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]
Friday, March 21, 2008
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.
Friday, February 29, 2008
Ju-on: The Grudge 2 (2003)
Synopsis: An actress and her boyfriend suffer a car accident which leaves him in a coma and does nothing to her. Several people which she has contact with subsequently start dying.
Appraisal: The same comments I made for the previous Ju-on film apply here as well. Both are empty films, which provide some creepy imagery and some narrative formalism which are an end in themselves. The effect is less than powerful.
Rating: 40
Appraisal: The same comments I made for the previous Ju-on film apply here as well. Both are empty films, which provide some creepy imagery and some narrative formalism which are an end in themselves. The effect is less than powerful.
Rating: 40
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Santa Claus and the Tenth Avenue Kid (1955) (TV)
Synopsis: A paroled convict is employed as a store Santa Claus.
Appraisal: The tone is considerably lightened here, in the spirit of the holiday it evokes; every episode but one so far has a little surprise or twist; in this one, it consists of a witty remark at the end. Bad Santa (2003) has some similarities with it.
Appraisal: The tone is considerably lightened here, in the spirit of the holiday it evokes; every episode but one so far has a little surprise or twist; in this one, it consists of a witty remark at the end. Bad Santa (2003) has some similarities with it.
Notes on a Scandal (2006)
Synopsis: In an English high school, a new teacher is the focus of the attentions. She and a spinster who has secret lesbian inclinations toward her become close friends. The new teacher -- a married woman with two children -- is fucking one of her students; the spinster sees them doing it.
Appraisal: Entertaining, smartly written and correctly directed.
Rating: 64
Appraisal: Entertaining, smartly written and correctly directed.
Rating: 64
Monday, February 25, 2008
Timecop (1994)
Synopsis: In 2004, time travel is technologically feasible. A police section has been established to punish those who do it for personal gain thus -- according to the film's peculiar physics -- altering the course of history. One cop finds out that one senator is using it to improve his financial status so that he can back his own presidential campaign.
Appraisal: This one was way better than I expected. The plot is quite ingenious, as long as its scientifical improprieties - such as the elimination of the concept of multiplying time lines -- are taken as the film's raison d'être rather than an oversight.
Rating: 51
Appraisal: This one was way better than I expected. The plot is quite ingenious, as long as its scientifical improprieties - such as the elimination of the concept of multiplying time lines -- are taken as the film's raison d'être rather than an oversight.
Rating: 51
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Venus (2006/I)
Synopsis: A very old man gets infatuated with a young woman.
Appraisal: Oh, how boring this is.
Rating: 32
Appraisal: Oh, how boring this is.
Rating: 32
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Guilty Witness (1955) (TV)
Synopsis: A man and his wife are concerned about the disappearance of a neighbor after he had an argument with his wife.
Appraisal: Another of those entertaining but ultimately unsatisfactory concoctions. This one borrows from "Rear Window" -- unless it anticipates it, or is just a simultaneous idea.
Appraisal: Another of those entertaining but ultimately unsatisfactory concoctions. This one borrows from "Rear Window" -- unless it anticipates it, or is just a simultaneous idea.
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Case of Mr. Pelham (1955) (TV)
Synopsis: A man begins to suspect of the existence of a double; he also ponders on the possibility of having gone mad.
Appraisal: This episode has an important difference from all the previous ones, which I won't tell here. Let's just say that they seemed to follow a formula, and this time they violated one of the rules of that formula. I can't say in all honesty that I liked it much; this whole series is watchable, but, let's face it, just barely so.
Appraisal: This episode has an important difference from all the previous ones, which I won't tell here. Let's just say that they seemed to follow a formula, and this time they violated one of the rules of that formula. I can't say in all honesty that I liked it much; this whole series is watchable, but, let's face it, just barely so.
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Long Shot (1955) (TV)
Synopsis: A man who owes money to a bookie flees town as the chauffeur of an Englishman; he is also from England and his employer makes him talk a lot about the old country. Halfway into the journey, the chauffeur finds out that his employer is going to San Francisco to collect an inheritance, and that no one there knows what he looks like.
Appraisal: Another ingenious concoction with a twist at the ending.
Appraisal: Another ingenious concoction with a twist at the ending.
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Our Cook's a Treasure (1955) (TV)
Synopsis: A man starts feeling bad in his stomach right after he hires a new cook. His wife shows some indisposition as well. All this happens while the newspapers report that a serial killer who employs herself as a housekeeper is on the loose.
Appraisal: Another nice concoction.
Appraisal: Another nice concoction.
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Breakdown (1955) (TV)
Synopsis: A man suffers a car crash and survives but gets completely paralyzed except for one finger. Everyone thinks he is dead, and he is scared that he will be buried alive.
Appraisal: This is a very good story, possibly the best so far among the ones I have watched in this series. Strictly from a cinematic angle, though, it's arguably not the best episode; it is very static and depends heavily on the voice-over which expresses the protagonist's thoughts.
Appraisal: This is a very good story, possibly the best so far among the ones I have watched in this series. Strictly from a cinematic angle, though, it's arguably not the best episode; it is very static and depends heavily on the voice-over which expresses the protagonist's thoughts.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Salvage (1955) (TV)
Synopsis: A woman faces up with the revenge urge of a man whose brother's death she ultimately caused.
Appraisal: Although its ending is predictable about halfway into it, this is remarkable in some aspects; the sheer precision and intensity of the direction, which features some stunning close-ups, is quite outstanding; the performances are also very good, particularly the leading actor's. While its plot is practically the telling of a joke, it is competently developed.
Appraisal: Although its ending is predictable about halfway into it, this is remarkable in some aspects; the sheer precision and intensity of the direction, which features some stunning close-ups, is quite outstanding; the performances are also very good, particularly the leading actor's. While its plot is practically the telling of a joke, it is competently developed.
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Into Thin Air (1955) (TV)
Synopsis: Mother and daughter arrive in Paris for the Exposition in 1900. The mother feels bad and the doctor sends the daughter to fetch the medicine. When she returns to the hotel her mother has disappeared and no one seems to remember either of them.
Appraisal: Stories of disappearance enjoy a persistent popularity. It's interesting to observe that the solution, although implausible, is rather prosaic, unlike in recent film productions.
Appraisal: Stories of disappearance enjoy a persistent popularity. It's interesting to observe that the solution, although implausible, is rather prosaic, unlike in recent film productions.
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Don't Come Back Alive (1955) (TV)
Synopsis: A man has his wife go to another town incognito for seven years so that he can claim her dead and thus collect her life insurance.
Appraisal: Entertaining.
Appraisal: Entertaining.
La folie des grandeurs (1971)
English title: Delusions of Grandeur.
Synopsis: In Spain of some centuries ago (I don't know exactly which century this is set in, probably the 16th), the Minister of Finance and Taxes is exonerated over a small incident; he then plots a scheme to have his job back while at the same time avenging himself at the Queen, who was responsible for his disgrace. The man who replaces him in his former job is his former valet, whom he plans to use in his evil schemes.
Appraisal: Predictably, this is another unattractive comedy by the same guy(s) who made Le Corniaud and La Grande Vadrouille. This one is even less attractive because it does not have Bourvil, who was probably the only interesting thing about the other two films.
Rating: 25
Synopsis: In Spain of some centuries ago (I don't know exactly which century this is set in, probably the 16th), the Minister of Finance and Taxes is exonerated over a small incident; he then plots a scheme to have his job back while at the same time avenging himself at the Queen, who was responsible for his disgrace. The man who replaces him in his former job is his former valet, whom he plans to use in his evil schemes.
Appraisal: Predictably, this is another unattractive comedy by the same guy(s) who made Le Corniaud and La Grande Vadrouille. This one is even less attractive because it does not have Bourvil, who was probably the only interesting thing about the other two films.
Rating: 25
Recreation (1914)
Synopsis: A park. A couple. A bum. Two police officers.
Appraisal: Awful short comedy.
Appraisal: Awful short comedy.
La grande vadrouille (1966)
English title: Don't Look Now - We're Being Shot at.
Synopsis: During World War II, some English airbombers are taken down while flying over occupied France, and their plane occupants jump with their parachutes. On French soil, they are chased by the Nazis. Two French men -- an orchestra conductor and a house painter -- help them to escape.
Appraisal: Another insipid French comedy by the same guy who made Le Corniaud.
Rating: 26
Synopsis: During World War II, some English airbombers are taken down while flying over occupied France, and their plane occupants jump with their parachutes. On French soil, they are chased by the Nazis. Two French men -- an orchestra conductor and a house painter -- help them to escape.
Appraisal: Another insipid French comedy by the same guy who made Le Corniaud.
Rating: 26
Friday, February 15, 2008
Baby Boom (1987)
Synopsis: Female executive inherits a baby from a distant cousin.
Appraisal: Nice comedy, with an intelligent screenplay and an outstanding leading performance. My understanding of the dialogue was less than 100%.
Rating: 56
Appraisal: Nice comedy, with an intelligent screenplay and an outstanding leading performance. My understanding of the dialogue was less than 100%.
Rating: 56
Poison (1991)
Synopsis: 1. "Horror". A scientist discovers the substance responsible for the sex drive. He accidentally drinks it and as a result he turns into a maniac and horrible leperlike wounds appear in his skin, both conditions being contagious to the touch. 2. "Hero". Several persons are interviewed regarding a kid who killed his father and mysteriously disappeared. 3. "Homo". A man is sent first to a reformatory, later to prison, because of his thefts. The homosexual world of these microcosmos is depicted, with their own rules and power structures. This segment is based on Jean Genet; I don't know about the other two.
Appraisal: Three segments having apparently little in common; perhaps the underlying theme is the interplay of instinct and society, although the segment "Hero" doesn't fit so nicely in this description. In the black-and-white "Horror" the conventions of B-science-fiction films are adopted to explicitate the dichotomy between Eros and civilization, in a story which owes much to Stevenson's The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. In "Homo", filled with pictorial and literary lyricism, environment shapes desire and identity, but there is still a division between group followers and individualists. "Hero", the most complex and ambiguous of the three stories, adopts an indirect approach where the only absent character is the protagonist himself. It's as if the main character is a perfect void, or a perfect mirror. It is a bit enigmatic, but there appears to be a thematic resemblance with the film La meilleure façon de marcher (1976).
Rating: 63
Appraisal: Three segments having apparently little in common; perhaps the underlying theme is the interplay of instinct and society, although the segment "Hero" doesn't fit so nicely in this description. In the black-and-white "Horror" the conventions of B-science-fiction films are adopted to explicitate the dichotomy between Eros and civilization, in a story which owes much to Stevenson's The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. In "Homo", filled with pictorial and literary lyricism, environment shapes desire and identity, but there is still a division between group followers and individualists. "Hero", the most complex and ambiguous of the three stories, adopts an indirect approach where the only absent character is the protagonist himself. It's as if the main character is a perfect void, or a perfect mirror. It is a bit enigmatic, but there appears to be a thematic resemblance with the film La meilleure façon de marcher (1976).
Rating: 63
Waist Deep (2006)
Synopsis: A man's son is kidnapped and he must raise the ransom in a short amount of time.
Appraisal: Not very original and definitely not to be taken seriously, yet watchable all the same, if you are in a very undemanding mood.
Rating: 31
Appraisal: Not very original and definitely not to be taken seriously, yet watchable all the same, if you are in a very undemanding mood.
Rating: 31
Global Heresy (2002)
Alternative title: Rock My World.
Synopsis: An American rock band goes to a secluded mansion in England to rehearse; the mansion is being let by an impoverished couple of aristocrats who disguise themselves as the house servants for the occasion.
Appraisal: Although nothing very innovative or brilliant, this comedy with occasional bits of drama is well constructed and well put together and may be seen with some pleasure.
Rating: 50
Synopsis: An American rock band goes to a secluded mansion in England to rehearse; the mansion is being let by an impoverished couple of aristocrats who disguise themselves as the house servants for the occasion.
Appraisal: Although nothing very innovative or brilliant, this comedy with occasional bits of drama is well constructed and well put together and may be seen with some pleasure.
Rating: 50
Death on the Staircase: The Aftermath (2005) (TV)
This provides a summary of what was shown in the series, as well as some further interviews with some of its protagonists and also its director after the events which were shown in it. The interviews with the jury members are essential viewing.
Soupçons (2004) (TV)
English titles: The Staircase; Death on the Staircase.
This documentary covers the indictment and subsequent trial of a man in North Carolina who was accused of the murder of his wife. It's an excellent show although the filmmaker didn't have as much access to the prosecution as he had to the defense team. It's very important that everyone who has the chance to and considers himself (herself) as a responsible citizen watches this, as it touches on very important aspects of the justice system in the U.S. (but that are no doubt present in varying degrees in many other so-called democracies); the one aspect which is prominently in evidence here is the jury system. This documentary's political,institutional, educational, anthropological, forensic, and, last but by no means least, domestic safety implications are big and by far surpass the scope of these modest notes. All I can do is stress that this miniseries should be seen by as many people as possible; more than that, it should be studied and meditated upon, if we want this world to function in a more rational and civilized way. Just as a side note, I would like to add that the fact that it's also tremendously entertaining does not detract from its seriousness one bit; this is good entertainment, achieved through honesty and intelligence. The implications of what is demonstrated in this telefilm are far wider in scope than the specific case which is analysed. Basically, its point is that in a trial the defendant's fate is put in the hands of twelve people whose education level, moral integrity, mental health, religious beliefs, political inclinations, and intelligence quotients, are anyone's guess, and who probably in most cases would have some difficulty understanding (or at any rate accepting) the concepts "burden of proof" and "reasonable doubt"; they might dislike the defendant for a vast number of reasons, and if someone linked to the defense tries to explain chaos theory or biomechanics to them, then you can abandon all your hopes; they also will very probably suffer peer pressure either explicitly or tacitly, not to mention outside influences which this film discusses at length. In view of all that, let me finish with one single question: is it possible that this is the best we can come up with, in terms of the application of justice?
Dealing with somewhat related subjects, see also a great nonfiction film named "Capturing the Friedmans".
Rating: 75 (4th position in my list of 2004's best)
This documentary covers the indictment and subsequent trial of a man in North Carolina who was accused of the murder of his wife. It's an excellent show although the filmmaker didn't have as much access to the prosecution as he had to the defense team. It's very important that everyone who has the chance to and considers himself (herself) as a responsible citizen watches this, as it touches on very important aspects of the justice system in the U.S. (but that are no doubt present in varying degrees in many other so-called democracies); the one aspect which is prominently in evidence here is the jury system. This documentary's political,institutional, educational, anthropological, forensic, and, last but by no means least, domestic safety implications are big and by far surpass the scope of these modest notes. All I can do is stress that this miniseries should be seen by as many people as possible; more than that, it should be studied and meditated upon, if we want this world to function in a more rational and civilized way. Just as a side note, I would like to add that the fact that it's also tremendously entertaining does not detract from its seriousness one bit; this is good entertainment, achieved through honesty and intelligence. The implications of what is demonstrated in this telefilm are far wider in scope than the specific case which is analysed. Basically, its point is that in a trial the defendant's fate is put in the hands of twelve people whose education level, moral integrity, mental health, religious beliefs, political inclinations, and intelligence quotients, are anyone's guess, and who probably in most cases would have some difficulty understanding (or at any rate accepting) the concepts "burden of proof" and "reasonable doubt"; they might dislike the defendant for a vast number of reasons, and if someone linked to the defense tries to explain chaos theory or biomechanics to them, then you can abandon all your hopes; they also will very probably suffer peer pressure either explicitly or tacitly, not to mention outside influences which this film discusses at length. In view of all that, let me finish with one single question: is it possible that this is the best we can come up with, in terms of the application of justice?
Dealing with somewhat related subjects, see also a great nonfiction film named "Capturing the Friedmans".
Rating: 75 (4th position in my list of 2004's best)
Rules of Engagement (2000)
Synopsis (spoilers): A rescue operation at the American embassy in Yemen ends with the U.S. soldiers shooting at the angry mob. The commander of that operation is sent to court martial for violating the rules of engagement. He asks a fellow military whose life he had saved in Vietnam to defend him. The whole case boils down to deciding whether there were shooters among the crowd; a videotape proving that there were is destroyed by the American International Affairs bureaucrat, for political reasons.
Appraisal: Hopelessly silly, which is no surprise considering its screenwriter's other works; mildly entertaining at some points, but you can sense the underlying ridiculousness throughout.
Rating: 36
Appraisal: Hopelessly silly, which is no surprise considering its screenwriter's other works; mildly entertaining at some points, but you can sense the underlying ridiculousness throughout.
Rating: 36
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Triggers in Leash (1955) (TV)
Synopsis: Western. The owner of a canteen does everything she can to stop two men from engaging in a duel.
Appraisal: Quite good, this one.
Appraisal: Quite good, this one.
Diamonds for Breakfast (1968)
Synopsis: A descendant from the Russian imperial family architects the heist of the Russian imperial jewels. The plan is carried out with the assistance of several female robbers.
Appraisal: Awful comedy, in which nothing works.
Rating: 12
Appraisal: Awful comedy, in which nothing works.
Rating: 12
Alfred Hitchcock: Premonition (1955) (TV)
Synopsis: A man returns home after a long absence, and finds that his father has died in mysterious circumstances.
Appraisal (mild spoiler): One of the several examples of how cinema and television have built a mythology of mental disorders according to simplistic notions with no empiric validation. Strictly as melodrama, it's not completely worthless.
Appraisal (mild spoiler): One of the several examples of how cinema and television have built a mythology of mental disorders according to simplistic notions with no empiric validation. Strictly as melodrama, it's not completely worthless.
Saturday, February 09, 2008
Alfred Hitchcock Presents: Revenge (1955) (TV)
Synopsis (mild spoilers): A man returns to his trailer home after work, and finds his wife lying in shock after an alleged assault by an unknown man. Presumably, the assailant was a traveling salesman who saw her in her bathing suit and then raped her (or tried to) -- although she claimed he wanted her money.
Appraisal: This is just so-so; nothing offensive, but nothing brilliant or exciting either.
Appraisal: This is just so-so; nothing offensive, but nothing brilliant or exciting either.
Friday, February 08, 2008
Le corniaud (1965)
English title: The Sucker.
Synopsis: A naive man is conned by a criminal into borrowing his car to make a vacation trip in Italy; there are drugs and stolen jewels concealed in the car.
Appraisal: Inferior comedy, which boasts some nice landscapes of Rome, Naples and Paris.
Rating: 26
Synopsis: A naive man is conned by a criminal into borrowing his car to make a vacation trip in Italy; there are drugs and stolen jewels concealed in the car.
Appraisal: Inferior comedy, which boasts some nice landscapes of Rome, Naples and Paris.
Rating: 26
Thursday, February 07, 2008
Ruthless (1948)
Synopsis: A rich man invites to a cerimony all the people he harmed or estranged during his rising.There he recollects his life, from his adoption by a generous man to his bold financial transactions in Wall Street.
Appraisal: Consistently watchable and occasionally interesting; some things are badly thought out (e.g. his mother's rather convenient detestability), others are downright awful (e.g. the ending). The film's dialogue goes deep into financial concepts, so it's expected that many viewers will have a rather superficial understanding of what goes on at certain spots; I'm afraid I'm one of them.
Rating: 39
Appraisal: Consistently watchable and occasionally interesting; some things are badly thought out (e.g. his mother's rather convenient detestability), others are downright awful (e.g. the ending). The film's dialogue goes deep into financial concepts, so it's expected that many viewers will have a rather superficial understanding of what goes on at certain spots; I'm afraid I'm one of them.
Rating: 39
Saint Ralph (2004)
Synopsis: A young boy whose mother is in a coma pledges to run in a marathon in the hopes that it would supernaturally bring her back.
Appraisal: Weak stuff, very uninspired. What can you expect from a film whose very premise is based on a semantical misconstruction -- if "only a miracle could bring her back", then winning the marathon could do it (since it would be a miracle); when of course the sentence doesn't mean that at all, but rather that only a supernatural intervention could bring her back, which in itself would constitute a miracle.
Rating: 21
Appraisal: Weak stuff, very uninspired. What can you expect from a film whose very premise is based on a semantical misconstruction -- if "only a miracle could bring her back", then winning the marathon could do it (since it would be a miracle); when of course the sentence doesn't mean that at all, but rather that only a supernatural intervention could bring her back, which in itself would constitute a miracle.
Rating: 21
La promesse (1996)
English title: The Promise.
Synopsis: An adolescent boy helps his father in his business of exploiting illegal immigrants. When one of the workers die, the man's wife becomes a threat and a conflict arises between the boy and his father, with the boy taking the side of the woman.
Appraisal: The usual fare from these filmmakers; mildly interesting conflicts, competent direction of actors, slightly unrealistic behavior immersed in a socially realistic context.
Rating: 48
Synopsis: An adolescent boy helps his father in his business of exploiting illegal immigrants. When one of the workers die, the man's wife becomes a threat and a conflict arises between the boy and his father, with the boy taking the side of the woman.
Appraisal: The usual fare from these filmmakers; mildly interesting conflicts, competent direction of actors, slightly unrealistic behavior immersed in a socially realistic context.
Rating: 48
Never Talk to Strangers (1995)
Synopsis: A criminal psychiatrist starts a relationship with a handsome stranger, and from then on strange things start to happen to her, even putting her life in danger. Her suspicions start to turn to her new boyfriend.
Appraisal: This is a frivolous little thing, without aspirations to realism or depth of any kind, but with a certain wicked sense of humor to it; despite what you may hear to the contrary, its finale is the only one possible which makes the film a coherent whole.
Rating: 38
Appraisal: This is a frivolous little thing, without aspirations to realism or depth of any kind, but with a certain wicked sense of humor to it; despite what you may hear to the contrary, its finale is the only one possible which makes the film a coherent whole.
Rating: 38
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
Heller in Pink Tights (1960)
Synopsis: A theatrical troupe traveling in the West in the 19th century gets into constant trouble because of their beautiful female star.
Appraisal: Funny and intelligent western, with splendid performances and high production values.
Rating: 65
Appraisal: Funny and intelligent western, with splendid performances and high production values.
Rating: 65
Tuesday, February 05, 2008
Indecent Proposal (1993)
Synopsis: A billionaire offers one million dollars to a married couple for a night with the woman.
Appraisal: It's hard for me to judge this film because I am not sure whether I have the necessary empathy with the characters and their dilemma; the way I see it, the whole thing seems based on a nonissue. Of course, if one can ignore that fact, or believe otherwise, the film follows a predictable pattern, and is reasonably well made.
Rating: 36
Appraisal: It's hard for me to judge this film because I am not sure whether I have the necessary empathy with the characters and their dilemma; the way I see it, the whole thing seems based on a nonissue. Of course, if one can ignore that fact, or believe otherwise, the film follows a predictable pattern, and is reasonably well made.
Rating: 36
Monday, February 04, 2008
Massa'ot James Be'eretz Hakodesh (2003)
English title: James' Journey to Jerusalem.
Synopsis: An African young man comes to Israel to visit Jerusalem, but is recruited as an illegal worker.
Appraisal: The process of survival and learning is depicted here in a simplified but still honest way; also interesting is the depiction of class (and race) relations in Israel, made without any attempt at ideologic or moral preaching.
Rating: 59
Synopsis: An African young man comes to Israel to visit Jerusalem, but is recruited as an illegal worker.
Appraisal: The process of survival and learning is depicted here in a simplified but still honest way; also interesting is the depiction of class (and race) relations in Israel, made without any attempt at ideologic or moral preaching.
Rating: 59
Showgirls (1995)
Synopsis: A young woman arrives in Las Vegas to be a nightclub dancer.
Appraisal: Strictly cliché melodrama, that nevertheless is well directed and sexy.
Rating: 38
Appraisal: Strictly cliché melodrama, that nevertheless is well directed and sexy.
Rating: 38
Place Vendôme (1998)
Synopsis: A woman finds among her dead husband's stuff some stolen diamonds which she tries to sell.
Appraisal: Interesting film, whose symmetry-ridden plot moves along nicely and without any shadow of dullness.
Rating: 60
Appraisal: Interesting film, whose symmetry-ridden plot moves along nicely and without any shadow of dullness.
Rating: 60
Sunday, February 03, 2008
Alpha Dog (2006)
Synopsis: A middle-class drug dealer kidnaps the teenage brother of a debtor.
Appraisal (mild spoiler): This film is perfect in every aspect, and yet I can't say that I cared much for it. It's a terrible story, to be sure, but it's so predictable that one can't help feeling down in anticipation of its ending. Every actor is pitch perfect. The mother's final scene is going to break your heart, unless it's made of stone.
Rating: 59
Appraisal (mild spoiler): This film is perfect in every aspect, and yet I can't say that I cared much for it. It's a terrible story, to be sure, but it's so predictable that one can't help feeling down in anticipation of its ending. Every actor is pitch perfect. The mother's final scene is going to break your heart, unless it's made of stone.
Rating: 59
Steel City (2006)
Synopsis: A young man has to live with his uncle after his father gets arrested. Meanwhile, his brother is cheating on his wife.
Appraisal: Reasonably well directed but unmemorable and indistinct from other current independent U.S. productions. The plot has some obscure details, which apparently the filmmaker didn't think necessary to clarify. I won't go into that, though.
Rating: 41
Appraisal: Reasonably well directed but unmemorable and indistinct from other current independent U.S. productions. The plot has some obscure details, which apparently the filmmaker didn't think necessary to clarify. I won't go into that, though.
Rating: 41
Rough Night in Jericho (1967)
Synopsis: A former deputy joins a former sheriff in a trip to another town where they expect to start a partnership with a woman in a stagecoach business. The town boss wants a share of the business, but the woman does not agree. The situation of injustice in the town becomes intolerable and some people decide to take action against the town boss and their men.
Appraisal: Interesting western, with an interesting and well developed theme.
Rating: 51
Appraisal: Interesting western, with an interesting and well developed theme.
Rating: 51
Que la fête commence... (1975)
English title: Let Joy Reign Supreme.
Synopsis: After the death of Louis XIV, his son being still an infant, Philippe d'Orléans rules France as regent. In Bretagne, an insurrection arises intending to proclaim it an independent republic. Meanwhile, abbey Dubois, the regent's former tutor and best friend, makes a deal with the English by which he will have an insurrection leader hanged in exchange of his being made archbishop.
Appraisal: Extremely eventful account of France's history in the XVIIIth century. It's well written and sufficiently directed, but the excess of points of view and subplots in such a short film length takes a little of the dramatic strength.
Rating: 62
Synopsis: After the death of Louis XIV, his son being still an infant, Philippe d'Orléans rules France as regent. In Bretagne, an insurrection arises intending to proclaim it an independent republic. Meanwhile, abbey Dubois, the regent's former tutor and best friend, makes a deal with the English by which he will have an insurrection leader hanged in exchange of his being made archbishop.
Appraisal: Extremely eventful account of France's history in the XVIIIth century. It's well written and sufficiently directed, but the excess of points of view and subplots in such a short film length takes a little of the dramatic strength.
Rating: 62
Fort Massacre (1958)
Synopsis: In 1879, an army outfit moving in the desert, and running out of water, is ordered by its leader, a ruthless sergeant, to strike against some Apache who are controlling a water pond. Later, they run into a house inhabited by an old Piute man and his granddaughter, and they decide to take refuge there.
Appraisal: Decent B western, well scripted and well directed, and with excellent cinematography.
Rating: 51
Appraisal: Decent B western, well scripted and well directed, and with excellent cinematography.
Rating: 51
Ren xiao yao (2002)
English title: Unknown Pleasures.
Synopsis: Two youngsters in China are unemployed and inseparable. The first one has a girlfriend who is going to the University; the other courts a singer/prostitute who has a very possessive and violent boyfriend (apparent he is her pimp too, but I couldn't care enough to figure that out).
Appraisal: Uninspired chronicle of small lives, for those enamoured with banality and immature quirkiness. Speaking strictly from the mise-en-scene angle, the filmmaker shows some skill.
Rating: 41
Synopsis: Two youngsters in China are unemployed and inseparable. The first one has a girlfriend who is going to the University; the other courts a singer/prostitute who has a very possessive and violent boyfriend (apparent he is her pimp too, but I couldn't care enough to figure that out).
Appraisal: Uninspired chronicle of small lives, for those enamoured with banality and immature quirkiness. Speaking strictly from the mise-en-scene angle, the filmmaker shows some skill.
Rating: 41
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Father Knows Best: Betty Goes Steady (1956) (TV) [season 3, episode 13]
Synopsis: Betty begins dating a classmate. Bud's advisor, a slightly older guy, questions her choice and her social behavior in general, which he finds to be conformist. There may be deeper motives for his opposition, as he too appears to be interested in Betty.
Appraisal: I have no memory of other episodes I may have seen in the past, but this one is priceless. Part of its interest is probably due simply because it is a window to another time, but anyhow it is smart enough for a delightful viewing. Too bad the version I watched was dubbed in Portuguese.
Appraisal: I have no memory of other episodes I may have seen in the past, but this one is priceless. Part of its interest is probably due simply because it is a window to another time, but anyhow it is smart enough for a delightful viewing. Too bad the version I watched was dubbed in Portuguese.
Steal This Film - Part 1 (2006) (V)
Description: Documentary about file sharing.
Appraisal: Interesting as information and debate.
Appraisal: Interesting as information and debate.
Monday, January 28, 2008
Waiting... (2005)
Synopsis: A bunch of guys and girls working at a restaurant as waiters and waitresses.
Appraisal: Quite entertaining, and, although formulaic, gives a convincing picture of life in a restaurant.
Rating: 55
Appraisal: Quite entertaining, and, although formulaic, gives a convincing picture of life in a restaurant.
Rating: 55
Copenhagen (2002) (TV)
Synopsis: Werner Heisenberg paid a visit to Niels Bohr in 1941. The motives of that trip from Germany to occupied Denmark are discussed in a dramatic form.
Appraisal: I found this kind of interesting. The obligatory poeticizing of science comes about in the last act, alas.
Rating: 40
Appraisal: I found this kind of interesting. The obligatory poeticizing of science comes about in the last act, alas.
Rating: 40
The Alternate (2000)
Also Known As: Agent of Death.
Synopsis: The staff of a President stages his kidnapping in the hope that it will boost his popularity. One of the team members reveals himself as a real kidnapper.
Appraisal: Some action scenes are badly staged and/or edited. The script is not so bad. On the whole, it's on the watchable side, but just barely.
Rating: 30
Synopsis: The staff of a President stages his kidnapping in the hope that it will boost his popularity. One of the team members reveals himself as a real kidnapper.
Appraisal: Some action scenes are badly staged and/or edited. The script is not so bad. On the whole, it's on the watchable side, but just barely.
Rating: 30
Monday, January 21, 2008
Romance & Cigarettes (2005)
Synopsis: A man cheats on his wife. She finds out about it.(The film is a musical.)
Appraisal: I didn't like it much, but it's hard to explain why. The format -- soundtrack music "commenting" the action -- is not exactly my cup of tea. But I think what rubbed me the wrong way was its sentimentality which sounded faux at certain moments. Anyway, I kept finding interesting things in the movie, although often they would be followed by other things I didn't like much.
Rating: 52
Appraisal: I didn't like it much, but it's hard to explain why. The format -- soundtrack music "commenting" the action -- is not exactly my cup of tea. But I think what rubbed me the wrong way was its sentimentality which sounded faux at certain moments. Anyway, I kept finding interesting things in the movie, although often they would be followed by other things I didn't like much.
Rating: 52
Bringing Down the House (2003)
Synopsis: A lawyer meets a woman on the Internet who says she is also a lawyer. They set up a date, and he finds out that she is no lawyer, and wants his help to clear her name from a crime of which she was convicted.
Appraisal: The first twenty minutes are fairly good; the rest of the movie is almost invariably unfunny and at times makes little sense.
Rating: 30
Appraisal: The first twenty minutes are fairly good; the rest of the movie is almost invariably unfunny and at times makes little sense.
Rating: 30
Tout feu, tout flamme (1982)
English title: All Fired Up.
Synopsis (mild spoilers): After a long absence, a man returns to France where he has three daughters and his mother. The eldest daughter works for the U.N. and is very suspicious of her father. When she hears that he has conned his own mother into selling her possessions so that he can open a casino, she is very enraged and tries to stop him from going ahead with the deal.
Appraisal: Dramatic comedy without much interest which nonetheless lets itself be seen without great effort, thanks to the agility of both script and mise-en-scene.
Rating: 34
Synopsis (mild spoilers): After a long absence, a man returns to France where he has three daughters and his mother. The eldest daughter works for the U.N. and is very suspicious of her father. When she hears that he has conned his own mother into selling her possessions so that he can open a casino, she is very enraged and tries to stop him from going ahead with the deal.
Appraisal: Dramatic comedy without much interest which nonetheless lets itself be seen without great effort, thanks to the agility of both script and mise-en-scene.
Rating: 34
Hitler: The Rise of Evil (2003) (TV)
Synopsis: His life from childhood until he becomes the dictator of Germany.
Appraisal: Vibrant telefilm, impeccable in all departments with the possible exception of less-than-ideal casting (which was to be expected given that it is an American production, and a TV one at that) and a somewhat vague depiction of his childhood and adolescence years (which was also to be expected due to length constraints and perhaps lack of reliable historic information). There is an interesting parallel with our times too, in which fighting terrorism is an excuse for the suppression of civil liberties.
Rating: 68
Appraisal: Vibrant telefilm, impeccable in all departments with the possible exception of less-than-ideal casting (which was to be expected given that it is an American production, and a TV one at that) and a somewhat vague depiction of his childhood and adolescence years (which was also to be expected due to length constraints and perhaps lack of reliable historic information). There is an interesting parallel with our times too, in which fighting terrorism is an excuse for the suppression of civil liberties.
Rating: 68
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Saddle Tramp (1950)
Synopsis (spoilers): Chuck, a cowboy and a drifter, is riding to California and decides to drop by on his friend along the way. He finds that his friend's wife has died leaving him four boys to look after. Chuck is staying overnight and while he is drowsing his friend goes out to check on a noise. He takes Chuck's horse to go after a coyote but the horse bucks after a shot and Chuck's friend falls and dies. Chuck reluctantly decides to take the children with him and look after them. He employs himself as a cowboy at a ranch but has to hide the children because the owner is not fond of children. A series of cattle thefts are occurring there and the rancher suspects of the neighboring rancher. Meanwhile a teenage girl who is running away from her sexually abusive uncle takes refuge in the children's camp. Chuck finds out that the thefts are being committed by both ranchers' foremen in alliance. After all is cleared up and the bad guys are dealt with, Chuck marries the girl (she's actually 19) and all of them live happily everafter.
Appraisal: Interesting little western, very humorous and light.
Rating: 51
Appraisal: Interesting little western, very humorous and light.
Rating: 51
Zui hao de shi guang (2005)
English title: Three Times.
Synopsis (spoilers): First story, 1966 -- A young man meets a woman in a snooker hall, then goes to military service on another town. He writes her letters. When he finishes his service period, he goes after her. Second story, 1911 -- Mr. Chang, a young man who works for the liberation of Taiwan from Japan, has a lover who works as a prostitute in a brothel. One of her friends gets pregnant and is considered for concubine of a man, but they couldn't reach a financial agreement. Mr. Chang helps her financially so that the deal can be made. Meanwhile, his own lover wants to free herself from the work in the brothel. Third story, 2005 -- A young woman cheats on her female lover with a young man. Her female lover gets more and more unhappy with the situation.
Appraisal: There are interesting elements in this film, both in individual scenes and in the general concept behind it. It seems to be trying to make some philosophical point about how the different times shape the individuals. The director doesn't seem to be especially competent, a suspicion which had already been aroused in the only other film I have seen directed by him (A City of Sadness). Notwithstanding that fact, he seems to be serious about the projects he chooses, based on these two films alone, and both films are interesting and watchable. Specifically in the case of "Three Times", he makes several serious mistakes which considerably compromise the quality of the film. In the first episode, there is a lot of wasted time in nonevents, and the use of pop music is atrocious. In the second episode, the choice of the use of intertitles is absurd and ridiculous. These are, despite these flaws, the two best episodes of the film. The third one is even more seriously flawed in its essence, and it's hard to know the whole point of the story, which goes nowhere and draws a rather stereotypical portrait of contemporary youth. It is also inexplicably shy in the depiction of physical contact.
Rating: 45
Synopsis (spoilers): First story, 1966 -- A young man meets a woman in a snooker hall, then goes to military service on another town. He writes her letters. When he finishes his service period, he goes after her. Second story, 1911 -- Mr. Chang, a young man who works for the liberation of Taiwan from Japan, has a lover who works as a prostitute in a brothel. One of her friends gets pregnant and is considered for concubine of a man, but they couldn't reach a financial agreement. Mr. Chang helps her financially so that the deal can be made. Meanwhile, his own lover wants to free herself from the work in the brothel. Third story, 2005 -- A young woman cheats on her female lover with a young man. Her female lover gets more and more unhappy with the situation.
Appraisal: There are interesting elements in this film, both in individual scenes and in the general concept behind it. It seems to be trying to make some philosophical point about how the different times shape the individuals. The director doesn't seem to be especially competent, a suspicion which had already been aroused in the only other film I have seen directed by him (A City of Sadness). Notwithstanding that fact, he seems to be serious about the projects he chooses, based on these two films alone, and both films are interesting and watchable. Specifically in the case of "Three Times", he makes several serious mistakes which considerably compromise the quality of the film. In the first episode, there is a lot of wasted time in nonevents, and the use of pop music is atrocious. In the second episode, the choice of the use of intertitles is absurd and ridiculous. These are, despite these flaws, the two best episodes of the film. The third one is even more seriously flawed in its essence, and it's hard to know the whole point of the story, which goes nowhere and draws a rather stereotypical portrait of contemporary youth. It is also inexplicably shy in the depiction of physical contact.
Rating: 45
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Panic (2000)
Synopsis: A middle-aged man works as a hitman for his father. He begins to see a shrink and falls in love with a young woman, even though he is married with one son.
Appraisal: This is a fine example of a perfectly executed piece of perfectly predictable yet perfectly enjoyable black comedy. The cast is superb, with no exceptions.
Rating: 64
Appraisal: This is a fine example of a perfectly executed piece of perfectly predictable yet perfectly enjoyable black comedy. The cast is superb, with no exceptions.
Rating: 64
Maboroshi no hikari (1995)
English title: Maborosi.
Synopsis (spoilers): A woman is happily married and one fine day her husband commits suicide for no apparent reason. She remarries in a different town but is still disturbed by her previous husband's final act.
Appraisal: The material here is obviously of superior quality, full of psychological nuances and insights. The direction is able at staging scenes as naturalistically as possible, although the after-sex scene is marred by their wearing underwear. What really mars the film is the excessive distance of the shots, and the unnecessary slowness at some points. All these remarks have already been made in the review (at this page) by IMDb user CountZero313, which is right on the money.
Rating: 59
Synopsis (spoilers): A woman is happily married and one fine day her husband commits suicide for no apparent reason. She remarries in a different town but is still disturbed by her previous husband's final act.
Appraisal: The material here is obviously of superior quality, full of psychological nuances and insights. The direction is able at staging scenes as naturalistically as possible, although the after-sex scene is marred by their wearing underwear. What really mars the film is the excessive distance of the shots, and the unnecessary slowness at some points. All these remarks have already been made in the review (at this page) by IMDb user CountZero313, which is right on the money.
Rating: 59
Dear Brigitte (1965)
Synopsis: A Poetry professor has a low esteem of Science; he suffers a severe blow when his son reveals himself as a genius of Mathematics.
Appraisal: It's hard to know whether this film is simply dated or whether it was antiquated even for the day when it was released. The subplot about the young boy's infatuation with the French starlet is particularly annoying. Anyway, aside from that and other unsuccessful attempts at being funny, the plot has some points to make about the interrelationship (and interdependence) of the artistically inclined and the more down-to-Earth people who value knowledge and the quantification of the Universe.
Rating: 33
Appraisal: It's hard to know whether this film is simply dated or whether it was antiquated even for the day when it was released. The subplot about the young boy's infatuation with the French starlet is particularly annoying. Anyway, aside from that and other unsuccessful attempts at being funny, the plot has some points to make about the interrelationship (and interdependence) of the artistically inclined and the more down-to-Earth people who value knowledge and the quantification of the Universe.
Rating: 33
Wednesday, January 09, 2008
Gunsmoke: Matt Gets It (1955) [Season 1, Episode 1]
Synopsis (spoilers): A gunfighter from Amarillo comes to Dodge after having killed an unarmed man (he didn't know it, he claims). The sheriff of Amarillo comes to arrest him (he would rather kill him) but is killed by him. Matt Dillon, the sheriff of Dodge, tries to arrest him and is seriously wounded. He recovers and tries again to arrest him, only this time he has learned that the outlaw is not so good at a distance (he doesn't take his time to aim), and shoots him before he comes too close.
Appraisal: It's a fair entertainment; as far as I can remember, it's the only episode I have seen, although who can really tell what he has seen in his faraway days of childhood?
Appraisal: It's a fair entertainment; as far as I can remember, it's the only episode I have seen, although who can really tell what he has seen in his faraway days of childhood?
Tuesday, January 08, 2008
Os Reis do Riso, Volume I [compilation VHS]
This Brazilian issue contains 5 butchered short silent films which were aired in the 60's on the TV show Comedy Capers. All of them had their names changed. The films are:
Smith's Vacation (1926) [retitled as "The Cruise"]
A Prodigal Bridegroom (1926) [retitled as "The Butter and Egg Man"]
At the Ringside (1921) [retitled as "You're Under Arrest!"]
Boobs in the Wood (1925) [retitled as "Tall Timber"]
Whispering Whiskers (1926) [retitled as "The Crystal Ball"]
No real assessment is possible since, as I have already mentioned, the films are heavily cut, but it is possible to appreciate the gags.
Smith's Vacation (1926) [retitled as "The Cruise"]
A Prodigal Bridegroom (1926) [retitled as "The Butter and Egg Man"]
At the Ringside (1921) [retitled as "You're Under Arrest!"]
Boobs in the Wood (1925) [retitled as "Tall Timber"]
Whispering Whiskers (1926) [retitled as "The Crystal Ball"]
No real assessment is possible since, as I have already mentioned, the films are heavily cut, but it is possible to appreciate the gags.
Mad Hot Ballroom (2005)
Description: Documentary about a ballroom dance competition among elementary school children.
Appraisal: It's very well made, and both serious and fun to watch; the only problem, if I may call that a problem, is that it's all a bit too trivial.
Rating: 54
Appraisal: It's very well made, and both serious and fun to watch; the only problem, if I may call that a problem, is that it's all a bit too trivial.
Rating: 54
Monday, January 07, 2008
Crank (2006)
Synopsis: A man is injected with a chemical which inhibits the flow of adrenalin to his heart. He has to keep himself in constant activity and excitement to compensate for the drug's effects.
Appraisal (mild spoiler): This is a variation on Speed (1994/I) (the bus is replaced by a person) and also of D.O.A. (1950 or 1988). The camerawork is frantic, the pace too. Halfway into the movie, it realizes its extreme amorality and shifts into extreme hypocrisy: the protagonist is revealed to be quitting his job. The woman, as usual in recent films, is innocent (and, I deduce, a little retarded). The action sequences are delirious -- well, almost.
Rating: 45
Appraisal (mild spoiler): This is a variation on Speed (1994/I) (the bus is replaced by a person) and also of D.O.A. (1950 or 1988). The camerawork is frantic, the pace too. Halfway into the movie, it realizes its extreme amorality and shifts into extreme hypocrisy: the protagonist is revealed to be quitting his job. The woman, as usual in recent films, is innocent (and, I deduce, a little retarded). The action sequences are delirious -- well, almost.
Rating: 45
Schultze Gets the Blues (2003)
Synopsis: A German man in his retirement goes to the U.S. for a music festival.
Appraisal: Really, this movie leaves something to be desired in the way of character definition and detailing of the events which unfold in the story. This is not to say it doesn't achieve a certain mood, or doesn't have intelligent ideas.
Rating: 45
Appraisal: Really, this movie leaves something to be desired in the way of character definition and detailing of the events which unfold in the story. This is not to say it doesn't achieve a certain mood, or doesn't have intelligent ideas.
Rating: 45
Saturday, January 05, 2008
Seabiscuit (2003)
Synopsis: In the 1930s, a horse begins racing and surprisingly becomes a champion.
Appraisal: Ideologically reactionary, it dismisses the importance of the government actions for reverting the big Depression, claiming that the spirit of competition and individualism were more crucial to that effect. Nevertheless, a film that has to be respected for the level of professionalism in all technical departments, and is moderately enjoyable as an extremely conventional narrative.
Rating: 49
Appraisal: Ideologically reactionary, it dismisses the importance of the government actions for reverting the big Depression, claiming that the spirit of competition and individualism were more crucial to that effect. Nevertheless, a film that has to be respected for the level of professionalism in all technical departments, and is moderately enjoyable as an extremely conventional narrative.
Rating: 49
Thursday, January 03, 2008
Ju-on: The Grudge (2003)
Synopsis: A house where a murder has occurred is haunted by apparitions and strange supernatural materializations which are fatal for those that encounter them.
Appraisal: This is supposed to be a horror movie, yet I was more bored than scared. It is built as a collection of set-pieces from which formal elaboration is not absent, but the general effect is of a cold and unaffecting aestheticism.
Rating: 40
Appraisal: This is supposed to be a horror movie, yet I was more bored than scared. It is built as a collection of set-pieces from which formal elaboration is not absent, but the general effect is of a cold and unaffecting aestheticism.
Rating: 40
The Happy Thieves (1962)
Synopsis: A trio of thieves of classic paintings is blackmailed into stealing a painting from a museum.
Appraisal: All efforts are made at lending this film an aura of lightness and sophistication --prominent among them the ad nauseam playing of a whistling tune. The plot is not completely uninteresting and the dialogue is occasionally philosophical, but it is not especially thrilling or humorous or ingenious; I guess it will do as a time killer.
Rating: 36
Appraisal: All efforts are made at lending this film an aura of lightness and sophistication --prominent among them the ad nauseam playing of a whistling tune. The plot is not completely uninteresting and the dialogue is occasionally philosophical, but it is not especially thrilling or humorous or ingenious; I guess it will do as a time killer.
Rating: 36
Sleep, My Love (1948)
Synopsis: A woman keeps finding herself in strange situations, appearing in unexpected places without recollection of how she got there, and seeing people nobody else saw. Her husband's strangely cold behavior and association with some shady characters place him as a suspect of staging a conspiracy of some kind. Fortunately, she meets a young man who will try to solve this mystery.
Appraisal: The plot follows strictly routine patterns, and is absurd at its core -- unless you believe that hypnosis can make people who are asleep -- and under the effect of heavy drugs -- rise and do all sorts of things as commanded. The direction -- as related to acting and the general technical factors that give a movie its superficial polishing -- is of a superior kind, but there is only so much one can do with such a material.
Rating: 31
Appraisal: The plot follows strictly routine patterns, and is absurd at its core -- unless you believe that hypnosis can make people who are asleep -- and under the effect of heavy drugs -- rise and do all sorts of things as commanded. The direction -- as related to acting and the general technical factors that give a movie its superficial polishing -- is of a superior kind, but there is only so much one can do with such a material.
Rating: 31
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