Old Boy "For this, the third film that I've seen at this year's Cannes Film Festival, I was finally blown away by something utterly original which not only managed to capture me both from an emotional and stylistic point of view, but an intellectual and mathematical one as well. Mathematical, you may be asking yourself? That's right, it's been a while since a film has managed to fuck with my head as much as this one did here, bringing out the same sort of feelings that I had while watching movies like MEMENTO, A CLOCKWORK ORANGE and THE GAME. In fact, you can qualify this film as the Asian, much more sadistic version of Fincher's maze of questions, with a much greater emphasis on the why, rather than the "who" or the "what"..." (full review)
The Motorcycle Diaries " I really liked this film on various levels, beginning with its basic idea of the "road trip", which is appealing to start, the great relationship established and developed between the two lead gentlemen, the solid acting chops from everyone involved, the palpable sense of time, place and culture, but ultimately, the feel of "life", the idea of a being greater than oneself living in all of us and a very honest message about the dehumanization of our society, through the greed and industrialization of the modern world. Now all that might sound a little "heavy" to you, but the film doesn't force anything down your throat, or preach in any shape or form, in fact, most of the movie focuses on the so-called adventures of these two doctors, reminding me a little of the Depp/Del Toro connection in FEAR AND LOATHING IN LAS VEGAS..." (full review)
Napoleon Dynamite "On April 29th, we were invited to see a pre-sneak preview of what I believe will be one of the top comedic surprises for the Summer. If you like the "witty banter" between SpongeBob Squarepants and his endearingly equally oafish buddy Patrick, you'll love this movie... and I'll tell you why..." (full review)
Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence "To describe this film as the worst movie that I've seen at the Cannes Film Festival so far is to do a disservice to all other movies that actually attempted to put together a narrative that makes sense on an actual cinematic level. Watching this film was like reading a really complicated, boring, technical computer manual while being inundated with so-so visuals and awful characterizations all at once. I don't remember the last time that I wanted to walk out of a screening so badly, but after about 1/3 of our audience disappeared about the film's first half, I was envying every single person who got up and followed..." (full review)
Metallica: Some Kind of Monster "It should be noted that I used to be a metalhead/punk in high school. One of the first albums that turned me on to the heavier side of rock was "Kill 'Em All" by a very young Metallica, featuring their first ever bassist Cliff Burton, who died in a bus accident a few years after that. I bring this up because I think it's important to have some perspective or appreciation for these guys and/or their music, in order to fully get into this 140-minute meditation on what went wrong with them in the past few years. I was intrigued throughout this entire documentary mostly because it showed these great musicians as "real people" with a variety of issues amongst one another..." (full review)
Hotel "Redundancy thy name is HOTEL. Anti-climactic endings thy name too, is HOTEL. European bore with a decent beginning, a hottie Austrian chick as the lead who does nothing but walk around for 83 minutes, thy name is HOTEL as well. All in all, this is the exact kind of movie that I was afraid to be seeing a lot of while at the Cannes Film Festival, the kind of movie that seems to have a decent premise, but uses it solely as groundwork on which to compound scenes of nothingness on top of nothingness, all of which add up to no story whatsoever, and yeah...plenty of nothingness..." (full review)
The Bad Education "Nothing particularly memorable or spectacular, Pedro Almodovar's latest doesn't bring all that much new to the table or entice/delight in any overt way, despite some solid performances, mucho color, brilliant cinematography and a couple of racy homosexual love entangles. Maybe I've seen one too many "tranny" flicks or movies which center around priests who either molest or abuse their altar boys, but I found myself rather ho-hum about this film's central subject matter, even though Almodovar does manage to spruce things up somewhat with transitional decades through which we get to know the characters..." (full review)
Football Factory by 'Sniper69' The film is called The Football Factory and is a grimy look in to the underworld of soccer hooliganism here in the UK. The film has caused a fair amount of controversy over here and has been accused of glorifying the violence associated with our national sport particularly at a time where it is creeping back into the game after it had been on the decrease since the 80's. It is also coming out just a few weeks before the European football Championships take place where there is a history of violent clashes. England have gained a fairly ugly and sometimes unfair reputation for being trouble makers at some of these tournaments and some in the media have claimed such a film will only incite trouble and make it seem "cool". The director, Nick Love has claimed this is total garbage and says that if people are going to cause trouble then a film is not going to deter or encourage them, they'll do it anyway. He may have a point but I guess only time will tell especially with the tournament only a few weeks off. Anyway, on to the film. I attended a preview screening tonight and have to say I was quite impressed. The best way to describe the film is to describe it as a cross between Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (or Snatch) and Fight Club. The Football Factory follows the life of Tommy Owen, a nearly 30 year old no-hoper, no decent job, no girlfriend and no real responsibilities. With few real prospects in life he vents his anger by doing copious amounts of drinking in the local pub, taking shit loads of drugs and "battering the shit" out of opposing football teams fans, or "firm's" as their known here every Saturday. It taps into the whole hooligan culture linking it to the social climate of London, the British mentality and our history as a nation. It's a violent movie but to say it glorifies this would be a lie, it follows Tommy as he gets himself in to trouble again and again, as he questions his life and the consequences of the things he does. It looks at the rough tough estates where he and his friends have grown up and lets the viewer see how he has turned out the way he has. Its quite an impartial film in that none of the characters are particularly nice people (you wouldn't want to get on the wrong side of them) but it doesn't preach, it just lets you sit back and decide what you think about whats going on. You can make your own mind up and believe me you will especially with so many spiteful and unsympathetic bastards rounding out the cast. Anyway, I don't really want to get into the plot any further than I have as it will ruin the movie for you but I think its well worth seeing and a part of British culture that is normally swept under the carpet due the problems it causes. I don't know if you guys will get it in the States but if you do check it out, it will at least whet your appetite until the next "football hooligan" movie makes comes out next year, which I think stars Elijah Wood and is being called The Yank at the moment
Baaaadddasss by 'ThaFlash' I had the pleasure of catching Mario Van Peebles' "Baadasssss" and WOW - this is some film, man. This is a real-crowd pleaser and thoughtful, sincere work of film that aims to be real and not kiss the ass of the Studios. The film should be seen and supported far and wide. Hope U get to catch it too. Here's my review. "You bled my Momma, You bled my Poppa, but You won't bleed me!" In 1971, Melvin Van Peebles changed the face of Hollywood. Riding the mellow waves of success stemming from his social-satire "The Watermelon Man," Melvin signed a 3-picture deal with Columbia Pictures and was the man whose hand you wanted to shake if you were Studio. Rather than shake the hands of people who wanted Melvin to make their movie, Melvin decided to make his movie and his movie was "Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song." "Sweetback" became a canonical piece of celluloid that is arguably the defining work of art from the decade that reinvented the American film, saved the studios' very existence and gave "Shaft" a new color. Now the time is 2004, the place is Hollywood and the story of the story of "SSBS" has come to life. Mario Van Peebles' "Baadasssss" is the story of the "Sweetback" story and it is a lucid example of life being even wilder than movies themselves. It is the innate nature of all story-tellers to capture everyday and accentuate its power and nature, by way of entertainment and when done with sincerity, skill, and experience it is a thrilling experience. "Baadasssss" is that. It is a thrilling, poignant, touching and important cinematic and human experience made under strangely similar conditions to its inceptor. It is a tight, deliberate tapestry of cinematic conventions painted onto 104 minutes of 35 MM. Not many films today or any day are an effective, equal convention of narrative conventions, but "Baadasssss" is with ease a father-son story, a "Rocky" story, a political story, a character story, a docudrama, an old-meets-new genre, social-commentary and that rare work that inspires that intrinsic attraction that we all have to the people whom most would consider deplorable. The film begins in 1970 Los Angeles. Under the L.A. sun and surrounded by the walls of a studio contract, and his curious, observant son Mario, (played by Khleo Thomas) Melvin (Mario Van Peebles) struggles to find the story of his next directorial effort. His agent and all push him to go comedy, but Melvin being the stubborn and arrogant giant of a man that he thought himself to be, he wanted to go revolution and tell the story of a revolutionary "Baadasssss Nigga out to get the Man's foot outta his ass." Melvin saw the ways and worries and ills of the time and felt that this was the story he was going to tell and no one was going to tell him that he wasn't going to make what was to become "SSBS". As told through interviews and straight scenes, "Baadasssss" introduces to the world of Hollywood's wicked structure and a myriad of hippies, porn, film-finance, Earth, Wind and Fire, indie-filmmaking and surprisingly, a different kind of family. Through each and every avenue of Melvin and company's journey, a young Mario experiences his dad's every personal characteristic and true Id during a struggle that may kill him; Mario is a silent Robin to Melvin's ostentatious Batman. It's someway for a kid to get to know his dad. A kid who calls his dad "Melvin." From his enlightenment in the desert to his near-ending of his life and journey, Melvin is an icon of will and passion, but nothing about Melvin is without offense and that is at the crux of "Baadasssss." We want Melvin to succeed, but should he? Are he and the film worth it? It is the cynical questions and sentimental realizations that arise from Melvin's madness and journey as presented by "Baadasssss" that capture and compel deep attention and care. The Id of Melvin and his blatant self-absorption and tortured genius are masterfully displayed by the younger Van Peebles the director, writer, and son. In no way, shape or form does Mario turn Melvin into a Disney character or the monster with an angel beneath the shell. "Baadasssss" is earnest in its telling of a madman on a mad-mission in a mad world. Technically, "Baadasssss" shot on HD on a budget of $1,000,000 in 18 days is overachieving. Robert Primes' use of digital to capture vivid colors and darkness is an example of quality cinematography. The Production design is simple but true to the time. While, the sets are simple they carry aesthetic and the costumes are straight-up 70's edge, and Baadasssss looking, as are the street locations of L.A. which look like they've never been touched by the hand of the 80's, 90's, and Y2K. Artistically, docudramas are often clichéd and/or blurred, but "Baadasssss" creates a coherent synergy between narrative and documentation. Mario and Dennis Haggerty's script wastes no ink on loose scenes. Every scene has purpose, prose and ultimately subtext (see the rope-climbing scene). The script also gives pertinent balance to the struggle of Melvin, his crew, and his family; everything comes together gloriously, even the laughs and dramatics. The direction of the movie is a prime of example of finesse and focus. Mario Van Peebles is a great director. Forget what "New Jack City" and "Posse" taught you. Mario Van Peebles has graduated to the All-Star game with "Baadasssss." He paces the movie like only a world-class conductor could, gracefully highlighting the small moments that reek of emotion and adding spice to those moments, which carry speed and impact. He never wastes a moment and carefully avoids the under and overstating of a performance. Just look at the turns of the supporting cast. Rainn Wilson is proper as the wider-eyed hippie. David Alan Grier is completely precise as the affected porno-producer looking to go legit. T.K. Carter does an uncanny take on one of the most famous comedians of our-time, who helped "Sweetback" survive. And even Adam West, God Bless his Bat-heart is hysterical is his swift turn as a producer who loves "fun." All the performances in "Baadasssss" are accomplished, and the film is a complimentary ensemble, however, no performance shines and stirs more than Mario's. His performance is the dramatic gel of the ensemble. In creating the Melvin Van Peebles, Mario is careful and all naturale in Melvin's pain, Melvin's demons, Melvin's anti-joy, Melvin's arrogance, and Melvin's heart. The character and man, Melvin Van Peebles is enormously intense, emotional, and yet understated. Mario's commitment to the performance and his way of adding gentleness and silence to his roles makes Mario's Melvin all the more accessible, captivating and thought-provoking. Mario Van Peebles' "Baadasssss" is an important film and should be seen and supported far and wide. It's an ode to cinema in the vein of "Cinema Paradiso." It is a testament to the human will in the vein of "Shawshank." For all those who dream and desire what life says they can't have and for all who love film and someday hope to be a part of the beauty of film, see this movie. That said - we all fall under those categories at some point in our lives, so, instead of being bled, see a film that induces new blood.
The Day After Tomorrow by 'Notre Dame 2000'
I went to a Fox screening of "The Day After Tomorrow" last night in Washington, DC. This pretty much meant that the audience consisted of politicians, capitol interns, and other folks living "inside the beltway," including myself. So you can assume off the bat that this is NOT your typical movie-screening crowd. Example: there was a tremendous roar of laughter from the audience after the President's character in the film asks everyone in the room after the storm hits - "does anyone know what we should do?"
I have seen all of the Emmerich films. All of them are pretty good, not great, but pretty good. I'll even admit to thinking "Godzilla" had its fair share of entertainment. But I think it's fair to say that "Day After Tomorrow" is the weakest of all these films. The trailers make this film out to be this intense non-stop thrill-ride - with the tornadoes, the waves, the storms, the flying houses... the flying cows, okay, so there are no flying animals (unfortunately). I was looking forward to seeing this one a lot! But the trailer shows just about EVERY action shot in the film that you are going to get. And considering trailers are only 2 minutes long, this is not much.
I won't go through the story, since you're only interest is to know whether the film is good or not. Since this review is only my opinion, it's hard to be objective about it, but I will certainly explain WHY this movie was bad. And I enjoy almost everything too! If a movie has atmosphere, action, interesting music, but NO story, I still think will enjoy a movie.
Yes, some of the shots in this film were amazing, but these shots are not around for very long. "Day After Tomorrow" had VERY MINIMAL action for the movie genre it is in (far less action than "ID4"), an under explained story, horrible dialogue, and my biggest complaint of all - no climax! The real story of this movie is about a climatoligist (Dennis Quaid) trying to get to his son in New York. And for the father, this involves a very uninteresting walk through snow from Philadelphia to New York (yes, you did hear me right). I'm willing to forgive cheesy dialogue if other cinematic elements are present in a movie. But there is no such luck with this one. The storms/tornadoes/waves all occur about halfway through the film. And once this ends, the REST of the movie is nothing but Jake Gyllenhaal trying to stay warm enough with his friends, and the father trying to get to New York through the snow. THIS IS IT! No more spectacular events or tense moments take place, in fact there is very little that DOES happen. The real climactic moment now sets itself up to be: whether or not the father will make it to his son. Is this very exciting? NO, IT ISN'T, or at least, IT WASN'T! This is the plot of a made for TV movie where Joe Explorer find himself trapped in the Arctic, and must wait in silent desperation for a helicopter to appear on the horizon to rescue him. This is the second half of "Day After Tomorrow" ! Yes, the movie has a nice dark and grayish visual atmosphere, yes the few visual shots we do see are spectacular, but that really is all I can say.
I also want to comment on the humor in this film. The laughs from the audience throughout the movie were divided between reaction to the movie's legitimate jokes, and mockery at the downright silly dialogue (I do understand we were all rigid DC/government people in this room, but c'mon, anyone else with would have laughed at it too). This would be a wonderful college drinking movie! There were a few VERY funny moments that were intentional - including a certain ironic situation with the Mexican border - and since this movie is about a second ice age in N. America, you can probably guess what this joke is. I'm not a cynical person at all when it comes to movies. I am known for enjoying, and sometimes defending, almost everything I see. Or at least, I try to find elements I like about the film and try to spread them over the parts I feel that are missing. Every Roland Emmerich film I have seen has been like this for me. This one fell way too short though.
The action and story-pacing just was not balanced. Since the trailers market the film as a roller coaster ride with non-stop action and colossal effects, it does nothing but set people like us up for disappointment. I know I have "dumbed" down this review a lot, but then again you can't really wax too eloquently on this genre. The best way to describe this movie it to compare it to other Emmerich films. Imagine "Godzilla," or even "ID4," now take away about half of the action, but keep the same formula and dialogue, and out comes "Day After Tomorrow." There is even a speech by the President concerning the world's new found respect for environmental awareness. Think "ID4" speech by president, but replace the word "alien" with "nature." Although, at least in "ID4" the President's speech led up to a massive air and space battle. By the time the "speech" in "Day After Tomorrow" arrives, the action and tension has LONG since passed.
I may have enjoyed this a little more than "Van Helsing" - which was 2 hours of loud cgi monsters jumping at the screen, with very poorly-edited and disjointed action sequences. I was surprised not have enjoyed that movie since I had a blast with "Mummy Returns" - another movie with silly dialogue that redeems itself with non-stop action, atmosphere, and entertaining music. I like to think of adventure movies as having several elements: story, atmosphere, music, and action. If three of these elements are there, I am willing to overlook the missing one. And sometimes two of these elements in an adventure film are missing, but the two that do remain can sometimes still be strong enough to eclipse the holes. "Day After Tomorrow" had about one of these elements at best, and that would be a weak helping from the 'action' and 'atmosphere' bowls.
My only advice: go see this movie on the biggest screen with the best sound system available. This is the only way you might have a chance at having a good time during this movie. After-all, good presentation can sometimes make even the biggest pile of crap bearable to look at.
