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Reviews
Reptile (2023)
Okay crime drama
Not a bad movie to pass the time, but why on earth is Benicio del Toro playing a cop called Tom Nichols? There's no way someone who looks so obviously Latino can be convincing as a Caucasian guy with an Anglo name. Big mistake - it ruined the credibility of the film for me. Why not give him a Latino name and background?
Anyway, it seems I have to write a minimum of 600 words or my review won't be accepted, so I need to think of some more stuff to say about this movie. It's quite watchable and quite exciting and the other cast members all do a good job, but I just can't get past del Toro miscasting himself as an Anglo. Nobody looks less Anglo than he does!
Eight O'Clock Walk (1954)
Meaning of title "Eight O'Clock Walk"
I'm in agreement with most other people here that this is an excellent British post-war melodrama (based on a true story). I just wanted to add that the title "Eight O'Clock Walk" refers to the time (8.00 am) when executions used to be carried out in England. It basically alludes to a condemned man's walk to the gallows (or the electric chair).
Casablanca (1942)
Pivotal moment
I think my favourite story about my favourite-ever actor in my favourite movie is the one about Michael Curtiz suddenly realising he needs one more shot to complete an iconic scene - in fact, THE pivotal scene of the movie. Bogey was finished for the day and still in costume; Curtiz sends some kid to find him and tell him one more shot is needed. Bogey comes back, stands at the top of the steps, and when the band leader looks to him he just nods ... that's it. Now he's on the side of the angels.
Champions (1984)
Good story, so-so film
John Hurt was 5'9" tall. The average height for jockeys is between 4'10" and 5'6". That puts him well outside the normal size for a jockey. Unfortunately, this meant I had great trouble suspending my disbelief while watching this film. Also, at the age of 44, he seemed much too old to be playing this role. Don't get me wrong - John Hurt is a fine actor, but he was sadly miscast in this movie.
One other small thing I noticed: at one point, during an early scene in the hospital (the camera is tracking down a corridor), there is a one-line female voiceover that is supposed to be the doctor speaking. The voice didn't sound anything like the voice of Judy Parfitt, who played Dr Merrow. I could swear it was Judi Dench's voice. It seemed like the line had been added in post-production, so this is a plausible theory.
The film is certainly worth watching, nevertheless, especially for horse and racing fans.
Kelly's Heroes (1970)
Ludicrous war film
It's impossible to take this film seriously. Okay, I know it's meant to be a comedy. I know it's meant to be a caper-style adventure. I know it's meant to have a serious anti-war message. But honestly, a film about WW2 that has a long-haired hippie-style tank commander, people calling each other 'man' and 'cowboy' and 'pain in the ass', people using expressions like 'freaking out' - I mean, come on! If I didn't know better I would think it's about the Vietnam War (1960s), not WW2 (1940s). I will never understand why people make films about historical periods and don't make the slightest attempt to have them look (and sound) like the period in question. Nobody in the 1940S - and I mean NOBODY - would ever have looked like the Donald Sutherland character. Spare me, please.
Operation Buffalo (2020)
A serious disappointment
'A gripping thriller'? I don't think so. I started watching this tonight, expecting it to be a sensitive, shocking exploration of the effects on the local Indigenous people of the British atomic bomb tests at Maralinga In outback Australia. Instead, it's a crude, ugly, unfunny and deeply hammy farce about the soldiers at the base. I have no idea who is responsible for this pathetic effort, but everyone concerned should be ashamed of themselves. I watched it for 25 tedious, appalling minutes and gave up. My advice? Don't waste your time.
True Grit (2010)
Totally implausible
Mattie Ross is a teenager. She is clearly past the age of puberty. This means she would be menstruating regularly. At the time this film is set (1880), there were no such things as tampons. Nor were there any commercially available menstrual pads. Women (and girls like Mattie) had to use rags, strips of old towels, etc., to absorb their menstrual blood, and they had to wash and dry them after use. These rags were extremely uncomfortable to wear. No girl or woman would be able to ride astride while wearing them. This would cause chafing, even bruising, and great discomfort, and the risk of blood leaking down their legs, through their clothes, and on to the saddle would be very high. At this time menstruation was regarded as a shameful secret, and no young girl would take the risk of any man becoming aware that she was having her period. How could Mattie have hidden this from the men? How would she have managed to wash and dry her rags? How could she have ridden astride a horse day after day? How could the Coen brothers have made a film that totally ignores this aspect of a woman's physiology? It's completely absurd. Maybe men watching the film wouldn't think about this, but I guarantee any woman watching it would think, 'Hang on, this is is ridiculous.'
Britain's Most Historic Towns: Norman Winchester (2018)
Great series but...
I enjoy this series very much, but ... BBC, of you're going to put your presenter on a horse, at least teach her how to hold ther reins correctly! Please!
Britain's Most Historic Towns: Norman Winchester (2018)
Great series but...
I enjoy this series very much, but ... BBC, of you're going to put your presenter on a horse, at least teach her how to hold ther reins correctly! Please!
Juno (2007)
Do they think we're idiots?
It's very hard to review this film without giving away the conclusion, but I will try. I started feeling uneasy about half an hour into the film, and my unease grew and grew as it progressed. The film makers did a very clever job of making the film 'cute', appealing, sweet and sugary in order to distract the viewer from realising what a huge con job the whole thing was. Are we seriously expected to believe that the problem of a teenage pregnancy can be resolved in this nonsensical 'happy ever after' way without permanently traumatising and devastating the teenage girl involved? Are they trying to make us believe that life can go back to normal as if nothing has happened? I was so angry by the time the film ended that it was all I could do not to storm out of the cinema in protest. I don't understand how anybody could fall for this incredibly manipulative and completely unbelievable portrayal of a seriously life-changing event. Teresa, Melbourne, Australia
Love Story (1944)
Better than I expected
In giving Love Story 6 stars I am very conscious that I am judging it by today's standards rather than the standards of 1944 when the film was released. Soppy and melodramatic it may be, but nevertheless there there is a lot to enjoy and appreciate in it. I was particularly interested in the Cornish setting, with some quite spectacular coastal scenery which is well photographed in black and white. Margaret Lockwood is excellent as dying pianist Lissa, but I'm afraid I found Stewart Granger very hard to swallow. Someone else described him here as wooden and supercilious and I can only agree. The supporting cast are all very good and in the background of the story is WW2, which at the time of the film's release was still in full swing. As a piece of romantic escapism I can imagine it would have been very popular with British audiences who were carrying on with a stiff upper lip and enduring terrible privations and the constant fear of death,,either their own or that of loved ones. The music, Herbert Bath's Cornish Rhapsody, is memorable and very well played. Something of a curiosity, it is well worth a look.
The Water Diviner (2014)
Not quite a masterpiece
The Water Diviner is a very interesting and beautifully-made film, giving an unusual post-war aspect of the well-known Gallipoli story. The production design, cinematography and acting are all excellent and the story (based on an actual event) is a powerful and moving one. Russell Crowe proves himself to be an able director, and the film is well structured and edited. I agree with other reviewers here that it also offers a sensitive and respectful view of Turkish culture. There is rather a lot of violence, both in the 'present' and in the flashbacks, although I realise that it is difficult to make a movie about war without depicting violence.
But unfortunately the whole film is deeply marred by the schmaltzy, unrealistic and frankly unbelievable 'love story' between the Aussie farmer Connor and an impossibly glamorous Turkish woman at the hotel. For me, this completely ruined an otherwise very good film. Sorry, Russell, but you have caved in to the Hollywood demand for soppy romance at the expense of verisimilitude.
Life of Pi (2012)
What is wrong with me?
I don't know what is wrong with me. Several people had told me this film was stupendous, wonderful, beautiful, amazing, profound, etc etc etc. I went along with a friend who was virtually speechless at the end - she said it had been an 'overwhelming' experience for her.
Well, it wasn't for me. Certainly the visuals were quite beautiful, but I was left stone cold by the viewing experience. Nothing about the film 'grabbed' me in any way. I consider myself an intelligent, imaginative, sensitive person, and am often moved quite profoundly by certain films or books, but all the way through Life of Pi I just could not suspend my disbelief enough to accept any of what I was seeing on the screen. I just kept thinking, 'this is impossible - this is unbelievable - this couldn't possibly happen', etc., and a day or two later I still can't find anything about the film to admire or be moved by, except for the technical accomplishment of the visuals.
Am I the only person who has been left completely cold by this film?
Your Sister's Sister (2011)
Who cares?
I was looking forward to seeing this film, having read several favourable reviews. So this afternoon I took myself off to my local cinema to check it out.
I waited patiently through the first half- hour or so of the movie, hoping it would start getting interesting - soon! Please! When is somebody going to say or do something that takes my attention and makes me think? Or care?
It is about a bunch of young, rich, smug, self-indulgent, middle- class people (I used a different word to describe them) sitting around talking, having sexual intercourse (again I used a different word for this activity), analysing themselves and each other ...
Sorry. I just didn't care about any of it. So I got up and left. This film was just a) boring and b) irritating. Don't waste your time or money on it.
Joe Hill (1971)
Joe Hill is being re-released!
Bo Widerberg's excellent 1971 biopic, 'Joe Hill', has been unavailable for many years. This has been very frustrating for people wishing to watch this very important and largely forgotten piece of labour history. As can be seen from other reviews here, the film is excellent and very memorable.
It is currently viewable on YouTube, but this is a very poor quality copy. The image is blurry and the sound is very poor and scratchy; I suspect it has been uploaded from a bootleg copy.
Interestingly, 19 November 2015 will be the 100th anniversary of Joe Hill's execution in Utah, USA, and many labour history groups around the world (including US, UK, Australia and Sweden) are planning to stage centenary celebrations. It would be great if the film were available for screening at these events.
Anyway, the GOOD NEWS is that a Swedish producer and filmmaker, Tomas Ehrnborg, is currently preparing a digitally remastered version of 'Joe Hill' and other films by Bo Widerberg (including 'Elvira Madigan') and is planning to release them as a boxed set later this year. At this stage (25/4/15) no release date has been confirmed.
For further information, please contact Tomas at Tomas.Ehrnborg@kb.se. I can be contacted at t.pitt@live.com.au
Teresa Pitt, Melbourne, Australia
Glory Enough for All (1988)
Why is it unavailable for purchase???
I saw this telemovie some years ago on Australian TV and thought it was excellent - it is well acted, beautifully produced and quite fascinating in its content. The passion and determination of the researchers to find a treatment for Type 1 diabetes was very moving, and the story of the little girl who was literally at death's door brings home powerfully just what a serious disease Type 1 diabetes is, and what a miracle the discovery of insulin was for all diabetics.
It is also a powerful example of the good that animal experimentation did in this particular case, although I accept that much animal experimentation is totally unnecessary.
I have Type 1 diabetes myself, and in my opinion this movie is an extremely important one - in fact, I think it should be compulsory viewing for all newly-diagnosed Type 1 (insulin-dependent) diabetics.
Why, oh why is this film not available on DVD??? Please, CBC, please re-release it! There must be a demand for it, and you could promote it through national and state diabetic associations world-wide.
Teresa Pitt
Up (2009)
Ho-hum
I'm not normally a huge fan of animated films but I have seen some really great ones lately, including 'Coraline' and 'Ponyo'. I loved both of those, but I have to say that 'Up' was a bit of a disappointment. In the first place I like Studio Ghibli films much better than Pixar/Disney ones. Maybe this puts me in the 'old fart' category, not being over-impressed by whiz-bang digital computer-generated graphics. I find the Pixar visual style irritating rather than appealing, and for me the super-slick, ugly, unappealing visuals tend to overshadow the story-line, dialogue, etc. 'Up' had quite a good story but it tended towards the clichéd and while there were some amusing moments I found myself wriggling in my seat and wondering how much longer I would have to sit there. So on the whole I'd have to say it was a missable film for me.
Blessed (2009)
Brilliant, absorbing, moving
I totally disagree with the first review of Blessed. I found the film utterly absorbing and very moving and I was totally caught up in the unfolding dramas of the children's (and their mothers') lives. I don't agree that the story was clichéd or the characters one-dimensional. Other members of my film discussion group said the same thing - not one person found fault with the film. It was bleak and sad but certainly spoke to me as a mother and former teacher. The young actors who played the children were marvellous and the adult actors played their parts in a very low-key and realistic way. I barely registered the fact that some of them were among Australia's top actors. As I came out of the cinema I was thinking, 'There but for the grace of god go I...' Anna Kokkinos has done a wonderful job. The cinema I saw it in was full, and at the end hardly anybody left while the end credits were rolling (most unusual). You could have heard a pin drop. I highly recommend this film.