Nicole Kidman. Ben Chaplin. In this scintillating comedy-drama, sparks fly between an English lonely bank teller and his Russia mail-order bride. At first, he is upset that she does not speak English, but soon he discovers that she has other talents and is in cahoot with these scum bag boyfriends who are out to fleece him. It is a light-hearted film, not taking itself seriously.
O. Henry's Full House, 1952
This film, narrated by John Steinbeck, is a series of five short stories, acted out by famous actors. It is an absolutely wonderful way to experience O. Henry. I only regret that they did not do The Pearl Necklace but maybe that was written by Guy Mausppaut. The five stories are:
The Cop and The Anthem with Charles Laughton and a very young Marilyn Monroe.
The Clarion Call
The Last Leaf with Anne Boxter
The Ransom of Red Chief
The Gift of the Magi with Farley Granger
Boyfriend, 2014
This will be your call. My reputation is on the stake!
LEVIATHAN
Lauded Russian director Andrey Zvyagintsev (The Return) won the Best Screenplay prize at Cannes for this painterly, primordial tale about a proud patriarch fighting to protect his family home from a corrupt local official. Kolia (Alexey Serebryakov) lives in a small fishing town near the stunning Barents Sea in Northern Russia. He owns an auto-repair shop that stands right next to the house where he lives with his young wife Lilya (Elena Lyadova) and his son, Roma (Sergueï Pokhodaev), from a previous marriage. The town’s corrupt mayor Vadim Shelevyat (Roman Madyanov) is determined to take away his business, his house, as well as his land. First the mayor tries buying off Kolia, but Kolia unflinchingly fights as hard as he can so as not to lose everything he owns, including the beauty that has surrounded him from the day he was born. Facing resistance, the mayor becomes more aggressive...
Official Russian Entry
87th Annual Academy Awards
Official Selection
*Toronto International Film Festival 2014*
*Cannes Film Festival 2014*
This film is truly a Masterpiece. It captures contemporary Russia with its corrupt and brutal government and authority and how this society crushes the human soul and spirit and destroys lives. I am surprised Russia allowed this movie to be made as I found it authentic and powerful, disturbing and realistic.
Suspicion, 1941
Joan Fontaine. Cary Grant. Fontaine won Best Actress Oscar in this Alfred Hitchcock film. It is a classic suspense tale of a shy and wealthy woman who is romanced by a charming ever-do-well whom she marries against her better judgement and then comes to suspect that he is going to murder her. He lies and cheats and steals. A terrible character. Once you know the story it is somewhat boring to sit through it again but Fontaine is simply beautiful to watch.
The Women, 1939
Norma Shearer. Joan Crawford. An all-star, all female cast is featured in an adaptation of the Claire Bloom Luce Broadway hit about a val of catty and chatty high-society women who destroy the lives of their "close friend' who is dealing with a cheating husband. Women who travel in circles can be cut-throat and highly destructive. It is a noisy and busy busy film. I loved the wise mother.
Juno, 2010
Jason Reitman. This film has held its time and remains as quirky and irreverent and adorable as when I first saw it. It is a delightful and charming, charming movie.
Two days, one night
"For the first time, the Dardenne Brothers have teamed with a major international star, Academy Award winner Marion Cotillard, and the result is another masterwork of humanism. Sandra (Cotillard) has just returned to work after recovering from an illness. Realizing that the company can operate with one less employee, management tells Sandra she is to be let go while the remaining employees will each receive a bonus. Over the course of a weekend, Sandra, often with the help of her loving husband (Fabio Rongione), races against time to convince each of her fellow co-workers to sacrifice their much-needed bonuses in order for her to keep her job. With each encounter, Sandra is brought into a different world with unexpected results while her fate hangs in the balance. The Dardennes have brought an extremely relevant social inquiry and turned it into a powerful statement on community solidarity.
Two-time winners of the Palme D'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, Belgian brothers Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne are two of the most acclaimed and deeply admired filmmakers at work today. Their deliberate, naturalistic movies slowly constrict as they follow seemingly ordinary characters who live on the edges of society. Though they started their career working on documentaries, their best known films are ROSETTA and THE CHILD, which both won the Palme d'Or at Cannes as well as THE KID WITH A BIKE which was also released by Sundance Selects and was nominated for a Golden Globe and Independent Spirit Award, becoming their most successful box office success." This was a deeply satisfying film experience, a marvelous movie with a brilliant actress.
Beloved Sisters
Beloved Sisters depicts the unconventional romance between two aristocratic sisters and a rebellious poet who took the European literary world by storm in the late eighteenth century. As the German Enlightenment flourishes in Weimar, vibrant Caroline von Beulwitz (Hannah Herszsprung) finds herself in an unhappy marriage to provide for her mother and shy younger sister Charlotte von Lengefeld (Henriette Confurius). When both sisters fall for outspoken writer Friedrich Schiller (Florian Stetter), their desire ignites a journey of shared passion and creativity. Charlotte and Schiller marry so that the lovers may pursue their ménage à trois under the guise of convention, but as Caroline reveals herself to be a talented author in her own right, the trio's fragile equilibrium is threatened and the sisters' once unbreakable connection is irrevocably changed. In this sweeping yet intimate romantic drama, which is also Germany's official submission to the Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film, acclaimed director Dominik Graf illuminates the lives of two bold young women and one of classical literature's most celebrated figures with charm and contemporary energy. The film was long but fine. It possessed a certain rhythm that flowed well and unfolded story with dignity and integrity. It felt natural to the period.
The Fokken's, 2011
Two old identical twin whores who live in Holland and have been whores over 50 years, this documentary explores their life and attitude. They were real characters.
Two old identical twin whores who live in Holland and have been whores over 50 years, this documentary explores their life and attitude. They were real characters.
The Lady in Apartment #6, 2013
Night Will Fall
This is probably the most powerful documentary I have ever seen on the Holocaust. It left me speechless, without words. And, I have seen everything. I only cried when I came home.
Song of the Sea
Ben and his sister Saoirse, the last Seal-child, embark on a fantastic journey to their home by the sea. Academy Award nominee for Best Animated Feature! This phenomenal film is loved by adults too. It does not have all those ridiculous bells and whistles that intensifies and scares children. It is Irish folklore. The production is magnificence and beautiful. The story carries values and heart, not sentimentality rubbish. "The unhurried pace will serve as an antidote to, or even an inoculation against, the made rush of most contemporary animation. This is a film made by the other crowd, people who care about helping children to care about he medium of film for the rest of their lives." Joel Morgenstern. I loved this film, as did Ariel. It was marvelous. The Grand Budapest Hotel, 2014
Ralph Fiennes. Saoirise Ronan. Quirky comedy in flashback, set in the wake of WW1, the famed concierge at a posh European hotel bonds with his trusted lobby boy as they search for a valuable Renaissance pairing and get involved in the fight over a family fortune. One has to get into this film and not take it seriously. It is unique direction and has a distinctive quality about it. I enjoyed it once I let go that it was not a conventional film.
Treasure of the Sierra Madre, 1948
Humphrey Bogart. Tim Holt. Best Picture Nominee is a treatise on greed and what "gold does to men's souls." when three miners circa 1920's set out to find the precious mineral in the mountains of Mexico. William Houston won Best Actor Award and he deserved to. He carried the entire picture with his humor and wisdom and interpretation of his role. It is a remarkable and beautifully shot classic film.
Zero Motivation, 2014
Israeli film. "This was the hottest film out from Israel. Director Talya Lavie gives us a unique portrait of everyday life for a unit of young, female soldiers n an isolated Israeli desert outpost. Sometimes dark and sometimes hilarious, Lavie's debut reveals the power struggles of three women with lots of idea and little to do." Winner of six Israeli Academy Awards, this film would be I think of only particular interest to committed people to Israel and to Israel's. I laughed out loud and yet there was evil intention there too which left me creeped out.
American Sniper
This was the most extraordinary film I have seen so far. It has to win Best Picture, although Cliff Eastwood was frozen out of Best Director because of his conservative credentials at the RC. It was powerful and brilliant and kept up a tension and suspense that was unrelenting. It had heart without sentimentality. It captured the essence of a soldiers life. It reminded me of the Gaza War. It was a magnificent film that when it ended, there was not where to go but remain in your seat and silent. I cried behind my eyes.
Selma
"Selma is the story of a movement, and a brilliant chronicle of the tumultuous three-month period in 1965 when Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (David Oyelowo) led a dangerous campaign to secure equal voting rights in the face of violent opposition. The epic march from Selma to Montgomery culminated in President Johnson (Tom Wilkinson) signing the Voting Rights Act of 1965, one of the most significant victories for the civil rights movement. Director Ava DuVernay tells the real story of how a revered leader and visionary, along with his brothers and sisters in the movement, prompted change that forever altered history—proving that one dream can change the world. Also starring Carmen Ejogo, Giovanni Ribisi, Alessandro Nivola, Tim Roth, Cuba Gooding Jr. and Oprah Winfrey. Academy Award nominee for Best Picture and Best Original Song ("Glory")." I found the film slow and historically inaccurate. Boring. It would never be nominated for Best Film if they did not need to include a black film in the race. The Jewish Presence was huge in the Civil Rights movement. It was utterly erased. Rabbi Abraham Joshua Hershel walked arm-in-arm with Martin Luther King on this march. He was erased from the front line. Flags of UN and US were presently simultaneously. And, a Muslim was inside King's cabinet of advisers. King was a passionate Zionist, a lover of Jews and Israel. Jews played an historical role in his messaging and legal maneuvering and participation. This was completely erased. I was disgusted.
"Selma is the story of a movement, and a brilliant chronicle of the tumultuous three-month period in 1965 when Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (David Oyelowo) led a dangerous campaign to secure equal voting rights in the face of violent opposition. The epic march from Selma to Montgomery culminated in President Johnson (Tom Wilkinson) signing the Voting Rights Act of 1965, one of the most significant victories for the civil rights movement. Director Ava DuVernay tells the real story of how a revered leader and visionary, along with his brothers and sisters in the movement, prompted change that forever altered history—proving that one dream can change the world. Also starring Carmen Ejogo, Giovanni Ribisi, Alessandro Nivola, Tim Roth, Cuba Gooding Jr. and Oprah Winfrey. Academy Award nominee for Best Picture and Best Original Song ("Glory")." I found the film slow and historically inaccurate. Boring. It would never be nominated for Best Film if they did not need to include a black film in the race. The Jewish Presence was huge in the Civil Rights movement. It was utterly erased. Rabbi Abraham Joshua Hershel walked arm-in-arm with Martin Luther King on this march. He was erased from the front line. Flags of UN and US were presently simultaneously. And, a Muslim was inside King's cabinet of advisers. King was a passionate Zionist, a lover of Jews and Israel. Jews played an historical role in his messaging and legal maneuvering and participation. This was completely erased. I was disgusted.
Wild Tales
Directed by: Damian Szifron. Six separate short stories all connected through rage and revenge and betrayal, although each story is a universe in and of itself. It was fabulous, to the point that when the lights came on, I forgot where I was. Intense. Passionate. Violent and Corrupt, the stories tell the universal experience of the individual and his world. Love it madly.
Birdman
"The critically-acclaimed black comedy Birdman tells the story of a washed-up actor (Michael Keaton)—famous for portraying an iconic superhero—as he struggles to mount a Broadway play. In the days leading up to opening night, he battles his ego and attempts to recover his family, his career and himself. Also starring Zach Galifianakis, Andrea Riseborough, Amy Ryan, Emma Stone, Naomi Watts and Edward Norton, Birdman is directed and co-written by Alejandro González Iñárritu (Biutiful, Babel, 21 Grams, Amores Perros). Nominated for 9 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor (Keaton), Best Supporting Actor (Norton), Best Original Screenplay and Best Director." There are no words as to how much I hated this film. The acting was superb but I could not stand the characters. Their supreme narcissistic, lack of any empathy or capability to love, selfishness and self-absorbness, violence and schudenfreid feeling, the entire movie reminded me of New York city and why I hate the city. Nothing goes. There is no shame. People are vicious and cruel and non-thinking and frankly to spend two hours with any of them was more than I could bear. If I had been alone, I would have gotten up and left. I found Birdman claustrophobic, filled with despicable characters (all actors) emotionally violent, self-absorbed, narcissistic, full of schudenfreid, is there anything that I have left out?
Avalon, 1990
An absolutely wonderful and poignant film of the immigrant experience. Directed by Barry Levinson, it is semi-autobiographical and follows Sam Krichinsky as the family falls apart, as names are changed, as fights break-up the extended family. It is profoundly sad.
Oscar Awarding Nominations of Documentary Shorts
These five choices were awful: Suicide of the Marines. Death by cancer of a mother as she records her last days. Watching bulls die in the pit of slaughter. Fracking i North Dakota. We walked out before we had to see a child die of in terminal illness. It was awful! I hope the care workers of the VA helping Vets who want to commit suicide wins.
Timbuktu
Nominated for Best Foreign Picture, it was phenomenal. I came away with it all being hopeless and that we will never be able to touch the divide between these 3rd world countries and the modern technological world.
It all felt hopeless. Extremely well done. It is the story of ISIS taking over these small villages and implementing Shira law and how one family is destroyed and the young girl becomes an orphan.
Unforgiven, 1992
Directed. Produced and Acted. Clint Eastwood. Gene Hackman. A former gunslinger is lured into a bounty hunt strictly for the money, which has been put up by a group of whores as payment for bringing in the man who disfigured one of them.
Suzy, 1936
Jean Harlow. Franchot Tone. Cary Grant. The adventures of a chorus girl during WWI and how she marries up.
Oscar Award Nominations of Live Shorts
"Don't miss this rare opportunity to see all five Academy Award nominees in the category of Best Live Action Short! Program includes: “Aya” (Israel/France), where two strangers unexpectedly meet at an airport and he mistakenly assumes her to be his assigned driver and she, enchanted by the random encounter, does not hurry to prove him wrong; “Boogaloo and Graham” (UK), in which two boys, Jamesy and Malachy, are over the moon when their soft-hearted dad presents them with two baby chicks to care for; “Butter Lamp” (France/China), in which a young itinerant photographer and his assistant offer to photograph some Tibetan nomads in front of various backgrounds; “Parvaneh” (Switzerland), in which a young Afghan immigrant travels to Zurich where she encounters a punk named Emily; and “The Phone Call” (UK), in which shy Heather (Sally Hawkins), working at a helpline call center, receives a phone call from a mystery man (Jim Broadbent).
I thought you could delete the Photographer one. That, to me, was the weakest one.
Best Animated Short
"Don't miss this rare opportunity to see all five Academy Award nominees in the category of Best Animated Short and more! Program includes: “A Single Life” (The Netherlands), in which Pia, when playing a mysterious vinyl single, is suddenly able to travel through her life; Walt Disney Animation Studios' “Feast” (USA), the story of one man’s love life as seen through the eyes of his best friend and dog, Winston, and revealed bite by bite through the meals they share; “Me and My Moulton” (Canada/Norway), about a seven-year-old girl in mid-’60s Norway who asks her parents one summer if she and her sisters can have a bicycle; “The Bigger Picture” (UK), in which innovative life-size animated characters tell the stark and darkly humorous tale of caring for an elderly parent; and “The Dam Keeper” (USA), which tells the tale of a young pig encumbered with an important job, and the meeting of a new classmate who changes everything." My favorite was The Dam Keeper. It was about bullying. The kids loved Me and My Mouton. There were no Japanese wins
American Sniper Should Win The Oscars
American Sniper is in a class by itself. I have seen all the films for Best Picture. There is no comparison. The others have an historical revisionism for entertainment purpose. American Sniper does not. For example, in An Imitation Game, which was indeed a marvelous film, Alan Tuerlling was an extremely promiscuous gay man, not at all the secretive, easy-to-blackmail, acquiring a beard as a fiance, type-of-guy that they portrayed him as. Or Selma. which was a lie from beginning, middle to end. Don't get me started on that anti-Semitic biased film.
Birdman of Alcatraz, 1962
Burt Lancaster. Karl Malden. "A docudrama about Robert Stroud, the prisoner who became a scientist and ornithologist and successful businessman and author - all from solitary confinement. When I first saw this movie at age 12, it left and indelible imprint on my young and impressionable mind. I fell in love with Lancaster. He was my hero. I fell in love with black and white storytelling and drama. I fell in love with birds. This was my favorite movie and I read his book and any biography I could get a hold of. It has stood the test of time. And, is now considered a classic. But, how disappointing I was when a few years back Cary and I went to Alcatraz and our remarkable guide took us to his cell which was on the upper level. He said the man was a psychopath, that the guards and other prisoners were actually afraid of him, that he never had remorse and was anything but the gentle and patient man that Lancaster made him into! And, here I had written to Bobby Kennedy to free the man!
Merchants of Doubt
A documentary about climate change that lost me half way through when it became partisan.
One Foot In Heaven, 1941
Fredric March. Martha Scott. Best Picture Nominee. It tells the story of a minister and his family, who moves from parish to parish, with their joys and sorrows, over the course of a lifetime in early 20th Century. It felt dated.
5 To 7
A romantic sweet film that had great potential but for the two stars themselves. He was way too young for her and too small for her too. It did not seem believable that this gorgeous married woman of two children would go for a virginal child/man. She smiled too much and her teeth were too white Forgettable.
The Second Nest Exotic Marigold Hotel
This second one did not have the charm as the first one did. I was bored. It was too hyper at the beginning. He was making me nervous with his hyper-energy. It felt much longer than two hours. Utterly forgettable.
The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel is the expansionist dream of Sonny (Dev Patel), and it’s making more claims on his time than he has available, considering his imminent marriage to the love of his life, Sunaina (Tina Desai). Sonny has his eye on a promising property now that his first venture, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel for the Elderly and Beautiful, has only a single remaining vacancy—posing a rooming predicament for fresh arrivals Guy (Richard Gere) and Lavinia (Tamsin Greig). Evelyn and Douglas (Judi Dench and Bill Nighy) have now joined the Jaipur workforce, and are wondering where their regular dates for Chilla pancakes will lead, while Norman and Carol (Ronald Pickup and Diana Hardcastle) are negotiating the tricky waters of an exclusive relationship, as Madge (Celia Imrie) juggles two eligible and very wealthy suitors. Perhaps the only one who may know the answers is newly installed co-manager of the hotel, Muriel (Maggie Smith), the keeper of every one's secrets. As the demands of a traditional Indian wedding threaten to engulf them all, an unexpected way forward presents itself. Directed by John Madden (The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, Shakespeare in Love).
Desert Dancer
Like Mao's Dancer, five years ago, this movie is about an Iranian dancer who lives in Iran where it is forbidden to dance. Forbidden. You go to jail if you are caught, or murdered. He finally escapes but not without paying a terrible price. It was a wonderful first film.
The Queen, 2006
Stephen Frears, Director. Helen Mirren. Michael Sheen. Oscar Award winning performance by Mirren who places Queen Elizabeth during the death and aftermath of her funeral and what was going on behind the scenes with her insensitivity and Tony Blair. Extremely well done but now dated.
The Kings, Speech, 2010
Colin Firth won an Academy Award for his performance. Helena Bonham Carter plays his wife. Geoffrey Rush plays the speech therapist. Stuttering King George "Bertie" finds his confidence waning but with the help of his eccentric speech therapist Lionel Logue in this captivating historical drama, he gains some of it back. These two men forge a bond that lasts a lifetime. It is a marvelous film.
Dodsworth, 1936
Ruthen Chatterton. Walter Huston. Best Picture nominee is an adaptation of a Sinclair Lewis novel about a rich couple who decide to travel to Europe and their marriage unravels because she keeps having affairs during their grand tour.
Cinderella
"After Ella’s (Lily James) father unexpectedly passes away, she finds herself at the mercy of a jealous and cruel stepmother (Cate Blanchett), as well as her daughters Anastasia (Holiday Grainger) and Drisella (Sophie McShera). Relegated to nothing more than a servant girl covered in ashes, and spitefully renamed Cinderella, Ella could easily begin to lose hope. Yet, despite the cruelty inflicted upon her, Ella is determined to honor her mother’s dying words and to “have courage and be kind.” And then there is the dashing stranger she meets in the woods. Unaware that he is really a prince, Ella finally feels she has met a kindred soul. It appears her fortunes may be about to change when the Palace sends out an open invitation for all maidens to attend a ball, raising Ella’s hopes of once again encountering the charming Kit (Richard Madden). Alas, her stepmother forbids her to attend and callously rips apart her dress. But, as in all good fairy tales, help is at hand, and a kindly beggar woman (Helena Bonham Carter) steps forward and—armed with a pumpkin and a few mice—changes Cinderella’s life forever." I found this a wonderful film. The Dolce Gabana dress with the crystals was magnificent and when they danced, it became magical. I loved it! Lily James was perfect!
The Salt of the Earth
"For the last 40 years, the photographer Sebastião Salgado has been traveling through the continents, in the footsteps of an ever-changing humanity. He has witnessed some of the major events of our recent history—international conflicts, starvation and exodus. He is now embarking on the discovery of pristine territories, of wild fauna and flora, and of grandiose landscapes as part of a huge photographic project, which is a tribute to the planet's beauty. In the hauntingly beautiful documentary The Salt of the Earth, Sebastião Salgado's life and work are revealed to us by his son, co-director Juliano, who went with him during his last travels, and by co-director Wim Wenders, himself a photographer. Academy Award nominee for Best Documentary Feature. (Partially subtitled)" As a photographer, I loved it. I saw how he took pictures - everything on automatic and all the art completed in the computer. He would have been nothing without his wife who was the hero beneath his wings. How did he eat in front of all these starving barely human beings without being attacked? He hardly looked hungry himself. The genocides looked Holocaust except for the regional tribal result. He persevered and he succeeded.
Waterloo Bridge, 1940
Sidewalks of London, 1938
Sinatra: All or Nothing at All, 1915-1998
Charade, 1963
The Road Within
Far From The Maddening Crowd
Taken 3, 2014
Django Unchained, 2013
Night crawler, 2014
Felix and Meira
I'll See You In My Dreams
The Water Diviner
Dior and I
About Elly
Sunshine Superman
In the freewheeling 1970s, what is now considered an “extreme sport” was considered simply crazy. Jumping off a building or bridge with only a few moments to release your parachute was not only seemingly illegal, it was deemed suicidal, even by many seasoned skydivers. Yet this is not a film about death. It is about the essence of life—of what it feels like, if for only a moment, to truly fly. Carl Boenish, the father of the BASE jumping movement and subject of this heart-racing documentary, had a passion for skydiving that led him to ever more spectacular—and dangerous—feats of foot-launched human flight. Experience his jaw-dropping journey in life and love, to the pinnacle of his achievements when he and wife Jean broke the BASE jumping Guinness World Record in 1984 on the Norwegian Troll Wall mountain range. Incredibly, within days, triumph was followed by disaster. Told through a stunning mix of Carl’s 16mm archive footage, well-crafted re-enactments and state-of-the-art aerial photography, Sunshine Superman will leave you breathless and inspired. This was a very fine documentary even though Carl and Jean remained an enigma throughout the film.
Girl on the Edge
Far From The Madding Crowd, 1987
When Marnie Was There
The Fourth Nobel Truth
The Singing Detective, 1998
Testament of Youth
Mistress America
After Words
Wolf Totem
Grandma
Learning To Drive
The Second Mother
The Party, 1968
The Gift
Son of Saul
A Brilliant Young Mind
This was a beautiful sensitive film that held my interest. The acting superb. The plot well done. The development fine. A highly recommended film that deserves to be seen and understood on its many levels of interpretation.
This original and heart-warming dramatic comedy tracks the funny and complex relationships that a young math prodigy builds as he is confronted by the irrational nature of love. Nathan (Asa Butterfield, Hugo, Ender's Game) struggles when it comes to connecting with other people, not least with his loving mother (Sally Hawkins). In a world difficult to comprehend, he finds comfort in numbers. Taken under the wing of an unconventional and anarchic teacher (Rafe Spall), the pair forge an unusual friendship. Eventually, Nathan’s talents win him a place on the UK National team at the International Mathematics Olympiad (IMO) and the team travel to a training camp in Taiwan, under the supervision of squad leader Richard (Eddie Marsan). In unfamiliar surroundings, Nathan is confronted by a series of unexpected challenges—not least the unfamiliar feelings he begins to experience for his Chinese counterpart, the beautiful Zhang Mei (Jo Yang), feelings that develop when the young mathematicians return to England for the IMO, held at Trinity College, Cambridge. Also known as X+Y.
Labyrinth of Lies
Wedding Crasher, 2005
The Men Who Built America. Vanderbilt. Rockefeller. Carnegie. Morgan. Ford.
The Keeping Room
Pawn Sacrifices
Legend
The Martian
Aram, Aram
Brooklyn
Brooklyn tells the profoundly moving story of Eilis Lacey (Saoirse Ronan, Atonement, Hanna), a young Irish immigrant navigating her way through 1950s Brooklyn. Lured by the promise of America, Eilis departs Ireland and the comfort of her mother’s home for the shores of New York City. The initial shackles of homesickness quickly diminish as a fresh romance sweeps Eilis into the intoxicating charm of love. But soon, her new vivacity is disrupted by her past, and she must choose between two countries and the lives that exist within. Directed by John Crowley (Boy A, Intermission) from a screenplay by Nick Hornby (Wild, An Education, About a Boy), Brooklyn also stars Domhnall Gleeson, Emory Cohen, Jim Broadbent and Julie Walters.
Mustang
Theeb
This was one of the most satisfying films that I have experienced this year. Foreign and mysterious. The spare dialogue was loaded with inference and meaning and interpretation and insinuation. The film itself was magnificent to look at and feel a part of. Filmed in Jordan near Petra, one felt the life of the Bedouin, where loyalty to family was everything. I loved it. Magnificent.
Bridge To The Sun, 1961
Written from the book by Gwendolyn Terasaki. Starring Carroll Baker. James Shigeta. An American woman living in Tokyo with her Japanese Diplomat husband during World War 11 endures not only culture shock and home sickness bu increasing suspicion and discomfort from her husband's government. A very sad film. Miller is the grandson of Gwendolyn and Hidenari Terasaki, a Japanese diplomat, who were the subject of the 1961 film, Bridge to the Sun, based on Gwen Terasaki's autobiography of the same name. Miller's mother, Mariko Terasaki Miller, was the first woman appointed Honorary Consul-General of Japan.
Ingrid Bergman In Her Own Words
Bjorkman's beautiful documentary, in which all of her children participated, revealed that her work was her life and her reason for why she breathed. She made famous the quotation, "I never regret the things I did. I only regret the things that I did not do. Sh was a migrant. American. Italy. Sweden. France. England. She associated the camera with love and orphaned at an early age, she traveled with her boxes of accumulation and things wherever she went to create feelings of home.
Youth
"From Paolo Sorrentino, the internationally renowned writer/director of Italy’s Oscar-winning foreign language film The Great Beauty, comes a poignant tale of how we each find our own passion in life. Michael Caine (Hannah and Her Sisters, Alfie, The Dark Knight) plays Fred, a famous English composer/conductor, and Harvey Keitel (Reservoir Dogs, The Piano) plays Mick, a veteran American director anxious to launch one more film. They are longtime best friends, vacationing in a luxury Swiss Alps spa. While Fred is retired and has no plans to resume his musical career despite a request from the Queen and the urging of his troubled daughter (Rachel Weisz, The Constant Gardener), Mick is trying to finish the screenplay for what may be his last important film, brainstorming with a quartet of brash young collaborators. He hopes that his muse, acting legend Brenda (Jane Fonda) will agree to star in it. And where will inspiration lead their younger friend Jimmy (Paul Dano, Love & Mercy), an actor grasping to make sense of his next performance? A breathtakingly beautiful film, full of humor, wisdom and acceptance." This was without a doubt, the worst film that I have ever seen. Stylized. Tedious. Boring. Pretentious. Filled with what it thinks is wisdom but is cliques instead, it should be called Old. No one discussed money. Nothing felt real. There was no truth or honest emotion in it. It was a piece of crap.
Joy
Joy is the wild story of a family across four generations, centered on the girl who grows up to found a business dynasty and becomes a matriarch in her own right. Betrayal, treachery, the loss of innocence and the scars of love, pave the road in this intense emotional and human comedy about becoming a true boss of family and enterprise, facing a world of unforgiving commerce. Allies become adversaries and adversaries become allies, both inside and outside the family, as Joy’s inner life and fierce imagination carry her through the storm she faces. Jennifer Lawrence stars, with Robert De Niro, Bradley Cooper, Edgar Ramirez, Isabella Rossellini, Diane Ladd, Virginia Madsen, Elisabeth Röhm and Dascha Polanco. Like writer/director David O. Russell’s previous films (American Hustle, Silver Linings Playbook, Three Kings), Joy defies genre to tell a story of family, loyalty and love. A familiar and common theme movie. Jennifer Lawrence is way too good for the script that she was dealt. She can open, carry and close a film, will be the Meryl Streep of her generation. But, the film was predictable and ordinary, been told 100 times before, and I felt as if I wasted time while giving it the benefit of the doubt that it did not deserve.
The Mortal Storm, 1940
Margaret Sullivan. James Steward. Robert Young. Frank Morgan. I have seen this film many times. It is a classic, and though Jew was not used, but Pacifist instead, it captured the fear, the increased incident, the terror, and the beginnings of the horror of the war.
The Revenant
“As long as you can grab a breath, you fight.” Inspired by true events, The Revenant is an immersive and visceral cinematic experience capturing one man’s epic adventure of survival and the extraordinary power of the human spirit. In the 1820s, deep in the uncharted American wilderness, legendary explorer Hugh Glass (Leonardo DiCaprio, The Wolf of Wall Street) is brutally attacked by a bear and left for dead by a traitorous member of his own hunting team, John Fitzgerald (Tom Hardy, Mad Max: Fury Road). Guided by sheer will and the love of his family, Glass must navigate a hostile environment, a vicious winter and warring tribes in a relentless pursuit to live and exact revenge. Also starring Domhnall Gleeson and Will Poulter, The Revenant is directed and co-written by renowned filmmaker and Academy Award winner Alejandro G. Iñárritu (Birdman, Babel, 21 Grams). Original music by Ryuichi Sakamoto (Babel, The Last Emperor, Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence). The movie was unnecessarily violent, politically correct and emotionally distancing. I felt as if we kept going around and around the same square footage acreage and that the photographer kept shooting the same scene again and again. It felt relativistic and realistic in its hardship, disbelieving that he would survive a bear attack like he did. The weight of the bear would have crushed him entirely. One bite or scratch would have killed him by infection. His son looked like a man almost the same age as Leo. Leo acted his heart out. And, he is a marvelous actor and he did a very good job. But, the political correctness turned me off. The Noble Savage who was not noble at all. The evil character who was entirely evil. And Leo, who was entirely good and whom you were rooting for throughout the entire film. The violence was brutal and raw and blood thirsty.
Directed by: Damian Szifron. Six separate short stories all connected through rage and revenge and betrayal, although each story is a universe in and of itself. It was fabulous, to the point that when the lights came on, I forgot where I was. Intense. Passionate. Violent and Corrupt, the stories tell the universal experience of the individual and his world. Love it madly.
Birdman
"The critically-acclaimed black comedy Birdman tells the story of a washed-up actor (Michael Keaton)—famous for portraying an iconic superhero—as he struggles to mount a Broadway play. In the days leading up to opening night, he battles his ego and attempts to recover his family, his career and himself. Also starring Zach Galifianakis, Andrea Riseborough, Amy Ryan, Emma Stone, Naomi Watts and Edward Norton, Birdman is directed and co-written by Alejandro González Iñárritu (Biutiful, Babel, 21 Grams, Amores Perros). Nominated for 9 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor (Keaton), Best Supporting Actor (Norton), Best Original Screenplay and Best Director." There are no words as to how much I hated this film. The acting was superb but I could not stand the characters. Their supreme narcissistic, lack of any empathy or capability to love, selfishness and self-absorbness, violence and schudenfreid feeling, the entire movie reminded me of New York city and why I hate the city. Nothing goes. There is no shame. People are vicious and cruel and non-thinking and frankly to spend two hours with any of them was more than I could bear. If I had been alone, I would have gotten up and left. I found Birdman claustrophobic, filled with despicable characters (all actors) emotionally violent, self-absorbed, narcissistic, full of schudenfreid, is there anything that I have left out?
Actors love it because they saw all the people they hate and despise in all the people they work with - of course, never themselves. Remember Reese Witherspoon's revealing drunken rage. It forever ruined her persona and I can't stand her anymore. Remember all the vile things that Sony wrote about its actors that they represent? They are a despicable group of people and this is what the movie was all about. I had to spend over two hours in their company. I would have left if I was alone.
Avalon, 1990
An absolutely wonderful and poignant film of the immigrant experience. Directed by Barry Levinson, it is semi-autobiographical and follows Sam Krichinsky as the family falls apart, as names are changed, as fights break-up the extended family. It is profoundly sad.
Oscar Awarding Nominations of Documentary Shorts
These five choices were awful: Suicide of the Marines. Death by cancer of a mother as she records her last days. Watching bulls die in the pit of slaughter. Fracking i North Dakota. We walked out before we had to see a child die of in terminal illness. It was awful! I hope the care workers of the VA helping Vets who want to commit suicide wins.
Timbuktu
Nominated for Best Foreign Picture, it was phenomenal. I came away with it all being hopeless and that we will never be able to touch the divide between these 3rd world countries and the modern technological world.
It all felt hopeless. Extremely well done. It is the story of ISIS taking over these small villages and implementing Shira law and how one family is destroyed and the young girl becomes an orphan.
Unforgiven, 1992
Directed. Produced and Acted. Clint Eastwood. Gene Hackman. A former gunslinger is lured into a bounty hunt strictly for the money, which has been put up by a group of whores as payment for bringing in the man who disfigured one of them.
Suzy, 1936
Jean Harlow. Franchot Tone. Cary Grant. The adventures of a chorus girl during WWI and how she marries up.
Oscar Award Nominations of Live Shorts
"Don't miss this rare opportunity to see all five Academy Award nominees in the category of Best Live Action Short! Program includes: “Aya” (Israel/France), where two strangers unexpectedly meet at an airport and he mistakenly assumes her to be his assigned driver and she, enchanted by the random encounter, does not hurry to prove him wrong; “Boogaloo and Graham” (UK), in which two boys, Jamesy and Malachy, are over the moon when their soft-hearted dad presents them with two baby chicks to care for; “Butter Lamp” (France/China), in which a young itinerant photographer and his assistant offer to photograph some Tibetan nomads in front of various backgrounds; “Parvaneh” (Switzerland), in which a young Afghan immigrant travels to Zurich where she encounters a punk named Emily; and “The Phone Call” (UK), in which shy Heather (Sally Hawkins), working at a helpline call center, receives a phone call from a mystery man (Jim Broadbent).
I thought you could delete the Photographer one. That, to me, was the weakest one.
I loved the suspense element of Parvenah. From the fear that the rock/hip girl would steal her money, to taking her "home" and it not being her home and then frisking her for the rest of the money, to the boy on the street, etc. I was always please to see her spine when she would stand up for herself. I never expected the happy resolution at the end of it. Very, very fine.
The Phone Call was much like the Short Documentary that we saw Saturday night with the VA and their Suicide Hot line. However, the short documentary was much, much better. It will win. Hands down. The Volunteers were phenomenal. Very impressive. I found Sally Hawkins getting on my nerves. There is such a goody-goody quality about her and she talked too much. She wouldn't let the man talk! Rule #1. Not! Also, there is no suicide hot line in any western country that does not have tracing ability. So that aspect was utterly unbelievable. I have worked in a suicide hot line. This setting did not seem plausible to me. She would have thrown a book at the other guy to get his attention.
The Chicken One, I found very, very cute. The dialogue, real. The only unreal thing was him being able to get an egg from the refrigerator and it being warm by the time that he or his wife would claim it each morning. Plus, having to pay for these eggs when money was tight! So that leap of faith I questioned, which was the conclusion to the film.
I loved the Israeli one the best, the storyline, but I have to be honest, I did not know if I loved it because it was Israeli. My question was the length of time that it took to drive from the airport to Jerusalem. That did not ring true since I have done it a million times and there is no way in hell that it would be light outside and it would be dark by the time they arrived in Jerusalem, especially with there being no traffic at all, which in and of itself, did not seem plausible. The traffic into Jerusalem, once you start to enter the city gets backed up but not that much that it becomes dark! It is less than a 30 minute drive for God's sake! 45 minute max! The only way that would have been believable is if they took the 443 highway and then been held up at a checkpoint. This would have worked. But the scenery entering Jerusalem was from the main highway, so this leap of faith in terms of distance did not work for me. I also did not like the ending of the film. She was holding the elevator for another man!? I mean, really? Acting out her fantasy I found very interesting but I would have ended it with her driving, thinking about the parking space, and then driving away into the dark for a few more frames. Letting us know that she was married with a child changed the story entirely and I thought added more information than I needed to know and diluted the story and what happened between the two of them. I then had to think of a lonely marriage, what is going on inside of her regarding her marriage, etc. and it changed the story line for me, so I didn't like the ending. I would have preferred her driving off, not taking the parking space for a few frames and keeping it at that. She was obviously at the airport in the first place to pick up her husband and I doubt, he being an Israeli man, would have been happy to not have found her there - he would have been calling her repeatedly on her cell phone and been furious not to have reached her, if she had turned it off. Would she have taken this man to Jerusalem, if she was at the airport to pick up her husband? I don't think so. Her husband certainly would not have embraced her at the end. He would have been furious, in addition, to having pay a $85.00 taxi fee to get home to Tel Aviv from the airport. So that part of the story line, once they introduced a husband, did not work for me.
So as a film, that worked the best in terms of not having holes in it, as a character that stayed true to herself from beginning to end, and no suspended beliefs or leaps of faith that I was required tot take, from beginning, to middle, to end, I think the best of the bunch would be Parvenah. It will probably win.
Best Animated Short
"Don't miss this rare opportunity to see all five Academy Award nominees in the category of Best Animated Short and more! Program includes: “A Single Life” (The Netherlands), in which Pia, when playing a mysterious vinyl single, is suddenly able to travel through her life; Walt Disney Animation Studios' “Feast” (USA), the story of one man’s love life as seen through the eyes of his best friend and dog, Winston, and revealed bite by bite through the meals they share; “Me and My Moulton” (Canada/Norway), about a seven-year-old girl in mid-’60s Norway who asks her parents one summer if she and her sisters can have a bicycle; “The Bigger Picture” (UK), in which innovative life-size animated characters tell the stark and darkly humorous tale of caring for an elderly parent; and “The Dam Keeper” (USA), which tells the tale of a young pig encumbered with an important job, and the meeting of a new classmate who changes everything." My favorite was The Dam Keeper. It was about bullying. The kids loved Me and My Mouton. There were no Japanese wins
American Sniper Should Win The Oscars
American Sniper is in a class by itself. I have seen all the films for Best Picture. There is no comparison. The others have an historical revisionism for entertainment purpose. American Sniper does not. For example, in An Imitation Game, which was indeed a marvelous film, Alan Tuerlling was an extremely promiscuous gay man, not at all the secretive, easy-to-blackmail, acquiring a beard as a fiance, type-of-guy that they portrayed him as. Or Selma. which was a lie from beginning, middle to end. Don't get me started on that anti-Semitic biased film.
In American Sniper there is an authenticity of emotion, not a sentimental manipulation. I saw it twice and was moved each time by its clarity, its spare emotion which allowed us to come to it on our own and not be manipulated by the Director. It was brilliant. Each frame was as if I was reading a page in a novel. Each frame gave me all the information I needed. No more. No less.
I felt as if I was inside the Gaza war. It made my heart break what our American and Israel soldiers have to do to fight these savages, to keep the war away from our shores in-spite of this most radical, extreme, appeasing, weak Administration. That Chris Kayle had to serve under this Administration made me sick.
This is the war that Israel has to fight and Eastwood did a Masterful and Brilliant job bringing it to screen. And, he is 84 years old! There is no other Director who could have achieved this level of power and restraint, in telling a truthful and honest story without showing the actual gore. Think about it. You never saw brains and blood bursting open. You did not see the child's arm being sawed off. You never heard the word F--- or S---t. Less than Directors, like Comics, use the blood and gore, the bad words, because they are actually unimaginative and lazy and sloppy and not that smart. But, if you are truly a Master of your Trade, you do not need to. In fact, less is more and it is more Powerful when you do not.
To me, this movie is a Classic in warfare and in telling a story.
It won't win because the Left Progressives are a bunch of Liberal weak-kneed and are politically compromised. (Look what is happening in Israel to their most coveted prize-The Israel Prize. Bibi has tried to fire the judges because historically they are all Far Left Wing and only elect their own, refusing the merits of anyone who is part of the Right. He wants the judges to be fairly represented and the Left is going crazy!) These Oscar voters will elect Birdman which I thought portrayed Hollywood as it is and which the voters do not see in themselves. It was a Narcissistic, Schudenfreid Insider Ultimate Indulgence and one of the worst films that I remember seeing in a long time. Or it will be Boyhood which comes close to second worse. This movie was tedious and boring and I do not remember ever looking at my watch so often as I did in this film. When will it be over?! Three hours of tedium torture. To me it covered one of the most boring, uninteresting families. Who cares?! But Hollywood is infatuated with itself, with the Idea of the film, because it follows the same people over 12 years. Wow. How exciting is this!? But, it is a fractured, typical boring American family, like the Loud Family from our decade that I actually could care less about. It spoofs Conservative values. Makes Conservative values into a mockery and a caricature and a clique.
But America Sniper! One of the most magnificent films that I have ever seen in this genre of warfare. It is far better then The Hurt Locker. American Sniper will not win. Because Eastman is a proud Republican and does not shy away from telling Truth. Something sorely not seen in Hollywood.
The Mark, 1961
Stuart Whitman. Rod Steiger. "A child molester serves a prison sentence for kidnapping, but is successfully rehabilitated. Upon his release, he begins to build a life, but when an incident occurs with a young girl, a news reporter digs into his past and reveals his secret." Seeing this film with a 2015 lens, I found deeply disturbing. A child molester is never rehabilitated. Steiger brilliantly acts. But, the idea that Whitman's character struggles with this issue inside of himself gave me a creepy feeling. The viewer was made to root for him. The towns people are made to feel wrong to have the anxious nervous feelings that they do once they find out the truth.
The Fallen Idol, 1948
Bobby Henry. Ralph Richardson. "Carol Reed directed Graham Green's tale of a boy who lies to protect his idol, the male servant or butler who takes care of him as he stays alone in the Embassy. Th butlers wife is killed and the Butler is blamed for her murder. The movie is extraordinarily told and is riveting and powerful. A marvelous film.
____________, 1956
Doris Day. Louis Jourdan.
"A disturbed and possessive jealous husband who confesses to his wife that her murdered her first husband will stop at nothing, including killing her to keep her from leaving him, especially once she finds out the truth. I saw this movie twice. It was utterly suspenseful and gripping and fabulous. Not to miss.
Tangerines
Directed by Zaza Urushadze. Nominated for the Oscars as Best Foreign film, this movie was the first to be elected from Georgia, Russia. It is moving with a powerful climax. The farmer cannot leave his home because he will not leave his buried son. He takes in and nurses back to health a Chechen and a Georgian soldier. It takes time over this time period. The world is bleak and dark and harsh. It is an anti-war film told through a day-in-the life of the average citizen.
Selma
I found the film slow and historically inaccurate. Boring. It would never be nominated for Best Film if they did not need to include a black film in the race. The Jewish Presence was huge in the Civil Rights movement. It was utterly erased. Rabbi Abraham Joshua Hershel walked arm-in-arm with Martin Luther King on this march. He was erased from the front line. Flags of UN and US were presently simultaneously. And, a Muslim was inside King's cabinet of advisers! which the camera never stopped filming. King was a passionate Zionist, a lover of Jews and Israel. Jews played an historical role in his messaging and legal maneuvering and participation. This was completely erased. I was disgusted. The Director's political agenda bled through this film.
McFarland, USA
Director. Niki Caro. Kevin Costner. A terrific film about Latinos who become part of cross country team and become first in State. It is sentimental but decent, with good values and struggles to overcome. Disney and well done.
The Nun's Story, 1959
Audrey Hepburn. Peter Finch. Best picture nominee about a young Belgian woman who defies her family to become a nun. Her faith is continually tested with hardships and sacrifice until she realizes that she cannot fit into the demands and rules anymore. She wants to live and to learn and to study and to love. I saw this film when I was 9 years old in Rockefeller Center in New York and it had a profound impact on me.
The Last Five Years, 2014
In New York, a struggling actress, Anna Kendrick, and a successful writer, Jeremy Jordan sing about their failed marriage from two perspectives. It is a modern version of Umbrellas of Cherbourg.
There are some wonderful films but they are all Independents and small. I do not know if you and Seth like these kinds of movies?
McFarland, USA
Director. Niki Caro. Kevin Costner. A terrific film about Latinos who become part of cross country team and become first in State. It is sentimental but decent, with good values and struggles to overcome. Disney and well done.
The Nun's Story, 1959
Audrey Hepburn. Peter Finch. Best picture nominee about a young Belgian woman who defies her family to become a nun. Her faith is continually tested with hardships and sacrifice until she realizes that she cannot fit into the demands and rules anymore. She wants to live and to learn and to study and to love. I saw this film when I was 9 years old in Rockefeller Center in New York and it had a profound impact on me.
The Last Five Years, 2014
In New York, a struggling actress, Anna Kendrick, and a successful writer, Jeremy Jordan sing about their failed marriage from two perspectives. It is a modern version of Umbrellas of Cherbourg.
There are some wonderful films but they are all Independents and small. I do not know if you and Seth like these kinds of movies?
I try to learn what others enjoy so that I don't recommend films to them that they won't like. This is why I am careful with Adam and Rachel, for example.
I thought that Still Alice, the film that Julianne Moore won her Oscar for, was a gem. But, it is sad, yet I found profoundly moving and well done and her acting was brilliant.
I thought that Boyhood was tedious and in love with itself. It only got as far is it did because of the IDEA of the film, which was following the same cast of people and characters over 12 years. But, the family was boring and ordinary and fractured and I could care less about any of them, much like the Loud Family from our generation. I never remember looking at my watch as much as I did. It was 3 hours long and each 10 minutes felt like 30 minutes!
I hated Birdman with a passion. I found it indulgent, narcissistic, and the characters emotionally violent, mean, nasty, vicious, full of deceit and schudenfrie. It is an insider movie. This is why Hollywood loved it. All the insider references, nuances, innuendos was pure Hollywood speak. It was also claustrophobic, as the entire film is shot inside a theater and its acting corridors. We would have walked out except we were with another couple. It was full of grandiosity and self-importance. To think that this is the film that was chosen to go over the world as the best of American film, that it was chosen over American Sniper or The Imitation Game or The Theory of Everything, I found appalling.
I felt The Theory of Everything was a wonderful film, very well done and absorbing and I cared about the characters and the plot development had almost impenetrable transitions. It was a very fine film.
For me, this year of the 5 Finalists of The Best Foreign were the best five that I remember seeing in a long time.
Tangerines - Georgia
Levantine - Russia
Wild Tales - Argentina
Timbuktu - Africa
Ida - Polish
I have seen all of them twice. Ida I actually saw 3 times. It was extraordinary in its spareness, its restraint, its photography. Each frame, I felt was a Masterpiece and was up for Cinematography but did not win. But it did win for Best Foreign Film Oscar. It is about a nun who has lived in a convent all of her life in Poland. Before, she takes her final Orders, she has to meet and close with her family. She thought she was an orphan but apparently, she had an aunt, the sister of her mother who had died when she was very young. This aunt turns out to be Jewish. The movie unfolds from this. It is quite powerful and sad when she learns that she is actually a Jew. It takes place in the early 1960's.
I loved Wild Tales. It is 5 separate stories, one story having nothing to do with the other. The over arching theme however, is Fury and Revenge. Cary, however, did not care for it, as he likes a movie with a beginning, a middle and an end. These were 5 separate stories. But, I could relate to all of them! :-) in one degree or another!
Above and Beyond
"In 1948, a group of World War II pilots, mostly from America, volunteered to fight for Israel in its War of Independence. As members of "Machal"– volunteers from abroad – this ragtag band of brothers turned the tide of the war, preventing the possible annihilation of Israel at the very moment of its birth. ABOVE AND BEYOND is their story, told for the first time.
ABOVE AND BEYOND recounts the harrowing missions of the men who helped repel five Arab armies. The film follows them from the United States – where they met and trained in secret and struggled to stay two steps ahead of the FBI – to Panama, Rome and even behind the Iron Curtain in Czechoslovakia, where they flew versions of the very Nazi planes they had tried to shoot down in World War II.
Set against the backdrop of an emerging nation still reeling from the horrors of the Holocaust, ABOVE AND BEYOND uncovers the motivations of these volunteers – Jews and non-Jews, some Zionists, many others not. It recounts the personal stories of the young pilots, whose experiences in Israel were life altering. And ultimately, the film taps into universal themes of courage, commitment and sacrifice. At a time when a fledgling nation was under attack, a tiny band of airmen answered the call for help. They risked their citizenship, their futures and even their lives.
ABOVE AND BEYOND is produced by Nancy Spielberg (Elusive Justice), directed by Roberta Grossman (Blessed Is the Match, Hava Nagila-The Movie) with cinematography by Harris Done (The Last Days), special effects by Industrial Light & Magic and an original score from Hans Zimmer’s studio." This remarkable story made me cry, sad collective tears. It was marvelous. Not to be missed.
Above and Beyond
"In 1948, a group of World War II pilots, mostly from America, volunteered to fight for Israel in its War of Independence. As members of "Machal"– volunteers from abroad – this ragtag band of brothers turned the tide of the war, preventing the possible annihilation of Israel at the very moment of its birth. ABOVE AND BEYOND is their story, told for the first time.
ABOVE AND BEYOND recounts the harrowing missions of the men who helped repel five Arab armies. The film follows them from the United States – where they met and trained in secret and struggled to stay two steps ahead of the FBI – to Panama, Rome and even behind the Iron Curtain in Czechoslovakia, where they flew versions of the very Nazi planes they had tried to shoot down in World War II.
Set against the backdrop of an emerging nation still reeling from the horrors of the Holocaust, ABOVE AND BEYOND uncovers the motivations of these volunteers – Jews and non-Jews, some Zionists, many others not. It recounts the personal stories of the young pilots, whose experiences in Israel were life altering. And ultimately, the film taps into universal themes of courage, commitment and sacrifice. At a time when a fledgling nation was under attack, a tiny band of airmen answered the call for help. They risked their citizenship, their futures and even their lives.
ABOVE AND BEYOND is produced by Nancy Spielberg (Elusive Justice), directed by Roberta Grossman (Blessed Is the Match, Hava Nagila-The Movie) with cinematography by Harris Done (The Last Days), special effects by Industrial Light & Magic and an original score from Hans Zimmer’s studio." This remarkable story made me cry, sad collective tears. It was marvelous. Not to be missed.
Birdman of Alcatraz, 1962
Burt Lancaster. Karl Malden. "A docudrama about Robert Stroud, the prisoner who became a scientist and ornithologist and successful businessman and author - all from solitary confinement. When I first saw this movie at age 12, it left and indelible imprint on my young and impressionable mind. I fell in love with Lancaster. He was my hero. I fell in love with black and white storytelling and drama. I fell in love with birds. This was my favorite movie and I read his book and any biography I could get a hold of. It has stood the test of time. And, is now considered a classic. But, how disappointing I was when a few years back Cary and I went to Alcatraz and our remarkable guide took us to his cell which was on the upper level. He said the man was a psychopath, that the guards and other prisoners were actually afraid of him, that he never had remorse and was anything but the gentle and patient man that Lancaster made him into! And, here I had written to Bobby Kennedy to free the man!
Merchants of Doubt
A documentary about climate change that lost me half way through when it became partisan.
One Foot In Heaven, 1941
Fredric March. Martha Scott. Best Picture Nominee. It tells the story of a minister and his family, who moves from parish to parish, with their joys and sorrows, over the course of a lifetime in early 20th Century. It felt dated.
5 To 7
A romantic sweet film that had great potential but for the two stars themselves. He was way too young for her and too small for her too. It did not seem believable that this gorgeous married woman of two children would go for a virginal child/man. She smiled too much and her teeth were too white Forgettable.
The Second Nest Exotic Marigold Hotel
This second one did not have the charm as the first one did. I was bored. It was too hyper at the beginning. He was making me nervous with his hyper-energy. It felt much longer than two hours. Utterly forgettable.
The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel is the expansionist dream of Sonny (Dev Patel), and it’s making more claims on his time than he has available, considering his imminent marriage to the love of his life, Sunaina (Tina Desai). Sonny has his eye on a promising property now that his first venture, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel for the Elderly and Beautiful, has only a single remaining vacancy—posing a rooming predicament for fresh arrivals Guy (Richard Gere) and Lavinia (Tamsin Greig). Evelyn and Douglas (Judi Dench and Bill Nighy) have now joined the Jaipur workforce, and are wondering where their regular dates for Chilla pancakes will lead, while Norman and Carol (Ronald Pickup and Diana Hardcastle) are negotiating the tricky waters of an exclusive relationship, as Madge (Celia Imrie) juggles two eligible and very wealthy suitors. Perhaps the only one who may know the answers is newly installed co-manager of the hotel, Muriel (Maggie Smith), the keeper of every one's secrets. As the demands of a traditional Indian wedding threaten to engulf them all, an unexpected way forward presents itself. Directed by John Madden (The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, Shakespeare in Love).
Desert Dancer
Like Mao's Dancer, five years ago, this movie is about an Iranian dancer who lives in Iran where it is forbidden to dance. Forbidden. You go to jail if you are caught, or murdered. He finally escapes but not without paying a terrible price. It was a wonderful first film.
The Queen, 2006
Stephen Frears, Director. Helen Mirren. Michael Sheen. Oscar Award winning performance by Mirren who places Queen Elizabeth during the death and aftermath of her funeral and what was going on behind the scenes with her insensitivity and Tony Blair. Extremely well done but now dated.
The Kings, Speech, 2010
Colin Firth won an Academy Award for his performance. Helena Bonham Carter plays his wife. Geoffrey Rush plays the speech therapist. Stuttering King George "Bertie" finds his confidence waning but with the help of his eccentric speech therapist Lionel Logue in this captivating historical drama, he gains some of it back. These two men forge a bond that lasts a lifetime. It is a marvelous film.
Dodsworth, 1936
Ruthen Chatterton. Walter Huston. Best Picture nominee is an adaptation of a Sinclair Lewis novel about a rich couple who decide to travel to Europe and their marriage unravels because she keeps having affairs during their grand tour.
Cinderella
"After Ella’s (Lily James) father unexpectedly passes away, she finds herself at the mercy of a jealous and cruel stepmother (Cate Blanchett), as well as her daughters Anastasia (Holiday Grainger) and Drisella (Sophie McShera). Relegated to nothing more than a servant girl covered in ashes, and spitefully renamed Cinderella, Ella could easily begin to lose hope. Yet, despite the cruelty inflicted upon her, Ella is determined to honor her mother’s dying words and to “have courage and be kind.” And then there is the dashing stranger she meets in the woods. Unaware that he is really a prince, Ella finally feels she has met a kindred soul. It appears her fortunes may be about to change when the Palace sends out an open invitation for all maidens to attend a ball, raising Ella’s hopes of once again encountering the charming Kit (Richard Madden). Alas, her stepmother forbids her to attend and callously rips apart her dress. But, as in all good fairy tales, help is at hand, and a kindly beggar woman (Helena Bonham Carter) steps forward and—armed with a pumpkin and a few mice—changes Cinderella’s life forever." I found this a wonderful film. The Dolce Gabana dress with the crystals was magnificent and when they danced, it became magical. I loved it! Lily James was perfect!
The Salt of the Earth
"For the last 40 years, the photographer Sebastião Salgado has been traveling through the continents, in the footsteps of an ever-changing humanity. He has witnessed some of the major events of our recent history—international conflicts, starvation and exodus. He is now embarking on the discovery of pristine territories, of wild fauna and flora, and of grandiose landscapes as part of a huge photographic project, which is a tribute to the planet's beauty. In the hauntingly beautiful documentary The Salt of the Earth, Sebastião Salgado's life and work are revealed to us by his son, co-director Juliano, who went with him during his last travels, and by co-director Wim Wenders, himself a photographer. Academy Award nominee for Best Documentary Feature. (Partially subtitled)" As a photographer, I loved it. I saw how he took pictures - everything on automatic and all the art completed in the computer. He would have been nothing without his wife who was the hero beneath his wings. How did he eat in front of all these starving barely human beings without being attacked? He hardly looked hungry himself. The genocides looked Holocaust except for the regional tribal result. He persevered and he succeeded.
The Gambler and The Lady, 1952
Dane Clark. Kathleen Byron. When a successful gambler falls in love with a member of the upper crust, he makes the fatal mistake of trying to climb the social ladder.
The Whales of August, 1987
This marvelous film was taken from a play on Broadway. It stars Lillian Gish, the great silent screen star at age 93. And, Betty Davis at age 88 and Ann Southern and Vincent Price, all in their high eighties. Superb performances. It is about two sisters that live on an island in Maine and takes place entirely in their house and outside in their garden. They speak of age of disappointment and loss and dying.
I have often been adrift but I have always stayed afloat.
Do you think one can live too long? Life can never be too long. Even if one outlives one's time. One's time if all one's time. Even to the end.
Moon casts its silver coins along the shore. It is a treasure that can never be spent.
Flowers. Roses. White is Truth and Red is Passion. Passion and Truth. This is all we need.
Good by Again, 1961
Ingrid Bergman. Yves Montage. Anthony Perkins. A Parisian decorator takes on a young lover to make her boyfriend jealous who is running around with younger women and she becomes unbearably lonely. The dialogue, plot, character study is brilliant and it is a marvelous and satisfying and ultimately sad film. I can not believe it was written so long ago. Nothing has changed.
A Letter to Three Wives, 1948
Jeanne Crain. Ann Southern. Best Picture nominee is about a former rival in romance who writes to three wives saying she had run off with one of their husbands and the trio flashes back to try and determine whose marriage is the one in jeopardy. Ultimately the message is for the wives to not neglect their husbands so much.
Adult Beginners
This movie was torture, one of the worst I have seen. It is about delayed adolescent man/children who speak awfully in front of their children, where every scene is a clique, utterly boring, imitative and I hated it.
Effie Gray
Dane Clark. Kathleen Byron. When a successful gambler falls in love with a member of the upper crust, he makes the fatal mistake of trying to climb the social ladder.
The Whales of August, 1987
This marvelous film was taken from a play on Broadway. It stars Lillian Gish, the great silent screen star at age 93. And, Betty Davis at age 88 and Ann Southern and Vincent Price, all in their high eighties. Superb performances. It is about two sisters that live on an island in Maine and takes place entirely in their house and outside in their garden. They speak of age of disappointment and loss and dying.
I have often been adrift but I have always stayed afloat.
Do you think one can live too long? Life can never be too long. Even if one outlives one's time. One's time if all one's time. Even to the end.
Moon casts its silver coins along the shore. It is a treasure that can never be spent.
Flowers. Roses. White is Truth and Red is Passion. Passion and Truth. This is all we need.
Good by Again, 1961
Ingrid Bergman. Yves Montage. Anthony Perkins. A Parisian decorator takes on a young lover to make her boyfriend jealous who is running around with younger women and she becomes unbearably lonely. The dialogue, plot, character study is brilliant and it is a marvelous and satisfying and ultimately sad film. I can not believe it was written so long ago. Nothing has changed.
A Letter to Three Wives, 1948
Jeanne Crain. Ann Southern. Best Picture nominee is about a former rival in romance who writes to three wives saying she had run off with one of their husbands and the trio flashes back to try and determine whose marriage is the one in jeopardy. Ultimately the message is for the wives to not neglect their husbands so much.
Adult Beginners
This movie was torture, one of the worst I have seen. It is about delayed adolescent man/children who speak awfully in front of their children, where every scene is a clique, utterly boring, imitative and I hated it.
Effie Gray
In EFFIE GRAY, actress-screenwriter Emma Thompson portrays the forbidden realms of Victorian society through the true story of the marriage of Effie Gray and renowned art critic John Ruskin, exposing a secret world of unrequited passion hidden behind the veil of an opulent public life. Set in an era when neither divorce nor homosexuality were tolerated, EFFIE is the story of a beautiful young woman coming of age, and finding her own voice in a world where women were expected to be seen but not heard.
This was a marvelous, restrained period piece film. The transitions were smooth and it caught the historical reality of the upper classes, understatement, the undercurrents of communication, the barbs and exaggerations. I loved it. Euphemia Chalmers Gray. Sir John Everett Millais. John Ruskin
The Jewish Journey: America
The hows and why of Jewish immigration to America are explored via historical records and first-hand accounts, beginning in the mid-17th century. You survive. You honor us by living not by crying. The future, you think about every minute. And, I live by that.
Waterloo Bridge, 1940
Vivian Leigh. Robert Taylor. During WWI, a love affair blooms between a British soldier and aristocrat and a young ballerina. (They dance beautifully together.) But, when she stays with him past curfew, she is thrown out of the ballet corps just as he is shipped out, leaving her on the streets as he goes to the front. Starving and penniless, she falls into prostitution to survive. When he returns, because she is good and filled with integrity, she cannot deceive him and kills her rather than tell him the truth about her former life. It is one of my favorite films which I love. It could be a grand opera.
Sidewalks of London, 1938
Charles Laughton. Vivian Leigh. They both give memorable and unforgettable performances in this tale about street entertainers, survival in London's West End. It is bittersweet and a lovely lovely film.
Sinatra: All or Nothing at All, 1915-1998
A portrait of Frank Sinatra, legendary entertainer. It features archival footage of his life and long career, including his 1971 retirement concert and remarks by family friends, ex-wives personalities and authors.
It portrays him as a tough guy, complex and complicated, connected to the Mob with questionable ties.
Charade, 1963
Cary Grant. Audrey Hepburn. A woman in Paris flees murderous crooks who seek a hidden World War II fortune stole by her late husband and receives unlikely assistance from a handsome sophisticate with a hidden agenda. Great chemistry between the beautiful stars and always a wonderful classic to revisit.
The Road Within
Director: Gren Wels. Robert Sheehan. A powerful and intense drama of a boy who suffers from ferret syndrome
using an uncontrollable vicious vocabulary that speaks the truth and who is unable to restrain himself and terrible ticks, out-of-control. He goes on a road journey with Zoe Kravitz (Marie) and Dev Patel ( Alex), an OCD guy and an anorexia female. The pain and suffering becomes almost unbearable to take but it is a worth while film indeed if you have the ability to stick with it.
Far From The Maddening Crowd
"Based on the literary classic by Thomas Hardy, Far From the Madding Crowd is the story of independent, beautiful and headstrong Bathsheba Everdene (Carey Mulligan, An Education), who attracts three very different suitors: Gabriel Oak (Matthias Schoenaerts), a sheep farmer, captivated by her fetching willfulness; Frank Troy (Tom Sturridge), a handsome and reckless Sergeant; and William Boldwood (Michael Sheen), a prosperous and mature bachelor. This timeless story of Bathsheba’s choices and passions explores the nature of relationships and love—as well as the human ability to overcome hardships through resilience and perseverance. Directed by Thomas Vinterberg (The Hunt, The Celebration).The original with Julie Christie and Alan Bates and Terrance Stamp and Peter Falk was so much better, that it makes me scratch my head. The original was 171 minutes. It possessed true passion and plot development and brilliant acting and achy emotional depth. This new version was utterly miscast except for Gabriel Oak. He was perfect. But, Carey Mulligan?! She had a mole by her mouth, that drove me nuts. She cannot act and it was utterly unbelievable that three men, let alone even one, would be interested in her. I felt as if I was reading Cliff Notes. Ugh.
Taken 3, 2014
Bryan Mills, Laim Neeson, life is ruined when he is falsely accused of a murder of his ex-wife that he did not commit. Mills employs his skills and maneuvers to weave himself around LA to find the real culprit. It was highly suspenseful and exciting to watch on a plane, even though the storyline was hokey and repetitive and actually, ridiculous. But, I have always love the voice and presence of Neeson. He is a great action hero! Forest Whitaker also stars in a small part. He is always good.
Django Unchained, 2013
Directed and written by Quentin Tarantino. Christopher Waltz. Waltz plays the identical role as he did in Inglorious Bastards. Jamie Foxx plays a free slave. Under the wing of a German bounty hinder, Django becomes a dangerous bounty hunter himself, seeking revenge and capture of his slave wife. He is determined to find her and liberate her from an evil plantation owner played by Leo DiCaprio. For a plane movie, it was great, escapism and incredibly violent and Tarantino would have been in jail, had he not made these movies.
Night crawler, 2014
After discovering the world of LA crime journalism, Lou Bloom, Jake Gyllenhaal, is a driven man who is desperate for work and blurs the lines between observer and participant in order to get the story and soon becomes the star of his own society. Bloom is despicable, lacks any moral ethical code to speak of and the movie is deeply cynical as he ends up succeeding and winning without any repercussions for his despicable behavior. I found the movie deeply disturbing.
Felix and Meira
FÉLIX AND MEIRA is a calling card for its young director, Maxime Giroux; a story of an unconventional romance between two people living vastly different realities mere blocks away from one another. Each lost in their everyday lives, Meira (Hadas Yaron), a Hasidim Jewish wife and mother and Félix (Martin Dubreuil), a secular loner mourning the recent death of his estranged father, unexpectedly meet in a local bakery in Montreal’s Mile End district. What starts as an innocent friendship becomes more serious as the two wayward strangers find comfort in one another. As Felix opens Meira’s eyes to the world outside of her tight-knit Orthodox community, her desire for change becomes harder for her to ignore, ultimately forcing her to choose: remain in the life that she knows or give it all up to be with Félix. Giroux’s film is a poignant and touching tale of self-discovery set against the backdrops of Montreal, Brooklyn, and Venice, Italy. I felt this spare moving kept its integrity in that the husband and the relationships came across in all their nuances and subtly, without sentimental caricature. However, I felt Meira just replaced one man with another and her bondage and lack of independence continues. She seemed to simple and uneducated and unworldly to be able to make her escape succeed. It is a good piece of film work.
I'll See You In My Dreams
A lovely, lovely film, Directed, Written and Produced by Brett Haley. It stars Blythe Danner as Carol, Sam Elliott as Bill and Martin Starr as Lloyd. It centers around Carol who is in her early 70's, lives alone with her dog, plays cards, drinks, and has an easy pleasant life when romance enters her life through the pool man and Bill. There was an ease to this film, a lovely flow, a dialogue and plot that felt real and genuine. I thought it was a wonderful, lovely present day film.
The Water Diviner
Russell Crowe’s directorial debut is an epic and inspiring tale of one man’s life-changing journey of discovery. Crowe plays Australian farmer Joshua Connor, who in 1919 goes in search of his three missing sons, last known to have fought against the Turks in the bloody Battle of Gallipoli. Arriving in Istanbul, he is thrust into a vastly different world, where he encounters others who suffered their own losses in the conflict: Ayshe (Olga Kurylenko, Quantum of Solace), a strikingly beautiful but guarded hotelier raising a child alone; her young, spirited son, Orhan (Dylan Georgiades), who finds a friend in Connor; and Major Hasan (Yilmaz Erdoğan), a Turkish officer who fought against Connor’s boys and may be this father’s only hope. With seemingly insurmountable obstacles in his path, Connor must travel across the battle-scarred Turkish landscape to find the truth… and his own peace. Inspired by a true story, I found the movie absorbing, and Russell Crowe as always, wonderful. He is one of my favorite actors. I enjoyed the movie although it was seriously panned by the critics. Oh. Well.
Noble
They broke everything but her spirit. They took everything but her dream. NOBLE, the award-winning feature film, is the incredible true story of a fearless Irish heroine driven by her daring vision to escape the slums of Ireland and risk everything on the streets of Vietnam. This remarkable woman, Christina Noble, is the perfect example of how one person can change the world. She suffered traumatically from nearly every hardship imaginable and yet, she gave back and went on to become a hero in so many other lives. Extraordinary, really.
Dior and I
In 2012, legendary French fashion house Christian Dior Couture announced the appointment of designer Raf Simons as its head Creative Director. Dior and I takes a privileged, behind-the-scenes look at the high stakes, high tension makings of Simons’ debut hauteur couture collection and how it returned to the origins of the house of Dior. The film also takes an intimate, cinema vérité-style glimpse at the inner workings of the Dior atelier, capturing the entire eight-week process up until the premiere of Simons’ collection. Some of the atelier workers—the heart and soul of the fashion industry—have sewed for Dior for decades and do so with an unbridled passion. Together, they form a support system for Simons and help to create his masterpiece collection, with every line they sketch and bead they sew. A whirlwind of creativity, stress, determination and triumph, Dior and I marks the third fashion film for writer/director Frédéric Tcheng, who previously co-wrote and co-directed Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has to Travel and co-produced Valentino: The Last Emperor. (Partially subtitled)
Astonishing how these couture houses have to assemble shows in two months and how they have to work with the original Dior Foundation to make the dresses and suits more modern.
About Elly
About Elly is a terrific film written and directed by Asghar Farhadi prior to making the Academy Award-winning A Separation and The Past. It is now getting a well-deserved U.S. release, and richly repays the wait. Like Farhadi’s other films, it is full of subtle motivations and believable characters, building intense emotional involvement as the story unfolds. Beautiful Sepideh (Golshifteh Farahani, The Patience Stone, Exodus: Gods and Kings), is a friendly young wife and mother with a tendency to stretch the truth to try to make things better. She arranges a weekend getaway to the seashore with three couples who were friends at university, with their young children, and includes Ahmad (Shahab Hosseini), the newly-divorced brother of one of them, home from Germany looking for a wife. She also invites, with considerable arm-twisting, Elly (Taraneh Alidoosti), the sweet but shy kindergarten teacher of her daughter, to get acquainted with Ahmad. Everyone is having a good time until tragedy suddenly strikes, with a mysterious disappearance. Recriminations ensue and relationships are strained. The friends try to cover up the truth, and lie piles upon lie leading to disaster. (Fully subtitled). There is such a dearth of good film around that I am compelled to share with you a movie that is a must see. This film, by the famous Iranian Director, Asghar Farhadi, an Academy Award winner, has created a deeply satisfying film experience. Placed on the seashore in Iran, there is an underlying suspense, a deep psychological exploration. Peels of emotion and relationship unravel, as truths are scratched out. At times, I felt my body like coil. There was an intimacy into and a deep curiosity of another culture. This film won Best Picture, The Bear Silver Award at the Berlin Film Festival, 2014. An award that is richly deserved. Go into the film without reading about it beforehand. Be wonderfully surprised. You will not be disappointed. This movie is currently playing at The Landmark. I don't know for how long.
Sunshine Superman
In the freewheeling 1970s, what is now considered an “extreme sport” was considered simply crazy. Jumping off a building or bridge with only a few moments to release your parachute was not only seemingly illegal, it was deemed suicidal, even by many seasoned skydivers. Yet this is not a film about death. It is about the essence of life—of what it feels like, if for only a moment, to truly fly. Carl Boenish, the father of the BASE jumping movement and subject of this heart-racing documentary, had a passion for skydiving that led him to ever more spectacular—and dangerous—feats of foot-launched human flight. Experience his jaw-dropping journey in life and love, to the pinnacle of his achievements when he and wife Jean broke the BASE jumping Guinness World Record in 1984 on the Norwegian Troll Wall mountain range. Incredibly, within days, triumph was followed by disaster. Told through a stunning mix of Carl’s 16mm archive footage, well-crafted re-enactments and state-of-the-art aerial photography, Sunshine Superman will leave you breathless and inspired. This was a very fine documentary even though Carl and Jean remained an enigma throughout the film.
Girl on the Edge
OK. It was a true story by the Director about his daughter who descended into bad behavior after she was raped at 15. They had to send her away to a program like the Taft's did with their son. It was the story of her rehabilitation and successful treatment. I felt as if I have seen this story too many times on TV, where healing is worked out through making a film. You would have liked it while watching it, as I did, but would I recommend it? No.
Far From The Madding Crowd, 1987
This remarkable classic stands the test of time, where agricultural life is explored with its pace and rhythm.
The characters are perfectly cast. The roles of the different types of men well represented. I love this film. To me, it is the essence of wonderful film making.
When Marnie Was There
Anna is a troubled, lonely 12-year-old orphan who calls her kindly adoptive mother “aunt.” Sent from her foster home in the city one summer to a sleepy town by the sea for her health (and, her mother hopes, to make new friends), Anna is drawn to a magnificent, apparently deserted mansion in the marshes. There she encounters Marnie, a mysterious but out-going blonde, and they become friends. “Let’s keep us a secret forever,” says Marnie, and Anna agrees. Soon Anna is telling Marnie things she never told anyone, while Marnie introduces her to the nighttime revels at the villa, presided over by her stylish socialite mother. Yet Marnie’s frequent unexplained absences make Anna wonder about her newfound friend. Animated in a beautiful world that seems to capture both dreams and reality, this Studio Ghibli release is the second feature by Hiromasa Yonebayashi, director of The Secret World of Arrietty. In English. A marvelous animation that tells a story without special effects and stupid dialogue and plot story. This was moving and sensitive and powerful and meaningful.
The Fourth Nobel Truth
This movie was so awful, about Yoga, and a manipulative, scoundrel who gets the girl at the end. This is all that it deserves. What ever happened to Jimmy Stewart?
The Singing Detective, 1998
BBC. Dennis Potter's legendary Award-Winning Masterpiece. It is the story of Philip Marlow, a mystery writer stricken with a crippling skin disorder whose hallucinations, interweave memories of his past with the murder mystery in his book, the story of a suave sleuth who croons with a bag band when he is not cracking cases. Brilliant. Original. Authentic. Creative. I found this series as riveting as when I first saw it. It is nearly 7 hours of TV addiction. He works through his childhood demons, as the mystery book unfolds in his imagination, as one of the patients reads it on the floor. I love it.
Testament of Youth
Testament of Youth is a powerful story of love, war and remembrance, based on the First World War memoir by Vera Brittain, which has become the classic testimony of that war from a woman's point of view. A searing journey from youthful hopes and dreams to the edge of despair and back again, it's a film about young love, the futility of war and how to make sense of the darkest times. Starring Alicia Vikander (Ex Machina), Kit Harington (“Game of Thrones”), Taron Egerton, Emily Watson, Hayley Atwell, Colin Morgan, Dominic West and Miranda Richardson. This film was powerful and profoundly sad, spare and real, elegant and meaningful. It stayed pretty much to the truth of the book. An outstanding interpretation of the book. I was not dissatisfied at all.
Me and Earl and the Dying Girl
is the uniquely funny, moving story of Greg (Thomas Mann), a high school senior who is trying to blend in as anonymously as possible, avoiding deeper relationships as a survival strategy for navigating the social minefield that is teenage life. He even describes his constant companion Earl (R.J. Cyler), with whom he makes short film parodies of classic movies, as more of a 'co-worker’ than a best friend. But when Greg’s mom (Connie Britton) insists he spend time with Rachel (Olivia Cooke)—a girl in his class who has just been diagnosed with cancer—he slowly discovers how worthwhile the true bonds of friendship can be. Winner of the Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. This uniquely contemporary and relevant cool interpretation kind-of-film, where death and dying is sardonic and not to become too emotional about, reflects, I feel, contemporary adolescent culture well. There was something hip and original about this film. It was profoundly sad, yet extremely present.
The Little Death
Director. Josh Lawson. Australian. This wonderful original film is about the sexual fetishes of 5 different couples and how they handle their relationships and sexual desires. Rape. Being turned on by tears. Sleeping with a person without their knowing, drugging them. It kept you off-balance. There was a creepiness. Some parts were funny. A superb film.
A Little Death is French for orgasm.
Like Water For Chocolate, 1980's
One of my favorite films of all time. A gem and a Masterpiece. A Classic. Winner of the Academy Award for Best Foreign Film
The Whole Wide World, 1990's
Renee Zellweger. Vincent D. Onofrio. This is one of Renee's first films, and like Jennifer Lawrence and Winter Bones, the movie put Renee on the map. It is a marvelous intimate film and one of my favorites. I found the out-of-print book years later and this film was actually far better than the memoir. It will become a classic of the small independent film festivals. Sad. Simple. Pure. Innocent. First love and lost. When its author wrote her memoir, she was 76 years old, nearly 70 years after this event that tore her life apart and changed it dramatically.
I Know Where I'm Going!
Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger. A play that was made into a film, it probably worked better as a film, though it remained slow and plodding. I did not care for the heroine. I never warmed up to her pretense and selfishness. Filmed in Scotland, off to marrying her much older fiance because he is wealthy, she falls against her will for a local gentleman.
The Garden of Allah, 1936.
Marlene Dietrich. Charles Boyer. A beautiful womb meets a runaway monk, who must choose between pursing his religious loyalties and running away with Dietrich. Pretty bad film.
Poor Little Rich Girl, 1936
Shirley Temple. A runaway girl is befriended by a vaudeville radio team. Temple is adorable.
Town Without Pity, 1957
Michael Redgrave. Ann Todd. Redgrave is quite handsome. Filmed like the play that it originally was, it is about an alcoholic writer who is in a race against time to find the real culprit behind his murder of his estranged son who has been accused of committing a murder he did not commit.
A Kiss Before Dying, 1956
Robert Wagner. Joanne Woodward. An ambitious social climber kills his pregnant girlfriend, making it look like a suicide, because he knows her wealthy family will never accept her. The dead woman's sister refuses to believe she would take her own life and begins an investigation. Very good suspense film!
Greed, 1924
Silent film. Gibson Gowland ZaSu Pitts. Erich von Stroheim masterpiece traces the demise of a dentist and his avaricious wife in what was originally a nine-hour epic. It is now 242 minutes. It shows how possession of money affects you, your relationships, and agenda and ulterior motives.
The End of The Tour
Jason Segal. Jesse Eisenberg. Segel was wonderful but Jesse gets on my nerves in every film that he is in. He is an irritating and annoying prick. Disingenuous and full of jealousy and self dishonesty. The film was good and absorbing.
It is about a writer for Rolling Stone who goes and interviews the greatest new writer on the literary scene today.
Amy
Amy tells the incredible story of six-time Grammy winner Amy Winehouse—in her own words. Featuring extensive unseen archive footage and previously unheard tracks, this strikingly modern, moving and vital film shines a light on the world we live in, in a way that very few can. A once-in-a-generation talent, Amy Winehouse was a musician that captured the world’s attention. A pure jazz artist in the most authentic sense—she wrote and sung from the heart using her musical gifts to analyze her own problems. The combination of her raw honesty and supreme talent resulted in some of the most unique and adored songs of the modern era. Her huge success, however, resulted in relentless and invasive media attention which, coupled with Amy’s troubled relationships and precarious lifestyle, saw her life tragically begin to unravel. Amy Winehouse died from alcohol poisoning in July 2011 at the age of 27. Directed by Asif Kapadia (Senna). This outstanding and marvelous documentary shows the train wreck of a wholesome and sweet girl, and how her insecurities and falling into the wrong boyfriend, makes her into a hardcore drug addict and alcoholic. You see her spiral into her own death. At 27. She had a talent larger than life. But, her private demons destroyed her. As, did fame.
Dead of Night, 1945
Michael Redgrave. Mervyn Johns. Classic quintet of eerie supernatural tales with Redgrave acting with a ventriloquist. The movie plays like a theater play. Boring and talking talking at times. Boring at others. Hung in there.
Mr. Holmes
Mr. Holmes is a new twist on the world's most famous detective. In 1947, an aging Sherlock Holmes (Ian McKellen) returns from a journey to Japan, where, in search of a rare plant with powerful restorative qualities, he has witnessed the devastation of nuclear warfare. Now, in his remote seaside farmhouse, Holmes faces the end of his days tending to his bees, with only the company of his housekeeper (Laura Linney) and her young son, Roger (Milo Parker). Grappling with the diminishing powers of his mind, Holmes comes to rely upon the boy as he revisits the circumstances of the unsolved case that forced him into retirement, and searches for answers to the mysteries of life and love—before it's too late. Directed by Bill Condon (Gods and Monsters, Dreamgirls).
It did not seem real that the boy did not die. Too Hollywood. OK film. Bored at parts. Make-up jobs superb.
The River, 1951
Nora Swinburne. Esmond Knight. On the banks of the West Bengal river, the eldest daughter of an English family is caught in a love triangle between a dashing visitor and a local Indian beauty and her girlfriend next door. Adapted by Director Jean Renoir. From a story by Rumor Godden. The movie was stylized and dated and will not stand up to the test of time.
Kiss Me Deadly, 1955
Ralph Meeker. Gaby Rodgers. Private eye Mike Hammer picks up a hitchhiker; both are kidnapped and she is killed. Now the Private Investigator wants to avenge her murder and find out why. Hokey. Boring. Dated.
Divorce in the Family, 1932
Jackie Cooper. Lewis Stone. A young boy from a broken home is forced to choose between his biological father and stepfather. The movie feels like an honest attempt or a subject foreign back then. Cooper is way too dramatic and overacts. He began to get on my nerves. The made the step father so wonderful, like black Sidney Poiter in Guess Who Is Coming To Dinner, that this stepfather seemed a little bit unbelievable. The conflict was good between good. It was more about adjusting to the new reality of divorce.
Inside Out
Growing up can be a bumpy road, and it's no exception for Riley, who is uprooted from her Midwest life when her father starts a new job in San Francisco. Like all of us, Riley is guided by her emotions -- Joy (Amy Poehler), Fear (Bill Hader), Anger (Lewis Black), Disgust (Mindy Kaling) and Sadness (Phyllis Smith). The emotions live in Headquarters, the control center inside Riley's mind, where they help advise her through everyday life. As Riley and her emotions struggle to adjust to a new life in San Francisco, turmoil ensues in Headquarters. Although Joy, Riley's main and most important emotion, tries to keep things positive, the emotions conflict on how best to navigate a new city, house and school. Saw it twice. Even got choked up.
Trainwreck
Filmmaker Judd Apatow (The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up, This Is 40) directs Trainwreck, starring and written by breakout comedic actress Amy Schumer (“Inside Amy Schumer”). Since she was a little girl, it’s been drilled into Amy’s head by her rascal of a dad (Colin Quinn) that monogamy isn’t realistic. Now a magazine writer, Amy lives by that credo—enjoying what she feels is an uninhibited life free from stifling, boring romantic commitment—but in actuality, she’s kind of in a rut. When she finds herself starting to fall for the subject of the new article she’s writing, a charming and successful sports doctor named Aaron (Bill Hader), Amy starts to wonder if other grown-ups, including this guy who really seems to like her, might be on to something. The comedy Trainwreck also stars Brie Larson, John Cena, Tilda Swinton and LeBron James. I loved this movie. It was hysterical. A great comedy. Contemporary and relevant.
Rosenwald
Directed. Writer. Producer, Aviva Kempner. A marvelous documentary about an unfamiliar Jew who was the head of Sears & Roebuck and was one of America's greatest philanthropists. It was emotional at times, quite moving. Kempner is 68 and this film took 13 years to complete. She also did the Partisans of Vilna.
Oblomov, 1979
Director. Josh Lawson. Australian. This wonderful original film is about the sexual fetishes of 5 different couples and how they handle their relationships and sexual desires. Rape. Being turned on by tears. Sleeping with a person without their knowing, drugging them. It kept you off-balance. There was a creepiness. Some parts were funny. A superb film.
A Little Death is French for orgasm.
Like Water For Chocolate, 1980's
One of my favorite films of all time. A gem and a Masterpiece. A Classic. Winner of the Academy Award for Best Foreign Film
The Whole Wide World, 1990's
Renee Zellweger. Vincent D. Onofrio. This is one of Renee's first films, and like Jennifer Lawrence and Winter Bones, the movie put Renee on the map. It is a marvelous intimate film and one of my favorites. I found the out-of-print book years later and this film was actually far better than the memoir. It will become a classic of the small independent film festivals. Sad. Simple. Pure. Innocent. First love and lost. When its author wrote her memoir, she was 76 years old, nearly 70 years after this event that tore her life apart and changed it dramatically.
I Know Where I'm Going!
Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger. A play that was made into a film, it probably worked better as a film, though it remained slow and plodding. I did not care for the heroine. I never warmed up to her pretense and selfishness. Filmed in Scotland, off to marrying her much older fiance because he is wealthy, she falls against her will for a local gentleman.
The Garden of Allah, 1936.
Marlene Dietrich. Charles Boyer. A beautiful womb meets a runaway monk, who must choose between pursing his religious loyalties and running away with Dietrich. Pretty bad film.
Poor Little Rich Girl, 1936
Shirley Temple. A runaway girl is befriended by a vaudeville radio team. Temple is adorable.
Town Without Pity, 1957
Michael Redgrave. Ann Todd. Redgrave is quite handsome. Filmed like the play that it originally was, it is about an alcoholic writer who is in a race against time to find the real culprit behind his murder of his estranged son who has been accused of committing a murder he did not commit.
A Kiss Before Dying, 1956
Robert Wagner. Joanne Woodward. An ambitious social climber kills his pregnant girlfriend, making it look like a suicide, because he knows her wealthy family will never accept her. The dead woman's sister refuses to believe she would take her own life and begins an investigation. Very good suspense film!
Greed, 1924
Silent film. Gibson Gowland ZaSu Pitts. Erich von Stroheim masterpiece traces the demise of a dentist and his avaricious wife in what was originally a nine-hour epic. It is now 242 minutes. It shows how possession of money affects you, your relationships, and agenda and ulterior motives.
The End of The Tour
Jason Segal. Jesse Eisenberg. Segel was wonderful but Jesse gets on my nerves in every film that he is in. He is an irritating and annoying prick. Disingenuous and full of jealousy and self dishonesty. The film was good and absorbing.
It is about a writer for Rolling Stone who goes and interviews the greatest new writer on the literary scene today.
Amy
Amy tells the incredible story of six-time Grammy winner Amy Winehouse—in her own words. Featuring extensive unseen archive footage and previously unheard tracks, this strikingly modern, moving and vital film shines a light on the world we live in, in a way that very few can. A once-in-a-generation talent, Amy Winehouse was a musician that captured the world’s attention. A pure jazz artist in the most authentic sense—she wrote and sung from the heart using her musical gifts to analyze her own problems. The combination of her raw honesty and supreme talent resulted in some of the most unique and adored songs of the modern era. Her huge success, however, resulted in relentless and invasive media attention which, coupled with Amy’s troubled relationships and precarious lifestyle, saw her life tragically begin to unravel. Amy Winehouse died from alcohol poisoning in July 2011 at the age of 27. Directed by Asif Kapadia (Senna). This outstanding and marvelous documentary shows the train wreck of a wholesome and sweet girl, and how her insecurities and falling into the wrong boyfriend, makes her into a hardcore drug addict and alcoholic. You see her spiral into her own death. At 27. She had a talent larger than life. But, her private demons destroyed her. As, did fame.
Dead of Night, 1945
Michael Redgrave. Mervyn Johns. Classic quintet of eerie supernatural tales with Redgrave acting with a ventriloquist. The movie plays like a theater play. Boring and talking talking at times. Boring at others. Hung in there.
Mr. Holmes
Mr. Holmes is a new twist on the world's most famous detective. In 1947, an aging Sherlock Holmes (Ian McKellen) returns from a journey to Japan, where, in search of a rare plant with powerful restorative qualities, he has witnessed the devastation of nuclear warfare. Now, in his remote seaside farmhouse, Holmes faces the end of his days tending to his bees, with only the company of his housekeeper (Laura Linney) and her young son, Roger (Milo Parker). Grappling with the diminishing powers of his mind, Holmes comes to rely upon the boy as he revisits the circumstances of the unsolved case that forced him into retirement, and searches for answers to the mysteries of life and love—before it's too late. Directed by Bill Condon (Gods and Monsters, Dreamgirls).
It did not seem real that the boy did not die. Too Hollywood. OK film. Bored at parts. Make-up jobs superb.
The River, 1951
Nora Swinburne. Esmond Knight. On the banks of the West Bengal river, the eldest daughter of an English family is caught in a love triangle between a dashing visitor and a local Indian beauty and her girlfriend next door. Adapted by Director Jean Renoir. From a story by Rumor Godden. The movie was stylized and dated and will not stand up to the test of time.
Kiss Me Deadly, 1955
Ralph Meeker. Gaby Rodgers. Private eye Mike Hammer picks up a hitchhiker; both are kidnapped and she is killed. Now the Private Investigator wants to avenge her murder and find out why. Hokey. Boring. Dated.
Divorce in the Family, 1932
Jackie Cooper. Lewis Stone. A young boy from a broken home is forced to choose between his biological father and stepfather. The movie feels like an honest attempt or a subject foreign back then. Cooper is way too dramatic and overacts. He began to get on my nerves. The made the step father so wonderful, like black Sidney Poiter in Guess Who Is Coming To Dinner, that this stepfather seemed a little bit unbelievable. The conflict was good between good. It was more about adjusting to the new reality of divorce.
Samba
Award-winning actor Omar Sy (The Intouchables, Jurassic World) stars in this richly entertaining chronicle of an undocumented kitchen worker battling deportation from his adopted home in Paris. When Samba (Sy) is suddenly ordered to leave France, he enlists the help of Alice (Charlotte Gainsbourg), an emotionally vulnerable immigration advocate with little experience but plenty of heart. As the immigrant aspiring chef and the burned-out corporate executive tentatively explore an unexpected bond, they inspire each other to reinvent themselves. A vibrant comedy full of tender humor and heartfelt optimism, Samba is directed by Olivier Nakache and Eric Toledano (The Intouchables). (Fully subtitled) I thought Gainsbourg was completely miscast. She was so ugly too. In person, Sy is slender and tall. In the film, he has bulked up and looks huge! OK. Too PC for me.
Inside Out
Growing up can be a bumpy road, and it's no exception for Riley, who is uprooted from her Midwest life when her father starts a new job in San Francisco. Like all of us, Riley is guided by her emotions -- Joy (Amy Poehler), Fear (Bill Hader), Anger (Lewis Black), Disgust (Mindy Kaling) and Sadness (Phyllis Smith). The emotions live in Headquarters, the control center inside Riley's mind, where they help advise her through everyday life. As Riley and her emotions struggle to adjust to a new life in San Francisco, turmoil ensues in Headquarters. Although Joy, Riley's main and most important emotion, tries to keep things positive, the emotions conflict on how best to navigate a new city, house and school. Saw it twice. Even got choked up.
Trainwreck
Filmmaker Judd Apatow (The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Knocked Up, This Is 40) directs Trainwreck, starring and written by breakout comedic actress Amy Schumer (“Inside Amy Schumer”). Since she was a little girl, it’s been drilled into Amy’s head by her rascal of a dad (Colin Quinn) that monogamy isn’t realistic. Now a magazine writer, Amy lives by that credo—enjoying what she feels is an uninhibited life free from stifling, boring romantic commitment—but in actuality, she’s kind of in a rut. When she finds herself starting to fall for the subject of the new article she’s writing, a charming and successful sports doctor named Aaron (Bill Hader), Amy starts to wonder if other grown-ups, including this guy who really seems to like her, might be on to something. The comedy Trainwreck also stars Brie Larson, John Cena, Tilda Swinton and LeBron James. I loved this movie. It was hysterical. A great comedy. Contemporary and relevant.
Rosenwald
Directed. Writer. Producer, Aviva Kempner. A marvelous documentary about an unfamiliar Jew who was the head of Sears & Roebuck and was one of America's greatest philanthropists. It was emotional at times, quite moving. Kempner is 68 and this film took 13 years to complete. She also did the Partisans of Vilna.
Oblomov, 1979
Stalin's daughter favorite movie. It is so Russian. Sad and poignant and heavy and like a typical Russian novel of lost love, unrequited love, heavy sorrow and loss, the movie flows from the past, the present and narrates into the future. It is a fine piece of film work and for a Russian, this is typical Russian.
Mistress America
In the comedy Mistress America, Tracy (Lola Kirke) is a lonely college freshman in New York, having neither the exciting university experience nor the glamorous metropolitan lifestyle she envisioned. But when she is taken in by her soon-to-be stepsister, Brooke (co-writer Greta Gerwig)—a resident of Times Square and adventurous gal about town—she is rescued from her disappointment and seduced by Brooke's impetuous, alluringly mad schemes. Directed and co-written by Noah Baumbach (While We’re Young, Frances Ha, The Squid and the Whale). This supremely contemporary film of contemporary society made me feel old. No one ever witnessed togetherness and staying together. Everyone came from divorced homes. Everything is for the now or as long as it lasts. There is no permanence. Kids came second in their parents lives as the parents tried to sort out their own lives leaving their children to pretty much figure it out on their own, without much success.
So when they leave for college, they are basically children at heart, needy, lost, and unstructured.
After Words
A poignant and sad film about a lonely, socially backward librarian who goes to Costa Rico to commit suicide and instead is saved by her tour guide who brings her from the brink of death back into life. The Director was from Urugray and was a second generation from Holocaust survivors, sensitive and handsome. His name was Juan Feldman and there were two Jewish references in the film. Chutzpah and Anne Frank. A must see.
Wolf Totem
Directed by Jean-Jacques Annaud. This film is how the wolves in Mongolia are becoming extinct because of the Chinese who are slaughtering them. And because of the wolves, the antelope are over-populating and eating all the grass and then the rats and squirrels come in and pick the roots causing terrible dust storms that affect the pollution in Beiging. All because they are killing these beautiful, majestic, gorgeous animals. It was a brutal and extraordinary film and profoundly sad. I was rooting for the wolves and got all choked up.
Grandma
In the acerbic comedy Grandma, Lily Tomlin stars as Elle Reid, a misanthropic grandmother who has just gotten through breaking up with her girlfriend. That’s when her granddaughter Sage (Julia Garner) unexpectedly shows up needing $600 before sundown. Temporarily broke, Grandma Elle and Sage spend the day trying to get their hands on the cash by making unannounced visits to old friends and flames—rattling skeletons and digging up secrets in the process. Also starring Marcia Gay Harden, Judy Greer, Laverne Cox, Sam Elliott, Nat Wolff and John Cho, Grandma is written and directed by Paul Weitz (About a Boy, In Good Company, American Pie). Lily Tomlin carried the entire film. What unhappy, unloved angry lonely women they all were, without men in their lives to center and cherish them. She will be nominated for an Academy for her performance.
Learning To Drive
Inspired by a true story, Learning to Drive stars Patricia Clarkson and Academy Award winner Ben Kingsley (Gandhi)in a feel-good comedy about an improbable friendship. Wendy (Clarkson) is a fiery Manhattan author whose husband has just left her for a younger woman; Darwan (Kingsley) is a soft-spoken taxi driver from India on the verge of an arranged marriage. As Wendy sets out to reclaim her independence, she runs into a barrier common to many lifelong New Yorkers: she's never learned to drive. When Wendy hires Darwan to teach her, her unraveling life and his calm restraint seem like an awkward fit. But as he shows her how to take control of the wheel, and she coaches him on how to impress a woman, their unlikely friendship awakens them to the joy, humor and love in starting life anew. A good movie but a forgettable one. Patricia Clarkson, who is one of my favorite character actors, did an excellent job carrying the entire film.
The Second Mother
An excitingly fresh take on some classic themes and ideas, THE SECOND MOTHER centers around Val, a hard-working live-in housekeeper in modern day Sao Paulo. Val is perfectly content to take care of every one of her wealthy employers’ needs, from cooking and cleaning to being a surrogate mother to their teenage son, who she has raised since he was a toddler. But when Val’s estranged daughter Jessica suddenly shows up the unspoken but intrinsic class barriers that exist within the home are thrown into disarray. Jessica is smart, confident, and ambitious, and refuses to accept the upstairs/downstairs dynamic, testing relationships and loyalties and forcing everyone to reconsider what family really means. This is a marvelous film, terrific acting, believable story about class and relationship and sacrifice and human limitations. I loved it.
The Party, 1968
A silly, exaggerated caper with Peter Sellers. It felt dated.
The Gift
Simon (Jason Bateman) and Robyn (Rebecca Hall) are a young married couple whose life is going just as planned -- until they have a chance encounter with an acquaintance from Simon's high school. Simon doesn't recognize Gordo (Joel Edgerton) at first, but after a seemingly coincidental series of encounters proves troubling, a horrifying secret from their past is uncovered after nearly 20 years. As Robyn learns the unsettling truth about what happened between Simon and Gordo, she starts to question: how well do we really know the people closest to us, and are past bygones ever really bygones? This gripping and to me, terrifying film, was brilliantly done. I screamed twice! I sat there unglued as the story unfolded, in terror, clutching my eye case to my mouth so I would not scream more!
Son of Saul
Hungarian. Nominated for Academy for Best Foreign film, winner of the Cannes Festival, not allowed to be seen in Germany, this crushing Holocaust film, this haunting and unforgettable film left me in shock, speechless and stunned. I was inside the pit itself. The Director called the confusion and terror and fear and unknowing and put to rest once and for all, the phrase, that they went like sheep to their slaughter. How dare this comment ever be said in the light of day again. The time sequence was brilliant. It takes place over a day, a night, through the night and the next day. I felt as if I had been in hell for years. The finest more realistic Holocaust film I have ever witnessed.
A Brilliant Young Mind
A Brilliant Young Mind
by director Morgan Matthews
The journey to make A Brilliant Young Mind, my first feature film, began over eight years ago when I was introduced to the world of competitive mathematics whilst making a documentary following a group of extraordinary young British students on their way towards the International Mathematical Olympiad—a fantastic competition that attracts the brightest young mathematical brains from over 100 countries around the world. I was immediately taken with the wonderful characters I met, who were all competing for medals at the Olympiad, and one of those young prodigies, Daniel Lightwing, became the inspiration for Nathan, our lead boy in A Brilliant Young Mind—played by Asa Butterfield of Hugo and Ender’s Game fame.
Whilst adapting the story, I never saw a great deal of purpose in simply re-making my documentary Beautiful Young Minds, but whilst we took significant creative license, many of the elements of Nathan’s character remain true to Daniel’s. When I first met Daniel, he was an incredibly shy young man, who had recently been diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome (an autism spectrum disorder), and had also been bullied at school for being different and ‘weird.’ Retreating from the world around him, Daniel found refuge in mathematics and also became obsessed with Chinese culture—teaching himself fluent Mandarin in less than three months. Emboldened by his new interest, he travelled to Beijing to train with the Chinese Mathematical Olympiad team—who are consistently the best in the world at the competition. Daniel aspired to what the young Chinese mathematicians were capable of and identified with Chinese culture in a way that he didn’t with his experience of life in England. In China, the young mathematicians were celebrated as stars—they were cool—whereas in England, Daniel had been ostracized and called a geek for his passion. It was also in China that Daniel fell in love for the first time.
For me, it was quite wonderful to see this brilliant, complex and sometimes troubled young man blossom with newfound confidence, and to witness what became a profound journey for him. So, with these foundations in the real world, I set out to develop the story into a feature film and teamed up with the wonderfully talented young writer James Graham, who at that time was emerging in theatre with some superb and original work. Putting a budget together for a film with a first time director at the helm is never easy, but with support from the British Film Institute and BBC Films, we eventually got to the stage where we were ready to shoot.
Making the transition from documentaries where I had been used to working in an intimate way with a small crew to making a feature film on much bigger scale was significant, but there are so many aspects of the film making process that are fundamentally the same. Ultimately both documentary and drama tell a story and use the same means to do it. Coming from a documentary background, I also understood the need for great casting, and whilst this is not something that everyone associates with documentary making, it is undoubtedly true that one cannot make a great documentary without great characters. With such a strong script from James, we were able to assemble a superb cast that included both established stars, such as the outstanding Sally Hawkins (Oscar nominated for her role in Blue Jasmine), as well as many exciting young actors who are undoubtedly stars of the future.
Whilst many of the themes of the film relate to Nathan’s condition and the fact he is on the spectrum, most of us will experience moments in our lives where we don’t fit in, or where we feel lonely or isolated. And whilst on the surface A Brilliant Young Mind is the story of an autistic teenager on his way towards a mathematics competition, this is really a film about a boy coming to terms with a tragedy in his early life, whilst learning what it means to love again.
Whilst adapting the story, I never saw a great deal of purpose in simply re-making my documentary Beautiful Young Minds, but whilst we took significant creative license, many of the elements of Nathan’s character remain true to Daniel’s. When I first met Daniel, he was an incredibly shy young man, who had recently been diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome (an autism spectrum disorder), and had also been bullied at school for being different and ‘weird.’ Retreating from the world around him, Daniel found refuge in mathematics and also became obsessed with Chinese culture—teaching himself fluent Mandarin in less than three months. Emboldened by his new interest, he travelled to Beijing to train with the Chinese Mathematical Olympiad team—who are consistently the best in the world at the competition. Daniel aspired to what the young Chinese mathematicians were capable of and identified with Chinese culture in a way that he didn’t with his experience of life in England. In China, the young mathematicians were celebrated as stars—they were cool—whereas in England, Daniel had been ostracized and called a geek for his passion. It was also in China that Daniel fell in love for the first time.
For me, it was quite wonderful to see this brilliant, complex and sometimes troubled young man blossom with newfound confidence, and to witness what became a profound journey for him. So, with these foundations in the real world, I set out to develop the story into a feature film and teamed up with the wonderfully talented young writer James Graham, who at that time was emerging in theatre with some superb and original work. Putting a budget together for a film with a first time director at the helm is never easy, but with support from the British Film Institute and BBC Films, we eventually got to the stage where we were ready to shoot.
Making the transition from documentaries where I had been used to working in an intimate way with a small crew to making a feature film on much bigger scale was significant, but there are so many aspects of the film making process that are fundamentally the same. Ultimately both documentary and drama tell a story and use the same means to do it. Coming from a documentary background, I also understood the need for great casting, and whilst this is not something that everyone associates with documentary making, it is undoubtedly true that one cannot make a great documentary without great characters. With such a strong script from James, we were able to assemble a superb cast that included both established stars, such as the outstanding Sally Hawkins (Oscar nominated for her role in Blue Jasmine), as well as many exciting young actors who are undoubtedly stars of the future.
Whilst many of the themes of the film relate to Nathan’s condition and the fact he is on the spectrum, most of us will experience moments in our lives where we don’t fit in, or where we feel lonely or isolated. And whilst on the surface A Brilliant Young Mind is the story of an autistic teenager on his way towards a mathematics competition, this is really a film about a boy coming to terms with a tragedy in his early life, whilst learning what it means to love again.
This was a beautiful sensitive film that held my interest. The acting superb. The plot well done. The development fine. A highly recommended film that deserves to be seen and understood on its many levels of interpretation.
This original and heart-warming dramatic comedy tracks the funny and complex relationships that a young math prodigy builds as he is confronted by the irrational nature of love. Nathan (Asa Butterfield, Hugo, Ender's Game) struggles when it comes to connecting with other people, not least with his loving mother (Sally Hawkins). In a world difficult to comprehend, he finds comfort in numbers. Taken under the wing of an unconventional and anarchic teacher (Rafe Spall), the pair forge an unusual friendship. Eventually, Nathan’s talents win him a place on the UK National team at the International Mathematics Olympiad (IMO) and the team travel to a training camp in Taiwan, under the supervision of squad leader Richard (Eddie Marsan). In unfamiliar surroundings, Nathan is confronted by a series of unexpected challenges—not least the unfamiliar feelings he begins to experience for his Chinese counterpart, the beautiful Zhang Mei (Jo Yang), feelings that develop when the young mathematicians return to England for the IMO, held at Trinity College, Cambridge. Also known as X+Y.
Labyrinth of Lies
Just when you think that there are no more stories to be told regarding Germany and the Holocaust, this movie appears. It is about Germany's cover up role in trying to arrest the local Nazi's from the camps who went on to live normal and happy lives after the war in Germany in 1956. It is the drive and persistence of a few lawyers and prosecutors who felt they had to be brought to justice. Well done and well layered and it presents how the entire society did not want to admit that they were all a bunch of Nazi's.
Wedding Crasher, 2005
Owen Wilson. Vince Vaughn. This raucous and charms are the life of the party as a pair of engaging Lothsarios who sneak into wedding receptions in order to scam girls into bed backfires when they meet a match that out smart them. Very funny and entertaining.
The Men Who Built America. Vanderbilt. Rockefeller. Carnegie. Morgan. Ford.
America Wasn't Discovered. It was built.
This remarkable and wonderful series, a documentary mixed with reenactments, was on a plain spoken level that someone like me could easily understand. It was terrific!
The Keeping Room
A Civil War small independent film about two sisters and their slave, who fight off these two men rapists, murderers and evil men. It is a horror film, a go girl film, a smart girl film. I actually enjoyed it.
Pawn Sacrifices
In a gripping true story set during the height of the Cold War, American chess prodigy Bobby Fischer (Tobey Maguire) finds himself caught between two superpowers when he challenges the Soviet Empire’s Boris Spassky (Liev Schreiber). Pawn Sacrifice chronicles Fischer's terrifying struggles with genius and madness, and the rise and fall of a kid from Brooklyn who captured the imagination of the world. Also starring Lily Rabe and Peter Sarsgaard. Directed by Edward Zwick (Defiance, Blood Diamond, The Last Samurai, Glory). I felt this was an outstanding film, gripping, character driven and utterly absorbing. It will be nominated some how in some category. Best Actor?
Legend
A gangster film that takes place in London about the violent and dangerous Reggie and Ron Kray identical twin brothers who run the town like a mafia. It is terribly violent and true and when Ron goes away for 37 years, it is hard to believe that their reign of terror ended at age 26!
The Martian
During a manned mission to Mars, astronaut Mark Watney (Matt Damon) is presumed dead after a fierce storm and left behind by his crew. But Watney has survived and finds himself stranded and alone on the hostile planet. With only meager supplies, he must draw upon his ingenuity, wit and spirit to subsist and find a way to signal to Earth that he is alive. Millions of miles away, NASA and a team of international scientists work tirelessly to bring “the Martian” home, while his crewmates concurrently plot a daring, if not impossible rescue mission. As these stories of incredible bravery unfold, the world comes together to root for Watney’s safe return. Based on Andy Weir’s best-selling novel, and directed by Ridley Scott (Blade Runner, Alien), this gripping sci-fi adventure also stars Jessica Chastain, Kristen Wiig, Kate Mara, Michael Peña, Jeff Daniels, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Donald Glover.
I found the casting uneven. Damon was terrific and may be nominated for the sheer number of dollars that he has brought into studios but the black characters were stereotypes from long ago and unbelievable in their roles and the only Chinese was a fat lumbering idiot. Where were the Jewish and Indian and Chinese scientists that make up JPL! The photography was terrific and will win the prize at the Academy. The Martian I enjoyed. Especially the photography. I found the casting very uneven. Matt was great. But, they had gorgeous, tall model types working at the Jet Populsion Lab.
Fat silly Chinese and a black, space dude thug like you would find in an inner city black community working at the earth space station lab, too. The cast was so politically correct it was ridiculous. Where were the Indians? Thin, smart Chinese and Jews at the Lab? Also one of the astronauts looked like she was 20! So though the movie was very good, and we enjoyed our nearly 3 hours with it, the poor casting kept distracting me. But, I loved the Castaway concept, think of Tom Hanks when he was stranded on an island, and you have the gist of the story.
Aram, Aram
A book about an Armenian Christian from Beruit who after his parents are killed a car accident goes to Los Angeles and lives with his grandfather who is a poor shoemaker in a dangerous gang filled neighborhood. As a 12 year old, he seeks a father figure in one of the gangs . It is a first film. Nothing great.
Brooklyn
Brooklyn tells the profoundly moving story of Eilis Lacey (Saoirse Ronan, Atonement, Hanna), a young Irish immigrant navigating her way through 1950s Brooklyn. Lured by the promise of America, Eilis departs Ireland and the comfort of her mother’s home for the shores of New York City. The initial shackles of homesickness quickly diminish as a fresh romance sweeps Eilis into the intoxicating charm of love. But soon, her new vivacity is disrupted by her past, and she must choose between two countries and the lives that exist within. Directed by John Crowley (Boy A, Intermission) from a screenplay by Nick Hornby (Wild, An Education, About a Boy), Brooklyn also stars Domhnall Gleeson, Emory Cohen, Jim Broadbent and Julie Walters. This was simply a marvelous satisfying film that I just adored. Simple. Easy. Uncomplicated. Unsentimental. Great Acting and story line, this is truly a fine, fine old-fashioned film.
Spectre
This latest James Bond film, starring in his last presentation of James Bond, Daniel Craig, was so boring and awful that I would have left if we had not been with friends. It was repetitive, tedious, dull and I was unengaged, bored to distraction. It felt like a cartoon. In fact, I started playing a game with myself. I began to anticipate the dialogue before the character said it or responded to it and I was right 50% of the time! This is how poorly written the script was. When people started walking out from this full theater, I knew it was really bad. Craig was too old with a paunch, his suit was too tight that it looked as if he would pop, he had zero emotional range, and grunted through the film. It was AWFUL! I did enjoy the Festival of Death parade and full photographic view of this as I had heard about it but have never seen it.
Brooklyn
This treasured gem I saw twice in one week. It is truly a Masterpiece in the old style of old fashion film. Told from the point-of-view of a new Irish immigrant who makes her way to America in the early 1950's, it has a ring of authenticity, without being overly emotionally wrought, without sentimentality, without pretense and an artificial pull at heartstrings. There was a crystal clear bell that through lingering pauses with the camera, the film came to life. I loved it completely and never wanted it to end.
Brooklyn tells the profoundly moving story of Eilis Lacey (Saoirse Ronan, Atonement, Hanna), a young Irish immigrant navigating her way through 1950s Brooklyn. Lured by the promise of America, Eilis departs Ireland and the comfort of her mother’s home for the shores of New York City. The initial shackles of homesickness quickly diminish as a fresh romance sweeps Eilis into the intoxicating charm of love. But soon, her new vivacity is disrupted by her past, and she must choose between two countries and the lives that exist within. Directed by John Crowley (Boy A, Intermission) from a screenplay by Nick Hornby (Wild, An Education, About a Boy), Brooklyn also stars Domhnall Gleeson, Emory Cohen, Jim Broadbent and Julie Walters.
The Danish Girl
This gorgeous new drama from director Tom Hooper (The King’s Speech, Les Misérables) tells the remarkable love story of Einar and Gerda Wegener, artists in 1920s Copenhagen, and Einar’s trailblazing journey as one of the first persons to have gender reassignment surgery. Academy Award winner Eddie Redmayne (The Theory of Everything) gives an amazing, transformative performance as Einar, who becomes Lili Elbe. Alicia Vikander (Ex Machina, Testament of Youth) plays his loving wife Gerda, who at first encourages and tutors him, but later fears to lose the person she loves. The first time Einar dons ladies’ clothes, the idea is Gerda’s; her model is late for an unfinished portrait and Gerda suggests that her husband stand in. Einar does, and loves the feeling of silk stockings, unleashing feelings he had long struggled with. When the model—ballerina friend Ulla (Amber Heard)—arrives late, she is amused and christens Einar’s alter ego “Lili.” Gerda’s paintings of Lili become the rage, and soon everyone wants to meet the mysterious Lili.
This highly stylized, with beautiful photography, opened up conversation that I find confusing and actually not particularly interested in. I think this is the new Frontier for many. I feel there is too much experimenting on young children when we do not have enough scientific knowledge. The movie was OK for its theme and development. I would not recommend it for everyone. Eddie will be nominated for Best Actor and she Best Actress and he may even win twice in a row.
And now Brooklyn!
"I finally saw Brooklyn and just loved it. The courtship and entire first half were luminous and utterly charming. The second half I found more confusing. Did you read the novel and if so, what is the back story on Rose? it seemed so odd to me that she wouldn’t have been married. She was just stunning. And had she been ill because it didn’t make sense that she would die just like that, such an avid golfer that she was. Also, up until close to the end, we get the impression our protagonist is going to stay in Ireland with the new beau after all. But then, the encounter with the narrow minded shop owner convinces her that there is no place for her in the village anymore and she longs for the freedom of the US. I couldn’t imagine leaving my mother like that without at least some attempt to convince her to come to America. I just really felt for the mom, the stoic one, disconnected from her daughter.”
Rose. Rose was very ill which she hid from her sister because she knew her sister would never leave and she knew that her sister had to get out of Ireland if she ever wanted to live her own life. She maintained a healthy appearance but she was dying inside herself. (Think Nora Ephron) This is probably why she never married. She knew she was sick. I do not think that she died just like that. I did not read the book but I imagine that it was over a period of time, but they shortened it in the movie for the sake of moving forward with the narrative of her sister’s (Ronan) life. ( can never remember the characters name!)
When Ronan returns to Ireland, she plays out the fantasy of what if, what if she stays in her village and lives the life that this new suitor offers her. They both shared the same background, family, class. She would have a comfortable and secure life. It is the road traveled. Not the road untraveled. He became she when they were together. He could not stop talking for example, like she could not stop talking when she was with her American boyfriend. It was she that he found so attractive, she had come from America and had lived already a much bigger life than he! She was a challenge and a way out of his own predictable life. He was not interested in her before she left. But when she met her old boss, she was suddenly confronted with reality and not with the fantasy, of just why she hated the village, why she longed to escape, why she knew she could not live there for the rest of her life. It was this confrontation, this smashing up against the reality with the fantasy that propelled her to return to America.
Regarding her mother. Her mother was actually the most unreal character of all to me. There was something too stoic. Maybe she wasn’t Jewish! But, you knew in the future, that she would come to visit, that once the shock of her daughter not returning sunk in, that in time, she would probably move to America. As there was nothing left for her in Ireland but sad and lonely memories. And, once the grand children, well that would move her across the ocean. But that was about the future. So this was my take on it!
And now Brooklyn!
"I finally saw Brooklyn and just loved it. The courtship and entire first half were luminous and utterly charming. The second half I found more confusing. Did you read the novel and if so, what is the back story on Rose? it seemed so odd to me that she wouldn’t have been married. She was just stunning. And had she been ill because it didn’t make sense that she would die just like that, such an avid golfer that she was. Also, up until close to the end, we get the impression our protagonist is going to stay in Ireland with the new beau after all. But then, the encounter with the narrow minded shop owner convinces her that there is no place for her in the village anymore and she longs for the freedom of the US. I couldn’t imagine leaving my mother like that without at least some attempt to convince her to come to America. I just really felt for the mom, the stoic one, disconnected from her daughter.”
Rose. Rose was very ill which she hid from her sister because she knew her sister would never leave and she knew that her sister had to get out of Ireland if she ever wanted to live her own life. She maintained a healthy appearance but she was dying inside herself. (Think Nora Ephron) This is probably why she never married. She knew she was sick. I do not think that she died just like that. I did not read the book but I imagine that it was over a period of time, but they shortened it in the movie for the sake of moving forward with the narrative of her sister’s (Ronan) life. ( can never remember the characters name!)
When Ronan returns to Ireland, she plays out the fantasy of what if, what if she stays in her village and lives the life that this new suitor offers her. They both shared the same background, family, class. She would have a comfortable and secure life. It is the road traveled. Not the road untraveled. He became she when they were together. He could not stop talking for example, like she could not stop talking when she was with her American boyfriend. It was she that he found so attractive, she had come from America and had lived already a much bigger life than he! She was a challenge and a way out of his own predictable life. He was not interested in her before she left. But when she met her old boss, she was suddenly confronted with reality and not with the fantasy, of just why she hated the village, why she longed to escape, why she knew she could not live there for the rest of her life. It was this confrontation, this smashing up against the reality with the fantasy that propelled her to return to America.
Regarding her mother. Her mother was actually the most unreal character of all to me. There was something too stoic. Maybe she wasn’t Jewish! But, you knew in the future, that she would come to visit, that once the shock of her daughter not returning sunk in, that in time, she would probably move to America. As there was nothing left for her in Ireland but sad and lonely memories. And, once the grand children, well that would move her across the ocean. But that was about the future. So this was my take on it!
Mustang
n a remote Turkish village, five teenage sisters try to break free from the rigid destiny imposed on them by their family. Their fierce love for each other emboldens them to rebel and chase a future where they can determine their own lives in Deniz Gamze Ergüven’s debut, a powerful portrait of female empowerment. An official selection of the 2015 Cannes Film Festival Directors' Fortnight and winner its Label Europa Cinemas award.
I thought that this was a marvelous film, suspenseful and tense, well development, although the transitions needed improving. Its message was strong and powerful and deeply disturbing. An satisfying film experience.
Secret In Their Eyes
A tight-knit team of rising FBI investigators—Ray (Chiwetel Ejiofor, 12 Years a Slave) and Jess (Julia Roberts), along with their District Attorney supervisor Claire (Nicole Kidman)—is suddenly torn apart when they discover that Jess's teenage daughter has been brutally and inexplicably murdered. Now, thirteen years later, after obsessively searching every day for the elusive killer, Ray finally uncovers a new lead that he’s certain can permanently resolve the case, nail the vicious murderer and bring long-desired closure to his team. No one is prepared, however, for the shocking, unspeakable secret that will reveal the enduring, destructive effects of personal vengeance on the human soul. Interweaving past and present, this deeply layered mystery explores the murky boundaries between justice and revenge, and asks the question: how far would you go to right an unfathomable wrong? An intense, powerful, haunting thriller written and directed by Billy Ray (Breach, Shattered Glass), based on the Oscar-winning foreign film from Argentina I was bored out of my mind. Predictable. Stupid. Lousy acting with Kidman who I cannot stand. Why exactly did I waste my time?
Theeb
Arabia, 1916. A young Bedouin boy named Theeb ("Wolf") takes a treacherous journey across the desert, encountering mercenaries, revolutionaries and raiders as he tries to survive and live up to the name his father gave him.
This was one of the most satisfying films that I have experienced this year. Foreign and mysterious. The spare dialogue was loaded with inference and meaning and interpretation and insinuation. The film itself was magnificent to look at and feel a part of. Filmed in Jordan near Petra, one felt the life of the Bedouin, where loyalty to family was everything. I loved it. Magnificent.
Out of the Past, 1947
Robert Mitchum. Jane Greer. Kirk Douglas. A tough guy, film noir of a tenacious detective who falls for a drop-dead beauty who is up to no good and brings him down with her as she lies, cheats, steals and murders, deceiving every man who falls for her. It is Mitchum's early work and is full of double-crosses. For this type of genre it is very well done.
The Lady In The Van
The magnificent Maggie Smith (“Downton Abbey,” The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, the Harry Potter series) shines in the hilarious and touching story of Miss Shepherd, a homeless woman of uncertain origins who “temporarily” parks her van in the driveway of playwright Alan Bennett (Alex Jennings) in North London—and ends up staying for 15 years. Arrayed in a mismatched panoply of rags, Miss Shepherd is hygienically challenged, violently allergic to classical music, maddeningly stubborn and guided by messages direct from the Virgin Mary. What begins as a begrudged favor by Bennett grows into a relationship that will change both their lives. This “mostly true” story, based on the memoir and play by Bennett (The History Boys, The Madness of King George, Prick Up Your Ears), was filmed on the actual street and in the house where it happened; it is directed by Nicholas Hytner, working with Bennett for the third time. With a supporting cast of Jim Broadbent, James Corden, Frances de la Tour, Roger Allam and Dominic Cooper. I found the movie OK. A good television, without the commercials, drama. At times it was quite poignant and sad, a wasted talent and life, which turned Mary into a bitter, angry woman that never revealed grace or gratefulness or kindness. She was the opposite of lovable and I kept expecting change in her, but there never was. She possessed a sense of entitlement and took advantage of those around her who were kind. But, at the end of the day, she was a tragic loss of herself and her talent, to herself and to others.Bridge To The Sun, 1961
Written from the book by Gwendolyn Terasaki. Starring Carroll Baker. James Shigeta. An American woman living in Tokyo with her Japanese Diplomat husband during World War 11 endures not only culture shock and home sickness bu increasing suspicion and discomfort from her husband's government. A very sad film. Miller is the grandson of Gwendolyn and Hidenari Terasaki, a Japanese diplomat, who were the subject of the 1961 film, Bridge to the Sun, based on Gwen Terasaki's autobiography of the same name. Miller's mother, Mariko Terasaki Miller, was the first woman appointed Honorary Consul-General of Japan.
Ingrid Bergman In Her Own Words
Bjorkman's beautiful documentary, in which all of her children participated, revealed that her work was her life and her reason for why she breathed. She made famous the quotation, "I never regret the things I did. I only regret the things that I did not do. Sh was a migrant. American. Italy. Sweden. France. England. She associated the camera with love and orphaned at an early age, she traveled with her boxes of accumulation and things wherever she went to create feelings of home.
Youth
"From Paolo Sorrentino, the internationally renowned writer/director of Italy’s Oscar-winning foreign language film The Great Beauty, comes a poignant tale of how we each find our own passion in life. Michael Caine (Hannah and Her Sisters, Alfie, The Dark Knight) plays Fred, a famous English composer/conductor, and Harvey Keitel (Reservoir Dogs, The Piano) plays Mick, a veteran American director anxious to launch one more film. They are longtime best friends, vacationing in a luxury Swiss Alps spa. While Fred is retired and has no plans to resume his musical career despite a request from the Queen and the urging of his troubled daughter (Rachel Weisz, The Constant Gardener), Mick is trying to finish the screenplay for what may be his last important film, brainstorming with a quartet of brash young collaborators. He hopes that his muse, acting legend Brenda (Jane Fonda) will agree to star in it. And where will inspiration lead their younger friend Jimmy (Paul Dano, Love & Mercy), an actor grasping to make sense of his next performance? A breathtakingly beautiful film, full of humor, wisdom and acceptance." This was without a doubt, the worst film that I have ever seen. Stylized. Tedious. Boring. Pretentious. Filled with what it thinks is wisdom but is cliques instead, it should be called Old. No one discussed money. Nothing felt real. There was no truth or honest emotion in it. It was a piece of crap.
Joy
Joy is the wild story of a family across four generations, centered on the girl who grows up to found a business dynasty and becomes a matriarch in her own right. Betrayal, treachery, the loss of innocence and the scars of love, pave the road in this intense emotional and human comedy about becoming a true boss of family and enterprise, facing a world of unforgiving commerce. Allies become adversaries and adversaries become allies, both inside and outside the family, as Joy’s inner life and fierce imagination carry her through the storm she faces. Jennifer Lawrence stars, with Robert De Niro, Bradley Cooper, Edgar Ramirez, Isabella Rossellini, Diane Ladd, Virginia Madsen, Elisabeth Röhm and Dascha Polanco. Like writer/director David O. Russell’s previous films (American Hustle, Silver Linings Playbook, Three Kings), Joy defies genre to tell a story of family, loyalty and love. A familiar and common theme movie. Jennifer Lawrence is way too good for the script that she was dealt. She can open, carry and close a film, will be the Meryl Streep of her generation. But, the film was predictable and ordinary, been told 100 times before, and I felt as if I wasted time while giving it the benefit of the doubt that it did not deserve.
A huge disappointment. you can watch it on video. I went to see it because of Jennifer Lawrence. I love her. She can open and close a film. But the script was too small for her enormous talent. In fact, the movie was repetitive, you have seen it a hundred times, the angle that they took, from a voice over of the dead Grandmother, did not work, it tried to be edgy and quirky but failed, the acting was over acting. I guess I would call the film insipid. Certainly not a recommendation. So much hype. And, so utterly ordinary.
The Mortal Storm, 1940
Margaret Sullivan. James Steward. Robert Young. Frank Morgan. I have seen this film many times. It is a classic, and though Jew was not used, but Pacifist instead, it captured the fear, the increased incident, the terror, and the beginnings of the horror of the war.
The Revenant
“As long as you can grab a breath, you fight.” Inspired by true events, The Revenant is an immersive and visceral cinematic experience capturing one man’s epic adventure of survival and the extraordinary power of the human spirit. In the 1820s, deep in the uncharted American wilderness, legendary explorer Hugh Glass (Leonardo DiCaprio, The Wolf of Wall Street) is brutally attacked by a bear and left for dead by a traitorous member of his own hunting team, John Fitzgerald (Tom Hardy, Mad Max: Fury Road). Guided by sheer will and the love of his family, Glass must navigate a hostile environment, a vicious winter and warring tribes in a relentless pursuit to live and exact revenge. Also starring Domhnall Gleeson and Will Poulter, The Revenant is directed and co-written by renowned filmmaker and Academy Award winner Alejandro G. Iñárritu (Birdman, Babel, 21 Grams). Original music by Ryuichi Sakamoto (Babel, The Last Emperor, Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence). The movie was unnecessarily violent, politically correct and emotionally distancing. I felt as if we kept going around and around the same square footage acreage and that the photographer kept shooting the same scene again and again. It felt relativistic and realistic in its hardship, disbelieving that he would survive a bear attack like he did. The weight of the bear would have crushed him entirely. One bite or scratch would have killed him by infection. His son looked like a man almost the same age as Leo. Leo acted his heart out. And, he is a marvelous actor and he did a very good job. But, the political correctness turned me off. The Noble Savage who was not noble at all. The evil character who was entirely evil. And Leo, who was entirely good and whom you were rooting for throughout the entire film. The violence was brutal and raw and blood thirsty.
