I really enjoyed the monster movie "Cloverfield". Sure, it was not original (its plot follows every other monster movie since "Gojira"), there was not much character development (and what little there was became annoying after a while, though only shortly before it ended) and the film"s emotional moments were far from hard hitting. But it was fun, it did not take itself too seriously, it had a great low-budget feel which I think lent the special effects an extra quality, rather than taking away from them (they are really good!), its hand held evocations of the World Trade Centre collapsing were impressive and the film was generally exciting and looked good. For example, the head of the statue of liberty flung through the air shows some ambition, humour and, considering the way the film"s images reflect 9/11, a little bravado - nicely tapping into people"s memories (with special effects, even, very nice). This, I believe, is how low (Hollywood) budget films should be - a indication of talent, a flair for film-making and an enticing promise of "if a team can achieve something like this with X million dollars, what could they do with Y million more?" "Cloverfield" is among my favourite movies this year, as a piece of cinema, and more than anything as a piece of entertainment.
I watch a lot of films. I enjoy the standard Hollywood blockbuster in any genre. I also occasionally enjoy a film that gives me something to think about and takes me places I didn"t expect to go. Without a shadow of a doubt, Southland Tales is such a film. Its not only set in present day America, it intelligently, cunningly reflects American society, in all its glories and failings. My jaw literally fell open a couple of times. My eyes were wide taking it all in and I immediately watched the ending again - to take it in.
Most film characters and plots are one dimensional - popcorn movies, some enjoyable, most instantly forgettable. Southland Tales has not one single character like this, nor any plot line - there are layers to this film that stay with you long after the credits roll. It had me thinking for hours afterwards - telling friends about it days later and now writing a review (something I very, very rarely do). This is a definite must-have - buy, don"t rent - you"ll definitely want to watch again. Easily, my favourite film in (absolute) years.
America - today - the human fallout of a nuclear terrorist attack... "This is how the world ends..."
Rarely will you see a film which is a greater undertaking than this. Three films all taking place in the same place at the same time with the characters overlapping and expounding on one another. As with Kieslowski's three colors trilogy, the characters from one film see the characters of another film. The difference is three-fold: 1. The characters all know each other here, and we know each of them from a different perspective because of each film. 2. The footage from each scene, which is shared across the three films, is the same from film to film (angle, pacing, etc.). 3. That each of these scenes works within a genre and is essential to that genre.
Trilogy is a monumental achievement that has more to say about reality and the effects that genre has on reality, while simultaneously undercutting those genres, than any other film I know of.
The thing that sets this set of films apart is that each works within its genre to such an extent as to be engaging almost the whole way through on the terms of each of these genres.
The first hour of the Melodrama is a bit slow and redundant, but for a film which is based on repeating itself, this is a magnificent achievement. The comedy makes you laugh out loud, the thriller keeps you on the edge of your seat, and the melodrama, at least for the last hour, draws you in, all while questioning what reality is and film's ability to represent that reality. Highly recommended.
This box set collects four meditative films from two of the world's greatest film artists both being praised from sources as diverse as David Bordwell, to Jean-Luc Godard, to Olivier Assayas. Artificial Eye follows through with impressive, though imperfect, transfers of all four films.
These are the only existing editions of the two Mizoguchi films (Life of Oharu, and Lady of Musashino, two of my favorites) with English subtitles. Despite the fact that the subtitles on "Life of Oharu" leave something to be desired (often using the word 'you' instead of 'your' and going without translation for up to five consecutive one-word sentences in a row), it is an essential addition to any English-subtitled Japanese film collection.
Though titles like 'Ugetsu' and 'Sansho the Bailiff' are favorites among Mizoguchi fans, I find these two titles more emotionally gripping and subtle than the previous two mentioned.
All four films are made at the height of each of these highly prolific director's maturity in style.
Ozu's films mark a beginning of his use of color, one of the last films with Setsuko Hara (The End of Summer), and the beginning of working with a new cast pool in a different film production company.
For anyone with access to a region 1 player, the eclipse 'Late Ozu' box set is by far the better alternative for the two Ozu films, but as the box-set can often be found for cheaper than any two of the films, and is highly recommended.
Four films by two great masters.
This remarkable collection pulls together the entirety of Optimum's Godard offerings in one convenient package, representing a career-spanning retrospective that puts together many of the French New Wave master's finest films in one BIG box. In terms of chronology, it encompasses his very first feature ("A bout de souffle") right through to his most recent feature ("Notre musique"). In between, there are obviously many films missing, but this set nevertheless presents a broad overview of the phases of Godard's career. The earliest years begin with the bold "A bout de souffle," with its fractured editing and shattering of cinematic conventions. Godard followed up this striking masterpiece with "Le petit soldat," which was banned at the time for its political commentary on the French/Algerian War, and which couches its politics in a more traditional narrative than Godard's debut. During these early years, Godard also attempted radically stylized versions of popular Hollywood genres, with the hilariously bright "Une femme est une femme" (musicals), the enigmatic social commentary of "Alphaville" (sci-fi and film noir), and the stately meta-film "Le mepris" (romantic epics). After the genre-blending experimentation of these early years, spanning roughly 1959-1964, Godard became increasingly political and radical as the 60s wore on, stepping further away from narrative with each new film. This box represents that transitional period with "Pierrot le fou" (a summation of Godard's early 60s period in one film), "Made in USA" (a brightly colored stab at a spy thriller), and "La Chinoise" (an absurdist approach to student radicalism and Godard's growing engagement with Communist philosophy). This box set leaves a large gap for Godard's fiercely radical 70s film, which are still unreleased on DVD anywhere, but picks up again in the 80s, when the master director made some of his finest films yet. Optimum includes the episodic "Passion," which is like a remake of "Le mepris" updated with Godard's new concerns about filmmaking, art, and commerce. There's also "Detective," an oddball late 80s work that follows the diverging stories of a group of people all living in a small European hotel: a boxer, a hotel detective, a pilot, and the webs of family and enemies around them. It's nominally a detective story and a mystery, but Godard typically fragments it into so much more. The box is rounded out by a trio of Godard's 90s features -- "Helas pour moi," "Eloge de l'amour," and "Notre musique" -- which demonstrate the modern Godard's fluid grasp of loose narratives coupled with dense, essayistic montages. The last film, especially, is a post-modern masterpiece, a lucid commentary on millennial wars, the disintegration of Yugoslavia, and the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. By stretching from the very beginning of Godard's career to his most recent films, this excellent box set brings together one of the most significant bodies of work in film. For those new to Godard's incredible films, this box is a near-perfect primer, an introduction to all his major themes and an opportunity to see an outline of his development over the first 50 years of his career. The bonus disc, with its trio of biographical and analytical features on Godard, is just icing on the cake as compared to the wonderful films themselves.
"High Noon" is a classic of the western genre, justifiably famous for the relentless way in which it builds up tension over the course of its length, ratcheting up the suspense until it explodes suddenly and violently in the inevitable finale. The typically laconic Gary Cooper plays a frontier sheriff who has just gotten married (to the radiant Grace Kelly) and is consequently leaving behind his life as a lawman to settle down and run a country store in a different town. Before he can leave, he learns that a vicious outlaw (Ian MacDonald) has just been released from prison and is returning to town on the noon train. While the outlaw's henchman wait at the train station for their friend to arrive, Cooper races around town, desperately trying to recruit help in order to subdue the criminal when he arrives, seeking revenge on Cooper. But the townspeople, who previously relied on Cooper's protection as sheriff, now maintain that this is not their problem, that this is a personal beef between Cooper and MacDonald, and everyone comes up with various excuses to abstain from the fight. Director Fred Zinnemann perfectly captures the tension of this situation, cutting back and forth throughout the film between Cooper and the outlaws waiting at the train station. At the climax of the film, Zinnemann's editing becomes frenetic as he cuts precisely and quickly between Cooper, the station, and a shot of a clock, as the train whistle roars on the soundtrack. This relentless build-up, coupled with the detailed portrait of the town's inhabitants, makes "High Noon" a deserved classic.
Intimate, intriguing and often hilarious two hander which sees embittered political journalist Pierre Peders (Steve Buscemi, who also directs) assigned to interview vacuous Hollywood starlet Katya (Sienna Miller). Now as much as I like Buscemi in films like 'Living In Oblivion' and 'Reservoir Dogs', I wasn't too keen on his last outing as auteur in 'Trees Lounge', whereas Sienna Miller is better known for her fashion sense & making tabloid column inches than her work on film. Recommended to me by a friend, after learning of my love of the movie 'Tape'; 'Interview' makes for an impressive character study with both actors on top form: Pierre antagonising his seemingly contemptible guest in Act I, before a twist of fate brings them together for Katya"s comeback in Act II. And though I wasn't expecting much from Miller, Sienna actually rises to the occasion with a captivating, memorable performance as someone who subtly escapes the confines of caricature with startling results. 'Interview' gained a modicum of notoriety upon its release; having been a project once directed by the late Dutch filmmaker & Nazi shill; Theo Van Gogh. Now I know one shouldn't speak ill of the dead: But Theo was no Vincent; and concluded his uninspiring, frankly ghoulish, career with an expectedly banal, ultracrepedarian attempt to denigrate Islam, in his controversial short film: 'Submission part I'. In fact, all the contrived, state sponsored, controversy surrounding 'Interviews' release probably did more harm than good, for playwright Theodor Holman actually develops some interesting ideas on the malleable concepts of identity and truth. 'Interview', for obvious reasons, isn't as intense as 'Swimming with Sharks' or 'Hard Candy' but prevalent themes of manipulation, deceit, escape and longing echo 'The Two Characters Play' by Tennessee Williams. Buscemi's adaptation is a film of hidden depth and an interview worth attending.
Well in the spirit of WAZ"s algebra-related title, my take on the film can pretty much be summed up with this little equation:
WAZ = SAW - inventive death scenes + (added bleakness + deep meaningful stuff)
WAZ definitely ticks all the "beware - this is grim, gritty and depressing" boxes:
* dimly lit scenes and wobbly hand-held camerawork
* dilapidated buildings with dingy stairwells decorated with graffiti and bodily fluids
* squalid crack dens filled with vacant-eyed addicts
* brutal gang members with a love for the more colourful expressions in the English language...
Happy happy joy joy eh? Thrown into the mix is the pretty standard pairing of "jaded older cop who enjoys smoking cigs and looking miserable" and "younger, more idealistic cop with a vulnerable side". Together they set out to stop a killer with a fondness for torture and algebra (sounds like most of my old maths teachers frankly) and become embroiled in issues of revenge, morality, love and self-sacrifice...
If you"re expecting/wanting Saw-style scenes of twisted torture devices and the gruesome dispatching of victims, then you"re pretty much out of luck. Most of the nasty stuff is implied rather than blatantly right in front of you on the screen (although a moment where a victim has nails hammered under his fingernails is quite wince-inducing). The visceral factor only really ramps up right towards the finale, and is combined with the obligatory twist (which I actually found a bit daft).
The performances of Stellan Skarsgård and Melissa George as the leads are solid enough but I can"t say I ever felt that their characters were very engaging or particularly interesting. This was echoed by the film in general which did plod a bit in a lot of the scenes. Sometimes literally, with Skarsgard"s Eddie wearily trudging up a flight of stairs or down a corridor.
Overall, for me it"d fall into the "watch once and never bother seeing again" category, but if you"re after a thriller that focuses less on gore and more on being thought-provoking then give it a go.
In Woody Allen's hilarious "Bullets Over Broadway," John Cusack plays David Shayne, a principled playwright who doesn't want to compromise his writing, but winds up selling out at every turn in order to get his newest play produced. His first compromise comes when he agrees to allow a mobster's girlfriend (Jennifer Tilly) to star in the play so that the gangster will bankroll the production. The film takes this rich potential and runs with it, constantly escalating the subtle humor that arises from Shayne's predicament. The film is populated with a brilliant cast full of comedic talents, some of them surprising. Woody regular Dianne Wiest is especially a revelation. She's always been a remarkable actress, but who would have guessed she was capable of the broadly funny and parodic performance she delivers here? Channeling Gloria Swanson from "Sunset Boulevard," she's simply brilliant and hilarious as the aging Broadway maven Helen Sinclair, vamping wildly and perfectly handling the melodramatic hamminess that Woody requires of her in this role. Chazz Palmintieri is also terrific as Tilly's mob bodyguard, who winds up discovering a previously untapped artistic side of his personality when watching Shayne's play being rehearsed day after day. This film represents Woody still at the peak of his talents, as laugh-out-loud funny as he's ever been, even when he's exploring such deeper questions as the morality of the artist and the relationship between art and commerce.
This begins promisingly, with the familiar Universal Pictures globe logo dissolving into a firebrand held by one of the angry villagers, marching to storm Victor Frankenstein's castle in a high-resolution monochrome scene with more than a nod to Universal's original "Frankenstein". The whole of the opening action sequence is gripping and done with some flair, but sadly things fall apart rapidly after that.
They've thrown everything in but the kitchen-sink here - Dracula, the Wolf Man, Frankenstein and his monster, even Mr Hyde - or is it Quasimodo? - pops up briefly in the form of Robbie Coltrane. And then of course there's Van Helsing himself.
I was part of that generation who grew up with Hammer's Peter Cushing as the good vampire slayer, so this hunky, leather-clad, testosterone-fuelled assassin was a bit of an assault on the senses, much like the film itself. Samantha Beckinsale struts about sexily in tight leather as well, but listening to her extraordinary accent I fear she would be wise not to draw too much attention to her appearance in this movie on her CV. The CGI is relentless throughout and, while it's all very clever and breath-taking, I found it curiously alienating. None of it really made me care about the characters or what happens to them. Finally, the plot! Hammer Pictures could have made about 15 films out of all the different plot threads here. Whatever would dear old Peter Cushing have made of it all?
Big screen re-makes of old TV series always run the risk of being despised by fans of the original, but even making the usual allowances I have to say "The Avengers" is about the worst I've seen. I think they attempted to capture the quirky, surreal world of the series, but missed it by a mile. Fiennes and Thurman are all at sea, and even Connery, an actor who generally acquits himself well whatever the film, gives an embarrassing performance. The interplay and dialogue between Steed and Mrs Peel lacks any kind of subtlety, wit or charm and here is cruder - some of the exchanges feel like they belong in a Carry On film. As for continuity, it's virtually non-existent. Patrick Macnee's brief "appearance" as an invisible agent hidden in the bowels of the ministry building seems strangely appropriate - almost as if he couldn't bring himself to actually show his face. In short, it's a mess. While they're all still alive, why doesn't someone get Brian Clemens to write a "reunion" screenplay for Macnee, Honor Blackman, Diana Rigg and Linda Thorson? I can see it now - they all meet up in Steed's nursing home, where someone's bumping off the residents....
Acclaimed Irish director Neil Jordan successfully adapts Anne Rice's bestselling gothic horror, with an all star cast, atmospheric sets and an astoundingly powerful performance by Tom Cruise as manipulative master vampire Lestat. 'Interview With The Vampire' is an enthralling epic of tragic loss, bloodlust, love, darkness and light told in flashback by tormented vampire Louis (an excellent Brad Pitt) who decides to give an account of his unnaturally long, and adventurous, life to bespectacled journo Daniel Malloy, played Christian Slater in a role originally intended for River Phoenix, incidentally, Slater donated his salary to River"s favourite charity after the star's untimely demise in 1993. A classic in every sense of the word, 'Interview With The Vampire' spans over three centuries with memorable appearances from Jordan regular Stephen Rea, an excellent Antonio Banderas, Indra Ove, Thandie Newton and an unforgettable, slightly disturbing turn by then child star Kirsten Dunst. Lestat is my favourite Cruise character of all time, just edging out 'Top Gun's' Maverick and 'Magnolia's' Frank T.J. Mackey; its also his first and only honest-to-goodness villain, and all credit to him; for Cruise plays the vain, fey, cravat wearing, bourgeois bloodsucker to the absolute limit, and one can"t help but smile a wicked smile when Lestat returns to re-embrace his dark destiny. Cinematographer Philippe Rousselot brings a rich, depth of field and intricate period detail to 18th century New Orleans, Paris and modern day New Orleans, whilst the vampire-on-vampire slaying of mother & child in the chambers beneath 'Theatre des Vampires', still ranks as the single most convincing vampire death ever filmed. Dante Ferretti's award winning production design is truly spectacular and only adds to the atmosphere; for not since 'Salem"s Lot' have I felt so immersed in locations as I did when watching this film, couple that with some fine performances from an impressive cast, and you've got what amounts to one of the best vampire movies ever made, bar none. For 'Interview With The Vampire', like its otherworldly protagonists, is bound to live forever.
A remake of the Charlton Heston movie Omega man ,somewhat different to the fact that they don't speak this time,the movie was ok but the ending spoils it.
Brilliant introduction to the world of Sam and Dean Winchester. Where scary mets sexy.
Some of the episodes play on childhood folklore such as Bloody Mary, as we all have heard that rumour as kids of the women in the mirror!!!
Brilliant program for give yourself chills, not ideal if you want to be scared out of your wits, this is not horror more of a thriller with a twist of horror.
The characters Sam and Dean bring in the humour which makes this a very good comedy meets horror series.
Though director Werner Herzog is best known for his five films starring Klaus Kinski (contained in Box Set #1), his other films, straddling documentary and fiction features, are equally impressive. This box set provides a sampling of the director's work without Kinski, a selection of representative films as one starting point for a trip into his large body of work.
The set's weirdest film, in a close contest, is undoubtedly "Even Dwarves Started Small," boasting an all-midget cast and skirting with offensiveness and exploitation even as it achieves a strange kind of grace. The casting may seem like a stunt, but it's not without purpose: the film is a parable about the breakdown of social order in a world which does not seem to be designed for the people who inhabit it. With its loose narrative about psych-ward inmates overthrowing the hospital staff, the film is horrifying, hilarious, ridiculous, and weirdly affecting all at once.
All these adjectives can be equally applied to "Stroszek," which takes a more realist approach to similar themes. The title character, a hopeless loser, seeks to improve his life by heading to America along with his friends, a prostitute and an old man. But the American dream turns out to be a sham, and these sad characters deal with their many disappointments in quietly absurd ways. The shot of a dancing chicken, which Herzog inserts as a non-sequitur, is emblematic of the film's skewed approach to tragedy.
Herzog's narrative sense is also tweaked in "Heart of Glass," in which Herzog asked all the actors to perform while under hypnosis, suggesting the numbed responses of the townspeople in a remote village as they give in to a manipulative outsider. The film's languid, hazy rhythms and the subtle beauty of its images create a visual and narrative counterpart to this perfomative hypnosis.
Of the fiction features in this box, only "The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser" is more straightforward in its narrative, recounting the story of a strange young man who was raised in complete isolation from society. The title character simply wanders into a town one day, with no language, no knowledge of society, and only vague memories of a past spent chained up in a room from birth. Herzog tells this story with simplicity and a complete lack of gimmicks or pretension, but it's clear that the film's themes of outsiders and civilization resonate with the director's usual concerns.
The box set is rounded out by a pair of very poetic documentaries, "Fata Morgana" and "Lessons Of Darkness." The former film is only debatably a documentary at all, since it weaves its footage of deserts and the optical illusions created by the sun (mirages of water) into a loose sci-fi story about aliens discovering a strange world. Herzog has always been interested in the weirdness of our world, and to this end he contrasts his surreally beautiful images with the equally weird people he encounters there, like a lizard handler and a bizarre lounge band playing to no audience. "Lessons of Darkness" crafts a similar sci-fi story, casting the Earth as an alien world, this time using images captured in the immediate aftermath of the first Persian Gulf War. These are some of the most stunning and tragically beautiful pictures Herzog has captured, as he gets intimately close to towering geysers of burning oil and wanders among black lakes of oil and muck, between giant bomb craters. This apocalyptic landscape becomes for Herzog the perfect represntation of his signature themes: the end of the world and humanity's uncertain place in the world it inhabits.
"King of California" is an independent comedy about the relationship between a sixteen year old girl who has fallen through the welfare system (and supports herself by working at McDonalds) and her father (Michael Douglas), recently released from hospital and who suffers from bipolar depression. As soon as I saw the bipolar and bearded Michael Douglas spinning and learning Spanish by tape I could feel a tide of revulsion for this movie rising in me. I didn"t like the pop-light portrayal of mental illness the movie was giving me, nor Douglas. However, after a while I got over this and my resistance to enjoying the movie subsided a little. As the farcical story unfolded I submitted to it, and even enjoyed parts of it. By the end I did not feel like I despised this movie, but rather didn"t care. I think the problem is that, unlike the portrayal of mental illness and desperate people in Terry Gilliam"s "The Fisher King", "King of California" fails to portray the father"s point of view, instead choosing the responsible daughter as narrator, and narrative focus. Instead of being given insight into the mind of someone with bipolar disorder we are given the cold and rational views of someone else. Thus we end up laughing at mental illness, if we laugh at all. And I can feel the revulsion returning.
Refusing to patronise teenagers, this Channel 4 drama pushes the boundaries of expectable behaviour seen on screen, but is still immensely watchable. The uncritical drug use committed by the larger than life cast is sometimes worrying. On the plus side, the often touching character acting supplies humour, warmth and well written drama.
Jamie Bell stars as a repressed teenager who is troubled about his mother"s mysterious death, who spends his time spying on people with binoculars. To clear his mind he flees to Edinburgh only to fill it up again with the head-turning hotel worker Sophia Miles, who bears resemblance to his late mother. Layering down character developments and clever plotting, this psychological drama has a lot to give.
Occasionally overlooked due to the release of the Touchstone (aka Disney) production starring Gwyneth Paltrow that was released around the same time, this confident and spirited adaptation of Jane Austen's classic is simply excellent. Broadcast on ITV to good reception, it made stars of Kate Beckinsale (Pearl Harbor, Underworld, Van Helsing) and Samantha Morton (Longford, Elizabeth: The Golden Age, In America). Andrew Davies's adaptation is lively, but still keeps the original tone of the novel, succeeding in pleasing both Austen fans and those who love a good period drama.
J.K. Rowling"s fifth book has been spectacularly adapted into film, with a starry, though not unbelievable cast and a deeper, darker storyline. The story, as it is, sees Harry returning to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry where major changes have been installed over the summer break. A new teacher has been appointed, the frothily pink, sweetly sadistic Dolores Umbridge (played expertly by BAFTA Winning Imelda Staunton) who has been positioned at Hogwarts for the purpose of spreading Ministry of Magic propaganda. This propaganda is ultimately defying Harry"s claim that wizarding terrorist Voldemort has returned to full blown power. Keeping the "everything is fine, there is no nasty wizard" mentality among the students is Unbridge"s aim, reducing defence against the dark arts lessons to mere theory studies. The character of Professor Umbridge works as a spin doctor for the Ministry of Magic. Imagine scooping out the last drops of strawberry smoothie from a blender and catching your hand on the razor-sharp blades at the bottom. This is what it is like to encounter Professor Umbridge.
This film can work both as a magical, fantasy tale or a translucent critique on real-life current affairs. Either way you look at it, British director David Yates has created a well crafted movie out of one of the weaker books in this cherished series.
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