tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-78254373713420541792024-03-13T02:33:09.096+00:00Jack L. film reviewsReviews of Films from all countries and all eras.Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.comBlogger139125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-5087018456932164012011-11-07T23:17:00.001+00:002011-11-07T23:17:21.976+00:00End of The Week Post<b>The Adventures of Tintin</b> - 2011 directed by Steven Spielberg<br />
9/10<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN9HSxDmE5D36cl_LQg0Fnp3k-JFTdBFZyJMbezNHiLW7VCkT1J8g6P79U4N4LpUr2cCBKQOe-g2bp2sKw6prrcT9F_2zTg48l8W0XDoqhURMj-Vz2l0NpatdAuSnIRxpQF7jnaofTuvyP/s1600/adventures-of-tintin-us-poster-01-405x600.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN9HSxDmE5D36cl_LQg0Fnp3k-JFTdBFZyJMbezNHiLW7VCkT1J8g6P79U4N4LpUr2cCBKQOe-g2bp2sKw6prrcT9F_2zTg48l8W0XDoqhURMj-Vz2l0NpatdAuSnIRxpQF7jnaofTuvyP/s200/adventures-of-tintin-us-poster-01-405x600.jpg" width="135" /></a></div>
The comics were childhood favourites of mine, so I was rather nervous when the cinematic adaptation was announced, but with time more information about the project emerged and I began to look forward to it. Peter Jackson producing, Edgar Wright and Joe Cornish scripting it, Andy Serkis etc...<br />
It has certainly proved to be extremely divisive, with most hardcore fans of the source material hating it. I however thought it was the best possible adaptation that could have come from the comics. It had a fantastic group of people behind it and they succeeded admirably.<br />
It was far more similar to the books than I had expected which was very pleasing, but I felt that it did occasionally take it's action scenes to unnecessary levels, in particular the "crane fight" scene, which was very over the top. But apart from that, and Captain Haddock's accent which got slightly irritating after a while, the film was a complete success in my opinion. <br />
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<b>The Fall</b> - 2006 directed by Tarsem Singh<br />
6/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5IhyphenhyphenuldMyi2_SIUtXiiazP_Gkc0Mr56wWVfBxceCyVLuR-WDhGB7QI6wFNrKUoHntEgWTxYKlc8Ut1rJ6X9dRkIeZQApwfSGA-sDOWGlA5J8PytZaOlQ0Zatvk52ECV6jMA-ixglxheCb/s1600/l_460791_ca6993e1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5IhyphenhyphenuldMyi2_SIUtXiiazP_Gkc0Mr56wWVfBxceCyVLuR-WDhGB7QI6wFNrKUoHntEgWTxYKlc8Ut1rJ6X9dRkIeZQApwfSGA-sDOWGlA5J8PytZaOlQ0Zatvk52ECV6jMA-ixglxheCb/s200/l_460791_ca6993e1.jpg" width="141" /></a>The Fall was not a great success when it was first released, getting mixed reviews and grossing little, but it has since become something of a cult film and even proclaimed a masterpiece by some enthusiastic fans. <br />
Despite the critics general indifference towards it, I as looking forward to The Fall, but ultimately I was disappointed and would agree with the critics consensus. <br />
There are some fantastic visuals on display, and the fact that they were all shot on location makes the film even more stunning, but everything else about the film is decidedly average, from the performances to the story, which fails to get any kind of point across and instead feels like a jumble of ideas that never comes together in a meaningful way, so many minor details are introduced and then forgotten about that it quickly becomes frustrating. Not a great film, or even a particularly good one, but I would still recommend giving it a watch.<br />
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<b>Cave Of Forgotten Dreams</b> - 2011 directed by Werner Herzog<br />
9/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY6fKH-_Bl3odTx_JKEcqf9YBnyalomOgU4HwJ6tUOA5Lxtz2bXMFHKh1wB1voC3YeMtTpP7noEACuYOnFEt74-yb1zhh4Ar9MklahpsPcwj7wJ-u85SwNyzyD0JV9OGkVLczyERiA7jJB/s1600/cave-of-forgotten-dreams.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY6fKH-_Bl3odTx_JKEcqf9YBnyalomOgU4HwJ6tUOA5Lxtz2bXMFHKh1wB1voC3YeMtTpP7noEACuYOnFEt74-yb1zhh4Ar9MklahpsPcwj7wJ-u85SwNyzyD0JV9OGkVLczyERiA7jJB/s200/cave-of-forgotten-dreams.jpg" width="135" /></a>I still regret not being able to see this documentary on the big screen in 3D, but I'm glad I saw it at all.<br />
Herzog has proved time and again that he is a master documentarian and he excels himself yet again with this doc about the Chauvet caves in France that contain the oldest paintings known to man. <br />
Herzogs captures some extraordinary images and scores them with some beautiful music, making the documentary a most enjoyable experience, but he also delves into the history of the paintings through interviews with specialists and the meanings and symbolism of the paintings through his brilliant musings. It may not be one of his best documentaries but it is still an unusual and interesting piece that I would hihgly recommend. And now I can barely wait to see his latest doc, Into The Abyss.<b><br /></b><br />
<b>Team American: World Police</b> - 2004 directed by Trey Parker, Matt Stone<br />
9/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEjUR4NY8Ixz-Ad5ZCOGU2Af1gmh3hnRnpPhoig6nYrzG7yo0gQEh73CmXsgQVW5pHNq1IurZM2t54mboTNBc2wRD8t9066uZKtgRKTHNHuVRclZ6PV1KtwyRh63L1ANgjT2jrErjTq6K1/s1600/image3s.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEjUR4NY8Ixz-Ad5ZCOGU2Af1gmh3hnRnpPhoig6nYrzG7yo0gQEh73CmXsgQVW5pHNq1IurZM2t54mboTNBc2wRD8t9066uZKtgRKTHNHuVRclZ6PV1KtwyRh63L1ANgjT2jrErjTq6K1/s200/image3s.jpeg" width="136" /></a>This is my second viewing of this film and I was just as amused as the first time.<br />
Team America is an entirely unique big budget puppet production that subverts as many Hollywood cliches as possible, while criticising both Left Wing politics and Right Wing politics, and delivering some exceptionally revolting humour in the process. <br />
This is a film from the creators of South Park, and like that show is designed to be as provocative as possible while still retaining a wittiness that is lacking from many shows of a similar nature. <br />
Team America is simply one of the most hilarious films of the decade, it isn't perfect (I feel it drags a bit towards the middle) but is unlike anything else I've ever seen.<br />
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<b>Five Easy Pieces</b> - 1970 directed by Bob Rafelson<br />
7/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6CkD3lRmBXhFxNUgXwku9E_0t3RuLBfZ7cX3EsKQWpC2ypFoPQ3JdWXUApCyCmC7Zw8cDwSiYAroeHAZxEQaLXlVwSqOAcRYCuabxdd-04itJRvyxiEpDEPUXDzpbdd40MgGnQ28CKrkY/s1600/images.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6CkD3lRmBXhFxNUgXwku9E_0t3RuLBfZ7cX3EsKQWpC2ypFoPQ3JdWXUApCyCmC7Zw8cDwSiYAroeHAZxEQaLXlVwSqOAcRYCuabxdd-04itJRvyxiEpDEPUXDzpbdd40MgGnQ28CKrkY/s200/images.jpeg" width="135" /></a>I wasn't sure what to expect from this film. It stars Jack Nicholson in his first lead role, which was reason enough for me to see the film.<br />
But I can't say I was very impressed on the whole, it is considered quite a classic but I just failed to see it's greatness.<br />
The first part of the film was exceedingly hard to get into, and while the film did get better towards the end, and the conclusion in particular was quite touching, it never really got it's message across in a very meaningful way.<br />
Which I thought was a shame as the message it holds is one that more and more people can identify with these days, myself included. That of being caught between several lifestyles, unable to fit in with any of them, feeling like an outsider where ever one goes. Some scenes conveyed this very well, but they were enveloped in many tedious and uneventful scenes that made the film fall rather flat in my opinion. <br />
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<b>American Beauty</b> - 1999 directed by Sam Mendes<br />
8/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI2jLyjm9tzkWHZykrcpnrN-RkfsH-IEWmKoKdMgvUtr5cjL1KB9BwbWe_wtfwXH09uI3laenm8yTBN4l-DwgZVuttGtQmgmsdDvl2oByi4JVHFm81VVfU2swYEsqrKx3Gj5fYKeHxk9kY/s1600/american_beauty_movie_poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI2jLyjm9tzkWHZykrcpnrN-RkfsH-IEWmKoKdMgvUtr5cjL1KB9BwbWe_wtfwXH09uI3laenm8yTBN4l-DwgZVuttGtQmgmsdDvl2oByi4JVHFm81VVfU2swYEsqrKx3Gj5fYKeHxk9kY/s200/american_beauty_movie_poster.jpg" width="135" /></a>Considered by most to be nothing less than a masterpiece, and by some to be one of the best films ever made, I was uncertain if American Beauty was going to live up to my expectations. <br />
But American Beauty is such a peculiar film that it both lived up to my expectations in some respects, exceeded them in other respects and failed to meet the in others. <br />
But all in all I enjoyed it, it is a good film, perhaps even a great one. I will admit that I did not love it as much as many people seem to, but maybe that is because of my failure to identify with the film as much as Americans would. <br />
I also had a handful of minor problems with the film, and did not care for the ending much, so it's not a film that is going to become one of my favourites, but I am nonetheless relived to say that I liked it.<b><br /></b><br />
<b> Tropa De Elite 2: The Enemy Within</b> - 2011 directed by José Padliha<br />
8/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY0whmw4xvR5F2nOxJFMfY5kk0jTVg9vG_9JXD8yNlUmsrkBMANJ6ymDLfA3r2wZs9pocVJDoyiY35lLMGOGvKxm-2iqORlg4WKDD2gzr_MhPLFhwMtUWVHXfvkHypTT5ZueQl7nnQKMEk/s1600/l_1555149_834c6dc4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY0whmw4xvR5F2nOxJFMfY5kk0jTVg9vG_9JXD8yNlUmsrkBMANJ6ymDLfA3r2wZs9pocVJDoyiY35lLMGOGvKxm-2iqORlg4WKDD2gzr_MhPLFhwMtUWVHXfvkHypTT5ZueQl7nnQKMEk/s200/l_1555149_834c6dc4.jpg" width="134" /></a><br />
I enjoyed the previous film, Tropa De Elite, but I did think it's moral and social standpoint was controversial, I agreed with some aspects of it and disagreed with others. But on the whole, the accusations levelled against it, of fascism and of glamourising a fascistic unit, definitely had some ground.<br />
The sequel improves on this, adding a much more thought out story, and taking a very different standpoint to the original film, the sequels vision is far broader than the originals and it touches on far more important themes, yet it still retains much of the the thrilling action.<br />
It is a rare sequel that improves on the original in many ways and acts a very good film in it's own right. <br />
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<i>Some thoughts:</i><br />
<br />
This week just flew by without a single post from me, which is disappointing. I'll try and post at least one review this week, and hopefully more.<br />
I'm also gradually getting back into reading your blogs, which is good. Anyway, thanks to everyone for commenting on my recent posts, even though I haven't been around for a while.<br />
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The reason I watched considerably fewer films this week is because I've begun watching the acclaimed TV series Breaking Bad, I've seen the entirety of season 1 already and enjoyed it. This kind of thing is quite a departure fro me as I'm very unfamiiar with TV in general, but I'm glad to be catching up on a few of the best series of the past few years.<br />
Are there any others you'd recommend? <br />
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<i>Time for some links:</i><br />
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The Film Connoisseur reviews one of the year's best films, <a href="http://filmconnoisseur.blogspot.com/2011/11/drive-2011.html">Drive</a>. <br />
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The Movie Snob writes a little overview on <a href="http://www.themoviesnob.net/2011/11/actor-profiles-we-need-more-laura-dern.html">Laura Dern</a>, arguing that we need to see more of her on screen these days, which is something I can definitely agree with. <br />
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Anomalous Material posted a review of Brett Ratner's latest film, <a href="http://www.anomalousmaterial.com/movies/2011/11/tower-heist-ludicrous-incoherent-hilarious/">Tower Heist</a>, which I can't say I'm particularly interested in, but the review is still an entertaining read.<br />
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Big Thoughts From a Small Mind dedicated a post to the often overlooked but seemingly omnipresent supporting actor, <a href="http://bigthoughtsfromasmallmind.blogspot.com/2011/11/character-actor-with-lots-of-character.html">Luis Guzman</a>. <br />
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Man, I Love Films has a review of a film I am rather looking forward to, the cumbersomely titled <a href="http://manilovefilms.com/reviews/theatrical-reviews/2011/11/martha-marcy-may-marlene-review/">Martha Marcy May Marlene</a>.<br />
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Andy Buckle reviews another film I am greatly anticipated, <a href="http://buckle22.blogspot.com/2011/11/upcoming-release-review-we-need-to-talk.html">We Need To Talk About Kevin</a>.<br />
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Stevee writes about <a href="http://filmjunkie25.blogspot.com/2011/11/favourite-film-argumentpost-700.html">Favourite films</a> and the various arguments that can arise from them. <br />
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Bonour Tristesse reviews Chabrol's <a href="http://www.bonjourtristesse.net/2011/11/les-cousins-1959.html">Les Cousins</a>. <br />
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Limette lists her <a href="http://limereviews.blogspot.com/2011/10/post-100-my-top-5-horror-films.html#more">favourite Horror films</a>. <br />Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-28837497097102441052011-10-31T00:34:00.000+00:002011-11-01T23:40:42.076+00:00End Of The Week Post<i>Films seen this week:</i><br />
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<b>Pusher </b>- 1996 directed by Nicolas Winding Refn<br />
8/10<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIsJqTurgHM6bWlXccFwoBIQL0emTrdZMt63_51EzJLYh31dwmoUv2xuLSGud14bgHqJswSPoBIg-IiGv3DAG4gujIom6FouUiS-CYoRBYI90X0tTL-_2lcSA5L_muWqhmjObucg2BpQZi/s1600/Pusher_Poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIsJqTurgHM6bWlXccFwoBIQL0emTrdZMt63_51EzJLYh31dwmoUv2xuLSGud14bgHqJswSPoBIg-IiGv3DAG4gujIom6FouUiS-CYoRBYI90X0tTL-_2lcSA5L_muWqhmjObucg2BpQZi/s200/Pusher_Poster.jpg" width="141" /></a></div>
Refn is one of the most interesting directors of his generation and while Drive may very well prove to be his breakthrough film, he has been making quality films ever since 1996. <br />
Pusher was Refn's first film and a minor success, it tells the tale of a small time drug pusher operating in Copenhagen who as a result of an unfortunate chain of events finds himself in enormous debt to his providers. His life is at stake while he desperately tries to gather the sum he owes. It is a downward spiral through and through and whilst the outcome is obvious from the start, it is nonetheless a fascinating watch. At first the handheld, gritty style was off putting, but as the film went on I grew to appreciate the films other aspects. It is a story ade up of very familiar elements, yet I still thought it brought a certain freshness to the gangster genre. <br />
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<b>Pusher 2</b>: <b>With Blood On My Hands</b> - 2004 directed by Nicolas Winding Refn<br />
8/10<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS6ob7f9pxoGJ_YUDACc8hnE4FW0TwSGSQvMY9uc66CjBskRteM0SNCiR1I6dnqrQZslACiwBmA55Bir5xYh5uX_RSWVkZjmNxrn98dujH7mugGz5sEJxZAPVf3AtYy7OEZzoD2oZqRaOX/s1600/s_396184_f8bb0063.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS6ob7f9pxoGJ_YUDACc8hnE4FW0TwSGSQvMY9uc66CjBskRteM0SNCiR1I6dnqrQZslACiwBmA55Bir5xYh5uX_RSWVkZjmNxrn98dujH7mugGz5sEJxZAPVf3AtYy7OEZzoD2oZqRaOX/s200/s_396184_f8bb0063.jpg" width="140" /></a></div>
After the success of the fist Pusher, Refn moved on to other projects, but one of them, Fear X, was such a financial failure that his career stalled for a while. Fortunately he was given to opportunity to make a come back of sorts by making two sequels to his successful debut feature. From the description one can be forgiven for not expecting much form these sequels, they were requested of him, as he had had no intention of making a trilogy in the first place, and they were both written and shot in a single year. <br />
But despite this, they are two of the best "unplanned sequels" ever made. Pusher 2 takes the story in a very different direction, and is perhaps my least favourite of the three despite the strong central performance from Mads Mikkelsen. However I would not rank it far below the first Pusher as it is a very good follow up and a great film in it's own right.<br />
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<b>Pusher 3: I'm The Angel Of Death</b> - 2005 directed by Nicolas Winding Refn<br />
8/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5EHVphhGX4XSus7cRjlMABFptJ9VBcgtxuXrsyUZeQFjQFdD99VV5SpoOhRw5-aRYzkB9Gzv076iQ55Np18zUuKfj5oE21x1QWF1ROjXIgaUu6vULBAG3qs93yzEZHrxZor35MBSyB_tf/s1600/pusherIII.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5EHVphhGX4XSus7cRjlMABFptJ9VBcgtxuXrsyUZeQFjQFdD99VV5SpoOhRw5-aRYzkB9Gzv076iQ55Np18zUuKfj5oE21x1QWF1ROjXIgaUu6vULBAG3qs93yzEZHrxZor35MBSyB_tf/s200/pusherIII.jpg" width="142" /></a><br />
Pusher 3 turned out to be my favourite of the trilogy surprisingly enough. <br />
Like the first sequel, it inhabits the same world as the first film and features some of the same characters, but tells a very different story. <br />
This is the tale I found to be the most affecting, and I had definitely warmed to the peculiar style of filmmaking by then, as I was able to notice the great benefits produced by the use of such technology. <br />
Just like the 2 films before it, this one ends with a cut-to-black, leaving the fates of all those involved unknown. This leaves endless possibilties for a follow up film, which could stem from anyone of the stories of these 3 films or could create an entirely new one. Apparently Refn is working on a Pusher 4, but he has so many other projects on the go (including a Logan's Run remake) that I doubt it will be made anytime soon.<br />
All in all the Pusher trilogy is one of the most consistent trilogies in Cinema, and a masterpiece in it's own way. Highly recommended, especially for those impressed by Refn's more recent work as its interesting to look back at his origins in the film making business. <br />
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<b>The Cranes Are Flying</b> - 1957 directed by Mkhail Kalatozov<br />
9/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfGiov-jnXKYTdpCyr6-Y4i9jU2z6xCb5CkdlC-MT0Q5VpQO1l6FwlGox30PHyZyb83teMWm1WiWFPujpJkO8aqZmD2rw984-iUNDsPcbNMAml3C9pFyiLdB01pQ1tYLkGjfzKHjPYZwnG/s1600/poster.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfGiov-jnXKYTdpCyr6-Y4i9jU2z6xCb5CkdlC-MT0Q5VpQO1l6FwlGox30PHyZyb83teMWm1WiWFPujpJkO8aqZmD2rw984-iUNDsPcbNMAml3C9pFyiLdB01pQ1tYLkGjfzKHjPYZwnG/s200/poster.jpg" width="141" /></a>Like many Soviet films The Cranes Are Flying is technically brilliant, some of the shots on display here are awe inspiring, but slightly marred by a preachy message with touches of propaganda.<br />
It's a great film nonetheless, with moving story, wonderful cinematography and excellent performances.<br />
As it's the first film by Kalatozov I have seen, I may write a review sometime soon.<br />
I'd recommend it though, it's definitely worthy of it's Palme D'Or.<br />
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<b> Ossessione</b> - 1943 directed by Luchino Visconti<br />
8/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7iBA19eWmKHf7bok4PdjDOfCmoC3kUt51gg6OcrPCIsOSPQ1PaSV7lwHMsympxd_5YcEDMxF6tt1rhsX4Nl1HRbCmwlz9EqClkgl3dMzllt5FXnc0WiTF-gjIwLasOPwYHY-TeXa-7kQJ/s1600/ossessione-old.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7iBA19eWmKHf7bok4PdjDOfCmoC3kUt51gg6OcrPCIsOSPQ1PaSV7lwHMsympxd_5YcEDMxF6tt1rhsX4Nl1HRbCmwlz9EqClkgl3dMzllt5FXnc0WiTF-gjIwLasOPwYHY-TeXa-7kQJ/s200/ossessione-old.jpg" width="143" /></a>This is the first film of the Neo-Realist movement of Italian cinema. <br />
A movement made famous by the success of films like The Bicycle Thieves and directors like Roberto Rosselini. <br />
However Luchino Visconti remains one of the lesser known Italian directors, not exactly obscure, but not quite on the same level of fame as his contemporaries such as Fellini, Antonioni, Bertolucci etc. However I'm a massive fan of his work.<br />
Ossessione was not one of his best films, but it's influence is undeniable. I would say it's a must see merely for it's cultural effect alone, but it is also a fine film in it's own right. It was simple, but interesting, particularly in it's portrayal of a long gone Italian lifestyle.<br />
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<b> Come And See</b> - 1985 directed by Elem Klimov<br />
10/10<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpdATsOrRMNxN0vKhSeHBw0HoDuUSpHAqBHHh63M5u27EqwD13pYzBwmVgRDlpxzOIx0ptbVym3PHdDUn_eZw8Kx3ll1lh0VEsTf-33WsEo0OHK34QEvM_DmYHrZcWm_l-c1QBhr-QXTRO/s1600/MV5BMTMzNDA0MjA4M15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMzI2NzAzMQ%2540%2540._V1._SY317_CR2%252C0%252C214%252C317_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpdATsOrRMNxN0vKhSeHBw0HoDuUSpHAqBHHh63M5u27EqwD13pYzBwmVgRDlpxzOIx0ptbVym3PHdDUn_eZw8Kx3ll1lh0VEsTf-33WsEo0OHK34QEvM_DmYHrZcWm_l-c1QBhr-QXTRO/s200/MV5BMTMzNDA0MjA4M15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMzI2NzAzMQ%2540%2540._V1._SY317_CR2%252C0%252C214%252C317_.jpg" width="135" /></a></div>
Now this film is a true masterpiece of cinema. <br />
Come and See is a Soviet film dealing with the effects of WW2 on Belarus. I tis a very intense film that ranks amongst the best War films I've ever seen, and is the absolute best film dealing with the Eastern European front of WW2.<br />
The camerawork was brilliant (and almost entirely composed of steadi-cam shots), the cinematography beautiful (reminiscent of Tarkosky's work), the content was overwhelmingly bleak, a downward spiral of atrocities, violence and insanity that is unrelenting in it's descent.<br />
Harrowing in every respect, yet it ultimately transcends it's propagandistic origins and becomes one of the most compelling anti war films ever made. It's a must see.<br />
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<b>Thor </b>- 2011 directed by Kenneth Branagh<br />
4/10<br />
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I'm amazed that I still haven't given up on the superhero genre entirely seeing as I rarely like any of the films, and yet I continue to watch the latest additions, even though nearly always end up disliking them.<br />
Thor is no exception, it was a massive success and received fairly positive reviews, yet I just thought it was generic, cartoonish and bland. <br />
None of the performances stood out in any way, the story was predictable, the directing uninspired (so many Dutch angles...) and the special effects overdone.<br />
It all had a very drawn out feeling, like not much of a story was spread out over the run time. All in all it felt like the first half of a film. And not a particularly good film at that.<br />
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<b>Crank</b> - 2006 directed by Mark Neveldine, Brian Taylor<br />
9/10 <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg92g96UNRLu1VGkXodIscnfv1_SAyfNfCS15yL2EYa84Wzj5tIDIE2JHJ5dcM7gKr5ppWnzJ6EN4XG8ZEl1vYMUDalLFVTIwxcHuAPzBd64pBa8zXZNm0n97qIVMb1t7_MK3uyhv6fKPbQ/s1600/imag1es.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg92g96UNRLu1VGkXodIscnfv1_SAyfNfCS15yL2EYa84Wzj5tIDIE2JHJ5dcM7gKr5ppWnzJ6EN4XG8ZEl1vYMUDalLFVTIwxcHuAPzBd64pBa8zXZNm0n97qIVMb1t7_MK3uyhv6fKPbQ/s200/imag1es.jpeg" width="136" /></a><br />
Sometimes I really do surprise myself, I did not expect much from this film as it appeared to be yet another run of the mill Jason Statham action film. But I was mistaken, I enjoyed it enormously.<br />
It features Statham's finest performance, his dead pan dialogue and strong English accent fit the film perfectly, the film's meta style was incredibly entertaining and above all it delivered non stop action of the kind very rarely found in action films, there were no interludes for character development, no back story, no time is wasted on anything that isn't action<br />
The Crank films have reputation for being in utterly bad taste and trying very hard to offend the audience ta every possible turn, but surprisingly I enjoyed this. <br />
All in all I'd say I haven't enjoyed an action film this much for ages, it is easily one of the best of the decade, if not the best. <br />
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<b>Crank 2: High Voltage</b> - 2009 directed byMark Neveldine, Brian Taylor<br />
7/10 <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioUeLX4twPj0YY6A1DQvutH_r0TgrLEQFwZSTAE3VFYg8cTHwRY-6pAWBQH2SwKxmPMtnXCFOT2rU2SgP5Z1IsQAlOMDOGobHLs2AXdXYsHX1z8AhveTIBGLCcSg-Ze37nv8P7f7CqyC4I/s1600/2009_crank_high_voltage_poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioUeLX4twPj0YY6A1DQvutH_r0TgrLEQFwZSTAE3VFYg8cTHwRY-6pAWBQH2SwKxmPMtnXCFOT2rU2SgP5Z1IsQAlOMDOGobHLs2AXdXYsHX1z8AhveTIBGLCcSg-Ze37nv8P7f7CqyC4I/s200/2009_crank_high_voltage_poster.jpg" width="135" /></a><br />
This sequel takes things even further than the original Crank, and consequently doesn't entirely live up to it's predecessor. It is still great fun of course, but I found this one's shock factor was even higher than the previous film, so my enjoyment was somewhat lessened. <br />
However Neveldine and Taylor have proved to be true maverick directors of the kind rarely encountered these days, constantly coming up with new and interestign techniques even if they are often used in a most crass manner.<br />
I greatly look forwards to their reinterpretation of Ghost Rider, which can only be an improvement on the original film.<br />
With the Crank films, I think I have found my ultimate guilty pleasure. I honestly can't recommend them to everyone as they are pretty much designed to offend you in some way or another, but if you're looking for a good action film that does not take itself seriously, then you could do a lot worse than the Crank films.<br />
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<b>George Harrison: Living In The Material World</b> - 2011 directed by Martin Scorsese<br />
8/10<br />
<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjynWk5-z2UfYiBr7151THeb8pqra2q02OnCTuonysGdTILG3jBJkVC_Y-VoiGcZ8svy1wLuvm_-f02OnHQmLqMr3nJW7CkjSQDVed-2zQyY6BC9PylLq-E5aGI3UTtoecl8p3MmUN0hZA0/s1600/images.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjynWk5-z2UfYiBr7151THeb8pqra2q02OnCTuonysGdTILG3jBJkVC_Y-VoiGcZ8svy1wLuvm_-f02OnHQmLqMr3nJW7CkjSQDVed-2zQyY6BC9PylLq-E5aGI3UTtoecl8p3MmUN0hZA0/s200/images.jpeg" width="134" /></a>Scorsese's latest music themed documentary covers the life of George Harrison, one of the Beatles and a notable solo musician. <br />
It is a 3 hour long documentary, and as usual Scorsese had access to all kinds of unseen before footage, photos, and documents, as well as having the opportunity to interview some of Harrison's closest friends. <br />
It is a very well put together film, although I can imagine it would be rather confusing for those without at least a minimum of background knowledge on the subject. <br />
However I could not help but feel it could have been better, I felt Harrison was glorified a bit too much while his shortcomings were mentioned occasionally but never dwelt upon. Of course it would not have been a good idea to dwell too much on the darker side of his nature, but I think a more interesting balance could have been obtained. <br />
That said, George Harrison was a very interestign man and a very talented artists, and this film does provide a lot of insight into his character, so it is a success and I would recommend it. <b> </b><br />
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<b>Live Flesh (Carne Tremula)</b> - 1997 directed by Pedro Almodovar.<br />
8/10<br />
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I continue my exploration of the Spanish directors work with Carne Tremula, one of his lesser known films.<br />
This film had a very original and compelling storyline, unlike anything I'd ever seen before yet also rather simple.<br />
The performances were all fantastic, and Almodovar directs with his usual skill and as always treats the material with utmost respect and tact even though it touches on some rather controversial issues. <br />
It didn't have as much of an impact on me as his other films at first, but by the end of the film my opinion of it improved considerably as it is a film that gets better as it goes along. I thought the pacing at the beginning was a bit off, and thus it was hard to get into the film, but towards the end I found myself really enjoying it as it descended into some kind of Greek tragedy with an unexpected conclusion.<br />
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<b>Midnight Express</b> - 1978 directed by Alan Parker<br />
7/10<br />
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I had very high expectations for this one, but I was quite disappointed. Alan Parker may be a somewhat uneven director, but this is generally considered his breakthrough film.<br />
But I was left waiting for the greatness of the film to start, and it never really did. It is by no means a bad film, but on the other hand it is little more than a run of the mill prison film. The main aspect in which it differs from other such films is that it concerns a character imprisoned in a country that is entirely foreign to him. <br />
Brad Davis was rather average as the main character, leaving John Hurt to steal the show.<br />
Some of the shots of Istanbul were fantastic, and the story was affecting enough, but it just never really got started in my opinion. And the synthesiser score has not aged well at all. It's a fairly middling entry to the prison genre and not one of Alan Parker's best films, but I would still recommend it as it is worth a watch.<br />
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<b>Halloween</b> - 1978 directed by John Carpenter<br />
9/10<br />
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To get into the spirit of Halloween I thought I had better watch at least one Horror film.<i><br /></i><br />
John Carpenter's Halloween is the ultimate halloween film and I had never seen it before despite my liking of Carpenter's work. <br />
I had not seen a single Halloween film, whether a sequel, prequel or remake before<i>, </i>so I did not quite know what to expect. <i></i><br />
It is one of the best Horror films I've seen, alongside the likes of The Shining, The Evil Dead and Psycho, John Carpenter quickly establishes a heavy atmosphere of dread and maintains it throughout the entire film with his chilling score (which ranks amongst his better synthesised pieces) and his very clever directing, which always avoids showing to much or explaining the motives behind the killings, yet still puts the viewer in a position of knowledge as we know who the killer is, and can easily guess what he will do next, but the characters walk unknowingly to their deaths. I believe that Horror is the easiest genre to make, but a truly effective Horror film is rare, and fortunately Halloween is one of them. <br />
The acting was quite terrible, and the film has visibly aged, but it still retains it's power to scare without being overly disturbing. <br />
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<b>The City Of Lost Children</b> - 1995 directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, Marc Caro<br />
7/10<br />
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Jean Pierre Jeanet is mainly known for the mega hit Amelie (which I have yet to see) but his work with Marc Caro seems to have been in a considerably different vein. <br />
Whilst I enjoyed the whole world this film creates, a strange kind of dystopian landscape with heavy steampunk influences, the film did not manage to capture my interest. The plot was meandering and lacked a strong sense of direction so unfortunately most of the interesting and original ideas go to waste. <br />
Ron Perlman was good in his role, but the supporting cast were the main strenght of the film, with Dominique Pinon giving a stunning performance a as large array of characters. Judith Vittet was also quite exceptional as the young girl Miette.<br />
However despite all the positive aspects, I was not very impressed by the film as a whole.<br />
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<b>Lars And The Real Girl</b> - 2007 directed by Craig Gillespie<br />
9/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYLRCOBaqDWqS8F8xQ92_oHfBoaB-7gbiZ1-hq7UaNFp61zoYUHcOWgiVO2kJE4LMZVuv4pgi_Go_YpavP_EyyS0zDF-JFVMEtreI_xImeeOr7t06kp-y0zbI218bAHxo0oUj3PvTR8_Jy/s1600/MV5BMTI4NDc1NDkwMV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNjgzMDE1MQ%2540%2540._V1._SY317_CR0%252C0%252C214%252C317_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYLRCOBaqDWqS8F8xQ92_oHfBoaB-7gbiZ1-hq7UaNFp61zoYUHcOWgiVO2kJE4LMZVuv4pgi_Go_YpavP_EyyS0zDF-JFVMEtreI_xImeeOr7t06kp-y0zbI218bAHxo0oUj3PvTR8_Jy/s200/MV5BMTI4NDc1NDkwMV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNjgzMDE1MQ%2540%2540._V1._SY317_CR0%252C0%252C214%252C317_.jpg" width="135" /></a><br />
The easiest way to describe this film would be that it is about a lonely man who falls in love with a sex doll. <br />
At first this description did put me off the film,but upon watching it I realised that the film was about so much more, and certainly was not a comedy. <br />
I was really surprised at how much I ended up liking the film, it was far from the typical Indie american film, and I thought that was a good thing.<br />
Ryan Gosling was exceptional, far better than in Drive, which is the only other performance I have seen of his. I look forward to seeing more of his work.<br />
Ultimately Lars and The Real Girl is a surprisingly cathartic film, that manages to be a feel-good film of sorts while still retaining a certain amount of realism. It was nice to see a more heartwarming film for a change. <br />
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<b>The Damned</b> - 1969 directed by Luchino Visconti<br />
5/10<br />
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Visconti is one of my favourite directors, I have loved all of his films up until this one. The Damned was a terrible disappointment for me, it had great potential, Visconti was a great choice for the subject matter. But it was just very poorly executed. The performances were quite bad, the dialogue even worse, the pacing was ridiculous and worst of all, the directing was very sub par. Visconti relies on clunky zooms more than camera movements and totally fails to get one interested in the film. <br />
I will give the film credit for it's choice of subject matter which was very original and touched upon themes I had never even seen mentioned in film before, but ultimately I cannot recommend this one as it is an unfortunate example of a very talented director making a poor film, which is always a sad sight to see. <br />
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<br />
<i>Time for some links:</i><br />
<br />
Anomalous Material has an excellent list of the <a href="http://www.anomalousmaterial.com/movies/2011/10/10-best-paul-thomas-anderson-characters/">Top Ten Best PTA Characters</a><br />
<br />
Bonjour Tristesse reviews <a href="http://www.bonjourtristesse.net/2011/10/rubber-2010.html">Rubber (2010)</a>, a film I've been meaning to see for a while now. <br />
<br />
Andy Buckle celebrates Halloween with this post on <a href="http://buckle22.blogspot.com/2011/10/honouring-halloween-memorable-horror.html">Memorable Horror Film Moments</a>.<br />
<br />
Joel Burman reviews a film from Swedish director Bo Wilderberg, whose films I really must watch, called <a href="http://www.joelburman.com/2011/10/the-man-from-mallorca/">The Man from Mallorca</a>.<br />
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<br />
CS reviews <a href="http://bigthoughtsfromasmallmind.blogspot.com/2011/10/boy-in-striped-pyjamas-always-last-to.html">The Boy In The Striped Pajamas</a>, a film I have heard much about, but have never been interested in watching.<br />
<br />
Lesya reviews <a href="http://eternityofdream.blogspot.com/2011/10/symphony-2011-film-review.html">The Symphony</a>, a film I had never even heard of before, but that sounds like something I would enjoy. <br />
<br />
Nate has reviewed both <a href="http://natesminireviews.blogspot.com/2011/10/color-of-pomegranates-sergei-parajanov.html">The Colour Of Pomegranates</a>, which I watched recently, and <a href="http://natesminireviews.blogspot.com/2011/10/napoleon-abel-gance.html">Napoleon</a>, which is one of my favourite films, and done so very well indeed.<br />
<br />
Limette's blog celebrates it's <a href="http://limereviews.blogspot.com/2011/10/happy-first-anniversary.html">1st Birthday</a>! <br />
<br />
Stevee writes about the <a href="http://limereviews.blogspot.com/2011/10/happy-first-anniversary.html">Rating systems</a> and how they can affect films.<br />
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Groggy Dunder reviews the original <a href="http://nothingiswrittenfilm.blogspot.com/2011/10/death-wish.html">Death Wish</a>.<br />
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<br />
<i>Some thoughts:</i><br />
<br />
My directors project is progressing, albeit very slowly, but unfortunately I will not be writing a post on Stan Brakhage like I had said I would at the end of the latest post due to the fact that I disliked his film so much that I was unable to finish it. Instead I will be writing about the first Pier Paolo Pasolini film I have seen, Teorema.<i></i><br />
I have also started to watch some of Maya Deren's short experimental films and am greatly enjoying them, when I have finished all of them I will write a post on her work as well, which should prove very interesting. <i></i><br />
<i><br /></i><br />
I have also recently decided to catch up on some of the more acclaimed TV series I may have missed over the years, and having recently watched The Office UK, which I loved, will now be starting Breaking Bad, which I hear is great. Any recommendations would be welcome as I have not watched any TV for years so don't really know were to start.<i></i><br />
<i><br /></i><br />
And finally, I should be seeing Tintin anytime soon, which I greatly look forward to as the book were childhood favourites and the talent involved in the film is astounding. But the negative reviews it's been getting (especially on The Guardian) have made me rather wary, has anyone seen it? If so what did you think of it?<i></i><br />
<i><br /></i><br />
That's all for this week, it has been a rather productive one with a very varied group of films. I hope this week will be as interesting.<i><br /></i>Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-67052494489774931222011-10-26T17:09:00.000+01:002011-10-26T17:09:38.913+01:00Day Of The Samurai 4: 13 Assassins - 201113 Assassins is the greatest Samurai film to have been released recently. Not only is it a brilliant hearkening back to the glory days of the genre, but it is also one of the very best films to have been released this year.<br />
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<br />
13 Assassins was not a financial success in the West, but it's reception from film buffs and critics alike was almost unanimously positive. It literally came out of nowhere and took the various film festivals by storm, I did not know what to expect when I first saw it, as Miike is well known for his unpredictable nature. But fortunately it was a very straightforward hearkening back to the Golden Age of Samurai films, as a fan of the genre, I loved it. <br />
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<a name='more'></a><br />
Takeshi Miike is well known amongst film buffs for both the speed with which he makes his films and the controversial and horrifying content often found within.<br />
While the extraordinary rate at which he makes films is unchanged, Miike does seem to be maturing and taking some rather unexpected paths as a director. His reputation was largely based around the controversy his films have created, but when focusing on this people often overlook his other works, which include some relatively mainstream works and even a film aimed at children if I'm not mistaken.<br />
I say all this from the point of view of someone with little more than a passing knowledge of Miike's work, having only seen 2 of his many films. And while I will continue to avoid his more controversial work (just can't stomach that kind of thing) I am nonetheless very intrigued by this director.<br />
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Recently Miike has moved away from the shock and horror that usually defines his films and has made 2 films firmly rooted in the Samurai genre, 13 Assassins (a remake of the 1963 Eiichi Kudo film of the same name) and Harakiri (yet to be released, a remake of the Masaki Kobayashi film of the same name I reviewed <a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/08/day-of-samurai-3-harakiri-1962.html">here</a>).<br />
And based on what I have seen in 13 Assassins, I can safely say that the transition was a most successful one, it is by far one of the best Samurai films of recent years, and is very different to the usual Samurai fare of the last decade or so. Many amazing Samurai films were released in the past decade, most notably When The Last Sword Was Drawn, but they all represented a rather significant departure from the Samurai film tradition, a tradition that this film returns to, in that they were far more artistic and intellectually driven, less intent of entertaining through bloody action scenes than providing insight onto the way of life of the Samurai while at the same time creating compelling dramas.<br />
This film however retunrs to the the more action/adventure type of Samurai film, complete with all the honour, bloody battles and samurai camaraderie that goes with it. <br />
<br />
13 Assassins is set in Feudal Japan, the Shogun holds absolute power over the various clans and it is a period of relative peace and stability. However the Shogun's younger brother, Lord Naritsugu, a vile sadistic bully who is fully aware of the privileges his status grants him and uses them to protect him from retaliations while he rapes, kills and maims all he comes across for his own amusement, is disrupting this tranquillity. After a high ranking Daimyo (Lord) commits harakiri, and another comes to complain over the murder of his son and the rape (leading to suicide) of his daughter in law at the hands of lord Naritsugu, a high ranking advisor to the Shogun decides that Naritsugu must be eliminated.<br />
It is a suicide mission and can only be entrusted to the best and most loyal of Samurai, so the esteemed Shinzaemon is tasked with putting together a trustworthy band of Samurai to carry out this task. <br />
<br />
A plan is drawn up, a location chosen, a curious character encountered, fortifications made, traps laid, and the battle begins. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2rRwUvgJ0GXd4NIIbwn9p2ZvkSsLXlAW6Z_U1hKTB07FZCc0qVzpx9UcJVRFN1GGa6nH70HrFu3yKxIV3kO875PLsCwf8Yg08Dpd8H8taqcLfhAdmu43p674Gi6uA7DCeLUkaM6CHh26d/s1600/13-assassins-movie-image-04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2rRwUvgJ0GXd4NIIbwn9p2ZvkSsLXlAW6Z_U1hKTB07FZCc0qVzpx9UcJVRFN1GGa6nH70HrFu3yKxIV3kO875PLsCwf8Yg08Dpd8H8taqcLfhAdmu43p674Gi6uA7DCeLUkaM6CHh26d/s320/13-assassins-movie-image-04.jpg" width="320" /></a>And what a battle it is! A total massacre (as stated in the film), that ranks among the finest sword battles captured on film for many years, Miike avoids any of the ridiculous shaky cam that has been plaguing the screens and instead goes for a large scale massacre, using wide shots when possible, and frequently having several different fights taking place in the same shot.<br />
It is both strikingly realistic and completely over the top, realistic in that it avoids many of the fancy swordplay and gravity defying leaps evident in so many Asian films, but over the top in it's sheer scale and execution.<br />
<br />
What is interesting about this film is the fact that one can almost picture how the film would have been as a Hollywood (or any Western production for that matter) production.The main difference would be the attitudes of the characters, here the Samurai are ready and willing to carry out this glorious task. I cannot imagine a band of Western heroes (of any era) having the same mindset.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuFlft3-ltbcxc3jzCaXS43pT0f_XBMeVYuiC2V3hqaKRzsKV-HZgkMicSjB3YGIg2hUQbB9HYJqHRXvbDsEiwaxHPxEnIOhWwKjfHCWj7m4Ryfp9yMdDJpZcoF0s8CCe2xplbJGYZcGwh/s1600/photo_01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuFlft3-ltbcxc3jzCaXS43pT0f_XBMeVYuiC2V3hqaKRzsKV-HZgkMicSjB3YGIg2hUQbB9HYJqHRXvbDsEiwaxHPxEnIOhWwKjfHCWj7m4Ryfp9yMdDJpZcoF0s8CCe2xplbJGYZcGwh/s320/photo_01.jpg" width="320" /></a>I mentioned previously that this film was considered quite a departure in style and content for Miike, and while that is true, there are still slight touches of his trademark penchant for disturbing, shocking and just plain weird content. The foremost example of this would be the tragic victim of the evil lord, a young woman entirely dismembered (both legs and both arms missing) and with her tongue cut out. Not something you'd see in any other film of the genre. The presence of the almost demonic character of Koyata, the are several small clues to his character scattered throughout the film, but it seems fairly obvious that he is some kind of demi-god/forest spirit made incarnate. He provides both the large part of the comic relief, and an admirable homage to Toshiro Mifune's character in the Seven Samurai, with which he has much in common. However his very nature makes him an unlikely element for a traditional Samurai film to include, so he can be seen as another of Miike's touches. <br />
<br />
Ultimately, 13 Assassins just goes to show that the Samurai genre is not dead, even though it's output has lessened considerably. Films like this, are hard to come across these days as our attitude to such films has changed considerably, but thankfully Miike has decided to take it upon himself to bring the glory days of the genre back to life (lets not forget his upcoming remake of Harakiri) in a competent, respectful and highly entertaining way, while still making them Miike films, not dull reflections of such films as The Seven Samurai or the original Harakiri, but strong films in their own right, changed where needed for contemporary audiences, but still great pieces of cinema. I can barely wait to see his remake of Harakiri, as I adored the original and am confidant he will something quite exceptional.Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-19145946122960759562011-10-24T00:12:00.001+01:002011-10-24T00:12:49.008+01:00Return To Blogging.I've been meaning to post this for ages and it's just been getting longer and longer. So don't bother reading this if your not interested, I'm mainly doing it so as to keep track of all the films I watched anyway...<br />
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<br />
<b>X Men First Class - 2011 directed by Matthew Vaughn</b><br />
4/10 <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqzDYu3xGExTuvo09unh7q6mVm3RhwBbzrxTSt9gco0PU0LWvDPSlPrxEqzP-mTQ6EeEc-1JlmKSOeHbUgbvhaIwA8nme3GCA5eoUP-5BBlDxSFaTN-cNUNv3W1YskWbMqCcYGaKAU-2sB/s1600/x-men-first-class-poster.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqzDYu3xGExTuvo09unh7q6mVm3RhwBbzrxTSt9gco0PU0LWvDPSlPrxEqzP-mTQ6EeEc-1JlmKSOeHbUgbvhaIwA8nme3GCA5eoUP-5BBlDxSFaTN-cNUNv3W1YskWbMqCcYGaKAU-2sB/s200/x-men-first-class-poster.jpg" width="134" /></a>Of
course due to my dislike for superhero films in general, I was not
expecting to love this film. But the all around high praise it received
did lead me to expect a certain level of quality. Unfortunately I found
the film to be most disappointing. <br />
Matthew Vaughn is a talented
director, and all the cast have done some great work previously, but for
me this film just failed completely. The praise it receives completely
mystifies me.<br />
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<b>Attack The Block - 2011 directed by Joe Cornish</b><br />
8/10<br />
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I've had been wanting to see this film for ages, and fortunately it was worth the long wait.<br />
Attack The Block is a terrific Horror/Comedy, even if it did lean more towards the Horror side than I originally expected.<br />
Perhaps
what I admired most about it is that it showed yet another side to
British cinema, a very cool side as opposed to the work of directors
like Mike Leigh, and genuinely cool and enjoyable as oppose to the
fabricated and false coolness of Guy Ritchie's work. <br />
I suppose it
can be likened to the work of Edgar Wright, a director I greatly
admire, so that would explain why I liked it so much. As the praise for
it has been pretty much overwhelming, I would highly recommend this
film. <br />
<br />
<b>The Tree Of Life - 2011 directed by Terence Malick</b><br />
7/10<br />
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Another
film I had long awaited, however this one did not leave me satisfied at
all. I have now seen all Terence Malick's films and for the moment The
Tree Of Life remains my least favourite.<br />
In my opinion Malick just
aimed far too high with this one and didn't achieve his lofty goals.
The footage was splendid, the music was superb, the performances were
great (especially Brad Pitt's) but the film just didn't work as a whole.
Malick put it together in a way that is unnecessarily convoluted, and
transformed what could have been a great story, into a mess. <br />
<br />
<b>Drive - 2011 directed by Nicolas Winding Refn</b><br />
8/10<br />
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After
seeing this film, I am convinced that Refn is one of the most
interesting director's working today. I did not like Valhalla Rising at
all, but Bronson impressed me greatly, and now after loving his latest
film Drive, I have decided to check out The Pusher Trilogy.<br />
Drive
reminded me a classic Hollywood film, from the late 60's early 70's,
such as Bullitt or Dirty Harry, but made from an entirely European
perspective. Ryan Gosling didn't impress me much, and the pop music was
annoying at times, but all around it's one of the very best films of the
year.<br />
<br />
<b>Hunger - 2008 directed by Steve Mcqueen</b><br />
9/10<br />
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With
many of the acclaimed films I watched recently (The Tree of Life, Drive
etc...) I did not expect that the finest film would turn out to be a
relatively overlooked but nonetheless critically successful film made on
a small budget from a first time director. <br />
Hunger, directed by
artist Steve McQueen, is a 2008 film that on the surface is about the
hunger strikes organised by activist Bobby Sands in the Maze prison of
Northern Ireland. But such a description only covers a tiny portion of
this films scope, it is not about Bobby Sands, nor is it about the
Troubles in Northern Ireland, nor is it a typical prison film. If
anything it is an experimental film, a work of art rather than a
narrative driven piece, that flits from character to character as the
films goes along, it is a piece driven by atmosphere more than anything
else.<br />
It is a film that relies enormously on it's visual aspects,
and these are sublime, for a first time director, McQueen shows an
enormous amount of skill, creating several unforgettable images and
managing to create a film that is at first glance about nothing in
particular, and upon further examination, a wonderfully thought
provoking film. Needless to say, I am greatly looking forward to Steve
McQueen's follow
up to this film, Shame released this year and starring Michael
Fassbender (winner of this year's Golden Lion for Best Actor) who
portrayal of Bobby Sands in this film was devastating and
his finest work I've seen so far.<br />
<br />
<b>Sympathy For Lady Vengeance </b>- 2005 directed by Park Chan Wook<br />
7/10<br />
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Park
Chan Wook is a director who intrigues me immensely, yet for some reason
I like him as a director more than I like his films (with the exception
of I'm a Cyborg But That's OK, which I loved), Oldboy did not impress
me, and now I have a similar reaction to Lady Vengeance.<br />
I thought
it started of very well, but gradually went down hill and ended up with
a most dissatisfying ending, which only came about after a handful of
false endings. <b><br /></b><br />
So pretty much the same problem I had with Oldboy. <br />
<br />
<b>Viva Maria</b> - 1965 directed by Louis Malle<br />
9/10<br />
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Louis
Malle is a favourite director of mine, and a very overlooked one in my
opinion, but strangely enough I have more experience with his little
know, even forgotten, works, such as Zazie Dans Le Metro and Viva Maria,
than his more acclaimed features such as the Oscar nominated Atlantic
City or Au Revoir Les Enfants.<br />
He is such an inventive, amusing,
and skilful director that I never tire of watching his films, and while
Viva Maria is no masterpiece, especially compared to his other films
like Le Feu Follet, it still provided me with more entertainment than
any other film I watched recently. <br />
Perhaps part of my high rating
stems from my liking of the films two stars, Brigitte Bardot and Jeanne
Moreau. Really a very fun film, with some clever camera tricks from
Louis Malle and charming performances from it's stars, I'd highly
recommend it.<br />
<br />
<b>The Colour Of Pomegranates</b> - 1968 directed by Sergei Parajanov<br />
9/10<br />
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Review can be found <a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/10/new-to-me-directors-sergei-parajanov.html">here</a>!<br />
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<br />
<b>Women On The Verge of Nervous Breakdown</b> - 1988 directed by Pedro Almodovar.<br />
8/10<br />
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My first Almodovar film and I'll admit I'm already hooked, I can't wait to see more of his work. Review will be up shortly.<br />
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<b>Waltz With Bashir</b> - 2008 directed by Ari Folman.<br />
10/10<br />
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One
of the most visually striking animations I've ever seen, and one of the
most brutally shocking. I'd rank it alongside the excellent Persepolis.<br />
This
one was a real pleasant surprise, of course I was expecting something
good, but the sheer level of it's greatness came as a bit of a shock. <br />
The
entire approach towards the films subject was very unexpected and
personal, as it was all based around real events and experiences related
by men who had experienced the war at first hand. Truly one of the
greatest films of it's kind. <br />
<br />
<b>Talk To Her</b> - 2002 directed by Pedro Almodovar<br />
9/10<br />
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After
liking the previous Almodovar so much, I immediately got hold of this
film, which happens to be one of his most acclaimed works.<br />
It was
certainly of a far more serious nature than the previous one I watched,
but I liked it nonetheless, in fact I thought it was even better.<br />
Almodovar is rising fast on my list of favourite directors, and I can't wait to watch All About My Mother next.<br />
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<b>The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover</b> - 1989 directed by Peter Greenway<br />
10/10<br />
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Review can be found <a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/10/new-to-me-directors-peter-greenaway.html">here!</a><br />
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<b>The Guard</b> - 2011 directed by John Michael McDonagh<br />
6/10<br />
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A
severe disappointment. I was really looking froward to this film for a
number of reasons, it is directed by the brother of the director of In
Bruges, which I loved, it was filmed around where I now live, and it
starred Brendan Gleeson who is a favourite actor of mine. <br />
But
what I got was a decidedly average film, that was made in an uninspiring
fashion, contained only a handful of laughs, and failed to put to use
all the various elements in introduces over the course of the film. Some
aspects were so overdone that I was annoyed to see them used in this
film, such as the philosophical gangsters.<br />
But on the whole it isn't an awful film, it just completely failed to live up to my expectations. <br />
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<b>Perrier's Bounty</b> - 2009 directed by Ian Fitzgibbon<br />
6/10<br />
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For
this film however my expectations weren't quite as high yet I still
found it suffered from many of the problems that crippled The Guard.<br />
It
seemed to me like an attempt at an Irish Guy Ritchie film, and as I'm
not a fan of Ricthie's films, this film just didn't work for me.<br />
It
was mainly marred by a ridiculous script, which was as sure of it's own
hilarity as it was contrived and at times just plain idiotic.<br />
Not
a film I'd recommend, even thought I did enjoy it quite a bit, but this
was almost entirely due to the cast, which included Cillian Murphy, Jim
Broadbent, Brendan Gleeson and Liam Cunningham. <br />
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<br />
<b>Drowning By Numbers</b> - 1988 directed by Peter Greenaway<br />
10/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij0TLAf0sfHjy5BSlrG5RoEX8AyUeunlTrAD9qM_2ab2qjRqfEdzwqaIrjbZIaaxEBBQyur2BFxpyJxhMX_s5_dDK5dT_v4L9qpKtfhf4sCK98MY104oKCnS18SLtSGyDtyPkby7oxPh_q/s1600/images.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij0TLAf0sfHjy5BSlrG5RoEX8AyUeunlTrAD9qM_2ab2qjRqfEdzwqaIrjbZIaaxEBBQyur2BFxpyJxhMX_s5_dDK5dT_v4L9qpKtfhf4sCK98MY104oKCnS18SLtSGyDtyPkby7oxPh_q/s200/images.jpeg" width="144" /></a><br />
Another stroke of complete genius from one of my new favourite directors.<br />
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<b> The Belly Of An Architect</b> - 1987 directed by Peter Greenaway<br />
10/10<br />
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And yet another...<br />
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<b>The Draughstman's Contract</b> - 1982 directed by Peter Greenaway.<br />
9/10<br />
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...and another<br />
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<b>A Zed And Two Noughts (Z00)</b> -1986 directed by Peter Greenaway<br />
9/10<br />
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...and one more.<br />
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<b>The Baby Of Macon</b> - 1993 directed by Peter Greenaway <br />
7/10<br />
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This film however is the most divisive of Greenaway's career, as well as being the most hard to obtain. <br />
It
may be my least favourite of his so far, but I will admit that there is
something great about this film, it's just hard to say exactly what.<br />
I
really didn't understand all of it though, and feel it deserves another
viewing, where I will be able to look past the more controversial
aspects of it and find the deeper meaning.<br />
<br />
I'll probably end up writing a lengthy Greenaway centred post when I see a few more of his films.<br />
<br />
<b>The Butcher Boy</b> - 1997 directed by Neil Jordan <br />
9/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj680id44nv83NXt0G_BOHkaC3NLc9VO8VTQCwpTFLyZQsxxa8HhJerOFVHddxPPHKbUGL0t2vLePjJBvzIopSD3lg0Sw7rTsQXEXUa8oW_c87iswlZnWpbhnphJVmb06q4bj7nF8kLjOk3/s1600/the-butcher-boy-1998-poster.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj680id44nv83NXt0G_BOHkaC3NLc9VO8VTQCwpTFLyZQsxxa8HhJerOFVHddxPPHKbUGL0t2vLePjJBvzIopSD3lg0Sw7rTsQXEXUa8oW_c87iswlZnWpbhnphJVmb06q4bj7nF8kLjOk3/s200/the-butcher-boy-1998-poster.jpg" width="117" /></a><br />
An Irish masterpiece.<br />
It's
hard to put into words exactly what makes this one so great, but it's a
tale of the descent into madness of a young boy growing up in Ireland
and his family disintegrates around him. It is presented in a darkly
humorous way, even thought some of the content is rather disturbing. <br />
Neil
Jordan touches on an abundance of themes here while remaining strongly
Irish, it is possibly his most underrated film. The main performance by
Eamonn Owens is incredible, better than many adults performances I've
seen, and the film never uses it darkly comic tone. The supporting cast
are of course excellent and full of familiar faces and the directing is
full of interesting flourishes, some grander than other.<br />
Ultimately it's one of the finest Irish films you'll ever see, so I'd highly recommend it. <br />
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<b>Confessions of A Dangerous Mind </b>- 2002 directed by George Clooney<br />
7/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9ClarvdxBGojXmtXkXwpyMEyfatPsxDG9VnQk9womObrzE3wu_GjaSOqSRk1GlS4D06kN0ly0aIAdnVfvyJE6Mq7Fp-NmTNcHayAyE2MbACgKmehjfzmqrwAU9ovgjY3cI4YfE3zinYJw/s1600/images.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9ClarvdxBGojXmtXkXwpyMEyfatPsxDG9VnQk9womObrzE3wu_GjaSOqSRk1GlS4D06kN0ly0aIAdnVfvyJE6Mq7Fp-NmTNcHayAyE2MbACgKmehjfzmqrwAU9ovgjY3cI4YfE3zinYJw/s200/images.jpeg" width="136" /></a><br />
I'm
a big fan of Charlie Kaufman and was interested on seeing Clooney's
work behind the camera, so I'm glad I eventually got around to this
film. However as great as the script, Clooney's directing, and Sam
Rockwell's performance are, it never really breaks into great film
territory, instead saying in a rather familiar area and bringing to mind
many other films like it.<br />
It's a shame because it had the
potential to be something really great, but ultimately it just felt a
bit to safe and toned down.<br />
However there is plenty to say in it's favour and I'd still strongly recommend it. <br />
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<b>The Way </b>- 2011 directed by Emilio Estevez<br />
5/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6EEONdQgYsiFxGagblfP2RfMJHI8ZQiyrN5A7MTLmPX6TfXNtzNCWf-N978qFTCCKOo7dCO0MjuYNgjlk3csuPveE8fotU1zICsGU6WqX0tY_BpB5vbTnXcEigm5_egfsRaljSsHSj2is/s1600/the-way-poster-martin-sheen-1.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6EEONdQgYsiFxGagblfP2RfMJHI8ZQiyrN5A7MTLmPX6TfXNtzNCWf-N978qFTCCKOo7dCO0MjuYNgjlk3csuPveE8fotU1zICsGU6WqX0tY_BpB5vbTnXcEigm5_egfsRaljSsHSj2is/s200/the-way-poster-martin-sheen-1.jpg" width="135" /></a><br />
This
film was another disappointment. Martin Sheen is a favourite of mine
and the story, as well as the whole real life father-son thing between
Sheen and Estevez, intrigued me. <br />
However this has the be the
single most cliched and stereotyped film of all those mentioned on the
list. The film is well made, and the performances are all good (with the
exception of the Scot pretending to be an Irishman, what the hell was
that?) <br />
The story was just too diluted, too cliched to be anything
more than a slight passing entertainment. It seems a shame to miss such
an opportunity as this, but the intense stereotyping of Europeans in
this film really was laughable. The characters were also rather unlike
able and the whole film just felt vastly disappointing, especially
considering the wonderful reviews it received. <br />
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<b>Midnight In Paris</b> - 2011 directed by Woody Allen<br />
8/10<br />
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Hailed
by many as Woody Allen's return to form, I was intrigued to see this
film as I'm a fan of Woody's earlier work but have been disappointed by
most of his films of the last decade or so. <b><br /></b><br />
However
the presence of Owen Wilson and Marion Cotillard, two actors I don't
care for much, and the obviously highly romanticised view of Paris did
make me doubt whether I'd like the film. <b><br /></b><br />
Fortunately
though, Owen Wilson has never been better or should I say less
unlikeable and Marion Cotillard was fine enough, of course Paris was
romanticised enormously, which is something I usually dislike, but I was
willing to look past that due to the charming story (that is
something I'm sure everyone has dreamt about at some point in their
life). <br />
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<b>Hearts Of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse</b> - 1991 directed by Fax Bahr, George Hickenlooper, Eleanor Coppola<br />
9/10<br />
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I recently decided to fully explore Apocalypse Now again, after not being very impressed the first time around.<br />
This documentary about the making of the film is simply one of the best of it's kind. Essential viewing for both fans of the film, and aspiring directors.<br />
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<b>Apocalypse Now</b> - 1979 directed by Francis Ford Coppola<br />
9/10 <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge6jo9pcch_iFZLwqbAqM921rsF5IUktLgrgtCv4szRycZTtVJOIjgDbh_7a1AGeSBmbWki4Zmovdf2hbufH9OUhN0JMMKWjsWKyxcIm-9Sgdcx25avUFZtvguwqsiaZfppjut84ZZMwe0/s1600/215px-Apocnow3.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge6jo9pcch_iFZLwqbAqM921rsF5IUktLgrgtCv4szRycZTtVJOIjgDbh_7a1AGeSBmbWki4Zmovdf2hbufH9OUhN0JMMKWjsWKyxcIm-9Sgdcx25avUFZtvguwqsiaZfppjut84ZZMwe0/s200/215px-Apocnow3.jpg" width="136" /></a><br />
I liked it a lot more this time around. I'm currently working on a rather lengthy analysis of it, so I won't say anymore here. <br />
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<b>Apocalypse Now Redux </b>- 2001 directed by Francis Ford Coppola<br />
8/10 <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi980wrddTp_a2FTUyJPzY6sZWIuQfj-EgdmD6ajxhDlkaEqdFND2YSim9qLrhBzPUN2lRKkEhldEIq8vkopfjpKQyQx6-Jrh3jEEBl-RGNp4A0Yh-PUkvMjOvefR3jlG-2vQUyNJN0AoXs/s1600/Apocalypse+now+redux.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi980wrddTp_a2FTUyJPzY6sZWIuQfj-EgdmD6ajxhDlkaEqdFND2YSim9qLrhBzPUN2lRKkEhldEIq8vkopfjpKQyQx6-Jrh3jEEBl-RGNp4A0Yh-PUkvMjOvefR3jlG-2vQUyNJN0AoXs/s200/Apocalypse+now+redux.jpg" width="143" /></a>Slightly inferior to the original cut in my opinion, but Redux is still a great film in it's own right.<br />
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<b>Submarine</b> - 2011 directed by Richard Ayoade<br />
7/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWElnDC1q1gbj2CCEjPX0-a8pdiOQJgt5NVKf4SYhIcUdFN0W0mKQ07NEksUO3XB1y1yfUca6HpLKOuNOiwh1_OrMApZnaHhoSDWCrNnJiXUkBOJDT1q9j9uzloGxQ4bm1fe3RnYix4dXk/s1600/submarine-500.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWElnDC1q1gbj2CCEjPX0-a8pdiOQJgt5NVKf4SYhIcUdFN0W0mKQ07NEksUO3XB1y1yfUca6HpLKOuNOiwh1_OrMApZnaHhoSDWCrNnJiXUkBOJDT1q9j9uzloGxQ4bm1fe3RnYix4dXk/s200/submarine-500.jpg" width="135" /></a>After the intense atmosphere of Apocalypse Now (over 5 hours of it in fact) I felt like watching something a bit more whimsical. Submarine was certainly a good choice as it's a fine little indie romantic comedy. The performances were good but the film ultimately suffered from it's stylistic excesses. Still and interesting work that does manage to put a well worn storyline to good use. <br />
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<b>Lost In La Mancha</b> - 2002 directed by Keith Fulton, Louis Pepe<br />
9/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg923e_phcaC8HL-KVKnONam0zkWUPXOTGDnwd1NMHrrM-C_lDevSowd5WCkQ-zdkkjbtpdptViNeSCgRsFZ5qFTvjfBtGASGjwVEi7ZM8hRmJ3WY457UG2VNNftGFzoe9cf2Kk1WdwJQqn/s1600/lostinlamancha.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg923e_phcaC8HL-KVKnONam0zkWUPXOTGDnwd1NMHrrM-C_lDevSowd5WCkQ-zdkkjbtpdptViNeSCgRsFZ5qFTvjfBtGASGjwVEi7ZM8hRmJ3WY457UG2VNNftGFzoe9cf2Kk1WdwJQqn/s200/lostinlamancha.jpg" width="135" /></a>After being very impressed with the making of documentary about Apocalypse Now, I decided to check out another similar film. <br />
Lost In la Mancha is about Terry Gilliam's failed attempt to bring the wonderful Don Quixote to screen. <br />
It's a very entertaining look at the production, which runs up against pretty much every problem one could imagine, and yet it is tinged with sadness throughout.<br />
Gilliam ultimately never completed the film and the subject matter remains unfilmed to date.<br />
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<b> Revanche</b> - 2008 directed by Gotz Spielmann<br />
7/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFm9C-tckVh8G98wIf8XFSy_j0KzPYZlXOal-wd_SdWy-UjOpndPJpzIHykW9n6IaAArkHTeujAEuXi-_ctJLDklMI0f_T2umQWB2fDunob5zd2uwSxUtq3o5jCFn89al0rSKA_GqjNqYN/s1600/MV5BMTczMjUwNDExM15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMTIxMjQwMw%2540%2540._V1._SY317_CR5%252C0%252C214%252C317_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFm9C-tckVh8G98wIf8XFSy_j0KzPYZlXOal-wd_SdWy-UjOpndPJpzIHykW9n6IaAArkHTeujAEuXi-_ctJLDklMI0f_T2umQWB2fDunob5zd2uwSxUtq3o5jCFn89al0rSKA_GqjNqYN/s200/MV5BMTczMjUwNDExM15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMTIxMjQwMw%2540%2540._V1._SY317_CR5%252C0%252C214%252C317_.jpg" width="135" /></a>I'd heard great things about this Austrian Oscar nominee, but I have to admit I thought it was rather disappointing. <br />
The style of filmmaking reminded me very much of Michael Haneke's work, and I while I appreciated the originality of the storyline, I still though it was rather contrived at times. <br />
On the whole this is one of those films that didn't really have any major flaws, but just didn't make much of an impact on me. <br />
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<b>All About My Mother</b> - 1999 directed by Pedro Almodovar<br />
9/10<br />
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Now I'm officially an Almodovar fan. All About My Mother was a brilliant film, taking you places you'd never expect and breaking a multitude of taboo's in the process.<br />
This is the most tragic work I've seen from Almodovar so far, but it was not without it's humour as well as an underlying message of hope and redemption. And this is what I liked so much about it, many films deal with tragic and disturbing material, yet only very few of them handle it in such a delicate and respectful manner as this one does.<br />
Very hihgly recommended! <br />
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<b>Teorema</b> - 1968 directed by Pier Paolo Pasolini<br />
8/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPxN7qYA9pWAPyrWsuF8rtilZnVNbbiDCm6kiClSBbKmNKtmXTPyk3pU6jviqEmlH7TAICM4T_YZWat5eExtM2iji4UWBvNu22aGQe5TUG3c1gr9gg9Z-BTzcwNqFOCx6vckb6BgGzkV9F/s1600/l_63678_06bcbc63.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPxN7qYA9pWAPyrWsuF8rtilZnVNbbiDCm6kiClSBbKmNKtmXTPyk3pU6jviqEmlH7TAICM4T_YZWat5eExtM2iji4UWBvNu22aGQe5TUG3c1gr9gg9Z-BTzcwNqFOCx6vckb6BgGzkV9F/s200/l_63678_06bcbc63.jpg" width="140" /></a>The first Pasolini film I've seen so far, I'll admit I was not eager to explore his work, mainly because of the reputation he has acquired due to his controversial film Salo: 120 Days of Sodom.<br />
However I liked this film. It didn't fully work in my opinion, but it was still quite unlike anything I'd ever seen before, and I appreciate that in a film. <br />
Taken on the surface value, the film is ludicrously bland, however it's the important symbolic and spiritual meaning that make the film of interest. Recommended to those interested in European Art films, if not you may not care for it much.<br />
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<b> Route Irish</b> - 2010 directed by Ken Loach<br />
9/10<br />
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Ken Loach is one of my favourite directors so naturally I was excited to hear that he had released a new feature. But little came of it, it received a fair amount of acclaim at Cannes last year, and then vanished. I have not seen it mentioned much since and it was only released on DVD a few months ago.<br />
But I'm glad I finally got around to watching it, even if the tepid reaction from some had me uncertain about what to expect. I liked it a lot though, in fact I'd say it's the best film about the war in Iraq that I've seen so far, even if it deals with the subject in an indirect manner. It's a film that builds much momentum before reaching an explosive and tragic climax that I won't forget for some time. <br />
As always Loach has worked his own strong political views into the film, which will be off putting for many people, but I tend to agree with his opinions so I didn't find this too problematic, even if he was heavy handed at times. <br />
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That's all the backlog taken care of, now hopefully I'lle be able to post more regularly and read some of your posts as well!Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-45163449440089105602011-10-23T14:14:00.001+01:002011-10-23T14:14:28.651+01:00Blockbuster Review: Conan The Barbarian 2011After the pleasant surprise of the last Hollywood blockbuster I watched and review, Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes, we return to yet another wholly unnecessary, entirely awful re-imagining of an 80's classic.<br />
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Conan the Barbarian was directed by Marcus Nispel, who is mainly known for a couple of reimaginings of classic horror films and the very poorly received Pathfinder. And was written by an assortments of writers, all of which have pretty terrible scripts to their names.<br />
It stars Jason Momoa as the titular character, as well as Rose McGowan, Ron Perlman and Stephen Lang.<br />
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The original Conan The Barbarian was by no means a great film, and certainly wasn't a particularly successful one as it failed in it's aim to launch the heroic fantasy genre into mainstream cinema and only succeeded in propelling Arnold Shwarzenegger into a career full of terrible action films. <br />
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But at least that film had aims to speak of, and fulfilled a purpose of sorts (whether it was a good purpose is a matter of opinion of course), but this remake is nothing more than an enormous waste of money in the worst possible kind of way. <br />
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This film was terribly made and contains not a single noteworthy performance or well written line of dialogue, and yet all this isn't where it fails so horribly. For I have seen films made in a considerably worse fashion that were infinitely better than this one.<br />
What lets this film down so much, is it's very nature. The fact that it is a remake of a film that so summed up a certain portion of Hollywood Cinema in the 80's does not work in this film favour, for while it is a "re-imagining" of the story, it has not re-imagined the themes and values presented within the film to fit a modern audience, thus while the originals' faults in this department can be laid down to being in some respect representative of the times it was made in, this film has no excuse. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUTPeRVrBuB7EkIWfJ3YW9LDXMM4VSwP_DWS38fEUgkVCjhazI_sPsy8EhPtrhWbaCBzCQJZi-pYAUC7JSuF2ipWSrEGNVkC1YejpFK61lelEMBuIJhNYQoOkyXSOoAg7AYIkvIrAfUj5r/s1600/Jason-Momoa-in-Conan-The-Barbarian-2011-Movie-Image-31.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUTPeRVrBuB7EkIWfJ3YW9LDXMM4VSwP_DWS38fEUgkVCjhazI_sPsy8EhPtrhWbaCBzCQJZi-pYAUC7JSuF2ipWSrEGNVkC1YejpFK61lelEMBuIJhNYQoOkyXSOoAg7AYIkvIrAfUj5r/s320/Jason-Momoa-in-Conan-The-Barbarian-2011-Movie-Image-31.jpg" width="320" /></a>All it did was make the same kind of film, with enhanced visuals and more gore. It is still just as sexist, as stereotyped and as mildly offensive as it's content as the first, but the difference is it is screening before a modern audience and thus should have made at least some efforts.<br />
We have all the scantily clad yet ultimately useless females, the hulking, moronic hero, the comedic black sidekick, the Arabic thief etc... All who fill out their stereotypical roles perfectly, with bad accents where required. <br />
However, I have noticed that this isn't one of the primary complaints brought up by those criticising this film. Perhaps the slew of 80's inspired films that has appeared recently has altered viewers perception of this aspect.<br />
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But to be honest, there is so much wrong with this film that I'm not surprised many people overlooked the previous point.<br />
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What surprised me about this film was that although I had expected to see an uninspired story, cartoonish characters, bad dialogue etc... I was shocked to find that even the elements one pays less attention too were poor. Such as the sound editing, how often do you see a review mention this? But here I feel I must because it was quite poor indeed, with overly loud battle sequences, but barely audible dialogue and just a bad sound design all around. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikBZnpsRevOUTGZc4mkqOeje3v9wyqJo0uwutNqef0hTF6bKdB26MakEB9JYpErNWRqfHDQWiwg_xPTQUoQ-zUWOXNySiJB1p27j0QKEkXmZ4qnBa9LMI62mwCZ6bIqkZUqwEbissI4fcQ/s1600/Conan_the_Barbarian_2011__12823632894297.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikBZnpsRevOUTGZc4mkqOeje3v9wyqJo0uwutNqef0hTF6bKdB26MakEB9JYpErNWRqfHDQWiwg_xPTQUoQ-zUWOXNySiJB1p27j0QKEkXmZ4qnBa9LMI62mwCZ6bIqkZUqwEbissI4fcQ/s320/Conan_the_Barbarian_2011__12823632894297.jpg" width="320" /></a>The editing was equally poor, creating a horrendously paced film that skips from one scene to another without rhythm of any sort. Not that this effects the story in any major way, as it would still have been awful even with good pacing. The whole story is meaningless, it is a typical revenge story but lacking the character development that usually occurs through such stories, Conan looks for the man who killed his father, finds him, kills him, the end. Everything concerning the characters can literally be summed up by their physique and basic motivations, for example, Conan is a massively muscled barbarian and is after revenge, that is as far as his character goes. Some characters have no motivations what so ever, but just hang around the film getting into fights. <br />
Speaking of fights, the battle sequences in this film are massively disappointing, if a film about a barbarian's quest for bloody revenge set in a land torn apart by far can't even create good or even particularly memorable action sequences, then has it any use at all?<br />
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Thus we come to the core point of my dissatisfaction with this film: Conan The Barbarian is an utterly useless film, it sets out with no goals, and consequently achieves nothing. It can be seen as a quick shot of fast food cinematic entertainement, and surely will be seen that way by the majority of people, but the fact that 70 million was spent on a film with no creativity put into it, not even the slightest vision propelling it, makes me lament the existence of this film rather than shrug it off as mindless entertainment.<br />
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All in all, Conan The Barbarian is an almost unbelievably bad film, that could still have been mildly amusing had it not taken itself so seriously.<br />
This may seem like a rather short review, but I really have nothing more to say about this enormous waste of time and money.Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-57550424312312863402011-10-20T23:40:00.000+01:002011-10-20T23:40:59.101+01:00New-to-me Directors': Pedro AlmodovarWomen On The Verge of Nervous Breakdown is the first Almodovar film I have seen. <br />
Which means I've finally decided to remedy what was a pretty obvious flaw in my film knowledge, by delving into the work of Spains' most acclaimed modern director. <br />
I can't say why my attention fell on this film in particular, but I needed a place to start and Women On The Verge Of Nervous Breakdown certainly had an intriguing title.<br />
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I was very impressed, with this film Almodovar has crafted what is essentially a romantic comedy in such an original, amusing and energetic way that I immediately decided to seek out more of his work.<br />
Talk To Her was the next I saw of his, and was even more impressed by his handling of a far more serious and dramatic plot, though not without it's humourous moments. But this review concerns my first experience with his work, so I will try to keep Talk To Her out of it and focus only on the marvelous little film that is Women On The Verge of Nervous Breakdown.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>Women On The Verge of Nervous Breakdown tells the story of Pepa, an inhabitant of Madrid who works in a dubbing studio. It is a film that fits best into the Romantic Comedy genre, and indeed it is one of the earliest and best that I've seen, but it is not presented in a fully straightforward manner. At the beginning of the film Pepa breaks up with her lover Ivan due to reasons that are only revealed much later in the film, and the proceeds to spend the rest of the film trying to get in touch with Ivan to explain things to him and to get rid of his possessions kept in her apartment. However as is to be expected from a comedy, a collection of colourful characters turn up throughout the film and drop their respective problems on Pepa's shoulders, amusingly though it turns out everyone's stories and problems are linked together in a brilliant fashion. <br />
The real strength of the film lies in the writing, each character however unimportant at first ends up playing a pivotal role in the story. it's easy to see that the script had been pieced together meticulously as it moves along at a perfect pace, combines slapstick comedy with some rather dark humour, some rather bittersweet scenes and even some action sequences. <br />
It is a very clever film in that at first glance it appears to be a very 80's romantic comedy, but when one looks deeper it is in fact a brilliant little subversion of the genre.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzkx4iaGEwUc1la4uQgrFcos8b7TXBX3nbLvtlEpLtUwqyN2aXmT-6EtD2zaDqpGDJIaMkrznf898TDkO7lckLB5TuAUxaMHSDBZVZeV1SXCXRZe6bzDgpiNdrBsDEXO-pwXEsV-lGvLZ5/s1600/women_verge_breakdown.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzkx4iaGEwUc1la4uQgrFcos8b7TXBX3nbLvtlEpLtUwqyN2aXmT-6EtD2zaDqpGDJIaMkrznf898TDkO7lckLB5TuAUxaMHSDBZVZeV1SXCXRZe6bzDgpiNdrBsDEXO-pwXEsV-lGvLZ5/s1600/women_verge_breakdown.jpg" /></a>Romantic Comedies are well known for their happy endings and rather mild content, however this film has neither, with an ending that can only be called bittersweet and various plotlines of a slightly more serious nature than you'd expect from a film like this, even if they are played for laughs, such as terrorist threats and a psychotic main character. <br />
But for me this only made it even more clear that Almodovar was aiming for a less feel-good type of comedy. In this comedy, there is an established atmosphere of chaos, of frustration and hysteria that runs throughout, after all it is entitled Women On The Verge of Nervous Breakdown.<br />
The main character Pena is the first to reach the verge of nervous breakdown, but ultimately the other female characters reach it as well. It is perhaps a strange choice of subject for a comedy, but I thought it worked well considered the nature of the comedy in the film, which was largely built around misunderstandings, communication problems and frustrated attempts to sort things out, mixed in to this is a fair amount of black comedy including a suicide attempt, scenes involving a drugged drink and the threat of a terrorist attack.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3XTmElMC2ZPAbN3jxHnKYYErmoTFZwgZc0LRKnadIe_UrTFsRi-WvdeoHrK4_hL6uFFE_dwOpyM3cqmjKjxJPSHpSFjdcdxISbo4XzyP149OHfWawSXSGmtVgNbMTBkcjdKou2uVouNbY/s1600/oeuvreverge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="113" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3XTmElMC2ZPAbN3jxHnKYYErmoTFZwgZc0LRKnadIe_UrTFsRi-WvdeoHrK4_hL6uFFE_dwOpyM3cqmjKjxJPSHpSFjdcdxISbo4XzyP149OHfWawSXSGmtVgNbMTBkcjdKou2uVouNbY/s200/oeuvreverge.jpg" width="200" /></a>Another element of the title is key to getting an idea of what the film is about, the fact that it is about Women is clearly specified in the title. The women presented in the film are portrayed in almost interesting way, it is a very female-centric film, but there are no false or misguided attempts to portray "empowered women" or anything of the sort, instead they are just portrayed as women of their time, strong minded and independant but also needing men. I won't go much further on the subject, because as a man it isn't really one of my strong points. But I did enjoy seeing a film that struck a balance between the pathetic women who need a strong man around to do everything for them, and the empowered women who have no use for men and run around trying their best to prove they can do everything just as well if not better than men. Women On The Verge Of Nervous Breakdown was very refreshing in that sense, of course all the characters aren't female, but it is principally about those who are, with the men serving more as plot devices, set ups for gags or, in the case of Ivan, the link between the many characters in the film.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW6x0GSYYuC3SyMDBduMETaBlXAs3oBc6UinW0vgMQSK3jCwd5uCLOMSI_qmUv8WQXgQ6A7eMIUx0WgtV4yFTS38pOvQyqN_bz3LBPHWTfTrgboVnOtzPHgdsrSEnPZ_OGYHMVqvF8gOVH/s1600/images2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="111" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW6x0GSYYuC3SyMDBduMETaBlXAs3oBc6UinW0vgMQSK3jCwd5uCLOMSI_qmUv8WQXgQ6A7eMIUx0WgtV4yFTS38pOvQyqN_bz3LBPHWTfTrgboVnOtzPHgdsrSEnPZ_OGYHMVqvF8gOVH/s200/images2.jpeg" width="200" /></a>The performances were all solid, nothing amazing, though Carmen Maura was very good in the lead role, but as in many comedies, the characters are more important than the actual actors, so in this sense the film succeeds as it has well written characters who the cast bring to life on screen admirably. <br />
The technical aspects were as with most comedies, primarily used as a showcase for the comical proceedins and winding storyline, but Almodovar does manage to slip in some very interesting sequences, especially towards the beginning of the film, where the film starts on a more serious note before gradually descending into comedy, and ending up with practically slapstick comedy towards the end. <br />
Having seen this film, I was convinced that Almodovar could make a good comedy film, and upon viewing Talk To Her (Habla Con Ella) I realise that he can pull off much more serious, and at times rather controversial, content just as well, if not better.<br />
Few directors show themselves equally proficient at both comedic and serious films, and such versatility is to be admired. Almodovar clearly is a director worthy of all the praise he has received over the years. I can't say I'm very familiar with contemporary Spanish Cinema but this film has got me interested in it, why I've never even thought of exploring it before I have no idea, but I'm glad I'm finally getting around to it. <br />
Almodovar is easily the most acclaimed and well known Spanish director
ever since Luis Bunuel, and I would even say that the fact that Bunuel
never actually made a film in Spain would qualify Almodovar for the
title of best Spanish director ever. I would need to see more of his
work before coming to such conclusions though.<br />
<br />
Naturally the humour is very Spanish, so I can't say I really "got" all
the jokes, especially the puns and wordplay. But I still found it fairly
accessible from a foreigners point of view, I will admit to having
studied Spanish for many years so I was able to understand more of the
films dialogue than someone completely unfamiliar with the tongue would,
but I think that it is inevitable when watching a film from another
culture that some of the jokes will be lost on you. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitWujibkKjjIqKUn2wW7mnK6LTITeYXe919BdDY-iPZuKP-MQnOd_II2bdsIWXFygAcPmX7wea-5GmNmJc8QHqqbS-zlM6-ce4lIBNkCye4HifBlYi3dIAd7h7DGLQ2SMBRfkdHLlp4Gfo/s1600/womenvergenervous_l.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitWujibkKjjIqKUn2wW7mnK6LTITeYXe919BdDY-iPZuKP-MQnOd_II2bdsIWXFygAcPmX7wea-5GmNmJc8QHqqbS-zlM6-ce4lIBNkCye4HifBlYi3dIAd7h7DGLQ2SMBRfkdHLlp4Gfo/s200/womenvergenervous_l.jpg" width="200" /></a>This is a film that is very much of it's time, in fact the whole plot would be resolved in a couple of minutes today as much of it is based around communication problems and other such things. The costumes, decor and pretty much everything else is so strongly of it's time that the film really has not aged very well. But such is often the case with comedies, I believe they are the hardest of all genres to make well and it is exceptionally rare to come across a comedy that transcends time and even more rare to find one that transcends nationalities. Women On The Verge of Nervous Breakdown is not one of these, but it is nonetheless a very well written, original, and hilarious.<br />
I would recommend it for those in search of a good European comedy. It's such a refreshing break from the usual Hollywood comedies, and rom-com's, which more often then not end up boring me to tears. Which some notable exceptions, I tend to lean more towards European comedies than US ones, and Women On The Verge of Nervous Breakdown just goes to show that a different culture can deliver comedy in a completely different style and be even more entertaining than an American comedy. I know this may sound rather unfair, for there are some great American comedies, but the truth is, it is (along with Horror) my least favourite genre and I don't generally bother with it, except for my handful of favourite comedy films. That would explain why there is a general lack of reviews for comedy films on this blog...<br />
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For the next instalment, I'm taking a more obscure turn, as it will be about experimental filmmaker Stan Brakhage. I'm not sure exactly what to expect, but I'm looking forward to seeing something rather different, even I ultimately have an negative reaction to it.<br />
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For the previous posts check out the <a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/08/top-50-directors-whose-work-i-need-to.html">original post of the project</a>, where I will add a link to each completed review.Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-76745635377965139032011-10-10T22:58:00.000+01:002011-10-10T22:58:14.844+01:00New-to-me Directors: Peter GreenawayAfter Sergei Parajanov, the next director I chose to turn my attention to was acclaimed British director Peter Greenaway.<br />
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When it comes to British directors, most film buffs will immediately think of the likes of Alfred Hitchcock and David Lean, Mike Leigh and Ken Loach, Edgar Wright and Danny Boyle.<br />
And while these are all great directors, some more than others perhaps, one name is always left out, sometimes purposefully so it seems.<br />
Take for example Empire's list of the <a href="http://www.empireonline.com/100britishfilms/?WT.dcsvid=SilverpopMailing&WT.mc_id=100711+newsletter+%281%29">100 Best British films</a>, all the expected choices are there, although the order they are ranked in is very problematic, with a notable exception. Peter Greenaway is one of the finest British directors, so why is he never mentioned? Why are his films always left off such lists? Surely he isn't overly obscure, he had his moment of fame in the late 80's, with The Cook The Thief His Wife and Her Lover. <br />
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The Cook The Thief His Wife and Her Lover is the first Greenaway film I have seen, but I was so amazed that I immediately got hold of most of the rest of his work, and have since seen 3 more of his films, all of which I have loved.<br />
But I will try to write this review in keeping with my initial reaction to the film.<br />
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<a name='more'></a> I had heard of this film a couple of times previously, and seen the phrasing of the title mimicked a few times as well, but I had never even considered watching it. Perhaps this was because of the allegedly graphic content, which is something I'm generally put off by.<br />
The Cook The Thief His Wife and Her Lover was a very controversial film in it's day, as it was originally given the choice between an X rating or nor rating at all in the USA, as it is not a pornographic film, and the producers did not want it to be associated with such films, they went with no rating. However this state of affairs led to a considerable amount of protestations and debates in the US. <br />
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Famed film critic Roger Ebert was one of the those to champion this films' cause, and eventually the controversy led to the creation of the NC-17 rating.<br />
However watching it now, 22 years after it's original release, the impact is diminished. I have seen films far more brutal and graphic than this but rated R. The standards have obviously changed over the years, but the reputation of this film has not. It is something of a cult classic, with a strong fan base and of course with most people that haven't seen it having a completely off the mark idea of what the film is about and what it contains. <br />
It's violence is certainly shocking, and the nudity is certainly very graphic, but I think what got to most people, and certainly what got to me, was the overwhelming atmosphere combined with Greenaway's peculiar tendencies. For example, people routinely see character getting shot and beaten in fact such things are mainly ignored these days, if the violence had been of that kind, no one would have a problem with this film. However Greenaway employs a much more unfamiliar and disturbing type of violence, the acts of violence themselves are unusual and even unique to this film, and the psychological violence is abundant. This is how the film retained the capacity to shock over all these years.<br />
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With this film Greenaway managed to create a masterpiece of contradictions, it is both beautiful and revolting, both thrilling to watch and repelling, high art about horrible characters. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUNN-4qszXL2e42tOGssYSt1xywtOZ23NIOh4IMJOuZM2lnXx7XnqpmBdIZnIkzT-5049kXSMAD8kMIlbA96wFPEHeDVap8HYmgxALNowYAnanmqg_pfsQB2SKDIgMyq64tpUOagnmeh-l/s1600/vlcsnap-106039.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><br /></a></div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUNN-4qszXL2e42tOGssYSt1xywtOZ23NIOh4IMJOuZM2lnXx7XnqpmBdIZnIkzT-5049kXSMAD8kMIlbA96wFPEHeDVap8HYmgxALNowYAnanmqg_pfsQB2SKDIgMyq64tpUOagnmeh-l/s1600/vlcsnap-106039.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="136" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUNN-4qszXL2e42tOGssYSt1xywtOZ23NIOh4IMJOuZM2lnXx7XnqpmBdIZnIkzT-5049kXSMAD8kMIlbA96wFPEHeDVap8HYmgxALNowYAnanmqg_pfsQB2SKDIgMyq64tpUOagnmeh-l/s320/vlcsnap-106039.png" width="320" /></a>I have seen few films that can rival this films sumptuousness, it's luscious cinematography, rich score, exotic sets, everything about it brings to mind a marvellously decadent and perverse piece of work. It is the exact oppose of those gritty, bare, independent films, and certainly miles away from the cinema of Britain's more celebrated directors, Ken Loach and Mike Leigh. <br />
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The Cook The Thief His Wife and Her Lover is a tragic tale of betrayal, revenge and love. As with all of Greenaway's films, the story revolves around a small group of characters, in this case the four titular characters and a handful of supporting ones. <br />
Richard Bohringer (who I had previously seen in Diva) plays the French Cook, a stoic and talented chef who acts as a neutral character to the proceedings, Michael Gambon (of Dumbledore fame) The Thief, the owner of the restaurent where the cook works and an all around horrible person, Helen Mirren plays His Wife, a repressed woman yearning for a more intellectually stimulating and free life than the one she lives with her oafish and controlling husband, and finally Alan Howard plays Her Lover, the exact opposite of The Thief, a book lover who meets a tragic fate at the hands of the jealous Thief. Smaller roles are taken on by a varied cast including Tim Roth, Ciarin Hinds and strangely enough, Ian Dury of The Blockheads.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4D6RW1TU1b3iB4k61lr9ezhAh_UDi8lN2BfwESG9LI35G_L7wXuv3IQHmuxvU15osk_T7f8SfvsxK4svYAr8sZFrdDOrITN7t0SGDn-2zeGfOqiwFjpTGRiFn8pFKhYrg__0oijD4cCG8/s1600/vlcsnap-107440.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="170" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4D6RW1TU1b3iB4k61lr9ezhAh_UDi8lN2BfwESG9LI35G_L7wXuv3IQHmuxvU15osk_T7f8SfvsxK4svYAr8sZFrdDOrITN7t0SGDn-2zeGfOqiwFjpTGRiFn8pFKhYrg__0oijD4cCG8/s400/vlcsnap-107440.png" width="400" /></a>Michael Gambon is an actor I have seen appear here and there in supporting roles in Hollywood films, and although I've always liked his performances, I never would have thought he would have been capable of bringing such a character as the terrifying Albert Spica (The Thief's proper name) to the screen. He is by far one of the greatest, most despicable villains in Cinema. More popular villains such as Darth Vader, Lord Voldermort etc... resemble nothing more than playground bullies next to the horrible Spica. What makes him such a figure worthy of hatred is the fact that he is actually a very complex character, a villain for sure, but also an obviously insecure man, pitiably so at times. One can observe that his lashings out at those around him, come from a deep insecurity somewhere inside of him. His attitude towards his wife (which makes up most of the films plot) reflects this, he brutalised her and repressed her every second of the time they spent with each other, yet it is also obvious that he loved her, in a sick and twisted kind of way. Everything about Spica was warped and nasty, his love for his wife, his treatment of both his enemies and those in his employ, his yearnings to be part of a more sophisticated class, which he hoped to achieve purely by wealth and outward appearances while remaining horribly vulgar and uneducated. All in all, he was little more than a small time bully, somehow possessed with enough wealth to give him a certain amount of respectability (such is the state of the world these days that this is very close to the truth) and thus permitting him to continue his bullying on a larger scale. <br />
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Gambon's flamboyant performance only adds to the sense that certain scenes almost take on an air of the theatre, in their carefully choreographed movements, the actors loud and clear line delivering and overexagerrated scuffles. I think that this is due in large part to the directional style Greenaway employed in this film, it is a very detached style but made up of magnificent tracking shots.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQwDYvEgG5F32EbbK06vYvRWKg0L_L8R3WEUA2AZHgkv0wJhS5PIjtqMNwbpwbuQMcE_Ddn6hANC5WYIbafgFrC-MScvLBmB3moC4Fi4pr93kN2wwd2Hl3xyrRYdW4-KIAEkpt6sKLXNLb/s1600/vlcsnap-105675.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="136" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQwDYvEgG5F32EbbK06vYvRWKg0L_L8R3WEUA2AZHgkv0wJhS5PIjtqMNwbpwbuQMcE_Ddn6hANC5WYIbafgFrC-MScvLBmB3moC4Fi4pr93kN2wwd2Hl3xyrRYdW4-KIAEkpt6sKLXNLb/s320/vlcsnap-105675.png" width="320" /></a>He makes some very interesting stylistic choices in this film, for example he always keeps the camera at the same level, there are very few low shots or high shots, the camera is generally placed at the same level as the action. This adds to the theatrical air, as it gives the viewer the sense that he's observing the proceedings. However this sense is often dismissed by the gliding movements of the camera, which passes through walls with ease and runs over the same track many times. Greenaway employs the same compositions for different shots throughout the film which I thought was most interesting and rather unheard of before. Most directors like to find new and different ways to film a scene that takes place in a location that has been used before, however Greenaway just trundles in, in exactly the same way as before, until a specific camera movement becomes almost synonymous with the the particular room. <br />
This reliance of steady, lenghty tracking shots, and disregard for walls and boundaries puts the sumptuous sets to excellent use. They are truly extraordinary, and the art department deserves a lot of praise for their work, I have never seen such lascivious, detailed and original sets before. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg8FtH2rOx_-EiaRioLuLmqrpjvTpPcPRmIkOqUdXOVwRUmMaGrY6f8F2U_mzor71Ja0ONtcnGVlgPoSFteDrrqVzdNZbatRfUFDnWJY-Zpt6S6uz2wfBqre0NrRDlXyLgmf__vai2k4sK/s1600/vlcsnap-107004.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="136" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg8FtH2rOx_-EiaRioLuLmqrpjvTpPcPRmIkOqUdXOVwRUmMaGrY6f8F2U_mzor71Ja0ONtcnGVlgPoSFteDrrqVzdNZbatRfUFDnWJY-Zpt6S6uz2wfBqre0NrRDlXyLgmf__vai2k4sK/s320/vlcsnap-107004.png" width="320" /></a>Most of the film takes place in the restaurant, and consequently food plays a large part in the film, sometimes directly, but often indirectly, take for example the first appearance of The Thief, he is smearing dog faeces all over one of his enemies, or the trucks of meat and fish that appear outside the restaurant at the start of the film and remain there throughout with their contents slowly decaying (decay is a theme Greenaway has touched on before, most notably in A Zed And Two Noughts), or the fate of the Lover, who is force fed books until death, or the ultimate fate of The Thief, forced to eat a piece of The Lover's roasted corpse. This is a film that doesn't entirely deal with the pleasant side of eating, in fact, eating takes on an almost revolting form in this film, it appears as something perverse and disgusting.<br />
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As with all of Greenaways' films, The Cook The Thief His
Wife and Her Lover is visually rich, and loaded with various visual
themes and motifs, all of which are open to interpretation due to their
symbolic nature.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwbkyeP_f0E5Jei98-SFfkyJyaBN3dX4FGsI3GLK66ry6meIOJMkozdi-scNLIjxCPcX8uT69bfOHpq3DI3Whi9MBu5rIinmEYbDA3lTxHC6ZAmsb0PrKNjJNOhAsO8neDhpda9Kgf6hCa/s1600/vlcsnap-105417.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="136" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwbkyeP_f0E5Jei98-SFfkyJyaBN3dX4FGsI3GLK66ry6meIOJMkozdi-scNLIjxCPcX8uT69bfOHpq3DI3Whi9MBu5rIinmEYbDA3lTxHC6ZAmsb0PrKNjJNOhAsO8neDhpda9Kgf6hCa/s320/vlcsnap-105417.png" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwbkyeP_f0E5Jei98-SFfkyJyaBN3dX4FGsI3GLK66ry6meIOJMkozdi-scNLIjxCPcX8uT69bfOHpq3DI3Whi9MBu5rIinmEYbDA3lTxHC6ZAmsb0PrKNjJNOhAsO8neDhpda9Kgf6hCa/s1600/vlcsnap-105417.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a>Many ideas are touched upon throughout the film,
and depending on your interpretations they may be religious, spiritual
or even political. But I won't go into any in depth analysis here as it
would deprive any prospective viewers of the unique experience of
watching this film for the first time.<br />
<br />
However there are certain aspects of the film that impressed me enormously, so I feel I must mention them here.<br />
One
of the first things I noticed about this film were the grand and
obvious visual and technical flairs Greenaway employed, such as the bold
colour scheme distinguishing each room from one another, for example
there is the green kitchen, the red dining room, the white bathroom
etc... with each room being composed entirely of different shades of
their given colour. But the real genius lay in the transition between
one room and another, these are achieved in such a manner as to make
them appear to be shot in one fluid take, but the colours of the
characters costumes adapt to each room they enter thus showing that an
imperceptible cut had taken place. It is a subtle touch, but unique to
this film and ingeniously executed.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLdN7eM-BgJ_AJ_EjZhjS-PLFaCgaIJB2UB-aG3fAw7HIcBMp0IPsLlcxm-O41rceZ1IQxgAJV3GzA5sGJXr3nHO3SHX9JhnhEaPSk0XhHjkYWEXWJ2pWRxN0ezUOYtMukh-wYrupAfzLj/s1600/vlcsnap-105050.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="136" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLdN7eM-BgJ_AJ_EjZhjS-PLFaCgaIJB2UB-aG3fAw7HIcBMp0IPsLlcxm-O41rceZ1IQxgAJV3GzA5sGJXr3nHO3SHX9JhnhEaPSk0XhHjkYWEXWJ2pWRxN0ezUOYtMukh-wYrupAfzLj/s320/vlcsnap-105050.png" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLdN7eM-BgJ_AJ_EjZhjS-PLFaCgaIJB2UB-aG3fAw7HIcBMp0IPsLlcxm-O41rceZ1IQxgAJV3GzA5sGJXr3nHO3SHX9JhnhEaPSk0XhHjkYWEXWJ2pWRxN0ezUOYtMukh-wYrupAfzLj/s1600/vlcsnap-105050.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a>This is a technique that has been used before, in various ways
(I'm thinking of such films as Dick Tracy, with it's primary colours
compositions, or Thunderpants, with it's palette made up entirely of
shades of green) but I have never seen it used so well.<br />
Understandably, the costumes play a significant role in this film, they were designed by the famous French designer Jean Paul Gaultier and are perfectly fitting for the film. Costume design is not something I tend to pay much attention to when watching a film, but there are some instances where you cannot help but notice what a fantastic job had been done in that department, this is one of those films. <br />
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Another compelling aspect of the film was it's highly symbolic nature, this is something I always admire in films, and something that is lacking in many modern films in my opinion.This film can be interpreted in many ways, you may see it as a political piece, an incisive critique of Thatcherite Britain (which was something Greenaway had on his mind while making it) or perhaps a more spiritual piece, with Spica as the Devil, and the Chef as some form of God. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRvLKgwmI63JzckuMsaMg5pOopZaXKcN42T-G77d-vyVVl7oVhDWfWfTGXkO5ePXFCon_vgj5L-5cLlYFQQ1ivo7DjO6ONG0UixIucpPWTZwLFx306p1GwllPjkiyVZDJJFFg3we3nOhZs/s1600/vlcsnap-106562.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="136" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRvLKgwmI63JzckuMsaMg5pOopZaXKcN42T-G77d-vyVVl7oVhDWfWfTGXkO5ePXFCon_vgj5L-5cLlYFQQ1ivo7DjO6ONG0UixIucpPWTZwLFx306p1GwllPjkiyVZDJJFFg3we3nOhZs/s320/vlcsnap-106562.png" width="320" /></a></div>
One of the main aspects of Greenaway's films that is often forgotten or simply overlooked, is his biting and ever present sense of humour. It is a very British sense of humour and about as dark as you can get, so of course it will not appeal (or even be apparent) to all. It really is intensely dark, but is present throughout all of his work, Spica for example, was undoubtedly terrifying, yet he was also at times hilarious. Such is the case with many of Greenaway's films, the darkest, most terrifying or disturbing aspects are also the funniest. He never employs out and out comedy, there are no jokes in his films, but rather absurdist situations, clever visual gags, or scenes that are simply so strange that one can't help but laugh. But as he never indulges in comedy per se, the tone of his films stays consistent, and this is fortunate, as much of the film is based around the atmosphere, which is created in part by Nyman's scores, it is a heavy, absorbing atmosphere that is unique to his films, it is never interrupted and of course varies in style from film to film, but it is still absolutely unique to Greenaway's films, it's hard to describe it, but in my opinion it must be experienced by all film buffs. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmKIoIVRox05TCa9G7PuFzhNdtqFxNxl1zW2fkfDDpe8FT1UUscsNf6kxLwNK5h-_reuGC_6DYSGgc7czceCUlbN_DocA-fBg-VERvdzZqxUxcs4g4InSPHmYVY4sd_YAoqzCV_gb1qj6I/s1600/vlcsnap-105937.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="136" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmKIoIVRox05TCa9G7PuFzhNdtqFxNxl1zW2fkfDDpe8FT1UUscsNf6kxLwNK5h-_reuGC_6DYSGgc7czceCUlbN_DocA-fBg-VERvdzZqxUxcs4g4InSPHmYVY4sd_YAoqzCV_gb1qj6I/s320/vlcsnap-105937.png" width="320" /></a><br />
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Occasionally, when I watch a film, everything about it seems to fall in place perfectly, and I am once again left dumdfounded, never having thought such things could be acheived in Cinema. This happened to me whilst watching The Cook The Thief His Wife and Her Lover, I was simultaneously inspired by the brilliance of the <br />
film and saddened at the impermanence of Greenaway's success.<br />
For me, he's a director on the same level as Kubrick and Kurosawa, so right near the top of the cinematic pantheon. <br />
But as with all such things, the very elements that transfix me when watching his films, repel other people. And consequently he is a very divisive director.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT4Pu-6CgWHX1VYELQArkOBqd0i6UQ__hu6QguwQBKshxXAdZm6cD940GlowxWodJ7w8AVCqWoG5YCuf4pUQVtnPhISjU4KWtGbRrWm7kWCPvWs9qgq1XjcqGAKlMqB6c5ReIPc-dNmqcI/s1600/vlcsnap-105284.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="136" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT4Pu-6CgWHX1VYELQArkOBqd0i6UQ__hu6QguwQBKshxXAdZm6cD940GlowxWodJ7w8AVCqWoG5YCuf4pUQVtnPhISjU4KWtGbRrWm7kWCPvWs9qgq1XjcqGAKlMqB6c5ReIPc-dNmqcI/s320/vlcsnap-105284.png" width="320" /></a>Perhaps what makes him such a great director is the fact that he has an understanding of imagery that goes far beyond his work in the Cinema, he trained as a painter and has a vast knowledge of classical painting, as well as all other forms of imagery, Cinema has been his art form of choice for many years, but he is equally proficient in other art forms. <br />
I don't know if this extends to music, but that is of little importance as he has the extremely talented composer Michael Nyman compose most, if not all of his films. Nyman's scores seem tailor-made for Greenaway's films, which isn't the case with most mediocre film score's you hear these days, which could be interchangeable. Nyman's scores are essentially Greenaway's films in music form. Without them, the films, and in particular The Cook The Thief His Wife and Her Lover as it's score is almost omnipresent, would be significantly less amazing. The same thing goes for the director of photography, Sacha Vierny, whose previous credits include Resnais' Hiroshima Mon Amour, L'Année Dernière à Marienbad (which happened to be a major inspiration for Greenaways' work), and Bunuels' Belle De Jour.<br />
Here is the main theme of the film, composed by Michael Nyman: <br />
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All in all, this film had a completely unexpected effect on me. It impressed me in a way only a handful of other films have done and triggered an intense admiration for Greenaway's work of which I am now rather familiar having seen many of his films over the past few days and liking each and every one of them immensely. For me he may very well be the best of British directors, a visual artists without equal, on the same level as Kubrick and vastly superior to the likes of Hitchcock and Lean.<br />
And yet he is so unknown, what didn't he have that stopped him going down in history along with the other great directors? Why is it that some names are still remembered and his is near forgotten by today's film buffs? Obviously his films won't be to the liking of everyone, but I still find his lack of success puzzling.<br />
Perhaps he failed to crack the US audience, forever remaining a European director with a reputation for artistic tendencies. <br />
I suppose that is how the world works, some achieve success others don't. It's all about being in the right place at the right time, the level of talent comes afterwards, that seems to be the best way to explain why directors such as Greenaway are little known whereas directors such as George Lucas, Ridley Scott or Coppola still retain a massive amount of fame even though they haven't done anything interesting for decades although some would argue, including me, that Lucas has never done anything interesting). <br />
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The Cook The Thief His Wife and Her Lover is not an easy film to watch, Gambon's character is vile and some scenes are revolting, but ultimately it is one of the greatest films ever made and a wonderful introduction to the genius of Greenaway. I'd highly recommend it, along with the rest of his work, some of which I may review on this blog at some point. <br />
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The next New-to-me director is to be the Spaniard Pedro Almodovar and you can see the previous entry <a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/10/new-to-me-directors-sergei-parajanov.html">here</a>.Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-57527361577872789892011-10-08T01:48:00.001+01:002011-10-08T01:48:13.575+01:00New-to-me Directors: Sergei Parajanov With my<a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/08/top-50-directors-whose-work-i-need-to.html"> previous post detailing my aim to see at least one film of the many acclaimed directors I had missed out on,</a> I embarked on a large project. And I've decided to keep track of it through this blog, every time I watch my first film of one of the directors listed, I shall review it here and express my first impressions of the director. This should prove to be a most interesting project and will help me keep track of my progress.<br />
It may also be a rather uneven project, as I have also many other films than those included in this project to watch, as well as various other projects and of course, work. But I'll do my best, and we'll see how this turns out.<br />
I'll also update the original post each time I cross one director off the list, links to the reviews will be found there.<br />
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The Colour Of Pomegranates (1968) is the film I chose to mark my first encounter with the work of Armenian director Sergei Parajanov. It is widely considered his masterpiece, as well as one of the most visually magnificent films in Cinema. As this is the first film I've seen of his, I can't comment on the former statement, but the latter is certainly true.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEwARPobdSiAdpl9a2vroiF_OVYKkzsf9jvgvVLLZL4sZaQZf2R1snxGGj817sXGYvhXXbHpcTuRrdXSVshIZTfkTs4-scywXTOXAiIMeyuG0YxmvwX3FaHphUQF0T33z_cJ_1cdITCA3m/s1600/pomegranate-550x700.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEwARPobdSiAdpl9a2vroiF_OVYKkzsf9jvgvVLLZL4sZaQZf2R1snxGGj817sXGYvhXXbHpcTuRrdXSVshIZTfkTs4-scywXTOXAiIMeyuG0YxmvwX3FaHphUQF0T33z_cJ_1cdITCA3m/s320/pomegranate-550x700.jpg" width="251" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbSQG2JJ7lpZsqakEd2f21Xg53j9y_OUcndW8Z3-Hq_vTJoKPemTofeGhtunl53vLXzH1ahS5wtOsSJ5iMlvhk5Qd7yPBzHIReIDwbYlt7R_dzPiVmbK3pmCIdxhQMkfDqJKywRlUTmxrb/s1600/vlcsnap-210263.png" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbSQG2JJ7lpZsqakEd2f21Xg53j9y_OUcndW8Z3-Hq_vTJoKPemTofeGhtunl53vLXzH1ahS5wtOsSJ5iMlvhk5Qd7yPBzHIReIDwbYlt7R_dzPiVmbK3pmCIdxhQMkfDqJKywRlUTmxrb/s200/vlcsnap-210263.png" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbSQG2JJ7lpZsqakEd2f21Xg53j9y_OUcndW8Z3-Hq_vTJoKPemTofeGhtunl53vLXzH1ahS5wtOsSJ5iMlvhk5Qd7yPBzHIReIDwbYlt7R_dzPiVmbK3pmCIdxhQMkfDqJKywRlUTmxrb/s1600/vlcsnap-210263.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a>Before I start lavishing praise upon this film, I think I should point out some aspects of the film that I think some viewers may find off putting. This film can best be described as an experimental film. That, combined with it's age, would probably be enough to put off several people, but I'm sure hearing it described as one of the most visually remarkable films ever made would encourage most film buffs to seek it out. And I can assure you that if that is the case you will not be disappointed. However you must bear in mind, that there is little dialogue, and all sound effects are dubbed over in a most disorientating and rudimentary fashion, silent era style intertitles are used at times and certain phrases are repeated many times in a row. There is no narrative to speak of, and all the action happens for the camera in a way that I've never experienced in a film before. This, added to the fact that camera never moves throughout the entire film, makes it inevitable that many viewers would be horribly bored by this film. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIGCtQZfBv67OQqB8buJ5clLGs6kwmcGBXLc7jLNVyfbjgcV9tJxafQI2th4F_nK_7zIc4Qufn6rcXMToYk704tannsyhthzMNjcfrul7O6u8Q2zUTCWCDgV-7OwrPAFEOtgLWjxQ1IwWN/s1600/snapshot20111006181548.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIGCtQZfBv67OQqB8buJ5clLGs6kwmcGBXLc7jLNVyfbjgcV9tJxafQI2th4F_nK_7zIc4Qufn6rcXMToYk704tannsyhthzMNjcfrul7O6u8Q2zUTCWCDgV-7OwrPAFEOtgLWjxQ1IwWN/s200/snapshot20111006181548.jpg" width="200" /></a>I will confess that I was far from riveted to my seat during this film, but it did have a certain mesmerising atmosphere, that inspired in me a sense that I was watchign something truly great, Cinema at it's purest form. Perhaps not the most exciting stuff, but remarkable nonetheless. This ability to arrest your attention even though you cannot make much sense of what you are seeing, at least on an intellectual level, is not something you come across in many films. It has a very slow pace, and portrays a culture that is very far removed from own, and furthermore it portrays this culture in a way that I've never seen before on film. There were no attempts to draw foreigners in, to dazzle and amaze them with such an alien culture, why still provide them with a grounding point, as in a character or a plot point that is familiar to them, so as not to completely shut them out, instead this felt very much like a film made by Armenians for Armenians, an attempt to preserve their history and culture on film, and it wasn't preserved for foreigners like me, but for their own people. of course I can look upon it from the point of view of the film student that I am, and marvel at it, yet it will never effect me in a way that it might someone who identifies, or desires strongly to identify, with the culture depicted here.<br />
Ultimately, this is such a unique film with such strikingly magnificent visuals that all other aspects are secondary, and this is fine as all other aspects are better off in a secondary place as they are rather underdeveloped. In other films this would be unacceptable, but as is proved nearly every time you review a "different" film, it's impossible to judge all films you come across on the same standards. Films like this need a rating scale all of their own, purely because they are so unique, there is absolutely nothing out there like them, and this is one of the main reasons that this film succeeds.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMHszneR6SeO_SIMsjr-SkiRp_g3rJuQwYo7wtOo3PKaYYdVbZt16QQ2maUeiJrU0dYirDPQfaRPR3RBNIBI1dJNdyhGAO_Hj9ZfR8ZQ1XNed3oQo947jLTQbj_S0oEV1Wq3odGK41zjHA/s1600/vlcsnap-210494.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMHszneR6SeO_SIMsjr-SkiRp_g3rJuQwYo7wtOo3PKaYYdVbZt16QQ2maUeiJrU0dYirDPQfaRPR3RBNIBI1dJNdyhGAO_Hj9ZfR8ZQ1XNed3oQo947jLTQbj_S0oEV1Wq3odGK41zjHA/s200/vlcsnap-210494.png" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMHszneR6SeO_SIMsjr-SkiRp_g3rJuQwYo7wtOo3PKaYYdVbZt16QQ2maUeiJrU0dYirDPQfaRPR3RBNIBI1dJNdyhGAO_Hj9ZfR8ZQ1XNed3oQo947jLTQbj_S0oEV1Wq3odGK41zjHA/s1600/vlcsnap-210494.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a>The Colour Of Pomegranates tells of the Armenian poet Sayat Nova, but rather than employing a standard narrative driven tale in an attempt to explain the life and times of Sayat Nova, Parajanov instead portrays the poetic and spiritual sides to the man, and little else. It is not a biographical film.<br />
After watching this film, I do not know any more about Sayat Nova than I did beforehand, in terms of hard facts, such as date of birth etc... But it does offer a fascinating view into both Parajanov's imagination, as well as Sayat Nova's spiritual influences.<br />
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As the director said, the films' visual style was inspired by the traditional Armenian religious iconography. <br />
This explains the bizarre shots that make up this film, all the actors face the camera, generally either in wide full body shots, or close ups of their faces and act <i>towards</i> the camera instead of interacting with each other and creating scenes through this while the camera appears invisible to them.<br />
I got the impression of a carefully and methodically staged play rather than a conventional film. The term "breaking the fourth wall" might apply, if there was even a sense of a fourth wall in the first place...<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuikYamLSpxzVksjAGt795zhmjTXZyLAEeKRKP9ZyI4YUjbsk3zjCljNHF10m5X6QiGoaqg73cGsAe1TwZ4GCoCERiLwr4ytUXo3bmCOfbPo5usMvLYsZlUVQm74F5uDGwyLmQgOOOArtp/s1600/snapshot20111006181256.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuikYamLSpxzVksjAGt795zhmjTXZyLAEeKRKP9ZyI4YUjbsk3zjCljNHF10m5X6QiGoaqg73cGsAe1TwZ4GCoCERiLwr4ytUXo3bmCOfbPo5usMvLYsZlUVQm74F5uDGwyLmQgOOOArtp/s200/snapshot20111006181256.jpg" width="200" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuikYamLSpxzVksjAGt795zhmjTXZyLAEeKRKP9ZyI4YUjbsk3zjCljNHF10m5X6QiGoaqg73cGsAe1TwZ4GCoCERiLwr4ytUXo3bmCOfbPo5usMvLYsZlUVQm74F5uDGwyLmQgOOOArtp/s1600/snapshot20111006181256.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a>More than any other film I have seen, The Colour Of Pomegranates truly is a succession of individual images so strikingly beautiful that they could form a work of art (ie a painting) even taken by themselves. The over used phrase concerning hanging frames of the film on your wall due to their beauty is more applicable here than in any other case I have experienced, even more so than Barry Lyndon or Ran which is saying a lot as those are my favourite films of all time.<br />
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It is important to note that background knowledge is crucial when it comes to this film, it is such a cryptic film that is obviously firmly rooted in a culture that is completely alien to most viewers that without a minimum of background knowledge, no sense will be made of it at all.<br />
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The film taken on it's own, may be visually remarkable but nothing more. However, when one learns that at the time this was made the Soviets were resolutely trying to stamp out the Armenian culture (and those of other countries in their power) despite it being one of the oldest Christian countries with a particularly eventful past.<br />
Considerable damage had already been done to the countries' culture and sense of identity by the Turks several decades earlier (in their genocidal purges of the Armenians), but thankfully Parajanov made this wonderful film, thus preserving the countries unique practices forever, despite the Soviets various attempts to prevent it's circulation. <br />
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All in all, The Colour Of Pomegranates is both a visually unique and deeply spiritual film. It will not fail to impress those willing to stray out of their comfort zones and watch this film, it is a tough watch at times, but ultimately it's a very rewarding experience. <br />
Combine this with it's historical and cultural importance, and you have a undeniably great film. <br />
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Sergei Parajanov is definitely a director I will be returning to someday, and hopefully it will be sooner rather than later. I think that Shadows of Our Forgotten Ancestors will be the next of his films that I'll watch, it looks quite amazing and I'm sure that eventually he will work his way onto my favourite directors list. <br />
He might not be a director who makes easily accessible films that one would watch several times, but I feel that he nonetheless deserves more recognition. For he really is overlooked, it took me a long time of cinema studies to even come across his name, which I think is shame. I'm glad I've found out about him now though, and would highly recommend this film.<br />
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Any recommendations concerning this directors' work would be most welcome! And of course feel free to comment on this review, especially if you've seen the film in question!Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-11566860407587581492011-09-12T15:20:00.000+01:002011-09-12T15:20:48.014+01:00Blockbuster Review: Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes - 2011The more I grow as a film buff, the further I move away from Hollywood blockbusters, which nonetheless sum up the medium for the majority of people. <br />
I have discovered some wonderful works of cinema over the past couple of years, and yet I am still unable to completely ignore Hollywood blockbusters, I am time and time again disappointed and yet I still persist in seeing most of the major ones each year. And for once, I'm glad I did, for I have finally come across a film that sits squarely within the category of blockbuster and yet is a very good film, proving that while enormous amounts of money doesn't guarantee quality, it does not make it impossible to obtain either.<br />
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Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes is everything one could want from a blockbuster, and nothing more, it is not a great film by any means, but it is all a blockbuster should be, something that seems increasingly hard for blockbusters to deliver these days.<br />
<a name='more'></a>This thing missing from so many similar films these days is the ability to tell a gripping, and thrilling story. The use of incredible CGI effects has become so widespread these days that a film must prove that it has something more than just flashy and awe inspiring visuals. Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes has incredible CGI, with at it's centre a ground breaking motion capture performance by Andy Serkis as the main character, Caesar.<br />
And yet the film does not fully lean on this aspect, it puts to great use the rich and imaginative world developed over the many films that have been made over the years, starting with The Planet Of The Apes in 1968, which combined with a fresh outlook on the story, terrific pacing and a story that walks the fine line between being somewhat socially relevant and unbearably preachy.<br />
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The film tells the tale of a young and brilliant scientists who is conducting groundbreaking research into a cure for Alzheimers, he is mainly fuelled by his desire to cure his own father who is afflicted by the disease. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnimzG1MASbu1IeECMI8OWygPSpyB8TkLyrjSkdQTSz_aDQ8E0T_45luDPSjeHcwgkQM1XV6_LWfbDyKWsybxjoHs4kdJce29ygYIKT8TqTmEBYH5cBYKTYsI8-uvmpcJXEzEPPJlfG8Si/s1600/Rise-of-the-Planet-of-the-apes_full.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="196" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnimzG1MASbu1IeECMI8OWygPSpyB8TkLyrjSkdQTSz_aDQ8E0T_45luDPSjeHcwgkQM1XV6_LWfbDyKWsybxjoHs4kdJce29ygYIKT8TqTmEBYH5cBYKTYsI8-uvmpcJXEzEPPJlfG8Si/s320/Rise-of-the-Planet-of-the-apes_full.jpg" width="320" /></a>He develops a cure but his testing on a chimp has disastrous effects which results in teh project being scrapped, despite his instance that it was all a misunderstanding. However the disaster is not without a thin sliver of hope, as a newborn chimp is discovered and taken in by this scientist who proceed to remark stunning developments in this chimp, named Caesar. <br />
But Caesar soon becomes separated from this environment and enters the real world in a harsh fashion, upon which he becomes disillusioned with human kind and their treatment on his fellows, the Apes, who he proceeds to lead in an uprising to overthrow humanity. <br />
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The film knows exactly where it's going and proceeds to move forwards rapidly, never to fast fortunately, but avoiding any drawn out exposition scenes. Of course this causes the audience to be able to only form a rather vague idea of the complexities of the scientific side of the plot, but I personally prefer it this way. After all, I didn't go into the film wanting to see scientists discussing their work but to see the effects of their work. If you are willing to look past the inaccuracies and plot holes that this brings about, you will find that the real charm of the film is in the character of Caesar, and his evolution as a character. <br />
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Much has been made of Andy Serkis's performance as Caesar the chimp and leader of the Ape uprising against humanity, and rightfully so in my opinion. It is yet another extraordinary motion capture performance that serves only as even more proof to what we already new, that Andy Serkis is by far the best motion capture performer around, I'm sure all of you reading this have seen the LOTR Trilogy at least once, and for me any way, Serkis's performance as the dastardly Gollum was one of the highpoints. But when talking of motion capture, one film will invariably be mentioned, Avatar. <br />
The film that many claimed revolutionised motion capture performance, but whilst it is true that it achieved technological advancements unlike that on any other film, I think Serkis's performance in Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes has done considerably more for the medium, in terms of establishing it as a reputable and respected art form, just as "normal" acting. His performance as Caesar creates a far more memorable, nuanced and engaging character than any character in Avatar.<br />
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I have mentioned the film pacing, which I found to be particularly good, but my reaction to the director's talents does not stop there, in fact I think he did a very good job here.<br />
The film does suffer from many shortcomings however, but nothing more than you'd expect from a film of this kind and in my opinion these are clearly outweighed by the more positive aspects of the film. Most of the human characters were extremely familiar and little more than stereotypes. However at times the inherent talents of the actors make up for this, as is the case with the always excellent Brian Cox, but the opposite is also true, as is the case with Tom Felton who plays a very minor variation on the character he developed over the past years as part of the Harry Potter series.<br />
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However Freida Pinto's character is a particularly useless one, and I suspect she was only added so as to have at least one female character taking part in the proceedings, and while this isn't a bad thing, there is still an unshakeable feel of her being a "token character" with no real purpose. <br />
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The director, Rupert Wyatt is an Englishman whose only previous directing credits are a couple of shorts and a film called The Escapist that I have heard absolutely nothing of. Yet he makes the step from directing small British films to a large Hollywood blockbuster with apparent ease. He deserves praise for his work on Rise of The Planet Of The Apes, perhaps not because he is a particularly original or daring director, even though he does create some rather stunning sequences, but rather because he tells the story in such a refreshingly fast paced, straightforward, familiar and yet not exactly cliched way.<br />
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But he does succeed in subtly touching on some rather interesting themes, perhaps these aren't developed enough to the liking of many viewers (me included) but they do nonetheless provide some food for thought.<br />
Most significant would be the way the film gets the audience to sympathise with Caesar and to support him in his overthrowing of the Human species, in other words, us.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg10VQiPvv0C4uNmjMqzAWxgzAHaeaaoXSCQVXN33ri99ZM0fD1lFN9p_oJadZijOnnfHcxL5lIBiSVpi0AyeLy3oO4huAABeM85t6f37De_whmRQbAsgGHnmeP3W0aKqVQ3D7Y2OYPumNR/s1600/rise-of-the-planet-of-the-apes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg10VQiPvv0C4uNmjMqzAWxgzAHaeaaoXSCQVXN33ri99ZM0fD1lFN9p_oJadZijOnnfHcxL5lIBiSVpi0AyeLy3oO4huAABeM85t6f37De_whmRQbAsgGHnmeP3W0aKqVQ3D7Y2OYPumNR/s320/rise-of-the-planet-of-the-apes.jpg" width="320" /></a>So it succeeds in turning the viewers sympathies in a way that is more ingenious than manipulative, but it never causes the audience to hate the humans, they aren't depicted as villainous on the whole, just particular individuals. The same can be said for the Apes, they are not exactly depicted as heroes, but individuals forced into rebellion by their circumstances.<br />
But ultimately, Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes remains an origins film. It mainly serves to set the groundwork for a series of films, and it does so admirably. I hope the following films manage to stay on the same level as this film or even maybe improve upon this film, although if there are any major changes in cast or crew the chances of this would definitely be lessened. <br />
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The average performances from the cast (not including Serkis of course), the basic script, which while adequate for it's purposes could have used some more work due to the abundance of small inconsistencies, plot holes and other such annoyances, these aspects prevent the film from being a really great work, but do not detract in a major way from the fact that Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes is one of the most entertaining blockbusters I have seen for quite some time. It's avoidance of unbearable levels of sentimentality, it's surprisingly short run time (105 mins), fantastic pacing, ground breaking special effects and genuinely thrilling action sequences quite unlike any I've seen before, makes this a very good film I would not hesitate to recommend.<br />
I am usually sceptical when it comes to such Hollywood blockbusters, especially those as ridiculously named as this one, and judging by the latest blockbuster I saw, Conan The Barbarian, I am right to be. But this just makes it even more surprising and enjoyable when I come across such a film as Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes.Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-25025712505420801112011-09-05T21:21:00.000+01:002011-09-05T21:23:18.945+01:00End Of The Week PostSorry for my abscence, these past couple of weeks have been particularly busy for me. But I've decided to get back into blogging now and should keep it up for the whole of September at least.<br />
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<i>Films seen since Sunday 14th August :</i><br />
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<b>Blue</b> - 1993 directed by Kryzysztof Kieslowski<br />
8/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiakKTTjfE4BMohbWgf0T-4zTyWUINfEJJGOfmlQLu6YWqJOGqGxsu0qVSxDa9ILs9LTOY8gSSn1s8q3I8yPSxZgod-wZuRdYzsNULKm4e5SA6FZb8kk9foZYPG57xaeGkijk3m1MiHzYxm/s1600/search.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiakKTTjfE4BMohbWgf0T-4zTyWUINfEJJGOfmlQLu6YWqJOGqGxsu0qVSxDa9ILs9LTOY8gSSn1s8q3I8yPSxZgod-wZuRdYzsNULKm4e5SA6FZb8kk9foZYPG57xaeGkijk3m1MiHzYxm/s200/search.jpeg" width="145" /></a>After seeing Kieslowski's The Double Life Of Veronique, I was intirgued by this director's work and decided to watch his celebrated Three Colours Trilogy. <br />
<b> </b>This first film in the trilogy is an interesting one and is often considered the best. I can't say I fully understood it, but it certainly is a most beautiful piece of cinema, and is the most impressive of the trilogy in terms of it's use of the titular colour. <br />
I realise that it was a film aimed primarily at capturing a state of mind on film, rather than a series of events. Fortunately the central performance by Juliette Binoche is impressive enough for this to work and it makes for an all around good film, that somehow left me slightly underwhelmed. <br />
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<b>White</b> - 1994 directed by Kryzysztof Kieslowski<b></b><br />
7/10<br />
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I think the general consensus is that this film is the weakest of the trilogy, and I would definitely agree with that. It's by no means a bad film, but I found it just pales in comparison with the other two films, in it's use of the titular colour, which is far from as impressive as in Blue, it's central performances which are weaker than those featured in the other two films and it's general story, which was far more developed than the other two films yet failed to establish the same kind of mesmerizing atmosphere<br />
I wasn't extremely disappointed, but I couldn't help but feel like this was a step down from the previous film and nothing more than a rather good film in it's own right.<br />
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<b>Red </b>- 1994 directed by Kryzysztof Kieslowski<b></b><br />
9/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjll1lQQlAhu2sYzmgfZ7nYvUWlkGyNyRHzGCkWVUt789n__so4foPSReZ-O4phTteZGDqfMXEAK3XsIgyjnIL_TNiM8KpEYWSokt7wxOxj3GBwdMBllhsxZyVt9je79myrFHKjHkqi1Oid/s1600/tcrp.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjll1lQQlAhu2sYzmgfZ7nYvUWlkGyNyRHzGCkWVUt789n__so4foPSReZ-O4phTteZGDqfMXEAK3XsIgyjnIL_TNiM8KpEYWSokt7wxOxj3GBwdMBllhsxZyVt9je79myrFHKjHkqi1Oid/s200/tcrp.jpg" width="133" /></a>Now this was an excellent film, and my favourite of the trilogy. <br />
Irene Jacob proves her wonderful performance in The Double Life of Veronique was not a fluke by delivering yet another great one in this film. <br />
This film combines the mesmerising atmosphere of Blue, with the more narrative driven style of White, making this the most balanced and satisfying film of the trilogy.<br />
Jean Louis Trintignant is one of the other reasons I liked this film more than the others, he is a veteran of many great French films but this is definitely of his finest performances. I also appreciated the way this film not only concluded it's story, but that of the previous films as well, it made me appreciate them as a whole much more than before and really helped me grasp what Kieslowski was aiming at with these films. While the others did not really make it into my favourites, but Red definitely has, it's a beautiful, thought provoking film that I'd hihgly recommend, but to appreciate it you really do need to see the previous ones. <br />
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<b>In The Name of The Father</b> - 1993 directed by Jim Sheridan<br />
10/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip2otJi3-u0bI8aFkZzeMczxXYhAGNaEib98HWAQc9Rl1piJP7GkzcqcfRMlcvYq58lwR5Mz3m-41mYT-SY7l_DCPN03tbXADBwN9QW4fPd093t2jdCej_ptFobMiPLAqF7FLREYR60iYj/s1600/A70-3584.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip2otJi3-u0bI8aFkZzeMczxXYhAGNaEib98HWAQc9Rl1piJP7GkzcqcfRMlcvYq58lwR5Mz3m-41mYT-SY7l_DCPN03tbXADBwN9QW4fPd093t2jdCej_ptFobMiPLAqF7FLREYR60iYj/s200/A70-3584.jpeg" width="133" /></a><br />
Daniel Day Lewis And Jim Sheridan's earlier collaboration, My Left Foot, impressed my so much that I instantly decided to check out this film.<br />
It is a very touchy subject, that of the IRA bombings carried out against civilians in the UK, and those wrongfully accused by the English and consequently imprisoned for many years. But Jim Sheridan handles it just as skilfully as he handled the subject of cerebral palsy in My Left Foot.<br />
DDL gives yet another terrific performance, perhaps not as mind blowing as his work in My Left Foot, but certainly one of the finest performances of the decade. <br />
It's a lengthy film with a brutal and intense subject and a number of fine performances, with fantastic supporting performances from Pete Postlethwaite and Emma Thompson. Highly recommended. <br />
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<b>A Bittersweet Life </b>- 2005directed by Jee Woon Kim<b></b><br />
10/10<br />
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<a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/08/internationalclassic-review-bittersweet.html">I reviewed this one a while ago</a>, excellent film.<br />
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<b>Naked </b>- 1993<b> </b>directed by Mike Leigh<br />
10/10<br />
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While writing about In The Name Of The Father, I mentioned that DDL's performance was one of the finest of the decade, well it just happens that this film contains another of the absolute finest performances of the decade, that of David Thewlis.<br />
Mostly known for his appearance in the Harry Potter series as Lupin. But his work here is infinitely superior. <br />
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<b>The Good The Bad and The Weird </b>- 2008<b> </b>directed by Jee Woon Kim<br />
8/10<b> </b><br />
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After loving A Bittersweet Life, I decided to revisit this film. I liked it just as much as I remembered. Not a great film, but a most entertaining one.<br />
It's an obvious homage to classic Spaghetti Westerns, with some interesting twists upon the genre.<br />
It is a deft mix of genres, incorporating elements of both the Western and the Comedy genres. I can't say I liked Jee Woon Kim's directional style in this film, it pales in comparison to that displayed in A Bittersweet Life. <br />
In some ways this could even be described as a guilty pleasure, it's not a great film, but it's one I'd never tire of watching and that never fails to entertain. <br />
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<b>Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes </b>- 2011<b> </b>directed by Rupert Wyatt<br />
8/10<br />
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A review for this one should be up shortly.<br />
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<b>Conan The Barbarian </b>- 2011 directed by Marcus Nispel<b></b><br />
1/10<br />
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And I'm working on a review for this, but for now I'll say: stay well away from this one, it's awful. <br />
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<b>Les Vacances De Mr Hulot</b> - 1953 directed by Jacques Tati<br />
8/10<br />
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A film I have vague memories of, so I must have seen it when I was a child. I can't recall whether I liked it or not, and in fact even now it's hard to say exactly what I thought of it. It's such an odd film. <br />
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<b>I Saw The Devil </b>- 2010 directed by Kim Jee Woon. <br />
9/10<br />
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The third film I've seen of this director is even more proof that the Korean's have completely mastered the revenge/thriller/psycho genre. <br />
I found this film to be truly horrifying, definitely one of the most brutal, dark and chilling films I've ever seen.<br />
However I notice there has been a bit of a backlash against this film, mainly for it's content and story, I thought it was fantastic though. Very hard to watch but it takes some common themes further than any other film has before.<br />
The performances are all exceptional and the film flies by despite it's 2h 20 or so runtime. It's a very intense and disturbing film, that I would hesitate to recommend, as I found myself looking away from the screen during certain particularly gruesome scenes. But it's a very rich film, in terms of both technical aspects and thematic material, and I'm sure it would be most interesting to analyse in depth. <br />
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<i> </i><b>Le Mepris</b> - 1963 directed by Jean Luc Godard<i> </i><br />
7/10<br />
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I don't quite know what to make of Godard and his work in general, but this film puzzled me to know end.<br />
As it finished I simultaneously thought, "what a load of pretentious drivel" and "what a interesting, bizarrely mesmerizing film". And I still haven't made my mind up what I really think of it. Each aspect of it I could praise, or criticise to equal measure. It's rare for me to come across a film that causes such a split in my opinion, and for that alone I've given it a relatively high rating, but I do require further thought on the matter before I make my mind up on what I really thought about this film. <br />
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Well, unfortunately I did not get to see The Tree of Life in the cinema, but will definitely get hold of a copy as soon as possible, I fear that this long wait may have built my expectations too high though and I may risk disappointment...<br />
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I took a rather unexpected break from blogging for a couple of weeks, and while I had expected to be back to blogging now, it seems I won't be able to resume the level of blogging I had gotten used to previously.<br />
And while this is obviously bad news for my blog, it is good news for my personal life, as I've recently gotten a place on a film set, this means I'll be extremely busy for most of the coming month. I'll try and blog when I can, but I doubt I'll be able to read many of your blogs. <br />
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But I do have a couple of posts ready, so expect to see those, and of course if I see a really inspiring film I will review it.<br />
Also I've decided to make this post on the <a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/08/top-50-directors-whose-work-i-need-to.html">Directors whose work I need to explore</a> into a sort of project, every time I see one of their films I shall probably write a short review containing my thoughts on it and on this new (to me) director. <br />
I'll also update the previously mentioned post as soon as I've explored a director's work.<br />
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<i>Time for some links (from quite a while ago unfortunately as I haven't had time to catch up on all your blogs yet):</i><br />
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Bonjour Tristesse reviewed Akira Kurosawa's <a href="http://specialdoseofsadness.blogspot.com/2011/08/high-and-low-1963.html">High And Low</a>, a film I really must see.<br />
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Bob posted some <a href="http://eternalsunshineofthelogicalmind.blogspot.com/2011/08/scribblings-of-random-nature-20.html">scribblings of a random nature</a>, which intrigued me as I had never even heard of the films he mentions before. It seems I've still got a lot to learn...<br />
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Andy Buckle reviewed <a href="http://buckle22.blogspot.com/2011/08/classic-throwback-camera-buff-krzysztof.html">Camera Buff</a>, a Kieslowski film that intrigued me, mainly because I've been getting into his work myself recently.<br />
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The site <a href="http://www.comicbookandmoviereviews.com/2011/08/jacklfilmreviewsblogspotcom.html%20">Comic Book and Movie Reviews</a> kindly posted a short piece on my blog, very flattering stuff. <br />
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I really enjoyed reading this post over at <a href="http://bigthoughtsfromasmallmind.blogspot.com/2011/08/heist-week-our-cinematic-heist-team.html">Big Thoughts From a Small Mind</a>, you must check it out, even if it's from a while back now.<br />
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The fantastic blog <a href="http://bykubricksbeard.blogspot.com/2011/08/fat-city-pulling-no-punches.html">By Kubrick's Beard</a>, reviewed the little known John Huston film, <a href="http://bykubricksbeard.blogspot.com/2011/08/fat-city-pulling-no-punches.html">Fat City</a>, that I happen to have seen and enjoyed. <br />
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Stevee reviews <a href="http://filmjunkie25.blogspot.com/2011/09/cheer-up-worlds-about-to-end-in-ten.html%20">Kathyrn Bigelow's Strange Days</a>, I really should see some more of this director's work despite my indifference towards the Hurt Locker.<br />
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Well, that's about it, it's good to be back blogging (kind of) and I've got a couple of reviews to post which is always a good thing.<br />
Sorry I didn't have more for you, but I've been spending much of my spare time catching up on my film viewing this past few days.Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-47627366163120202492011-08-20T17:44:00.000+01:002011-08-20T17:44:53.174+01:00International/Classic Review: A Bittersweet Life - 2005Every now and then a film I watch a film that leaves me completely astounded, and occasionally even restores my faith in Cinema. A Bittersweet Life is one of these films, it isn't particularly original as it is made up of elements that will be familiar to most film buffs, it has no monumental performances from it's cast, and makes no major technical breakthroughs. And yet it has something that is not often seen in recent films, it has a deliberate sense of self, an identity that I find lacking in many similar films these days, and more importantly, it has a soul. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga0kKpCVp0hBv4EFHWNJkFwd8yK30POm6GbK2hSYrJ8limlOjWL-5yEKE0FafEuAddVv3q_t0hqzvZn1uWoYretRWFIV0lwgyAbty3UwMJzQg5_ycrmMAug0_OR285T_0_Wbu-vBF131lQ/s1600/images.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga0kKpCVp0hBv4EFHWNJkFwd8yK30POm6GbK2hSYrJ8limlOjWL-5yEKE0FafEuAddVv3q_t0hqzvZn1uWoYretRWFIV0lwgyAbty3UwMJzQg5_ycrmMAug0_OR285T_0_Wbu-vBF131lQ/s1600/images.jpeg" /></a></div>This may sound silly, but that is what makes all the difference between this film and the many other vapid and dull "gangster" films released each year.<br />
Perhaps this is because it is a Korean film (original title: Dalkomhan insaeng), and the Korean film industry is a relatively new one that seems to be at the height of it's powers at the moment, producing one great film after another and completely outdoing Hollywood in one of their own staple genres, the Thriller, in particularly the investigative thriller (police vs psychos).<br />
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A Bittersweet life isn't really a detective thriller, I'd say if it had to be put into a genre, it would be a gangster film.<br />
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But it surpasses all recent gangster films produced by Hollywood, which isn't very hard as it's a genre that seems to have died out when Scorsese moved away from it in the late 90's. But the film successful avoids all the clichés of the genre, there is no camaraderie between criminals, daring robberies and shoot-outs with the police, instead we are shown what is essentially a business. This may not sound like a typical gangster film, but the truth is that gangsterism itself has changed, so of course films have to change with it. Gone are the old days of the goodfellas, now it is enterprises making illegal transactions which they occasionally have to enforce or protect in violent manners. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj87Vs-qKEhUMk7_cgPzEC74-Xc1GKhLzWV9Aa9mhFuHkO8r8wFMJO1lqizh_-XnX6NEnC8ozQ9OwlLD3O_fT8XQpdlvT_sEWeUvMwYWM2nxcvsDFSDHObWl3RkNkpzBbJoZ318MbA8Jq95/s1600/photo3136.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj87Vs-qKEhUMk7_cgPzEC74-Xc1GKhLzWV9Aa9mhFuHkO8r8wFMJO1lqizh_-XnX6NEnC8ozQ9OwlLD3O_fT8XQpdlvT_sEWeUvMwYWM2nxcvsDFSDHObWl3RkNkpzBbJoZ318MbA8Jq95/s320/photo3136.jpg" width="320" /></a>As I previously remarked, this film does not really bring anything original in terms of content to the genre, we have all the similar faces, the cool, blank faced enforcer (are main character in this case), the kindly looking boss with a heart of steel, the oblivious young woman caught up in the middle of all this, the flamboyant petty criminals, the psychotic disfigured villain etc... And yet I strongly believe that originality is not what it takes to make a great film, it is the amount of skill with which the directors puts all these pieces together, most of the time the film will feel like a lazy rehashing of ideas that have been put to better use previously, but occasionally one comes across a film that takes all the familiar pieces and forms a surprising masterpiece with them.<br />
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A Bittersweet isn't a typical rise and fall gangster film, it begins with the main character, named Sun Woo, who is at the top of his game, a enforcer for "a committee" and a manager of a hotel. He is a cold, calculating and highly skilled young man, who life revolves around his job, he has no personal contacts and shows little to no emotion. However his prospects are promising and appear secure, he is a rising man in the underworld.<br />
Yet all this success is at the cost of his very humanity, he has become little more than a cold hearted machine, obeying the command of his boss without question and brutally injuring those who stand in his way. <br />
But soon he is to discover his humanity and unearth his emotions, when put into contact with a young woman in perilous circumstances. For the first time in his career, he takes a decision clouded by his emotions, a decision that will save the life of this young woman and her lover while putting his own in terrible danger. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY_PbgZkflApEJr40e1C0Oe9EUy47q9ZrA6fGc2APZWv1URLY4dySCG6qB30XO55zMRkGGCDAfU2j3i1AmCdN2m3CHBmMqcP8noNW7SMm4QuJdbQJbprV19Ur-RTgXv5atoXewkf5GNQUs/s1600/a-bittersweet-life-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY_PbgZkflApEJr40e1C0Oe9EUy47q9ZrA6fGc2APZWv1URLY4dySCG6qB30XO55zMRkGGCDAfU2j3i1AmCdN2m3CHBmMqcP8noNW7SMm4QuJdbQJbprV19Ur-RTgXv5atoXewkf5GNQUs/s320/a-bittersweet-life-3.jpg" width="320" /></a>Here a downward spiral is entered, one bad decisions leads to another and Sun Woo's arrogant nature and inability to express and recognise his emotions becomes his downfall. He is captured by his enemies and brutally beaten, before being turned over to his own side who caught wind of his betrayal, he is subjected to several ordeals, but escapes during one of the best fight scenes I've seen on film for quite some time. Forget the one take corridor fight from Oldboy, this film contains far superior action scenes, brilliant choreographed, chillingly executed by the actors, and stunningly well shot. <br />
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From this point onwards, the film descends further and further into a vicious circle of violence, leaving none of the characters involved untouched. Such a story can only end in tragedy, as more and more people are sucked into to the storm of bullets.<br />
The action scenes in the latter part of the film literally are storms of bullets, but it never feels gratuitous or unnecessary as so much is at stake. For despite Sun Woo's nature, I still wished that he could be given the opportunity to live his life, instead of being bound to his committee. His fate is tragic, for he caught a glimpse of a life that could never be his, a life shared with a loved one. But his past history of violence caught up with him and dashed all his dreams, with nothing left to loose, he sets out to exact revenge on those responsible for his torment and the emptiness of his life. <br />
The yearning he feels for a different life is given form in the shape of Heesoo, the young woman he is assigned to protect. Some may find her a very underdeveloped character, but that is the point, she is mysterious and out of reach for Sun Woo, he cannot understand her yet quickly falls in love with her and what she represents. In one of the films most moving scenes, we see Sun Woo watching Heesoo play her cello, he seems content and smiles, the only time he does so in the entire film, before he is plunged into mind-numbing violence and cruelty. <br />
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The only experience I had of Je Woon Kim's work before watching this film is his gleeful, cartoonish and action packed Spaghetti Western homage, The Good The Bad and The Weird. As much as I enjoyed that film, it did not make me consider than Je Woon Kim could display such talent as he does with A Bittersweet Life. It is meticulously crafted, with fluid tacking shots and brilliant use of light, especially in the night sequences in the city. Much of the camera work on display is subtle and restrained, although if you pay attention you can notice a great number of little touches and creative flourishes, especially during the action scenes and a couple of the driving scenes, in which the camera seems to be attached to the characters back and moves with him. One shot is particular left me open-mouthed, that would be one that occurs in the final action sequence, in which Sun Woo shoots one of his last opponents, while the camera pans back from Sun Woo to reveal his enemy firing at him. All this done at a higher speed than any other shot in the film. This simple shot caught my attention above all others and is still vividly in my mind as I write this review. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizBtH8RUzjNc6hPAEFXkjy6Iv4bfzAGy__UK1XeoYRFfOLYb_EwYGn5LQgSKjYyAfQi0kPQQXxTuCIjHlfNo9BrhpZ7HTUjacnokYRNWFnELyIunC7taq8CJHtUy39SNt4nCmpUoBVexYT/s1600/a-bittersweet-life001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="136" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizBtH8RUzjNc6hPAEFXkjy6Iv4bfzAGy__UK1XeoYRFfOLYb_EwYGn5LQgSKjYyAfQi0kPQQXxTuCIjHlfNo9BrhpZ7HTUjacnokYRNWFnELyIunC7taq8CJHtUy39SNt4nCmpUoBVexYT/s320/a-bittersweet-life001.JPG" width="320" /></a>On the whole, the cinematography was quite beautiful, capturing the urban landscapes in which the story takes place marvellously. It brings to mind the work of Michael Mann, particularly his film Collateral, filled with night shots of the city, using the lights to great effect. The rest of the technical side of the film is admirably done, with a score that perfectly underlines the story and the actions upon screen while never overshadowing them, and performances that may not rank among some of the best I've seen, but were certainly worthy of the awards they received. Byung-hun Lee in particular, was impressive as the main character, for it is a performance made up entirely of subtleties. The character is largely inexpressive, and has little understanding of his own emotions making it difficult for the audience to comprehend what he is feeling. However Lee fits the role perfectly, being able to portray the stone faced enforcer just as convincingly as the other side to the character, the side in search of some meaning for his life. <br />
<br />
One aspect I admired about the film was the entirely unapologetic nature with which it handled the violence, it was not glorified nor was it condemned, it was just present and that is all. It also subtly overturns a few cliches, avoiding a happy ending and thankfully avoiding an element that has long annoyed me in revenge films, often the climax of the revenge film is the confrontation between the main character (the victim) and the main antagonist (the object of his revenge), but sometimes the antagonist life is spared, I always find this implausible even though I understand what the writers are trying to convey.<br />
However this film doesn't take the easy way out, and goes the whole way with the violence and bloodshed, no characters are immune to it. Yet I did not find it quite so disturbing as it could have been, perhaps because it chose to be more stylised than gritty, it is generally fast, and while bloody, there is no lingering shots of wounds and such, the film doesn't revel in it's violence, but treats it in a very matter of fact why, much like Sun Woo himself. <br />
Furthermore, the total absence of any back-story was most refreshing, why directors and writers feel the need to indulge in lengthy and useless back-stories is beyond me, especially when it comes to a film of this kind. In fact the lack of exposition works in the films favour, accentuating the dullness and emptiness of Sun Woo's life, as one can assume by his manner and bearing that he has been going through these motions for many years. All we need to know of teh character is presented in the first few scenes of the film, him sitting alone, silently eating a cake, him ordering those under him around while barely uttering a word, him beating 3 men senseless in cold blood to him taking order and waiting upon his boss. This is all the exposition needed and I'm glad for once that the director understood that.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMFTDhE-xM2RK28iSWcukkAM_C9_nc3L33-lGCenJ13bPlsunjcgRsdsEpANaefAOuleey-M5DlhovlrVTLmiwiEvvmPV418lWl67vX8cp9dUmEYxbO2PDuvkN-7gmAs7Uqfg9YLdM7EjQ/s1600/bittersweet8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="209" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMFTDhE-xM2RK28iSWcukkAM_C9_nc3L33-lGCenJ13bPlsunjcgRsdsEpANaefAOuleey-M5DlhovlrVTLmiwiEvvmPV418lWl67vX8cp9dUmEYxbO2PDuvkN-7gmAs7Uqfg9YLdM7EjQ/s320/bittersweet8.jpg" width="320" /></a>The ending is left ambiguous, some have noted a similarity to the end of Taxi Driver, as Sun Woo looks at a reflection of himself and is by all appearances very much alive and well. based on this ending scene, some may consider the events that have taken place to be little more than a day dream, but I see it rather as a flashback, the last thing he sees and the last we see. It is of himself in obviously better times, looking eager and energetic, perhaps at the start of his criminal career, looking forward to great things, unaware of what is to come. That is how I interpreted the end but there are some strong arguments to be made in favour of the film being a dream sequence. <br />
<br />
All in all, A Bittersweet Life is a masterpiece of modern cinema and one of the finest films to come out of Korean in recent years. It has revived my interest in Korean cinema, and soon I shall be watching some of Kim Ki Duk's films and may even check out some of Park Chan Wook's work, despite my indifference towards Oldboy. <br />
It seems pretty evident that South Korea has surpassed Hollywood in this particular genre, for no recent Hollywood film can compare to the works these directors have been producing over the past few years. There is a daringness and a powerful drive behind these films that seems to be lacking in Hollywood these days; and while some of them are probably far too violent and disturbing for my taste, I am sure I will discover many more great films as I venture further into Korea's film industry. Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-69074018741506273382011-08-17T22:57:00.006+01:002011-10-29T21:25:02.667+01:00Top 50: Directors Whose Work I Need To ExploreAfter a couple of years of film watching with purpose, I've seen quite a few films and have become familiar with many directors works. But as always (and as is evident by <a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/08/list-top-5-hollywood-classics-i-still.html">this previous post</a>) there are some directors whose work I have yet to experience. Some are internationally famous directors, other more obscure, but I have been recommended their work many times and feel that the time has come for me to watch at least one of their films.<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
I've seen at least one film of a great many directors, and while I cannot include these names on my favourites list as I prefer to have seen at least 3 of a directors films before doing such a thing, I also cannot place them on this list, as this is reserved solely for those of whom I have not seen even 1 film.<br />
<br />
I'd welcome any recommendations from those familiar with these directors of course, as I wouldn't know where to start.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
Pedro Almodovar</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
<i>Theodoros Angelopoulos</i><br />
<br />
<i>Andrea Arnold</i><br />
<br />
<i>Hal Ashby</i><br />
<br />
<i>Peter Bogdanovich</i><br />
<br />
<i>Stan Brakhage</i><br />
<br />
Robert Bresson<br />
<br />
<i>Charles Burnett</i><br />
<br />
Jane Campion<br />
<br />
Leos Carax<br />
<br />
Marcel Carné<br />
<br />
<span data-jsid="text">John Cassavetes</span><br />
<br />
Claude Chabrol<br />
<span data-jsid="text"> </span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
Jean Cocteau</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
Lu Chuan<br />
<br />
Maya Deren<br />
<br />
Costa Gavras<br />
<span data-jsid="text"> </span><span data-jsid="text"> </span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
Hal Hartley<br />
<br />
<i>Hou Hsiao-Hsien</i><br />
<br />
Tadashi Imai<br />
<br />
<span data-jsid="text">Miklos Jancso</span><br />
<span data-jsid="text"> </span> <br />
Alejandro Jorodowsky<br />
<br />
Wong Kar Wai</div>
</div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
<i>Aki Kaurismäki</i><br />
<br />
Buster Keaton<br />
<br />
<span data-jsid="text">Abbas Kiarostami</span><br />
<br />
Kim Ki Duk<br />
<br />
Satoshi Kon<br />
<br />
Patrice Leconte<br />
<br />
<i>Guy Maddin</i><br />
<br />
Samira Makhmalbaf<br />
<br />
Deepa Mehta<br />
<br />
<span data-jsid="text"></span><span data-jsid="text"> Max Ophuls</span><br />
<span data-jsid="text"> </span><span data-jsid="text"> </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Sergei Parajanov</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
Pier Paolo Pasolini<br />
<br />
Otto Preminger<br />
<br />
Lynne Ramsay<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
Satyajit Ray</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
Nicholas Ray<br />
<br />
Kelly Reichardt<br />
<br />
Jacques Rivette<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span data-jsid="text">Glauber Rocha</span><br />
<br />
Nicolas Roeg<br />
<span data-jsid="text"> </span></div>
<br />
Roberto Rosselini<br />
<br />
<span data-jsid="text"> Vittorio De Sica</span><br />
<br />
Erich Von Stroheim<br />
<br />
<span data-jsid="text">Aleksandr Sokurov</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
<i>Jan Svankmajer</i><br />
<br />
<i><span class="bt-director">István Szabó</span></i><br />
<br />
Bela Tarr</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
<span data-jsid="text">Julie Taymor</span><br />
<span data-jsid="text"><br />
</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span data-jsid="text">Hiroshi Teshigahara</span><span data-jsid="text"> </span><span data-jsid="text"> </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Lars Von Trier</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
<i>Shin'ya Tsukamoto</i><br />
<br />
<i>Jan Troell</i><br />
<br />
Agnes Varda<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Andrez Wadja</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
<i>Bo Widerberg</i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
Michael Winterbottom<br />
<br />
Yoji Yamada</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
Well, that isn't really 50 directors, it's 42. So I'm going to need your help. Please recommend some more directors and if I haven't seen any of there work, or even heard of them before, then I'll add them to the list.<br />
I'm sure there are many I have overlooked. But as I'm not a Horror fan, please go lightly on all the classic Horror directors (Romero, the many Giallo directors etc...)<br />
<br />
<b><i>This section will chronicle my progress as I work my way through at least one film of each of these directors. </i></b><br />
<b><i>Click on their names for a link to the review in which I share my thoughts on the film and my first impressions of the directors.</i></b><br />
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_1983725776"><br /></a><br />
<a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/10/new-to-me-directors-sergei-parajanov.html">Sergei Parajanov</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/10/new-to-me-directors-peter-greenaway.html">Peter Greenaway</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/10/new-to-me-directors-pedro-almodovar.html">Pedro Almodovar</a><br />
<br />
Ones added after the original date of posting this will be in <i>italic</i><br />
<i>Note: I'm also working on a list of my top 50 directors, so keep an eye out for that. </i></div>Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-68453354301202209922011-08-17T00:42:00.000+01:002011-08-17T00:42:23.922+01:00Blockbuster Review: Limitless - 2010<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">After giving very negative reviews to the last two blockbusters I reviewed, I decided to write about a blockbuster that I had actually enjoyed this time; for after all I’m not a snob and can enjoy anything as long as it’s good and/or entertaining whether it be an old Kung Fu, a B movie or an enormous blockbuster.</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgHfd7PFbRrRXhCMFS_foaoP2VsqaICdeXagnJCpAAMjrJW158XBfslVT2tRJzJWU4f3zvY4TV9hOVvHC3p3mvhS76OPF-NblWWSOehFTjZA8B162ikPyglWAD49VwM5KiQQMroGqYvO_d/s1600/Limitless%252BPoster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgHfd7PFbRrRXhCMFS_foaoP2VsqaICdeXagnJCpAAMjrJW158XBfslVT2tRJzJWU4f3zvY4TV9hOVvHC3p3mvhS76OPF-NblWWSOehFTjZA8B162ikPyglWAD49VwM5KiQQMroGqYvO_d/s320/Limitless%252BPoster.jpg" width="216" /></a></div><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Limitless may not be a blockbuster on par with the sheer enormity of the likes of the Harry Potter films, Avatar or the recently released Green Lantern, but it certainly was designed to be a crowd pleaser and to generate money. </span><br />
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">There is nothing remotely deep or intelligent about it; it is just an above average Hollywood film. However it did have some interesting ideas behind it, but as with many such films they were poorly developed and put aside for more thrilling and attention grabbing elements. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Of course the fact that De Niro had a supporting role was enough to get me interested in this film, but that interest was diminished by the fact that he hasn’t been in a good film for quite some time, that I had never seen Bradley Cooper in a film before and that on the whole the film didn’t appeal to me at all. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><br />
<a name='more'></a></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">But I was surprised to find that while I had many problems with the film, I still found it very enjoyable with a refreshingly intelligent idea behind it. Of course I wasn't developed as fully as it could have been, but I had expected it to be that way and was consequently not disappointed. If anything I was pleasantly surprised by the technical side of the film, which seems to have been much more thought out than the usual Hollywood blockbuster, and Bradley Cooper's performance, which while not being any particularly great, was more than adequate for the role in my opinion. </span><br />
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">It was overall an amusing and entertaining film, with a nice mix of some witty dialogue, mostly internal, some suspenseful scenes, a few surprises and a couple of good action scenes.</span><br />
<br />
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Limitless tells the tale of a down and out "writer", who has yet to actually produce any written material, who goes through the usual cliches of a luckless protagonist in films, he loses his girlfriend, has trouble with his landlord and looks like a tramp.</span><br />
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Fortunately for him, he comes across a shady acquaintance who is quick to offer him some NZT, a state of the art drug designed to maximise brain use. His life is immediately changed for the better in every possible way, but this new found success must surely come with some drawbacks. As it happens the drawbacks are many, including a think headed mobster, a mysterious figure who follows him, an untrustworthy boss and worst of all, the side effects of the drug itself. </span><br />
<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
</span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Make no mistake, I don’t think this film is a great work, I wouldn’t even say it’s particularly good, but it certainly is better than average. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaqQRpGOYCGFc3vUOeqjX8IgM62b3EvEFU0200mZND6gJe-ai9m5tU5woc87WtRop4p90O_ObbKqe96mFVfz3ixqQxpsjSVYGT-ehGxJmCT3ptUu48vDWIyYYIkphWB676TtfETu2LIACl/s1600/limitless-trailer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="111" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaqQRpGOYCGFc3vUOeqjX8IgM62b3EvEFU0200mZND6gJe-ai9m5tU5woc87WtRop4p90O_ObbKqe96mFVfz3ixqQxpsjSVYGT-ehGxJmCT3ptUu48vDWIyYYIkphWB676TtfETu2LIACl/s200/limitless-trailer.jpg" width="200" /></a><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">This is mainly due to the very imaginative techniques used behind the camera, which make for an interesting film from a visual point of view. Although some of these techniques may have been a bit obvious, such as the colour palette changing from muted blues and greens to warm and bright colours upon taking the drug, it still worked relatively well and certainly showed that the director paid attention to such things which isn’t always the case with these blockbusters. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">The film overall had a very polished feel to it, no scenes really dragged on longer than they should have and it was tightly packed in order for the viewer o never get bored. I sometimes find this method of filmmaking rather annoying as it lacks room for the audience to relax and take in the film due to all the high speed editing, fancy camera work and adrenalin filled action scenes. However in Limitless this didn’t bother me much, and I think the films limited run time and continuous moving forward stopped it from meandering as it could have given the nature of its premise. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">What did bother me about this film though, is not the fact that it’s a very interesting idea that is poorly developed. I had been expecting this and was thus indifferent to the results even if I still think the film could have been a lot better. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">What really bothered me was the underlying nature of the film and its overall message which ultimately is the most important part of the film, far more so than the technical aspects or the acting. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv2drOYbZYfjkZBKuaMCypriIbFo2crqGNrdV_5a0f4QHzcYUZt3Cmo99HeF10B1PLooLeMeQFlgz6AzFdjlVL8HbSKFJBaerSTKMrlIe8eiLAxlgmrRapK47E5JH_A6AZhyJA2wSR_Bh5/s1600/limitless-movie-photo-01-550x366.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv2drOYbZYfjkZBKuaMCypriIbFo2crqGNrdV_5a0f4QHzcYUZt3Cmo99HeF10B1PLooLeMeQFlgz6AzFdjlVL8HbSKFJBaerSTKMrlIe8eiLAxlgmrRapK47E5JH_A6AZhyJA2wSR_Bh5/s200/limitless-movie-photo-01-550x366.jpg" width="200" /></a><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">While the concept of a super drug that would unlock the massive amounts of brain capacity left unused by most people was definitely intriguing, and the film itself well executed, I couldn’t help but be put off by the little details throughout the film, as well as the plotline on the whole. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">As soon as the main character starts getting into finances it all took a downward turn for me. It just seems like such an obvious attempt to impress audiences and generally be cool. With the fast cars, women, vast amounts of money, luxury suits etc... I found this all to be most offensive as was the overall finance storyline that seems to have been added in there on the assumption that it will interest everyone. But seeing a group of wealthy, suit clad business men discuss how to make more money in devious ways and generally strut around being unlikeable is not my idea of entertainment, and while I realise it probably satisfies some weird fantasy for many people, it had no effect on me other than repelling me from the film as a whole. I know this may seem a rather strong reaction, but it is the primary reason for my general dislike of these kinds of films. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">The whole idea that such things are what you would do if possessed with vastly increased metal capabilities is quite offensive and while I realise that the film was probably not made for my personal enjoyment but was a general crowd pleaser and thus had to cover themes that could entertain as large an audience as possible. </span></div><br />
This is all a terrible shame really, for in a way it felt like the strong introduction and build up, along with the considerable amount of rather suspenseful and thrilling scenes, was completely let down with the direction the film took. It tries to make up for this by its conclusion, which I have to admit was very unsatisfactory. That kind of ambiguous open ended conclusion is one better suited for other more artisticly leaning films in my opinion and I don't even think much of it in those cases so as a conclusion to Limitless it felt completely out of place.<br />
<br />
All in all, Limitless was a film with a good idea that almost made up for it's failure to develop that idea interestingly with it's ingenious technical aspects. </div>Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-40653249461088129972011-08-14T23:58:00.001+01:002011-08-15T00:01:06.744+01:00End of the Week PostFilms seen this week:<br />
<br />
<b>The Usual Suspects </b>- 1995 directed by Bryan Singer<b><br />
</b><br />
10/10<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7J9XshyjwcQg58gsE-H5F53yj1XbMzRp5OJIUoUZcSw735WAqrIhx8rZr5HbHuIlUrO0aE1XKKj1yoS5qIXjzLL97qSfvQg1s0Ttv33w0t6TkcRW-GpLvhKVGPQVIIDh3A__qeupIaNuC/s1600/MV5BMzI1MjI5MDQyOV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNzE4Mjg3NA%2540%2540._V1._SY317_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7J9XshyjwcQg58gsE-H5F53yj1XbMzRp5OJIUoUZcSw735WAqrIhx8rZr5HbHuIlUrO0aE1XKKj1yoS5qIXjzLL97qSfvQg1s0Ttv33w0t6TkcRW-GpLvhKVGPQVIIDh3A__qeupIaNuC/s200/MV5BMzI1MjI5MDQyOV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNzE4Mjg3NA%2540%2540._V1._SY317_.jpg" width="133" /></a></div>This is a brilliant film, I had forgotten just how great it was, or maybe I had failed to perceive it at first. What makes it so great is the fact that no matter how many problems you may have with the film, say you think one scene is overly dramatic, or that you think you've found a plot hole or that you think the motivations of one character were unclear, all perfectly sensible criticisms that actually are useless when brought against The usual Suspects, because all that transpires is essentially a completely made up and warped version of events, told by one of the characters, so to criticise the film's story is to criticise his story which is all untrue anyway. Brilliantly done and a very original and enjoyable piece of cinema that is a perfect blend of the more artistic types of American films and the blockbusters.<br />
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<b>At Close Range</b> - 1986 directed by James Foley <br />
5/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBEe0pyAPYCDW6wOQJRKubcyisvBrQdpLc9jNyCIyxUCD4JOBHt3a92J7UrsKAu9Y2rbh07lrwfHS55DmYoqLsoRdY7PMyTRLZiocGEw-uNQaM2uR_04Oq0IL10b77ow9E7mQFJY6SHHti/s1600/MV5BMjA2MjUzMjY1M15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMDczMTcyNA%2540%2540._V1._SY317_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBEe0pyAPYCDW6wOQJRKubcyisvBrQdpLc9jNyCIyxUCD4JOBHt3a92J7UrsKAu9Y2rbh07lrwfHS55DmYoqLsoRdY7PMyTRLZiocGEw-uNQaM2uR_04Oq0IL10b77ow9E7mQFJY6SHHti/s200/MV5BMjA2MjUzMjY1M15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMDczMTcyNA%2540%2540._V1._SY317_.jpg" width="130" /></a>I was rather looking forward to this film, mainly due to the cast: Sean Penn, Christopher Walken, Chris Penn and many others in smaller roles. But I was very disappointed, it was a very bland film and rather unpleasant.<br />
Sean Penn disappointed me with this one, I usually expect a quality performance from Penn, but apparently he can also be very bland and unconvincing as well.<br />
Christopher Walken was good though slightly miscast, his was probably the strongest performance of the entire cast, and it is not one of his strongest.<br />
The film is based on real events, but I found that all the efforts at creating a suitably atmosphere, which turns menacing later on, failed. This is a film with many commendable aspects, that completely failed to come together in an interesting or engaging fashion.<br />
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<b> Marwencol</b> - 2010 directed by Jeff Malmberg<br />
8/10<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbVJzoVU7fR6i1Ta2ayFyJv-U9WJOIG_VyU6Yh1DbXsgXVHj99pu8FNiqelmFyriBmab3BM6bNSa-r81zENEoQDEfAYXGPL8or_u9ZPSDndkSiwXWbCIDZNyrp_HOaDuYxDsanU9M_FSgj/s1600/MV5BNDg5NzgzNDM4Nl5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNzY1MzY4Mw%2540%2540._V1._SY317_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbVJzoVU7fR6i1Ta2ayFyJv-U9WJOIG_VyU6Yh1DbXsgXVHj99pu8FNiqelmFyriBmab3BM6bNSa-r81zENEoQDEfAYXGPL8or_u9ZPSDndkSiwXWbCIDZNyrp_HOaDuYxDsanU9M_FSgj/s200/MV5BNDg5NzgzNDM4Nl5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNzY1MzY4Mw%2540%2540._V1._SY317_.jpg" width="135" /></a></div>As with so many documentaries, I had heard nothing of this until I read a review not long ago, this review was rather positive and the film itself seemed to unique that I tracked it down instantly.<br />
This documentary represents what I love about documentaries, it renders it's subject instantly fascinating and explains just enough to keep you interested, it reveals it's various bits of information carefully and keeps a certain mysterious air to the story, never over explaining and thus taking the "magic" away from the subject. <br />
It shows us a man who as a result of a sever beating which caused him brain damage, has had to start life over. Obviously this creates some very complex issues for him, which he expresses and deals with through an unconventional medium. A small but to scale village built entirely by himself and inhabited by his alter ego and his friends, where various scenario's of his imagining take place. <br />
Overall it's a charming documentary, one cannot help but admire this man who has created such a world of his own and recovered from his attack admirably, yet he is never idolised, and darker sides to his character are evident throughout.<br />
It's a highly interesting look at human nature, that I'd highly recommend, one of my main problems with it was the over use of extreme close ups, with felt somewhat limiting, but apart from that it's a rather well made doc.<br />
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<b>Castle In The Sky</b> - 1986 directed by Hayao Miyazaki<br />
8/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidTKx9npRQHN99amquP71burdbXoiuvTQe32Zw3FvRtnZUs51niHDBkA9wsTHXIcVvXl5yVGtTO6YBIYQwIvu7ge39TVDmdZGKXQ6QeZJaQI67qERjTQ09mjF9GZ_I46BNRDVCRGXdGHtS/s1600/MV5BMTU4MTUyMTc3MV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwOTg4Mzk5._V1._SY317_CR4%252C0%252C214%252C317_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidTKx9npRQHN99amquP71burdbXoiuvTQe32Zw3FvRtnZUs51niHDBkA9wsTHXIcVvXl5yVGtTO6YBIYQwIvu7ge39TVDmdZGKXQ6QeZJaQI67qERjTQ09mjF9GZ_I46BNRDVCRGXdGHtS/s200/MV5BMTU4MTUyMTc3MV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwOTg4Mzk5._V1._SY317_CR4%252C0%252C214%252C317_.jpg" width="135" /></a><br />
I've been a fan of Miyazaki for a while now, he's definitely one of the finest animators to have existed. But I find that as the first Miyazaki I saw was Spirited Away, I often end up comparing his other films to it, and they are understandably inferior, mainly because Spirited Away is a masterpiece. <br />
This film was great fun, not one of his finest works, but still a very enjoyable animations with some stunning art work.<br />
However I did think it was rather flawed, it did drag on at times and Miyazaki's strong opinions on certain things such as the environment, were often on obvious display.<br />
But it definitely ranks as one of his better works nonetheless, and is one I'd highly recommend.<br />
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<b>Rear Window</b> - 1954 directed by Alfred Hitchcock<br />
8/10<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigTaPDaA9OGLeSXm_TEX5ZSvUB8vHWVU0C5X2PDucguLoeoEdB38jM-zqK7OaMnDIuJS64bth0jdoHJXARXhxgwAcj0f9jrsmlMsRCywfiefm9dem8DM6Zc-6CX4N-XX1VFMwimDNjQQKE/s1600/l_47396_a8f29209.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigTaPDaA9OGLeSXm_TEX5ZSvUB8vHWVU0C5X2PDucguLoeoEdB38jM-zqK7OaMnDIuJS64bth0jdoHJXARXhxgwAcj0f9jrsmlMsRCywfiefm9dem8DM6Zc-6CX4N-XX1VFMwimDNjQQKE/s200/l_47396_a8f29209.jpg" width="150" /></a></div>Earlier this week I put together a little <a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/08/list-top-5-hollywood-classics-i-still.htmlhttp://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/08/list-top-5-hollywood-classics-i-still.html">list of classics I hadn't seen</a>. Rear Window was mentioned as it is one of Hitchcock's most acclaimed films.<br />
I have never been a fan of Hitchcock's work on the whole, with the notable exception of Psycho, as I find it hard to really be amazed by his films, they generally leave me rather cold.<br />
Rear Window was a fine film, with strong performances, especially from the striking Grace Kelly, some interesting technical choices and some genuinely thrilling scenes.<br />
However it did contain many of the elements I find problematic when watching Hitchcock's films, so I wasn't overly impressed by it on the whole. It was a very good thriller, but I would hesitate to call it a masterpiece.<br />
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<br />
<i> Some thoughts</i>:<br />
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If all goes as planned, I should be seeing The Tree of Life on Monday. This will be my first cinema experience for many months, and my first in my new home, so this added to the fact that it's the latest film of one of my favourite directors (whose previous films I have seen without exception) makes for a very highly anticipated cinema going. I hope I won't be disappointed, but The Tree of Life does seem to be very polarising. But I think it's worth it to see it on the big screen.<br />
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More importantly, my Irish Film blogathon has been announced (<a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/08/irish-film-blogathon.html">here for those who missed it</a>) and I'd strongly encourage you to participate. Read the post to find out the details and don't hesitate to ask questions in the comment section.<br />
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My list making has developed into something a bit tougher, as I'm gradually putting together 3 exhaustive directors lists. 1 List of Favourite directors, 1 of directors I like but need to see more of, and 1 of directors I have yet to explore.<br />
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<i>Time for some links</i>:<br />
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Stevee @ Cinematic paradox has been counting down the days until her 16 birthday, and has posted a special post each day. <a href="http://filmjunkie25.blogspot.com/2011/08/16-days-of-birthday-day-7-little-seen.html">Here is one I particularly liked</a>, but don't forget to check out the others as well.<br />
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Brent reviews the amazing TV series, <a href="http://silverscreenmania.blogspot.com/2011/08/i-claudius.html">I Claudius</a>. A real favourite of mine that I would also highly recommend.<br />
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Max @Anomalous Material writes a brilliant piece on his experiences watching Woody Allen's latest, <a href="http://www.anomalousmaterial.com/movies/2011/08/how-i-spent-my-summer-vacation-midnight-in-paris-in-grenoble/">Midnight In Paris</a>.<br />
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Andy Buckle reviews <a href="http://buckle22.blogspot.com/2011/08/new-release-review-rise-of-planet-of.html">Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes</a>, a film that I am rather looking forward to watching.<br />
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Ruth reviews one of Peter Weir's early films, <a href="http://splendidandlovely.blogspot.com/2011/08/last-wave-peter-weir-1977.html">The Last Wave</a>. <br />
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Joel writes a piece encouraging readers to see <a href="http://www.joelburman.com/2011/08/time-to-lecture-a-little/">Blue Valentine</a>, which he was obviously impressed with. It's a film I have yet to get around to, but I surely will someday soon.<br />
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Limette writes an amusing post on <a href="http://limereviews.blogspot.com/2011/08/scissors-take-1-cut.html">short haired actresses</a>.<br />
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Bonour Tristesse reviews an intriguing film named <a href="http://limereviews.blogspot.com/2011/08/scissors-take-1-cut.html">Mountain Patrol</a>.<br />
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Thomas celebrates his 100th review by writing about the masterful <a href="http://filmmasterjournal.blogspot.com/2011/08/psycho-1960-100th-review.html">Psycho</a>.<br />
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And finally Groggy Dundee writes of <a href="http://nothingiswrittenfilm.blogspot.com/2011/08/remembering-life-as-college-moviegoer.html">his life as a college movie goer</a>. <br />
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<i>Did you see any great films this week? Or have you an opinion on those I saw? Don't hesitate to comment if so.</i>Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-57760587479307556472011-08-12T17:33:00.000+01:002011-08-12T17:33:19.694+01:00List: Top 5 Hollywood Classics I Still Haven't SeenI thought it would be interesting to take a break from my lengthy reviews and post a list or two.<br />
The idea for this one came to me almost instantly as I'm always feeling guilty about having not seen these films, but for some reason never watch them or even make any effort to get hold of them. <br />
I don't know why this is, but I do know that I'll have to watch them sometime as they are all massively important films especially from a cultural point of view, they are classics in the truest sense of the word. <br />
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Classic Hollywood has never really been my cup of tea anyway, I much prefer the work of the Hollywood New Wave, or even the Pre-Code films. But I'm often left unimpressed by the so called classics of the 40's and 50's. Maybe that is why I have never made the effort to watch these films.<br />
Anyway, enough rambling, here are my choices:<br />
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<i>Honourable Mentions:</i><br />
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Rebel Without a Cause<br />
Rear Window<br />
Notorious<br />
A Streetcar Named Desire<br />
Cat On A Hot Tin Roof<br />
The African Queen<br />
And many, many more...<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">5.King Kong</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcipyHmWRkaNRFVlak9vbE2hopI37nJdIBBlnU4zfkMfuELYdvw-HHh_7KW0rwgXG1ZG4lWREO_q8fcf3s_BGrLHChi7ledt8k5P-YfPevGwLmG0XiNrFoJXDi1GevUIbG72swRgx-t1Mb/s1600/s_86082_0024216_ff450f56.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcipyHmWRkaNRFVlak9vbE2hopI37nJdIBBlnU4zfkMfuELYdvw-HHh_7KW0rwgXG1ZG4lWREO_q8fcf3s_BGrLHChi7ledt8k5P-YfPevGwLmG0XiNrFoJXDi1GevUIbG72swRgx-t1Mb/s200/s_86082_0024216_ff450f56.jpg" width="135" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Such an important film, from a cultural point of view but also from a cinematic al point of view as it was quite ground-breaking. In fact, I haven't seen any of the various incarnations of King Kong, such as the 1976 version or the 2005 version.The original was a real staple of cinema for so many years that I feel bad about not having seen it, but I have yet made no efforts to see it. </div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">4.Singin In The Rain </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEZQKCxX1PInSKbPuXg4rYRSlAaOkEu8VtA12G-CVizdtqATkGNCk2ILWnB_zauOrzl9-5udDZtxu3Kb0RAFi5TKoHTOvdUjooHn3ghziC37tBGUHQA5YTktlOev6bbwvcgKfZ75GvsSxA/s1600/singin-in-the-rain-poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEZQKCxX1PInSKbPuXg4rYRSlAaOkEu8VtA12G-CVizdtqATkGNCk2ILWnB_zauOrzl9-5udDZtxu3Kb0RAFi5TKoHTOvdUjooHn3ghziC37tBGUHQA5YTktlOev6bbwvcgKfZ75GvsSxA/s200/singin-in-the-rain-poster.jpg" width="135" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">A classic musical, and probably one of the most well known films around, even if not everyone has seen it, most have heard of it. But I as a film buff shuold have seen it by now, after all I've heard it referenced countless times (A Clockwork Orange) and yet again have made no effort to see it, maybe this can be pinned on my overall dislike for musicals. But that seems a rather shoddy excuse for avoiding this classic.</div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">3.On The Waterfront</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfNUwgEa8ra1-MnbGW3zOUDgwzYfawSps0YC8jFcDsnj6VdE7onJSadUfBljfmpandczBqenYrR45mm4xsiqaPxW4HdfJh2FhGM-5_nr4BSbHh8St2IOBUaXK805f_yzSPqLE5q-hiXIF9/s1600/poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfNUwgEa8ra1-MnbGW3zOUDgwzYfawSps0YC8jFcDsnj6VdE7onJSadUfBljfmpandczBqenYrR45mm4xsiqaPxW4HdfJh2FhGM-5_nr4BSbHh8St2IOBUaXK805f_yzSPqLE5q-hiXIF9/s200/poster.jpg" width="135" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Ah, Marlon Brando, such a icon, and yet I've only seen him in two films, The Godfather and Apocalypse Now. I have not seen any of his classic 50's films even though he's supposed to be one of the greatest actors of all time. Again, I have no real excuse for not seeing this, it's a widely known and easily obtainable classic. </div><div style="text-align: center;">Of all the films on this list, this is probably the one I'd be most likely to see, mainly because I am curious to see Brando at the height of his career.</div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">2.Casablanca </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB1vPyUisXRs1oJtc1Z7q98ATsP29v9QXVIAQvR4rFzkOxANlS-pkRyBrgC4tqvYLCgXw7ZEkjc0DQ3SrAitqZvJOCpGCPR10r6DtXvfzIfQ8IYUw65BV7PkoqgaC7Kn798S_gNAAYOK6R/s1600/b70-1191.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB1vPyUisXRs1oJtc1Z7q98ATsP29v9QXVIAQvR4rFzkOxANlS-pkRyBrgC4tqvYLCgXw7ZEkjc0DQ3SrAitqZvJOCpGCPR10r6DtXvfzIfQ8IYUw65BV7PkoqgaC7Kn798S_gNAAYOK6R/s200/b70-1191.jpeg" width="135" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Apparently this film has the greatest screenplay ever written (and one of the most quoted), is one of the first films to come to mind when thinking of a classic and is one every film buff should see.</div><div style="text-align: center;">And I have never seen it, I have no idea why, I just never got around to it. But to be honest, the only reason I would see it is for it's importance, and just to see what all the fuss is about. For it doesn't seem like the kind of film I'd enjoy.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">1.Gone With The Wind <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0Oj-enHdTeag8tlIdRuXlYHn0UV3IOhWYkaW7LDCCHFkTrSS4qedDzv8HHcEObfjOBm_-pa2LSMgkCYZ8DwzsFBUIog-jZGDyJ0C_MAMWhrDP58AjB-3DBePjGu_VJQt6r8VbQDU03edU/s1600/images.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0Oj-enHdTeag8tlIdRuXlYHn0UV3IOhWYkaW7LDCCHFkTrSS4qedDzv8HHcEObfjOBm_-pa2LSMgkCYZ8DwzsFBUIog-jZGDyJ0C_MAMWhrDP58AjB-3DBePjGu_VJQt6r8VbQDU03edU/s200/images.jpeg" width="135" /></a></div>This one is pretty much the ultimate Hollywood Classic. A lengthy romantic epic that is widely considered one of the best films ever made. I've seen it ranked highly on lists so many times that I've lost count, and have been told I should watch it even more times. But I still haven't seen it, and I doubt I will anytime soon. <br />
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<div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">Of course I will probably end up watching these films at some point, and who knows, I may even like them, but for now I often surprise myself at how many Hollywood classics I haven't seen yet. It seems rather silly for a film buff like me to avoid them for no particular reason. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">I decided to make this solely about Hollywood films because it would be far to long if I had included World cinema, The Bicycle Thieves, Ugetsu Monogatari etc... So many classics I have yet to see.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Anyway, that puts an end to my little self criticism session (I'm reading a book on Communist China at the moment, so that would partly explain this post), so how about you? I'm sure there are a couple of Hollywood classics you feel you should have seen already. </div></div>Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-48216406383149423272011-08-11T23:34:00.000+01:002011-08-11T23:34:29.602+01:00Day Of The Samurai 3: Harakiri - 1962Harakiri, or Seppuku as it is normally called in Japan, is a film by celebrated director Masaki Kobayashi, the director of the monumental Human Condition Trilogy and another Samurai classic, Samurai Rebellion.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiISFLxadT5t6aaDc8pYOqJYx35XC4T6efBiHGJMODDL4PzUhW8upsMjPyFCZRmHTCRzXrI36cCABCNy36mzb9W8XI8_8ssnnsfM0zlK0MKTPI6VBRq3qja4eQoHbLJJHo7TyPf_fMZ1H53/s1600/302_box_348x490.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiISFLxadT5t6aaDc8pYOqJYx35XC4T6efBiHGJMODDL4PzUhW8upsMjPyFCZRmHTCRzXrI36cCABCNy36mzb9W8XI8_8ssnnsfM0zlK0MKTPI6VBRq3qja4eQoHbLJJHo7TyPf_fMZ1H53/s320/302_box_348x490.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>Harakiri is one of the most acclaimed Samurai films, and one of the most successful outside of Japan as it one the Special Jury Prize at Cannes as well as being nominated for the prestigious Palme D'Or (which it lost to the excellent The Leopard, which in my opinion was a deserving win). Thus it marks a real turning point for the genre as a whole, as this is when such films became recognised not only for their ability to entertain and provide amazing action spectacles, but also for their intellectual content and the insight they shed into Japanese society and the Way of the Samurai, a subject that has long fascinated Western audiences.<br />
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But this film takes a very different approach to the subject that the usual Samurai film. It essentially deconstructs the lifestyle of the Samurai and code they live by, from the inside out. Unlike The Sword Of Doom, which was more intent of telling the story of an evil Samurai in it's effort to criticise the way of the Samurai when it was used by the wrong kind of men, while still upholding it's valour's. This film does it in a far more intelligent way, by bringing to light the hypocrisies that make up the code these men live by and the false honour that drives many of them and eventually becomes little more than petty pride and vanity.This vanity is mainly represented through the character of the counsellor, who is more concerned with "saving face" and having an outward appearance of honour than actually being honourable. <br />
But thankfully it doesn't completely destroy the idea of the Samurai, it just shows that their glory days had come to an end, the Feudal system was arising as was the use of gunpowder, these put an end to the all powerful Samurai.<br />
It does however maintain that there is an honourable lifestyle to be made following this way, as it does teach many important values, but the very same way can lead to vastly different results when interpreted in a different way.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpt-lHeBlRzRpG_6hkgiIi27n-uhGpjcF94wYrNUUNQj1jd_uZuoYSLyBrp3U6GFQbFnrAwfD4xEvRgslUA9gbMX_RqjvKiIinLYGWSGbUWKFcfb1QhH7UnPn3koxOQ6weVQHsARNQh0nL/s1600/images.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="135" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpt-lHeBlRzRpG_6hkgiIi27n-uhGpjcF94wYrNUUNQj1jd_uZuoYSLyBrp3U6GFQbFnrAwfD4xEvRgslUA9gbMX_RqjvKiIinLYGWSGbUWKFcfb1QhH7UnPn3koxOQ6weVQHsARNQh0nL/s320/images.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>What also becomes apparent, is the fact that the Way of the Samurai is mainly suited to life during wartime, the events in this film however take place during a long period of peace and this is the reason for many of their problems. A lack of employment and occupation, leaving them without purpose thus creating all the problems that appear in this film and many more I'm sure, for the Samurai are not suited to times of peaceful indolence, they cannot survive in such an atmosphere and had to either adapt or be extinguished. <br />
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This leads many Samurai into extreme poverty, including the main character of our story, Hanshiro Tsugumo. Interestingly, we are shown another side to the Samurai during these segments, we see a family man, laughing and playing with his grandson, worrying about the health of his family and doing what he can to help them. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDpG3Bv93FCrkYqf9DA8oY33fZpxESuGxBITDhp0lVpP8gf2P63DDK7ZUIOZxuwR3DsjM3jbq2UvNBHCfGICUxc_gx-ALrUT5lxQ6GGlgYByomXlu7WWwaNupIZQ47sDtuH1oO9mjVLuV0/s1600/harakiri6sm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDpG3Bv93FCrkYqf9DA8oY33fZpxESuGxBITDhp0lVpP8gf2P63DDK7ZUIOZxuwR3DsjM3jbq2UvNBHCfGICUxc_gx-ALrUT5lxQ6GGlgYByomXlu7WWwaNupIZQ47sDtuH1oO9mjVLuV0/s200/harakiri6sm.jpg" width="139" /></a>But the very fact that he is a Samurai is to be his downfall, for the pride and supposed honour that comes with the title does him more harm than good during these hard times, and prevents him or his son in law from getting regular employment. Soon, with his wife and son both extremely ill, Tsugumo's son in law, named Motome Chijiiwa, cracks. He abandons what last scraps of honour and pride that remained in him, and proceeds to take part in a scam of sorts, one practised by other unfortunate Samurai. It involves going to a nearby Lord's castle, and announcing their wish to commit harakiri in his domain, the Lord's counsellors generally gave the Samurai a small amount of money to leave them alone and spare them having to arrange and go through with the ceremony. <br />
This scam is a tough one, as it involves using the Way of the Samurai in a twisted and perverted way for ones own benefits. But faced with the horrible poverty is family live in, and the advanced stage of his sons' illness he is left little choice but to go through with it. <br />
But the scam tragically backfires, leaving Motome dead, with his wife and child dying soon afterwards. <br />
Tsugumo sets out to have his revenge on those responsible for this tragedy, he cold hearted, proud and completely hypocritical Samurai. <br />
In revolves into a conflict of words and wills between Tsugumo who has lost his faith in the Way of the Samurai and sees it for what it is, a cloak used by the cruel rulers to hide and justify there actions while at the same time keeping their servants in unwavering loyalty. <br />
Soon this battle of wits and will transforms into a full blown sword fight, which result in nothing but tragedy. <br />
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One of the most fascinating aspects of the film would be it's ingenious narrative structure, which puts the audience in the position of the villain, counsellor Kageyu Saito, as we now nothing of the character of Tsugumo beforehand and his true intentions and relation to Motome are only gradually revealed.<br />
In fact a large part of the film is taken up by flashbacks, this is a technique that was still a relatively inventive one by the time this film was made having only been around since 1941 (with Citizen Kane's invention of this kind of narrative)0 and further developed by Kurosawa's ground breaking Rashomon, which like this film, tells it's tale mainly through flashbacks. These flashbacks are presented in the form of a tale told to other characters, at first counsellor Saito tells of Motome's fate to Tsugumo, and afterwards the roles are reversed and Tsugumo explains all that lead up to Motome's death and what caused him to go to such extreme measures. <br />
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Kobayashi directs competently and confidently, creating may fantastic shots with apparent ease.Although his directional style is rather austere, and is mainly used to bring the exceptionally well written story to the screen, it is nonetheless of interest; especially for those familiar with the genre. He uses a variety of wide shots that add a larger more spacious feel to the proceedings, even though they take place in a rather confined area. <br />
The tradition of using Black and White in films of this genre is continued and to be honest, I have always preferred Samurai films in Black and White, for some reason having the blood without colour always made it more affecting for me, and Black and White was in general more sophisticated looking than colour at the time, so while later films such as After The Rain work brilliantly in colour, earlier ones such as the Samurai Trilogy would actually have benefited from being shot like this film.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3vmiqwgPYk4SQ9n8J4esFexThPty-suaa2yBI_N3Z5lsu96UcLo9NbSqsyKRZGK9sXnZ2M5gSM68HLdcSha1gJxoruWXePjRZl-gYjB4Hz60yYGPGdjBCJxKHJBn-rLLIDRPDQqNaoOVO/s1600/195888-seppuku1_super.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="139" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3vmiqwgPYk4SQ9n8J4esFexThPty-suaa2yBI_N3Z5lsu96UcLo9NbSqsyKRZGK9sXnZ2M5gSM68HLdcSha1gJxoruWXePjRZl-gYjB4Hz60yYGPGdjBCJxKHJBn-rLLIDRPDQqNaoOVO/s320/195888-seppuku1_super.jpg" width="320" /></a>I particularly admired his wide shots from a high angle, which is quite unusual for a film of the genre, but here Kobayashi doesn't hold back and creates a visually remarkable film that does not let down the amazing script and fantastic performance.<br />
The film has a rather significant amount of dialogue, and relatively inactive scenes of ceremony, but it never feel stale or repetitive, as there is much movement to the camera, nothing majestic however but shot and subtle sweeping shots and many other such things that altogether give a unique feel to the film without actually causing the directing to take precedence over the content. <br />
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However, the cinematography is striking, many of these black and white Samurai films can claim to have brilliant cinematography and rightfully so, but Harakiri surpasses many of them with ease. The lighting is very atmospheric and creates a cold, bleak feel to the settings which went perfectly with the events depicted.<br />
For the film is very bleak, it is about death. Death of ones loved ones, suicide, end of an era, all the themes are linked by death. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjocHq61DPWRqHoyVeh8tIC6FDzy8JwKMwwmA6R8fy9tuOOqpDgqr7SHYRqWekO_K_w9XKWGHXdod3TUOca2XKj7h7czpgTY7XhWQ_DNOUYcMGVEIINIeLHLtPjeBCWPAg1kYJfVSmiNIVD/s1600/3858375_gal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="112" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjocHq61DPWRqHoyVeh8tIC6FDzy8JwKMwwmA6R8fy9tuOOqpDgqr7SHYRqWekO_K_w9XKWGHXdod3TUOca2XKj7h7czpgTY7XhWQ_DNOUYcMGVEIINIeLHLtPjeBCWPAg1kYJfVSmiNIVD/s200/3858375_gal.jpg" width="200" /></a>Nakadai gives yet another extraordinary performance, but this one is particularly striking due to the fact that despite being only about 30 years of age, he is surprisingly convincing as an elderly man.<br />
Few other actors are able to convey the fierce intensity of Tatsuya Nakadai, his presence alone elevates any scene as he is one of the finest actors. In Harakiri, his intense desperation and grief is unforgettable, and his desire for revenge so clearly etched onto his features that it adds a certain unpredictable edge to the whole proceedings. For this is one of the films greatest strengths, as the story unfolds before us, and we begin to understand the immense sorrow of Tsugumo and the depth of Saito and his mens' cruelty, we fully expect and even hope that Tsugumo will leap up and exact his revenge, at any time. <br />
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When he finally does, we are treated to one of the most impressive combat scenes of the era. It avoids the sometimes comical appearance of the other films simply by taking place after a long period of exposition and development of the story, leading the audience to really care about the outcome. It is a fight scene with much in stake, and although Nakadai's character is hopelessly outnumbered I still found myself wishing for him to survive. But the ending to such a tragic film is hardly going to be uplifting is it?<br />
I won't say any more, except that the ending and the reaction of the counsellor perfectly represent the decadence and vanity that the Way of the Samurai had fallen into by that time.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyLJa-z8ax-KnbC7c2dzARkywSHx226ih5bC7gUpmbbf5E-20Byny7ymZlrlLMJTTTLNfY4vnerZvry2YlPG5kEwF8_D_CCW9Ku26KohMUEfJc5ihu3S8UtcqB5xUbpY9-jpzAvxH4xSUz/s1600/Harakiri.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyLJa-z8ax-KnbC7c2dzARkywSHx226ih5bC7gUpmbbf5E-20Byny7ymZlrlLMJTTTLNfY4vnerZvry2YlPG5kEwF8_D_CCW9Ku26KohMUEfJc5ihu3S8UtcqB5xUbpY9-jpzAvxH4xSUz/s320/Harakiri.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>I wish I could think of some negative aspects to mention in order to provide a bit of balance to the review, but I cannot think of any. Harakiri is clearly a masterpiece of storytelling and one of the most intelligent and thought provoking films to come out of the genre. <br />
I'd highly recommend it to any films buffs, not just those who are fond of Japanese cinema as it is a great film.<br />
It may not be for the faint of heart though, as the harakiri scene itself is unbearably intense and gruesome. <br />
This one isn't just one of the finest Samurai films I've seen, it is also an instant favourite and would surely rank very high in any favourites list I may put together sometime.Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-26048646267294894992011-08-10T00:46:00.001+01:002011-08-10T00:56:19.548+01:00Irish Film BlogathonDue to my recent move to Ireland, I started up a small series of reviews designed to celebrate Irish Cinema. However I soon realised that I would only be able to review a small fraction of the films I had planned to.<br />
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I had briefly considered putting together a blogathon, but had soon dismissed the idea as I did not think anyone would be interested. However Nathanael Hood has convinced me to give it a try, and as a result this blog with be hosting it's very first blogathon in celebration of Irish Cinema!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYn5OjrOOqHl45e1p4z0Nh72OET4cGTCYn51qUZpxQFFQoT2hFRMDwRJxH1Vrp_63fS0-29BzMLPHzneE2mWeijNpnJYyqw7M0vBWi2OjWBuCRpfC0QlXRZOnfO1MtPVnKo3hJVsasHHq2/s1600/lunapic_131178028430115_1-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYn5OjrOOqHl45e1p4z0Nh72OET4cGTCYn51qUZpxQFFQoT2hFRMDwRJxH1Vrp_63fS0-29BzMLPHzneE2mWeijNpnJYyqw7M0vBWi2OjWBuCRpfC0QlXRZOnfO1MtPVnKo3hJVsasHHq2/s320/lunapic_131178028430115_1-1.jpg" width="253" /></a></div><br />
To start off, here are the films I've already reviewed in my marathon:<br />
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<a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/07/irish-film-marathon-part-1.html">The Commitments</a> - 1991 directed by Alan Parker<br />
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<a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/07/irish-film-marathon-part-2.html">The Wind That Shakes The Barley</a> - 2006 directed by Ken Loach<br />
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<a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/07/irish-film-marathon-part-3.html">Michael Collins </a>- 1996 directed by Neil Jordan<br />
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<a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/08/irish-film-marathon-part-4.html">Angela's Ashes</a> - 1999 directed by Alan Parker<br />
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<a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/08/irish-film-marathon-part-5.html">My Left Foot</a> - 1989 directed by Jim Sheridan<br />
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<a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/08/irish-film-marathon-part-6.html">Once</a> - 2006 directed by John Carney <br />
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<a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/08/irish-film-marathon-part-7.html">The Secret Of Kells</a> - 2009 directed by Tomm Moore, Nora Twomey<br />
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<a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/08/irish-film-marathon-part-6.html"></a><br />
These are the more well known Irish films so I think that this blogathon should cover the more obscure and overlooked works.<br />
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<i>The blogathon is open to absolutely anyone who in interested in participating, even if you don't have a blog of your own. If you are interested, then you can write about any Irish film of your choosing on your blog (or send it to me by mail if you have no blog).</i><br />
<i>I think a whole month should be enough time, so I'll post all the entries on the <b>10th of September</b>.</i><br />
<i>Please send in all submissions by the <b>9th of September</b> at latest.</i><br />
(my email: <a href="mailto:jack.lunt@gmail.com">jack.lunt@gmail.com</a>)<br />
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Here are some suggestions based mainly on films I had considered for the marathon:<br />
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In The Name Of The Father directed by Jim Sheridan<br />
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The Field directed by Jim Sheridan<br />
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Hunger directed by Steve McQueen<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br />
Breakfast On Pluto directed by Neil Jordan</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">Man About Dog directed by <span style="font-weight: normal;">Paddy Breathnach</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Bloody Sunday directed by Paul Greengrass </span> </span><br />
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The General directed by John Boorman<br />
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However any film connected to Ireland in some way is acceptable, even if it's only set in Ireland, or perhaps about Irish people abroad...<br />
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I would naturally prefer it if there weren't a dozen reviews for the more popular ones (ie The Wind That Shakes the Barley etc...), so I was considering restricting it to one writer per film, however I would not want to limit your creativity to much, so feel free to write whatever you choose. <i>I'll soon publish a post asking which films you've selected, and will write them down as I go along so both I and you, the readers, can keep track of things.</i><br />
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I think that it would also be an interesting idea to write about some of the actors who have come from Ireland, as there are surprisingly numerous. A few notable examples would be Pierce Brosnan, Peter O'Toole, Richard Harris, Liam Neeson, Saoirse Ronan and many more. So for those who don't really feel like watching and reviewing an Irish film, you can always write about one of their actors.<br />
But there are no real rules as to what you can write, in fact the more original and unexpected the better!<br />
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I do hope some of you will be interested in participating, I know this may seems slightly ambitious as a first blogathon, but I'm confidant that I can get at least 10 submissions. We'll see how it works out anyway, and please don't forget to promote the blogathon on your own blogs, it would be a great help.<br />
The above image, (a rather rudimentary one I will admit) can easily be taken and displayed anywhere of your choosing (with a link to this post perhaps). <br />
Well, that is all there is to say for now. I have a feeling I must have left something out, so don't hesitate to ask for any clarifications you may need.<br />
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<i>(On a final note, I'm working on a post for this blogathon myself, and it will certainly not be the kind of post you've seen before on this blog)</i>Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-35762482736235451122011-08-08T03:30:00.000+01:002011-08-08T03:30:33.117+01:00End Of Week Post<b>Let There Be Rock </b>1980 directed by Eric Dionysius, Eric Mistler<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkBcpD7ajzIHrNuT7NHF6FFIncFFz70PlnqawSkPokiMbWBA-0z7o3QPu20FXARyKzL_YOPtIx1i4wQUT_ik8pFFaMLOy1PNB3oDl7_uMufu075BXGQwcjw1v6PnGeDFPeGEgNkub4IQr1/s1600/o_apg8awnifh3uee3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkBcpD7ajzIHrNuT7NHF6FFIncFFz70PlnqawSkPokiMbWBA-0z7o3QPu20FXARyKzL_YOPtIx1i4wQUT_ik8pFFaMLOy1PNB3oDl7_uMufu075BXGQwcjw1v6PnGeDFPeGEgNkub4IQr1/s200/o_apg8awnifh3uee3.jpg" width="146" /></a></div>This is by far one of the best live performances by a band I've ever seen. The energy of this band and the enormity of their performance and overall sound is simply astounding. <br />
This is definitely some of the best live footage of ACDC and I'd say it's a must see for all their fans. And even for any fans of the Rock genre as a whole, as few bands completely capture the very spirit of rock as well as ACDC did.<br />
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<b>La Double Vie De Veronique </b>- 1991 directed by Krzysztof Kieslowski<br />
9/10<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqkLvq2HBQ4km6kxh5NlxVQTEnzeX4Zb2rSXUWJsizPCu4wVUByu1XImW_bBHgtcRncI7q-06pJjtds6eo8tPWuEeqUQjE3sih_PZZ4YbelTDyOgx9mtRe0eA7mKsNGmWI2ONc7THaXAo1/s1600/5532804050_07b60e6da1_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqkLvq2HBQ4km6kxh5NlxVQTEnzeX4Zb2rSXUWJsizPCu4wVUByu1XImW_bBHgtcRncI7q-06pJjtds6eo8tPWuEeqUQjE3sih_PZZ4YbelTDyOgx9mtRe0eA7mKsNGmWI2ONc7THaXAo1/s200/5532804050_07b60e6da1_o.jpg" width="141" /></a></div> This is a film I had heard much about and was really looking forward to. It is also the first of Kieslowski's films I have seen, I thought it was a most interesting work, that could have been off putting in it's vagueness if not for the wonderful performance of Irene Jacob and the stunning cinematography. <br />
It is truly a beautiful film to look at, and the story kept me interested even thought it was almost cryptic in it's nature, I thought it flowed very well and the fact that I didn't grasp all of it did not bother me at all. It reminded me of a David Lynch film in some ways, the way nothing is explained for the viewer and the way themes are followed through in peculiar ways throughout the film. I liked it a lot and Kieslowski has definitely got my interest, I look forward to seeing the Three Colours Trilogy and the Decalogue. <br />
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<b>Das Boot</b> - 1981 Wolfgang Petersen<br />
10/10<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggdY48DP1pug4t_HSYgyaUyFT04FJOV5BeOscU5fe0McEzNLazJuLSCUqjiMPgRlszjF540xlVyn5bC9wdGqWc9aHx9mGFg2S1yvgvmXQ83ckyccJsiM201zcPftXc1cCvNGDw5om4P4bD/s1600/MV5BMjE5Mzk5OTQ0Nl5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwNzUwMTQ5._V1._SY317_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggdY48DP1pug4t_HSYgyaUyFT04FJOV5BeOscU5fe0McEzNLazJuLSCUqjiMPgRlszjF540xlVyn5bC9wdGqWc9aHx9mGFg2S1yvgvmXQ83ckyccJsiM201zcPftXc1cCvNGDw5om4P4bD/s200/MV5BMjE5Mzk5OTQ0Nl5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwNzUwMTQ5._V1._SY317_.jpg" width="124" /></a></div>A unique film, made all the more fascinating by the fact that this very same director would go n to make Troy.<br />
The film's portrayal of life on a U Boat was harrowing and intense, I was particularly impressed by the technical aspects of it all,and how brilliantly they had managed to surpass the obvious difficulties of shooting in such confined places.<br />
The acting was also great, and from what I've read, it seemed to me like they captured the spirit of the U Boat men admirably.<br />
All this makes for a film that easily lives up to it's title of "classic".<br />
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<b>Terror's Advocate </b>- 2007 directed by Barbet Schroeder<br />
10/10<b><br />
</b><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT90z6r31yk-h4Bceuh9lhzxBO0l-eZKRTd0J3Kdp-isCq8mquA7CT4xoJ_p2rQJDlRWaURNkXzRM-jQcxIq9RCMDP0oxrtEb9-OzcKcDehmpGM1L00J_me1N2VhNb02gpkgWxDeY_riN2/s1600/MV5BMTQxODYwMTMzOV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMjg4MDU1MQ%2540%2540._V1._SY317_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT90z6r31yk-h4Bceuh9lhzxBO0l-eZKRTd0J3Kdp-isCq8mquA7CT4xoJ_p2rQJDlRWaURNkXzRM-jQcxIq9RCMDP0oxrtEb9-OzcKcDehmpGM1L00J_me1N2VhNb02gpkgWxDeY_riN2/s200/MV5BMTQxODYwMTMzOV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMjg4MDU1MQ%2540%2540._V1._SY317_.jpg" width="135" /></a>I don't watch nearly enough documentaries as I'd like, but when I do often discover some amazing works. This is one of them.<br />
It is highly informative, in fact I feel I've learnt more by watching this than I ever did in history class at school, and very well made. Schroede brings his professional and artistic eye to the whole affair and manages to create a very fluid and well put together piece.<br />
Their is an enormous amount of information flying round here and yet I never felt confused once, so I must congratulate all those involved in the making of this.<br />
The subject is an ideal one for a documentary, one of the most controversial men in France, Jacques Vergès, a lawyer known for his extremist sympathies and anti colonialist leanings. He defended the likes of Carlos, Klaus Barbie and many more infamous figures. If you have anything more than a fleeting interest in French history, or in the birth of modern terrorism (which is something the film reveals a lot about) then I'd highly recommend this.<br />
And the English title is a great play on words, brining to mind both devil's advocate (which Vergès most certainly is) and a lawyer (or advocate) who defends terrorists.<br />
<br />
<i> A Few Thoughts:</i><br />
<br />
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy has officially become my most anticipated film for the rest of the year after the fantastic <a href="http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi1614322713">second trailer</a> was released. <br />
It has an extensive cast, with John Hurt, Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, Mark Strong, Tom Hardy and many, many more familiar faces. <br />
I have read the book it is adapted from, as well as the two sequels, and while it is rather tough material for a cinematic adaptation, I'm convinced that it will make a great film if done well. <br />
It is directed by Tomas Alfredson, who impressed critics and audiences alike with his film Let The Right One In a few years ago (I was not very impressed, but that's another story.), he will certainly bring an interesting element to the story, and I'm glad it isn't turning out to be an entirely Hollywood affair, as it would have been a complete disaster.<br />
<br />
Recently, I've decided to put together some lists for the blog, to add a bit of lighter content here and there. I've come up with some interesting ideas all ready. And one in particular that I'venearly finished all ready.<br />
There is one that is a particularly tough task, as it will be a lst of all the directors whose work I have never seen but feel I should.<br />
<br />
On a completely unrelated note, I was down at the pub earlier today and was surprised to find Brendan Gleeson there, playing the violin.For those that don't know, Gleeson is an Irish actor of some renown as he portrayed Mad Eye Moody in the Harry Potter films, I loved his performance in In Bruges far more though. He's just a very good actor and apparently will be trying his hand at directing soon.<br />
Anyway, I didn't speak with him as I didn't want to interrupt his violin playing, but I'm sure I'll see him around some time as he leaves close by me.<br />
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And finally, the details of the Irish Film Blogathon will be posted tomorrow, so keep an eye out for that!<br />
<br />
<i>Time for some links:</i><br />
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BT reviews Louis Malle's <a href="http://specialdoseofsadness.blogspot.com/2011/08/black-moon-1975.html">Black Moon</a>, a film which I'll definitely be watching due to my new found admiration of Malle's work.<br />
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Michael Parent celebrates <a href="http://cinephiliaque.blogspot.com/2011/08/its-my-birthday-here-are-top-5-films-of.html">his birthday</a> with a list of the best films released that year. And posted an excellent review of <a href="http://cinephiliaque.blogspot.com/2011/08/clockwork-orange.html">A Clockwork Orange</a>. <br />
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The Film Conoisseur reviews <a href="http://filmconnoisseur.blogspot.com/2011/08/castle-in-sky-1986.html">Castle In The Sky,</a> a Miyazaki film I have yet to see, but based on his excellent review I quickly got hold of it and look forward to watching it.<br />
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Nick @Ramblings Of A Demented Doorknow lists his <a href="http://dementeddoorknob.blogspot.com/2011/08/top-10-luc-besson-productions.html">Top Ten Favourite Luc Besson Productions</a>.<br />
<br />
Thomas lists his favourite <a href="http://filmmasterjournal.blogspot.com/2011/08/12-great-musical-film-characters.html">Musical Film Characters</a>. <br />
<br />
CS writes about<a href="http://bigthoughtsfromasmallmind.blogspot.com/2011/08/i-felt-dirty-after-that-filmand-not-in.html%20"> a recent, and extremely off putting, experience</a> he had at the cinema.<br />
<br />
Anomalous Material presents it's list of <a href="http://www.anomalousmaterial.com/movies/2011/08/the-10-coolest-lgbt-movie-characters/">Top 10 Coolest LGBT characters</a>, I particularly like the top choice.<br />
<br />
Limette reviews a film called <a href="http://limereviews.blogspot.com/2011/08/band-baaja-baaraat-2010-make-love-not.html"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span">Band Baaja Baaraat.</span></span></a><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span">Well, that's all for these week. Did you see anything interesting this week? Feel free to comment below! </span></span>Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-91249928405377507552011-08-06T02:08:00.000+01:002011-08-06T02:08:42.321+01:00Irish Film Marathon: Part 7The Secret Of Kells reveals yet another side to Irish Cinema, one rather different from the other films I've explored as part of this marathon. It is an animation, and a very beautiful one.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcS1etutEb1eNSo5PO-8VyVWaEqocBYKmasrRFOpaQhWhqaSR8OXZrloJVa6kGKOa4zvyT9iXk7utmAUirVqk73Xyf1axGcBJ-dyhEAqitN3n117KnUy2AmidKTCHv-W3-RHgg_n1Fihyphenhyphenj/s1600/the-secret-of-the-kells-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcS1etutEb1eNSo5PO-8VyVWaEqocBYKmasrRFOpaQhWhqaSR8OXZrloJVa6kGKOa4zvyT9iXk7utmAUirVqk73Xyf1axGcBJ-dyhEAqitN3n117KnUy2AmidKTCHv-W3-RHgg_n1Fihyphenhyphenj/s320/the-secret-of-the-kells-01.jpg" width="228" /></a></div>The Secret Of The Kells isn't an entirely Irish film as it was funded by companies from all over Europe. However the story and themes of it are fundamentally Irish, so much so that this is probably the definitive Irish animation, of the ones I've seen so far anyway. <br />
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This is the first time I've attempted to review an animated film, and I will admit that I don't quite know how to go about it. But I'll do my best.<br />
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<a name='more'></a><br />
Brendan is a young apprentice monk in the seventh century, in the Abbey Of Kells. He lives during a time of great troubles, Viking raids terrorise the lands and he has been forbidden to leave the Abbey, which is in the process of being enclosed by a large wall. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDkJ7x44PwvK_kjipdY2sh5TUCB_S8QJ9MH-LNYxsAes81k0HnROS6wOHCEKzmeq23tcX-41pXNsV51NbovudkoOUML9yyC7zR-5E58bbAz0YDTLPrS5o9-v5BnHMLmgsl-A3IyyfJNYfh/s1600/brendanstill.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="135" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDkJ7x44PwvK_kjipdY2sh5TUCB_S8QJ9MH-LNYxsAes81k0HnROS6wOHCEKzmeq23tcX-41pXNsV51NbovudkoOUML9yyC7zR-5E58bbAz0YDTLPrS5o9-v5BnHMLmgsl-A3IyyfJNYfh/s320/brendanstill.jpg" width="320" /></a>Soon a fascinating new monk arrives at the Abbey, bearing with him The Book of Iona, which he managed to save from the ruins of Iona as it was sacked by the terrible Vikings.<br />
Brendan becomes this man's apprentice and is soon taught the ways of an Illuminator, that is to say a master artist who illustrated and wrote the fabulous Books of that era. <br />
Soon disaster strikes however as a Viking raiding party draws near, and Brendan is punished for his excursions beyond the wall, where he meets a nature spirit and a terrifying demon of old. <br />
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The Secret Of Kells is a beautiful film, but a very flawed one. The primary complaint I believe was the fact that it all felt a bit rushed, and I agree with that observation as it did feel like the film was trying to cover too much ground in too short a run time.<br />
But this is a relatively minor complaint and did not bother me so much, however other aspects of the film did let me down. In particular the fact that it relied on so many cliches, of the kind I had hoped no to find in this film. It seemed like such a refreshingly original film, and in terms of animation it certainly is, but the basic story structure and the various events just felt extremely redundant. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFPVUNgskiOim0ddn1usEtvjVrHa6raVTUKuFB_UCYiqIDvURL5u7E7L7j69Ta7vHSuM8pe5QDuEPkkOuBH5LthDGBZEB9s687rw3FgjxcHRr_53k4pptd98PQuY1TJ8YVFHNuhdvPwN4X/s1600/the_secret_of_kells04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFPVUNgskiOim0ddn1usEtvjVrHa6raVTUKuFB_UCYiqIDvURL5u7E7L7j69Ta7vHSuM8pe5QDuEPkkOuBH5LthDGBZEB9s687rw3FgjxcHRr_53k4pptd98PQuY1TJ8YVFHNuhdvPwN4X/s320/the_secret_of_kells04.jpg" width="320" /></a>It had nowhere near the same originality and unique attitude that made me love such animations as Persepolis and the work of Miyazaki, or even some of the celebrated Pixar studio's films. <br />
Perhaps my hopes were set too high, I don't know, but in any case the film relied far too much on a familiar storyline which somewhat undercut it's amazing visuals for me. <br />
The storyline starting with a child frustrated with his surroundings and feeling alienated from his family, only to meet a wise stranger who reveals to him many amazing things, which eventually lead him into trouble where he is saved by a mysterious character, with whom he strikes up a friendship, I could go on but I don't want to spoil it all. Of course the context in which this is applied is very interesting, but I would like to have seen a more imaginative script. The characters all felt like variations on ones I'd seen before, and I was left craving a bit of the originality promised by the extraordinary visuals. <br />
Furthermore, another problem I had was that I felt it tried to hard to be educational, as if for little children, it did sound slightly patronising at times. Perhaps the film was just not made for my age group though, so this is a very minor complaint. <br />
<br />
One aspect I did appreciate about the films story was the fact that it didn't necessarily assign modern attitudes to it's characters in an effort to appeal to audiences, these is something I dislike, especially when it comes to animated films. Furthermore the film might have been rather shallow, it seems to think it's beautiful imagery made up for it's fairly mundane scrip, I still found it enjoyable. It was nothing particularly ground-breaking in terms of writing, but it certainly wasn't an unpleasant viewing experience. <br />
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The visual aspects are where this film shines. It's animation is unique, strikingly colourful, complex and highly detailed. I greatly admired every second of it, with some sequences being far more impressive than others of course. <br />
This is where the heart of the film lies, and was obviously developed with a great deal of love by the animators, it is by far the strongest and most appealing aspect of the film, so I can somewhat forgive the films underdeveloped storyline as the animation more than makes up for it. <br />
For those who have not seen the film, I can assure you it is quite unlike any other animation you may have seen before.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje8Ch0vD9UZ2ZXtUJ9Qz6rC3iczzPl2cavNUusCpnTN5M6JEUpXXihBQwX1hgJ5rrbLV8uPaBp5z3hPgnctleJoOI2OHHz4F4YCBUSMfQGw04uS4rJNblGjRhsxKj993KwcSWtOKUUVZLD/s1600/Secret+of+Kells+Spread.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje8Ch0vD9UZ2ZXtUJ9Qz6rC3iczzPl2cavNUusCpnTN5M6JEUpXXihBQwX1hgJ5rrbLV8uPaBp5z3hPgnctleJoOI2OHHz4F4YCBUSMfQGw04uS4rJNblGjRhsxKj993KwcSWtOKUUVZLD/s320/Secret+of+Kells+Spread.JPG" width="320" /></a> It is obviously inspired from the very same drawings that the film focuses on, the work of the Illuminators, it is obviously strongly influenced by such traditional Celtic art and the work of the Christian monks. This makes for an animation style that is completely original, yet very engaging. It seems little consideration was given to realistic proportions and such things, as the bodies are all strangely presented as is the landscape, but this doesn't matter. Instead of concentrating of realism, the animation is more about capturing the themes and movements of the film. Thus everything flows very nicely, and changes brilliantly to adapt to each individual situation. <br />
A wide range of colours is on display, as well as a myriad of wonderful visual tricks and techniques, many of which take you by surprise and always save the animation from becoming redundant. <br />
I'd recommend watching the film to see this animation alone, it is fascinating and well worth the various awards and nominations it received. <br />
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Another good aspect of the film would be the voice acting, which was clearly very competent. It isn't something people always notice, but I find that good voice acting can make an animation great, whereas bad voice acting can ruin it. Here it was very good, from a talented cast with accents that should be decipherable to pretty much everyone, which is a good thing. Of course it isn't very realistic as the characters would have had thicker accents but I think softening the accents is a perfectly reasonable thing to do in order for those unfamiliar with it to understand.<br />
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Finally, I thought it was very interesting to see an Irish animation, it is not an art form they are particularly known for so I was glad to see it succeed. I'm also glad to see that they stuck to their roots in a way, by making a film about Irish traditions. For it is a very Irish film, it is made up of countless scraps from the tales of the Celts and the early Christians and this provides the film with a most interesting basis. This harkening back to he old days is something that is not very commonplace in animation, as more tend to look towards the future, or to just focus on talking animals.<br />
However flawed this one may be, I still think it's a better animation than most of the ones I have seen recently, which proves that once again, real quality can be found in the more unlikely places, especially when it comes to Cinema.<br />
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The Secret Of The Kells may not be the most amazing animation to come around recently, but it's wonderful animation definitely makes it a worth checking out. I found the story to be rather weak on the whole, and slightly forgettable, but I realise that I'm in a minority as it was very well received by critics and audiences alike. As I said, I think my hopes were just to high.<br />
I can easily recommend it to all, and hope you enjoy it even more than I did. <br />
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This puts an end to my Irish Film Marathon, I will soon expand upon this very theme by announcing a blogathon, but more information on that later.<br />
To see all the previous posts in the series, <a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/search/label/Irish%20Film%20Marathon">click here!</a>Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-40668407954859066242011-08-05T00:04:00.000+01:002011-08-05T00:04:08.720+01:00Irish Film Marathon: Part 6Once is a film directed by John Carney and released in 2007. It was shot over a period of 17 days with a budget of about 180 thousand. Yet it went on to become one of the most successful independent films of the year earning near on 10 million as well as winning multiple awards including an Oscar (for Best Original Song).<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJW3RonEqRE0kRyy4CwoM6S4pcDgms-9IXWKLyj8LyzFiLICO8qXms5OYDP6iAlaQMqgnV4cjy9GvNV3b6nNCaGrbFCXqXKVOMPpzv-GiEBQycYtDKsPuNLZ3AfyT5MYUbe8k6tKWJ32KR/s1600/once-poster-0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJW3RonEqRE0kRyy4CwoM6S4pcDgms-9IXWKLyj8LyzFiLICO8qXms5OYDP6iAlaQMqgnV4cjy9GvNV3b6nNCaGrbFCXqXKVOMPpzv-GiEBQycYtDKsPuNLZ3AfyT5MYUbe8k6tKWJ32KR/s320/once-poster-0.jpg" width="216" /></a></div>It is a real critical favourite and one that I had been recommended many times before, but had never got around to watching it until now. I'm glad I did, as this is clearly the smallest of all the films chosen for this marathon and shows a different side to Ireland's film industry. <br />
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<a name='more'></a>Of course films made on such a limited budget and dead line will always be less polished as a final product than a film with a larger budget. The editing is rather poor, the cinematography slightly grainy and shaky. I think that this was partly due to the limitations imposed by the equipment, ad partly due to an intended effect the director was aiming for.<br />
I can't say I'm the biggest fan of this kind of gritty, realistic "cinema vérité style", but it works well enough here. I've never been a fan of such film making style, but I'll admit that on occasion it can work very well. <br />
But ultimately, it isn't the superficial and technical aspects that make this film so enjoyable, it is the characters and how they interact as well as the bitter sweet storyline and of course the music. <br />
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A quick word must be said about the music, as this is one of the primary aspects of the film, the story is told throught the music just as effectively as through the traditional film making mediums.<br />
It isn't particularly the music I listen to often, but I did enjoy it rather a lot, of course the way it was employed in the film was very interesting, but even taken as itself I found it to be quite enjoyable. Glan Hansard is clearly a very talented musician, and impressed me even despite my usual musical inclinations, which is always a good sign.Marketa Iglova is also rather brilliant on the piano, she does some very beautiful work that really makes the music very beautiful. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5uaIZPBTWLFZexrN1ymJlO2n9uycZCaUNw584LiKPOGeIPkWzUi6TZHYVJXA5phCdkMlSLmxWISZXTecBhVIJSDxnOGiFqVTiUD665cE_RjH3_0yYlD-pEAobc_wfDrs9EHo_vba0ot9U/s1600/once_0.preview.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5uaIZPBTWLFZexrN1ymJlO2n9uycZCaUNw584LiKPOGeIPkWzUi6TZHYVJXA5phCdkMlSLmxWISZXTecBhVIJSDxnOGiFqVTiUD665cE_RjH3_0yYlD-pEAobc_wfDrs9EHo_vba0ot9U/s320/once_0.preview.jpg" width="320" /></a>As the film begins, we see a middle aged man busking in the streets of Dublin. He is given no name but is portrayed by Glen Hansard who previously appeared in this marathon in a small part in the first film I reviewed, The Commitments.<br />
His life seems to have become rather bland since his girlfriend left him, but upon meeting a young immigrant from the Czech Republic (played by Marketa Iglova) who also goes unnamed, he seems to become inspired by her, she becomes his muse of sorts. and he becomes hers.<br />
The film then covers the couple's relationship over a week or so, in which they both inspire each other to change their lives and record an album together.<br />
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I will admit that Romance is not a genre I usually gravitate towards, but I will make exceptions at times and I'm glad I did in this case as this is a film that is as realistic as it is charming, it just goes to show that one doesn't need to make a film full of contrived situations and melodramatic events in order to make a genuinely charming piece of cinema. It does not present a romanticised view of relationships however, instead it portrays a most realistic story, perhaps best described as a "slice of life" style film. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidzuhrtzTxNqSZ4v5p6OYuPJhom055dlq6970t1nS4zBjkFPiwB1gE5ND2SN9XwEfizk5oN2NXpY6kKT1TpHdXNs2CfrZmwRzZKHaJUzqt5k8EYatGfe6JbMo_yVQZQpzi13S5tD5OUJJ2/s1600/once.imgprensa.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="203" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidzuhrtzTxNqSZ4v5p6OYuPJhom055dlq6970t1nS4zBjkFPiwB1gE5ND2SN9XwEfizk5oN2NXpY6kKT1TpHdXNs2CfrZmwRzZKHaJUzqt5k8EYatGfe6JbMo_yVQZQpzi13S5tD5OUJJ2/s320/once.imgprensa.jpeg" width="320" /></a>Both characters are very humanly represented, portrayed as flawed, talented but ultimately very hopeful individuals.<br />
Each of them have their share of problems, the Guy has not seen his girlfriend for many years and yet cannot make up his mind to return to her. The Girl is in a foreign country, with her young child and without her husband. She is in search of something meaningful in her life, as is the Guy, they are both in need of a change of direction. Their encounter marks the beginning of this change, one could say they "fall in love" but that would be oversimplifying it, instead they both discover someone like them, in love with music, in need of a change and in need of affection. They essentially fall in love through their music. <br />
This is what makes their album such a success. <br />
But their relationship is not to be, for one thing there is a considerably age difference, as well as the fact that the guy is still in love with his previous girlfriend, the Girl also has a child to bring up and a husband. It's a relationship that is obviously meant to take place on a creative level more than anything else. <br />
The film does not end up how you may expect from a Romantic film, but then again this is a very unconventional one, I feel I've already revealed enough in my review so I won't go into details about the ending, except to say that it's a beautiful ending, that may not be particularly pleasing, but is undeniably great.<br />
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I did mention previously that I wasn't particularly a fan of this films stylistic choices, but I will admit that I really admired the way this film was made on such a minuscule budget. It is an entirely human story, with everything taking place between the characters, so there is no real need for impressive visuals or fancy shots. The films purpose is to tell a story and it does so magnificiently, everything else is secondary.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSlpsM9lQbSV1FhYrlMXVsZgb_sIgMcWZYtH87An1usvmXTfV8W_ABIjWaUw6HWv1dbbktdb6CPaBaHy2GKGB5GjoonhUmhGoq6lH0dCW9iaMKlRuDVQLk6PwjTLu5H1iHKyZ1C9FG-QkU/s1600/once.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSlpsM9lQbSV1FhYrlMXVsZgb_sIgMcWZYtH87An1usvmXTfV8W_ABIjWaUw6HWv1dbbktdb6CPaBaHy2GKGB5GjoonhUmhGoq6lH0dCW9iaMKlRuDVQLk6PwjTLu5H1iHKyZ1C9FG-QkU/s320/once.jpg" width="320" /></a>The performances are of course very natural looking and appealing, nothing spectacular, and certainly a step down from my previous viewing experience, My Left Foot featuring the impossibly talented Daniel Day Lewis, but it is nonetheless very moving, a large amount of the film's success hinges on the performances, if they had been more contrived or cliched the film just would not have worked. But as it is, one can see genuine affection between the performers which is obviously transmitted to their characters. <br />
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It's a bitter sweet story (again), but these kinds of stories do tend to be the most affecting I find, as they generally show a great emotional depth, that is getting rarer in films these days.<br />
The films refusal to take the easy way out and live up to the audiences expectations, formed from watching many terrible romantic films I'm sure, is admirable in my opinion and makes for a most refreshing film.<br />
I can easily see why it won so many awards and such acclaim from so many different people, its certainly a very unique film and that is perhaps one of it's greatest strengths. It also makes it harder to review, for what can one compare this film to when it is so unique? <br />
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Their really isn't much more to say in regards to this film. I enjoyed it enormously, it was such a refreshing take on the near dead Romance genre, and had some excellent music, although I would not describe it as a musical as some people seem to be doing. Of course there were some flaws, and it isn't a film that will make it's way into my absolute favourites, but I would not hesitate to recommend it to all. <br />
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<i>A rather short review this time, but I believe that the size of a review should depend entirely on the film one is reviewing... Anyway, hope you enjoyed it and don't hesitate to comment!</i><br />
<i>Next up is the final film in the marathon, and the only animation, The Secret Of Kells.</i><br />
<i>To read the previous entry <a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/08/irish-film-marathon-part-5.html">click here</a>!</i>Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-15982067982069675232011-08-03T19:52:00.000+01:002011-08-03T19:52:32.554+01:00Irish Film Marathon: Part 5My Left Foot is a film released in 1989 and directed by Jim Sheridan, one of Ireland's most acclaimed director, with who I'm afraid to say I'm not very familiar with as this is the first of his films I've seen. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiel7LQjBHBf2F_N_3fMt9dfdefHXaRcdoG6y3AGbO-fsXcas9eeeOukwzTQEPcvny3OTJncOhlrnShJeqPa4D57Py-dvUjeU_8nsCn1JsZk4VXgQBwfAlbkBjxZTki95msfakEKWsYI3GG/s1600/MPW-39968.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiel7LQjBHBf2F_N_3fMt9dfdefHXaRcdoG6y3AGbO-fsXcas9eeeOukwzTQEPcvny3OTJncOhlrnShJeqPa4D57Py-dvUjeU_8nsCn1JsZk4VXgQBwfAlbkBjxZTki95msfakEKWsYI3GG/s320/MPW-39968.jpeg" width="207" /></a></div>It tells the tale of Christy Brown, an Irish painter and author who has suffered from cerebral palsy from the moment he was born, thus making him entirely paralysed with the sole exception of his left foot, hence the title. <br />
It was very well received by critics and audience alike and won several prestigious awards including the coveted Best Actor as well as the Best Supporting Actress. <br />
But the majority of the praise focused on the amazing performance by Daniel day Lewis in the titular role. Most of the awards for Best Actor went to him that year. But even removing DDL from the picture, the film remains a great one and in my opinion fully deserving of all the praise.<br />
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<a name='more'></a> Apart from Daniel Day Lewis's amazing performance, the most impressive aspect of the film was the way that Christy Brown's disability was presented. It was not in a pitying way, as Christy is not presented as an unfortunate character, he is presented as an entirely normal human being, the disability that affects his physical body is not transposed to his mind or his emotions. And yet he is not made out to be a glorious genius, he is not made out to be a cripple worthy of everyone's sympathy, just a flawed human being, a troubled artist with a strong character. <br />
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He has mood swings, is selfish at times, falls in love, gets drunk, gets into fights etc... All while being physically crippled. <br />
Often such films are sentimental attempts to elicit sympathy from audiences by showing them those more unfortunate to themselves, while at the same time quietly saying, "you should consider yourself lucky you're not in the same state". I often find this attitude offensive and a real bore to watch. <br />
However My Left Foot avoids all this, making a character that is as believable as he is human. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKApPasLbogYEhWxcgS1ODrjBXzPJl41p1HOCRXWapA0eaNllMuOljUCSkZYUzTR1Kuo3qo8XX11_bwG6FZziLCXXbxubFa99lB0fsiA5rx5wv9L4A2QVC46NOvmZfD2NAdW3fpE0ellTT/s1600/21.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKApPasLbogYEhWxcgS1ODrjBXzPJl41p1HOCRXWapA0eaNllMuOljUCSkZYUzTR1Kuo3qo8XX11_bwG6FZziLCXXbxubFa99lB0fsiA5rx5wv9L4A2QVC46NOvmZfD2NAdW3fpE0ellTT/s200/21.jpg" width="200" /></a>Jim Sheridan proves to be a most talented director, his title of Ireland's foremost director is well deserved in my opinion despite the small amount of films he directed. His directing style is rather minimalistic and mainly used to bring the characters and the exceptional story to the screen. It is a fascinating story, and deeply moving, and I think much of the praise for the handling of the subject should go to Jim Sheridan. He directs with a great amount of sensitivity and obvious admiration for the subject. One can tell he is genuinely fascinated by Christy Brown's story and he transmits this to the audience. <br />
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The film is constructed in a rather non linear way, a way that is familiar for those who have even a limited experience of biographical films. It begins with Christy Brown in his 30's attending a fund raising event to promote his new autobiographical book. His attendant is quickly charmed by him and proceeds to read the copy of the book he give her while they wait for his moment to appear. <br />
Then through way of the book, we are shown Christy Brown's reminiscences about his childhood years, from his great love and dependence on his mother, his relationship with his father, his young years during which no one even considered that he may have a brilliant mind trapped in his crippled body, his years as a developing artist, filled with the depression and creativity that often come hand in hand to such artistic temperaments. His hopes for a normal life, with normal relationships, which he eventually comes to term with and accepts his fate.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8PVce7YXlKTCnpfRu8W6HB17-G9JTZOYGydTymj4obQG_Jl6Vyr0wy1OIdisUq-HgL12Qhnj89BGysVZ8CUD7f4nKDwwf3jAd1Wb3DbBX7VzJp4F6o0IE_ecDXt8gb2EADjjQuomSQCMy/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="129" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8PVce7YXlKTCnpfRu8W6HB17-G9JTZOYGydTymj4obQG_Jl6Vyr0wy1OIdisUq-HgL12Qhnj89BGysVZ8CUD7f4nKDwwf3jAd1Wb3DbBX7VzJp4F6o0IE_ecDXt8gb2EADjjQuomSQCMy/s200/1.jpg" width="200" /></a>And his eventual love for the very same person who is ready the book throughout the film, his attendant for that event, named Mary. They marry soon after, so in a way all this was a lead up to one of the happiest events in Christy's life, it was his future wife discovering who he really was by means of his book, a very personal affair that we (the audience) get to experience as well. <br />
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I've avoided focusing on DDL's performance to much up until now, but I can hardly go much further without writing about it. There really isn't much to say, if ever a performance was worth of the Best Actor Award, it was Daniel Day Lewis's performance in My Left Foot. He was extraordinary, and your level of appreciation will only rise when you read of the incredible length's he went in order to give such an impressive performance. He refused to get out of character during the whole shoot apparently, staying in his wheelchair the whole time and eventually suffering damage to his ribs due to the sitting position he'd been in for so long. <br />
Of course one may argue that such method acting performances generally get more acclaim and publicity because of the crazy methods employed by the actors to get into character, however nothing I'd read had prepared me for the greatness of Daniel Day Lewis's performance. It is almost quite terrifying how Day Lewis completely transforms into the character, bearing little to no resemblance to Bill The Butcher or Daniel Plainview, some of his more popular roles. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiCNvItM4gRQiXOkCyIxGpDaAlTDxbc5D2wp9knxubQONLekwVRFWFgvdcvyzwiiatvJmlLuMfnUpWhvog50-tFromj-J0msyMoSS7D5jMfTbZZjn9lDni-WqpR1jpcEYOlMJjKgHpH44d/s1600/my-left-foot-daniel-day-lewis.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiCNvItM4gRQiXOkCyIxGpDaAlTDxbc5D2wp9knxubQONLekwVRFWFgvdcvyzwiiatvJmlLuMfnUpWhvog50-tFromj-J0msyMoSS7D5jMfTbZZjn9lDni-WqpR1jpcEYOlMJjKgHpH44d/s320/my-left-foot-daniel-day-lewis.jpg" width="320" /></a>Daniel Day Lewis elevated this film and made it into an unforgettable film, his performance is the main selling aspect, but in my opinion not the only great thing about the film, for it is also directed in a marvellous fashion, most of the film takes place in and around the Brown's house. But it never becomes claustrophobic or repetitive, as much the real landscape of the film is on Christy's face, we see his triumphs, joys, sorrows and bitter disappointments. <br />
This is captured brilliantly by Sheridan, it isn't prying and has no intrusive feel to it. Perhaps the portrayal of Irish family life is slightly romanticised, in fact it isn't exactly romanticised but perhaps rather simplistic, it touches upon several aspects of life at the time, such as the excessive number of children, the scandal of pregnancy of before marriage, poverty and lack of food, lack of understanding towards Christy's condition and the lack of proper care for him.<br />
All this was only lightly touched upon, but I can understand why, as this wasn't a realistic look at life Ireland at the time, it is a film about Christy Brown, it would have been a bit to depressing I think if the film had spent more time on these subjects. <br />
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One aspect I particularly admired was the fact that the makers of the film chose to show Christy Brown is a more realistic light rather than a sympathetic light, they did not change their portrayal of him just because he was disabled. I've mentioned this before, but in this case I would like to draw attention to how they portrayed Christy as an artist. Especially in the scene towards the end in which a segment of his book in read out. <br />
The descriptions Christy gives of creativity is very thought provoking, he describes it as a black cloud descending on him, this is very obvious throughout the film, as he is depicted very much as a tortured artists type of character, and not just due to his physical problems, but because of his trouble coming to terms with his creativity and the fact that so many people had high expectations of him. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig4lwPApIHevREAMMjooflsS5oj_i37S5iziR0kZ0-Gt0jGHmhjHrkTD5GqnEiTOh83sccw3lkmKj71s3elF7gcsLDoUm08SbT-3yQDEPQBRtC0nO9DnB-zXYpiPYSmCjqJxRu9hvhqKPI/s1600/MyLeftFoot73.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="109" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig4lwPApIHevREAMMjooflsS5oj_i37S5iziR0kZ0-Gt0jGHmhjHrkTD5GqnEiTOh83sccw3lkmKj71s3elF7gcsLDoUm08SbT-3yQDEPQBRtC0nO9DnB-zXYpiPYSmCjqJxRu9hvhqKPI/s200/MyLeftFoot73.jpeg" width="200" /></a>And last, but not least, a mention must go to Brenda Fricker for her Award winning performance as Christy's mother, perhaps the most important person in his life (as depicted in the film anyway). She is a rather simple character, defined by her unconditional love for her son. And yet she is a very developed character, more so than you might expect at first. She is the real backbone of the film and for a while is Christy's only link to the outside world, their relationship is very touching. <br />
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All in all, My Left Foot is a fantastic film that I am ashamed to have avoided until now. Daniel Day Lewis gives what may be his finest performance (it's hard to say though as he has done so much great work), Jim Sheridan proves to be a great director, the supporting cast is excellent and above all the subject matter is treated respectfully and sensitively without resorting to the melodrama that usually accompanies films dealing with disabilities. <br />
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Next up is the 2007 film Once!<br />
To read the previous entry <a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/08/irish-film-marathon-part-4.html">click here</a>.<br />
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All comments are of course very welcome and will be answered.Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-42714748491759142712011-08-03T02:11:00.000+01:002011-08-03T02:11:57.975+01:00Irish Film Marathon: Part 4<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><i>I should have had this review up ages ago, but due to some technical problems with my PC and because I've been busier than usual, I didn't get the chance to write it up. Also it will be a bit shorter than the others. </i><br />
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The film which garnered the poorest reviews out of all the films chosen for thsi marathon would be Alan Parker's adaptation of Frank McCourt's classic biographical novel, Angela's Ashes. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeYCqouAhNW80ePGLo-bFgseCrnRm9Pe-BcMo20oe9YBo6tuqDW-6CvwuQ1qzLFHILFaHyTg9NTL55Y-n6Is2e4vKToYpJBC-q2nqY-wULF_AlxtP00EIVzD9CVCyGuEIZNkKyeb2SpbP9/s1600/MPW-40925.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeYCqouAhNW80ePGLo-bFgseCrnRm9Pe-BcMo20oe9YBo6tuqDW-6CvwuQ1qzLFHILFaHyTg9NTL55Y-n6Is2e4vKToYpJBC-q2nqY-wULF_AlxtP00EIVzD9CVCyGuEIZNkKyeb2SpbP9/s320/MPW-40925.jpeg" width="215" /></a></div>I have vague memories of the book, which I read at a very young age, but I do remember enjoying it and some particular passages have stayed in my mind ever since.<br />
But unfortunately critics and audiences alike seem to have thought it the adaptation failed to capture the greatness of the book. It received poor reviews, and flopped.<br />
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But now after watching it, I can honestly say that I don't know why it received such lacklustre reviews and performed so poorly at the bow office. <br />
I thought is was a very well made, brilliantly performed and very compelling film. <br />
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This will be the first review of the marathon where I go against the general consensus in a significant way. But I just can't comprehend the poor reviews this film received. It may not be a masterpiece, but it certainly is very original and just a good film all around.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiucfLdX1ZLNmJmX6_l-jxAd7_w3uVYYA5J382j6Cj0nIvGcdTor8BLK5vXpxQpjzTDrTbLqZXpsvA1V3d3JWMehZsnQ_OXTNvm9Vck8nTvRipdQUffZawbUqT5LuJiDg2zIj-Lh-wjLaBj/s1600/angela-s-ashes-6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiucfLdX1ZLNmJmX6_l-jxAd7_w3uVYYA5J382j6Cj0nIvGcdTor8BLK5vXpxQpjzTDrTbLqZXpsvA1V3d3JWMehZsnQ_OXTNvm9Vck8nTvRipdQUffZawbUqT5LuJiDg2zIj-Lh-wjLaBj/s320/angela-s-ashes-6.jpg" width="320" /></a></div> Angela's Ashes is based on the book of the same name written by Irish author Frank McCourt. It is an entirely autobiographical piece and makes for fascinating reading. I thought that Alan Parker and the screenwriter Laura James did an excellent job of adapting the book. They captured the perfect atmosphere, a depressing, fatalistic atmosphere punctuated by short bursts of humour, and even managed to fit in an amusing and witty narration taken straight out of the book. <br />
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It tells of an Irish family, composed of the mother Angela, the father Malachy and the eldest son Frank. These are the three main characters, and although there are other siblings and relatives, they are nothing more than supporting characters and never have a storyline of their own. <br />
The film starts with the family in Brooklyn, New York in the 1930's. They had obviously immigrated there along with many other Irish to escape the famine, troubles and general poverty that affected Ireland at the time. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnYA_K76uGcaaV865CeaTnFwiW4fRB6nkrBkc1k0u2ghu_v7RfWvNoE_iP3QxTx5z9hjLvaoUoInOOf4capUwP5V9Vw86C7ZUo-TCRSLJSW9MuQrevUTh4dByyF4P1iP3oLLE2IrZg0R0M/s1600/article-0-0023C27F00000258-976_468x312.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnYA_K76uGcaaV865CeaTnFwiW4fRB6nkrBkc1k0u2ghu_v7RfWvNoE_iP3QxTx5z9hjLvaoUoInOOf4capUwP5V9Vw86C7ZUo-TCRSLJSW9MuQrevUTh4dByyF4P1iP3oLLE2IrZg0R0M/s320/article-0-0023C27F00000258-976_468x312.jpg" width="320" /></a>However only a short part of the film takes place in the US, as tragedy befalls the family and they are forced to leave for Ireland and their mothers home town of Limerick. <br />
Now Ireland was certainly very poor at the time, but Limerick was particularly bad and one of the worst place to live at the time, even today it remains a rather unsavoury town.<br />
Tragedy after tragedy befalls them, siblings die, the father is constantly out of work due to his Northern Irish origins and his drunkenness. <br />
Frank is portrayed by three different actors. One at the age of 5, one at the age of 10 or so and one around 15. So the film spans more or less 10 years in the family's life. <br />
All is based around Frank, everything that happens is in some way linked to him, thus each significant event such as the leaving of his father, his illness, his first love etc... Provides insight into how he developed as a person, but luckily the smaller things that make up life aren't missed out, providing a realistic and enjoyable air to the film. Such as the trips to the Cinema, the two brothers splashing each other in puddles, going to school etc... <br />
It's a real coming of age film, this may sound cliche but that describes the film perfectly, it is about his transition from a boy to a man , represented in the film by his first pint, but I prefer to see the tradition as occurring at the very end of the film when he arrives in New York alone, then he has become truly a man. <br />
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One of the most important influences in Frank's early life was that of the Catholic Church, and indeed the film provides more insight into the way of life in Ireland, and it particular how it was influenced and even shaped by the Church, than any other film I've seen. The influence of the Church had an all powerful and all encompassing hold on people's lives in Ireland at the time and rarely was this power employed in a way that benefited the people. I don't want to start a massive debate about the merits of Catholicism here, I am not an atheist although I am rather anti organised religion, but I would like to point out that the Catholic Church was directly responsible for the poverty of many families, often because the prohibition of contraceptives led to enormous families that were hard to maintain, but also because it encouraged hatred towards the Protestants, of course the Protestants have their part to play in the matter as well, but the fact remains that the Catholic Church did more harm that good to the inhabitants of Ireland at the time, infusing them with fear of God, with guilt and with a meek acceptance of their awful fates which is something I can not agree with and was obviously just a means to exert their power over the populace. Furthermore, where were they during the famine? All the people got was scraps of their food and disease ridden furniture in return for their devotion. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqiyp-lltM2x5-B3mwx8KH7rD_yNuIahfbfU-nxSuFDXc__15bXxEeIBnlssSADGbTSZ8Fxl3aPtvewun6aszZWvSy64vdVfhBGEjrha8X7OfHokJLNh8sAqFkECwQw90Gy3c1rtGSuwFZ/s1600/images2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqiyp-lltM2x5-B3mwx8KH7rD_yNuIahfbfU-nxSuFDXc__15bXxEeIBnlssSADGbTSZ8Fxl3aPtvewun6aszZWvSy64vdVfhBGEjrha8X7OfHokJLNh8sAqFkECwQw90Gy3c1rtGSuwFZ/s1600/images2.jpeg" /></a>Anyway, moving on from that subject, I did admire the films refusal to make the film to idealised, sure Ireland is a beautiful place, and the people are very friendly, but the fact remains that they were utterly miserable, famished and dirt poor. No attempts were made to make the film into a traditional coming of age film, when things went wrong tehy went horribly wrong, when the father left, he didn't come back, when his first love was ill, she died. Such was life at the time, harsh and brutal. <br />
Watching it from the point of view of someone considerably more well off, although far from being able to describe myself as wealthy, it was rather heartbreaking to watch this film. Perhaps the impact was augmented by the fact I now live not far off from where the film takes place, perhaps I'm just easy to impress when it comes to films, or perhaps I am just being to generous with this particular film. But I honestly think, that it is a very moving piece of cinema, that retains nonetheless some of the books humour. The accusations brought against it of romanticising the poor are ridiculous and quite offensive, they are portrayed in a most unflattering light, we are not exactly meant to feel sorry for them, except maybe for the children, because they themselves are flawed. <br />
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It seems to me that much of the criticism of the film revolves around the perceived failure of Alan Parker to transmit the humour and drama that made up McCourt's early life successfully onto screen. The visuals, performances and pretty much everything else was praised, but on the whole it seems to have been considered tedious. <br />
Of course I will agree that is it nowhere as near as great as the book, but it seems that yet again a film adaptation of a book is compared unfavourably to the book and dismissed. But looked at solely on it's own cinematic merits, it's a great film. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnDL9l9jVf2nt9O_qT6f8lysbwpPYB2qU0olciub9bIXAuaOG8L5hrQR6uEG2X09wgvu8X26YCgp67joWuNfgNbto5eOl68NIOQyh6oMFKqh9eI4NRy68cp_0MET2Hc1uj6PqK-EYJiwAV/s1600/frank-mccourt-415x461.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnDL9l9jVf2nt9O_qT6f8lysbwpPYB2qU0olciub9bIXAuaOG8L5hrQR6uEG2X09wgvu8X26YCgp67joWuNfgNbto5eOl68NIOQyh6oMFKqh9eI4NRy68cp_0MET2Hc1uj6PqK-EYJiwAV/s320/frank-mccourt-415x461.jpg" width="288" /></a></div>If their is one thing I'd criticise about this film it would be the pacing, it was rather jarring at first and hard to get into. It took some getting used to I will admit and never fully found it's flow. This is often a problem I have with Parker's work, and while I was never bored I did feel the film might of had a bit more of a dramatic impact at times if it had been paced better. Some scenes get repetitive, others are only passed upon lightly and deserved more. <br />
One of the most interesting things about the film, and the book for that matter, is not actually contained within. This would be he reception they received, especially by the inhabitants of Limerick who were quick to accuse McCourt of inaccuracy. I find this most interesting, as I don't doubt McCourt's recollection for a minute, yet the fact that the inhabitants stand by their opinion that Limerick was a great place to live puzzles me. Could this be due to the relative acceptance people had of their fates, and the fact that they seemed loath to complain, always showing a toughened façade to the world around and never admitting their weaknesses and the fact that their lives hung by threads. It's almost like they blocked out the horrible conditions around them by refusing to acknowledge them. Anyway, it certainly provides food for thought. <br />
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Alan Parker is a director who has many detractors, yet a solid enough fanbase. In a way I'm not surprised that this film received mixed reviews, as his films have been doing so for many years. But I think people should look past their opinions on Parker's work (which I'll admit isn't always great) and see the film for what it truly is, a very touching coming of age story that is intensely realistic and captures a whole generation of peoples lives.<br />
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The performances were great all around, but some stood out more than others such as the always terrific and horribly underrated Robert Carlyle, who for some reason is playing an Irishman even though he's a Scot. He is terrific and immensely likeable, despite his flaws I couldn't help but feel sorry for him at first, a feeling that diminished over time due to his actions. He is perhaps the most complex character of the film and Carlyle gives an unforgettable performance. <br />
Emily Watson, yet another underrated performer, plays Angela, the mother of the family. She does so admirably and just confirms my high opinion of her. She is a rather complex character as well, and although it is easy to feel sorry for her, one cannot but help be appalled by her apathy towards her situation at times. <br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJaFJ4X6iSoGpzE0PsPHTD-Lig4I-xaa2mWV-PajmWv6xFNclVtLJyLVpiqBoOsBALWGJpp0fsHWMD8N-PIajCB9WSrPxfvY2p57oeAHdqfYAEY9JgjzBh2f27p0Z-csg4G6H7BiRuNkuH/s1600/MV5BMTgzNDk0NTc3N15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwNzkyOTU3._V1._SX475_SY254_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="106" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJaFJ4X6iSoGpzE0PsPHTD-Lig4I-xaa2mWV-PajmWv6xFNclVtLJyLVpiqBoOsBALWGJpp0fsHWMD8N-PIajCB9WSrPxfvY2p57oeAHdqfYAEY9JgjzBh2f27p0Z-csg4G6H7BiRuNkuH/s200/MV5BMTgzNDk0NTc3N15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTYwNzkyOTU3._V1._SX475_SY254_.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Parker with the 3 actors who play Frank</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Frank McCourt is played by three actors, Joe Breen plays the youngest incarnation, Ciaran Owens the middle one, and Michael Legge the elder. Of all of these I think Joe Breen's performance was the most striking, although Michael Legge's is the best.<br />
The rest of the cast are excellent, with some familiar faces for those who have some experience with English or Irish Cinema of the time. <br />
<br />
The score by John Williams is brilliant, and I'm sure no less was expected from such a distinguished composer. This is one of his least known scores, but I found it to be excellent nonetheless, and perfectly suited to the tone of the film. <br />
<br />
All in all, Angela's Ashes is a beautifully shot, very well acted film that provides a considerable amount of insight into the way of the life amongst the poorest of the poor in Ireland at the time and also acts as a great coming of age story. It certainly has it flaws, and obviously will not please everyone, but I was surprised to find that it was a great film, as I had pretty low expectations. <br />
I'd highly recommend it, but don't set your hopes too high, as you run the risk of being as disappointed as the many film critics that reacted badly to this film. <br />
<br />
<i>Next up is My Left Foot, by Jim Sheridan. </i><br />
<i>To read the previous entry, <a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/07/irish-film-marathon-part-3.html">click here</a>!</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
<i>All comments are of course welcome and will be answered. </i><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-70154451699780382902011-07-31T23:31:00.000+01:002011-07-31T23:31:40.768+01:00End Of The Week Post<b> A slight improvement on the last week's viewing, but still not as many films as I would have liked:</b><br />
<br />
<b>The Great Silence</b> 1968 directed by Sergio Curbucci<br />
7/10<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPuiNDXe7kDktvJnPoihFrZh9ZwvMP-GFX2GGpBbcOzEO54ibFH9Hggljsfq4YjS359srigkfjftztRPew7dTKWpaisFPEZS4-KII7LH-AWfUzMR7lzP62LWgzCACRbBJYysBqW0kvU3Vt/s1600/420955.1020.A.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPuiNDXe7kDktvJnPoihFrZh9ZwvMP-GFX2GGpBbcOzEO54ibFH9Hggljsfq4YjS359srigkfjftztRPew7dTKWpaisFPEZS4-KII7LH-AWfUzMR7lzP62LWgzCACRbBJYysBqW0kvU3Vt/s200/420955.1020.A.jpg" width="141" /></a></div>I don't believe I've ever seen a film try so persistently to subvert and deconstruct a genre than The Great Silence does.<br />
It takes so many familiar elements of the genre and spins them completely on themselves, we have the very setting itself which is typically dry, dusty and hot transformed into a snowy wasteland, the bandits are portrayed as sympathetic and the bounty hunters as villainous, the classic "six shooter" of the hero is traded out for a automatic Mauser and the end is entirely unexpected and a complete reversal of what you may have come to expect from a Western. <br />
It's a poorly made film, with awful dubbing, but it is saved by the sheer originality of it all, and of course by Kinski's and Trintignant's performances, as the rest of the cast are terrible. It's a fun film all around, not a masterpiece but as far as non-Leone Spaghetti Westerns go, this one was good. <br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<b>The Rolling Stones' Rock and Roll Circus. - </b>shot in 1968 released in 1996 directed by Michael Lindsay Hogg<br />
<b>N/A</b><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO7QvQbJ6fNZNeXrA2hO9eujxRY8WJLUVU0omhMjTT-RYHvKtGQLlJe963W7mYoMTFCQbKPpsRAtEXXSsbiVtTHMSuT_5h-wIv4tHTb5cuct6w6EEIMkQjL5pRiTGCPJLKExkdqD73kOui/s1600/rock-and-roll-circus-dvd-new.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO7QvQbJ6fNZNeXrA2hO9eujxRY8WJLUVU0omhMjTT-RYHvKtGQLlJe963W7mYoMTFCQbKPpsRAtEXXSsbiVtTHMSuT_5h-wIv4tHTb5cuct6w6EEIMkQjL5pRiTGCPJLKExkdqD73kOui/s200/rock-and-roll-circus-dvd-new.jpg" width="145" /></a>I do enjoy watching these music films every now and then, they are a kind of guilty pleasure for m<b>e.</b><br />
This one is one of the best you can find, mainly because it's got some of the best live footage of the Rolling Stones, as well as Jethro Tull (with Tony Iommi on guitar), The Who (who are amazing) and little band by the name of The Dirty Macs (composed of John Lennon, Keith Richards, Eric Clapton and Mitch Mitchell, yes, it's amazing)<br />
I can't really rate this as a film, but it's great entertainment and a must see for all fans of the Rolling Stones. <b><br />
</b><br />
<b> 13 Assassins</b> - 2011 directed by Takeshi Miike<br />
9/10<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcZ93s18X1i4t6tryQKg0ueXyV7v19BM9RisJWAGKdM2m1G6wnSDskZkiqfnsaZbq_Dq9zMQbe4CJgqtN_7YCdX1YY9CJl9oG-pDXR7eOa5lWNmaLcDvfepfc3_UlzgyigFg5HixW-SoMU/s1600/13-Assassins-Poster.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcZ93s18X1i4t6tryQKg0ueXyV7v19BM9RisJWAGKdM2m1G6wnSDskZkiqfnsaZbq_Dq9zMQbe4CJgqtN_7YCdX1YY9CJl9oG-pDXR7eOa5lWNmaLcDvfepfc3_UlzgyigFg5HixW-SoMU/s200/13-Assassins-Poster.png" width="141" /></a>My second experience my Miike (after Sukiyaki Western Django) and I have to admit that I like his work, I'll still avoid his controversial stuff, but I like his more mainstream work.<br />
13 Assassins is a brilliant film, with action scenes that put most modern action films to shame, good performances, some humour which was most welcome and one of the most despicable villains I've seen on film for quite a while. <br />
I'd recommend it to those who aren't to squeamish, and to those who aren't put off by a rather slow first half.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b> When The Last Sword Is Drawn - </b>2003<b> </b><br />
10/10<b></b><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-tp6VrAx4ojl7NqHplp87IRbRJZg1PlS9o6YsNJj5Vo_1O37o25sQKYxsrHTaZurstCwI_fvaezI3kA8tCRowsNi2FJt8WTmDluaIqPqc69LOxWOci23iTvDO_g9HCQb4i4UWPOdM2InO/s1600/images.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-tp6VrAx4ojl7NqHplp87IRbRJZg1PlS9o6YsNJj5Vo_1O37o25sQKYxsrHTaZurstCwI_fvaezI3kA8tCRowsNi2FJt8WTmDluaIqPqc69LOxWOci23iTvDO_g9HCQb4i4UWPOdM2InO/s200/images.jpeg" width="137" /></a>This was by far one of the finest films I'd seen for quite some time. It is simply fantastic in every way, with no exceptions.<b> </b>It tells a tragic story in a complex but easy to follow way with many surprises along the way, some fantastic action sequences, beautiful scenery, an extensive amount of character each with their own backstory which is nicely developed and some very moving scenes. <b></b>Perhaps it did slow down quite a bit towards the end, and perhaps a few scenes were overly melodramatic, but it's an instant favourite of mine and one I would highly recommend.<br />
<br />
<br />
<i>A few thoughts:</i><br />
<br />
I think my Irish film marathon has been going rather well so far. Next up is Angela's Ashes.<br />
And I've decided that I'm going to launch a blogathon based on the same idea as soon as this little marathon is over, which should be by Friday. <br />
It will be about Irish cinema solely, even though I did consider Nathanael Hood's suggestion of focusing on Scottish and Welsh films as well as Irish, I eventually decided against that as they are technically part of the UK whereas Ireland is not, so it wouldn't feel right grouping it together with the aforementioned countries. <br />
Anyway, I'll have a more comprehensive plan drawn up towards the end of the week, so keep an eye out for it. And I hope you'll be interested in participating at least.<br />
<br />
As for my return to normal reviews, well that will take a while if I go ahead with the blogathon. But I've got quite a few reviews ready to post, including a couple of music reviews for a change.<br />
<br />
<i>Time for some links:</i><br />
<br />
The excellent blog Mondo 70 has posted a most interesting review of a film named <a href="http://mondo70.blogspot.com/2011/07/sun-solntse-2005.html%20">Sun</a>. <br />
<br />
Front Room Cinema has posted <a href="http://www.frontroomcinema.com/midweek-mumbling-movie-blogger-part-1/">some interesting blogging tips</a> that a lot of bloggers need to read. <br />
<br />
<br />
Stevee has posted <a href="http://filmjunkie25.blogspot.com/2011/07/how-do-you-know-that-youve-found.html">a rather personal piece </a>that is a very interesting read. <br />
<br />
<br />
Chelsea has returned to blogging and posts her thoughts on <a href="http://passion-for-film.blogspot.com/2011/07/seen-this-week.html">a collection of films</a> she saw recently. <br />
<br />
Limette writes about her <a href="http://limereviews.blogspot.com/2011/07/song-of-month-summer-2011.html%20">song of the month</a> and why she chose it. <br />
<br />
Groggy reviews <a href="http://nothingiswrittenfilm.blogspot.com/2011/07/three-kings.html">Three Kings</a>, a film I've been meaning to see for quite a while but have yet to get to.<br />
<br />
CS has posted an interesting piece on <a href="http://bigthoughtsfromasmallmind.blogspot.com/2011/07/blow-out-candles-arnold-schwarzenegger_30.html">Arnold Swharzenneger's career</a> in celebration of his birthday.<br />
<br />
A great blog I came across recently is <a href="http://cliched-monologues.blogspot.com/">Cinemascope</a>, which review the Korean film<a href="http://cliched-monologues.blogspot.com/2011/07/i-saw-devil-2010.html"> I Saw The Devil</a>.<br />
Another interesting blog I came across is <a href="http://www.italianfilmreview.com/">Italian Film Reviews</a>, which I'd recommend taking a look at.<br />
<br />
Finnally, I'd like to link to a rather new blogger who is nonetheless very dedicated and passionate about film. I'd suggest following his blog @<a href="http://filmmasterjournal.blogspot.com/%20">Film Master Journal</a><br />
<br />
That's all for this week, I hope you'll continue following my marathon and perhaps be interested in the upcoming blogathon. <br />
<b><br />
</b>Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-60559595815100872052011-07-30T21:38:00.000+01:002011-07-30T21:38:43.893+01:00Irish Film Marathon: Part 3In my previous review, I compared Michael Collins to The Wind That Shakes The Barley and it didn't come out very favourably, but the truth is it is far from being a bad film. In fact it's a very good one that is extremely close to being great.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnX4WmBvYsf16ealq95xBZ4qG2fNHA1TmpQmWzkScPB9h8WFU5HZcHJfghQWv9dnmqrV6ChJ1QCSSHztup2wv-s5GSvX9NJJHleFxI1LVu7ZM9xukIuC8h1PB_nTQknAweW4DlsJi1cSjr/s1600/220px-Michael_collins_dvd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnX4WmBvYsf16ealq95xBZ4qG2fNHA1TmpQmWzkScPB9h8WFU5HZcHJfghQWv9dnmqrV6ChJ1QCSSHztup2wv-s5GSvX9NJJHleFxI1LVu7ZM9xukIuC8h1PB_nTQknAweW4DlsJi1cSjr/s320/220px-Michael_collins_dvd.jpg" width="214" /></a></div><br />
Michael Collins is directed by Neil Jordan, which may come as some surprise to those used to seeing his name on films such as The Crying Game and others, but Jordan clearly shows his versatility here as he directs a big Hollywood blockbuster with some of the biggest stars of the time.<br />
It was released in 1996 to largely positive reviews and became the highest grossing film in Ireland, to be beaten only by Titanic sever years later.<br />
However it failed to gain the success it aimed for, as it grossed only 16 million worldwide on a budget of 28 million and positive but not exceptional reviews (77% on <a href="http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/michael_collins/">RT</a>.)<br />
<a name='more'></a>Is this because the subject was not of interest to international audiences? I suppose Michael Collins is not particularly well known outside of Ireland despite his massive fame here. But I would have thought the big names involved would have been enough to at least guarantee a small profit. But apparently that was not the case.<br />
However I do consider a rather overlooked film that deserves more appreciation for it's many positive aspects. It certainly is better than a lot of the similar historical/biographical films being made around the same time such as Braveheart and to a lesser extent, Gladiator. <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Michael Collins is a well made but relatively shallow film. It relies more on it's elaborate set designs, fantastic scenery and many stars rather than on a strong story.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhfQlGGX-HMkSfoIPNd3jTLPMPb08K4bBVRuilci2zHHdZduokrx5dJGoQO-p1ihfiA1Fn9CTBNgnF_awoVe2EyMNB_YTTQlB9HFIP-t5XI-56EXEAxsiSX5T4QZ22wNXXEKLOzjUlCIro/s1600/snapshot20110730212140.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="110" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhfQlGGX-HMkSfoIPNd3jTLPMPb08K4bBVRuilci2zHHdZduokrx5dJGoQO-p1ihfiA1Fn9CTBNgnF_awoVe2EyMNB_YTTQlB9HFIP-t5XI-56EXEAxsiSX5T4QZ22wNXXEKLOzjUlCIro/s200/snapshot20110730212140.jpg" width="200" /></a>This however is not evident while watching the film, as it is filled with gripping and exciting scenes and moves along at a great pace despite it's length of well over 2 hours. It is well shot and contains many scenes that are quite breathtaking in their scale and execution.<br />
But if only it had been done with more care and thought for the subject matter instead of revolving into a film that practically glorifies Michael Collins and his men.<br />
<br />
Calling this film a biopic would be misleading, it does not offer a comprehensive study of Michael Collins' life and personalty, but rather uses him as a way to explore the times and the conflict. The way this was handled was slightly disappointing in my opinion, as they continuously had to connect the events with Michael Collins' experiences of them, thus taking a great many liberties with the historical facts. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_cN1qbBNi2-tGE_QyrgTVnNU8U9Hu4dWIfK3ndGr9y4bsEWfKhxwMUHKmUN-qZiZoDqR4UhOU6eohgcFlPp96iGbrL5wS_QmKNxjtViNLFUBqfO-LnGV1rkOBpDmcu9W8wPEDQbTqtab2/s1600/snapshot20110730212344.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="176" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_cN1qbBNi2-tGE_QyrgTVnNU8U9Hu4dWIfK3ndGr9y4bsEWfKhxwMUHKmUN-qZiZoDqR4UhOU6eohgcFlPp96iGbrL5wS_QmKNxjtViNLFUBqfO-LnGV1rkOBpDmcu9W8wPEDQbTqtab2/s320/snapshot20110730212344.jpg" width="320" /></a>This leads to some of the films worst scenes, such as the scene of Michael Collins and Kitty kissing and such intercut with various murders and attacks carried out by Collins' men or the scene in which Michael Collins is ambushed intercut with scenes of Kitty getting ready for their marriage.But interestingly it also makes for some of the films best scenes, as it greatly increases the drama and overall impact of the scenes in a way that wasn't really necessary in my opinion but is still rather impressive to watch.<br />
The reason I don't find this addition of drama and focus on action and thrills very useful is because I find the conflict to have been dramatic enough as it is, but obviously it wasn't up to the standards of the studios, and thus we get a pointless romantic subplot, a excess of action scenes, many highly dramatised scenes and an oversimplification of the events and characters.<br />
The film essentially sacrifices historical accuracy for entertainment, but you may be tempted to think this is a good thing, that if you wanted historical accuracy you'd watch a documentary, but in my opinion I would rather have watched a film that had spent less on spectacular explosions and such and had instead developed and expounded on some of the various themes and ideas in the film that weren't executed interestingly. Room for this could have been made by abandoning the romantic sub plot, which was included entirely for dramatic purposes as it has little effect on the story, and by extension the relationship between Michael Collins and his right hand man, they are both in love with the same woman, and when the Civil War comes about the right hand man chooses to side with Collins' enemies rather than his former friend, and it is obvious this is more than partly because of his ill fated romance. If the sub plot had been done away with, the desertion of his former ally would have been far more dramatic and would have portrayed just how split Ireland and it's inhabitant's were by the Civil War, instead it seems more like an act of revenge than anything else, even if that may not be how the director intended it. <br />
<br />
<br />
Alan Rickman's De Valera (President of Ireland) is portrayed as a villain, this is presumably why Rickman was chosen for the part, as after all he isn't well known for his sympathetic characters is he?<br />
This portrayal was of course rather inaccurate and highly dramatised in order to create a hero (Michael Collins) villain (De Valera) conflict. I found this a bit to predictable and overly simplified, possibly to appeal to wider audiences. <br />
<br />
Some of the accusations laid against The Wind That Shakes The Barley were that it romanticised it's characters, and made of these Irish fighters romantic heroes. This is an accusation that should be directed at Michael Collins.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwbwlnU6w3Vh2zoLuOC4ZnqB_lyl15wWcoXp_dF0Urkss_2usSf2NfT0HMxFfjNgB3N_6ZyyGbCQbLJWlWJXeTHLhbNwD34at7xJ-yorqVUFk5tOqckmgv-L-nUm2PugE849Ezc9h2dinx/s1600/snapshot20110730212213.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="110" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwbwlnU6w3Vh2zoLuOC4ZnqB_lyl15wWcoXp_dF0Urkss_2usSf2NfT0HMxFfjNgB3N_6ZyyGbCQbLJWlWJXeTHLhbNwD34at7xJ-yorqVUFk5tOqckmgv-L-nUm2PugE849Ezc9h2dinx/s200/snapshot20110730212213.jpg" width="200" /></a>It creates a larger than life character with Michael Collins and portrays him and his men in the most sympathetic light possible. The fact remains that when the English were repelled, Michael Collins and his men effectively replaced them in brutality and conducted a brutal clamp down against those who continued the fight, of course I do not support those who continued fighting at all, but I couldn't help but feel that portraying Michael Collins and his men as heroes was very heavy handed as they carried out their fair share of atrocities. <br />
The film presents a version of Irish history that has been modified and tweaked to suit the demands of international audiences, making it to "black and white", to romantic and far to action filled.<br />
I've mentioned that the romantic sub plot detracts from the films impact, well the same is true for the action scenes, which are fast paced, thrilling and very well done, but nonetheless make the film at times much to like an action film rather than a film attempting to shed insight upon a very complex conflict or even a film attempting to tell of a man's life. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd_ZXMdhy9qKIpH9VWw_NanfpNtlgpvCvuhSiP3aebRQDNuozopVqXYajOeusUpQ8eBmZOSCe5SE8S_WNlwzg9duTBgyeaGOlHnDmg7B2_ig-Y91hm6lQvgi5rS5IBbSlJuEMOA6m53gYa/s1600/snapshot20110730212327.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="176" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd_ZXMdhy9qKIpH9VWw_NanfpNtlgpvCvuhSiP3aebRQDNuozopVqXYajOeusUpQ8eBmZOSCe5SE8S_WNlwzg9duTBgyeaGOlHnDmg7B2_ig-Y91hm6lQvgi5rS5IBbSlJuEMOA6m53gYa/s320/snapshot20110730212327.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>But as I said before, the film fails as a biopic, as it provides absolutely no insight as to why Michael Collins is in this situation in the first place, what made him such a fervent fighter for his country and such a determined leader of the revolution. Sure we are shown that he was courageous, charming and humble, but I believe they failed to give a completely rounded portrayal of the man. This is an exceptionally hard thing for a film to portray, but perhaps it should have concentrated more on this nevertheless. <br />
<br />
But despite all my various complaints about the film handling of the subject, it nonetheless succeeds in capturing the era beautifully, capturing the general atmosphere of the times and crafting a film that is both impressive from a technical point of view, and that tells a great story. For it may be inaccurate but it is still very well told, and paced in a way that makes it fly by in a thrilling manner. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghpQ1Dk2ovSymm7o9Pl-O_xs_kUYon-rgSe8EO7N3kPkhSltLVGFAIQwe6a-hdZEdhMywjSZnExWLs7Dr-i878FgReRfQm5TcrR_84pabtoTHQxBW5LPitZqgnHQ1R4ef5XWaGwBEpv2N3/s1600/snapshot20110730212226.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="110" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghpQ1Dk2ovSymm7o9Pl-O_xs_kUYon-rgSe8EO7N3kPkhSltLVGFAIQwe6a-hdZEdhMywjSZnExWLs7Dr-i878FgReRfQm5TcrR_84pabtoTHQxBW5LPitZqgnHQ1R4ef5XWaGwBEpv2N3/s200/snapshot20110730212226.jpg" width="200" /></a>Neil Jordan proves yet again to be a most talented director and has definitely earned his place as one of Ireland foremost directors. He puts his large budget to full use and is never afraid to capture his recreations of the times in as impressive a manner as possible. <br />
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One of the films greats strengths is it's cast, an impressive ensemble containing both Irish and English talents, such as Liam Neeson in the titular role and Aidan Quinn as his right hand man, Harry. Alan Rickman as De Valera and many more familiar names such as the always excellent and always underrated Stephan Rea, the great Brendan Gleeson and even Jonathan Rys Meyers in a small but crucial role, many more familiar faces pop up throughout the film and I wouldn't want to reveal all of them.<br />
Julia Roberts is the only American member of the cast I believe, and was obviously included to add some star power, this becomes expectationally obvious when one remembers that at the time she was having a high profile relationship with Liam Neeson. As for her performance, not particularly bad but rather out of place and distracting, she just didn't really belong in the film. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9XtxhjUwzWjAKipAilU51gkpdYbGS52Xx0icaVqkf22Cvu7sJYTDAKcds5kjcS2LRB0_ntoG5fteFzYAL6EuZs8_rmGx1PgybFU93XwoNwAFhiQlO0DCBGNoML6PR9BszNtXqztu4H56Y/s1600/snapshot20110730212306.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="110" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9XtxhjUwzWjAKipAilU51gkpdYbGS52Xx0icaVqkf22Cvu7sJYTDAKcds5kjcS2LRB0_ntoG5fteFzYAL6EuZs8_rmGx1PgybFU93XwoNwAFhiQlO0DCBGNoML6PR9BszNtXqztu4H56Y/s200/snapshot20110730212306.jpg" width="200" /></a>The performances are what makes this film worth watching, of course it has many other fine elements, but its exceptionally talented cast are the main attraction. Liam Neeson was at the peak of his career when this was made, having made Schindler's List a few years previously, for his performance as Michael Collins he received far fewer honours than for his performance as Oscar Schindler, but think it's easily the second best work of his career. Sadly his career took a downward turn from which he has yet to recover, these days he's an excellent actor stuck in mediocre films. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-oYOyUBqwoNJeLb7snvz68zSBBQe2Uf8r6dYBZmt8Uau1uAjzNoWIJbgvWssBRdpUKr8prqq5TRNg2Mqdz-kBhk6Oh5JD7naLXFmGwBQWWDlo5OKxrA2M3K8L8PyzEMfUwaM9RhyMayoF/s1600/snapshot20110730212415.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="176" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-oYOyUBqwoNJeLb7snvz68zSBBQe2Uf8r6dYBZmt8Uau1uAjzNoWIJbgvWssBRdpUKr8prqq5TRNg2Mqdz-kBhk6Oh5JD7naLXFmGwBQWWDlo5OKxrA2M3K8L8PyzEMfUwaM9RhyMayoF/s320/snapshot20110730212415.jpg" width="320" /></a>As with most biopics, an awful lot hinges revolves around whether or not the main actor can pull off the performance, this is what makes or breaks a biopic. <br />
Fortunately, Liam Neeson is extremely charismatic, very tall and imposing (Michael Collins was nicknamed the Big Fellow), and most importantly Irish. he gets the role perfectly right and deserved more recognition for the performance than he actually got. <br />
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All in all, Jordan's obvious talent and experience, combined with a fantastic cast, a highly interesting subject and some well written dialogue makes for a very enjoyable viewing experience but lacks the power and brutal honesty of The Wind That Shakes The Barley. <br />
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Read the previous review <a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/07/irish-film-marathon-part-2.html">here</a> if you missed it.<br />
Nest up is Angela's Ashes, the lowest reviewed film of the marathon.Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7825437371342054179.post-27572616549744434562011-07-28T23:39:00.001+01:002011-07-29T00:28:52.901+01:00Irish Film Marathon Part 2The Wind That Shakes The Barley is a 2006 film directed by English director Ken Loach. <br />
It is the most successful independently financed film made in Ireland, with a budget of around 6 million. It was a resounding success and a triumph for independent filmmaking. It won the prestigious Pal D'Or by a unanimous vote. I personally think it was a most deserving winner as it is certainly one of the finest films of the decade.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2hpKMUOaHcVWuFL0Jisk4t_eYYz3ZHB1JhBSSd9ieicVR8jw5Ked4HHFugY4Se7_6msNUIr7h_ySe4eRYCMmn8eATW5SzE9au8mJlIiGNOLNkAGkehnjMzTplVgFSdvTXlB9uxb5rwfKF/s1600/220px-The_Wind_That_Shakes_the_Barley_poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2hpKMUOaHcVWuFL0Jisk4t_eYYz3ZHB1JhBSSd9ieicVR8jw5Ked4HHFugY4Se7_6msNUIr7h_ySe4eRYCMmn8eATW5SzE9au8mJlIiGNOLNkAGkehnjMzTplVgFSdvTXlB9uxb5rwfKF/s1600/220px-The_Wind_That_Shakes_the_Barley_poster.jpg" /></a></div><br />
The Wind That Shakes The Barley is widely held to be a masterpiece of independent Cinema and of Irish Cinema in particular. <br />
It shares many themes and similarities with an earlier Irish films, Michael Collins, a big budget biopic of one of the most important men of the times.<br />
However in my opinion this film is superior, despite the obvious differences in budget size. But more on that later.<br />
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<a name='more'></a> The Wind That Shakes The Barley tells of the Irish War Of Independence and the subsequent Civil War. To simplifying things, the Irish first rose up against the English who had ruled Ireland ruthlessly for centuries, the war was a particularly terrible one, which acts of brutality on both sides. When the English were sufficiently weakened they opened negotiations with the IRA (Irish Republican Army) and offered to withdraw all of their troops and form their own government, on the condition that they swore allegiance to the Queen and that the North remained in under their rule.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ2oYnovgu_wl25QlzgOffyF24Ln-RCkC25b3d7-batqHU_KMWnYAR4OUN8acVG9uc6fRPEQI3VUbkgLja6DM_SIz5s57XVzA8IPWmvzrh-1ANhPFYPAwgdI1r6kzlxF3tWuRSKPNHR42L/s1600/snapshot20110728230214.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="110" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ2oYnovgu_wl25QlzgOffyF24Ln-RCkC25b3d7-batqHU_KMWnYAR4OUN8acVG9uc6fRPEQI3VUbkgLja6DM_SIz5s57XVzA8IPWmvzrh-1ANhPFYPAwgdI1r6kzlxF3tWuRSKPNHR42L/s200/snapshot20110728230214.jpg" width="200" /></a>Then comes a division in the ranks of the IRA, some, weary of war, decide that this treaty is the best they'll get and resign themselves to their fate, but others find that victory, meaning absolute freedom from English rule is within their reach. Thus a Civil War begins, with the New Irish Army in conflict with the remnants of the IRA. <br />
Damien and Teddy are two brothers in County Cork who this conflict affects in a direct way, the story is told from Damien's point of view, Damien is one of those who resists the treaty and continues the armed struggle, but his brother takes the other side. <br />
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Of course this brother vs brother plot device makes for a good example of the effect the conflict had on the Irish people, I mean brother fighting brother is the epitome of divisiveness. So as much as this theme is interesting from a narrative point of view, as it symbolises the divided Ireland, it isn't exactly believable from a human and realistic point of view, especially towards the end. It is extremely hard to believe that such things could happen, of course I'm not saying it's impossible but it just felt a bit extreme. However it certainly gets ken Loach's message through in a way you won't soon forget, but I couldn't help but think it was a bit heavy handed. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4GmJFa8KLozG2OymqLH_In7Cz4zb0rrdYe1Huh5pNUC826aZPMJV1xsdtjKTePPn19bdVAQeU4ZfdfUu9RQoBWCs_X-KDpntnuwPwYlqpevEbEc3YC5A5UEYFkba6ayg8879fCc28X-dR/s1600/snapshot20110728230449.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="177" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4GmJFa8KLozG2OymqLH_In7Cz4zb0rrdYe1Huh5pNUC826aZPMJV1xsdtjKTePPn19bdVAQeU4ZfdfUu9RQoBWCs_X-KDpntnuwPwYlqpevEbEc3YC5A5UEYFkba6ayg8879fCc28X-dR/s320/snapshot20110728230449.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>As for the rest of the film, Ken Loach shows much sensitivity in handling the subject whcih is fortunate as the subject matter is so sensitive to both the English and the Irish that to handle it heavy handedly would have been disastrous, furthermore one must keep in mind that these events didn't take place such a long time ago relatively speaking, it was less than 90 years ago and I'm sure there are many people alive now whose parents lived through these times or maybe even a few who lived through them themselves.<br />
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Loach particularly excels at bringing the times to life on the screen and transporting the viewer to them easily. <br />
The costumes, weapons, vehicles, landscape, everything is flawlessly portrayed and instantly engaging. The minimal budget was put to exceptionally good use, as this film has better production values than many films I've seen with ten times as much money behind them. It all depends on the skill of the director and how he puts the money to use. <br />
Given that it looks like most of the budget went into the production design, I assume the actors were paid a relatively small amount. But this does not mean that the performances are poor, in fact it is excellent as is often the case with these independently produced films with smaller salaries for the actors, as this means the actors would have accepted because they were genuinely interested or passionate about the subject matter and thus give far better performances than those who are in a film solely for the salary. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpt6hgk3GZzGfIC_SstyjegwON5EgHnkUvFDeO6YrZ5puVv3itpCgzFFnl6Keb-pgGFkpb_RBrAWdIZ3oyP7MJ8sgGJuQifBV5Rv_Np_DPmIsbI-ai2l0ASRYyEe6pmnq16ByTYJ_Ssd4b/s1600/snapshot20110728230237.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="110" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpt6hgk3GZzGfIC_SstyjegwON5EgHnkUvFDeO6YrZ5puVv3itpCgzFFnl6Keb-pgGFkpb_RBrAWdIZ3oyP7MJ8sgGJuQifBV5Rv_Np_DPmIsbI-ai2l0ASRYyEe6pmnq16ByTYJ_Ssd4b/s200/snapshot20110728230237.jpg" width="200" /></a>Cillain Murphy is in the lead role and excels, he has been popping up in a few big productions these over the last few years but from this small roles alone I never would have thought he was such a talented actor. He's a young actor with a solid fan base, especially amongst online bloggers I've noticed, and with interesting career choices. The rest of the cast is made up of little known actors who are all talented. One mention must go to Liam Cunningham though, as he is one of Ireland's most overlooked yet talented actors, probably because he is mainly a supporting actor yet in my opinion he never fails to deliver a solid performance no matter the overall quality of the film. He was particularly memorable in Harry Brown I thought.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFABYncN5l5GZSPKC_elZE0kFKYBxOwn5S3yNjKmFiL9i1rCRCLq7DE8z6GF7i-25XitjGh9I7osOY_F3IC0O3ELgPWC8VCZZQgd4i1RWNSHvo4W0k3rYT0z0VBHzVTERDUDM_-_YqHj6c/s1600/snapshot20110728230505.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="177" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFABYncN5l5GZSPKC_elZE0kFKYBxOwn5S3yNjKmFiL9i1rCRCLq7DE8z6GF7i-25XitjGh9I7osOY_F3IC0O3ELgPWC8VCZZQgd4i1RWNSHvo4W0k3rYT0z0VBHzVTERDUDM_-_YqHj6c/s320/snapshot20110728230505.jpg" width="320" /></a>Everything about the film is as quintessentially Irish as The Commitments was but this is showing another side to Ireland, in fact it's showing how modern Ireland was born, and it was a troubled birth indeed from which the country has yet to recover. Ken Loach and his crew capture the Irish landscapes sheer beauty like few others have before on film, they do not concentrate on the more spectacular shots, instead going for a more focused look at what makes the countryside so beautiful, and they succeed with beautiful shots of mist over fields, stone walls and small country lanes, all relatively simple scenery but the kind you'd only see here in Ireland.(I have interspersed screenshots depicting this throughout the review)<br />
But he doesn't just apply this focused look to the scenery, in fact the whole story is built up around that idea. So parallels can easily be drawn in between the focused cinematography and the story that centres around only a few people caught in the midst of a much larger conflict. <br />
Ken Loach describes as being about "civil war in microcosm", a very interesting idea and reminiscent of his earlier film Land And Freedom, which focuses on the Spanish Civil War and while it isn't as good as The Wind That Shakes The Barley, I still think it's a very good film that is far to often overlooked.<br />
Land And Freedom is strikingly similar to this film but I feel is an inferior work mainly due to the overall production values being much poorer and some problems with the narrative. I'd still recommend it though.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjecQwmXxzMGaltRON0FOdVHrEEsP4Civ4JVnIlj1Lfdx6SHTptkzklUJP2nwv5FkPHmE9RH27xvBVi19jCeh7UQO8Nv13db5TDLYl0rM6jRsipoNO4LMiB4nmRPG-0FMbLbBXTUNaTTl-e/s1600/snapshot20110728230304.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="110" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjecQwmXxzMGaltRON0FOdVHrEEsP4Civ4JVnIlj1Lfdx6SHTptkzklUJP2nwv5FkPHmE9RH27xvBVi19jCeh7UQO8Nv13db5TDLYl0rM6jRsipoNO4LMiB4nmRPG-0FMbLbBXTUNaTTl-e/s200/snapshot20110728230304.jpg" width="200" /></a>This idea of showing the conflict in a microcosm is not a particularly new one, it has been put to use many times before but I feel that here it is put to it's best possible use, as by ignoring the larger scale of things, Loach really sheds some light upon what he conflict meant for the ordinary people, how they responded to the various events and how they viewed the treaty. In this way it is far superior to Michael Collins, a film which deals on the opposite side of the spectrum and focuses solely on the big names of the conflict, Collins, De Valera etc...<br />
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I think the main criticism that can be brought against this film is the manner in which it approaches the subject. Ken Loach is extremely politically minded and this has been a large part of his films for many years now.<br />
Some have argued that the films portrayal of the British and the Irish is too Black and White, that is to say the British are portrayed as oppressive villains and the Irish as romantic heroes, but this is some of the most easily destructed arguments I've ever seen against a film. For one thing the British are not shown as universally evil villains but rather as soldiers doing their duty to their country. Loach even goes to great pains to get this across in one particular scene.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmlzLLHSvFRuR8yalrI9NGzoRs-MHss52huOeQmshcbNK13Oz8V0jN9QttUhGspt4Zn61o8XlV7BxS4c8cqFUdKk9pnopEkZxsk2maq6PC9vhQVp726XrJvfzCa0PKeMpLaBdhb5e4eMYt/s1600/snapshot20110728230641.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="110" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmlzLLHSvFRuR8yalrI9NGzoRs-MHss52huOeQmshcbNK13Oz8V0jN9QttUhGspt4Zn61o8XlV7BxS4c8cqFUdKk9pnopEkZxsk2maq6PC9vhQVp726XrJvfzCa0PKeMpLaBdhb5e4eMYt/s200/snapshot20110728230641.jpg" width="200" /></a>Furthermore, the Irish are far from romantic heroes, they are of course portrayed sympathetically at first, but soon one cannot help but feel repelled by their barbarity, especially when they kill an young informer in cold blood. This feeling increases as the film goes on and culminates when half the characters join the New Irish Army and carry out atrocities in the same vein as those carried out by the English not long before. <br />
So the film is not as Black and White as it may seem at first, and there are no villains, in fact Michael Collins is far more deserving on this kind of criticism as it obviously paints De Valera as the villain of the story and Michael Collins as a very romantic hero indeed. <br />
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I mentioned Ken Loach's highly political nature, this may not please some viewers as the film takes is very much in support of independence for Ireland and Loach's Leftist leanings are evident throughout, not as much as in Land and Freedom however. Here the film takes exactly the opposite view than that of Michael Collins, and seems to support those who continued fighting while showing those who accept the treaty as traitors of sorts. Whereas Michael Collins shows these exact same people as heroes and those who continue fighting as bloodthirsty villains.<br />
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This complete opposite of views can be disconcerting and certainly makes it very tough to decide where ones sympathies lie, I personally think the IRA's continued struggle brought only suffering to Ireland when it should have been rebuilding itself after the Revolution, not all will share my point of view but I think that the Treaty was the best possible offer they could have got out of the English. <br />
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Some viewers may find certain scenes quite disturbing, I know I did, not for violence shown as their is little to no blood or other such things, but rather because the actors do such an excellent job that they actually become terrifying, these scenes are almost unbearably tense as you know anyone could be killed at any moment and the hatred between these people is palpable. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-izmPBoAWuItiy0Zv_cSIM919mSiax2CypHAPK7PRwxaSjV3H8CuTsekt-JNsmgn6xjQDThkwMkgVUVuwiozWNQIjlsvKnELM9l5C1_WnaF1MmNNwxUnoTJp3CbyxT5qqZ8DPb1Qa7gvM/s1600/snapshot20110728230649.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="176" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-izmPBoAWuItiy0Zv_cSIM919mSiax2CypHAPK7PRwxaSjV3H8CuTsekt-JNsmgn6xjQDThkwMkgVUVuwiozWNQIjlsvKnELM9l5C1_WnaF1MmNNwxUnoTJp3CbyxT5qqZ8DPb1Qa7gvM/s320/snapshot20110728230649.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
But to those worried about such things, I'd recommend giving the film a go nonetheless, it's not a Horror film, none of this tension is used against the audience but rather against the characters, their is little violence and thankfully no sexual assaults, a plot device I partiuclarly dislike as I find it generally to be a rather unnecessary way to provoke and shock the viewer, but such a film as The WInd That Shakes The Barley have no need for such scenes, for a start the subject in controversial enough as it is, and such acts are not need on screen as what takes place is horrifying enough in it's own way.<br />
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But all that aside, it's still a fantastic film, superbly shot, competently acted and with a thought provoking subject rich in drama, some may say a bit to melodramatic at times, but I can't say I had a problem with that, it's brother against brother storyline was far more convincing than the similar plot device employed in Michael Collins, where it was largely unnecessary. Also, the romantic plot line was of little interest to the film as a whole but still brought a bit of humanity to the proceedings and was nowhere near as useless as that in Michael Collins.<br />
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To end the review, I must say that I apologise to having used Michael Collins as an example so many times, I should have brought up some other films occasionally, but I find it's similarities and contradictions with The Wind That Shakes The Barley to be fascinating, it is not often one comes across to films so different in every way that deal with what is ultimately the same story. <br />
All in all The Wind That Shakes The Barley is a great film despite a few minor flaws, I'd highly recommend it even though I think it may be better to have a minimum of knowledge about the times and the events that took place beforehand, as the film doesn't really spell it out for you.<br />
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The previous entry to the blogathon can be found <a href="http://jacklfilmreviews.blogspot.com/2011/07/irish-film-marathon-part-1.html">here</a>!<br />
Next up for reviewing is Michael Collins, I thought it would be interesting to review both these films back to back.Jack Lhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14558083317361098572noreply@blogger.com0