Sherlock Holmes: a Game of Shadows -
9/10 . . I love the series.
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Sherlock Holmes: a Game of Shadows -
9/10 . . I love the series.
We finished the third season. The part that had the fly in it was unbelievably bad. I've reduced the score back to 8/10.
It seems the real problem is that Skylar and her sister want the best medical care and don't believe that their insurance can provide it. What's the insurance for anyway? Hank acts like a baby and won't go through with the treatment that is now costing them much more money and then he won't go home until he magically gets better.
Skylar continues to act like a nuisance.
Walter should do what Jessie says and go to the police. But if he does that, the story would end. I do like the way he finished off those two that Jesse was planning to kill. I'll up the score to 8.5/10 just for that scene.
THE PUTIN SYSTEM 10/10
From my late teens I have always had a keen interest in the Machiavellian maneuvering of politicians in the major European countries; not least my own.
It makes for great reading and, as Shakespeare has shown, it's a trait common to nations in general.
Russia is obviously no exception and a full length French documentary on Youtube called the Putin System covers the events that brought Vladimir Putin to power and his consolidation of that power. It is the story of how a group of rascals, sometimes reffered to as the Jewish Oligarchs, got hold of Russia through a foolish Boris Yeltsin's breakneck mass denationalisation of the country's industry and used him as a puppet to milk Russia of billions of roubles. When Yeltsin's health started to deteriorate they had to find a successor and they set up Putin, an ex KGB colonel who had infiltrated Yeltsin's circle, as their next puppet by using their vast wealth in promoting him to the electorate who voted him in as president . And whaddya know folks? the puppet turned out to be more rascally than his backers and nailed them for corruption and tax evasion; forcing some to flee the country and imprisoning others. Those who were allowed to remain were warned not to interfere in the country's politics while he set about massively restoring Russian power that had been devastated by the predatory oligarchs; thereby gaining the support of the population at large.
Of course, it's always prudent not to take such documentaries at face value and allow for a certain amount of axe grinding but this one was so well made I watched it twice .
I was so impressed with Putin's political skill, that I'm thinking of buying a Putin mug. I'm torn between one with a hammer and sickle and the words 'Nobody tells Vladimir what to do', and another with a picture of Putin's smiling face and the slogan; 'Haters Gonna Die'
I saw The Imitation Game last night. It tells (or distorts) the story of Alan Turing, the man who helped break the enigma code in World War 2 by inventing one of the first computers. He was then convicted of public indecency for engaging in homosexual acts (in the '50s) and submitted to "chemical castration" (hormone therapy) instead of going to prison.
The movie is so bad that it was almost fun. It distorts the historical facts to portray Turing as the ultimate nerdy genius, socially inept and politically uninterested. He's in love with his computer -- which he names after his dead, beloved Public School friend, Christopher. It's the sort of pop-psychoanalysis in which bad movies indulge.
And how "The Imitation Game" indulges!!! Every scene is imbued with high drama and terrible dialogue. The fun comes from watching the actors chew the scenery attempting to give life to their ridiculous lines. Throughout the movie,Turing occasionally goes jogging, an event which, based on the facial expressions of actor Benedict Cumberbatch, leads him to run the gamut of every emotion known to man.
In the interest of dramatic tension, "The Imitation Game" has the head of the secret decoding project despise Turing and try repeatedly to get rid of him. Since Turing's boss is portrayed by Charles Dance (Papa Lannister from Game of Thrones), viewers cannot but wonder if he survived being shot through with arrows by his son Tirian.
At the end of the movie, subtitles describe Turing's fate: conviction for being, in the argot of the movie, a "poofter", hormonal therapy, and suicide. There is no mention that his suicide occurred at least a year AFTER his hormonal therapy ended -- that might ruin the dramatic tension between an evil, uncaring society and a tormented, gay genius.
I have no objection to distorting historical facts in the interest of good cinema; "The Imitation Game" distorts historical facts in the interest of bad cinema. Why bother?
I was going to see "The Imitation Game", but I probably won't after that review, Ecurb. There is another "Night at the Museum" movie that I was eyeing. I missed "Dumb and Dumber To" because my wife refused to have anything to do with it after seeing the trailer. I'll wait till the library gets it. I remember seeing "Transcendence" and I know how bad some of these movies can get, with or without names like Johnny Depp.
If, YesNo, The Homesman is playing in your mall spackled suburban environment, I recommend you see it. I saw it a couple of days ago, and it's remarkably good.
It's director and star is Tommy Lee Jones, and if your have seen "The Three Burial of Melquiades Estrada", you will know that he is a talented director as well as a good actor. His co-star is Hillary Swank. Together, they take on the responsibility of transporting three insane women from the wilds of 19th century Western Nebraska back to civilization in eastern Iowa.
The women are appropriately insane -- they can't talk. The bit players -- including John Lithgow and the omnipresent Meryl Streep -- are excellent. The story is harsh and dramatic. The acting is excellent.
Best of all, though, the photography is stunning. Nebraska is a bleak land that could drive anyone insane. The trip back east is a National Geographic expedition through strikingly barren beauty.
By way of example, the last shot in the movie is a direct copy of George Bingham's painting "The Jolly Flatboat Men". Here's a link (since I don't know how to insert a picture): http://www.artnet.com/artists/george...n3Ln2abw98Acw2
I'm not sure why more directors don't copy painting for their visuals. Terrence Malick copied many famous American paintings in "Days of Heaven", and it's still one of the most visually stunning films I've seen.
The theater we usually go to isn't showing "The Homesman", but it looks like one to rent when it gets out of the theaters and into the library.
We did see "The Theory of Everything" some time ago which we found enjoyable. Say, score 8/10.
"The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" was OK, but it got tiring. Score: 6/10
My wish list includes "Interstellar", "Wild" and "Into the Woods".
Edit: Just adding a comment on the next scenes from Breaking Bad. The Whites are manipulating the owner of a car wash to sell. This seems in character for Skylar and Saul, but I am getting tired of these characters. It also confirms the stupidity of Walter, whatever character he is trying to represent. Hank's pettiness is tiring as well and I have never understood why his wife likes to steal things. I've reduced that score to 6/10.
Visually superb movies are still far better in the theater than on TV, despite the improvements in high definition TVs.
Infidelity is a theme that runs through Louis Malle's films like a thread, so it's no surprise that Damage , unusually filmed as an English story, concerns a Member of Parliament with a wealthy wife and two children who falls for his son's girlfriend. This initiates a passionate affair giving Malle a chance to show Jeremy Irons and Juliet Binoche thrashing around in the sack while his wife and son remain completely unaware of the affair. Given the athleticism of the guilty parties coupling, not to mention the frequency, it's a wonder nobody noticed the bruises. It would have been much improved if it had been cut from its two-and-a-half hours to 90 minutes but it comes across as another example of self-indulgent film making that palls about half-way through.
5/10
I dont see much difference between a theater and what we have for a tv. I tend to get hypnotzed by the story even if I view it on my phone, providing it is done well.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ecurb
Regarding the movie "Damage", I think I saw it but can't remember enough about it to suggest a score, not that my scores mean much.
Well film scores are fairly arbitrary anyway and the fact that you don't remember much about it is a good indication of its lack of impact.Quote:
Originally Posted by YesNo
Repetitious sex scenes are no substitute for imaginative film making although, in this instance, the storyline wasn't that impressive either.
I saw "Into the Woods" last night. I love musicals -- both stage musicals and movie musicals. However, I haven't liked most of the big hit movie musicals in recent years. Les Miz -- which I loved on the stage -- was horrid. How Anne Hathaway won an Oscar for her embarrassing performance as Fantine is beyond me. Chicago -- which won best movie, I think -- was terrible. Richard Gere's attempts at dancing reminded my of how difficult it is. Instead of showing professional dancing, the camera swirled around the actors in an attempt to create an illusion of graceful movement. It didn't work.
So it was with trepidation that I went to "Into the Woods", the fine Stephen Sondheim musical that I'd seen 3 times on various stages. Like other lousy musicals of recent years, it starred some non-singers and non-dancers -- like Meryl Streep as the witch and Johnny Depp as the Big Bad Wolf.
Not to fear! The movie was very good! True: Streep's big numbers ("It's the Last Midnight") were talked rather than sang -- but she has sufficient talent to pull it off, and played her role with a sense of humor. The filming was appropriately mystical; the princes appropriately conceited; the baker and his wife appropriately cute. The best numbers -- Into the Woods, You are Not Alone, Children will Listen -- were well done.
Careful the wish you make
Wishes are children
Careful the path they take
Wishes come true.....
The Hobbit Battle of the five armies (or something like that). Well I had to remind myself constantly that this is just a movie and as such I enjoyed it. A lot of new stuff was added and I felt the whimsical part of the Hobbit book was a bit lost. I liked Thranduil character, but maybe that is because I love Lee Pace.
It's a good movie if you try not to compare it to the book, but if you do then it's no good....
good entertainment but no masterpiece.
This film conforms generally to my recollection of E.M.Forster's novel that I read many years ago. The story is set in the fictional hill town of Monteriano in Italy in 1903 and relates the consternation of a widow's family and her inlaws when she decides to marry the unemployed son of an Italian dentist. Her first husband's son is sent to Italy to persuade the Italian to renounce the marriage by offering him money but is laughed at and told that the wedding has already taken place .
Having failed in their attempt to salvage what they perceive as their damaged reputation, they are further disconcerted by the news that the errant relative has died in childbirth; leaving the child in the charge of her husband.
Both families decide separately to 'rescue' the child from a life of semi-poverty and have him brought up in England as a gentleman, but their plans go awry and end in tragedy.
The culture clash is deftly handled by the director, and the Tuscan scenery shown to advantage while the cast manage to convey the stiffness of middle class Englishness with the free and easy lifestyle of the Italians. 9/10
It's surprising that, given the interest shown in English writers, that E.M. Forster, one of its foremost practitioners, is hardly mentioned on LitNet
I saw BBC documentary One Life last night and it was very entertaining. It is a collection of different scenes shot in exotic locations. And I loved the scenery. Some parts of the film were really awe-inspiring, like Komodo Dragon stalking a water buffalo. I also liked the music and Daniel Craig's narration.
Thanks for recommendation, Nikolai. It was great.
Watched Wag the Dog last week. It's a great political satire with biting humour. Very thoughtful film and it shows how the general public is easily fooled by politicians who are habitual liars. Robert De Niro and Dustin Hoffman were excellent throughout the film. Woody Harrelson (Old Shoe) was really funny.
Thanks for recommending it, Hawk. I enjoyed it.