Results tagged “movie” from The Cattle Grid

I don't have much time to review books or movies at this time, so I'll just tell what I'm interested in right now - even though probably no one cares. :-)

Movies: I just saw Ratatouille, which likely is the best work ever come out of Pixar Studios. You really need to watch it!!! I need to take a look at Michael Clayton now.

Books: I just finished reading Ken Follet's latest masterpiece, World without end (rating 9++, it's also closely related to another Follet's masterpiece: Pillars of Earth). Now I'm reading The bedroom secrets of master chefs, by Irvine Welsh, and also a coding-related book: Mastering Perl.

TV: After only five episodes, the thirds season of Lost bored me so much that I decided to quit with it. At this time, I'm just looking at Doc Martin and Spooks.

Magazines: I'm becoming an avid Speak Up reader/listener.

Rating: 7.5

Yesterday evening I went to the movies here in Maniago after a long time, and it was a great comeback for me. Bobby is a movie about the day of the assassination of Robert Kennedy, RFK. It gives a detailed account of what happened inside the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, where Kennedy and his supporters were at first waiting for - and the celebrating - the results of the California primary election.

Rating: 8

I was a bit skeptical about this movie, but I was curious beacause of the talk (some would even say scandal) that is continuing to rise around it. Demonized by the Church, acclaimed by the fans of the book, at first it seemed that The Da Vinci Code was not only a masterpiece, but a revelation for all the Christian world. However, many people who saw it are commented "oh, it ain't worth", "don't watch it, it's really bad", "the book is way better", "both the book and the movie suck", etc...

Before going any further, let me say that I did not read the book.

The movie starts with a murder in Paris. Soon after the discovery of the body, it's quite clear that it's not a simple murder but that there's something bigger behind; the size of this "something" grows as the movie goes on, until the viewer understands it's an hidden truth which can shake the Christian Church from the roots (by the way, there are chances it is really true). The first part of the film is an excellent crime thriller, then it slowly changes by mixing in genres such as thriller, adventure, and even comedy. As the American symbologist Robert Langdon and the French policewoman Sophie Neveu continue their quest towards the truth, the situations, places and characters would perfectly fit in an Indiana Jones movie. And this, besides the damn good plot, is what keeps the movie entertaining until the last scene (which shows up nearly 150 minutes after the murder).

There's no need to comment on Tom Hanks' brilliant performance in the role of Robert Langdon. Audrey Tatou, the fascinating Amelie at her first Hollywood experience, deserves a praise for the excellent starring in Sophie Neveu character. Besides the main actors, my favourite is Ian McKellen (in the role of Sir Leigh Teabing): despite being a controversial character, he's so fun with his all-British style and humor.

The Da Vinci Code is likely to become one of the most commercially successful movies of all time. Is that deserved? Well, I think so. It's not a masterpiece, but that means nothing (were Titanic and Harry Potter masterpieces?). Ron Howard's work will not shake the ground under you feet, but it is very entertaining: don't miss it.

Elizabethtown

Rating: 7.5

This movie comes as a nice surprise:at first you might think of it as not-too-serious romantic comedy, but then it proves to be too much in depth - and way too smart - to be just that. The story is about a man who suffers a fiasco in his professional life and, just before committing suicide, gets the news that his father has died. He then begins a journey in his father's town, and the subsequent events will change his life.

Although sometimes a bit "confused", Cameron Crowe's work is frequently as wit as Joel Coen's O Brother, Where Art Thou?, and often as enlightening as Tim Burton's Big Fish (two movies you should really watch in the unfurtunate case you haven't already done so). Oralndo Bloom's performance is excellent - and also fun at times - while Kirsten Dunst perfectly plays the role of the girl who is the real leading force of the film.

Pay attention to the fantastic soundtrack: almost all of it is wisely chosen American country rock.

All in all, it's not a masterpiece, but it's inspiring. It shows that Cameron Crowe is talented even beyond what he showed in the past years, which makes the wait for his future works quite interesting.

The Inside Man

Rating: 7.5

Some evenings ago I was at my uncle's place and he convinced me to go and watch this movie the same night, telling me that with Spike Lee I couldn't go wrong. He was damn right, this work the African-American genius is close-to-awesome.

There's the bank robbery and there's how they do the heist. If you dig deeper, the movie will tell you something about the USA society of these years: you'll not want to lose the scene when the Arab hostage exists the bank. Interestingly enough, even though the movie is all about money, almost all the characters have something they need to take care of, which is more important for them than money.

Clive Oven's performance in the role of the bank robber Dalton Russel is superior. Denzel Washington is fine as well (how couldn't he be?), while I'm not really fond of Jodie Foster (that's a general thing, it's not related to this movie only).

You should really watch this movie as, besides what I wrote about it, it's very entertaining.

Rating: 9

This movie is the most recent of the ones based on British writer Jane Austen's classic masterpiece. Well, you all know the story, I won't tell it again; if you don't know it, please type Pride and Prejudice on your favourite search engine and look at the results. ;-)

Even though there have been other cinema versions of this novel, this one ranks very high on my list of most well-made movies. The 1800s British upper-class atmosphere is built very well, and every detail is almost perfect. This is a story about the somehow-rich, the very rich and the enormously wealthy, and the places you see all reflect their owners as if they were part of them: there's the Bennet's mansion, the Bignley's luxury house, and Lady Catherine De Bourgh's castle.

However, what really makes this movie stand out is Keira Knighltey's outstanding performance. The British actress is perfect in the role on a girl who always says what she thinks, in a society where she shouldn't. It's just like the way she behaved in Pirates of the Caribbean: the middle-class who just can't fit in her role. In a word: charming.

Rating: 7

When I went to see this film with my friend Mitra, I thought I was going to see Rob Reiner's latest work, but I made a mistake with the day, and the cinema was playing Reinas. I entered anyway, and it was a mildly good choice.

Reinas means queens in Spanish, and the movie is all-Spanish, with that "brad and salami" way of acting and the not-so-excellent image quality. It looks like Almodovar - there are even the right actresses - but it's a brilliant comedy. It dives into a difficult subject such as gay marriages, but it doesn't take them seriously; even the characters do not take themselves too seriously. The movie is in fact about what happens around these marriages, and besides the main theme it talks especially of women: the mothers of the spouses. It's almost always so brilliant to be even fun, but it still manages to make you understand the uneasy situation of gay people who want to marry. With a smile, which ain't bad.