Search

Search only in certain items:

Inmate #1: The Rise of Danny Trejo (2020)
Inmate #1: The Rise of Danny Trejo (2020)
2020 | Documentary
9
8.5 (2 Ratings)
Movie Rating
I don't think there's anyone who would be able to say "Danny who?" unless they were living in a cave somewhere. Whether it's Machete, Navajas in Desperado or the voice of Jaguar in Rick and Morty, there's something for everyone to click with out there. (3-Headed Shark Attack for the classiest of you out there.)

There's always something amazing around Danny Trejo, I love seeing him pop up in films. It wasn't until watching this that I realised just how many roles he's done and has coming up, it's even gone up a significant amount since they put this together. It also made me realise that I have a lot of things I need to watch. I'm at a measly 5% watched according to Letterboxd.

With several documentaries I've watched recently there are fundamental pieces that they've tweaked to try and change things up, Inmate #1 has kept to quite a traditional setup and it works tremendously well. We have interviews, old video footage of locations and sets and photos from Danny's life, the archival footage gives you a very clear image of what is being narrated and it helps to take you through the timeline.

The only slight drawback to the interview portion is the sheer variety of people that they include. Trejo's children, friends and colleagues have recurring parts and a significant portion is them recounting stories. It's all interesting content, but it's not always personally relevant to them and that seemed a little odd. It was really only a small point on the whole thing but I wouldn't have said no to more Trejo moments.

Seeing Danny Trejo's personality come across is wonderful to behold, he has an addictive humour to him and seeing him laugh at memories will make you smile back. But you also get to see remorse and emotion in such an honest way. The Kermit story broke me.


Overall, the documentary handles change in tone and situations well. All the transitions you see are smooth and there was no jarring change at any point which meant I was engaged for the whole 1hr and 47 minutes. It's compiled wonderfully and the mix between old and new content is balanced, the fact that it brings you full circle and shows you how hard he works on his career and his community is a joy.

Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2020/06/inmate-1-rise-of-danny-trejo-movie.html
  
40x40

Gaspar Noe recommended An Andalusian Dog (1929) in Movies (curated)

 
An Andalusian Dog (1929)
An Andalusian Dog (1929)
1929 | Fantasy, Horror
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Movie Favorite

"I’m obsessed with 2001: A Space Odyssey, but I’m not jealous of the director who directed it because it was so much work. I’m sure he was working 20 hours a day for five years, with the very best people he could find on this planet to create a cathedral of cinema. The movie is a cathedral itself. And also when you read about how the reception to the movie was, how much he suffered, everybody was picking on the movie besides the young audience, that you don’t envy Kubrick. You envy his talent. But if there’s one director that I really envy, it’s Buñuel. I wish I was in his head when he had shown the movie he co-directed with Salvador Dali, because it’s just a short movie, a 17-minute movie, but that still is his most famous movie after a huge career of fabulous movies. And it’s the first movie that I know that really used the language of dreams and nightmares. The opening scene of the movie, of the short film, with Bunuel cutting the eye of a woman — even if the close-up, they replaced the eye of the woman by the eye of a cow — is so shocking that I wish I could have been in the audience, if I could not be behind Bunuel. If I could see the reaction, I’m sure there’s never people turning more crazy in the history of cinema, than the first audience that that movie had. Really it was not as banned as his first feature, L’Age d’Or, that was more anti-religious than this one. But yeah, there’s so many documentaries about the Second World War, about the First World War, about the things that happened in the trench, but why didn’t anybody film the opening day, or that first premiere of Un Chien Andelou? I’m sure that it was a general state of shock. And the movie is so beautiful, so political, that it’s a real piece of art. There’s not many directors you can consider as artists. Of course, Kubrick’s like an architect, the most famous architect in the history of cinema, but as a poet or painter, Bunuel is an artist. Also, he was co-directing a movie with Salvador Dali, which makes sense. You can say Kennith Anger is an artist. But there are not many filmmakers that you can consider artists."

Source
  
40x40

Sarah (126 KP) rated The Staircase in TV

Aug 10, 2018  
The Staircase
The Staircase
2018 | Crime, Documentary
8
8.0 (25 Ratings)
TV Show Rating
Good start-to-finish coverage of the matter (0 more)
The last few episodes are dragged out a little (0 more)
A Compelling Watch
All are punish'd.

The final words of The Staircase, taken from the last scene of Romeo & Juliet, seem particularly fitting for the series.

This series is centred on the untimely death of Kathleen Peterson, wife of author Michael Peterson.

For fans of true crime documentaries such as Making a Murderer, Evil Genius and Wild, Wild Country, this may seem something of a "slow burn"; however, from the initial report of Kathleen apparently tumbling down the stairs, we are quickly taken on a journey which spans several decades, two continents and which reveals lies and betrayal the likes of which seem more fitting of a crime thriller novel than a real life crime drama.

As with pretty much of these true crime series', we are left with a lot of unanswered questions; what makes The Staircase different is that it actually takes from the initial 911 call right up to the closure of the case.

What this start to finish coverage of the matter does give is a stark indication of the sheer length of time (and amount of money) that justice can take - if, indeed, one considers that justice was in fact served in this matter - and the toll that can take.

The level of coverage - of coaching of the witness pre-Trial, interviews with the Judge following the conclusion, and pretty much everything in between - allows us great insight into the US judicial process, as well as a close look at the Defendant himself and his family.

While each and every viewer will undoubtedly form their own opinion as to the guilt or otherwise of Michael Peterson - even though we aren't privy to all of the evidence, investigations, etc of the prosecution team - this series is certainly serves as an insight into the criminal justice process in the United States and how it can affect entire families.

My only criticism would be that the last few episodes seem to have been really dragged out - including lots of long, lingering shots of Michael Peterson, perhaps to reinforce how he had aged and suffered over the course of the series. In my opinion, it really could have been reduced by several episodes which would have actually made the whole thing flow better.

As regards guilt, one line towards the end of the series really stood out to as being the most honest thing said by anyone: "is there ever anyone in this family who isn't performing?"
  
TT
The Titanic for Dummies
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
<b>4.5 stars</b>
Chock-full of facts that range from the building of the Titanic to the 1985 expedition when it was finally found to why the ship's legacy still lives on, THE TITANIC FOR DUMMIES is a nicely arranged, easy to read history for those who either have a passing interest or intermediate knowledge of the Titanic. Although aficionados on the infamous ocean liner most likely won't find anything new between the covers.

The author wrote this with the intent that each section could be read both straight-through or out of order, which can make it slightly repetitive if read front to back (as I did) or too quickly. I found that reading only a chapter or two at a time was a more enjoyable experience overall and kept me from getting overwhelmed by all the information. The writing is clear, easy to understand, and all encompassing to anything related to the Titanic. I enjoyed reading about some of the ludicrous myths, in which the author debunks most of them, the list of recommended documentaries to see, and well, most everything. I only noticed a few minuscule errors, most of which did not involve Titanic history and were mainly grammar, but nothing worth mentioning. The only negative I can find to the book is the lack of pictures, it only features three pages of color photographs, and a few more added diagrams of the ship. Throughout the book's text there also could have been more black and white photos included. The most glaring exclusion from the book is that there is no picture of the "Big Piece", a 15x25 foot, 20-ton piece of the hull that had been salvaged from the wreck site and was mentioned extensively throughout the book. I would have welcomed the addition instead of hopping online to see a <a href="http://www.vegasnews.com/56809/titanics-largest-recovered-artifact-the-big-piece-at-titanic-the-artifact-exhibition.html">picture</a>; of the famous piece. Also, at one time there was a table of Titanic's ten decks, with descriptions and what rooms were on those decks, that would have been better served with a diagram of the ship to help those of us who are more visually-inclined. Those are fairly minor complaints in comparison to the breadth of material this book covers however.

Highly informative, concise, and written for anyone of any age, I would recommend The Titanic for Dummies to anyone interested in learning more about the Titanic, it's a great primer that has left me more knowledgeable about a subject I've always been fascinated by.

Click <a href="http://titanicphotographs.com/">here</a>; for some great photographs taken by passenger, Father Francis Browne, who disembarked from the Titanic when it docked in Cobh (then Queenstown), Ireland.
  
40x40

Ti West recommended American Movie (1999) in Movies (curated)

 
American Movie (1999)
American Movie (1999)
1999 | Comedy, Documentary
(0 Ratings)
Movie Favorite

"Number four is the documentary American Movie. The reason I like this movie so much is I’m a big fan of sort of vérité documentaries and, while this is not exactly a vérité documentary, it’s a movie from the late ’90s and it’s sort of the end of the 16mm personal documentary era. I suppose there are some that exist after that, but for the most part, as someone who really likes movies like Grey Gardens and Seventeen and all these great sort of authentic… Filmmakers went and experienced their experiences with their subjects. American Movie is really like the pinnacle of that for me in that it’s a movie that took two years to make and two years to edit. It’s the kind of movie where when you hear Chris Smith, the director, ask a question, you almost get excited because it’s like, “Oh, the guy from behind the camera is a part of the story also?” Or the boom dips in. It’s charming because you know they’ve been there for two years living with these people. The movie’s amazing because it’s an incredible critique on filmmaking that’s both funny and also sort of sentimental and inspiring in that the Murphy’s Law of filmmaking is that anything that can go wrong will go wrong and, you know, in the case of [subject] Mark Borchardt, it really does. But you’ve never seen someone more impassioned and more determined to sort of accomplish… I don’t know if I want to say something as silly as “their dreams,” but he’s dedicated to doing this and that. To me as a filmmaker or as someone who’s trying to do any sort of artistic endeavor, it’s really amazing to watch, and the movie is very sincere and very honest and very charming and very funny. It gives you an idea of, like, what to avoid when making movies, but it also gives you an idea of what movies are going to be very hard — I would say that making movies is very traumatic — and you’ve just sort of got to stick with it, and this movie is a great example of that. And it’s a great example of getting to know the characters personally, or the subjects personally, and it’s the kind of movie that, when it’s over, you feel like you know everybody in that movie. It’s incredibly charming and it’s one of those movies that I think, as a filmmaker or just a film fan in general, it’s a very essential movie to see. I always try to watch it or show it to people right before we make a movie to say, like, hopefully it won’t go like this."

Source
  
40x40

Armie Hammer recommended Apocalypse Now (1979) in Movies (curated)

 
Apocalypse Now (1979)
Apocalypse Now (1979)
1979 | Action, Drama, War

"That’s my plane movie. Like, I’ve got it stored on my phone, and if I absolutely just need to just be on a plane, I’ll just put on Apocalypse Now. The mania and craziness that Colonel Kurtz is supposed to represent, and what the jungle in Cambodia is supposed to represent — knowing, by watching documentaries and reading about it, that that mania was not only present, it was prominent on set as they filmed this. Just all of that together. The movie itself is incredible, but the knowing of the making of the film, and what happened when they were making that film, knowing all of that just makes it a much more comprehensive experience. When Colonel Kurtz talks about the horror, and you know what horror he’s talking about, you just feel like you are let in. You’re gifted an audience into true craziness. Every single character in that movie is bats–t insane, and it’s just a matter of how forward it is. So I mean, even Robert Duvall saying, “There’s nothing like the smell of napalm in the morning,” and then taking a pause from it and going, “You know, one day this war is going to be over.” You can just feel how sad he is about that, and how crazy that is. And then you move on to the othercharacters, and then when they get to that farthest checkpoint where the bridge keeps getting knocked down, and he’s like, “Who’s in charge?” And the guy’s like, “S–t man, aren’t you?” No one knows what’s going on here. What does he say to the guy, Roach, the guy with the grenade launcher? “Do you know who’s in charge here, son?” And he just looks at him and he goes, “Yeah,” and then turns around and walks away. That’s when you know. You know who’s in charge? Craziness. The only thing that is in charge here is chaos. You can feel it, and I love it. And Lance, who’s tripping on acid, who’s standing on top of the bunker screaming, looking out, where Charlie is screaming back at him like, “F–k you, GI,” and he’s like, “Lance, get the f–k down!” But that’s the thing: Lance is all of us. That’s what I feel about that movie. He first gets up and he’s just like the good old surfer dude who’s just there and serving his thing, doing what he has to, and in the presence of all of that craziness, he is so affected by it. He’s like the frog slowly boiled in water. To the end, where you get there and he’s ready, he’s primed for the gospel of Kurtz, and he’s just there, and that would be all of us. That’s the experience that so many people had in that war."

Source
  
Everest (2015)
Everest (2015)
2015 | Action, Drama, Mystery
A by the numbers adventure
The 1996 Everest disaster remains one of the greatest true stories to have ever been told. From made-for-TV movies to award-winning documentaries, it appears that audiences simply cannot get enough of this tale of survival.

Now, Universal Pictures ends its record-breaking summer campaign with Everest, a high-budget thriller based on those events in 1996. But does it get the balance between all-out spectacle and human characterisation spot on?

Everest follows the fortunes of two climbing teams planning on making it to the top of the deadly mountain. The Adventure Consultants, led by Rob Hall, and Mountain Madness, guided by Scott Fischer, all make their way to the summit of Everest, battling against horrific storms, avalanches and the mountain itself along the way.

The film features an all-star cast, something not forgotten in its marketing campaign, with the likes of Jason Clarke as Hall, Jake Gyllenhaal as Fischer, Josh Brolin, Keira Knightley, Emily Watson and Sam Worthington all making an appearance as climbers and base-camp attendees.

There’s some great talent here but Everest simply cannot cope with that many characters jostling for screen time and the majority of the cast, bar Clarke, feel like cardboard cut-outs – this is a real shame given the true-story that the writers had to work with.

Knightley in particular is wasted with only ten minutes of screen time and Brolin’s side story is never fully explored to make you remember his character – especially when the onslaught of stormy weather makes it difficult to pick out each person at a glance.

Effects-wise, this is a huge spectacle. The cinematography is absolutely astounding and every shot is filled to the brim with colours, sounds and ragged landscapes – it’s absolutely stunning.

The scenes before the mountaineers start their final climb are particularly beautiful and the summit sequences themselves feel ridiculously real, all culminating in a film that looks and sounds spectacular, but just lacks that human touch needed to make it matter.

Unfortunately, there are no risks here, despite the ones being taken by our intrepid explorers and whilst the true-story elements lend the film some gravitas, everything else feels a little clichéd with a been there, done that attitude.

Naturally, the finale is when the emotional side comes into play with a selection of real video footage and photographs. This ensures that Everest finishes on a thought-provoking and intentionally sombre note. Yes, this is Hollywood at work, but this is not a film to be ‘enjoyed’ in the traditional sense.

Overall, Everest is a fine film with some breath-taking action sequences and top-notch special effects. Unfortunately, despite the fascinating true-story, the human characters don’t register until the final act and this stops it from being as memorable as it should be.

https://moviemetropolis.net/2015/09/27/a-by-the-numbers-adventure-everest-review/
  
The Serpent&#039;s Mark
The Serpent's Mark
S.W. Perry | 2019
2
2.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
<a href="https://diaryofdifference.com/">Blog</a>; | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/diaryofdifference/">Facebook</a>; | <a href="https://twitter.com/DiaryDifference">Twitter</a>; | <a href="https://www.instagram.com/diaryofdifference/">Instagram</a>; | <a href="https://www.pinterest.co.uk/diaryofdifference/pins/">Pinterest</a>;

<b>Nicholas Shelby Series</b>

#1 <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/39904044-the-angel-s-mark">The Angel's Mark</a> - Not Read
#2 <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2849284383">The Serpent's Mark</a> - DNF

<img src="https://diaryofdifference.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Book-Review-Banner-1.png"/>;

<b><i>The first book in 2019 that I didn't manage to finish is The Serpent's Mark by S.W. Perry.</i></b>

I am sad and disappointed. If you know me, you will know how I don't want to leave things unfinished, especially when reading books. I want to finish every book I read, so I can have a thorough opinion and valid comments.

I stopped reading this book at page 75, which is very early days, but I just couldn't continue because of a few points.

Before I start, I need to mention all the things that attracted me to this book in the first place. I love mysteries, and this book promised conspiracy, murder and espionage in Elizabethan London. It is set in the year 1591, where a doctor is investigated of his questionable practices. This was, by itself a promising start. And if you haven't seen the beautiful cover already, please do. It's art to have this book on your shelves.

However, while reading those 75 pages, I haven't encountered any murder. Conspiracy and espionage maybe, but it is so subtle, that everything else comes in first place, while I am here, flipping pages and desperately waiting for something to happen.

A book that contains a lot of politics and religion in a same chapter is just not the book for me. As a person that moved into the UK, I know a little bit about politics and not much about history politics, but I am also not very interested in it either. Documentaries, yes - but books for pleasure, not quite so much. This book was over-flooding with politics and religion, and it is something I just couldn't put past me. After deciding to DNF it, I also realized that it was a second book of a series, but can also be read as a standalone.

I wish I enjoyed it, but I just couldn't. However, if the book seems like something you might enjoy, please go for it, read it, and let me know how it went. <b>We all have different tastes in book - and that's OKAY! :)</b>

Thank you to ReadersFirst, a UK based website that sends me books every month in exchange for my honest reviews. What you do it absolutely amazing!

<a href="https://diaryofdifference.com/">Blog</a>; | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/diaryofdifference/">Facebook</a>; | <a href="https://twitter.com/DiaryDifference">Twitter</a>; | <a href="https://www.instagram.com/diaryofdifference/">Instagram</a>; | <a href="https://www.pinterest.co.uk/diaryofdifference/pins/">Pinterest</a>;
  
What We Do In The Shadows (2014)
What We Do In The Shadows (2014)
2014 | Comedy, Horror
I don't think I ever really knew what this was before seeing it, but then I genuinely think it would be difficult to conceive this in your brain accurately from the description.

Viago, Deacon, Vladislav and Petyr live together in Wellington, New Zealand. There's nothing too odd about a group of men living together, they do all the usual things, argue over the chores, have guests for dinner, clean blood out of their new second-hand clothing... oh right, yes, and they're vampires. Life is fine until Nick comes into their lives. He's young and hip and starts to show them what the modern world has to offer. We watch the story of these ordinary vampires as their night to night lives unfold.

The documentary style is always an interesting idea, it's not even something that actual documentaries get right all the time so a fictionalised version was intriguing and they really staked it through the heart with this one. We cut between interview and footage styles and it really does help to give you that real-life documentary feel as well as a sense of each individual character. The addition of historical photographs and illustrations was a fun way to get bits of their backstory and I thought they were created really well.

There is a brilliant casual nature about all the acting and being able to just be yourself means it does all feel a lot more real. While I like all the characters my favourite is definitely Viago played by Taika Waititi. There's a wonderful innocence to him and a kind nature that is really at odds with the whole vampire thing. He's keen for everyone to get along and he's got a very positive outlook on death. Waititi gives Viago that bouncy energy that always makes me smile, so many of his moments genuinely made me smile.

Everyone brings that bit of supernatural fun, the rivalry with the werewolves, meeting with other vampires on the street, and the vampire "tricks" that lead to one of my favourite pieces in the whole film... the police officers. Their reactions to everything were priceless.

I've watched it a few times recently and honestly, each watch is just as entertaining as the first. It might not have the high production values of other films but it really has a wonderful presence. There are some days when you need this sort of amusement (with a tiny bit of devastation thrown in), this is the antidote to so many of the world's troubles.


If you haven't already done so then check out these episodes of At The Flicks (Mega Shark In Lockdown) and MovieDrone (Episode 91) where I talking with all your favourite movie men about What We Do In The Shadows.

Originally posted on: https://emmaatthemovies.blogspot.com/2020/06/what-we-do-in-shadows-movie-review.html
  
Anatomy of Innocence: Testimonies of the Wrongfully Convicted
Anatomy of Innocence: Testimonies of the Wrongfully Convicted
Laura Caldwell | 2017 | Biography, Crime, History & Politics
8
9.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
With movements like Black Lives Matter at the forefront of society right now, and multiple documentaries about wrongful convictions such as Steven Avery and The West Memphis Three out, there has never been a better time for this book to come out and be read. This topic is <i><b>so important.</i></b>

Reading about the lives of these poor, innocent human beings being treated like they’re dirt, like they’re less than dirt, is devastating. A number of these stories actually brought tears to my eyes. How this injustice goes on, I can’t fathom. In many of these stories we hear how there are alibis that prove the person wasn’t there to commit the crime, but they convict them anyway. There are confessions from other people to crimes, yet they will convict someone else. There is someone else’s DNA on a victim's body but they will commit someone whose DNA is not on the body. And possibly the worst one of them all, there are statements from VICTIMS that the person they have arrested is not the right person, yet they will still convict them. How can a legal system, that’s supposed to protect us and who we’re supposed to trust, let this happen? It makes my blood boil.

In this book, each person’s story is written by a prolific crime writer, so all of these accounts are really well written and they really bring out raw emotions in you because they’re so well presented and you can feel the exonerees pain.

Many of these people spent over a decade, if not over <b>two decades</b> of their life trapped in the walls of dirty prisons for crimes they were innocent of, such as murder, child murder, rape and GBH. The brutality of the officers arresting these people makes me sick. <b>Literal</b> torture is used on innocent people, as young as 17, to coax a <b>false confession</b> out of them, all because they want to be able to arrest someone. What makes me sicker is that these officers and the higher powers who turn(ed) a blind eye to this kind of abuse are never charged or made to own up to their brutalities AND because of the idiocy of these *insert the worst possible swear word and insults here* policemen, real child sex offenders and heartless murderers are <b>NEVER CAUGHT.</b>

This book is hopeful, but it is also heart breaking and while I could go on forever talking about the hatred and rage that this book makes me feel, but I’m going to end it with this instead.

<b><blockquote>GLORIA KILLIAN

DAVID BATES

RAY TOWLER

MICHAEL EVANS

KEN WYNIEMKO

KIRK BLOODWORTH

AUDREY EDMUNDS

ALTON LOGAN

PETER REILLY

GINNY LEFEVER

BILL DILLON

JEFF DESKOVIC

ANTOINE DAY

JERRY MILLER

JUAN RIVERA</blockquote></b>

<b>You are brave and you are strong. Thank you for sharing your stories with us and shining a light on a subject so often ignored. I hope the world does nothing but right by you from here on in. You, over anyone, deserve it.</b>

I have been inspired. I am now going to look into the UK’s own Innocence Group and see what I can do to help those 10% who are wrongly convicted and being left to rot in prison.

<i>Thanks to Netgalley and W. W. Norton & Company for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.</i>