Synopsis: A young man pretends to be crazy in order to investigate and avenge his father's death.
Appraisal: This version of the famous legend has modern settings but uses the exact words from the 17th century play. The attempts to make the story consistent with the contemporary world are null, except for the corporate settings and superficial elements like phones, faxes, etc. The reasons for making this film in this exact manner (or at all, to be frank) are dubious. Thus the only possible grounds for appraisal one has lie in the quality of the mise-en-scene and performances and, in my view, the film comes out rather well in those. All the performances are quite satisfactory.
Rating: 55
Saturday, September 30, 2006
Thursday, September 28, 2006
San Pietro (1945)
This film is a depiction of a minor battle in World War II and the subsequent liberation of the Italian village of San Pietro. Until recently it was thought that the majority of the battle scenes were authentic; it has been revealed that most or all of them were restaged. I understand, however, that the sequence of the village liberation is documental (anyone who has certified information about this, please let me know). Anyway, the film is certainly worthwhile for those with an interest in WWII, or in filmmaking in general. The copy I saw was 32 minutes long and was broadcast on the Brazilian channel "Telecine Cult". It is also available on the Internet Archive site, but beware: although they claim their copy is 43 minutes long, it is actually also 32 minutes long.
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
De-Lovely (2004)
Synopsis: Biopic-musical about composer Cole Porter, centering on his marriage.
Appraisal: Paradoxically, lifelessness seems to be the rule when it comes to films telling someone's life, and this is no exception. It considerably edulcorates Porter's convenience marriage, giving it a romantic status that, based on reliable accounts, it lacked. It's not that I think absolute loyalty to factual reality is mandatory; it's that in this case the unloyalty has probably less than noble motives like hypocrisy; and the results are clearly tedious and unconvincing. Musically, it is tainted by featuring the worst renditions ever of two Porter songs: "Begin the Beguine" (which alters the melody beyond recognition), and "Let's Do It" (this one is so obscene it has to be heard to be believed). The other numbers vary from unremarkable ('Let's Misbehave') to quite good ('De-Lovely').
Rating: 40
Appraisal: Paradoxically, lifelessness seems to be the rule when it comes to films telling someone's life, and this is no exception. It considerably edulcorates Porter's convenience marriage, giving it a romantic status that, based on reliable accounts, it lacked. It's not that I think absolute loyalty to factual reality is mandatory; it's that in this case the unloyalty has probably less than noble motives like hypocrisy; and the results are clearly tedious and unconvincing. Musically, it is tainted by featuring the worst renditions ever of two Porter songs: "Begin the Beguine" (which alters the melody beyond recognition), and "Let's Do It" (this one is so obscene it has to be heard to be believed). The other numbers vary from unremarkable ('Let's Misbehave') to quite good ('De-Lovely').
Rating: 40
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999)
Synopsis: The Trade Federation establishes a blockade on planet Naboo. Two Jedi knights are sent by the Senate of the Galactic Republic to try to settle the conflict.
Appraisal: There is no denying the visual beauty of this film. The screenplay is mediocre though. Things that rubbed me in the wrong way: an entire robot army is controlled by one central device, without which it simply ceases to function (you don't have to go to Engineering School to realize this is plain stupid, not to mention hardly necessary technologically; on the other hand, it is very convenient dramatically; see also my review for 'Reign of Fire'); on the other hand, it becomes clear that the concept of decentralization is not alien to the screenwriter, and he is willing to employ it as long as it is advantageous to the 'good guys': a queen uses a double who (implausibly enough) is prepared to speak for her when it is necessary, while she parades along as a maid (does no one know what she looks like?).
Rating: 51
Appraisal: There is no denying the visual beauty of this film. The screenplay is mediocre though. Things that rubbed me in the wrong way: an entire robot army is controlled by one central device, without which it simply ceases to function (you don't have to go to Engineering School to realize this is plain stupid, not to mention hardly necessary technologically; on the other hand, it is very convenient dramatically; see also my review for 'Reign of Fire'); on the other hand, it becomes clear that the concept of decentralization is not alien to the screenwriter, and he is willing to employ it as long as it is advantageous to the 'good guys': a queen uses a double who (implausibly enough) is prepared to speak for her when it is necessary, while she parades along as a maid (does no one know what she looks like?).
Rating: 51
Leila para Sempre Diniz (1975)
I caught it by chance on TV. It is only 10 minutes long. It is a summary of the life of the once famous Brazilian actress, dead at 27 in a plane crash of Japan Airlines in India in 1972. For those with a special interest.
Sunday, September 24, 2006
Super Size Me (2004)
Synopsis: This is a documentary about the effects of fast food on people's health.
Appraisal: In all honesty, this film is twice as long as it should be, with a lot of redundancy that could easily be compressed or eliminated altogether (oh and it is losing a lot of rating points on account of the pointless and disgusting display of a stomach reducing surgery; have pity!). To keep in tune with the film's theme, fatness is as unhealthy on a movie as it is on a person, and this film is obese. I know much of the praise it has received is based on its alleged social change-inducing power. Give me a break! If the U.S.A. (or, for that matter, a lot of other countries including my own) is in such a bad moral and political shape as to depend on a movie produced by a hitherto unknown person in order to change things that are reaching catastrophic proportions, there is something deeply wrong with the U.S.A. (and, for that matter, a lot of other countries including my own) that goes way beyond the physical health of their people. Is this the only way? Will people have to die before action is taken? Note that, as reported by the film, the only actions taken in order to reduce this problem came from individual institutions; as far as the government is concerned, the only action that the film reports is a law that forbids certain kinds of lawsuits against food companies.
Note: I saw a dubbed-in-Portuguese version.
Rating: 51
Appraisal: In all honesty, this film is twice as long as it should be, with a lot of redundancy that could easily be compressed or eliminated altogether (oh and it is losing a lot of rating points on account of the pointless and disgusting display of a stomach reducing surgery; have pity!). To keep in tune with the film's theme, fatness is as unhealthy on a movie as it is on a person, and this film is obese. I know much of the praise it has received is based on its alleged social change-inducing power. Give me a break! If the U.S.A. (or, for that matter, a lot of other countries including my own) is in such a bad moral and political shape as to depend on a movie produced by a hitherto unknown person in order to change things that are reaching catastrophic proportions, there is something deeply wrong with the U.S.A. (and, for that matter, a lot of other countries including my own) that goes way beyond the physical health of their people. Is this the only way? Will people have to die before action is taken? Note that, as reported by the film, the only actions taken in order to reduce this problem came from individual institutions; as far as the government is concerned, the only action that the film reports is a law that forbids certain kinds of lawsuits against food companies.
Note: I saw a dubbed-in-Portuguese version.
Rating: 51
Osmosis Jones (2001)
Synopsis: This film alternates between live action and animation. In the live action part we see a man with lousy health habits who is supposed to go with his daughter on a camping trip but for reasons that the film will show can't. In the animation part we see what happens in the same period in the insides of said man's body as he is contaminated by a deadly virus.
Appraisal: This film is probably a good educational instrument to teach biology to kids. It is also entertaining, thanks to the smart, funny script and to the good job done in the animation department (this is old-fashioned animation, by the way).
Rating: 62
Appraisal: This film is probably a good educational instrument to teach biology to kids. It is also entertaining, thanks to the smart, funny script and to the good job done in the animation department (this is old-fashioned animation, by the way).
Rating: 62
Saturday, September 23, 2006
Rang-e khoda (1999)
English Title: The Color of Paradise.
Synopsis: A blind boy suffers because of his egotistical, unloving father.
Appraisal: This film has clear moralizing purposes and as it approaches the ending its tone becomes more and more sentimental and preachlike. It's competently made, and even its moralistic agenda is accomplished with as little manicheism as possible -- e.g. the father's point of view is exposed, and the film tries to show that it is comprehensible but not justifiable. I wouldn't recommend it to general audiences though, because it is not rewarding enough in a purely aesthetical or entertaining sense.
Rating: 43
Synopsis: A blind boy suffers because of his egotistical, unloving father.
Appraisal: This film has clear moralizing purposes and as it approaches the ending its tone becomes more and more sentimental and preachlike. It's competently made, and even its moralistic agenda is accomplished with as little manicheism as possible -- e.g. the father's point of view is exposed, and the film tries to show that it is comprehensible but not justifiable. I wouldn't recommend it to general audiences though, because it is not rewarding enough in a purely aesthetical or entertaining sense.
Rating: 43
The Devil Wears Prada (2006)
Synopsis: An aspiring journalist takes a job as an assistant to the bitchy editor-in-chief of a fashion magazine.
Appraisal: This film sabotages itself artistically (but probably secures itself a higher grossing too) by placing an exaggerated emphasis on the pop music soundtrack, the flashy display of fashion items, and the romantic elements in the plot. That being said, the end result still offers some insight about sadomasochistic behavior in the workplace. A better film with similar subject matter is 'Swimming with Sharks (1994)'.
Rating: 57
Appraisal: This film sabotages itself artistically (but probably secures itself a higher grossing too) by placing an exaggerated emphasis on the pop music soundtrack, the flashy display of fashion items, and the romantic elements in the plot. That being said, the end result still offers some insight about sadomasochistic behavior in the workplace. A better film with similar subject matter is 'Swimming with Sharks (1994)'.
Rating: 57
Garrincha, Alegria do Povo (1963)
International English Title According to IMDb: Garrincha: Hero of the Jungle (sic).
Correct Translation of the Title: Garrincha, Joy of the People.
This is a documentary about a Brazilian soccer player, whose deftness at dribbling made him famous. One sees images from the World Cups of 1958 and 1962, in which one can testify to Garrincha's phenomenal abilities. Also, some bits of his personal life are shown. The film lasts 58 min (at least my copy did), but only the first 40 or so are about Garrincha. The rest of the movie is about soccer as a mass phenomenon in general. The film is not a complete picture of Garrincha, but is nice to watch due to some good soccer and also the display of the common soccer fans and their reactions.
Rating: 56
Correct Translation of the Title: Garrincha, Joy of the People.
This is a documentary about a Brazilian soccer player, whose deftness at dribbling made him famous. One sees images from the World Cups of 1958 and 1962, in which one can testify to Garrincha's phenomenal abilities. Also, some bits of his personal life are shown. The film lasts 58 min (at least my copy did), but only the first 40 or so are about Garrincha. The rest of the movie is about soccer as a mass phenomenon in general. The film is not a complete picture of Garrincha, but is nice to watch due to some good soccer and also the display of the common soccer fans and their reactions.
Rating: 56
Fantastic Four (2005)
Synopsis: A team is sent on a spaceship to investigate an atmospheric phenomenon and suffers an accident after which its members develop superpowers.
Appraisal: I had a good time with this film; it has good set-pieces and the storyline is quite interesting.
Rating: 60
Appraisal: I had a good time with this film; it has good set-pieces and the storyline is quite interesting.
Rating: 60
Friday, September 22, 2006
Chicken Run (2000)
Synopsis: The chickens in a pen are constantly trying to escape.
Appraisal: This is an animation with mass modeling dolls that impresses by the competence of the animation itself. In a conventional way it is well written and offers a moderate amount of entertainment. It is nothing very remarkable though. Another thing: maybe it's just me, but I found many of the situations excessively disturbing; nothing really gruesome actually happens, but the threats and close calls did put me off a bit, as I expect they would an overly sensitive child.
Rating: 55
Appraisal: This is an animation with mass modeling dolls that impresses by the competence of the animation itself. In a conventional way it is well written and offers a moderate amount of entertainment. It is nothing very remarkable though. Another thing: maybe it's just me, but I found many of the situations excessively disturbing; nothing really gruesome actually happens, but the threats and close calls did put me off a bit, as I expect they would an overly sensitive child.
Rating: 55
The End of the Affair (1999)
Synopsis: The wife of a government employee cheats on him with a writer.
Appraisal: Although I acknowledge the good work of the two leading performers (not the husband, though: he acts like a character straight from 'Night of the Living Dead'), this half-baked romantic-theological drama is seriously dated, and looks more like a mind game (a tedious one at that) than the depiction of real people and their inner conflicts. It has a repetitive structure, devised for showing multiple points of view, but it's all predictable after the first time it is shown. Since the performances give the film a human dimension that the script lacks, I won't give it too low a rating.
Rating: 48
Appraisal: Although I acknowledge the good work of the two leading performers (not the husband, though: he acts like a character straight from 'Night of the Living Dead'), this half-baked romantic-theological drama is seriously dated, and looks more like a mind game (a tedious one at that) than the depiction of real people and their inner conflicts. It has a repetitive structure, devised for showing multiple points of view, but it's all predictable after the first time it is shown. Since the performances give the film a human dimension that the script lacks, I won't give it too low a rating.
Rating: 48
Thursday, September 21, 2006
Lucía y el sexo (2001)
English Title: Sex and Lucia.
Synopsis: A young woman gets involved with a writer who had a child from a fleeting encounter on an island.
Appraisal: Altogether awful plotwise, its only possible attractiveness lies in the photogenic depiction of nude bodies and natural settings.
Rating: 25
Synopsis: A young woman gets involved with a writer who had a child from a fleeting encounter on an island.
Appraisal: Altogether awful plotwise, its only possible attractiveness lies in the photogenic depiction of nude bodies and natural settings.
Rating: 25
Enemy at the Gates (2001)
Synopsis: During the siege of Stalingrad, in World War II, a sniper becomes the symbol of the resistance.
Appraisal: The main storyline is quite tedious, basically revolving around a duel between a German major and a Soviet sniper. There is also an uninteresting love triangle comprised of said sniper, a local educated young woman and a Soviet officer. There is hardly any battle in this movie; anyone who expects to see the film about the siege of Stalingrad will be sourly disappointed, except for the opening sequence containing a very well staged depiction of the arrival of Soviet soldiers in the city, and a few skirmishes later in the film. The writers didn't miss a chance to insert anti-stalinist comments in the dialogue; those comments seem rather strained and out of place; of course, as propaganda it's as innocuous as beating a dead dog. The stakeout and shooting sequences are well staged, which, along with the opening sequence, make the film piecewise endurable; as a dramatic unit it doesn't stand.
Rating: 45
Appraisal: The main storyline is quite tedious, basically revolving around a duel between a German major and a Soviet sniper. There is also an uninteresting love triangle comprised of said sniper, a local educated young woman and a Soviet officer. There is hardly any battle in this movie; anyone who expects to see the film about the siege of Stalingrad will be sourly disappointed, except for the opening sequence containing a very well staged depiction of the arrival of Soviet soldiers in the city, and a few skirmishes later in the film. The writers didn't miss a chance to insert anti-stalinist comments in the dialogue; those comments seem rather strained and out of place; of course, as propaganda it's as innocuous as beating a dead dog. The stakeout and shooting sequences are well staged, which, along with the opening sequence, make the film piecewise endurable; as a dramatic unit it doesn't stand.
Rating: 45
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Svadba (2000)
English Title: The Wedding.
Synopsis: Tanya returns to her hometown from Moscow. When she meets Mischka, who is in love with her since childhood, she proposes to him.
Appraisal: There is not much to see here except for loud discussions, some singing and dancing, and people getting drunk. It's a poor way of developing a story, and conveys a stereotyped portrayal of the Russian people. Of course they might be exactly like this, for all I know. Anyway, the film is rather limited, although it achieves some funny moments here and there.
Rating: 44
Synopsis: Tanya returns to her hometown from Moscow. When she meets Mischka, who is in love with her since childhood, she proposes to him.
Appraisal: There is not much to see here except for loud discussions, some singing and dancing, and people getting drunk. It's a poor way of developing a story, and conveys a stereotyped portrayal of the Russian people. Of course they might be exactly like this, for all I know. Anyway, the film is rather limited, although it achieves some funny moments here and there.
Rating: 44
Operation Petticoat (1959)
Synopsis: In World War II, a submarine is forced to take some women in.
Appraisal: This is mostly dated and bland. There is a terrific piece of dialogue when the admiral gets irritated and then there is a non-sequitur in his girlfriend's comment (see the movie or read this guy's extensive review if you want to know how it goes). That brief moment aside, the film is a little more than barely watchable.
Rating: 40
Appraisal: This is mostly dated and bland. There is a terrific piece of dialogue when the admiral gets irritated and then there is a non-sequitur in his girlfriend's comment (see the movie or read this guy's extensive review if you want to know how it goes). That brief moment aside, the film is a little more than barely watchable.
Rating: 40
Monday, September 18, 2006
Reign of Fire (2002)
Synopsis: In the future, the Earth is dominated by dragons.
Appraisal: With the technology that is available today for production of computer-generated imagery, it was only natural that an idea like this would come up: a science-fiction film with dragons. The visuals are the main attraction here, and all that the screenplay has to do is provide some opportunities for the display of those lovely beasts flying around and throwing fire. It actually does it, and even more. The film is reasonably good entertainment, with good action sequences and a coherent (though not very imaginative) story connecting them. Someone tell me: isn't there a previous film where there are many monsters but it suffices to kill one of them to stop them from reproducing? Am I having a false-memory episode here?
Rating: 54
Appraisal: With the technology that is available today for production of computer-generated imagery, it was only natural that an idea like this would come up: a science-fiction film with dragons. The visuals are the main attraction here, and all that the screenplay has to do is provide some opportunities for the display of those lovely beasts flying around and throwing fire. It actually does it, and even more. The film is reasonably good entertainment, with good action sequences and a coherent (though not very imaginative) story connecting them. Someone tell me: isn't there a previous film where there are many monsters but it suffices to kill one of them to stop them from reproducing? Am I having a false-memory episode here?
Rating: 54
Sunday, September 17, 2006
Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001)
Synopsis: Two guys go to Hollywood to try to stop a movie indirectly based on them.
Appraisal: I remember having laughed a couple of times during this film, which is too little. I was not pissed off, though. I had the notion I could be doing something better, or at least watching something better, but I reckon the movie was not totally despicable. It's mostly comprised of in-jokes, which I don't much care for. These two guys are getting a little too old for their personas, so I hope this was the end of them.
Rating: 32
Appraisal: I remember having laughed a couple of times during this film, which is too little. I was not pissed off, though. I had the notion I could be doing something better, or at least watching something better, but I reckon the movie was not totally despicable. It's mostly comprised of in-jokes, which I don't much care for. These two guys are getting a little too old for their personas, so I hope this was the end of them.
Rating: 32
Saturday, September 16, 2006
Dog Park (1998)
Synopsis: A guy is dumped by his girlfriend.
Appraisal: What an awful film this is. It's rare to see a film so consistently and bravely bad as this one. I must say I admire its maker for the sheer cold blood he had to have in order to first conceive, then direct, and finally release such a piece of crap. I humbly hope that my ordeal serves to discourage potential viewers.
Rating: 16
Appraisal: What an awful film this is. It's rare to see a film so consistently and bravely bad as this one. I must say I admire its maker for the sheer cold blood he had to have in order to first conceive, then direct, and finally release such a piece of crap. I humbly hope that my ordeal serves to discourage potential viewers.
Rating: 16
Because of Winn-Dixie (2005)
Synopsis: A girl moves with her preacher father to a small town. There she befriends a dog.
Appraisal: This is the gazillionth film about a kid and a dog, but it is set apart by a more realistic approach of some issues like broken families, alcoholism, prejudice against social misfits, dealing with loss, etc. The film has virtues and is probably adequate (and even beneficial) to children, but I suspect it could be a little less serious and more spontaneous without betraying its principles.
Rating: 56
Appraisal: This is the gazillionth film about a kid and a dog, but it is set apart by a more realistic approach of some issues like broken families, alcoholism, prejudice against social misfits, dealing with loss, etc. The film has virtues and is probably adequate (and even beneficial) to children, but I suspect it could be a little less serious and more spontaneous without betraying its principles.
Rating: 56
Coach Carter (2005)
Synopsis: A determined basketball coach accepts to coach a small team.
Appraisal: The premise here is similar to one million other films, but here they added a new element: the coach is concerned about the academic performance of the players. I enjoyed the film moderately; also it tackles relevant educational issues.
Rating: 52
Appraisal: The premise here is similar to one million other films, but here they added a new element: the coach is concerned about the academic performance of the players. I enjoyed the film moderately; also it tackles relevant educational issues.
Rating: 52
Thursday, September 14, 2006
The Guru (2002)
Synopsis: An Indian immigrant becomes by a series of fortuitous events a sex guru.
Appraisal: While completely unsophisticated, this comedy is not bad as semi-mindless entertainment. It is definitely upbeat and everyone in it seems to be having a good time, so it's easy for the viewer to relax and get in the same mood.
Rating: 52
Appraisal: While completely unsophisticated, this comedy is not bad as semi-mindless entertainment. It is definitely upbeat and everyone in it seems to be having a good time, so it's easy for the viewer to relax and get in the same mood.
Rating: 52
Good Bye Lenin! (2003)
Synopsis: A woman enters in a coma just prior to the big changes that led to the downfall of the East Germany regime and only wakes up months after. His son, afraid that the news might worsen her condition, conceals what went on from her.
Appraisal: Another one-joke movie, playing with a far-fetched idea for a few comic or dramatic dividends. A poor screenplay makes those dividends scarce. The technical aspects are quite professional and some individual sequences are well handled, but they are inserted in a story that I really couldn't bring myself to care about. Matters are made even worse by some silly character behavior that is revealed as a surprise near the none-too-soon ending.
Rating: 41
Appraisal: Another one-joke movie, playing with a far-fetched idea for a few comic or dramatic dividends. A poor screenplay makes those dividends scarce. The technical aspects are quite professional and some individual sequences are well handled, but they are inserted in a story that I really couldn't bring myself to care about. Matters are made even worse by some silly character behavior that is revealed as a surprise near the none-too-soon ending.
Rating: 41
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
Lonesome Jim (2005)
Synopsis: Young man returns to his parents' house after not having made it in New York.
Appraisal: This film deals with the topics of motivation and happiness in life and the role families play in it. I always take the subjacent psychology of supposedly realistic films like this one with a grain of salt. The tendency for psychological falsification is apparently inherent in screenwriters from all over the world. But 'Lonesome Jim', while probably a little strained or simplistic in some details (e.g. the children are too uniformly well behaved; the ending was 100% predictable and 0% consistent with how real people act), looks reasonably true to life in the bigger picture it draws. I think it hits the mark more often than it misses it.
Rating: 54
Appraisal: This film deals with the topics of motivation and happiness in life and the role families play in it. I always take the subjacent psychology of supposedly realistic films like this one with a grain of salt. The tendency for psychological falsification is apparently inherent in screenwriters from all over the world. But 'Lonesome Jim', while probably a little strained or simplistic in some details (e.g. the children are too uniformly well behaved; the ending was 100% predictable and 0% consistent with how real people act), looks reasonably true to life in the bigger picture it draws. I think it hits the mark more often than it misses it.
Rating: 54
The Paper (1994)
Synopsis: This film shows the inners of a newspaper office; the outside fact driving most of the action is the murder of two white businessmen and the subsequent arrest of two innocent black men.
Appraisal: This film doesn't make the littlest effort to stay away from clichés. There is the workaholic reporter, who is constantly at odds with his insensitive female supervisor. There is also the old boss who is sick and wants to make peace with his estranged daughter. Etc, etc. The screenplay pushes the situations to extremes, and it is not always very plausible at that. But, all that being said, the film is enjoyable; it has a hectic rhythm (I guess it should too, since it portrays a newspaper office), and, while I wouldn't call it thrilling, it does hold a viewer's attention.
Rating: 56
Appraisal: This film doesn't make the littlest effort to stay away from clichés. There is the workaholic reporter, who is constantly at odds with his insensitive female supervisor. There is also the old boss who is sick and wants to make peace with his estranged daughter. Etc, etc. The screenplay pushes the situations to extremes, and it is not always very plausible at that. But, all that being said, the film is enjoyable; it has a hectic rhythm (I guess it should too, since it portrays a newspaper office), and, while I wouldn't call it thrilling, it does hold a viewer's attention.
Rating: 56
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Rinne (2005)
English Title: Reincarnation.
This is my second viewing of this film (see post on Aug, 27 for my first review). There was a lot I didn't understand upon first viewing, which may explain my low rating (36) then. After having seen it for the second time, I may say that there is nothing gratuitous in this film. There are things that still look nonsensical to me, like a videocamera that comes out of the blue and a few other things, but overall the film is enjoyable and above average for a horror film these days.
Rating: 55
This is my second viewing of this film (see post on Aug, 27 for my first review). There was a lot I didn't understand upon first viewing, which may explain my low rating (36) then. After having seen it for the second time, I may say that there is nothing gratuitous in this film. There are things that still look nonsensical to me, like a videocamera that comes out of the blue and a few other things, but overall the film is enjoyable and above average for a horror film these days.
Rating: 55
No Rio das Amazonas (1995)
Description: Documentary that follows some people (one of whom is a zoologist) down a riverboat cruise in Amazonia.
Appraisal: Though occasionally informative, it's often tedious and uneventful. Watch it only if you are very interested in information about the Amazonian region.
Rating: 34
Appraisal: Though occasionally informative, it's often tedious and uneventful. Watch it only if you are very interested in information about the Amazonian region.
Rating: 34
Monday, September 11, 2006
Lord of War (2005)
Synopsis: The life of an arms dealer.
Appraisal: Once you abandon all hopes for (a) formal sophistication or originality; (b) exciting action; and (c) psychological depth, then maybe, even probably, you will enjoy 'Lord of War' a little. It is hard not to, because (i) its theme is relevant, (ii) it's done its homework in subject research, and (iii) it exposes some interesting aspects of recent world history in a reasonably entertaining way. But for the reasons (a), (b) and (c) above, it is also hard to enjoy it more than a little.
Rating: 59
Appraisal: Once you abandon all hopes for (a) formal sophistication or originality; (b) exciting action; and (c) psychological depth, then maybe, even probably, you will enjoy 'Lord of War' a little. It is hard not to, because (i) its theme is relevant, (ii) it's done its homework in subject research, and (iii) it exposes some interesting aspects of recent world history in a reasonably entertaining way. But for the reasons (a), (b) and (c) above, it is also hard to enjoy it more than a little.
Rating: 59
Strings (2004)
Rating: 46
Synopsis: A king commits suicide because he feels that he has failed to bring peace to his people. He leaves the throne to his son, but his evil brother makes it look like he was murdered by the king of a neighboring nation, thus instigating a state of war between the two nations.
Appraisal: I will probably be one of the very few people to say bad things about this film, perhaps because it comes in a format that seems to inspire immediate, inconditional reverence. I mean, who could not like an epic story staged with wooden puppets that are nicely carved and masterfully handled?
My objection to this movie is that if you seriously consider its plot (and some people won't because, you know, it's just a film with puppets, for chrissakes...) you will see that it is unhealthily unrealistic. It is impossible not to notice the similarities of the story with many current global events. According to IMDb, the director himself stated that he wanted to make a movie about 9/11 in a fantasy framework. Thence the evil nation that invents an enemy in order to make a war that will serve his own agenda of world domineering. The other nation in the movie, that initially is seen as bad and then is revealed as a victim of oppression and as having been expelled from their native land, is obviously a reference to the Palestinian people. All these very strained correspondences with the real world should be taken for what they're worth; of course reality has many nuances that are not present in this story. Unfortunately, even as a hypothetical, very simplified political drama it is hard to swallow.
**MILD SPOILERS AHEAD**
The heir to the throne eventually discovers the fiendish plot and embraces all the claims of the oppressed nation, out of love for a woman. The compliance of all of his people to that decision is taken for granted, and not a word is spoken. An ethereal message of universal interdependence is issued, and everything ends well.
*** END OF SPOILERS***
Summing it up, I was a little put off by the film's fairy tale approach to serious contemporary issues.
Synopsis: A king commits suicide because he feels that he has failed to bring peace to his people. He leaves the throne to his son, but his evil brother makes it look like he was murdered by the king of a neighboring nation, thus instigating a state of war between the two nations.
Appraisal: I will probably be one of the very few people to say bad things about this film, perhaps because it comes in a format that seems to inspire immediate, inconditional reverence. I mean, who could not like an epic story staged with wooden puppets that are nicely carved and masterfully handled?
My objection to this movie is that if you seriously consider its plot (and some people won't because, you know, it's just a film with puppets, for chrissakes...) you will see that it is unhealthily unrealistic. It is impossible not to notice the similarities of the story with many current global events. According to IMDb, the director himself stated that he wanted to make a movie about 9/11 in a fantasy framework. Thence the evil nation that invents an enemy in order to make a war that will serve his own agenda of world domineering. The other nation in the movie, that initially is seen as bad and then is revealed as a victim of oppression and as having been expelled from their native land, is obviously a reference to the Palestinian people. All these very strained correspondences with the real world should be taken for what they're worth; of course reality has many nuances that are not present in this story. Unfortunately, even as a hypothetical, very simplified political drama it is hard to swallow.
**MILD SPOILERS AHEAD**
The heir to the throne eventually discovers the fiendish plot and embraces all the claims of the oppressed nation, out of love for a woman. The compliance of all of his people to that decision is taken for granted, and not a word is spoken. An ethereal message of universal interdependence is issued, and everything ends well.
*** END OF SPOILERS***
Summing it up, I was a little put off by the film's fairy tale approach to serious contemporary issues.
Sunday, September 10, 2006
Le chiavi di casa (2004)
English Title: The Keys to the House.
Synopsis: A man meets for the first time his 15 year old disabled son whom he abandoned at birth.
Appraisal: There are good things in this film; among them I will mention the mise-en-scene (exceptional in the handling of emotional scenes) and the marvellous work of the young actor. The screenplay does a fine job of portraying the progression of the characters's emotions. Unfortunately, there are certain things in it with which I can't agree, in particular a series of irrational actions taken by the kid's father, that can't plausibly be attributed to his emotional state or low intelligence. Anyone who watches the film will see what I mean, or they can go to the users's comments for this movie at IMDb.
Rating: 60
Synopsis: A man meets for the first time his 15 year old disabled son whom he abandoned at birth.
Appraisal: There are good things in this film; among them I will mention the mise-en-scene (exceptional in the handling of emotional scenes) and the marvellous work of the young actor. The screenplay does a fine job of portraying the progression of the characters's emotions. Unfortunately, there are certain things in it with which I can't agree, in particular a series of irrational actions taken by the kid's father, that can't plausibly be attributed to his emotional state or low intelligence. Anyone who watches the film will see what I mean, or they can go to the users's comments for this movie at IMDb.
Rating: 60
The Singing Detective (2003)
Synopsis: A detective with a skin disease is in the hospital; his mind confuses his real life, past and present, with his fiction plots.
Appraisal: This film didn't work for me. It didn't seem to find the right key to convey all its facets: the musical, the drama, and the parody. The hospital musical number was, in my opinion, not so well staged and badly lit. The concatenation of events in the movie seemed kind of disjointed. Some sequences were uninspired at best, especially some of those featuring the two hoods. It was occasionally funny and occasionally clever, but the final result was a little disappointing.
Rating: 48
Appraisal: This film didn't work for me. It didn't seem to find the right key to convey all its facets: the musical, the drama, and the parody. The hospital musical number was, in my opinion, not so well staged and badly lit. The concatenation of events in the movie seemed kind of disjointed. Some sequences were uninspired at best, especially some of those featuring the two hoods. It was occasionally funny and occasionally clever, but the final result was a little disappointing.
Rating: 48
Saturday, September 09, 2006
La niña santa (2004)
English Title: The Holy Girl.
Synopsis: An adolescent girl who lives in the hotel owned by her mother decides to put in practice her personal version of her Catholic teacher's lessons when she meets a medic who is at the hotel for a conference and who has perversions of his own.
Appraisal: An absorbing narrative, masterfully directed, with some wonderful performances (namely, the main girl, the mother, the girl's best friend, the best friend's mother, and the medic -- all the main roles!), and a smart screenplay. So far this has been the best film of 2004 that I've seen (I've seen only 81 films of 2004, so I suspect it will lose that position in the future).
Rating: 77
Synopsis: An adolescent girl who lives in the hotel owned by her mother decides to put in practice her personal version of her Catholic teacher's lessons when she meets a medic who is at the hotel for a conference and who has perversions of his own.
Appraisal: An absorbing narrative, masterfully directed, with some wonderful performances (namely, the main girl, the mother, the girl's best friend, the best friend's mother, and the medic -- all the main roles!), and a smart screenplay. So far this has been the best film of 2004 that I've seen (I've seen only 81 films of 2004, so I suspect it will lose that position in the future).
Rating: 77
Friday, September 08, 2006
The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
Synopsis: When Royal Tenenbaum runs out of money, he attempts to go back to his ex-wife's house. Simultaneously, his sons and daughter face problems of their own which drive them back to their mother's house as well.
Appraisal: This is a bittersweet family chronicle that reminded me, perhaps unduly, of the films based on John Irving's novels (wasn't it 'The Hotel New Hampshire' that had an brother-sister relationship?). The film has limitations when it comes to its script; it isn't always as fresh and original as it should be. Still, although it doesn't soar too high, it never flies too low either; it keeps its aplomb, and that is something. The visual details, on the other hand (art direction, costumes, etc.), are very stylish and perhaps the film's main asset.
Rating: 61
Appraisal: This is a bittersweet family chronicle that reminded me, perhaps unduly, of the films based on John Irving's novels (wasn't it 'The Hotel New Hampshire' that had an brother-sister relationship?). The film has limitations when it comes to its script; it isn't always as fresh and original as it should be. Still, although it doesn't soar too high, it never flies too low either; it keeps its aplomb, and that is something. The visual details, on the other hand (art direction, costumes, etc.), are very stylish and perhaps the film's main asset.
Rating: 61
Sud sanaeha (2002)
English Title: Blissfully Yours.
Synopsis: Min is an illegal Burmese immigrant in Thailand; he has a skin disease and is accompanied to the doctor by his Thai girlfriend Roong and an older woman named Orn. In the afternoon, Min takes Roong to a picnic in a remote bucolic area.
Appraisal: BY belongs to a film trend that believes that films should reproduce reality in its most banal details. If the characters take a trip to the country, for example, the car ride must by all means be included in its entirety in the film, even if there is nothing but road and trees to be shown. Although it might be claimed that this philosophy of filmmaking shows some disregard concerning a crucial element in the art of cinema, namely, the viewer, it is also true that some viewers were delighted precisely by this quality of real-time-ness (to each his own, I guess). They apparently cherish the subjective experience of sitting in a theater and immersing into an alternate reality, with much the same characteristics of our own, including the same rhythm of time flow.
That being said, I acknowledge some merit to this film. Its slow pace does produce now and then a feeling of intimacy with the characters that might not be achieved with an excessively dynamic editing; and, sure, there is a lyrical quality to the two young lovers's 'splendor in the grass', to which the final captions add a perspective that makes it all the more poignant, in retrospect.
Rating: 41
Synopsis: Min is an illegal Burmese immigrant in Thailand; he has a skin disease and is accompanied to the doctor by his Thai girlfriend Roong and an older woman named Orn. In the afternoon, Min takes Roong to a picnic in a remote bucolic area.
Appraisal: BY belongs to a film trend that believes that films should reproduce reality in its most banal details. If the characters take a trip to the country, for example, the car ride must by all means be included in its entirety in the film, even if there is nothing but road and trees to be shown. Although it might be claimed that this philosophy of filmmaking shows some disregard concerning a crucial element in the art of cinema, namely, the viewer, it is also true that some viewers were delighted precisely by this quality of real-time-ness (to each his own, I guess). They apparently cherish the subjective experience of sitting in a theater and immersing into an alternate reality, with much the same characteristics of our own, including the same rhythm of time flow.
That being said, I acknowledge some merit to this film. Its slow pace does produce now and then a feeling of intimacy with the characters that might not be achieved with an excessively dynamic editing; and, sure, there is a lyrical quality to the two young lovers's 'splendor in the grass', to which the final captions add a perspective that makes it all the more poignant, in retrospect.
Rating: 41
Thursday, September 07, 2006
La pianiste (2001)
English Title: The Piano Teacher.
Synopsis: A sadomasochistic piano teacher who lives with her obnoxious mother is doted upon by a young engineer who is also a music lover.
Appraisal: I am traditionally oversuspicious when it comes to films that aim to be accurate psychological portrayals of individuals on the brink of insanity. I have always the feeling that these films walk a thin line between truth and baloney. Maybe it's just me, of course. That being said, my impression is that 'La pianiste' has more insight into the human soul than usual; or at least it has a more coherent development. To be honest, initially I had some reservations about the character of the mother, whose obnoxiousness seemed too exaggerated to be real, but once I read that the inspiration for the character was Jelinek's mother I decided to suspend my disbelief. Another point that rubbed me in the wrong way was how the main character metamorphoses from a totally cold person into an overemotional one, without explicit indication of the process that led to it. It's not an absurd change, I admit it, once you consider that she was living in a state of unstable equilibrium, but since nothing is shown one has to accept it on faith (one of the reasons a novel is usually more satisfying than a film based on it -- though I haven't read this one). All in all, I liked the movie; it comes off as a little schematic and/or strained at times (I can't believe that in this day and age a young man would be in the least concerned about someone telling his mother that he was looking at the porn magazines at a newsagent), and the ending is not exactly satisfactory, but these flaws do not compromise the movie in a serious way.
Rating: 62
Synopsis: A sadomasochistic piano teacher who lives with her obnoxious mother is doted upon by a young engineer who is also a music lover.
Appraisal: I am traditionally oversuspicious when it comes to films that aim to be accurate psychological portrayals of individuals on the brink of insanity. I have always the feeling that these films walk a thin line between truth and baloney. Maybe it's just me, of course. That being said, my impression is that 'La pianiste' has more insight into the human soul than usual; or at least it has a more coherent development. To be honest, initially I had some reservations about the character of the mother, whose obnoxiousness seemed too exaggerated to be real, but once I read that the inspiration for the character was Jelinek's mother I decided to suspend my disbelief. Another point that rubbed me in the wrong way was how the main character metamorphoses from a totally cold person into an overemotional one, without explicit indication of the process that led to it. It's not an absurd change, I admit it, once you consider that she was living in a state of unstable equilibrium, but since nothing is shown one has to accept it on faith (one of the reasons a novel is usually more satisfying than a film based on it -- though I haven't read this one). All in all, I liked the movie; it comes off as a little schematic and/or strained at times (I can't believe that in this day and age a young man would be in the least concerned about someone telling his mother that he was looking at the porn magazines at a newsagent), and the ending is not exactly satisfactory, but these flaws do not compromise the movie in a serious way.
Rating: 62
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
Dogville (2003)
Synopsis: A woman in trouble takes refuge in a small town.
Appraisal: Written in the style of a parable but at times more reminiscent of a fairy tale, this film has few intrinsic cinematic characteristics. The camerawork is so rudimentary as to be annoying, and there are no sets, which gives a distinct feel of amateur theater to the whole proceedings, although in form it resembles more a prose narrative (with voiceover included) than a play. The contrivances of the text are too visible not to be bothersome. The analogies to the story of Christ are an interesting aspect of the film, but it should have been developed in a less infantile manner. The pretension of making commentary about the USA, suggested by its settings, are made unequivocally clear by the still images displayed during the final credits. This pretension is, however, totally at odds with the utterly nonrealistic, abstract approach chosen. What we see is mostly an agenda-driven movie, filled with hatred, that has neither the artistic means to make it enjoyable, nor the factual basis to make it politically resonant.
Rating: 38
Appraisal: Written in the style of a parable but at times more reminiscent of a fairy tale, this film has few intrinsic cinematic characteristics. The camerawork is so rudimentary as to be annoying, and there are no sets, which gives a distinct feel of amateur theater to the whole proceedings, although in form it resembles more a prose narrative (with voiceover included) than a play. The contrivances of the text are too visible not to be bothersome. The analogies to the story of Christ are an interesting aspect of the film, but it should have been developed in a less infantile manner. The pretension of making commentary about the USA, suggested by its settings, are made unequivocally clear by the still images displayed during the final credits. This pretension is, however, totally at odds with the utterly nonrealistic, abstract approach chosen. What we see is mostly an agenda-driven movie, filled with hatred, that has neither the artistic means to make it enjoyable, nor the factual basis to make it politically resonant.
Rating: 38
Tuesday, September 05, 2006
Elf (2003)
Synopsis: A baby is raised as an elf in Santa Claus's workshop.
Appraisal: I guess the children enjoyed this film, but they are obviously undemanding spectators. That critics have loved it so much is what I find perplexing. While not devoid of some (low) amount of entertainment value, its development is just "more of the same", including an improbable love interest. And of course they couldn't do without the mandatory workaholic and neglective father, only this time he is under the pressure of an evil CEO; an atypically inquisitive child might wonder whether that CEO was also under pressure, but most of them will buy this hypocrisy without blinking. Just like they will not ask themselves: did this movie fail to meet its release deadline? And does that mean that all the participants in it are insensitive workaholics? Or is the megacorporation behind it an exception in a world of greedy, soulless capitalists?
Rating: 36
Appraisal: I guess the children enjoyed this film, but they are obviously undemanding spectators. That critics have loved it so much is what I find perplexing. While not devoid of some (low) amount of entertainment value, its development is just "more of the same", including an improbable love interest. And of course they couldn't do without the mandatory workaholic and neglective father, only this time he is under the pressure of an evil CEO; an atypically inquisitive child might wonder whether that CEO was also under pressure, but most of them will buy this hypocrisy without blinking. Just like they will not ask themselves: did this movie fail to meet its release deadline? And does that mean that all the participants in it are insensitive workaholics? Or is the megacorporation behind it an exception in a world of greedy, soulless capitalists?
Rating: 36
Monday, September 04, 2006
Still Crazy (1998)
Synopsis: A rock band that split up 20 years ago tries to reunite for a revival tour.
Appraisal: This film is structured on top of clichés associated with rock and roll bands; it is neither funny enough as a comedy nor moving enough as a drama. It is not unwatchable though, and it's even mildly entertaining most of the time.
Rating: 42
Appraisal: This film is structured on top of clichés associated with rock and roll bands; it is neither funny enough as a comedy nor moving enough as a drama. It is not unwatchable though, and it's even mildly entertaining most of the time.
Rating: 42
National Treasure (2004)
Synopsis: Some explorers seek a treasure whose location is given on the back of the declaration of independence.
Appraisal: The positive aspects of this film are: the action scenes are well conceived and staged (though nothing outlandishly fancy, mind you); there aren't any significant drops in pace (although it's not hectic either). The negative aspects are: there isn't much humor in it; the characters and situations aren't especially memorable or original.
Rating: 45
Appraisal: The positive aspects of this film are: the action scenes are well conceived and staged (though nothing outlandishly fancy, mind you); there aren't any significant drops in pace (although it's not hectic either). The negative aspects are: there isn't much humor in it; the characters and situations aren't especially memorable or original.
Rating: 45
Sunday, September 03, 2006
Dogma (1999)
Synopsis: Two angels threaten the universe.
Appraisal: Right at the beginning of 'Dogma', we see a campaign for renewal of catholicism called Catholicism Wow. The crucifix is being replaced by a ludicrous doll called "Buddy Christ". I had good laughs at this sequence, and this doll was really funny. Unfortunately, the funny part of the movie ended right there; from that point on, I had to endure two hours or so of the most unfunny, pointless, insane concoction that could ever come from a human brain. Well, at the end of the movie I felt cleansed and assured that I had atoned for all my past sins.
Rating: 15
Appraisal: Right at the beginning of 'Dogma', we see a campaign for renewal of catholicism called Catholicism Wow. The crucifix is being replaced by a ludicrous doll called "Buddy Christ". I had good laughs at this sequence, and this doll was really funny. Unfortunately, the funny part of the movie ended right there; from that point on, I had to endure two hours or so of the most unfunny, pointless, insane concoction that could ever come from a human brain. Well, at the end of the movie I felt cleansed and assured that I had atoned for all my past sins.
Rating: 15
Saturday, September 02, 2006
Banlieue 13 (2004)
Rating: 46
English Titles: District B13; District 13; 13th District.
Synopsis: In 2010, they build walls around 'bad' neighborhoods. When a gangster from one of them hijacks a missile, they send a cop in.
Appraisal: Most of the fun in this film comes from the action scenes, which are really slick, with splendid cinematography, editing and camerawork. The script, however, leaves the impression of having been written in 15 minutes. The plan that the central duo concocts for entering the district is never carried out, for unexplained reasons; instead, they end up doing the most stupid thing possible. Also, the 'girlfriend' by the side of the bomb tries to do the most inexplicable, idiotic thing imaginable, just so we have a little extra suspense.
*MILD SPOILER AHEAD*
Finally, the ending is really sappy and makes one wonder: if the premise of the movie is that in 6 years the social situation will have deteriorated that much, how come they have such a happy turnaround of events in such a small time? In other words, how can a film that starts off in such a pessimistic key end up in an even more intensely optimistic one?
English Titles: District B13; District 13; 13th District.
Synopsis: In 2010, they build walls around 'bad' neighborhoods. When a gangster from one of them hijacks a missile, they send a cop in.
Appraisal: Most of the fun in this film comes from the action scenes, which are really slick, with splendid cinematography, editing and camerawork. The script, however, leaves the impression of having been written in 15 minutes. The plan that the central duo concocts for entering the district is never carried out, for unexplained reasons; instead, they end up doing the most stupid thing possible. Also, the 'girlfriend' by the side of the bomb tries to do the most inexplicable, idiotic thing imaginable, just so we have a little extra suspense.
*MILD SPOILER AHEAD*
Finally, the ending is really sappy and makes one wonder: if the premise of the movie is that in 6 years the social situation will have deteriorated that much, how come they have such a happy turnaround of events in such a small time? In other words, how can a film that starts off in such a pessimistic key end up in an even more intensely optimistic one?
Abismu (1977)
There is no plot to this film, and even some of the plots that are posted at some Brazilian Internet sites are completely bogus. The film is simply a collage featuring four characters: a woman that drives around with a big cigar in her mouth, a mad scientist with long fingernails who mostly hangs around a giant telescope, a hitman that is somehow associated with said scientist, and a medium that foretells some kind of catastrophe or revolution in long, ludicrous monologues; there is also a fifth character that appears in the beginning of the movie, but I don't know what he stands for. The film is suffused mostly with late 60's rock music by one famous guitar player, and there are inserts from one of his concerts. The film appears to be a psychedelic parody of those 'new age' theories that were so popular in the seventies and eighties, but lacks much structure or elaboration; it doesn't differ a lot from a home movie that any person would make should they feel inclined to do so; the medium character is my favorite and at least one of his monologues (happening at approximately 50 minutes after the beginning of the film) is extremely ludicrous.
Rating: 8
Rating: 8
Friday, September 01, 2006
Head in the Clouds (2004)
Rating: 47.
Synopsis: An Irish guy studying in England meets an American young woman in 1933; she lives in Paris with a Spanish young woman; the three of them will go through various periods of peacetime and wartime, sometimes together and other times apart, until 1945.
Appraisal: I found this film seriously lacking in terms of script. It just doesn't develop into something really substantial, though there are enjoyable moments in it, and it has good dialogue and good actors.
**MILD SPOILERS AHEAD**
I found the ending particularly frustrating and unreasonable; though it is not implausible in strictly historical terms, I thought it was somewhat contrived, only, oddly enough, this time it was contrived for unhappiness.
Synopsis: An Irish guy studying in England meets an American young woman in 1933; she lives in Paris with a Spanish young woman; the three of them will go through various periods of peacetime and wartime, sometimes together and other times apart, until 1945.
Appraisal: I found this film seriously lacking in terms of script. It just doesn't develop into something really substantial, though there are enjoyable moments in it, and it has good dialogue and good actors.
**MILD SPOILERS AHEAD**
I found the ending particularly frustrating and unreasonable; though it is not implausible in strictly historical terms, I thought it was somewhat contrived, only, oddly enough, this time it was contrived for unhappiness.
The Kid Stays in the Picture (2002)
Description: Documentary on the life of the film producer behind "The Godfather" and some other megahits of the late 60's and early 70's.
Appraisal: There was clearly a lot of work behind this film, which contains an enormous amount of images of the periods it addresses. The quick succession of those images keeps the viewer away from the usual boredom that is associated to documentaries. The question that kept coming to my head, though, was, why should we care about this guy in the first place? I don't know the answer to that question. When you think about it, this film doesn't stray too far in essence from the gossip magazines and TV shows that are featured in it. I have nothing against this kind of thing in principle, but it has limited interest.
Rating: 48
Appraisal: There was clearly a lot of work behind this film, which contains an enormous amount of images of the periods it addresses. The quick succession of those images keeps the viewer away from the usual boredom that is associated to documentaries. The question that kept coming to my head, though, was, why should we care about this guy in the first place? I don't know the answer to that question. When you think about it, this film doesn't stray too far in essence from the gossip magazines and TV shows that are featured in it. I have nothing against this kind of thing in principle, but it has limited interest.
Rating: 48
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