A Mighty Heart

I haven't blogged about film since January. For a month or two, I wrote about every film I saw. It seems like this was a good idea, so I'll start again.

I saw Brad Pitt's A Mighty Heart on Sunday night. I wasn't quite sure what to expect: I had heard that the film was controversial, but I had not yet read any reviews. Though I knew the story of the Pearls, I didn't know much about the film.

I loved the opening of the film, he didn't wallow in the personal details. It would have been too invasive to start portraying their wedding or their lives before they moved to Karachi. They stuck to the events surrounding the kidnapping of Daniel Pearl, and they didn't let other events enter.

The footage of Karachi was very impressive. Though I'm not sure if it was filmed in Karachi, I believe it must have been. Pitt communicates the idea of living in as an ex-pat is like, the characters are all very believable.

Jolie's performance was excellent. The last film she did with Pitt was Mr and Mrs Smith, where neither character had the chance to show a lot of deep emotion, yet here Jolie had to rely on talent over sexiness to shine, and it worked great. One of my favourite scenes in the film was when she was walking down the street with Adam and Nouvelle Vague played In a Manner of Speaking. Classic... j'me paris!


8/10

El Laberinto del Fauno

Guillermo del Toro's newest film, which was nominated for six Oscars, reminded me a lot of Narnia. Fantasy mixed with WWI. A child's war mixed with an adult world - though they're completely different, somehow they correspond.

The film was odd because of the two levels of the film, but I think this was effective. What kind of film is it? Certainly not a child's movie, certainly not a normal fantasy, and certainly not history. It's rather a mix of all three. One review I read referred to it as dark poetry. Very violent, yet still beautiful.

The special effects were phenomenal. Some of the monsters and animals were incredibly real looking. The acting was also good. Ivana Baquero plays Ofelia, and the role is very well done.


7/10

Smokin' Aces

Joe Carnahan's film features a great list of actors, a somewhat entertaining plot, and lots of stereotypical characters. The inspiration definitely seems to be Tarantino. The same idea of multiple stories weaving in and out with lots of blood and sex.

The actors involved are all quite famous. I don't think I've ever seen Alicia Keyes or Common in a film before. They both performed well, and oddly enough end up together on the end of the film. Jeremy Piven did an excellent job portraying a strung-out, drugged-up mafioso.


decent film

7/10

The Good Shepherd

Deniro's new film the Good Shepherd is reminiscent of Munich. Both films tell true stores of the intelligence world. Instead of the glamourous James Bond, new films depict the hard life of intelligence. But with less politik, it emphasizes the history of how the CIA was started. Unlike Munich, it lacked the action and mystery.

The film was pretty good, and it shows how good an actor Matt Damon really is. His portrayal of a ultra-loyal workaholic is almost a bit scary.

Good film, tho long and lacking excitement.


6/10

Art School Confidential

I watched Art School Confidential with Joel a few nights ago. I wasn't sure what to expect, and I think I was hoping for more of an indy comedy. It was nothing of the sort. The film's about a young guy who goes to an art school and gets wrapped up in a big murder scandal.

The movie makes all of its laughs at the expensive of stereotypes. Though this can be funny, this was a little bit over done. The painters are idiots and not at all in touch with anything except their muse ... And they don't have any talent anyway. The gallery owners are greedy, and art losers go crazy. Unfortunately, they didn't quite exaggerate enough to be funny. Was it supposed to be an ironic exposee on art school? Was it supposed to be a comedy making fun of it? Because I didn't laugh too much nor did I find it representative of arties.


4/10

A Night at the Museum

A night at the museum... A list of A actors that spans across the decades decide to work together and come up with a child's film. I liked it. The story line was pretty good and definitely original.

Some of the highlights were Steve Coogan and Owen Wilson's role as the miniature wax pieces. The little boy also acted very well.

Good film. Made me laugh.


6/10

The Illusionist

I saw the Illusionist last night with Ben and Aryk. I was initially struck by the cool effects done with the camera. I love the shot the follows Edward Norton walking across the brick square ... The love scene with Jessica Biel was also very well done, tho it may not have been wholely appropriate. :p

The plot-line had a couple of good ideas, but it left far too many events unexplained. Things that couldn't happen seemed to have happened without any explanation. I hate movies that make you think one thing is happening and suddenly without any class tell you that something completely different happened. It's stupid ... That's what I didn't like Oceans 12 much either, but at least they did it with class.


5/10

Apocalypto

I haven't written about any of the movies I've seen lately, but not wanting to abandon this blog, I'll pick up again. I saw Apocalypto a few nights ago in theatres. I wasn't sure what to expect, and I thought the story went into he conquistadores. Actually, is almost solely about the natives on the yucatan peninsula.

The acting was excellent, especially considering none of them had ever acted before. Obviously the main actor, Jaguar Paw, and his wife were highlights. Both expressed a lot of real emotion. Other highlights include some of the jungle fight scenes, which were filmed in pretty creative, fun ways.

Gibson's portrayal of the Mayas is a bit sketchy to be honest. The Mayas were one of the most advanced civilizations, yet he depicts them as hunter-gatherers living in the forest and blood thirsty massacrists.

I wonder what Gibson's purpose for making the film was. What is it a critique on modern society? He begins and ends with the quote about a dying civilization ... Perhaps this could explain why he allowed so many historical inaccuracies - he wasn't trying to present a historical document, but a jab at Western society?

7/10

Frida

I didn't really know much about Frida before watching this movie, or at least I didn't think I did. Actually, I've apparently been to her house, and I've seen a lot of her and Rivera's paintings.

The movie is surprisingly good. I had heard that it was boring, but to the contrary, I think the story is well told, with many interesting twists. To start, the characters are diverse and flavourful. Frida, Rivera, Leo, and others .... all intermingled with art, politics, philosophy, and sex. Second, the film took an artsy twist - there are some great animated sections that are decently surrealistic. Frida's self portraits make reoccuring appearances, which was a good idea. The symbolism was good too.

The montages, likes the characters, are full of character. Though the film is obviously not mexican, it captures the color. I love the scenes of Mexico - xoximilco, the dresses, the bars ...

Salma Hayek does an excellent job. She gets to play a seductive, yet not-cute girl who is full of pain and frustration. I'm sure it's hard.



7/10

Cruel Intentions

Lacros' Les Liaisons Dangereuses comes to modern NYC aristocracy in the film Cruel Intentions. Though I can't say I recommend the film because of the content, there is something about it that is likable. Jetset romance and vengeance ...

Sarah Michelle Gellar's role as the villain was pretty good. I love how by the end Sebastian is turned into a hero. That made me laugh. Is the moral of the story that penitence reverses everything? I like the idea of it being a journal, but I think it would have been excellent to tell it from a journal, a sort of epistolary film - like the book. But ... dommage


6/10

L'auberge espagnole

I watched L'auberge espagnole again last night. I was struck by the difference between American plot-drive movies and more european (or even Mexican?) movies that are built around a situation.

good film... I laughed a lot, and I love the part at the end where he goes on about who he is. 'I'm spanish, I am belgian ... I'm him, I'm him, I'm her, I'm her....' There's this moment where you realize he's changed forever. Transformation.



7/10