Chiara Ronconi

(2012-04-27 05:26:12)

Marvelous,undying and indestructible like Hellgate Bridge!

I think it's a wonderful movie and it's been unjustlyunderestimated:it's oneiric,sentimental,poetic and the dramatic plot isdealt with a sense of humour.There are various issues like malebonding,homosexuality,friendship and I think every role is proper forthe actor who plays it:my favourite actor JOHN MALKOVICH(GREAT)is ahomosexual with some existential problems and he falls in love withMarty(Michael Zelniker)and they get engaged at the end of thefilm;Dennis(Kevin Bacon)has in vain tried to get successful inHollywood as a musician,Al(Joe Mantegna)grows up thanks of Jamie LeeCurtis,Vinny(Tony Spiridakis)dreams to become an actor and Ray(KenOlin)a painter.Even if the dreams of some of these guys don't comethrough,their strong and profound tie is the reason to continue to hopein the future.I also think the title is the only very funny thing ofthe movie(in Italian language it's "Dreaming Manhattan")but the filmsucceeds to alternate melancholy and thoughtless scenes:Mantegna climbsup the bridge which links Astoria to Manhattan,Ken Olin listens to hismessage "I love you guys" while he's thinking about his life,KevinBacon and Michael Zelniker play "ordinary people song" while Zelnikerand Malkovich look at each other,Malkovich jilts Terry Kinney,who hadfallen in love with him,because he doesn't like the way he talks abouthis friends(when Kinney asked him if those guys were his type,hereplied "that I don't know but they are the best I could do"),TonySpiridakis howls with a healer without a reason,Tom Waits reads his oddpoem at Jack's,Jamie Lee Curtis takes Mantegna's gun and learns him tothrow all away,Chloe Webb tells Madame Rose,a palmist, she's surroundedby idiots,the five boys shout out Arnold's name while they're having abath under Hellgate during the night because he was the only guy,apartfrom Mantegna,who climbed up that bridge and they don't see LindaFiorentino stealing their clothes out of spite,because her husbandMantegna spent all his time with his friends(he also kisses JohnMalkovich at the disco)...well,these guys are amazing!They are eithercrazy or gay,either sad or happy,sometimes they make you cry,sometimesthey make you amuse.Personally I was a depressed sixteen year old girlwhen I saw this movie for the first time on a night during last summerand it made me dream:this movie is everything for me,it lets me to takerefuge in another world and it makes me isolate from my reality,whom Ihate as much as I can, but fortunately I'm not here,I'm under HellgateBridge to dream with other Queens.I thank Tony Spiridakis,who wrote thestory,and all the actors very much for this wonderful movie!!!

Fred

(2012-04-26 14:46:28)

Now THIS Is New York

Released in 1991, this movie captures a quality New York possessed in thelate eighties. The characters seem genuinely capable of making thewisecracks the script has them make. They're middle-class urbanites who arecapable of desperate violence. Yet, they are not particularly violent. Theyare haunted by the hardscrabble lives of their parents. The story involves agroup of people in their early-to-mid-thirties. They've known each othersince childhood. The plot is this: Will the scheduled marriage between twomembers of this group actually take place?While he is not the lead actor here, John Malkovich plays a character whoembodies the dilemma each one of the characters faces. Each one wishes hewere somewhere else and yet each one would give his right arm for anybodyelse in this circle of friends. Unlike his friends, he is gay, but what hehas in common with them is the sense that the upper-class will have nothingto do with him. He is dating an upwardly-mobile man and his confrontationwith him is still refreshing thirteen years after this movie wasfilmed.Many movies and TV series have dealt with this milieu, but very few havepulled it off. It is not entirely believable--there's an over-the-topstory-line with Jamie Lee Curtis as a smooth-talker who enchants the edgyJoe Mantegna--but it's assertive. QUEENS LOGIC is well worth viewing.

(2012-04-23 02:34:59)

Queen's logic DVD

This review is from: Queens Logic (DVD) I am not a fan of Joe Mantegna, I bought the movie mostly because I like Linda Fiorentino and John Malkovich a lot...... Fiorentino disappointed me here, and Mantegna who has a thankless role is a total disappointment too.I think Anthony LaPaglia would have better served the role played by Mantegna.

(2012-04-22 07:05:16)

Where was I when........?

This review is from: Queens Logic (DVD) Queens Logic is another of those movies where you ask yourself.... How did I miss this movie before? Queens Logic? Never heard of it!The movie is special for its little moments and its great characters. The bartender we all wish we knew (Marinaro), the sleazeball with a heart of gold (Tom Waits), Joey Clams, Joe Mantegna paying his employees "in cash or check?", shotgun handy. The performances are great, particularly Mantegna, and the film succeeds in transporting you to a section of New York only otherwise known as the home of the Mets.The film succeeds in showing how these friends truly care for one another and has almost as many precious moments as another cult classic (although less steeped in mythology) "The Wanderers". These are the moments you want to look back on. These are the friends who will always love you. This is a movie which feels good to watch.

(2012-04-21 14:17:29)

Underappreciated gem.

This review is from: Queens Logic [VHS] (VHS Tape) If you know a group of 30 (and even 40) somethings who just can't seem to let go of their adolescence, this film will resonate with you. The buddy relationships depicted amongst the pack of guys are right on target, and the awkwardness between the guys' reliance on the pack and their building adult romantic relationship (heterosexual or gay)beyond the pack is well detailed. Linda Fiorentino and Chloe Webb are a credible and recognizeable pair of friends who suport each other, sometimes in anger, somtimes in bemusement, while the somewhat arrested guys in their lives stumble into growing up. Others may disagree, but I am willing to bet that many single urbanites will shout "bingo" when they overhear some of the film's conversations between guy and girl, guy and guy, and girl and girl. Add some quirky, fun NYC caricatures, an evening of last hurrah stunts, and first rate performances from everyone (particularly Mantegna, Jamie Lee Curtis, Fiorentino, and Malkevich)and you have a solid, enjoyable ensemble piece.

regenerating

(2012-04-20 19:37:39)

dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb....

this movie is absolutely terrible. the script is horribly written, theplotis so weak it caves in on itself, and even the acting doesn't save it.you'd think with a handful of good actors that it would at least beenjoyable. well, it's not. i found myself watching it in fast forwardtowards the end, because the it just would not end. all of thecharacters,except maybe malkovich, were unlikable and annoying. you know somethingiswrong when you get done watching a movie, and you find yourself saying,"ohthat malkovich guy did a really good job."this movie tries desperately to be "the big chill", so if you're inthemood for that sort of thing, then rent the big chill, even if you'vealreadyseen it a thousand times. 2/10

jeremy3

(2012-04-15 19:17:16)

Great cast, poor script

It is a shame that I could not give this movie a much higher rating.The acting was great. Kevin Bacon played Dennis, a struggling actor inL.A. who returned home for his friend Ray's (Ken Olin)wedding. Bacondoes a terrific job playing someone who is superficially cheerful,hiding his insecurities and loneliness. The other actors and actresseswere also very good. Joe Mantegna plays Al, an extroverted person, whoisn't afraid to be himself. John Malkhovich also does his usual goodjob, playing Eliot, a man trapped in the machoistic World of Queens,yet struggling with his homosexuality. Perhaps the best scene is whenEliot tells a "pesky" homosexual to "bug off", because he just doesn'tlike him. This movie could have been a lot more, but it tried to do toomuch, didn't explain to the viewer what was going on, and becamepredictable by the ending. First of all, we never understand whyexactly Al's wife, played by Linda Fiorentino, leaves him so suddenlyand violently. All we know is that she is mad at him. We similarlyunderstand that Ray is having second thoughts about getting married. Weunderstand that Eliot is kind of an angry character. We never reallyfind out why. Eliot befriends a homosexual pianist. We never reallyfind out much about the pianist, except that he is rather mildmannered. There are also things that just don't help the plot much.Jamie Lee Curtis plays a character who is never really developed well,and in the end we have no idea why she behaved the way she did (and howthis changed Al's life). Another scene that doesn't work is theswimming pool scene. Al's wife steals Al and all four or five of hisbuddies clothing, yet somehow he has spare clothing for all of them inhis car. This movie could have been a good movie. Instead, it wasconfusing and not very well written.

(2012-04-15 10:00:58)

Cringe-Inducing

This movie is lame, lame, lame. I saw it when it came out because my friends and I were living in Astoria at the time and were aware of its having been filmed (in part) there. It was the end of the glorious time in Astoria before it'd been "discovered", and we were saving tons of money in rent! Anyway, we'd sort of hoped the movie would be ok, but after the reviews (or pre-hype, don't remember exactly now) we knew it would be just awful. And it was. It was Tony's personal love song to his old neighborhood, but with every cliche and stereotype there is. Joe Mantegna was about 20 years too old for the part. Really, don't bother, unless you're a fan of one of the actors. I mean a BIG fan.

body_elec

(2012-04-14 16:20:30)

adults

Actually this came as a reaction to carmenjonze-1. I really wonder howsomeone can be disappointed by this film. Granted, it's in the BigChill vain, but it features a fabulous cast in top-notch form, realattitudes, compact characters, and quite a few memorable scenes, evenif it doesn't do justice to JL Curtis. Yes, it's more verbal thanvisual, but that's not necessarily a bad point, considering it leads tocomments like "wounded animal convention" or Eliot's rationale for notgoing' out. All in all, I find it quite entertaining; a gem of a storyabout everyday people in everyday situations. And yes, again,it's notBergman. But if you're sick of films that blackmail your interest in aonce-in-a-million character in a once-in-a-trillion-situation, then youcould definitely give this one a try.

rogierr

(2012-04-14 00:57:00)

terribly overlooked movie about a bunch of friends

Sentimental, nostalgic and supposedly authentic portray of some people andtheir relations with great music (Joe Jackson et al.) around a wedding underHellgate Bridge in Queens. Anger, frustration and ideals reach the surfaceas we get to know these figures. One of them gives the advice: 'Wanna behappy for the rest of your life? Fall in love with your wife.' Probablythe best advice a young man whose dreams don't come together canget.Tom Waits was two years later in Altman's 'Short Cuts' that also deals withseveral relationships and has no plot. Short Cuts however is more solid andintelligent. This movie is not exceptional in any way, but I've seen itthree times already because I think it's a nice movie with good acting abouta day in the lives of some young people and that makes me feelgood.The chosen music tells about half of the story. That's a very good choiceof director Rash, especially since there is no real plot. SO, if you're aperson who needs a plot, then don't watch this movie. In that case try'Chinatown' instead, or 'the Maltese Falcon'. Or kick in another open door:)I don't understand why so few people like this film. But then again I alsoliked Jade (Friedkin, 1995) and Last Seduction (Dahl, 1994): plotfilms withsuspense. Maybe it's just because I like common denominator LindaFiorentino very much. There is no challenging intellectual material inQueens Logic.8/10

(2012-04-13 02:25:00)

One of my favorite romantic comedies

This review is from: Queens Logic (DVD) I'm not from New York, but there's just something about this movie. The small parts alone almost make it worth a watch... Megan Mullaly (now on "Will & Grace") as a drunken bar conquest, Richard Kind (of "Mad About You" and currently on "Spin City") as a partygoer, Todd Field (Nick Nightingale in "Eyes Wide Shut" and the most unexplained/useless character in "The Haunting") as Cecil.I loved Mantegna's ability to get by on attitude ("I can work with that" - "box seats, the Mets, tonight"), Jamie Lee Curtis' cameo, Linda Fiorentino's ability to make "backed up anger" sound like "back tabanga", John Malkovich with a shotgun... and Tom Waits' character of Monte is one of the most loveable onscreen scuzzballs you'll find. It's not a movie you love for the continuity of plot or the great acting throughout. No one in the movie really has to stretch that far. It's a movie you love for its moments (like the howling scene)... and a kickin' soundtrack.

(2012-04-12 11:14:41)

An excellent movie,that has been mostly overlooked and underrated.

Queens loqic is a real sleeper of a movie.This movie covers an area of queens,and its love of the ny mets.The movie has an all star cast,and i believe you will enjoy this movie.The movie is presented in full screen on a budget lable.I highly recommend this movie.It is sure to please!!!Thank you Stewart L.

(2012-04-08 21:57:30)

high potential to achieve college cult status

Sure, "Queens Logic" might at first come across asnothing more than "The Big Chill" Italian-American-style,with a marriage instead of a funeral drawing folks back together. But if ever a movie begs a second (and third) watching it's this one. Not only is it sharply directed by Steve Rash but the acting is quite nearly pristine throughout, an astounding accomplishment considering the number of prime characters, bit-parts and cameo appearances which permeate the storyline from beginning to end. But it's the screenwriting angle that elevates this movie to the category of significant cinematography. The street-level dialogue is classically accurate -- and perfectly delivered.While it shines as an uncensored piece of Big Apple Americana, it also has that feel of college cult favorite, as much for its quirkiness as the now high-profile faces which appear throughout, like an always-way-cool Tom Waits, a left-field-guruish Jamie Lee Curtis, a can't-score-for-nothin' Kevin Bacon and a trascendentally-gay John Malkovich. Worth buying instead of simply renting.

Bill-276

(2012-04-08 05:12:28)

Holy screenplay!

Queens Logic is an excellently written film about a bunch of late thirtysomethings who are still trying to figure out how to get their acttogether. I worry that this film is only going to be accepted locally (i.e.New York, Long Island target audience) when it really has a multitude ofuniversal levels to it. The acting was brilliant--absolutely brilliant,fromKevin Bacon to Linda Fiorentino, Joe Mantegna and John Malkevich. Theactorsreally understood these complex characters (Malkevich is SO good onceagainit's scary). And the writing and direction could not have been better forthese roles. Congratulations for writing a script with so many thoughtful,intelligent and original characters which reflect so well on the time andall of our struggles to figure out what it is that makes us happy--and todoit so humorously as well. This is one of those rare very smart and veryfunny films.Like I said though, people who are not necessarily from the New York areamay not buy or believe these characters, but I guarantee you there are somany people like them. Guarantee it. They're great people with sameproblemsas everyone else. They just choose to deal with them on their own termsandin the best format they know how: with Queens logic.

kdrobin

(2012-04-06 17:36:14)

Even if you're a lifelong lonely country boy, you should love this movie.

I have seen a ton of reviews of this movie over the years and I amalways shocked and disappointed as to how "low" the movie is rated.This is simply one of the best movies ever made. It's that simple. Lookat the cast: John Malkevich, Joseph Montegna, Chloe Webb, LindaFiorentino, Kevin Bacon, Jamie Lee Curtis, Ken Olin, and on and on(including Tom Waits - hysterical as Monte). It is sweet and funny andengaging and the sound track is super. I have the DVD and I have lentit out to friends dozens of times and the before and after is alwaysthe same: before "never heard of it" - after "loved it" --- and itdoesn't matter the age or gender or politics of the viewer. Sure ithelps if they are from some urban area as opposed to a rural area. Andit helps if childhood friendships still mean something to them. Buteven if you're a lifelong lonely country boy, you should love thismovie.

pk-2

(2012-04-06 13:21:13)

Unknown movie that's on my top 25 list..

The only non famous movie on my top 25 list is Queens logic. I dont knowwhyI relate to this movie. Its got a little of everything I like in a movie-comedy, male bonding or whatever you call it, good music, romance,fighting,pain, and a host of other things. Not to mention the incredible cast.

(2012-04-06 13:27:37)

Where was I when........?

Queens Logic is another of those movies where you ask yourself.... How did I miss this movie before? Queens Logic? Never heard of it!The movie is special for its little moments and its great characters. The bartender we all wish we knew (Marinaro), the sleazeball with a heart of gold (Tom Waits), Joey Clams, Joe Mantegna paying his employees "in cash or check?", shotgun handy. The performances are great, particularly Mantegna, and the film succeeds in transporting you to a section of New York only otherwise known as the home of the Mets.The film succeeds in showing how these friends truly care for one another and has almost as many precious moments as another cult classic (although less steeped in mythology) "The Wanderers". These are the moments you want to look back on. These are the friends who will always love you. This is a movie which feels good to watch.

Toni Bonner

(2012-04-05 23:13:17)

Like "ThirtySomething" only far, far better!

I love this film and I can't understand why it hasn't been morepopular. Try and get hold of a copy if you can. The cast is amazing - Joe Mantegna, John Malkovic, Linda Fiorentino,Jamie Lee Curtis ( in her best ever role), and Kevin Bacon all givingrestrained but emotional performances. The soundtrack is wonderful too. An eclectic mix of songs that workperfectly. It took me a long time to track down the song from theclosing credits but it was worth it.It's one of those films that you can watch if you're feeling a bit downand it will lift your mood. Especially recommended if you've had apointless argument with a loved one!

(2012-04-05 17:12:10)

Great movie, but too underestimated!!

When I saw this movie for the first time I was a Malkovich's fan and I had already seen all his films, from the "Glass Menagerie" to "Of mice and men", from "Places in the heart" to "Mary Reilly" and "Being John Malkovich", but this one was quite unknown and it was always given bad reviews. I have never understood why: first of all the cast is excellent(apart from Malkovich,whose lonely character is unforgettable, I think Kevin Bacon and Joe Mantegna give two of their best performances and Linda Fiorentino doesn't play another dark lady, showing how versatile she can be, even if Chloe Webb, Ken Olin, J.Lee Curtis are outstanding, too, as usual). Moreover the script by Spiridakis is very original and it avoids every possible stereotype: it includes a group of friends from Queens(NYC)who reunite themselves for Ray(Ken Olin)'s wedding to Patty(Chloe Webb), but Ray is very doubtful and he dreams to become a painter in Italy; however his pals have their own problems, too: his loud and impulsive cousin Al(Joe Mantegna) is in trouble with his proud and neglected wife Carla(L.Fiorentino); his roommate Eliot(Malkovich) is an apathetical homosexual, who dislikes gay lifestyles, and his old buddy Dennis(Kevin Bacon), who was in love with Patty, pretends to have got successful in Hollywood, but then reveals to be just a failure. Of course the plot is based on self-revelations, the actors are more important than the director, but the film is very fluent and unusual; it doesn't look like "The Big Chill" or "Diner" that much: both of them are good movies, but I prefer "Queens logic" because it's more anticonventional and non-conformist, since it involves odd characters like Jeremy(Terry Kinney, a co-founder of the Steppenwolf Company with Gary Sinise and Malkovich), a snob homosexual who pursues Eliot; or such as Monte, played by Tom Waits, a funny alcoholic idler, or Inez(Jodie Markell), an eccentric healer, or madame Rosa, a fortune-teller whom Patty and Carla tell their problems, or Grace(Jamie Lee Curtis), a psychotic who teaches Joe Mantegna to "throw it all away", namely to leave adolescence and grow up. If you add the magic atmosphere of the nights in New York, a wonderful photography of the city, a nostalgic and dynamic soundtrack(David Bowie, Van Morrison, Souther, Johnny Nash, Marvin Gaye), the scene which includes the young Joe Mantegna climbing up the bridge which links Queens to Manhattan and the other characters who gaze at him, you can easily understand how marvelous this movie is! It is my favourite movie and I got very disappointed when I discovered that it hadn't had any kind of success. In my country(Italy)it's also out of print, so I bought a dvd from USA, well-worthy to be bought; note that the Italian title is quite poetical and maybe more helpful, it's "Sognando Manhattan"("Dreaming Manhattan"). Anyway buy this movie! If you like the actors it's a must!!

bear90

(2012-04-05 00:58:50)

I Oughtta Know

I grew up in queens in the mid seventies and it's not much different.Look, the film works. It works on so many levels, I can't begin tocatalog them all. But for me, it works because, at the end of the dayand looking back over thirty years, I knew a few of those guys. Everonehas a dream, and the dream has a way of changing as you grow up. But isis rarely the same one you started with.You want to be happy? find a girl you can climb to the top of abuilding with and howl. Howl your heart and soul out and don't ask why.Or find a woman who "is Queens" and don't let her go. And, after all issaid and done, it's not always about climbing a bridge. Acting in amovie or painting a masterpiece. What it's about dear readers, is whatthis movie is about. Friendship that lasts.