THE GODFATHER
Recommended. Good it's been re-released. I finally saw the classic. And a classic it is. A powerful story of loyalties, the family, life choices, power and trust.
SURROGATES
Seen second time. It still strikes me how complete a portrayal of a future world it is. The film ingeniously winks towards SF fans with its hints at "Gamer", "Terminator", "G.I.Joe" and "Last Action Hero". And it's pure pleasure to see the streets full of supermodel-lookalikes.
CREATION
Walked out. It's not about Charles Darwin procrastinating to announce his theory. It's about the script writer putting off the main story. Well, if there is any later on. My patience ran out.
Tuesday 29 September 2009
Monday 28 September 2009
SURROGATES
Recommended. Good science fiction comes up with a new scientific idea and puts it to a test in a fictitious medium. A good film is well scripted, filmed and acted. This movie meets all these conditions.
FAME
Recommended. Bereft of the original's gloom and fatalism, it's retained the most valid plots and fantastically modernised the whole. Of course it's kept the hit song "I'm gonna live forever".
In the meantime I've set four nights out free of charge for myself for this week only. I'm gonna dance forever...
Recommended. Good science fiction comes up with a new scientific idea and puts it to a test in a fictitious medium. A good film is well scripted, filmed and acted. This movie meets all these conditions.
FAME
Recommended. Bereft of the original's gloom and fatalism, it's retained the most valid plots and fantastically modernised the whole. Of course it's kept the hit song "I'm gonna live forever".
In the meantime I've set four nights out free of charge for myself for this week only. I'm gonna dance forever...
Saturday 26 September 2009
THE SOLOIST
Watchable. It starts with people, whether sane or mentally ill, talking rubbish and it feels like sitting on a London bus having to hear strangers' boring conversations. but soon it gets so much better. The portrayal of the community of mentally ill people is just surreal and the bits putting you into the mind of a schizophreniac just show how it feels to hear voices.
WHAT'S YOUR RAASHEE?
Watchable. The comedy is brilliant (e.g. "How did you like the girl?" "She's nice but she argues a lot." "You won't argue after marriage." "Why?" "By then you will learn to shut up."). What detracts from the movie is too Western music.
MEET THE ROBINSONS
Watchable. I don't like animation making cartoon characters look like dolls. But time warp movies tend to be good and this story doesn't disappoint.
Watchable. It starts with people, whether sane or mentally ill, talking rubbish and it feels like sitting on a London bus having to hear strangers' boring conversations. but soon it gets so much better. The portrayal of the community of mentally ill people is just surreal and the bits putting you into the mind of a schizophreniac just show how it feels to hear voices.
WHAT'S YOUR RAASHEE?
Watchable. The comedy is brilliant (e.g. "How did you like the girl?" "She's nice but she argues a lot." "You won't argue after marriage." "Why?" "By then you will learn to shut up."). What detracts from the movie is too Western music.
MEET THE ROBINSONS
Watchable. I don't like animation making cartoon characters look like dolls. But time warp movies tend to be good and this story doesn't disappoint.
Thursday 24 September 2009
Wednesday 23 September 2009
THE CRIMSON WING
Watchable. Interesting visual effects show that truly only the best material of the 13-month shooting has been selected. The commentary sounds so monotonous that it's hard to focus though. Still, what I can see clearly from the film is that I will need new feathers for my collection. Not all flamingoes are totally pink. Some have white feathers with crimson tips - really beautiful.
THE FIRM
Walked out. Boring are lives of football hooligans. And expensive (£80 for a tacky tracksuit in the 80s).
I skipped the preview of "The Soloist" with full conscience - if the proceeds go to a charity, I'd better leave it to normal ticket payers to attend the screening. I guess my Unlimited pass wouldn't help much.
Watchable. Interesting visual effects show that truly only the best material of the 13-month shooting has been selected. The commentary sounds so monotonous that it's hard to focus though. Still, what I can see clearly from the film is that I will need new feathers for my collection. Not all flamingoes are totally pink. Some have white feathers with crimson tips - really beautiful.
THE FIRM
Walked out. Boring are lives of football hooligans. And expensive (£80 for a tacky tracksuit in the 80s).
I skipped the preview of "The Soloist" with full conscience - if the proceeds go to a charity, I'd better leave it to normal ticket payers to attend the screening. I guess my Unlimited pass wouldn't help much.
Saturday 19 September 2009
JULIE AND JULIA
Watchable. I like to cook and it's a very uplifting movie about the joy of cooking and eating. Still, it's not exactly mouthwatering and the kitchen disasters could be funnier.
THREE MILES NORTH OF MOLKOM
Watchable. It's about an obscure event full of rituals reminiscent of paganism. But it's shown with irreverent humour (e.g. a cool Australian has heard about a festival while travelling through Europe and disappointingly found himself stuck with tree-huggers, the camera captures his and others' faces commenting on the goings-on).
The screening was preceded by a lengthy comedy show by Russell Howard. I don't get much of his humour but a few jokes were good. One had me in stitches: A girl at school is doing some calculations and whenever her calculator refuses cooperation, she bangs it against the desk. The noise is so annoying to the teacher that he says to the underage girl: "How would you like it if I banged you against the desk?"
FISH TANK
Watchable. A gritty look on daily lives of chavs: kids that drink, smoke and steal like it's no big deal, a young mother that hardly tolerates her children. It is unpleasant but fascinating to watch for an outsider. Very convincingly made and acted.
MISS MARCH: GENERATION PENETRATION
Watchable. It is gross but funny, like "American Pie".
CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS 3-D
Watchable. The story is about as clever as the title indicates but when ice-cream fell down on the village I just couldn't help fantasising about a downpour of pancakes with wild blueberries and whipped cream. The movie is quite funny. Just see the inventor's father face when his son asks him to find a file and email to his mobile.
WANTED
Watchable. The music and dancing is really good and that means a lot in Bollywood. The storyline is ingeniously contrived. Salman Khan acts at his best. Just the gang dealings feel a bit lengthy.
Trailers promise a number of good movies this Diwali. "Blue" is particularly intriguing - diving, sharks, Bollywood top actors.
DIL BOLE HADDIPA!
Recommended. The music and dancing is absolutely top-class. Shahid Kapoor and Rani Mukherjee act and dance just so well that I checked their names. Truly rising stars. The comedy is also hilarious.
Watchable. I like to cook and it's a very uplifting movie about the joy of cooking and eating. Still, it's not exactly mouthwatering and the kitchen disasters could be funnier.
THREE MILES NORTH OF MOLKOM
Watchable. It's about an obscure event full of rituals reminiscent of paganism. But it's shown with irreverent humour (e.g. a cool Australian has heard about a festival while travelling through Europe and disappointingly found himself stuck with tree-huggers, the camera captures his and others' faces commenting on the goings-on).
The screening was preceded by a lengthy comedy show by Russell Howard. I don't get much of his humour but a few jokes were good. One had me in stitches: A girl at school is doing some calculations and whenever her calculator refuses cooperation, she bangs it against the desk. The noise is so annoying to the teacher that he says to the underage girl: "How would you like it if I banged you against the desk?"
FISH TANK
Watchable. A gritty look on daily lives of chavs: kids that drink, smoke and steal like it's no big deal, a young mother that hardly tolerates her children. It is unpleasant but fascinating to watch for an outsider. Very convincingly made and acted.
MISS MARCH: GENERATION PENETRATION
Watchable. It is gross but funny, like "American Pie".
CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS 3-D
Watchable. The story is about as clever as the title indicates but when ice-cream fell down on the village I just couldn't help fantasising about a downpour of pancakes with wild blueberries and whipped cream. The movie is quite funny. Just see the inventor's father face when his son asks him to find a file and email to his mobile.
WANTED
Watchable. The music and dancing is really good and that means a lot in Bollywood. The storyline is ingeniously contrived. Salman Khan acts at his best. Just the gang dealings feel a bit lengthy.
Trailers promise a number of good movies this Diwali. "Blue" is particularly intriguing - diving, sharks, Bollywood top actors.
DIL BOLE HADDIPA!
Recommended. The music and dancing is absolutely top-class. Shahid Kapoor and Rani Mukherjee act and dance just so well that I checked their names. Truly rising stars. The comedy is also hilarious.
Wednesday 16 September 2009
IN THE REALM OF THE SENSES
Watchable. It's about sex so, obviously, it's exciting to watch. But it's about nothing more than sex.
(500) DAYS OF SUMMER
Watchable. A beautiful love story with an annoying commentary (by an old prick's voice), a nonsense film in the film and ridiculous and confusing going forward and back in time.
DISTRICT 9
Watchable. Poor direction and acting combined with a boring mockumentary style (really, TV talking heads discussing trivia) detract from a good storyline. "Enemy Mine" it isn't.
THE HURT LOCKER
Walked out. Day-to-day work of soldiers in a war zone. For fans of army machinery only. Even "Jarhead" was better.
WHITEOUT
Watchable. A spotless and spacious station in Antarctica, much better than the one whose replica I saw at an exhibition at Science Museum, is the background to an almost-slasher-movie. While the balaclava-clad figure running with a dagger looks ridiculous, the frozen dead bodies and investigators' struggle with the weather conditions are more involving.
LOS ABRAZOS ROTOS (BROKEN EMBRACES)
Watchable. A usual multi-layer Almodovar story, with the characters somewhat subdued. The farther in the movie, the better. The comic bit of "Girls and Suitcases" should be developed into a full-length film - vibrant characters and perfect acting.
GAMER
Watchable. The movie builds on "The Running Man", with Gerard Butler taking Arnold Schwarzenegger's place. The clownish-acting inventor would suit "Batman" better but the vision of future entertainment is plausible and attractive to watch. A bit chaotic though.
Watchable. It's about sex so, obviously, it's exciting to watch. But it's about nothing more than sex.
(500) DAYS OF SUMMER
Watchable. A beautiful love story with an annoying commentary (by an old prick's voice), a nonsense film in the film and ridiculous and confusing going forward and back in time.
DISTRICT 9
Watchable. Poor direction and acting combined with a boring mockumentary style (really, TV talking heads discussing trivia) detract from a good storyline. "Enemy Mine" it isn't.
THE HURT LOCKER
Walked out. Day-to-day work of soldiers in a war zone. For fans of army machinery only. Even "Jarhead" was better.
WHITEOUT
Watchable. A spotless and spacious station in Antarctica, much better than the one whose replica I saw at an exhibition at Science Museum, is the background to an almost-slasher-movie. While the balaclava-clad figure running with a dagger looks ridiculous, the frozen dead bodies and investigators' struggle with the weather conditions are more involving.
LOS ABRAZOS ROTOS (BROKEN EMBRACES)
Watchable. A usual multi-layer Almodovar story, with the characters somewhat subdued. The farther in the movie, the better. The comic bit of "Girls and Suitcases" should be developed into a full-length film - vibrant characters and perfect acting.
GAMER
Watchable. The movie builds on "The Running Man", with Gerard Butler taking Arnold Schwarzenegger's place. The clownish-acting inventor would suit "Batman" better but the vision of future entertainment is plausible and attractive to watch. A bit chaotic though.
Tuesday 15 September 2009
AWAY WE GO
Walked out. People in their thirties try to sort their lives. I decided sorting out my own life was more interesting and left.
DORIAN GRAY
Watchable. The 1970 film was one of the creepiest of my childhood. This one relies on ominous noises and worms rather than dosing the menace. It's also really poorly acted, even Colin Firth acts half-heartedly. Good it retained some of Oscar Wilde's brilliant observations (e.g. "I didn't exactly propose. I just said I loved her and she said it was her dream come true to become my wife." "Women are so wonderfully practical.")
SORORITY ROW
Watchable. The title indicated a chick flick so I was surprised to see them killing each other. As slasher movies go, this one doesn't stand out. It's fast-paced so you can't get bored but no major scares.
Walked out. People in their thirties try to sort their lives. I decided sorting out my own life was more interesting and left.
DORIAN GRAY
Watchable. The 1970 film was one of the creepiest of my childhood. This one relies on ominous noises and worms rather than dosing the menace. It's also really poorly acted, even Colin Firth acts half-heartedly. Good it retained some of Oscar Wilde's brilliant observations (e.g. "I didn't exactly propose. I just said I loved her and she said it was her dream come true to become my wife." "Women are so wonderfully practical.")
SORORITY ROW
Watchable. The title indicated a chick flick so I was surprised to see them killing each other. As slasher movies go, this one doesn't stand out. It's fast-paced so you can't get bored but no major scares.
Monday 14 September 2009
ADVENTURELAND
Watchable. A sad story about ordinary lives entangled in strong emotions. With amazing Bill Hader as the theme park manager.
APNI BOLI APNA DES
Watchable. The story of love, family and debt is involving but it starts with half an hour of people talking jibberish about wedding plans. Mediocre music. Punjabi.
Watchable. A sad story about ordinary lives entangled in strong emotions. With amazing Bill Hader as the theme park manager.
APNI BOLI APNA DES
Watchable. The story of love, family and debt is involving but it starts with half an hour of people talking jibberish about wedding plans. Mediocre music. Punjabi.
Sunday 13 September 2009
MR. MAGORIUM'S WONDER EMPORIUM
Recommended. Saw it twice. The story is full of magic and wonders indeed.
THE FINAL DESTINATION 3-D
Recommended. Finally real 3D! It starts with a mind-blowing 3D car race and doesn't relent for a minute. The storyline is intriguing too: are we destined to die at a specific time or can we get away with it?
FUNNY PEOPLE
Walked out. What an unfunny movie about comedy.
TINKERBELL AND THE LOST TREASURE
Walked out. Tinkerbell manipulates everyone around her by being cute and sulking.
Recommended. Saw it twice. The story is full of magic and wonders indeed.
THE FINAL DESTINATION 3-D
Recommended. Finally real 3D! It starts with a mind-blowing 3D car race and doesn't relent for a minute. The storyline is intriguing too: are we destined to die at a specific time or can we get away with it?
FUNNY PEOPLE
Walked out. What an unfunny movie about comedy.
TINKERBELL AND THE LOST TREASURE
Walked out. Tinkerbell manipulates everyone around her by being cute and sulking.
Friday 11 September 2009
MESRINE: L'ENNEMI PUBLIC NO. 1 (MESRINE - PART II: PUBLIC ENEMY 1)
Watchable. Surprisingly. I walked out from Part I but this one is much more fun. Lots of humour (e.g. the criminal drinking to being No. 1 when declared public enemy). It could be shorter though. The scenes that are supposed to increase tension are so lengthy that they increase sleepiness rather than the heart rate.
KISAAN
Watchable. A run-of-the-mill social economic rural family story with a good criminal plot. The music is mediocre: pleasantly melodious songs throughout the film with the best one saved for the credits.
Watchable. Surprisingly. I walked out from Part I but this one is much more fun. Lots of humour (e.g. the criminal drinking to being No. 1 when declared public enemy). It could be shorter though. The scenes that are supposed to increase tension are so lengthy that they increase sleepiness rather than the heart rate.
KISAAN
Watchable. A run-of-the-mill social economic rural family story with a good criminal plot. The music is mediocre: pleasantly melodious songs throughout the film with the best one saved for the credits.
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