the reel dope

Movie reviews for: Bye Bye Birdie, The Ugly American, and Dr. No.

entrapment

the year: 1999

the genre: suspense


the cast: Sean Connery (Robert "Mac" MacDougal); Catherine Zeta-Jones (Virginia Baker); Ving Rhames (Aaron Thibadeaux); Will Patton (Hector Cruz)


the plot: Following the theft of a highly-secured piece of artwork, an insurance agent convinces her employers to allow her to pretend to be an art theif in order to entrap an aging but active master thief. Mac takes her on suspiciously and demands rigorous training before their first job together--stealing a highly-valued mask. Their deepening attraction and distrust could tear apart their partnership but the promise of a bigger prize (some eight billion odd dollars) keeps the game interesting. Only, who's playing with whom?


did you know: the film came in $2 million below its budget. Co-producer Rhonda Tollefson credits this to Producer Sean Connery's thrifty Scottish ways. Connery drove his own car instead of hiring a driver and flew on commercial planes instead of using private ones so that all the money would show up onscreen.


listen for: "It's impossible. But doable."


extra bonus points: if you can name one piece of information found in Mac's file.


also listen for: "I don't like surprises." "Trust me, there won't be any." "Trust me, there always are surprises."

darby o'gill and the little people

the year: 1959

the genre: fantasy


the cast: Albert Sharpe (Darby O'Gill); Janet Munro (Katie O'Gill); Sean Connery (Michael McBride); Jimmy O'Dea (King Brian)


the plot: Darby O'Gill seems to be as full of blarney as any old codger in Ireland, but the stories of leprechauns he tells at the pub are true. In fact, he and the tiny King Brian, ruler of the little people, are friendly adversaries, continually out-foxing each other. Darby needs a bit of magical help from the wily king when Lord Fitzpatrick replaces him as caretaker with the handsome, strapping young Michael from Dublin. Michael falls in love with Darby's beautiful daughter, Katie, which is all right with Darby; but the lad has a rival in a local ruffian, the son of a devious widow who wants her boy to be the caretaker. King Brian's supernatural assistance is necessary to make everything come out all right, but the sneaky leprechaun won't play matchmaker without a fight. Real trouble comes in the form of the Banshee, and Darby will need all his quick wits to save his daughter from the wicked spirit.


don't miss: Sean Connery singing! "My Pretty Irish Girl" sung by Sean Connery and Janet Munro was released as a single about the same time as the debut of the movie. Sean Connery said the singing was the one aspect of the role he wasn't too fond of.


listen for: "Agh! And him a Dublin man!"


did you know: the lighting used to make sure the actors were kept in proper perspective without seeming false used up so much electricity it blew out a substation in Burbank when the lights were turned on without warning.


extra bonus points: if you know why this film was important to Sean Connery's film career.


did you also know: the leprechaun effects look very high tech and complicated, but most of them were achieved very simply by placing the "normal sized" actors closer to the camera than the "tiny" ones, and lining them up on the same horizontal plane through the lens so the distance between them could not be detected.


also listen for: "What ails him?" "Oh nothin' at all, but he retired about five years ago and didn't tell me about it."