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Stars Fell on Henrietta C+, B+
US/1995/COLOR/WIDESCREEN 2.35:1/STEREO SURROUND/110
MINUTES/DIRECTED BY JAMES KEACH/STARRING ROBERT DUVALL, AIDAN QUINN/WARNER/35
CHAPS/CLV/$34.98
Chief amongst the virtues and problems of this pleasing small movie are Robert Duvall.
I found Duvall quite charming in the role of an old time oil wildcat still looking for his
own first taste of black gold. Yet it is easy to see that Duvall's eccentric delivery of
charm could become annoying for some viewers. 
The Stars Fell on Henrietta is set in drought bound Texas farm country surrounded by
towers of pumping oil derricks holding out the dream of financial salvation. Mr.
Cox(Duvall)finds himself adrift in a storm with a nasty bump on the head only to be
rescued by Don Day(Aidan Quinn), the owner of a nearby failing farm. At the farm, Mr. Cox,
the dreamer, the intuitive failed oil man, senses there is oil under the ground of this
dying farm and infects Quinn with this fantasy of survival. Cora Day(Frances Fisher)nixes
the idea of expending the last of the family assets on oil exploration and Duvall sets off
assuring Don Day that he will find the money to finance the drilling. Act two is comprised
of Mr. Cox's attempts to promote the oil seed money and the final act, predictably results
in a gusher.
Complimenting Duvall's performance are two excellent performances by Quinn and Fisher
grounded in a sense of reality and desperation. The three actors bring more to this tale
than the script can provide. Perhaps the full potential of this depression fantasy has not
been fully pulled from its origins, yet, ultimately, the inherent sweetness of The Stars
Fell on Henrietta is enough to carry the day. It is directed with obvious delight by James
Keach and it is warmly photographed by Bruce Surtees.
The laser disc captures the delicate lighting and warm, nostalgic, tones of the film.
It's a very sharp transfer that is thoroughly pleasant to look at. The night scenes with
Duvall cavorting under the stars to emphasize the fantasy of this film are transferred
with deep blacks providing the perfect background for twinkling stars. Dialogue is very
clear and the music is well served by the laser. |
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Laser Disc
Ratings
|
12
Monkeys Special/A-,B+ |
12
Monkeys/ B+,B |
1941
SE/ C-, B- |
a
la Mode/B+,B+ |
A
Pure Formality/C,B |
After the Fox/C+,B |
Alaska/B,B+ |
Albino
Aligator/C+,B |
Alfie/B,B |
Amateur/B+,C+ |
American
President/ B+, B+ |
Apache/C+,C+ |
Apocalypse Now/A-,A- |
Apollo
13 SpecialA,A |
Apollo 13//A,A |
Appaloosa/C+,C+ |
Assassins/C,A |
Bad
and the Beautiful, The/A,B+ |
Basquiat/C+,B |
Bend of the River/ B, B+ |
Belle Epoque/B+,A- |
Bhagdad
Cafe/B,B |
Big
Country/ B, C |
Big Deal on Madonna Street/B,B |
Big
Picture, The/B,B |
Big
Trees, The/C+,C+ |
Bingo
Long and His Traveling All-Stars/B+,A |
Blood and Wine/B,B |
| Blue Kite/B+,B |
Bogus/C,C+ |
Bordello of Blood/C-,A- |
Borderline/C+,B |
Bound/B+,B+ |
Brazil
Special Edition/B+,A- |
Bride
Came COD/B-,B |
Bringing
Up Baby/A,B |
Brute Force/B+,B+ |
Bulletproof/C,B+ |
| Butch
Cassidy and the Sundance Kid/B,A- |
Call
Nothside 777/B+,C+ |
Camille
Claudel/ A, B+ |
Canterville
Ghost/C+,C+ |
| Caro Diario/A-,A- |
| Captain from Castile/B,B+ |
Casino/
C+, B |
Casper/C+,A |
Cause
for Alarm/C,B- |
Celestial
Clockwork/B+,B- |
| China Moon/B+,A |
Christmas in July/A,B+ |
Christopher
Columbus(1949)/C,C |
| Come and Get It/B,B+ |
Commandments/C+,B+ |
Courage Under Fire/B,A |
Crash/C+,B+ |
| Crimson Tide/A-,A |
Crossing
Guard, The/B,B+ |
Cutthroat
Island/C, A |
Dante's
Peak/B-/B |
Daylight/B,A- |
Dead
Man Walking/C+,B+ |
Dead Man/C+,A- |
Dead
Presidents Special/ B+,A |
Dersu Uzala/B+,B |
Diabolique(1995)/C+,C |
Diary
of Ann Frank/ A-,B |
Dodes'ka-den/ B+, B+ |
Double
Happiness/ B+,B+ |
Dragon/B+,A |
| Dune/C+,B+ |
Earrings
of Madame de.../ B+, B+ |
Enemy
Below/ B, B |
| Englishman Who Went..../C,B |
English Patient/B+,A |
Ermo/B-,B- |
Escape from LA/B-,A |
Everybody's
Fine/C+,C+ |
Executive
Decision/B+,A |
Eye
for an Eye/B,B+ |
F.I.S.T./B,B |
| Face-Off/B+,A |
| Family Thing/B,B+ |
| Farewell My Concubine/A-,A |
Far
Country/ B-, C+ |
Field
of Dreams Special/A-,B+ |
Field
of Dreams/ A-, B |
Fierce Creatures/B-,B+ |
| Fires on the Plain/B+,B |
Firestarter/C+,C+ |
First
Knight/ C-, B+ |
First
Wives Club/C+,B+ |
| For Whom the Bell Tolls/B-,B+ |
| French Kiss/B-,B+ |
| Fugitive,The(1947)/B-,B |
Frankie
Starlight/B+,B |
Freaks/B+,B |
Free
Willy 2/B-,B+ |
Funny Bones/A,A |
Get Shorty/ A, A |
Goldeneye/
B, A |
| Ghost Story/B,B |
Great
Escape(MGM)/A-,B- |
Great
Expectations/A,B+ |
Greystoke:
The Legend of Tarzan/B+,C |
| Grosse Point Blank/A-,A- |
Grumpier
Old Men/B-,B+ |
Gun
in Betty Lou's Handbag, The/B,C- |
Happy
Gilmore/ B-, A- |
| Hard Boiled/B-,B+ |
Hard Eight/B,C+ |
Harriet
the Spy/B,A |
Haunting,
The/A,B+ |
Head
Above Water/D+,B |
Heat/A-,B |
| Heaven
and Earth/B+,A- |
Helen
of Troy/C+,B+ |
| Henry V/A,B |
Hill,The/A-,B |
Hoop Dreams/A,A |
| Horseman on the Roof/B-,B |
Innocent,
The/ C, C |
Innocents,
The/ A, A- |
Interrupted
Melody/C+,C |
| Into the West/A,B+ |
Inventing
the Abbots/B-,B+ |
| Jack/C+,A- |
Jean
de Florette/ A-, B- |
Jumanji/
B+, B+ |
Kansas
City/D+,C+ |
Kentuckian/B-/B |
Kingpin/B,B+ |
Kolya/A-,A- |
Kwaidan/A,A- |
La
Dolce Vita/ A, B |
Last
Dance/B,B+ |
Last
Man Standing/C,B |
Last
Supper, The/B-,B+ |
League of Gentlemen/B,B |
Leave
Her to Heaven/B+,B+ |
Les
Miserables/ B, B+ |
Liar,Liar
Special/B+,A |
Lili/A-,C |
List
of Adrien Messinger/B,B+ |
| Lonely are the Brave/A-,A- |
| Lord of Illusions/B,A- |
Love
Jones/B,A- |
| Malice/B+,B+ |
| Mask,The/A-,A |
| Mi Familia/A-,A- |
| Michael/C+,A |
Miracle
of Morgan's Creek/B,B- |
Mirage/B,B- |
Mission
Impossible/C+,B+ |
Mona Lisa/B+,B+ |
Morgan/B,C+ |
Mulholland Falls/C+,B |
Muriel's
Wedding/ B, B+ |
My
Name is Nobody/C,C |
Mystery of Rampo/ A-, B |
| Natural Born Killers/B,B+ |
Nell/B,A- |
Net,
The/ C, B+ |
Nixon/B+,A |
Nothing
Sacred/B,C |
Old
Man and the Sea/B,B |
Othello/A-,B+ |
| Peeping Tom/A-,A- |
| Raw
Deal/B+,B |
| Red Firecracker,Green Firecracker/B+,A |
| Repulsion/A,A |
Restoration/B+,A |
Richard III/A,A |
Ridicule/A-,B- |
River Wild/B+,A- |
| Romy and Michele's High School Reunion/B,B |
Room
at the Top/A-,B |
Rosewood/B,B+ |
Scopio/B,C |
Seven
SE/ B+, A |
| Shawshank Redemption/A-,A |
| She/B,B- |
Shining
Through/C+,B |
| Silence of the Lambs/A,A |
| Sling
Blade/A,B+ |
Slingshot/A,A- |
Something
to Talk About/ B-, B+ |
| Spartacus Special Edition/A,A |
Species/C,B+ |
Star
Trek: First Contact/C+,A- |
Stars Fell on Henrietta/ C+,B+ |
Stealing
Beauty/B,B |
Strange
Days/ C+, B+ |
Striptease/D,A- |
Sudden
Death/ B, A- |
Sullivan's
Travels/B+,B |
Surviving
Picasso/C,B+ |
| T-Man/B,B |
That
Old Feeling/B-,A- |
That
Thing You Do/B,C+ |
They
Drive By Night/B,B |
| Thieves(Les
Voleurs)/B,B |
Things
You Do in Denver When You're Dead/D+,B+ |
This
Sporting Life/A-,B+ |
Timemaster/
D, C |
Tom
and Viv/B-,B- |
Tortilla
Flat/B+,B |
Trainspotting/B-,B+ |
Trees
Lounge/B-,B- |
| Trigger Effect/B-,B+ |
Two
Bits/C,B |
Unforgettable/C,C+ |
| Umbrellas of Cherbourg/B+,B |
Unzipped/B-,B- |
Usual
Suspects/ B-,C+ |
| Valdez is Coming/C+,B- |
Vengeance
Valley/B,C+ |
Vertigo/A-,A- |
Virtuosity/
C+, A |
Wait
Until Dark/B,B- |
Walk in the Clouds, A/ A-, |
Walkabout/B/B- |
Waterworld/ B+, B |
White
Man's Burden/ B, B+ |
White
Squall/ B,A |
| Whole Wide World/B,B |
Wicked
City/ B, C+ |
Wild
Bill/ C+, B |
Window
to Paris/ B,B |
| Witness/B+,A- |
| Wonderful,Horrible World Life..../B+,B |
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