ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY AT IMAX 3D
Watchable. I was apprehensive about "The Stories". What's more, as I try not to read about movies before seeing them, I expected a spin-off. Luckily it's nicely and meticulously written into the original low-tech trilogy and the "Star Wars" Universe and you know straightaway when it's happening. Filmed on locations in Iceland, Jordan and the Maldives which gives the feel of the reality of the diverse galaxy as well as impressive sceneries. One major well-known character appears alongside brief cameos of three others. Music by Michael Giacchino smoothly blends with the famous "Star Wars Theme" by John Williams. A number of protracted battle scenes. Very standard jokes with occasional few good ones e.g.: "I'll be there to protect you. Caspian told me I had to." Amazing shots of planets from space. The movie runs at 80% of the force (pun intended) till it evolves into a delightful ending. In the end I also got to love the two new heroes. As with original "Star Wars" there are no scenes during or after the credits but I just loved the score harmonising with the original score by John Williams.
16. INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL WATCH DOCS
WRONG ELEMENTS
Watchable. While you can find out what has happened and what is happening now to the Ugandan child soldiers or learn about the current Lord's Resistance Army position, it's a partly French film which means the predictable: the camera just follows the young people talking while visiting sites with no editing or commentary. Apart from me not being fond of such kind of documentaries, from time to time it hinders making out what they're referring to in their conversations and remarks.
RADIN! (PENNY PINCHER!)
Watchable. It's a moderately witty comedy - I loved the orchestra playing "The Four Seasons" in 12 minutes but didn't laugh out loud much - except for the sad and cheesy ill daughter subplot which turns it into a drama only to return to a comedy at the end.
16. INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL WATCH DOCS
THE FATHER, THE SON AND THE HOLY JIHAD
Watchable. Gosh, is it chaotic! A family torn between advocating for ISIS, being a moderate muslim and staying away from religion makes for a hot subject but lousy editing ruins the experience.
SNEZNAYA KOROLEVA 3. OGON I LED (THE SNOW QUEEN 3: FIRE AND ICE)
Watchable. Although the title looks like a citation of "A Song of Ice and Fire" by George R. R. Martin, it's anything but. It's just one of a few pop culture references in the movie. There are some funny situations and cute animals (birds and an ermine). However, it all appears to be merely a cartoon version of fantasy movies for teenagers. The Snow Queen fairytale reduced to pop pulp.
GLOBAL MIGRATION FILM FESTIVAL
AND WHO TAUGHT YOU TO DRIVE?
Watchable. A very interesting account of dos and don'ts in different cultures. Could be easily titled "Driving round the world". In India the car will always malfunction, this way or the other. In Japan every little gesture matters and it sometimes takes seven attempts to pass the test but with no attention to detail you will never succeed. In addition the Japanese don't speak English (no wonder if their English teachers dream of quitting the job). In Germany the instructor was the most sexist of them all. Very informative and fun to watch. Only the editing had a field for improvement.
KONWOJ
Watchable. There have been Polish movies about how bad policemen are. This one's about bad prison transport officers. Excellent gradation of tension but, due to a shoddy editing, a bit unclear at times. I'm waiting for a film about the failing judicial system.
PASSENGERS 3D
Recommended. From the first sight of the travelling spaceship you know it's going to be fantastic. Mind-blowing visually. One of swimming pool scenes is like nothing I had seen before, in any movie. Neither had Jennifer Lawrence. The story contains the best elements of "The Martian", "Gravity" and... lots of surprises. The script by Jon Spaihts (the writer behind "Prometheus", "Doctor Strange" and upcoming "The Mummy") is a complete vision of the future and of people's personalities and motivations combined with a thought-provoking moral dilemma. Genuine space opera. Better than the latest "Star Wars".
PO PROSTU PRZYJAZN
Watchable. Finally a Polish film where all dialogues are perfectly audible and clear. Too many prolonged scenes with slow music. Little humour, most of it at the beginning of credits. No scenes after the credits. The best roles are the truly comic ones by three supporting actors: Anna Polony as Patryk's grandma, Magdalena Warak as Ivanka's sister and Jan Peszek as the hospital director.
RESTER VERTICAL (STAYING VERTICAL)
Watchable. Very good: clear, naturalistic, yet deprived of vulgarity sex scenes are juxtaposed with a baby crying for a bigger part of the film. There are also a clear scene of gerontophilic homosexual sex and another of straight-in-your-face birthgiving which I found a bit disturbing. However the wolf scene is excellent. The storyline's quite peculiar - it's tongue-in-cheek but doesn't make anyone laugh. The main protagonist is striving to survive but takes a downfall, especially once the baby is born. I'm not sure what the movie is meant to be. A contraception pill?
Saturday, 24 December 2016
Tuesday, 13 December 2016
JOSEPH AND MARY
Watchable. A typical Biblical story: quiet, correct, touching and seen a hundred of times already.
PUSTINA - EPISODES 1 & 2
Watchable. Filth rules - both physical (no one washes their hands after using the toilet) and moral. Made to imitate Scandinavian crime series but with focus on the lower class. The second episode is more interesting than the first, you know already who is who so you can start guessing whodunnit. Yet, the Pustina town is made to look so ordinary it's not a must see. So while the girl's disappearance is intriguing, seeing the serial means watching lowlives for 8 hours in total.
16. INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL WATCH DOCS
TONY (THE CHOCOLATE CASE)
Recommended. Time to face it: I'm guilty of slavery. It turns out that cocoa plantations are ridden with slave labour of children who don't get paid, are starved and whipped. Dutch Tony Chocolonely brand was set up to eradicate it. It's growing and, as the director said during the Q&A after the screening, some regular brands have vanished from the market since so that's optimistic. But most of all, the humble beginnings, when journalist Teun van de Keuken started investigating the chocolate production ethics, are hilarious. The film is very infomative, e.g. debunks the myth that Fair Trade equals ethical, transparent and monitored. So altogether it's clever, funny and disquieting at the same time.
Watchable. A typical Biblical story: quiet, correct, touching and seen a hundred of times already.
PUSTINA - EPISODES 1 & 2
Watchable. Filth rules - both physical (no one washes their hands after using the toilet) and moral. Made to imitate Scandinavian crime series but with focus on the lower class. The second episode is more interesting than the first, you know already who is who so you can start guessing whodunnit. Yet, the Pustina town is made to look so ordinary it's not a must see. So while the girl's disappearance is intriguing, seeing the serial means watching lowlives for 8 hours in total.
16. INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL WATCH DOCS
TONY (THE CHOCOLATE CASE)
Recommended. Time to face it: I'm guilty of slavery. It turns out that cocoa plantations are ridden with slave labour of children who don't get paid, are starved and whipped. Dutch Tony Chocolonely brand was set up to eradicate it. It's growing and, as the director said during the Q&A after the screening, some regular brands have vanished from the market since so that's optimistic. But most of all, the humble beginnings, when journalist Teun van de Keuken started investigating the chocolate production ethics, are hilarious. The film is very infomative, e.g. debunks the myth that Fair Trade equals ethical, transparent and monitored. So altogether it's clever, funny and disquieting at the same time.
Monday, 12 December 2016
16. INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL WATCH DOCS
IKONA (ICON)
Watchable. The film lacks cohesion. While part of the disarray comes from the contorted relationships in the mental hospital, e.g. the birthday cake scene, where the hapless patient gets practically told off for having caused the problem of baking the cake, appears in between numerous shows of affection of the personnel towards the ill, the doctor's philosophical musings are out of the blue.
HOOLIGAN SPARROW
Watchable. The case of a school director who abused 6 of his female charges is just a pretext to present current day China where high officials find it "fashionable" to rape underage girls and authorities systematically threaten human rights activists and raid their offices. It's also more about the activist's life than about the case. So it's for viewers interested in China as a country rather than in women's rights.
WALKA Z SZATANEM (THE BATTLE WITH SATAN)
Watchable. No wonder the film met with neither outrage nor praise from the side of the Church. It's quite low key. The topic is controversial: Poland is Europe's unfamous leader in the number of exorcisms and most of the alleged possession victims are females between 15 and 25. While it's clear from the film that some children are forced to attend religion lessons and then get coerced into undergoing the rites which guarantee regular profits to the Church, it all can be read between the lines only.
FANG DEN HAIDER (CATCHING HAIDER)
Watchable. An interesting portrayal of a tremendously popular politician. While it says a lot about Joerg Haider's background and political tactics, what comes to the fore is his impact on people. He was a keen observant, with outstanding memory of people's names and faces, just as much as a shrewed manipulator. A natural born leader. Beautiful views of Austria - similar to Switzerland - and local festivities are a delight too. The director's personal commentary doesn't help to understand some local dealings though. It would be better as a biopic rather than a political reportage.
LA LA LAND
Watchable. I was afraid the jazz music might be too much for me and that I would walk out like from "Excentrycy, czyli po slonecznej stronie ulicy" or "Whiplash". Anything but. It's mild jazz, pop, 80s, really light. What's more, it's truly catchy, the music just stays with you. The story is also light, good for a musical, a bit cliche, especially as it associates happiness with having a child as the culmination of a relationship. J. K. Simmons, known as the teacher from "Whiplash", plays a small part. There's nothing over or after the credits so you can leave as soon as the movie ends.
In between the screenings I overheard a peculiar conversation between two Muggle journalists: "There's a 'Star Wars' screening on Wednesday." "Again?! There's been one already!" "That was last year. There's a new part coming out."
SOLIDARUCHY Z RAKOWIECKIEJ
Watchable. A very fresh documentary about former Solidarnosc activists talking about their imprisonment. Some funny bits, e.g. about the political police from Katowice driving a Varsovian activist to the jail in Warsaw - they didn't know the city so the arrested guy had to guide them, or prisoners' pipe dreams of becoming the director of a jail for communists. Some grim ones - about brutally murdered freedom fighters and conditions of their incarceration. A number of talking heads droning on. Who-is-who notes are given at the very end which renders a big part of the film incomprehensible to people like me.
The film will be shown on Channel 2 of Polish Television at 10:55 p.m. tonight.
16. INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL WATCH DOCS
THE LAST LAUGH
Watchable. About whether you can joke about the Holocaust or not. Of course you can. Provided you're Jewish. I'm not but some jokes are so tactful even I can quote them: "Two Jews were sent to assassinate Hitler. They were waiting outside his quaters as he was to come at 8. Half an hour passed. He didn't turn up. An hour passed. He was still not there. Two hours passed and one Jew says to the other: 'He's still not here. I hope nothing's happened to him.'" or "My mum was a Holocaust survivor. Sorry, she was the alleged Holocaust survivor." Several other jokes were told in the film. Unfortunately, most just weren't funny.
IKONA (ICON)
Watchable. The film lacks cohesion. While part of the disarray comes from the contorted relationships in the mental hospital, e.g. the birthday cake scene, where the hapless patient gets practically told off for having caused the problem of baking the cake, appears in between numerous shows of affection of the personnel towards the ill, the doctor's philosophical musings are out of the blue.
HOOLIGAN SPARROW
Watchable. The case of a school director who abused 6 of his female charges is just a pretext to present current day China where high officials find it "fashionable" to rape underage girls and authorities systematically threaten human rights activists and raid their offices. It's also more about the activist's life than about the case. So it's for viewers interested in China as a country rather than in women's rights.
WALKA Z SZATANEM (THE BATTLE WITH SATAN)
Watchable. No wonder the film met with neither outrage nor praise from the side of the Church. It's quite low key. The topic is controversial: Poland is Europe's unfamous leader in the number of exorcisms and most of the alleged possession victims are females between 15 and 25. While it's clear from the film that some children are forced to attend religion lessons and then get coerced into undergoing the rites which guarantee regular profits to the Church, it all can be read between the lines only.
FANG DEN HAIDER (CATCHING HAIDER)
Watchable. An interesting portrayal of a tremendously popular politician. While it says a lot about Joerg Haider's background and political tactics, what comes to the fore is his impact on people. He was a keen observant, with outstanding memory of people's names and faces, just as much as a shrewed manipulator. A natural born leader. Beautiful views of Austria - similar to Switzerland - and local festivities are a delight too. The director's personal commentary doesn't help to understand some local dealings though. It would be better as a biopic rather than a political reportage.
LA LA LAND
Watchable. I was afraid the jazz music might be too much for me and that I would walk out like from "Excentrycy, czyli po slonecznej stronie ulicy" or "Whiplash". Anything but. It's mild jazz, pop, 80s, really light. What's more, it's truly catchy, the music just stays with you. The story is also light, good for a musical, a bit cliche, especially as it associates happiness with having a child as the culmination of a relationship. J. K. Simmons, known as the teacher from "Whiplash", plays a small part. There's nothing over or after the credits so you can leave as soon as the movie ends.
In between the screenings I overheard a peculiar conversation between two Muggle journalists: "There's a 'Star Wars' screening on Wednesday." "Again?! There's been one already!" "That was last year. There's a new part coming out."
SOLIDARUCHY Z RAKOWIECKIEJ
Watchable. A very fresh documentary about former Solidarnosc activists talking about their imprisonment. Some funny bits, e.g. about the political police from Katowice driving a Varsovian activist to the jail in Warsaw - they didn't know the city so the arrested guy had to guide them, or prisoners' pipe dreams of becoming the director of a jail for communists. Some grim ones - about brutally murdered freedom fighters and conditions of their incarceration. A number of talking heads droning on. Who-is-who notes are given at the very end which renders a big part of the film incomprehensible to people like me.
The film will be shown on Channel 2 of Polish Television at 10:55 p.m. tonight.
16. INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL WATCH DOCS
THE LAST LAUGH
Watchable. About whether you can joke about the Holocaust or not. Of course you can. Provided you're Jewish. I'm not but some jokes are so tactful even I can quote them: "Two Jews were sent to assassinate Hitler. They were waiting outside his quaters as he was to come at 8. Half an hour passed. He didn't turn up. An hour passed. He was still not there. Two hours passed and one Jew says to the other: 'He's still not here. I hope nothing's happened to him.'" or "My mum was a Holocaust survivor. Sorry, she was the alleged Holocaust survivor." Several other jokes were told in the film. Unfortunately, most just weren't funny.
Sunday, 11 December 2016
16. INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL WATCH DOCS
AU NOM DE L'ORDRE ET DE LA MORALE (IN THE NAME OF MORALS AND ORDER)
Recommended. Coercion into sterilisation, nuns torturing children and priests raping them, forced child labour don't sound like... Switzerland, do they? A hard-hitting film about how all of this was either inevitable or even desirable in the society of a few decades ago.
CURUMIM
Recommended. The whole film is pleasing to watch. The main protagonist is a very nice guy whose life was so fascinating it could be easily made into a Hollywood blockbuster: drug-dealing while paragliding, a spectacular escape, an Indonesian prison onto which venomous snakes are thrown from the air daily. The ending in the form of notes informing you of the latest fate of the portrayed people comes as a shock.
DESTRUCTION OF MEMORY
Recommended. Scenes of world-famous monuments of culture being blown up are thrown in the midst of the discussion so abruptly they startle you. It's a scientific fact that genocide is always preceded by the demolition of the ethnic or religious group's material culture. The film chronicles such devastation from World War Two Dresden and Warsaw, through former Yugoslavia, to ISIS destroying Timbuktu and Syria. Owing to the demolition of cultural artefacts having been recognised as a war crime, counteraction is being taken in Syria. Nearly a military operation in itself.
A157
Watchable. Nothing really new about ISIS enslaving Yazidi teenage girls. I learnt about dots round the neck of one of the opressors with words "open here" and people making a living of looking for relatives of those in the refugee camps. Other than that it's just the slow routine of life in a muddy camp.
#MYESCAPE
Recommended. The subject of recent refugee migration has been all over mass media for a couple of years now so I thought I had seen it all. But here you get ordinarily looking people, including some really hot guys, who have been to hell and back: have spent thousands of dollars, trekked through a dessert, travelled in nearly air-locked carriages, struggled not to fall asleep to be able to keep balance on a dinghy brimming with people and done most of that at gunpoint. Recorded with their own candid cellphones. Makes impression.
The film is available for free online. The makers didn't put it on Youtube but someone did and the producers don't mind.
SCOPE 100
LA TORTUE ROUGE (THE RED TURTLE)
Watchable. Very good beginning. Thirst you hear music similar to sea waves, then you see the castaway. Later on the animation with few colours but of numerous shades is the main attraction. The film is slow but in a calm manner so it's quite relaxing. What perplexed me was its nonsense natural geography: as far as I'm aware, the only seals living in the tropics are those off the coast of California where the cold current runs. But such a current wouldn't be favoured by sea turtles.
AU NOM DE L'ORDRE ET DE LA MORALE (IN THE NAME OF MORALS AND ORDER)
Recommended. Coercion into sterilisation, nuns torturing children and priests raping them, forced child labour don't sound like... Switzerland, do they? A hard-hitting film about how all of this was either inevitable or even desirable in the society of a few decades ago.
CURUMIM
Recommended. The whole film is pleasing to watch. The main protagonist is a very nice guy whose life was so fascinating it could be easily made into a Hollywood blockbuster: drug-dealing while paragliding, a spectacular escape, an Indonesian prison onto which venomous snakes are thrown from the air daily. The ending in the form of notes informing you of the latest fate of the portrayed people comes as a shock.
DESTRUCTION OF MEMORY
Recommended. Scenes of world-famous monuments of culture being blown up are thrown in the midst of the discussion so abruptly they startle you. It's a scientific fact that genocide is always preceded by the demolition of the ethnic or religious group's material culture. The film chronicles such devastation from World War Two Dresden and Warsaw, through former Yugoslavia, to ISIS destroying Timbuktu and Syria. Owing to the demolition of cultural artefacts having been recognised as a war crime, counteraction is being taken in Syria. Nearly a military operation in itself.
A157
Watchable. Nothing really new about ISIS enslaving Yazidi teenage girls. I learnt about dots round the neck of one of the opressors with words "open here" and people making a living of looking for relatives of those in the refugee camps. Other than that it's just the slow routine of life in a muddy camp.
#MYESCAPE
Recommended. The subject of recent refugee migration has been all over mass media for a couple of years now so I thought I had seen it all. But here you get ordinarily looking people, including some really hot guys, who have been to hell and back: have spent thousands of dollars, trekked through a dessert, travelled in nearly air-locked carriages, struggled not to fall asleep to be able to keep balance on a dinghy brimming with people and done most of that at gunpoint. Recorded with their own candid cellphones. Makes impression.
The film is available for free online. The makers didn't put it on Youtube but someone did and the producers don't mind.
SCOPE 100
LA TORTUE ROUGE (THE RED TURTLE)
Watchable. Very good beginning. Thirst you hear music similar to sea waves, then you see the castaway. Later on the animation with few colours but of numerous shades is the main attraction. The film is slow but in a calm manner so it's quite relaxing. What perplexed me was its nonsense natural geography: as far as I'm aware, the only seals living in the tropics are those off the coast of California where the cold current runs. But such a current wouldn't be favoured by sea turtles.
Friday, 9 December 2016
SZCZESCIE SWIATA
Watchable. It's weird and makes no sense but the weirdos are charming in their period style.
SKWAR (HEAT)
Watchable. About nothing but short at least (8 minutes).
LA DANSEUSE (THE DANCER)
Watchable. It's in fact about two dancers - one who made it through hard work and one with incomparable talent who made history. Beautiful Lily-Rose Depp as Isadora Duncan. Both dancers blew me away with their choreographies. Unfortunately the dance scenes appear quite late in the film and aren't that many. The story's a bit disturbing as Maire-Louise Fuller had to start her career through bed, there are also games played between potential lovers: her and Isadora, her and Louis etc. Very French in that.
OFFICE CHRISTMAS PARTY
Watchable. Fun starts shortly after the party does which means you need to wait through the interesting, yet not hilarious, built-up to get the situation humour that'll make you laugh out loud several times later on.
Watchable. It's weird and makes no sense but the weirdos are charming in their period style.
SKWAR (HEAT)
Watchable. About nothing but short at least (8 minutes).
LA DANSEUSE (THE DANCER)
Watchable. It's in fact about two dancers - one who made it through hard work and one with incomparable talent who made history. Beautiful Lily-Rose Depp as Isadora Duncan. Both dancers blew me away with their choreographies. Unfortunately the dance scenes appear quite late in the film and aren't that many. The story's a bit disturbing as Maire-Louise Fuller had to start her career through bed, there are also games played between potential lovers: her and Isadora, her and Louis etc. Very French in that.
OFFICE CHRISTMAS PARTY
Watchable. Fun starts shortly after the party does which means you need to wait through the interesting, yet not hilarious, built-up to get the situation humour that'll make you laugh out loud several times later on.
Wednesday, 7 December 2016
TONI ERDMANN
Watchable. It is long (162 minutes) and it feels long. All the film I just kept waiting to learn what the corporate rat woman's father came to teach her. It's nothing special and nothing obvious till the end. It was only after the screening that it finally dawned on me - the joker father is more authentic in his disguises than his daughter is in her business suit. Romania is a perfect setting for pretenders as, with its largest shopping centre nearly empty, being too expensive for the general public to shop, it's one huge mask as well. I only felt sorry for the hot Romanian guy who seemed to have human feelings. The film's a praise of being oneself and true to one's values whatever they are.
LA FILLE INCONNUE (THE UNKNOWN GIRL)
Watchable. Dark and heavy, getting heavier and heavier as the story develops. About guilt. The dark side of society is juxtaposed with the unchanging calmness and kindness of the young female doctor trying to uncover the dead girl's identity. Very French - events take place as if in real time. The mystery keeps you on the edge of the seat. Very good, tense. Doesn't really evoke any other emotions.
Watchable. It is long (162 minutes) and it feels long. All the film I just kept waiting to learn what the corporate rat woman's father came to teach her. It's nothing special and nothing obvious till the end. It was only after the screening that it finally dawned on me - the joker father is more authentic in his disguises than his daughter is in her business suit. Romania is a perfect setting for pretenders as, with its largest shopping centre nearly empty, being too expensive for the general public to shop, it's one huge mask as well. I only felt sorry for the hot Romanian guy who seemed to have human feelings. The film's a praise of being oneself and true to one's values whatever they are.
LA FILLE INCONNUE (THE UNKNOWN GIRL)
Watchable. Dark and heavy, getting heavier and heavier as the story develops. About guilt. The dark side of society is juxtaposed with the unchanging calmness and kindness of the young female doctor trying to uncover the dead girl's identity. Very French - events take place as if in real time. The mystery keeps you on the edge of the seat. Very good, tense. Doesn't really evoke any other emotions.
Tuesday, 6 December 2016
GLOBAL MIGRATION FILM FESTIVAL
THE GOOD LIE
Recommended. It throws you in the middle of a Sudanese child refugee life: the heart-wrenching scenes in Sudan, the foot journey of over 700 miles to Kenya, resettlement to the US after 13 years in the camp, cultural blunders, e.g. calling the job agency worker, who has helped them a lot, "Yardit" meaning a "great white cow" to which she reacts: "Well, I've been called worse" and battling with horrible memories. Very well acted by actual refugees, including two former child soldiers. Impossible to stay indifferent after the movie.
Ex-president Komorowski popped in the cinema with his wife after the movie. He had a quick chat with the festival organizers before going to see "The Handmaiden".
THE GOOD LIE
Recommended. It throws you in the middle of a Sudanese child refugee life: the heart-wrenching scenes in Sudan, the foot journey of over 700 miles to Kenya, resettlement to the US after 13 years in the camp, cultural blunders, e.g. calling the job agency worker, who has helped them a lot, "Yardit" meaning a "great white cow" to which she reacts: "Well, I've been called worse" and battling with horrible memories. Very well acted by actual refugees, including two former child soldiers. Impossible to stay indifferent after the movie.
Ex-president Komorowski popped in the cinema with his wife after the movie. He had a quick chat with the festival organizers before going to see "The Handmaiden".
Monday, 5 December 2016
OCHO APELLIDOS VASCOS (SPANISH AFFAIR)
Watchable. Well scripted and acted but quite impenetrable. I've been to both Seville and the Basque Country and I speak some Spanish, yet I was perplexed. The Polish translation retaining a lot of Castillan and Basque expressions didn't help. If you're not Spanish, you put so much effort into distinguishing which is which, what it means and why it's funny that you fail to laugh. So it's fun but more of linguistic and cultural interest rather than comedy. One important message from the film is: if you want to overthrow your government, don't smoke! The excise tax funds the regime.
Watchable. Well scripted and acted but quite impenetrable. I've been to both Seville and the Basque Country and I speak some Spanish, yet I was perplexed. The Polish translation retaining a lot of Castillan and Basque expressions didn't help. If you're not Spanish, you put so much effort into distinguishing which is which, what it means and why it's funny that you fail to laugh. So it's fun but more of linguistic and cultural interest rather than comedy. One important message from the film is: if you want to overthrow your government, don't smoke! The excise tax funds the regime.
Saturday, 3 December 2016
THE FOURTH PHASE
Recommended. Stunning cinematography and a fantastic score by Kishi Bashi accompany a story of endurance driven by love of all the four phases of water. There's just one joke: "Hey, mum! I did it. No, she's not pregnant. I'm talking about snowboarding." Yet, the whole thing is entirely entertaining and makes you feel the power of following your own path. A must see. Numerous scenes during and after the first credits.
LASSEMAJAS DETEKTIVBYRA - STELLA NOSTRA (THE WHODUNIT DETECTIVE AGENCY)
Watchable. The film's silly and lacks humour but the acting, dubbing and costumes are perfect for a children's movie. Lets you unwind.
FIVE FLAVOURS FILM FESTIVAL
경성학교: 사라진 소녀들 (THE SILENCED)
Recommended. Unpredictable for a larger part and mysterious. The best part is you never know which way it's going to turn as the very genre is not clear till the end.
SULLY
Recommended. A film about the emergency landing on the Hudson river requires tension to be gradually and precisely built up. This film meets the condition. It's also remarkable that all the rescue took just 24 minutes and everyone survived. New York response workers are really something. Tom Hanks' performance is touching. When you get to the scene about Christmas cards during the credits, that's it, that's the final.
POWIDOKI (AFTERIMAGE)
Recommended. Four bleak years of stalinism. A free-thinking artist is dismissed for political reasons, thrown out of the artists' association and left without any sustenance. Makes you wonder if all non-religious and non-national art is going to get banned in the current situation in Poland. You'll find some comfort in it being "just a wind of history which always passes". Very well acted and scripted, pulling you in deeper and deeper. Tragic and moving.
KOLEKCJA SUKIENEK
Watchable. 8 popular actresses and 1 actor tell life stories. Lots of natural-looking close-ups give the impression of having conversations with them and the stories are very life-like so it feels cosy to follow them. You just feel like one of them. Everyone has some unfulfilled dreams and disappointments with partners or regrets about having children. The man in the ending feels like from a different tale. The film should have ended with the conversation about death.
BAD SANTA 2
Watchable. Gross and hardly funny but at least with a cohesive storyline. The female security guard has a fabulous Christmas lipstick.
WARSAW JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL
A PICKLE RECIPE
Watchable. A feel-good family movie and satire on Americans trying to cash on everything. The comedy bits could be funnier though.
LUX FILM DAYS
A PEINE J'OUVRE LES YEUX (AS I OPEN MY EYES)
Watchable. "Mustang" it isn't - it's too political and too Tunesian. The music's not too bad but the story's not fully transparent for people outside the portrayed country. Also the bit about the singer's boyfriend is too frustrating in its chauvinism. It's like he's doing whatever he likes and she gets the blame.
LION
Recommended. A tear-jerker from the 18th minute but so beautiful and touching to the core it's a must-see. Wonderfully acted and shot. Arresting scenery of Tasmania's Wellington Park plays a significant role too. A great movie to be released before Christmas. Makes you want to reunite with all your relatives.
According to the writer Luke Davies, the first 40 minutes were modelled on "WALL-E". Dev appears only in the 55th minute, the 2nd act of the film.
FALE
Watchable. The family, relationship, school and planning for the future issues of two hair-dressing trainees are easy to follow even if marred by poor music. Sadly it ends nowhere. An interesting scene is training shaving on a balloon - if you cut the surface, it bursts. I hope the real training looks just like that!
KEKSZAKALLU
Watchable. It was killing me with boredom till the ending where one of the girls drops her upper-middle-class life to leave for Brazil though lacking any knowledge of geography. Only then did I get the meaning of the film. What makes you change your life doesn't have to be any misfortune. Boredom is a sufficient trigger. What enlivens the 72 minutes of the film are scenes depicting Argentinian lifestyle, my favourite being cooking an octopus - the first time for me to see that. The eponymous Blue Beard is just the symbol of the unknown, no violence here.
If you're going to be around Wroclaw on 9th or 11th December, you can land a 6 zl ticket to see Pierce Brosnan or Wim Wenders at Kino Nowe Horyzonty. While in Warsaw, a big night will be the 15th December when the two new screens at Muranow will be officially opened.
Recommended. Stunning cinematography and a fantastic score by Kishi Bashi accompany a story of endurance driven by love of all the four phases of water. There's just one joke: "Hey, mum! I did it. No, she's not pregnant. I'm talking about snowboarding." Yet, the whole thing is entirely entertaining and makes you feel the power of following your own path. A must see. Numerous scenes during and after the first credits.
LASSEMAJAS DETEKTIVBYRA - STELLA NOSTRA (THE WHODUNIT DETECTIVE AGENCY)
Watchable. The film's silly and lacks humour but the acting, dubbing and costumes are perfect for a children's movie. Lets you unwind.
FIVE FLAVOURS FILM FESTIVAL
경성학교: 사라진 소녀들 (THE SILENCED)
Recommended. Unpredictable for a larger part and mysterious. The best part is you never know which way it's going to turn as the very genre is not clear till the end.
SULLY
Recommended. A film about the emergency landing on the Hudson river requires tension to be gradually and precisely built up. This film meets the condition. It's also remarkable that all the rescue took just 24 minutes and everyone survived. New York response workers are really something. Tom Hanks' performance is touching. When you get to the scene about Christmas cards during the credits, that's it, that's the final.
POWIDOKI (AFTERIMAGE)
Recommended. Four bleak years of stalinism. A free-thinking artist is dismissed for political reasons, thrown out of the artists' association and left without any sustenance. Makes you wonder if all non-religious and non-national art is going to get banned in the current situation in Poland. You'll find some comfort in it being "just a wind of history which always passes". Very well acted and scripted, pulling you in deeper and deeper. Tragic and moving.
KOLEKCJA SUKIENEK
Watchable. 8 popular actresses and 1 actor tell life stories. Lots of natural-looking close-ups give the impression of having conversations with them and the stories are very life-like so it feels cosy to follow them. You just feel like one of them. Everyone has some unfulfilled dreams and disappointments with partners or regrets about having children. The man in the ending feels like from a different tale. The film should have ended with the conversation about death.
BAD SANTA 2
Watchable. Gross and hardly funny but at least with a cohesive storyline. The female security guard has a fabulous Christmas lipstick.
WARSAW JEWISH FILM FESTIVAL
A PICKLE RECIPE
Watchable. A feel-good family movie and satire on Americans trying to cash on everything. The comedy bits could be funnier though.
LUX FILM DAYS
A PEINE J'OUVRE LES YEUX (AS I OPEN MY EYES)
Watchable. "Mustang" it isn't - it's too political and too Tunesian. The music's not too bad but the story's not fully transparent for people outside the portrayed country. Also the bit about the singer's boyfriend is too frustrating in its chauvinism. It's like he's doing whatever he likes and she gets the blame.
LION
Recommended. A tear-jerker from the 18th minute but so beautiful and touching to the core it's a must-see. Wonderfully acted and shot. Arresting scenery of Tasmania's Wellington Park plays a significant role too. A great movie to be released before Christmas. Makes you want to reunite with all your relatives.
According to the writer Luke Davies, the first 40 minutes were modelled on "WALL-E". Dev appears only in the 55th minute, the 2nd act of the film.
FALE
Watchable. The family, relationship, school and planning for the future issues of two hair-dressing trainees are easy to follow even if marred by poor music. Sadly it ends nowhere. An interesting scene is training shaving on a balloon - if you cut the surface, it bursts. I hope the real training looks just like that!
KEKSZAKALLU
Watchable. It was killing me with boredom till the ending where one of the girls drops her upper-middle-class life to leave for Brazil though lacking any knowledge of geography. Only then did I get the meaning of the film. What makes you change your life doesn't have to be any misfortune. Boredom is a sufficient trigger. What enlivens the 72 minutes of the film are scenes depicting Argentinian lifestyle, my favourite being cooking an octopus - the first time for me to see that. The eponymous Blue Beard is just the symbol of the unknown, no violence here.
If you're going to be around Wroclaw on 9th or 11th December, you can land a 6 zl ticket to see Pierce Brosnan or Wim Wenders at Kino Nowe Horyzonty. While in Warsaw, a big night will be the 15th December when the two new screens at Muranow will be officially opened.
Friday, 2 December 2016
FIVE FLAVOURS FILM FESTIVAL
ANTIPORNO
Watchable. A bit like "The Duke of Burgundy" - the roles both are ambiguous and get reversed. The topic is quite feminist and lesbian too. Visually much more attractive though. At least it's colourful.
A YELLOW BIRD
Watchable. Singapore boasts itself on its cleanliness, orderliness and high standard of living. This, in turn, is a sordid, seedy picture of the city-state: illegal migrant workers, lawlessness and moral filth. Interesting to see the hidden part but the movie's slow, disturbing and bleak.
ANTIPORNO
Watchable. A bit like "The Duke of Burgundy" - the roles both are ambiguous and get reversed. The topic is quite feminist and lesbian too. Visually much more attractive though. At least it's colourful.
A YELLOW BIRD
Watchable. Singapore boasts itself on its cleanliness, orderliness and high standard of living. This, in turn, is a sordid, seedy picture of the city-state: illegal migrant workers, lawlessness and moral filth. Interesting to see the hidden part but the movie's slow, disturbing and bleak.
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