Grade B 2002
I?m not quite cynical enough to dismiss an earnest Holocaust drama executed with this much skill, despite the feeling that we?re traveling over well-covered territory. Polanski has spent much of his career showing people in surroundings where they don?t belong and the repercussions of horror and this film is probably his most personal extension of those themes (and his family?s experience in Poland during WWII). The second half is full of haunting scenes and images, and an artist using art to get through tragedy seems like an apt topic for Polanski ? since he has lived through three tragedies (one of his own making).
Grade B- 1968
Bleak story set against HUGE production numbers and I was never really attuned to the style. I would have probably liked it more had I not seen it mere weeks after David Lean?s superb (and superbly stylized) telling of the same story, which dwarfed this one. I?m not sure if this film is representational of Carol Reed?s later work, but I didn?t see a glimmer of The Third Man and Odd Man Out auteur.
Grade B- 1975
Pretty silly in retrospect, but full of small pleasures which make the film worth seeing. The director Saul Bass, who famously did the titles for several key Alfred Hitchcock films, finds many unsettling images of ants (yes this is a killer ant picture) and challenges audience expectations enough to keep the film consistently interesting.
Grade B 1987
There are a few really good things in Street Smart, especially the pimp played by Morgan Freeman and prostitute by Kathy Baker, but the film never even remotely gels. Christopher Reeves is miscast and the plot (although initially intriguing) quickly becomes redundant and lazy. Baker and Freeman deserve a better film, maybe one focused on their characters.
Grade A- 2003
Gaspar Noe was a born provocateur and one of the most exciting filmmakers working now. He possesses a unique ability to create images and sound that put the viewer in the mindset of the characters. His first film I Stand Alone was a minor masterpiece following a racist, depraved butcher as he walked around promising violence. That film would randomly leap towards the character with a non-diegetic gunshot on the soundtrack, which raised the intensity of an already intense film considerably. Irreversible contains a few such effects, which grate on the nerves of the viewer.
Grade A- 2003
This is also one of the year?s best films another amazing treat from the consistently interesting Guy Maddin. This is a silent film and a surprisingly faithful retelling of Bram Stoker?s Dracula as a ballet. Some sequences are very funny and some images are totally resonant, making this my favorite telling of Stoker?s story so far.
Grade D+ 2001
This is a fairly pathetic film, with couple arguing and bickering for much of the running time only to realize the importance of marriage in the final seconds. A total waste of time and Reiner?s worst film since North.
Grade A- 1942
Very good musical biography, given a manic energy by James Cagney who is superb as George M. Cohan. The relationships between Cohan and his wife and his entertainment family is particularly well handled in this film, leading to many scenes of emotional weight in the second half of the film.
Grade B 2003
Good documentary focusing on the brief American auteur system that developed in the seventies, focusing on a few key directors. Although all the interview footage is very good, and often revealing, the film would have benefited greatly if more of the featured directors had agreed to be interviewed.
Grade B+ 2002
Grade A 1959
Grade B- 2002
I was originally going to write this review as a rap, but then realized I wasn?t that fancy. This film is the rap version of The Karate Kid, and it goes along pretty much as you would imagine a streamlined retelling of Eminem?s life as a Hollywood sport?s film. The film sometimes tries to clear up the controversies surrounding his career: his homophobia is dismissed by the film ? gay = homosexual, faggot = loser and Eminem is even given a gay co-worker who he seems to like. I liked how the film chose to include many other autobiographic details that made his character look unflattering. The rap battles are entertaining but too few, with too many subplots bogging down the film?s middle section.
Grade A- 1970
I almost teared up a few times while watching this film, which deals with an aged father struggling to hold on to his son as the expense of the son?s happiness. The performances are flawless, with Hackman giving a sensitive performance that?s close to Harry Caul in The Conversation. The direction is sometimes wrong-footed, and has the annoying tendency to underline (obvious) great actor moments and monologues with the zoom-lens. The strong script has a good handle on human interactions (it feels autobiographical) without stooping to easy pay-off or cheap sentiment.
Grade C 1972
A terrible script is given Bava?s typically stylish touch and almost becomes watchable. But no amount of blue lighting or wonderfully creepy shadows could rescue this script.
Grade B- 1990
There are some awesome stretches and images in Akira Kurosawa?s Dreams, but it?s too much of a mixed bag with some fascinating dreams and others that I?ve already forgotten. All the dreams are variations on the stupidity of man (war, ruining or not appreciating nature). This is a film that is probably best viewed in spurts - maybe over several days ? just to let the images sink in properly.
Grade B- 2003
This film is just an exercise in style: with every excuse for wind blown hair, clothes or curtains exploited (with the obligatory WHOOSH on the soundtrack) and everything neatly color coordinated. However, director Zhang Yimou approaches the material with a crippling air of self-righteousness and complete seriousness (hell even Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon had some humor in it), content to drive it home that martial arts IS art. Sword fighting is equated with music and calligraphy, with every fight filmed like a ballet, which is then contradicted by unbelievable wire-fu fighting which removes the art and skill from the fighting we see ? putting everything in the world of fantasy but without any of the fun. The story twists itself into a narrative pretzel, making a straightforward story unnecessarily complicated just to show new variations on the fight sequences. That said, the fight sequences are often dazzling: especially the fight in the falling autumn leaves and the one skidding across the ocean, which make the film worth seeing ? just don?t expect a masterpiece like Master of the Flying Guillotine.
Grade C- 2003
Sometimes charming (mostly thanks to performances) but just too much of a mess to even be a pleasant diversion. The tone wavers between scenes, but has an underlining earnestness that is kind of creepy. Bruno Barreto appears have a leg fetish, as he takes every possible opportunity to fawn over Paltrow in her short skirts ? which isn?t a complaint merely an observation. Mark Ruffalo is appealing but wasted as the male love interest for Paltrow, thanks to the script which denies him scenes of any weight in order to keep everything ?even breakups- as civil as possible.
Grade A 1995
Long review coming soon.
Grade B- 1987
Good Hong Kong action film with a very charismatic performance by Chow Yun-Fat and interesting interaction between him and the lead badguy. The story was latter borrowed by Tarantino for Reservoir Dogs, and though Tarantino lifted entire scenes from this film?s second half, the two films couldn?t be more different. If only Quentin wrote the dialogue for this film?
Grade B- 1972
Argento?s film before his masterpiece Deep Red, is a stylish and sometimes scary giallo thriller. The killer was too easy to predict ? especially if you are attuned to Argento?s conventions ? but the reveal of the title ?Flies? is a lot of fun. Argento?s mise-en-scene isn?t as strong here as it is in Deep Red, but there are several show-off bits of technique that will please his fans (my favorite was the shot inside the guitar at the beginning). Not a great film but essential for fans of the director, which I am.
Grade B- 2002
Remake of Stanley Donen?s Charade, is basically an exercise in style and charm. The film is set in 60?s France and has a lot of fun referencing and paying homage to films of the French New Wave, among them: clip from Shoot the Piano Player (and appearance of star Charles Aznavour), The Umbrellas of Cherbourg of the side of a van and a late appearance from (the queen) Anna Karina, among others. Wahlberg is too laid back and no match for Cary Grant (I would have cast George Clooney but others would bitch about that as well), but the effortlessly charming Thandie Newton does very well in the lead role. It is also nice to see Demme (always the humanist) conclude the final shoot-out in such an unexpected way. Not a great film but full of small pleasures.
Grade B- 2003
The first shot of Spider (after Cronenberg?s typically weird title sequence) is a long tracking shot down an arrived train, we watch as many interesting faces pass the camera and wonder which character we will follow. When we finally start following a skinny, mumbling man that can barely walk and the filming technique adjusts to the character. Which is to say that Cronenberg?s new film Spider is pretty hard to watch and hostile to the viewer, unfolding at a slow pace with a typically static camera. We follow Spider back into his memories of childhood and see what made him the man he is. The final revelation is hardly a great plot twist (Spider should be automatically seen as an unreliable narrator), but it puts an interesting spin on the material and makes it translate into many different readings ? all of which have some validity.
Grade B 1949
Beautifully shot (by John Alton) film noir, with haunting day-for-night compositions with an oppressive skyline. The story echoes T Men, except this time the characters are infiltrating illegal farming practices. The second half is an odd blend of extreme (for 1949) violence and warm character interactions.
Grade B+ 1950
A film noir that was sometimes hampered by illogical plot points and character actions, but overcame any story problems with technical accomplishment. At times the film plays like a Hitchcockian thriller, but Mann?s unique framing makes the film all his own. The final car chase and shoot-out are surprisingly effective and exciting.
Grade C+ 2002
I feel bad giving a film this ambitious and full of brilliant moments a C+, and I concede I may be terribly underrating it. Moments of the film are so beautiful that they will resonate strongly in my mind for weeks after seeing them (especially the silenced screaming and concert scenes) but they can?t overcome a movie this muddled and hopelessly pretentious. If I work up the courage I may try sitting through this film again, and see if I missed a masterpiece in my struggle to comprehend.