Defiant Success

The Killing of a Chinese Bookie

2012-02-11T18:39:00.000-05:00

What's interesting about John Cassavetes' The Killing of a Chinese Bookie is that it flips flops between genres. It starts off as a drama, then switching to thriller before blossoming into a character study. Not many directors can pull off this feat; Cassavetes was one of the few that could.

The film focuses on Cosmo Vitelli, played excellently by the recently departed Ben Gazzara. Cosmo runs a small strip club in Los Angeles, and by all accounts has a good life. But he's in debt and as a way to cleat up some of it, he has to kill a Chinese bookie. (Hence the title, of course.)

This is also interesting about The Killing of a Chinese Bookie. The actual crime is treated as nothing more than a minor subplot. This isn't a complaint, mind you, but merely as something that needed to be pointed out. Cassavetes isn't interested in blood and carnage. He'd rather watch someone's reaction to it.

Like his other films, Cassavetes has his camera linger on the main character, in this case Cosmo. In the aftermath of the crime he committed, he appears calm. But just in the very next shot, he has a panicked look on his face, thinking any move he makes could be his last. It's a hell of a performance from Gazzara.

The Killing of a Chinese Bookie shows you don't need violence to make an effective thriller. Oh, and that last shot of Cosmo standing outside his club? Now that is how you do a close-up.

My Rating: ****1/2

A Woman Under the Influence

2012-02-10T13:51:00.000-05:00

There's a shot in John Cassavetes' A Woman Under the Influence that captures the whole mood of the film. As he watches his wife Mabel (Gena Rowlands) resisting getting committed and rapidly loses grips with reality, Nick (Peter Falk) expresses a pained look, realizing Mabel has gone off the edge.

What caused Mabel to snap? Perhaps her mundane life as a housewife could be viewed as a contribution. She's alone most of the day, and she is clearly someone who longs for companionship. So basically she got bored out of her mind.

Another contribution is Nick himself. He tries so hard to keep his family together, he ends up breaking it up more. Nick is a staggering portrait of blind devotion; he wants his wife to stay yet he absentmindedly pushes her away.

Cassavetes was noted for focusing strictly on the characters' movements. More than once in A Woman Under the Influence the camera captures Mabel's many facial and gestural quirks. We're watching her unravel before ours eyes and no one else seems to notices.

A Woman Under the Influence is a brilliant film. Cassavetes gives us a glance of a marriage completely falling apart at the seams. Oh, and one more thing: how Rowlands didn't win and Falk wasn't nominated is beyond me. (Maybe their performances were too daring at the time?)

My Rating: *****

Faces

2012-02-09T23:37:00.000-05:00

John Cassavetes' must have been running a mile a minute during those fifty-nine years of his life. So many thoughts appeared in the films he made.

Such is the case with Faces. It's Cassavetes' view on the sexes and marriage in general. It's neither a positive viewpoint or negative, just somewhere in between.

Faces also examines how dissatisfying life can be. The four principal actors (among other supporting characters) are completely unhappy with what life has offered them. Even if they're happy, their sour views on life always overrule them.

That's what makes Faces a bit of a frustrating film to watch. There's so much pessimism in practically every scene, one could frantically try to find any sense of contentment. It becomes more aware as the film wears on.

Still, Faces is a well-done film. Those problems mentioned above aside, there are some great performances out of them. Though I can't shake the notion that Faces is probably the weaker of Cassavetes' essential films.

My Rating: ****

Shadows

2012-02-08T13:36:00.000-05:00

Independent film made it big during the late 1960's, mainly with Easy Rider. Or so the film historians say. In reality, it started in 1959 with John Cassavetes' Shadows.

1959 was pretty much a big year for the world of film. The entries ranged from funny (Some Like It Hot) to exciting (Ben-Hur) to scandalous (Anatomy of a Murder, Suddenly, Last Summer) to entertaining (North by Northwest, Rio Bravo). Where does Shadows fit in? Simple: none of them.

Shadows was essentially a groundbreaking film because of several reasons. Rather than starring A-list movie stars, it stars actors who perhaps just arrived on the scene. Instead of following a script, many of the actors ad-lib their lines. Nowadays, both of those details are common among independent productions. They've got Cassavetes to thank.

Shadows also doesn't strictly focus on one story. It rather flows through the lives of the main characters. In a sense, we're watching their lives unfold as we hide in the shadows.

What else to say about Shadows? Just this. One can pick up on the directing style Cassavetes would become immortalized for. What is that style? Glancing at someone's life as though you are watching from the outside.

My Rating: ****1/2

The Entertainer

2012-02-07T22:00:00.000-05:00

It must be a sad life that Archie Rice (Laurence Olivier) leads. Beneath the layers of greasepaint he wears for his act, he is nothing more than a tragic clown.

When Archie is on stage, he possesses a liveliness that could be matched to that of Fred Astaire. Off stage, however, one could become shocked that this was the same Archie Rice that performed with great enthusiasm. The reason for such a remark? His liveliness and enthusiasm are replaced by desperation.

Can you blame him? The only reason he's in show business is to avoid going to jail for tax evasion. He's also trying to get out of the shadow of his father, a famous (and more talented) name in vaudeville. It's a losing battle for Archie; he simply can't upstage or even match his own father.

There's a scene in The Entertainer that showcases what Archie really feels. After his tryst with a beauty contest runner-up, she pours out her feelings for him. The camera lingers on his face, which expresses a sort of happiness that he is unfamiliar with. This is perhaps the only time in the film (and maybe in his own life) where Archie feels loved.

Olivier has portrayed tragic heroes and cold villains, but his role as Archie Rice is a complete departure from his other roles. We can't entirely sympathize for him but we don't hate him either. There's one thing there's no denying about: The Entertainer contains Olivier's best work as an actor.

My Rating: ****1/2

The Descendants

2012-02-06T19:13:00.000-05:00

It's funny. For years, there have been names straining to be known as actors rather than movie stars. Hey, just look at anyone that made it big during the 1950's.

It still persists today too. One such example is George Clooney. I know he's a talented man being both an actor and a director, but most of the time I can only see him as a modern day Cary Grant. But much like Grant, he can do wonders when in the hands of the right director.

As Matt King in Alexander Payne's The Descendants, Clooney gives the best performance of his career to date. He isn't his suave, charming self here. Instead, he's more down to earth. (He also wears those dorky Hawaiian shirts, but moving on.)

Matt is facing two different dilemmas: he finds himself looking after his daughters, and he's underway in a deal to sell a remaining piece of Hawaiian land his family had owned for generations. Both dilemmas, however, could go hand in hand. One about reconnecting, the other letting go. Towards the end of the film, there's a great shot of Matt, part of his face in the shadows and making him appear older especially after all that has happened.

Along with Clooney's work, I loved the whole film. Mind you, the only other Payne film I saw was Sideways, but I could tell this was a Payne film because of the slight air of cynicism floating within several of the characters. Also, saying Clooney's now my frontrunner at the Oscars is an understatement.

My Rating: *****

The Odd Couple

2012-02-05T23:16:00.000-05:00

There's always that unique quirk about dark comedies. It's hard to figure out why that is. Believe me, I've seen enough to ask such a thing.

One good example is Gene Saks' The Odd Couple. It most definitely fits the criteria for a dark comedy. After all, its two main themes are suicide and divorce.

As you probably know by now, Jack Lemmon is one of my favorite actors. He could do drama and comedy, a true sign of a skilled actor. Here in The Odd Couple, he portrays the sympathetic mensch he was known for. But like C.C. Baxter, you support Felix Ungar practically the minute he's introduced.

Walter Matthau was a great character actor, and The Odd Couple shows as to why. He always worked so well with many of his co-stars, and Lemmon's no exception. After all, I saw how funny they were together in The Fortune Cookie.

All in all, I just loved The Odd Couple. The jokes are still funny, snappy and smart. Though I must add something. I wonder if there was a similar live-in situation between Joe and Jerry before everything that happened in Some Like It Hot?

My Rating: *****

The Rat Race

2012-02-04T12:21:00.000-05:00

What Robert Mulligan's The Rat Race shows us is that even if you know what you're going to do, things won't pan out as you want them to.

Such is the case with Pete Hammond, Jr., played by Tony Curtis. A musician from Milwaukee, he aspires to make it big upon his arrival to New York City. But within the same day as his arrival, Pete realizes that some things are easier said than done. Fortunately, he's an optimist.

If Pete is the optimist in The Rat Race, then Peggy Brown (Debbie Reynolds) is surely the pessimist. Her behavior says she has been there and done it twice. She probably had the same attitude on life as Pete upon her arrival to New York City but thanks to people like her boss Nelson Miller (a disturbingly effective Don Rickles), her attitude went sour.

Like Mulligan's most famous work To Kill a Mockingbird, The Rat Race examines society and the people within it. Peggy constantly tries to bring Pete back down to reality while at the same time he tries to lift her out of her dreary frame of mind. It's a losing battle on Peggy's part, though Pete isn't victorious either.

I think what I liked best with The Rat Race is that in a way, Curtis and Reynolds were displaying their own personalities within their performances. He is content with his past but is very uncertain with his future while she is completely disillusioned from her recent past. (Bear in mind this was made when Curtis was still trying to make a name for himself as a serious actor, and Reynolds was in the aftermath of her highly publicized divorce with Eddie Fisher.) Don't believe me? Watch it for yourself.

My Rating: ****

Baby Face

2012-02-03T16:31:00.000-05:00

What makes Barbara Stanwyck so memorable is not only was she a great actress, she had attitude. Like James Cagney, she had a real firecracker of a personality. (Must be a New York City thing.)

In Baby Face, she stars as Lily Powers, a woman who charms her way to the top. Like many other Stanwyck roles, Lily is someone who goes by her own rules. The main difference between Lily and the other roles is that Lily won't let anything get in the way.

From her first appearance, one could tell that Lily was someone that can not, does not and will not forget anyone or anything. The same thing could be applied to the men that meet her. She's someone that no one can or will forget.

Lily possesses a glint in her eyes, hinting that she is all too familiar with her own schemes. Indeed her past in brought up in an early scene, but not many details emerge. Her sly smile keeps us wondering if she even likes doing what she does.

Baby Face is one of those films where you can tell what era of Hollywood it was made. (In this case, the pre-code era.) Stanwyck is in a very bold performance, by both today's standards and those of that period in time. This in all honesty is essential pre-code.

My Rating: *****

The Game

2012-02-02T21:45:00.000-05:00

Is there a weird requirement that directors names David have to make at least one film that fits into the fucked-up category? Hey, that theory has been proven by the likes of Lynch and Cronenberg.

Another David that tests the theory is David Fincher. His entry is The Game, made between Se7en and Fight Club. In all honesty, I was shouting "What the FUCK?" a lot when I was watching it. Mind you, that's a good thing.

I'm tempted not to say anything about the plot since I'm still trying to piece together the whole thing. However, I will part with some knowledge of it. What The Game focuses on is a conspicuous corporation. There, that's all I'm saying.

There are so many factors to The Game that practically make it Fincher's tribute to both Hitchcock and Frankenheimer. Along with Fincher's meticulous direction, there's also Howard Shore's eerie music. Also, the immense lack of light, natural or otherwise, amps up the creepiness of it all.

Holy crap, The Game is messed up. It drags on a bit in the middle, but it's really effective. If you want to make your brain work a mile a minute, then David Fincher's The Game is your best bet.

My Rating: ****1/2

BOOK VS MOVIE: Inherit the Wind

2012-02-01T22:55:00.000-05:00

There's always something so appealing about courtroom dramas. The points of view can vary from either one of the lawyers, the defendant or even a bystander.

Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee's play Inherit the Wind was written during a time when one's ideal and beliefs must match everyone else's. Like Arthur Miller's The Crucible, Inherit the Wind was written during the height of McCarthyism. This of course was when anyone could be accused of being, for lack of a better word, "inhuman".

The writing style of Lawrence and Lee is very straightforward. Through the dialogue, the characters get their points very much across, and this very thing is still in effect for the film.

Stanley Kramer's adaptation, apart from a few minor additions here and there, stays true to the play. It stars Spencer Tracy and Frederic March as opposing lawyers in the re-telling of the Scopes "Monkey" Trial. Both are great in their roles, as with Gene Kelly in an excellent non-musical role. Of the trio, my favorite performances came from Tracy and Kelly mainly for their biting dialogue and their complete disinterest in the Bible.

Inherit the Wind is a great work, both on the page and screen. Lawrence and Lee's writing is fantastic, and Kramer's film garners impressive work from its three big stars. Choosing which is better is next to impossible.

What's worth checking out?: I'd go with both.

Lady Killer

2012-01-31T23:16:00.002-05:00

Like I said a few days back, pre-codes were the most entertaining type of movie. Perhaps they were so carefree solely because they were released during a time when people were straining to forget their worries.

In 1933, Roy Del Ruth made Lady Killer, an amusing tale of crime and Hollywood. The combination of the two kept me entertained from beginning to end. Not many movies can boast a feat like that.

The star of Lady Killer is James Cagney, whom I realized from this that he had a real firecracker of a personality. I have a feeling he had fun with his role of a theater usher turned small-time hood turned movie star. After all, this was made a whole two years after his star-making turn in The Public Enemy.

I'm not sure, but I believe Lady Killer was one of the first movies to show the behind the scenes/on the set action in Hollywood. Bear in mind this was years before Sunset Boulevard, Singin' in the Rain and The Bad and the Beautiful. Hey, there's a first for everything.

More than once while watching Lady Killer I found myself chuckling at the many antics. Hey, why not? It's a really good movie. It also contains my favorite performance of Cagney's. In all honesty, I might be watching this again, perhaps in the very near future.

My Rating: *****

Persona

2012-01-30T19:06:00.000-05:00

With Ingmar Bergman's Persona, viewers are offered a glimpse into the minds of two different women. One talks about her personal life, the other remains quiet.

I knew of Bergman's depiction of human behavior and nature from The Seventh Seal. With Persona, he provides a more in-depth glance on both topics. (On a different note, why do most foreign films focus on those two mainly?)

It's hard to say which of the two leading ladies gave the better performance. Bibi Andersson's Alma tells of every detail of her life, many of them she never told anyone before. She soon starts speaking for both women, and her transition from each personality is astonishing.

On the flip side, Liv Ullmann's Elisabet Vogler speaks volumes by barely speaking at all. She clearly has a perplexing personality, yet we still wonder about her after we've learned everything about her. Every emotion of hers is played across her face yet she is devoid of any. (Well, except for an early scene.)

Persona really makes you think about one's identity, who we are in society. It also captures two of the best female performances I've seen. And maybe, just maybe, I'll be able to understand Mulholland Drive a little better if at all.

My Rating: *****

SAG Winners

2012-01-30T12:53:00.000-05:00

Underlined means my prediction, bold means the winner.

BEST ENSEMBLE
The Artist
Bridesmaids
The Descendants
The Help
Midnight in Paris

BEST ACTOR
Demián Bichir – A Better Life

Jean Dujardin – The ArtistGeorge Clooney – The Descendants
Leonardo DiCaprio – J. Edgar
Brad Pitt - Moneyball

BEST ACTRESS

Glenn Close - Albert Nobbs

Viola Davis - The Help

Meryl Streep - The Iron Lady

Michelle Williams - My Week with Marilyn

Tilda Swinton - We Need To Talk About Kevin

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Christopher Plummer - Beginners

Armie Hammer - J. Edgar

Kenneth Branagh - My Week with Marilyn

Jonah Hill - Moneyball

Nick Nolte - Warrior

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Janet McTeer - Albert Nobbs

Bérénice Bejo - The Artist

Melissa McCarthy - Bridesmaids

Jessica Chastain - The Help

Octavia Spencer - The Help

The Motorcycle Diaries

2012-01-29T20:50:00.000-05:00

You ever get that urge to get away from it all? Just drop everything and hit the road?

Such is the case with Ernesto Guevara (Gael Garcia Bernal) and Alberto Granado (Rodrigo de la Serna), the lead protagonists in Walter Salles' The Motorcycle Diaries. Both are studying medicine, but both strive for that one last escape.

What de la Serna puts in his work as Granado is a zest for life. He is rarely concerned for what his future holds. He wants to live the moment. I also love the final shot of him, his face expressing an uncertainty as to what his fate will be.

Bernal is different. He possesses a silent intensity, a skill only a few choice actors have. Many of his thoughts are expressed with his face rather than his words, again a rare skill among actors. In all honesty, this is a very bold performance.

Along with the acting, the technical aspects of The Motorcycle Diaries I just love. The main factors being Eric Gauntier's cinematography, Gustavo Santaolalla's music, and Salles' direction. The lush locales Guevara and Granado venture make them appear to be Argentinian versions of Sal Paradise and Dean Moriarty, the protagonists of Jack Kerouac's On the Road.

My Rating: ****1/2

The Gold Rush

2012-01-28T23:49:00.000-05:00

I had seen two Charlie Chaplin films prior to The Gold Rush. Both were essentially social commentaries (Modern Times, The Great Dictator), but The Gold Rush provides pure entertainment.

What's best about The Gold Rush is that the simplest of gags can still be funny even after almost ninety years. Not many films can boast a feat like that.

Such gags include Chaplin eating his shoe, the cabin on the edge of the mountain an d my personal favorite, the dinner roll dance. Just watching those gags makes it clear as to why they're so iconic.

What The Gold Rush also captures is heart. Bear in mind this was made several years before City Lights, a film I am in dire need of revisiting. Still, Chaplin was and always will be one of the few names that could have comedy and tragedy in one film, and make it work.

The Gold Rush is one of those films that will always stand the test of time, as with many of Chaplin's other films. If you haven't seen it, you are most definitely in for a treat.

My Rating: *****

Dancing Lady

2012-01-27T22:44:00.001-05:00

This is a known fact: pre-codes were the most entertaining type of movie. Hey, they were sometimes riskier than today's movies.

Joan Crawford is someone I am really starting to like with each passing movie. She's a very lively actress and such a trait is shown in Dancing Lady. As Janie Barlow, she shows a determination that is lacking in most film characters today. It may also be my favorite performance of Crawford's.

As Patch Gallagher, Clark Gable gives a performance with a lot of gusto. How to describe Patch? Frankly, my dear, he doesn't give a damn. (Sorry, I had to.)

Franchot Tone I only knew of for two reasons: his Oscar-nominated role in Mutiny on the Bounty and his marriage to Crawford. (Both happened in 1935.) As Tod Newton, he possesses a bit of a sly aura within the role. You don't see roles like that very often nowadays.

I just adore Dancing Lady. It's so carefree and I just love it. Oh, extra bonus of Dancing Lady is seeing Fred Astaire in his film debut.

My Rating: *****

The Little Foxes

2012-01-26T23:40:00.002-05:00

With William Wyler's The Little Foxes, we see the many shades of human nature. Some light, some dark, all compelling.

Regina Giddens (Bette Davis) by appearance is a very sociable woman. Behind closed doors, it's a whole other matter. Along with her brothers, she aspires to gain a good chunk of money from the business deal they want to act out on. However, there is one small problem.

That problem is Regina's husband Horace (Herbert Marshall). They need his money to go through with the deal. But Horace, a man that's weak both physically and mentally, refuses. Naturally they aren't pleased.

Between all of this is Regina and Horace's daughter Alexandra (Teresa Wright). She temporarily becomes a pawn in the scheme to get the money, but she clearly wants no part in any of it.

Regina, Horace and Alexandra are all completely different people. To think they live under the same roof. Their morals and beliefs vary and it's obvious that the Giddenses are a very fractured family.

My Rating: *****

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

2012-01-25T19:16:00.003-05:00

You know that saying "third time's the charm"? That can most definitely be applied to The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.

The main trio for Sergio Leone's film just compliment each other fantastically. Clint Eastwood is completely aloof but at the same time incredibly tough as "the Man with No Name". Lee Van Cleef's "Angel Eyes" (more like "Devil Eyes" in my book) is evil clad in a black hat. Eli Wallach is the perfect candidate as the greedy bastard that is Tuco. I can't see anyone else in the roles.

As I watched The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, I saw many elements that Leone would later use in Once Upon a Time in the West. Both captured the nature of a dying Wild West, as well as focusing on three pivotal characters with a similar goal. Many directors have tried to connect their films, but I think Leone was one of the few masters that could do such a thing.

I can't finish this review without talking about Ennio Morricone's score. I just can't. The whole score works in every scene, but there were three specific pieces that I adored. Those are the main theme, the piece playing as Tuco searches for the grave (and damn near loses his mind), and the piece playing during the Mexican standoff. (The second piece I promptly bought off iTunes afterwards.)

Saying that The Good, the Bad and the Ugly is one of the best Westerns ever made is an understatement. Seriously, how many Westerns are there that perfectly balance action, character study and the affects of battle in one film? No wonder Quentin Tarantino dubbed it "the best-directed movie of all time".

My Rating: *****

For a Few More Dollars

2012-01-24T23:21:00.002-05:00

Usually sequels are expected to match up or even surpass the original film. It doesn't happen very often, mind you. When it does, it stands out as much as the original.

With Sergio Leone's For a Few Dollars More, it doesn't generally have the same bite as A Fistful of Dollars. It's just the flow isn't the same. Don't get me wrong. It's good, but there are flaws within the narrative.

Clint Eastwood still proves that he's a badass here, but he didn't have the same edge he had in A Fistful of Dollars. I still liked him regardless. Let's face it, who doesn't like Eastwood?

Lee Van Cleef I encountered before in two other films. No surprise that both of them were also Westerns (High Noon and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance), so I knew the man could handle a gun. And damn well too.

So For a Few Dollars More didn't match up with A Fistful of Dollars. I wasn't surprised in all honesty. All I hope for is that The Good, the Bad and the Ugly will be better.

My Rating: ****

Academy Award Nominations

2012-01-24T11:50:00.001-05:00

Ho hum. Not even sure why I still pay attention to the Oscars. I say this because they completely shut out two of my favorite films from last year (Shame and Drive) for major categories. Underlined means my prediction.

BEST PICTURE
The Artist
The Descendants
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
The Help
Hugo
Midnight in Paris
Moneyball
The Tree of Life
War Horse

BEST DIRECTOR
Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris
Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist
Terrence Malick, The Tree of Life
Alexander Payne, The Descendants
Martin Scorsese, Hugo

BEST ACTOR
Demian Bichir, A Better Life
George Clooney, The Descendants
Jean Dujardin, The Artist
Gary Oldman, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Brad Pitt, Moneyball

BEST ACTRESS
Glenn Close, Albert Nobbs
Viola Davis, The Help
Rooney Mara, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady
Michelle Williams, My Week with Marilyn

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Kenneth Branagh, My Week with Marilyn
Jonah Hill, Moneyball
Nick Nolte, Warrior
Christopher Plummer, Beginners
Max von Sydow, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Berenice Bejo, The Artist
Jessica Chastain, The Help
Melissa McCarthy, Bridesmaids
Janet McNeer, Albert Nobbs
Octavia Spencer, The Help

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
The Artist
Bridesmaids
Margin Call
Midnight in Paris
A Separation

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
The Descendants
Hugo
The Ides of March
Moneyball
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

BEST ART DIRECTION
The Artist
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
Hugo
Midnight in Paris
War Horse

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
The Artist
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
The Tree of Life
War Horse

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Anonymous
The Artist
Hugo
Jane Eyre
W.E.

BEST FILM EDITING
The Artist
The Descendants
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
Moneyball

BEST MAKEUP
Albert Nobbs
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
The Iron Lady

BEST ORIGINAL SONG
"Man or Muppet", The Muppets
"Real in Rio", Rio

BEST SCORE
The Adventures of Tintin
The Artist
Hugo
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
War Horse

BEST SOUND MIXING
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
Moneyball
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
War Horse

BEST SOUND EDITING
Drive
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
War Horse

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
Hugo
Real Steel
Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Transformers: Dark of the Moon

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Hell and Back Again
If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front
Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory
Pina
Undefeated

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT SUBJECT
The Barber of Birmingham: Foot Soldier of the Civil Rights Movement
God is the Bigger Elvis
Incident in New Baghdad
Saving Face
The Tsunami and the Cherry Blossom

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Bullhead
Footnote
In Darkness
Monsieur Lazhar
A Separation

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
A Cat in Paris
Chico & Rita
Kung Fu Panda 2
Puss in Boots
Rango

BEST SHORT FILM, ANIMATED
Dimanche
The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore
La Luna
A Morning Stroll
Wild Life

BEST SHORT FILM, LIVE ACTION
Pentecost
Raju
The Shore
Time Freak
Tuba Atlantic

A Fistful of Dollars

2012-01-23T22:53:00.002-05:00

It was inevitable. Sooner or later I would see the trilogy Sergio Leone made with Clint Eastwood. So I started off with A Fistful of Dollars.

Having seen Once Upon a Time in the West, I had a good sense as to what Leone shows in a Western. I also had a sense of what the two main characters would are like. Those characters are the aloof but determined anti-hero and the villain who is the epitome of ruthless.

Eastwood introduced his iconic "Man with No Name" here and boy, does he make the most of it. His presence is most definitely felt, especially during the final shootout. No one does badass better than Eastwood.

A Fistful of Dollars is Leone's take on Akira Kurosawa's Yojimbo. I myself haven't seen Kurosawa's film, so I can't have my say on if Leone stayed true. I will say I plan to seek out Yojimbo in the near future.

I really liked A Fistful of Dollars. I finally realized how much of a BAMF Eastwood really is. Also, I anticipate what the two other films hold for me.

My Rating: ****1/2

Haywire

2012-01-22T22:30:00.001-05:00

I have mixed feelings towards Steven Soderbergh. On the one hand, I was very much impressed by Traffic (though it rubbed me the wrong way in parts). On the other hand, Contagion, which was more than effective in the first two acts, completely fell apart in the third act. (And don't get me started on that ending. Ugh.)

His newest movie Haywire falls somewhere in between those two. It possesses a plot where government conspiracy and covering the truth are involved. However, Soderbergh doesn't focus on those topics of interest long enough. It appears he's much more interested in guns going off and necks being damn near broken.

Of the three Soderbergh movies I saw, it's clear he likes working with an ensemble. Many of the actors he has worked with range from popular stars to award winners. The cast for the mostly male-dominant Haywire includes Ewan McGregor, Antonio Banderas, Michael Douglas, Bill Paxton and Michael Fassbender.

The star is Gina Carano, who is nothing more than a plot device. Indeed she kicks serious ass, but she isn't given much else to do. Then again, that is usually the case with most action movie leads.

All in all, Haywire is an okay movie. My opinion would probably be different had it been a little longer. The performances sans Carano and Channing Tatum are good. The only thing that really stuck with me was David Holmes' music. Oh, and it ended on a much more interesting note than Contagion.

My Rating: ****

The Nun's Story

2012-01-21T21:56:00.001-05:00

It's a daring move to have a film focus primarily on one character. It's usually several primary characters are introduced and focused on. Only a few films can make it work.

The amusing thing about Audrey Hepburn is she's usually viewed as an image of glamour. Not many people acknowledge that she was a fine actress. Her skill as an actress is as natural as her eternal beauty.

As Sister Luke in Fred Zinnemann's The Nun's Story, Hepburn gives perhaps the greatest performance of her career. Through her years in the church, she becomes worn out by the rules and restrictions. She tries to keep others happy with her behavior, but she herself isn't happy.

With a running time of over two and a half hours, it could have fallen apart early on. But Zinnemann makes sure such a thing doesn't happen. The film practically glides with every passing minute rather than get stuck every ten minutes. Again, not many films can make that work.

In toll, The Nun's Story is an excellent film. Hepburn is luminous in her role, a type that comes around every now and again. Conflict in the church is almost a cliche by today's standards, but Zinnemann's film shows the depths that so many fail to achieve.\

My Rating: *****

The Women

2012-01-20T23:06:00.001-05:00

It's ironic once you think of it. George Cukor is noted for his "women's pictures" (particularly the ones he made with Katharine Hepburn), and he made a literal women's picture. Why literal? I'll explain.

The Women starred only women. (Even the animals showed are female.) Upon hearing the dialogue, it was clear that it was written by and for women. This wouldn't have worked if it was written by men, mainly because they don't know what goes on in a woman's mind.

The cast has some of the biggest names of the time, most of them I've seen in other movies. Such names include Rosalind Russell, Joan Crawford, Paulette Goddard and Joan Fontaine. I loved the performances from all four of them, but Russell and Goddard stood out the most for me mainly because they have attitude (and most of the movie's best lines).

Prior to this, I hadn't seen anything with Norma Shearer. After seeing her in The Women, I now desire to see more of her work because she possesses an aura very few actors have. This aura shows she's the kind of person you support no matter what.

The Women just works wonderfully. Cukor shows that he knows how to work with actresses, all of whom play their roles vibrantly. And is it any surprise that this great movie was released in the great year of 1939?

My Rating: *****

Jezebel

2012-01-19T23:12:00.000-05:00

Bette Davis was and always will be a firecracker of an actress. She always made an impression on audiences, co-stars and directors (even if the latter two were mostly negative). Hey, she didn't get ten Oscar nominations and two wins just by being a good actress.

In William Wyler's Jezebel, Davis' character of Julie Marsden makes Scarlett O'Hara look like Melanie Hamilton. Her first scene alone proves it. She appears at a party wearing her riding clothes, gets a drink made strictly for the men, and basically shocks everyone there. You think they would rarely be surprised by Julie's attitude. It seems she's like this all the time.

Julie's fiance Preston Dillard (Henry Fonda) is one such person accustomed to her behavior. However, he has his limits with her. Particularly in one famous sequence. Julie causes a stir at a ball by wearing a red dress instead of the required white. Preston keeps his opinion silent, but it's clear he's furious at her decision.

As aloof and carefree Julie may seem, her emotions towards Preston are genuine. She cares more about him than anyone else, even herself. Even after he leaves her, she still holds a torch for him. (Well, not in the same sense of Scarlett with Ashley.)

Jezebel is really like a watered down Gone with the Wind, but not in a bad sense. After all, I find Julie much more bearable than Scarlett. (Yeah, I said it. What about it?)

My Rating: *****

Night Moves

2012-01-18T23:00:00.000-05:00

With Arthur Penn's passing back in 2010, I was compelled to see some of his films (as with the case of other names in the business that have died recently). But what to watch? I had already seen Bonnie and Clyde and The Miracle Worker within a month before his death.

Then I discovered Night Moves, his film from 1975. It's an underseen entry year because, let's face it, 1975 was loaded with great movies. Like the other releases of the year, Night Moves is damn good.

Gene Hackman, who worked with Penn on Bonnie and Clyde, stars as detective Harry Moseby. He's stuck in a faltering marriage, but he doesn't let that affect him too much. Comparing him to other film private eyes, he shares similarities with Elliot Gould in The Long Goodbye.

In relation with Bonnie and Clyde and The Miracle Worker, Night Moves focuses more on character development than it does on plot development. I'm saying it not as a bad thing but as merely an innocent observation.

All in all, I really liked Night Moves. The flow of it kind of bothered me considerably, but the performances made up for it. Either way, it's an underrated entry of the 1970's.

My Rating: ****1/2

Purple Noon

2012-01-17T22:34:00.000-05:00

It's no surprise that there are similarities between Rene Clement's Purple Noon and Anthony Minghella's The Talented Mr. Ripley. Both are based on Patricia Highsmith's novel, but their styles are completely different.

Same goes for the actors' personalities. Alain Delon is more elusive than Matt Damon. Maurice Ronet is as much as a bastard as Jude Law. Marie Laforet isn't as suspicious as Gwyneth Paltrow. In fact, Delon, Ronet and Laforet are on a completely different level of acting to that of Damon, Law and Paltrow.

Purple Noon isn't as swank and posh as The Talented Mr. Ripley. It's more down to earth. It rarely focuses on the luxuries surrounding Tom. It focuses more on Tom trying to conceal the crimes he committed. Both films have their advantages but when it comes to hiding the unlawful acts, that goes to Purple Noon.

One aspect of The Talented Mr. Ripley was its homoerotic subtext. Of course with this being released during the final years of the Production Code era, it isn't as abundant in Purple Noon. In fact, there isn't even any hinting that Tom wants Philippe, not just his money and life.

Purple Noon is a very well-crafted film, even though it loses its way towards the end and has a resolved ending (much to the dismay of Highsmith herself). Still, it's just as seductive as Minghella's film.

My Rating: ****1/2

Golden Globe Winners

2012-01-16T08:25:00.000-05:00

Looks like my predictions were way off in some categories. Underlined means my prediction; bold means the winner.

BEST PICTURE, DRAMA

The Descendants

The Help

Hugo

The Ides of March

Moneyball

War Horse

BEST PICTURE, MUSICAL OR COMEDY

50/50

The Artist
Bridesmaids

Midnight in Paris

My Week with Marilyn

BEST DIRECTOR
Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris
George Clooney, The Ides of March
Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist
Alexander Payne, The Descendants
Martin Scorsese, Hugo

BEST ACTOR, DRAMA
George Clooney, The Descendants
Leonardo DiCaprio, J. Edgar
Michael Fassbender, Shame
Ryan Gosling, The Ides of March
Brad Pitt, Moneyball

BEST ACTRESS, DRAMA
Glenn Close, Albert Nobbs
Viola Davis, The Help
Rooney Mara, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady
Tilda Swinton, We Need to Talk About Kevin

BEST ACTOR, COMEDY OF MUSICAL
Jean Dujardin, The Artist
Brendan Gleeson, The Guard
Joseph Gordon-Levitt, 50/50
Ryan Gosling, Crazy Stupid Love
Owen Wilson, Midnight in Paris

BEST ACTRESS, COMEDY OR MUSICAL
Jodie Foster, Carnage
Charlize Theron, Young Adult
Kristen Wiig, Bridesmaids
Michelle Williams, My Week with Marilyn
Kate Winslet, Carnage

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Kenneth Branagh, My Week with Marilyn
Albert Brooks, Drive
Jonah Hill, Moneyball
Viggo Mortensen, A Dangerous Method
Christopher Plummer, Beginners

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Berenice Bejo, The Artist
Jessica Chastain, The Help
Janet McTeer, Albert Nobbs
Octavia Spencer, The Help
Shailene Woodley, The Descendants

BEST SCREENPLAY
The Artist
The Descendants
The Ides of March
Midnight in Paris
Moneyball

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
The Adventures of Tintin
Arthur Christmas
Cars 2
Puss in Boots
Rango

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
The Flowers of War
In the Land of Blood and Honey
The Kid with the Bike
A Separation
The Skin I Live In

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
The Artist
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
War Horse
W.E.

BEST ORIGINAL SONG
"Lay Your Head Down", Albert Nobbs
"Hello Hello", Gnomeo and Juliet
"The Living Proof", The Help
"The Keeper", Machine Gun Preacher
"Masterpiece", W.E.

Mala Noche

2012-01-15T22:15:00.014-05:00

There are very few directors that, regardless of how well their films do, continue to work in Hollywood. One such name is Gus Van Sant. His filmography has been a mix of studio productions and independent features.

His debut Mala Noche falls into the latter category, and conveys many themes seen later in his work. (If you've seen any of his later works, you know what those themes are.)

Much like My Own Private Idaho and Good Will Hunting, Mala Noche features a lead character who's on the fine line of being out of place in society and belonging in it like a normal person. Throughout the film, he wavers on that line, staying on each side for some time.

In a similar vein of Milk and To Die For, the lead has aspirations he plans to achieve. He won't let anyone or anything get in his way, regardless of what others might think.

Mala Noche has you thinking about aspects of society, something Van Sant most definitely did with Milk. What's right with it? What's wrong with it? These are questions that are raised constantly when watching this transfixing film.

My Rating: ****1/2

The Moon Is Blue

2012-01-14T22:56:00.000-05:00

Of the films I saw that were directed by Otto Preminger, they were dramas and controversial ones at that.

In between his many successes (and failures) of the 1940's and 1950's, he made an unconventional film: a comedy. Like his other films, it too garnered its share of controversy upon its release back in 1953. What with the use of shocking words like "virgin" (which the female lead is), "mistress" and "pregnant". Of course, the mention of those words isn't that big of a deal nowadays.

The three main actors of The Moon Is Blue are William Holden, Maggie McNamara and David Niven. Holden and Niven I'm the most familiar with, though McNamara I knew of faintly. They're fine in their roles, but McNamara came off as too talkative.

Of the trio, the one that stood out the most was not Holden (the biggest name in the cast) nor McNamara (who got an Oscar nomination for her work here). It was Niven. His pithy commentary makes the film a little more bearable.

Back then, The Moon Is Blue was one of the most scandalous films ever released. Now, especially watching it after seeing Shame, its once-infamous controversy has faded considerably. Still, you can tell it's an Otto Preminger film.

My Rating: ****

Grand Hotel

2012-01-13T22:16:00.000-05:00

Even during the early years of Hollywood, ensemble acting was big. I personally like it. It shows that studios were willing to focus on more than one or two stars.

Grand Hotel features several actors I have either heard of or seen in other films. Here, I want to focus on three that stood out for me. The first is Greta Garbo's worn out ballerina who gets a new view of life after meeting John Barrymore's "baron". You gotta love that immortal line of hers: "I vant to be alone."

Lionel Barrymore's dying man also got my attention. Once mourning not living his life up enough, he soon makes up for lost time. To think this is the same man who played Mr. Potter fourteen years later.

In the film's best performance, Joan Crawford as Wallace Beery's stenographer is perhaps in her most natural performance. None of her lines feel forced, her actions aren't contrived, and she appears to be a normal person. And personally, I adore it.

Grand Hotel describes itself within the title. It's a grand film. All of the actors play their parts magnificently, none of them feeling out of place. I usually gripe about AMPAS choosing the wrong films for Best Picture. Not here.

My Rating: *****

The Letter

2012-01-12T23:23:00.000-05:00

The opening moments of William Wyler's The Letter shows a scene of peace and serenity. And then, gunshots.

The shots were fired by Leslie Crosbie (Bette Davis). She vehemently claims that the shooting was in self-defense, and all evidence supports it. Everyone else believes her...well, almost everyone.

Many of the movies I saw Davis in had her in charge even with a personal flaw within her character. As Leslie, she convinces almost everyone that there was reason behind the shooting while at the same time hides some secrets of her own. It's a hell of a role for Davis.

Leslie is also very concerned on what others might think of her if the titular letter is revealed to the public. Of course, the whole outcome of the trial will be completely different than what she hopes for.

It ends with an expected Production Code-required ending, but The Letter is a hell of a film. As mentioned, Davis gives a powerful performance in it. Bear this thought as you watch it: looks can be deceiving.

My Rating: *****

Missing

2012-01-11T22:17:00.000-05:00

Costa-Gavras' Missing raises many questions on politics, war and society. Can any of the three be trusted?

To Ed (Jack Lemmon) and Beth Horman (Sissy Spacek), their views on the Chilean government constantly change throughout as they look for his son and her husband Charles (John Shea). What they thought was a reliable government turns into uncertainty towards that so-called reliability. Even the U.S. government's reliability comes into question.

Throughout Missing, the violence within Chile gets dangerously close to everyone. Gunshots fill the air. Bodies lie in the streets. Panic rises within everyone. It's a dog-eat-dog world in Chile, and every day is a fight for life.

As they search for Charles, Ed and Beth have to come to terms with their own personal differences. Beth supports Charles' job as a journalist; Ed believes that's what got him arrested. Despite their differing opinions, they agree they won't leave Chile without Charles.

The physical turmoil of Chile mirrors the emotional turmoil of Ed and Beth, devastated and in ruins. Seeing the country's conditions makes a question Ed asks at one point all the more resonant: "What kind of world is this?"

My Rating: *****

That Hamilton Woman

2012-01-10T22:47:00.000-05:00

What is it about the 19th century and illicit affairs? They seem to be the main focus in films and novels.

An example of this is That Hamilton Woman, which stars then-newlyweds Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh. Both actors I'm fairly familiar with, and both give good performances as lovers Admiral Horatio Nelson and Emma Hamilton, who eventually became pariahs among English society.

Leigh I was familiar with from A Streetcar Named Desire and Gone with the Wind, the two films that earned her Oscars. As Emma, her personality lies somewhere between Blanche's and Scarlett's. She's a very independent woman yet she feels lost without Horatio by her side.

I was more familiar with Olivier from a later career film (Spartacus), his Oscar-winning film (Hamlet), and two films that got him nominated (Marathon Man, Wuthering Heights). As Horatio, he possesses the same traits that make Hamlet and Heathcliff who they are: tortured and doomed.

That Hamilton Woman is a gorgeously shot film, but the story leaves a lot to be desired. Not exactly Gone with the Wind or Wuthering Heights, but it's close enough to satisfy someone who loves a good romance.

My Rating: ****1/2

Niagara

2012-01-09T23:05:00.001-05:00

There's just something about Marilyn Monroe that's absolutely mystifying, but what is it exactly? Is it the screen persona that views her as glamorous, even though she was the opposite in real life? Or was it when she was on screen, she became the prime focus? Either way, she has captivated audiences for decades.

Ever since I saw her in Some Like It Hot, I became curious as to what else she had to offer. Four more movies later, I saw her in Niagara. This was different from the other movies I saw her in. Rather than being a dumb blonde, her Rose Loomis is a calculating dame.

Rose is plotting to kill her husband George (Joseph Cotten) at, ironically, the honeymoon capital of the world. It's an airtight scheme and mistakes are rare. But it's once the crime is committed that the scheme falls apart at the seams.

What Monroe offers here is a new meaning on the saying "looks can be deceiving". She wears a welcoming smile and is very sociable, but don't let that fool you. Underneath the smile is a mind that's dark.

Niagara in itself is a good movie but as with the case of other Monroe movies, it lacks something when she's not on screen. There's also a good performance out of Cotten. It's a good story too, but I felt there should have been more.

My Rating: ****

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

2012-01-08T15:47:00.000-05:00

With the release of Tomas Alfredson's Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, we are given a glimpse into the world of espionage. Don't expect James Bond; this is the real deal.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is based on John le Carre's famed novel. Having never read it, I was curious to see what it was about. At the same time however, I was reluctant since the last two le Carre adaptations I saw (The Constant Gardener and The Spy Who Came in from the Cold) weren't as impressive as I thought they would be. I had almost the same problem with Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, but just barely.

Alfredson's previous film was the excellent Let the Right One In and like that film, he captures the many curiosities and uncertainties of the many characters. With the introductions of new information in almost every scene, the curiosities and uncertainties of the characters (and the audience) grows.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy boasts an impressive (and mostly British) cast. The stars range from experienced (Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, John Hurt) to rising (Benedict Cumberbatch, Tom Hardy). All of the actors play their parts extremely well, especially Oldman. I won't generally say he deserves an obscenely overdue Oscar nomination, but it would be nice.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is a damn good film, but I was left wanting more out of it. I also felt that the ending was trying to quickly tie up all of the loose ends. Still, a good story and fine acting makes up for the slow spots.

My Rating: ****1/2

The Fortune Cookie

2012-01-07T22:04:00.001-05:00

For over two years now, I have been an unapologetic admirer of Billy Wilder. How could you not like him? The man had enough humor and wit to shame anyone who dared to upstage him.

His 1966 film The Fortune Cookie stars regular/favorite actor Jack Lemmon as a TV cameraman injured from filming a football game. Like many of his other roles, you support him because of the many hardships he endures. Besides, who doesn't like Jack?

The Fortune Cookie is notable for being the first of many movies between Lemmon and Walter Matthau, and for good reason too. Their scenes together are just some of the best comedy captured on film. And Matthau is particularly a scene stealer as Lemmon's brother-in-law/lawyer. No surprise on how he got the Oscar.

This was Wilder's last big success (though not his last movie), but you can still tell that he had that stamina within him. This was also made when the Production Code was on its last legs, and there are the expected sly jokes (and then some). All in all, this has Billy Wilder written all over it.

The Fortune Cookie is undoubtedly one of Wilder's best. More than once I caught myself laughing out loud. It definitely gets up there among the ranks of Some Like It Hot and The Apartment.

My Rating: *****

Dangerous Liaisons

2012-01-06T23:02:00.000-05:00

Whoever said the late 1700's were a time of civility clearly never saw Stephen Frears' adaptation of Dangerous Liaisons. Trust me, civility is the last thing on the characters' minds.

Glenn Close has always been a great actress. (And yet no Oscar to prove it!) This and Fatal Attraction show how heartless her roles can be. She's as cold as a block of ice, and she's damn effective. The last few scenes of her show the extent of her being.

John Malkovich, like Close, knows what he's doing here. He too is cold, but not as cold as Close. It's a hell of a performance from him, perhaps the best of his career.

Michelle Pfeiffer is different from Close and Malkovich. Unlike their very present frigidness, she provides the only warmth in the whole film. She isn't false in any of her emotions like Malkovich clearly is. Another great performance out of Dangerous Liaisons.

Dangerous Liaisons is a great film, but I found the storyline a tad disjointed. Along with Close, Malkovich and Pfeiffer, there's also some great work from a young Uma Thurman. (Also, what the hell is Keanu Reeves doing in this?) This is for those craving a darker view on the 1700's.

My Rating: ****1/2

The Lusty Men

2012-01-05T23:20:00.001-05:00

With Nicholas Ray, his films are usually thinly veiled character studies. His 1952 film The Lusty Men provides such an example. The three major roles showcase the effects of the dangerous sport that is rodeo.

Jeff McCloud (Robert Mitchum) is an ex-rodeo rider who becomes a mentor to Wes Merritt (Arthur Kennedy). Early on, it's clear that Wes has potential, much to the dismay of Wes' wife Louise (Susan Hayward).

By the time Wes makes it big, his personality takes a change for the worse. All that matters to him is making more money off rodeos and keeping it all to himself, a far cry from the original plan between him and Louise. Wes' transformation mirrors that of Midge Kelly from Champion (which also co-starred Kennedy).

Wes' behavior change shocks Louise, but it barely fazes Jeff. He has probably seen it happen before. Maybe such a thing has happened to Jeff himself. Who knows? The script doesn't specify much on Jeff's past, leaving us to wonder...

The Lusty Men is one of those films you can tell was made by a certain director. I don't view that as a bad thing, mind you. Many themes of Ray are easily detectable. Mitchum, Kennedy and Hayward are at the height of their careers in this underseen Nicholas Ray gem.

My Rating: *****

The Magnificent Seven

2012-01-04T23:14:00.000-05:00

The funny thing with Akira Kurosawa was that sooner or later, his work was going to get remade just in a matter of years. I mean, just look: Sergio Leone gave Yojimbo a Western twist and called it A Fistful of Dollars, and George Lucas set The Hidden Fortress in space and named it Star Wars.

And John Sturges turned Kurosawa's magnum opus Seven Samurai into The Magnificent Seven. What? A samurai epic made into a Western? Sounds ridiculous, but it works.

In anyone else's hands, this would've failed spectacularly. But Sturges made sure that the masses (and Kurosawa) were appeased. They were. (Kurosawa reportedly rewarded Sturges with a samurai sword.)

Sure, there are a few differences between Seven Samurai and The Magnificent Seven, but it doesn't matter much. All that matters is that Sturges gets the viewer's attention and keeps a hold on it until the very end.

Saying The Magnificent Seven is one of the best Westerns out there is barely scratching the surface. There are just so many aspects about it that make it work. My personal favorites are the ensemble cast and Elmer Bernstein's score. Who doesn't like either one of the two, or even the movie for that matter?

My Rating: *****

Talk to Her

2012-01-03T23:14:00.000-05:00

What is it about foreign films that has them capturing emotions and feelings better than American films? It's something that makes them stand out.

I was familiar with Pedro Almodovar's work, but hadn't seen any of it. At least until the mesmerizing Talk to Her entered my life. I really had no idea what I was in for.

What I got was a very hypnotic tale of love and obsession. Not many films can cover topics like that with ease. The only two I know of are Alfred Hitchcock's Vertigo and Johnathan Glazer's Birth.

Like Hitchcock before him (and Glazer later on), Almodovar shows how love and obsession actually go hand in hand. One doesn't just fall in love; there are many different aspects to being in love. It isn't just the heart involved but also the mind.

Talk to Her is one of the best foreign films ever made. It's as spellbinding as it is heartbreaking. It never lands on a false note at any point. As of now, I have a preconceived notion that seeking Almodovar is in my future.

My Rating: *****

Include Me Out

2012-01-02T22:40:00.001-05:00

When most memoirs are published, they're usually those written by some of the biggest and/or more recognizable names in the business. Of course, the lesser known (but equally talented) names get published too.

One such name is Farley Granger. He is best known for the two movies he did with Alfred Hitchcock, Strangers on a Train and Rope. Granger isn't as known by many today because his true calling was on the stage rather than the screen, silver or small. He passed away last year but like his career, it got overlooked by many. (He died just days after Elizabeth Taylor.)

Granger wasn't particularly fond of the spotlight when he was still in Hollywood, but that didn't stop him from writing Include Me Out, his 2007 memoir. Not much was known about his personal life prior to the publication.

Like many actors of the time, Granger speaks of his discontent of Samuel Goldwyn's treatment of him. (However, Granger isn't too bitter; the title is one of Goldwyn's sayings.) He also speaks of his many productions, both screen and stage, and his meetings of some of entertainment's most talented names. (He also recollects the highly tumultuous friendship he had with Shelley Winters.)

Include Me Out contains some of the best descriptions I've read. Granger speaks of his ability to remember all of his lines if not the whole script. The same ability was used when he speaks of his experience making Senso (which, in my opinion, contains his best work as an actor). He repeats sometimes in his writing, though Granger shows that he had one hell of a life.

My Rating: ****1/2

BOOK VS MOVIE: To Kill a Mockingbird

2012-01-01T21:28:00.000-05:00

With the releases of Harper Lee's sole novel To Kill a Mockingbird and Robert Mulligan's film, they raised questions about one's beliefs towards race. Also bear in mind both were released at the beginning of the civil rights movement.

The fact that it's told from a child's point of view gives the audience a sense of naivete. Scout, the narrator, is as unclear of the many events in Maycomb as much as the audience. Apart from the folklore surrounding him, no one knows much about Boo Radley. Scout, as well as us, barely knows of the case her father Atticus is defending in until the actual trial.

That's what makes Lee's writing so effective. We learn of major points in the story when Scout learns of them. And if you're wondering about the significance of the title, Atticus mentions that "it's a sin to kill a mockingbird." (Mockingbirds are mentioned as symbolism for innocence.)

Mulligan's film is just as great as Lee's novel. There are only a few minor changes, but Horton Foote's script stays true to what Lee originally wrote. You just can't imagine anyone else but Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch. Seriously, you just can't.

Now comes the challenge of choosing which is better. It's really hard to say, even with a metaphorical gun to my head. In all honesty, I just can't. Both the novel and the film have their own certain qualities, hence the challenge.

What's worth checking out?: I'd go with both.

Run Silent, Run Deep

2011-12-31T22:48:00.001-05:00

A common theme in some war movies is that of revenge. Mostly if one of the characters lost something dear to them in battle, like a ship, a plane or a close friend.

In the case of Cmdr. Richardson (Clark Gable) in Robert Wise's Run Silent, Run Deep, he wants revenge on the Japanese who sank his submarine and several others. The thought of revenge almost consumes him.

Lt. Bledsoe (Burt Lancaster) and the rest of the crew notice Richardson's eccentricities. Richardson's behavior can't exactly be compared to that of Capt. Queeg in The Caine Mutiny or Capt. Powell in Mister Roberts, but tints of Capt. Ahab are present.

The contrasting acting styles of Gable and Lancaster is an interesting touch. Both have a natural style of acting, but Lancaster's style has more power within it. Since I consider both personal favorites, it's hard to say which of the two gave the better performance though Gable has an experienced edge for the role.

Run Silent, Run Deep is a really great movie. Wise captures the right balance of suspense, as well as actors at the top of their game. Considering this was released during the somewhat busy year of 1958, it's safe to say that it is an underrated entry of the year. It also means you should really check it out.

My Rating: *****

The Pink Panther

2011-12-30T23:37:00.000-05:00

Since his passing last year, I managed to catch up on Blake Edwards' work. This year alone, I saw Operation Petticoat, Victor Victoria and Breakfast at Tiffany's.

I also saw what is considered Edwards' best known comedy: The Pink Panther. I wouldn't generally say that it's his best comedy, period. (That probably goes to Victor Victoria.)

The cast for The Pink Panther is recognizable by my standards. It stars David Niven, Capucine, Claudia Cardinale, Robert Wagner, and, of course, Peter Sellers. No surprise that Sellers is the focal point here, but he did have more leeway than the others.

And knowing Edwards' sense of humor, I knew what to expect. Basically it involves a somewhat silly concept getting blown out of proportion. Look, after a while, you start picking up small things.

To sum things up, The Pink Panther is entertaining but it gets too silly in parts. Also, the movie starts losing steam when Sellers isn't on screen. But if you need something to watch as a means of relaxing, The Pink Panther is the way to go.

My Rating: ****

Auntie Mame

2011-12-29T23:05:00.000-05:00

In most movies, the characters that are full of life are usually the supporting roles. Not that common with lead characters.

Well, except Rosalind Russell's Mame Dennis in Auntie Mame. She has more life in one finger than most people do in their whole bodies. Who wouldn't want to meet a person like Mame?

Of course, the fun doesn't last for very long, what with becoming the guardian of her nephew. Sure, she manages to squeeze in time for herself, but all of her attention is focused on him. (Okay, so her first of schooling for him wasn't the greatest, but you can't blame her for trying.)

You've got to admire the fact that Mame is trying her best. Most people in her situation would've given up. Not Mame. With all that life in her, she has to prove her status in the working society.

Auntie Mame is a really entertaining movie. Yes, it gets silly in some parts, but that's what makes it more fun. The gowns by Orry-Kelly are just gorgeous, and Russell's performance is still lively even after all these years. (The movie also shows a great way to get rid of pesky future in-laws.)

My Rating: ****1/2

Black Orpheus

2011-12-28T23:04:00.000-05:00

Amid the chaos of festivities, one can find their own form of activity. Such is the case with Marcel Camus' Black Orpheus.

Set in Rio de Janiero during Carnival, Black Orpheus chronicles a romance that was doomed from the very beginning. A few films depict such an affair and do it successfully. Black Orpheus is one of them.

Black Orpheus is based on a Greek myth. I myself hadn't heard of the myth but after seeing what Camus presented, I realized how great of a myth it is.

It's the small details of Black Orpheus that work. My favorite aspects were the music and the gorgeous cinematography, as well as the vivid and vibrant colors. Hey, if you don't think so, watch it for yourself.

Black Orpheus is a fantastic film. The story gets a little disoriented, but no matter. Just soak in everything Camus has to offer. I will add this though: this is only for the true film aficionados.

My Rating: ****1/2

Birth

2011-12-27T19:25:00.001-05:00

I've rarely seen a film as hypnotic as Jonathan Glazer's Birth. There hasn't been a film that captivates as well as Birth.

Many elements of the film could be allusions to Alfred Hitchcock's Vertigo. After all, both films revolve around the longing of someone who has passed on. Also in both films, the supporting characters are appalled at the actions and beliefs of the lead character.

In Birth, the lead character is Anna. She is played by Nicole Kidman, perhaps one of the finest actresses working today. As Anna, she delivers possibly the performance of her career. Many of her emotions are conveyed with not her words but her expressions. One lingering shot of her at a concert solidifies this concept.

The main star of Birth is not Kidman, nor is it Danny Huston or Lauren Bacall. It is Cameron Bright, whose eerie presence is felt when he's not on screen. Bright's performance is probably one of the few examples of where the work from a child actor is neither annoying or irrelevant to the plot.

Birth is one of the most neglected films I have ever seen. Everything about it is so nuanced yet so mesmerizing. It sucks you in and never lets go until the end credits start to roll. It's just that good.

My Rating: *****

My Cousin Rachel

2011-12-26T22:34:00.000-05:00

Henry Koster's My Cousin Rachel is different from most costume dramas of the time. Rather than focusing on a romance of some sort, it's a fine thriller.

In a sense, My Cousin Rachel is sort of a reversed Jane Eyre. It focuses on a mysterious person and another person who falls madly in love with them. Just keep that in mind as you watch it.

In his first Hollywood production, Richard Burton makes one hell of an impact. As Philip Ashley, he showcases a bravura that can be manipulated by the right kind of person. His performance is also the foundation of many great performances to come.

As the title character of Rachel Sangalletti, Olivia de Havilland possesses a side of her acting ability that no one had seen before My Cousin Rachel. de Havilland at that time was known for playing the good girl. Here, she's in a darker role. And I must say, it's a great one.

My Cousin Rachel is a great movie. It starts off rather slow, but it picks up just as quickly. Burton and de Havilland give some of their best performances within this film. And to think this is was made by the same man responsible for Harvey.

My Rating: ****1/2

The Holiday

2011-12-25T18:45:00.000-05:00

I always love it when I see a movie I originally thought I wouldn't like and I end up really liking it. (Not usually to the point of loving it.) Who doesn't love surprises?

This is the case with Nancy Meyers' The Holiday. From the fragments I saw, I figured it would be the usual tasteless romantic comedy. What I got instead was a movie that was really, really cute.

Among the actors in The Holiday are Cameron Diaz, Kate Winslet, Jude Law and Jack Black (and Eli Wallach in an awesome supporting role). Diaz and Black I normally like in very small doses, but I did like them in The Holiday. I liked Black more because he was more dorky than loud as he usually is.

This was a nice transition for Winslet and Law. Both did a number of serious movies prior to The Holiday, so seeing them each do a light comedic role is a subtle touch. Their work here proved they are more versatile than originally perceived. (That, and Law is freaking adorable here.)

The Holiday, as stated, is a very cute movie. My main complaint is that the script focused too much on Diaz and Law, and not enough on Winslet and Black. All in all, I liked it more than I thought I would.

My Rating: ****

Love Actually

2011-12-24T23:02:00.000-05:00

"Love is all you need.." So goes the song, but is it true? Is love all you need? Richard Curtis' Love Actually proves that yes, it is.

Set in England in the weeks leading up to Christmas Eve, Love Actually chronicles how one searching for love can find it. Either it can involve a lot of searching or, in the case of many of the characters, the love of your life is right in front of you. (Being single myself, I rather have the second option.)

Curtis, whose most notable credit prior to Love Actually was writing Four Weddings and a Funeral, provides a certain charm within the characters and dialogue. It's not heavily British as you might think. In fact, it could be made set somewhere in the United States and it would still work (though I would advise against such a remake).

There are many notable names in Love Actually, British and American, Oscar winners and Oscar nominees. Of the stories in the movie, my favorites were those on Colin Firth, Hugh Grant, Laura Linney and Martin Freeman. (I also liked the Liam Neeson story, but it feels tragically ironic now.)

Love Actually just works on so many levels. It's not contrived like many other modern romantic comedies; it's clever. I love the work from all of the actors. My only complaint is that it didn't focus enough on some of the characters. Boy, was I missing out.

My Rating: ****1/2

Knock on Any Door

2011-12-23T23:14:00.000-05:00

Nicholas Ray, in a lesser style to that of Billy Wilder, captured an air of cynicism in his films. Yes, some of his films would take an uplifting turn. but then they would soon turn into something more of a nightmare than a dream.

Such is the case with Ray's sophomore effort Knock on Any Door. Lawyer Andrew Morton (Humphrey Bogart) is faced with the task of proving his client Nick Romano (John Derek), who is charged with killing a police officer, innocent.

Morton claims that Romano wasn't given a chance at having a life of his own. Living in the slums made Romano turn to a life of crime. But did it persuade him to murder?

Much like Gloria Grahame's Laurel Gray in In a Lonely Place, Morton is suspicious of Romano regardless of what Romano said. Did he actually pull the trigger? Or was there some dark urge boiling within him? It's a question that continually surfaces as the movie progresses.

Knock on Any Door is a pretty Ray movie, exploring many themes he would develop in the next decade. Bogart gives an effective performance, as does Derek. The problem with the movie is that the script doesn't generally hold up. If it did, Knock on Any Door would probably be ranked among In a Lonely Place, Rebel Without a Cause and Bigger Than Life. In all honesty, this is for the true Nicholas Ray devotees.

My Rating: ****

Midnight in Paris

2011-12-22T18:45:00.000-05:00

Woody Allen has always brought out the magic in his movies, especially with The Purple Rose of Cairo. In recent years, some of his entries lacked that magic. His newest movie Midnight in Paris brought the magic back and then some.

The first four minutes of Midnight in Paris shows shot of the City of Lights, which is reminiscent of the opening moments of Manhattan. You have to admire Allen for paying homage to his own work. Only he can display the glamour of a city without overdoing it.

Our protagonist Gil is played by Owen Wilson, who I considered one of two actors that perfectly captures the Woody Allen persona apart from Allen himself. (The other actor is John Cusack in Bullets Over Broadway.) Gil is clearly unsatisfied with how his life is going. He's constantly around people that you yourself wouldn't want to be stuck with at a party, including his fiancee. (They're at that stage that makes you wonder what made them fall in love in the first place.)

But then at midnight, Gil finds himself transported to his ideal location: Paris in the 1920's. Over several nights, he encounters prolific names of the lost generation. (Of the people Gil meets, my favorites were Corey Stoll's Ernest Hemingway and Adrien Brody's Salvador Dali.)

Much like The Purple Rose of Cairo, Midnight in Paris masterfully blends fantasy and reality. Almost immediately, I was swept up in the tale Allen had crafted. If you haven't seen one of this year's best...well, why haven't you?

My Rating: *****

The Last Tycoon

2011-12-21T19:53:00.000-05:00

Elia Kazan is always known for making making movies where the main character has society against him. Look at Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire. Look at Terry Malloy in On the Waterfront. Look at Philip Green in Gentleman's Agreement.

Also look at Monroe Stahr (Robert De Niro) in Kazan's swan song The Last Tycoon. Monroe is a movie producer, but recently he's losing interest in his work. He wants to focus less on his professional life and more on his personal life.

I admire Kazan going all out with the cast. Along with De Niro, the cast for The Last Tycoon includes Robert Mitchum, Ray Milland, Dana Andrews, Tony Curtis, Jeanne Moreau and Jack Nicholson. I'm not saying this because I like him more, but I think Curtis gave the better performance out of all these actors. He gives us what his role offers him, perhaps because he was a struggling actor like his character Rodriguez. (I love the one shot of Rodriguez as he sees a picture of his younger self hanging in Monroe's office, making him smile and remember his past.)

The Last Tycoon is based on F. Scott Fitzgerald's unfinished final novel. I'm not sure which parts were from Fitzgerald's mind and which from screenwriter Harold Pinter's, but I will say there are a lot of underdeveloped issues. It's just so many of the characters don't move forward.

All in all, The Last Tycoon is decent on many counts. Decent acting, decent direction, decent script. It could have been vastly improved, but what's presented is all right by most standards.

My Rating: ****

Day for Night

2011-12-20T15:19:00.000-05:00

There are many movies that revolve around the production of another movie. Such examples include Stanley Donen's Singin' in the Rain, Richard Rush's The Stunt Man, and Federico Fellini's 8 1/2.

Another example is Francois Truffaut's Day for Night. It chronicles the many (and I mean many) complications that happen on a movie set. Such problems could be an actor being stubborn, someone on the verge of a breakdown or a relationship blossoming (or ending) on the set. In Day for Night, all three of those examples happen.

Other scenes in Day for Night reminded me of real-life accounts of what happened on movie sets. The opening scene was almost like what happened on any Stanley Kubrick movie. An actress requiring her lines to be pasted all over the set reminded me of Marilyn Monroe and her line "Where's that bourbon?" in Some Like It Hot. A set hand's always present, always suspicious wife mirrors when Zsa Zsa Gabor was on the set of All About Eve as then-husband George Sanders filmed his scenes with Monroe.

That doesn't mean Truffaut is making fun of the world of film. In fact, he's paying tribute to it. (It is dedicated to Lillian and Dorothy Gish after all.) This was a man truly devoted to the craft he loved. Not many people have such devotion.

Day for Night is one of the most insightful glimpses of movie production. Truffaut doesn't mock any of the characters but rather shows them as conflicted people. Definitely worth a look.

My Rating: *****

The Barefoot Contessa

2011-12-19T22:29:00.000-05:00

Tales of Hollywood became more popular during the 1950's, appropriately when big names had become disillusioned by the studio system. Can you blame them? They practically sell their souls to a studio for seven years (or however long their contract is).

By the late 1940's and early 1950's, Humphrey Bogart appeared in movies where his characters were more world weary than tough. In The Barefoot Contessa, he stars as a writer-director whose attitude could be matched to that of Joe Gillis. (William Holden in Sunset Boulevard to those that don't know who the hell I'm talking about.) However, under the cynical exterior, he possesses a caring heart. (Corny, I know, but it's true.)

Ava Gardner co-stars as the unknown nightclub singer turned Hollywood star. Once she becomes famous, it's clear she has no interest in what Hollywood has to offer (in a similar vein to Gardner herself). She doesn't let the bright lights of Hollywood blind her from remembering her roots.

Along with Bogart and Gardner, another actor that stood out was Edmond O'Brien. He plays a publicity agent who's not as ruthless but just as effective as Sidney Falco. (Tony Curtis in Sweet Smell of Success to those that don't know who the hell I'm talking about.) O'Brien is good, but I don't think he deserved the Oscar. (It should have gone to Karl Malden or Lee J. Cobb.)

The Barefoot Contessa is good, though the story goes off track a bit. I particularly liked the work from Bogart, Gardner and O'Brien. If you want a movie that's anti-Hollywood but not as cynical as Sunset Boulevard, look no further.

My Rating: ****

Jane Eyre

2011-12-18T23:11:00.000-05:00

Cary Fukunaga's take of Charlotte Bronte's novel Jane Eyre was different than I thought it would be. I had a preconceived notion of sorts that it would be the typical costume drama we get every year. In reality, it was a step up from what the studios usually make, but just barely.

Mia Wasikowska, whom I'm more familiar with from The Kids Are All Right, stars in the title role. As much as tried, I couldn't shake the feeling that she was miscast. She felt too modern to be a period piece.

Michael Fassbender, however, feels right at home as the mysterious Mr. Rochester. In fact, he seems at ease in most of the movies he's in. (This is from someone who has four other movies of his this year alone.) Like the late, great Greta Garbo, Fassbender possesses an allure that makes people notice him. That, and also one hell of an acting ability.

Along with Fassbender's acting, two other aspects of Jane Eyre I loved were Dario Marianelli's score and Adriano Goldman's cinematography. Both of what Marianelli and Goldman contributed to the film add much to it. I think the film would have been missing something had the score and cinematography not been as effective as they were.

As stated before, I had a few problems with Jane Eyre. I will say it's one of the better titles of the year, but it could have been improved. But still, it's worth a look.

My Rating: ****

Camille

2011-12-17T22:43:00.000-05:00

I always manage to neglect watching certain actors. A poor excuse, I know, but I can't help it. There are too many out there I want to discover.

One of the more glaring entries until now was Greta Garbo. I wanted to that mysterious allure of hers in action, but I kept putting it off. Was it because I couldn't find an appropriate film to watch her in that best shows her allure? Or was it because I just couldn't handle the beauty she possessed? It's one or the other, and I have no idea as to which.

Another actor I unintentionally shirked off from watching was Robert Taylor. Knowing him mainly as Barbara Stanwyck's ex-husband, I read several comments on him that he had a certain charm to him. As with the case for other actors, I had a feeling that Taylor's looks and charm would go together hand in hand.

I finally saw both of them in action in the form of George Cukor's Camille. To my surprise, the personalities of Garbo and Taylor work wonderfully. Garbo's passion for the high life and Taylor's passion for her compliment each other. (In a way, they reminded me of Holly and Paul in Breakfast at Tiffany's.)

Camille is probably one of the few love stories that doesn't feel contrived. It could told even by today's rules, and it could still work. (Like I said, it reminded me of Breakfast at Tiffany's.) The costumes designed by Adrian are absolutely gorgeous, as with the work from Garbo and Taylor. I won't say anything else about Camille for I want others to watch it.

My Rating: *****

The Leopard

2011-12-16T19:38:00.000-05:00

I'm not much on foreign films in all honesty. It's mostly because I want to, you know, watch a movie, not go through the hassle of reading subtitles as well. Mind you, it also depends on the film's quality.

Usually when I do finally see a foreign film, it's usually made by one of three directors I like: Federico Fellini, Akira Kurosawa or Luchino Visconti. In this case, I saw Visconti's The Leopard. It intrigued me because two of its main stars weren't Italian; one was American (Burt Lancaster), the other French (Alain Delon). This doesn't mean I'm viewing it as a bad thing. In fact, The Leopard contains some of their best work.

Lancaster's work here reminded me that of his work in Atlantic City. Both films have his characters witnessing change in a society they knew by heart, their statuses slowly becoming meaningless. Once towering figures now shifting to a lesser role. Also with both roles, you can see the wear and tear the changes have made on them just by looking at their faces.

Knowing Visconti, I could sense his meticulous eye for detail would be used here. Boy, is it ever. The ball scene alone will make your eyes dazzle. (Such care in details can also be seen in Senso.) The plot is interesting because it doesn't particularly focus on one topic. No matter. Just bask in what Visconti has to offer.

The Leopard has to be one of the most gorgeously shot films made. That is thanks to cinematographer Giuseppe Rotunno. In fact, everything in The Leopard is to die for. The acting, Visconti's direction and eye for detail, Rotunno's cinematography, Nino Rota's score...everything. If you don't believe me, see it for yourself.

My Rating: *****

Wuthering Heights

2011-12-15T23:28:00.000-05:00

Edward Fairfax Rochester, Fitzwilliam Darcy, Heathcliff...the similarities between these three literary characters? All are considered Byronic heroes, meaning they have certain traits that would rub people the wrong way. Yet women find these traits irresistible. (Confession: I'm one of those women.)

Another woman that can't avoid those traits is Cathy Earnshaw (Merle Oberon) in William Wyler's take on Emily Bronte's novel Wuthering Heights. The man in question is Heathcliff (Laurence Olivier). They're madly in love, but Cathy is reluctant at the thought of marriage. She cringes at the thought of being married to a stable boy.

That doesn't make Heathcliff fall out of love with her. He wants Cathy to love him for who he is, not hate him for what he isn't. Unfortunately for Heathcliff, that is what drives Cathy away from him.

I haven't read Bronte's novel but from what I've heard, Wyler stays mostly true to the novel. I say mostly because the film covers barely half of the novel, and a few pivotal characters are omitted. But what's left is a romance story for the ages.

I just loved the work from Olivier and Oberon, as well as Gregg Toland's Oscar-winning cinematography. It's the simplest of touches that counts. (Side note: am I the only one who thinks the score is a few notes off from sounding like the Gone with the Wind score?)

My Rating: *****

Golden Globe Nominations

2011-12-15T11:10:00.001-05:00

An improvement from the SAG nominations yesterday, but not by much. Underlined means my prediction.

BEST PICTURE, DRAMA

The Descendants

The Help

Hugo

The Ides of March

Moneyball

War Horse

BEST PICTURE, MUSICAL OR COMEDY

50/50

The Artist
Bridesmaids

Midnight in Paris

My Week with Marilyn

BEST DIRECTOR
Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris
George Clooney, The Ides of March
Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist
Alexander Payne, The Descendants
Martin Scorsese, Hugo

BEST ACTOR, DRAMA
George Clooney, The Descendants
Leonardo DiCaprio, J. Edgar
Michael Fassbender, Shame
Ryan Gosling, The Ides of March
Brad Pitt, Moneyball

BEST ACTRESS, DRAMA
Glenn Close, Albert Nobbs
Viola Davis, The Help
Rooney Mara, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady
Tilda Swinton, We Need to Talk About Kevin

BEST ACTOR, COMEDY OF MUSICAL
Jean Dujardin, The Artist
Brendan Gleeson, The Guard
Joseph Gordon-Levitt, 50/50
Ryan Gosling, Crazy Stupid Love
Owen Wilson, Midnight in Paris

BEST ACTRESS, COMEDY OR MUSICAL
Jodie Foster, Carnage
Charlize Theron, Young Adult
Kristen Wiig, Bridesmaids
Michelle Williams, My Week with Marilyn
Kate Winslet, Carnage

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Kenneth Branagh, My Week with Marilyn
Albert Brooks, Drive
Jonah Hill, Moneyball
Viggo Mortensen, A Dangerous Method
Christopher Plummer, Beginners

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Berenice Bejo, The Artist
Jessica Chastain, The Help
Janet McTeer, Albert Nobbs
Octavia Spencer, The Help
Shailene Woodley, The Descendants

BEST SCREENPLAY
The Artist
The Descendants
The Ides of March
Midnight in Paris
Moneyball

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
The Adventures of Tintin
Arthur Christmas
Cars 2
Puss in Boots
Rango

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
The Flowers of War
In the Land of Blood and Honey
The Kid with the Bike
A Separation
The Skin I Live In

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
The Artist
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
War Horse
W.E.

BEST ORIGINAL SONG
"Lay Your Head Down", Albert Nobbs
"Hello Hello", Gnomeo and Juliet
"The Living Proof", The Help
"The Keeper", Machine Gun Preacher
"Masterpiece", W.E.

What are your predictions?

Gaslight

2011-12-14T19:55:00.000-05:00

There's one shot in George Cukor's Gaslight that I feel I must point out. Confronted by her husband Gregory (Charles Boyer), the lighting on Paula's (Ingrid Bergman) face shows her weariness from her constant persecutions of her husband. It emphasizes the dark circles under her eyes, a nice touch from cinematographer Joseph Ruttenberg.

Paula was tormented long before this scene. She lives in the house where her aunt was murdered. The event haunts her for much of Gaslight. But there's more that torments Paula's mind.

It's clear Gregory is hiding something from Paula, but what? When he's hiring Nancy (Angela Lansbury) as a maid, he's quite friendly to her as well as in later scenes. Could he be attracted to her? After all, Nancy is shown to be a lively girl. (The fact Paula doesn't like could be another reason.)

Enter Brian Cameron (Joseph Cotten), a police officer who becomes transfixed by Paula's beauty. (Not to the point of obsession, mind you.) He also becomes transfixed by her marriage to Gregory. They appear to be a loving couple, but it's a whole different story behind closed doors.

Gaslight is a great movie. The work from Bergman, Boyer, Cotten and Lansbury is great, especially Bergman. She slowly falls into the depths of insanity, a daring task both then and now. It's something that has to be seen to be believed.

My Rating: *****

SAG Nominations

2011-12-14T09:36:00.002-05:00

It's that time of year again. Below are who's nominated; underlined means my prediction.

BEST ENSEMBLE
The Artist
Bridesmaids (really?)
The Descendants
The Help
Midnight in Paris

BEST ACTOR
Demián Bichir – A Better Life

Jean Dujardin – The Artist
George Clooney – The Descendants
Leonardo DiCaprio – J. Edgar
Brad Pitt - Moneyball

BEST ACTRESS

Glenn Close - Albert Nobbs

Viola Davis - The Help

Meryl Streep - The Iron Lady

Michelle Williams - My Week with Marilyn

Tilda Swinton - We Need To Talk About Kevin

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Christopher Plummer - Beginners

Armie Hammer - J. Edgar

Kenneth Branagh - My Week with Marilyn

Jonah Hill - Moneyball

Nick Nolte - Warrior

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Janet McTeer - Albert Nobbs

Bérénice Bejo - The Artist

Melissa McCarthy - Bridesmaids

Jessica Chastain - The Help

Octavia Spencer - The Help

What are your predictions?

The Believer

2011-12-13T23:08:00.000-05:00

What causes someone to fall into an unsavory group? Peer pressure? Their own decision? Either way, their choices can shock those closest to them.

Danny Balint (Ryan Gosling) expresses his hate towards people of Jewish faith quite openly. But there's something about him that could get him killed by his colleagues. What is it? Danny is Jewish himself.

As The Believer wears on, you can tell Danny is getting pangs of conscience. He wants to despise his religion, but he can't bring himself to do so entirely. One powerful scene is where he performs a combination of the Nazi salute and Jewish prayer. The scene shows the type of conflict Danny is facing.

Danny is in a similar vein with Derek Vinyard in American History X. Both have strong prejudices, however we get a more in-depth look from Danny. Derek is already a reformed man when we first see him in the present day. (It's in the flashbacks we see his evil side.) With Danny, the seeds of his evil being planted are what we see in the flashbacks.

The Believer is quite good, but I think it wouldn't have done as well had it not had a daring actor like Gosling. The script is good, though it has its faults. To sum things up, it's worth a look.

My Rating: ****

In the Name of the Father

2011-12-12T18:15:00.000-05:00

Wrongful convictions is one thing in our society that never ceases to provoke me. It shows how misinformed the legal system can be.

Jim Sheridan's In the Name of the Father shows one of the best example of a miscarriage of justice. Set during the 1970's in Belfast, it displays the many hardships of the time. Hey, no one said life in the 1970's was pleasant.

The main driving force of In the Name of the Father is in the form of Daniel Day-Lewis. He appears confident and sure of himself early on, but you can clearly notice the scared look on his face throughout. This is also one of Day-Lewis' best performances. (Then again, does he ever have a bad performance?)

Another great performance comes from Pete Postlethwaite, a fine actor who sadly passed away earlier this year. He was always a bit of a scene stealer (as shown in his penultimate film The Town), and such is the case with In the Name of the Father. He tries to re-connect with Day-Lewis, trying to salvage the father-son relationship they once had. It's a heartbreaking performance from him. (It's also another reason for why I hold a grudge at Tommy Lee Jones for winning Supporting Actor that year.)

In the Name of the Father is a great movie, but the pacing bothered me a bit. It was like it was slow, then it sped up, and then it slowed down again. Bothersome, but thankfully the work from Day-Lewis and Postlethwaite managed to have me overlook that irksome detail. All in all, worth a look.

My Rating: ****1/2

Singin' in the Rain

2011-12-11T09:46:00.001-05:00

Before any of you give me a hard time, I have seen Singin' in the Rain before. However, this was years ago and long before I became dedicated to movies. Anyway, onward with the review.

Singin' in the Rain is named one of the best musicals ever made. And this was a movie made when studios were cranking out musicals every week. What makes Singin' in the Rain still remembered nearly sixty years later is that it doesn't depend solely on the musical numbers. It also relies on the characters and their development.

Of course with musicals, everyone has their favorite numbers. For me, my favorites are "Make 'Em Laugh", "Moses Supposes", "Good Morning", and, of course, "Singin' in the Rain". You didn't think I could pick just one, did you?

By all accounts, making Singin' in the Rain was no bed of roses. After shooting the "Make 'Em Laugh" number, Donald O'Connor suffered from exhaustion and carpet burns, and was in bed for a week. (Can you imagine his response to having to shoot that number again after the initial footage was accidentally destroyed?) Debbie Reynolds said making Singin' in the Rain was one of the two hardest things she's ever had to do. (The other thing was childbirth.) And the most famous complication was Gene Kelly shooting the "Singin' in the Rain" number with a temperature of 103. When you take into account all the turmoil the three leads went through, it makes the final result an ultimate payoff.

It's movies like Singin' in the Rain that show why I'm so in love with them in the first place. What better way to forget your troubles than by watching a movie? In closing, I think Singin' in the Rain is now among my favorites. Scratch that. It is now among my favorites.

My Rating: *****

Seven Days in May

2011-12-10T18:49:00.000-05:00

In the aftermath of JFK's assassination, a new genre sprung up within the media: the political thriller. They became immensely popular during the 1960's, and still remain so to this day.

One of the few geniuses of this genre was John Frankenheimer. After all, his magnum opus is The Manchurian Candidate, made just a year before (and shares startlingly similar aspects with) JFK's assassination. He also made the excellent Seconds, whose main theme was trust no one. Between those two, Frankenheimer made Seven Days in May.

Seven Days in May was released in 1964, the same year as Dr. Strangelove and Fail-Safe. In those three films, JFK's assassination and the Cold War could still be felt. They're felt the most in Seven Days in May, mainly how our own government was close to having similar events as in the film.

There are many aspects of Seven Days in May that make it excellent. Naturally Frankenheimer's direction, but also the performances. Both Fredric March's President Jordan Lyman and Kirk Douglas' Col. Martin "Jiggs" Casey won't back down when the going gets rough. Burt Lancaster's Gen. James Mattoon Scott is ruthless and spews venom when he speaks. Ava Gardner's Ellie Holbrook is still healing from her past with Scott (they were former lovers), but that doesn't stop her from wanting revenge. The true star of Seven Days in May isn't March, Douglas, Lancaster or Gardner; it's Rod Serling's script. How the Academy failed to nominate it is beyond me.

Seven Days in May is still effective after all these years. To those that think otherwise, view it instead as a retrospective of 1960's politics. Nerves were frayed during those times, and Frakenheimer encased those feelings in his work.

My Rating: *****

Ikiru

2011-12-09T17:05:00.000-05:00

What would you do if your time on earth was to run out in a matter of time? Some would live their lives up in the little time they have. Others try to do something they'll be remembered for. In the case with Kanji Wantanabe (Takashi Shimura) in Akira Kurosawa's Ikiru, he does both.

Upon finding out of his stomach cancer, his life starts to spiral out of control. He tries to live up what's left of his life, but that doesn't fill the widening void within him. If you notice, he feels good when he makes someone else happy. That sets something off in his mind.

Wantanabe doesn't tell anyone of his cancer. Well, he tries to tell his son (he has a Mildred Pierce sort of relationship with him), but is shut out when he does almost speak up. In fact, Wantanabe is viewed with contempt by his relatives. Can you blame him for keeping his cancer secret because he didn't want to hurt anyone else?

The previous Kurosawa movies I saw (Seven Samurai, High and Low, Rashomon) all move at a fast pace. Not Ikiru. It moves at a pace slower than the rest. It might be a bother to some, but not to me. Plus, the slow pace gives us time to develop feelings for the characters.

In short, I loved Ikiru. It captures many emotions and feelings that so many movies try so hard to get. Also, if you don't feel anything from that shot of Wantanabe on the swing, don't even talk to me.

My Rating: *****

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

2011-12-08T23:02:00.000-05:00

With Westerns, there's always that certain theme running throughout. Most of the time, the theme involves the main character(s) and their morals.

Such is the case with John Ford's The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. When Ransom Stoddard (James Stewart) first arrives in the town of Shinbone, he's shocked at the lack of backbone against violent bandit Liberty Valance (Lee Marvin). Stoddard is fresh out of law school, so he's looking to have Valance thrown in jail.

The only person in Shinbone that's both for and against Stoddard's ideas is Tom Doniphon (John Wayne). He agrees that Valance needs to be put behind bars, but claims (as with the rest of Shinbone) that Valance is impossible to capture without a fight. Like that's going to stop Stoddard.

It's interesting with Stewart and Wayne cast alongside each other. For someone who has seen enough movies with each of them, they both have a different way of creating an understanding between them and others. With Stewart, he'll use talking and logic as a way to understand the heart of the matter. Is it the same with Wayne? Hell no. With him, it's either agree with him or get slugged.

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance shows how one's morals can either stay put or shift, especially when the going gets rough. Ford has done such a theme before, particularly in The Grapes of Wrath. Here, he has mastered the theme.

My Rating: *****

Dead Man

2011-12-07T19:00:00.000-05:00

The Western has been varied countless times. It can focus on characters more than action (Rio Bravo), action more than characters (The Wild Bunch) or both (Red River). Each time they manage to gain a new audience.

Jim Jarmusch's Dead Man isn't a Western in the strictest sense of the word, but rather a neo-Western. It's not set strictly in a dusty little town or the plains of the west, but rather in the wilderness of the west.

Our hero of Dead Man is William Blake (Johnny Depp), a bookish accountant from Cleveland (and not to be confused with the poet). Early on, it's clear he's unprepared for what is to happen with him. Once everything falls into place, Blake becomes one with the wild.

From his arrival in Machine to his trek in the wilderness, Blake encounters a motley group of characters. Of them, the ones that stood out the most for me were Alfred Molina's bigoted trader and Robert Mitchum's gun-toting businessman. I think it was mostly because both go by their own rules and question anyone that questions them. (That, and they're both badasses. Mitchum especially.)

Dead Man has many aspects I approve of. The acting, the cinematography, the script all work. The narrative, however, bugged me a bit. No matter. Jarmusch's direction kept Dead Man afloat.

My Rating: ****1/2

Rashomon

2011-12-06T23:20:00.001-05:00

Akira Kurosawa is one of the most prolific foreign film directors out there. For good reason too. He knew how to convey the many different personalities the human race has.

Rashomon, one of his most famous films, is one such example. Four people are involved in a crime, and all provide insights on the crime. Who is right about what has happened?

However, all four do agree on one aspect of the crime. The other aspect is what's up for debate. This is what makes Rashomon interesting. The film doesn't agree or disagree with any of their stories. It just rolls with them.

As with the personalities, Kurosawa showcases several of them: the (supposedly) honest working man, the damsel in distress, and the cocky troublemaker. Knowing Kurosawa, he blends these roles in to work wonders.

Rashomon is both one of the best foreign films and one of the most influential. After all, there are so many movies and TV episodes that owe a thank you to Kurosawa. One to miss? Think again.

My Rating: *****

American Prince

2011-12-05T19:26:00.000-05:00

When celebrities have their memoirs published, it allows their fans to learn more about them. (Well, at least the stuff they keep out of interviews.) Then there are the names whose personal lives were exploited for most of their careers.

One such name is Tony Curtis. Being more than aware of his reputation as a womanizer who spoke his mind often, I was more than a little reluctant to read his memoir American Prince, which was published a few years before his passing in 2010. I had a preconceived feeling that it would be nothing but sex and smut on every other page. But once I started reading, I realized that he had a complex sort of personality.

Curtis, like most other stars of the Golden Age, didn't exactly have the best of upbringings. He went from the slums of the Bronx to the bright lights of Hollywood thanks in part to his good looks. In a span of nearly sixty years, he appeared in over 100 movies.

He tells of his many antics on the set (he was the target of many pranks early in his career) and off (the occasional get together among Hollywood's elite). There are several moments in the book that could raise some eyebrows (apparently Marilyn Monroe did too good of a job during their intimate scene in Some Like It Hot), but it's all good.

American Prince is one of the most sincere memoirs out there, however I didn't like how Curtis blamed his ex-wives for their failed marriages. (Because of that, I'm now tempted to read Janet Leigh's memoirs to see what she had to say about their marriage.) The words glide across the pages as he remembers pivotal scenes of his life and career. (His description of his brother Julius' death just shattered my heart.) Definitely a must-read.

My Rating: ****1/2

Shame

2011-12-04T10:54:00.000-05:00

It's impossible to control one's demons if you're the only one who knows of them. Such is the case with Brandon (Michael Fassbender) in Steve McQueen's sophomore triumph Shame.

Brandon is addicted to something more physically debilitating than alcohol or any drug: sex. As the film progresses, you can see in his face that it's taking a toll on him. Matters only get worse when his younger sister Sissy (Carey Mulligan) shows up.

There are many long takes within Shame, much in the same vein as McQueen's previous film Hunger. There are also several shots of Brandon in pure silence. It's within those shots you wonder what's running through his tormented mind.

We never do find out what caused Brandon and Sissy to be who they are. Was it because of a traumatic event? Were they always like this? All we know is that they're in New York City to start over. (This makes Sissy's rendition of "New York, New York" in one scene all the more poignant.) By the end, we still know very little about them.

Don't turn away because of the rating. It's much more than sex. It's about raw and honest feelings. Think of it almost as McQueen's take on Last Tango in Paris. Fassbender is in a role so bold, daring and powerful that comparing it to Brando's role is practically an understatement. Mulligan possess much of the vulnerability and naivety as Schneider did. In short, fantastic performances, fantastic film.

My Rating: *****

Open Thread

2011-12-03T06:39:00.001-05:00

What's on your mind today?

The People vs. Larry Flynt

2011-12-02T17:44:00.000-05:00

Apparently freedom of expression is an oxymoron. For crying out loud, it's in the Constitution. Some freedom.

Such a feeling is expressed in Milos Forman's The People vs. Larry Flynt. If you couldn't tell by the title, it focuses on Hustler publisher Larry Flynt. Flynt is portrayed by Woody Harrelson, a fine actor in his own right. Harrelson, in a fantastic performance, shows the many plights Flynt encountered with his wife Althea (Courtney Love, really effective) and his lawyer Alan Isaacman (Edward Norton, always good).

After Flynt gets shot and paralyzed, he starts to slip into Howard Hughes territory, shown both in and out of the courtroom. But earlier, he shows he's competent. One scene in particular where Flynt gives a speech comparing sex to war. It's one hell of a speech.

The People vs. Larry Flynt reminded me of Bob's Fosse Lenny. Both are about two men who were game changers in regards with the First Amendment. (Larry Flynt with publishing his magazine, Lenny Bruce with his comedy.) Though in a sense, they never wanted to conform to the morals of their times.

The People vs. Larry Flynt shows how expressive one person can be. (Then again, this is directed by the same person who made One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. ) The performances were great, as was the script by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski. However, I thought it focused too much on some scenes and not enough on others. Still a damn fine film though.

My Rating: ****1/2

BOOK VS MOVIE: Sweet Bird of Youth

2011-12-01T23:13:00.000-05:00

Being the admirer of Tennessee Williams that I am, I have picked up on the many common roles in his plays: the woman on the brink of self-destruction, the young man striving to make a name for himself, and the small posse determined to keep everyone's morals intact.

These characters are showcased in Sweet Bird of Youth. All of them long to have their met, but of course that isn't always the case. Knowing Williams' sense of nihilism, he never goes for the happy ending. (Well, with the exception of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.)

With Sweet Bird of Youth, all of the characters long for the past. They want to find a way to remember their glory days, but it's no use. They also want their futures to contain tints of their pasts.

Richard Brooks' adaptation of Williams' play stars Paul Newman and Geraldine Page, both the stars of the original stage production. Both are at the top of their game here. Newman's Chance Wayne strives to be famous, Page's Alexandra Del Lago wants to be forgotten. Both are fantastic in their roles.

Of course knowing Hollywood from this time period, they demanded a happy ending. (The play's ending was much more violent.) However, comparing the two endings, I liked the movie's ending more. Also, apart from the ending change and an added scene or two, the movie's very true to the play.

What's worth checking out?: I'd go with the movie.

All That Heaven Allows

2011-11-30T19:28:00.000-05:00

In 2002, Todd Haynes released Far from Heaven. It was his tribute to director Douglas Sirk. The two movies of Sirk's that were influences on Far from Heaven were Imitation of Life and All That Heaven Allows.

All That Heaven Allows may have a trite plot (a widow in a love affair with a younger man) and a flimsy script, but Sirk has us look over these small details for the much grander ones of the film. It's a bold move, but Sirk has done it frequently in his career.

The grander details in question are what Sirk toys with constantly: lighting, color and framing. All three are applied to Cary (Jane Wyman) throughout. After her affair with Ron (Rock Hudson) starts, she goes from wearing dull shades to vivid colors. When the affair ends, she's shot in the shadows frequently. Also, she's framed in many objects (mirror, doorway, window pane) to show she's trapped to the conformities of her town.

All That Heaven Allows isn't just about a love affair that is frowned upon. It's about one's desire to break free of the hypocrisy they face from those closest to them. After all, haven't you had that desire?

My Rating: ****1/2

The Ox-Bow Incident

2011-11-29T19:30:00.000-05:00

In old movies especially, morals are questioned on a regular basis. At first, some decisions were smart. But after more facts come in, those decisions don't look as smart.

A situation like that is shown in William Wellman's The Ox-Bow Incident. In the aftermath of a shooting, the townspeople are searching for who did it. They're hungry for justice and spilled blood. When they find the men (Dana Andrews, Anthony Quinn, Francis Ford), the only voice of reason in the posse (Henry Fonda) tries to convince the others the men are innocent.

Of the actors, I particularly liked Fonda and Andrews. Fonda because he is always the ideal choice for the voice of reason. (Anyone who has seen 12 Angry Men can agree with me.) Andrews, an underrated actor of the time, because he conveys fear without overdoing it. The close-up of him as he's told of the crimes shows the amount of worry within him building up. (That extra beam of light across his eyes in that shot is a nice touch.) Both are great and should have earned some form of recognition.

The Ox-Bow Incident could be viewed as almost a Western version of 12 Angry Men, however the outcomes for both are vastly different. It may be far from the Hollywood ending most movies of the time had, but there's no denying that the ending for The Ox-Bow Incident is a memorable one.

My Rating: *****

Last Tango in Paris

2011-11-28T15:06:00.000-05:00

There are always those movies that get a slew of controversy upon their releases. Most of the time the controversy still lingers years later, but it manages to gloss over what the movie is actually about.

Such is the case with Bernado Bertolucci's Last Tango in Paris. It's infamous for its frank depiction of sex. (It's infamous for a few other things, but you know what those are.) In reality, the scenes of intimacy between Paul (Marlon Brando) and Jeanne (Maria Schneider) are mere backdrop to the real heart of the story.

Brando is frequently dubbed the greatest actor of all time (even if we can't hear what the hell he's saying most of the time), and Last Tango in Paris shows as to why. In comparison to some of his earlier roles, Paul could be viewed in a similar vein to Terry Malloy, someone who shuts himself out from what's going on around him. That's only for the first half. The second half showcases Paul as a more brutish Stanley Kowalski. Paul could be viewed as a blending of previous Brando roles but either way, he is from a different part of Brando's range of acting.

Brando's most powerful scene in Last Tango in Paris (and perhaps his best scene in general) is when Paul speaks to his deceased wife. It starts off like a normal conversation, but soon Paul's inner anger starts to boil to the surface. He furiously questions her on she killed herself before he falls apart and tearfully apologizes. A scene like this has been done countless times by numerous actors, resulting in them overdoing the scene. With Brando, he makes the scene his own.

Last Tango in Paris is not what it seems. It isn't an erotic vision in the vein of In the Realm of the Senses. It's a tale of loss and longing, and Bertolucci weaves this tale beautifully.

My Rating: *****

Johnny Guitar

2011-11-27T09:43:00.000-05:00

The best thing about Nicholas Ray is that he takes genres that are immensely popular and turns them around on their heads. Bigger Than Life made social dramas of the 1950's look like bad soap operas. In a Lonely Place and They Live By Night added new perspectives to film noir.

Like Howard Hawks' Rio Bravo five years later, Ray's Johnny Guitar shone a new light onto the Western. Both focus on the principle characters more than the action. Both have characters that capture the audience's attention. Both are made for those not that into Westerns, like yours truly.

What makes Johnny Guitar unique is its use of role reversals. The bandits are actually good guys, the townspeople are villains, and the women wear the pants in this show. After all, we learn early on that Vienna (Joan Crawford) and Emma (Mercedes McCambridge) are two dames you shouldn't cross.

God, I love what Ray has offered me so far. Rebel Without a Cause, In a Lonely Place, Bigger Than Life, They Live By Night, and now Johnny Guitar. What I like about them the most is that they're unconventional from other movies of the time. That is also why I love Ray in general.

My Rating: *****

Medium Cool

2011-11-26T19:30:00.000-05:00

1968 was a hell of a year. There were countless riots because of the Vietnam War, as well as civil rights. The biggest news of the year were the assassinations of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Robert Kennedy. Many books and movies were inspired by the events of 1968.

One such movie is Haskell Wexler's Medium Cool. Wexler, better known for his cinematography in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, presents the events of 1968 not as a focal point but as a minor detail to the story he wrote and directed. (And, yes, did the cinematography for.)

Robert Forster, more familiar to today's audiences from his Oscar-nominated turn in Jackie Brown, I particularly liked here. He works for a Chicago news station, but isn't interested in most of the stories he covers. He's more into the human interest stories than the ones on politics. This is why RFK's assassination is treated as something unimportant in the story.

Medium Cool is a very well done movie. It's not a political thriller in the vein of The Manchurian Candidate but rather as a retrospective of the 1960's. I admire that a majority of the movie is shot in documentary-style, which adds to how hectic the time period was.

My Rating: ****1/2

Crossfire

2011-11-25T19:43:00.000-05:00

During the late 1940's, anti-Semitism was unfortunately on the rise in the United States. Even after what happened earlier in the decade in Germany, there was still much discrimination towards people of Jewish faith.

Hollywood took note of it. In 1947 alone, Gentleman's Agreement and Crossfire were released. The plots for both were different, but both were strictly focused on anti-Semitism. Gentleman's Agreement was about a man posing as Jewish; Crossfire was about a man who was murdered because he was Jewish.

Crossfire is based on a book written by Richard Brooks (later famous for directing such movies as Elmer Gantry and In Cold Blood), however there was one major difference between the book and Edward Dmytryk's movie. The murder victim in the movie is Jewish; in the book, he was a homosexual. (It was changed to appease the censors.) Either way, both could make someone an immediate target of a hate crime.

Crossfire is quite good. I particularly liked the work by Robert Mitchum, Robert Ryan and Gloria Grahame, all familiar faces to film noir. However, the flow of the narrative is a little flawed throughout, but that doesn't stop me from recommending it.

My Rating: ****1/2

Hugo

2011-11-24T17:31:00.000-05:00

With all of the recent family friendly movies being released, it's hard to find one right for the whole family. So naturally it would be surprising that the best came from the least likely of names in the field: Martin Scorsese.

Surprising as that may sound, Scorsese captures what many movies in the same spectrum try so hard to contain: the wonder seen through a child's eyes. So many directors have tried to achieve that feat. Only a few have succeeded.

Hugo has to be Scorsese's most personal entry. What other contribution of his to the world of film conveys his love of film? This is more than just a movie for kids. This is a movie made for those who are as deeply devoted to the early years of film as much as Scorsese is.

Hugo is one of this year's best. Scorsese can do no wrong here. (Then again, when doesn't he?) He masterfully blends fantasy and realism within each scene. Also, if you're going to watch this (which you should), see it in 3D. It will enhance your viewing experience to a new level.

My Rating: *****

Barton Fink

2011-11-23T23:01:00.000-05:00

Joel and Ethan Coen are one of the most compelling duos in the film industry. Their movies are different from others'. I don't mean that in a bad sense; it shows their work is memorable.

Barton Fink depicts the life that was 1941 Los Angeles, which by all accounts wasn't as glamorous as it was cracked up to be. Around that time, established writers and playwrights were being commissioned by studios, and were disappointed by the Hollywood treatment. They thought they would be getting more out of what they were being paid.

John Turturro, a frequently underused actor, stars in the title role of the Clifford Odets doppelganger. Through his bouts of writers' block while cooped up in a Los Angeles hotel, he encounters a mysterious salesman (a villainous John Goodman).

Barton Fink conveys the many themes of the Coen brothers, however it's much darker than some of their other work. The performances by Turturro and Goodman are great. To those wanting a glimpse of Hell on earth, you'll find it in the form of Barton Fink.

My Rating: ****1/2

Eyes Without a Face

2011-11-22T18:45:00.000-05:00

After seeing Diabolique, I knew the French mean business when it came to horror movies. I realized that even more after seeing Eyes Without a Face.

Any movie that contains surgery scenes will always have me turning away. It doesn't help much that Eyes Without a Face has a segment where demented Dr. Genessier (Pierre Brasseur) and his even more demented nurse Louise (Alida Valli) remove a girl's face in one piece. (Can you say "gross"?) All of that to repair the face of Genessier's daughter Christiane (Edith Scob). Isn't that sweet?

Of course, there are the small details of Eyes Without a Face that make it even more horrifying. There's Georges Franju's direction, which could be compared to Hitchcock or Clouzot. And that score by Maurice Jarre (more famous for Lawrence of Arabia). It sent chills up my spine like Bernard Herrmann's score for Psycho.

Eyes Without a Face is one of the more unnerving horror movies. The most unsettling part of this has to be Christiane's mask. The blank and expressionless face she wears to hide her real (and heavily damaged) face just flat out scares me. Also, don't be surprised if it reminds you of another mask of similar traits.

My Rating: *****

The Purple Rose of Cairo

2011-11-21T12:27:00.000-05:00

You ever been in a low mood and your first solution is to watch a movie? It has and always will be the best way to forget your problems.

This is the case with Cecilia (Mia Farrow). She has good reason for her moviegoing. She's stuck in an abusive, loveless marriage, she has been fired from her job, and she's looking for an escape from the poverty throughout her neighborhood in Depression-era New Jersey. What better escape than going to the movies?

I've always liked Woody Allen's work (mainly Manhattan and Hannah and Her Sisters), mostly because he knows how to capture the movie's mood. With The Purple Rose of Cairo, he blends the feel of the 1930's with the ambiance of a comedy from that time. Not many movies can do that successfully.

I absolutely love The Purple Rose of Cairo. Farrow and Jeff Daniels have magnificent chemistry together. In fact, the movie acts as though it's from the 1930's. The ending just about crushed my heart, but that didn't stop me from adoring this movie.

My Rating: *****

Beginners

2011-11-20T19:40:00.000-05:00

A common theme in some independent movies is sadness. Usually it's because the main character(s) lost a loved one, ended a relationship or it's just within their nature.

In Beginners, we're already told of what has happened with Oliver (Ewan McGregor) within the first few minutes. Shortly after his mother passed away, his father Hal (Christopher Plummer) comes out and embraces the gay lifestyle before he dies. Oliver accepts what Hal has told him, but there's that look of uncertainty on his face.

As he tells his new girlfriend Anna (Melanie Laurent) about his father, you can pick up on the touch of sadness in Oliver's voice and eyes. He's clearly upset over his father's passing, however he's starting to embrace life without Hal. It's a tough task, but he has to do it sooner or later.

I really liked Beginners, mainly for the work from McGregor and Plummer. The simple addition of flashbacks is a nice touch. The low lighting also gives us a glimpse of what's inside Oliver's mind. The thing is though is that the movie is stuck in the same mood for the whole duration. That small flaw aside, Beginners is worth checking out.

My Rating: ****1/2

Winter's Bone

2011-11-19T18:00:00.000-05:00

As for usual Hollywood standards, most female roles tend to cross into degrading territory. That's mostly for studio movies, mind you. At least independent movies are more focused on character examination rather than making money.

Debra Granik's Winter's Bone does have character examination, mainly in the roles by Jennifer Lawrence and John Hawkes (fittingly the two Oscar nominees). Lawrence may be the principle character, but I feel that Winter's Bone loses something when Hawkes isn't on screen.

Winter's Bone is also successful at depicting the rugged life some people have to face. Some will do anything to save or earn money, but they stop at desperate measures. The bleak weather and lack of light adds to the moody nature of the movie.

If you think this would be a positive review, think again. The narrative for this was so dense, I was certain I was going to fall asleep. The only things keeping the movie afloat are Lawrence and Hawkes. Everything else is weak.

My Rating: ***1/2

The Big Heat

2011-11-18T22:25:00.000-05:00

Although I've only seen M and The Big Heat, I know enough that Fritz Lang had a certain style of directing. He had his movies burn slowly to excitement and a hell of an ending.

Glenn Ford is someone I've encountered before in Gilda and Blackboard Jungle. In both, he barely has enough of a spine to stand up for himself. In The Big Heat, he looks as though he's about to rip out someone's spine. Nice to see a man get tough every now and again.

Gloria Grahame was the quintessential femme fatale back in the day. However in The Big Heat, she does somewhat of a variation of the role. Her Debby Marsh doesn't want to harm Ford's Dave Bannion but rather help him with the cases that are slowly consuming him. The only people she wants to harm are those who harmed her. (That pot of coffee to the face had to hurt.)

The Big Heat gets up there as one of the best noirs I've seen. Ford and Grahame deliver their best work in this. Lang also manages to deliver the goods. A must for noir admirers.

My Rating: *****

Wild River

2011-11-17T19:33:00.000-05:00

It's really sad that after his near-fatal car crash, studios were more than hesitant to cast Montgomery Clift in their projects. It wasn't just because his good looks were destroyed, but his mental state was as well.

Elia Kazan trusted Clift enough to cast him in Wild River. After all, Kazan had previously worked with Method acting pioneers Marlon Brando and James Dean, but Clift was different both acting-wise and mentally. Clift had a slow simmering type of acting, which he showcases in Wild River.

Wild River also stars Lee Remick, whom I also like. She is someone who I dub an "underactor" meaning her performances are so subtle and nuanced, they feel more like she's being herself rather than acting. Her work in Wild River is such an example.

Although the title implies otherwise, Wild River gets on the slow side more than once. It's a good movie, but I wouldn't generally rank it among On the Waterfront, A Streetcar Named Desire or A Face in the Crowd. I will say, however, that Clift and Remick some fine work.

My Rating: ****

Imitation of Life

2011-11-16T19:39:00.000-05:00

With some directors, I usually associate them with the things and/or themes in their movies (ie, Fellini's religious imagery, Tarantino's cuss-filled dialogue, Hitchcock's mysterious blondes, Hawks' fast-talking women, etc.). It can lead to problems however.

Take Douglas Sirk for example. In the way critics and film lovers describe him, Sirk is viewed as making overly dramatic "women's pictures". After seeing Magnificent Obsession, I went with that for some time. When I saw Imitation of Life, that stereotype of Sirk was thrown out the window.

The main characters of Imitation of Life are two mothers and two daughters. Lora Meredith (Lana Turner) is a stage actress who tries to be a good mother to Susie (Sandra Dee), but her career constantly interferes with her family life. Lora's maid Annie Johnson (Juanita Moore) tries to regain the love of her daughter Sarah Jane (Susan Kohner), but it's impossible because Sarah Jane refuses to accept that she has mixed blood. Turner and Dee are the bigger names, but it's Moore and Kohner that make Imitation of Life what it is.

Imitation of Life is a lot better than I originally thought, however I thought it was a little mushy in a few scenes. All in all, this was a fitting send-off for a director like Sirk.

My Rating: ****1/2

How to Marry a Millionaire

2011-11-15T16:49:00.000-05:00

I usually like comedies from the classic era because the jokes were what the jokes in today's comedies are not: funny. Older comedies relied on jokes with wit rather than today's comedies relying on jokes with bad taste.

How to Marry a Millionaire I like because, as mentioned, the jokes are actually funny. They still work after nearly sixty years, so that's good. (I personally like when Lauren Bacall making reference to husband Humphrey Bogart as "that old fellow what's-his-name from The African Queen".)

I really liked the performances in How to Marry a Millionaire. Bacall possesses a New York attitude that has her in charge. Betty Grable, whom I'm not too familiar with, did manage to grasp my attention with her work. William Powell is his debonair self as the beau and eventual fiance of Bacall. (Who wouldn't want to marry him?) But my favorite performance came from Marilyn Monroe, whom I'm starting to like more with each passing movie. She showcases the typical ditzy blonde persona, but she gives a new take on it.

To sum things up, I really liked How to Marry a Millionaire. It gets a little silly in some scenes, but it's a very clever comedy. It also makes me long for a new comedy that mirrors the classics.

My Rating: ****1/2

Out of the Past

2011-11-14T15:17:00.000-05:00

As popular as film noir was back in the 1940's and 1950's, sometimes the more famous titles weren't as successful upon their release.

That wasn't the case with Jacques Tourneur's Out of the Past. It was heralded as one of the greatest noirs ever made, and upon seeing it I can understand why. It has many common elements of noir that flow with immense ease.

Jeff Bailey best captures Robert Mitchum's screen persona of the laid back anti-hero. He's willing to find Kathie Moffat (Jane Greer) for Whit Sterling (the first glimpse of Kirk Douglas' devious screen persona) but upon seeing her, Jeff has almost met his match.

My opinion on Out of the Past is a bit different than perhaps that of others. I thought it was quite good, and I particularly liked the work from Mitchum and Douglas. However, I thought the narrative was a little jumbled. I still think it's good though.

My Rating: ****1/2

Peyton Place

2011-11-13T22:28:00.000-05:00

During the 1950's, the melodrama was a popular genre among female audiences. The more popular ones were made by Douglas Sirk, but some were made by others.

Peyton Place by today's standards contains every personal tragedy in the book (rape, suicide, abortion, illegitimacy). After all, these were subjects that were "hush hush" in mixed company back then. But thanks to Mark Robson, he makes this less Douglas Sirk and more dignified soap opera.

Of course like most soap operas, the pinnacle of Peyton Place has to be the actors. The best work came from the actors who were nominated for Oscars: Lana Turner, Diane Varsi, Hope Lange, Arthur Kennedy and Russ Tamblyn. I found it amusing that Turner, a victim of many scandals, was cast where her character has a secret that would destroy her reputation.

All in all, I really liked Peyton Place. The time might be a shock to some (over two and a half hours), but surprisingly the times flies right by though it drags a little in the third act. Again, I just love the performances. This is for those who want a non-Sirk melodrama.

My Rating: ****1/2

The Postman Always Rings Twice

2011-11-12T18:50:00.000-05:00

There have been many famous femme fatales in movies. Some of the more notable ones include Barbara Stanwyck in Double Indemnity, Rita Hayworth in Gilda and Ava Gardner in The Killers. They were proven to be poisonous to Fred MacMurray, Glenn Ford and Burt Lancaster in their respective movies.

Another on is Lana Turner's Cora Smith in The Postman Always Rings Twice. She wears nothing but white throughout (she wears black in one scene where she contemplates suicide), however she doesn't become a true femme fatale until the lovesick Frank Chambers (John Garfield) suggests to get rid of her husband Nick (Cecil Kellaway).

It's hard to distinguish who is the root of all evil, Cora or Frank. On the one hand, it's Frank who suggests murder. But once Nick is done away with, Cora becomes more defensive about her behavior, almost to the brink of getting of anyone who gets too close or knows too much.

The Postman Always Rings Twice is very good, but there are some moments that could have been improved or kept out all together. Doesn't mean I didn't like it though.

My Rating: ****1/2

Run Lola Run

2011-11-11T18:31:00.000-05:00

Every time I see a movie that has received nothing but high praises, I have to be cautious. It can't always be as good as others say. (I learned that after seeing Citizen Kane.)

Good thing Run Lola Run is as good as everyone says it is. The concept has been done a bunch of times in other movies that don't generally work. Run Lola Run presents the concept that is so simple as something fresh.

This was made during the MTV era of the 1990's, so naturally it would feel that it was made for the MTV crowd. In reality, Run Lola Run is made for everyone. It's not targeted at a specific audience but rather at those who want to get their money's worth from a movie.

Run Lola Run is a very good movie, but I had a problem or two with the narrative. I found it a bit jumpy in spots, but that's a minor detail. All in all, Run Lola Run is worth checking out.

My Rating: ****1/2

Don't Bother to Knock

2011-11-10T19:45:00.000-05:00

Marilyn Monroe is known as the quintessential sex symbol. Anyone who's seen The Seven Year Itch or Gentlemen Prefer Blondes can see why, But being me, I'm trying to watch some of her more professional work.

So far I've seen Some Like It Hot and The Misfits, as well as her small part in All About Eve. I have also seen her fantastic work in Roy Ward Baker's Don't Bother to Knock. Instead of being the sultry blonde, Monroe's Nell Forbes is someone who is distant from the rest of society. Her mind works differently than everyone else, and you wonder what runs through it.

In a sense, Nell shows tints of Monroe's psyche. She's clearly unhinged just from her own being. Nell is a femme fatale, but not in the same vein as Barbara Stanwyck or Gloria Grahame. In a sense, the only true victim in Don't Bother to Knock is Nell herself.

Don't Bother to Knock is still effective after nearly sixty years. Along with Monroe, there's also some great work from Richard Widmark and a fresh-faced Anne Bancroft. Definitely worth checking out.

My Rating: *****

The Breakfast Club

2011-11-09T14:56:00.000-05:00

Even after his passing several years ago, I still haven't seen much of John Hughes' work. The only titles I can brag about are Ferris Bueller's Day Off and Planes, Trains and Automobiles. Doesn't mean I'm not trying.

As most everyone knows, Hughes captured the many awkward moments in a teenager's life. (Who hasn't gone "That was so me in high school!" when watching one of his movies?) Ferris Bueller's Day Off made me realize I need to live life to the fullest while I'm still young. (I didn't steal my dad's Ferrari though. Or in reality, his Porsche.)

The Breakfast Club shows the many types of teenagers you'll find in the average high school: the brain (Anthony Michael Hall), the athlete (Emilio Estevez), the princess (Molly Ringwald), the criminal (Judd Nelson) and the basketcase (Ally Sheedy). I knew these exact types of people in high school, so I could understand them and their problems. (For me, I'm a weird mix between Nelson and Sheedy.)

I got a good kick of nostalgia from this. (I'm only a college freshman, but whatever.) Of course high school was hell for me as I'm sure it was for everyone else, but one thing is for certain however. It's about the people you from then.

My Rating: ****1/2

Victim

2011-11-08T19:00:00.000-05:00

By the time the 1960's rolled around, there were a lot of movies that were considered groundbreaking, most of them released during the 1960's.

Decades before Brokeback Mountain, Victim was released when homosexuality was still considered a crime in both the United States and the United Kingdom. It was a daring move for director Basil Dearden, an even more daring movie for star Dirk Bogarde who had established himself as a leading man (and was also gay).

Bogarde gives one hell of a performance as Melville Farr. A number of his shots has a beam of light focused on his face, mainly his eyes. Bogarde was one of those actors who acted his eyes as much as he did with his words. That's what makes that beam of light important. He shows a wounded nature within, especially early on.

Victim is a really great movie, however it gets a tad crammed after a while. I love Bogarde's work as stated earlier. This was perhaps responsible for movies of similar themes released within the last thirty or so years. Because after all, one thing can have a big effect.

My Rating: ****1/2