Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Tuesday's With Movies: 9/25/12
Thursday, September 20, 2012
HOT: Cast Away
This was a trailblazer type of film - at least from what I can remember. This was the first real big-budget film that showcased an individual for nearly an entire movie. Since then we have had a few more of these type of films, like Buried and 127 Hours.
So, Tom Hanks stars as Chuck Noland in Cast Away. Noland is a systems analyst for FedEx and wants the company to improve its ability to ship faster.
He is in a relationship with Kelly Frears (Helen Hunt) and the two are hoping to get married, but Noland's busy job always tends to get in the way. As they are having Christmas with her family, Noland is called to make another trip and he must leave again.
On the flight, something appears to go wrong with the plane during a thunderstorm and Noland is the lone survivor. He washes up on an inhabited island with no way of contacting the outside world and call for help.
The rest of the film, for the most part, is Noland spending time on this island alone. As he's on the island, FedEx packages that the plane was carrying begin to wash up on shore and Noland collects them, and eventually opens them to find uses for them.
Of course, the best of those packages proves to be a volleyball that eventually becomes Noland's only friend on the island. In a strange way having Wilson was a way for Noland to stay sane (which is odd to say) as he was able to talk to him and bounce ideas off of him.
Noland ends up going from a man that had no true hunter/camping skills to an expert after spending around four years on the island.
I, of course, loved this film. When I first heard that Hanks would spend the entire movie on an island alone, I thought there was no way they could make that interesting. But, they totally did - and a lot of that has to do with Hanks' performance and the inclusion of a volleyball.
In fact, I feel the island portion of the film is far superior than the portion of the film where Hanks is interacting with the other humans. That is when the film seemed to get a bit more boring - which is odd.
.jpg)
He is in a relationship with Kelly Frears (Helen Hunt) and the two are hoping to get married, but Noland's busy job always tends to get in the way. As they are having Christmas with her family, Noland is called to make another trip and he must leave again.
On the flight, something appears to go wrong with the plane during a thunderstorm and Noland is the lone survivor. He washes up on an inhabited island with no way of contacting the outside world and call for help.
The rest of the film, for the most part, is Noland spending time on this island alone. As he's on the island, FedEx packages that the plane was carrying begin to wash up on shore and Noland collects them, and eventually opens them to find uses for them.
Of course, the best of those packages proves to be a volleyball that eventually becomes Noland's only friend on the island. In a strange way having Wilson was a way for Noland to stay sane (which is odd to say) as he was able to talk to him and bounce ideas off of him.
Noland ends up going from a man that had no true hunter/camping skills to an expert after spending around four years on the island.
I, of course, loved this film. When I first heard that Hanks would spend the entire movie on an island alone, I thought there was no way they could make that interesting. But, they totally did - and a lot of that has to do with Hanks' performance and the inclusion of a volleyball.
In fact, I feel the island portion of the film is far superior than the portion of the film where Hanks is interacting with the other humans. That is when the film seemed to get a bit more boring - which is odd.
Grade:
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
50x3: Sunshine Cleaning (A-1)
The first movie that was selected for me came from Aimee's list. A movie I had been wanting to see for awhile now and finally got a chance to see.
Sunshine Cleaning stars two ladies that I have really started to enjoy, Amy Adams as Rose and Emily Blunt as Norah.
The pair are both sisters in what appears to be a small town. Rose was a popular high school student, the head cheerleader who was dating the popular bot in school.
Her present, however, is not as spectacular as her past. Rose is struggling to make ends meet as a cleaner with a son, Oscar (Jason Spevack). She is also still pretty much in love with her former boyfriend from high school, Mac (Steve Zahn), who just happens to be married with a daughter.
But, they still seem to plan weekly meetings at a local motel.
Rose and Norah lost their mother at an early age when she took her own life. Rose, the elder sister, sort of began the motherly role towards Norah. Especially since their father, Joe (Alan Arkin), though loving is also struggling with odd things he is looking to sell to get rich quick.
Mac, who is a cop, over hears how much a crime scene cleanup crew charges and passes that on to Rose. Rose has been looking to become a real-estate agent, but it is taking much longer than she is expecting. Once Oscar is kicked out of school and she must send him to a private school, she takes Mac's plan and begins cleaning up crime scenes with her sister.
While shopping for supplies she meets Winston (Clifton Collins Jr.), who becomes a bit of a mentor to her as she really has no idea what she is doing, or what she needs to have to complete these jobs.
Though it is buried throughout, the underlying theme of the film is family. Rose has also felt she needs to take care of her sister, especially after their mother's death. Norah, who is still hurting from her mother's death, has some issues that she begins to work through - and realizes she needs to step out on her own away from Rose.
Finally, Rose begins to realize that she needs to stop living in the past and begin planning for her future, which means leaving everything else behind from her past.
Very enjoyable film. As I said, Adams and Blunt are very talented and I have really started to enjoy their work from the new things I have seen. I also love how well the English Blunt is able to speak Americanized - I just think it is so cool.
Plus another subtle yet solid performance from Collins Jr. He has been acting for a good while now, but I didn't become really aware of him until Star Trek. And here he played off Adams very well.
A good start to the new list, looking forward to the rest.
.jpg)
The pair are both sisters in what appears to be a small town. Rose was a popular high school student, the head cheerleader who was dating the popular bot in school.
Her present, however, is not as spectacular as her past. Rose is struggling to make ends meet as a cleaner with a son, Oscar (Jason Spevack). She is also still pretty much in love with her former boyfriend from high school, Mac (Steve Zahn), who just happens to be married with a daughter.
But, they still seem to plan weekly meetings at a local motel.
Rose and Norah lost their mother at an early age when she took her own life. Rose, the elder sister, sort of began the motherly role towards Norah. Especially since their father, Joe (Alan Arkin), though loving is also struggling with odd things he is looking to sell to get rich quick.
Mac, who is a cop, over hears how much a crime scene cleanup crew charges and passes that on to Rose. Rose has been looking to become a real-estate agent, but it is taking much longer than she is expecting. Once Oscar is kicked out of school and she must send him to a private school, she takes Mac's plan and begins cleaning up crime scenes with her sister.
While shopping for supplies she meets Winston (Clifton Collins Jr.), who becomes a bit of a mentor to her as she really has no idea what she is doing, or what she needs to have to complete these jobs.
Though it is buried throughout, the underlying theme of the film is family. Rose has also felt she needs to take care of her sister, especially after their mother's death. Norah, who is still hurting from her mother's death, has some issues that she begins to work through - and realizes she needs to step out on her own away from Rose.
Finally, Rose begins to realize that she needs to stop living in the past and begin planning for her future, which means leaving everything else behind from her past.
Very enjoyable film. As I said, Adams and Blunt are very talented and I have really started to enjoy their work from the new things I have seen. I also love how well the English Blunt is able to speak Americanized - I just think it is so cool.
Plus another subtle yet solid performance from Collins Jr. He has been acting for a good while now, but I didn't become really aware of him until Star Trek. And here he played off Adams very well.
A good start to the new list, looking forward to the rest.
Grade:
50x3: The List (Again)
OK.
Well, I have finally finished the second 50 list - something that took way too long. Now, I am ready to take on number three, but I will do my absolute best to stay up-to-date on reviews and stick with watching the films.
I posted my third list awhile ago, thinking it wouldn't be long before I began it. But, it was. So, I want to post a bit of a reminder.
My third 50 list I went to four different friends - and my wife - to make me a list of 10 movies each that either they enjoy or they think I should check out (or both). It took some time (not as long as me finishing my last list, thankfully) and some back-and-forth, but I think everyone has helped make this new 50 list outstanding.
In my old lists I would print out a sheet with all 50 on there and select a film to watch based on how I was feeling that night, or select a film that fit into my time frame. This time around, I have put the 10 films of each person into their own cup and I will select a movie out of the cup to watch. I will take turns for each cup so that I watch one film for each person in each five that I watch - until I get through them all (hopefully in a timely manner.
So, here are the films I will be checking out:
Aimee's List
A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)
Far and Away (1992)
Freeway (1996)
Fried Green Tomatoes (1991)
Legend (1985)
Mad Max (1979)
Mermaids (1990)
Run Lola Run (1998)
Sunshine Cleaning (2008)
The Piano (1993)
Matt's List
About a Boy (2002)
Big Trouble in Little China (1986)
Brazil (1985)
Brick (2005)
Fearless (1993)
Les Miserables (1998)
Son of Rambow (2007)
Stranger Than Fiction (2006)
Three O'Clock High (1987)
What's Eating Gilbert Grape? (1993)
Erika's List
Elizabethtown (2005)
Ella Enchanted (2004)
Marley & Me (2008)
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005)
P.S. I Love You (2007)
Rent (2005)
The Crow (1994)
The Help (2011)
The Notebook (2004)
Waitress (2007)
Jessica's List
A Scanner Darkly (2006)
Feast of Love (2007)
Flakes (2007)
Heavenly Creatures (1994)
Kramer vs. Kramer (1979)
Melancholia (2011)
Out of Africa (1985)
Peacock (2010)
Say Anything (1989)
Sense and Sensibility (1995)
Oscar's List
28 Days Later (2002)
Cloverfield (2008)
Dirty Dozen (1967)
Girl w/ the Dragon Tattoo (2011)
Killing Fields (1984)
Lost Boys (1987)
Lost Highway (1997)
Moon (2009)
Stay (2005)
Timecrimes (2007)
Well, I have finally finished the second 50 list - something that took way too long. Now, I am ready to take on number three, but I will do my absolute best to stay up-to-date on reviews and stick with watching the films.
I posted my third list awhile ago, thinking it wouldn't be long before I began it. But, it was. So, I want to post a bit of a reminder.
My third 50 list I went to four different friends - and my wife - to make me a list of 10 movies each that either they enjoy or they think I should check out (or both). It took some time (not as long as me finishing my last list, thankfully) and some back-and-forth, but I think everyone has helped make this new 50 list outstanding.
In my old lists I would print out a sheet with all 50 on there and select a film to watch based on how I was feeling that night, or select a film that fit into my time frame. This time around, I have put the 10 films of each person into their own cup and I will select a movie out of the cup to watch. I will take turns for each cup so that I watch one film for each person in each five that I watch - until I get through them all (hopefully in a timely manner.
So, here are the films I will be checking out:
Aimee's List
A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)
Far and Away (1992)
Freeway (1996)
Fried Green Tomatoes (1991)
Legend (1985)
Mad Max (1979)
Mermaids (1990)
Run Lola Run (1998)
Sunshine Cleaning (2008)
The Piano (1993)
Matt's List
About a Boy (2002)
Big Trouble in Little China (1986)
Brazil (1985)
Brick (2005)
Fearless (1993)
Les Miserables (1998)
Son of Rambow (2007)
Stranger Than Fiction (2006)
Three O'Clock High (1987)
What's Eating Gilbert Grape? (1993)
Erika's List
Elizabethtown (2005)
Ella Enchanted (2004)
Marley & Me (2008)
Memoirs of a Geisha (2005)
P.S. I Love You (2007)
Rent (2005)
The Crow (1994)
The Help (2011)
The Notebook (2004)
Waitress (2007)
Jessica's List
A Scanner Darkly (2006)
Feast of Love (2007)
Flakes (2007)
Heavenly Creatures (1994)
Kramer vs. Kramer (1979)
Melancholia (2011)
Out of Africa (1985)
Peacock (2010)
Say Anything (1989)
Sense and Sensibility (1995)
Oscar's List
28 Days Later (2002)
Cloverfield (2008)
Dirty Dozen (1967)
Girl w/ the Dragon Tattoo (2011)
Killing Fields (1984)
Lost Boys (1987)
Lost Highway (1997)
Moon (2009)
Stay (2005)
Timecrimes (2007)
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Quick Shots 17
Starring: Daniel Craig, Paul Dano, Sam Rockwell, Adam Beach, Clancy Brown, Noah Ringer, Keith Carradine, Olivia Wilde, Harrison Ford.
Brief Synopsis: A man (Craig) wakes up in the middle of the desert with a strange object on his arm and a little bit of amnesia. He rides his way in to a local town and Ella Swenson (Wilde) becomes enamored with him for some reason. Local sheriff, John Taggart (Carradine), sees that the man is actually Jake Lonergan and is wanted - so he arrests him. Then, the aliens come.
Opinion: When I first saw this trailer I was immediately in. A movie with cowboys and aliens, plus James Bond and Indiana Jones. Of course I am in. But, I did what I tell myself never to do - listen to other people's reviews. I finally ended up watching it - and I actually enjoyed it. The one 'sort of' twist I saw coming a mile away, but the rest of the film was interesting and action packed.
Grade:
.jpg)
Starring: Jason Biggs, Alyson Hannigan, Chris Klein, Thomas Ian Nicholas, Tara Reid, Seann William Scott, Mena Suvari, Eddie Kaye Thomas, John Cho, Eugene Levy.
Brief Synopsis: It's been 13 years since the gang graduated from high school, and of course they never planned a reunion. So, a 13-year reunion is planned and they all head back to the hometown to meet up. Jim (Biggs) and Michelle (Hannigan) are married with a child, but their love life is now lacking. Kevin (Nicholas) is married, but is now a house husband. Oz (Klein) is a well-known sports castor, but not happy with his girlfriend. Stiffler (Scott) is working as an errand boy and still hasn't really grown up, while Finch (Thomas) is apparently living it up all over the world.
Opinion: As I believe I have said before, these are my people. This gang graduated in '99 the same year that I graduated. American Pie was one of the funniest movies I had seen at the time, and I have enjoyed each film since. Here, they get the entire gang back together again and it was hilarious again. Plus, they brought back pretty much everyone - even if they had smaller roles in the movie.
Grade:
Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Danny McBride, Aziz Ansari, Nick Swardson, Dilshad Vadsaria, Michael Pena, Fred Ward.
Brief Synopsis: Dwayne (McBride) lives with his father (Ward), who has a bunch of money and Dwayne wants to get his hands on it. He gets an idea to hire someone to kill his father so he can use the money to start an 'adult' tanning salon. To kill his father, he must come up with 100 thousand dollars - so him and his friend Travis (Swardson) strap a bomb to a stoner pizza delivery guy, Nick (Eisenberg) and force him to rob a bank for them.
Opinion: This wasn't as bad as I was expecting. People were saying this was horrible, but I have seen so many films worse than this one. There were some pretty funny parts in the film, and it was sort of interesting as well. Sure, it probably could have been both funnier and more interesting, but it was a decent watch.
Grade:
.jpg)
Starring: James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Kevin Bacon, Rose Byrne, Jennifer Lawrence, January Jones, Oliver Platt, Nicholas Hoult.
Brief Synopsis: Charles Xavier (McAvoy) and Erik Lehnsherr (Fassbender) come together to take down Sebastian Shaw (Bacon), who plans to take over the world. Erik has personal issues with Shaw, as he was once a Nazi and killed his mother. Xavier is first just excited to find more people like him - and wants to keep them and the humans at peace so they can all mix well together.
Opinion: I enjoyed the first X-Men trilogy, so I knew I was going to enjoy this one. It had sort of a Star Trek vibe to it at the start - as we get some background history on both Xavier and Erik (much like Kirk and Spock). McAvoy and Fassbender were perfect as the main duo - and Lawrence is just a talented actress. Plus, I have said we need more Bacon in this world - and we get it here.
Grade:
.jpg)
Title: Scream 4.Starring: Neve Campbell, David Arquette, Courteney Cox, Emma Roberts, Hayden Panettiere, Marielle Jaffe, Alison Brie, Marley Shelton, Erik Knudsen, Rory Culkin, Adam Brody, Anthony Anderson.
Brief Synopsis: It's been 10 years since Sidney Prescott (Campbell) has had to deal with the ghostface killer. She has finally picked herself up and is now promoting her book about how she has gotten through her ordeal - and her final stop is Woodsboro. And, just like in the past, Sidney just brings bad luck with her as ghostface returns to stalk the locals - and Sidney, Dewey (Arquette) and Gale (Cox) are at the center of it again.
Opinion: Scream is one of the lone 'horror' franchises that I really got into. Not even sure when I watched the first one, but I have enjoyed them all. And, this was a nice return to the roots - but by adding some of the younger generation. Only thing missing, in my opinion, was the amount of humor that Jamie Kennedy was able to bring to the original three films.
Grade:
Tuesday's With Movies: 9/18/12
Monday, September 17, 2012
50x2: Conclusion
Let me first start this by saying - I suck.
After such a seamless first 50 list that took no time at all, I took forever watching these second set of 50 films. Now, of course there were some reasons behind why it took so long, but not why it took this long.
The first post on this second list was made on August 11, 2011. The final post on this list was posted this morning. That is an entire year to sit down and watch 50 movies then post about what I thought. That is insane.
My main conclusion for why this took so long is basically laziness on my part. I watched a ton of these movies without sitting down to write the review. And then I found myself playing catch up, and the catch up took too long. Which basically made me stop watching the films until I did catch up.
Not this time. I am promising to watch a film and write a review as soon as possible after finishing it. My main reason for doing these lists is to get myself to watch films that I should be watching, but for some reason continue to put off.
Some of the films are exactly what I think they are going to be, and some of them surprise - and this works in both ways. Some films I watched surprised me that I liked them so much, while others surprised me that I just didn't enjoy it as much as I should have.
Anyway, to wrap up the 50 films list, volume two - here are my 10 favorite characters from the movies I watched and the top 10 films. Enjoy! 50 list, volume three coming soon.
After such a seamless first 50 list that took no time at all, I took forever watching these second set of 50 films. Now, of course there were some reasons behind why it took so long, but not why it took this long.
The first post on this second list was made on August 11, 2011. The final post on this list was posted this morning. That is an entire year to sit down and watch 50 movies then post about what I thought. That is insane.
My main conclusion for why this took so long is basically laziness on my part. I watched a ton of these movies without sitting down to write the review. And then I found myself playing catch up, and the catch up took too long. Which basically made me stop watching the films until I did catch up.
Not this time. I am promising to watch a film and write a review as soon as possible after finishing it. My main reason for doing these lists is to get myself to watch films that I should be watching, but for some reason continue to put off.
Some of the films are exactly what I think they are going to be, and some of them surprise - and this works in both ways. Some films I watched surprised me that I liked them so much, while others surprised me that I just didn't enjoy it as much as I should have.
Anyway, to wrap up the 50 films list, volume two - here are my 10 favorite characters from the movies I watched and the top 10 films. Enjoy! 50 list, volume three coming soon.
Top 10 Characters
10) Tom Stall (Viggo Mortensen)
Mortensen stars as Tom Stall in A History of Violence. Stall is a local diner operator with a wife and two kids. One evening he takes out a few diner thieves and becomes an over night hero. But, he gets discovered on television and it turns out Stall is not who he says he is.
9) Irwin 'Fletch' Fletcher (Chevy Chase)
Almost everyone knows this film, but for some reason I never actually sat down to watch the movie. Chase stars as the titular Fletch, a columnist for a newspaper, who gets caught up in a bit of an issue with a man who wants Fletch to kill him.
8) Sir James Matthew Barie (Johnny Depp)
Depp stars as Barie, the man behind the magical Peter Pan, in Finding Neverland. This film shows Barie befriending a family and some children as he pens his most memorable book.
7) Aron Ralston (James Franco)
The first of two characters on this list that pretty much spend the entire film on the screen alone. Franco stars as Alston in 127 Hours, a film based on a true story where a mountain hiker falls down in between a pair of rocks and gets caught for days.
6) Floyd (Brad Pitt)
Pitt, who plays a bit of a stoner named Floyd in True Romance, doesn't have much screen time at all, but his presence is definitely felt. His character is pretty hilarious and he mistakenly tells the bad guys where to go to setup the final showdown.
5) Tom Hansen (Joseph Gordon-Levitt)
Like so many others I have sort of developed a non-sexual man crush on Gordon-Levitt. This man can act, and I have loved so many of his films of late. Here he stars as Tom Hansen in (500) Days of Summer, a man that falls in love but with a woman that doesn't seem to have the ability to love in return.
4) Paul Conroy (Ryan Reynolds)
I will make the confession that I didn't think Reynolds had the ability to carry a film alone - I hardly felt Tom Hanks could do it. But, I was wrong. Reynolds plays Conroy in Buried, a film where he gets buried alive with only a few things available to him to help him get rescued.
3) Dicky Eklund (Christian Bale)
I could have picked a lot of characters from this film. Bale gets most of the credit in The Fighter as the struggling Eklund, but Mark Wahlberg and Amy Adams were just as good in this film. But, I think Bale played most against cast so he gets the edge for me.
2) Lars Lindstrom (Ryan Gosling)
This is sort of where I come to the realization that Gosling is going to be a talented actor for a very long time. He stars as Lars in Lars and the Real Girl, a man that had a difficult upbringing and has the inability to connect with others - so he bonds with a sex doll instead.
1) Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson)
Woody Harrelson just has this ability to stand out, at least to me. In a film a bit outside my comfort zone that I really loved - Harrelson had a lot to do with it. He was so badass and hilarious in this film. He just loves killing zombies, but all he really wants is a Twinkie.
Top 10 Films
10) Point Break
9) City of God
8) All the President's Men
7) The Town
6) Zombieland
5) (500) Days of Summer
4) Buried
3) The Fighter
2) Mystic River
1) Lars and the Real Girl
50/50x2: Blade Runner
When I get these 50 lists compiled I usually take a glance and try to leave at least one film for the very last that I think will knock my socks off.
During the first 50 list I definitely guessed correctly with Inglourious Basterds. On this list, I picked a pretty fair film, but not one that really blew me away.
Blade Runner is a film set in the 'not-so' distant future. The film was made in 1982 and the future is the year 2019. So, seeing as it is now 2012 and we are nowhere near the future this film is talking about, it was a little hard to believe. (sort of like Back to the Future II).
Anyway, in this future the human race has created replicants, or a replica for humans, that are much stronger than humans but usually have a small lifespan of about four years. These replicants have been placed on another planet away from Earth, but occasionally a few of them make it to the planet. When this happens, the police send out blade runners to track them down and retire them (or kill them).
One of the best blade runners, Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford), is now retired but as six replicants high jack a spaceship and make it to Earth, police chief Bryant (M. Emmet Walsh) encourages him to go after the four that remain - Pris (Daryl Hannah), Leon (Brion James), Zhora (Joanna Cassidy) and their leader Roy (Rutger Hauer).
Deckard goes to the main who creates these replicants, Dr. Eldon Tyrell (Joe Turkel), to get more information and discovers that his assistant Rachael (Sean Young) is a new breed of replicant - one that does not she is because of memories inserted into her.
Once Bryant and Deckard's 'partner' Gaff (Edward James Olmos) finds out about Rachael - she is added to Deckard's list to retire - despite the fact that Deckard just may have feelings for her.
Would this film have been better in 1982? I can pretty much guarantee it. The special effects would have been amazing back then and 2019 was so far away at the time that this future may have been plausible.
Now, not so much. But, I still enjoyed the film. It just wasn't spectacular to me, like it may have been in the '80s - and like I have heard it should have been from many others.
Ford was, as usual, spectacular. I have heard the name Sean Young a ton, but honestly I don't really know her from much of anything except Ace Ventura, but she was also good as Rachael. Another standout to me was William Sanderson, who played J.F. Sebastian, a person that worked on the replicants that Pris locates to get close to Tyrell.
Finally, Hannah was pretty good as Pris, but her screen time was rather slim - Hauer, who I don't believe I had ever seen, was pretty over the top as the main bad guy. But, from an '80s film that is what we come to expect.
.jpg)
During the first 50 list I definitely guessed correctly with Inglourious Basterds. On this list, I picked a pretty fair film, but not one that really blew me away.
Anyway, in this future the human race has created replicants, or a replica for humans, that are much stronger than humans but usually have a small lifespan of about four years. These replicants have been placed on another planet away from Earth, but occasionally a few of them make it to the planet. When this happens, the police send out blade runners to track them down and retire them (or kill them).
One of the best blade runners, Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford), is now retired but as six replicants high jack a spaceship and make it to Earth, police chief Bryant (M. Emmet Walsh) encourages him to go after the four that remain - Pris (Daryl Hannah), Leon (Brion James), Zhora (Joanna Cassidy) and their leader Roy (Rutger Hauer).
Deckard goes to the main who creates these replicants, Dr. Eldon Tyrell (Joe Turkel), to get more information and discovers that his assistant Rachael (Sean Young) is a new breed of replicant - one that does not she is because of memories inserted into her.
Once Bryant and Deckard's 'partner' Gaff (Edward James Olmos) finds out about Rachael - she is added to Deckard's list to retire - despite the fact that Deckard just may have feelings for her.
Would this film have been better in 1982? I can pretty much guarantee it. The special effects would have been amazing back then and 2019 was so far away at the time that this future may have been plausible.
Now, not so much. But, I still enjoyed the film. It just wasn't spectacular to me, like it may have been in the '80s - and like I have heard it should have been from many others.
Ford was, as usual, spectacular. I have heard the name Sean Young a ton, but honestly I don't really know her from much of anything except Ace Ventura, but she was also good as Rachael. Another standout to me was William Sanderson, who played J.F. Sebastian, a person that worked on the replicants that Pris locates to get close to Tyrell.
Finally, Hannah was pretty good as Pris, but her screen time was rather slim - Hauer, who I don't believe I had ever seen, was pretty over the top as the main bad guy. But, from an '80s film that is what we come to expect.
Grade:
Friday, September 14, 2012
49/50x2: City of God
For those that know me at all, watching a film with subtitles is a bit out of my comfort zone. I am not that huge of fan of reading books, which is why I definitely enjoy watching a film over reading a book. I like to be entertained - but every so often I do take that step out of my comfort zone.
A friend of mine has been telling me how good City of God is, so I tossed it on my list so that I would force myself to watch it. And, I waited until pretty much the very end to finally throw it.
And, I actually enjoyed it. In fact, the film itself was pretty amazing to watch. Of course, my only complaint is that I had to read what was going on. I feel if I could have just watched and not had to keep looking down to see what was being said I would have liked it even more. I thought afterwards that perhaps a dubbed version would have worked - except I cannot stand when words don't match with mouths, so I am not sure if this issue could have been fixed.
The film starts with a little party being thrown by one of the crime lords of the City of God (which is located in Brazil). One of the live chickens escapes, so everyone chases after it - and the group ends up face-to-face with the police, and in the middle is a teenager with camera.
The film then jumps back a handful of years to see how they got to this point. We learn that the kid with the camera is Rocket (Alexandre Rodrigues), a boy that is more into school, hanging out with his friends and eventually photography than becoming a member of one of the local gangs - or as they call it hoodlums.
At the start of this mess, a trio of hoods named Shaggy (Jonathan Haagensen), Clipper (Jefechander Suplino) and Goose (Renato de Souza) like to stickup delivery men in their slums, and do other non-violent crimes. Goose also happens to be Rocket's brother.
One afternoon the trio lets a young kid named Li'l Ze' (Leandro Firmino) to join them on a robbery at a local Motel. Li'l Ze' wants to be a hoodlum really bad, but unlike the other trio he has a bit of a taste for blood.
As we begin to flash forward, Li'l Ze' and his friend Benny (Phellipe Haagensen) start to take over the City of God - eventually they both become power hungry and end up taking out all of the local drug dealers, except Carrot (Matheus Nachtergaele) who is friends with Benny.
Soon, though, even having Carrot out there becomes too much for Li'l Ze' and he wants to take him out as well. But, with Benny by his side talking sense into him he stays under control. Benny even convinces him to find a girl to take up some of his time.
At a local party, Li'l Ze' approaches a girl who has caught his eye - but she is apparently with Knockout Ned (Seu Jorge). Instead of just accepting this, Li'l Ze' takes it as a slap in the face and tries to embarrass Ned by stripping him of his clothes. While this is happening and the party begins to use a strobe light - a member of Carrot's gang tries to take out Li'l Ze', but accidentally kills Benny instead.
With Benny no longer by Li'l Ze's side - the war will officially begin. Li'l Ze' still feeling wronged by Ned and his girlfriend - knocks Ned out and rapes his girlfriend. Thinking later that he should have killed Ned, he goes back to his house and eventually kills Ned's brother and uncle.
Ned joins Carrot's gang and begins to sign up people for the inevitable war that would come between the two sides.
What does Rocket have to do with any of this? Well, he always seems to find himself in the middle of everything. He gets himself a job as a delivery boy at the local paper and befriends one of the guys in the lab and the photographer. Li'l Ze' even asks him to take photos of him and his gang - as he gets them developed a woman finds them and publishes them in the paper. Fearing for his life, he stays away from Li'l Ze' and the slums - not knowing that Li'l Ze' actually loves the photo.
Sneaking around the slums during the day to get photos for the paper, Rocket finds himself in the middle of Li'l Ze's game and the police. Which is where the film begins.
As I said, a great film even if I had to read what was going on. I can't really comment on the acting much because I don't know the language - but from what I could tell they all did very well. I really enjoyed the action and the relationships formed throughout the film. Even a big time crime lord has a soft spot for his best friend.
.jpg)
I shouldn't need to post this - reviews will have some spoilers.
And, I actually enjoyed it. In fact, the film itself was pretty amazing to watch. Of course, my only complaint is that I had to read what was going on. I feel if I could have just watched and not had to keep looking down to see what was being said I would have liked it even more. I thought afterwards that perhaps a dubbed version would have worked - except I cannot stand when words don't match with mouths, so I am not sure if this issue could have been fixed.
The film starts with a little party being thrown by one of the crime lords of the City of God (which is located in Brazil). One of the live chickens escapes, so everyone chases after it - and the group ends up face-to-face with the police, and in the middle is a teenager with camera.
The film then jumps back a handful of years to see how they got to this point. We learn that the kid with the camera is Rocket (Alexandre Rodrigues), a boy that is more into school, hanging out with his friends and eventually photography than becoming a member of one of the local gangs - or as they call it hoodlums.
At the start of this mess, a trio of hoods named Shaggy (Jonathan Haagensen), Clipper (Jefechander Suplino) and Goose (Renato de Souza) like to stickup delivery men in their slums, and do other non-violent crimes. Goose also happens to be Rocket's brother.
One afternoon the trio lets a young kid named Li'l Ze' (Leandro Firmino) to join them on a robbery at a local Motel. Li'l Ze' wants to be a hoodlum really bad, but unlike the other trio he has a bit of a taste for blood.
As we begin to flash forward, Li'l Ze' and his friend Benny (Phellipe Haagensen) start to take over the City of God - eventually they both become power hungry and end up taking out all of the local drug dealers, except Carrot (Matheus Nachtergaele) who is friends with Benny.
Soon, though, even having Carrot out there becomes too much for Li'l Ze' and he wants to take him out as well. But, with Benny by his side talking sense into him he stays under control. Benny even convinces him to find a girl to take up some of his time.
At a local party, Li'l Ze' approaches a girl who has caught his eye - but she is apparently with Knockout Ned (Seu Jorge). Instead of just accepting this, Li'l Ze' takes it as a slap in the face and tries to embarrass Ned by stripping him of his clothes. While this is happening and the party begins to use a strobe light - a member of Carrot's gang tries to take out Li'l Ze', but accidentally kills Benny instead.
With Benny no longer by Li'l Ze's side - the war will officially begin. Li'l Ze' still feeling wronged by Ned and his girlfriend - knocks Ned out and rapes his girlfriend. Thinking later that he should have killed Ned, he goes back to his house and eventually kills Ned's brother and uncle.
Ned joins Carrot's gang and begins to sign up people for the inevitable war that would come between the two sides.
What does Rocket have to do with any of this? Well, he always seems to find himself in the middle of everything. He gets himself a job as a delivery boy at the local paper and befriends one of the guys in the lab and the photographer. Li'l Ze' even asks him to take photos of him and his gang - as he gets them developed a woman finds them and publishes them in the paper. Fearing for his life, he stays away from Li'l Ze' and the slums - not knowing that Li'l Ze' actually loves the photo.
Sneaking around the slums during the day to get photos for the paper, Rocket finds himself in the middle of Li'l Ze's game and the police. Which is where the film begins.
As I said, a great film even if I had to read what was going on. I can't really comment on the acting much because I don't know the language - but from what I could tell they all did very well. I really enjoyed the action and the relationships formed throughout the film. Even a big time crime lord has a soft spot for his best friend.
Grade:
48/50x2: Slumdog Millionaire
I honestly had no idea what this movie would eventually be about, but I have to admit the way that they put this movie together was definitely interesting and original.
Jamal (Dev Patel) is a contestant on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? in the movie Slumdog Millionaire. This isn't the Regis Philbin, now Meredith Vieira, one that we are used to, but one hosted by Prem (Anil Kapoor) in Mumbai, India.
Jamal (who is also played by a number of different kids in flashbacks) uses what he has learned growing up in the Juhu slum and touring the country on trains with his brother, Salim (Madhur Mittal), to advance pretty far on the show - so much so that people begin to believe he is cheating.
The film uses questions that Prem asks Jamal on the game show to flashback to different portions of Jamal's life, which I felt was very unique and interesting.
A third child, Latika (Freida Pinto) is introduced during the Bombay Riots, which is where Jamal and Salim lose there mother. They join a small group of other kids without parents, who are trained by Maman (Ankur Vikal) to become beggars. Soon, the children learn that Maman is blinding children to help them in the begging and the three take off towards the train station. Jamal and Salim are able to escape, but Latika is unable to make it on the train and gets scooped back up by Maman.
This sticks with Jamal for years, and soon he talks Salim into going back and rescuing her from Maman. It is here that Salim makes a turn into a gangster lifestyle - using a gun for the first time, and eventually kicking Jamal out a hotel room so he could take Latika's virginity.
Jamal has always been in love with Latika, and he tries to do everything he can to get her out of the lifestyle that she is currently stuck in.
During a break in the bathroom, Prem finds out that Jamal does not know the answer to a question - so he writes the answer on the bathroom mirror. Jamal doesn't trust the answer, and after using his 50/50, he selects the opposite answer, which proves to be correct. Prem then has him arrested for cheating - and he spends the night in jail talking to the police and explaining how he knew the answers to the questions.
Obviously, these are a lot of knew actors for me. The only one I have seen before is Patel - and that is because he is now on the show Newsroom. But, I thought the acting was very good. Even the children gave great performances.
As I said, I have heard great things about this movie - and I really enjoyed it. The thing I liked the most is this unique way of storytelling. Flashbacks are used a ton in movies, but this was a very interesting way to use this game show in order to tell the back story.
.jpg)
Jamal (who is also played by a number of different kids in flashbacks) uses what he has learned growing up in the Juhu slum and touring the country on trains with his brother, Salim (Madhur Mittal), to advance pretty far on the show - so much so that people begin to believe he is cheating.
The film uses questions that Prem asks Jamal on the game show to flashback to different portions of Jamal's life, which I felt was very unique and interesting.
A third child, Latika (Freida Pinto) is introduced during the Bombay Riots, which is where Jamal and Salim lose there mother. They join a small group of other kids without parents, who are trained by Maman (Ankur Vikal) to become beggars. Soon, the children learn that Maman is blinding children to help them in the begging and the three take off towards the train station. Jamal and Salim are able to escape, but Latika is unable to make it on the train and gets scooped back up by Maman.
This sticks with Jamal for years, and soon he talks Salim into going back and rescuing her from Maman. It is here that Salim makes a turn into a gangster lifestyle - using a gun for the first time, and eventually kicking Jamal out a hotel room so he could take Latika's virginity.
Jamal has always been in love with Latika, and he tries to do everything he can to get her out of the lifestyle that she is currently stuck in.
During a break in the bathroom, Prem finds out that Jamal does not know the answer to a question - so he writes the answer on the bathroom mirror. Jamal doesn't trust the answer, and after using his 50/50, he selects the opposite answer, which proves to be correct. Prem then has him arrested for cheating - and he spends the night in jail talking to the police and explaining how he knew the answers to the questions.
Obviously, these are a lot of knew actors for me. The only one I have seen before is Patel - and that is because he is now on the show Newsroom. But, I thought the acting was very good. Even the children gave great performances.
As I said, I have heard great things about this movie - and I really enjoyed it. The thing I liked the most is this unique way of storytelling. Flashbacks are used a ton in movies, but this was a very interesting way to use this game show in order to tell the back story.
Grade:
Thursday, September 13, 2012
47/50x2: The Untouchables
It's funny, I never really knew what this film was about. I always saw the DVD (maybe even a VHS) cover in stores and when I worked at video stores, and it always stood out to me for some reason.
Plus, now I know where that famous line came from that I have heard many, many times over the years. And, that scene that was famously parodied (maybe many times) in The Naked Gun.
The Untouchables is a film about Prohibition-era Chicago, and the major hold that Al Capone (Robert De Niro) had over everything during this time.
Eliot Ness (Kevin Costner) is a Bureau of Prohibition agent who is summoned to take down Capone and all of the crime happening in Chicago as people continue to peddle alcohol despite it being against the law.
Ness appears to be taking over an impossible task, but soon he meets up with Jim Malone (Sean Connery), a beat cop that Ness takes a liking to and moves him into his task force. Ness also recruits the accountant the company sends over for him into the group.
Finally, Ness and Malone head to the Academy to find the best shot - and best man - to complete their quartet. They take a shining to George Stone (Andy Garcia) and he joins the group that begins to finally make a difference in cracking down on the selling of alcohol.
Despite all of the arrests and seizure of alcohol, Capone continued to stay in the wind - above everything with no real connection to him and the crimes.
Eventually, Malone learns of Capone's accountant, and hopes to use his books to link Capone to everything. Malone finds the accountant's place and gets the information to Ness - who, along with Stone, partake in a shootout at a train station and are able to take the accountant into custody, and put him on the stand to testify against Capone.
This was a pretty interesting film. I like almost all of the actors in the film, and Connery, Garcia and Costner were pretty great. De Niro, despite being the notorious Capone, wasn't really in it as much but was still an overpowering figure.
Of course, the line I was talking about was uttered by Malone, "Brings a knife to a gun fight." Which has been used in many different ways in a lot of movies (and in casual conversation). Good to finally see the film with this iconic quote, and that one iconic scene as well. I liked it, but it wasn't mind blowing.
.jpg)
Plus, now I know where that famous line came from that I have heard many, many times over the years. And, that scene that was famously parodied (maybe many times) in The Naked Gun.
Eliot Ness (Kevin Costner) is a Bureau of Prohibition agent who is summoned to take down Capone and all of the crime happening in Chicago as people continue to peddle alcohol despite it being against the law.
Ness appears to be taking over an impossible task, but soon he meets up with Jim Malone (Sean Connery), a beat cop that Ness takes a liking to and moves him into his task force. Ness also recruits the accountant the company sends over for him into the group.
Finally, Ness and Malone head to the Academy to find the best shot - and best man - to complete their quartet. They take a shining to George Stone (Andy Garcia) and he joins the group that begins to finally make a difference in cracking down on the selling of alcohol.
Despite all of the arrests and seizure of alcohol, Capone continued to stay in the wind - above everything with no real connection to him and the crimes.
Eventually, Malone learns of Capone's accountant, and hopes to use his books to link Capone to everything. Malone finds the accountant's place and gets the information to Ness - who, along with Stone, partake in a shootout at a train station and are able to take the accountant into custody, and put him on the stand to testify against Capone.
This was a pretty interesting film. I like almost all of the actors in the film, and Connery, Garcia and Costner were pretty great. De Niro, despite being the notorious Capone, wasn't really in it as much but was still an overpowering figure.
Of course, the line I was talking about was uttered by Malone, "Brings a knife to a gun fight." Which has been used in many different ways in a lot of movies (and in casual conversation). Good to finally see the film with this iconic quote, and that one iconic scene as well. I liked it, but it wasn't mind blowing.
Grade:
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)