Video Picks Archive

October 3, 2001
This Week's Video Picks
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Reviews by Matt Heffernan <matt@filmhead.com>

This week my picks are Amores perros (2000 - ) and As Good As It Gets (1997 - ).

The first film this week tells three stories that revolve around two dogs in Mexico City. The humans who care for these dogs are also going through tremendous changes in their relationships with human loved ones. Alejandro González Iñárritu's trilogy is brilliant, and nearly flawless except for the somewhat superfluous second story about a model who gets into a car wreck and then loses her dog. That story is much less sympathetic than those of the poor folks in the rest of the film, whose parts are more visually compelling, as well. In fact, few other films are as visually compelling as Amores perros, and certainly none from Mexico, where great films are extremely scarce. I certainly hope this film marks a turning point for Mexican film, which is finally showing a great deal of promise.
Full review from June 1, 2001

After the highly emotional first film, the second should provide much-needed comic relief while still adhering to the same theme. James L. Brooks' As Good As It Gets has three people and a dog at its center: obsessive-compulsive writer Jack Nicholson, harried waitress Helen Hunt, and gay artist Greg Kinnear, who owns the dog. Brooks' screenplay is incredibly funny, and the film perfectly cast. Yet the themes of love and change still resonate amid the humor, without being overly sentimental. Both Nicholson and Hunt won Academy Awards for their great performances, but Best Picture would be taken by the juggernaut known as Titanic. This small film didn't have a chance, but was my clear favorite of 1997.

Here's some merchandise for sale at

Amores Perros (2000) - subtitled in English	-- VHS
Amores Perros (2000) - dubbed in English	-- VHS
Amores Perros (2000) - in Spanish without subtitles	-- VHS
Amores Perros (2000)	-- DVD
Amores Perros: Soundtrack	-- Compact Disc
As Good as It Gets (1997)	-- VHS
As Good as It Gets (1997)	-- VHS Widescreen
As Good as It Gets (1997)	-- DVD
As Good As It Gets: Music From The Motion Picture	-- Compact Disc

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