What About Bob? (1991)

Synopsis: A patient follows his psychotherapist to where he is spending his vacation.
Appraisal: Enjoyable comedy, with so uniformly excellent performances that it is hard to point out the best one among them. The screenplay is intelligent and, although it consists basically of one joke that is explored to its ultimate consequences, it never gets dull. It may be seen as a satire of shrinks.
Rating: 63

Red Eye (2005)

Synopsis: During a flight, woman is blackmailed by guy sitting next to her into making a phone call that will get a government official killed.
Appraisal: Interesting situations of suspense are engendered by this film's screenplay; it's not a very ambitious film, but it's tautly directed and brilliantly acted, and thus works fine as a time killer.
Rating: 55

2 filhos de Francisco (2005)

English title: Two Sons of Francisco.
Synopsis: The real-life story of two poor boys whose father was determined to turn them into musical hits.
Appraisal: The first two-thirds of the film, encompassing the childhood years of the two singing brothers, are decent though far from extraordinary; the final third is hard to watch. The director is clearly competent; the actors do a fine job, with minor slips here and there that are not worth mentioning. One last note: should they suppress the final third of the movie (and I think they should), the two sons would not be the same two; thus, I deduce that the title doesn't really refer to two particular persons; rather, it is a sort of statement, as in 'two sons of Francisco are in the spotlight'; one of them changes, but they're always two.
Rating: 40

Les temps qui changent (2004)

English title: Changing Times.
Synopsis: The story is set in Tangiers. Cécile is suddenly in over her head: an old flame reclaims her love, her homosexual son's drug-addict girlfriend who was stood up by her Muslim twin sister comes to stay in their house, the radio show Cécile hosts pays her barely enough to keep her solvent, her marriage is stagnant and her husband has open affairs to which she makes no objections.
Appraisal: A love story with implausible ramifications into witchcraft, plus some side-plots that go nowhere and have little impact on the central one. That sums this film up, in terms of contents. On the technical side, it is marked by a pervasive use of the hand-held camera. I pondered about the meaning of the title and I couldn't come up with a satisfactory explanation (is he referring to our times' sexual morals which change fast, or is he referring to the circumstances of one's life which change just as fast?). I can't say that I care though.
Rating: 28

Letters from Iwo Jima (2006)

Synopsis: In 1945, at the island of Iwo Jima, Japanese soldiers defend the island with no air or naval support. The Americans bomb the island from air and water and then invade it. The main character is Saigo, who before being drafted was a baker with a pregnant wife. The general adopts the tactics of digging tunnels on the mountains. Several of his officers are constantly opposing him.

Appraisal: This is, in general terms, a formally (though not historically, as dust-7 pointed out at the User Comments section of IMDb) correct movie, with a well structured screenplay, and with some spectacle value. There are some incursions into bullshit territory that I cannot leave uncommented: (1) the general's regret about not having cleaned the kitchen floor; (2) the general reads the letter from the prisoner's mom aloud, and gives his soldiers the same recommendation made by her, "do the right thing because it is the right thing"; it would be preposterous for a general to do a thing like that, since a war presupposes a certain level of emotional distancing from your enemy; (3) the dog subplot (ridiculous!); (4) admiral Ito going on a lonely excursion and lying on the ground with the dead men (the probable course of action here would be to tie the mines to corpses and walk away, and by the way that is what occurred in real life).

Rating: 63

The Master of Disguise (2002)

Synopsis: Pistachio is the descendant of an ancient lineage of disguise artists. He has been kept unaware of this family tradition by his parents, but when said parents are kidnapped by a thug who intends to use one of them to help him rob historical objects Pistachio's grandfather teaches him how to become the master of disguise so that he may rescue his parents.
Appraisal: Sloppily written comedy that is a mere excuse for the showcasing of the main actor's impersonating abilities, combined with the make-up artist's own abilities. Some of the impersonations are moderately funny, and the female sidekick is played by a good comedian. But the film is utterly forgettable.
Rating: 25

The Devil in Miss Jones (1973)

Synopsis: A virgin woman kills herself and is offered a chance to experience sex before she is sent to Hell.
Appraisal: I like the plot of this film, whose finale is said to be loosely based on the 1945 play 'Huis-clos' (named 'No Exit' in the U.S.) by Sartre. The central and largest part of the movie is comprised of sex. So, don't expect the theme to be developed, because it is not. But that is not an uncommon feature of non-pornographic movies either; take some fight or action films for example. The acting is good, especially by the main actress; she is not pretty, but that is not necessarily a liability. The sex scenes are performed consistently with the central character's frame of mind; I liked them.
Rating: 60

Sibling Rivalry (1990)

Synopsis: A neglected wife goes to bed with a stranger she meets at the grocery store and after they have sex she notices that the guy died.
Appraisal: Three pairs of siblings are examined in this comedy of errors. In each pair, the siblings have opposite personalities. The plot is full of coincidences so the six of them interrelate, but this doesn't detract from the film in any measure, because it is not about realism, rather an analytic study where a dialog is exchanged between opposites through their equivalents; thus, the cop's date is the equivalent of his brother, and the housewife has an arrangement with the blind installer (he installs blinds, I mean) who is just like her sister. The doctor and his dead brother are also opposites in a certain personality trait that becomes clear early on. This ingenious structure is matched by a clever development. Also, every actor plays his or her part to the perfection. The direction is invisible, which is how it should be. All that being said, the impression the film made on me is probably that of an accomplished but ultimately small-scale amusement.
Rating: 58

Treasure Planet (2002)

Synopsis: Jim is a teenage boy who lives with his mother, an inn-keeper. One day a stranger gives him a spherical object and dies. A gang of thugs led by a mysterious character comes looking for that object. Jim and his mother are obliged to flee, as they see the inn be destroyed by the thugs. Jim finds out that the strange object is a treasure map. He organizes an expedition in search of the treasure, which is located on a distant planet.
Appraisal: Umpteenth version of the 1883 novel "Treasure Island" by Robert Louis Stevenson. This time it's a sci-fi version, which looked promising at first but disappointed all the way through, being short on good ideas, both visual and story-related ones. If my memory doesn't fail me, the portal thing is ripped off from Stargate.
I've seen the Brazilian Portuguese-dubbed version.
Rating: 36

Beverly Hills Cop II (1987)

Synopsis: A series of robberies in Beverly Hills challenges the police; notes are left that apparently contain clues to who the robber is; also, the robbed places follow an alphabetic pattern. A police detective is wounded while doing an outdoors investigation; a friend of his who is a policeman in Detroit decides to pay him a visit and help in the solution of the crimes.
Appraisal: The attempts at humor in this film didn't strike me as funny at all; on the contrary, its main character even seemed a little obnoxious to me. The plot is not very interesting either.
Rating: 20

Real Genius (1985)

Synopsis: A 15 year old Physics student enters the university and is assigned to work on a device without knowing that it will be used as a weapon.
Appraisal: This comedy is torn between silly and smart moments, the silly ones winning by a small margin, I suppose. Like many of the comedies of that era, there is a sexist slant, as in the party with the aestheticians in bikinis. But the characters are funny and well acted, that being the film's main asset. The theme of the film is well addressed, being the responsibility of scientists regarding the use given to the product of their work. Overall it's pretty watchable. Seen it dubbed in Portuguese, a misfortune.
Rating: 46

The Matador (2005)

Synopsis: A hitman and a salesman meet at a bar in Mexico City and become friends.
Appraisal: Not much happens in this film, but it is nice to watch, and has a funny central character. Beware though: its focus is on morals, not action. It's all about how far you would go to reach your goals, but also about the fascination exerted on the bourgeoisie by criminals. It is not very believable, nor is it meant to be, I think.
Rating: 59

Fifty/Fifty (1992)

Synopsis: Two friends are hired by the CIA to help overthrow a dictatorship in South Asia.
Appraisal: Derivative yet moderately enjoyable action comedy. [Spoilers ahead.] There are some plot holes, for example one of the main suspense sequences is about one of the characters turning an electric fence off in time or else his buddy will be electrocuted, which is bullshit since all the latter has to do is throw something at the fence and see if it emits sparks (we actually witness the phenomenon, when a moth touches the fence a few instants before it is turned off!). Another weak spot is how the rebel leader switches to the dictator's side near the end, and then becomes the opposition leader all over again after the dictator dies; there is no point in fighting for a guy like this, and chances are he will become as evil a dictator as the deposed one.
Saw it dubbed in Portuguese, an unfortunate circumstance.
Rating: 32

Harry and the Hendersons (1987)

Synopsis: A family on vacation in the woods hits a big animal with their car in their way back. It is Bigfoot, a legendary creature resembling an evolved giant ape. They think it is dead and decide to take it along with them. But after they arrive home they discover it is actually alive.
Appraisal: Small children will probably like it, but for me it was not such a rewarding experience. The screenplay is poor, and many jokes are based on the destruction of furniture. The creature is well designed and built though. The film features a prominent anti-hunting message and I question the honesty of the preaching strategy, which basically consists in exploring the empathy towards a fictitious creature.
Rating: 34

Young Adam (2003)

Synopsis: Joe is a young man who lives in a barge with a couple, Les and Ella, and their little son. They transport coal and other stuff; that's how they make a living. One day the two men find a dead body floating on the water. It's a young woman wearing only a petticoat. Joe starts an affair with Ella. Meanwhile, we see flashbacks of Joe and a woman he had a relationship with.
Appraisal: Based on a 1957 novel by Alexander Trocchi, this film is a well directed tale of adultery and other secrets that is nevertheless not all that absorbing. Apart from the somewhat monotonous storyline, what I disliked most was the less than credible trial of the dead girl's married friend. But to be honest I don't know much about the Scottish justice system at the unspecified (60's?) time at which the film is set. On the good side, the most impressive thing for me was how the film shows the subtle change in Ella's treatment of Joe, after Les leaves. All the actors in this film are perfect. This film has similarities with earlier ones, like those based on the novel The Postman Always Rings Twice, and Knife in the Water; the central character is reminiscent of the one in Alfie (1966).
Rating: 52

Ken Park (2002)

Synopsis: Shawn has an affair with his girlfriend's mother. Tate lives with his grandparents to whom he is aggressive. Claude has an abusive father and a passive mother. Peaches lives with her father who treats her well as long as she behaves according to his religious standards.
Appraisal: The conflicts between teenagers and their parents is the central theme of this film. Several aspects of this problem are shown, but it is all one-dimensional and caricatural, and not in a satirical way. The result is more tedious than shocking. Example of moronic scene: a guy is drinking beer and pissing, and the camera lowers so we can see his penis and the piss coming out of it, then it rises again to head level - why would we be interested in looking at his penis when we can hear perfectly well that he is pissing?
Rating: 19

Return of the Seven (1966)

Synopsis: Mexico. An evil farmer kidnaps all the men in the nearby villages, prompting the wife of one of them to ask the help of a gunfighter named Chris, who had helped her village in the past. Chris rounds up a posse of seven men.
Appraisal: There are some good plot ideas in this film, like the Marxist justification used by the bad guy to enslave the peasants - he has always fought the peasants' oppressors and the peasants reaped the benefits without ever raising a finger to help. This, and several characters' backstories, are exposed solely in dialogue. The big problem of this film is that it lacks visually exciting sequences. All the riding and shooting become a little boring, especially without a juicier dramatic conflict on which to focus our attention.
Rating: 31

Little Children (2006)

Synopsis: Sarah has a Master's in Literature but spends her days taking care of her little daughter. Her husband works in marketing and is a porn addict. Brad has a law degree but has failed the bar exam twice, so he is in charge of looking after his little son while his wife works as a doctor. Sarah and Brad meet at the playground and start an affair. Ronnie is a convicted child molester who just got out of jail. Larry is an ex-cop who is distributing warning leaflets with Ronnie's photo. Brad meets Larry and is invited to play in the football team.
Appraisal: There is a good sequence in this film, namely when Ronnie the child molester is in the swimming pool and is recognized by the people there. It is well orchestrated to achieve a sense of bizarreness. They should perhaps release that sequence as a short film and burn the rest of the negative, because apart from that sequence the film is just pitiful.
Rating: 10

The Human Shield (1992)

Synopsis: Doug, an American ex-military who used to train Iraqi soldiers in the war against Iran, has to return to Iraq at the time of the invasion of Kuwait because his brother was kidnapped by an Iraqi general who wishes to set a personal score with Doug.
Appraisal: Derivative actioner whose melodramatic subplot produces at least one anthological exchange of dialogue; it's between Lila and her husband, the Iraqi general she married out of love for the American soldier. General: 'Do you find me ugly because of my scar?' Lila: 'For me it is your most beautiful part, because it reminds me of the man that made it.' Note: this film's title bears no relation with anything that happens in it.
Rating: 31

40 Pounds of Trouble (1962)

Synopsis: A casino manager who has evaded California in order to avoid paying alimony to his ex-wife is suddenly burdened with the task of looking after a little girl who has been left by her father at the casino.
Appraisal: This is an entertaining comedy that keeps schmaltz at a reasonably low level. It starts with a car chase from California to Nevada, then has a larger portion set inside a casino, and then has a long sequence in Disneyland where another chase takes place. All this eventfulness, plus the finely written dialogue, makes this a film where dullness is never present.
Rating: 55

Dear Wendy (2005)

Synopsis: A young man founds a club for the study of guns and the practice of shooting; he invites his friends to join it. They swear not to use the guns ever, but carry them to feel safe.
Appraisal: This is really weak as a fable or parable or whatever it has set out to be.
Rating: 27

Species II (1998)

Synopsis: During a trip to Mars, alien organisms contaminate astronauts. Back to Earth, they start procreating.
Appraisal: The first film was already not so good; this sequel is even more absurd and pointless. The emphasis here is less on action than on the exhibition of shock images, which sort of disguise the intrinsic dullness of the film.
Rating: 25

Rebelião em Vila Rica (1958)

Synopsis (with spoilers): Ouro Preto is a historic town in Brazil where a conspiracy to establish an independent state was foiled by the Portuguese in the 18th century. This movie's story happens in 1945, when Brazil is under a dictatorial regime which curbs the universities' autonomy. When the government announces its decision to transfer the Mining and Metallurgy School to another city, the students and the school's dean oppose the decision. The dean is put into forced retirement and a new dean is appointed by the government. The students organize a strike. When that proves itself ineffective, they decide to organize a small routine that they expect to annoy the dean and turn the city's population against him: they chime the church's bell at night, awaking the town. The dean retaliate, closing the Students' Association. The students decide for a radical act: to take over the school. However, they are betrayed by one of them, who was facing expulsion for trying to adulterate his score card. When the students break into the school's building, they are received by the police. In the confront, the students' leader is killed. He becomes a martyr and the students' cause finally win.
Appraisal: It's impossible not to notice the naiveté in the depiction of its characters and their interrelationships, but its warmth and energy imparts it a certain attractiveness. There are many musical numbers with the actors being dubbed by singers or by a professional choir, making the first half of the movie practically a musical. These musical interruptions, although well performed, are clumsy and in some cases dilute the dramatic strength of the film. The film's political aspect is not without interest, even nearly 50 years later. Certain performances, for instance those of the characters 'Rosália' (the secretary) and 'Xavier' (the students' leader) are very good. The major problem is that some smaller parts are not well played at all.
Rating: 40

Filme de amor (2003)

Englisht title: A Love Movie.
There is no plot, just two guys and a girl in a house in their undies (and occasionally without them) in erudite monologues about love (and Moby Dick, go figure). A few inserts of sex scenes are thrown in and voilà, here is your award-winning artistic achievement of the day. Beware that I am reviewing the 91 minute version that was exhibited on Canal Brasil; I know nothing about longer versions that, according to IMDb, have 100 minutes and 116 minutes of length.
Rating: 8

The Purple Plain (1954)

Synopsis: A World War II pilot stationed in Burma in 1945 worries his colleagues and superiors with his recklessness; having lost his wife on his wedding day he doesn't value his own life. This changes when he meets a beautiful Burmese woman at the local Mission. A plane crash in the jungle will put to test his will to live.
Appraisal: Somewhat dull war adventure that is lifted by an excellent lead performance and good supporting ones. Based on a 1947 novel by H.E. Bates.
Rating: 45

The Event (2003)

Synopsis: A New York assistant district attorney investigates the death of an AIDS-stricken homosexual following a streak of similar deaths that may possibly have been assisted suicides.
Appraisal: Slow-moving and clearly agenda-driven, this film is not hard to watch but has barely any dramatic depth other than that which is required to advance the cause of the legalization of assisted suicide. Unlike the similarly themed It's My Party, this doesn't have engaging characters or a dynamic pace. Another recent film that tries to make a case for euthanasia is Mar adentro (aka The Sea Inside). In a way, it's good that the theme is being openly addressed. Let's hope that the legislators do something about it, in the so-called civilized countries in the world.
Rating: 46

Dracula: Dead and Loving It (1995)

Synopsis: A Transylvanian count who's a vampire moves to England where he begins to make victims among young women and is fought by Van Helsing, a vampire expert.
Appraisal: Comedy that spoofs the famous book by Bram Stoker (first published in 1897) and several of its many film versions (the first of which was released in 1922). It boasts a rather simple humor, that at times can be moderately funny.
Rating: 46

RV (2006)

Synopsis: Family goes out on vacation on an RV (recreational vehicle, a small bus), without knowing that it's just a means for the father of the family to get closer to a work meeting he has to attend.
Appraisal: It's just not funny. What more can I say?
Rating: 25

Legends of the Fall (1994)

Movie's source: a 1979 novella by Jim Harrison.
Synopsis (complete with spoilers): Three brothers live in a farm: Alfred, Tristan, and Samuel. Their father is a retired military. Samuel, the youngest one, brings his fiancée Susannah to meet his family, and she falls for Tristan, the middle brother, who is wild. The three go to war (it's 1914). Samuel dies. Alfred is wounded and returns home. He proposes to Susannah. She reluctantly accepts, but when Tristan returns she decides for him instead and they marry. Tristan gets restless and goes on a trip, visiting all the wildest and remotest parts of the world. Susannah marries Alfred, who goes into politics. Tristan returns, marries Isabel Two, the foreman's daughter; he goes into bootlegging (it's the prohibition era). During a police roadblock, Isabel Two is killed. Tristan beats the policeman, goes to jail for a month, Susannah visits him, we see that she still loves him, but he tells her to go back to Alfred. Tristan goes out of jail and wreaks vengeance upon the people responsible for Isabel Two's death. Susannah kills herself. Tristan asks Alfred to look after his children, and goes again on a trip. He dies very old in a fight with a bear.
Appraisal: There is nothing implicitly wrong with the above synopsis. It could be made into a good film, I guess. Here, however, what we get is very much a soap opera, with solemn music in the background and big clichés from start to finish. The characters are all one-dimensional, except for the character of Susannah, who is zero-dimensional - she only exists in function of other characters and it's hard to figure out what, apart from her beautiful smile, caused others to fall instantly in love with her. Still it's a watchable film, because the narrative is kept flowing at a steady pace and the cinematography is good, but veers often to ludicrousness, like the scene where Isabel Two (yes, that is her nickname) proudly says that she knows that Heraklion is the capital of Crete because she had 'European history' lessons with the colonel.
Rating: 38

The Quest (1996)

Synopsis (*spoilers*): Dubois, a street clown and thief, is chased by the police, ending up on a pirate ship, from where he is rescued when the ship is taken by Dobbs, a gunrunner who sells Dubois to a Thai fight master, who in turn trains Dubois on the Muay Thai martial art. Dubois wins a tournament and there meets Dobbs, asking him to help him rob the Golden Dragon, a trophy of a secret tournament featuring fighters from all over the globe. A woman reporter joins them. They also meet the American contestant, who waives his participation in the tournament in favor of Dubois, whom he thinks is a better fighter.
Appraisal: Colorful adventure with a rather old fashioned look and sense of humor, but with often terrible dialogue. The tournament is quite risible, featuring contestants of wildly disparate weights, all dressed in "national" attires; so, the Japanese contestant is a fat guy in a sumo thong, the Scottish one fights in kilts, the Spanish one is in full bullfighter clothes, etc. It all seems to have come out of a 11 year old boy's mind, yet secures a minimal level of entertainment.
Rating: 31

The Bad News Bears (1976)

Synopsis: Some parents win a lawsuit that will give their kids the right to compete in a baseball championship. One of the parents hire a former player turned swimming pool cleaner, and a drunk, as the kids' coach. Initially, the coach doesn't give a damn about the kids, who play awfully, but soon he changes his mind.
Appraisal: This is my second viewing of this film, and I have enjoyed it more this time than the previous one. The screenplay is rather simple, and the jokes and the morality are elementary. But it is well put together; the direction is precise, the timing of the jokes is perfect, and the staging of the games is very good. A nice entertainment.
Rating: 57 (up from a previous 46)

The Ugly American (1963)

Synopsis (*spoilers*): In an asiatic country called Sarkhan, the Americans are building a highway that allegedly will foster that country's economy. The communists provoke an accident that causes several deaths and make it look like it was due to the drunkenness of the American engineer. This leads to a massive opposition to the presence of the Americans, and specifically to the building of the highway. Meanwhile, the U.S. nominate MacWhite as the new ambassador; he is a longtime friend of Deong, the most popular figure in Sarkhan. Deong opposes to the highway but is not thought to be a communist. Deong instructs his followers to go to the airport and make a peaceful protest during the arrival of MacWhite, but the communists incite the mob to a riot that almost gets MacWhite and his wife killed. Later on, a conversation between Deong and MacWhite convinces the latter that Deong is really a communist. He makes a pact with Kwen Sai, the prime-minister of Sarkhan, by which the U.S. would provide military support to the government; in exchange Kwen Sai would agree to a change in the route of the highway, which would head to North Sarkhan, which is ruled by the communists. The man in charge of the construction of the highway tries to talk MacWhite out of this decision but to no avail. Munsang, the communist party's leader, uses the ceremony of the dedicatory of the highway as a pretext for initiating the revolution; he co-opts Deong to lead the masses. MacWhite is warned by Kwen Sai that Deong is just being used and is not really a communist, and that the communists will probably kill him after they take over the country; he also informs that Russian and Chinese soldiers have already invaded the country and that the Chinese commander is his prisoner. MacWhite rushes to warn Deong, urging him to call the government palace and verify for himself that the Chinese colonel is a prisoner. When Deong realizes he has been duped by the communists, he orders his longtime assistant to revert the process, but is immediately killed by said assistant. What happens then is not shown; MacWhite is being interviewed by the press, and later goes on TV with a statement that the U.S. will continue to support underdeveloped countries, without a political agenda.
Appraisal: Although politically naive and with a clear pro-American slant, this film still has much insight to some of the problems faced by U.S. foreign policy; these problems have not changed much since the time this film was made, although of course the demise of the U.S.S.R. is a significant change. I liked the fact that the main character is not shown as flawless; he is often arrogant, and must face the consequences of his errors. I also liked the lead performance; it was at once energetic and nuanced. The narrative is well paced and never dull. It is said that the novel is much superior to the film though.
Rating: 60

Rosalie Goes Shopping (1989)

Synopsis: A housewife manages the finances of her numerous family in a rather original and creative way. Her husband, a crop-dusting pilot, is unaware of her illegalities, but the priest to whom she confesses is rather worried.
Appraisal: Silly comedy that is not too unpleasant to watch, but whose critique of capitalism and consumerism is rather bland. The main character's deadpan attitude is amusing but the script would require serious further working for it to achieve real entertainment quality. I am not a plausibility freak, but to assume that a bank would grant a 2 million dollar loan without any collateral is just insulting. The copy exhibited on Brazilian channel Telecine is only 89 minutes long, 5 minutes shorter than the length that is given by IMDb.
Rating: 35

Fear X (2003)

Synopsis: A security guard is obsessed about his wife's death by gunshot while she was in the parking lot of the same mall at which he works. In his spare hours, he goes over the security tapes of the mall in the hope of finding a clue that will help him solve the exact nature of her death.
Appraisal: This film is marred by a seriously anti-climactic last act. The writer probably didn't have enough imagination to come up with a thrilling culmination for the story he concocted. If it were a bigger production, they would probably have hired a team of writers to perfect this screenplay in a manner that would prevent the frustration of the viewers. That being said, the film has merits; it is brooding and well directed, and has a solid lead performance.
Rating: 46

Vera Drake (2004)

Synopsis: In 1950 England, a working-class housewife, esteemed by everyone, has a secret activity on the side: she performs abortions.
Appraisal: This film is a very elaborate and detailed propaganda piece for the cause of legalized, state-sponsored abortion. In order to achieve that goal, several characters, sufficiently defined for the purpose of assessing their reaction to the referred subject matter, are strategically created. The main character is defined as a woman who likes to help people, and that (along with a fact in her own past, the exact nature of which is not revealed) is the motive that allegedly leads her to the illegal acts she performs. It seems that this choice is optimal for the filmmaker's agenda, since it makes clear that it is not a question of individual character, but of public policy. Further evidence that this film is not about characters but about politics is given by the fact that there are events in the movie that have no significant relation to Vera, namely the episode with the rich girl who has an abortion in a clinic. The upper-class characters have no development and the episode is there with the sole purpose of showing the injustice that the hypocritical legislation imposes on the less favored classes. An excellent, very informative review about this movie can be found on the User Comments section of IMDb; it was written by F. Gwynplaine MacIntyre.
Rating: 61

King Kong (2005)

Synopsis: A filming crew travels to a small island to make a film and there they find a prehistoric world ruled by a giant gorilla.
Appraisal: You may think of it as a piece of propaganda about the wonders of computer generated imagery, the main selling point being: the film within the film is an extreme example of the difficulties of on-location shooting, while the film we watch has no troubles of this kind, because everything is done in the computer. It's not really a film about humans, and it's not a film about animals, either. The actors are mere props here. This film's philosophy of spectacle is summarized in the scene where Ann performs for Kong, art as just a means of calming the beast within every one of us.
Rating: 42

Lucky Number Slevin (2006)

Synopsis: A young man arrives at a friend's house and is mistaken as the latter by two rival gangsters. The problem is, said friend owes money to said gangsters.
Appraisal (with possible spoilers): While I acknowledge some finely written dialogue, nothing can conceal the basic vacuity and disposability of the whole thing. The contrivance of some elements is evident and if you want proof look at the deleted scenes and see how they had a hard time deciding what to do with one particular character; their choice implies that you must accept that a person would trust an assassin not to shoot his target in the head.
**Warning**
There is terrible flaw in this film's plot. An untrustworthy narrator is a device that should only be used under very special circumstances, and for very solid reasons; this film simply cheats the viewer with detailed information that is later proved to be false (read this for details). This is the sleaziest way of screenwriting possible.
Rating: 39

Walk the Line (2005)

Synopsis (with spoilers): This is an account of the life of singer Johnny Cash, who was born in a rural area and lost his brother at an early age, then got married and had kids, and then fell in love with fellow singer June Carter,which spent a long time rejecting him, initially because he was married, then because he became addicted to pills, and finally accepted his marriage proposal, which ended the period covered by the film.
Appraisal: In my opinion, this film's sin is that it never really convinces us that there is enough in this story to justify the making of a movie about it. This is not these lives' faults, in my opinion, but, I repeat, the film's; even the most banal of subjects can be made into an interesting film, given the right treatment. Here the basic motif is summarized in the image of a tractor stuck in the mud; likewise, the main character's life gets 'stucked', possibly due to an unfulfilled need for love, both from his father and with the woman he loved. This basic conflict gets diluted in the shallow biopic approach.
Rating: 45

The Departed (2006)

Synopsis: A gangster's protégé enters the Boston police force, where he acts as the gangster's informant. Meanwhile, a graduate from the Massachusetts police is co-opted by his employers to infiltrate that gangster's organization.
Appraisal: This is a remake of a Hong Kong film which I have not seen, called Infernal Affairs. 'The Departed' is a cerebral cat-and-mouse game, very well concocted except for the last act and some minor details. Why wouldn't Costigan just play dumb after finding out about Sullivan, collecting his money and splitting? His actions then make absolutely no sense, giving the events after that a very ridiculous aspect - especially when you think about all the gratuitous violence entailed. I have to remark also that the small preamble of the film, showing some riots and a monologue, is completely unnecessary and pretentious - even if I eventually discover what they have to do with what follows them. I would like to add to my remarks those of Frank Dudley Berry, Jr., a IMDb user who made some very intelligent observations about the later developments in the plot. In fact, I suggest you go to the IMDb Users Comments section for this film and select the "Hate It" option. There are many, many other very questionable plot points that were mentioned there, although I think they are not of crucial relevance to the enjoyment of the film.
Rating: 68

Little Miss Sunshine (2006)

Synopsis: A family rides together on a van to take 10 year old Olive to a child pageant contest.
Appraisal: This combination of the dysfunctional-family and road-movie genres worked surprisingly well for me. The script's weaknesses are quite evident, but there is still enough in the way of entertainment to make us forgive the somewhat clichéd situations and characters.
Rating: 58

The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)

Synopsis: In 1981, a man in extreme financial paucity needs to support a child on his own while simultaneously attending an internship for a stockbroker job.
Appraisal: Captain America lies on the street, and a kid just can't go back to fetch it. The bottom line being, of course, it's neither what your country can do for you nor what you can do for your country; the morals these days are more on the lines of Each Man for Himself and the State Against All. For us, viewers, pain is kept comfortably on-screen, and we can enjoy some irresistible comic moments, e.g. Chris riding the subway with his hand stuck on the door, holding his precious merchandise on the outside. The poor hippies are pursued high and low, because they are in the way of Chris's happiness - one of them wants to sell Chris's bone density scanner. The other one is more realistic: he wants to travel back to the sixties, very far away from Reaganomics.
Rating: 60

Cradle Will Rock (1999)

Synopsis: In 1936, a theater group tries to produce a play under the Federal Theater Program, a branch of Roosevelt anti-depression plan. Concurrently, New York mayor Rockefeller hires Rivera to paint a mural.
Appraisal: The key image for this film is a puppet doll who turns communist, much to its master's dismay. Thus, the government's expectations concerning the program of subsidies for the arts backfired - they were all reds. A costume party is used as a device to contrast the manipulating elite and the oppressed people. There are many instances of brilliance throughout this film, but it is all hammered on our heads in a loud, hysterical manner, culminating in an torturous and unnecessary depiction of the performance of Cradle Will Rock, a musical about the importance of Unions. Sometimes less is more, someone should tell this film's director.
Rating:54

The Cat's Meow (2001)

Synopsis: The film is a hypothetical account of the events preceding Thomas Harper Ince's mysterious death. It takes place on a yacht, where are several people linked to movies one way or another (actors, directors, columnists, a media mogul, etc.).
Appraisal: The script is efficient and well structured; the mise-en-scene is precise and competent. It is hard for me to decide whether I believe in this version or not, but the film is enjoyable either way. The fact that the world once stood this close to not having masterpieces such as "City Lights" sent a chill up my spine.
Rating: 55

La mano de un hombre muerto (1962)

English title: The Sadistic Baron Von Klaus.
Synopsis: A series of grizzly murders of young women puts a quiet little town in a state of fear. A police investigation is under way; a reporter from the capital is sent there and does some inquiries of his own. Two vagabonds are in town and begin to spread the notion that it is all related to a legendary curse that falls upon the Von Klaus, a family of noblemen that live in a castle in the town's outskirts.
Appraisal: To be honest, the plot of this crime thriller is quite dull; the real murderer's identity is quite obvious very early on in the film. It does get a little more interesting towards the end, albeit a little more sickly too, with flogging scenes that inaugurate what is said to be a trademark in this director's oeuvre. The cinematography is quite good throughout, and the composition of the scenes, particularly of the snow-covered city and some ensemble shots inside the café, are quite carefully done. The sequence at the swamp, near the ending, is quite good and atmospheric.
Rating: 32

Capote (2005)

Synopsis: The account of the process of writing of the book "In Cold Blood", centering on the relationship between the writer and one of the killers.
Appraisal: This can be thought of as a companion to "In Cold Blood" itself. The leading player delivers a powerful performance, that considerably enlivens the narrative. It is a fascinating story, although I wouldn't be so positive in calling it a fascinating film. In fact, even admitting to the film's obvious merits, I think it is rather conventional, as many based-on-true-events stories tend to be. The theme of the film is rather obvious, having to do with how the storyteller becomes part of the story it tells; it sometimes disturbs the events it portrays, and sometimes is disturbed by them; often both happen simultaneously. Of course, this can only apply to so-called realism, or, in its new form presented here, 'new journalism'. In fact it applies to all journalism, and it is a phenomenon as old as the press itself. What might put this story in a particular category is the personality of this writer; the film hints to that, but there is only so much one can do with two hours of straightforward realistic narrative.
Rating: 68

Little Manhattan (2005)

Synopsis: A 10 year old boy falls in love with her karate classmate of the same age.
Appraisal: This is like an extended version of an episode of "The Wonder Years"; the script is dull and uninspired and we have seen this a thousand times before. But it is all competently done, and we get a photogenic New York as scenery, which is sort of nice.
Rating: 45

The Incredibles (2004)

Synopsis: A family of super-heroes is forced into retirement, then goes back in action to foil the plans of a lunatic.
Appraisal: Everything in this animated film is well designed, from the stylized sets to the characters themselves to the elaborated action sequences; the plot is a logical step into the 'humanization' of super-heroes, an angle that has been explored since the late eighties in films.
Rating: 63

Beavis and Butt-Head Do America (1996)

Synopsis: Two nitwit teenagers have their TV set stolen and later are mistakenly sent to do a hit job that they completely misunderstand. The hit target stole a biological weapon, complicating things further.
Appraisal: This animated comedy is funny enough but in a somewhat repetitive manner.
Rating: 50

Jakob the Liar (1999)

Synopsis: Poland, 1944. Jakob lives in Jewish ghetto and, after he hears some war news on a German radio, people start believing he owns a radio; this causes a great uproar in the ghetto and complications for Jakob.
Appraisal: This is based on a 1969 novel by Jurek Becker, previously filmed in 1975. It is an interesting story about the revolutionary power of mass communication, and the ethical quandary opposing truth vs. pragmatic lies. It can be thought of as complementary to such works as Moonlighting (1982) and Depuis qu'Otar est parti... (2003); while in those films the news are used as an 'official' vehicle for the appeasement of the 'people', here news are an instrument for the oppressed. The film has a beautiful cinematography, which gives a good sense of the ghetto ambiance. The average level of the acting, however, is far from good, and the fact that the dialogue is spoken in English with an artificial accent makes comprehension difficult at times.
Rating: 53

Confidences trop intimes (2004)

English title: Intimate Strangers.
Synopsis: A woman on her way to her first appointment with a psychoanalyst enters by mistake in a tax advisor's office and tells her secrets to him.
Appraisal: An absurd premise followed by a trite and unconvincing development results in a silly film, whose only purpose is to evoke some sexual tension between the two leads; it partially succeeds at that, thanks largely to the great ability of the performers.
Rating: 40

Dog Soldiers (2002)

Synopsis: A group of soldiers gets stuck in a cabin surrounded by werewolves.
Appraisal: Although it has original elements in its premise, the overall development of this film is basically cliché, and not very well written at that. There is little suspense build-up; hardly any distinction between the secondary characters; dialogue that will make you cringe; plot that doesn't always make sense; editing that is far from perfect, some scenes being, at times, difficult to follow. Shortly put, it is watchable, but I didn't enjoy it much.
Rating: 36

The Queen (2006)

Synopsis: After the death of the ex-princess, there is a general outcry for some manifestation of sorrow from the Royal Family.
Appraisal: A magnificent stag ('an Imperial', someone describes it) stands on a hill while some kids who just lost their mother are nearby, eager to take his life. The Queen takes the side of the beast, and shoos it. There is a metaphor in that, the kids standing for the English people, childish and voluble; the stag is the Monarchy. The stag is finally killed by an investment banker - the Monarchy finally defeated by capitalism? - but it doesn't die at once, running for a long time after being injured. The Prime Minister rises to power promising many reforms, but who doesn't these days? The queen warns him his turn will come; in our time frame, it has already, and different actors are playing some of these same roles. So, if you wish to make the correspondence, the Royalty stands for the U.S. empire, England for the flunkeys ('groveling on all fours'), and the ex-princess's death for 9/11.
Rating: 65

Ça commence aujourd'hui (1999)

English title: It All Starts Today.
Synopsis: This film tells the typical everyday problems faced by a kindergarten teacher in an economically troubled town in France; it also has some subplots relating to his private life.
Appraisal: This film's dramatic merits are not abundant; it tries to be all over the place, diluting considerably its strength. That being said, it is not devoid of interest. It is instructive, in a sort of encyclopedic way, about the problems that affect some economically depleted regions in France. I don't think it tells lies; probably all that goes on in the film is based on reality. But it is hard to see it as detached and objective; beginning with its title, stating that the future 'starts today', therefore the children of today are the men of tomorrow, there is a clear catechetical agenda in the movie; it also comes with a distinct ideological coloring: for example, an unbelievable amount of children has Anglo-Saxon names, and one of the characters notices that fact in amazement; thus, the film seems to imply that American films and TV are responsible for the problems afflicting these French families, which, according to it, range from alcoholism to child abuse. It is quite professionally done; the acting is on a satisfactory level, and the staging of the school scenes is convincing enough.
Rating: 46

By the Sun's Rays (1914)

Synopsis: A gold mine has its shipments constantly being stolen because its clerk is an accomplice of the bandits; he signals to them with a mirror whenever a shipment goes out; the mine owner sends for a detective, who solves the case and romances the owner's daughter.

The Skulls (2000)

Synopsis: Lucas, a college student of modest background, is invited to join a college secret society, and meets with the disapproval of his closest friend. The latter starts an investigation and ends up dead, which gives Lucas second thoughts about belonging to the secret society.
Appraisal: I wanted to see this film because it has, broadly speaking, a very interesting subject matter, one that hasn't been explored very often in films. And I did find it interesting, up to a certain point. Sadly, when it comes to the film's dramatic merits, I can't say it has enough of them to make for a rewarding viewing experience. The film's plot suffers from very poor choices in the second half, defying common sense in the most blatant manner. Anyway, a much more interesting approach would be to skip the whole murder investigation angle and really dwell on the Society life, baring to our eyes its inner working in its everyday aspects, and, if possible, extending to post-school activities. But that is not box-office material, so...
Rating: 40

Vampire's Kiss (1989)

Synopsis: A literary agent in New York begins to think he has turned into a vampire.
Appraisal: Brilliant. And funny. And more than a little disturbing, once one realizes what it is ultimately about, hints of which can be perceived in various instances throughout the film, for example in the taxi driver's speech, which clarifies the 'misfiling' theme: love is love, work is work, sex is sex. "How can someone misfile something?", Peter shouts to his therapist, but can human emotions really be isolated from one another? It also signals, right from the opening shots of building tops evoking huge fangs pointing upwards, that it can also be taken as a dissection of New York at its most businesslike - probably one of the few places where someone can go completely crazy in a bathroom and all an unnoticed witness will assume is that he is practicing for his acting classes. Like American Psycho did a decade later, it establishes a relation between the big city's dehumanization and mental illness. The leading performance is intelligently attentive to the role's needs; kudos also for the actress playing the secretary.
Rating: 77
Ranking: 17th in my favorites for 1989.

Larger Than Life (1996)

Synopsis: A man inherits an elephant from his father (whom he never knew).
Appraisal: A very clever premise, that brings to the fore the problematic life that the main character has been living, and gives it a solution, in an ingenious, or simply serendipitous, posthumous action from the abandoned father. It is also a humorous response to motivational programs, a plague of our days. The development did not satisfy me as much, but is far from boring, and the main actor illuminates everything he is in.
Rating: 51

Flushed Away (2006)

Synopsis: A pet mouse is alone in the house while its owners are away on a trip; a sewer mouse invades the house and when the pet mouse tries to flush the sewer mouse down the toilet the former ends up being flushed himself. He finds an underground city, and meets a pretty lady mouse and foils an evil plan concocted by a toad.
Appraisal: Visually interesting, frantic and loud, with nice characters, but has a weak plot (e.g. the association of sewer creatures with precious stones is pretty uninspired and arbitrary). Saw it dubbed in Portuguese.
Rating: 53

Masques (1987)

English title: Masks.
Synopsis: A writer approaches a TV host and proposes to write his biography; the TV host accepts and invites the writer over to his country estate. The TV host keeps his orphaned godchild there, and she and the writer make friends. The real agenda of the writer is gradually revealed, and some hidden facts about the TV host also come to fore.
Appraisal: This plot is rather devoid of surprises, with a taste of déjà vu. The mise-en-scène is rather conventional too. The dialogue is reasonably well written and the acting is excellent. Overall, a forgettable film, that has its highlight in the final TV speech delivered by the protagonist.
Rating: 37

Le confessionnal (1995)

English title: The Confessional.
Synopsis: In 1989, a man returns to Québec City for his father's funeral, and, along with his adopted brother, pursues an investigation about the latter's real father. This story is interweaved with that of his parents, set in 1952, and his mother's sister who lived in the same house with them; the film also shows Hitchcock in Québec during the production of I Confess, of whose plot this film's is a variation.
Appraisal: Moderately interesting but too dispersive and ice cold; full of symbolism (the red paint that keeps coming back, the bathtub that is colored red, etc.); I didn't totally connect.
Rating: 48

Far from Heaven (2002)

Synopsis: U.S.A., 1957. A woman finds out that her husband has homosexual inclinations. Meanwhile, she develops a friendship with her African-American gardener.
Appraisal: Intelligent drama, conceived and shot with clockwork precision, and a powerful reminder of how wrong and senseless certain social conventions can be. I am not sure about the verisimilitude of certain details; for instance, the conversation about art in the exposition seemed unlike anything I have come across among non-intellectuals, but perhaps I should give it the benefit of the doubt; another example is the sequence of the persecution of the little girl which did seem a little simplistically staged. On a bitchier note, maybe I am a tiny little bit suspicious of a film that looks so organized and methodical, and everyone seems to behave so according to expectations. Anyway, its achievements are still great, and its poignant story is probably akin to many real life ones. The acting in this film is top notch.
Rating: 75
Ranking: 11th position in my favorites list for 2002

A Night in the Show (1915)

Second viewing of this short. Nothing to add to the review I wrote on June 21, 2006, except that this time I watched the restored version. Aside from the general better state of the copy and the corrected frame speed, the only difference I perceived in this version was that in the line to buy tickets there is an additional couple (and Charlie flirts with the woman).

Bocage - O triunfo do amor (1997)

English title: Bocage, the Triumph of Love.
Synopsis: The film's first and third acts are an account of some incidents in the life of Manuel Maria Barbosa du Bocage (1765-1805), a Portuguese poet, illustrated by his poems; the middle section is a story written by him, involving two women who are seduced by the same man.
Appraisal: Doubtless interesting and probably successful in giving a picture (albeit a partial one) of a free-spirited libertine; it is however impossible to contextualize some of the events depicted if one hasn't read anything about the poet (my case); the visuals are elaborate and reminded me of films like Medea (1969) and Satyricon (1969). A pleasant film, but perhaps too loose in form and incomplete in contents to qualify as a major work.
Rating: 54

Manderlay (2005)

Synopsis: A woman happens upon a rural community where slavery is still existent, even after its abolition. She decides to overthrow the archaic rules by which it has lived and adapt it to modern, more liberal times.
Appraisal: Perhaps it would be interesting to note that, while in Dogville we had a community nearly destroy an individual, here it is the other way around. This film is on approximately the same high-school-drama level as that other film, and has the same anti-American agenda, which I find most inappropriate, since it is neither an accurate depiction of a historic event, nor a hypothetical situation envisioned as a warning about some impending development. This kind of anti-Americanism just for the sake of it is pointless and mean-spirited, in my opinion; of course, I am in favor of exposés (of any kind), and of deep, well substantiated political analysis; I am also for liberal ideas, and against wars that will bring more harm than good; should I also add that I like sets and elaborated camerawork, or would that be considered reactionary?
Rating: 38

Johnny Handsome (1989)

Synopsis: A facially deformed ex-con agrees to participate in a robbery to help an old friend, but things don't come out as he expected.
Appraisal: This is an OK crime drama in the noir style, not very memorable and with a script that perhaps would need some additional work, but enjoyable all the same and featuring an impressive lead performance and some good supporting ones too.
Rating: 51

The Family Stone (2005)

Synopsis: A woman spends Christmas with her boyfriend's family, but she doesn't get along too well with them.
Appraisal: A nearly perfect first act that sadly goes mostly downhill from there, at its worst resorting to bad slapstick to make up for its lack of inspiration; it also gets progressively more dramatic (and romantic) towards the end, but it fails to fully convince as such.
Rating: 59

Universal Soldier: The Return (1999)

Synopsis: A computer runs out of control, programming the Universal Soldiers - androids made from dead soldiers - to stage a rebellion.
Appraisal: Althoug it was better than my very low expectations predicted, it is still marred by an indistinctive and derivative plot. Why it is better: it has some sense of humor, which makes it watchable; some fight scenes are not bad either.
Rating: 34

Roberto Succo (2001)

Synopsis: This film tells the real exploits of an Italian man who went to France and there lived as a burglar and a robber, murdering several people along the way.
Appraisal: I don't have exactly any negative comments to make about this film; what it sets itself to do, it does, namely, tell this person's bizarre story, avoiding speculations and keeping it to what was witnessed. Oddly, I found it simultaneously exciting and boring, perhaps not in the same degree, excitement winning by a small margin. But it's not much more than an extended version of one of those TV shows that depict "astounding crimes" and the like. Except here it is lifted by a uniformly stupendous cast, a compliment that inevitably extends to the director.
Rating: 60

Babel (2006)

Synopsis: Several interconnected stories are told simultaneously. A moroccan peasant buys a rifle to kill the jackals that are eating his goats; a woman on tour in Morocco with her husband is shot; a Mexican housekeeper working in America needs to go to Mexico for her brother's wedding during her bosses' absence; a deaf Japanese adolescent girl is facing an emotional crisis due to lack of affection.
Appraisal: The inherent intensity in these stories are translated into strong images, making for an emotional cliffhanger of sorts; special mentions should be made for the actresses playing 'Amelia' and 'Chieko'. The film has a good thematic cohesion too, being about incommunicability and isolation in a so-called globalized and interconnected society. The fact is, barriers exist, and are getting higher, it seems to imply; some of them are inside us, in our prejudices, and others, which may be reflections of the inner ones, are embedded in the laws that regulate our world. Whatever its degree of success in making that point, it is an ingenious and mostly enjoyable piece of cinematic storytelling. If I don't rate it higher, it is because I think the individual short stories lack depth, although they sure have strong moments in them. Of the characters presented, the only one that made a consistent impression on me was Amelia.
Rating: 67

The Champion (1915)

I had seen this film previously on January 29, 2006, and its synopsis and some comments were posted on this blog at that date. However, the version I'd seen then was incomplete, and the one I've seen today is a restored one. The initial scene with the dog was completely absent from the earlier version; aside from that, I haven't compared the two versions.

A Night Out (1915/I)

I had already seen this film on January 29, 2006, and you can find a synopsis and one line of review for it on this blog at that date. However, the version I have seen today is a restored one, with many differences in editing; many scenes that are featured in this restored version are not present in the one I previously saw. Conversely, and oddly, the reverse is also true, albeit in a much minor scale; some very short, and generally of little importance, scenes that are in the non-restored version are not in the restored one, most notable of which are Ben drinking the water Charlie gives him and Charlie trying to hang his trousers by the window and not letting them drop on the floor.
Some of the scenes that were not in the non-restored version (and are in the restored one) are:
- after Ben gives a friendly slap on Charlie's chest, all of a sudden he is seen lying inside the fountain, then Charlie also falls in the eating area, then the waiter slips and falls by the fountain, then he pulls Ben by the arm to his table;
- Chaplin makes his ablutions at the fountain;
- at the first hotel, Charlie peeks through the keyhole and is caught by the bellboy;
- at the second hotel, Charlie places his jacket and hat on the telephone set and shakes hands with his jacket;
- Charlie puts his trousers under the blanket;
- he falls on the floor;
- some intercalated scenes of Edna and her dog;
- Edna playing with dog (with shoe);
- Charlies tries to hang trousers on several places;
- in the bathroom, Charlie spreads a product on his hair and combs it.

City of Fear (2001)

Synopsis: A journalist is invited to do a story in Sofia on a scientist who is his childhood friend, but arriving there he hears of his friend's death. He decides to investigate what is behind it.
Appraisal: Poorly scripted and acted, this is hardly worth one's time, despite all the references to Citizen Kane and The Third Man, and a few valuable remarks about the situation in post-communism Bulgaria. Most ludicrous moment: a medical research center featuring an employee-of-the-month photo on the wall.
Rating: 12

Life as a House (2001)

Synopsis: A divorced architectural model builder is terminally ill and decides to spend his last summer with his rebellious teenage son, and to build with his help a mortise-and-tenon house which he has been dreaming of for long.
Appraisal: (*SPOILERS AHEAD*) Lamely written drama about relationships, whose ending is totally predictable from its start in both its sad and happy aspects. Its development is also not very full of surprises, except sometimes it surprises us in the artificial set-ups it contrives so that things turn up well for its protagonists (example: see how they arrange it for Alyssa to find out that her boyfriend is a scumbag just so that she can break up with him and be Sam's girlfriend). It's not touching, precisely because there is so little in it that feels real.
Rating: 40

The Massacre (1913)

Synopsis (with spoilers): A woman has two suitors; one of them is a scout for the army, the other is a more urban character; she chooses the urban one. The scout rejoins the army and on a certain day decides to go with some friends and massacre a Native American village. Meanwhile, Mr. and Mrs. Urbanite decide to go West, and when they must go through dangerous territory they go with a military escort; guess who is with the escort as a scout? You guessed it, it's the rejected suitor. Well, things are going fine until some survivors of the earlier massacre decide to take revenge upon the white men and attack the caravan. During the attack, Mr. Urbanite is away, as he had to attend to some business on a military base nearby. Another scout (or is it the same one?) goes to him and warns him that his wife and child (did I mention they have a lovely baby?) are in terrible danger, so he rushes back to join them. The gunfight at the site of the attack is non-stop, and everybody dies, except the woman and her baby, who were shielded by the brave men, and the husband, because he was away. So, I guess it was a happy ending, right?
P.S.: this is my second viewing of this film; my first viewing was on January 19, 2006.

Monsoon Wedding (2001)

Synopsis: An arranged wedding in India. The film tells several micro-stories involving the many characters: the bride, the bride's stepsister, the bride's younger brother, the wedding contractor, the housemaid, etc. One subplot deals with child molesting; there are also some romance-oriented subplots; and some parenting issues involving the younger son.
Appraisal: It's very well directed, but I think that the film suffers from being too trivial at times; also, the dramatic conflicts are kept at a superficial level, probably because there are so many subplots that there would be no way to devote a lot of time to each of them without making the film overlong.
Rating: 61

Enoch Arden (1911)

Synopsis (with spoilers): Annie Lee has two suitors, Philip Ray and Enoch Arden. She ends up choosing Enoch as a husband. He is poor, and soon, with three children to support, he finds himself in dire need of money, so he decides to enlist as a sailor on a long trip. There is a shipwreck and he ends up on a deserted island. Meanwhile, at home, Philip Ray resumes his courtship of Annie Lee and finally convinces her to marry him. One day, a passing ship discovers Enoch in his island and rescues him back home. Getting there, he finds out his wife has remarried and dies of sadness. Based on a 1864 poem by Alfred Tennyson.

The Lesser Evil (1912)

Synopsis (spoilers herein): A young woman lives near the seaside and has a sweetheart that works as a fisherman. One day, she meets him and sets to meet him again later at a set time. When the meeting time arrives she goes to the place where she was supposed to meet him, but he is not there, because his watch broke and he missed the meeting hour. The meeting place is right beside a shed and she figures that he might be inside. She opens the door and comes upon a gang of smugglers doing their shady business. They capture the woman and decide to kidnap her to their boat (why exactly, it is not explained; I figure it is to prevent her from denouncing them). The boyfriend arrives on the beach just in time to see her off to the smugglers' boat. He runs to call the police to rescue her. Aboard the boat, the captain puts the woman in his cabin. The crew is planning to rape the woman, but, as the captain decides to protect her, they organize a mutiny. The captain sets guard at his cabin's door, shooting anyone who will come near. As he runs short on ammunition, however, he decides to get in the cabin. There, he tells the woman that there is only one bullet left in his revolver and, if she agrees to it, he will shoot her so that she escapes being raped ("the lesser evil" that the title refers to). She agrees to it. Before he pulls the trigger, however, the rescue party arrives. The captain intents to shoot himself but is talked out of it by the woman. He then hides from the rescue team, jumps to the water and swims to the shore. The woman doesn't tell on him and after a while she looks through a binocular to see if he has made it safely to the shore.

Friends (1912)

Synopsis (spoilers): In a gold mining town lives Dora, a beautiful young woman ("an orphan") who is the sweetheart of Dandy Jack, presumably a gold miner. He is described as a "gambolier". Anyway, he decides to leave town because he has better chances of making money up North. He says goodbye to his sweetheart, who is devastated. But soon Grizzley Fallon, another prospector, comes into town and begins to court Mary. She is reluctant at first, but finally reciprocates. Then, one day, Dandy Jack returns to town and finds his old sweetheart engaged to Grizzley, who happens to be a friend of his. Mary still has feelings for Dandy Jack, but he chooses to forsake his love in favor of his old friend.

The Miser's Heart (1911)

Synopsis (complete with spoilers): A little girl whose mother is very ill is told to go play in the common area of the tenement where she lives. There she encounters the miser who lives upstairs. He is coming from the bakery and the little girl takes a loaf of bread from him. The miser initially protests, then comiserates with her, finally deciding on a fraction of a loaf, taking back the remaining portion of it. He then climbs to his apartment where he holds a vault with his savings. Meanwhile on the street a thief is released from jail; once in the street he steals a sack of bread from the bakery's employee, runs away and arrives at the building where the little girl lives; they meet, he gives her some bread and starts to eat. She goes up to the miser's house to offer him the bread (in retribution for the one he had given her?). Meanwhile a pair of house thieves is planning to rob the miser's money. When they enter through a window they encounter the miser and the little girl. They tie the old man up and ask him for the vault's combination. He won't give it, so they threaten the girl. Only after they hang her outside the window threatening to drop her to the floor (remember the apartment is upstairs) he agrees to give them the combination. Meanwhile the other thief (the one who had stolen the bread) sees the girl hanging outside the window and calls the police. They arrive in the building, save the miser and the little girl and arrest the bad burglars. The miser then goes down to the little girl's apartment and offers her mother some money, to buy medicine for her and perhaps a doll for her daughter.

The Last Drop of Water (1911)

Synopsis (complete with spoilers): A woman has two suitors; one is shy and the other is overly imposing. The woman ends up marrying the latter, who turns out to be a drunkard. Then the three of them are in a caravan heading west. They are attacked by Natives. They run out of water. The two men volunteer to go get more of it. The shy one is passing out due to thirst, but is saved by the other one, who offers him what is left of his supply of water and shortly dies. The cavalry arrives and saves the caravan.

Two Family House (2000)

Synopsis: In the early 50's a man buys a house in Staten Island whose tenants - a middle-aged drunkard and his much younger wife, who is pregnant - won't vacate the place. He urges them to leave because he intends to use the place for residence and also for the bar he plans to open (but to which his wife opposes). An unexpected - for all but one of them - fact, however, changes the course of events.
Appraisal: Moderately interesting story in a competent rendition. It's marginally about racism but ultimately about how the environment one lives in may annihilate one's individuality.
Rating: 55

Bee Season (2005)

Synopsis: When his 11 year old daughter enters a spelling competition, Saul becomes more and more focused on her. Meanwhile, his wife and elder son become more and more detached.
Appraisal: There is a skeleton of reason in this film, which is surrounded by annoying elements that definitely spoiled it for me. Thus, there is one character that has psychic powers, there is another character who has a completely implausible mental illness which is disclosed for the viewer only near the ending, and there is also a professor that believes in the magical powers of the cabala. All that is very phony, in my opinion. The reasonable part has to do with a family falling apart because of reasons very hard to put one's finger at, but having to do apparently with the domineering personality of the father. It is not well developed precisely because almost all the time of the movie is wasted, as I said, with mystical or supernatural garbage. Also, I confess there were some sequences with a toppled car whose meaning I couldn't figure out.
Rating: 37

Miss Congeniality (2000)

Synopsis: A female FBI agent has to go undercover as a Miss USA contestant to investigate and prevent a possible terrorist attack.
Appraisal: Not very rich in laughs; actually, the best bits are the ones that are in the trailer. But it is watchable and the lead actress is a pretty competent comedian.
Rating: 38

Nochnoy Dozor (2004)

English title: Night Watch.
Synopsis: There are "others" among us. They are divided in "light-others" and "darkness-others". The latter are vampires. There is also an extremely jinxed woman that is about to cause a catastrophe. And the dark ones are after a child that will decide the fate of the Earth.
Appraisal: What is this? The result of too much vodka, perhaps? "Anything goes" seems to be the motto.
Rating: 14

Stay (2005/I)

Synopsis: A psychiatrist takes a patient who has stated his intention of committing suicide on a precise date and time. As he tries to prevent that extreme act he begins to witness strange occurrences that seem to defy reason.
Appraisal, with spoilers: Yet another film in the continuing trend of supernatural thrillers the idea for which appeared for the first time in 1891 when Ambrose Bierce published a short story named "An Occurrence at Owl Bridge Creek" in the collection Tales of Soldiers and Civilians. Then in 1962 an atmospheric little film called Carnival of Souls used a similar idea. In 1990, came Jacob's Ladder, which I don't remember well but apparently dealt with similar motifs. In 1999, there was The Sixth Sense whose plot idea had a certain similarity to Carnival of Souls. Then came The Others, in 2001, with the same basic idea. Mulholland Dr., also in 2001, was related, although it had no supernatural connotations. In 2003, there was The I Inside, another variation. And in 2005, this film called Stay, which is a reworking of The I Inside's basic idea, combined with an idea from Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking Glass (the one that was used in the epigraphe of Borges's short story The Circular Ruins). Thus this is the 6th (at least) variation on a theme that is beginning to feel very tired. I didn't see anything particularly remarkable about this one. It is well acted and shot, but there is not much else to it.
Rating: 35

True Colors (1991)

Synopsis: Two friends from Law School have different characters and backgrounds. One is lower-middle class, ambitious and unscrupulous; the other is upper-middle-class and an idealist. They pursue different careers: the unscrupulous one goes into politics, joining a senator's staff, and the idealistic one becomes a public attorney.
Appraisal: This is a drama about friendship that also has interesting insights into the American political system, in particular the issue of private financing of political campaigns, a terrible plague which affects also my country, Brazil. While possibly this story is not one that will affect one in a deep way, it is well worth one's attention: it is well written and well directed and, while some situations are clearly exaggerated for dramatic purposes, there are many points of contact with real life that I could recognize.
Rating: 55

Przypadek (1987)

English title: Blind Chance.
Synopsis: Three stories show how a character's life would unfold depending on one banal event: the catching of a train. In the first one, he quits his studies to become a Party member in 1980's Poland; in the second one, he joins an opposition group; in the third one, he decides to pursue a medical career and not get involved in politics.
Appraisal: Tedious study on chance and fate in the Communist world. This film was finished in 1981 and shelved for 6 years.
Rating: 37

The Illusionist (2006)

Synopsis: A magician competes with a prince for the love of a duchess.
Appraisal: I really feel cheated for having payed to see this movie. It is one of the few films that I feel incapable of reviewing. It's just so bad in so many different aspects that it is just hard to conceptualize my objections. To put it shortly, it doesn't make sense however you look at it. There is nothing in it that would justify the time (and, in my case, the money) spent seeing it. To be completely fair, there was the seed of a good film in one line said by the Prince: "How come he deceives people and is loved and I expose the truth and am hated?" (not an accurate quotation, I'm afraid). Had this line of reasoning been pursued, we would have a serious, non-manicheistic film instead of the preposterous nonsense that was delivered.
Rating: 10

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003)

Synopsis: Five friends are on a van, on their way to a concert, when they almost run over a young woman walking aimlessly on the road. They stop to help her, and this is the beginning of a series of ghastly occurrences wherein they will meet a family of freaks and murderers.
Appraisal: While not completely bad as a horror and suspense film, still there are several things that don't seem to be right in this remake of a 1974 horror classic. The approach here is less extreme than in the other film, and the dark humor is largely absent. This is bad because the film verges into obnoxiousness in more than one occasion, and it seems misplaced because there isn't a context of caricature like there was in the first film. It doesn't always fare too well in the suspense department either, with many set-pieces that operate in a somewhat disjointed way. I guess the film will work better for those who haven't seen the earlier version.
Rating: 40

Redentor (2004)

English title: Redeemer.
Synopsis: A journalist does a story on a bankrupt real-estate entrepreneur who was his childhood friend; he gets caught in a web of corruption whilst being assaulted by religious visions.
Appraisal: While it has a premise that is rooted on some Brazilian real events and addresses some of Brazil's chronic problems, it sadly opts for a silly approach instead of delving deeper into the interesting issues it deals with. It doesn't manage to be funny -- to be honest, I'm not sure it even strives for comicity -- and in fact I don't know what it accomplishes if anything. But here and there one stumbles upon an interesting idea, so I guess it's not a total waste.
Rating: 35

Il cuore altrove (2003)

English titles: Incantato; The Heart Is Elsewhere.
Synopsis: A sexually inexperienced schoolteacher, at his father's advice, moves to another city where it would be easier for him to find a woman to marry and thus provide an heir who would continue the family business -- making clothes for the clergy. He meets a recently blinded woman for whom he falls.
Appraisal: Interesting film, with a subtle sense of humor and a clever script; the only problem -- that is, if we can call that a problem -- is that the development is a little predictable, and the premise has been explored in many films already, with slight variations. But it is a worthwhile film, that throughout its duration remains faithful to its approach of keeping a distance from its characters and pursuing a slightly melancholy mood.
Rating: 62

El maquinista (2004)

English title: The Machinist.
Synopsis: A blue-collar worker has had insomnia for a year now. Strange things start happening to him, such as seeing a person whose existence everyone else denies.
Appraisal: This is ultimately silly as a construction, building up mystery that it never intended to solve in the first place, a characteristic that appears to be very fashionable at the moment in films. Directorially the film is an achievement, with a visual style that matches exactly what the story is asking. Taken individually, there are several sequences that are interesting and strong. It is too bad that, as I said, the approach is misguided, leading the audience to expect a complex explanation that never comes -- the one that is provided is perhaps an explanation for the protagonist's mental state, but places much of what happened earlier under the label 'hallucination', which is a very easy thing to do. Furthermore, I don't understand how the alleged solution to the protagonist's problem is a solution at all.
Rating: 45

Striptease (1996)

Synopsis: A woman loses custody of her daughter to her ex-husband and tries to improve her financial situation working as a dancer at a strip-club. By way of her work - and of her attempts to recover custody of her child - she gets involved with a corrupt congressman.
Appraisal: Shabbily done mix of drama and satire (an unusual mix, for sure) that nevertheless has enough going to keep one slightly amused.
Rating: 37

Random Hearts (1999)

Synopsis: An Internal Affairs sergeant whose wife dies in a plane crash discovers she was having an affair with the man who was sitting next to her on the plane; he then seeks out that man's wife, who is running for Congress.
Appraisal: This film transpires elaboration in every shot and line; the one thing I'm not sure of though is whether such a turn-off of a story deserves the amount of professionalism and skill put to it. Based on a 1984 novel by Warren Adler.
Rating: 41

In Her Shoes (2005)

Synopsis: Two sisters, one a workaholic lawyer, the other a jobless bimbo. They fight and the bimbo sister goes to Florida to meet her estranged grandmother. The lawyer sister decides to quit her job after a love affair with a colleague goes awry.
Appraisal: Although the first, say, 20 minutes of this film establishes a potentially interesting situation, it is clear from then on that nothing will come of it; it then just adds more and more story bits that become more and more tedious and perfunctory. Some of it makes little sense, such as the lawyer sister's decision to switch to a supposedly less demanding and less stressing occupation (note: echoes of American Beauty (1999), only there it made sense, or so I thought); the inevitable resolution is forced upon us in the usual unconvincing manner.
Rating: 33

Undercover Blues (1993)

Synopsis: A couple of retired spies with a baby is enjoying their vacation in New Orleans and are convinced back into their jobs with the task of foiling the smuggling of some weapons to Europe.
Appraisal: Very tame comedy that bases its humor on the effortless skill of the two central characters.
Rating: 35

Evelyn (2002)

Synopsis: After his wife abandons him and his three children, an Irish unemployed house painter has trouble supporting his family, and the state sends them to institutions run by the church. The battle to have them back is a tough one and involves some legal issues.
Appraisal: Although the main character and his daughter are surely worthy of our sympathy, and the exposition and development of the story are clear and easy to follow, I couldn't help an overall impression of laziness and perhaps compromise. For example, I honestly didn't exactly buy the all-sisters-were-nice-except-one angle, but who knows. Anyway, it is definitely on the watchable side, but don't expect much.
Rating: 43

Shadow Conspiracy (1997)

Synopsis: A presidential aide is contacted by an independent researcher about an ongoing conspiracy involving members of the White House inner circle. The researcher and his colleagues are murdered and the aide is relentlessly hunted down, along with a woman journalist.
Appraisal: This film has been bashed by viewers and critics alike, mainly, it seems, for its lack of realism and some ludicrous methods used by the villain. They are probably right but I couldn't help being somewhat entertained by the film; even the most preposterously absurd sequences kept me watching with interest; as an action film it could have done a lot worse.
Rating: 41

When a Man Loves a Woman (1994)

Synopsis: A pilot is married to a schoolteacher. When she develops an alcohol addiction, her family life starts to deteriorate.
Appraisal: This drama deals with heavy issues that hardly any film dares to tackle, and, although it does it mostly with intelligence, it can't help embellishing it, the way Hollywood usually does. The ending seemed especially forced. That being said, it is still an overall rewarding experience. The players deserve compliments for their convincing performances and the director, for eliciting them.
Rating: 60

Gothika (2003)

Synopsis: A psychiatrist who works at a detention facility for the insane suffers, on her way home, an accident after which she loses conscience; when she comes to she is being accused of having murdered her husband.
Appraisal: The big unsolved puzzle here is why the dead must place themselves in front of moving vehicles -- thus provoking nasty accidents -- in order to communicate with the living. I must say that due to a state of extreme exhaustion I didn't understand one of the key sequences of the movie -- namely, the flashback to the murder -- and at first my assessment was compromised; I then read the whole plot at The Movie Spoiler and things fit in. This is a well acted and tautly directed supernatural mystery thriller that nevertheless has an unsatisfactory script.
Rating: 35