Author Topic: Write about the last movie you watched (2006-2010)  (Read 5996735 times)

BlueVoid

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Re: Write about the last movie you watched
« Reply #31430 on: May 20, 2010, 03:11:59 PM »
The Princess and the Frog [2009]

It's a return to classic Disney animation, and it feels right at home.  While it might not quite have the same magic as the top tier Disney films, it is a solid entry.  There is a feeling of familiarity while watching this that makes you smile.  It may not be the best film of the year, but it's certainly better than most of the computer animated drivel that gets pumped out and it makes you yearn for more of this animation style.
Rating: 3.5/5


The Secret of Kells [2009]

The film that came out of no where to get nominated for an Oscar for best animated feature amongst a tough crowd.  The Irish film tells the story of a boy who is confined within the walls of his city in the ninth century and is exposed to the magical powers of the Book of Kells.  It is a movie that is deeply rooted in fantasy, and one that I could never get into.   The highlight was the beautiful use of classic 2D animation. It was a cute story, but it never really dug in emotionally.
Rating: 3/5


The Secret in Their Eyes [2009]

The surprise winner of the Best Foreign Language Oscar is also the rightful one.  The Argentinean film, about a federal justice agent haunted by a case he let slip through his fingers, is gripping and manages to make what could have been a tired plot exciting and unexpected.  As I watched, I at first thought it was a run of the mill crime drama, only to have the momentum continually build and draw me in.  It's innovative approach and solid acting culminate in what is a solid crime drama.
Rating: 4/5


The Milk of Sorrow [2009]

'The Milk of Sorrow' is a brutally harsh examination the aftermath of Peru's violent period of the 80's and early 90's, especially dealing with women who were frequently raped at the hands of soldiers during the Maoist uprising.  The children born as a result of these rapes, were believed to receive the trauma and grief of their mothers through their breast milk.  Fausta(Magaly Solier), the lead in this film, is one of these children.  Solier gives a great performance in a sensitive role.  For the most part the film is an unrelenting barrage of bleakness, but given the theme, its hard to expect anything else.  It's hard to enjoy a film that is so sad, and so disturbing, especially when there is little reprieve, but it is none the less successful telling a story that is that unfortunate and it deserves praise for that.
Rating: 3/5
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sdedalus

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Re: Write about the last movie you watched
« Reply #31431 on: May 20, 2010, 03:20:23 PM »
The River Wild (another GREAT true thriller)

I always thought that, but nobody ever agrees with me.

*mad high fives*

I mean c'mon! You got Meryl Streep, Kevin Bacon, David Strathairn, John C Reilly... it's an amazing cluster of talant. And what an adventure!

Add another high five to the mix, I enjoyed The River Wild a bunch when I watched it.  :)

Me too!
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philip918

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Re: Write about the last movie you watched
« Reply #31432 on: May 20, 2010, 03:40:56 PM »
The River Wild (another GREAT true thriller)

I always thought that, but nobody ever agrees with me.

*mad high fives*

I mean c'mon! You got Meryl Streep, Kevin Bacon, David Strathairn, John C Reilly... it's an amazing cluster of talant. And what an adventure!

Add another high five to the mix, I enjoyed The River Wild a bunch when I watched it.  :)

Me too!

Yep, definitely a fun film.  Probably watched it a dozen times as a kid.

FLYmeatwad

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Re: Write about the last movie you watched
« Reply #31433 on: May 20, 2010, 04:54:11 PM »
It's innovative approach and solid acting culminate in what is a solid crime drama.
Rating: 4/5

I need to finish my review, but either way I think you're off the mark here. The film is pretty brilliant because it sets itself up as a crime drama but as the film carries on it becomes more and more apparent that the framing device of the novel to frame the crime drama proves to be another framing device for the larger concept of obsession and self destruction, and ultimately acceptance, that the film really confronts.

Also you're probably off the mark about it being the rightful winner, though I've only seen two other nominees and that's a different topic entirely  :P

BlueVoid

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Re: Write about the last movie you watched
« Reply #31434 on: May 20, 2010, 04:58:47 PM »
It's innovative approach and solid acting culminate in what is a solid crime drama.
Rating: 4/5

I need to finish my review, but either way I think you're off the mark here. The film is pretty brilliant because it sets itself up as a crime drama but as the film carries on it becomes more and more apparent that the framing device of the novel to frame the crime drama proves to be another framing device for the larger concept of obsession and self destruction, and ultimately acceptance, that the film really confronts.

Also you're probably off the mark about it being the rightful winner, though I've only seen two other
nominees and that's a different topic entirely  :P

A Prophet and The White Ribbon didn't do much for me.  I like Secret more that The Milk of sorrow, and didn't see Ajima.  Out of the ones I watched it was the clear choice.
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FLYmeatwad

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Re: Write about the last movie you watched
« Reply #31435 on: May 20, 2010, 05:00:14 PM »
Yeah, but I still wouldn't call The Secret in their Eyes a crime drama.

BlueVoid

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Re: Write about the last movie you watched
« Reply #31436 on: May 20, 2010, 05:15:15 PM »
Yeah, but I still wouldn't call The Secret in their Eyes a crime drama.

it's a drama centered around a crime and its investigation, or, a crime drama.  Sure there is a lot more meat there, but this is it's genre.
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FLYmeatwad

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Re: Write about the last movie you watched
« Reply #31437 on: May 20, 2010, 05:22:12 PM »
I guess. I saw it more as a character study, all the crime drama kind of seemed irrelevant.

jdc

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Re: Write about the last movie you watched
« Reply #31438 on: May 20, 2010, 08:16:40 PM »
Assembly



The story starts off with some pretty kick ass fighting scenes.  Maybe a bit too much of the shaky camera for me but still pretty impressive.  The battle centers around a Captain in the Chinese army who lost his entire 47 man squad in a battle against the Nationalist at the end of the 1940's.  Because the army loses records and is disorganized, they end up listing all 47 as MIA instead of died in battle which would make a difference to the honor of the families as well as they would receive more rice in compensation.

From there, it basically moves on to a more heart felt story of the Captain trying to search for his men and get the Army to recognize them as killed in action as war heroes instead of MIA. 

It's ok, not sure about winning 19 awards but still good.  The second half does drag somewhat as the story moves away from the war and into the search.  I would still recommend City of Life and Death for a better film about war that is from mainland China.

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dedpool1979

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Re: Write about the last movie you watched
« Reply #31439 on: May 20, 2010, 09:19:30 PM »
I'm following along with the Wilder marathon, so the last film I watched was Sunset Boulevard. I wasn't as taken with it as I'd hoped to be. I did a full write up about it on my Tumblr page: http://movieblog.tumblr.com/post/612273719/sunsetblvd if anyone wants to read the whole thing, but in a nutshell:

"The script overall is a bit of a mess, I think. The dialogue is kind of clunky, and Joe comes across as far too generic early on in the film. That all of this comes from his desire not to lose his car (which he loses ANYWAY) is a bit baffling to me. I mean, I understand not wanting to watch your car be repo’d, but, not to this extent. Once I saw the dead monkey, it would have been like one of those cartoons, all you’d see is my outline. It’s just a bit too bizarre at the beginning, and I don’t think the romance with Betty really works either.

I love Wilder. Yes, I’m not a big fan of Some Like It Hot, but I understand WHY everyone else like it, but Sunset Boulevard just had me scratching my head a lot. Overall, as I said, I was never sure of what Wilder was going for. I didn’t know which scenes were being played for laughs, which ones were supposed to be melodramatic and if it was all supposed to feel so campy and horrifying at the same time. And, maybe that’s where the brilliance of this film lies, that it can be watched and re-watched and you’ll experience a different genre each time. Or, maybe I just don’t get it."