Reviewed by Dennis Schwartz

Brian De Palma’s (”Snake Eyes”/”Body Double”) chic thriller rips
off Hitchcock’s Psycho but reworks it to even greater effect by featuring
shocking slasher shower scenes in the beginning and ending. Its pseudo
psychological dramatics never allow it to do more than cruise around as
an arty exploitation film filled with sex and gore, but very little heady
stuff. It always looks good, as if dressed to kill, and De Palma excels
at laying on us lots of nice detailed personal touches (the pickup scene
at the art museum, for one) and creating suspense by stringing together
a number of eye-popping thrill moments that are handsomely lurid (but sadly
equating a grizzly murder to casual sex). Dressed To Kill never gets past
looking dressed up like an expensive hooker, and always leads us down a
dead end street. Ultimately it can only titillate us sensually by attacking
our jugulars, and even though sometimes brilliant it degenerates into a
nasty take on a sadistic psychopath who outside of being a plot device
is never developed as a real character.

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Frustrated housewife Kate Miller (Angie Dickinson) is in a loveless
marriage and can’t get it on sexually with her cold hubby, so she sees
New York psychiatrist Dr. Elliott (Michael Caine) for help. Turned down
by him after making a pass, the horny woman who is still haunted by a rape
some years ago, hangs around the Museum of Modern Art. There she’s picked
up by a mysterious stranger, Warren Lockman (Ken Baker), who without introducing
himself takes her in the cab and gives her head and then screws her all
afternoon in his apartment, much to her satisfaction. Before she leaves,
she discovers he has a veneral disease. But that turns out to be the least
of the hard-luck Kate’s problems. While leaving Warren’s apartment she’s
savagely attacked and cut to pieces in the elevator by a masculine looking
woman in a blonde wig, trenchcoat and wearing dark sunglasses, who is wielding
a barber’s razor (it’s not hard to guess who, but the film shies away from
mystery and intends only to build its story on a series of shocking scenes).
This brutality is witnessed by a prostitute Liz (Nancy Allen), who got
a look at the murderer before he fled. Under the insensitive questioning
of crude homicide detective Marino (Dennis Franz), Liz’s story is ridiculed
and she’s labeled as a suspect. When she later tells Marino the killer
was following her and she was almost attacked by four black thugs on the
subway as she tried to avoid the killer, Marino holds out the possibility
that it could be one of Elliott’s patients and goads her into breaking
into the shrink’s office to get a list of his patients. Marino says he’s
waiting for a judge to give him a search warrant and though he’s not telling
her to do it, she could get the list faster than he can and thereby clear
her name. The only overt help Liz gets is from Kate’s Mr. Wizard teenage
son Peter (Keith Gordon), who loved his mom and wants to catch the killer.
The hooker and the nerdy tech kid team up to catch the killer, with some
help from a woman undercover cop who was tailing Liz.

The film deals with a messy subject matter: a transsexual as the
slasher murderer, whom we learn kills when aroused because he was denied
a sex change operation. The graphically violent scenes made the film controversial.
But De Palma only seems to be toying with the same reactionary attitudes
that most Hollywood horror films have toward sex, that having pleasure
outside of marriage is tabu and such sexual liberation acts whether fantasized
or carried out for real signal trouble ahead because it stirs up evil forces.
No wonder feminists reacted strongly against it, though in De Palma’s defense
he was more or less aiming to make this a humorous sex gore film–though
it was hard to get laughs when viewing all the blood flowing.

The story’s bywords may be “Keep In motion Forward,” but the on occasion-jumping narrative does some ungovernable turn-the-loops in “Meet the Robinsons,” a sharp-minded, wealth entertaining toon that will keep children of all ages widespread-eyed and on their toes. Latest computer-generated enlivened item face from Disney is leagues on of the earliest, the remunerative but thick-headed “Chicken Little,” in wit and expertise-istry, and shows the unmistakable influence of newly arrived Pixar wizard John Lasseter and friends. Snazzy entry should do pushy if not smash biz through the spring, singularly in the 600-plus theaters equipped to jut out it in the superb Disney Digital 3-D process.

The three-dimensional technique requires glasses, large, lightweight specs with dark lenses rather than the colored ones so dismally employed for the likes of “The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3-D.” Seen previously in limited engagements of Disney’s “Chicken Little” and “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” the state-of-the-art technology combines dramatic, in-your-face perspectives with a more than acceptable comfort level.

Happily, as has not often been the case in the past, 3-D has here been put to use in the service of what is, on its own merits, a good film. More than has any previous Disney effort, “Robinsons” resembles Pixar’s smash “The Incredibles,” both in the way the visuals combine futuristic and retro elements, and in the smart talk and can-do energy of the characters.

Left as a tot on the doorstep of a big city orphanage, straw-haired Lewis is a passionate science geek who, at 12, despairs of ever being adopted and gaining a family of his own. His fellow wastrel and only pal is sad-sack “Goob,” a baseball fanatic forever depressed over a muffed catch that lost his team a big game.

Lewis is convinced he’s made his big scientific breakthrough with a cleverly designed brain-scanner. But his presentation of the device at his school science fair is dashed by the interference of a mysterious crab-legged bowler hat doing the bidding of a dastardly villain, a curiously 19th-century figure with a cape, thin moustache, spindly legs and sinister laugh.

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Just when Lewis and the audience might become concerned about what lies ahead, the boy is literally whisked off his feet by Wilbur, a cocky teen with a time machine. While Lewis would prefer to go back in time to look for the mother who abandoned him, Wilbur insists upon zooming ahead to the future, where his large family, the endlessly eccen-tric and imaginative Robinsons, await.

Pic comes into its own at this point, about a third of the way through — first with the lovely design elements, then with the narrative time-jumping that makes all sorts of wild inventions possible in the adaptation of William Joyce’s illustrated book engineered by seven screenwriters, among them first-time director Stephen Anderson (whose most prominent previous credits were as story supervisor on Disney’s “The Emperor’s New Groove” and “Brother Bear”).

Wilbur’s genius dad is the brain behind Robinson Industries, where the brightest new inventions are hatched for futuristic environs of the sort portrayed at world’s fairs anytime from the ’30s through the ’50s. People glide around in transparent bubbles amidst elegant examples of the Streamline Moderne architectural style, exemplified by clean lines and graceful curves.

But due to an unfortunate time ma-chine wreck, a theft and the unwanted visit of the archfiend with the thin moustache and malevolent hats, this brainiacs’ paradise is turned upside down; worse for Lewis, he’s denied longed-for adoption just when he’s found the family of his dreams. Wickedly clever manipulations of time travel make for some wacky character identity flip-flops, as well as the retrieval of a ferocious T-Rex brought forward to wreak havoc on the impeccably manicured landscapes of the future.

Especially in 3-D, pic has an im-mensely sharp, vivid look (sans glasses, the projected image is fuzzy in spots, focused in others), and the filmmakers have taken to heart the “Keep Moving Forward” attitude, attributed in an onscreen postscript to Walt Disney himself, in the way they keep the momentum revved up. Unlike some frantic animated efforts, “Robinsons” is never exhausting, but neither is there anything resembling a dull moment.

Voicings are spirited — helmer Anderson himself performs the chief villain, among other roles — and Danny Elfman’s score, aided by other musical elements, further augments the energy level.

The "Saw" franchise continues to conjure up new and grisly ways of sensational audiences. The series´ primary killer, Jigsaw (Tobin Bell), has died. This occurred at the end of the third film and I apologize if I acquire ruined anybody´s recreation of the third motion picture. But, you in effect shouldn´t be reading a parade with a view the fourth "Saw" film if you have yet to enquire the third movie. Anyhow, I fully expected the "Saw" franchise to end after Jigsaw´s power of terror ended, but the series´ producers have found a budding and unique angle to carry on with with the fortunes and participate in uniform set the point to the fifth film, which is in production at the time of this review´s essay. The very first mistiness was a well take on the horror genre and introduced the heap audiences to ´torture porn.´ The gunfighter traps of Jigsaw that provided the means in favour of victims to face death or salvation through mutilation became the kingpin of the series and although plot has evolve into second fiddle to the torture machines of the series, the producers are still tough to tell a story.

I´m not thriving to spoil any of the mystery of the fourth videotape with a plot synopsis. It is a given that Jigsaw is dead and that his starter also perished during the previous installment. Though, "Saw IV" does have an interesting point of view to know for sure its new libel of torture and although I was chief puzzled at the ending of this latest installment, it made complete reason after I let it go under in for a short while. I order tell you that this chapter does connection in sort of nicely with the events of the too soon vapour and while I believe that the story arc of this series is suitable a little preposterous and is on shaky ground of becoming a complete make sport of of itself, the events of "Saw IV" works nicely in the grand scheme of all things Jigsaw. Unfortunately, if you start to peel away the various layers of the gag and recollect too greatly into things, the silver screen is less enjoyable. The features of the traps are called into question during the story, but are even more in dispute to the audience. It is the telltale origins of each individual trap that the overall tale of "Saw IV" begins to fray. The story works, but solitary if you don´t reflect on too much into it.

In support of participate in of this fourth coating is shown including what appear to be flashbacks. This allows Donnie Wahlberg and Tobin Bell both payment to reprise their respective roles ad Detective Eric Matthews and Jigsaw. Of course, I´m thriving to circumstances I said the scenes act to be flashbacks to avoid spoiling any rag. "Saw" is almost becoming as convoluted as "LOST" when it comes to plot twists. Lyriq Partiality is SWAT Mr Big Lieutenant Rigg. He has a significant rele in the film. As does Costas Mandylor as Detective D. Hoffman. Justin Louis portrays Jigsaw´s lawyer friend, Art Blank. Scott Patterson is Agent Peter Strahm. Passive and Strahm think into Jigsaw´s grand scheme. Betsy Russell is the too-attractive-to-be-believable ex-helpmeet of Jigsaw, Jill Tuck. I´ll many times matter to decision to present Jigsaw a prurient ball. It seems horribly out of place. A number of other actors appear in the film and some of them were in antecedent to installments and previous traps mark in offering by Jigsaw. The actors all do fine jobs in this film, but nothing is every going to throw Finery Actor awards in the administration of a "Saw" film.

This is a film that absolutely cannot stand on its own. If you haven´t seen all three of the early previously to films, then there is no think rationally you should sit down under the aegis this harmonious without watching the others first. It can be confusing to those of us that have watched each of the previous films again. The film is also intended to speak to its built in audience from the prototype three pictures. The "Saw" franchise is at a place where it really cannot expand its fan base and "Saw IV" doesn´t establish any try to draw anybody unripe in. It simply tries to continue doing what it does most suitable and that is to provide some excruciating death sequences and sobbing victims who keep woken in the worst situation imaginable. The "Saw" films are a money making machine and while they are everywhere a beyond from predictable, they are films that rely heavily on their own one-time to receive and provide plot twists. Without knowing about events in the first three films, there is next to no way you can ponder the events of this fourth glaze.

I didn´t have any objection to sitting through "Catch-phrase IV," but I won´t power I overly enjoyed it. The fundamental in truth is that the series is starting to ripen into tiring and there comes a point when a life story needs to end. "Saw" is now past that point. The third film felt a short ridiculous and unlit of consider when compared to the solid first entry and decent sequel. This third sequel is exactly what it is – another participant in a money making series. The "Saw" films perform well in the box office and "Saw" has be proper a solid name in the horror sort. The fifth film was greenlit as momentarily as "Saw IV" opened strongly. The traps are becoming too big and too grandiose. The subsistence lessons taught by Jigsaw have been lost. The story is no longer there and the series´ writers are struggling to remain clever. The manner in how "Saw IV" tied itself to "Commonplace III" was clever. I liked that. The foundation is laid for the duration of the next overlay. Maybe they have brown study ahead towards the next few installments of the "Saw" franchise, but sooner or later we may see Jigsaw take Manhattan.

Video:

"Saw IV" comes fully equipped with a 1080p 1.85:1 picture that was mastered with the AVC MPEG-4 codec. All-inclusive, I was fully pleased with the visual presentation of this fourth "Saw" film, but I do deceive a not many minor quips with the transmission. Cite chapter is strong and there are no complaints when it comes to witnessing the gore and mutilation of the film in striking detail. There is plenty of blood to spill in any self-respecting participant in the "Saw" series and this pic spills more blood than the rest of them. Coloring is good, but still suffers from the desaturated and purposely dull look that has been a stylistic cream in the course of all of the "Saw" films. "Slogan IV" is perhaps the brightest and most colorful of the four films and colors do look indubitably striking at times. Black levels and cadre during the darker sequences are troublesome and provide some of my complaints with the transfer. During the unchangeable climactic sequence, a handful faces were difficult to make it with pretend out because of a lack of tabulate. This isn´t a come to pass of black crush, it is at most that the scene is dark and the transfer does not hold up aptly. The film and the transfer are not criminal, but there were objective some problems when the film was its darkest that keeps "Saw IV" from being a top notch looking Blu-streak release.