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  • Film & TV Moderators: ghostfreak

FILM: Mini-reviews of a bunch of random movies

I just got lucky - I moved to this town in the middle of nowhere (Carbondale, IL) that seems to have movies that I had to go to Nashville to see before. This weekend I plan to see "Amalie" and "The Man Who Wasn't There". But this is the other stuff I've seen lately:
A Beautiful Mind - This was a great film, and very thought provoking. The things that Nash goes through in evolving in his disease and in becoming a complete person are just so unbelievable. Russell Crowe acted the heck out of this role, and Jennifer Connelly is just luminous, although I preferred her work in "Requiem of a Dream" more. I think that a lot of us who do question the use of drugs in our life should go see this. It'll make you think.
Ocean's Eleven - This movie is definitely not high art; however, this was one of the most entertaining movies I've seen in a long time. George Clooney are great movie stars (not actors - big difference) and just looked great in this. It was a grand escapade, beautifully shot and it was just a helluva lot of fun. My main complaints are with Julia Roberts' character, which was one of the most useless characters ever.
Lord of the Rings - WOW. All I can say about it. If you haven't seen it go and you'll see what I mean.
Harry Potter - This was a terrific film, and managed to capture the book almost perfectly. My main complaint is that they cut out so much of the part about the dragon; however, I understand that something had to go. I look much more forward to seeing the sequels, since the books get much darker.
That's not all, but most of what I've seen in theatres (if I started on DVD I'd be here all day, lol.) Will have some more after this weekend. And if anyone wants to help me out a bit, I moderate a movie forum at an arts site that REALLY needs some posters. Check out Lightning Seeds of Poetry and the film forum. Thanks!
[ 18 January 2002: Message edited by: Ariela ]
 
Lingo-No problem at all. :) I believe you when you say that you found the movie funny. I did hear other people in the theater laughing at certain points, which can't be said for Orange County. Sometimes humor can be too subtle in the sense that I can't find the damn joke. Kind of like Norm McDonald or Ben Folds. 8) Having Ben Stiller and his kids dress up in red sweatsuits and the ex-tennis player wear a sweatband just didn't cut it with me. Where's the satire? I agree that Gene Hackman got in some good lines, such as when he tells his estranged wife that he's dying and then saying he's kidding, etc. The son riding around on an ocean liner by himself or the drug addicted friend "crashing" the wedding and killing the dog just didn't do much. I just think the movie doesn't deserve much more praise than a 6/10.
Damn, Ariela! You are almost worse than me! ;) Anyway, good post and I looked at that message board. :)
Okay, tough choice: In The Bedroom, Impostor or Black Hawk Down? Hmmm....I will go with In The Bedroom based on kell's review. :D
Uh oh, I think this post has used up my daily allotment of smilies. :(
 
my favs...
NATURAL BORN KILLERS!! The best movie ever made! Directors Cut of course! ;)
The Doom Generation
SLC Punk
Sid and Nancy
The Green Mile
American Psycho
All the Halloween Movies
Scream(the first one)
 
I just finished watching Dr. Strangelove. Can someone please explain to me why this movie is supposed to be so great?
 
Shana,
Dr. Strangelove takes points out the stupidity of nuclear war in a comical way. Comedy ensues.
Adios,
Steve
 
Oooh, i just saw the documentry on the making of the million dollar hotel, a movie that really 'got' me (in a good way).
I think it's one of the most underated (& unseen) films of last year.
It's based on an idea Bono (from U2) had after filming a video on top of the million dollar hotel in LA. So a friend of his wrote the screenplay & Wim Wenders ended up directing.
It stars Jeremy Davis, Milla Jochavich(sp) &`Mel Gibson, dont let MG put you off, it's a complete departure from his usual roles. It's an ensamble cast with tim roth appearing briefly as does Amanda Plumer & lots of other crazy characters that inhabit the million dollar hotel.
The basic premise is that Gibsons' character is an FBI agent investigating a possible murder.
The murder (which was orginally considered to be a suicide) happens on top of the million dollar hotel, a run-down dive full of apparent freaks, nutters & drug addicts.
Tom-Tom is the main character, who is a simpleton with a heart of gold, he sees his friends at the hotel as heroes, not the losers that society has labeled them. Tom -Tom falls for Eloise(Milla J)
& their relationship builds with tendernes & underlying tension of impending doom.
Thats all I can be bothered writing, I highly recomend it, I'm interested to see what you guys think of it as I don't know anyone else thats seen it.
 
Yes, people have seen BOTW, in fact, it's got its own thread.
My recent movie choices have been influenced by the supply of pot brownies I currently possess ( ;) ):
Not Another etc. - Not even being high could make this movie funny. I had such hopes too, they were parodying all the way back to John Hughes. No stars.
Orange County - It was really pretty good! I am sure it was due to the kid being Tom Hanks's son and there had to be some input/advice/good scriptwriter procuring going on from him. The scene with Harold Ramis rolling had me in tears laughing so hard. 7 of 10 stars.
There is pretty much nothing good this week. Oh well. :(
 
I just saw "Amelie" last weekend. GREAT movie! First love story that I've seen in a long time that was not impossibly sweet or impossibly hokey. Amelie is this sweet, quirky girl who has this great devilish side. The characters are just amazing. GO SEE THIS if it's playing anywhere near. And this is from a really jaded person. :)
 
Having finally seen the Royal Tenenbaums, I can say 2 things, it is one of the best pictures I have seen in a long time and ceartinly this year. And the humor is anything but subtle...I mean shit, the little Indian guy Pagoda, and his tendency to shank Royal in the stomach alone had me laughing for like 10 fucking minutes...
Good stuff, even better than Rushmore, in my opinion...
Perhaps it's a film best viewed after smoking a nice fat joint of kind, and thus my opinion a bit skwered, I dunno, I thought it was something absolutley unique...
 
Okay, it's about that time again....
The Mothman Prophecies This movie was interesting and definitely held my attention for most of the two hours. The previews basically summarize the plot, but Richard Gere (LOL) plays a Washington Post reporter. He loses his wife admidst odd circumstances and then we skip ahead two years. Gere is driving to interview someone and loses track of time....1.5 hours later he finds out he has left the District of Columbia and is 400+ miles away in West Virginia. Things continue to get stranger and stranger. I am trying to figure out why I like this movie, and I think it is because I can identify with the Gere character. Basically at every twist and turn of the plot, his next move would be pretty much what I would have done myself. This is damn rare with the suspense/thrillers. There are some parts that seem a little too neat, but hey....it is just a damn movie. My rating might be too high compared to other peoples' opinion, but oh well: I give it a 8.5/10.
By the way: Amelie is not playing in my area.
 
I saw The Royal Tenenbaums last night. I enjoyed it but overall it was not one of my favorite movies. Very well acted, of course, but I'm not sure that the characters really felt so real. They were all completely shut off or completely manic - no inbetween. However, I did love the detail that is so big in Wes Anderson movies. It's worth watching, but I still prefer Amelie for quirky humour.
Catch-22, I highly recommend going and kidnapping a theatre manager and making him show this movie for one week. ;) You need to see it.
[ 02 February 2002: Message edited by: Ariela ]
 
Once upon a time *kell* said:
I saw In the bedroom the other day.I enjoed it, It was low-key, some might even so far as to say slow or boring. It stars Sissy Spacik (whom i love), i saw an interview with her where she decribed it as a film form adults (no not porn) I would have to agree with that.
7/10
In The Bedroom I really agree with kell's assessment. I think middle-aged parents would really relate to this movie and I am gonna be suggesting it to my folks. I thought the character development was great and it really captured some elements of the middle-class white family. The worst thing that could be said about In The Bedroom is that it is slow moving. It was also billed as a "thriller" and I don't know if that is the right description. Regardless, I would suggest it as a great movie to rent for anyone who appreciates characters and a well put together story. 7/10
___
I went through and re-read this entire thread. I was way too harsh with The Man Who Wasn't There and think it should be at least 7/10. Also, I was way too nice with Not Another Teen Movie and it should be no better than a 3/10. Damn, I promise I haven't been smoking crack so I don't know what was wrong with me. LOL Oh....Amelie is playing at an independent theater about an hour away. The same little 25-seat theater where I saw Memento. I might be just enough of a dork to make a road trip....
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My take on the above-mentioned recent releases:
Ocean's Eleven:
Chewing gum for the eyes.
By default, it was a better-than-average movie, but given the budget, the intriguing premise, and the talent, it should have been a lot better.
Clooney and Pitt were excellent as usual, and several supporting actors chipped in as well (notably, Cheadle), but the dialogue was pedestrian and predictable, the plot was "eh" and Julia Roberts was horrendous.
LOVELIFE-O-METER Grade: 2.7 (out of 4.0 stars)
A Beautiful Mind:
Nice movie.
Crowe and Connelly were both fantastic, and the movie was very moving.
The script was well-written overall, but because it spanned nearly five decades, we didn't get to connect with the characters quite as well as we did with characters in other Oscar-level dramas such as Shawshank and American Beauty.
I wanted to love this movie, and I liked it a lot, but in the end, something was missing which keeps it from being what I would call an epic.
LOVELIFE-O-METER: 3.4
The Royal Tenenbaums:
There's comedy, there's high comedy, and then there's The Royal Tenenbaums.
I have always been a Hackman fan, but this performance was incredible, even for him.
Mind was more of an "Academy" type movie, so I'd put my money on Crowe to beat him for Best Actor, but if I had a vote, I would cast it for Mr. Hackman.
Hackman's performance was the funniest I've seen in a comedy since Antonio Banderas as the playboy father in Four Rooms - and that was seven years ago.
Other than Hackman, the acting was good but not great, with the exception of Baldwin - his narration was excellent, and made for a strong beginning to the film.
The humor was offbeat and higher-level than what Hollywood tends to put out - twice, Hackman had me laughing so hard, I missed the next several lines . . . yes, he was THAT good.
I liked the fact that the director (Wes Anderson) eschewed easy low-level easier-to-get laughs, and instead focussed on letting us understand and empathize with a group of characters, who, on the surface, are not very loveable.
One of the best comedies I've seen in years.
LOVELIFE-O-METER: 3.4
Note:
It would seem strange that although my review of Tenenbaum's was more glowing than my review of Mind, I gave them both the same rating (3.4 stars).
Allow me to explain:
Because Dramas tend to hit a wider range of emotions, I generally consider the best Dramas to have more value than the best Comedies.
In other words, while I would rate perhaps 4 percent of all Dramas higher than a 3.4 and the best Dramas, a 4.0 (e.g., Shawshank, Godfather, Godfather II, Schindler's), I would rate only about 1 percent of Comedies above a 3.4, and to date, I have NEVER rated a comedy higher than a 3.9 (When Harry Met Sally - and even that could be termed more of a "Dramaty" than a "Comedy.")
Peace,
LL
 
Not really into doing the whole film critic thing, but I don't think this really qualifies...
SEE GOSFORD PARK
Thank you, drive thru.
 
Well well well....it's about that time again! Guess what finally came to my crappy little town?
Amelie I really, really liked this movie. The story revolves around an offbeat French coffee shop waitress in her early 20's. One night she discovers a tin box hidden in her bathroom that seems to change the way she handles life. I thought this movie had great character development, an eccentric but entertaining storyline....yeah, I just really liked it! I thought the romance part was touching and I really cared about what happened to Amelie towards the end of the movie. I definitely give it a 10/10 and encourage everyone to give it a try.
 
Hart's War I need to remember to avoid going to the movie theaters in February because that is when Hollywood dumps off all the crap. Some naive Yale law student is serving as a Lieutenant during World War II. His job consists of driving champaigne around in a little jeep. Against all odds, he somehow manages to get captured and naturally squeals like a little piggy during interrogation. This slack-jawed newbie is then sent to Stalog 6, where Colonial Bruce Willis is the ranking POW. Then the plot thickens....well, not really. The plot was pretty soupy all the way through. The characters were lame and there was no suspense generated. The most likeable character to me was the aging Nazi in charge of the camp. That should give a hint of just how bad Hart's War was! I give it a 3/10. Avoid....even if you are into WW2 or military flicks, avoid.
 
Super Troopers
Meow. Loved it! Very funny meowvie, the actors dscribe it best themselves, "full of cheeky shenanigans." A comedy troupe called Broken Lizard are all the main characters. The basic plot is that there meow are two rival cop units, the 'locals' and the 'highway hogs'. The highway hogs' station is going to be closed down if they don't start making meow more arrests. There is a lot of slapstick humor and some very funny dialogue (Afghanistanimation). Kinda reminds me of the Police Academy movie, the first one, not the crappy sequels. I would give this 7.75 of 10 stars. Not often a truly funny comedy comes along!
*If you see the movie, you will understand the meows. :)
 
Hedwig and the Angry Inch was a superior flick. My wife hated it, didn't even finish watching it, but transvestites/transsexuals make her nervous. I kept saying " But honey, you liked Rocky Horror, right?" Sometimes she just doesn't get it...
Cool movie with cool songs; recommended.
 
Maybe it's just me but by definition, wouldn't a "movie snob" avoid seeing half of the movies that are being praised in this thread, hence earning the title "snob". Anyway, the best movies from last year(imo)were Ghost World, Amelie, and Amores Perros. Granted, I haven't seen Gosford Park but it would still be hard to do better than the ones mentioned above. And for anyone that actually liked Black Hawk Down--are you kidding me?
 
Maybe it's just me but by definition, wouldn't a "movie snob" avoid seeing half of the movies that are being praised in this thread, hence earning the title "snob".
Well, I see your point. I used the word "snob" so that we'd actually rate and recommend movies (provide an opinion), rather than just summarize the plot and remain neutral. This thread is just about movies currently in the theaters. If someone was to start a thread about independent films or rare stuff, I would love to get involved in that discussion, too.
And for anyone that actually liked Black Hawk Down--are you kidding me?
Hey, this is just an exchange of opinions. My "blah" reaction to The Royal Tenenbaums is directly at conflict with a thumb's up from everyone else who has seen it. I walked out of Black Hawk Down after 15 minutes, but when it came to In The Bedroom, kell and I were in complete agreement. This thread is just a place to see what other people are saying....
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