The Mod Squad Review
by Akiva Gottlieb (akiva AT excite DOT com)April 1st, 1999
The Mod Squad *
rated R
starring Claire Danes, Omar Epps, Giovanni Ribisi, Dennis Farina, Josh Brolin, Steve Harris, Michael Lerner, Richard Jenkins written by Stephen T. Kay, Scott Silver, and Kate Lanier directed by Scott Silver
About five minutes into Scott Silver's awful THE MOD SQUAD, I had already made up my mind to leave the theater. But just as I was getting out of my chair, a feeling hit me. Maybe by the end of this review, I'll know what that feeling was.
Now I know that in most of my reviews I reserve the second paragraph to describe the plot, but I looked hard at THE MOD SQUAD and couldn't find one. Those of you who watched the 60's TV series on which this film is based know that the "mod squad" is a group of three young criminals (Claire Danes, Omar Epps, Giovanni Ribisi) who are sent out to become undercover cops. In this two hour long episode (hmm, maybe the show wasn't this bad) they are sent out by their boss (Dennis Farina) to execute some kind of drug bust. The funny thing is that there is not one engaging plot twist to be found at all. For some reason though, when I decided not to walk out, I became oddly drawn towards the screen. In no way was I engrossed in the experience, but there was something subtle in the film that begged me to like it even the slightest bit. I mean, the film at least lookd great, thanks to some great cinematography by Ellen Kuras and three very fresh-looking young faces. Each one of these actors has shown incredible potential in their prior film outings. Get Danes, Epps, and Ribisi together in a film with a decent script and I'll be first in line to see it. And somebody please give Giovanni Ribisi a good role! How come the brat pack from SUBURBIA (Steve Zahn, Giovanni Ribisi, Parker Posey, Ajay Naidu) is all of a sudden selling out. SUBURBIA's one of my favorite movies for G-d's sake! As you can tell by now, I have gone off topic in this very personal review of THE MOD SQUAD, but I have finally figured out what made me sit through it. I ended up feeling sorry not for any character in the film, but for the entire production itself.
review by Akiva Gottlieb, The Teenage Movie Critic
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http://www.angelfire.com/mo/film
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