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Rear Window
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Thanks for the rec with an excellent review. Let Me In (2010) http://i1097.photobucket.com/albums/...dc/LetMeIn.jpg An okay American version of John Lindqvist's timeless masterpiece...not a bad effort from Matt Reeves; he tried though some scenes were overdone e.g. the pool scene and it was bit awful to see the vampire look they gave here for Abby (Eli). >>: B |
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Just Before Dawn (1981). What this flick has left me with is a bag full of conflicted emotions. On the one hand, I want to get back into camping, mainly because it seems that all tag along chicks will be sporting short shorts and tied shirts. Yay!. On the other hand is my inherent fear hillbillies. Jason Voorhees has better table manners. In the end, slightly protruding buttocks have won the day, and when something goes bump in the night I will be sure not to be the one stupid enough to go and see what the fuss is about just beyond the campfire's flicker. For the genre, the acting was above par. I cannot recall a single moment where a cringe was elicited from a moment of theatrical putrification. If story is the most important thing, then this flick might be quick to bore. There is nothing really new here. But what it lacks in backwoods originality it makes up for with filmmaking style. The camera worked magic in creating that uncomfortable sensation in our bellies, a phenomenon that humans seem compelled to not only seek out but pay dearly for. More so, it took the organic beauty of the out of doors and used its expansive majesty to belittle us humans into the realms of puny significance. This sets the stage for the intrusive ugliness that takes forever to find its way to the center stage. After evil drops its initial celluloid bomb, it really does take its time worming its way into the dark fathoms of our minds. Usually this translates into movie boredom, but Just Before Dawn keeps our interest by the continuous addition of other story elements, letting our imaginations wander around in its fruitless efforts to figure out how it will all fit in. And when the actions finds its fuel, it keeps revving until the very end. The payoff scenes were confoundedly obvious and yet awe inspiring, dragging out these moments with the aplomb of a porn director that is looking to get laid. These moments were then augmented by the snappy editing that took no prisoners. Keep up or fall prey to the hideous force behind those viscous giggles. Deliverance this was not. But we should have known that before dropping this one into the player. Instead, this was a genuinely atmospheric monument of backwoods terror whose greatest inspiration was found in the notion that chicks should never leave their makeup bags at home because you never know who you might meet in the middle of nowhere. d |
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LEAP YEAR: Eh. FREEWAY: Still one of Witherspoon's best. TCM: Up in the top ten of horror movies ever made. |
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ROBOGEISHA |
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But, frankly my dear I don't give a da.. |
The Matrix and The Dark Knight
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Enter the Void (2009)
http://l.yimg.com/eb/ymv/us/img/hv/p...mallposter.jpg >>: C- In their Sleep (2010) http://i1097.photobucket.com/albums/...heir-Sleep.jpg Though the ending was somewhat disappointing but overall a fine French thriller with a simple predictable story. >>: B Howl (2010) http://l.yimg.com/eb/ymv/us/img/hv/p...mallposter.jpg O victory, forget your underwear...we're free! >>: A- |
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Volver (2006). OK, when I popped this into the VCR thingy I was expecting an action flick. It opened with chicks discussing family stuff at a cemetery, prompting me to rightfully yank it out, replacing it with a Scorsesee flick for good measure. But curiosity got the better of me and Volver found its way back into my life. Oh the horror thought I, for if I was caught watching this veritable chick flick then my man card would be yanked for sure. But watch on did I, and in doing so was blessed with an amazing story punctuated by even better acting, AKA man card fully intact. Volver is a story that hints at the supernatural, that flips the prosaic upside down and makes it wonderful, and that comes to an ugly conclusion that somehow matches the incredible beauty of Penelope Cruz. How it begins as a wildly tangential venture and ends as a tightly knitted present is the work of directorial splendor of Almodovar. Even the familial parallelism, fantastic by its very nature, seems both mundane yet wildly entertaining. This really should have been a boring affair, a feminine flick with no explosions to speak of, let alone a substantial male actor to incite some sort of manly shenanigan. Instead this was a film dominated by the fairer sex, but done in such a fashion that its feminine flair was far from a turnoff for the stinky gender of which I belong. Maybe it was Penelope's incredible screen presence. Here is a woman filled with primal fire, a woman not exactly bright but street-smart and driven to action for all of the right reasons- family. And while Cruz is the star, the supporting cast does more than their fair share to support her. Lola Duenes was incredible as the secretive sister, and what a secret she holds. The mother, skillfully played by Carmen Maura, delivers a performance powered through her on screen capacity to barely hold back her character's emotions. The greatest supporting performance might just have come from Yohana Cobo as Penelope's daughter. Her character captured both the profoundly disturbed emotions of the story's grim hinge as well as the barely contained verve of a secret that proves incapable of containment. The symbolism from the exquisitely composed photography soared way over my head, but in eyes more capable than mine volumes of celluloid momentum must have been emoted to great effect. The dialog, even by way of the off-putting subtitle, was substantially better than the Hollywood droll that is born just south. Writer/director Pedro Almodovar has simply created a light-hearted movie of insidiously profound implications, told in an open style through believable characters whose life struggles we cannot help but to understand and root for. d |
I liked HOWl..
I thought Enter the Void looked great. |
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