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Reviews
True Grit (2010)
Humanity corrupts, with the accidents abundant; can life go on?
"Life can still continue" is not the type of ending Coen brothers' films will let audiences take away with, and there are always surprising tweaks of story development, so did "True Grit", even as a re-make, 40 years apart. Consider this is the first re-make by Coen's.
The re-make presents a paradox explicitly displayed, inherent with power of black humor. Audiences are caught into all possible disturbances, to carry with them after the end of the film – a Coen Brothers' trade mark.
Unlike most of the re-makes, the difference does not lie in the advance of technology but different styles. We can appreciate fairly two makings primarily on the ground of craftsmanship – this is the most extreme fun of seeing movies to watch the same story line presented by two distinguished (groups of) great artists. Won't get bored.
The Tourist (2010)
Stardom shadowed by foolish cops, directorship limited by predictable plots
If there is a remake for DVD, could the last ten minutes be redone? Inspector Acheson should not be so stupid to un-notice Frank who can escape from the captive, without reasoning he could be just the possibly hunted?
Predictable plots make one of the greatest directors in the world deliver a just about average film, though the film has been beautifully taken in a beautiful location, Venice.
Try not to be picky as this is a film featuring the most dominant characters in Hollywood today. To brush up my memory about stardom and directorship, seeing this gives myself a very good excuse to check out again 'Don't Look Now' by Nicolas Roeg, shot also at Venice and 'Thomas Crown Affair' by John McTiernan or Norman Jewison, shot at not as beautiful NYC with cops not as foolish and plots a little less predictable, if DVD are accessible.
La femme de l'aviateur (1981)
a musical chair game for film character development
It's always fun watching Rohmer's heroes and heroins develop their characters in a 90-min of story-telling.
The aviator Christian shows up talking for 5 minutes in the beginning, and then he turns to just a subject that we all audience, including François, have to know him from how Anne will describe him and how Lucie will envision him.
The audience can only see aviator's wife once from a photo Anne posses, but till we see it, including François, we learn all of our assumption made from Lucie's smart guessing will need to be re-assumed otherwise.
The last five minutes of the movie indicates François will get himself to be going after Lucie, for he is made believe Lucie may not seem as straightforward as he felt. His role somehow imitates to Christian now.
So much fun with so minimal resources of moving making. Solute Eric.
Ajami (2009)
Dichotomy is no longer dichotomy
Story has been told by separate chapters, and not sequentially in time.
Each chapter gives just about the right weight for character and story-line development, no less and no more.
The film does let dichotomy regarding the cultural, religious, economic and ethnic conflicts be presented, beginning to end, as viewers may all have participated.
What distinguish the film from the average arrangement is 1). a back thrust of the powerful ending, and 2). the crisp closing of each chapter and 3). the motif gradually changing its tone from chapter to chapter. This gives the exciting movie going experiences, much more than, if this film has been shot in, a linear, one way, manner, instead, to offer.
After seeing the movie, viewers can fully apprehend why living in this territory is complicated enough and dichotomy is no longer dichotomy for an outsider to judge those who are in this entanglement of the millennium; sadly, it remains hard for generations to expect resolutions in an easy way.
Mondovino (2004)
Terroir, and people attached to it
A terroir consists of - Climate, Soil type, Topography, and Other plants growing in and around the vine plots
Now seeing this film, we are convinced the human factors will play an even critical role than most of the above.
Wine reviews guide you to read (not physically touch) the terroir of the wine you are tasting, while the production, distribution, advertising and the pre-determined taste buds determined by a few individuals, during the course, shaped what you think you are having.
This is a film for wine lovers to re-think why you fall in love with wine. You can be not so subjective to reviews, just like not seeing a review before going to a theater, or like being open-minded to know someone, without first checking his or her resume.
Like all the characters in the film, though more towards those who are pressed by the more financially dominant side.
Inception (2010)
Hollywood owes us more than an "Inception", and a few philosophical thoughts
With all the big budgets and technology Hollywood can get, what did we the audience get? Many sequels (And I dislike Dark Knight, being just a little better sequel).
Since the Matrix was released more than 10 years ago, what did we the Sci-Fi film fans get compared with a decade or two before that? Chris Nolan delivered on these two accounts, and fewer and fewer directors in Hollywood can really master in commanding a complicated project and a good story telling, at the same time. I want more films like "Inception" coming to theaters here, which spent a lot of money making one as well as taking us to experience something other media, such as TV, games, can't offer. That is what we trade for paying the ticket to get in a theater.
There is also a philosophical angle for the audience, I think. When we moviegoers are used to be overpowered by technology hard to distinguish among themselves, like computer graphics, animation, special effects, ..., unavoidably we find ourselves attracted to those with a "FORM" standing out among all, on top of such as acting of any particular roles, words of power of any particular scenes. "FORM" of this film will be something many to follow. If the derivatives of "FORM" to this film lead to a new spectrum for film makings, then that will be something interesting for us movie lovers to know first.
The only thing I don't get it though - why did Saito and Fischer not recognize each other when they both waked up in the airplane? Aren't they supposed to know each other, being major competitors in the business they are respectively in?