The Next Three Days (2010) Blu-ray
Really a very good movie starring Russell Crowe and Elizabeth Banks, Directed by Paul Haggis (Crash).
A man's wife is arrested for murder and all the evidence points to her as the culprit and she is sentenced to 20+ years in prison. Russell Crowe is a high school Science teacher, who trying to get his wife off of this charge keeps running into roadblocks. He finally turns to what seems to be the only way out and that is to break her out and run.
Haggis directs a very tightly night thriller here that has its share of twists and turns, and at just a little over two hours is presented in a very taut fashion.
Great photography, very tight script, good actors, with small but efficient roles from Daniel Stern, Brian Dennhy, and Olivia Wilde, make up what is very enjoyable film from start to finish.
7/10
What Movie Did You Just Watch? ... And Robin
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jpanimation
- Anniversary Edition
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Rango (2011) 6.5/10 - it's kind of a mess of a film that I had a hard time getting into (like the third Pirates). The animation is gorgeous, the best part of the whole film, but the mixing of genres just didn't work. It's mostly a western, or a parody of one, that just doesn't do a very good job at it (Blazing Saddles does a much better job of parodying the genre while mixing movie references). Visually, it's fantastic at just how much it looks like a live action film (much like Zack Snyder's animated owl movie, which also contained realistic looking animals), but the story and characters just aren't interesting in the slightest. I'm extremely disappointed.
Also, don't watch the extended version. I watched it first and found the tacked on ending just left a bad taste in my mouth.
Also, don't watch the extended version. I watched it first and found the tacked on ending just left a bad taste in my mouth.
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PixarFan2006
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The Sword in the Stone (1963) - Okay for a Disney film, but definitely not at the top of my favorites list. The songs are forgettable for the most part and the villain really does not add much to the story. I thought the best part was the duel toward the end. Otherwise, a middle-of-the-road movie.
6.5/10
6.5/10
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ajmrowland
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Willow-a nice fantasy. Ron Howard did a good job with this. Warwick Davis was good as a serious lead. The outdated 80s effects provide camp value. And it was a nice, simple story.
Man On The Moon-Jim Carrey was wonderful in this true story based on the professional life of Andy Kauffman. Of note is that while the cast of Taxi reprise their roles during the filming scenes, Danny Devito plays Kauffman's agent.
Man On The Moon-Jim Carrey was wonderful in this true story based on the professional life of Andy Kauffman. Of note is that while the cast of Taxi reprise their roles during the filming scenes, Danny Devito plays Kauffman's agent.
Korkoro (2009)
Also known as 'Liberté'. It's said to be the first movie about the nazi's persecution of gyspies during World War II, but it doesn't do a very good job at it. While it's situated in 1943 France, there is not a direct threat to the gypsies for the largest portion of the film. Over an hour into it, they get locked up in a camp, but this is only temporarily and they get released in, like, five minutes. Toward the end, they get caught again and the people who tried to help them get arrested as well. But up until then, the atmosphere of the movie has been so light and careless that it's hard to feel sorry for the characters, who were very 2-dimensional, too. It's beautifully shot, too, and features lots of great music.
Also known as 'Liberté'. It's said to be the first movie about the nazi's persecution of gyspies during World War II, but it doesn't do a very good job at it. While it's situated in 1943 France, there is not a direct threat to the gypsies for the largest portion of the film. Over an hour into it, they get locked up in a camp, but this is only temporarily and they get released in, like, five minutes. Toward the end, they get caught again and the people who tried to help them get arrested as well. But up until then, the atmosphere of the movie has been so light and careless that it's hard to feel sorry for the characters, who were very 2-dimensional, too. It's beautifully shot, too, and features lots of great music.
Les Miserables: The 25th Anniversary Concert
Very fun to watch and I enjoyed the whole cast. It was interesting that it wasn't completely a concert since they did have some characters do things beside sing.
I'm going to give a review of each major character:
Alfie Boe was great as Valjean. His rendition of Bring Him Home was beautiful. It was amazing seeing a guy with such a deep operatic voice hit very high notes.
Norm Lewis as Javert was good, he never really wowed me ever though.
Lea Salonga as Fantine, did amazing job. She in my opinion was the greatest actor of the cast. When she did Fantine's Death, I had tears in my eyes.
Katie Hall as Cosette was good, nothing really else to say. I am probably a little prejudiced though, since the songs Cosette sings are not my favorite at all. Little Cosette was adorable.
The Thénardiers were awesome! You could tell that they really enjoy playing these characters. Master of the House was the most catchy tune of the show, everyone was completely into doing the song. I thought it was funny that everyone clapped when they came on.
Samantha Barks as Éponine is one of my favorites. Her doing On My Own was probably one of my favorite songs of the musical. She is probably tied with Frances Ruffelle as my favorite Éponine.
Nick Jonas was okay as Marius. He has a good voice when he doesn't sing through his nose, I felt kind of poorly for him when he tried singing the big notes, it almost looked like he was in pain. I really liked his voice when he did Empty Chairs at Empty Tables. Not much nose singing.
Ramin Karimloo as Enjolras was interesting, his voice is a lot different than other guys Enjolras. I still haven't decided if I like or dislike it.
It was great to see at the end four other previous Valjeans come on stay and sing Bring Him Home. I thought it was very classy of the other Valjeans to let Colm Wilkinson (the original Valjean) sing the end of the song. Also was fun to see the Original London Cast and the current cast sing One Day More together. Not sure why they didn't have the Original Enjolras there.
Very fun to watch and I enjoyed the whole cast. It was interesting that it wasn't completely a concert since they did have some characters do things beside sing.
I'm going to give a review of each major character:
Alfie Boe was great as Valjean. His rendition of Bring Him Home was beautiful. It was amazing seeing a guy with such a deep operatic voice hit very high notes.
Norm Lewis as Javert was good, he never really wowed me ever though.
Lea Salonga as Fantine, did amazing job. She in my opinion was the greatest actor of the cast. When she did Fantine's Death, I had tears in my eyes.
Katie Hall as Cosette was good, nothing really else to say. I am probably a little prejudiced though, since the songs Cosette sings are not my favorite at all. Little Cosette was adorable.
The Thénardiers were awesome! You could tell that they really enjoy playing these characters. Master of the House was the most catchy tune of the show, everyone was completely into doing the song. I thought it was funny that everyone clapped when they came on.
Samantha Barks as Éponine is one of my favorites. Her doing On My Own was probably one of my favorite songs of the musical. She is probably tied with Frances Ruffelle as my favorite Éponine.
Nick Jonas was okay as Marius. He has a good voice when he doesn't sing through his nose, I felt kind of poorly for him when he tried singing the big notes, it almost looked like he was in pain. I really liked his voice when he did Empty Chairs at Empty Tables. Not much nose singing.
Ramin Karimloo as Enjolras was interesting, his voice is a lot different than other guys Enjolras. I still haven't decided if I like or dislike it.
It was great to see at the end four other previous Valjeans come on stay and sing Bring Him Home. I thought it was very classy of the other Valjeans to let Colm Wilkinson (the original Valjean) sing the end of the song. Also was fun to see the Original London Cast and the current cast sing One Day More together. Not sure why they didn't have the Original Enjolras there.
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dvdjunkie
- Signature Collection
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- Location: Wichita, Kansas
The Lincoln Lawyer (2011) Blu-ray
This is one of the most mesmerizing films I have watched in quite a while. Starring Matthew McConaughey, Marisa Tomei and Ryan Phillippe, and Directed by Brad Furman ("Moon").
McConaughey plays Mickey Haller, a top-notch Los Angeles lawyer who works out of his Lincoln Town Car. He is a free-wheeling Defense lawyer who generally avoids anything that takes him out of his comfort zone, but when confronted by what is a seemingly slam-dunk of an attempted murder case, he jumps at the money.
The film features some great roles played by John Leguizamo, William H. Macy and Josh Lucas. The story is very captivating, and the photography, editing, and production is top-notch filmed on the seemier-side of Los Angeles. It takes a very unique twist that you don't see coming about twenty minutes from the end, and you are pushed back in your seat by what occurs. One of the most satisfying court-room dramas I have seen in a very long time. On the Junkie Meter 4/5 stars.
This is one of the most mesmerizing films I have watched in quite a while. Starring Matthew McConaughey, Marisa Tomei and Ryan Phillippe, and Directed by Brad Furman ("Moon").
McConaughey plays Mickey Haller, a top-notch Los Angeles lawyer who works out of his Lincoln Town Car. He is a free-wheeling Defense lawyer who generally avoids anything that takes him out of his comfort zone, but when confronted by what is a seemingly slam-dunk of an attempted murder case, he jumps at the money.
The film features some great roles played by John Leguizamo, William H. Macy and Josh Lucas. The story is very captivating, and the photography, editing, and production is top-notch filmed on the seemier-side of Los Angeles. It takes a very unique twist that you don't see coming about twenty minutes from the end, and you are pushed back in your seat by what occurs. One of the most satisfying court-room dramas I have seen in a very long time. On the Junkie Meter 4/5 stars.
The only way to watch movies - Original Aspect Ratio!!!!
I LOVE my Blu-Ray Disc Player!
I LOVE my Blu-Ray Disc Player!
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BelleGirl
- Anniversary Edition
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- Joined: Thu Oct 18, 2007 2:36 am
- Location: The Netherlands, The Hague
Harry Potter and the deathly hallows part 2
Nice closure to the series. Not having read most of the HP books, the story held enough suprises for me. Some revelations about Severus Sneep for instance.
Fanny and Alexander
This is one of the classic movies one ought to see. I thought it was a bit slow at first, but after the first hour I was grabbed by the story. Fascinating.
Nice closure to the series. Not having read most of the HP books, the story held enough suprises for me. Some revelations about Severus Sneep for instance.
Fanny and Alexander
This is one of the classic movies one ought to see. I thought it was a bit slow at first, but after the first hour I was grabbed by the story. Fascinating.
See my growing collection of Disney movie-banners at:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/78256383@N ... 651337290/
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PixarFan2006
- Signature Collection
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dvdjunkie
- Signature Collection
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Excalibur (1981) Blu-ray
Director John Boorman's excellent telling of the story of King Arthur and his sword "Excalibur". Starring Nigel Terry, Helen Mirren, Nicole Williamson and a very early appearance by Patrick Stewart, this movie is very vast in its telling of the legend of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. Beautifully photographed, and in the Hi-def blu-ray, it is vastly superior in picture quality to the VHS and DVD copies I used to own of this film. 5.1 Lossless audio track is amazing and just adds to the viewing of this film. I will give it a strong 4/5.
Director John Boorman's excellent telling of the story of King Arthur and his sword "Excalibur". Starring Nigel Terry, Helen Mirren, Nicole Williamson and a very early appearance by Patrick Stewart, this movie is very vast in its telling of the legend of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. Beautifully photographed, and in the Hi-def blu-ray, it is vastly superior in picture quality to the VHS and DVD copies I used to own of this film. 5.1 Lossless audio track is amazing and just adds to the viewing of this film. I will give it a strong 4/5.
The only way to watch movies - Original Aspect Ratio!!!!
I LOVE my Blu-Ray Disc Player!
I LOVE my Blu-Ray Disc Player!
Two amusing, light-weight comedies:
In and Out (1997)
About a midwestern teacher who starts to doubt his sexuality after one of his former students outs him at the Oscars. Very enjoyable, mostly thanks to Kevin Kline, who was just made for these kind of parts. There are so very good jokes about prejudices and stereotypes, but they're not very subtle. Still, if you're not very PC-minded, you'll probably enjoy this one. Though the ending was a bit too sappy, but that seems to go with this genre.
Post Grad (2009)
Very predictable, but funny nonetheless. A straight-A student who has just graduated sees all her dreams vanish when she doesn't get her dream job and has to experience the harsh reality of moving back into with her dysfunctional parents and going through enless job interviews without any results. A lot of the storyline was very relatable to me, as I've gone through the same, which enhanced my enjoyment. I also could relate very well to the main character's best friend, who has been hopelessly in love with her for years, only to never have his love been asnwered. Of course, in the end, they still end up together --a part that, unfortunately, was not relatable to me. Still, I enjoyed it. And these kinds of movies are supposed to have a happy end! I think the predicatability of it all was neutralized by the wonderful charm of Alexis Bladel.
In and Out (1997)
About a midwestern teacher who starts to doubt his sexuality after one of his former students outs him at the Oscars. Very enjoyable, mostly thanks to Kevin Kline, who was just made for these kind of parts. There are so very good jokes about prejudices and stereotypes, but they're not very subtle. Still, if you're not very PC-minded, you'll probably enjoy this one. Though the ending was a bit too sappy, but that seems to go with this genre.
Post Grad (2009)
Very predictable, but funny nonetheless. A straight-A student who has just graduated sees all her dreams vanish when she doesn't get her dream job and has to experience the harsh reality of moving back into with her dysfunctional parents and going through enless job interviews without any results. A lot of the storyline was very relatable to me, as I've gone through the same, which enhanced my enjoyment. I also could relate very well to the main character's best friend, who has been hopelessly in love with her for years, only to never have his love been asnwered. Of course, in the end, they still end up together --a part that, unfortunately, was not relatable to me. Still, I enjoyed it. And these kinds of movies are supposed to have a happy end! I think the predicatability of it all was neutralized by the wonderful charm of Alexis Bladel.
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jpanimation
- Anniversary Edition
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Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011) 6/10 - as a fan of the original movie, I'm left feeling disappointed once again. It's better then the dreadful Revenge of the Fallen but not by much. It feels 'different' from the first two, more "dreary" as Leonard Maltin puts it, but it still suffers from many of the same problems that plagued Revenge of the Fallen. Probably should've skipped seeing it in theaters and just waited to rent it from my library.
Here's Leonard Maltin's review, which I agree 100% with:
http://blogs.indiewire.com/leonardmalti ... _the_moon/
and here's a review that perfectly explains the "dreary" feel of the movie:
http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainmen ... ry/241305/
Here's Leonard Maltin's review, which I agree 100% with:
http://blogs.indiewire.com/leonardmalti ... _the_moon/
and here's a review that perfectly explains the "dreary" feel of the movie:
http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainmen ... ry/241305/
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Dr Frankenollie
- In The Vaults
- Posts: 2704
- Joined: Mon May 02, 2011 4:19 am
The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)
The cinematic era of the 1930’s is often recognised as Hollywood’s Golden Age, and rightfully so. After the successful early experiments with sound by Warner Bros. in the late 1920’s with The Jazz Singer and Lights of New York, Hollywood left its humble, comedy-focused silent origins, and some of the best stars and directors of the silent era-such as Chaplin and DeMille-successfully transitioned into the sound era. But the crucial developments in cinema were not over, as 1935’s Becky Sharp (the first ever film to use the three-strip Technicolor process) revolutionised cinema.
At the time, America was in the midst of a Great Depression, and tension was brewing in Europe with Hitler’s repeatedly appeased breaking of the Treaty of Versailles. Cinema offered an escape for people everywhere, and the later years of the 1930’s offered sweet, wholesome and innocent entertainment both the young and old could enjoy. Three movies are emblematic of this anti-Depression innocence: 1937’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, 1939's The Wizard of Oz and 1938’s The Adventures of Robin Hood.
It tells of the legend of Robin Hood (Errol Flynn), the swashbuckling hero who stole from the rich and gave to the poor. Whilst the fair and just King ‘the Lionheart’ Richard (Ian Hunter) is away in the crusades, his scheming brother Prince John (Claude Rains) tries to take the throne for himself, raising taxes to ridiculous levels in the meantime. Standing in his way is the Saxon Earl of Locksley, Robin Hood, who after humiliating the vicious Guy of Gisbourne (Basil Rathbone) in the presence of Prince John starts recruiting followers, such as Much (Herbert Mundin), Little John (Alan Hale Senior) and even the religious Friar Tuck (Eugene Pallette), and they set up camp in Sherwood Forest in Nottingham. Whilst Prince John and Guy of Gisbourne try to capture Robin, Richard’s ward Maid Marian (Olivia de Havilland) begins to understand Robin’s cause and subsequently falls for Robin.
It seems fitting that Warner Bros, the first studio to properly use sound, were one of the first few studios to use Technicolor, with The Adventures of Robin Hood capitalising on the advantages of Technicolor, with a wide variety of colours in the locations and costumes put to good use. Although Warner Bros normally produced low-budget gangster movies featuring the likes of Edward J Robinson and James Cagney, they produced this big-budget swashbuckler after a successful succession of other swashbucklers also starring Flynn.
The Adventures of Robin Hood’s cast is filmed with stars, with the most famous of course being Flynn, Rains, Rathbone and de Havilland. Flynn embodies the usual image of the legend, but not only in appearance (sporting mostly green attire and a crossbow with arrows) but also in the way he acts and the way he talks; the character is charismatic, persuasive and a quick-thinking, agile swordsman, with a hint of arrogance as well as playfulness. He is never fully charming but is compelling and certainly fun to watch (although his laugh gets a little irritating after the first dozen times), and due to the movie’s popularity has become synonymous with the legend.
He also has excellent chemistry with de Havilland, who contrasts to the almost pantomime portrayal Flynn offers with subtlety, especially in facial expressions and the delivery of lines. Her character is the most well-rounded and believable, initially holding Robin Hood in contempt due to her loyalty for King Richard being carried over to become loyalty for Prince John. But her hatred for Robin turns to understanding and inevitably love, as she learns that Robin is as loyal to the King as she and sees the poor quality of life so many Nottingham villagers have.
But the stars of The Adventures of Robin Hood are really the villains, with Rains and Rathbone both being exquisite and tremendous: Rains is more quietly evil, hiding his cruel intentions by faking admiration for Robin Hood, but Rathbone is the more active of the two, with Gisbourne being candidly treacherous. Both John and Gisbourne may not be as interesting as Robin, but at times you feel like siding with the villains due to their likability and exceptional deviousness. As for the other performances, only Herbert Mundin is quite memorable as Much the miller’s son, mostly for the light-hearted comic relief he provides.
Visually, this movie is high art, lavishly designed, lovingly cinematographed and wholly impressive. Not only are the natural ‘sets’ like Bidwell Park in Chico, California (aka ‘Sherwood Forest’) tranquil-looking and rather sumptuous, but the models for the exterior of the castle are almost believable, and the interior of the castle (featuring a number of areas, including the dungeons and banqueting hall) is oddly awe-inspiring as you realise that this was built by the studio. Whilst not completely authentic-looking, it looks so real so frequently and the fact that this was built during the tail end of the Great Depression is unbelievable.
Undoubtedly the best scenes in The Adventures of Robin Hood are the action scenes, some being quite ahead of its time (like the climactic battle scene). The sword fight between Robin and Gisbourne near the end is sensational alone, with the choreography of it being endlessly inventive and considerably original by old movie standards. It’s much more thrilling than most modern fight scenes, thanks to Michael Curtiz’s (the man behind Casablanca, also produced and distributed by Warner Bros) deft direction and the fact that there’s enough build-up to make you excited (even if the outcome is predictable) and enough great acting and characterisation to make you care for these characters. The scene is even a little ‘artsy’ with the inspired usage of shadows fighting, a moment still remembered even after all these decades, as proven by countless spoofs and references (like in the comedy Hot Shots! Part Deux).
The Adventures of Robin Hood is an entertaining and colourful rollercoaster from start to finish, and the only thing it’s missing is a great score. Despite one or two nitpicks of mine, this movie is a hugely entertaining and timeless near-masterpiece and for a movie buff required viewing.
9/10.
The Lovely Bones (2009)
Oddly enough, whilst watching Peter Jackson’ s 2009 dramatic horror The Lovely Bones based upon the best-selling book of the same name, I was reminded of The Sixth Sense; upon looking at both films closely, one will notice The Lovely Bones and M Night Shyamalan’s famous suspense thriller have a lot in common. They both deal with ghosts and death (as well as coping with it), but the specific scene I recalled in The Sixth Sense whilst watching this was where we learnt that a mother had poisoned her daughter’s food repeatedly and eventually killed her, and was planning on doing the same to her younger daughter; this was eventually discovered by evidence on tape.
Now, I haven’t read the book The Lovely Bones was adapted from, but either the author or the screenwriters ripped off Shyamalan, seeing as parts of the plot are practically identical to what was merely a minor subplot in Sixth Sense-except that instead of the mother doing the killing it’s a lonely neighbour, and instead of a tape being the evidence it’s a set of photographs.
Set in 1973, The Lovely Bones tells of the camera-loving 14-year-old (Saoirse Ronan) named Susan Salmon-‘like the fish’, she says-who is brutally murdered one day after being lured into an underground den allegedly built for kids by creepy paedophile George Harvey (Stanley Tucci); Susan’s spirit becomes trapped in-between Earth and Heaven, and as well as befriending ‘Holly’ (Nikki SooHoo), she tries to keep in contact with her grieving parents (Mark Wahlberg and Rachel Weisz), younger sister Lindsay (Rose McIver) and her would-be boyfriend/high school crush Ray (Reese Ritchie); that’s basically it.
Whilst the meagre plot leaves a lot of room for character depth and character development, not a lot of it is filled; the whole thing feels like a disjointed, wobbly mess, and often seems like the screenwriters were making it up as they went along. Some uninteresting characters like the father of Susan are overused, whereas some interesting characters like Ruth (Carolyn Dando) are disappointingly underused.
Nevertheless, the acting is worth of notice, particularly that of Saoirse Ronan, who is excellent by child actor standards. There is a lot of space for improvement, but she’s still quite impressive and rather compelling as the distraught and confused Susan, who is caught up in an almost fantastical Purgatory-like reality as she desperately wishes to go home back to her family and friends. Ronan, in fact, is the reason for the character’s compelling quality: the character is written quite duly and blandly, but Ronan’s talent at emoting that is already quite mature, coupled with Peter Jackson’s occasionally truly deft direction, makes the character one you root for. Unfortunately, Susan doesn’t do anything after her murder (which happens early on) besides crying and bemoaning, and whilst it’s thankfully not in an irritating way but in a way that garners sympathy from even me, the character never has to complete a task besides finding a way to get into Heaven, and she mostly focuses on the mortal world, and is only allowed passed the Pearly Gates when she stops caring.
The villain is, however, well-directed, well-written and well-realised, with the skilful Stanley Tucci able to create an evil persona reminiscent of Hitchcock’s sociopathic antagonists. Of course George Harvey is no Norman Bates, but nevertheless he is just as believable and yet at the same time unbelievable-he is believable in the fact that despite his despicable actions and manipulating of children and adults alike, he never laughs maniacally and often acts like a normal human being (when actually he’s quite the opposite) and is a very realistic depiction of a sociopath (memorably, there is one scene where before answering the police at his front door, he puts a biscuit in his mouth and splays an open magazine across a table to give off a casual demeanour); but he is unbelievable in the fact that if you met him-unless you were a child he wanted to victimise-he’d seem very much like a kind, friendly and harmless old man.
The aging Susan Sarandon fits her role perfectly as Susan’s cigarette-addicted grandmother, although does little. Meanwhile, Wahlberg and Weisz leave a lot to be desired. The two other main child actresses-Rose McIver and Nikki SooHoo-never reach the levels of emotion Ronan can achieve, but considering their ages are still quite okay. However, Reese Ritchie is bland in every sense of the word as Susan’s senior crush, and can’t force out a tear like even Wahlberg can.
If you’re looking for style rather than substance, firstly you’re an idiot, and secondly this movie will be a treat for you: Jackson continues showing off his SFX skills he first displayed with the visually phenomenal Lord of the Rings trilogy, and the depiction of the In-Between (or Purgatory, or whatever you want to call it) is superb. There are twisting and turning landscapes, giant bottles, giant photos, lakes in the middle of corn fields, snowy mountaintops and meadows. It is wonderfully realised and is much better than anything else in the movie, but nevertheless it’s still style over substance and the special effects can’t support it alone.
However, at times Peter Jackson seemed to remember that he was a good director, and whilst there are an array of boring and pointless scenes-like when the grandmother tries to cheer the family up in an unsuitably cheery montage-there are two character-based scenes worthy of notice. The first is the slow-paced build-up to the murder, as George Harvey lures poor Susan into his complicated trap; the second is a terrifically intense and suspenseful scene where Susan’s sister Lindsay has discovered incriminating evidence against Harvey under his bedroom floorboards, but before she can leave her comes home. For the latter scene, there is a series of shots which actually resonated with me, and despite the fact that Lindsay hadn’t be focused upon very much and thus I didn’t care for her, I did care for Susan, and as a result I hoped Harvey would be arrested by the police. The second scene is truly excellent, and for all of this movie’s flaws almost makes it worth watching.
Overall, it’s a shambles, and a waste of a lot already experienced talent (Jackson and Tucci) but also a waste of new, compromising talent (Ronan). Fortunately, the talent of a few cast members helps elevate it to become a better film, but when looking at the story in particular, I’m reminded bizarrely of Avatar: it has a slightly ripped-off plot (as well as a few ripped-off concepts, like one blatantly taken from Ghost when Susan uses Ruth’s body to see Ray again), is style over substance, is filled with flaws but has creates a brilliant new world. Probably the worst part of this movie is the ending: there’s a Deux Es Machina in the form of an icicle, the body of Susan has still not been found, and the movie ends with the following cringe-worthy lines: “My name is Salmon, like the fish; first name Susie. I was 14 years old when I was murdered on December 6, 1973. I was here for a moment and then I was gone. I wish you all a long and happy life.”
This movie never fully enters the dark murky waters of badness, but is certainly not very good; like Susie Salmon, it was here for a moment, and it will be soon be gone-gone from the minds of the people who viewed it as they move on to watching greater things.
4/10.
The cinematic era of the 1930’s is often recognised as Hollywood’s Golden Age, and rightfully so. After the successful early experiments with sound by Warner Bros. in the late 1920’s with The Jazz Singer and Lights of New York, Hollywood left its humble, comedy-focused silent origins, and some of the best stars and directors of the silent era-such as Chaplin and DeMille-successfully transitioned into the sound era. But the crucial developments in cinema were not over, as 1935’s Becky Sharp (the first ever film to use the three-strip Technicolor process) revolutionised cinema.
At the time, America was in the midst of a Great Depression, and tension was brewing in Europe with Hitler’s repeatedly appeased breaking of the Treaty of Versailles. Cinema offered an escape for people everywhere, and the later years of the 1930’s offered sweet, wholesome and innocent entertainment both the young and old could enjoy. Three movies are emblematic of this anti-Depression innocence: 1937’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, 1939's The Wizard of Oz and 1938’s The Adventures of Robin Hood.
It tells of the legend of Robin Hood (Errol Flynn), the swashbuckling hero who stole from the rich and gave to the poor. Whilst the fair and just King ‘the Lionheart’ Richard (Ian Hunter) is away in the crusades, his scheming brother Prince John (Claude Rains) tries to take the throne for himself, raising taxes to ridiculous levels in the meantime. Standing in his way is the Saxon Earl of Locksley, Robin Hood, who after humiliating the vicious Guy of Gisbourne (Basil Rathbone) in the presence of Prince John starts recruiting followers, such as Much (Herbert Mundin), Little John (Alan Hale Senior) and even the religious Friar Tuck (Eugene Pallette), and they set up camp in Sherwood Forest in Nottingham. Whilst Prince John and Guy of Gisbourne try to capture Robin, Richard’s ward Maid Marian (Olivia de Havilland) begins to understand Robin’s cause and subsequently falls for Robin.
It seems fitting that Warner Bros, the first studio to properly use sound, were one of the first few studios to use Technicolor, with The Adventures of Robin Hood capitalising on the advantages of Technicolor, with a wide variety of colours in the locations and costumes put to good use. Although Warner Bros normally produced low-budget gangster movies featuring the likes of Edward J Robinson and James Cagney, they produced this big-budget swashbuckler after a successful succession of other swashbucklers also starring Flynn.
The Adventures of Robin Hood’s cast is filmed with stars, with the most famous of course being Flynn, Rains, Rathbone and de Havilland. Flynn embodies the usual image of the legend, but not only in appearance (sporting mostly green attire and a crossbow with arrows) but also in the way he acts and the way he talks; the character is charismatic, persuasive and a quick-thinking, agile swordsman, with a hint of arrogance as well as playfulness. He is never fully charming but is compelling and certainly fun to watch (although his laugh gets a little irritating after the first dozen times), and due to the movie’s popularity has become synonymous with the legend.
He also has excellent chemistry with de Havilland, who contrasts to the almost pantomime portrayal Flynn offers with subtlety, especially in facial expressions and the delivery of lines. Her character is the most well-rounded and believable, initially holding Robin Hood in contempt due to her loyalty for King Richard being carried over to become loyalty for Prince John. But her hatred for Robin turns to understanding and inevitably love, as she learns that Robin is as loyal to the King as she and sees the poor quality of life so many Nottingham villagers have.
But the stars of The Adventures of Robin Hood are really the villains, with Rains and Rathbone both being exquisite and tremendous: Rains is more quietly evil, hiding his cruel intentions by faking admiration for Robin Hood, but Rathbone is the more active of the two, with Gisbourne being candidly treacherous. Both John and Gisbourne may not be as interesting as Robin, but at times you feel like siding with the villains due to their likability and exceptional deviousness. As for the other performances, only Herbert Mundin is quite memorable as Much the miller’s son, mostly for the light-hearted comic relief he provides.
Visually, this movie is high art, lavishly designed, lovingly cinematographed and wholly impressive. Not only are the natural ‘sets’ like Bidwell Park in Chico, California (aka ‘Sherwood Forest’) tranquil-looking and rather sumptuous, but the models for the exterior of the castle are almost believable, and the interior of the castle (featuring a number of areas, including the dungeons and banqueting hall) is oddly awe-inspiring as you realise that this was built by the studio. Whilst not completely authentic-looking, it looks so real so frequently and the fact that this was built during the tail end of the Great Depression is unbelievable.
Undoubtedly the best scenes in The Adventures of Robin Hood are the action scenes, some being quite ahead of its time (like the climactic battle scene). The sword fight between Robin and Gisbourne near the end is sensational alone, with the choreography of it being endlessly inventive and considerably original by old movie standards. It’s much more thrilling than most modern fight scenes, thanks to Michael Curtiz’s (the man behind Casablanca, also produced and distributed by Warner Bros) deft direction and the fact that there’s enough build-up to make you excited (even if the outcome is predictable) and enough great acting and characterisation to make you care for these characters. The scene is even a little ‘artsy’ with the inspired usage of shadows fighting, a moment still remembered even after all these decades, as proven by countless spoofs and references (like in the comedy Hot Shots! Part Deux).
The Adventures of Robin Hood is an entertaining and colourful rollercoaster from start to finish, and the only thing it’s missing is a great score. Despite one or two nitpicks of mine, this movie is a hugely entertaining and timeless near-masterpiece and for a movie buff required viewing.
9/10.
The Lovely Bones (2009)
Oddly enough, whilst watching Peter Jackson’ s 2009 dramatic horror The Lovely Bones based upon the best-selling book of the same name, I was reminded of The Sixth Sense; upon looking at both films closely, one will notice The Lovely Bones and M Night Shyamalan’s famous suspense thriller have a lot in common. They both deal with ghosts and death (as well as coping with it), but the specific scene I recalled in The Sixth Sense whilst watching this was where we learnt that a mother had poisoned her daughter’s food repeatedly and eventually killed her, and was planning on doing the same to her younger daughter; this was eventually discovered by evidence on tape.
Now, I haven’t read the book The Lovely Bones was adapted from, but either the author or the screenwriters ripped off Shyamalan, seeing as parts of the plot are practically identical to what was merely a minor subplot in Sixth Sense-except that instead of the mother doing the killing it’s a lonely neighbour, and instead of a tape being the evidence it’s a set of photographs.
Set in 1973, The Lovely Bones tells of the camera-loving 14-year-old (Saoirse Ronan) named Susan Salmon-‘like the fish’, she says-who is brutally murdered one day after being lured into an underground den allegedly built for kids by creepy paedophile George Harvey (Stanley Tucci); Susan’s spirit becomes trapped in-between Earth and Heaven, and as well as befriending ‘Holly’ (Nikki SooHoo), she tries to keep in contact with her grieving parents (Mark Wahlberg and Rachel Weisz), younger sister Lindsay (Rose McIver) and her would-be boyfriend/high school crush Ray (Reese Ritchie); that’s basically it.
Whilst the meagre plot leaves a lot of room for character depth and character development, not a lot of it is filled; the whole thing feels like a disjointed, wobbly mess, and often seems like the screenwriters were making it up as they went along. Some uninteresting characters like the father of Susan are overused, whereas some interesting characters like Ruth (Carolyn Dando) are disappointingly underused.
Nevertheless, the acting is worth of notice, particularly that of Saoirse Ronan, who is excellent by child actor standards. There is a lot of space for improvement, but she’s still quite impressive and rather compelling as the distraught and confused Susan, who is caught up in an almost fantastical Purgatory-like reality as she desperately wishes to go home back to her family and friends. Ronan, in fact, is the reason for the character’s compelling quality: the character is written quite duly and blandly, but Ronan’s talent at emoting that is already quite mature, coupled with Peter Jackson’s occasionally truly deft direction, makes the character one you root for. Unfortunately, Susan doesn’t do anything after her murder (which happens early on) besides crying and bemoaning, and whilst it’s thankfully not in an irritating way but in a way that garners sympathy from even me, the character never has to complete a task besides finding a way to get into Heaven, and she mostly focuses on the mortal world, and is only allowed passed the Pearly Gates when she stops caring.
The villain is, however, well-directed, well-written and well-realised, with the skilful Stanley Tucci able to create an evil persona reminiscent of Hitchcock’s sociopathic antagonists. Of course George Harvey is no Norman Bates, but nevertheless he is just as believable and yet at the same time unbelievable-he is believable in the fact that despite his despicable actions and manipulating of children and adults alike, he never laughs maniacally and often acts like a normal human being (when actually he’s quite the opposite) and is a very realistic depiction of a sociopath (memorably, there is one scene where before answering the police at his front door, he puts a biscuit in his mouth and splays an open magazine across a table to give off a casual demeanour); but he is unbelievable in the fact that if you met him-unless you were a child he wanted to victimise-he’d seem very much like a kind, friendly and harmless old man.
The aging Susan Sarandon fits her role perfectly as Susan’s cigarette-addicted grandmother, although does little. Meanwhile, Wahlberg and Weisz leave a lot to be desired. The two other main child actresses-Rose McIver and Nikki SooHoo-never reach the levels of emotion Ronan can achieve, but considering their ages are still quite okay. However, Reese Ritchie is bland in every sense of the word as Susan’s senior crush, and can’t force out a tear like even Wahlberg can.
If you’re looking for style rather than substance, firstly you’re an idiot, and secondly this movie will be a treat for you: Jackson continues showing off his SFX skills he first displayed with the visually phenomenal Lord of the Rings trilogy, and the depiction of the In-Between (or Purgatory, or whatever you want to call it) is superb. There are twisting and turning landscapes, giant bottles, giant photos, lakes in the middle of corn fields, snowy mountaintops and meadows. It is wonderfully realised and is much better than anything else in the movie, but nevertheless it’s still style over substance and the special effects can’t support it alone.
However, at times Peter Jackson seemed to remember that he was a good director, and whilst there are an array of boring and pointless scenes-like when the grandmother tries to cheer the family up in an unsuitably cheery montage-there are two character-based scenes worthy of notice. The first is the slow-paced build-up to the murder, as George Harvey lures poor Susan into his complicated trap; the second is a terrifically intense and suspenseful scene where Susan’s sister Lindsay has discovered incriminating evidence against Harvey under his bedroom floorboards, but before she can leave her comes home. For the latter scene, there is a series of shots which actually resonated with me, and despite the fact that Lindsay hadn’t be focused upon very much and thus I didn’t care for her, I did care for Susan, and as a result I hoped Harvey would be arrested by the police. The second scene is truly excellent, and for all of this movie’s flaws almost makes it worth watching.
Overall, it’s a shambles, and a waste of a lot already experienced talent (Jackson and Tucci) but also a waste of new, compromising talent (Ronan). Fortunately, the talent of a few cast members helps elevate it to become a better film, but when looking at the story in particular, I’m reminded bizarrely of Avatar: it has a slightly ripped-off plot (as well as a few ripped-off concepts, like one blatantly taken from Ghost when Susan uses Ruth’s body to see Ray again), is style over substance, is filled with flaws but has creates a brilliant new world. Probably the worst part of this movie is the ending: there’s a Deux Es Machina in the form of an icicle, the body of Susan has still not been found, and the movie ends with the following cringe-worthy lines: “My name is Salmon, like the fish; first name Susie. I was 14 years old when I was murdered on December 6, 1973. I was here for a moment and then I was gone. I wish you all a long and happy life.”
This movie never fully enters the dark murky waters of badness, but is certainly not very good; like Susie Salmon, it was here for a moment, and it will be soon be gone-gone from the minds of the people who viewed it as they move on to watching greater things.
4/10.
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ajmrowland
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- Location: Appleton, WI
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SillySymphony
- Gold Classic Collection
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Movie views of the past 2 weeks:
(Rating scale 1-5 ✰s)
Amish Grace ✰✰✰
Winnie the Pooh ✰✰✰✰
The Boys:The Sherman Bros.' Story ✰✰✰✰1/2
Harry Potter...Deathly Hallows Pt. 2 ✰✰✰1/2
Make Mine Music ✰✰✰
Source Code ✰✰✰✰
The Boys was better than Waking Sleeping Beauty; It felt more honest and open, plus brilliant music. Planning to watch Walt & El Grupo this week.
(Rating scale 1-5 ✰s)
Amish Grace ✰✰✰
Winnie the Pooh ✰✰✰✰
The Boys:The Sherman Bros.' Story ✰✰✰✰1/2
Harry Potter...Deathly Hallows Pt. 2 ✰✰✰1/2
Make Mine Music ✰✰✰
Source Code ✰✰✰✰
The Boys was better than Waking Sleeping Beauty; It felt more honest and open, plus brilliant music. Planning to watch Walt & El Grupo this week.
theCat'sOut/Flowers&Trees/theFlyingMouse/theSkeletonDance/theThreeLittlePigs
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dvdjunkie
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- Location: Wichita, Kansas
Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid (1973) - Director's Cut DVD
As westerns go this one is pretty weak as far as telling the real story goes, but it has some brilliantly photographed scenes that boggle your mind. Directed by Sam Peckinpah and starring James Coburn and Kris Kristofferson in the lead roles, this movie has its ups and downs. While the acting is pretty good, there are some scenes that just don't work, while there are others that are absolutely stunning. With a featured cast of Chill Wills, Slim Pickens, R.G. Armstrong and Bob Dylan, who also provided a great soundtrack, this movie goes nowhere fast. I will say, however, that the Director's Cut (122 min.) is far superior to the mish-mash that was released to the theater (106 min.).
3/5 stars.
As westerns go this one is pretty weak as far as telling the real story goes, but it has some brilliantly photographed scenes that boggle your mind. Directed by Sam Peckinpah and starring James Coburn and Kris Kristofferson in the lead roles, this movie has its ups and downs. While the acting is pretty good, there are some scenes that just don't work, while there are others that are absolutely stunning. With a featured cast of Chill Wills, Slim Pickens, R.G. Armstrong and Bob Dylan, who also provided a great soundtrack, this movie goes nowhere fast. I will say, however, that the Director's Cut (122 min.) is far superior to the mish-mash that was released to the theater (106 min.).
3/5 stars.
Last edited by dvdjunkie on Thu Jul 28, 2011 7:09 am, edited 1 time in total.
The only way to watch movies - Original Aspect Ratio!!!!
I LOVE my Blu-Ray Disc Player!
I LOVE my Blu-Ray Disc Player!
You forgot to mention Dylan's wonderful soundtrack.dvdjunkie wrote:Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid (1973) - Director's Cut DVD
Luckily, I didn't ask you.ajmrowland wrote:^If you ask me, the Hilary Duff one was way better.
Oh, you were still under the impression I watched it because I thought the plot might have interesting?
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ajmrowland
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^No, I was just saying that the plot *was* more interesting in the first one. It really did have it's moments. Duff made her character strong and likable and I personally rooted more for her than for Gomez-not that Gomez is a bad actress.
But as you implied, my opinion is worth nothing, so dont listen to me.
But as you implied, my opinion is worth nothing, so dont listen to me.