Fellow Movie Lovers
Your feedback, observations and criticisms have been valid and welcomed!
Some have asked for a repeat of my Five Star rating system:
Five Stars: the movie has to be flawless.
Four Stars: almost perfect.
Three Stars: good but not great.
Two Stars: go if you have absolutely nothing else to do.
One Star: the movie should not have been made.
No Stars: why was the movie made?
Yes, I intentionally changed A Serious Man to The Serious Man. Mazeltov to those who caught it!
Again yes, my Blog is very subjective; but isn’t all criticism?
Please keep the comments coming!
Now for a sample of England, Bollywood and Hollywood!
THE DAMNED UNITED
I was twenty-five when I discovered that all men did not spring forth from the womb as bonafide sports fanatics: their first conscious thought in the shape of a “ball”!
My father failed in reigning over six vociferous women and the birth of my brother fell into the category of the Second Coming; fortunately his DNA housed the sport gene and the bonding was complete!
Sport movies have always fascinated me and this is no exception. Michael Sheen (Frost/Nixon) brilliantly portrays Brian Clough the doomed manager of England’s 1970’s Leeds United Football Club; it is uncanny how he has inhabited the persona of the real Clough, a performance of sheer genius. He is supported by Timothy Spall playing Clough’s very moral assistant Peter Taylor; an equally strong performance.
More than the game itself this film captures the primal essence of the power of sports: it is, like Andy Warhol’s silk screens the greatest tool in eliminating elitism; when rooting for a team your gender, education, profession, wealth or lack thereof are secondary to the euphoria or devastation of your team’s win or loss! We clap or cry together!
Whether The Damned United will rank in the halls of iconic sport films (Brian’s Song, The Natural, Hoop Dreams, Field of Dreams, The Longest Yard) only time and the fervent wish of this critic hopes that it does.
Four Stars!
BLUE
Bollywood for a westerner is an acquired taste. I took my first bite five years ago and have been gobbling them voraciously (thanks to Netflix) ever since.
The typical Bollywood film can, at times, take up a major portion of your day; not unusual to have to devote over three hours (with an interval) to the banquet. The plots are simple, the actors are a “feast for the eyes” and the endings, happy and satiating.
There are names synonymous with Bollywood; Bachchan , Khan, Kapoor, one talented dynasty breeding another.
In Blue (short by India standards, 2 hours; obviously adjusting to the westerners’ short attention span) we have a sunken treasure hunt story; a few plot twists, starring Sanjay Dutt, who unlike Roman Polanski, did the crime and served the time, and is back in hunky glory on the wide screen. But the major stars are the breath taking under water scenes filmed in the Bahamas.
There’s romance, dance and intrigue but only gets Two Stars from me!
Would recommend the following that are highly substantive and diverge from the typical Bollywood fare:
Ghajini
Lagaan
Shukriya
Maine Pyar Kiya
Dil Chahta Hai
Maine Prem Ki Diwani Hoon
Mr. & Mrs. Iyer
WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE
This is a wonderful fantasy based on the book by Maurice Sendak and exquisitely directed by Spike Jonze. Starring the deliciously enchanting Max Records as Max; the imaginative and misunderstood boy who creates a world where he is crowned King!
My children loved this book along with Shel Silverstein’s The Giving Tree; the lessons and messages for both young and old are unlimited and ageless.
This is a movie for everyone; we have all gone where the wild things are and have returned changed and enriched!
Four Stars!
For Now……………Peneflix
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Monday, October 12, 2009
Fellow Movie Lovers
Fellow Movie Lovers
A SERIOUS MAN
Growing up in an upper middle class Christian community, studying comparative religions in college, I developed a fascination for Judaism and its amazing story of survival. From the Babylonian captivity (506 BC), Diaspora from Rome (70AD), Spanish Inquisition, expulsion from every European country and the ultimate degradation, the Holocaust, Judaism did not die, nor did its people. Why? It remains a mystery.
After embracing this religion as my own I have thrived in its glorious history, culture, philosophy and religious traditions; it is the core of my existence and I love it!
So when viewing Ethan and Joel Coen’s The Serious Man I was sickened and stunned by their portrayal of a late 1960s Jewish family and their Jewish community. Every individual is devoid of compassion, depth, sympathy and most importantly love.
They depict the rabbis as ignorant, self centered and cruel. The Coens render the familial relationships as petty, mean spirited and totally superficial. Even the Bar Mitzvah boy is stoned at his pivotal ceremony, denigrating its beautiful meaning in a young boys (and girls) religious life.
The major protagonist Larry Gopnik (exceptionally played by Michael Stuhlbarg) is the Job in this scenario; unlike Job he loses any shred of dignity by ultimately changing the failing grade of one of his students. There is not one redeeming scene in this entire film: it is pejorative, destructive and anti-semitic!
While viewing this movie with a friend we questioned the motives behind its creation? Why make your ancestors evil? Where was the respect for their family and deep rooted traditions? What kind of message does this send to the non Jewish world? After 9/11 there was another flare up of anti-Semitism; plus the financial misdeeds of Bernie Madoff; do we need another log on the proverbial pyre of Jewish hatred?
I thought of the historical wrongs perpetrated on this incredible religion and its people: the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, the teachings of Martin Luther; the madness of Hitler.
Was The Serious Man necessary?
On the positive side, long after the Coens have been forgotten, Judaism will still be alive!
Seriously,
NO STARS
For Now………….Peneflix
A SERIOUS MAN
Growing up in an upper middle class Christian community, studying comparative religions in college, I developed a fascination for Judaism and its amazing story of survival. From the Babylonian captivity (506 BC), Diaspora from Rome (70AD), Spanish Inquisition, expulsion from every European country and the ultimate degradation, the Holocaust, Judaism did not die, nor did its people. Why? It remains a mystery.
After embracing this religion as my own I have thrived in its glorious history, culture, philosophy and religious traditions; it is the core of my existence and I love it!
So when viewing Ethan and Joel Coen’s The Serious Man I was sickened and stunned by their portrayal of a late 1960s Jewish family and their Jewish community. Every individual is devoid of compassion, depth, sympathy and most importantly love.
They depict the rabbis as ignorant, self centered and cruel. The Coens render the familial relationships as petty, mean spirited and totally superficial. Even the Bar Mitzvah boy is stoned at his pivotal ceremony, denigrating its beautiful meaning in a young boys (and girls) religious life.
The major protagonist Larry Gopnik (exceptionally played by Michael Stuhlbarg) is the Job in this scenario; unlike Job he loses any shred of dignity by ultimately changing the failing grade of one of his students. There is not one redeeming scene in this entire film: it is pejorative, destructive and anti-semitic!
While viewing this movie with a friend we questioned the motives behind its creation? Why make your ancestors evil? Where was the respect for their family and deep rooted traditions? What kind of message does this send to the non Jewish world? After 9/11 there was another flare up of anti-Semitism; plus the financial misdeeds of Bernie Madoff; do we need another log on the proverbial pyre of Jewish hatred?
I thought of the historical wrongs perpetrated on this incredible religion and its people: the Protocols of the Elders of Zion, the teachings of Martin Luther; the madness of Hitler.
Was The Serious Man necessary?
On the positive side, long after the Coens have been forgotten, Judaism will still be alive!
Seriously,
NO STARS
For Now………….Peneflix
Friday, October 9, 2009
Fellow Movie Lovers
Fellow Movie Lovers
WHIP IT
The appropriate word to describe this coming of age movie is “sweet”! Drew Barrymoor’s directorial debut should be applauded; casting herself in a minor role is an exercise in humility that should also be commended.
Ellen Page (Juno, Smart People) stars as the frustrated small town teen, seething to break the binds of her very conventional existence. Ms. Page, radiates intelligence, comfort and supreme control over her characterization of Bliss (aka Babe Ruthless); she is a dynamite wizard on wheels.
Marcia Gay Harden gives a credible performance of a mother trying to actualize her dreams through her daughters: she too must come of age.
Whip It will satisfy the thirteen through twenty-five year olds. The rest, Skip It!
Two Stars!
The BOYS ARE BACK
I think it was Shakespeare who once said that if all one does is play, it becomes work! In this film the viewer is treated to two hours of tedium watching a father and his sons run, romp and role while sinking deeper and deeper into a sea of squalor: oblivious to the “cleanliness is next to godliness” mantra!
This is based on a true story and everyone can empathize with the pain of loss and the challenges of coping with grief but the movie was totally lacking in substance. Even the devastating countenance of Clive Owen and the magical landscape of Australia could not save this film from the world of mediocrity. The boys are back; oh how I wished they had stayed where they were!
Two Stars!
CAPITALISM: A LOVE STORY
When I think of filmatic love stories or pairings I conger up images of Burton and Taylor, Tracy and Hepburn, O’Neal and MacGraw, Ledger and Gyllenhaal or even Fay Wray and King Kong. But in Michael Moore’s latest fantasy he partners Wall Street and its passionate quest for “capital”ism as a marriage so devoted, so strong so empirical that it will never grace the halls of a divorce court: just a criminal one.
This is NOT a documentary. Moore’s talents lie in shedding seeds of truth on his field of fiction. The financial institutions deserve much of the castigation depicted in this, at times very entertaining film but Moorism takes it into the realm of the absurd. He proselytizes that capitalism and democracy are diametrically opposed and can never coexist: his converts, members of the clergy and Congress believe that we are on the verge of an apocalypse. Apropos of a Stephen King novel.
Moore is disturbing with his black and white portrayal of the government, financial institutions and both major political parties; nothing and no one is left unscathed. But this is his right and privilege in our democratic society; we encourage discourse and dialogue between opposing opinions. Yes, it feels good to vent; no one does venting better than Moore.
The movie shines with his clever juxtapositions of past film clips with the present; naturally edited to prove his point. His chutzpah at trying to make a citizens arrest and arriving at banks with a Brinks truck to collect the bailout funds to be redistributed to the people are hilarious.
It should be noted that Mr. Moore received millions of dollars in tax incentives from the state of Michigan to film Capitalism: A Love Story in their state; and like any good capitalist, if this was disclosed, it was in very small print! Whose pockets did these incentives come from? We also know from a recent Wall Street Journal article that you can purchase a home in Detroit for the price of a Birkin bag!
Mr. Moore, instead of Wall Street, should invest some of his capital in a new suit, hat and tie!
Two & ½ Stars!
For Now……………..Peneflix
WHIP IT
The appropriate word to describe this coming of age movie is “sweet”! Drew Barrymoor’s directorial debut should be applauded; casting herself in a minor role is an exercise in humility that should also be commended.
Ellen Page (Juno, Smart People) stars as the frustrated small town teen, seething to break the binds of her very conventional existence. Ms. Page, radiates intelligence, comfort and supreme control over her characterization of Bliss (aka Babe Ruthless); she is a dynamite wizard on wheels.
Marcia Gay Harden gives a credible performance of a mother trying to actualize her dreams through her daughters: she too must come of age.
Whip It will satisfy the thirteen through twenty-five year olds. The rest, Skip It!
Two Stars!
The BOYS ARE BACK
I think it was Shakespeare who once said that if all one does is play, it becomes work! In this film the viewer is treated to two hours of tedium watching a father and his sons run, romp and role while sinking deeper and deeper into a sea of squalor: oblivious to the “cleanliness is next to godliness” mantra!
This is based on a true story and everyone can empathize with the pain of loss and the challenges of coping with grief but the movie was totally lacking in substance. Even the devastating countenance of Clive Owen and the magical landscape of Australia could not save this film from the world of mediocrity. The boys are back; oh how I wished they had stayed where they were!
Two Stars!
CAPITALISM: A LOVE STORY
When I think of filmatic love stories or pairings I conger up images of Burton and Taylor, Tracy and Hepburn, O’Neal and MacGraw, Ledger and Gyllenhaal or even Fay Wray and King Kong. But in Michael Moore’s latest fantasy he partners Wall Street and its passionate quest for “capital”ism as a marriage so devoted, so strong so empirical that it will never grace the halls of a divorce court: just a criminal one.
This is NOT a documentary. Moore’s talents lie in shedding seeds of truth on his field of fiction. The financial institutions deserve much of the castigation depicted in this, at times very entertaining film but Moorism takes it into the realm of the absurd. He proselytizes that capitalism and democracy are diametrically opposed and can never coexist: his converts, members of the clergy and Congress believe that we are on the verge of an apocalypse. Apropos of a Stephen King novel.
Moore is disturbing with his black and white portrayal of the government, financial institutions and both major political parties; nothing and no one is left unscathed. But this is his right and privilege in our democratic society; we encourage discourse and dialogue between opposing opinions. Yes, it feels good to vent; no one does venting better than Moore.
The movie shines with his clever juxtapositions of past film clips with the present; naturally edited to prove his point. His chutzpah at trying to make a citizens arrest and arriving at banks with a Brinks truck to collect the bailout funds to be redistributed to the people are hilarious.
It should be noted that Mr. Moore received millions of dollars in tax incentives from the state of Michigan to film Capitalism: A Love Story in their state; and like any good capitalist, if this was disclosed, it was in very small print! Whose pockets did these incentives come from? We also know from a recent Wall Street Journal article that you can purchase a home in Detroit for the price of a Birkin bag!
Mr. Moore, instead of Wall Street, should invest some of his capital in a new suit, hat and tie!
Two & ½ Stars!
For Now……………..Peneflix
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Fellow Movie Lovers
Fellow Movie Lovers
FAME
The delicious and gentler remake of the 1980 movie that garnished two Academy awards! Fame a four letter word that entices us to ponder its meaning; subjective to its very core. Fame comes in all packages and in all categories; the media keeps us posted on its parameters or non parameters!
The unmitigated and raw talent in this film oozes off the screen. It screams with vitality and pulls us into the world of performing arts. A refreshing look at gifted young artists; artists whose sex, race or backgrounds are totally irrelevant to their goal…………just being the best at what they do, and the competition is thrilling. Even those whose dreams are dashed, succeed in attaining a modicum of fame. Many have to be satisfied with a Warholian moment!
The movie has its flaws and clichés; but youth in retrospect is a cliché!
These young and beautiful stars, and stars they are, dance, sing, compose and act with a brightness so rarefied that I hope, unlike a supernova, they will last forever.
Three Stars!
A WOMAN IN BERLIN
Max Farberbock has created a masterpiece; based on the true story of a female journalist, struggling to survive in the waning days of WWII in the city of Berlin. The Russians are the victors and the victors take the spoils and take the spoils over and over again! A brutal, complex and at times poignantly human portrayal of “man’s inhumanity to man” (or women in this scenario)!
Nina Hoss plays Anonyma, a brilliant journalist and the perfect mold for the Aryan ideal of female perfection: blond, beautiful and loyal to the cause. There are two minutes in the early stages of the film that capture us instantly. Buoyant and educated people toasting the magnificence of Germany and its mission; in a gleaming Bauhaus living room; a room that is transformed by war but still habitable, and the stage for constant degradation.
This story was written and published anonymously. She wrote to her absent love; to record, escape and find meaning to a life unrecognizable from the glamorous one of the past. It was not well received when it was published in the late 50’s; wounds still festered between Russians and Germans. Also, German women were very sensitive to a role forced upon them by their captors.
Ultimately this is a document of revenge, power, of illusions and lives destroyed. But above all it is the story of one woman’s will to survive, through all the horrors her thirst for life and love remained unquenched!
Five Stars!
ZOMBIELAND
We’ve all had moments when we have questioned our decisions, or sanity. I had one of those moments today. After ten minutes I realized that with knowledge and foresight I chose this movie. After thirty minutes a colonoscopy would have been preferable. But by exercising supreme fortitude and because of the charm of Woody Harrelson I stayed for the conclusion (but was the first one to poll vault from my seat to the safety and saneness of the lobby)! And kept my head low to avoid detection or recognition from my peers. Really there was nothing to fear; I was the oldest member of the audience by twenty years!
In fairness many seem to really enjoy and relish the humor (lost upon humorless me); also the use of the word “like”, robbed of its legitimacy by the twenty first century culture, grates “like” nails on a blackboard on my grammatical sensitivities!
Two Stars!
For Now………………..Peneflix
FAME
The delicious and gentler remake of the 1980 movie that garnished two Academy awards! Fame a four letter word that entices us to ponder its meaning; subjective to its very core. Fame comes in all packages and in all categories; the media keeps us posted on its parameters or non parameters!
The unmitigated and raw talent in this film oozes off the screen. It screams with vitality and pulls us into the world of performing arts. A refreshing look at gifted young artists; artists whose sex, race or backgrounds are totally irrelevant to their goal…………just being the best at what they do, and the competition is thrilling. Even those whose dreams are dashed, succeed in attaining a modicum of fame. Many have to be satisfied with a Warholian moment!
The movie has its flaws and clichés; but youth in retrospect is a cliché!
These young and beautiful stars, and stars they are, dance, sing, compose and act with a brightness so rarefied that I hope, unlike a supernova, they will last forever.
Three Stars!
A WOMAN IN BERLIN
Max Farberbock has created a masterpiece; based on the true story of a female journalist, struggling to survive in the waning days of WWII in the city of Berlin. The Russians are the victors and the victors take the spoils and take the spoils over and over again! A brutal, complex and at times poignantly human portrayal of “man’s inhumanity to man” (or women in this scenario)!
Nina Hoss plays Anonyma, a brilliant journalist and the perfect mold for the Aryan ideal of female perfection: blond, beautiful and loyal to the cause. There are two minutes in the early stages of the film that capture us instantly. Buoyant and educated people toasting the magnificence of Germany and its mission; in a gleaming Bauhaus living room; a room that is transformed by war but still habitable, and the stage for constant degradation.
This story was written and published anonymously. She wrote to her absent love; to record, escape and find meaning to a life unrecognizable from the glamorous one of the past. It was not well received when it was published in the late 50’s; wounds still festered between Russians and Germans. Also, German women were very sensitive to a role forced upon them by their captors.
Ultimately this is a document of revenge, power, of illusions and lives destroyed. But above all it is the story of one woman’s will to survive, through all the horrors her thirst for life and love remained unquenched!
Five Stars!
ZOMBIELAND
We’ve all had moments when we have questioned our decisions, or sanity. I had one of those moments today. After ten minutes I realized that with knowledge and foresight I chose this movie. After thirty minutes a colonoscopy would have been preferable. But by exercising supreme fortitude and because of the charm of Woody Harrelson I stayed for the conclusion (but was the first one to poll vault from my seat to the safety and saneness of the lobby)! And kept my head low to avoid detection or recognition from my peers. Really there was nothing to fear; I was the oldest member of the audience by twenty years!
In fairness many seem to really enjoy and relish the humor (lost upon humorless me); also the use of the word “like”, robbed of its legitimacy by the twenty first century culture, grates “like” nails on a blackboard on my grammatical sensitivities!
Two Stars!
For Now………………..Peneflix
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