The Insider(dir. Michael Mann)
REVIEW PENDING...
** out of ****
Showing posts with label 1999. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 1999. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 02, 2008
Saturday, March 08, 2008
Oh Multi-Facial...
Multi-Facial(dir. Vin Diesel)
This was essentially an acting showpiece for its star/director/writer to help him get bigger and better roles in the past and while it's easy to criticize the film on these terms, it's not necessarily what sinks the film. What sinks the film is the "poor me" attitude the film is happy to indulge in from time to time because of the star/director/writer's multiracial(substitute the R with a F and you get the title, LOL) background. There's nothing particularly wrong with Diesel attempting to explore what most likely prevented him from getting the roles he wanted in the past and while his acting is actually impressive given some of his performances in recent films and his direction is mundane yet serviceable, it's the clunky nature of the script's examination of his previous situation that makes this short film particularly hard to recommend. An example would be a casting executive/director/whatever saying after Vin's character leaves the room that they need more of a "Wesley-type" for whatever they're working on. The ending is also one of the most unintentionally funny things I've ever seen with a woman ordering her coffee "not too light, not too dark" and Vin's character sitting in a booth in front of her listening in and finding that phrase so profound that he mouths it because it describes his skin complexion perfectly. Without this film, we wouldn't be all appreciate the meathead we all love from films like Chronicles of Riddick and Fast and the Furious, but it's too idiotic to recommend.
** out of ****
This was essentially an acting showpiece for its star/director/writer to help him get bigger and better roles in the past and while it's easy to criticize the film on these terms, it's not necessarily what sinks the film. What sinks the film is the "poor me" attitude the film is happy to indulge in from time to time because of the star/director/writer's multiracial(substitute the R with a F and you get the title, LOL) background. There's nothing particularly wrong with Diesel attempting to explore what most likely prevented him from getting the roles he wanted in the past and while his acting is actually impressive given some of his performances in recent films and his direction is mundane yet serviceable, it's the clunky nature of the script's examination of his previous situation that makes this short film particularly hard to recommend. An example would be a casting executive/director/whatever saying after Vin's character leaves the room that they need more of a "Wesley-type" for whatever they're working on. The ending is also one of the most unintentionally funny things I've ever seen with a woman ordering her coffee "not too light, not too dark" and Vin's character sitting in a booth in front of her listening in and finding that phrase so profound that he mouths it because it describes his skin complexion perfectly. Without this film, we wouldn't be all appreciate the meathead we all love from films like Chronicles of Riddick and Fast and the Furious, but it's too idiotic to recommend.
** out of ****
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Oh Sarah & Tom...
The Secret Life of Words(dir. Isabel Coixet)
For some reason, I just knew that Sarah Polley was bound to get naked in this even if it didn't make a whole lot of sense and was completely unnecessary. I think she is attractive so that's not the reason why I'm complaining. It just seems rather ridiculous that an actress of her talent has to get topless for really no reason. Yes, I understand why her character got topless, but there was easily another way to go about that. I mean the story takes place on a fucking oil rig and she's a nurse that tends to a patient played by Tim Robbins, who is both blind and has burn wounds, so if anyone was bound to get naked, it would have probably been him. The film seemed too self-satisfied for it's own good with it's plot that was fairly contrived and a little too dramatic, but the performances make this one go down as easily as it possibly could. While my little rant above probably makes me sound like I didn't like the movie much, I actually enjoyed it even if it does have some obvious flaws. The whole little girl voiceover stuff was a little odd and I don't entirely understand what they were trying to go with that and the film seems to pat itself on the back a little too much for exposing these atrocities in the Balkans with Julie Christie's monologues, but ultimately because of the performances, I have to recommend.
*** out of ****
Eyes Wide Shut(dir. Stanley Kubrick)
After watching There Will Be Blood with it's Kubrick-inspired shenanigans, I decided I wanted the real deal so I bumped this up in my queue. This film could have been titled Dr. Bill Harford's Misadventures in Trying to Get Laid. It basically plays out as a sexual fantasy that is never able to be fulfilled that eventually goes sour and then eventually concludes with the possibility of sex and essentially hope. Tom Cruise's character, Dr. Bill Harford, is much like Bogie's in The Big Sleep with women throwing themselves at him left and right, but unlike Bogart's character, he actually wants the sex yet there's always something that has to pop up to kill the mood. He's not attracted to all the women that throw themselves at him, however. There's one exception to the rule that happens to be the first broad he turns to when he needs some poontang to cope with his current situation and when her boyfriend picks up, he decides to go out and visit the local prostitute he ran into from the night before. She's not there, but her sexy roommate is there and she seems willing to go downtown with him and then she breaks the news to him that her roommate that she thinks he had sex with but didn't has received the results of her blood test that says she is HIV positive. Did I mention that this news followed the most erotically-charged scene in the movie that happened to expose zero skin whatsoever and that all of this is played for comedy? The difference between Kubrick and Paul Thomas Anderson is simply the fact that Kubrick knows how to handle the pitch-black comedy of his hero's exploits while still retaining a sense of sympathy for him despite essentially taunting him throughout the narrative while Anderson seems incapable of weaving elements of comedy and drama in a non-slipshod fashion. It's the difference between a master and a director still trying to master his craft. Kubrick is also smart enough to provide an ending that basically lets the audience in on the joke instead confound them by not allowing them to decipher whether he had his tongue firmly placed in cheek or not while filming it. I wouldn't call this film a masterpiece or anything, but it's still definitely one to watch. I highly recommend.
***1/2 out of ****
For some reason, I just knew that Sarah Polley was bound to get naked in this even if it didn't make a whole lot of sense and was completely unnecessary. I think she is attractive so that's not the reason why I'm complaining. It just seems rather ridiculous that an actress of her talent has to get topless for really no reason. Yes, I understand why her character got topless, but there was easily another way to go about that. I mean the story takes place on a fucking oil rig and she's a nurse that tends to a patient played by Tim Robbins, who is both blind and has burn wounds, so if anyone was bound to get naked, it would have probably been him. The film seemed too self-satisfied for it's own good with it's plot that was fairly contrived and a little too dramatic, but the performances make this one go down as easily as it possibly could. While my little rant above probably makes me sound like I didn't like the movie much, I actually enjoyed it even if it does have some obvious flaws. The whole little girl voiceover stuff was a little odd and I don't entirely understand what they were trying to go with that and the film seems to pat itself on the back a little too much for exposing these atrocities in the Balkans with Julie Christie's monologues, but ultimately because of the performances, I have to recommend.
*** out of ****
Eyes Wide Shut(dir. Stanley Kubrick)
After watching There Will Be Blood with it's Kubrick-inspired shenanigans, I decided I wanted the real deal so I bumped this up in my queue. This film could have been titled Dr. Bill Harford's Misadventures in Trying to Get Laid. It basically plays out as a sexual fantasy that is never able to be fulfilled that eventually goes sour and then eventually concludes with the possibility of sex and essentially hope. Tom Cruise's character, Dr. Bill Harford, is much like Bogie's in The Big Sleep with women throwing themselves at him left and right, but unlike Bogart's character, he actually wants the sex yet there's always something that has to pop up to kill the mood. He's not attracted to all the women that throw themselves at him, however. There's one exception to the rule that happens to be the first broad he turns to when he needs some poontang to cope with his current situation and when her boyfriend picks up, he decides to go out and visit the local prostitute he ran into from the night before. She's not there, but her sexy roommate is there and she seems willing to go downtown with him and then she breaks the news to him that her roommate that she thinks he had sex with but didn't has received the results of her blood test that says she is HIV positive. Did I mention that this news followed the most erotically-charged scene in the movie that happened to expose zero skin whatsoever and that all of this is played for comedy? The difference between Kubrick and Paul Thomas Anderson is simply the fact that Kubrick knows how to handle the pitch-black comedy of his hero's exploits while still retaining a sense of sympathy for him despite essentially taunting him throughout the narrative while Anderson seems incapable of weaving elements of comedy and drama in a non-slipshod fashion. It's the difference between a master and a director still trying to master his craft. Kubrick is also smart enough to provide an ending that basically lets the audience in on the joke instead confound them by not allowing them to decipher whether he had his tongue firmly placed in cheek or not while filming it. I wouldn't call this film a masterpiece or anything, but it's still definitely one to watch. I highly recommend.
***1/2 out of ****
Monday, January 14, 2008
Oh 1999...
1999
1. Show Me Love(dir. Lukas Moodysson)
2. Rushmore(dir. Wes Anderson)
3. The Limey(dir. Steven Soderbergh)
4. After Life(dir. Hirokazu Koreeda)
5. Eyes Wide Shut(dir. Stanley Kubrick)
Magnolia(dir. Paul Thomas Anderson)
Toy Story 2(dir. John Lasseter) need to rewatch
Need to see: The Insider, The Straight Story, Election, Boys Don't Cry, The Mission, Sleepy Hollow, Austin Powers(rewatch), Topsy-Turvy, Bringing Out the Dead, Beau Travail, All About My Mother, and more...
1. Show Me Love(dir. Lukas Moodysson)
2. Rushmore(dir. Wes Anderson)
3. The Limey(dir. Steven Soderbergh)
4. After Life(dir. Hirokazu Koreeda)
5. Eyes Wide Shut(dir. Stanley Kubrick)
Magnolia(dir. Paul Thomas Anderson)
Toy Story 2(dir. John Lasseter) need to rewatch
Need to see: The Insider, The Straight Story, Election, Boys Don't Cry, The Mission, Sleepy Hollow, Austin Powers(rewatch), Topsy-Turvy, Bringing Out the Dead, Beau Travail, All About My Mother, and more...
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Oh Iran...
Color of Paradise(dir. Majid Majidi)
I really liked it, but some of the techniques seemed unnecessary like the use of slow motion in some scenes and all the music used for dramatic effect. The little girls were adorable.
***1/2 out of ****
I really liked it, but some of the techniques seemed unnecessary like the use of slow motion in some scenes and all the music used for dramatic effect. The little girls were adorable.
***1/2 out of ****
Monday, April 02, 2007
Oh Some British Actor/Actress...
Wonderland(dir. Michael Winterbottom)
I was hungry and now I'm convinced that if I'm hungry, my brain doesn't function at maximum capacity and that means I won't be able to get into a movie. After I ate some food, I started getting into this. I had a similar thing with Children of Men with eating food and getting into the movie. Maybe it's only with movies with British actors. I don't know. I thought the ending was pretty much perfect in its simplicity. I'll probably rewatch it, but I don't think my opinion will change that much.
***1/2 out of ****
I was hungry and now I'm convinced that if I'm hungry, my brain doesn't function at maximum capacity and that means I won't be able to get into a movie. After I ate some food, I started getting into this. I had a similar thing with Children of Men with eating food and getting into the movie. Maybe it's only with movies with British actors. I don't know. I thought the ending was pretty much perfect in its simplicity. I'll probably rewatch it, but I don't think my opinion will change that much.
***1/2 out of ****
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