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Pan’s Labyrinth

// January 26th, 2007 // 1 Comment » // films

I saw Pan’s Labyrinth last night. I walked out impressed by the film. One of the better one’s I seen recently alongside The Last King of Scotland (****) and Children of Men (****), but today I am even more impressed as the film has sunk in.

The beauty of the film is in the way del Toro shows us a young girl retreating into fantasy to deal with the brutality of war around her. It isn’t a retreat into happy safe fairy tales or the schmaltzy nonsense of Life Is Beautiful that pretends war isn’t ugly and scary. This is fantasy that mirrors the experience of life. Scary, sometimes ugly, and yet filed with hope. One of the best films I have seen in a long time. Don’t let the subtitles scare you off this is truly one of the best films of this or any year.

Jesus Camp

// September 18th, 2006 // 11 Comments » // films

The trailer has been out for a while and now ABC News has done a story on the new documentary.

I don’t even know where to start.

This week I watched

// June 19th, 2006 // Comments Off // films, random

Kingdom of Heaven
It may not be a classic but Ridley Scott can direct a good epic. Sure Orlando Bloom is a little to boyish, cute for the lead role and almost everyone speaks like they have been rehearsing what to say in that particular moment for all their lives, but it still entertained. 3.5 out of 5

Confessions of a Dangerous Mind
For Clooney‘s directorial debut this is a fine introduction. He’s trying a little too hard at times to be artsy (see Good Night and Good Luck to see him nail artsy perfectly) and it can drag a little in the middle but damned it Sam Rockwell doesn’t make almost anything watchable, even Chuck Barris. 4 out of 5

Nacho Libre
Tried to go see this twice in one night and can you believe it was sold out! Nachooooooooooo

This week I watched

// June 12th, 2006 // Comments Off // films, random

The Game
One of Fincher‘s earlier films, it doesn’t have his trademark visual style but it is a pretty cool twist of a film. Sure the plot holes are gapping and there are some pretty big leaps of faith you need to make to buy into the premise but it’s a good ride. 4 out of 5

Underworld Evolution
If Underworld is a guilty pleasure then this one is really guilty. No pretense to any sort of character developmet here. I did actually like it better than the first time I saw it though. 3 out of 5

The Notorius Betty Page
I didn’t actually get to see this one. It was playing at the Uptown Theatre but apparently Joe and I were a couple days late. ? out of 5

This week I watched

// June 5th, 2006 // 1 Comment » // films, random

War of the Worlds
Everything that was wrong with this movie was wrong with the book so don’t blame Spielberg or Cruise for it. I thought it was pretty good. 4 out of 5

Stay
With a $50 million budget and a grand total of $3.5 million earned at the domestic box office you could probably call this one a bomb. As a follow up after Finding Neverland this has to be a bit of a disappointment for Mark Forster but it’s not all that bad. 3 out of 5

Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
I never did read the book so I didn’t have the incomprehensible reverence some people seem to hold for the guide. Without the baggage of measuring up to the novel I thought the movie was reasonably entertaining. 3 out of 5

Munich
Surprisingly intelligent even though the themes are pretty obvious. That intelligence, excellent performances all around and a great visual style make this the best film Spielberg has done in a long time. Easy. 4.5 out of 5

This week I watched

// May 29th, 2006 // Comments Off // films, random

X-Men III: The Last Stand
Come on, it doesn’t get much more fun than this. Sure they screwed up the comic, and the plot had some pretty big holes but just watching half the characters get smoked was worth the price. Perfect summer sillyness. 3.5 out of 5

Aeon Flux
It’s the second time I’ve seen this. Wasn’t much better the second time around. 3 out of 5

Fun With Dick and Jane
Okay, so Jim Carey is gauranteed to make you smile at least a couple times if you watch him for an hour and a half- his face is just funny- still that doesn’t mean you get your 90 minutes back. This is just one more movie that didn’t need a remake. 2 out of 5

Shaolin Soccer
I love Stephen Chow. Bizarre dance sequences and a ton of jokes that are probably twice as funny if you can actually understand Cantonese. 3.5 out of 5

Old School
Seriously I watched a lot of dumb comedies this week. What’s up with that. Oh and I love Luke Wilson. 3 out of 5

Wow, not one intelligent movie this entire week.

Da Vinci Code: The Movie

// May 22nd, 2006 // 1 Comment » // films, random

Despite overwhelmingly bad reviews, I went to see the Da Vinci Code last night. Of the $224 million dollars it raked in across the globe over the weekend, making it the second largest worldwide opening weekend ever, only $21.90 of that previously belonged to Rachel and myself.

Anyway, here’s the gist of my review- boring. Seriously this was a boring movie. It plodded along with absolutely none of the engine that the book had. Tom Hanks, is obviously not a fan of intellectuals, because his portrayal of a Harvard professor amounted to the most stone-faced, ineffectual, performance of his career, and Audrey Tautoo had only one expression, confusion, for the entire movie. No wonder the film had none of the latent sexual tension between the two leads, they were both too bored to notice each other.

I mean this could have been a fun movie, car chases, hulking albino assassins, high ranking conspiracy- and yet nothing materialized.

It really seemed that Howard, true to form, didn’t want to offend anyone. He softened Hanks’ character, and made him more sympathetic to Christians, he absolved the Vatican of any wrong-doing and had the “bad guys” working without the knowledge or approval of the church, he downplayed the role goddess worship and even made rank-and-file Opus Dei members come out on the side of angels.

After all the nervous hand-wringing by Christians across the globe, the only people who should really be offended about this movie is anyone that payed $10.95 a ticket to see it.

Seriously dissappointing.
** out of *****

The Squid and the Whale

// March 22nd, 2006 // No Comments » // films, random

Philistine: Someone who doesn’t read books or enjoy interesting films.
_Jeff Daniels in The Squid and the Whale

I first read Noah Baumbach’s name in the credits to Wes Anderson’s “The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou” which he co-wrote. In “The Squid and the Whale” he adds director to his credits. As a director Baumbach is solid, his camera work isn’t particularly interesting (certainly not in a league with Anderson), and the shaky cam can be a little annoying (though forgiveable given the tight budget) but the performances he pulls form his cast, especially Jeff Daniels as a self-absorbed intellectual, are fantastic. Add to that a particularly funny, touching and smart script and this is a great little film.

A History of Violence

// March 15th, 2006 // No Comments » // films, random

Last night I watched A History of Violence for the second time. Generally I like watching movies several times (as evidenced by my embarrassingly large DVD collection… don’t ask) but I was struck by how much better this film was on a second viewing. At first glance the film is an excellent B-movie – but on subsequent viewings you can really start to see how powerful the film is.

David Cronenberg has never been a particularly accessible director. As much acclaim as this year’s Best Picture received, Cronenberg’s film of the same name is a slight bit more difficult to sit through. Still his eye for composition and his sense of tension and subtext are powerful. -besides he’s Canadian.

In A History of Violence, Tom Stall is a mild family man living in rural USAmerica. But when he is forced to act to stop a murder he is put in the public spotlight. The limelight attracts attention from the violent past Tom thought he had outrun and his wife, Edie, and family never knew existed.

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The Oscars

// February 28th, 2006 // 1 Comment » // films

In honour of the Academy Awards being given away this Sunday here are my picks for the major Oscars.

Best Picture
Brokeback Mountain
Capote
Crash
Good Night, Good Luck
Munich

Best Director
Brokeback Mountain
Capote
Crash
Good Night, Good Luck
Munich

Best Actor – Male
Philip Seymour Hoffman – Capote
Terrence Howard – Hustle and Flow
Heath Ledger – Brokeback Mountain
Joaquin Pheonix – Walk the Line
David Strathairn – Good Night Good Luck

Best Actor – Female
Judi Dench – Mrs. Henderson
Felicity HUffman – Transamerica
Keira Knightley – Pride and Prejudice
Charlize Theron – North Country
Reese Witherspoon – Walk the Line

Screenplay – Adapted
Brokeback Mountain
Capote
Constant Gardner
A History of Violence
Munich

Screenplay – Original
Crash
Good Night Good Luck
Match Point
The Squid and the Whale
Syriana

Some realy good films this year. Among my favorites, A History of Violence, Capote, Syrianna, Hustle and Flow, Good Luck Good Night, Batman Begins, King Kong and Crash.