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Kirk Bage (1775 KP) rated Band a Part (1964) in Movies
Jan 28, 2021
Of all the directors I have flirted with in my opening months with the BFI player, Godard is the one I am finding most accessible and least intimidating. He is the guy whose movies I am most tempted by when I don’t want to think or analyse too much, but simply sit back and enjoy for being cool. I also wanted to see why Quentin Tarantino named his production company after this movie. And now I have seen it his whole oeuvre makes total sense, at last! The exact feel of this Nouvelle Vague cornerstone is exactly what you find in 80% of what Tarantino is trying to do. The plot is incidental, of course. What is happening is only there to pin the characters and quirky dialogue on. Being cool is all. And this mid 60s confection is so cool, so French and so much style over content in the best possible way.
On the surface it is about two dodgy guys who take a shine to a girl and rope her into a heist. But the most memorable moments are the trivialities of them dancing the Maddison in a cafe because they are bored; reading the news aloud from newspapers whilst sat in the woods; driving erratically in a speedy little jalopy with a broken roof; and just making faces at one another as they flirt and express the bittersweet tediousness of being alive. It epitomises the time and place almost more than A Bout de Souffle, and in my opinion is the more mature, more knowing film. Ultimately it means very little, but is impossible not to like. It also sparked a greater interest in Anna Karina as a film icon, being the 2nd film on this list in which she impressed me.
On the surface it is about two dodgy guys who take a shine to a girl and rope her into a heist. But the most memorable moments are the trivialities of them dancing the Maddison in a cafe because they are bored; reading the news aloud from newspapers whilst sat in the woods; driving erratically in a speedy little jalopy with a broken roof; and just making faces at one another as they flirt and express the bittersweet tediousness of being alive. It epitomises the time and place almost more than A Bout de Souffle, and in my opinion is the more mature, more knowing film. Ultimately it means very little, but is impossible not to like. It also sparked a greater interest in Anna Karina as a film icon, being the 2nd film on this list in which she impressed me.
The Ghastly One: The Sex-Gore Netherworld of Filmmaker Andy Milligan
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Nicolas Winding Refn presents one of the most acclaimed film director biographies ever published....
Agent Alice
Games
App
AN ALL-NEW HIDDEN OBJECT ADVENTURE GAME Join Special Agent Alice Wallace, and dive into a whole new...
The Poetry Deal
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"The Poetry Deal: San Francisco Poet Laureate Series No. 5 gives us di Prima's vision as she looks...
TheBookMother (105 KP) rated The Memory Keeper's Daughter in Books
Jun 6, 2019
Hauntingly Beautiful
This came into the charity shop I work in and as soon as I read the blurb on the back of the book I knew I had to read it.
A Doctor in a snow storm delivers his twins but one is born with Down Syndrome and he decides there and then to tell his wife that she died. He hands over his daughter to the nurse and asks her to take her to a home. She decides upon seeing the home she cannot possibly leave her here and raises her herself.
The book follows through time the lives of everyone the Doctor and his wife raising there son Paul, and the Nurse Caroline fighting for Phoebe to be accepted and have access to an education and equal opportunities.
It starts of in the 60s and we really get a glimpse into the attitudes of the time towards those with Down Syndrome and at times it is awkward to read at times as you cannot believe that it was like this.
With such a explosive secret being kept and the grief that Norah feels after thinking she has lost a child the family is poisoned and relationships turn toxic and the family dynamic is ripped apart.
We see Phoebe thrive throughout her life with Caroline and also the limitations she faces in her day to day life.
The emotive language the author uses means you do feel Norah's loss, you resent David for his betrayal, you can understand Paul's rebellion and Caroline's guilt.
It is an achingly beautiful book which is dealing with an explosively emotive storyline. I really enjoyed it and it is really hauntingly staying with me even after I've finished as I began to imagine how I would feel and what I would do if I was put in that situation. A really good read, possibly to emotionally charged for a sleep deprived and hormonal mother of two boys, one of which does have medical issues do I could relate somewhat too.
A Doctor in a snow storm delivers his twins but one is born with Down Syndrome and he decides there and then to tell his wife that she died. He hands over his daughter to the nurse and asks her to take her to a home. She decides upon seeing the home she cannot possibly leave her here and raises her herself.
The book follows through time the lives of everyone the Doctor and his wife raising there son Paul, and the Nurse Caroline fighting for Phoebe to be accepted and have access to an education and equal opportunities.
It starts of in the 60s and we really get a glimpse into the attitudes of the time towards those with Down Syndrome and at times it is awkward to read at times as you cannot believe that it was like this.
With such a explosive secret being kept and the grief that Norah feels after thinking she has lost a child the family is poisoned and relationships turn toxic and the family dynamic is ripped apart.
We see Phoebe thrive throughout her life with Caroline and also the limitations she faces in her day to day life.
The emotive language the author uses means you do feel Norah's loss, you resent David for his betrayal, you can understand Paul's rebellion and Caroline's guilt.
It is an achingly beautiful book which is dealing with an explosively emotive storyline. I really enjoyed it and it is really hauntingly staying with me even after I've finished as I began to imagine how I would feel and what I would do if I was put in that situation. A really good read, possibly to emotionally charged for a sleep deprived and hormonal mother of two boys, one of which does have medical issues do I could relate somewhat too.
Awix (3310 KP) rated Godzilla: Final Wars (2004) in Movies
Feb 8, 2018
Everything but the Nagashidai
Almost wholly nuts kaiju-SF movie originally produced for the 50th anniversary of Godzilla's first appearance. It actually does a pretty good job of having something for everyone - everyone who's ever enjoyed a Godzilla film, anyway. The plot is certainly reminiscent of some of the 60s movies - aliens from Planet X (seriously) turn up and initially pretend to be friendly, but turn out to be intent on taking over the world, using their ability to control almost all of Earth's monsters. Naturally, Godzilla is immune, and the desperate human characters resort to releasing Godzilla from the prison he's been in for years so he can sort the invaders out - even if this will mean him having to fight virtually every other monster on the planet almost single-handed.
All very promising, if you like this sort of thing, but the director's clear desire to actually be making a Matrix sequel is a bit intrusive - there's a lot of human-on-human martial arts action which isn't what I personally turn up to a Godzilla movie for. The sheer knowing silliness of the film may also be off-putting for some viewers.
But set against all that, there's a bit where Mothra battles Gigan! There's a fight between proper Japanese Godzilla and the mutant iguana pretender from the Roland Emmerich version! You get to see Baby Godzilla sitting in the cab of a pick-up truck during an unexpected subplot about hitch-hiking! And much more. (Keith Emerson's soundtrack is very atypical for a Godzilla film, but actually pretty funky.) The sheer profusion of monsters - nearly every Toho beastie makes at least a cameo, the only big-name absentee being Mechagodzilla - and the cheerful craziness of the story make this, if not quite an entirely worthy tribute to Godzilla's first fifty years, then certainly a very hard film to completely dislike.
All very promising, if you like this sort of thing, but the director's clear desire to actually be making a Matrix sequel is a bit intrusive - there's a lot of human-on-human martial arts action which isn't what I personally turn up to a Godzilla movie for. The sheer knowing silliness of the film may also be off-putting for some viewers.
But set against all that, there's a bit where Mothra battles Gigan! There's a fight between proper Japanese Godzilla and the mutant iguana pretender from the Roland Emmerich version! You get to see Baby Godzilla sitting in the cab of a pick-up truck during an unexpected subplot about hitch-hiking! And much more. (Keith Emerson's soundtrack is very atypical for a Godzilla film, but actually pretty funky.) The sheer profusion of monsters - nearly every Toho beastie makes at least a cameo, the only big-name absentee being Mechagodzilla - and the cheerful craziness of the story make this, if not quite an entirely worthy tribute to Godzilla's first fifty years, then certainly a very hard film to completely dislike.
Fred (860 KP) rated The Grinch (2018) in Movies
Dec 26, 2019
Dr. Seuss lite
Everyone knows & loves Chuck Jones' animated version from the 60s & I'm sure most people know the live-action Jim Carrey version as well. Whether you like that one or not is up to you. I did like it. Anyway, here we get a new animated version, full-length movie. How is it? Well, it's hit & miss.
Let's start with the Grinch himself. He's kind of toned down in this version & not really as mean as he should be. Yeah, sure he tries to stop Christmas, but his reasoning for it is different than the original. But we deal with it because he still wants to stop Christmas from coming. He almost seems like he's a nice guy pretending to be mean.
One of the greatest things in the original animated version is the song "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch" sung by Thurl Ravenscroft. Even the Jim Carrey version, was good. But the version in this film is absolutely horrendous. It borders on annoying. Actually, it may have crossed the border. The only thing saving it was they only used about 4 lines from the song.
My main problem with the movie is it's Dr. Seuss lite. What I mean by that is that they hardly use any of Seuss' crazy language. I remember words like floo-floobers, kazay, zoozits, tar-tinkers & things like that. There was nothing like that in this film. Even lines from the book were hardly used. It doesn't feel like Dr. Seuss at all. It's almost like they never read the book. They changed the story, the ending & add useless characters like Fred the reindeer.
As for the good. Well, the voice acting is good & the animation is very good. The story works well enough, even with the changes. All in all, it is enjoyable. It's not as good as the Jim Carrey version & nowhere near as good as the Chuck Jones version. Would I watch it again. Maybe. But I'd watch the others before this one.
Let's start with the Grinch himself. He's kind of toned down in this version & not really as mean as he should be. Yeah, sure he tries to stop Christmas, but his reasoning for it is different than the original. But we deal with it because he still wants to stop Christmas from coming. He almost seems like he's a nice guy pretending to be mean.
One of the greatest things in the original animated version is the song "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch" sung by Thurl Ravenscroft. Even the Jim Carrey version, was good. But the version in this film is absolutely horrendous. It borders on annoying. Actually, it may have crossed the border. The only thing saving it was they only used about 4 lines from the song.
My main problem with the movie is it's Dr. Seuss lite. What I mean by that is that they hardly use any of Seuss' crazy language. I remember words like floo-floobers, kazay, zoozits, tar-tinkers & things like that. There was nothing like that in this film. Even lines from the book were hardly used. It doesn't feel like Dr. Seuss at all. It's almost like they never read the book. They changed the story, the ending & add useless characters like Fred the reindeer.
As for the good. Well, the voice acting is good & the animation is very good. The story works well enough, even with the changes. All in all, it is enjoyable. It's not as good as the Jim Carrey version & nowhere near as good as the Chuck Jones version. Would I watch it again. Maybe. But I'd watch the others before this one.
LeftSideCut (3778 KP) rated X-Men: First Class (2011) in Movies
Jul 28, 2019
Back on form
Fox made a smart move with First Class. After just four movies, the X-Men movie franchise had already started to feel a bit stale. The solution? Take the story way back for a 60s adventure.
The casting here is pretty strong. James McAvoy is great in the role of a younger and cockier Charles Xavier, and Michael Fassbender seems like perfect casting as Erik Lensher (even if his Irish accent slips into his dialogue now and again!)
The relationship between the two friends, sadly destined to become enemies, is the beating heart of First Class. A lot of the action we've become accustomed too throughout these films is sidelined to explore their friendship, and their conflicting ideologies. As the plot comes to a head, and these two really pull in opposite directions, the emotional impact is well earned and hard hitting.
Elsewhere, we have Nicholas Holt as Beast and Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique. They also fit the billing pretty well, and are a welcome addition to the cast.
As an X-Men comic fan, it's a lovely touch to see less known characters get screen time such as Azazel, Havoc, and finally - Banshee!
We also get an adaption of Emma Frost, although she is criminally underused, merely present as a glorified henchwoman.
Kevin Bacon is the big bad this time round, playing Sebastian Shaw, a relatively minor X-Men villain, who plays his part well in First Class - he never feels like a huge threat, but that works as it doesn't steal the limelight from Erik's descent into Magneto.
The final action scene is enjoyable comic book fun - the small X-Men team clad in yellow and blue outfits (a nod to the original comic costumes), and the setting is full of colour. Its pretty damn glorious.
First Class is a stand out entry into the X-Men franchise, and certainly worth your time, even if you've never seen another X-Men film!
The casting here is pretty strong. James McAvoy is great in the role of a younger and cockier Charles Xavier, and Michael Fassbender seems like perfect casting as Erik Lensher (even if his Irish accent slips into his dialogue now and again!)
The relationship between the two friends, sadly destined to become enemies, is the beating heart of First Class. A lot of the action we've become accustomed too throughout these films is sidelined to explore their friendship, and their conflicting ideologies. As the plot comes to a head, and these two really pull in opposite directions, the emotional impact is well earned and hard hitting.
Elsewhere, we have Nicholas Holt as Beast and Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique. They also fit the billing pretty well, and are a welcome addition to the cast.
As an X-Men comic fan, it's a lovely touch to see less known characters get screen time such as Azazel, Havoc, and finally - Banshee!
We also get an adaption of Emma Frost, although she is criminally underused, merely present as a glorified henchwoman.
Kevin Bacon is the big bad this time round, playing Sebastian Shaw, a relatively minor X-Men villain, who plays his part well in First Class - he never feels like a huge threat, but that works as it doesn't steal the limelight from Erik's descent into Magneto.
The final action scene is enjoyable comic book fun - the small X-Men team clad in yellow and blue outfits (a nod to the original comic costumes), and the setting is full of colour. Its pretty damn glorious.
First Class is a stand out entry into the X-Men franchise, and certainly worth your time, even if you've never seen another X-Men film!
Rocks: My Life in and out of Aerosmith
David Ritz and Joe Perry
Book
In this riveting inside account of his life in rock-and-roll band Aerosmith, Joe Perry opens up for...
Testimony
Book
Robbie Robertson's singular contributions to popular music have made him one of the most beloved...