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The Ref (1994)

The RefThis is no great shakes, but it was better than I thought it would be. I found the salty dialog amusing for the most part. In general I like the kvetching Kevin Spacey module, featured here, better than the subdued Kevin Spacey, featured in Pay It Forward or The Shipping News. I think Judy Davis, who must have the record for the Australian in the most Woody Allen movies (four by my count), is awesome, and I’m probably likely to think more favorably of movies she is in. I sort of even liked Naked Lunch.

This is primarily a vehicle for Denis Leary to be Denis Leary, and a little definitely goes a long way with him. 93 minutes of him is about 84 minutes too much. What’s with the Mrs. Robinson pose on the DVD box?

And what’s with the weird upbeat ending? These people hate each other, and should continue to into infinity. Supposedly this originally ended much more appropriately, with Leary getting caught and going to prison, but test audiences hated it. Morality is a harsh mistress.

It seems like I’ve seen a lot of movies lately about crime bringing people together. Maybe all movies involving crime do that to some extent. Any outliers?

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Jessica said,

February 10, 2006 @ 9:58 pm

I don’t know how to respond to this. The Ref is an awful movie — bad script, bad pacing, stupid premise, unbelievable and unlikeable characters. We must have been watching two different movies with the same title!

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monoglot said,

February 10, 2006 @ 10:03 pm

No great shakes, I tell you!

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Jessica said,

February 10, 2006 @ 10:16 pm

Some crime movies depend on the double-cross or the wood-chipper to tear people apart:

Grifters, Reservoir Dogs, Little Caesar, Shallow Grave, Asphalt Jungle, Fargo

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Emily said,

February 11, 2006 @ 1:37 am

How many movies do you get from Netflix each month? They may be ripping you off. Did you see that?

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monoglot said,

February 11, 2006 @ 6:40 pm

We don’t actually get enough movies from Netflix each month to matter. I would say we get 10 in a good month. The primary reason is the video store around the corner from us, where we also have an unlimited membership. Netflix is great for longterm movie viewing plans and overarching schemes (for example, seeing everything possible from 1974, which, yeah, we’re doing), but you can’t beat the Hollywood a block away for newish releases on a whim.

And then there’s digital cable with a couple hundred free on-demand movie-viewing options…

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Emily said,

February 13, 2006 @ 11:36 am

So you’re saying a disproportionately high percentage of your income is spent on movie watching. That is where we differ, my brother. I did not get the movie-watching and tolerating genes that you did.

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