John Herzfeld
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Connections, in both directions
A clumsy "Network"-style opening, featuring Kelsey Grammer as a sensationalistic telejournalist, is thankfully short-lived as the film shifts focus and morphs into a surprisingly gritty crime drama with Robert De Niro and Edward Burns as, respectively, a famous homicide detective and a low-profile fire marshal who join forces to solve a combination arson/homicide.
The script, by the helmer, takes a fresh approach to the subject of media hype that has been plumbed many times in the past, most notably in Sidney Lumet's "Network."
The film's concept has promise -- imagine Network reborn as an episode of NYPD Blue.
Seven years ago, Natural Born Killers struck a nerve with its attack on violence and the media, and while not as successful as Oliver Stone�s masterpiece, 15 Minutes effectively hits many of the same notes.
As disreputable as Oliver Stone's "Natural Born Killers" is as an artistic document, the infamous 1994 satire on the linkage between the cult of celebrity and the culture of violence in contemporary America can at least be admired for the director's able deployment of his patented bag of film-school tricks to give the picture the hysterically jazzed-up surface so characteristic of his work.
As if Oliver Stone hadn't already driven this material into the ground with Natural Born Killers.
Somewhere between a buddy-cop potboiler and a blunted, commercialized "Natural Born Killers" lies "15 Minutes," a slick, violent thriller with an acerbic statement to make about media sensationalism.
Unlike Natural Born Killers, which constantly shifted from film to 8mm to various others, 15 Minutes just alternates between film and a Sony digicam.
The bad news is, judging from the numerous devices stolen from "Natural Born Killers," it now appears he wants to be the next Oliver Stone.
“15 minutes” is probably that long but is an unmoderated look at the images and research that inspired the look and content of There Will Be Blood.
These days, Carter is best known as an Emmy-winning TV director ("Don King: Only in America") who scored a big-screen breakthough in 2001 with "Save the Last Dance," another teen-themed drama with a strong follow-your-heart message.
Before director Thomas Carter moved behind the camera (for a career that includes the worthy Save the Last Dance and Don King: Only in America), he acted in the '70s tube classic The White Shadow.
When Fegan's evil henchmen, including two played by Teri Hatcher (1996's "2 Days in the Valley") and Robert Patrick ("The Faculty"), come looking for the Cortez offsprings, it is up to Juni and Carmen to go on the run, all the while setting off to rescue their parents.
Other examples are Paul Thomas Anderson's "Magnolia" and John Herzfeld's "2 Days in the Valley" or even Robert Altman's "Short Cuts."
Charlize Theron first came to attention back in 1996 with her small role in 2 Days in the Valley, where she fought Teri Hatcher and completely stole away that third-rate Tarantino rip-off.
When they crest a hill, a startling sight meets their eyes - amidst ancient ruins, Grigori Rasputin (Karel Roden, "15 Minutes") is opening a portal to unleash the seven gods of chaos to begin Armageddon.