1. Jackknife (1989): DeNiro and Ed Harris as Vietnam buddies home and trying to heal. Good performances.
2.Head On (1999): Young gay man in Greek/Australian community searches for his place in the world. Not very good.
3. Wheel of Time (03): Werner Herzog DOC about the Kalachakra Initiation ceremonies given to Buddhists by the Dalai Llama.
4. Buy the Ticket, Take the Ride (06): DOC about 'gonzo' counterculture journalist Hunter S. Thompson. Not bad.
5. The Bourne Ultimatum (07): Third movie made from Ludlum's novels. Fun if you like chase sequences.
6. Running on Karma (03): Disastrous Hong Kong genre melange starring Andy Lau. Truly horrible, I can't believe I actually watched the whole thing. GMAB. Shame on me!
7. My Father's Glory (1990): French. Beautifully told story based on the memoirs of french novelist/filmaker Marcel Pagnol. An adolescent boy recalls his magical summer vacation in Southern France in 1900. LEM, WWW.
8. The City of No Limits (03): French/Spanish. Spanish business titan is in the hospital dying. As his son investigates
his 'delusional' ramblings long held family secrets are revealed. Not bad.
9. Rize (05): Fantastic DOC introduces us to the history of 'Krumping' , a type of dancing culture that sprung up in South Central L.A. It starts with the story of a man named "Tommy the Clown' who began teaching this , getting kids off the street and changing many, many lives in the process. Great music, Great dancing, Great people. Inspirational. LEM, WWW, NWIE, WBTIE, LLI. I immediately bought the DVD!
10. The Dying Gaul (05): Riveting psychological thriller set in movie mogul land Hollywood. It is based on the play of the same name. A triangle forms between a producer, his wife, and the gay male screenwriter they get involved with. The ending is a flop which is too bad as this could have been a great film. Still, I liked it and it has stuck in my head and probably will continue to do so. Maybe they will redo it as most reviews agreed with me about the unsatisfying ending.!
11. Jupiter's Dance (06): DOC. An intriguing tour of the music scene in Kinshasa, capitol of Congo. The main character is Jupiter Bokodji of the band Okwess. The handmade guitars alone make this WWW.
12. Burning Annie (03): Poor romantic comedy about a kid who is obsessed with the film 'Annie Hall'.
13. Sand and Sorrow (07): DOC explaining the history that lead to the current day horrors in Darfur.
14. The Walker (07): Woody Harrelson is a gay 'Walker' for the elite elder ladies of Washington D.C. Murders, backstabbing etc. Not good at all but it was fun to see Lauren Bacall and Lilly Tomlin again.
15. Keiller's Park (06): Swedish director Susanna Edwards film inspired by true events. A young successful business heir who is engaged to be married, falls in love with a FASCINATING male character played by Pjotr Gigo. He struggles with all the losses he has to bear and then is accused of..(i won't give away the plot). The two men are played brilliantly and I found it hard to believe that they were not real! I surely hope to see more of Mr. Gigo in the future, he is mesmerizing. The director says this is the first in a trilogy of films. Let's hope so! Be aware, there is lots of sex. EOS, LEM, LLI,, NECOT.
16. Films I tried but couldn't sit through:
-Yes (04)
-Nightbreed (90)
-The World (04)
-The Dark Backward (91)
-The Emperor's Naked Army Marches On (87)
-You are Alone (06)
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Saturday, June 7, 2008
Lee Just Watched: May 24 - June 6
American Gangster (07): Typical Denzel Washington vehicle. Formula to the max. If it hadn't been based on a true story it would have been useless to me.
Attenborough in Paradise Disc 2 (96): Can't gush enough about what this man and his work mean to me. One section is a DOC about his professional history from youth, thru formative years, in charge of BBC2, and his mind boggling influence on the developement of nature films. Must see if you are a fan. WWW.
No Country For Old Men (o7): Coen brothers hit the mark. LEM, especially Javier Bardem's character. The dialogue was brilliant and I'd like to read the book and see how close the dialogue was to the original. WBTIE.
My Kid Could Paint That (o7): Interesting DOC about a 4 yr old 'painter' and what happens to her family as her work becomes known. Coming up on our list to watch.
Wristcutters:A Love Story (06): A fantastical tale of a world populated by people who committed suicide. Pleasant but not great. CFE.
Climates (06): Pretentious, self absorbed over rated 'art' film from Turkey. Yawn Yawn Yawn.
Spiral (07): Mom and I watched this thriller together. We thought it was brilliantly crafted (unlike the majority of reviews we read!) The guy who wrote it stars as well. A talented young crew of friends put it together on a very restricted budget. Bravo! ( This may go on the list, definitely OTBP!) SOD, EOS, LEM, WWW.
Death of a Cyclist (1955): Spanish metaphorical drama (corrupt politics during the Franco era) about a cheating couple who hit a cyclist and are blackmailed. OKBNG.
The Dead Girl (06): Mystery set in an L.A .community. Young girl found dead in a field. Four separate stories converge to find the answers. Unique and well done. Pretty chilling segment involving the killer and his wife!
Harsh Times (05): Christian Bale in his usual intense acting style pulls off what otherwise would have been just way too much violence for my taste. However I was glad I finished it .The ending was surprisingly satisfying and it was a well done and off beat 'buddy story'. NECOT but if you are a Bale fan it's worth watching.
Subway Stories (97): A set of 'true' stories put to film. (sent in to HBO by NYC subway commuters.) Not terrible but not worth watching.
The Number 23 (07): Jim Carrey in another weird psychological thriller. OKBNG. I confess I do enjoy watching his face and body.
Stray Dog (49): Early Kurosawa film starring T. Mifune. About a young new police recruit in Tokyo who has his gun stolen on a crowded bus and the journey he takes to recover it. OKBNG.
Triple Agent (04): Film by French New Wave director Eric Rohmer about a Russian couple living in Paris. Hitchcock like plot and style. Wife slowly learns the truth about what her husband is involved in. OKBNG.
Family Nest (79): Blk & wht cinema verite style Hungarian film. Shows the tensions that a seven member family experience while living in a tiny apartment during a time of exteme housing shortage in communist ruled Hungary.
Gypo (05): British lower middle class family experiences a catharsis after a young Czech female refugee comes into their lives. I liked the direct and gritty way this film approached the subject matter of prejudice, marriage, friendship. WWW.
Attenborough in Paradise Disc 2 (96): Can't gush enough about what this man and his work mean to me. One section is a DOC about his professional history from youth, thru formative years, in charge of BBC2, and his mind boggling influence on the developement of nature films. Must see if you are a fan. WWW.
No Country For Old Men (o7): Coen brothers hit the mark. LEM, especially Javier Bardem's character. The dialogue was brilliant and I'd like to read the book and see how close the dialogue was to the original. WBTIE.
My Kid Could Paint That (o7): Interesting DOC about a 4 yr old 'painter' and what happens to her family as her work becomes known. Coming up on our list to watch.
Wristcutters:A Love Story (06): A fantastical tale of a world populated by people who committed suicide. Pleasant but not great. CFE.
Climates (06): Pretentious, self absorbed over rated 'art' film from Turkey. Yawn Yawn Yawn.
Spiral (07): Mom and I watched this thriller together. We thought it was brilliantly crafted (unlike the majority of reviews we read!) The guy who wrote it stars as well. A talented young crew of friends put it together on a very restricted budget. Bravo! ( This may go on the list, definitely OTBP!) SOD, EOS, LEM, WWW.
Death of a Cyclist (1955): Spanish metaphorical drama (corrupt politics during the Franco era) about a cheating couple who hit a cyclist and are blackmailed. OKBNG.
The Dead Girl (06): Mystery set in an L.A .community. Young girl found dead in a field. Four separate stories converge to find the answers. Unique and well done. Pretty chilling segment involving the killer and his wife!
Harsh Times (05): Christian Bale in his usual intense acting style pulls off what otherwise would have been just way too much violence for my taste. However I was glad I finished it .The ending was surprisingly satisfying and it was a well done and off beat 'buddy story'. NECOT but if you are a Bale fan it's worth watching.
Subway Stories (97): A set of 'true' stories put to film. (sent in to HBO by NYC subway commuters.) Not terrible but not worth watching.
The Number 23 (07): Jim Carrey in another weird psychological thriller. OKBNG. I confess I do enjoy watching his face and body.
Stray Dog (49): Early Kurosawa film starring T. Mifune. About a young new police recruit in Tokyo who has his gun stolen on a crowded bus and the journey he takes to recover it. OKBNG.
Triple Agent (04): Film by French New Wave director Eric Rohmer about a Russian couple living in Paris. Hitchcock like plot and style. Wife slowly learns the truth about what her husband is involved in. OKBNG.
Family Nest (79): Blk & wht cinema verite style Hungarian film. Shows the tensions that a seven member family experience while living in a tiny apartment during a time of exteme housing shortage in communist ruled Hungary.
Gypo (05): British lower middle class family experiences a catharsis after a young Czech female refugee comes into their lives. I liked the direct and gritty way this film approached the subject matter of prejudice, marriage, friendship. WWW.
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