If I had to compose a list of my ten favorite movies, these movies would most likely be cordially invited to join the list.....
Lord of the Rings trilogy- The Star Wars of our generation, a passionate trilogy made with tremendous appreciation and a rare understanding of the novels that were created by the timeless J.R.R. Tolkien. This trilogy will be known as the standard for movies in the future that are classified as epics, or fantasies.
Requiem for a Dream- A portrait of the drug world that is all to unknown, but all to real. A study of 4 Coney Island dreamers that dream of the best, and expierience there own versions of living hells, directed by visionary director Darrren Aronofsky, who is now wielding "The Fountain" who will star Hugh Jackman, who could use a serious role for his resume, and Rachel Weisz who is solid enough for drama.
Jerry Maguire- Tom Cruise is the acting icon of the 1990's and in 1996 he made a movie that can help but inspire us. A movie about trust, understanding, and how we find love through witnessing the trust and love of others. 1 word for this is underrated. NOTE** Cruise is still amazing.
Pulp Fiction- One can only say enough about this movie, about the script, about the dialogue, and the directing. Quentin Tarantino's best movie, maybe one of the best screenplays of all time that humors, shocks, and finds ways to make us believe that movie-making will never die, there will always be that movie nerd that long ago worked in a video store, that dreamt of directing, and when he did, he made Pulp Fiction.
JFK-Oliver Stone's fascinating interpretation on the events surrounding JFK's assasination. One of the most controversial directors made one of the most interesting movies ever, about how a nation destroyed there leader. CIA, FBI, the White House and the mob' s scheme to terminate the World's working class leader. Stone points many fingers, but some of the fingers could be correct, and even if they aren't, he has still made a masterpiece.
Goodfellas- Big, Rich, and Powerful are three words that stand out when one is talking about this 1990 movie that got robbed when it didn't win Best Picture. Martin Scorsese's story of a rags to riches mobster who in the end turns his life inside out, and turns into a trader to save his own ass has some memorable scenes that only Scorsese could translate on the screen.
The Godfather, part I, II- On a lot of peoples list as the greatest movies ever, it's truly deserves anything in anyones top 10. The ultimate story of a crime ridden family that lie heavily on trust, responsibility, and power to proclaim there name on top of the mafia throne. It took me a while to understand how important these movies were to the history of cinema.
Fight Club- Brad Pitt and Edward Norton, two young actors in 1999 who starred in David Finchers male dominance comedy/thriller can be oddly characterized as a dark "Office Space" about hating our jobs, our bosses, and doing violent things to balance your life out, all about letting go and possesing self-awareness.
Magnolia-A movie about corresponding themes of love, forgiveness, redemption, and mainily hope, begs us to Wise up and start living your life out so you won't regret anything in the end. This movie is an artfrom, this is one of those movies you either hate or love, anyone that asks to many questions in movies, and doesnt understand movies easily will HATE this movie, if you know what you want in life, and are interested in human behavior you will love this movie. P.T Anderson needs to make more movies.
Traffic- Small, but large movie about drug traffiking, how it will never end no matter what lenghts we go to. A story of how the war against drugs must be fought in small battles, we must rid it out of our houses, and not turn it into a communinity thing.
Thursday, May 26, 2005
Thursday, May 19, 2005
Episode 3 review
“Star Wars Episode 3: Revenge of the Sith”
Starring: Hayden Christensen, Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Frank Oz, Samuel L. Jackson, Christopher Lee
3 stars out of 4
The 3rd and final Star Wars chapter is the final bridge leading to Star Wars Episode IV, a New Hope. This chapter is the darkest of all six, the longest, it has the feeblest acting, but the action is great. The action and the long awaited moments are the only parts that save this movie from being a cinematic bust.
The plot is particularly simple, the Jedi are getting weaker, and Anakin Skywalker could be the final peace that the invisible Empire needs to conquer the galaxy. Anakin played by Hayden Christensen probably has the weakest acting out of the main characters, he tries to force emotions, and act tough, but he has nothing to show for it. Ewan McGregor who plays Obi-Wan-Kenobi is the most likely candidate for the best acting in the last 3 prequels. He is straight-forward and in Episode 3 he looks at Anakin in a weird way.
It starts off with Obi-Wan and Anakin on a mission to save the Chancellor, who is also secretly Darth Sidious, he wants Anakin on his side, and convinces him that if he turns to the Dark Side he possess powers that no Jedi could ever teach. The whole movie besides the action is Anakin pondering that decision and others trying to turn him away from the everlasting choice that determines the fate of all galactic activity in the future.
Padme is Anakin’s wife, she just stands by him throughout the movie, and we learn early that she is pregnant. It’s honestly sad how bad the acting is in the movie, and it’s ironic because Natalie Portman who plays Padme played 2 awesome parts in earlier movies of 2004, and was nominated in Closer, in this she’s just Anakin’s secret wife who seems to sleep in dresses, and lay on terrible dialogue along with her partner, the soon to be Darth Vader.
While watching the film you still can’t deny all of the long awaited moments and scenes when they are presented, along with those there are many tasty light-saber duels that will leave you tired afterwards. Most of the great scenes are all towards the end or at the end, the fight between Obi-Wan and Anakin, the birth of Luke and Leia, Yoda against Darth Sidious, and the conclusion which turns Anakin into the legend villain, Darth Vader.
The question throughout is how did Anakin turn, and why. His strings are pulled so easily by Sidious that anything that Sidious wants done, Anakin will do. He explains to Anakin that if he wants his bad dreams of Padme dying to stop, that he will have to save her through ways that only a member of the dark side posses. Anakin easily agrees as the movie progresses. He is in turmoil also; the Jedi council obviously knows that the Chancellor is against them, so they assign Anakin to “spy” on him, Anakin transfers this news to the Chancellor, who also wants Anakin to “spy” on the Jedi council. The only problem I had with the movie, besides the acting, is how the transformation and turn of Anakin to Vader is played out, it seems as though the script uses cheap plot devices and bad manipulation skills by Sidious to turn Anakin.
The real problem for me was seeing fucking movie at 12:21, honestly for half of the movie I just kept thinking of my bed, because I was so goddamn tired. But since I didn’t sleep in the movie, this was all the stuff that I got out of it, bad acting, great action, un-convincing turn for Anakin to the dark side, or if you look at the bright side, some emotional scenes that close out the trilogy. I myself am not the biggest Star Wars fan; I have only seen the originals once or twice each. Again if I was a bigger fan, maybe more appreciation would have been granted to Episode 3, but as a tired movie fan that I was last night this is what I had to say. I liked it, just didn’t love it, but then again you will have a lot of people saying they loved it when they honestly didn’t.
NOTE* A 2nd viewing may increase my opinion, but maybe not.
Starring: Hayden Christensen, Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Frank Oz, Samuel L. Jackson, Christopher Lee
3 stars out of 4
The 3rd and final Star Wars chapter is the final bridge leading to Star Wars Episode IV, a New Hope. This chapter is the darkest of all six, the longest, it has the feeblest acting, but the action is great. The action and the long awaited moments are the only parts that save this movie from being a cinematic bust.
The plot is particularly simple, the Jedi are getting weaker, and Anakin Skywalker could be the final peace that the invisible Empire needs to conquer the galaxy. Anakin played by Hayden Christensen probably has the weakest acting out of the main characters, he tries to force emotions, and act tough, but he has nothing to show for it. Ewan McGregor who plays Obi-Wan-Kenobi is the most likely candidate for the best acting in the last 3 prequels. He is straight-forward and in Episode 3 he looks at Anakin in a weird way.
It starts off with Obi-Wan and Anakin on a mission to save the Chancellor, who is also secretly Darth Sidious, he wants Anakin on his side, and convinces him that if he turns to the Dark Side he possess powers that no Jedi could ever teach. The whole movie besides the action is Anakin pondering that decision and others trying to turn him away from the everlasting choice that determines the fate of all galactic activity in the future.
Padme is Anakin’s wife, she just stands by him throughout the movie, and we learn early that she is pregnant. It’s honestly sad how bad the acting is in the movie, and it’s ironic because Natalie Portman who plays Padme played 2 awesome parts in earlier movies of 2004, and was nominated in Closer, in this she’s just Anakin’s secret wife who seems to sleep in dresses, and lay on terrible dialogue along with her partner, the soon to be Darth Vader.
While watching the film you still can’t deny all of the long awaited moments and scenes when they are presented, along with those there are many tasty light-saber duels that will leave you tired afterwards. Most of the great scenes are all towards the end or at the end, the fight between Obi-Wan and Anakin, the birth of Luke and Leia, Yoda against Darth Sidious, and the conclusion which turns Anakin into the legend villain, Darth Vader.
The question throughout is how did Anakin turn, and why. His strings are pulled so easily by Sidious that anything that Sidious wants done, Anakin will do. He explains to Anakin that if he wants his bad dreams of Padme dying to stop, that he will have to save her through ways that only a member of the dark side posses. Anakin easily agrees as the movie progresses. He is in turmoil also; the Jedi council obviously knows that the Chancellor is against them, so they assign Anakin to “spy” on him, Anakin transfers this news to the Chancellor, who also wants Anakin to “spy” on the Jedi council. The only problem I had with the movie, besides the acting, is how the transformation and turn of Anakin to Vader is played out, it seems as though the script uses cheap plot devices and bad manipulation skills by Sidious to turn Anakin.
The real problem for me was seeing fucking movie at 12:21, honestly for half of the movie I just kept thinking of my bed, because I was so goddamn tired. But since I didn’t sleep in the movie, this was all the stuff that I got out of it, bad acting, great action, un-convincing turn for Anakin to the dark side, or if you look at the bright side, some emotional scenes that close out the trilogy. I myself am not the biggest Star Wars fan; I have only seen the originals once or twice each. Again if I was a bigger fan, maybe more appreciation would have been granted to Episode 3, but as a tired movie fan that I was last night this is what I had to say. I liked it, just didn’t love it, but then again you will have a lot of people saying they loved it when they honestly didn’t.
NOTE* A 2nd viewing may increase my opinion, but maybe not.
Tuesday, May 10, 2005
Review(tL style)
“Crash”
Starring: Sandra Bullock, Don Cheadle, Matt Dillon, Brendan Fraser, Jennifer Esposito, Luadacris, Ryan Phillippe, Larenz Tate, Michael Pena’, Terrence Howard, Thandie Newton
4 stars out of 4
The new film that I deeply admire most likely had a small budget, most likely did not take long to make, but the ideas are larger then life, the acting is powerful, the story is riveting, and after you have made your final thought’s, this movie could change lives.
“Crash” takes place in the post 9/11 era, it takes place in LA, which is an ideal background that the many characters lay there hats down on at the end of their days. It involves a district attorney and his wife (Fraser-Bullock) Two detectives that are also lovers (Cheadle-Esposito) Two cops that have all too opposing views on race and right and wrong (Dillon-Phillippe) An African American couple (Howard-Esposito) Two black car thieves (Ludacris-Tate) and another storyline that involves a Mexican family and a Persian family.
“Crash” takes place in only 36 hours, one of those films that will probably hibernate in your mind after a long while, and will pop up again when you’re talking about racism. Racism is the ring-leader of the trials and tribulations of the characters, it takes them over, it makes them demand comfort so they can avoid it, it never shuts its mouth when it wants to, due to the characters harshly using racial name calling as scapegoats. The film has many races, Whites, Blacks, Mexicans, Persians, and Chinese etc.
“Crash” as I mentioned has great acting, the casting was made perfectly in my opinion, I can’t even explain how powerful these performances are, even though there are about a dozen characters and not even a two hour run time, when a certain character is on screen, he or she makes the best out of there time. For example the young actor Michael Pena’, who plays a young Mexican father, he is involved in two scenes that are perfectly crafted, one which tells you all you need to know about him and his daughter, where they have been and how a young Mexican father finds the words to comfort his daughter. The other scene is the most emotional scene in the movie, also done to perfection, due to Paul Haggis’ brilliant script.
All I can say is that the movie is about racism, and how people’s lives are intertwined in good times and in bad, this film might have more twists then a thriller, which is another tip of the hat to the script. Bad people sometimes have the heart to physically change, while good people sometimes find tragedy through co-incidences and assumptions. “Crash” basically came out of nowhere, you don’t happen to find about these movies unless you see a preview for them; if you don’t know about them, they know they are important and they find you.
Note-this movie isn't for everyone
Starring: Sandra Bullock, Don Cheadle, Matt Dillon, Brendan Fraser, Jennifer Esposito, Luadacris, Ryan Phillippe, Larenz Tate, Michael Pena’, Terrence Howard, Thandie Newton
4 stars out of 4
The new film that I deeply admire most likely had a small budget, most likely did not take long to make, but the ideas are larger then life, the acting is powerful, the story is riveting, and after you have made your final thought’s, this movie could change lives.
“Crash” takes place in the post 9/11 era, it takes place in LA, which is an ideal background that the many characters lay there hats down on at the end of their days. It involves a district attorney and his wife (Fraser-Bullock) Two detectives that are also lovers (Cheadle-Esposito) Two cops that have all too opposing views on race and right and wrong (Dillon-Phillippe) An African American couple (Howard-Esposito) Two black car thieves (Ludacris-Tate) and another storyline that involves a Mexican family and a Persian family.
“Crash” takes place in only 36 hours, one of those films that will probably hibernate in your mind after a long while, and will pop up again when you’re talking about racism. Racism is the ring-leader of the trials and tribulations of the characters, it takes them over, it makes them demand comfort so they can avoid it, it never shuts its mouth when it wants to, due to the characters harshly using racial name calling as scapegoats. The film has many races, Whites, Blacks, Mexicans, Persians, and Chinese etc.
“Crash” as I mentioned has great acting, the casting was made perfectly in my opinion, I can’t even explain how powerful these performances are, even though there are about a dozen characters and not even a two hour run time, when a certain character is on screen, he or she makes the best out of there time. For example the young actor Michael Pena’, who plays a young Mexican father, he is involved in two scenes that are perfectly crafted, one which tells you all you need to know about him and his daughter, where they have been and how a young Mexican father finds the words to comfort his daughter. The other scene is the most emotional scene in the movie, also done to perfection, due to Paul Haggis’ brilliant script.
All I can say is that the movie is about racism, and how people’s lives are intertwined in good times and in bad, this film might have more twists then a thriller, which is another tip of the hat to the script. Bad people sometimes have the heart to physically change, while good people sometimes find tragedy through co-incidences and assumptions. “Crash” basically came out of nowhere, you don’t happen to find about these movies unless you see a preview for them; if you don’t know about them, they know they are important and they find you.
Note-this movie isn't for everyone
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