The Pianist
Im speechless. I dont know where to begin praising this masterpiece. Roman Polanski has adapted a story that will touch you in every way. This movie brought tears to my eyes. Im also going as far to say that it matched "Schindlers List", I have yet to decide which one is better though. Adrien Brody gave a superb performance and deserved his Oscar.
A cinematic masterpiece, a lesson about life and the human beings, and a history lesson. Thank You Roman Polanski for this one.

10/10

I consider The Pianist to be by far the best film of the new millenium, and one of the top 15 movies of all time. I rank it higher than Schindler's List.

Glad you liked it.

You know what? I knew that You would be the first one replying to my post I have to see Shindler's List the next days again to decide which one I prefer..

Mr. & Mrs. Smith - (Doug Liman;2005;USA)
A husband and wife find out during a failing marriage that they are both assassins working for rival companies.
Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have very good chemistry, and this film has many moments of good humor, but unfortunately it lacks in everything else. The whole film seems to exist solely for it's shootouts, and nothing else aside it's humor. It's not enough, and at times the action feels too cartoon-ish to enjoy, although those scenes do have their moments.

Interesting how Doug Liman, when he directed THE BOURNE IDENTITY, offered the title role to Brad Pitt before giving it to Matt Damon........me, I think things worked well as they have.

The Exorcism of Emily Rose **

A true story of a young college girl who was possesed and her priest is brought up on charges of negligence in her death. A pretty dull movie that didn't have the effect it was trying to gain. Laura Linney was the only positive thing I can say about the movie besides Tom Wilkinson who plays Father Moore (I couldn't belive he played Carmine Falcone in Batman Begins. It took me a little while to finally recognize him. It's a mix of a horror movie and court room drama

Glad you liked it, Aziatic. A real masterpiece. Adrian Brody's performance was absolutely outstanding. Yet, for some reason (it would be too long to discuss it now), I prefer Schindler's list. I do urge everybody to watch both. They are priceless.

Yesterday I watched "Man on fire". WOW, what a powerful thriller! Denzel Washington is one of my fav actors and his performance is great, as ever.

Washington reminds me of Morgan Freeman. He's good at playing himself, but rarely stretches beyond his typecast. Man on Fire is as tough as it is empty, with Washington firing guns all over the place and not giving a damn, filmed and edited with such video-game flair that it creates a sense of unreality, perhaps to disguise the fact that this is nothing we've not seen before.

Mick

Glad you enjoyed Man on Fire Lavinia. I loved it too

I think any actor plays somehow himself, at least to a certain extent.


you're right, I noticed that video-game like flair too and I did not enjoyed it at all. Apparently nowadays directors consider it to be cooler adding a bit of oddities to their movies, but it's just disturbing to me.

I'm not with you on this, Mick. A bounty killer (that's why he didn't give a damn to kill high and low) who saves somebody's life by means of his own sacrifice is something that was rarely seen before, IMO.

I'm glad we finally agree on a movie, Irish!

Another contender for film of the year...

De battre mon coeur s'est arrêté (The Beat That My Heart Skipped)
Jacques Audiard 2005 France (1st time; big screen)
A small-time crook operating at the low end of the property market takes up his passion again for the piano, and struggles to share time between his two lives.
Never less than engaging, a credited remake of James Toback's Fingers, this is a brooding character study done with unsettling flair and driven along by a meticulously agitated performance from Romain Duris in the leading role, as the tormented would-be concert pianist.

Heat ***

I guess the third time was the charm for me as I was not very impressed with this movie the first 2 times (which were years ago by the way). I did love both De Niro & Pacino (as usual). De Niro was awesome in his cool & claim "I'm a bank robber but also a killer" persona. While Pacino was intense and comical at times. Kilmer did a nice job too with his role. Overall a good movie but nothing "great" or "masterpiece" about it. I personally feel it's a little overrated on this here board

Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)



* * * *
4 Stars

Directed by: Stanley Kubrick
Main Cast: Peter Sellers, George C. Scott, Sterling Hayden, and Slim Pickens
Nominated for 4 Oscars

Summary: U.S. Air Force Colonel Jack Ripper goes completely and utterly mad, and sends his bomber wing to destroy the U.S.S.R. He suspects that the communists are conspiring to pollute the "precious bodily fluids" of the American people. The U.S. president meets with his advisors, where the Soviet ambassador tells him that if the U.S.S.R. is hit by nuclear weapons, it will trigger a "Doomsday Machine" which will destroy all plant and animal life on Earth. Peter Sellers portrays the three men who might avert this tragedy: British Group Captain Lionel Mandrake, the only person with access to the demented Gen. Ripper; U.S. President Merkin Muffley, whose best attempts to divert disaster depend on placating a drunken Soviet Permier and the former Nazi genius Dr. Strangelove, who concludes that "such a device would not be a practical deterrent for reasons which at this moment must be all too obvious". Will the bombers be stopped in time, or will General Jack Ripper succeed in destroying the world ?

Review: First viewing, making my way through Kubrick's body of work, this is my 3rd one after 2001 and the Shining. Really enjoyed this, Peter Sellers was fantastic, and it was nice to see Sterling Hayden outside of the Godfather. Brilliatnly shot by Kubrick, enjoyed my first George C. Scott movie. The ending was unforgettable, very well done. Guess I'll try out my new film evaluation system...

Direction and Editing - 18/20
Acting and Caliber of the Main Cast - 20/20
Story, Keeps Interest - 18/20
Rewatchability - 17/20
Cinematography - 8/10
Supporting Cast - 9/10
Music - 8/10
Depth - 6/10

104/120 = 87%

87% = 4/5 Stars

Best Quote: "Well, boys, I reckon this is it - nuclear combat toe to toe with the Rooskies."

Lost Highway

Big time confusing movie. 3 of us watched and didn't understand a single thing . Now my friend has just googled and come up with an interpretation Now it makes some sense, but did David Lynch expect anyone to understand this on first viewing. This is the first movie of his I am watching. Man, he makes such cryptic movies. I will be scared to watch any of his other movies. However after understanding the story through backdoor, I think the movie is pretty good. Any suggestions for a non-cryptic movie of his??

Week-end (Weekend)
Jean-Luc Godard 1967 France/Italy (2nd time)
A bourgeois couple travel to Oinville, but their journey is hampered by an endless traffic jam and forest-dwelling savages.
Godard's vision of Hell, depicted with brutal force at the expense of middle class consumerism: apparently, in order to overcome the horrors of the bourgeoisie, more horror is required. Essential viewing, as a cinematic mass of one artist's ideas; it is quite clearly made by somebody disgusted with the world.

Mick

Try The Elephant Man (1980), The Straight Story (1999), and then move up to Wild at Heart (1990), Eraserhead (1976), Blue Velvet (1986) and Mulholland Dr. (2001), in that order.

In the meantime, however, I just watched Lost Highway for the third time last week; only on this viewing did I grasp how brilliant it is. Reading my review of it may help "appreciate" the film more, but understanding it is another thing. Essentially, I think you should watch Lynch's other suggested work, then revisit it, keeping in mind that understanding his work is not necessarily the same as finding the meaning; its meaning, indeed, is entirely the feeling, emotion or reaction it conjures up upon your own mind while, and after, watching it.

Thanks,
Mick

The scene in the war war room featuring the repartee between Seller's President Muffley and Scott's General Turgidson is one of my four or five favorite scenes in all of filmdom.

Plawrence, would be the other three or four?

Too many to name from the GF Trilogy, but aside from that, these come to mind (in no particular order):

- The scene early in Mean Streets where Keitel and deNiro are in the back room discussing Johnny Boy's loan shark payments. Also, the fight in the pool room scene from the same film.

- Two scenes from Spike Lee's Do The Right Thing, one where Frank Vincent drives his cadillac convertible throught fire hydrant spray, and the other in which the characters of different races and nationalities spew all of the stereotypes about each other.

- The opening scene in Reservoir Dogs

- The scene in Paths of Glory when General Broulard and General Mireau have their first meeting.

- The penultimate scene in Inherit The Wind, when Spencer Tracy had Frederic March on the witness stand.

- The scene in Hitchcock's Dial M for Murder when Ray Milland (Tony Wendes) first meets with Charles Swann and draws him into the plot to murder his wife.

Hmmmm.... that's seven already

And....I also consider just about every scene in Raging Bull to be pretty close to perfection.

One day I'm gonna have to post my list of all-time favorite films, too.

I've not seen Do the Right Thing, Paths of Glory or Dial M for Murder, but it is interesting to note that all of the listed scenes are notable for their excessive use of dialogue. From the phatic interaction of Tarantino's Dogs to the rousing rhetoric Spencer's speech in Inherit the Wind. Can we, then, take from these examples an insight into your character? You like to talk, perhaps...?

I count that Mean Streets scene as one of De Niro's finest examples of acting, ever.

I have Dial M for Murder ready to watch.

Mick

Who, me?

I suppose it's fair to say that I have occasionally been accused of a somewhat florid style in my use of both the spoken and written word.

You promised me a review a while ago for some film or another, Mick. Was it Dial M?

That's my favorite Hitchcock, BTW. I like a great many of Alf's films, but strangely enough I'm not a big fan of some of his more critically acclaimed work, like Rear Window or Vertigo, for example.

And how is it that a film fan of your caliber has never seen Paths of Glory?

Quite frankly, you should be ashamed of yourself. :p

I am.

The promised review was, I believe, Miller's Crossing. I'd need to revisit it to write one now. Watch this space...

And, I suppose, like me, you take honour in such accusations of floridity.

Elaborately yours,
Mick

Fantastic Four ***

A good action/comedy movie that I feel was somewhat 'underappreciated'. I'm not gonna sit here and say it was better than Sin City, X-Men or Spider-Man but it was not a Hellboy or A League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. I'd say it was more like The Punisher (which I also enjoyed). Michael Chiklis was definitely the highlight for me and he worked beautifully with Chris Evans the most. The whole group had good chemistry between them and I feel bad for Ioan Gruffudd who's been dogged for his role as 'Mr. Fantastic.' I didn't read the comics so I "wasn't disappointed" with the character of Dr. Doom

The Big Red One (1980) Second Viewing
Directed by: Samuel Fuller
Rating: ***/****

Searching through my history teachers closet today, I found a VHS copy of Sam Fuller's, "The Big Red One". A huge fan of the new reconstruction (Perhaps the greatest war film ever and one of my personal favorites), I was loaned the copy and I saw a film, that even trunicated, still is extremely effective. However, watching the original 1980 cut I am reminded of just how criminal it was to cut almost an hour of fotage from the film and it also reinforces my love of the reconstruction.
The original cut eliminates many of the best scenes I've grown accustomed to and the pacing is awkward, making it from the amazing war epic I love into a more faster paced but weaker film and in fact the cuts made by Warners in 1980 really made some scenes just really hard to comprehend.
At any rate, it's worth seeking out the original 1980 cut to compare with the 2004 reconstruction which again, I rate amoung the ten greatest films in history.
Tomorow I am watching, "Michael Collins".

I'd put money on some of the older members here loving the gem I've just watched...

Out of the Past (Build My Gallows High)
Jacques Tourneur 1947 US (1st time)
A small town gas station owner is visisted by an old friend, and his past life creeps up on him.
Atmospheric noir superbly played by all involved; every line reeks of wit and every shot is drenched in shadow.

Ya Sully, I saw that truncated edit of BIG RED ONE awhile back on cable TV.....and ya, thank god we have the Reconstructed edit on DVD now.

Oh and irishman.....you're wrong. FANTASTIC FOUR is equal in the quality of say SIN CITY or BATMAN BEGINS. That is, if you then took it, shoot it with 100 bullets, beat the shit out of it, throw it off a cliff, flush down the toilet, take a good dump of human solid mineral waste on it, and then light it in fire. Then you're right. :p

HEAT (1995)

****1/2 out of 5

A near-masterpiece of the cop and crime genres, Writer/producer/Director Michael Mann's crime saga in Los Angeles is one that does suffer from the many storylines presented by Mann without smooth resolution...but you know what? That is oddly one reason why I love this movie. Truely Dennis Haysbert's minor subplot is short but effectively sad for what it is. Not to mention that the legendary bank heist sequence is so influential and awesome. Enough action and adrenaline in those scenes that is much more than wimps like Michael Bay could wish to ever equal. Funny enough, many police forces in America study that sequence in how to possibly combat such high firepower battles with bank robbers...and yes, bank robbers have indeed followed that sequence religiously to usually higher-than-normal success, especially one in Baltimore back last year.

If anything, Michael Mann's HEAT is among the most influential movies for me.

Weekend says more in one frame than most films do in their entirety. I consider it to be one of the greatest accomplishments in the history of cinema.

I once said, long ago, that Godard can invoke mroe energy into a single frame than most directors can into an entire feature; I stand by that. Him, Lynch, Herzog and Bacon are my heroes.

Mick