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September 24th, 2009
01:35 pm - District 9, Inglourious Basterds, Public Enemies
District 9 
Low budget sci-fi, action movie made in documentary-like style in which an extraterrestrial race that is forced to live in slum-like conditions in South Africa suddenly finds a kindred spirit in a government agent that is exposed to their biotechnology. Remarkable debut film of Neill Blomkamp with an entirely unknown cast.
There's often the danger that when the praise for a movie gets too high and the marketing campaign risks getting too loud that by the time a movie reaches theatres here I'm turning kind of sceptical. But I was very pleased with what I saw. At the beginning I was a bit worried that the main character would become kind of irritating during the course of the movie but it turned out that after a difficult start he turned out to be one of the main assets by becoming a reluctant hero.
Also on the plus side was the unconventional setting in a South African slum with a dirty, realistic look as opposed to the often used glossy Hollywood style. A good example that a limited budget can be an advantage. The documentary style shaky-cam was used well to make the action look more real. The fact that the movie didn't tell the usual story of a dramatic alien invasion but instead focused on events taking place twenty years afterwards is also noteworthy. Including elements of scrupulous companies, manipulative lies spread by the media, the use of tactics of personal discrediting and fabricated "terror acts" are also always welcome.
I was also a little afraid that the parallels between real-life South African apartheid and the story would become too forced but thankfully that wasn't the case. There were things throughout the movie that reminded you of that fact but I didn't find it too much (I also have a feeling that parts of the movie can be seen as a bit controversial itself). However, I only did find out a few days ago that there's even a story behind the forced relocation of a district in South Africa.
What should be mentioned is that after a comparatively slow start that sets up the story, it turns into an almost conventional thriller of a man on the run. But by then you are well invested with the main character and even for a thriller you still get a few unexpected (mostly believable) twists and turns. There were a few scenes towards the end where I feared the action would get out of hand and enter brainless Michael Bay territory but thankfully that only lasted a couple of minutes.
A nice example that action movies don't have to be stupid and thoughtful movies don't have to be boring.
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May 21st, 2009
04:42 pm - The Fall, Duplicity, Slumdog Millionaire
The Fall
 An uplifting fantasy movie directed by Indian Tarsem Singh. In a hospital on the outskirts of 1920s Los Angeles, an injured stuntman (Lee Pace) begins to tell a fellow patient, a little girl with a broken arm, a fantastical story about 5 mythical heroes. Thanks to his fractured state of mind and her vivid imagination, the line between fiction and reality starts to blur as the tale advances.
Sometimes it pays off to be patient. Ever since I had seen the trailer more than a year ago I wanted to see this movie on a big theatre screen due to its eye-popping visuals (the only movie I can think of with a similar use of colour is Zhang Yimou's Hero). And a few weeks ago the movie was finally shown at my local community theatre. I even left the house for an 11pm screening which usually isn't my preferred time to watch a movie. But it was the only starting time the movie was shown for a couple of days.
Since I already had watched the trailer a couple of times to shorten the waiting period and also had a look at the available stills I was not as overwhelmed by the visuals as I had expected. But that is obviously just a personal problem. Everyone who isn't overly familiar with the scenes should in all likelihood be spellbound by the images. But more important, I was very pleasantly surprised by the story itself and how it was told. From what I had heard I expected it more to be like a second thought but that isn't really the case. Sure, the images are the main focus but the story is nice and gets more interesting by a neat trick that keeps your attention that I won't reveal.
Also worth mentioning is young Romanian actress Catinca Untaru who's just endearing. And on a side note, towards the end there's a scene that featured an animation that looked familiar in style. And indeed, the end credits confirmed that the scene was done by the brothers Lauenstein who won an Oscar for a short movie called Balance.
If you like visually interesting movies then this movie is highly recommended, but please try to watch it on a as big a screen as possible. If you are curious about the look of the movie, please have a look at the trailer.
The movie's director Tarsem (as he likes to be called) is mainly known for making commercials and video clips. But a few years ago he made a movie called The Cell starring Jennifer Lopez which also stood out because of its similar use of visual imagery. If you like to read more about him and the making of the movie have a look at this interview.
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April 7th, 2009
04:12 pm - Man on Wire, Watchmen, The Bone Man
Man on Wire
As it's often the case, it took some time but finally this Oscar-winning documentary about tightrope walker Philippe Petit made it to a movie theatre near me. And I am very thankful that I had a chance to see it. The doc tells the story of the daring but illegal, high-wire routine performed by Petit between New York City's World Trade Center's twin towers in 1974.
It is an absolutely thrilling movie that couldn't be more gripping if it were a scripted film. It's told more like a heist movie than a documentary. And you wouldn't believe it had happened it you didn't see the footage. As it turns out, Petit was quite obsessed with the WTC. He first read about the two towers in an article in 1968 while waiting at the dentist at a time when they weren't even finished. Ever since, it was his dream to walk on a rope between the towers. The doc then tells us about the various stages of the planning, the problems he and his friends encountered and how they finally pulled off the event. It also shows footage from similar walks Petit did in Paris and Sydney.
While the doc shows that there is often a thin line between genius and obsession (that takes its tolls among your friends) it nevertheless is a very inspiring tale about believing in your dreams.
I can see that some of you may have problems watching it because of what happened to the WTC many years later. But if you have some distance to those events I don't think it's a problem. In fact, I think there's even a chance that you may get an added perspective what the towers can stand for.
The only minor criticism I have is that it wasn't always clear to me which parts of the film material was original footage and which parts were re-created which I find a bit unfortunate for a documentary.
But I highly recommend the movie, everyone should see it. It's absolutely fascinating to watch. It will move you, and depending on how invested you'll become in the story, there's a good chance it will move you to tears. The doc is also recommended to fans of Michael Nyman who generously allowed the director to use his compositions from previous movies because of the very limited budget of the production.
If you haven't seen it already, please have a look at the trailer to get an idea what the doc is about.
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March 4th, 2009
07:29 pm - Frost/Nixon, The International, O'Horten
Frost/Nixon
Dramatic retelling of the post-Watergate television interviews between British talk-show host David Frost (Michael Sheen) and former US president Richard Nixon (Frank Langella) and the surrounding events. Matthew Macfadyen, Oliver Platt and Sam Rockwell play aides to Frost, Kevin Bacon is on the president's team. The movie's directed by Ron Howard (A Beautiful Mind, Apollo 13, The Da Vinci Code) but the real mastermind behind the movie is Peter Morgan who's responsible for the script which is based on a successful play he wrote. After an interesting movie about the Queen of England, this time he's put together a compelling story about a television interview.
The interviews themselves took place over the course of four days, about 28 hours of conversation were taped, which built the basis for four 90-minute programs.
Not being overly familiar with Frost I was partially surprised by his portrayal in the movie. I can see how until then he was more of an entertainer than a journalist, I nevertheless found it a bit doubtful that he was shown so little involved in the preparing of the questions and researching the background of interview topics. Sure he had a lot on his hands due to the difficulties to come up with the financing and related challenges of the event (which in itself was very interesting for me to find out) but I was still wondering if he was really that detached until the actual interviews began.
While Frost's motivation is shown to be his ambition to be successful in the entertainment industry, the movie tells us that Nixon's plan was to use the interviews to improve his image and use the perceived lightweight Frost to tell his story of his presidency. So in a way the two were similarly in search of an audience. When it comes to the interviews itself I was at times reminded of a boxing match, including some coaching during the breaks.
Besides the political background, there's also the media angle of the movie. It's hard to imagine that, no matter how much they like to hear themselves talk, that today a prominent politician would agree to more than twenty hours of interviews without having a lot of control over the questions and no control at all over the final broadcast. So the chance that one day the newest ex-president will take part in an extensive interview to talk about why he thought he's rarely bound to existing laws is fairly slim.
Already knowing that Morgan took some liberties when writing the story (mainly the invention of a crucial, late night phone call), I was very curious how the real interview looked like. Thanks to some lucky coincidence in the days immediately after I saw the movie I had access to the documentary David Frost Interviews Richard Nixon which consists of a brief introduction by Frost, most of the final, fourth part of the interview and ends with some additional remarks and anecdotes surrounding the event, again told by Frost.
It was very fascinating to watch. Even if it's just one part of the interview you can see how indeed Nixon tried to endlessly extend his answers, how some of his replies seem well rehearsed but are still given in a convincing manner. As it turns out, at least judging by the documentary, Frost comes across much more focused, as I originally had been expecting.
If you have a basic interest in the events that took place back then I can heartily recommend the movie as well the documentary about the interviews.
A final question, I'd like to know if somebody saw the play being performed in London or New York. I read a review about it but would be interested to hear a brief summary what it consisted of.
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October 9th, 2008
07:26 pm - Happy-Go-Lucky, The Dark Knight, Shall We Kiss?
Happy-Go-Lucky
Comedy from Mike Leigh about an irrepressibly cheerful primary school teacher (Sally Hawkins who rightfully won the Best Actress Award this year in Berlin) who won't let anyone or anything get her down. Living with her flatmate, she has a gift for making the most of life. After her bicycle gets stolen she's determined to learn to drive. She finds herself matched with Scott (Eddie Marsan), an uptight driving instructor who is everything she is not.
Since for me watching movies most of the time is escapism, movies from British directors Mike Leigh and Ken Loach usually aren't my first choice when it comes to going to the movies. But the trailer and the reviews easily convinced me that this one will be worth a look.
If you've seen the trailer you could easily think that this is a pure comedy, but fans of working-class British Cinema can be assured that's not entirely the case. Yes, Poppy is an incredibly cheery and positive person, even to the point where you really feel the urge building to shout at her to shut up, and maybe even want to slap her because of her non-stop talking. But after the while she's also confronted with more challenging situations and it's interesting to see how she manages them.
All of this is contrasted with the driving instructor who really is her polar opposite. Just as Poppy is the eternal optimist, he's the pessimist. And it all comes down to a matter of world views and I was very pleased with the way the situations were handled.
It may sound naive but if more people were like Poppy the world would be a better place.
The movie is a life lesson, maybe not a very subtle one, but nevertheless very enjoyable. A welcome reminder that it's a good idea to "look at the bright side of life" and recommended to everyone who's in need for something positive because of, for example, let's say, campaign politics or a global financial and economic crisis.
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April 22nd, 2008
06:50 pm - I'm a Cyborg But That's OK, Michael Clayton, There Will Be Blood
I'm a Cyborg, But That's OK - Saibogujiman kwenchana
An absurd romantic comedy about a girl (Lim Su-jeong) who thinks she is a combat cyborg who checks into a mental hospital, where she encounters other psychotics. Eventually, she falls for a man (Rain) who thinks he can steal people's souls. It goes without saying that the only thing this movie has in common with South Korean director Park Chan-wook's revenge trilogy are the remarkable visuals.
This is so far the most difficult movie for me to write about in order to keep track of the movies I've seen this year at the theatre since I don't really know what to make of it. In the movie there are lots of nice little ideas and scenes that I liked. For example, since the girl thinks she's a cyborg, she tries to "recharge" herself using batteries instead of eating and her glowing toes show her energy level in various colours. She's also trying to communicate with other machines. And there are lots of other inventive little scenes like that that can best be compared to Michel Gondry's style in The Science of Sleep. I also liked the main plot, the relationship between the girl and the boy who tries to make her eat again.
But there are also things that I thought are stretching the movie a bit much like the introduction of a book of seven deadly sins or the back-story of her family and their radish-eating habits. I also wasn't able to make sense of entire scenes. And even though I suspect they weren't made to be understood I still found them unnecessarily taxing.
I thought about fifteen minutes before the end there was an excellent moment to finish the movie with a more "traditional" ending (on a relative basis). It would've been a nice compromise between the absurdity of much of the movie and more conventional storytelling. But it seems Park thought that would've been too normal so he added a few more scenes which left me again a bit lost.
Overall I thought a little less absurdity would've been more. If you like absurd comedies and like Michel Gondry's style then I recommend that you have a look at this one, just be prepared that not everything will make sense. If you'd like to get an impression of how the movie looks like, please have a look at two of the available trailers.
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March 26th, 2008
05:31 pm - Darjeeling Limited, No Country for Old Men, Band's Visit
The Darjeeling Limited
Comedic drama about three American brothers (Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody and Jason Schwartzman) who have not spoken to each other in a year set off on a train voyage across India with a plan to find themselves and to become brothers again like they used to be and also visiting their long lost mother (Anjelica Huston). Their "spiritual quest", however, veers rapidly off-course and they eventually find themselves stranded alone in the middle of the desert. At this moment, a new, unplanned journey suddenly begins.
I didn't really have plans to watch the latest movie from Wes Anderson at the theatre since it looked somewhat similar to his previous works The Royal Tenenbaums, Rushmore and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. Which I liked but when in doubt I prefer to watch something I haven't seen before. But when our local arthouse theatre decided to show a subtitled version I couldn't resist. And I'm glad I didn't since it put me into a melancholic yet wonderful mood.
The first pleasant surprise was that the movie started with the prologue in the form of the 10-minute short Hotel Chevalier (I wasn't sure if it would be shown) in which Schwartzman's character has a brief re-union in Paris with his former girl-friend (Natalie Portman with a boyish haircut. It's interesting to see how her hair starts to grow back with every role after she cut it all off for V for Vendetta).
The movie itself begins with Bill Murray as a businessman trying to catch a train in India which is filmed as a chase scene in heavy (Indian) traffic which provides a wonderful start for the main story.
The movie consists of the usual whimsical, somewhat sad characters that are all part of the typical Anderson universe, mostly played by members of the regular Anderson ensemble. New to the cast is Adrien Brody but with his sad face he fits in very well. The movie also has the typical composed scenes though Anderson's use of colour looks better placed in an India setting.
The brothers have a lot of baggage (literally as well as emotionally) but the tone of the movie seemed for the most part very consistent and I often felt strangely moved. The soundtrack certainly also played a role which consists of original music from old Indian movies as well as a few titles from the Kinks. And Owen Wilson's ability of telling made up stories with a straight, earnest face is just remarkable. And while the brothers have a lot of (family) problems most of it is told with the typical deadpan, slightly absurd humour.
So despite the fact that the movie gets weaker towards the end and I could've done without the part with Anjelica Huston it nevertheless put me in a good mood and I certainly don't regret watching it. If you don't like Anderson's style you won't like this one either. But if you're a fan of his work then I'd suggest you should watch this one too. And if you've never seen a movie from him this one is a good way to start.
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March 4th, 2008
03:36 pm - The weekend I overdosed on "Pride and Prejudice". Almost overdosed.
Not long ago, ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) alexandral made a picture post about the various stages of brooding of Mr. Darcy/Colin Firth. In the ensuing conversation I had to admit that, despite having often read about the miniseries of the BBC, I never had actually seen it. In a selfless act of generosity that can only be described as darcy-esque she insisted on sending me the DVDs and by that finally allowing me to fill this gaping hole in my life as a movie watcher. And I'm very thankful she did.
 I hesitated at first to write about it since I thought I better first watch the series more than once before I say something knowing that some of you have seen the adaptation and "read the book billions of times". But since I already wanted to talk with two people about it I decided to write down my first impressions. I haven't read the book so I won't be able to draw any comparisons. But please be free to point out differences or extensions of the book to me. I will also later say something positive about the movie adaptation, in other words I am prepared to suffer death by stoning.
I was at the same time excited of finally being able to watch the English version since everything sounds better in proper English in the first place, double so if it's something as witty as a Jane Austen adaptation. But I was also somewhat afraid that my English will fail me so I decided early on that I will watch it with English subtitles. I was a bit reluctant to do so since I knew it would distracted me from watching what was going on as well as listening to what's being said. But with a running time of almost six hours I didn't really wanted to go back and forth if I had difficulties understanding what's being said.
So first some remarks about the language. From now on I will try to make "vexing" and "Make haste!" part of my active vocabulary. Noteworthy the (for me) unusual pronunciation of "ma'am" as "mum", likewise the way "Derbyshire" was pronounced. Very interesting to me was the repeated exclamation "Capital, capital!", in the sense of "great" or "brilliant". I remember seeing a German movie some time ago where someone repeatedly says "Kapital!" in German and it sounded very strange. But now I'm sure that it was meant in the very same way. I also liked the expression "to secure a man" and I realised that the "drawing room" doesn't necessarily has something to do with the act of painting, though I suspect there's a connection. Maybe somebody can tell me were that expression is coming from.
I also noticed that especially the names of the male characters in combination with how they are pronounced already describe them very well, "Darcy" sounds very serious, "Bingley" a bit silly and "Wickham" speaks for itself.
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February 12th, 2008
09:00 pm - My Blueberry Nights, I Am Legend, Melodies of Spring
My Blueberry Nights
 Wong Kar-wai's first English language movie is a romantic movie about a young, lovesick woman (Norah Jones, who plays her part well) who enters late at night the café/bar of Jeremy (Jude Law) whom she asks if he remembers having seen her cheating boyfriend as a guest. The two start to talk about life, the universe and everything and soon her visits become a regular event. One day she doesn't return and starts a soul-searching journey across America to resolve her questions about love. On her trip she works in various bars and restaurants. At one point she encounters Arnie (David Strathairn) who has difficulties to accept that his marriage with Sue (Rachel Weisz) is long over. And while working in a casino in Nevada she encounters Leslie (Natalie Portman), a self-assured gambler who thinks she has all her opponents figured out.
The movie doesn't develop the same hypnotic fascination as WKWs previous two movies. It's much less intense so don't expect another In the Mood for Love or 2046. But of course the visuals are again the main draw and if you're interested it is strongly recommended to see it at a movie theatre since I suspect it loses much of its appeal if you watch it on a small TV screen. You not so much have to understand but feel the movies of WKW.
Most of the movie takes place during the night in the bars and restaurants and the actors are lit so that they have halos from the neon light most of the time. A lot of scenes are filmed through glass with reflections everywhere. You can get a good impression of the used colour palette by looking at the stills or by watching the trailer. In combination with the music this generates a typical dreamy WKW mood, always a bit melancholic.
It's a simple, old-fashioned love story in the form of a road movie. Some may say a little too simple. How much you will like it will probably depend on how much of a romantic you are and in what mood you're in while watching it. You don't necessarily have to be of the hopeless kind but it might helps. I liked it a lot.
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January 30th, 2008
01:48 pm - Persepolis, Becoming Jane, Lust Caution
Persepolis
Animated movie that is the big screen adaptation of the autobiographical graphic novels written by Marjane Satrapi. It tells her coming-of-age in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. We see how the people's hopes get dashed as fundamentalists take power - forcing the veil on women and imprisoning thousands. Clever and fearless, she outsmarts the "social guardians" and discovers punk, ABBA and Iron Maiden.
The movie's mostly in black and white and the animation is "old-fashioned" two-dimensional. I haven't read the novels but I have no difficulties to imagine that they look exactly like the movie.
After sitting through quite a few epic, 2 1/2 hours long movies in recent months it was a nice change of pace to have so much story crammed into just ninety minutes. On the one hand it's sort of an introduction to the history of Iran of the late 1970s and 80s with the fall of the Shah regime, the start of the so-called Islamic Revolution and the long, bloody Iran-Iraq War. The movie shows the devastating effects those events had on Marjane and her friends and relatives which lead to her being sent to Austria at the age of fourteen.
And then there's the "normal" difficulties of growing up. In Austria she understandably feels very foreign. Weird people, strange German TV shows (Derrick) and ghastly Austrian music ("Live is Life"). She has her first encounters with the opposite sex and for a while she enjoys being in Vienna but eventually gets homesick and so she returns to Iran despite the fact that things there only have gotten worse. And that's only half of the story. Helping her through all her struggles are conversations with god and valuable advice from her grandmother (like how to keep your breasts firm).
So if you would like to find out what life was like growing up in Iran 20-30 years ago then I strongly recommend this original and charmingly animated movie. It's at the same time serious and funny. And some knowledge about history never hurts, especially next time somebody wants to tell you a fairy-tale about weapons of mass destruction.
And as I've learned from the movie's website, the title comes from the name of the ancient Persian capital that was built in the 6th century BC.
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January 12th, 2008
01:31 pm - Eastern Promises, Atonement, Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada
I failed pretty badly in the second half of last year to keep an online movie diary of the films I saw at the theatre. But since it was already helpful for me a couple of times to be able to come back to the entries I wrote, I'm trying again this year. And since the new year is off to a busy start I'll get right to it.
Eastern Promises
From imdb: The film follows the mysterious and ruthless Nikolai (Viggo Mortensen), who is tied to one of London's most notorious organized crime families. His carefully maintained existence is jarred when he crosses paths with Anna (Naomi Watts), an innocent midwife trying to right a wrong, who accidentally uncovers potential evidence against the family. Armin Mueller-Stahl plays the head of the "family" and Vincent Cassel his son. Directed by David Cronenberg.
At first I didn't want to watch this movie since I still felt the disappointment of Cronenberg's previous A History of Violence. But recommendations from friends lead to change of mind and I'm glad I did. While the characters aren't particularly new and the story of "family" within the mafia is also well known, it was a welcome variation that it was the Russian "family" instead of more common US-Italian or Japanese setting. All actors were perfect despite the fact that a New Yorker, a Frenchman and a German had to speak with heavy Russian accents. Though I read that Mortensen actually speaks Russian as well as Mueller-Stahl who's also definitely an excellent violin player. Mortensen really had a quiet and intense presence.
I especially liked that it was a very focused, dense story with just a handful of characters. It showed that it isn't necessary to make decade-spanning, convoluted epics to tell stories about the mafia. That way it's much easier to create a dark atmosphere of threat and danger. Nice plot twists don't hurt either. Well done!
And maybe a word of caution, although it's relatively tame compared to older Cronenberg movies, the rating says that it has "strong brutal and bloody violence" which sums it up pretty well. But given the setting the movie takes place in, it mostly fit into the story.
Random remark: While browsing through reviews of the movie, it was noted that the screenplay was written by Steven Knight who also was responsible for Dirty Pretty Things which, while not set in the world of the mafia, still touches upon a lot of similar subjects.
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August 16th, 2007
09:29 pm - 2 Days in Paris, Transformers, Zodiac
2 Days in Paris
 Julie Delpy plays Marion, a French photographer and Adam Goldberg is Jack, an American interior designer. They are a couple that lives in New York and before returning from a holiday in Venice they stop by for two days in Paris at the home of Marion's parents (played by Delpy's real-life parents). The movie is also written, directed, edited and co-produced by Delpy. She even composed the score. There's also a notable guest appearance by Daniel Brühl.
This set-up of course evokes memories of the two similar movies starring Julie Deply, Before Sunrise and Before Sunset. But while this movie shares the focus on dialogue and talkativeness, it has a vastly different tone. While it could be seen as a similar situation in which a couple has become used to each other and their relationship is somewhat strained I think it's best to see it as a different movie.
It's a comedy about two neurotic characters, both of them not very likable. She's a hothead, arguing with a racist French taxi driver or shouting at former boyfriends in restaurants. He's on the one hand mocking his fellow Americans but at the same time he's anxious about oncoming colds and terrorists. It also seems Paris is full of Marion's ex-boyfriends so he's constantly jealous and much of the talk centres on sex. But of course this set-up is a good premise for funny dialogues. In a way it can also be seen as a satire about the differences of US and Europe.
Almost every review mentions it and I also think it's the best way to describe the movie, it's one of the best (old-school) Woody Allen movies not directed by Woody Allen. And just like in Allen's movies not every joke is funny but on balance it's a nice indy comedy.
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July 19th, 2007
04:05 pm - Ocean's Thirteen, Shopping, Lady Vengeance
Ocean's Thirteen
 Danny Ocean and his crew are back and this time they are again in Vegas where they have to help out one of the members of the pack. Reuben Tishkoff has been forced out of a partnership with another casino mogul, Willie Bank (Al Pacino). Of course Clooney, Pitt, Damon and Co. try their best to pay him back in spades.
If you've seen one of the first two Ocean movies then you know what to expect. Cool people doing cool things and having (mostly) cool conversations. While the plot itself isn't exactly dispensible it's not really the most important thing either.
I liked this one better than the second one but of course nothing will beat the coolness factor of the first. While I enjoyed the second movie most of the time, I thought the Julia Roberts playing Julia Roberts part was too much and ruined the rest of the movie for me.
As for the cast additions, let's say I'm no particular fan of Ellen Barkin but she didn't bother me as much as I thought she would. Al Pacino is decent but I still would've liked a viler opponent. Too bad Andy Garcia switched sides (or at least is somewhere in between) but I'm glad he's still part of the cast since I always liked watching him. Eddie Izzard's appearance is too short, something that can be said about many of the characters but that's the downside of having so many of them.
This one also has a lot of meta-jokes. I got some of them but I heartily recommend reading the corresponding imdb trivia page once you've seen the movie. For example a particular scent is used in the movie that's called "The Gilroy" which is a reference to the writer of the adapted screenplays of the three Bourne movies in which Matt Damon plays the leading role. Of course it isn't necessary to get those references but it's nevertheless fun to read about them. It also reinforces my hope that the leading actors don't actually get paid (or donate their pay) since considering how much fun they probably had making the movie I don't think it can be considered actual work.
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May 24th, 2007
06:50 pm - Fracture, Junebug
Fracture
Intelligent thriller in which a successful assistant District Attorney (Ryan Gosling), who is on his way to a lucrative private job, is caught up in a game of cat-and-mouse with a man (Anthony Hopkins) who tried to murder his wife (Embeth Davidtz) and at first openly admits that he did so but then things start to get complicated.
The less you know about the movie the better since, as it's often the case, even watching the trailer gives away too much. It's directed by Gregory Hoblit who also directed Primal Fear so that should give you an indication that he's able to make a good movie from that genre.
I like (courtroom) thrillers like this and I felt very pleasantly entertained. Despite having a very unusual premise by starting with the fact that the suspect confesses that he committed the crime (on an alternative poster for the movie Hopkins declares 'I shot my wife') it's certainly a variation of a movie we've seen before.
But the two leading actors make the difference. It's so much fun to watch Hopkins and Gosling that you don't really start to ask a lot of questions (besides maybe why Hopkins has a beautiful wife about half his age despite being portrayed as an arrogant know-it-all). Their performances are absolutely gripping, helped by the fact that they are given some very good dialogue.
But it's not just the large roles but also the minor scenes like the flirting between Gosling and Rosamund Pike (his future employer) or the funny scenes in Gosling's DA office that I liked.
The movie won't change the course of the world but if you like legal thrillers then I can heartily recommend this movie that doesn't insult your intelligence. Even if you figure out early how it will end, or some of the plot turns, it should keep you interested until the end because of the duel between Hopkins and Gosling. And if you have a crush on Rosamund Pike and/or Embeth Davidtz (like myself) then you surely get more than your money's worth.
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May 2nd, 2007
01:22 pm - The Good German, Curse of the Golden Flower, Sunshine
The Good German
While in post-WWII Berlin to cover the Potsdam Conference, an American military journalist (George Clooney) is drawn into a murder investigation which involves his former mistress (Cate Blanchett) and his driver (Tobey Maguire).
Almost every review and description starts with the mentioning of the fact that Steven Soderbergh made a Film Noir thriller in which he emulates the technique of movie making of the 1940s up to the very last little detail. So unsurprisingly, when you start watching the film you feel instantly reminded of black and white movies like Casablanca or A Foreign Affair or The Third Man. Since I don't watch those old movies very often it took me a while getting used to it but after the first half an hour or so I stopped thinking about it.
For some reason I was expecting that I may find the plot lacking since everybody was putting so much emphasis on describing the technicalities. But I was pleasantly surprised that there is a good and intriguing story and with lots of twists and turns that kept me interested right until the end. Lots of shady characters and it's not easy to distinguish between friend and foe. Everybody in post-war Berlin tried to secure an advantage. In some way it turns out that the two recent 'good' movies (Shepherd and German) have even more in common than their similar sounding titles.
I have to mention that I thought that Blanchett and Clooney don't have the same chemistry as Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Bogart (but they looked good) and I also found the character that Maguire played not entirely believable but I don't think that will keep their respective admirers from watching the movie eventually.
A lot of the reviews I read afterwards said that Soderbergh failed in his attempt to recreate the movie making process of that era and that he basically made the movie to show off. I don't have enough knowledge about those things but personally I'm thankful that Soderbergh and Clooney are able to convince studios to give them the money for such experiments in exchange for delivering them blockbusters like the Ocean series. So if you like old black and white movies then I think you'll find some good entertainment.
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April 10th, 2007
07:07 pm - Good Shepherd, Last King of Scotland, Smokin' Aces
The Good Shepherd
 I was glad that before I saw the movie I had read that it is slowly paced. I have no problems to see such a movie (just the opposite) but I like to know beforehand what general direction a movie takes because otherwise a close to three hour long film can be very long. In other words, you should be well rested when you watch this one.
If you do so then you get a dramatic thriller that chronicles the early years of the Central Intelligence Agency and its predecessor organisation, the Office of Strategic Services. You get a feeling what the cat-and-mouse game of intelligence and counterintelligence operations during World War II was like and how the Cold War developed in its aftermath.
The story is told from the perspective of Edward Wilson (played by Matt Damon) a character who is partly based on James Jesus Angelton, an early member of the CIA. Damon is a very good choice for the role since he plays the loyal, inconspicuous agent well and doesn't look like someone who tries to influence the turn of world events. The excellent supporting cast consists of Angelina Jolie, William Hurt, John Turturro, Robert De Niro (who also directed), Alec Baldwin, Billy Crudup and Michael Gambon.
The movie doesn't focus on the action portion of the events that unfold, it is instead an inner portrait of the works of a secret service based on events of recent world history. It shows that you can trust nobody. You don't know who's loyal and who's a mole and it's very hard not to get paranoid. If you decide to serve then you have to be willing to sacrifice everything, even your family. And if you have a weakness then be prepared that it will be used against you if the time has come.
If you like a low-key thriller where dialogue is more important than action scenes then I can highly recommend this movie.
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March 1st, 2007
07:56 pm - Thumbsucker, Pan's Labyrinth, Stranger Than Fiction
Thumbsucker
 Coming-of-age drama with comedic undertones about a guy named Justin (very convincingly played by Lou Taylor Pucci who deservedly won the Best Actor Award for his role in Berlin two years ago) who tries to ease the pain that comes with growing up by still sucking on his thumb. His problems aren't out of the ordinary, just the usual teenage issues, communication problems at home, difficulties at school, first intimate encounters with the strange other sex.
However, since I'm a little too old to really identify myself with these issues (apart from the strangeness) I had some problems to connect. But if you're that age and if those problems sound familiar then I can heartily recommend this movie to you.
While watching the movie I thought that it could be described as a prequel to Garden State not at least because of the soundtrack which is mostly provided by The Polyphonic Spree and plays a big part in setting the mood.
All supporting characters have their own problems and are played by actors that are all additional reasons to watch even if you think you are over the targeted age: Tilda Swinton and Vincent D'Onofrio who play Justin's parents, a remarkable Keanu Reeves as a dentist who tries to cure Justin from his illness in unusual ways, as well as Vince Vaughn playing a teacher and Benjamin Bratt portraying a TV series star.
This movie can be used as an example to illustrate how much time passes until a film reaches my hometown. It premiered at the Sundance and Berlin Film Festival in 2005, the first trailer dates back to August 05, US release in October 05, limited release in Germany starts October 06, movie finally reaches my hometown February 07.
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February 7th, 2007
09:03 pm - Ein Freund von mir, Prestige, Queen, Scoop, Paris je t'aime
When I started this blog I also started another one in German which I used as a diary about what movies I've seen at the theatre. But as keeping this trailer blog got more and more time consuming to maintain and also got more popular I abandoned the other one.
But from time to time I still think that it is very neat to have some written memory of the movies I've seen. And since I recently encouraged various people to continue writing about the movies they have seen it seems only fair that I try to do the same. So from now on I will try to write a short monthly summary of the movies I've seen at the theatre and from time to time add a noteworthy movie I've seen from DVD or on TV. With five pictures January surely was an above average month.
Ein Freund von mir - A Friend of mine
 German movie featuring two of Germany's busiest actors Daniel Brühl and Jürgen Vogel. Brühl plays the lonely insurance employee Karl who's most comfortable when he can sit in his office juggling with complex insurance formulas. As a career development action he gets sent by his superior to a car rental company to find out what risks the company would be taking if they decided to insure their business. There he meets Hans who's just the opposite of him, very out-going, constantly talking and always in a good mood.
The trailer was very funny but it was also clear that it won't be just a comedy but that the dramatic part would also play a considerable role. One review I read mentioned that the movie would change pace and direction in a meaningful way half-way through, which made me a bit sceptical. Thankfully, I didn't get that impression at all. It turned out be just the right combination of serious seize the day story and some lighter moments. Brühl and Vogel are, as usual, a pleasure to watch. A first movie highlight of the year for me.
Since I haven't posted the trailer for this movie because they are only available in German here are the links to the teaser and the trailer.
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