A middle aged man expects to enjoy life finally, when he receives news that his daughter is pregnant.
An interesting analysis of a familial situation, operated in rather typical terms.
Rating: 51
Saturday, January 26, 2013
Friday, January 25, 2013
The Lady Gambles (1949)
A journalist and his wife are in Las Vegas, where he is to do a story on a dam. She tries the casinos and soon becomes addicted to gambling.
Not a satisfactory film on the gambling addiction; the explanation for her behavior is very unconvincing. The film seems to seek to entertain us with the sordid life she leads, and to a small extent succeeds.
Rating: 34
Not a satisfactory film on the gambling addiction; the explanation for her behavior is very unconvincing. The film seems to seek to entertain us with the sordid life she leads, and to a small extent succeeds.
Rating: 34
Thursday, January 24, 2013
The Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell (1955)
In the 1920s, an American officer clashes against his peers for demanding more investment in Air equipment and personnel.
Military drama loosely based on real events. The basic core of the plot is mildly interesting for showing a typical situation of a man who sees farther than his superiors. Some of the dramatic aspects are rather unconvincing, though.
Rating: 39
Military drama loosely based on real events. The basic core of the plot is mildly interesting for showing a typical situation of a man who sees farther than his superiors. Some of the dramatic aspects are rather unconvincing, though.
Rating: 39
The Sun Shines Bright (1953)
Based on short stories ("The Sun Shines Bright", "The Mob from Massac", "The Lord Provides") by Irvin S. Cobb.
A judge running for re-election faces a series of city problems in a Southern town in the late 19th century (or early 20th). The doctor's adoptive daughter is said to be a local general's granddaughter; a black boy is unjustly accused of rape and is threatened with lynching; a dying prostitute asks for a pompous funeral service.
Mythifying, sentimental view of the American South. Mostly it is a mildly entertaining film, on occasion it gets oversentimental or downright ridiculous.
Rating: 53
A judge running for re-election faces a series of city problems in a Southern town in the late 19th century (or early 20th). The doctor's adoptive daughter is said to be a local general's granddaughter; a black boy is unjustly accused of rape and is threatened with lynching; a dying prostitute asks for a pompous funeral service.
Mythifying, sentimental view of the American South. Mostly it is a mildly entertaining film, on occasion it gets oversentimental or downright ridiculous.
Rating: 53
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Prince of Players (1955)
The life of Edwin Booth, an American actor of the nineteenth century, son of another famous actor and brother of Lincoln's assassin.
Mediocre, occasionally ridiculous biopic, with extensive Shakespeare recitation.
Rating: 38
Mediocre, occasionally ridiculous biopic, with extensive Shakespeare recitation.
Rating: 38
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
Your Friends & Neighbors (1998)
Second viewing.
Two couples plus a guy and a girl. Couple one: the guy speaks during sex which annoys his girlfriend. Couple two: the wife is frigid and the guy's favorite sex act is masturbation. The other guy is a misogynist and a psychopath. The other girl is a lesbian who works at an art gallery as a secretary.
It is practically a stage play, and reminded me of Carnal Knowledge. It deserves some respect for being an examination of modern sex life as experienced by different types of persons, but was way too overrated by me in my previous viewing.
Rating: 50 (down from 81)
Two couples plus a guy and a girl. Couple one: the guy speaks during sex which annoys his girlfriend. Couple two: the wife is frigid and the guy's favorite sex act is masturbation. The other guy is a misogynist and a psychopath. The other girl is a lesbian who works at an art gallery as a secretary.
It is practically a stage play, and reminded me of Carnal Knowledge. It deserves some respect for being an examination of modern sex life as experienced by different types of persons, but was way too overrated by me in my previous viewing.
Rating: 50 (down from 81)
Son of Fury: The Story of Benjamin Blake (1942)
An orphan is enslaved by his uncle; the latter has furthermore usurped the former's title and properties. One day the young man runs away and embarks to the South Seas, where he intends to amass a fortune, so that he can come back and restore his rights.
Derivative and unexciting adventure, with good production values (but in black and white).
Rating: 31
Derivative and unexciting adventure, with good production values (but in black and white).
Rating: 31
Monday, January 21, 2013
Between Heaven and Hell (1956)
A rich landowner is called to serve in World War II in an island on the Pacific (possibly Guadalcanal). He changes his perception of the world due to his wartime experience.
An entertaining film, with interesting action sequences as well as dramatic ones, but the actual process of social conscience development by the protagonist is poorly shown. Anyway, it carries the somewhat unusual message that war is a potentially humanizing experience.
Rating: 51
An entertaining film, with interesting action sequences as well as dramatic ones, but the actual process of social conscience development by the protagonist is poorly shown. Anyway, it carries the somewhat unusual message that war is a potentially humanizing experience.
Rating: 51
Lexx: I Worship His Shadow (1997) (TV)
First episode of a TV series. Very grotesque and juvenile, where the latter word must be taken in a late-90s context. It is like Star Wars on speed. Not my cup of tea.
Saturday, January 19, 2013
Sex, Lies, and Videotape (1989)
Second viewing.
The unfaithful husband, his frigid wife, her promiscuous sister. And the pervert who gets off watching home video.
This is a romantic comedy in disguise, or perhaps a satire (of romantic comedies) in disguise. I was fooled on my first viewing, even though what the film stands for (at the closing of the eighties of all times) is now clear as water. Many others were fooled as well (see the awards it has received), and while that is no excuse, it is a consolation of sorts. But I refuse to consider it as a bad film. The sheer boldness of its concept should absolve it. I guess.
Rating: 51 (down from 71)
The unfaithful husband, his frigid wife, her promiscuous sister. And the pervert who gets off watching home video.
This is a romantic comedy in disguise, or perhaps a satire (of romantic comedies) in disguise. I was fooled on my first viewing, even though what the film stands for (at the closing of the eighties of all times) is now clear as water. Many others were fooled as well (see the awards it has received), and while that is no excuse, it is a consolation of sorts. But I refuse to consider it as a bad film. The sheer boldness of its concept should absolve it. I guess.
Rating: 51 (down from 71)
Friday, January 18, 2013
Le cheval d'orgueil (1980)
English title: The Horse of Pride.
Based on the memoir by Pierre-Jakez Hélias.
Chronicle of Breton peasant life in the beginning of the twentieth century.
Well-made, realistic, little seen, interesting.
Rating: 65
Based on the memoir by Pierre-Jakez Hélias.
Chronicle of Breton peasant life in the beginning of the twentieth century.
Well-made, realistic, little seen, interesting.
Rating: 65
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Pasazerka (1963)
English title: The Passenger
A woman who had been a supervisor at Auschwitz meets, while aboard a cruise ship, another woman who had been an inmate in that camp. She tells the story of the two of them to her husband, in two versions.
The director died before completing the film, other persons edited the material inserting stills for the parts not finished. The result is interesting, although I cannot glimpse a great film coming of it had the original filmmaker lived to complete it. I cannot say I understood everything in it, and am not sure it is possible to understand everything. Liza's motivations are hard to fathom, and the same could be said for her feelings.
Rating: 56
A woman who had been a supervisor at Auschwitz meets, while aboard a cruise ship, another woman who had been an inmate in that camp. She tells the story of the two of them to her husband, in two versions.
The director died before completing the film, other persons edited the material inserting stills for the parts not finished. The result is interesting, although I cannot glimpse a great film coming of it had the original filmmaker lived to complete it. I cannot say I understood everything in it, and am not sure it is possible to understand everything. Liza's motivations are hard to fathom, and the same could be said for her feelings.
Rating: 56
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
O Céu de Suely (2006)
English titles: Love for Sale; Suely in the Sky.
Correctly translated title: Suely's Heaven.
A woman returns to her hometown with her baby, leaving her husband in the big city. She soon loses all contact with him. She devises a way to raise the money she needs to go away to a bigger city and start life anew.
Overrated drama which doesn't come up with a sufficiently interesting story, or sufficiently interesting characters. On a scene by scene basis, however, it is not hard to watch and is reasonably well filmed and well acted.
Rating: 44
Correctly translated title: Suely's Heaven.
A woman returns to her hometown with her baby, leaving her husband in the big city. She soon loses all contact with him. She devises a way to raise the money she needs to go away to a bigger city and start life anew.
Overrated drama which doesn't come up with a sufficiently interesting story, or sufficiently interesting characters. On a scene by scene basis, however, it is not hard to watch and is reasonably well filmed and well acted.
Rating: 44
Love Laughs at Andy Hardy (1946)
Andy Hardy is a young man returning home from Army service. While he was away he met a girl named Kay and fell in love with her. Now all he can think of is asking her to marry him. His parents are worried with this situation. Andy and Kay are both studying at the same college.
Weak comedy, with a few funny situations, but overall pretty trivial and bland. One thing I did not quite get is: Where did Andy meet Kay if he was in the army? Anyway, pretty forgettable stuff. Particularly cringeworthy is the stereotyped Latin American young woman who has a crush on Andy.
Rating: 31
Weak comedy, with a few funny situations, but overall pretty trivial and bland. One thing I did not quite get is: Where did Andy meet Kay if he was in the army? Anyway, pretty forgettable stuff. Particularly cringeworthy is the stereotyped Latin American young woman who has a crush on Andy.
Rating: 31
Sem essa, Aranha (1970)
A non-narrative succession of long takes featuring the same three or four actors (plus some musical celebrities who appear on some scenes, and assorted extras) who more or less play, respectively, a billionaire, his wife, a destitute woman, and another woman who is possibly the billionaire's lover. The only rule of the film seems to be chaos, there is a lot of screaming, the lines are repeated ad nauseam, the scenes are apparently to a large degree improvised, an atmosphere of doom pervades all scenes. There is a review (in Portuguese) of this film on the film site Contracampo, at this link:
http://www.contracampo.com.br/58/semessaaranha.htm
That review describes a scene (a self-rape with a bottle) which I do not recall seeing in the movie. Either I was not paying enough attention or the copy I saw was cut.
Rating: 16
http://www.contracampo.com.br/58/semessaaranha.htm
That review describes a scene (a self-rape with a bottle) which I do not recall seeing in the movie. Either I was not paying enough attention or the copy I saw was cut.
Rating: 16
Monday, January 14, 2013
O homem do Sputnik (1959)
A simple chicken farmer becomes famous after an object falls in his back yard, killing some of his chickens. The object is speculated to be the Soviet satellite Sputnik, and members of several foreign governments come to Brazil aiming to get it for them.
A modest comedy of customs, with touches of political satire, reasonably well-made and, on the whole, watchable.
Rating: 40
A modest comedy of customs, with touches of political satire, reasonably well-made and, on the whole, watchable.
Rating: 40
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Blind Fury (1989)
Nick is blinded in combat in Vietnam. He is rescued by some Vietnamese and trained as a swordsman. Twenty years later, back in America, Nick's war buddy Frank is being forced to make designer drugs to a mobster. Nick witnesses Frank's wife be killed by the mobster's henchmen who want to take Frank's son as a hostage.
Interesting, well-made action thriller, with a good performance by Hauer. Based on Zatoichi Challenged (1967).
Rating: 59
Interesting, well-made action thriller, with a good performance by Hauer. Based on Zatoichi Challenged (1967).
Rating: 59
Wednesday, January 09, 2013
The House of Mirth (2000)
Based on the novel by Edith Wharton (1st ed. 1905).
A beautiful young woman is in love with a young lawyer but would rather find a rich man to marry. She falls out of favor of society by several imprudent actions, and her unwillingness to compromise her principles.
A truly well-made film with an intelligent text behind it (I say this even without having read the novel). All the performances are very adequate and profissional. Perhaps, in this short and clearly insufficient notes, it would be nice to point out that the author seems to have eschewed strict realism (in the sense of an "average" situation) in favor of a study of a worst-case scenario. In a discussion on the Internet Movie Database, a fellow identified as rdconger points out some similarities between Madame Bovary and The House of Mirth . An antagonist, one theninthgate , points out some differences between Lily and Emma. I think it is fair to read The House of Mirth as a critique or updating of Madame Bovary.
Rating: 74
A beautiful young woman is in love with a young lawyer but would rather find a rich man to marry. She falls out of favor of society by several imprudent actions, and her unwillingness to compromise her principles.
A truly well-made film with an intelligent text behind it (I say this even without having read the novel). All the performances are very adequate and profissional. Perhaps, in this short and clearly insufficient notes, it would be nice to point out that the author seems to have eschewed strict realism (in the sense of an "average" situation) in favor of a study of a worst-case scenario. In a discussion on the Internet Movie Database, a fellow identified as rdconger points out some similarities between Madame Bovary and The House of Mirth . An antagonist, one theninthgate , points out some differences between Lily and Emma. I think it is fair to read The House of Mirth as a critique or updating of Madame Bovary.
Rating: 74
Monday, January 07, 2013
Vivement le cinéma (2011)
Lovely documentary about the forerunners of cinema. It has a fictive narration by E.G. Robertson, who was a "magic lantern" operator. He was followed by Plateau, Horner, Muybridge, Marey, Demenÿ, Reynaud, Edison, and finally Lumière, not to mention several minor characters like Leprince, Skladanowski, and others.
Vale dos esquecidos (2010)
Instructive documentary about land conflicts in Northeastern Mato Grosso, a state of Brazil. Xavante Indians, squatters, farmers, whatnot. I gave the IMDB year (2010) which is when it was finalized, but apparently it was released in 2011 in Festivals (and a news emission of 2011 was added at the end of the movie), and based on its web page I assume it will premiere in cinemas in April (unless this refers to last year but I think not).
Screamers (1995)
Allegedly based on the short story "Second Variety", by Philip K. Dick, first published in 1953.
In the future, Earth establishes mining colonies on other planets. A radiation problem comes up and causes a war between mining corporations on one side and workers and scientists on the other. The latter develop killing machines to fight their enemy, but these machines are too intelligent and begin to evolve. An outpost on a distant planet receives a message about the end of the war. Their commander decides to check it out for himself and, with a new recruit, walks up to the planet's government facilities.
A poor film, with a plot which fails to really engage the viewer. Scientifically it is full of holes, and dramatically it is dull.
Rating: 33
In the future, Earth establishes mining colonies on other planets. A radiation problem comes up and causes a war between mining corporations on one side and workers and scientists on the other. The latter develop killing machines to fight their enemy, but these machines are too intelligent and begin to evolve. An outpost on a distant planet receives a message about the end of the war. Their commander decides to check it out for himself and, with a new recruit, walks up to the planet's government facilities.
A poor film, with a plot which fails to really engage the viewer. Scientifically it is full of holes, and dramatically it is dull.
Rating: 33
Saturday, January 05, 2013
Mr. Bean's Holiday (2007)
Second viewing.
Mr. Bean takes a trip to Cannes, filming everything with his camcorder. He is responsible for the separation of father and son at the train station. He tries to reunite them, and meets a film actress on the way. They all meet at the Cannes Festival, where an ego-obsessed actor-director is having his premiere.
Entertaining and occasionally creative comedy. I was a little too harsh on it on first viewing, upon which I wrote:
"Synopsis: Bean wins a trip to the South of France, along with a video camera. He asks a man in the station to film him and this causes that man to miss the train, which his kid has already boarded. Bean accompanies the kid down to Cannes, where the latter's father will be a Festival juror.
Appraisal: A little disappointing. It's a nice film, but not very funny or brilliant."
Rating: 55 (up from 48)
Mr. Bean takes a trip to Cannes, filming everything with his camcorder. He is responsible for the separation of father and son at the train station. He tries to reunite them, and meets a film actress on the way. They all meet at the Cannes Festival, where an ego-obsessed actor-director is having his premiere.
Entertaining and occasionally creative comedy. I was a little too harsh on it on first viewing, upon which I wrote:
"Synopsis: Bean wins a trip to the South of France, along with a video camera. He asks a man in the station to film him and this causes that man to miss the train, which his kid has already boarded. Bean accompanies the kid down to Cannes, where the latter's father will be a Festival juror.
Appraisal: A little disappointing. It's a nice film, but not very funny or brilliant."
Rating: 55 (up from 48)
Thursday, January 03, 2013
Men in Black (1997)
Second viewing.
The Men in Black are field operatives of a secret organization in charge of dealing with extraterrestrials on (or otherwise posing a problem to) Earth. In the case in question here, a small object which works as an energy source is the object of dispute between two races of aliens, the Arquilians and the Insects. A member of the latter comes to Earth in search of said object. The Arquilians threaten to destroy the Earth in order to prevent the Insect from leaving with the energy source. Jay and Kay, a team of MIB, must kill the Insect and recover the energy source before that happens.
Entertaining and occasionally funny sci-fi comedy.
Rating: 68 (unchanged)
The Men in Black are field operatives of a secret organization in charge of dealing with extraterrestrials on (or otherwise posing a problem to) Earth. In the case in question here, a small object which works as an energy source is the object of dispute between two races of aliens, the Arquilians and the Insects. A member of the latter comes to Earth in search of said object. The Arquilians threaten to destroy the Earth in order to prevent the Insect from leaving with the energy source. Jay and Kay, a team of MIB, must kill the Insect and recover the energy source before that happens.
Entertaining and occasionally funny sci-fi comedy.
Rating: 68 (unchanged)
Wednesday, January 02, 2013
El Mariachi (1992)
Second viewing.
A mariachi (Mexican singer and guitar player) is mistaken with a drug dealer who has vowed to kill a drug lord unless a monetary debt between them is settled.
The smart screenplay conveys a modern tragedy, the style is quite charming. Despite obvious technical limitations it is filmed with care.
Rating: 60 (unchanged)
A mariachi (Mexican singer and guitar player) is mistaken with a drug dealer who has vowed to kill a drug lord unless a monetary debt between them is settled.
The smart screenplay conveys a modern tragedy, the style is quite charming. Despite obvious technical limitations it is filmed with care.
Rating: 60 (unchanged)
Sunday, December 30, 2012
The Fortune (1975)
Second viewing.
The 1920s. A married man seduces a rich young woman and convinces her to elope to California, only in order to do it he must get around the Mann act which punishes who carries a woman across state borders "for immoral purposes". He gets around it by marrying his sweetheart to a friend, a stupid fellow who is a little greedy as well.
Funny farce with moments of brilliance.
Rating: 69 (unchanged)
The 1920s. A married man seduces a rich young woman and convinces her to elope to California, only in order to do it he must get around the Mann act which punishes who carries a woman across state borders "for immoral purposes". He gets around it by marrying his sweetheart to a friend, a stupid fellow who is a little greedy as well.
Funny farce with moments of brilliance.
Rating: 69 (unchanged)
Friday, December 28, 2012
Radioland Murders (1994)
In the heyday of radio, the premiere night of a network station is beset by a series of murders at the studio facilities.
Hysterical comedy, with excellent technique and relentlessly witty dialogue.
Rating: 60
Hysterical comedy, with excellent technique and relentlessly witty dialogue.
Rating: 60
Fierce Creatures (1997)
A corporate mogul sends one of his new executives (a woman), along with his son, whom he hates, to England to run a zoo who has been recently under new management. The zoo's staff enters in conflict with the American managers (as they had with the recently empowered English one).
Mildly entertaining comedy which is critical of corporate capitalism. Despite the good ideas, the screenplay is not in the least sophisticated, the humor is strained, and the ending, which was redone based on viewers' rejection of the former one, is the strainedest, unfunniest part of the movie.
Rating: 39
Mildly entertaining comedy which is critical of corporate capitalism. Despite the good ideas, the screenplay is not in the least sophisticated, the humor is strained, and the ending, which was redone based on viewers' rejection of the former one, is the strainedest, unfunniest part of the movie.
Rating: 39
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
Sweet Nothing in My Ear (2008) (TV)
Drama about a couple's disagreement about making a cochlear implant on their son.
Well-made and has a fascinating subject, which, in general terms, is analyzed in Wells' short story The Country of the Blind. On the particular universe of deaf people, there is also a splendid documentary called Sound and Fury. The open ending seems a chickening out.
Rating: 51
Well-made and has a fascinating subject, which, in general terms, is analyzed in Wells' short story The Country of the Blind. On the particular universe of deaf people, there is also a splendid documentary called Sound and Fury. The open ending seems a chickening out.
Rating: 51
Tuesday, December 25, 2012
Ernest Saves Christmas (1988)
Santa Claus is looking for a substitute and finds him in a TV actor whose show has just been cancelled. But the guy has another job offer and is reluctant to take Santa's. Ernest is a taxi driver who serves as Santa's helper in his task. There is also a young runaway girl who joins them.
Bad comedy, not even children will have fun with this.
Rating: 17
Bad comedy, not even children will have fun with this.
Rating: 17
Braddock: Missing in Action III (1988)
Col. Braddock witnesses the fall of Saigon. He is married to a Vietnamese woman at the occasion. He mistakenly thinks she dies during those events. Many years later he is looked up by a priest who works in Vietnam with Amerasian children.
Reasonably well-made yet derivative. The insanity of the plot may be construed as surrealism.
Rating: 35
Reasonably well-made yet derivative. The insanity of the plot may be construed as surrealism.
Rating: 35
Sunday, December 23, 2012
Mean Streets (1973)
Second viewing.
In New York, a guy is some sort of debt collector for his uncle. His best friend is an irresponsible fellow who owes money to everyone. A better, more comprehensive synopsis is given on IMDb, and I will transcribe it here:
--beginning of quote--
The future is set for Tony and Michael - owning a neighbour- hood bar and making deals in the mean streets of New York city's Little Italy. For Charlie, the future is less clearly defined. A small-time hood, he works for his uncle, making collections and reclaiming bad debts. He's probably too nice to succeed. In love with a woman his uncle disapproves of (because of her epilepsy) and a friend of her cousin, Johnny Boy, a near psychotic whose trouble-making threatens them all - he can't reconcile opposing values. A failed attempt to escape (to Brooklyn) moves them all a step closer to a bitter, almost preordained future. Written by Dave Cook <cookd@mcmail.cis.mcmaster.ca>
--end of quote--
In my first viewing I could not connect to this film. I think I get its style better now, anyway I had a good time watching it. It is very predictable what the story will unfold to, the important is how it happens. There are several unexpected microevents which are pretty insignificant to the plot itself but add to the film's mood which shifts between humorously realistic and lyrically intimate. Keitel's character is not without a certain kinship to the one he played in Fingers a few years later; in both cases you see a man overburdened by his environment and by one or more persons around him.
Rating: 68 (up from 39)
In New York, a guy is some sort of debt collector for his uncle. His best friend is an irresponsible fellow who owes money to everyone. A better, more comprehensive synopsis is given on IMDb, and I will transcribe it here:
--beginning of quote--
The future is set for Tony and Michael - owning a neighbour- hood bar and making deals in the mean streets of New York city's Little Italy. For Charlie, the future is less clearly defined. A small-time hood, he works for his uncle, making collections and reclaiming bad debts. He's probably too nice to succeed. In love with a woman his uncle disapproves of (because of her epilepsy) and a friend of her cousin, Johnny Boy, a near psychotic whose trouble-making threatens them all - he can't reconcile opposing values. A failed attempt to escape (to Brooklyn) moves them all a step closer to a bitter, almost preordained future. Written by Dave Cook <cookd@mcmail.cis.mcmaster.ca>
--end of quote--
In my first viewing I could not connect to this film. I think I get its style better now, anyway I had a good time watching it. It is very predictable what the story will unfold to, the important is how it happens. There are several unexpected microevents which are pretty insignificant to the plot itself but add to the film's mood which shifts between humorously realistic and lyrically intimate. Keitel's character is not without a certain kinship to the one he played in Fingers a few years later; in both cases you see a man overburdened by his environment and by one or more persons around him.
Rating: 68 (up from 39)
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Dirty Harry (1971)
Second viewing.
A San Francisco police officer investigates a series of crimes committed by a lunatic who demands payment so that he will not kill a certain person or persons.
A thriller which depicts the policeman's angst stemming from the various vicissitudes to which he is exposed: the legal system, low salaries, deficient sex life, etc. An interesting film, and very well made.
Rating: 54 (up from 49)
A San Francisco police officer investigates a series of crimes committed by a lunatic who demands payment so that he will not kill a certain person or persons.
A thriller which depicts the policeman's angst stemming from the various vicissitudes to which he is exposed: the legal system, low salaries, deficient sex life, etc. An interesting film, and very well made.
Rating: 54 (up from 49)
Le colonel Chabert (1994)
English title: Colonel Chabert.
Based on the novel by Honoré de Balzac (1st ed. 1844).
A man given as dead on the war returns to claim a share of his possessions. His wife remarried to an ambitious man.
A tale of ambition and the fragility of human bonds. The cinematography is gorgeous. It is well directed too.
Rating: 52
Based on the novel by Honoré de Balzac (1st ed. 1844).
A man given as dead on the war returns to claim a share of his possessions. His wife remarried to an ambitious man.
A tale of ambition and the fragility of human bonds. The cinematography is gorgeous. It is well directed too.
Rating: 52
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
Lethal Weapon 2 (1989)
Second viewing.
Riggs and Murtaugh fight a South African gang of drug dealers led by a diplomat who hides behind his diplomatic immunity. While they do it they must also look after a key witness in a drug case.
A frantic comedy with nonstop action, with a racism subtheme.
Rating: 50 (up from 40).
Riggs and Murtaugh fight a South African gang of drug dealers led by a diplomat who hides behind his diplomatic immunity. While they do it they must also look after a key witness in a drug case.
A frantic comedy with nonstop action, with a racism subtheme.
Rating: 50 (up from 40).
Saturday, December 08, 2012
Il bidone (1955)
English title: The Swindle
The exploits of three men who make a living out of swindling poor people out of their money. Their leader is a middle-aged man, whose relationship with his daughter becomes sort of the focal point at around midmovie.
*SPOILERS*
Second viewing. I was not very impressed. The characters act for the viewer, example: 'Carlo' is a struggling painter, so he is shown making observations about a landscape, comparing it to a Corot; Roberto is always singing (that is his intended career); etc. The film is very easy to watch and, concessions being made about the points mentioned, well directed. Another interesting aspect is the moral ambiguity of the main character, shown in the ending of the movie: he tries to be a good father even at the moral cost of fleecing both a poor family and his crime partners.
There is an allegorical level to Il bidone which I am not sure anyone has remarked. On that level, its theme is cinema itself. The criminal activity performed by the swindlers has a necessary component of staging which makes it akin to the theatrical art (and by extension to cinema). The two auxiliary members -- the would-be painter and the would-be singer -- symbolize respectively the visual and aureal artistic ideals which a cinematic work of art should aspire to. By the end of the movie they have defected the crime life, presumably to pursue their art. The older man, devoid of their assistance, must resort to other persons. It all goes wrong, signalling the fate of cinema itself should it forsake its artistic potential to focus on profit alone. The attempt to divert the money for a good cause will be curtailed by the businessmen (criminals). So, what it is saying is: when cinema becomes dominated by the business side, Art will necessarily be crushed.
Rating: 60 (down from 70)
The exploits of three men who make a living out of swindling poor people out of their money. Their leader is a middle-aged man, whose relationship with his daughter becomes sort of the focal point at around midmovie.
*SPOILERS*
Second viewing. I was not very impressed. The characters act for the viewer, example: 'Carlo' is a struggling painter, so he is shown making observations about a landscape, comparing it to a Corot; Roberto is always singing (that is his intended career); etc. The film is very easy to watch and, concessions being made about the points mentioned, well directed. Another interesting aspect is the moral ambiguity of the main character, shown in the ending of the movie: he tries to be a good father even at the moral cost of fleecing both a poor family and his crime partners.
There is an allegorical level to Il bidone which I am not sure anyone has remarked. On that level, its theme is cinema itself. The criminal activity performed by the swindlers has a necessary component of staging which makes it akin to the theatrical art (and by extension to cinema). The two auxiliary members -- the would-be painter and the would-be singer -- symbolize respectively the visual and aureal artistic ideals which a cinematic work of art should aspire to. By the end of the movie they have defected the crime life, presumably to pursue their art. The older man, devoid of their assistance, must resort to other persons. It all goes wrong, signalling the fate of cinema itself should it forsake its artistic potential to focus on profit alone. The attempt to divert the money for a good cause will be curtailed by the businessmen (criminals). So, what it is saying is: when cinema becomes dominated by the business side, Art will necessarily be crushed.
Rating: 60 (down from 70)
Wednesday, December 05, 2012
Hallam Foe (2007)
A teenage boy lives in social isolation and antagonizes his stepmother on account of his mother's death. He also has developed voyeuristic habits. One day he packs his things and leaves for Edinburgh where he finds a job and meets his mother's lookalike.
Not exactly the smartest film of all times, nor the most original, but I found myself watching it painlessly, and especially enjoying Forlani's performance. She builds a very sexy character. It is curious to observe how several hitchcockian themes and imagery (from Vertigo, Rear Window, Suspicion, Shadow of a Doubt, Saboteur, and who knows what more) were incorporated into a film which is very non-hitchcockian in style.
Rating: 51
Not exactly the smartest film of all times, nor the most original, but I found myself watching it painlessly, and especially enjoying Forlani's performance. She builds a very sexy character. It is curious to observe how several hitchcockian themes and imagery (from Vertigo, Rear Window, Suspicion, Shadow of a Doubt, Saboteur, and who knows what more) were incorporated into a film which is very non-hitchcockian in style.
Rating: 51
Sunday, December 02, 2012
Ruby (1992)
A drama based on the final period of Jack Ruby's life. He was a club owner in Dallas who got involved with the Cosa Nostra and ended up killing Lee Oswald. The film invents a female dancer whom Ruby takes under his wings.
A fine film, but its plot at every moment leaves the less knowledgeable viewer with a sensation of incomplete understanding about what is going on. The fictitious relationship with Candy serves the story well, the film is well written and very well directed. A study on the loser.
Rating: 57
A fine film, but its plot at every moment leaves the less knowledgeable viewer with a sensation of incomplete understanding about what is going on. The fictitious relationship with Candy serves the story well, the film is well written and very well directed. A study on the loser.
Rating: 57
Saturday, December 01, 2012
Snake Eyes (1998)
Second viewing at least.
At a boxing event an attempt is made against the life of the Secretary of State. An investigation is carried out by a corrupt police officer, who is a childhood friend of the security chief. A conspiracy is unraveled.
The first half-hour or so is one of the most dazzling pieces of cinema in history, and that alone would put to shame the IMDb 5.9 rating, but let us not get into sordid affairs like the masses' tastes. It would be next to impossible to keep the film on that initial level, but the fact is that it is good from start to finish. Cage is very much at home in his part, and Sinise's performance is also anthological. One of the best-directed, best-written films of the 90s, not easy to grasp fully in a single viewing perhaps, but worth the effort. Of course it is about corruption and evil and levels of corruption and evil, and smart as hell at that. Enough said, watch it.
Rating: 83 (unchanged)
At a boxing event an attempt is made against the life of the Secretary of State. An investigation is carried out by a corrupt police officer, who is a childhood friend of the security chief. A conspiracy is unraveled.
The first half-hour or so is one of the most dazzling pieces of cinema in history, and that alone would put to shame the IMDb 5.9 rating, but let us not get into sordid affairs like the masses' tastes. It would be next to impossible to keep the film on that initial level, but the fact is that it is good from start to finish. Cage is very much at home in his part, and Sinise's performance is also anthological. One of the best-directed, best-written films of the 90s, not easy to grasp fully in a single viewing perhaps, but worth the effort. Of course it is about corruption and evil and levels of corruption and evil, and smart as hell at that. Enough said, watch it.
Rating: 83 (unchanged)
Sunday, November 25, 2012
Rushmore (1998)
Second viewing.
The one about the boy who excelled at numerous extracurricular activities but was dangerously deficient at the mandatory ones, in the private high school he went to, with a scholarship, since he was the son of a barber and couldn't afford it otherwise. His love life was not going anywhere either, a fact he would try to change by targeting a new English teacher, a young widow.
One of the most brilliant movies of the 90s, it established (along with the equally amazing Bottle Rocket) its director and co-writer among the principal filmmakers in activity in the world, even though his subsequent efforts were (perhaps) not on the same level. A film of endless enjoyment, infinitely sophisticated, wonderfully cerebral and at the same time vigorously assertive emotionally. An event.
Rating: 88 (up from 86)
The one about the boy who excelled at numerous extracurricular activities but was dangerously deficient at the mandatory ones, in the private high school he went to, with a scholarship, since he was the son of a barber and couldn't afford it otherwise. His love life was not going anywhere either, a fact he would try to change by targeting a new English teacher, a young widow.
One of the most brilliant movies of the 90s, it established (along with the equally amazing Bottle Rocket) its director and co-writer among the principal filmmakers in activity in the world, even though his subsequent efforts were (perhaps) not on the same level. A film of endless enjoyment, infinitely sophisticated, wonderfully cerebral and at the same time vigorously assertive emotionally. An event.
Rating: 88 (up from 86)
Missing in Action 2: The Beginning (1985)
A group of American soldiers are taken prisoners in Vietnam after the end of the war. The camp commandant is a sadist who demands the American leader's confession to war crimes he has not committed.
Quite effective and well made, with competent direction (the one exception, save error of mine, being an apparently unconvincing sequence where Braddock is looking for a buddy and inspects an enclosure which is full of armed enemies who fire at him). The film is almost entirely made of exciting sequences, and the plot has an interesting underlying idea. Nevertheless, the historical references should not be taken seriously, it seems to me.
Rating: 52
Quite effective and well made, with competent direction (the one exception, save error of mine, being an apparently unconvincing sequence where Braddock is looking for a buddy and inspects an enclosure which is full of armed enemies who fire at him). The film is almost entirely made of exciting sequences, and the plot has an interesting underlying idea. Nevertheless, the historical references should not be taken seriously, it seems to me.
Rating: 52
Sunday, November 18, 2012
Callas Forever (2002)
An impresario has the idea, in 1977, of making a film with Maria Callas in which she would only lip-synch to her old recordings, as a way to overcome the fact that she no longer has a quality voice.
It's not very clear what the whole point is. My interpretation is the following: certain women will ruin the men who get involved with them; in the case where no romantic attachment is involved, a milder version of this is at play: she manages to lead him to the edge of bankruptcy and disrupt (maybe only temporarily) his love affair with someone else.
Rating: 37
It's not very clear what the whole point is. My interpretation is the following: certain women will ruin the men who get involved with them; in the case where no romantic attachment is involved, a milder version of this is at play: she manages to lead him to the edge of bankruptcy and disrupt (maybe only temporarily) his love affair with someone else.
Rating: 37
Saturday, November 17, 2012
La vieille fille (1972)
English title: The Old Maid.
At the Mediterranean town of Cassis, a bachelor on his way to Spain has car troubles and is forced to stay at the hotel while it is fixed. While there he meets the "old maid" (40-ish), and also a pastor and his weird wife. Not to mention the maids.
Nice and harmless little dramedy (I hesitate to classify it thus).
Rating: 50
At the Mediterranean town of Cassis, a bachelor on his way to Spain has car troubles and is forced to stay at the hotel while it is fixed. While there he meets the "old maid" (40-ish), and also a pastor and his weird wife. Not to mention the maids.
Nice and harmless little dramedy (I hesitate to classify it thus).
Rating: 50
Friday, November 16, 2012
Rebel without a Cause (1955)
A new kid in town is bullied by the high school gang who rules over the place; he tries to get attention from a female colleague, but she is in the gang too, so... A younger boy, on the other hand, is highly infatuated with him. All three have problematic familial relations.
Second viewing. An extreme case of opinion change for me; I have little idea of what I liked about it the first time, but the fact is that I adored it then. Now, after viewing it again, it seems to me that the writer or writers had the tongue firmly placed in the cheek, and the director did his best to conceal it. Anyway, it is something of an event of sorts: the acting, the filming, the bizarreness of situations which may be construed in two or more ways, in short an interesting film.
Rating: 60 (down from 100)
Second viewing. An extreme case of opinion change for me; I have little idea of what I liked about it the first time, but the fact is that I adored it then. Now, after viewing it again, it seems to me that the writer or writers had the tongue firmly placed in the cheek, and the director did his best to conceal it. Anyway, it is something of an event of sorts: the acting, the filming, the bizarreness of situations which may be construed in two or more ways, in short an interesting film.
Rating: 60 (down from 100)
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
The Tenth Man (1988) (TV)
Based on a novel by Graham Greene, published in 1985, the idea for which was born in 1937 for a film and subsequently dropped.
The synopsis from IMDB is very complete, with SPOILERS (kind of), so I will give it here:
"Based on the novel of the same name by Graham Greene, this is a story of a French advocate Chavel who, while imprisoned by the Germans during the occupation, trades his material possessions to another prisoner in exchange for his life when condemned to the firing squad. At the end of the war, Chavel, posing as one of the other prisoners, returns to his home which is now occupied by Therese, the sister of the prisoner he traded his possessions to, and who bitterly awaits the return of the man who had indirectly caused the death of her brother. His real identity unknown to Therese, Chavel is invited to stay as a caretaker and to identify Chavel should he return to the house. The relationship between Chavel and Therese develops until one night, someone calling himself Chavel turns up at their doorstep. Written by Thariq Ahmad ."
Second viewing. An interesting, ingenious story, and Hopkins is excellent in it. It has a XIXth-century romantic novel air to it, despite being set in WWII France. Perhaps one could say it is too plot-oriented to be great. I may have overrated it a bit in my previous assessment.
Rating: 64 (down from 75)
The synopsis from IMDB is very complete, with SPOILERS (kind of), so I will give it here:
"Based on the novel of the same name by Graham Greene, this is a story of a French advocate Chavel who, while imprisoned by the Germans during the occupation, trades his material possessions to another prisoner in exchange for his life when condemned to the firing squad. At the end of the war, Chavel, posing as one of the other prisoners, returns to his home which is now occupied by Therese, the sister of the prisoner he traded his possessions to, and who bitterly awaits the return of the man who had indirectly caused the death of her brother. His real identity unknown to Therese, Chavel is invited to stay as a caretaker and to identify Chavel should he return to the house. The relationship between Chavel and Therese develops until one night, someone calling himself Chavel turns up at their doorstep. Written by Thariq Ahmad ."
Second viewing. An interesting, ingenious story, and Hopkins is excellent in it. It has a XIXth-century romantic novel air to it, despite being set in WWII France. Perhaps one could say it is too plot-oriented to be great. I may have overrated it a bit in my previous assessment.
Rating: 64 (down from 75)
Sunday, November 11, 2012
Jogo de cena (2007)
American title: Playing.
Several women tell an important episode or aspect of their lives. Sometimes it is the women themselves who speak in the film, other times actresses, some famous in Brazil, some not, deliver their lines. Some of the actresses talk about the experience.
It is not exactly a null film, but, honestly, what is its point?
Rating: 33
Several women tell an important episode or aspect of their lives. Sometimes it is the women themselves who speak in the film, other times actresses, some famous in Brazil, some not, deliver their lines. Some of the actresses talk about the experience.
It is not exactly a null film, but, honestly, what is its point?
Rating: 33
Seems Like Old Times (1980)
A writer is kidnapped by two men who use him as an accessory to bank robbery, in a way that makes him the fall guy for that crime. He takes refuge in his ex-wife's house. It so happens that her present husband is running for D.A.
IMDB cues us in that it is in the style of screwball comedy. The lines try to be funny all the time, which is a nuisance, even though some are. It's watchable, but not much more; the middle section is the worst part.
Rating: 32
IMDB cues us in that it is in the style of screwball comedy. The lines try to be funny all the time, which is a nuisance, even though some are. It's watchable, but not much more; the middle section is the worst part.
Rating: 32
Saturday, November 10, 2012
One Million Years B.C. (1966)
Set in prehistoric times, it centers on a fellow who cannot get along with his tribal fellows and so decides to wander alone until he meets another, more advanced, tribe, where he and a beautiful woman fall in love with each other.
Worthy remake of a 1940 movie. It is a nonrealistic depiction of prehistoric times, featuring lots of animals which were long extinct when Man appeared on the Earth. The flow of narrative is diverted at regular intervals by the appearance of such monsters; they often fight each other, too. The monsters are all made in stop-motion animation, a welcome improvement over the 1940 version, which had live animals. The cast consists of unknowns (to me anyway), except for Welch, who is marvelous in it.
Rating: 51
Worthy remake of a 1940 movie. It is a nonrealistic depiction of prehistoric times, featuring lots of animals which were long extinct when Man appeared on the Earth. The flow of narrative is diverted at regular intervals by the appearance of such monsters; they often fight each other, too. The monsters are all made in stop-motion animation, a welcome improvement over the 1940 version, which had live animals. The cast consists of unknowns (to me anyway), except for Welch, who is marvelous in it.
Rating: 51
The Killer Inside Me (2010)
Based on the novel by Jim Thompson (1st ed. 1952).
In a small town, the deputy sheriff is a psychopath. His victims of choice are women, but in order to conceal his crimes a few men must go too.
A faithful adaptation of the novel. The central problem it analyzes is that of the monster, the madman, the complete alien, the wolf in sheep's clothes. There is no solution for his problem, of course, but he keeps going anyway, until he cannot go any further. The tone is surreal, and therefore makes for uncomfortable viewing. Comedy is not excluded: take the scene where the protagonist chases a bum down the city streets, for example. The performances are good, with the exception of Hudson's.
Rating: 60
In a small town, the deputy sheriff is a psychopath. His victims of choice are women, but in order to conceal his crimes a few men must go too.
A faithful adaptation of the novel. The central problem it analyzes is that of the monster, the madman, the complete alien, the wolf in sheep's clothes. There is no solution for his problem, of course, but he keeps going anyway, until he cannot go any further. The tone is surreal, and therefore makes for uncomfortable viewing. Comedy is not excluded: take the scene where the protagonist chases a bum down the city streets, for example. The performances are good, with the exception of Hudson's.
Rating: 60
Tuesday, November 06, 2012
Aviso aos navegantes (1950)
A ship leaves from Buenos Aires to Rio de Janeiro; in it go several artists, a stowaway, and a spy.
Musical comedy which is not very funny. I remember one sequence which I thought very funny: Frederico (Oscarito) impersonating a doctor ("...sistema vago-simpático, muito vago, muito simpático.."). The rest is either mildly funny or not funny at all. The musical numbers are simple, the songs are mostly mediocre, with the exception of two or three (there are a lot of songs in it). The camerawork is good.
Rating: 34
Musical comedy which is not very funny. I remember one sequence which I thought very funny: Frederico (Oscarito) impersonating a doctor ("...sistema vago-simpático, muito vago, muito simpático.."). The rest is either mildly funny or not funny at all. The musical numbers are simple, the songs are mostly mediocre, with the exception of two or three (there are a lot of songs in it). The camerawork is good.
Rating: 34
Friday, November 02, 2012
Thinner (1996)
An overweight man starts getting thinner after a gypsy man puts a curse on him.
This film is bad. On more than one level. And let's leave it at that.
Rating: 11
This film is bad. On more than one level. And let's leave it at that.
Rating: 11
Thursday, November 01, 2012
Estrada (1995)
Two couples go out on a trip to the countryside in a car. A truck driver leaves on a job to deliver a heavy load.
The banality we are used to expecting from this filmmaker.
A segment in Felicidade é...
The banality we are used to expecting from this filmmaker.
A segment in Felicidade é...
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
O pornógrafo (1970)
A man's career in a magazine of erotic comics. A certain change in the editorial line provokes a series of tragic incidents.
A puerile comedy, with an inordinated number of jokes based on characters' pranks. That being said, it has a certain amount of charm. For one thing, the central performance is extraordinary, and lifts the movie into a level it wouldn't have otherwise.
Rating: 40
A puerile comedy, with an inordinated number of jokes based on characters' pranks. That being said, it has a certain amount of charm. For one thing, the central performance is extraordinary, and lifts the movie into a level it wouldn't have otherwise.
Rating: 40
Sunday, October 28, 2012
The Hunger (1983)
A female vampire has a male partner who is suffering from accelerated aging. He seeks help from an aging specialist, a woman who later gets acquainted with his partner.
Second viewing. An intelligent vampire movie, formally a bit uneven (something which may have gone unnoticed on my first viewing); these formal infelicitousnesses seem to have been the main cause of this film's bad reputation.
Rating: 74 (down from 100)
Second viewing. An intelligent vampire movie, formally a bit uneven (something which may have gone unnoticed on my first viewing); these formal infelicitousnesses seem to have been the main cause of this film's bad reputation.
Rating: 74 (down from 100)
On the Waterfront (1954)
A longshoreman belongs to the union mafia that controls New York harbors. His brother is a high-ranking official in that organization. He falls in love with the sister of a man who was murdered by the mob because he threatened to testify against it.
Second viewing. Technically, it's a very involving film, and the fine performances help too. Morally, there is no arguing with the correctness of the view espoused, insofar as a film can be said to espouse a moral view at all. However, there are problems with the film as I see it. First, let's get the realism issue out of the way. Although the film depicts situations which, broadly speaking, are within the sphere of possible ones which a man, and especially a working man, may encounter, they are perhaps not probable to occur with the same level of brutality as the film depicts, and especially not in a big city like New York. In what concerns dramatic consistency strictly, I have some objections also; two of these objections, perhaps the main ones, were already raised as questions in the Frequently Asked Questions section of the Internet Movie Database, and were answered there, in an unsatisfactory way. The two questions are: "Why do Terry's friends give him the cold shoulder after he testifies if they hate the mob as much as he does?" The answer they give is "For fear" and it is an unconvincing explanation; fear would determine restraining in the manifestation of support for Terry, but it would not go as far as making him an outcast. The other question is "Why does Tommy kill all the pigeons (and becomes hostile to Terry) after Terry testifies?" Again, it is a most unconvincing answer they give: Tommy would have been driven by a misled loyalty to the mafia boss, and would have seen Terry as a snitch. Well, no child is as naive or misinformed as that, or can revoke his early feelings as easily. Finally, a note about the ending, which is acknowledged to be Kazan's own contribution in disregard of Schulberg's original script's ending; although it is staged in an inspired way, and Brando adds power to it with his whole body's movements, the sheer absurdity of it makes it plain that it is just that: staging, for the sake of melodramatic spectacle.
Rating: 57 (up from 50)
Second viewing. Technically, it's a very involving film, and the fine performances help too. Morally, there is no arguing with the correctness of the view espoused, insofar as a film can be said to espouse a moral view at all. However, there are problems with the film as I see it. First, let's get the realism issue out of the way. Although the film depicts situations which, broadly speaking, are within the sphere of possible ones which a man, and especially a working man, may encounter, they are perhaps not probable to occur with the same level of brutality as the film depicts, and especially not in a big city like New York. In what concerns dramatic consistency strictly, I have some objections also; two of these objections, perhaps the main ones, were already raised as questions in the Frequently Asked Questions section of the Internet Movie Database, and were answered there, in an unsatisfactory way. The two questions are: "Why do Terry's friends give him the cold shoulder after he testifies if they hate the mob as much as he does?" The answer they give is "For fear" and it is an unconvincing explanation; fear would determine restraining in the manifestation of support for Terry, but it would not go as far as making him an outcast. The other question is "Why does Tommy kill all the pigeons (and becomes hostile to Terry) after Terry testifies?" Again, it is a most unconvincing answer they give: Tommy would have been driven by a misled loyalty to the mafia boss, and would have seen Terry as a snitch. Well, no child is as naive or misinformed as that, or can revoke his early feelings as easily. Finally, a note about the ending, which is acknowledged to be Kazan's own contribution in disregard of Schulberg's original script's ending; although it is staged in an inspired way, and Brando adds power to it with his whole body's movements, the sheer absurdity of it makes it plain that it is just that: staging, for the sake of melodramatic spectacle.
Rating: 57 (up from 50)
Saturday, October 27, 2012
Mogari no mori (2007)
English titles: The Mogari Forest; The Mourning Forest.
A young woman takes care of older people in a rest home; she devotes special attention to a widower who shows signs of demency. She takes him for a ride near the forest in the home's vicinity, and has some setbacks.
Quite dull, yet not devoid of human warmth.
Rating: 30
A young woman takes care of older people in a rest home; she devotes special attention to a widower who shows signs of demency. She takes him for a ride near the forest in the home's vicinity, and has some setbacks.
Quite dull, yet not devoid of human warmth.
Rating: 30
Thursday, October 25, 2012
The Last Picture Show (1971)
A small town in Texas, in the early fifties. Sonny and Duane are best friends. Duane dates upper-class Jacey, the best looking girl in town. Sonny begins an affair with a sexually frustrated married woman. Sam "the Lion" owns the local poolhall and also a diner and a cinema theater. Sonny and Duane are so bored they decide to go to Mexico for a few days. And so on.
Second viewing. A true work of art, every single frame of it. It tells of an old man with a big heart and also of a young woman with no heart at all. And a lot more, but the images count more than the plot. The kind of film it's not much use talking about. Seeing it is everything.
Rating: 91 (up from 88)
Second viewing. A true work of art, every single frame of it. It tells of an old man with a big heart and also of a young woman with no heart at all. And a lot more, but the images count more than the plot. The kind of film it's not much use talking about. Seeing it is everything.
Rating: 91 (up from 88)
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
The Front (1976)
A restaurant cashier serves as front for blacklisted TV writers. He ends up getting involved in the lives of the persecution's victims.
Second viewing. Often funny, and with several memorable bits, but ultimately a sentimental film whose meaning is hard to decipher. The plot's kinship to Cyrano de Bergerac is obvious, but it upends that work's morals in an ending which seems to respond to the necessity of having a sympathetic central character.
Rating: 67 (down from 78)
Second viewing. Often funny, and with several memorable bits, but ultimately a sentimental film whose meaning is hard to decipher. The plot's kinship to Cyrano de Bergerac is obvious, but it upends that work's morals in an ending which seems to respond to the necessity of having a sympathetic central character.
Rating: 67 (down from 78)
Monday, October 22, 2012
The Man who Would Be King (1975)
Based on a novella by Rudyard Kipling (first published in 1888).
Two adventurers devise a plan to rule a remote region peopled by barbaric men, steal as much as they can and come back rich to civilization.
A very good film, which places its main emphasis on comedy, yet never loses its epic flavor. The casting of the two main actors was very felicitous. My admiration has shrunken a bit on this second viewing, though.
Rating: 74 (down from 97)
Two adventurers devise a plan to rule a remote region peopled by barbaric men, steal as much as they can and come back rich to civilization.
A very good film, which places its main emphasis on comedy, yet never loses its epic flavor. The casting of the two main actors was very felicitous. My admiration has shrunken a bit on this second viewing, though.
Rating: 74 (down from 97)
Saturday, October 20, 2012
The Heart of Me (2002)
Based on the novel "The Echoing Grove" (1st ed. 1953), by Rosamond Lehmann.
A love triangle in 1930s London between a man, his wife, and his sister-in-law.
The script is built exclusively on clichés, and quite humorless. It's not badly directed, though.
Rating: 38
A love triangle in 1930s London between a man, his wife, and his sister-in-law.
The script is built exclusively on clichés, and quite humorless. It's not badly directed, though.
Rating: 38
Birdy (1984)
Al and Birdy become best friends in their adolescence, despite being very much opposites in nearly everything. Al is a sociable guy who likes girls, whereas Birdy is completely asocial and asexual, devoting his entire time to birds. Both guys are drafted to the Vietnam war, and go back scarred -- Al physically, Birdy mentally.
Second viewing. Not as rewarding an experience as I seem to have considered on my first viewing. While an interesting movie, it has problems, the biggest of which being perhaps that its main dramatic axis -- will Birdy return to sanity or not? -- is not very interesting, especially as it is handled in a very ponderous manner. I think a possible reading of the film is that Al and Birdy are actually two sides of the same person; their attitudes towards women, for example, although apparently opposite, are equally resulting from an ideology that forbids seeing them as persons.
Rating: 56 (down from 74)
Second viewing. Not as rewarding an experience as I seem to have considered on my first viewing. While an interesting movie, it has problems, the biggest of which being perhaps that its main dramatic axis -- will Birdy return to sanity or not? -- is not very interesting, especially as it is handled in a very ponderous manner. I think a possible reading of the film is that Al and Birdy are actually two sides of the same person; their attitudes towards women, for example, although apparently opposite, are equally resulting from an ideology that forbids seeing them as persons.
Rating: 56 (down from 74)
Friday, October 19, 2012
The Backwater Gospel (2011)
Animation short. Set in a small American town, with its fanatic priest who antagonizes the town singer, blaming him for the appearances of death in the guise of The Undertaker, a supernatural character.
Not bad.
Not bad.
Thursday, October 18, 2012
Bottle Rocket (1996)
Two brothers. Anthony is mildly depressive. Dignan is enthusiastic about pursuing a life of crime; he is slightly detached from reality. The latter's guru, one Mr. Henry, is his former employer at a gardening company.
A masterpiece. This is my second viewing. I am not sure I can put into words the very special quality of this film. I could point out the perfect mastering of the technique, or the perfect understanding of comedy rules, or even direct one's attention to Owen Wilson's phenomenal performance. But it would all fall short of making justice to this film's many perfections.
Rating: 86 (unchanged)
A masterpiece. This is my second viewing. I am not sure I can put into words the very special quality of this film. I could point out the perfect mastering of the technique, or the perfect understanding of comedy rules, or even direct one's attention to Owen Wilson's phenomenal performance. But it would all fall short of making justice to this film's many perfections.
Rating: 86 (unchanged)
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
The Age of Innocence (1993)
Based on the novel by Edith Wharton (1st ed. 1920).
New York, 1870. Ellen Olenska is an American woman returning from Europe after a failed marriage. Everybody initially rejects her, but Newland Archer, a young lawyer, defends her and convinces the high society to change their attitude toward her. Newland and Ellen fall in love with each other, but she hasn't gotten a divorce and, more importantly, he is engaged to another woman.
Second viewing. An excellent film, with excellent performances. The extensive use of voiceover gives it a literary air and helps understand the inner workings of the characters' minds. The recurring images of dishes remind us that these are very rich people.
Rating: 83 (unchanged)
New York, 1870. Ellen Olenska is an American woman returning from Europe after a failed marriage. Everybody initially rejects her, but Newland Archer, a young lawyer, defends her and convinces the high society to change their attitude toward her. Newland and Ellen fall in love with each other, but she hasn't gotten a divorce and, more importantly, he is engaged to another woman.
Second viewing. An excellent film, with excellent performances. The extensive use of voiceover gives it a literary air and helps understand the inner workings of the characters' minds. The recurring images of dishes remind us that these are very rich people.
Rating: 83 (unchanged)
Sunday, October 14, 2012
Taken (2008/I)
An ex-CIA agent's daughter is kidnapped while on vacation in Paris. He learns she has fallen in the hands of a gang that traffics young women. He goes after her.
Unpleasant, predictable, unreasonable.
Rating: 10
Unpleasant, predictable, unreasonable.
Rating: 10
Downton Abbey (First Season, 2010) (TV Series)
In the second decade of the twentieth century, a manor in England faces an inheritance-related crisis. We get to watch its inhabitants' lives until the outbreak of the First World War.
Basically a soap opera, and a dull one at that. Stereotypes abound.
Basically a soap opera, and a dull one at that. Stereotypes abound.
Saturday, October 13, 2012
Cabaret mineiro (1980)
Second viewing (first one: September 10, 2000)
A man journeys through the interior of Minas Gerais, Brazil, leading a life of leisure, meeting women who are invariably available to his pleasure.
Reportedly it results from an project which was aborted and then morphed into something else, which may explain the visibly disjointed nature of its narrative. Its occasional inspired moments add up to a kind of audiovisual poem on hedonism, of a very Brazilian type. The score and the cinematography are good. There is no apparent connection between the first hour of the movie (to which the synopsis above refers) and its last 10 minutes, which are an adaptation of Rosa's short story "Soroco, his mother and his daughter" (but I have not read it, so this is secondhand information).
Rating: 30 (up from 18)
A man journeys through the interior of Minas Gerais, Brazil, leading a life of leisure, meeting women who are invariably available to his pleasure.
Reportedly it results from an project which was aborted and then morphed into something else, which may explain the visibly disjointed nature of its narrative. Its occasional inspired moments add up to a kind of audiovisual poem on hedonism, of a very Brazilian type. The score and the cinematography are good. There is no apparent connection between the first hour of the movie (to which the synopsis above refers) and its last 10 minutes, which are an adaptation of Rosa's short story "Soroco, his mother and his daughter" (but I have not read it, so this is secondhand information).
Rating: 30 (up from 18)
Friday, October 12, 2012
São Bernardo (1972)
In Northwestern Brazil, a man makes his way from very poor origins to owner of a big farm. His lack of scruples and brutality alienates the people around him.
Second viewing. A very static film. It makes its points well (through a Marxist analysis), but is not a rich cinematic experience.
Rating: 62 (down from 71)
Second viewing. A very static film. It makes its points well (through a Marxist analysis), but is not a rich cinematic experience.
Rating: 62 (down from 71)
Kingpin (1996)
Second viewing. My previous synopsis and comments are sufficiently good, so here they are:
A former bowling champion sees in an Amish amateur player his chance at big bucks.
Imaginative, consistently funny, with inventive visual gags, in short this is a successful comedy. It is also an influential film, playing with excess and shock in a way that has been imitated by many but was only equaled by these directors themselves. The comic skill of the two leading actors contributed significantly to the success of the movie.
(written on June 30, 2006)
I would like to add the sole observation that my shifting from present perfect to simple past on the same sentence is bizarre and obviously incorrect.
Rating: 71 (up from 67)
A former bowling champion sees in an Amish amateur player his chance at big bucks.
Imaginative, consistently funny, with inventive visual gags, in short this is a successful comedy. It is also an influential film, playing with excess and shock in a way that has been imitated by many but was only equaled by these directors themselves. The comic skill of the two leading actors contributed significantly to the success of the movie.
(written on June 30, 2006)
I would like to add the sole observation that my shifting from present perfect to simple past on the same sentence is bizarre and obviously incorrect.
Rating: 71 (up from 67)
Monday, October 08, 2012
Exit through the Gift Shop (2010)
Documentary about street art, but also about one specific person whose filming habit drew him closer to the street art scene.
Entertaining and funny documentary, which draws its appeal simultaneously from its take on contemporary art and from its central character and his idiosyncrasies.
Rating: 63
Entertaining and funny documentary, which draws its appeal simultaneously from its take on contemporary art and from its central character and his idiosyncrasies.
Rating: 63
Royal Wedding (1951)
Dancing partners and siblings Tom and Ellen go to England to do a show. Their stay there coincides with a royal wedding.
This is a film about siblinghood, between people and between nations; notice how, apart from the central pair, there is also a comic actor playing twins, one American and the other British. The idea of incest is present, in a very subtle way as expected from a Hollywood musical, and the rather sudden decision to get married at the end of the movie can be best explained by considering the overhanging shadow of that age-old taboo. Let's not forget also that royal weddings are historically notorious for happening between relatives, so it is ambiguous the exact manner in which it works as an inspiration for the marrying protagonists. And there is the inevitable joke: (--We are getting married! -- I thought you two were related.). Apart from these thematic issues, the film is a pleasant watch, with good dancing, fair-to-good songs, good choreography, and fair-to-good comedy.
Rating: 63 (second viewing; unchanged)
This is a film about siblinghood, between people and between nations; notice how, apart from the central pair, there is also a comic actor playing twins, one American and the other British. The idea of incest is present, in a very subtle way as expected from a Hollywood musical, and the rather sudden decision to get married at the end of the movie can be best explained by considering the overhanging shadow of that age-old taboo. Let's not forget also that royal weddings are historically notorious for happening between relatives, so it is ambiguous the exact manner in which it works as an inspiration for the marrying protagonists. And there is the inevitable joke: (--We are getting married! -- I thought you two were related.). Apart from these thematic issues, the film is a pleasant watch, with good dancing, fair-to-good songs, good choreography, and fair-to-good comedy.
Rating: 63 (second viewing; unchanged)
Thursday, October 04, 2012
The Big Heat (1953)
An honest policeman in a corrupt police force is under pressure to abort further investigation of a retired officer's suicide.
Second viewing.
A technically perfect film, with some memorable lines of dialogue, and an above-average realism in the presentation of police corruption.
Rating: 65 (unchanged)
Second viewing.
A technically perfect film, with some memorable lines of dialogue, and an above-average realism in the presentation of police corruption.
Rating: 65 (unchanged)
Tuesday, October 02, 2012
L'illusionniste (2010)
Animation. A decadent magician travels overseas in search of a job, and befriends a lonely teenage girl.
In its general contours, an interesting film; a flawed one, however. The middle section is a little plodding at times, and the whole episode of his job at the advertising agency is uninspired. There is a structural resemblance to The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (1968) as both films explore, among other common threads, the idea of non-existence, a very compelling one in its metaphysical and psychological ramifications.
Rating: 52
In its general contours, an interesting film; a flawed one, however. The middle section is a little plodding at times, and the whole episode of his job at the advertising agency is uninspired. There is a structural resemblance to The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (1968) as both films explore, among other common threads, the idea of non-existence, a very compelling one in its metaphysical and psychological ramifications.
Rating: 52
Sunday, September 30, 2012
Inside Job (2010)
Documentary about the U.S. financial crisis of 2008.
Overall I found it quite informative. Reading other people's comments, however, I get the impression that some facts were somewhat misrepresented. Anyway, there are things in it that just rubbed me the wrong way. For example, someone saying that high executives see prostitutes and then go back to their wives... ok, what has this got to do with anything? This kind of remark should not have been included, simple as that. And about the ending, it is just that same old same old: we got to do our best, fight for a better world, blah blah blah. Well, that's what I (and everyone else, I suspect) always do, so please spare me -- unless one would be a little more specific about it. I do not have a deep enough knowledge of the situation which would allow me to criticize this movie with confidence, and if I had I would not be among its target audience to begin with. Here is a very general reflection, though. The idea that greed for money is evil should be balanced with the idea that there are non-monetary types of greed as well. A populist government which is not sure he can afford his populist actions is greedy for popularity, and is just as guilty (perhaps more) in case of a catastrophe. And let's not forget that there are other capital sins. Like, for instance, sloth.
Rating: 52
Overall I found it quite informative. Reading other people's comments, however, I get the impression that some facts were somewhat misrepresented. Anyway, there are things in it that just rubbed me the wrong way. For example, someone saying that high executives see prostitutes and then go back to their wives... ok, what has this got to do with anything? This kind of remark should not have been included, simple as that. And about the ending, it is just that same old same old: we got to do our best, fight for a better world, blah blah blah. Well, that's what I (and everyone else, I suspect) always do, so please spare me -- unless one would be a little more specific about it. I do not have a deep enough knowledge of the situation which would allow me to criticize this movie with confidence, and if I had I would not be among its target audience to begin with. Here is a very general reflection, though. The idea that greed for money is evil should be balanced with the idea that there are non-monetary types of greed as well. A populist government which is not sure he can afford his populist actions is greedy for popularity, and is just as guilty (perhaps more) in case of a catastrophe. And let's not forget that there are other capital sins. Like, for instance, sloth.
Rating: 52
The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988)
A clumsy policeman tries to avert the assassination of Queen Elizabeth, to be carried out during a baseball game.
Second viewing. I laughed as hard as on my first viewing, the film is intelligent and well-made.
Rating: 60 (unchanged)
Second viewing. I laughed as hard as on my first viewing, the film is intelligent and well-made.
Rating: 60 (unchanged)
Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Timeline (2003)
A company develops a machine that transports people to the 14th century. A team is assembled to rescue an archaeologist who used it to travel to the past and did not come back.
Not much to say about this one. It is very poor on all levels, except acting. (I liked especially Thewlis, Connolly, and Butler, who is splendid).
Rating: 25
Not much to say about this one. It is very poor on all levels, except acting. (I liked especially Thewlis, Connolly, and Butler, who is splendid).
Rating: 25
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Coup de tête (1979)
English title: Hothead
In a small town in France, Perrin, a local football player, is fired from the team on account of a conflict with the team's star player. After that, Perrin is accused of rape and convicted on the grounds of the testimony of the victim (who is not sure, though) and of three other alleged witnesses.
A silly movie, despite some competence in the screenplay's first half and the excellence of the cast. The second half of the movie, however, is marred by very implausible events and generalized boredom.
Rating: 31
In a small town in France, Perrin, a local football player, is fired from the team on account of a conflict with the team's star player. After that, Perrin is accused of rape and convicted on the grounds of the testimony of the victim (who is not sure, though) and of three other alleged witnesses.
A silly movie, despite some competence in the screenplay's first half and the excellence of the cast. The second half of the movie, however, is marred by very implausible events and generalized boredom.
Rating: 31
Friday, September 21, 2012
Till the Clouds Roll By (1946)
A fiction pretending to be the life of composer Jerome Kern (1885-1945). He befriends an arranger (a fictional character) and his little daughter Sally (ditto), travels to England, meets an American Broadway producer, meets Eva, a young woman with whom he falls in love with, comes back to America to do a musical for said producer, the show does not happen, he barely fails to embark to England again on the ill-fated Lusitania (yes, he really missed that boat), later returns to England on another ship, gets married with the one he fell in love with, becomes famous, searches for Sally who has left home to become a singer, Sally's father dies, Sally is found (she sings in a Memphis nightclub), Jerry goes to Hollywood.
This has reportedly little to do with Kern's real life. There are many well done musical numbers (which happen as musical numbers in the diegesis), the best of which is probably the circus one. A lifeless biography. The copy I watched was probably not complete.
Rating: 41
This has reportedly little to do with Kern's real life. There are many well done musical numbers (which happen as musical numbers in the diegesis), the best of which is probably the circus one. A lifeless biography. The copy I watched was probably not complete.
Rating: 41
Geometría (1987)
Based on the short story "Naturally", by Fredric Brown.
A student summons the Devil in the hope of getting some help to pass an exam.
Amusing.
Watched it dubbed in Italian.
A student summons the Devil in the hope of getting some help to pass an exam.
Amusing.
Watched it dubbed in Italian.
The Ninth Gate (1999)
A dealer in old books is hired to verify the authenticity of a copy of a demonology manual, of which only two other copies exist.
Second viewing. This is not as bad as I thought on my first viewing, but is still a weak movie. The ending is kind of beautiful, though.
Rating: 32 (up from 18)
Second viewing. This is not as bad as I thought on my first viewing, but is still a weak movie. The ending is kind of beautiful, though.
Rating: 32 (up from 18)
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Amei um bicheiro (1952)
Marcos is an operator in the illegal business of "jogo do bicho" gambling in Rio de Janeiro. His wife needs an operation, so he decides to make a risky move against his boss.
Second viewing. Despite some naiveté here and there, the general lines that drive the movie are frankness and realism. The direction is competent and makes good use of location shooting. The actors are good.
Rating: 52 (down from 54)
Second viewing. Despite some naiveté here and there, the general lines that drive the movie are frankness and realism. The direction is competent and makes good use of location shooting. The actors are good.
Rating: 52 (down from 54)
Saturday, September 15, 2012
A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)
Blanche is a penniless woman who leaves her hometown to stay at her married sister's house. They come from a formerly wealthy Southern family. The sister's husband, of an inferior social class and a brute, doesn't like the idea of having Blanche in the house.
A play of very intense pathos which somehow has undertones of a weird comicity. As film adaptations go, I don't think one can do better than this. The performances are simply stupendous, but I do not need to say this at this point in history.
Rating: 62
A play of very intense pathos which somehow has undertones of a weird comicity. As film adaptations go, I don't think one can do better than this. The performances are simply stupendous, but I do not need to say this at this point in history.
Rating: 62
Friday, September 14, 2012
Missing in Action (1984)
A veteran of the Vietnam War who spent several years as a prisoner of war is convinced that there are still American soldiers being held prisoners in Vietnam camps, and decides to rescue them.
A fairly insane movie, yet not an altogether bad one, once you watch it with the proper spirit. Cannon, the company behind it, specialized in low-budget films, many of them rip-offs of bigger productions. Missing in Action is sometimes tagged as a Rambo rip-off due to certain similarities between the protagonists of both franchises. It should be pointed out, though, that the first Rambo film, called First Blood, had a very different plot, and the second one appeared after Missing in Action. In plot, it is closer to Uncommon Valor (1983), which is a superior film, and not in the low-brow surreal genre as this one.
Rating: 34
A fairly insane movie, yet not an altogether bad one, once you watch it with the proper spirit. Cannon, the company behind it, specialized in low-budget films, many of them rip-offs of bigger productions. Missing in Action is sometimes tagged as a Rambo rip-off due to certain similarities between the protagonists of both franchises. It should be pointed out, though, that the first Rambo film, called First Blood, had a very different plot, and the second one appeared after Missing in Action. In plot, it is closer to Uncommon Valor (1983), which is a superior film, and not in the low-brow surreal genre as this one.
Rating: 34
Saturday, September 08, 2012
Baby Doll (1956)
A man (named Archie Lee) is married to a much younger woman (nicknamed Baby Doll) who has agreed to consummate their marriage on her twentieth birthday. Coincidentally, on that very day they are having the cotton syndicate manager as guest, who is there to make justice against Archie Lee, who has set his cotton gin on fire.
Of all Williams I have seen this is the closest he gets to comedy. It is a well orchestrated film which is amusing to a certain extent. It is a satire of the U.S. South, of relations between ethnic groups, and of capitalism.
Rating: 58
Of all Williams I have seen this is the closest he gets to comedy. It is a well orchestrated film which is amusing to a certain extent. It is a satire of the U.S. South, of relations between ethnic groups, and of capitalism.
Rating: 58
The Joy Luck Club (1993)
Two generations of Chinese-American women and their stories. The mothers were born in China and their daughters in America. Civil war, abuse from their husbands, backward customs, all are part of the mothers' stories. Some of that still affects the daughters' lives, although they live in a modern society.
Second viewing. This is perhaps the most extreme case of a change in my appreciation of a movie, to such an extent that I have trouble understanding my previous assessment. For, now I see it, this is blatantly a soap-opera, with all the stereotypes one is entitled to. The events are crammed into the length of the movie in such a fashion that there are no genuinely cinematic sequences: most are static dialogue and the rest are sequences where there is little movement or it is very simple. What enjoyment one may take from it comes from a perception of its very exaggerations and simplism which overflow into kitsch.
Rating: 48 (down from 80)
Second viewing. This is perhaps the most extreme case of a change in my appreciation of a movie, to such an extent that I have trouble understanding my previous assessment. For, now I see it, this is blatantly a soap-opera, with all the stereotypes one is entitled to. The events are crammed into the length of the movie in such a fashion that there are no genuinely cinematic sequences: most are static dialogue and the rest are sequences where there is little movement or it is very simple. What enjoyment one may take from it comes from a perception of its very exaggerations and simplism which overflow into kitsch.
Rating: 48 (down from 80)
Friday, September 07, 2012
Tocaia no asfalto (1962)
A hitman is hired to kill a politician and falls in love with a prostitute. A subplot concerns a congressman who is investigating the illegal activities of the aforementioned politician.
This political thriller has some naive touches in its plot, foremost among which is the hitman's scruples at the church, on account of an ecclesiastical tale he heard from his girlfriend stating that a church where a murder has occurred must stay closed for a hundred years. Also worthy of note is one particular sequence featuring ludicrously pompous dialogue between an honest young congressman and his girlfriend, whose father (another politician) is being investigated by him. It is not badly filmed, especially considering the overall poorness of Brazilian cinema of that period (but shouldn't I say: of any period?). The film's title, which translates to "Stakeout on the Asphalt", refers presumably to one specific sequence wherein a gang of hitmen trap the honest congressman in a very risky (and implausible) manner: one of them lies on the road, thus forcing the congressman to stop his car and barely avoid killing the bad guy. The other stakeouts in the movie do not involve asphalt at all and take place, respectively, at a church, at a cemetery, and at a train station. The last of these has, again, some implausible behavior on the part of the ex-prostitute, who could have done a lot better in her attempt to save her boyfriend.
Rating: 33
This political thriller has some naive touches in its plot, foremost among which is the hitman's scruples at the church, on account of an ecclesiastical tale he heard from his girlfriend stating that a church where a murder has occurred must stay closed for a hundred years. Also worthy of note is one particular sequence featuring ludicrously pompous dialogue between an honest young congressman and his girlfriend, whose father (another politician) is being investigated by him. It is not badly filmed, especially considering the overall poorness of Brazilian cinema of that period (but shouldn't I say: of any period?). The film's title, which translates to "Stakeout on the Asphalt", refers presumably to one specific sequence wherein a gang of hitmen trap the honest congressman in a very risky (and implausible) manner: one of them lies on the road, thus forcing the congressman to stop his car and barely avoid killing the bad guy. The other stakeouts in the movie do not involve asphalt at all and take place, respectively, at a church, at a cemetery, and at a train station. The last of these has, again, some implausible behavior on the part of the ex-prostitute, who could have done a lot better in her attempt to save her boyfriend.
Rating: 33
Thursday, September 06, 2012
My Fellow Americans (1996)
Two ex-presidents by rival parties are incidentally united on account of a plot to frame one of them, conducted the present occupant of the presidency.
This has an elaborate screenplay, is funny and moderately critical of the American political system.
Rating: 64
This has an elaborate screenplay, is funny and moderately critical of the American political system.
Rating: 64
Tuesday, September 04, 2012
The Towering Inferno (1974)
Gigantic skyscraper catches fire on the night of its inauguration due to its builders having used cheap material in it. The architect, at first with the building's personnel and later with the firemen, tries to help avoid a complete tragedy.
Second viewing. Very well-made and entertaining disaster-movie. This genre's plot conventions are mostly true to human nature, as can be observed in the real-life economic cataclisms that recently shook, and are still shaking, several countries of the world, and of which this film is a metaphor.
Rating: 52 (up from 36)
Second viewing. Very well-made and entertaining disaster-movie. This genre's plot conventions are mostly true to human nature, as can be observed in the real-life economic cataclisms that recently shook, and are still shaking, several countries of the world, and of which this film is a metaphor.
Rating: 52 (up from 36)
Bogus (1996)
A fatherless boy who just lost his mother "creates" an imaginary friend who comforts him. He is placed under the care of his mother's foster sister, who is a busy woman and is not enthusiastic about her new duties.
This is a fairly bad film, an ideological signpost of an era which, having lost its faith in the Great institutions, and systems of ethics, metaphysics, politics, etc., retained their "believing" element and placed it in an "anything goes" superstructure. Of course this kind of trend is not altogether new in cinematic narrative: Miracle on 34th Street was released in 1947 (yes, blame it on post-WWII angst) and, certainly not by sheer coincidence, remade only two years before Bogus' release. This film's apparent anticapitalist message (centered on the foster mother, a workaholic businesswoman) is actually pro-capitalist when you think that for Capitalism to work it must balance production and consumption; all it's saying is "Relax, take some time off, spend some money, if not with yourself, then with your kid."
Rating: 14
This is a fairly bad film, an ideological signpost of an era which, having lost its faith in the Great institutions, and systems of ethics, metaphysics, politics, etc., retained their "believing" element and placed it in an "anything goes" superstructure. Of course this kind of trend is not altogether new in cinematic narrative: Miracle on 34th Street was released in 1947 (yes, blame it on post-WWII angst) and, certainly not by sheer coincidence, remade only two years before Bogus' release. This film's apparent anticapitalist message (centered on the foster mother, a workaholic businesswoman) is actually pro-capitalist when you think that for Capitalism to work it must balance production and consumption; all it's saying is "Relax, take some time off, spend some money, if not with yourself, then with your kid."
Rating: 14
Sunday, September 02, 2012
Body Double (1984)
Jake is staying at his friend Sam's residence while Sam is away. Sam informs Jake about a woman who lives at a nearby building, and who can be seen through a telescope while performing a sensual act (which she does every day at the same hour).
Second viewing. A gratuitous but very well filmed and, to a certain extent, entertaining blend of Rear Window and Vertigo. The filmmaker puts no holds on vulgarity and the film is best enjoyed with an eye to self-parody.
Rating: 56 (down from 68)
Second viewing. A gratuitous but very well filmed and, to a certain extent, entertaining blend of Rear Window and Vertigo. The filmmaker puts no holds on vulgarity and the film is best enjoyed with an eye to self-parody.
Rating: 56 (down from 68)
Saturday, September 01, 2012
Intervista (1987)
English title: Interview.
A famous Italian film director is making a film, and gets interviewed by Japanese journalists. His film reenacts his first visit to the studio as a journalist who would interview a movie actress. Next he starts to shoot what is apparently another film, based on a literary work. An old actor with whom he had worked before shows up on the set and they take a weekend off to visit an actress who worked with the two of them many years earlier in a movie. In that movie the old actor played a journalist and the old actress played a young actress whom the journalist interviewed and had a brief affair with. They all rewatch that movie in the old actress's house.
I guess this is not entirely without interest as an "essay" on interviews (and also filmmaking, I guess), and by the way it is my second viewing. My rating did not change, I am afraid. To be honest I did not find it particularly remarkable.
Rating: 41 (unchanged)
A famous Italian film director is making a film, and gets interviewed by Japanese journalists. His film reenacts his first visit to the studio as a journalist who would interview a movie actress. Next he starts to shoot what is apparently another film, based on a literary work. An old actor with whom he had worked before shows up on the set and they take a weekend off to visit an actress who worked with the two of them many years earlier in a movie. In that movie the old actor played a journalist and the old actress played a young actress whom the journalist interviewed and had a brief affair with. They all rewatch that movie in the old actress's house.
I guess this is not entirely without interest as an "essay" on interviews (and also filmmaking, I guess), and by the way it is my second viewing. My rating did not change, I am afraid. To be honest I did not find it particularly remarkable.
Rating: 41 (unchanged)
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
The Flying Deuces (1939)
Ollie joins the Foreign Legion after he is rejected by a woman. He is accompanied by Stan. It doesn't take long for them both to realize that the demands of military life are above their capabilities and disposition.
My second viewing of this lesser comedy of the famous duo. The most interesting aspect is perhaps the funny play with "forgetting" and the naive notion of a voluntary effort towards the consecution of the oblivious condition.
Rating: 42 (unchanged)
My second viewing of this lesser comedy of the famous duo. The most interesting aspect is perhaps the funny play with "forgetting" and the naive notion of a voluntary effort towards the consecution of the oblivious condition.
Rating: 42 (unchanged)
Monday, August 27, 2012
Corações sujos (2011)
English title: Dirty Hearts.
After the end of World War II, the Japanese community in Brazil is torn over issues of loyalty. Isolated from the world at large by the very laws of the country, and suspicious of the little information that arrives to them, many believe that Japan won the war.
The screenplay leaves some questions unanswered, apparently; on the other hand, it may be that there is no completely rational explanation for the behavior which the film tries to depict. The narrative is solemn and static; the scoring is excessive. The use of out-of-focus cinematography in some takes is unaccountable. Overall, not a satisfying film.
Rating: 38
After the end of World War II, the Japanese community in Brazil is torn over issues of loyalty. Isolated from the world at large by the very laws of the country, and suspicious of the little information that arrives to them, many believe that Japan won the war.
The screenplay leaves some questions unanswered, apparently; on the other hand, it may be that there is no completely rational explanation for the behavior which the film tries to depict. The narrative is solemn and static; the scoring is excessive. The use of out-of-focus cinematography in some takes is unaccountable. Overall, not a satisfying film.
Rating: 38
Sunday, August 26, 2012
Dumbo (1941)
A baby elephant in a circus is ridiculed for having oversized ears. The source of his afflictions proves to be just the ticket to overcoming his problems, though.
The plot is just a weird variation on a recurrent fairy tale motif, most explicitly present in Andersen's "The Ugly Duckling". The film is composed of very elaborate set-pieces, which are stylistically quite diverse from one another, although consistent with the progression of the plot. This is one of the most modernistic works produced by Disney (following on the at least equally so "Fantasia"). The film is, at its essence, very plausible, albeit in an obviously metaphorical manner, in its depiction of personal adaptation and success. The only minor quibble I have with it is its yielding to the temptation of narcissism in the finale (Dumbo goes to Hollywood). A movie should not suppose that its own symbolical sphere is the ultimate horizon of expectation of mankind (or even elephantkind).
Rating: 75 (up from 64)
The plot is just a weird variation on a recurrent fairy tale motif, most explicitly present in Andersen's "The Ugly Duckling". The film is composed of very elaborate set-pieces, which are stylistically quite diverse from one another, although consistent with the progression of the plot. This is one of the most modernistic works produced by Disney (following on the at least equally so "Fantasia"). The film is, at its essence, very plausible, albeit in an obviously metaphorical manner, in its depiction of personal adaptation and success. The only minor quibble I have with it is its yielding to the temptation of narcissism in the finale (Dumbo goes to Hollywood). A movie should not suppose that its own symbolical sphere is the ultimate horizon of expectation of mankind (or even elephantkind).
Rating: 75 (up from 64)
Também somos irmãos (1949)
Two black brothers who were raised by a white family take differents paths in life: one becomes a lawyer and the other a petty criminal. Their stepsister gets involved with a crook.
Not altogether bad, and is somewhat curious for being one of the few Brazilian films of the time which dealt with race issues. It is basically a melodrama, though.
Rating: 34
Not altogether bad, and is somewhat curious for being one of the few Brazilian films of the time which dealt with race issues. It is basically a melodrama, though.
Rating: 34
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
The Avengers (2012)
Some people from the other side of the universe steal a thingum which is very dangerous indeed. A team of superheroes is assembled to recover it. Oh, and there is a flying serpent of sorts which is really a scare.
Wow, that 3D is sensational. Now, I am waiting for the remake of "Cries and Whispers".
Rating: 40
Wow, that 3D is sensational. Now, I am waiting for the remake of "Cries and Whispers".
Rating: 40
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Casque d'or (1952)
English title: Golden Helmet.
Paris, late 19th century (or early 20th). A carpenter who has served time in prison gets involved with a beautiful woman. She's the unwilling lover of another, who is a member of a gang; she is also coveted by the gang leader, who also owns a commerce and is a friend of the police chief.
Second viewing. A masterpiece. It is a double (or triple) edged story which, on one side, focus on the feelings and behavior of the woman whose nickname is "Golden Helmet" (referring to her blonde hair), who is forced to live under the authority of men but rebels. The other side is a study of organized crime, on a small scale. And, last but perhaps not least, this is the story of a man who chooses independence but -- is that possible to achieve?
Rating: 86 (down from 88)
Paris, late 19th century (or early 20th). A carpenter who has served time in prison gets involved with a beautiful woman. She's the unwilling lover of another, who is a member of a gang; she is also coveted by the gang leader, who also owns a commerce and is a friend of the police chief.
Second viewing. A masterpiece. It is a double (or triple) edged story which, on one side, focus on the feelings and behavior of the woman whose nickname is "Golden Helmet" (referring to her blonde hair), who is forced to live under the authority of men but rebels. The other side is a study of organized crime, on a small scale. And, last but perhaps not least, this is the story of a man who chooses independence but -- is that possible to achieve?
Rating: 86 (down from 88)
Friday, August 10, 2012
King Solomon's Mines (1985)
Adventurer helps woman find her dad who was kidnapped by thugs in search of the titular mines.
Poor adventure which rips off the Indiana Jones movies, with rather infantile sense of humor and hackneyed situations. I was rather impressed with Gagoola and the actress who played her, though.
Rating: 32
Poor adventure which rips off the Indiana Jones movies, with rather infantile sense of humor and hackneyed situations. I was rather impressed with Gagoola and the actress who played her, though.
Rating: 32
Thursday, August 09, 2012
The Salton Sea (2002)
A drug addict whose girlfriend was killed is now a police informant.
Here is another one which lost a lot on second viewing. It is a blend of the neo-noir and the junky subgenres. Enjoyable but not as original or consistent as I first thought.
Rating: 66 (down from 77).
Here is another one which lost a lot on second viewing. It is a blend of the neo-noir and the junky subgenres. Enjoyable but not as original or consistent as I first thought.
Rating: 66 (down from 77).
Sunday, August 05, 2012
Sudden Death (1995)
Terrorists seize the vice-president in a stadium during a big hockey game. A security man, whose two kids are in the audience, try to stop the bad guys from killing the hostages and blowing up the stadium.
I read on IMDB that this was first written as a comedy. I think it was a big mistake to have changed their minds, because as a serious action movie this has not got much to offer (and a little vestigial comicity remains in the movie). It admittedly has a few spectacular sequences, and is not badly directed, but overall it is hackneyed and not very plausible.
Rating: 32
I read on IMDB that this was first written as a comedy. I think it was a big mistake to have changed their minds, because as a serious action movie this has not got much to offer (and a little vestigial comicity remains in the movie). It admittedly has a few spectacular sequences, and is not badly directed, but overall it is hackneyed and not very plausible.
Rating: 32
Friday, August 03, 2012
Victory (1981)
World War II. In a camp for prisoners of war, a football match is arranged between the inmates and German players. The inmates plan to use the event to escape.
Basically mediocre, but the shockingly unrealistic switch near the end establishes a vague similarity with Jorge Luis Borges' El sur.
Rating: 36
Basically mediocre, but the shockingly unrealistic switch near the end establishes a vague similarity with Jorge Luis Borges' El sur.
Rating: 36
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