Synopsis: An aviator is cryogenically frozen in an Army experiment, and wakes up 53 years later.
Appraisal: This completely befooled me for a while. I was expecting something along the lines of Sleeper (1973) or Idiocracy (2006), which have a similar premise but are set in the future. However this film took a different turn and the subject of the comparison between different periods is not tackled except in the most casual manner (e.g., regarding television he comments simply that he had already seen it on the 1939 fair). Only in the last scene did I realize what this is actually about, and perhaps got a clue what the title is about also, a sense of irony by the filmmakers being implied. That being said, I am not entirely convinced that the long path it takes to make its point -- act now, don't procrastinate, you will not remain forever young -- is rewarding enough from a dramatic standpoint.
Rating: 41
Sunday, March 30, 2008
She's Gotta Have It (1986)
Synopsis: A young woman keeps a simultaneous affair with three different men, who are dissatisfied with that situation.
Appraisal: This is situated in the frontiers of irrelevance, and yet it is kind of watchable, maybe because the characters have some amount of definition.
Rating: 32
Appraisal: This is situated in the frontiers of irrelevance, and yet it is kind of watchable, maybe because the characters have some amount of definition.
Rating: 32
Saturday, March 29, 2008
David and Saul (c1912)
More information about it at
http://biblefilms.blogspot.com/2006/03/early-films-about-david-and-saul-1911.html
and at
http://biblical-studies.ca/blog/wp/2006/03/16/king-saul-on-the-silver-screen-an-early-film-about-saul-and-david/ .
I will reproduce those pages below, almost in their entirety. The former page is by Matt Page. There it goes.
*begin quote*
Friday, March 03, 2006
Early films about David and Saul (1911-1913)
The final films on the DVD I've been discussing this week are both about the Hebrew King Saul; David et Saul (David and Saul) made in 1911 and La Mort de Saül (The Death of Saul) made two years later in 1913.
These films are also made by Pathé Frères and not listed in Campbell and Pitts' "The Bible on Film". They do list two other related films David and Goliath (1908) and Saul and David (1909), which is also listed on the IMDB . What is unusual about these two films is the subject material they choose to handle, particularly given that only a couple of films based on 1 Samuel had been made by this point. I imagine if you asked a modern day viewer which episodes from the books of Samuel they were most familiar with they would firstly list David and Goliath, and then perhaps David and Bathsheba, or the calling of Samuel, or the anointing of Saul or David. I'm not sure whether it's a sign of how much the parts of the bible we focus on have changed so much in 95 years, or that, even upon its release, they were unusual choices. Suffice to say none of the above scenes are in either of these films, the details of which are below:
David and Saul (1911)
David returns from beating the Philistines - (1 Sam 17/ 1 Sam 18:27)
David marries Michal - (1 Sam 18:27)
Saul grows jealous - (1 Sam 18:6-9)
David feigns madness whilst in hiding - (1 Sam 21:10-15
Saul slaughters the priests - (1 Sam 22:6-18)
David hides from Saul - (1 Sam 23:24-28)
Death of Saul (1913)
Saul slaughters the priests - (1 Sam 22:6-18)
The Witch of Endor - (1 Sam 28)
The death of Saul - (1 Sam 31:1-6)
What we do see is a great deal of attention given to Saul ordering the killing of the priests of Nob, which appears in both films. The review of The Death of Saul at IMDb notes how:
"The story of David and Saul is an interesting and ambitious choice of material, and this short feature does a creditable job of filming it. The story has plenty of action, plus some significant psychological themes, and this movie succeeds in bringing out at least some of both."
In my opinion the most successful biblical films have been those that use less familiar material to challenge our pre-conceptions, or are at least more concerned with trying to explore their protagonist's motives.
A few notes:
It's interesting that the first film starts with a celebration of David's victory over the Philistines. I put chapter 17 as a possible reference, but that's probably just re-coiling from the fact that the most likely victory this refers to is the one where he gives 200 Philistine foreskins to Saul as a wedding dowry (1 Sam 18:27). Certainly the fact that at the end of the scene Saul holds David and a very un-cinematic Michal together indicates that it is this victory which is being celebrated.
Although this film doesn't actually show the incident where David chooses not to kill Saul when he had the chance, it does refer to it in the intertitles "Fatigued Saul seeks repose in the cave where David was hidden". However, instead of seeing David cut Saul's cloak or steal his spear, the scene following this intertitle seems to portray David hiding on the other side of the mountain (1 Sam 23:24-28). The film crams a lot in, in a very short time, and it's hard for the viewer - even if they have a good knowledge of the various stories - to work out what is being depicted.
The break between the two films on the DVD I have is very slight, and most of the scant discussion of these two films on the web seems to treat them as one. In fact I noticed that the title of the film, placed at the top of each intertitle, changed before I noticed the briefly shown intertitle card that announced the new film.
The second film is two years later, and the filmmakers have significantly improved in that time. The use of a red colour wash during the sacking of Nob is quite effective, as is the use of special effects when Samuel appears in the witch's cave. There's also a really impressive scene (coming soon) where a large crowd of Philistines rush past the camera into the battle. Except for the old black and white celluloidthe way this action is filmed is on a par with anything today, and is the most impressive sequence I can recall at any point before Birth of a Nation revolutionised film in 1915.
It is interesting how the second film paraphrases Saul's prophesy into three clauses and then shows each happening in turn:
"Thy armies shall be delivered into the hands of the PhilistinesThy sons shall perishThy sword shall avenge the God of Israel"
It's not quite what Samuel says (1 Sam 28:19), but the way the film takes each clause and shows it happening is a far more sophisticated narrative device than was standard for the era.
Finally, although the second film is about the same length as the first it takes things much more slowly. The emphasis here seems to be much more on Saul and what is happening to him internally, than the events that are happening around him. It also allows a chiastic structure to the events. The film starts with Saul destroying the priests of Nob, and ends with him being destroyed by them, separated only by an announcement of God's judgement upon him, and linking the two actions nicely together.
Matt
Labels: David
posted at 2:10 PM © Matt Page 2005-2008
*end quote*
The second web page I gave at the beginning is reproduced, almost in its entirety, below. Its author is Tyler F. Williams.
*begin quote*
King Saul on the Silver Screen: An Early Film about Saul and David
16th March 2006
I recently bought on eBay a DVD with a silent film from the early 1900s about Saul and David. The amateur DVD is entitled, “Early Religious Films” and besides the film on Saul and David, it includes two other early Jesus films. Matt Page over at Bible Film Blog purchased the same DVD and has blogged on the two Jesus films here and here, and the Saul and David film here. As Matt noted in his blog entries, identifying these films is a bit challenging. The distributor who made the DVD from old reels doesn’t have any further information on the films included. In particular, a major problem with the Saul and David film is trying to determine whether or not it is one film or two. Matt thinks what is on the DVD is actually two films, a film called “David and Saul” and another film called “The Death of Saul.” Matt’s summary of this film is excellent and I encourage you to read it. I thought I would offer my own slightly different take on this early film about Saul and David.
Identification
According to my research, in the early 1900s there were four films made that focused particularly on the reign of Saul, the first king of Israel, and his stormy relationship with David. My primary sources for this information are:
Richard Abel, The Ciné Goes to Town: French Cinema 1896-1914 (University of California Press, 1994; Buy from Amazon.ca Buy from Amazon.com)
Richard H. Campbell and Michael R. Pitts, The Bible on Film: A Checklist, 1897-1980 (Scarecrow Press, 1981; out of print)
Jon Solomon, The Ancient World in the Cinema (Revised & Expand edition; Yale University Press, 2001; Buy from Amazon.ca Buy from Amazon.com)
As I piece the various lists together, there are four early films on Saul and David. In chronological order they are:
Saul and David. This early American film was directed by J. Stuart Blackton with the scenario written by Madison C. Peters. Produced and distributed by Vitagraph in 1909. [Noted in Campbell and Pitts, 3; Solomon, 5, 166; IMDb]
Saul and David [Saül et David]. A French film produced and directed by Léon Gaumont in 1911. [Noted as “lost to the ages” in Campbell and Pitts, 5; Solomon, 7]
David and Saul [David et Saül]. Produced by the French studio Pathé-Frères and distributed by their export office C.G.P.C. in 1912. Campbell and Pitts has this film listed as “Saul and David” while IMDb has it as “David and Saul.” In addition IMDb notes this film was directed by André (Henri) Andréani and dates it to 1911. This identification is plausible since Andréani directed many of Pathé-Frères biblical films in this period; the earlier date likely represents its actual production date, while the later date is its American distribution. [Noted in Campbell and Pitts, 5; Solomon, 7; IMDb]
The Death of Saul [La Mort de Saül]. This French film was directed by André (Henri) Andréani with the scenario written by Eugène Creissel with Louis Ravet playing Saul. It was produced by Pathé-Frères in June 1912, while its American distribution date is typically listed as 1913. 12 minutes long. [Noted in Abel, 319; Solomon, 7, 141; and IMDb]
The challenge with identifying the film on the DVD is that, based on the intertitles, it appears to be two films spliced together. The first three intertitles include the title “David and Saul” in small print at the top of the frame; then there is a full-frame intertitle introducing “The Death of Saul” while the rest of the intertitles in film have “The Death of Saul” in small print at the top. In addition, while there is remarkable consistency between the two sections in regards to costuming and it appears Louis Ravet plays Saul in both parts, the actor playing Saul’s son Jonathan is different between the two sections.
Matt Page identifies the first part with the 1911/12 film “David and Saul” and the second part with the 1912/13 film “The Death of Saul.” This identification is more than likely correct, since both films are by the same studio. From the discussion in Abel (which is based on the version of the film in the Library of Congress archives), however, it is clear that the “Death of Saul” on the DVD does not include its original beginning. Perhaps that is why excerpts from “Saul and David” were included at the beginning.
What should be clear from this discussion is that figuring out the early history of Bible related films is challenging to say the least!
Analysis
The origin of the film aside, the version that I have consists of two main sections, Saul and David and the Death of Saul. Here is my breakdown and discussion of the two parts (my divisions are based primarily on the intertitles):
David and Saul
This part of the film may be divided into three sections based on the intertitles. It’s camera work is pretty basic, consisting of almost exclusively of stationary longshots.
David, conqueror of the Philistines, asks Saul to Keep his Promise [to give his daughter Michal in marriage]
This section is based on 1Sam 18:27 and has David returning from battle, being greeted by a portly Jonathan, and being given Michal in marriage by Saul.
Jealous of David’s Popularity, Anger Invades Saul’s Heart.
This section consists of five scenes. The first has Saul in his palace looking out at the crowds who are evidently praising David’s military prowess (inspired by 1Sam 18:7). The second scene, based on 1Samuel 19 (cf. 19:1, 17), shows a confrontation between Saul and a group consisting of Michal, Jonathan, and some others. Saul is evidently asking for the whereabouts of David, but he leaves none the smarter. The third scene shows a dejected looking David and his motley crew of followers at the cave of Adullam (1Sam 22:1-2). Note that Matt Page identifies this scene as “David feigns madness whilst in hiding” based on 1 Sam 21:10-15. The problem with this identification is that the setting is does not appear to be Achish and David doesn’t look too insane (at least he’s not scratching marks on gates or drooling). The fourth scene is very roughly based on 1Sam 22:6-18. It has Saul going to the sanctuary at Nob and confronting Ahimelech the priest about David’s whereabouts (I say only roughly, since in the biblical account the priests are brought to Saul). Ahimelech refuses and is then killed by a nasty looking Doeg the Edomite. The fifth and final scene of this section has Saul and his guard leaving in search of David.
Fatigued, Saul Seeks Repose in the Cave where David was Hidden.
This third and final section appears to be cut off prematurely. It is made up of two brief scenes based on 1Sam 24:1-3 (not 1 Sam 23:24-28 as Matt Page suggests). The first has Saul and his guard coming to a cave in the wilderness of En-gedi and Saul going into the cave to relieve himself (for more on the euphemisms used in this passage see my post here). The second scene shows David and his followers within the cave hiding themselves from the approaching Saul.
The Death of Saul
The second part of the film is, as Matt noted, of a higher quality and shows more innovation in camera work. It includes a pan shot as well as some ambitious outside action shots. It consists of seven parts of various lengths.
Saul Decides that the Priests and Other Inhabitants of the City shall be Slain.
This scene somewhat accurately represents the story in 1Sam 22:11-19 where Saul (in his palace) decides to kill Ahimelech and put the entire city to the sword. Interestingly, Abel, in his discussion of the film, mistakenly identifies the besieged city as Keilah (1Samuel 23). This is quite unlikely, especially considering Saul gave up his expedition against Keilah once he heard that David had fled the city.
Jonathan Endeavors to Avert the Massacre.
This section is quite long and involved, consisting of at least seven different scenes. The first two scenes of Jonathan fleeing the palace and warning Ahimelech of the coming massacre does not appear to be inspired by any biblical passage. The next scene has the priest going out and praying for the inhabitants of the city. Then the fourth scene shifts to Saul and his guard leaving the palace. The next three scenes has Saul and his army entering the city of Nob and burning it and putting it to the sword. These scenes employ some of Pathé’s patented special effects of red smoke and small explosions. The final scene of this section shows Saul receiving a written message just leaving the city. The message, which is signed by David, is presented on an intertitle. It says, “O King, know thou that the Philistines have gathered together to do battle with us. May the God of Israel protect us.” This may be based on 1Sam 23:27, though one cannot be sure.
Saul Seeks the Witch of Endor.
This section consists of two scenes based on 1Sam 28:3-8. The first has Saul encamped at Gilboa in fear of the Philistines who are assembled against Israel at Shunem. While the second has Saul leaving camp with two men to inquire of the medium at Endor since the Lord did not answer him. This second scene includes a primitive pan shot as the three men are walking towards Endor.
The Witch Evokes the Spirit of Samuel.
This section, taken from 1Sam 28:8-25, begins with a scene with Saul and the two men coming to the cave where the witch lives and then there is an interesting close-up bridge shot of Saul going down the narrow tunnel to the cave entrance alone. The scene where the disguised Saul asks the witch to consult Samuel has some interesting camera shots. Samuel appears on the cave wall with a flaming special effect and fade in shot and then later disappears with a straight cut. Samuel’s message to Saul, paraphrased from 1Sam 28:18-19, is included on an intertitle. Interestingly, the next three sections of the film are introduced by intertitles including excerpts of this message.
Thy Armies Shall be Delivered unto the Hands of the Philistines.
This section starts with Saul returning to the Israelite encampment, cuts to an amazing scene of the Philistine army rushing the Israelites, and ends with Saul and his army rushing out to meet them.
Thy Sons shall Perish.
This brief scene includes a son of Saul coming back from battle and dying in Saul’s arms (if this is Jonathan, then it is a different actor from the first film as noted above), Saul lamenting and then falling on his sword.
They Sword shall Avenge the God of Israel.
This final scene shows Saul dying — with, of course, the sword handle appropriately protruding from his belly!
Final Thoughts
There are a number of noteworthy things about this early film. First, as perhaps is clear from the various departures from the biblical storyline, that even in the early days of cinema films were interpretations of the biblical story. The scenario writer and director crafted their story with liberty to modify the biblical version as they thought appropriate. Second, what the film chose to focus on is interesting. The attention given to the massacre of the city of Nob and the visit with the witch of Endor likely stem from a number of things, including the simple desire to show off some of the special effects. Finally, I have to concur with Matt Page when he notes, “the most successful biblical films have been those that use less familiar material to challenge our pre-conceptions, or are at least more concerned with trying to explore their protagonist’s motives.” In this regard, I found this film to be quite intriguing.
For a complete listing of films based on the Hebrew Bible, please see my Old Testament on Film pages.
*end quote*
http://biblefilms.blogspot.com/2006/03/early-films-about-david-and-saul-1911.html
and at
http://biblical-studies.ca/blog/wp/2006/03/16/king-saul-on-the-silver-screen-an-early-film-about-saul-and-david/ .
I will reproduce those pages below, almost in their entirety. The former page is by Matt Page. There it goes.
*begin quote*
Friday, March 03, 2006
Early films about David and Saul (1911-1913)
The final films on the DVD I've been discussing this week are both about the Hebrew King Saul; David et Saul (David and Saul) made in 1911 and La Mort de Saül (The Death of Saul) made two years later in 1913.
These films are also made by Pathé Frères and not listed in Campbell and Pitts' "The Bible on Film". They do list two other related films David and Goliath (1908) and Saul and David (1909), which is also listed on the IMDB . What is unusual about these two films is the subject material they choose to handle, particularly given that only a couple of films based on 1 Samuel had been made by this point. I imagine if you asked a modern day viewer which episodes from the books of Samuel they were most familiar with they would firstly list David and Goliath, and then perhaps David and Bathsheba, or the calling of Samuel, or the anointing of Saul or David. I'm not sure whether it's a sign of how much the parts of the bible we focus on have changed so much in 95 years, or that, even upon its release, they were unusual choices. Suffice to say none of the above scenes are in either of these films, the details of which are below:
David and Saul (1911)
David returns from beating the Philistines - (1 Sam 17/ 1 Sam 18:27)
David marries Michal - (1 Sam 18:27)
Saul grows jealous - (1 Sam 18:6-9)
David feigns madness whilst in hiding - (1 Sam 21:10-15
Saul slaughters the priests - (1 Sam 22:6-18)
David hides from Saul - (1 Sam 23:24-28)
Death of Saul (1913)
Saul slaughters the priests - (1 Sam 22:6-18)
The Witch of Endor - (1 Sam 28)
The death of Saul - (1 Sam 31:1-6)
What we do see is a great deal of attention given to Saul ordering the killing of the priests of Nob, which appears in both films. The review of The Death of Saul at IMDb notes how:
"The story of David and Saul is an interesting and ambitious choice of material, and this short feature does a creditable job of filming it. The story has plenty of action, plus some significant psychological themes, and this movie succeeds in bringing out at least some of both."
In my opinion the most successful biblical films have been those that use less familiar material to challenge our pre-conceptions, or are at least more concerned with trying to explore their protagonist's motives.
A few notes:
It's interesting that the first film starts with a celebration of David's victory over the Philistines. I put chapter 17 as a possible reference, but that's probably just re-coiling from the fact that the most likely victory this refers to is the one where he gives 200 Philistine foreskins to Saul as a wedding dowry (1 Sam 18:27). Certainly the fact that at the end of the scene Saul holds David and a very un-cinematic Michal together indicates that it is this victory which is being celebrated.
Although this film doesn't actually show the incident where David chooses not to kill Saul when he had the chance, it does refer to it in the intertitles "Fatigued Saul seeks repose in the cave where David was hidden". However, instead of seeing David cut Saul's cloak or steal his spear, the scene following this intertitle seems to portray David hiding on the other side of the mountain (1 Sam 23:24-28). The film crams a lot in, in a very short time, and it's hard for the viewer - even if they have a good knowledge of the various stories - to work out what is being depicted.
The break between the two films on the DVD I have is very slight, and most of the scant discussion of these two films on the web seems to treat them as one. In fact I noticed that the title of the film, placed at the top of each intertitle, changed before I noticed the briefly shown intertitle card that announced the new film.
The second film is two years later, and the filmmakers have significantly improved in that time. The use of a red colour wash during the sacking of Nob is quite effective, as is the use of special effects when Samuel appears in the witch's cave. There's also a really impressive scene (coming soon) where a large crowd of Philistines rush past the camera into the battle. Except for the old black and white celluloidthe way this action is filmed is on a par with anything today, and is the most impressive sequence I can recall at any point before Birth of a Nation revolutionised film in 1915.
It is interesting how the second film paraphrases Saul's prophesy into three clauses and then shows each happening in turn:
"Thy armies shall be delivered into the hands of the PhilistinesThy sons shall perishThy sword shall avenge the God of Israel"
It's not quite what Samuel says (1 Sam 28:19), but the way the film takes each clause and shows it happening is a far more sophisticated narrative device than was standard for the era.
Finally, although the second film is about the same length as the first it takes things much more slowly. The emphasis here seems to be much more on Saul and what is happening to him internally, than the events that are happening around him. It also allows a chiastic structure to the events. The film starts with Saul destroying the priests of Nob, and ends with him being destroyed by them, separated only by an announcement of God's judgement upon him, and linking the two actions nicely together.
Matt
Labels: David
posted at 2:10 PM © Matt Page 2005-2008
*end quote*
The second web page I gave at the beginning is reproduced, almost in its entirety, below. Its author is Tyler F. Williams.
*begin quote*
King Saul on the Silver Screen: An Early Film about Saul and David
16th March 2006
I recently bought on eBay a DVD with a silent film from the early 1900s about Saul and David. The amateur DVD is entitled, “Early Religious Films” and besides the film on Saul and David, it includes two other early Jesus films. Matt Page over at Bible Film Blog purchased the same DVD and has blogged on the two Jesus films here and here, and the Saul and David film here. As Matt noted in his blog entries, identifying these films is a bit challenging. The distributor who made the DVD from old reels doesn’t have any further information on the films included. In particular, a major problem with the Saul and David film is trying to determine whether or not it is one film or two. Matt thinks what is on the DVD is actually two films, a film called “David and Saul” and another film called “The Death of Saul.” Matt’s summary of this film is excellent and I encourage you to read it. I thought I would offer my own slightly different take on this early film about Saul and David.
Identification
According to my research, in the early 1900s there were four films made that focused particularly on the reign of Saul, the first king of Israel, and his stormy relationship with David. My primary sources for this information are:
Richard Abel, The Ciné Goes to Town: French Cinema 1896-1914 (University of California Press, 1994; Buy from Amazon.ca Buy from Amazon.com)
Richard H. Campbell and Michael R. Pitts, The Bible on Film: A Checklist, 1897-1980 (Scarecrow Press, 1981; out of print)
Jon Solomon, The Ancient World in the Cinema (Revised & Expand edition; Yale University Press, 2001; Buy from Amazon.ca Buy from Amazon.com)
As I piece the various lists together, there are four early films on Saul and David. In chronological order they are:
Saul and David. This early American film was directed by J. Stuart Blackton with the scenario written by Madison C. Peters. Produced and distributed by Vitagraph in 1909. [Noted in Campbell and Pitts, 3; Solomon, 5, 166; IMDb]
Saul and David [Saül et David]. A French film produced and directed by Léon Gaumont in 1911. [Noted as “lost to the ages” in Campbell and Pitts, 5; Solomon, 7]
David and Saul [David et Saül]. Produced by the French studio Pathé-Frères and distributed by their export office C.G.P.C. in 1912. Campbell and Pitts has this film listed as “Saul and David” while IMDb has it as “David and Saul.” In addition IMDb notes this film was directed by André (Henri) Andréani and dates it to 1911. This identification is plausible since Andréani directed many of Pathé-Frères biblical films in this period; the earlier date likely represents its actual production date, while the later date is its American distribution. [Noted in Campbell and Pitts, 5; Solomon, 7; IMDb]
The Death of Saul [La Mort de Saül]. This French film was directed by André (Henri) Andréani with the scenario written by Eugène Creissel with Louis Ravet playing Saul. It was produced by Pathé-Frères in June 1912, while its American distribution date is typically listed as 1913. 12 minutes long. [Noted in Abel, 319; Solomon, 7, 141; and IMDb]
The challenge with identifying the film on the DVD is that, based on the intertitles, it appears to be two films spliced together. The first three intertitles include the title “David and Saul” in small print at the top of the frame; then there is a full-frame intertitle introducing “The Death of Saul” while the rest of the intertitles in film have “The Death of Saul” in small print at the top. In addition, while there is remarkable consistency between the two sections in regards to costuming and it appears Louis Ravet plays Saul in both parts, the actor playing Saul’s son Jonathan is different between the two sections.
Matt Page identifies the first part with the 1911/12 film “David and Saul” and the second part with the 1912/13 film “The Death of Saul.” This identification is more than likely correct, since both films are by the same studio. From the discussion in Abel (which is based on the version of the film in the Library of Congress archives), however, it is clear that the “Death of Saul” on the DVD does not include its original beginning. Perhaps that is why excerpts from “Saul and David” were included at the beginning.
What should be clear from this discussion is that figuring out the early history of Bible related films is challenging to say the least!
Analysis
The origin of the film aside, the version that I have consists of two main sections, Saul and David and the Death of Saul. Here is my breakdown and discussion of the two parts (my divisions are based primarily on the intertitles):
David and Saul
This part of the film may be divided into three sections based on the intertitles. It’s camera work is pretty basic, consisting of almost exclusively of stationary longshots.
David, conqueror of the Philistines, asks Saul to Keep his Promise [to give his daughter Michal in marriage]
This section is based on 1Sam 18:27 and has David returning from battle, being greeted by a portly Jonathan, and being given Michal in marriage by Saul.
Jealous of David’s Popularity, Anger Invades Saul’s Heart.
This section consists of five scenes. The first has Saul in his palace looking out at the crowds who are evidently praising David’s military prowess (inspired by 1Sam 18:7). The second scene, based on 1Samuel 19 (cf. 19:1, 17), shows a confrontation between Saul and a group consisting of Michal, Jonathan, and some others. Saul is evidently asking for the whereabouts of David, but he leaves none the smarter. The third scene shows a dejected looking David and his motley crew of followers at the cave of Adullam (1Sam 22:1-2). Note that Matt Page identifies this scene as “David feigns madness whilst in hiding” based on 1 Sam 21:10-15. The problem with this identification is that the setting is does not appear to be Achish and David doesn’t look too insane (at least he’s not scratching marks on gates or drooling). The fourth scene is very roughly based on 1Sam 22:6-18. It has Saul going to the sanctuary at Nob and confronting Ahimelech the priest about David’s whereabouts (I say only roughly, since in the biblical account the priests are brought to Saul). Ahimelech refuses and is then killed by a nasty looking Doeg the Edomite. The fifth and final scene of this section has Saul and his guard leaving in search of David.
Fatigued, Saul Seeks Repose in the Cave where David was Hidden.
This third and final section appears to be cut off prematurely. It is made up of two brief scenes based on 1Sam 24:1-3 (not 1 Sam 23:24-28 as Matt Page suggests). The first has Saul and his guard coming to a cave in the wilderness of En-gedi and Saul going into the cave to relieve himself (for more on the euphemisms used in this passage see my post here). The second scene shows David and his followers within the cave hiding themselves from the approaching Saul.
The Death of Saul
The second part of the film is, as Matt noted, of a higher quality and shows more innovation in camera work. It includes a pan shot as well as some ambitious outside action shots. It consists of seven parts of various lengths.
Saul Decides that the Priests and Other Inhabitants of the City shall be Slain.
This scene somewhat accurately represents the story in 1Sam 22:11-19 where Saul (in his palace) decides to kill Ahimelech and put the entire city to the sword. Interestingly, Abel, in his discussion of the film, mistakenly identifies the besieged city as Keilah (1Samuel 23). This is quite unlikely, especially considering Saul gave up his expedition against Keilah once he heard that David had fled the city.
Jonathan Endeavors to Avert the Massacre.
This section is quite long and involved, consisting of at least seven different scenes. The first two scenes of Jonathan fleeing the palace and warning Ahimelech of the coming massacre does not appear to be inspired by any biblical passage. The next scene has the priest going out and praying for the inhabitants of the city. Then the fourth scene shifts to Saul and his guard leaving the palace. The next three scenes has Saul and his army entering the city of Nob and burning it and putting it to the sword. These scenes employ some of Pathé’s patented special effects of red smoke and small explosions. The final scene of this section shows Saul receiving a written message just leaving the city. The message, which is signed by David, is presented on an intertitle. It says, “O King, know thou that the Philistines have gathered together to do battle with us. May the God of Israel protect us.” This may be based on 1Sam 23:27, though one cannot be sure.
Saul Seeks the Witch of Endor.
This section consists of two scenes based on 1Sam 28:3-8. The first has Saul encamped at Gilboa in fear of the Philistines who are assembled against Israel at Shunem. While the second has Saul leaving camp with two men to inquire of the medium at Endor since the Lord did not answer him. This second scene includes a primitive pan shot as the three men are walking towards Endor.
The Witch Evokes the Spirit of Samuel.
This section, taken from 1Sam 28:8-25, begins with a scene with Saul and the two men coming to the cave where the witch lives and then there is an interesting close-up bridge shot of Saul going down the narrow tunnel to the cave entrance alone. The scene where the disguised Saul asks the witch to consult Samuel has some interesting camera shots. Samuel appears on the cave wall with a flaming special effect and fade in shot and then later disappears with a straight cut. Samuel’s message to Saul, paraphrased from 1Sam 28:18-19, is included on an intertitle. Interestingly, the next three sections of the film are introduced by intertitles including excerpts of this message.
Thy Armies Shall be Delivered unto the Hands of the Philistines.
This section starts with Saul returning to the Israelite encampment, cuts to an amazing scene of the Philistine army rushing the Israelites, and ends with Saul and his army rushing out to meet them.
Thy Sons shall Perish.
This brief scene includes a son of Saul coming back from battle and dying in Saul’s arms (if this is Jonathan, then it is a different actor from the first film as noted above), Saul lamenting and then falling on his sword.
They Sword shall Avenge the God of Israel.
This final scene shows Saul dying — with, of course, the sword handle appropriately protruding from his belly!
Final Thoughts
There are a number of noteworthy things about this early film. First, as perhaps is clear from the various departures from the biblical storyline, that even in the early days of cinema films were interpretations of the biblical story. The scenario writer and director crafted their story with liberty to modify the biblical version as they thought appropriate. Second, what the film chose to focus on is interesting. The attention given to the massacre of the city of Nob and the visit with the witch of Endor likely stem from a number of things, including the simple desire to show off some of the special effects. Finally, I have to concur with Matt Page when he notes, “the most successful biblical films have been those that use less familiar material to challenge our pre-conceptions, or are at least more concerned with trying to explore their protagonist’s motives.” In this regard, I found this film to be quite intriguing.
For a complete listing of films based on the Hebrew Bible, please see my Old Testament on Film pages.
*end quote*
Gone Baby Gone (2007)
Synopsis: A private investigator is hired to help locate a missing child. The mother is a drug addict.
Appraisal: Quite well directed. The several situations and characters develop in an interesting way, but the whole is less than compelling; it's a sort of formulaic structure designed in such a way as to insert bleak social -- and moral, if you will -- commentary into a mystery plot with some action set-pieces thrown in for good measure.
Rating: 64
Appraisal: Quite well directed. The several situations and characters develop in an interesting way, but the whole is less than compelling; it's a sort of formulaic structure designed in such a way as to insert bleak social -- and moral, if you will -- commentary into a mystery plot with some action set-pieces thrown in for good measure.
Rating: 64
Friday, March 28, 2008
Waterborne (2005)
Synopsis: Someone is tampering with the water supply of Los Angeles. Several people die and panic sets in among the population.
Appraisal: Even though the filmmaker shows some ability on some individual scenes, the film as a whole is very poor, both in psychological characterizations, and in showing the progression of the crisis.
Rating: 25
Appraisal: Even though the filmmaker shows some ability on some individual scenes, the film as a whole is very poor, both in psychological characterizations, and in showing the progression of the crisis.
Rating: 25
Buona Sera, Mrs. Campbell (1968)
Synopsis: In a small Italian town, a woman tells everyone that her daughter is the fruit of her marriage with an American World War II captain, who died soon afterwards. In reality, she slept with three different men during the War, and she later told each one of them he was the father, so that she could collect checks from all of them. The upcoming visit of the three of them with an American group for a celebration puts her in a state of panic.
Appraisal: Very bland comedy, with a very weak premise which resolves itself quite easily in the end, which was to be expected since it didn't make much sense from the beginning. The dialogue constantly tries to insert risqué allusions, which seem very dated and contrived.
Rating: 32
Appraisal: Very bland comedy, with a very weak premise which resolves itself quite easily in the end, which was to be expected since it didn't make much sense from the beginning. The dialogue constantly tries to insert risqué allusions, which seem very dated and contrived.
Rating: 32
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Where's Marlowe? (1998)
Synopsis: Two filmmakers do a documentary about a private investigating agency.
Appraisal: Second viewing. Thematically akin to Real Life (1979) and Guy (1997). Entertaining and funny, but its limitations became more evident on second viewing.
Rating: 65 (down from 69)
Appraisal: Second viewing. Thematically akin to Real Life (1979) and Guy (1997). Entertaining and funny, but its limitations became more evident on second viewing.
Rating: 65 (down from 69)
The Death of Christ (c1900)
More information at http://biblefilms.blogspot.com/2006/03/death-of-christ-c1900.html, the contents of which I am reproducing below almost integrally. The author of the page (and of the blog) is Matt Page.
*begin quote*
Thursday, March 02, 2006
Death of Christ (c.1900)
Following on from the last two days' posts where I have been looking at a couple of very early Jesus films, I wanted to post today, in more detail on the second of these The Death of Christ. It was hard enough trying to date The Life of Christ, but at least it provided a date to be sceptical about! With this film I would place it at around the same time, maybe even slightly earlier than The Life of Christ, but I wouldn't place it any early than the date claimed at the start of the Life of Christ. Anyway - the full discussion of that was two days ago.
This film is actually more interesting to right about than the earlier one since whereas that film largely contained material that was incorporated into The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ. Whilst this film is shorter (only 10 minutes long), most of the material is original to this film. First things first the scenes guide with scripture citations.
Last Supper (start of) - (Mark 14:16-17)
*Gethsemane - (Mark 14:32-42)
*Arrest of Jesus - (Mark 14:43-46)
*Trial before Pilate - (Mark 15:1-14)
*Scourging & Mocking - (Mark 15:15-20)
*Presented before the People - (Matt 27:24-26)
Road to the cross - (Luke 23:26-28)
*Crucifixion - (Mark 15:22-33)
*Death of Jesus - (John 19:30,34)
*Resurrection - (Mark 16:1-8)
Ascension - (Luke 24:50-53)
A Few Notes
*These scenes are different from those in The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ, although in many cases they have strongly influenced that film, with it being really clear that it re-filmed some scenes almost exactly the same, with only minor "improvements". A good example of this is the trial of Jesus in front of Pilate where in this film it is not very clear that Barabbas is present, whereas in the later The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ Barabbas is far more distinct. The shot is very similar in most other respects.
Only three scenes then are used in The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ. Firstly, the last supper, where the scant footage shown here is actually that which immediately preceds the longer scene in The Life and Passion. Next is the road to the cross scene, and finally, the ascension scene. These last two scenes are actually in all three films. The latter scene is far more complex than any of the other scenes in this film, and has been reasonably well done so it is not surprising that no-one went to the trouble fo re-filming it.
Two further points. Firstly, in comparing the scenes here with the Life of Christ, I noticed that that film seems to jump from the money-changers scene straight to Jesus's trail. Even for viewers who know the story this is a strange move. It does make me wonder if some of the material here was at one stage part of that film.
Secondly, of all three of these early films I think this is my favourite. This is partly because it is the least coloured, and the technique is a bit of a distraction, it's partly because it contains one really great scene - that in the Garden of Gethsemane, as well as being the source, I assume, for the innovative ascension scene. I also like the depiction of the scourging in contrast to The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ. Here Jesus offers some resistance, there Jesus almost seems to volunteer for it. I wonder if this was the main reason that this scene was re-filmed as except for a difference in background it is more or less the same. I also much refer the resurrection scene. It's one of the hardest things to film, and film-makers have used a variety of approaches. This is one of the best. Fairly literal, and yet not sensational, kitschy, or cheesy. That said it doesn't really rely on any of the gospels (non of which describe the actual resurrection), and perhaps is most similar to Mel Gibson's version, but it's far more simple, and effective, and not nearly so pleased with itself.
All in all, I'm glad I've uncovered this early classic. Jesus films for the next 110 years have swung between the kitsch and the more profound, and I'm glad that at least one of the very earliest Jesus films falls into the latter category.
Matt
Labels: Life and Passion of Jesus Christ
posted at 9:04 AM © Matt Page 2005-2008
*end quote*
*begin quote*
Thursday, March 02, 2006
Death of Christ (c.1900)
Following on from the last two days' posts where I have been looking at a couple of very early Jesus films, I wanted to post today, in more detail on the second of these The Death of Christ. It was hard enough trying to date The Life of Christ, but at least it provided a date to be sceptical about! With this film I would place it at around the same time, maybe even slightly earlier than The Life of Christ, but I wouldn't place it any early than the date claimed at the start of the Life of Christ. Anyway - the full discussion of that was two days ago.
This film is actually more interesting to right about than the earlier one since whereas that film largely contained material that was incorporated into The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ. Whilst this film is shorter (only 10 minutes long), most of the material is original to this film. First things first the scenes guide with scripture citations.
Last Supper (start of) - (Mark 14:16-17)
*Gethsemane - (Mark 14:32-42)
*Arrest of Jesus - (Mark 14:43-46)
*Trial before Pilate - (Mark 15:1-14)
*Scourging & Mocking - (Mark 15:15-20)
*Presented before the People - (Matt 27:24-26)
Road to the cross - (Luke 23:26-28)
*Crucifixion - (Mark 15:22-33)
*Death of Jesus - (John 19:30,34)
*Resurrection - (Mark 16:1-8)
Ascension - (Luke 24:50-53)
A Few Notes
*These scenes are different from those in The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ, although in many cases they have strongly influenced that film, with it being really clear that it re-filmed some scenes almost exactly the same, with only minor "improvements". A good example of this is the trial of Jesus in front of Pilate where in this film it is not very clear that Barabbas is present, whereas in the later The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ Barabbas is far more distinct. The shot is very similar in most other respects.
Only three scenes then are used in The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ. Firstly, the last supper, where the scant footage shown here is actually that which immediately preceds the longer scene in The Life and Passion. Next is the road to the cross scene, and finally, the ascension scene. These last two scenes are actually in all three films. The latter scene is far more complex than any of the other scenes in this film, and has been reasonably well done so it is not surprising that no-one went to the trouble fo re-filming it.
Two further points. Firstly, in comparing the scenes here with the Life of Christ, I noticed that that film seems to jump from the money-changers scene straight to Jesus's trail. Even for viewers who know the story this is a strange move. It does make me wonder if some of the material here was at one stage part of that film.
Secondly, of all three of these early films I think this is my favourite. This is partly because it is the least coloured, and the technique is a bit of a distraction, it's partly because it contains one really great scene - that in the Garden of Gethsemane, as well as being the source, I assume, for the innovative ascension scene. I also like the depiction of the scourging in contrast to The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ. Here Jesus offers some resistance, there Jesus almost seems to volunteer for it. I wonder if this was the main reason that this scene was re-filmed as except for a difference in background it is more or less the same. I also much refer the resurrection scene. It's one of the hardest things to film, and film-makers have used a variety of approaches. This is one of the best. Fairly literal, and yet not sensational, kitschy, or cheesy. That said it doesn't really rely on any of the gospels (non of which describe the actual resurrection), and perhaps is most similar to Mel Gibson's version, but it's far more simple, and effective, and not nearly so pleased with itself.
All in all, I'm glad I've uncovered this early classic. Jesus films for the next 110 years have swung between the kitsch and the more profound, and I'm glad that at least one of the very earliest Jesus films falls into the latter category.
Matt
Labels: Life and Passion of Jesus Christ
posted at 9:04 AM © Matt Page 2005-2008
*end quote*
The Life of Christ (c1900)
More information at http://biblefilms.blogspot.com/2006/03/life-of-christ-1898.html, the contents of which I am reproducing below almost integrally. The author of the page (and of the blog) is Matt Page.
*begin quote*
Wednesday, March 01, 2006
Life of Christ (1898)
Yesterday's entry looked at the problems of dating some early films picked up on eBay. Today's post will look at the first of those (as it arrived on the disc), The Life of Christ, purporting to be from 1898. The film is just 14:23 minutes long, and none of the actors' names are given. Here's the scene order (as ever, scripture citations are in the normal format.)
Angels and Joseph's Dream - Matt 2:13-14
Escape to Egypt - Matt 2:15
*The Boy Jesus and the Doctors - Luke 2:40-52
Baptism - Mark 1:6-11
*Woman at Samaria - John 4:4-29
†Feeding 5000 with Fish and Bread - Mark 6:30-44
Christ Walks on Water - Mark 6:47-48
*Entering into Jerusalem - Mark 11:1-10
*Driving out the Money Changers - Mark 11:15-19
Trial before Pilate - Mark 15:1-15
*Ecce Homo - John 19:5
(Veronica) - Tradition
Road to the cross - Luke 23:26-28
Crucifixion - Mark 15:22-33
Death of Jesus - John 19:30,34
Resurrection - Mark 16:1-8
Acension - Luke 24:50-53
A Few Notes:
†This scene (the feeding of the 5000, or the "Fish and Bread" as the intertitles call it is the only one in the film without parallel in The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ. That said...
*Scenes marked with a * are different from those in The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ, even if the later film copies / improves upon them. Sometimes the details are fairly minor (e.g. different actors or backgrounds), at other times the whole composition of the shot is fundamentally different.
Four scenes use camera trickery - essentially double exposure. The two appearances by angels in the first two scenes both use this technique fairly simply, but the resurrection scene, where Jesus floats out of his grave, and "Christ Walks on Water" are both a bit more sophisticated. The later is possibly significant as renown camera trickery pioneer George Méliès released a film in 1899 called Christ Walks on Water. This was thought to be the first part of the bible to be shown on camera outside of Jesus's Passion. Part of me wonders if this scene (later incorporated into The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ) was Méliès's original, and whether this effects the potential dating of this film.
The film starts in a strange place as well, not showing the nativity or any of the events leading up to it, but starting after the departure of the wise men as Joseph is about to have the dream that instructs him to take his family to Egypt. Having thought about the dating of the film more since yesterday, this was one piece of evidence I didn't really consider enough.
As with The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ this film was shot in black and white, but a number of scenes have been hand coloured. In addition some scenes stencil on extra details, most notably the Holy Spirit stenciled on as a dove in the baptism scene (see left) and the ascension scene.
In terms of episodes that rarely make Jesus films, obviously this film has nearly all of it's material in common with The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ. Even so, both films show the Ascension in an unusual way, and in fact, depictions of this are rare in themself. The scene with the woman of Samaria is also fairly rare in film version of Jesus's life, which is unusual as it gives us a rare three dimensional female role. Directors are usually keen on such roles, note for example one of the most frequently filmed scenes outside of his Passion - the woman taken in adultery.
Finally, one comment that is often made about The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ is worth repeating here. As this was filmed in the very early days of cinema, it's very obvious from this film that even the most basic aspects of moviemaking have yet to be discovered. For example, the camera is always static, and the acting takes place in front of it - this works similarly to watching a play. In a similar vein, nearly all the action takes place in the middle distance. There are a couple of exceptions in this film, and these may have been the first films to pioneer these new techniques. The first is the Ecce Homo moment. The camera get that bit closer to Jesus, just showing his upper half as he stands in front of the words "Ecce Homo" behind him. The second is a shot of Veronica, after she has wiped his face. The camera cuts to a shot of her holding her cloth, close enough for the viewer to see she has a perfect image of Jesus's face upon it.
This film will probably be available from this seller on eBay as part of a compilation DVD Early Religious Films.
Matt
Labels: Life and Passion of Jesus Christ
posted at 10:00 AM © Matt Page 2005-2008
3 Comments:
(...)
At 2:45 AM, March 16, 2008, Antonio Ventaja said…
Sorry, I don´t speak and not wright in english ( I am spanish).I beliver that this film is La Vie et la Passion de Jésus-Christ of 1898 of directors Georges Hatot and Louis Lumière.Thanks for your blog.
At 3:11 AM, March 16, 2008, Matt Page said…
Thanks for that, I'm not sure I've heard that before.
Thanks
Matt
*end quote*
*begin quote*
Wednesday, March 01, 2006
Life of Christ (1898)
Yesterday's entry looked at the problems of dating some early films picked up on eBay. Today's post will look at the first of those (as it arrived on the disc), The Life of Christ, purporting to be from 1898. The film is just 14:23 minutes long, and none of the actors' names are given. Here's the scene order (as ever, scripture citations are in the normal format.)
Angels and Joseph's Dream - Matt 2:13-14
Escape to Egypt - Matt 2:15
*The Boy Jesus and the Doctors - Luke 2:40-52
Baptism - Mark 1:6-11
*Woman at Samaria - John 4:4-29
†Feeding 5000 with Fish and Bread - Mark 6:30-44
Christ Walks on Water - Mark 6:47-48
*Entering into Jerusalem - Mark 11:1-10
*Driving out the Money Changers - Mark 11:15-19
Trial before Pilate - Mark 15:1-15
*Ecce Homo - John 19:5
(Veronica) - Tradition
Road to the cross - Luke 23:26-28
Crucifixion - Mark 15:22-33
Death of Jesus - John 19:30,34
Resurrection - Mark 16:1-8
Acension - Luke 24:50-53
A Few Notes:
†This scene (the feeding of the 5000, or the "Fish and Bread" as the intertitles call it is the only one in the film without parallel in The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ. That said...
*Scenes marked with a * are different from those in The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ, even if the later film copies / improves upon them. Sometimes the details are fairly minor (e.g. different actors or backgrounds), at other times the whole composition of the shot is fundamentally different.
Four scenes use camera trickery - essentially double exposure. The two appearances by angels in the first two scenes both use this technique fairly simply, but the resurrection scene, where Jesus floats out of his grave, and "Christ Walks on Water" are both a bit more sophisticated. The later is possibly significant as renown camera trickery pioneer George Méliès released a film in 1899 called Christ Walks on Water. This was thought to be the first part of the bible to be shown on camera outside of Jesus's Passion. Part of me wonders if this scene (later incorporated into The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ) was Méliès's original, and whether this effects the potential dating of this film.
The film starts in a strange place as well, not showing the nativity or any of the events leading up to it, but starting after the departure of the wise men as Joseph is about to have the dream that instructs him to take his family to Egypt. Having thought about the dating of the film more since yesterday, this was one piece of evidence I didn't really consider enough.
As with The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ this film was shot in black and white, but a number of scenes have been hand coloured. In addition some scenes stencil on extra details, most notably the Holy Spirit stenciled on as a dove in the baptism scene (see left) and the ascension scene.
In terms of episodes that rarely make Jesus films, obviously this film has nearly all of it's material in common with The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ. Even so, both films show the Ascension in an unusual way, and in fact, depictions of this are rare in themself. The scene with the woman of Samaria is also fairly rare in film version of Jesus's life, which is unusual as it gives us a rare three dimensional female role. Directors are usually keen on such roles, note for example one of the most frequently filmed scenes outside of his Passion - the woman taken in adultery.
Finally, one comment that is often made about The Life and Passion of Jesus Christ is worth repeating here. As this was filmed in the very early days of cinema, it's very obvious from this film that even the most basic aspects of moviemaking have yet to be discovered. For example, the camera is always static, and the acting takes place in front of it - this works similarly to watching a play. In a similar vein, nearly all the action takes place in the middle distance. There are a couple of exceptions in this film, and these may have been the first films to pioneer these new techniques. The first is the Ecce Homo moment. The camera get that bit closer to Jesus, just showing his upper half as he stands in front of the words "Ecce Homo" behind him. The second is a shot of Veronica, after she has wiped his face. The camera cuts to a shot of her holding her cloth, close enough for the viewer to see she has a perfect image of Jesus's face upon it.
This film will probably be available from this seller on eBay as part of a compilation DVD Early Religious Films.
Matt
Labels: Life and Passion of Jesus Christ
posted at 10:00 AM © Matt Page 2005-2008
3 Comments:
(...)
At 2:45 AM, March 16, 2008, Antonio Ventaja said…
Sorry, I don´t speak and not wright in english ( I am spanish).I beliver that this film is La Vie et la Passion de Jésus-Christ of 1898 of directors Georges Hatot and Louis Lumière.Thanks for your blog.
At 3:11 AM, March 16, 2008, Matt Page said…
Thanks for that, I'm not sure I've heard that before.
Thanks
Matt
*end quote*
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
I Am David (2003)
Synopsis: In the 50's, a little boy escapes from a concentration camp in Bulgaria. He faces many perils in his journey to a safe place. Based on the novel "David", by Anne Holm (1st ed. 1963).
Appraisal: Total incompetence are the defining words here, so let's not waste our time. The book is considered somewhat of a classic in literature for children, and the skeleton of the plot does reveal the possibility of a sound divertissement, which evidently was spoiled.
Rating: 16
Appraisal: Total incompetence are the defining words here, so let's not waste our time. The book is considered somewhat of a classic in literature for children, and the skeleton of the plot does reveal the possibility of a sound divertissement, which evidently was spoiled.
Rating: 16
Monday, March 24, 2008
Dark Blue (2002)
Synopsis: A cop and his rookie partner are assigned to investigate a multiple murder at a store. It turns out to be a very complicated affair, involving police corruption and the theft of a safe full of money.
Appraisal: One of the better cop movies of the last few years. The interconnection among the several elements of the story is very well handled, and the film flows in a crescendo of action and dramatic tension right until the end. Gleeson's performance is absolutely amazing. Russell doesn't do so badly either.
Rating: 69
Appraisal: One of the better cop movies of the last few years. The interconnection among the several elements of the story is very well handled, and the film flows in a crescendo of action and dramatic tension right until the end. Gleeson's performance is absolutely amazing. Russell doesn't do so badly either.
Rating: 69
Le grand restaurant (1966)
English titles: What's Cooking in Paris; The Big Restaurant.
Synopsis: The president of a foreign country disappears from a restaurant and a kidnapping is assumed; the restaurant's owner is summoned by the police to help find him.
Appraisal: It's practically two different films; it begins as a comedy set at a restaurant and later becomes a more action-oriented film. Both parts are moderately enjoyable.
Rating: 41
Synopsis: The president of a foreign country disappears from a restaurant and a kidnapping is assumed; the restaurant's owner is summoned by the police to help find him.
Appraisal: It's practically two different films; it begins as a comedy set at a restaurant and later becomes a more action-oriented film. Both parts are moderately enjoyable.
Rating: 41
Les bronzés font du ski (1979)
Synopsis: The same group of friends from Les bronzés are now on a ski resort.
Appraisal: Passable sequel.
Rating: 46
Appraisal: Passable sequel.
Rating: 46
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Martha Behind Bars (2005) (TV)
Synopsis: A TV show host who has built a corporate empire is charged with insider trading, goes to trial, is convicted, serves time, is released.
Appraisal: I have thought about the difficulties of depicting real events in this kind of movie, and came to the conclusion that they are big. Consequently, the difficulty of assessing this film's credibility is also big. Abstracting it from the actual case, this telefilm provides some matter for reflection regarding the justice system. From the human angle, it provides some slight entertainment.
Rating: 39
Appraisal: I have thought about the difficulties of depicting real events in this kind of movie, and came to the conclusion that they are big. Consequently, the difficulty of assessing this film's credibility is also big. Abstracting it from the actual case, this telefilm provides some matter for reflection regarding the justice system. From the human angle, it provides some slight entertainment.
Rating: 39
Juana la loca (2001)
English titles: Mad Love; Madness of Joan; Madness of Love.
Synopsis: In the 15th century, the Spanish princess Joan is sent to Flanders to marry the Archduke Philip. Their marriage is characterized by his infidelities and her intense jealousy. Based on the play "La locura de amor" (Madness of Love), of 1855, by Manuel Tamayo y Baus (and according to some sources also on the film Locura de amor (1948), which was also based on that play).
Appraisal: The analysis of jealousy was reportedly the central theme of the source play. The film seems to be afraid to commit to this angle; as the political events unfold the central character seems to recede from the edge of madness into a more mature position. As a result, the film loses its focus and strength; we as the audience are left wondering why we should care in the first place.
Rating: 39
Synopsis: In the 15th century, the Spanish princess Joan is sent to Flanders to marry the Archduke Philip. Their marriage is characterized by his infidelities and her intense jealousy. Based on the play "La locura de amor" (Madness of Love), of 1855, by Manuel Tamayo y Baus (and according to some sources also on the film Locura de amor (1948), which was also based on that play).
Appraisal: The analysis of jealousy was reportedly the central theme of the source play. The film seems to be afraid to commit to this angle; as the political events unfold the central character seems to recede from the edge of madness into a more mature position. As a result, the film loses its focus and strength; we as the audience are left wondering why we should care in the first place.
Rating: 39
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (1958)
Synopsis: In the 18th century an ugly schoolteacher comes to a small town and sets his eyes on the farmer's beautiful daughter. An athletic local youth is also interested in her, but the teacher is favored by the lady, maybe due to his better social skills, maybe to an unfathomable woman's whim. This is one of the halves of The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad (1949), released as a standalone piece in 1958.
Appraisal: I haven't read Washington Irving's short story (1st ed. 1820, in "The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent."), but, this being regarded as a faithful adaptation, I can only say that it must be a work of genius. The animated film properly is finely crafted and enjoyable, as was the norm of the studio which made it at that time. I saw a Portuguese-dubbed version.
Rating: 60
Appraisal: I haven't read Washington Irving's short story (1st ed. 1820, in "The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent."), but, this being regarded as a faithful adaptation, I can only say that it must be a work of genius. The animated film properly is finely crafted and enjoyable, as was the norm of the studio which made it at that time. I saw a Portuguese-dubbed version.
Rating: 60
Friday, March 21, 2008
Art School Confidential (2006)
Synopsis: An art student at a school where a series of murders is taking place falls in love with a female model, but he thinks she is only interested in his classmate.
Appraisal: While perhaps not always as brilliant as could be expected, it has an intelligent plot and some funny developments; on average it works fine, offering a rather comprehensive satiric panel about its subject.
Rating: 57
Appraisal: While perhaps not always as brilliant as could be expected, it has an intelligent plot and some funny developments; on average it works fine, offering a rather comprehensive satiric panel about its subject.
Rating: 57
Layer Cake (2004)
Synopsis: A drug dealer wants to quit the business, but is forced into doing a last job which consists of pushing a huge load of ecstasy pills. Everything goes wrong.
Appraisal: A high number of secondary characters and plot subtleties characterizes it. The main attraction are the competent actors, but other than that, and despite the script's complexity, or maybe because of it, this doesn't pay off as it should; although watchable on a superficial level, it doesn't add significantly to the already extensive filmography of its genre.
Rating: 47
Appraisal: A high number of secondary characters and plot subtleties characterizes it. The main attraction are the competent actors, but other than that, and despite the script's complexity, or maybe because of it, this doesn't pay off as it should; although watchable on a superficial level, it doesn't add significantly to the already extensive filmography of its genre.
Rating: 47
Dottie Gets Spanked (1993) (TV)
Synopsis: A little boy is obsessed with a sitcom and in particular with its female protagonist.
Appraisal: A masterpiece. It's 30 minutes long and one of the finest films of all times. A plunge into a child's mind, with a wealth of layers and connections which would be enough for long discussions, and yet is immensely rewarding even on a first viewing unencumbered by rationalizations.
Rating: 100 [best film of 1993]
Appraisal: A masterpiece. It's 30 minutes long and one of the finest films of all times. A plunge into a child's mind, with a wealth of layers and connections which would be enough for long discussions, and yet is immensely rewarding even on a first viewing unencumbered by rationalizations.
Rating: 100 [best film of 1993]
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Bewitched (2005)
Synopsis: A witch gets a job playing a witch in a TV show. She wants to be a normal person, just like her character. The show is a vehicle for its male star.
Appraisal: Not exactly good, but I'd say marginally interesting for the narrative problems it poses, and the solutions it finds. And also as a comedy it's not as bad as some said at the time of its release, anyway it doesn't seem so to me. All that being said, there is at least one joke that is evil, and I don't mean unfunny -- which it is -- but offensive. Or maybe it's just me.
Rating: 40
Appraisal: Not exactly good, but I'd say marginally interesting for the narrative problems it poses, and the solutions it finds. And also as a comedy it's not as bad as some said at the time of its release, anyway it doesn't seem so to me. All that being said, there is at least one joke that is evil, and I don't mean unfunny -- which it is -- but offensive. Or maybe it's just me.
Rating: 40
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Le gendarme se marie (1968)
English title: The Gendarme Gets Married.
Synopsis: Inspector Cruchot falls in love with a rich widow. The exam for the position of Chief-Inspector is approaching and Cruchot will have a go at it, competing with his own boss.
Appraisal: Very agitated and featuring some nice car stunts; the humor is still elementary and naive, but it works as an unpretentious pastime.
Rating: 37
Synopsis: Inspector Cruchot falls in love with a rich widow. The exam for the position of Chief-Inspector is approaching and Cruchot will have a go at it, competing with his own boss.
Appraisal: Very agitated and featuring some nice car stunts; the humor is still elementary and naive, but it works as an unpretentious pastime.
Rating: 37
Impostor (2001)
Synopsis: In the near future, the Earth is at war with Alfa-Centaur. A man is arrested under the accusation of not being the scientist he resembles but an extraterrestrial cyborg made to look exactly like him, and equipped with a bomb inside his body which is programmed to detonate in the proximity of the Earth's government leader. Based on a short story by Philip K. Dick written in 1953.
Appraisal: After an arresting first act, what follows is rather conventional, in the form of chases, fights, and the like. The camerawork relies heavily on fast panning, which I found to be headache-inducing. The film has interesting philosophical implications, derived from the fact that the cyborgs are supposed to be programmed to think they are really the humans they impersonate.
Rating: 38
Appraisal: After an arresting first act, what follows is rather conventional, in the form of chases, fights, and the like. The camerawork relies heavily on fast panning, which I found to be headache-inducing. The film has interesting philosophical implications, derived from the fact that the cyborgs are supposed to be programmed to think they are really the humans they impersonate.
Rating: 38
Le gendarme de St. Tropez (1964)
English title: The Gendarme of St. Tropez.
Synopsis: A small town policeman is promoted and assigned to the city of St. Tropez, in the coast of France. There, he surprises everyone with his dilligency and rigor. His daughter's antics, however, threaten to harm his career. Throw in a stolen Rembrandt and confusion sets in.
Appraisal: It is built around simple jokes and and a plot wich provides some action. It's not devoid of good moments, though, particularly in its prologue, and on the whole it's not too hard to see.
Rating: 37
Synopsis: A small town policeman is promoted and assigned to the city of St. Tropez, in the coast of France. There, he surprises everyone with his dilligency and rigor. His daughter's antics, however, threaten to harm his career. Throw in a stolen Rembrandt and confusion sets in.
Appraisal: It is built around simple jokes and and a plot wich provides some action. It's not devoid of good moments, though, particularly in its prologue, and on the whole it's not too hard to see.
Rating: 37
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World (2005)
Synopsis: A declining comedian takes a government job consisting of a research about the Muslim people's predilections in the subject of humor.
Appraisal: Very poor as comedy -- or as whatever else one may fancy it.
Rating: 18
Appraisal: Very poor as comedy -- or as whatever else one may fancy it.
Rating: 18
Monday, March 17, 2008
Dreamer: Inspired by a True Story (2005)
Synopsis: A little girl has a father who works evaluating the physical condition of racing horses. One of the horses breaks a leg during racing and to prevent her from being put down, he buys her.
Appraisal: I don't know whether it is the story in itself, or the excessively sedate way it is told, the fact is that this film didn't connect to me in any deeper way.
Rating: 32
Appraisal: I don't know whether it is the story in itself, or the excessively sedate way it is told, the fact is that this film didn't connect to me in any deeper way.
Rating: 32
O Homem que Desafiou o Diabo (2007)
Synopsis: Zé Araújo is a traveling salesman and a womanizer. He has sex with the store owner's daughter and is obliged to marry her. She is a ballbreaker. One day he gets tired and gets away, forging himself a new identity as Ojuara. He meets an old man who keeps a chest full of gold coins in his house half of which he says belongs to the devil; the latter appears and Ojuara fights him. The old man dies and Ojuara buries the chest intending to come back for it. He then meets a prostitute who is being harassed by a strong man. Ojuara fights him too. Ojuara goes to the circus, where he falls in love with the ballerina. Ojuara leaves for a castle in which a witch and her hunchback servant live. The witch says Ojuara may conjure up anyone he pleases, so he chooses the ballerina; they have sex. The second night belongs to the witch; she is said to have a 'vagina dentata', so Ojuara inserts a rapadura (a kind of Brazilian candy bar) in her and flees. Ojuara tames a bull for a local farmer and is offered her daughter to marry; she loves another guy so Ojuara declines. He meets a violent outlaw who has been spreading terror in the region with his killings; he turns out to be a kid from the town where he got married several years before so the two don't fight; instead they go to a brothel where they meet the farmer's daughter -- her beloved turned out to be impotent so she fled to be a prostitute; they also meet the other prostitute who was being bullied in the other brothel. Ojuara marries the latter and they head to a mythical land where the rivers are said to be made of milk and the mountains of sugar. The devil catches up with them and kills his pregnant wife. He claims his gold, Ojuara fights him and wins.
Appraisal: Awful. Nothing against the text per se, which is inspired in the novel "As Pelejas de Ojuara" (Ojuara's Fights), by Nei Leandro de Castro (1st ed. 1986). It's just that the actual realization in filmic form is unsavorily incompetent.
Rating: 15
Appraisal: Awful. Nothing against the text per se, which is inspired in the novel "As Pelejas de Ojuara" (Ojuara's Fights), by Nei Leandro de Castro (1st ed. 1986). It's just that the actual realization in filmic form is unsavorily incompetent.
Rating: 15
Les surmenés (1958)
Synopsis (spoilers): An introduction is shown about the fast urbanization of the 20th century and the change in pace that it has brought about in people's lives. The short story which follows tells of a country girl who moves to Paris to work as a typist for her fiancé, and who becomes addicted to the hectic nightlife of the city; it eventually affects her work negatively. A parallel subplot tells about her brother-in-law -- in whose apartment the typist girl is living -- who works as a newspaper editor and stays at his job until late hours and then gets up very early in the morning to exercise; it's no wonder he is overcome by fatigue too, and in a severer form than her sister-in-law.
Appraisal: This deliciously anachronic short is the perfect cinematic equivalent of those health articles which used to appear in 50's and 60's magazines and ended up in abridged form on the pages of Reader's Digest. The hand of a soon-to-be-famous filmmaker is unmistakably felt in the screenplay. The title's meaning is "The Fatigued Ones".
Appraisal: This deliciously anachronic short is the perfect cinematic equivalent of those health articles which used to appear in 50's and 60's magazines and ended up in abridged form on the pages of Reader's Digest. The hand of a soon-to-be-famous filmmaker is unmistakably felt in the screenplay. The title's meaning is "The Fatigued Ones".
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Les bronzés (1978)
English title: French Fried Vacation.
Synopsis: A summer resort in France, its guests and the folks who work there. A couple which tolerate each other's infidelities but down deep is not too comfortable with that policy; a socially inept fellow who is ridiculed by everyone; and several other characters.
Appraisal: An obviously unpretentious film which has a certain amount of charm; its collective character is not exactly balanced, with the Bernard-Nathalie couple being a sort of dramatic axis, and Jean-Claude the goofy fellow the comical one. It's uneven, with its fair amount of unfunny bits; to be sure, there are funny ones too, and the general spontaneity of mise-en-scene is remarkable in its own right. I saw the shorter version, with approximately 90 minutes (the longer one has 105, according to IMDb).
Rating: 51
Synopsis: A summer resort in France, its guests and the folks who work there. A couple which tolerate each other's infidelities but down deep is not too comfortable with that policy; a socially inept fellow who is ridiculed by everyone; and several other characters.
Appraisal: An obviously unpretentious film which has a certain amount of charm; its collective character is not exactly balanced, with the Bernard-Nathalie couple being a sort of dramatic axis, and Jean-Claude the goofy fellow the comical one. It's uneven, with its fair amount of unfunny bits; to be sure, there are funny ones too, and the general spontaneity of mise-en-scene is remarkable in its own right. I saw the shorter version, with approximately 90 minutes (the longer one has 105, according to IMDb).
Rating: 51
Blood Diamond (2006)
Synopsis: Sierra Leone, 1999. The diamond trade finances a ravaging civil war. A poor man has his family torn apart from him; he is enslaved at the mines by the guerilla. A smuggler will ally with him in the quest for a huge diamond he found and buried.
Appraisal: Hyperconventional adventure which wears the "political awareness" disguise whenever it can. The shooting on location brings a marginal sense of authenticity to an otherwise overwhelmingly inauthentic melodrama.
Rating: 38
Appraisal: Hyperconventional adventure which wears the "political awareness" disguise whenever it can. The shooting on location brings a marginal sense of authenticity to an otherwise overwhelmingly inauthentic melodrama.
Rating: 38
Le coût de la vie (2003)
English title: The Cost of Living.
Synopsis: Several characters and how they deal with money in their lives; the miser, the irresponsible spender, the prostitute, the heir, the billionaire, etc.
Appraisal: Its schematic, encyclopedic nature is evident, as is the psychological shallowness which veers into silliness on occasion.
Rating: 30
Synopsis: Several characters and how they deal with money in their lives; the miser, the irresponsible spender, the prostitute, the heir, the billionaire, etc.
Appraisal: Its schematic, encyclopedic nature is evident, as is the psychological shallowness which veers into silliness on occasion.
Rating: 30
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle (2004)
Synopsis: Two guys decide to eat at a certain fast food place, but are diverted from their goal by several incidents.
Appraisal: Sort of entertaining, in a cheap way.
Rating: 39
Appraisal: Sort of entertaining, in a cheap way.
Rating: 39
A Fei zheng chuan (1991)
English titles: Days of Being Wild; The True Story of Ah Fei.
Synopsis: A young man who doesn't like commitment gets involved first with a stadium ticket seller, then with a cabaret dancer; he was adopted as a baby and his stepmother won't tell him who his biological mother is, despite his continuous plea for her to do so.
Appraisal: A soap opera, no more and no less, albeit with some extra care in the mise-en-scene and excellent camerawork.
Rating: 39
Synopsis: A young man who doesn't like commitment gets involved first with a stadium ticket seller, then with a cabaret dancer; he was adopted as a baby and his stepmother won't tell him who his biological mother is, despite his continuous plea for her to do so.
Appraisal: A soap opera, no more and no less, albeit with some extra care in the mise-en-scene and excellent camerawork.
Rating: 39
A fost sau n-a fost? (2006)
English titles: 12:08 East of Bucharest; Was It or Was It Not?
Synopsis: In a small town in Romania, a talk show host from the local TV station invites two men to talk about their memories of the day of Ceausescu's fall. The film shows these three characters' lives on the morning before the show, and then the show proper, during which they will try to answer whether there was a Revolution or not in their town.
Appraisal: Observational cinema, composed of small incidents through which one may get a glimpse of an entire country. I wish it were a little more exciting.
Rating: 52
Synopsis: In a small town in Romania, a talk show host from the local TV station invites two men to talk about their memories of the day of Ceausescu's fall. The film shows these three characters' lives on the morning before the show, and then the show proper, during which they will try to answer whether there was a Revolution or not in their town.
Appraisal: Observational cinema, composed of small incidents through which one may get a glimpse of an entire country. I wish it were a little more exciting.
Rating: 52
Friday, March 14, 2008
Accepted (2006)
Synopsis: A high school graduate doesn't get accepted in any college, so he fakes an acceptance letter for his parents, from a fictitious college. To sustain the lie, he subsequently has to fake the entire college.
Appraisal: This is probably a record breaker for stupidity in movies, but one that proceeds from a good idea. As is so often the case, the filmmakers spoil it by inserting a hokey and hypocritical serious angle into what could have been a perfectly anarchic and fun satire. Glimpses of that are seen occasionally. I wonder if the authors were aware of the similarity with Poe's 'The System of Doctor Tarr and Professor Feather' and if that's what motivated the choice of a shut-down insane asylum for the fake college building.
Rating: 24
Appraisal: This is probably a record breaker for stupidity in movies, but one that proceeds from a good idea. As is so often the case, the filmmakers spoil it by inserting a hokey and hypocritical serious angle into what could have been a perfectly anarchic and fun satire. Glimpses of that are seen occasionally. I wonder if the authors were aware of the similarity with Poe's 'The System of Doctor Tarr and Professor Feather' and if that's what motivated the choice of a shut-down insane asylum for the fake college building.
Rating: 24
Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins (1985)
Synopsis: A policeman is kidnapped and his death is faked; he is then subjected to plastic surgery and submitted to an intensive training to become an agent of a secret government agency. His first target is a villainous weapons manufacturer. Based on the The Destroyer series of novels by Warren Murphy and Richard Sapir, the first installment of which was published in 1971 (but written in 1963) and which continues to this day.
Appraisal: Actioner which entertains, sort of. It's very comic-book-ish. The most remarkable things are Grey's make-up and performance.
Rating: 40
Appraisal: Actioner which entertains, sort of. It's very comic-book-ish. The most remarkable things are Grey's make-up and performance.
Rating: 40
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Curse of the Pink Panther (1983)
Synopsis: An American inspector is hired by the French police to locate Inspector Clouseau, who is missing. Also missing is the famous Pink Panther diamond. The new inspector, who is just as clumsy as the man he is looking for, conducts his searches in Lugash, South of France, and Valencia.
Appraisal: Sequel which is not all that bad. Despite its overall tepidity, it is visually pleasing (lots of nice places) and has enough gags to hold one's attention.
Rating: 40
Appraisal: Sequel which is not all that bad. Despite its overall tepidity, it is visually pleasing (lots of nice places) and has enough gags to hold one's attention.
Rating: 40
The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005)
Synopsis: A priest is charged with the death of a young woman whom he exorcized. Loosely inspired on the real case of Anneliese Michel who died in Germany in 1976 after a history of medical problems dating back to 1968.
Appraisal: Effective potboiler. Despite the inherent dishonesty which permeates it, there are some interesting philosophical issues which it suscitates. Both it and The Exorcist (1973) bring forth the notion that if demons exist then God must too. What this basically tries to reason is that possessions, by persuading people of the existence of the supernatural, would open the way to belief in other supernatural entities, God included. At first, this seemed logically sound to me, but later I saw its other side, namely, that the existence of demons, and possessions, is actually a sign of chaos and anarchy in the universe, which would be evidence of the absence of a God-like regulating entity. Anyway, it is obvious that what drives people's faiths is ultimately the selfish concern about whether they will somehow defeat death, and the mechanism which is employed is not really important. A more accurate rendition of the real events is said to be given in the film Requiem, which I haven't seen.
Rating: 51
Appraisal: Effective potboiler. Despite the inherent dishonesty which permeates it, there are some interesting philosophical issues which it suscitates. Both it and The Exorcist (1973) bring forth the notion that if demons exist then God must too. What this basically tries to reason is that possessions, by persuading people of the existence of the supernatural, would open the way to belief in other supernatural entities, God included. At first, this seemed logically sound to me, but later I saw its other side, namely, that the existence of demons, and possessions, is actually a sign of chaos and anarchy in the universe, which would be evidence of the absence of a God-like regulating entity. Anyway, it is obvious that what drives people's faiths is ultimately the selfish concern about whether they will somehow defeat death, and the mechanism which is employed is not really important. A more accurate rendition of the real events is said to be given in the film Requiem, which I haven't seen.
Rating: 51
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Gabrielle (2005)
Synopsis: A woman abandons her husband, leaving him a letter saying she would never return, and then does.
Appraisal: Unpleasantly affected. It's based on a short story by Joseph Conrad named "The Return", which was first published in "Tales of Unrest" in 1898, and which Conrad said he hated.
Rating: 35
Appraisal: Unpleasantly affected. It's based on a short story by Joseph Conrad named "The Return", which was first published in "Tales of Unrest" in 1898, and which Conrad said he hated.
Rating: 35
Monday, March 10, 2008
Sermões - A História de Antônio Vieira (1989)
Synopsis: The film is based on Padre António Vieira's life and works. He was a 17th century priest who lived most of his life in Brazil.
Appraisal: A child of 5 could not do worse than this collection of Vieira's excerpts intercut with semi-correlated or non-correlated snippets of silent classics, assorted poetry, and baroque music. If it weren't for the inspired leading performance, this film would be a complete waste of celluloid. As a side note, based on what I have seen and read about Vieira (this film, and Palavra e Utopia, and an encyclopedia entry), the man was as mad as a hatter and still he is considered the greatest Portuguese-language writer of the 17th century. Go figure.
Rating: 21
Appraisal: A child of 5 could not do worse than this collection of Vieira's excerpts intercut with semi-correlated or non-correlated snippets of silent classics, assorted poetry, and baroque music. If it weren't for the inspired leading performance, this film would be a complete waste of celluloid. As a side note, based on what I have seen and read about Vieira (this film, and Palavra e Utopia, and an encyclopedia entry), the man was as mad as a hatter and still he is considered the greatest Portuguese-language writer of the 17th century. Go figure.
Rating: 21
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Older Sister (1956) (TV)
Synopsis: A year after the Fall River murders, Lizzie Borden and her sister Emma are visited by a reporter.
Appraisal: An atypical episode, and arguably one more ambitious than the show's average. The story presents a new hypothesis for the notorious real-life case; it's an ingenious take, but as I am probably not aware of all of the case's details I am not ideally fit to assess its plausibility.
Appraisal: An atypical episode, and arguably one more ambitious than the show's average. The story presents a new hypothesis for the notorious real-life case; it's an ingenious take, but as I am probably not aware of all of the case's details I am not ideally fit to assess its plausibility.
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: You Got to Have Luck (1956) (TV)
Synopsis: An escaped convict breaks into a house where a woman is alone.
Appraisal: More ironies of fate.
Appraisal: More ironies of fate.
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Big Switch (1956) (TV)
Synopsis: A guy intends to kill his former girlfriend who dumped him for another man while he was in jail. He sets up an alibi playing poker with his friend, a bar owner.
Appraisal: Another entertaining piece of black humor.
Appraisal: Another entertaining piece of black humor.
The Last King of Scotland (2006)
Synopsis: A young doctor goes to Uganda in search of adventure and ends up becoming the personal physician of that nation's new ruler. The dictator develops a sort of dependence towards him.
Appraisal: This is an interesting work about personal responsibility and the limits of friendship. The films mixes historical fact and fictional characters such as Dr. Garrigan.
Rating: 65
Appraisal: This is an interesting work about personal responsibility and the limits of friendship. The films mixes historical fact and fictional characters such as Dr. Garrigan.
Rating: 65
The Extreme Adventures of Super Dave (2000) (V)
Synopsis: A stunt man in his declining years decides to retire but is then betrayed by his student, and accepts his challenge in order to get the money for a kid's heart surgery.
Appraisal: Innocuous little comedy, which has some entertaining value.
Rating: 41
Appraisal: Innocuous little comedy, which has some entertaining value.
Rating: 41
Kokoda (2006)
Synopsis: In World War II, a precariously equipped outfit in Papua New Guinea must stop the Japanese from reaching a harbor which would be crucial for invading Australia.
Appraisal: Very realistic depiction of war in its grim physicality.
Rating: 56
Appraisal: Very realistic depiction of war in its grim physicality.
Rating: 56
Sukkar banat (2007)
English title: Caramel.
Synopsis: The lives of several women who work at a beauty parlor. One of them has an affair with a married man and is loved by a policeman, another is a divorcée who is trying to find work as an actress in commercials, another is a lesbian who falls in love with a client, the other is about to get married and is worried because she is no longer a virgin; another character is an older woman who is a seamstress who has never married and looks after an even older woman with mental problems.
Appraisal: Commercial cinema that's short on new ideas and relies heavily on clichés.
(Saw it dubbed in French.)
Rating: 31
Synopsis: The lives of several women who work at a beauty parlor. One of them has an affair with a married man and is loved by a policeman, another is a divorcée who is trying to find work as an actress in commercials, another is a lesbian who falls in love with a client, the other is about to get married and is worried because she is no longer a virgin; another character is an older woman who is a seamstress who has never married and looks after an even older woman with mental problems.
Appraisal: Commercial cinema that's short on new ideas and relies heavily on clichés.
(Saw it dubbed in French.)
Rating: 31
Wednesday, March 05, 2008
The Bucket List (2007)
Synopsis: Two terminal patients escape from the hospital and go on a trip around the world.
Appraisal: It's hokey, but that's not all; it's unimaginative and follows a predictable course of worn-out clichés.
Rating: 23
Appraisal: It's hokey, but that's not all; it's unimaginative and follows a predictable course of worn-out clichés.
Rating: 23
Tuesday, March 04, 2008
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977)
Synopsis: Three short animation films (Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree (1966), Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day (1968), and Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too! (1974)) united. Winnie flies with a balloon towards a honey spot; a terrible wind brings the owl's house down; Tigger's jumping over people gets to be a nuisance to the rabbit. Based on the books written by English author A. A. Milne and illustrated by E. H. Shepard, the first of which was published in 1926.
Appraisal: A work of art for small children, perfectly enjoyable by adults, I think. My experience was somewhat diminished by having watched a Portuguese-dubbed version.
Rating: 63
Appraisal: A work of art for small children, perfectly enjoyable by adults, I think. My experience was somewhat diminished by having watched a Portuguese-dubbed version.
Rating: 63
Sunday, March 02, 2008
Audrey Rose (1977)
Synopsis: A man believes that his dead daughter has reincarnated in another girl and tells it to her parents. Meanwhile, the girl suffers from nightmares and inexplicable burnings.
Appraisal: One of the worst films of the seventies, I believe, a glorious piece of nonsense whose infinite atrociousness is only diminished by Mason's earnest performance.
Rating: 14
Appraisal: One of the worst films of the seventies, I believe, a glorious piece of nonsense whose infinite atrociousness is only diminished by Mason's earnest performance.
Rating: 14
Saturday, March 01, 2008
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: A Bullet for Baldwin (1956) (TV)
Synopsis: A file clerk at an investment bank is fired and shoots his boss. The next day of work he finds out that his boss is still alive and has no recollection or symptom of having been shot -- or at least that's what the appearances indicate.
Appraisal: This is the weirdest and most contrived story of this show, so far. It is not completely bad, though.
Appraisal: This is the weirdest and most contrived story of this show, so far. It is not completely bad, though.
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Cheney Vase (1955) (TV)
Synopsis: A museum employee is fired and cons an old invalid woman into hiring him as her assistant, with the purpose of stealing a precious vase she possesses.
Appraisal: The story is on the same average, moderately entertaining, level of its predecessors. What I find remarkable about this whole series, and perhaps this episode in particular, is the sheer brilliance of the mise-en-scene, and the excellency of the acting. And, of course, the introduction and farewell comments are usually a treat in their own right.
Appraisal: The story is on the same average, moderately entertaining, level of its predecessors. What I find remarkable about this whole series, and perhaps this episode in particular, is the sheer brilliance of the mise-en-scene, and the excellency of the acting. And, of course, the introduction and farewell comments are usually a treat in their own right.
An Inconvenient Truth (2006)
Documentary which is mostly comprised of a lecture about the issue of global warming. It addresses mainly the phenomenon and its consequences. Its causes are addressed in very general terms, and the individual action is addressed only in brief guidelines during the end credits. I was a bit appalled that the specific fact that cattle raising (and all the economy that surrounds it) is the main responsible for global warming was not mentioned once in the film; it thus reinforces the myth that automobiles are that main responsible -- they are mentioned several times. Those final guidelines should include "lower your cow meat consumption". Anyway, as I said, this is primarily about the acknowledgement of the problem and its consequences; as such it fares well.
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