See It 2/27/2010

Grand Illusion (1937)
Directed by: Jean Renoir
Written by: Jean Renoir + Charles Spaak
Starring: Jean Gabin, Dita Parlo, Pierre Fresnay, Erich von Stroheim, Julien Carette, Georges Peclet, Werner Florian
WWI changed everything, and 'Grand Illusion' carefully reveals the eroding social structure of the early 20th Century. The classes are melting into each other, and the new world emerging is seen with both hope and reservation. The cast is well chosen and they work wonderfully as an ensemble. There are many powerful scenes in the film, so many that it would be pointless to try listing them. Nevertheless, this is a great film about the futility of war, racism, classism, and all other things that separate any human being from another. A wonderful film. A-



Pygmalion (1938)
Directed by: Anthony Asquith + Leslie Howard
Written by: George Bernard Shaw, WP Lipscomb, Cecil Lewis, Ian Dalrymple, Anatole de Grunwald, Kay Walsh
Starring: Leslie Howard, Wendy Hiller, Wilfrid Lawson, Marie Lohr, Scott Sunderland, Jean Cadell, David Tree, Everley Gregg
Professor Henry Higgins, an upper-class intellectual snob, makes a bet with a friend that he can transform Eliza Doolittle, a crass, unrefined girl from the street into a refined, dignified lady of society. After working and training Eliza to fit in, he soon realizes that Eliza is a human being, with feelings and opinions of her own. Goerge Bernard Shaw's play is successfully adapted into a funny, touching film, featuring an absolute knock-out performance from Wendy Hiller as Eliza. The sexism that occasionally rears its ugly head could turn off today's viewer, but whatever, they'd be missing out on a really good film. B+



Ninotchka (1939)
Directed by: Ernst Lubitsch
Written by: Melchior Lengyel, Charles Brackett, Billy Wilder, Walter Reisch
Starring: Greta Garbo, Melvyn Douglas, Ina Claire, Bela Lugosi, Sig Ruman, Felix Bressart, Alexander Granach
A wonderful romantic comedy starring the luminous Greta Garbo, who plays Ninotchka, a tough Soviet visiting Paris to finalize the sale of some confiscated royal jewels. She plays the role to perfection in finding nothing good with capitalism and all that it represents. The movie must have given audiences some insight into what was going on with the Soviets at that time. She eventually begins to soften a little after spending time with her co-star Melvyn Douglas, a rich playboy, who happens to fall in love with her. Things get complicated when true identities are discovered, and the former owner of the jewels tries to get them back. The story is somewhat basic but does have quite a bit of humor that brought on more than a few chuckles. B+



The Grapes of Wrath (1940)
Directed by: John Ford
Written by: John Steinbeck; Nunnally Johnson
Starring: Henry Fonda, Jane Darwell, John Carradine, Charley Grapewin, Dorris Bowdon, Russell Simpson, O.Z. Whitehead
This powerful film chronicles the turmoil of a family traveling west to California during the Great Depression. The always excellent Henry Fonda plays Tom, just released from prison. He travels back to his family's farm only to discover they've been evicted from their land. When rumors of available work spread from the west, the family packs all their belongings to brave the unknown as they make their way cross country in their jalopy. There are countless powerful scenes and images throughout, as our heroes face starvation, homelessness, and cruelty on their journey. A



Ball Of Fire (1941)
Directed by: Howard Hawks
Written by: Billy Wilder, Thomas Monroe, Charles Brackett
Starring: Gary Cooper, Barbara Stanwyck, Oskar Homolka, Henry Travers, S.Z. Sakall, Tully Marshall, Leonid Kinskey, Richard Haydn, Aubrey Mather, Kathleen Howard, Mary Field, Dan Duryea
When a group of socially awkward professors, led by Gary Cooper, realize they need to study how 'real' people talk in order to complete their 12 year encyclopedia writing project, they end up unwittingly aiding a beautiful singer (Barbara Stanwyck) escape from the police when her gangster boyfriend gets into hot water. While laying low with the professors, everyone learns something new, and eventually she gets a marriage proposal from Cooper. Things get dangerous for everybody when her mobster boyfriend locates her. Stanwyck is great as always, but it's Gary Cooper who's the real draw here. Playing against his tough guy image, he is really good as the timid, awkward Professor Potts. B



The Naked City (1948)
Directed by: Malvin Wald
Written by: Albert Maltz + Malvin Wald
Starring: Barry Fitzgerald, Howard Duff, Dorothy Hart, Don Taylor, Frank Conroy, Ted de Corsia, House Jameson, Anne Sargent, Adelaide Klein
Amid a semi-documentary portrait of New York City and its people, Jean Dexter, an attractive blonde model, is murdered in her apartment. Homicide detectives Dan Muldoon and Jimmy Halloran investigate. Suspicion falls on various shifty characters who all prove to have some connection with a string of apartment burglaries. This police procedural was groundbreaking in it's day, but often plays like a narrated episode of 'Law and Order.' Regardless, it's still a pretty interesting movie, with some great on location cinematography of a long-gone New York City of yesteryear. B



Miss Julie (1951)
Directed by: Alf Sjoberg
Written by: August Strindberg; Alf Sjoberg
Starring: Anita Bjork, Ulf Palme, Marta Dorff, Lissi Alandh, Anders Henrikson, Inga Gill, Ake Fridell, Kurt-Olof Sundstrom, Max von Sydow
When the young, wealthy Miss Julie and the married servant Jean spend the midsummer night together, they reflect on their respective pasts. They are in love but because of who they are they know they cannot possibly be together. They hatch a plan to run away together, but circumstances, and the specters of their painful histories, seem to hold them where they are. This is a very odd but incredibly moving film. Anita Bjork is fantastic as the cold, defensive Miss Julie, and the dreamlike cinematography is some of the best I've ever seen. A-


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Listening to: Loretta Lynn - Snowbird
via FoxyTunes

My Oscar Choices

Best Motion Picture
of the Year:
The Hurt Locker
or
Inglourious Basterds

Best Performance by an
Actor in a Leading Role:
Jeff Bridges for 'Crazy Heart'
or
Jeremy Renner for 'The Hurt Locker'

Best Performance by an
Actress in a Leading Role:
Gabourey Sidibe for 'Precious...'
or
Carey Mulligan for 'An Education'

Best Performance by an
Actor in a Supporting Role:
Christoph Waltz for 'Inglourious Basterds'

Best Performance by an
Actress in a Supporting Role:
Mo'Nique for 'Precious...'

Best Achievement in Directing:
Kathryn Bigelow for 'The Hurt Locker'
or
Quentin Tarantino for 'Inglourious Basterds'

Best Writing, Screenplay
Written Directly for the Screen:
'The Hurt Locker' by Mark Boal
or
'Inglourious Basterds' by Quentin Tarantino

Best Writing, Screenplay
Based on Material Previously
Produced or Published:
'In the Loop' by Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell,
Armando Iannucci, and Tony Roche

Skip It 2/20/2010

The Box (2009)
Directed by: Richard Kelly
Written by: Richard Matheson; Richard Kelly
Starring: Cameron Diaz, James Marsden, Frank Langella, James Rebhorn, Holmes Osborne, Gillian Jacobs, Celia Weston, Deborah Rush
A creepy old man offers a suburban couple one million dollars if they simply push a button in a box. The catch is that somewhere in the world, someone they don't know, will die. After a bit of contemplation the button is pushed, and soon after things get complicated. What could have been a really creepy thriller is bogged down by tons of needless exposition and some really bad acting. 'The Box' is a film that tries to be thought provoking but just ends up being stupid. D-



Where The Wild Things Are (2009)
Directed by: Spike Jonze
Written by: Maurice Sendak; Spike Jones + Dave Eggars
Starring: Max Records, Catherine Keener, Mark Ruffalo, James Gandolfini, Paul Dano, Catherine O'Hara, Forest Whitaker, Chris Cooper, Lauren Ambrose
An obnoxious little boy runs away from home because he doesn't get enough attention from his single mom, and finds himself on an island inhabited by giant unpleasant mascots. They declare him their king and then they run around breaking things and arguing for the rest of the movie. A kids book is stretched out into a long, unpleasant, boring movie that only masochists would enjoy. F



Nine (2009)
Directed by: Rob Marshall
Written by: Mario Fratti, Maury Yeston, Arthur Kopit; Anthony Minghella + Michael Tolkin
Starring: Daniel Day-Lewis, Marion Cotillard, Penelope Cruz, Nicole Kidman, Judi Dench, Kate Hudson, Sophia Loren, Stacy Ferguson
An acclaimed director is trying to come up with a script for his new film, which has already begun production in Rome. While following this man as he goes through a private development hell, we meet a group of women that have either inspired him in the past or complicate his life in the present. All these women have a big song, but the only memorable one belongs to Marion Cotillard, who plays the wife. Other characters are jammed in haphazardly, particularly Nicole Kidman as the directors muse and Kate Hudson as a reporter, and all the big production numbers fall completely flat. The whole movie is disjointed, way too long, and ultimately a big mess. C-



The Wolfman (2010)
Directed by: Joe Johnston
Written by: Curt Siodmak; Andrew David Walker + David Self
Starring: Benicio Del Toro, Anthony Hopkins, Emily Blunt, Hugo Weaving, Art Malik, Geraldine Chaplin
In this remake of the 1941 cult classic, a man named Lawrence Talbot returns to his ancestral home on the English moors after his brother goes missing. When he arrives he discovers that his brother's body has already been found, and it looks as if he was torn apart by a wild animal. Soon, Talbot is bitten by a giant wolf and before we know it, he himself transforms into a hulking beast when the moon is full and goes on a rampage. Also along for the ride are his creepy father, his dead brother's former fiance, a Scotland Yard detective and some gypsies. The only things that make this absolute mess watchable are the cinematography and production design, which create a wonderfully foreboding atmosphere. We have fog shrouded forests, vine encrusted edifices, long dark hallways, cob-web covered walls, and tons of gore. What's missing here is a good script, decent pacing and some actual suspense. There's absolutely no reason to care about Lawrence Talbot, and the only scares in this are the cheap jump scares. Avoid. D-


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Listening to: Icehouse - Crazy
via FoxyTunes

See It 2/13/10

The Loveless (1982)
Directed by: Kathryn Bigelow + Monty Montgomery
Written by: Kathryn Bigelow + Monty Montgomery
Starring: Willem Dafoe, Robert Gordon, Marin Kanter, J. Don Ferguson, Tina L'Hotsky, Lawrence Matarese
A young biker (Dafoe) on his way to a rally in Florida is held over in a small sleepy roadside town when his motorcycle needs repairs. While waiting in a diner he meets some other bikers and some locals looking for a thrill. 'The Loveless' focuses on atmosphere over plot and hhile the movie is incredibly slow moving, I guess it really captures what it was like to be in a biker gang in the 50's. You didn't know where you would end up, time passed by unnoticed and you never knew who you were going to cross paths with. B



La Femme Nikita (1990)
Directed by: Luc Besson
Written by: Luc Besson
Starring: Anne Parillaud, Marc Duret, Patrick Fontana, Tcheky Karyo, Jeanne Moreau
In France, a violent gang member is arrested after a botched robbery, declared dead by the government and enlisted into a top secret organization of assassins. After being held underground and trained for a few years, she is released and sent on various missions. When she falls in love with an unsuspecting civilian she has a hard time keeping her double life as an assassin separate from her married life. This film has a wonderful look to it, as well as a great soundtrack. But the best thing about it are it's action set-pieces, which keep you on the edge of your seat. B+




Gojira (1954)
Directed by: Ishiro Honda
Written by: Ishiro Honda, Shigeru Kayama, Takeo Murata
Starring: Akira Takarada, Momoko Kochi, Akihiko Hirata, Takashi Shimura, Fuyuki Murakami
After a Japanese fishing village is ravaged by what everyone thinks is a hurricane, a team of scientists discover that a radioactive monster has been awakened by atomic bomb testing in the pacific. The monster, nicknamed Gojira by the Japanese after a mythical sea god, ravages Japan, while the scientists race to find a way to destroy it. There were two versions of this film released, the original Japanese version, and a version released in America with scenes of Raymond Burr as a visiting American shoehorned in while other scenes with the Japanese cast were omitted. This is the original version, and while the effects seem dated and clunky, and the acting stiff, the images of civilians being burned alive, children dying and cities being toppled and burned to the ground are an all too painful reminder of how Japan was eviscerated at the dawn of the atomic age. B



Running On Empty (1988)
Directed by: Sidney Lumet
Written by: Naomi Foner
Starring: Christine Lahti, River Phoenix, Judd Hirsch, Jonas Abry, Martha Plimpton, Ed Crowley, L.M. Kit Carson, Steven Hill, Augusta Dabney
During the Vietnam War, a pair of liberal activists blew up a napalm factory, paralyzing an innocent bystander in the process. Ever since they have been fugitives of the law, going from town to town under assumed identities. Now they have two children, Stephen, a young boy and Michael, a teenage piano prodigy (a wonderful River Phoenix.) After they arrive in a small town in New Jersey, the teenager falls in love with his music teacher's daughter and applies to Julliard in NYC. But when the family needs to skip town and go on the run again, he is torn between his aspirations and his family. Christine Lahti and Judd Hirsch are both great as the streetwise, idealistic parents, but the real star here is the late River Phoenix, who gives a wonderful, angst filled performance. A-

Skip It 2/5/10

New Year's Evil (1980)
Directed by: Emmett Alston
Written by: Emmett Alston and Leonard Neubauer
Starring: Roz Kelly, Kip Niven, Chris Wallace, Grant Cramer, Louisa Moritz
The hostess of a televised New Years Eve punk show is terrorized by a killer. Throughout Los Angeles the killer murders various people, eventually finding his way to the hotel where the punk show is being broadcast. This is one of the many holiday themed slasher films that were churned out after 'Halloween' hit big. This movie features some awful acting, particularly Roz Kelly as the lead, terrible punk music from no-name bands, and absolutely no scares. Completely inept on every level. F


The Stepfather (2009)
Directed by: Nelson McCormick
Written by: J.S. Cardone
Starring: Dylan Walsh, Sela Ward, Penn Badgley, Amber Heard, Sherry Stringfield, Paige Turco, Jon Tenney
Remake of the 80's cult classic has the same basic storyline, but switches the genders of the teenage protagonist (for no apparent reason.) A nut-job (a decent Dylan Walsh) goes from family to family, seeking the perfect family, killing them if they don't meet his high expectations of perfection. This time he marries a single mom with two sons. The eldest son (a sleep inducing Penn Badgley) grows suspicious of his step-dad, and things sloooooooowly build to a predictable, cliched climax. Stick to the original. D-


The Countess (2009)
Directed by: Julie Delpy
Written by: Julie Delpy
Starring: Julie Delpy, William Hurt, Daniel Bruhl, Anamaria Marinca, Andy Gatjen, Adriana Altaras
I really wanted to like this. Based on the true story of 17th century Countess Bathory, who grew obsessed with retaining her youth, and decided the best way to do this was by bathing in the blood of virgins. What could have been a disturbing descent into madness turns out to be a dull by the numbers bio-pic/period piece. Julie Delpy does an alright job in the titular role, but the departure from her usual romantic roles doesn't really work, as Delpy just seems like she's on auto-pilot thru most of the film. The script, written by Delpy, treats the Countess as some sort of feminist pioneer, and at other times, shows her to be a monster. The movie wants to have it both ways, but in the end it it just seems really confused and tiresome. C-