Lisa

Reviews

Wuchak
**_Prosaic flick about a mother & daughter’s clash with a serial killer_** A 14 years-old girl (Staci Keanan) inadvertently strikes up a secret relationship with a distinguished restauranteur in Hollywood (DW Moffett). Unfortunately, he might also be the notorious Candlelight Killer, which would put her and her mother in danger (Cheryl Ladd). "Lisa" (1990) is a coming-of-age drama meshed with PG-13 slasher. Writer/director Gary Sherman knows how to make atmospheric horror in view of his well-done "Dead & Buried" (1981). I happened to see Brian De Palma’s “Dressed to Kill” (1980) the night prior and it was thoroughly artistic and well-written with genuine surprises. This film, by comparison, strikes me as by-the-numbers, which no doubt had to do with the modest budget. Nevertheless, “Lisa” is a perfectly serviceable film in which the mother & daughter are successfully fleshed out and you find yourself caring for them and their outcome. Staci was only 14 during shooting while Cheryl was 38. If you’re a fan of either, this is certainly worth checking out, even though it’s not exactly high art. The movie runs 1 hour, 35 minutes, and was shot in Hollywood (the apartment, flower shop and school) and Muse restaurant on Beverly Boulevard in Los Angeles. GRADE: B-
Movie Recommendation
- The Bad Batch2017-06-23After being exiled to a fenced-off wasteland, Arlen is kidnapped by a group of cannibals and goes on a journey to reunite a missing girl with her father.More...
- Who Am I?1998-01-17A group of covert CIA operatives trailing a potential new energy source are double-crossed by corrupt agent Morgan, who causes a helicopter crash in remote South Africa. The sole survivor, suffering severe amnesia, is nursed to recovery by a kindly native tribe who call him "Whoami" after the question he keeps asking. With the help of a mysterious reporter Christine, Whoami pieces together his past and tracks the turncoat agent and his criminal cohorts.More...
- Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone1983-05-20On a distant planet inhabited by mutants, two bounty hunters race to rescue three Earth female captives from the clutches of an evil warlord.More...
- Don't Be Afraid of the Dark1973-10-10A young couple inherits an old mansion inhabited by small demon-like creatures who are determined to make the wife one of their own.More...
- Demented1980-06-01A woman is gang-raped in a horse's stable, and even though the rapists are caught and imprisoned, she is harassed many moons later by ghastly visions of her tormentors, while her husband philanders and every little thing frightens her out of her wits.More...
- Trouble Bound1993-01-09Upon getting out of prison, a man who took the rap for some thief buddies gets together with them again, and tells them he's not interested in doing things with them any more. They stick a dead body in his trunk, unbeknownst to him, and he roars off to find his future. Unfortunately, they forgot to get the key they need off the body, so they're chasing him. Meanwhile, a mafia kingpin's daughter is trying to kill the hitman that killed her father, but her grandmother is trying to make peace with the family that hired the hitman, so she and her thugs are trying to stop the daughter. The guy and the daughter get together and experience mayhem on the run from two directions.More...
- Peppermint2018-09-06A grieving mother transforms herself into a vigilante following the murders of her husband and daughter, eluding the authorities to deliver her own personal brand of justice.More...
- Bohemian Rhapsody2018-10-24Singer Freddie Mercury, guitarist Brian May, drummer Roger Taylor and bass guitarist John Deacon take the music world by storm when they form the rock 'n' roll band Queen in 1970. Hit songs become instant classics. When Mercury's increasingly wild lifestyle starts to spiral out of control, Queen soon faces its greatest challenge yet – finding a way to keep the band together amid the success and excess.More...
- Marriage Story2019-09-28A stage director and an actress struggle through a grueling, coast-to-coast divorce that pushes them to their personal extremes.More...
- Thunderbolts*2025-04-30After finding themselves ensnared in a death trap, seven disillusioned castoffs must embark on a dangerous mission that will force them to confront the darkest corners of their pasts.More...
- Hillbilly Elegy2020-11-09An urgent phone call pulls a Yale Law student back to his Ohio hometown, where he reflects on three generations of family history and his own future.More...
- Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales2017-05-23Thrust into an all-new adventure, a down-on-his-luck Capt. Jack Sparrow feels the winds of ill-fortune blowing even more strongly when deadly ghost sailors led by his old nemesis, the evil Capt. Salazar, escape from the Devil's Triangle. Jack's only hope of survival lies in seeking out the legendary Trident of Poseidon, but to find it, he must forge an uneasy alliance with a brilliant and beautiful astronomer and a headstrong young man in the British navy.More...
- F/X1986-02-07A movies special effects man is hired by a government agency to help stage the assassination of a well known gangster. When the agency double cross him, he uses his special effects to trap the gangster and the corrupt agents.More...
- Savages1995-12-15A group of Italian tourists on a Caribbean holiday finds itself stranded on a deserted island after a plane crash.More...
- Parasite2019-05-30All unemployed, Ki-taek's family takes peculiar interest in the wealthy and glamorous Parks for their livelihood until they get entangled in an unexpected incident.More...
- First Man2018-10-10A look at the life of the astronaut, Neil Armstrong, and the legendary space mission that led him to become the first man to walk on the Moon on July 20, 1969.More...
- Triangle of Sadness2022-09-18A celebrity model couple are invited on a luxury cruise for the uber-rich, helmed by an unhinged, alcoholic captain. What first appears Instagrammable ends catastrophically, leaving the survivors stranded on a desert island in a struggle of hierarchy.More...
- Let the Sunshine In2017-09-27Isabelle, Parisian artist, divorced mother, is looking for love, true love, at last.More...
- Wild Tales2014-08-21Injustice and the demands of the world can cause stress for many people. Some of them, however, explode. This includes a waitress serving a grouchy loan shark, an altercation between two motorists, an ill-fated wedding reception, and a wealthy businessman who tries to buy his family out of trouble.More...
- The Accountant²2025-04-23When an old acquaintance is murdered, Wolff is compelled to solve the case. Realizing more extreme measures are necessary, Wolff recruits his estranged and highly lethal brother, Brax, to help. In partnership with Marybeth Medina, they uncover a deadly conspiracy, becoming targets of a ruthless network of killers who will stop at nothing to keep their secrets buried.More...