moonspinner55

"Somewhere", written and directed by Sofia Coppola, doesn't go anywhere--and if that's her idea of amusing irony, her career is in a lot of trouble. Tale of a busy but burnt-out actor in today's apathetic Young Hollywood isn't new ground for Coppola, and casting slack-jawed Stephen Dorff as the movie star at the center of the non-action was another mistake. We understand that the Sunset Strip youth of today are aimlessly hedonistic, indifferent and spoiled, but Coppola views them dispassionately in a rock-and-roll din. An early sequence with Dorff's head covered in plaster for a life mask seems to symbolize the alienation inherent in an actor's life, but those who really believe that celebrity living occurs in an isolated bubble is playing right into the filmmaker's hands. Coppola obviously respects the cliché she's peddling here--and she isn't the first to do so--but I wouldn't call her intentions good, nor would I accuse her of being naïve. She's so 'in touch' with this milieu that she's out of synch with her art--and her audience. * from ****

British-US space shuttle comes upon spacecraft hidden in the coma of Halley's Comet. The investigating astronauts bring back an alien being that resembles a large bat, also three naked humanoids, two men (their nether-regions discreetly covered) and a woman (who is on full display). Adaptation of Colin Wilson's novel "The Space Vampires" is full of life-sucking sequences (complete with mouth-to-mouth kinetic electricity), ghoulish shapeshifting, sexual hypnotism and telepathy, autopsies, the works (even that old standby: an erotic nightmare which climaxes with colonel Steve Railsback awakening with a scream à la James Stewart in "Vertigo"). Director Tobe Hooper (who reportedly was handed a blank check by Cannon Films' producers Golan & Globus after his success with "Poltergeist") knows how to mount a serious science-fiction tale without that '80s-trendy tongue-in-cheek overlay; still, the vampires are the only interesting aspect of the picture--the military and medical personnel being stiff and boring. A box-office dud at the time, "Lifeforce" has now acquired a loyal following. *1/2 from ****

194mn television event via Los Angeles prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi's non-fiction bestseller covering Charles Manson's capture and trial after the Tate/LaBianca murders of 1969. Steve Railsback riveting in the lead (almost too chilling, as this role quickly became an albatross around the actor's neck). No portrayals of the victims--and none were necessary; the film is purely a court case/docudrama and is all the better for it. Three Emmy nominations: Tom Gries for his direction, Billy Goldenberg for his music, and for film editing. Gries also received a DGA nomination for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Specials. *** from ****