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Control
2007-12-06 13:17:00
With Control , the debut feature film of photographer and artist Anton Corbijn, Corbijn has made a great film about Joy Divison's Ian Curtis. Making of Curtis more than just the famous frontman who died at young age, Curtis is presented as an ordinary twentysomething having to deal with marriage and fatherhood and a returning disorder which comes to haunt him his whole life. Played by Sam Riley, Ian Curtis is brough to life so vividly, making you as a viewer forget it's only a film you're watching and not the real band. Including some full performances of songs, which were performed by the actors themselves with Riley bearing a striking vocal resemblance to Curtis extraordinary voice. It's a breaktrough performance for the young actor who was once himself the frontman of his own band 10.000 Things. Entirely shot in black and white, because this is how Corbijn remembers the period when visualizing it in his mind, Control is one of the better biopics, showing the life of a young ...

The Best 3 Of October
2007-12-06 12:47:00
Again running a bit late, I still have to pick the best 3 films for the month of October . Having been a month with lots of recent films, but also some older ones, it has brought in some really nice pieces of cinema, some of which can be seen as real classics or classics in the making. Here they are, the top 3.1. Blue VelvetDavid Lynch's masterpiece is a perfect blend of the surreal and voyeuristic. With the magical Isabella Rossellini, Blue Velvet is your usual mystery thriller, but Lynch style. Always trying to make his audience think and not being satisfied with providing just a simple story, Lynch's work always tend to have a dream like, hallucinating atmosphere. Blue Velvet more than some of his other films finds a perfect balance between the strange and the normal.2. Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless MindWith Eternal Sunshine director Michel Gondry has brought to life a frantic and mindbobbling puzzle bringing up questions about the human mind and reminding his audience of the...

Elizabeth: The Golden Age
2007-12-01 23:35:00
Visually stunning, Elizabeth : The Golden Age definitely has succeeded in being a beautiful painting like film. Narratively, however, Elizabeth never seems to reach any real climax or tension. Directed by Shekhar Kapur, the director who also directed the first installment of which The Golden Age should be the second part of a trilogy about the life of Elizabeth I, the film never manages to rise above the level it sets up at the beginning. There are some moments which should deliver some real peaks, but never really do so. The ending of the film, which involves the big battle against the Spanish armada, is nothing more than a painting brought to life, with unfortunately not much exitement involved. The overall feeling you have watching Elizabeth is an empty one. You watch a stream of images go passed you, but never feel truly engaged with the characters and the events they go through. Still, though, Elizabeth: The G olden Age is quite an entertaining film. Like the first one it involve...

Yella
2007-11-25 13:02:00
From the very first seconds of Yella you know you're in for something good and definitely different. With it's chilly atmosphere, director Christian Petzold, provides for a psychological thriller that will have you puzzled and somewhat confused about the events that happen to Yella, the film's main character played extraordinary well by the beautiful Nina Hoss. Not sure of what exactly happens to her and what the symbolic clues mean, as a viewer you are constantly linked to Yella. She's in every scene, making for complete engagement with the character, putting you in her shoes and having only her to count on to figure out what is going on with her. After a life changing event caused by her obsessive husband who since their break-up keeps stalking her, Yella keeps hearing weird sounds, like ducks or a goose and looks almost frightened up to the sky and the branches of a tree, waiting as for something to appear. Getting her life back on track, having just given a new job, time has...

Venus
2007-11-23 12:45:00
Venus by director Roger Michell is a little gem of a film, smart, funny and sweet. With actor Peter O'Toole as the main character, Venus is filled with brilliant performances both by the somewhat older actors and the very young. Falling for one of his best friends his niece, Jessie, O'Toole's character, Maurice, rediscovers his inner youth, being once again fascinated by the beauty of the young women who grace the earth. Filmed with great lighting, besides the heartfelt and daring story, Venus also delivers some breathtaking shots, being fresh and inventive in the images it presents. It's Peter O'Toole's performance, however that lingers the most. He lives his part making him perfect for the role. As a viewer you watch his enjoyment, playing such a wonderfully written character for an actor of his age. It's an opportunity to once again shine and O'Toole firmly takes on the challenge. His eyes let you look directly into his soul and his voice makes every piece of dialogue co...
More About: Venus

Intacto
2007-11-20 14:12:00
Intacto (Intact) is a very fascinating film that keeps your mind busy trying to figure out what exactly is going on and how these games that are played in the film work. It's a very fresh and original film not revealing its exact intentions until the very end and one that looks very stylish and slick. Director Juan Carlos Fresnadillo who recently directed the sequel to Danny Boyle's hit 28 Days Later and together with Andrés M. Koppel has written the screenplay, makes that the story is kept surrounded by this constant mysterious atmosphere and only at the end the viewer comes to fully understand what has taken place and how far it was right to believe. Following a plot in which strange games are played that can only be won by the person who ends up being the most lucky, it's crucial that as a viewer you are willing to go along and play the game in order for the film to work. To provide yourself with that luck you have to collect the luck from others, which can be achieved by tak...

3:10 To Yuma
2007-11-17 15:28:00
James Mangold who in 2004 made Walk The Line, which featured an Oscar winning performance by actress Reese Witherspoon, but who also made movies like the horror/thriller Identity and the romantic Kate & Leopold, now moves to a completely different genre, namely the western. Updating the original, he brings us 3:10 To Yuma , with actors Russel Crowe and Christian Bale as the two male leads. Not having seen the original, Mangold's version seems to fit very well into this period of time, not at all feeling oldfashioned, but very modern and at the same time bringing to the front the feeling of a true western. With bullets flying everywhere, 3:10 To Yuma provides its audience with enough action and suspense to keep it fresh and alive. Central to the film's plot is the story of Dan Evans, played by Bale, a very concerned father who struggles to keep his family together. It's this story and Bale's character which are the heart of the movie. Bale gives an excellent and very convincin...

A Fost Sau N-A Fost?
2007-11-15 01:00:00
A Fost Sau N-A Fost? (12:08 East To Bucharest) is an intelligent little film with very endearing characters who will make you smile and laugh in your seat. It consist almost completely out of static shots, which later is played with and probably wouldn't have worked so well if not almost the entire film was made up out of these still shots. Having written the story himself, after experiencing a somewhat similar television broadcast which was shown on TV, director Corneliu Porumboiu delivers a fine piece of cinema. Showing the lives of three characters in today's Romania and the way Ceau?escu has effected all of them, Porumboiu presents a beautiful and very charming portrait of a country still trying to recover from its past. It's especially the film's simplicity what makes A Fost Sau N-A Fost? stand out. Using almost only static shots is quite a risk in today's cinema, which makes use of many different shot angles and lots of close-ups. The decision to do this, however, makes t...

2 Days In Paris
2007-11-12 23:21:00
Julie Delpy until now was an actress who at a very young age landed one of her first roles in a movie directed by French legend Jean-Luc Godard, a musician with one album under her belt, and one of the writers of the screenplay for the film Before Sunset, the follow up to the wonderful Before Sunrise. With her second effort The Countess already in progress, a film about Erzebet Bathory, Delpy now seems to have set her eyes on becoming a serious director as well. And by the look of her fresh and very hilarious debut 2 Days In Paris , she seems to be destined for success. Having not only taken the job of director on her tiny shoulders, Delpy also plays the female lead opposite the superb Adam Goldberg, has written the entire screenplay herself, did all the editing and if all that already wasn't enough, also composed the film's music. It's clear that 2 Days In Paris has been really her project and was a film she wanted to make and most importantly had to make in her own way, the way ...

Hallam Foe
2007-11-11 16:46:00
Telling the story of a young teenage boy figuring out life and having to cope with his mother's recent death, Hallam Foe by director David Mackenzie is a film that is very nice and made very well, and is original and fresh in its presentation of the film's credits, but also is one that doesn't seem to be held together all that well. Thinking about this film more, it's one that seems to become better on a second view, but after seeing it once, Hallam Foe tends to be a bit problematic having really nice moments, but at times feeling a bit boring as well. The feeling of boredom is strange, when in this film a lot of things happen and keep happening. Though Hallam Foe, the main character, who is perfectly played by Jamie Bell, doesn't really seem to grasp you and make you feel engage completely. His character doesn't completely take you in, compell, as you would expect. It's only when with Kate, the young woman looking almost identical to his mother and who is played by actress S...
More About: Alla

Marie Antoinette
2007-11-11 15:23:00
The third feature length film by Sofia Coppola is like looking through a photoalbum. One beautiful picture after another flashes by, providing the viewer with snapshots of Marie Antoinette's teenage life. The costumes worn by the female characters are exquisite just like the huge ballroom locations. The film is all about Marie Antoinette and shows this girl who finds herself in the middle of all this luxury. It makes you question at times why Coppola has chosen to tell Marie Antoinette's story when it feels like this story could be of any girl of the same age. Coppola could have chosen to tell a story of fiction when the film itself doesn't really seem to take history all too seriously. It's nice though that with Marie Antoinette Coppola makes you think about how Marie Anotinette's life could have been like. Looking how she and her friends go through different boxes of shoes and show there love for the most beautiful fabrics for dresses, like modern day women on a shopping spre...
More About: Inet

Death Proof
2007-11-06 12:03:00
Quentin Tarantion's Death Proof starts off with a group of girls, simply called 'The Girls' smoothly chatting away in a car. Just like Kill Bill, Death Proof is all about the women. It's female empowerment of the 21th century, showing women talking about guys, like guys normally would, sitting in a bar, eating, smoking and shaking their behind to the music pumping out of the juke box, knowing that every man in the room looks, but can't touch. Tarantino shows it all being fearless as he always is, not caring about what people might think. In full close-up, as a viewer you therefore are being served with actress Vanessa Ferlito's behind swaying to the beat and later on giving Kurt Russell's character stuntman Mike, a full lapdance. These girls are sassy, with especially Sydney Poitier , the daughter of the actor with almost the exact same name, standing out, rambling up the lines masterfully written by Tarantino as if they have bursted into her head all by themself. The ease wi...

Die Fälscher
2007-11-04 18:46:00
Stefan Ruzowitzky's Die Fälscher (The Counterfeiters) is a very hard, but gripping film. Telling the story about Salomon Sorowitsch, a forger of Jewish decent and one of the best living in Germany during the Second World War, Die Fälscher shows what happened once he was taken and brought into the concentration camps. At times the film makes you wonder whether or not to show the horrific events. It's very confrontational to be shown the events especially when like in Die Fälscher the events are shown in a way which makes it all look very real. Maybe even too real at times. Some scenes can therefore be quite horrofying. Die Fälscher isn't afraid to show people shot through their heads with just one bullet, blowing it all away in a second. By showing scenes like this you have to take into consideration how much the film tries to show the events and thinks the events really happened. Does it want to shock and point a finger to the Nazi's making sure the audience gets as clear as pos...

Quand J'étais Chanteur
2007-11-03 18:40:00
With his role in Quand J'étais Chan teur Gérard Depardieu comes to show once again why he's one of France's most famous actors. The charismatic actor gives a wonderful performance, making his character stand out from everything else. Though greatly supported by actress Cécille De France who gives a very strong performance and is very mesmerizing, Quand J'étais Chant eur becomes all Depardieus'. Slowly getting into Alain Moreau's skin, the way Depardieu builds up his character is proof of his long time experience. Director Xavier Giannoli is very lucky to have Depardieu in his film, which only starts to get into full steam somewhere slightly after the middle of the film. Showing two characters you dont'expect to end up falling in love with each other, it holds resemblance to Sofia Coppola's Lost In Translation, though, standing comepletely on its own. It's a very beautiful and very funny little film. Moreau is a character you can't help but love. A singer with no real succes ...

Blue Velvet
2007-11-03 17:14:00
David Lynch's Blue Velvet is perfect from beginning to end. It has great use of music, strong performances by its actors and contains shots that feel slightly surreal. The story is quite simple, but one that gets every viewer thrilled with excitement and filled with suspense. Stories about ordinary people getting involved in a murder mystery they shouldn't get involved in and secretly entering the appartment of a stranger, will most of the time have everyone on the edge of their seats. A great example is Alfred Hitchcock's Rear Window, an absolute classic and one of the best films which concern this theme. Much less confusing then, let's say, Mulholland Dr., Blue Velvet starts by letting its main character come across some strange objects and being witness of some strange events. After his father ends up in hospital, Jeffrey Beaumont returns to the suburban town he grew up in and once he meets Sandy, wonderfully played by Laura Dern, he loses his sense of what's right and what...

The Best 3 Of September
2007-11-03 17:14:00
Having had almost no time to write lately, I'm trying desperately to save this blog, which kind of has become my little baby. Never did I expect to write this much, and thinking about it, I could have written an entire novel if I would have put all my energy into that instead of this. But I wouldn't have missed it for the world, so I'm very glad I started this blog, which is already some long months ago. Already in November I still have to recapture on what I found to be the best films I saw in September . So...here I go.1. AtonementBeing only his second feature film, Joe Wright's Atonement, is much more than your usual adaptation. Truly capturing the spirit of the book, making great use of mise-en-scène and cinematography, Wright seems to be on his way to become one of the great. Being this big bombastic telling of love, that is edited in a triumphant way, it sucks you in completely taking you on this magical ride presenting the most breathtaking images and doesn't spit you out...

Ultimo Tango A Parigi
2007-11-03 00:35:00
Opening with Marlon Brando outside on the street, sounds of traffic rushing by, Bernardo Bertolucci's Ultimo Tango A Parigi (Last Tango In Paris) immediately gets hold of your full attention. Then passing him by, sweeping him off his feet, is Maria Schneider as the very charming Jeanne, of whom Brando refuses to know her name. 'No names' he keeps telling her as they head off into this passionate and very sexual affair. Outstanding use of locations and mise-en-scène, the movie presents itself with lots of beautiful orange and brownish colours, like the long coat Brando's character is wearing. Feeling almost as a play, especially in the beginning, Ultimo Tango is a film that centers around two characters who explore themselves and each other. Playfully teasing one another the film becomes somewhat poetic which is intensified by the wonderful cinematography. Also making somewhat fun of the process of filmmaking itself, Jeanne's fiancee follows her with his filmcrew making a movie...

My Own Private Idaho
2007-10-21 18:51:00
Taking us into the world of male prostitution, Gus Van Sant's My Own Private Idaho tells the story of a teenage boy searching for his mother driven by daydreams and memories of the woman who has left him behind. Clouds drifting by fast in a bright blue sky, an open road that looks like the face of an ugly man, a house falling down from the sky and into pieces, all the usual dreamy aspects which make up a real Van Sant seem to be there. Experimenting with shots that can be seen as daring, like the one in the diner the two main characters and their friends like to hang out, which show the two main protagonist conversating inside, but from outside or the way some of their friends speak about their experiences separtely, but all at the same time, moving from one character to another, not waiting for one person's story to be finished before moving on to the next. My Own Private Idaho is amazing when looking at it from a visual perspective. It's what is most interesting about the film ...

Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind
2007-10-14 17:41:00
As the names of everyone involved slide down the screen and singer Beck can be heard performing a version of Everybody Got To Learn Sometimes, which was especially recorded for the film, you slowly try to recover from the stream of images that flashed by your eyes and that make up the wonderful weirdness of what is Eternal Sunshine Of the Spotless Mind . Directed by Michael Gondry and featuring another original and very inventive screenplay by the genius that is Charlie Kaufman, Eternal Sunshine starts off by showing us two characters who meet at a train. One of them is the blue-haired Clementine Kruzcynski, a young feisty woman, the other, Joel Barish, a slightly neurotic thirtysomething. Marvelously played by both Jim Carrey, who can be seen in one of his what can be called more 'serious' roles, and Kate Winslet, with a spot-on American accent, the two characters seem attracted to one another, not at all aware of the history they already share together. With fast paced cutting, a...

A Mighty Heart
2007-10-07 13:49:00
After In This World and The Road To Guantanamo, both films that feel like a documentary depicting real events, but which are actually fictionalized dramas, director Michael Winterbottom brings A Mighty Heart , a film based on the book written by Mariane Pearl with the same title. Paid full attention to in the news, especially in the US, the story about the kidnapping of Mariane's husband, Daniel Pearl, a journalist, is one of many that have taken place after the events of 9/11. Putting the focus mostly on Mariane and the search for Daniel, Winterbottom's movie tries to capture the chaos and the doubt Mariane's living in, afraid of never seeing her husband again. With fast cutting, A Mighty Heart speeds up the pace, but not always for the better. Throughout the film you can feel the tension and the fear, but the film just shows too much to be fully captured by it. Especially the middle feels too long. There's too much repetition and after a while the search becomes tiring. There a...

Atonement
2007-10-01 20:58:00
Atonement is only the second feature film by director Joe Wright, and moves on where his first one, Pride & Prejudice left off. Atonement is a visual fiest, just like its predecessor but even more stunning and with more bravoure. It tells the larger than life love story of a young man and woman filled with passion and who are send to doom by the young woman's younger sister. The story itself, adapted from the novel of the same title by highly acclaimed writer Ian McEwan, of which his works The Comfort Of Strangers and Enduring Love also got translated to the big screen, is already great and provides for great material, but the way Wright tells it, is absolutely amazing. It's full of enchanting moments and poetic images, that are edged deeply onto your mind. Both visually as musically Atonement is a pure rush of delight. It has some of the most interesting scenes all combined in just one movie. A scene between lovers Cecilia and Robbie against a bookcase where they make passion...
More About: Atonement , Tone

Last Days
2007-09-27 09:55:00
The final installment of what is known as Gus Van Sant's 'Death Trilogy' brings the story of a rockstar who seems to have lost himself, a story loosly based on the life and especially the last days of musician Kurt Cobain. Last Days is an ambitious work, like the former Gerry and Elephant, but probably the weakest one of the three. Still there is a lot of things to like. The problem though is that like Gerry the movie more feeds from narrativity than a real chronological story. There are a lot of shots of Blake, the film's main character, walking zombie like to the woods, mumbling words that are almost unrecognizable. There seems to be more chronologicallity than in Gerry though, but still lots of the movie is open to interpretation. Showing its characters from a distance, the camera hardly moves. The only movement comes from zooms and pans. Only sometimes does the camera move through its surroundings, but most of the time it's placed in one spot being completely static. It cre...

This Is England
2007-09-23 19:42:00
This Is England by director Shane Meadows is a hard gripping story about growing up in the beginning of the eighties in England. Following a young boy who comes to be part of a group of skinheads, Meadows serves his audience a delightful portrait of England that has its roots strongly grounded into the country's background and its context. This Is England draws heavily on political subjects and touches on topics that are still very much alive in contemporary England. Especially considering the possibility of falling apart in different independent regions like Scotland or Wales. This Is England gives a lot of thought to what England is, it's own identity and how some people look upon it. It's a film which shows Englands urge to stay pure. The story is poured into a very solid narrative structure, beginning fresh, introducing its characters and setting up their relationships. It's a coming of age story seen through the eyes of a young boy, Shaun. It's he who leads the audience in...

The Golden Door
2007-09-19 17:34:00
The Golden Door (Nuovomondo in Italian) by director Emanuele Crialese is a wonderfully made film with some very interesting and inspiring scenes, but which overall lacks a good and interesting narrative structure. As a whole the film looks great, but it does has some flaws, especially at the beginning. The way it is told makes it hard for the viewer to immediately feel connected with the story and its characters. It takes a while to get the feeling to fully participate into the film's story, but when you do you will come to really enjoy the film and want to linger in it as long as you can. The problem however is that the film by then already is close to its end. The film features actress Charlotte Gainsbourg, who's soft and clear voice make her a person you want to get inside. With the red hair she is even more enchanting than she already normally is. Her presence on screen is absolutely lovely. She seems to be a real part of the diegetic world and gives a nice subtle performance ...
More About: The Go , The G , Golden Door

The Best 3 Of August
2007-09-19 12:51:00
After moving to Canterbury in the UK and studying at the University Of Kent, I haven't had much time to watch movies or write reviews about them. Luckily, I am already settling down a bit getting accustomed to everything. So maybe this blog will survive and won't die out because of the lack of updates. August seems already a long time ago. There were a lot of interesting films I saw that month. Some of them I wanted to see for already a long time, some of them I never really wanted to and eventually turned out to be really nice experiences.1. 2001: A Space OdysseyDefinitely a movie that blew me away, the story with its great themes of life, mankind and evolution, set for a large part in space, 2001 really shows the talent of the late Mr. Kubrick who with movies like A Clockwork Orange and Dr. Strangelove can already be seen as one of the great. His films make you question and capture a certain period of time and the atmosphere people in that time find themselves in. 2001 with its...

The Bourne Ultimatum
2007-09-08 10:11:00
It seems that after this third installment Bourne really has come to stand for quality. Probably the best one of the three, which is a remarkable thing, since the other two are also great, The Bourne Ultimatum has more different locations, brings a female character to the forefront again and is full of great chases by car, motorcycle, and foot, flying from building to building. It's action-packed fun, with also, which is the most important been a real strength as well. Matt Damon once again is superb as Jason Bourne. He carries the movie very well and seems to have really grown into his role completely with this third film. Even through the action scenes he still shows so much emotion in his face. The tormented look never goes away. This guy has been through a lot and it shows. Still, however, his softer side always shines through, which makes him a real character, a real hero, audiences can relate to and will come to root for in difficult times. Joan Allen who was introduced in Th...

Reprise
2007-09-07 09:05:00
Rule number 1: Never drink any liquids of what kind soever when you know you're going to watch a film in a movie theatre without a bathroom break. Because this is what happens. You'll watch the film and prevent yourself from having to go to the bathroom almost the entire film. But then, just when you realize the movie's almost coming to an end, you really can't hold up any longer and with much pain in your heart you have to leave the room, while the movie's still playing. And then when you come back as fast as you can you find the film to have already ended, without you there. That is exactly what happened to me yesterday evening when I watched the amazing Reprise by director Joachim Trier. Now, when I left the movie only went on for like three minutes and I'm pretty sure I could have stuck in there longer, but at that moment I thought my bladder was going to break. So no way I could stay. Very, very frustrated I was and I am still. You can tell me how it ends, you can tell me...

Antwone Fisher
2007-09-05 10:17:00
Denzel Washington's first attempt at directing has led to a beautiful, touching film that, even though it could have, never becomes too over-dramatic, which partly has to do with the very impressive acting debut of actor Derek Luke in his first ever feature film. Slowly unravelling his character's inner state, Luke shows his character's struggle beautifully. There's much character development. As you watch the film you come to learn more about Fisher and get to know him better. Because of Luke's portrayal, as a viewer you really want to come to understand him. You want to know what goes on inside that head of his and causes all his hurt. When he finally speaks, you really come to know of the harm that has been done to him over the years. You then understand why he has built this wall around him that was so difficult to break through. Completely holding his own next to Washington, Luke gives a great performance. Washington really gives him space to evolve and show what he's cap...

Être Et Avoir
2007-09-03 10:30:00
Except for one short interview where we watch the teacher, who's the main focus of Être Et Avoir (To Be And To Have) a documentary directed by Nicholas Philibert, Être Et Avoir is entirely made up out of footage where the camera is only observing the people in front of it and in which you're almost never aware of the filmmakers being present. Showing teacher Georges Lopez and his pupils is an experience filled with nostalgia. The children are so real and recognizable from the kids you yourself have been in class with and make you remind of so many things all at once that it can become quite overwhelming. The chance that tears will flow is quite huge. The story is told only through footage of the children in class, at home and as we watch them be brought to the school by a white mini van. Those are accompanied by a lot of shots of the beautiful landscapes filled with different kinds of cows. The shots have very long cuts, which give a great image of how events unfolds in real tim...

Te Doy Mis Ojos
2007-09-01 12:29:00
Te Doy Mis Ojos (Take My Eyes) is a very confrontational film that at times can be quite scary, which most part has to do with the way director Icíar Bollaín, who herself took credit in writing the film's story, manages to keep the story real, without falling into clichés. Telling a story about a wife who has to deal with an abusive husband isn't very original. Though, the way Bollaín does it deserves lots of praise. In her depiction Bollaín doesn't shy away from being to realistic and too raw. She really makes her characters go through a lot of suffering and doesn't romanticize anything. In Laia Marull and Luis Tosar she really has found the perfect actors to play the movie's two main characters. They both are phenomenal in showing the struggle their characters go through on the inside and make it look very convincing, almost too real. Their emotions seem really sincere and truthful. Tosar, who plays the husband, prefectly manages to show his character's willingness to change...