Originally posted by pacinofan: "A Mighty Heart" C+
A noble failure. Well acted but not particularly gripping and hard to follow.
I agree with hard to follow, but I found it extremely gripping.
"A movie is not good because it arrives at conclusions you share, or bad because it does not. A movie is not about what it is about. It is about how it is about it: about the way it considers its subject matter, and about how its real subject may be quite different from the one it seems to provide." - Roger Ebert, from the introduction to "Awake in the Dark" (2006)
I didnt find it hard to follow. After Angelina, I'm going to find it hard to forget the look on their faces while they were 'watching'. It was just a few seconds, but it was intense, and very moving.
Posts: 6279 | Location: canada | Registered: December 22, 2005
The parts I found hard to follow were some middle portions where it switches away from Jolie and deals with the Pakistani authorities. It lost me for a few minutes because I couldn't keep up with all the names, captures, phone calls, and interrogations. But overall it didn't bother me too much. The way the story is told, it's about a group of characters struggling to assemble bits and pieces of information. What struck me wasn't the information so much as the process of gathering it and the detail in the characters and culture that are revealed along the way.
"A movie is not good because it arrives at conclusions you share, or bad because it does not. A movie is not about what it is about. It is about how it is about it: about the way it considers its subject matter, and about how its real subject may be quite different from the one it seems to provide." - Roger Ebert, from the introduction to "Awake in the Dark" (2006)
A- Eastern Promises Away from Her No Country for Old Men Grindhouse: Death Proof Control We Own the Night A Mighty Heart You Kill Me Juno Black Snake Moan Hairspray The Lookout
B+ Black Book Margot at the Wedding The Bourne Ultimatum The Darjeeling Limited Grindhouse: Planet Terror In the Valley of Elah Red Road The Hoax Southland Tales The Brave One The Simpsons Movie Interview Golden Door Live Free or Die Hard Ratatouille Breach
B 28 Weeks Later The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford Once Enchanted Joshua The Host Bug Disturbia Superbad
B- Into the Wild Gone Baby Gone Smiley Face Music and Lyrics
C+ Michael Clayton Atonement Sunshine Romance & Cigarettes I'm Not There
C The Ten Great World of Sound La Vie en Rose Before the Devil Knows You're Dead
C- Rescue Dawn
D+ The Boss of It All Lucky You Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
D Spider-Man 3
F I Know Who Killed Me
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A masterpiece of cinematic technique with some of the scariest & most exciting sequences ever put on film. Only the disappointing ending keeps me from giving it an A+.
2) "Before the Devil Knows Your Dead" Grade: B
A great performance by Philip Seymour Hoffman and high style make this thriller/family drama worth seeing even if Ethan Hawke cannot keep up with his co-star. Great dialogue throughout even if the events are somewhat predictable... or if you prefer to think in tragedy terms- PREDESTINED.
Posts: 14748 | Location: Phoenix, AZ | Registered: February 02, 2003
Added The Hoax (A). Review soon to follow in the "What film have you seen today" thread.
"A movie is not good because it arrives at conclusions you share, or bad because it does not. A movie is not about what it is about. It is about how it is about it: about the way it considers its subject matter, and about how its real subject may be quite different from the one it seems to provide." - Roger Ebert, from the introduction to "Awake in the Dark" (2006)
Amusing New Zealand horror comedy with some decent scares. It's a one joke premise but a pretty good joke. Genetic testing is turning sheep on New Zealand's largest sheep farm into blood-thirsty killers, and humans that are just bitten turn into hideous were-sheep. Reminded me of the splatter comedies Peter Jackson made at the very beginning of his career though with better special effects.
Posts: 14748 | Location: Phoenix, AZ | Registered: February 02, 2003
Originally posted by babypook: Adding: Bee Movie Full of malapropisms, puns, and satire, Bee Movie was uneven but entertaining enough. The animation was average and was secondary to the dialogue, which was not as clever as they were desperately trying to be. I appreciated Zellweger's character, who says, "How can we possibly know what they are capable of feeling?", which is something I agree with. Her act of mercy and compassion was easily relateable. Matthew Broderick sang a little ditty , with cello and trumpet. Seinfeld thanked Spielberg and his wife and kids at the end. Watching those credits, several thousand people worked on this. B-
Lions For Lambs Giving us a glimpse of conversations and ideals at every level, the talky, self-righteous, horrified and disillusioned, down to the microcosm of two men looking out for one another, this film touched me once again very deeply. Even though I have heard or participated in these same kinds of conversations with friends and colleagues, it was still wonderful to hear intelligent dialogue and passionate beliefs. In the end, all that mattered were those young individuals who gave everything to make a difference.
Streep and Cruise were solid. A
Posts: 6279 | Location: canada | Registered: December 22, 2005
As a historical account of one man, William Wiberforce. this was a film with historical bravery and keen passion to do what was right all along. Youssou N'Dour's quiet testimonies gave it the most dignity in the film. They kept the focus of Wilberforce. played by Ioan Gruffid. It was certainly nice to see him away from The Silver Surfer films. His character treated everyone in the film equally, and his scenes with his butler were among th best.(Jeremy Scott).Very emotional movie. B+ What was noticeable by much absence, were the people that were freed.
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Posts: 6279 | Location: canada | Registered: December 22, 2005
"A movie is not good because it arrives at conclusions you share, or bad because it does not. A movie is not about what it is about. It is about how it is about it: about the way it considers its subject matter, and about how its real subject may be quite different from the one it seems to provide." - Roger Ebert, from the introduction to "Awake in the Dark" (2006)
I forgot to include this film on my list. Don Cheadle was excellent; Chewetel Ejiorfor was the best I've seen him. Moving, uncompromising, and a great snap-shot of those times. B+
Posts: 6279 | Location: canada | Registered: December 22, 2005
Added Ratatouille (A) -- Easily one of the best films of the year. I'll post my review in the "What film have you seen today" thread when I'm done writing it.
"A movie is not good because it arrives at conclusions you share, or bad because it does not. A movie is not about what it is about. It is about how it is about it: about the way it considers its subject matter, and about how its real subject may be quite different from the one it seems to provide." - Roger Ebert, from the introduction to "Awake in the Dark" (2006)
If it wasn't for some of the 3-D effects this really wouldn't be worth seeing at all. The script is painfully idiotic, even by warrior film standards, but the main problem is the motion capture animation technology just is not satisfying. It is good for sweeping outdoor shots and art design but the characters' faces are rubbery and inexpressive... it's as if the technology makes bad actors. Even with the limites of the technology in mind John Malkovich does embarrassinbg vocal work. Not a fan of the Grendel monster design either, he appears as a deformed human turned inside out but it is not as cool as that sounds. The film didn't work for me at all and even with all the gore, and even a surprising amount of nudity, I was bored a lot of the time.
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Posts: 14748 | Location: Phoenix, AZ | Registered: February 02, 2003
