Rob Reiner

Meathead started out making these great, perhaps perfect, movies and then for me just kind of fizzled out. I still like him though, as a person and funnyman.

This Is Spinal Tap (1984) -- The first of the now-popular "mockumentaries" (and probably still the best), everything about this movie is completely hilarious... and true. If all involved aren't geniuses all the time, they at least were during the making of this movie.

Stand By Me (1986) -- This could be a really good movie if it weren't for the Richard Dreyfus narration. For example, there's a pretty good scene where River Phoenix has a good cry with his friend Wil Weaton, followed by Wil Weaton quietly seeing a small deer. But the scene is all but ruined with Richard Dreyfus saying, "I didn't tell anyone about the deer. I kept that to myself, and I haven't spoken of it or written about it until now." Oh really? Maybe you shouldn't have now either. There's lots of bad "writer" stuff in the movie (blame Stephen King probably). But the kids are cool, especially Corey Feldman. It's no Goonies, but it often has a similar vibe, and it's a really good movie for kids and young teens--if less so for adults.

The Princess Bride (1987) -- Rob Reiner somehow pulled off this perfect movie, so perfect that it has zillions of fans spouting lines from it each day of their life (including me, more or less, though I don't even realize what I'm referencing any more). I've seen it so many times I probably won't watch it for years. I think the movie is laced with crack, not sure.

Misery (1990) -- A pretty great little funny thriller, with that nutty Barry Sonnenfeld cinematography. Kathy Bates does a really good job in playing both sweet and insane, blending over-the-top and realistic together somehow. And James Caan's "grit" goes against her perfectly. I also appreciate the gruesomeness of the movie (especially near the end), that it doesn't soften it up too much. Rob Reiner's last good movie.

A Few Good Men (1992) -- You can't handle the... something, can't remember. This isn't a bad movie. It's worth watching one night when you're at your parents' house and you can't sleep and your dad has a horrible pan-and-scan copy of it in his videotape collection. T hat's how I saw and sort of enjoyed it anyway.

Ghosts of Mississippi (1996) -- James Woods seemed like he might have been good at Byron de la Beckwith, but I didn't even make it far enough to see him much, since I was completely bored with this movie. When are they going to film the positive Mississippi movie anyway?