There are two big tragedies in life, one is living in a world where everybody lies, and the other, even worse, is living in a world where everybody says the truth.
I guess this is the message of the movie.
In a world where everybody is honest, the one who is not becomes a hero and a quite successful guy.
This couldn’t of course happen in everyday contemporary world, but "For what is Truth?
In matters of religion, it is simply the opinion that has survived.
In matters of science, it is the ultimate sensation. In matters of
art, it is one's last mood."
It is a way of denying reality.
Aren’t dreams much better?
Monday, December 28, 2009
Friday, December 25, 2009
Dorian Gray
One thing must be said and that is today’s movies are so technically good that it is a pleasure to look at them, even if the movie is nothing new or nothing special.
This in my opinion is the case with this.
The picture is so perfect, and so crisp, it is almost like being there.
I nevertheless would never make a movie out of any of Oscar Wilde´s work.
Its work is great for the way it is written, for what he says, not certainly for the story.
The Picture of Dorian Gray was one of my favorite (being Oscar Wilde one of my favorite author).
Not certainly the Movie.
This in my opinion is the case with this.
The picture is so perfect, and so crisp, it is almost like being there.
I nevertheless would never make a movie out of any of Oscar Wilde´s work.
Its work is great for the way it is written, for what he says, not certainly for the story.
The Picture of Dorian Gray was one of my favorite (being Oscar Wilde one of my favorite author).
Not certainly the Movie.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
The end could really surprise you
Many leading movies have surprise endings. And audiences love that. The surprise ending can be tough to get right and sometimes overdone but it can be impossible to keep the secret once it’s out. Here are 10 movies that got it right - their surprises really were just that.
10. The Crying Game
The big surprise in this movie does not happen in the end but half way through. The movie has a stunning end which was talked of as a spoiler for a long time. The film was about an IRA member (Stephen Rea) whose relationship with a woman (Jaye Davidson) takes the most unexpected turn.
9. Brazil
A troubled technocrat, Sam Lowry works in a futuristic society that is inefficient. He dreams of the time when he can spend the days with the woman of his dreams away from overpowering bureaucracy and technology. In the film Lowry meets Jill Layton, the woman of his dreams. Meanwhile, he is charged by the bureaucracy for being involved in some terrorist bombings, and both his and Jill’s lives are endangered.
8. The Sting
When a mob boss kills a mutual friend, two con men try to take revenge by pulling off the big con on the mob boss. The story has several last minute alterations and unexpected twists. The young con man is Johnny Hooker who is taught by Luther. One day they pull one of their con jobs without knowing that the man they conned is the courier for a numbers runner. The boss, Doyle Lonigan, sees it as a personal attack and orders the people involved to be terminated. From here the film proceeds to have a surprising twist in the end.
7. Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
The story of Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia and the others is not over with the destruction of the Death Star - it moves forward in THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK. Imperial forces have made the Rebels to hide themselves in Hoth, the Ice World. However they cannot escape the wrath of Darth Vader for a long time as he devastates the Rebel base. Luke flees to Dagobah to begin Jedi Knight training with Yoda, while Han Solo, Chewbacca, Princess Leia and C-3PO run the blockade of Imperial Star Destroyers in the Millennium Falcon.
6. Identity
In this film, the first two-thirds of its showtime is spent laying the pieces of a horror movie puzzle which then moves into an ambitious and brilliant psychological murder mystery with maximum plot twists which can confuse even the best mystery movie enthusiast. Identity can also be called a mature and sleek murder mystery and not a cheap horror film.
5. Psycho
This is not a gory film exactly and contains just three big shocks. The rest of the film is devoted to setting suspense, setting scenes and playing with our minds. But those three shocks are enough to leave our heads spinning because of the thrill and excitement – Hitchcock sees to that nicely.
4. Beneath the planet of the Apes
This one is a continuation of the first film of its kind. Another space ship crashes in the forbidden area on the planet. The ship is manned by Brent (James Franciscus) and the captain Maddox (Tod Andrews) both of whom die in the crash. Nova (Linda Harrison), Taylor’s mate shows them the ape city. In the forbidden zone something dangerous is going on and the apes want to invade by being proactive. The intelligent humans mutated by radiation long ago turn to be the enemy.
3. Fight Club
This film based on the novel by Chuck Palahniuk is a contemporary play giving warnings regarding the decay of society. The unnamed protagonist is Edward Norton who starts attending meetings and support groups to keep himself occupied. Though he is not suffering from any problems, he finds solace in the groups. This is destroyed after his meeting with Marla (Helena Bonham Carter). He finds that his life is changed once again, by a chance meeting with Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt), whose no-nonsense style of communication appeals to our narrator. Pitt and Norton make a superb duo, and the film has some comic moments and a surprising end.
2. Usual Suspects
This film opens with a catastrophe in a shipyard and we can see the interrogation of a handicapped and a sad faced survivor Verbal Kint ( Spacey) and things that led to the killings. We will be tantalized with questions such as what really happened in the shipyard, whether Verbal is telling the truth to the investigating lawman or protecting someone and finally who is Keyser Soze throughout the film.
1. The Sixth Sense
Masterfully directed and amazingly well written and acted, “The Sixth Sense” will move, captivate, and scare you. The surprise end of the movie will leave your head spinning.This is one movie which will leave a lasting impression on your mind. Haley Joel Osment starts seeing dead people and his therapist, Bruce Willis, too many times. The true shocker comes with the twist at the end of M. Night Shyamalan’s best film.
more...
10. The Crying Game
The big surprise in this movie does not happen in the end but half way through. The movie has a stunning end which was talked of as a spoiler for a long time. The film was about an IRA member (Stephen Rea) whose relationship with a woman (Jaye Davidson) takes the most unexpected turn.
9. Brazil
A troubled technocrat, Sam Lowry works in a futuristic society that is inefficient. He dreams of the time when he can spend the days with the woman of his dreams away from overpowering bureaucracy and technology. In the film Lowry meets Jill Layton, the woman of his dreams. Meanwhile, he is charged by the bureaucracy for being involved in some terrorist bombings, and both his and Jill’s lives are endangered.
8. The Sting
When a mob boss kills a mutual friend, two con men try to take revenge by pulling off the big con on the mob boss. The story has several last minute alterations and unexpected twists. The young con man is Johnny Hooker who is taught by Luther. One day they pull one of their con jobs without knowing that the man they conned is the courier for a numbers runner. The boss, Doyle Lonigan, sees it as a personal attack and orders the people involved to be terminated. From here the film proceeds to have a surprising twist in the end.
7. Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
The story of Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia and the others is not over with the destruction of the Death Star - it moves forward in THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK. Imperial forces have made the Rebels to hide themselves in Hoth, the Ice World. However they cannot escape the wrath of Darth Vader for a long time as he devastates the Rebel base. Luke flees to Dagobah to begin Jedi Knight training with Yoda, while Han Solo, Chewbacca, Princess Leia and C-3PO run the blockade of Imperial Star Destroyers in the Millennium Falcon.
6. Identity
In this film, the first two-thirds of its showtime is spent laying the pieces of a horror movie puzzle which then moves into an ambitious and brilliant psychological murder mystery with maximum plot twists which can confuse even the best mystery movie enthusiast. Identity can also be called a mature and sleek murder mystery and not a cheap horror film.
5. Psycho
This is not a gory film exactly and contains just three big shocks. The rest of the film is devoted to setting suspense, setting scenes and playing with our minds. But those three shocks are enough to leave our heads spinning because of the thrill and excitement – Hitchcock sees to that nicely.
4. Beneath the planet of the Apes
This one is a continuation of the first film of its kind. Another space ship crashes in the forbidden area on the planet. The ship is manned by Brent (James Franciscus) and the captain Maddox (Tod Andrews) both of whom die in the crash. Nova (Linda Harrison), Taylor’s mate shows them the ape city. In the forbidden zone something dangerous is going on and the apes want to invade by being proactive. The intelligent humans mutated by radiation long ago turn to be the enemy.
3. Fight Club
This film based on the novel by Chuck Palahniuk is a contemporary play giving warnings regarding the decay of society. The unnamed protagonist is Edward Norton who starts attending meetings and support groups to keep himself occupied. Though he is not suffering from any problems, he finds solace in the groups. This is destroyed after his meeting with Marla (Helena Bonham Carter). He finds that his life is changed once again, by a chance meeting with Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt), whose no-nonsense style of communication appeals to our narrator. Pitt and Norton make a superb duo, and the film has some comic moments and a surprising end.
2. Usual Suspects
This film opens with a catastrophe in a shipyard and we can see the interrogation of a handicapped and a sad faced survivor Verbal Kint ( Spacey) and things that led to the killings. We will be tantalized with questions such as what really happened in the shipyard, whether Verbal is telling the truth to the investigating lawman or protecting someone and finally who is Keyser Soze throughout the film.
1. The Sixth Sense
Masterfully directed and amazingly well written and acted, “The Sixth Sense” will move, captivate, and scare you. The surprise end of the movie will leave your head spinning.This is one movie which will leave a lasting impression on your mind. Haley Joel Osment starts seeing dead people and his therapist, Bruce Willis, too many times. The true shocker comes with the twist at the end of M. Night Shyamalan’s best film.
more...
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Disney acquires Marvin
The news broke that beloved comic book (and tentpole movie franchise) company Marvel is being acquired by Disney, meaning Avengers mansion now sits on the same block as the House of Mouse. While the business side of the deal makes sense - Marvel has some great content just aching to be made into movies - as geeks, we can only tremble in fear when considering what could happen to some of our most beloved properties. And so here is our top (bottom?) 10 list of movies events we fear will happen as a result of Disney buying Marvel:
10: Beauty & The Hulk - in this updated version of the animated Disney classic, Selena Gomez plays Dr. Bryce Banner, a talented physicist who learns a life lesson about self-image when her gamma-ray experiment creates unintended results.
9: Mutant High School Musical - It’s a teen-angst musical, set at a high-school full of mutants!
8: Ultimate Jonas Brothers - The boy band’s Monkees-esque antics take on a harder-edge; they all grow beards.
7: Herbie the Love Sentinel - Poor Herbie will be relegated to the junk-yard if he doesn’t kill some mutants, but Emily Osment as a young Emma Frost wins him over to the side of good, and wins the Westchester 500 to boot!
6: The Wizards of Xavier Place - The three Russo kids find out they’re not really wizards, they’re mutants! Time to go to a new school…
5: Snow White and the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants - A lost Snow must take care of a band of cantankerous baddies. With Blob as Grumpy, and Toad as Dopey.
4: The Scarlet Witch - this will be a major movie event, with Miley “Hannah Montanna” Cyrus playing the troubled reality-controlling mutant, along with her annoying speedster-brother, Quicksilver, and special guest appearance by Billy Ray Cyrus as her father, Magneto.
3: Wolverine in Wonderland - Logan takes a tumble down the rabbit’s hole, and hilarity ensues. “I’ll show you ‘off with his head, bub!’”
2: Hayao Miyazaki’s Guardians of the Galaxy - actually, if this happened, we’d SO be there!
1: Muppet Avengers Assemble!
Geekdad
10: Beauty & The Hulk - in this updated version of the animated Disney classic, Selena Gomez plays Dr. Bryce Banner, a talented physicist who learns a life lesson about self-image when her gamma-ray experiment creates unintended results.
9: Mutant High School Musical - It’s a teen-angst musical, set at a high-school full of mutants!
8: Ultimate Jonas Brothers - The boy band’s Monkees-esque antics take on a harder-edge; they all grow beards.
7: Herbie the Love Sentinel - Poor Herbie will be relegated to the junk-yard if he doesn’t kill some mutants, but Emily Osment as a young Emma Frost wins him over to the side of good, and wins the Westchester 500 to boot!
6: The Wizards of Xavier Place - The three Russo kids find out they’re not really wizards, they’re mutants! Time to go to a new school…
5: Snow White and the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants - A lost Snow must take care of a band of cantankerous baddies. With Blob as Grumpy, and Toad as Dopey.
4: The Scarlet Witch - this will be a major movie event, with Miley “Hannah Montanna” Cyrus playing the troubled reality-controlling mutant, along with her annoying speedster-brother, Quicksilver, and special guest appearance by Billy Ray Cyrus as her father, Magneto.
3: Wolverine in Wonderland - Logan takes a tumble down the rabbit’s hole, and hilarity ensues. “I’ll show you ‘off with his head, bub!’”
2: Hayao Miyazaki’s Guardians of the Galaxy - actually, if this happened, we’d SO be there!
1: Muppet Avengers Assemble!
Geekdad
Monday, August 24, 2009
SCI-FI movies you cannot miss
If you are a fan of SCI-fi movies you cannot miss these.
While great sci-fi movies have made their presence and influenced movies of all genres to this day, a lot of science fiction films over the years have gone quite unnoticed, even by today’s standards, with the Internet making it possible to spread word about independent “thinking man’s sci-fi” like Moon, Primer and, to some extent, Sunshine. Here are ten movies that are virtually not present in any “top 10 sci-fi ________ list” (fill in the blank).
Note: we intentionally did not include sequels, remakes nor animated features. And by “forgotten” and “underrated”, we mean amongst the general audience. Not necessarily movie buffs like us and the ones who frequently roam the Internets.
10: Code 46 (2004, IMDB link)
Code 46, the British sci-fi film set in the not too distant future where the population is divided between the wealthy ones staying in the cities, and the not so fortunate ones who have been delegated and separated outside. An insurance fraud investigator, played by Tim Robbins, is visiting Shanghai, where his investigation leads him to meeting a woman and… you’ll have to see the rest for yourself. There’s not much action or drama in the film — it’s rather slow and the pacing and story carefully unfold during the movie. It’s by no means a perfect film, but definitely worth seeing, if only for it’s beautiful photography.
9: Enemy Mine (1985, IMDB link)
In the distant future, mankind is fiercely fighting an alien civilization, and when a pilot from each side of the battling worlds crash land on a planet, they’re forced to work together in order to survive. It’s the sci-fi version of the buddy movie, yet very intelligent and, at times, emotional, offering an excellent comment on society, where “working together usually benefits both parties”. It was Wolfgang Petersen’s first success in North America after “Das Boot”, but sadly, one of his most forgotten ones.
8: Equilibrium (2002, IMDB link)
Christian Bale’s first real action movie, as a law enforcer in a dystopian future where human emotions and art are strictly forbidden in order to eradicate violence and war. So they are told. People are controlled with a daily intake of “equilibrium”. Bale’s character forgets to take the “medication”, and subsequently begins to “feel”, giving him a new perspective on the situation. While the movie wasn’t a commercial nor artistic hit, it offered an original view of a dystopian world, interesting action set pieces, and the introduction of the “gun kata”, a martial arts style which includes gun-fighting.
7: Pitch Black (2000, IMDB link)
Vin Diesel’s broke through as an action star in Pitch Black, playing the anti-hero Riddick amongst a group of survivals who crash landed on a planet where constant sunlight is scorching everything. Originally a prisoner, Riddick now turns out the be their only hope of survival. The movie was a big success at the box office, and critics applauded its originality and visual style. It has since been regarded as a cult classic, and while a sequel, The Chronicles of Riddick, came out in 2004, it was a far cry from the original in almost every aspect but the size of the budget.
6: eXistenZ (1999, IMDB Link)
David Cronenberg’s eXistenZ, while not the greatest title of a movie ever, was a unique take on virtual reality, unfortunately, the movie was overshadowed by another movie which dealt with the same concept; The Matrix. In Cronenberg’s eXistenZ, a game designer who is working on a virtual reality game has to immerse herself into the game in order to stop corruption of the game (or as some would call, “extreme bug hunting”). It’s a must see for fans of The Matrix and Dark City, which brings us to number 5 on our list…
5: Dark City (1998, IMDB Link)
Dark City is one of the most original sci-fi stories of the 1990’s, and to some extent, influenced The Matrix, which was released a year later. Despite receiving great reviews — Roger Ebert called it the best movie of 1998 — it wasn’t a hit at the box office and has since been forgotten by anyone but hard core sci-fi fans. Alex Proyas wrote the film in the early 90’s, but it only managed to get stuck in “production hell”, as they say, and moved from studio to studio until New Line finally put in production. The recent release of the Director’s Cut version, which includes 15 minutes of extra footage, is a must have in any DVD or Blu-ray collection.
4: The City of Lost Children (1995, IMDB Link)
Jean Pierre Jaunet’s and Marc Caro’s bizarre and surreal tale of a scientist who kidnaps children and steals their dreams in order to benefit himself is one of the most visually and artistically striking films of the last few decades. Being a native French movie with no English, it was still a hard sell for North American audience, and it received a limited, yet critically acclaimed release in 1996. Almost every aspect of the film feels original, from the plot, to the characters, to the visual style (which includes a lot or steam punk and retro futurism) — even the camera angles and shot compositions feel like something you’ve never seen before.
3: Gattaca (1997, IMDB link)
Andrew Niccol’s Gattaca was a true “thinking man’s” science fiction movie, dealing with a society where genetics determine one’s class and thereby the possibilities in life. One of the unfortunate ones, Vincent Freeman (played by Ethan Hawke), who has only been given a life expectancy of 30 years, changes place with one of the lucky ones (played by Jude Law), in order to fulfill his wish to travel into outer space. Gattaca is one of the few sci-fi dramas that have ever been made, and offers a provocative, and at times, striking view of the future where genetics play a far bigger role than today.
2: Brazil (1985, IMDB link)
What happens if you mix Monty Python and 1984? You get Brazil, Terry Gilliam’s genius and satirical take on a dystopian society where bureaucracy, endless paperwork and bad jobs in an industrialized megacity are the norm. It’s take on 1984 is obvious, and while in production, the working title was 1984 1/2. Even with a modest budget of less than $10 million, the movie has astonishing production values, however, it remains largely forgotten. In addition to 12 Monkeys, Brazil is one of Gilliam’s most successful — at least artistically speaking — movies, and has since become a cult classic.
1: Stalker (1979, IMDB link)
Russian director Andrei Tarkovsky — one of Russia’s finest — will most likely be remembered by one film in his career; Stalker, and it’s unfortunate that so many are unaware of it today. The movie was originally shot by Tarkovksy over a period of a year, only to be destroyed because it was shot on an experimental film that the Soviet film labs were unfamiliar with. This didn’t discourage him from shooing it again, this time with a new cinematographer, Aleksandr Knyazhinsky, and together they created one of the most visually stunning films of the time. Granted, the movie is not for everyone, it’s consists of lots of long shots, and its poetic style is the exact opposite of today’s action blockbusters like Transformers. But as far as science fiction goes, it’s an absolute masterpiece and it’s no wonder the film is one of the most studied at film schools around the world.
Links and pictures
While great sci-fi movies have made their presence and influenced movies of all genres to this day, a lot of science fiction films over the years have gone quite unnoticed, even by today’s standards, with the Internet making it possible to spread word about independent “thinking man’s sci-fi” like Moon, Primer and, to some extent, Sunshine. Here are ten movies that are virtually not present in any “top 10 sci-fi ________ list” (fill in the blank).
Note: we intentionally did not include sequels, remakes nor animated features. And by “forgotten” and “underrated”, we mean amongst the general audience. Not necessarily movie buffs like us and the ones who frequently roam the Internets.
10: Code 46 (2004, IMDB link)
Code 46, the British sci-fi film set in the not too distant future where the population is divided between the wealthy ones staying in the cities, and the not so fortunate ones who have been delegated and separated outside. An insurance fraud investigator, played by Tim Robbins, is visiting Shanghai, where his investigation leads him to meeting a woman and… you’ll have to see the rest for yourself. There’s not much action or drama in the film — it’s rather slow and the pacing and story carefully unfold during the movie. It’s by no means a perfect film, but definitely worth seeing, if only for it’s beautiful photography.
9: Enemy Mine (1985, IMDB link)
In the distant future, mankind is fiercely fighting an alien civilization, and when a pilot from each side of the battling worlds crash land on a planet, they’re forced to work together in order to survive. It’s the sci-fi version of the buddy movie, yet very intelligent and, at times, emotional, offering an excellent comment on society, where “working together usually benefits both parties”. It was Wolfgang Petersen’s first success in North America after “Das Boot”, but sadly, one of his most forgotten ones.
8: Equilibrium (2002, IMDB link)
Christian Bale’s first real action movie, as a law enforcer in a dystopian future where human emotions and art are strictly forbidden in order to eradicate violence and war. So they are told. People are controlled with a daily intake of “equilibrium”. Bale’s character forgets to take the “medication”, and subsequently begins to “feel”, giving him a new perspective on the situation. While the movie wasn’t a commercial nor artistic hit, it offered an original view of a dystopian world, interesting action set pieces, and the introduction of the “gun kata”, a martial arts style which includes gun-fighting.
7: Pitch Black (2000, IMDB link)
Vin Diesel’s broke through as an action star in Pitch Black, playing the anti-hero Riddick amongst a group of survivals who crash landed on a planet where constant sunlight is scorching everything. Originally a prisoner, Riddick now turns out the be their only hope of survival. The movie was a big success at the box office, and critics applauded its originality and visual style. It has since been regarded as a cult classic, and while a sequel, The Chronicles of Riddick, came out in 2004, it was a far cry from the original in almost every aspect but the size of the budget.
6: eXistenZ (1999, IMDB Link)
David Cronenberg’s eXistenZ, while not the greatest title of a movie ever, was a unique take on virtual reality, unfortunately, the movie was overshadowed by another movie which dealt with the same concept; The Matrix. In Cronenberg’s eXistenZ, a game designer who is working on a virtual reality game has to immerse herself into the game in order to stop corruption of the game (or as some would call, “extreme bug hunting”). It’s a must see for fans of The Matrix and Dark City, which brings us to number 5 on our list…
5: Dark City (1998, IMDB Link)
Dark City is one of the most original sci-fi stories of the 1990’s, and to some extent, influenced The Matrix, which was released a year later. Despite receiving great reviews — Roger Ebert called it the best movie of 1998 — it wasn’t a hit at the box office and has since been forgotten by anyone but hard core sci-fi fans. Alex Proyas wrote the film in the early 90’s, but it only managed to get stuck in “production hell”, as they say, and moved from studio to studio until New Line finally put in production. The recent release of the Director’s Cut version, which includes 15 minutes of extra footage, is a must have in any DVD or Blu-ray collection.
4: The City of Lost Children (1995, IMDB Link)
Jean Pierre Jaunet’s and Marc Caro’s bizarre and surreal tale of a scientist who kidnaps children and steals their dreams in order to benefit himself is one of the most visually and artistically striking films of the last few decades. Being a native French movie with no English, it was still a hard sell for North American audience, and it received a limited, yet critically acclaimed release in 1996. Almost every aspect of the film feels original, from the plot, to the characters, to the visual style (which includes a lot or steam punk and retro futurism) — even the camera angles and shot compositions feel like something you’ve never seen before.
3: Gattaca (1997, IMDB link)
Andrew Niccol’s Gattaca was a true “thinking man’s” science fiction movie, dealing with a society where genetics determine one’s class and thereby the possibilities in life. One of the unfortunate ones, Vincent Freeman (played by Ethan Hawke), who has only been given a life expectancy of 30 years, changes place with one of the lucky ones (played by Jude Law), in order to fulfill his wish to travel into outer space. Gattaca is one of the few sci-fi dramas that have ever been made, and offers a provocative, and at times, striking view of the future where genetics play a far bigger role than today.
2: Brazil (1985, IMDB link)
What happens if you mix Monty Python and 1984? You get Brazil, Terry Gilliam’s genius and satirical take on a dystopian society where bureaucracy, endless paperwork and bad jobs in an industrialized megacity are the norm. It’s take on 1984 is obvious, and while in production, the working title was 1984 1/2. Even with a modest budget of less than $10 million, the movie has astonishing production values, however, it remains largely forgotten. In addition to 12 Monkeys, Brazil is one of Gilliam’s most successful — at least artistically speaking — movies, and has since become a cult classic.
1: Stalker (1979, IMDB link)
Russian director Andrei Tarkovsky — one of Russia’s finest — will most likely be remembered by one film in his career; Stalker, and it’s unfortunate that so many are unaware of it today. The movie was originally shot by Tarkovksy over a period of a year, only to be destroyed because it was shot on an experimental film that the Soviet film labs were unfamiliar with. This didn’t discourage him from shooing it again, this time with a new cinematographer, Aleksandr Knyazhinsky, and together they created one of the most visually stunning films of the time. Granted, the movie is not for everyone, it’s consists of lots of long shots, and its poetic style is the exact opposite of today’s action blockbusters like Transformers. But as far as science fiction goes, it’s an absolute masterpiece and it’s no wonder the film is one of the most studied at film schools around the world.
Links and pictures
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
The life of the others
I cannot say it is one of the best movies I recently saw, but I can say it is one of the movies I liked best (recently).
May be because I feel personally involved in it, living in the ex DDR (GDR) Republic.
I like to read History, not the one written in books, the one told by ordinary people, living an ordinary life, happening to be more or less in places where history is made.
And I saw that whatever is the frame, the life is similar.
Good or bad, better, sometimes good and sometimes bad.
It is the ordinary life made by ordinary people.
Good people and bad people.
I liked this movie, because it is a fair mirror of unfair events.
Not just one sided right and one sided wrong.
Mostly both sided feelings, including the ones we mostly despise which are oppression, unjustice and arrogance.
From a diamond nothing grows, from manure flowers do.
Watch the clip
It is in German.
Here is the text:
I've got a new one.
Honecker comes into his office,
opens the window, sees the sun, and says...
What's wrong?
Oh, excuse me... I just...
No, carry on, colleague!
No harm in laughing about
the Party Chairman, is there.
I probably know the joke anyway.
Come on, tell us!
Well... Honecker...
I mean, the Comrade General Secretary
sees the sun and says,
- "Good morning, dear sun!"
- More like, "Good morning, dear sun!"
The sun replies, "Good morning, dear Erich!"
And at noon, Erich goes to
the window and says,
"Good day, dear sun!"
The sun replies, "Good day, dear Erich!"
In the evening, Erich says again,
"Good evening, dear sun!"
and the sun doesn't reply.
"Good evening, dear sun... "
"What's wrong?" he asks.
And the sun replies,
"Screw you, I'm in the West now!"
Name?
Rank? Department?
Me?
Stigler.
2nd Lieutenant Axel Stigler. Dept. M.
I don't have to tell you
what this means for your career.
Please, Comrade Lieutenant Colonel,
I was just...
You were just deriding the Party!
That's incitement,
and likely just the tip of the iceberg!
I will report this to the Minister's office.
May be because I feel personally involved in it, living in the ex DDR (GDR) Republic.
I like to read History, not the one written in books, the one told by ordinary people, living an ordinary life, happening to be more or less in places where history is made.
And I saw that whatever is the frame, the life is similar.
Good or bad, better, sometimes good and sometimes bad.
It is the ordinary life made by ordinary people.
Good people and bad people.
I liked this movie, because it is a fair mirror of unfair events.
Not just one sided right and one sided wrong.
Mostly both sided feelings, including the ones we mostly despise which are oppression, unjustice and arrogance.
From a diamond nothing grows, from manure flowers do.
Watch the clip
It is in German.
Here is the text:
I've got a new one.
Honecker comes into his office,
opens the window, sees the sun, and says...
What's wrong?
Oh, excuse me... I just...
No, carry on, colleague!
No harm in laughing about
the Party Chairman, is there.
I probably know the joke anyway.
Come on, tell us!
Well... Honecker...
I mean, the Comrade General Secretary
sees the sun and says,
- "Good morning, dear sun!"
- More like, "Good morning, dear sun!"
The sun replies, "Good morning, dear Erich!"
And at noon, Erich goes to
the window and says,
"Good day, dear sun!"
The sun replies, "Good day, dear Erich!"
In the evening, Erich says again,
"Good evening, dear sun!"
and the sun doesn't reply.
"Good evening, dear sun... "
"What's wrong?" he asks.
And the sun replies,
"Screw you, I'm in the West now!"
Name?
Rank? Department?
Me?
Stigler.
2nd Lieutenant Axel Stigler. Dept. M.
I don't have to tell you
what this means for your career.
Please, Comrade Lieutenant Colonel,
I was just...
You were just deriding the Party!
That's incitement,
and likely just the tip of the iceberg!
I will report this to the Minister's office.
Sunday, April 26, 2009
The secret life of bees
The bees are just the background.
Lily Owens, a 14 year-old girl, is haunted by the memory of her late mother whom she accidentally killed when a child.
But it is more a story as "how we were" of course we being the Americans.
And what they were is not always nice to remember.
But past is something you have to accept and if it is too painful you can always build a wailing wall and put small messages on a piece of paper...
That was not the right or at least a satisfying solution for May.
Lily finds five mothers, Rosaleen a new home, a new name and the right to vote.
T. Ray is a loser from the beginning to the end.
It is the classic example of "when you do not understand your mistakes you are going to repeat them endlessly".
He lost a wife, a daughter and the respect of the others.
Neil is the incarnation of the "American dream", a "negro" who wants to be a lawyer.
We do not know if he will, but we hope...
Lily Owens, a 14 year-old girl, is haunted by the memory of her late mother whom she accidentally killed when a child.
But it is more a story as "how we were" of course we being the Americans.
And what they were is not always nice to remember.
But past is something you have to accept and if it is too painful you can always build a wailing wall and put small messages on a piece of paper...
That was not the right or at least a satisfying solution for May.
Lily finds five mothers, Rosaleen a new home, a new name and the right to vote.
T. Ray is a loser from the beginning to the end.
It is the classic example of "when you do not understand your mistakes you are going to repeat them endlessly".
He lost a wife, a daughter and the respect of the others.
Neil is the incarnation of the "American dream", a "negro" who wants to be a lawyer.
We do not know if he will, but we hope...
Thursday, April 16, 2009
10 surprises for Summer
By now, it’s easy to know what to expect from the summer movie season. There will be a few movies with big robots (Transformers 2, Terminator). There will be at least one superhero movie (Wolverine). At least one Judd Apatow movie (Funny People) and at least one Adam Sandler movie (Funny People, again). Then there will be another movie only produced by Apatow (Year One). Finally, there will be a critically-acclaimed Pixar movie (Up) and, yep, it’s also a Harry Potter year.
Chances are, they won’t all be good. But we’re excited about them anyway, because they deliver everything we want out of summer movies: explosions, laughs, and, well, that’s pretty much it. We’re easily satisfied.
But then there are other movies. Movies that somehow find themselves in the summer season amidst all these blockbusters that just don’t jive with the summer spirit. They’re too serious, too treacly, or too completely, horribly awful. We present to you the top ten summer movies of 2009…that we guarantee will bomb.
Full article
10. Dance Flick (May 22nd)
Does anyone lament the death of the spoof movie? They were on a big roll for a while with the Scary Movies, and then on a smaller-but-still-profitable roll there with Date Movie and Epic Movie, but finally — after the painfully diminishing returns had hit their lowest point with Meet the Spartans — Superhero Movie and Disaster Movie flopped. And it was about time. But apparently the Wayans brothers, who did the first two Scary Movies, never got the memo. So they’re coming out with Dance Flick, and the title is all you need to know. To avoid paying money to see it.
9. Away We Go (June 5th)
Unlike Dance Flick, this is a movie that actually has higher aspirations in mind. In fact, on paper, it sounds terrific: The Office’s beloved John Krasinski and SNL’s undervalued Maya Rudolph team up for a comedy written by author Dave Eggers and directed by American Beauty’s Sam Mendes. It looked good, until we saw the trailer and realized it was so hipster-pretentious that it made us want to claw our eyes out. (No no, it’s deep, see, because he has a beard. And they stare off into space a lot while indie music plays.) Who’s not tired of that?
8. Final Destination: Death Trip 3D (August 28th)
Aren’t animated movies kind of embarrassed that the only other genre embracing 3D is B-grade horror? My Bloody Valentine 3D came out in January, and now we have this, actually the fourth Final Destination movie. (We imagine they were afraid Final Destination 4: Death Trip 3D would’ve been too confusing.)
7. Battle for Terra (May 1st)
Remember Delgo? Delgo was a computer-animated original story that took over $40 million and six years for an unknown independent animation studio to finish. Unfortunately, unknown independent animation studios don’t know much about marketing, so it set the record late last year for the worst per-theater opening weekend of a wide release ever. Battle for Terra, which screened at the 2007 Toronto Film Festival (yeah, it’s been sitting around not getting released for two years) looks like the next Delgo.
6. All the Boys Love Mandy Lane (July 17th)
Battle for Terra premiered at the 2007 Toronto Film Festival, right? Well, All the Boys Love Mandy Lane premiered at the 2006 Toronto Film Festival. It’s been mishandled by the Weinstein Company (which recently gave up the film to Senator Distribution) ever since. Not that that means we want to see it — it looks like the umpteenth crappy horror movie of recent months — but it does have rising star Amber Heard (the chick from Pineapple Express who also just booked a Johnny Depp movie) going for it. Of course, if you’re an Amber Heard fan, just go see The Informers when it comes out later this month; she spends the majority of the movie naked.
5. The Time Traveler’s Wife (August 14th)
We hear “Time Traveler,” we think: hey, time travel, sci-fi, that sounds cool. (Yes, we’re that easy to please.) But then we look at the official still photos from the movie: nothing but Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams staring at each other. Seriously, a bunch of production stills have been released, and that’s all they are. What a lame bait-and-switch. When you drop phrases like “Time Traveler,” we want Lost meets Back to the Future meets Star Trek IV, not a romantic drama!
4. Jennifer’s Body (September 18th)
At first, any movie starring Megan Fox with the word “body” in the title sounds like a winning idea. That is until you find out it’s written by Juno’s precocious one-hit-wonder, Diablo Cody. Not to mention Fox’s topless scene is said to have been cut. And on top of all that, it’s being billed as a “horror-comedy” which is just Hollywood speak for “we have no idea how to market this piece of crap, but we’re sure as hell going to try.” Sorry, Megan - we love you. But this one is going to be one for the sh!tter.
3. The Ugly Truth (July 24th)
At a glance, it looks like a pretty harmless romantic comedy. And we haven’t picked on Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (May 1st), starring Matthew McConaughey and Jennifer Garner, or When in Rome (August 14th), starring Kristen Bell and Josh Duhamel. So why are we complaining about this one? One, because it stars Katherine “I’m such a jerk that I publicly insulted the writers of my own show via not a slip of the tongue but a full-blown official statement” Heigl. And another, because the story seems sexist. Seriously, we know we just made fun of Heigl, but go with us here: she plays a morning show producer who can’t find love because she’s apparently too self-confident and successful — until a chauvinistic correspondent comes along who apparently tames her into falling in love with him. Kind of weird, right?
2. Imagine That (June 12th)
Eddie Murphy scored at the box office with Norbit, then failed badly with Meet Dave. So in a world where Daddy Day Care can gross over $100 million, what will audiences make of his return to family-friendly territory with Imagine That? Hopefully, that it looks like an even blander version of Bedtime Stories.
1. My Sister’s Keeper (June 26th)
Let’s see…My Sister’s Keeper, starring Abigail Breslin and Cameron Diaz, is the story of a girl who was genetically conceived as a bone marrow match for her leukemia-ridden older sister so that she could help her fight the disease via lots of surgeries and blood transfusions, and once she discovers this, takes her parents to court in order to emancipate herself from them. Who knows what happens to the sick sister (actually, we have an idea), but we are sure that we’re never watching this movie in a million years, and for something that sounds this emotionally devastating to be released in the otherwise happy-go-lucky whiz-bang summer season seems like it should be illegal. Just writing that synopsis made us want to crawl in bed for three days and sob.
Chances are, they won’t all be good. But we’re excited about them anyway, because they deliver everything we want out of summer movies: explosions, laughs, and, well, that’s pretty much it. We’re easily satisfied.
But then there are other movies. Movies that somehow find themselves in the summer season amidst all these blockbusters that just don’t jive with the summer spirit. They’re too serious, too treacly, or too completely, horribly awful. We present to you the top ten summer movies of 2009…that we guarantee will bomb.
Full article
10. Dance Flick (May 22nd)
Does anyone lament the death of the spoof movie? They were on a big roll for a while with the Scary Movies, and then on a smaller-but-still-profitable roll there with Date Movie and Epic Movie, but finally — after the painfully diminishing returns had hit their lowest point with Meet the Spartans — Superhero Movie and Disaster Movie flopped. And it was about time. But apparently the Wayans brothers, who did the first two Scary Movies, never got the memo. So they’re coming out with Dance Flick, and the title is all you need to know. To avoid paying money to see it.
9. Away We Go (June 5th)
Unlike Dance Flick, this is a movie that actually has higher aspirations in mind. In fact, on paper, it sounds terrific: The Office’s beloved John Krasinski and SNL’s undervalued Maya Rudolph team up for a comedy written by author Dave Eggers and directed by American Beauty’s Sam Mendes. It looked good, until we saw the trailer and realized it was so hipster-pretentious that it made us want to claw our eyes out. (No no, it’s deep, see, because he has a beard. And they stare off into space a lot while indie music plays.) Who’s not tired of that?
8. Final Destination: Death Trip 3D (August 28th)
Aren’t animated movies kind of embarrassed that the only other genre embracing 3D is B-grade horror? My Bloody Valentine 3D came out in January, and now we have this, actually the fourth Final Destination movie. (We imagine they were afraid Final Destination 4: Death Trip 3D would’ve been too confusing.)
7. Battle for Terra (May 1st)
Remember Delgo? Delgo was a computer-animated original story that took over $40 million and six years for an unknown independent animation studio to finish. Unfortunately, unknown independent animation studios don’t know much about marketing, so it set the record late last year for the worst per-theater opening weekend of a wide release ever. Battle for Terra, which screened at the 2007 Toronto Film Festival (yeah, it’s been sitting around not getting released for two years) looks like the next Delgo.
6. All the Boys Love Mandy Lane (July 17th)
Battle for Terra premiered at the 2007 Toronto Film Festival, right? Well, All the Boys Love Mandy Lane premiered at the 2006 Toronto Film Festival. It’s been mishandled by the Weinstein Company (which recently gave up the film to Senator Distribution) ever since. Not that that means we want to see it — it looks like the umpteenth crappy horror movie of recent months — but it does have rising star Amber Heard (the chick from Pineapple Express who also just booked a Johnny Depp movie) going for it. Of course, if you’re an Amber Heard fan, just go see The Informers when it comes out later this month; she spends the majority of the movie naked.
5. The Time Traveler’s Wife (August 14th)
We hear “Time Traveler,” we think: hey, time travel, sci-fi, that sounds cool. (Yes, we’re that easy to please.) But then we look at the official still photos from the movie: nothing but Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams staring at each other. Seriously, a bunch of production stills have been released, and that’s all they are. What a lame bait-and-switch. When you drop phrases like “Time Traveler,” we want Lost meets Back to the Future meets Star Trek IV, not a romantic drama!
4. Jennifer’s Body (September 18th)
At first, any movie starring Megan Fox with the word “body” in the title sounds like a winning idea. That is until you find out it’s written by Juno’s precocious one-hit-wonder, Diablo Cody. Not to mention Fox’s topless scene is said to have been cut. And on top of all that, it’s being billed as a “horror-comedy” which is just Hollywood speak for “we have no idea how to market this piece of crap, but we’re sure as hell going to try.” Sorry, Megan - we love you. But this one is going to be one for the sh!tter.
3. The Ugly Truth (July 24th)
At a glance, it looks like a pretty harmless romantic comedy. And we haven’t picked on Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (May 1st), starring Matthew McConaughey and Jennifer Garner, or When in Rome (August 14th), starring Kristen Bell and Josh Duhamel. So why are we complaining about this one? One, because it stars Katherine “I’m such a jerk that I publicly insulted the writers of my own show via not a slip of the tongue but a full-blown official statement” Heigl. And another, because the story seems sexist. Seriously, we know we just made fun of Heigl, but go with us here: she plays a morning show producer who can’t find love because she’s apparently too self-confident and successful — until a chauvinistic correspondent comes along who apparently tames her into falling in love with him. Kind of weird, right?
2. Imagine That (June 12th)
Eddie Murphy scored at the box office with Norbit, then failed badly with Meet Dave. So in a world where Daddy Day Care can gross over $100 million, what will audiences make of his return to family-friendly territory with Imagine That? Hopefully, that it looks like an even blander version of Bedtime Stories.
1. My Sister’s Keeper (June 26th)
Let’s see…My Sister’s Keeper, starring Abigail Breslin and Cameron Diaz, is the story of a girl who was genetically conceived as a bone marrow match for her leukemia-ridden older sister so that she could help her fight the disease via lots of surgeries and blood transfusions, and once she discovers this, takes her parents to court in order to emancipate herself from them. Who knows what happens to the sick sister (actually, we have an idea), but we are sure that we’re never watching this movie in a million years, and for something that sounds this emotionally devastating to be released in the otherwise happy-go-lucky whiz-bang summer season seems like it should be illegal. Just writing that synopsis made us want to crawl in bed for three days and sob.
Friday, March 6, 2009
The curious case of Benjamin Button
If you are one of those that seldom go to movies, this is one you shouldn’t miss.
Because even if you do not like the story (which is almost impossible) you will be astonished to see how modern science and makeup can change people.
The same actor is 50 years younger or older in the same movie.
The life of Benjamin goes backward, but that doesn’t make it better than ours.
On the contrary, if your life goes differently from all other human beings you are not allowed to live.
You are too old when you should be young and too young when you should be old.
But there is a magic moment in every life and in the one of Benjamin’s too, when he is not too old and not too young.
Those are the few moments that belong to any of us: The moments of love.
Few magic precious moments when you would like to stop and let life be that way forever.
But life goes on, for us and for him.
Because even if you do not like the story (which is almost impossible) you will be astonished to see how modern science and makeup can change people.
The same actor is 50 years younger or older in the same movie.
The life of Benjamin goes backward, but that doesn’t make it better than ours.
On the contrary, if your life goes differently from all other human beings you are not allowed to live.
You are too old when you should be young and too young when you should be old.
But there is a magic moment in every life and in the one of Benjamin’s too, when he is not too old and not too young.
Those are the few moments that belong to any of us: The moments of love.
Few magic precious moments when you would like to stop and let life be that way forever.
But life goes on, for us and for him.
Monday, December 29, 2008
What we will see in 2009
Push
Release Date: February 6, 2009
Push might seem like Heroes for the big screen, but instead of the characters' powers being dictated by an eclipse, it's a clandestine government agency called "The Division" that calls the shots. The organization has toyed with the genetic makeup of the characters to engineer warriors that can see the future, move things with their minds, create new realities and kill victims without touching them. Those who don't cooperate are hunted down and killed. If the F/X are as well done and the story is as fast-paced and coherent as it appears from the trailer, this flick could put the small-screen heroes to shame.
Watchmen
Release Date: March 6, 2009
Forget Spider-Man and Superman—2009 is the year of the Watchmen. This highly anticipated film adaptation of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons's groundbreaking 1986 graphic novel is such a hot property that two studios are squabbling over who owns it, which could delay its release (perish the thought). Director Zach Snyder has copped to amping up the action and removing The Black Freighter vignettes (a pirate aside that weaves throughout the graphic novel) to cut run time, but the 20 minutes of footage we screened in October was almost reverentially faithful to the source material—a fact that leaves us hopeful that the rest of the film will receive an equally great treatment. Whether the giant squid ending makes the cut remains to be seen, but based on Dr. Manhattan's CG rendering alone, this movie will still deliver thrills for diehard fans of the novel as well as for the uninitiated.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Release Date: May 1, 2009
What do filmmakers do when they finish a mega-successful trilogy about mutants-turned-heroes known as the X-Men? Figure out where those mutants came from—and start with the most mysterious mutant of all, Wolverine. The trailer for this first Origins film (a Magneto-based film is also in the works) details Wolverine's tragic childhood, his experience in various wars, the slaying of his true love and his involvement in (and subsequent rebellion from) the Mutant X program. The introduction of a slew of other mutants—Gambit, Silver Fox and Deadpool among them—as well as the fight scenes between Wolverine and his nemesis, Sabretooth, are enough to make this a hotly anticipated movie for any comic fan. And Wolverine taking on a helicopter? We're so there.
Star Trek
Release Date: May 8, 2009
Director J.J. Abrams's decision to initiate a Star Trek reboot was controversial among fans; so were his casting choices (lead actor Chris Pine, in particular). But Abrams has said he hopes this origin story will appeal to more than just Trekkies. The fast-paced action of the trailer, particularly that Cloverfield-esque beast and a newly developed Spock/Kirk rivalry, promise that even if Abrams hasn't made the next Wrath of Khan, he'll at least have made something better than Final Frontier—and that's something everyone can support.
Terminator: Salvation
Release Date: May 22, 2009
In Salvation, set in post-apocalyptic 2018, John Connor leads the resistance against Skynet and its army of Terminators as they attempt to wipe out the last survivors of the human race. Thanks to his tortured portrayal of Batman, Christian Bale as John Connor would have been enough to convince us to see Salvation, the fourth installment in the Terminator franchise. The blistering human-on-robot action from the trailer is an added bonus that will no doubt have film fans lining up around the block to see how the human race survives this time.
UP
Release Date: May 29, 2009
The premise of Up, Pixar's latest offering, speaks to the limitless imagination the studio continues to tap: 78-year-old Carl, a curmudgeonly old man who wants to visit the wilds of South America, attaches thousands of balloons to his house to get there. Take an enthusiastic 8-year-old wilderness explorer along for the ride, and you've got a quirky, loveable adventure story. It may not include robot love, but we have high hopes for this digitally animated kids' flick.
Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen
Release Date: June 26, 2009
Laugh at explosion-happy Michael Bay if you must, but it's undeniable that the guy knows how to bring the fun along with the dynamite. The first Transformers flick was a great popcorn movie with incredible special effects that have helped create buzz for the next in the series, Revenge of the Fallen. Speculation is running rampant about just what the title means. (Is Megatron coming back from his watery grave?) And details on the plot are scarce. But Bay's own personal tagline seems to be go big or go home. Expect cooler robots, crazier F/X sequences and, yes, bigger (and more!) explosions. The combination will, no doubt, create lines at the megaplex for a midnight showing, whether or not Bay makes it one explosion too many.
2012
Release Date: July 10, 2009
In Roland Emmerich's upcoming film, 2012, it's the end of the world as we know it—again. From the aliens in Independence Day to a wrathful Mother Nature in The Day After Tomorrow, Emmerich has made a name for himself directing F/X-laden films about mankind's demise. 2012 is the last year in the Mayan calendar, which some believers say signals the apocalypse. Say what you will about the quality of Emmerich's films, but his effects are always topnotch—check out the flood in the trailer—and geeks will certainly line up to see how he chooses to end it all this time around, and, of course, how the survivors triumph over catastrophic forces.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Release Date: July 17, 2009
By the time Half-Blood Prince hits theaters, rabid fans will have gone two years without a film adaptation of the spectacularly successful Harry Potter book series. (Warner Brothers cited the writer's strike as the reason it pushed the film from its original November 2008 release). This action-packed sixth film marks, among other things, another major character death, the beginnings of young love and the return of Quidditch. Fans are especially focused on seeing how director David Yates creates the Inferi—corpses reanimated by a Dark Wizard's curse—in the pivotal cave scene, where Harry and Hogwart's Headmaster Albus Dumbledore fight them with fire. If the creatures are anything like Prisoner of Azkaban's creepy, soul-sucking Dementors, viewers will be in for a treat.
G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra
Release Date: August 7, 2009
G.I. Joe has been an action figure and the star of a cartoon series—and now the soldier will attempt to conquer the multiplex in what many assume will be the first film in a franchise. As the title suggests, Rise of the Cobra is an origin story that centers around the formation of the nefarious Cobra Organization. Stephen Sommer—who directed The Mummy and The Mummy Returns—is at the helm, so expect killer action scenes and explosions truly befitting these Real American Heroes.
Avatar
Release Date: December 18, 2009
Technology has finally caught up to James Cameron's brain, and that's reason enough to be geeked out over the release of the 3D mega-project, Avatar. The director, who had the idea for the film in 1996, couldn't begin working on it until 2007 because the technology to fulfill his vision—photo-realistic CGI renderings of people, created using motion-capture technology—simply wasn't advanced enough. The shoot was more live action than previous mo-cap films, but now thanks to a new virtual camera, Cameron can observe on a monitor how the actors' digital characters interact with the movie's digital world in real time. Avatar was originally scheduled for a May 2009 release but was pushed back to allow more time for post-production and for more theaters to convert to 3D. Here's hoping it doesn't get pushed back again.
Release Date: February 6, 2009
Push might seem like Heroes for the big screen, but instead of the characters' powers being dictated by an eclipse, it's a clandestine government agency called "The Division" that calls the shots. The organization has toyed with the genetic makeup of the characters to engineer warriors that can see the future, move things with their minds, create new realities and kill victims without touching them. Those who don't cooperate are hunted down and killed. If the F/X are as well done and the story is as fast-paced and coherent as it appears from the trailer, this flick could put the small-screen heroes to shame.
Watchmen
Release Date: March 6, 2009
Forget Spider-Man and Superman—2009 is the year of the Watchmen. This highly anticipated film adaptation of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons's groundbreaking 1986 graphic novel is such a hot property that two studios are squabbling over who owns it, which could delay its release (perish the thought). Director Zach Snyder has copped to amping up the action and removing The Black Freighter vignettes (a pirate aside that weaves throughout the graphic novel) to cut run time, but the 20 minutes of footage we screened in October was almost reverentially faithful to the source material—a fact that leaves us hopeful that the rest of the film will receive an equally great treatment. Whether the giant squid ending makes the cut remains to be seen, but based on Dr. Manhattan's CG rendering alone, this movie will still deliver thrills for diehard fans of the novel as well as for the uninitiated.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Release Date: May 1, 2009
What do filmmakers do when they finish a mega-successful trilogy about mutants-turned-heroes known as the X-Men? Figure out where those mutants came from—and start with the most mysterious mutant of all, Wolverine. The trailer for this first Origins film (a Magneto-based film is also in the works) details Wolverine's tragic childhood, his experience in various wars, the slaying of his true love and his involvement in (and subsequent rebellion from) the Mutant X program. The introduction of a slew of other mutants—Gambit, Silver Fox and Deadpool among them—as well as the fight scenes between Wolverine and his nemesis, Sabretooth, are enough to make this a hotly anticipated movie for any comic fan. And Wolverine taking on a helicopter? We're so there.
Star Trek
Release Date: May 8, 2009
Director J.J. Abrams's decision to initiate a Star Trek reboot was controversial among fans; so were his casting choices (lead actor Chris Pine, in particular). But Abrams has said he hopes this origin story will appeal to more than just Trekkies. The fast-paced action of the trailer, particularly that Cloverfield-esque beast and a newly developed Spock/Kirk rivalry, promise that even if Abrams hasn't made the next Wrath of Khan, he'll at least have made something better than Final Frontier—and that's something everyone can support.
Terminator: Salvation
Release Date: May 22, 2009
In Salvation, set in post-apocalyptic 2018, John Connor leads the resistance against Skynet and its army of Terminators as they attempt to wipe out the last survivors of the human race. Thanks to his tortured portrayal of Batman, Christian Bale as John Connor would have been enough to convince us to see Salvation, the fourth installment in the Terminator franchise. The blistering human-on-robot action from the trailer is an added bonus that will no doubt have film fans lining up around the block to see how the human race survives this time.
UP
Release Date: May 29, 2009
The premise of Up, Pixar's latest offering, speaks to the limitless imagination the studio continues to tap: 78-year-old Carl, a curmudgeonly old man who wants to visit the wilds of South America, attaches thousands of balloons to his house to get there. Take an enthusiastic 8-year-old wilderness explorer along for the ride, and you've got a quirky, loveable adventure story. It may not include robot love, but we have high hopes for this digitally animated kids' flick.
Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen
Release Date: June 26, 2009
Laugh at explosion-happy Michael Bay if you must, but it's undeniable that the guy knows how to bring the fun along with the dynamite. The first Transformers flick was a great popcorn movie with incredible special effects that have helped create buzz for the next in the series, Revenge of the Fallen. Speculation is running rampant about just what the title means. (Is Megatron coming back from his watery grave?) And details on the plot are scarce. But Bay's own personal tagline seems to be go big or go home. Expect cooler robots, crazier F/X sequences and, yes, bigger (and more!) explosions. The combination will, no doubt, create lines at the megaplex for a midnight showing, whether or not Bay makes it one explosion too many.
2012
Release Date: July 10, 2009
In Roland Emmerich's upcoming film, 2012, it's the end of the world as we know it—again. From the aliens in Independence Day to a wrathful Mother Nature in The Day After Tomorrow, Emmerich has made a name for himself directing F/X-laden films about mankind's demise. 2012 is the last year in the Mayan calendar, which some believers say signals the apocalypse. Say what you will about the quality of Emmerich's films, but his effects are always topnotch—check out the flood in the trailer—and geeks will certainly line up to see how he chooses to end it all this time around, and, of course, how the survivors triumph over catastrophic forces.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Release Date: July 17, 2009
By the time Half-Blood Prince hits theaters, rabid fans will have gone two years without a film adaptation of the spectacularly successful Harry Potter book series. (Warner Brothers cited the writer's strike as the reason it pushed the film from its original November 2008 release). This action-packed sixth film marks, among other things, another major character death, the beginnings of young love and the return of Quidditch. Fans are especially focused on seeing how director David Yates creates the Inferi—corpses reanimated by a Dark Wizard's curse—in the pivotal cave scene, where Harry and Hogwart's Headmaster Albus Dumbledore fight them with fire. If the creatures are anything like Prisoner of Azkaban's creepy, soul-sucking Dementors, viewers will be in for a treat.
G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra
Release Date: August 7, 2009
G.I. Joe has been an action figure and the star of a cartoon series—and now the soldier will attempt to conquer the multiplex in what many assume will be the first film in a franchise. As the title suggests, Rise of the Cobra is an origin story that centers around the formation of the nefarious Cobra Organization. Stephen Sommer—who directed The Mummy and The Mummy Returns—is at the helm, so expect killer action scenes and explosions truly befitting these Real American Heroes.
Avatar
Release Date: December 18, 2009
Technology has finally caught up to James Cameron's brain, and that's reason enough to be geeked out over the release of the 3D mega-project, Avatar. The director, who had the idea for the film in 1996, couldn't begin working on it until 2007 because the technology to fulfill his vision—photo-realistic CGI renderings of people, created using motion-capture technology—simply wasn't advanced enough. The shoot was more live action than previous mo-cap films, but now thanks to a new virtual camera, Cameron can observe on a monitor how the actors' digital characters interact with the movie's digital world in real time. Avatar was originally scheduled for a May 2009 release but was pushed back to allow more time for post-production and for more theaters to convert to 3D. Here's hoping it doesn't get pushed back again.
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
The 10 best of 2008
10. Hunger
Remember what I said about emotionally positive movies in my introduction? Forget that for just a little bit. Steve McQueen's stunning dissection of the human power to choose the mental or even the spiritual over the physical is one of the most riveting films of the year. Almost dialogue-free except for a 17-minute, unbroken conversation that sets up its final act, Hunger is the story of IRA prisoners led by Bobby Sands (Michael Fassbinder) and their decision to go on a hunger strike. The first half of the film ping-pongs protagonists from a cop in the prison to one of the physically-abused inmates to eventually Bobby himself. Seemingly disjointed but stunningly photographed scenes like the cop washing the wounds on his hands (from beating prisoners) to an amazing sequence visualizing the physically violent way the inmates are cut and cleaned add resonance to Sands' decision, which takes center stage in only the final act. But McQueen isn't mythologizing Sands or hunger strikes. Hunger may not be thematically "positive," but in seeing the striking visual sensibility of one of the best directorial debuts of the year, I certainly felt something close to elation at the use of the form.
9. Let the Right One In
Speaking of debuts, Tomas Alfredson made one of the best of the year with his riveting tale of vampire in love, Let the Right One In. I mistakenly gave the film only three-and-a-half “bones” the first time I saw it. Watching it again and letting it sink in from the first viewing, it deserves four. One of the things that struck me most both times I saw Let the Right One In is the way Alfredson and his cinematographer turn their snow-covered setting into a character in their brilliant blend of adolescence and blood-lust. Who's more emotionally isolated than the awkward pre-teen? The awkward, pre-teen vampire who literally can't be close to anyone. And the isolation of puberty is amplified by a cold, snow-covered setting that forces everyone indoors. Oskar is drawn to Eli partially because she's the only other child on the playground. Their love story is one of the best of the year, a beautiful tale of how much we are willing to forgive to keep the one person (or vampire) who has ever loved us close.
8. The Visitor
Walter Vale is one of the most full-realized, believable characters of the year and it's in the way that writer/director Thomas McCarthy and actor Richard Jenkins bring him to vivid life that gives The Visitor its beating heart. The Visitor is as full of life as any film in 2008, partially because it's about a man who discovers the passion for his own in the most unusual of places - his own apartment. I hate it when people try to classify The Visitor as a movie about our nation's ignorant and stupid immigration laws. Yes, that's part of the fabric of the story, but The Visitor is a much more complex film than that. It's a beautiful, heartwarming story of a man who opens his closed heart to music, friendship, and love. When Walter plays his drum in that final scene, he does so with anger at what happened to his friend Tarek, but also as a tribute to the man who changed his life by merely being a visitor to this country.
7. The Wrestler
The Wrestler is almost more remarkable for what it's not than for what it is. A film about an over-the-hill wrestling superstar who can find no happiness or stability outside the ring - and increasingly less inside of it - it could have been a melodramatic, soapy mess. There's even yet another stripper with a heart of gold, one of the most overdone clichés in movie history. But Darren Aronofsky, Mickey Rourke, and Marisa Tomei take the stereotypes and make them genuine again. The physical and emotional pain of Randy "The Ram" Robinson feels completely real in every single scene of The Wrestler. Rourke has been praised for giving one of those soul-baring, physically demanding performances that you only see every few years, but it's a part of the realism that Aronofsky is going for in the entire piece. Even the emotional confrontation with his estranged daughter, an underrated Evan Rachel Wood, which would have been pure
6. Happy-Go-Lucky
I can't shake Poppy. I think about her back story, what happens to her in Happy-Go-Lucky, and I wonder what she's up to now. Maybe she's been so memorable in part because I think she's been so miscategorized by people instantly turned off to a character whose main goal in life seems to be to try to make everyone happy. But Poppy is not naive. She's not blissful in ignorance. That's a misreading of the film. When she encounters the abuse of one of her young students, she doesn't ignore it. She doesn't believe in blind love with her new beau. She even knows that Scott, her sometimes violent driving instructor, is a little crazy. Like Walter and Randy, Poppy is fully three-dimensional and, in bringing her to life, Sally Hawkins gives the most memorable performance of the year. Happy-Go-Lucky is a hard movie to define. It has its comedic moments but also goes to some dark places. And what's the message of Mike Leigh's movie? I'm not sure there is one. I think it's just a classic character study and the one this year
5. Rachel Getting Married
Jonathan Demme's best film since Silence of the Lambs is one of his most personal. Surrounded by musicians, multi-cultural artists, and good friends, Rachel Getting Married is like Demme's dream wedding. How better for a filmmaker to capture what thematically needs to be an overwhelming declaration of love than to do so with music he loves (it's no coincidence that the groom sings Neil Young) and people he honestly cares about? Into this atmosphere of overpowering warmth comes a woman who can no longer feel love. She doesn't even think she's worthy of God's love. Hathaway's award-winning portrayal of Kym, the deeply damaged sister of the titular Rachel, provides the perfect counter-balance to the cinematic wedding of the decade, but the entire ensemble excels in Demme's creatively rewarding environment. Rachel Getting Married is one of the most unique movies of 2008 because it's filled with dichotomies. Slowly paced yet riveting. Painfully emotional yet not melodramatic. Loving and filled with self-loathing. And brilliant in every scene.
4. Slumdog Millionaire
When I was writing the introduction to this piece, I was looking for a word other than "triumph" to describe Slumdog Millionaire but nothing seems nearly as appropriate. Danny Boyle's best film is about the human will's ability to triumph over any kind of adversity. It's turned into the sleeper hit of the year because of its power to inspire every audience that sees it. Don't trust anyone who doesn't leave the theater for Slumdog Millionaire with a smile on their face. Simon Beaufoy's Oscar-worthy screenplay distills a book full of what were basically short stories into a study about the importance of life experience over purely intellectual pursuit. And with Boyle's masterful direction, they turn the story of a lucky young man on a crash course with destiny into an inspirational film that everyone can relate to around the world. We'd all like to think that the ups and downs of our life have an end-goal and that, even though we may not know every answer on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, our life experience has led us to where we are for a reason. Slumdog Millionaire is one of the best films of 2008 because it takes the amazing and makes it relatably inspirational.
3. Milk
Speaking of inspirational, just as you shouldn't trust anyone who's not smiling at the end of Slumdog Millionaire, stay away from anyone unmoved by the best film of Gus Van Sant's career and the best performance of Sean Penn's. Milk is a masterpiece. It's easy to write a movie about a martyr and, in lesser hands, that's exactly what Milk would have been. But Harvey himself would hate a movie that turned him into a martyr, so Van Sant and should-be-Oscar-winning writer Dustin Lance Black did something a lot more complicated and made a movie about a movement. Milk is a movie about the painful steps that the homosexual community has had to make just to be seen as equal. Black and Van Sant film every element of Harvey Milk's life in that context. So, we see the impact of his drive for gay rights on his lovers, most notably in performances by James Franco and Diego Luna. We see him run repeatedly for office, picking himself up and trying again when he loses. And we see the impact of Milk's movement on the damaged soul that would take this inspirational man's life because he couldn't get a grip on his own in Josh Brolin’s incredible portrayal of Dan White. As 2008 has painfully taught us, the gay rights movement is far from over, but no film has ever captured the importance of the continued struggle as vibrantly or brilliantly as Milk.
2. The Dark Knight
What more is there to say about The Dark Knight? Is it the best superhero movie ever made? There's no contest. Seen outside of the blurry haze of the summer movie season, The Dark Knight looks even more accomplished than it did earlier this year. So much has been written about Heath Ledger's riveting portrayal of The Joker - and I'm certainly a part of the chorus calling for him to win Best Supporting Actor - but he's just one piece of the amazing puzzle that director Christopher Nolan put together for The Dark Knight. It's one of the most technically accomplished films in YEARS from Wally Pfister's gorgeous use of shadow and light in his award-worthy cinematography to the spectacular score by James Newton Howard and Hans Zimmer to the editing, costume design, etc. Leave Ledger's performance aside and The Dark Knight would still make this list. Perfectly conceived, paced, and executed, The Dark Knight not only raises the bar on superhero movies - that's a given - but it also raises the bar on what we should expect from our entertainment.
1. Wall-E
Believe it or not, even a critic as cynical as I am is really just looking for that theatrical experience that transcends what we do. The movies that I find most notable are almost always the ones that simply make me forget about the review I inevitably have to write. It's the rare film that a critic can just let wash over them and take them away from their profession. Most of us are sitting there in the dark taking notes, trying to grab quotes or ideas for our inevitable review. But when a movie can make a critic stop pre-planning their review and just enjoy the experience, well, that's rare indeed. Pixar has that power and never more so than in their best film, the masterpiece that is Wall-E. Director Andrew Stanton and the team at Pixar proved yet again that they are filmmakers truly willing to take the biggest risks that reap the biggest rewards. A movie with almost no dialogue, references to Hello Dolly, and set in the overdone genre of science fiction? Wall-E was a HUGE risk. They swung for the fences and they hit a home run for the ages, a movie that people will be watching for generations to come. It's one of the few films from 2008 that I can guarantee you will last throughout the years. The little robot that could is the star of not just one of the best movies of the year, but one of the best of the decade. 2008 may not have been a good year, but any that gives us a movie as treasured as Wall-E isn’t half-bad either.
Remember what I said about emotionally positive movies in my introduction? Forget that for just a little bit. Steve McQueen's stunning dissection of the human power to choose the mental or even the spiritual over the physical is one of the most riveting films of the year. Almost dialogue-free except for a 17-minute, unbroken conversation that sets up its final act, Hunger is the story of IRA prisoners led by Bobby Sands (Michael Fassbinder) and their decision to go on a hunger strike. The first half of the film ping-pongs protagonists from a cop in the prison to one of the physically-abused inmates to eventually Bobby himself. Seemingly disjointed but stunningly photographed scenes like the cop washing the wounds on his hands (from beating prisoners) to an amazing sequence visualizing the physically violent way the inmates are cut and cleaned add resonance to Sands' decision, which takes center stage in only the final act. But McQueen isn't mythologizing Sands or hunger strikes. Hunger may not be thematically "positive," but in seeing the striking visual sensibility of one of the best directorial debuts of the year, I certainly felt something close to elation at the use of the form.
9. Let the Right One In
Speaking of debuts, Tomas Alfredson made one of the best of the year with his riveting tale of vampire in love, Let the Right One In. I mistakenly gave the film only three-and-a-half “bones” the first time I saw it. Watching it again and letting it sink in from the first viewing, it deserves four. One of the things that struck me most both times I saw Let the Right One In is the way Alfredson and his cinematographer turn their snow-covered setting into a character in their brilliant blend of adolescence and blood-lust. Who's more emotionally isolated than the awkward pre-teen? The awkward, pre-teen vampire who literally can't be close to anyone. And the isolation of puberty is amplified by a cold, snow-covered setting that forces everyone indoors. Oskar is drawn to Eli partially because she's the only other child on the playground. Their love story is one of the best of the year, a beautiful tale of how much we are willing to forgive to keep the one person (or vampire) who has ever loved us close.
8. The Visitor
Walter Vale is one of the most full-realized, believable characters of the year and it's in the way that writer/director Thomas McCarthy and actor Richard Jenkins bring him to vivid life that gives The Visitor its beating heart. The Visitor is as full of life as any film in 2008, partially because it's about a man who discovers the passion for his own in the most unusual of places - his own apartment. I hate it when people try to classify The Visitor as a movie about our nation's ignorant and stupid immigration laws. Yes, that's part of the fabric of the story, but The Visitor is a much more complex film than that. It's a beautiful, heartwarming story of a man who opens his closed heart to music, friendship, and love. When Walter plays his drum in that final scene, he does so with anger at what happened to his friend Tarek, but also as a tribute to the man who changed his life by merely being a visitor to this country.
7. The Wrestler
The Wrestler is almost more remarkable for what it's not than for what it is. A film about an over-the-hill wrestling superstar who can find no happiness or stability outside the ring - and increasingly less inside of it - it could have been a melodramatic, soapy mess. There's even yet another stripper with a heart of gold, one of the most overdone clichés in movie history. But Darren Aronofsky, Mickey Rourke, and Marisa Tomei take the stereotypes and make them genuine again. The physical and emotional pain of Randy "The Ram" Robinson feels completely real in every single scene of The Wrestler. Rourke has been praised for giving one of those soul-baring, physically demanding performances that you only see every few years, but it's a part of the realism that Aronofsky is going for in the entire piece. Even the emotional confrontation with his estranged daughter, an underrated Evan Rachel Wood, which would have been pure
6. Happy-Go-Lucky
I can't shake Poppy. I think about her back story, what happens to her in Happy-Go-Lucky, and I wonder what she's up to now. Maybe she's been so memorable in part because I think she's been so miscategorized by people instantly turned off to a character whose main goal in life seems to be to try to make everyone happy. But Poppy is not naive. She's not blissful in ignorance. That's a misreading of the film. When she encounters the abuse of one of her young students, she doesn't ignore it. She doesn't believe in blind love with her new beau. She even knows that Scott, her sometimes violent driving instructor, is a little crazy. Like Walter and Randy, Poppy is fully three-dimensional and, in bringing her to life, Sally Hawkins gives the most memorable performance of the year. Happy-Go-Lucky is a hard movie to define. It has its comedic moments but also goes to some dark places. And what's the message of Mike Leigh's movie? I'm not sure there is one. I think it's just a classic character study and the one this year
5. Rachel Getting Married
Jonathan Demme's best film since Silence of the Lambs is one of his most personal. Surrounded by musicians, multi-cultural artists, and good friends, Rachel Getting Married is like Demme's dream wedding. How better for a filmmaker to capture what thematically needs to be an overwhelming declaration of love than to do so with music he loves (it's no coincidence that the groom sings Neil Young) and people he honestly cares about? Into this atmosphere of overpowering warmth comes a woman who can no longer feel love. She doesn't even think she's worthy of God's love. Hathaway's award-winning portrayal of Kym, the deeply damaged sister of the titular Rachel, provides the perfect counter-balance to the cinematic wedding of the decade, but the entire ensemble excels in Demme's creatively rewarding environment. Rachel Getting Married is one of the most unique movies of 2008 because it's filled with dichotomies. Slowly paced yet riveting. Painfully emotional yet not melodramatic. Loving and filled with self-loathing. And brilliant in every scene.
4. Slumdog Millionaire
When I was writing the introduction to this piece, I was looking for a word other than "triumph" to describe Slumdog Millionaire but nothing seems nearly as appropriate. Danny Boyle's best film is about the human will's ability to triumph over any kind of adversity. It's turned into the sleeper hit of the year because of its power to inspire every audience that sees it. Don't trust anyone who doesn't leave the theater for Slumdog Millionaire with a smile on their face. Simon Beaufoy's Oscar-worthy screenplay distills a book full of what were basically short stories into a study about the importance of life experience over purely intellectual pursuit. And with Boyle's masterful direction, they turn the story of a lucky young man on a crash course with destiny into an inspirational film that everyone can relate to around the world. We'd all like to think that the ups and downs of our life have an end-goal and that, even though we may not know every answer on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, our life experience has led us to where we are for a reason. Slumdog Millionaire is one of the best films of 2008 because it takes the amazing and makes it relatably inspirational.
3. Milk
Speaking of inspirational, just as you shouldn't trust anyone who's not smiling at the end of Slumdog Millionaire, stay away from anyone unmoved by the best film of Gus Van Sant's career and the best performance of Sean Penn's. Milk is a masterpiece. It's easy to write a movie about a martyr and, in lesser hands, that's exactly what Milk would have been. But Harvey himself would hate a movie that turned him into a martyr, so Van Sant and should-be-Oscar-winning writer Dustin Lance Black did something a lot more complicated and made a movie about a movement. Milk is a movie about the painful steps that the homosexual community has had to make just to be seen as equal. Black and Van Sant film every element of Harvey Milk's life in that context. So, we see the impact of his drive for gay rights on his lovers, most notably in performances by James Franco and Diego Luna. We see him run repeatedly for office, picking himself up and trying again when he loses. And we see the impact of Milk's movement on the damaged soul that would take this inspirational man's life because he couldn't get a grip on his own in Josh Brolin’s incredible portrayal of Dan White. As 2008 has painfully taught us, the gay rights movement is far from over, but no film has ever captured the importance of the continued struggle as vibrantly or brilliantly as Milk.
2. The Dark Knight
What more is there to say about The Dark Knight? Is it the best superhero movie ever made? There's no contest. Seen outside of the blurry haze of the summer movie season, The Dark Knight looks even more accomplished than it did earlier this year. So much has been written about Heath Ledger's riveting portrayal of The Joker - and I'm certainly a part of the chorus calling for him to win Best Supporting Actor - but he's just one piece of the amazing puzzle that director Christopher Nolan put together for The Dark Knight. It's one of the most technically accomplished films in YEARS from Wally Pfister's gorgeous use of shadow and light in his award-worthy cinematography to the spectacular score by James Newton Howard and Hans Zimmer to the editing, costume design, etc. Leave Ledger's performance aside and The Dark Knight would still make this list. Perfectly conceived, paced, and executed, The Dark Knight not only raises the bar on superhero movies - that's a given - but it also raises the bar on what we should expect from our entertainment.
1. Wall-E
Believe it or not, even a critic as cynical as I am is really just looking for that theatrical experience that transcends what we do. The movies that I find most notable are almost always the ones that simply make me forget about the review I inevitably have to write. It's the rare film that a critic can just let wash over them and take them away from their profession. Most of us are sitting there in the dark taking notes, trying to grab quotes or ideas for our inevitable review. But when a movie can make a critic stop pre-planning their review and just enjoy the experience, well, that's rare indeed. Pixar has that power and never more so than in their best film, the masterpiece that is Wall-E. Director Andrew Stanton and the team at Pixar proved yet again that they are filmmakers truly willing to take the biggest risks that reap the biggest rewards. A movie with almost no dialogue, references to Hello Dolly, and set in the overdone genre of science fiction? Wall-E was a HUGE risk. They swung for the fences and they hit a home run for the ages, a movie that people will be watching for generations to come. It's one of the few films from 2008 that I can guarantee you will last throughout the years. The little robot that could is the star of not just one of the best movies of the year, but one of the best of the decade. 2008 may not have been a good year, but any that gives us a movie as treasured as Wall-E isn’t half-bad either.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Worst of 2008
"The Love Guru" : Religious groups were worried about Mike Myers' film about a guru who helps a troubled hockey player, even before it opened. Don't bother - this film was so bad that people wisely stayed away. Besides, it wasn't offensive on religious grounds. It was offensive on comedy grounds. How bad? Elephant sex. That bad.
"Untraceable" : Diane Lane starred in what could have been a decent social commentary - a serial killer streams his deeds online - but is instead a nitwit caper film so ridiculous it makes CSI look like high art.
"Leatherheads" : Turns out George Clooney CAN do wrong. Certainly directing and starring in this madcap would-be comedy about the early days of professional football certainly did him no favors. A waste of John Krasinski, as well.
"Speed Racer" : If looks were all it took to make a movie great, this would be in the top 10, not the bottom. Unfortunately, there's a little more to it than that. The Wachowski brothers bring all the visual magic you'd expect from the Matrix guys, but things like acting and story got left by the side of the road.
"Jumper" : Decent premise - Hayden Christensen can "jump" from one place to another and finds out there are others like him who are hunted - that comes to nothing. The story doesn't make much sense, and, as it turns out, Christensen isn't much of an actor. Bad story, bad acting: bad combo.
"Street Kings" : Keanu Reeves stars as a detective mourning the death of his wife who must unravel all manner of police corruption, mostly by killing people. Violent, loud, stupid.
"Max Payne" : Maybe basing movies on video games isn't such a good idea? This would be Exhibit A. Mark Wahlberg plays a cop who runs afoul of just about everyone after his wife's death. All sorts of hallucinogenic images, very little else to care about.
"Death Race" : Could have been big dumb fun, in the manner of "Wanted" or the remake of "The Day the Earth Stood Still." Instead, it's just dumb, period, and a waste of Ian McShane, as well.
"What Happens In Vegas" : Ashton Kutcher and Cameron Diaz play a couple who drunkenly marry in Vegas, win millions and promptly hate each other (each wants all the money). A judge orders them to live together; yes, it's that stupid. And predictable. Whatever the opposite of chemistry is, it's on full display here.
"Rambo" : Why? Really, that's all this comes down to. Why would Sylvester Stallone co-write, direct and star in a fourth installment of his angry-vet films? There's just no telling. John Rambo helps rescue missionaries in Burma, killing whoever gets in his way. You expected anything less (or, maybe, more)? Scariest news: HE MAY MAKE ANOTHER.
"Untraceable" : Diane Lane starred in what could have been a decent social commentary - a serial killer streams his deeds online - but is instead a nitwit caper film so ridiculous it makes CSI look like high art.
"Leatherheads" : Turns out George Clooney CAN do wrong. Certainly directing and starring in this madcap would-be comedy about the early days of professional football certainly did him no favors. A waste of John Krasinski, as well.
"Speed Racer" : If looks were all it took to make a movie great, this would be in the top 10, not the bottom. Unfortunately, there's a little more to it than that. The Wachowski brothers bring all the visual magic you'd expect from the Matrix guys, but things like acting and story got left by the side of the road.
"Jumper" : Decent premise - Hayden Christensen can "jump" from one place to another and finds out there are others like him who are hunted - that comes to nothing. The story doesn't make much sense, and, as it turns out, Christensen isn't much of an actor. Bad story, bad acting: bad combo.
"Street Kings" : Keanu Reeves stars as a detective mourning the death of his wife who must unravel all manner of police corruption, mostly by killing people. Violent, loud, stupid.
"Max Payne" : Maybe basing movies on video games isn't such a good idea? This would be Exhibit A. Mark Wahlberg plays a cop who runs afoul of just about everyone after his wife's death. All sorts of hallucinogenic images, very little else to care about.
"Death Race" : Could have been big dumb fun, in the manner of "Wanted" or the remake of "The Day the Earth Stood Still." Instead, it's just dumb, period, and a waste of Ian McShane, as well.
"What Happens In Vegas" : Ashton Kutcher and Cameron Diaz play a couple who drunkenly marry in Vegas, win millions and promptly hate each other (each wants all the money). A judge orders them to live together; yes, it's that stupid. And predictable. Whatever the opposite of chemistry is, it's on full display here.
"Rambo" : Why? Really, that's all this comes down to. Why would Sylvester Stallone co-write, direct and star in a fourth installment of his angry-vet films? There's just no telling. John Rambo helps rescue missionaries in Burma, killing whoever gets in his way. You expected anything less (or, maybe, more)? Scariest news: HE MAY MAKE ANOTHER.
Monday, December 15, 2008
Nights in Rodanthe
If you look at this movie for nights in Rodanthe you will certainly be deluded.
I remember one and not so much of it.
What you will find is the perfect example of the perfect mother who sacrifices her private life and love for her children to the point that life will sacrifice her.
All movie is in waiting for the Real Love, which looks close, but will never realize.
Real Love is what makes you waiting for it.
Too bad sometimes is just that: waiting...
But then, it is much better a dream of a reality than the reality of a dream...
What is better and more pure, more sublime, than a love that dies before it becomes reality?
I remember one and not so much of it.
What you will find is the perfect example of the perfect mother who sacrifices her private life and love for her children to the point that life will sacrifice her.
All movie is in waiting for the Real Love, which looks close, but will never realize.
Real Love is what makes you waiting for it.
Too bad sometimes is just that: waiting...
But then, it is much better a dream of a reality than the reality of a dream...
What is better and more pure, more sublime, than a love that dies before it becomes reality?
Saturday, December 13, 2008
The Duchess
Women's only I would say.
But I bet most women will just love it.
Gorgeous clothes, mansions, love, intrigue, maternal love, all in one and doesn't last as long as a woman would like.
It could go on with grandchildren and be a saga.
But this great woman who even loves the children her husband fathered with other women, the children she cannot bring up, the friends who cheated her, is the hero (and she is not even unattractive, on the contrary).
I hardly believe that she is a little bit human, I mean the usual humanity, not what we would like humanity to be...
But I bet most women will just love it.
Gorgeous clothes, mansions, love, intrigue, maternal love, all in one and doesn't last as long as a woman would like.
It could go on with grandchildren and be a saga.
But this great woman who even loves the children her husband fathered with other women, the children she cannot bring up, the friends who cheated her, is the hero (and she is not even unattractive, on the contrary).
I hardly believe that she is a little bit human, I mean the usual humanity, not what we would like humanity to be...
Friday, December 12, 2008
Mamma Mia
If you are a nostalgic of old faces and old songs, this is the movie for you.
Without forgetting the incredible blue of the Greek sea and the charm of a wonderful Greek island, with its simple life, primitive plumbing and shabby chic buildings.
They have it all: love, past, present, future, sex, nostalgia, typical American wedding.
At the end the only one who doesn't get married is the only one who is supposed to, for whom the wedding is planned.
Happy and I would like to say unexpected end, but I was sure it would have finished that way: three middle age men and three middle age women...
Without forgetting the incredible blue of the Greek sea and the charm of a wonderful Greek island, with its simple life, primitive plumbing and shabby chic buildings.
They have it all: love, past, present, future, sex, nostalgia, typical American wedding.
At the end the only one who doesn't get married is the only one who is supposed to, for whom the wedding is planned.
Happy and I would like to say unexpected end, but I was sure it would have finished that way: three middle age men and three middle age women...
Monday, December 8, 2008
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
An old movie (1975) that, thanks to a magnificent (and quite young)Nicholson, you can still enjoy (a lot) looking at.
Crazy is all what doesn't comform to our actual view of what is being sane.
We are Nuts and so we can do what we like...
And he really does, whatever he can, in his limited way, what he likes...
At the end of the movie one could think that he has a much better way to treat nuts than doctors and nurses.
McMurphy (Jack Nicholson )is the false crazy who believes in himself (and he succeds in making the others believe in him too)and in life.
His optimism is contagious and probably the best cure against any illness of any kind, including mental illness.
A great movie, because of the main carachter, who conveys the essence of McMurphy to perfection.
A story which is so close to reality you do not believe it is a story anymore...
Crazy is all what doesn't comform to our actual view of what is being sane.
We are Nuts and so we can do what we like...
And he really does, whatever he can, in his limited way, what he likes...
At the end of the movie one could think that he has a much better way to treat nuts than doctors and nurses.
McMurphy (Jack Nicholson )is the false crazy who believes in himself (and he succeds in making the others believe in him too)and in life.
His optimism is contagious and probably the best cure against any illness of any kind, including mental illness.
A great movie, because of the main carachter, who conveys the essence of McMurphy to perfection.
A story which is so close to reality you do not believe it is a story anymore...
Saturday, December 6, 2008
The Graduate
I guess yesterday wars the third time I have seen it...
The film is always the same, but it looks different to me.
It is a forty years backward look.
It is "How we were" and what we "hoped" and how we saw the "future".
Luckily it is ages apart from what we are and what we hoped to be.
It is a society that has grown a lot, not always in the right direction, but in many ways yes.
It is a society that has widened its view of life and the part that has not will have to in a very near future.
How much easier life looked then, in that movie at least.
No worries for a job.
Richness and a granted future, so that the main concern is who am I going to marry and what is going against my will...
Love, of course, wins, but leaves quite a few unanswered questions.
And a few quite granted answers.
The film is always the same, but it looks different to me.
It is a forty years backward look.
It is "How we were" and what we "hoped" and how we saw the "future".
Luckily it is ages apart from what we are and what we hoped to be.
It is a society that has grown a lot, not always in the right direction, but in many ways yes.
It is a society that has widened its view of life and the part that has not will have to in a very near future.
How much easier life looked then, in that movie at least.
No worries for a job.
Richness and a granted future, so that the main concern is who am I going to marry and what is going against my will...
Love, of course, wins, but leaves quite a few unanswered questions.
And a few quite granted answers.
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Changeling
Good story, in the right moment.
It gives hope that something can change also in America and Justice in the end prevails, even though leaving a sour taste in the heart of a mother.
The main character in the whole movie is hope.
Hope never dies; hope is what you are looking for, when everything else is lost.
Hope to have justice, hope to find back your way in life, hope to find forgiveness in the next life and hope to find your loved ones one day in the future.
Hope that helps you to live everyday life, and to go into death.
It gives hope that something can change also in America and Justice in the end prevails, even though leaving a sour taste in the heart of a mother.
The main character in the whole movie is hope.
Hope never dies; hope is what you are looking for, when everything else is lost.
Hope to have justice, hope to find back your way in life, hope to find forgiveness in the next life and hope to find your loved ones one day in the future.
Hope that helps you to live everyday life, and to go into death.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Bonneville
Jessica Lange has to dispose of her dead husband's ashes and wants to fulfil his will to spread them on the places they were together.
But it is either to bring the ashes to her husband's daughter or to lose the house she lives in.
Thus the trip to Santa Barbara to deliver them to his daughter.
This trip is the chance to see how beautiful America is.
Huge mountains, deserts, lakes, beaches.
You see it all. A new romance begins for her friend and the third one wins a big sum of money in Las Vegas.
She (Jessica Lange) ends up without any more ashes to bring to the daughter and her friend has the idea to collect some embers from the beach they were sleeping the last night before Santa Barbara.
As usual a terrible accident happens: the urn falls and all ashes are scattered on the floor revealing an unexpected beer top...
Arvilla doesn't own a house anymore, but still has a place in her friends' heart and home...
Nice movie, where the feelings are worth more than anything.
Ashes go back to ashes…
But it is either to bring the ashes to her husband's daughter or to lose the house she lives in.
Thus the trip to Santa Barbara to deliver them to his daughter.
This trip is the chance to see how beautiful America is.
Huge mountains, deserts, lakes, beaches.
You see it all. A new romance begins for her friend and the third one wins a big sum of money in Las Vegas.
She (Jessica Lange) ends up without any more ashes to bring to the daughter and her friend has the idea to collect some embers from the beach they were sleeping the last night before Santa Barbara.
As usual a terrible accident happens: the urn falls and all ashes are scattered on the floor revealing an unexpected beer top...
Arvilla doesn't own a house anymore, but still has a place in her friends' heart and home...
Nice movie, where the feelings are worth more than anything.
Ashes go back to ashes…
Friday, October 17, 2008
Top Ten Losers in Movies
Losers are everywhere. It’s a scientific fact and the silver screen has had its fair share over the years.
Last week How To Lose Friends and Alienate People was released in the cinemas, putting another loser on the big screen in the form of Simon Pegg’s Sidney Young. In a move that’s totally non-affiliated with that film, we here at hecklerspray have decided to compile together a list of a bunch of losers, that one way or another, have given us greats amount of joy over the years in the cinema.
Maybe it’s because we’re better than them, maybe it’s because it gives us hope or maybe they are just too cool in a world that doesn’t appreciate them, either way, here we go…
10. Ben Stone - Knocked Up
A relatively new loser, Ben Stone managed to be a perfect example of what we love about these guys: Funny, likeable, stupid and completely oblivious to it all. The smartest thing he managed to do was get an incredibly hot chick pregnant and therefore locking her down for life. Well played, old friend.
“If any of us get laid tonight, it’s because of Eric Bana in Munich.” - Ben Stone
9. Harry Dunne and Lloyd Christmas – Dumb and Dumber
Pumpkin haircut, chip on his front tooth, sellotaping a dead bird’s head onto its body and selling it to a blind kid. All of these are reasons why we love Lloyd Christmas, the stupidest idiot in cinema - or should that prestigious title go to Harry Dunne, who drives around in a giant dog car all day long? It’s a close call but these losers manage to screw up every chance they get but they make for one of the funniest modern comedy duos.
“I can’t believe we drove around all day, and there’s not a single job in this town. There is nothing, nada, zip!” - Harry
“Yeah! Unless you wanna work forty hours a week.” - Lloyd
8. Milton Waddams/Peter Gibbons – Office Space
This pair of losers both work in the colourful world of Initech, where each day is exactly the same as the last. Peter has no delusions about his position in life and just wants nothing more than to do nothing everyday for the rest of his life. Milton is worse for the fact he loves his job and tries hard but gets crapped on by everyone around him on a daily basis.
“Every single day of my life has been worse than the day before it. So that means that every single day that you see me, that’s on the worst day of my life.” – Peter Gibbons
“Excuse me, I believe you have my stapler…” – Milton Waddams
7. Shaun – Shaun of the Dead
We’ve all been there, sitting in the pub night after night drinking with our mate wondering why life is so boring. Shaun is like all of us, with nothing ever interesting happening to him day by day. That is until zombies take over the country and Shaun becomes his friends’ last chance for survival with a rifle in one hand and a pack of peanuts in the other. The ultimate English slouch becomes one of its best action heroes.
“You’re the one that’s gone from being a chartered accountant to Charlton Heston!” - Shaun
6. Willie - Bad Santa
Foul mouthed, down on his luck and a drunk. Willie is the perfect candidate for a in-store Santa Claus to entertain your children. When he starts forming an unlikely bond with a young child you would assume life lessons follow. Instead he carries on much the same - cursing, beating children up, punching a midget in the face - but we love him for it.
“Why don’t you wish in one hand, and shit in the other. See which one fills up first.” - Willie
5. Ash Williams – Evil Dead Trilogy
Another loser by day, zombie-killing machine by night; Ash just wanted to get away from it all with his girlfriend. Little did he know the terrors that awaited him in the woods. Everything tries to kill Ash and as he falls into trouble again and again he emerges the coolest geek this side of our dimension. He also looks kick-ass with a chainsaw for a hand.
“Groovy” - Ash
4. Max Fischer – Rushmore
Max is a loser who thinks he’s the ultimate winner. Nothing stands in his way, he gets what he wants and thinks everyone loves him. It turns out though that everyone thinks he’s a spotty wee skidmark at Rushmore Elementary. Charismatic he may be but with a pretentious elitist attitude and flunking every class he is one guy who punches above his weight.
“Oh my God, I wrote a hit play!” – Max Fischer
3. Spinal Tap – This Is Spinal Tap
The world would be a less sexier place if it wasn’t for these rock and roll stars. These guys just can’t seem to get anything right, whether it be replacing their manager, just getting out of a prop onstage or keeping a drummer that doesn’t die. Their Stonehenge re-enactment is the most stupidly brilliant live performance of all time and this trio of David St. Hubbins, Nigel Tufnel and Derek Smalls are cemented in rock history for ever.
“It’s such a fine line between stupid, and clever.” – David St. Hubbins
2. Jay and Silent Bob/ Dante and Randall – Clerks, Clerks 2, The View Askewniverse
These four are bundled together for their respective charms, they are a ying and yang foursome. Jay and Bob stand outside the Quick Stop store, selling weed and dancing like loons everyday all their lives. They’re content with how they live and aren’t going anywhere fast. Dante can’t stand being anywhere near the Quick Stop he’s working at and only has Randall to pass the time with. These guys have the ultimate ‘do nothing and hope something will come my way’ attitude. For their failures all four are totally likeable and relatable in different ways. Long live the Clerks!
“I’m not even supposed to be here today!” – Dante
“That guy’s being awfully forward with that donkey.” - Jay
1. The Dude – The Big Lebowski
Here he is, numeral uno, The Dude. Never before has someone who has exerted so little been forced into doing so much. He was a man who does few things bowling, driving around, the occasional acid flashback. When his life gets pissed on he gets tangled into a dark mystery he has to get to the bottom of, all for the sake of a rug! Rarely losing his cool, he is one guy who can be on our bowling team any day.
“That rug really tied the room together!” – The Dude
The Dude was the only one who could be at the top but what do you make of the list? Anyone you think deserves to be on there who isn’t? Strike back below and let us know.
[story by David Scarborough]
Last week How To Lose Friends and Alienate People was released in the cinemas, putting another loser on the big screen in the form of Simon Pegg’s Sidney Young. In a move that’s totally non-affiliated with that film, we here at hecklerspray have decided to compile together a list of a bunch of losers, that one way or another, have given us greats amount of joy over the years in the cinema.
Maybe it’s because we’re better than them, maybe it’s because it gives us hope or maybe they are just too cool in a world that doesn’t appreciate them, either way, here we go…
10. Ben Stone - Knocked Up
A relatively new loser, Ben Stone managed to be a perfect example of what we love about these guys: Funny, likeable, stupid and completely oblivious to it all. The smartest thing he managed to do was get an incredibly hot chick pregnant and therefore locking her down for life. Well played, old friend.
“If any of us get laid tonight, it’s because of Eric Bana in Munich.” - Ben Stone
9. Harry Dunne and Lloyd Christmas – Dumb and Dumber
Pumpkin haircut, chip on his front tooth, sellotaping a dead bird’s head onto its body and selling it to a blind kid. All of these are reasons why we love Lloyd Christmas, the stupidest idiot in cinema - or should that prestigious title go to Harry Dunne, who drives around in a giant dog car all day long? It’s a close call but these losers manage to screw up every chance they get but they make for one of the funniest modern comedy duos.
“I can’t believe we drove around all day, and there’s not a single job in this town. There is nothing, nada, zip!” - Harry
“Yeah! Unless you wanna work forty hours a week.” - Lloyd
8. Milton Waddams/Peter Gibbons – Office Space
This pair of losers both work in the colourful world of Initech, where each day is exactly the same as the last. Peter has no delusions about his position in life and just wants nothing more than to do nothing everyday for the rest of his life. Milton is worse for the fact he loves his job and tries hard but gets crapped on by everyone around him on a daily basis.
“Every single day of my life has been worse than the day before it. So that means that every single day that you see me, that’s on the worst day of my life.” – Peter Gibbons
“Excuse me, I believe you have my stapler…” – Milton Waddams
7. Shaun – Shaun of the Dead
We’ve all been there, sitting in the pub night after night drinking with our mate wondering why life is so boring. Shaun is like all of us, with nothing ever interesting happening to him day by day. That is until zombies take over the country and Shaun becomes his friends’ last chance for survival with a rifle in one hand and a pack of peanuts in the other. The ultimate English slouch becomes one of its best action heroes.
“You’re the one that’s gone from being a chartered accountant to Charlton Heston!” - Shaun
6. Willie - Bad Santa
Foul mouthed, down on his luck and a drunk. Willie is the perfect candidate for a in-store Santa Claus to entertain your children. When he starts forming an unlikely bond with a young child you would assume life lessons follow. Instead he carries on much the same - cursing, beating children up, punching a midget in the face - but we love him for it.
“Why don’t you wish in one hand, and shit in the other. See which one fills up first.” - Willie
5. Ash Williams – Evil Dead Trilogy
Another loser by day, zombie-killing machine by night; Ash just wanted to get away from it all with his girlfriend. Little did he know the terrors that awaited him in the woods. Everything tries to kill Ash and as he falls into trouble again and again he emerges the coolest geek this side of our dimension. He also looks kick-ass with a chainsaw for a hand.
“Groovy” - Ash
4. Max Fischer – Rushmore
Max is a loser who thinks he’s the ultimate winner. Nothing stands in his way, he gets what he wants and thinks everyone loves him. It turns out though that everyone thinks he’s a spotty wee skidmark at Rushmore Elementary. Charismatic he may be but with a pretentious elitist attitude and flunking every class he is one guy who punches above his weight.
“Oh my God, I wrote a hit play!” – Max Fischer
3. Spinal Tap – This Is Spinal Tap
The world would be a less sexier place if it wasn’t for these rock and roll stars. These guys just can’t seem to get anything right, whether it be replacing their manager, just getting out of a prop onstage or keeping a drummer that doesn’t die. Their Stonehenge re-enactment is the most stupidly brilliant live performance of all time and this trio of David St. Hubbins, Nigel Tufnel and Derek Smalls are cemented in rock history for ever.
“It’s such a fine line between stupid, and clever.” – David St. Hubbins
2. Jay and Silent Bob/ Dante and Randall – Clerks, Clerks 2, The View Askewniverse
These four are bundled together for their respective charms, they are a ying and yang foursome. Jay and Bob stand outside the Quick Stop store, selling weed and dancing like loons everyday all their lives. They’re content with how they live and aren’t going anywhere fast. Dante can’t stand being anywhere near the Quick Stop he’s working at and only has Randall to pass the time with. These guys have the ultimate ‘do nothing and hope something will come my way’ attitude. For their failures all four are totally likeable and relatable in different ways. Long live the Clerks!
“I’m not even supposed to be here today!” – Dante
“That guy’s being awfully forward with that donkey.” - Jay
1. The Dude – The Big Lebowski
Here he is, numeral uno, The Dude. Never before has someone who has exerted so little been forced into doing so much. He was a man who does few things bowling, driving around, the occasional acid flashback. When his life gets pissed on he gets tangled into a dark mystery he has to get to the bottom of, all for the sake of a rug! Rarely losing his cool, he is one guy who can be on our bowling team any day.
“That rug really tied the room together!” – The Dude
The Dude was the only one who could be at the top but what do you make of the list? Anyone you think deserves to be on there who isn’t? Strike back below and let us know.
[story by David Scarborough]
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