Category: 10/10
The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
It doesn’t matter who you are, you love this damn film.
The film tells the story of Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbins), a banker who spends nearly two decades in Shawshank State Prison for the murder of his wife and her lover despite his claims of innocence. During his time at the prison, he befriends a fellow inmate, Ellis Boyd “Red” Redding (Morgan Freeman), and finds himself protected by the guards after the warden begins using him in his money laundering operation.
Let me just say this, if you have not seen this film, stop reading and get out there to your local video store/Redbox/Netflix account/illegal movie download website and check this ditty out. Honestly, everybody loves it. Of course when people say that about anything, it usually means that it’s just their opinions and that about 2 people they know agree with them so they feel like hot shit but that’s not the case here at all. You could ask anyone their thoughts on this and I’ll bet they’ll all tell you the same thing: perfection.
The craziest thing about this flick is how this was writer/director Frank Darabont‘s first movie he ever made. That’s right people…..FIRST MOVIE HE EVER MADE! Darabont really deserves all the credit for this story and for this flick because he found a way to match all of Stephen King’s writing in such a perfect way that it made every line of dialogue, feel like a piece of art itself. When the film wants to be funny, it’s funny; when the film wants to be emotional, it’s emotional without ever being hokey; and whenever the film wants to find its own little sly ways of getting us more and more involved with this story, it does and never stops the whole time. All of the dialogue, if placed in a lesser hand, could have been written off as corny but Darabont and King work wonders together, and it’s no surprise that Darabont went after another King adaptation about 5 years later with The Green Mile. Oh yeah, and he’s the guy who also adapted The Walking Dead so that definitely earns some brownie points in my book.
I think what really makes me truly love this film the way that I do is that I have seen it about 5 times and not once does it ever get old. That’s the true sign of a good movie. Since you know everything that goes down in the end, you get the chance to look at everything once again and see all of the little hints and clues that this film throws at you, without you ever really knowing in the first place. It’s really cool how Darabont was able to throw these little things in there to have it all make sense in the end but still allows you to get something new out of the movie each and every time you watch it. The film is all about the human spirit and how we can all be free no matter where it is that we are at in our lives. These prisoners feel trapped but it’s all about how they can all break free from these walls without ever having to take a step over them. It’s a message that we have all seen done and talked about before, but for some reason, this film does it the best and really makes you want to just get out there and live like a free person anywhere you go.
At the center of this whole film though is the performances of everybody involved, especially those ones of Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman. These guys were already big names before this film came out but I think it’s definitely the best performances of their careers by far, and if you have ever seen any of their other work you know that this is a very bold statement to make in the first place. Robbins is very mysterious and strange as Andy, but he’s also a very likable character that makes it easy to see why all of these guys take such a liking to him in the first place. We also see Andy as a free soul that wants to do anything in his power to do right for everyone around him and gets even better and better once you start to see just how smarter he is than he lets on. It’s such a shame that he didn’t get nominated for an Oscar here because he really brings a whole lot to Andy. Morgan Freeman is also the perfect choice as Red. Red is our narrator for the whole movie and shows us a look at everything that’s going on with Andy from the outside-in and it just works because you feel a huge deal of warmth and comfort from this character that it really shows as one of Freeman’s signatures when it comes to him playing in any role. I heard that Darabont chose Freeman over such legends like Clint Eastwood, Harrison Ford, Paul Newman, and Robert Redford, and to be honest, I couldn’t see any of them playing the part as perfectly as Freeman does here.
What made this film work the way it does on me is the friendship these two create together. Red sees something in Andy that he never expected in the first place and from then on, we see two people who are both struggling for freedom in a place where all hope is lost, gain some sort of hope together. What I’m describing right now may sound a bit too much like a mixture between Brokeback Mountain and Cool Hand Luke, but it’s honestly the best aspect of this whole movie because you see this friendship blossom over time and you see how they each look out for one another in every single situation they have. By the end, everything they have together starts to come in full circle and that’s where I actually started to tear up a bit because this is where the film’s message comes around and it’s also where you notice that these two guys were meant to best buds and live free after all.
Consensus: The Shawshank Redemption is just one of those perfect movies that seems to have it all: great writing, great direction, amazing performances, a message that is meant to inspire anybody who watches this, and so much more to it. Basically if you are reading the end of this review and have still not checked this one out, then get off your butts and do so. I promise you will not be let-down in the least bit.
10/10=Love and Cherish Forever!!
Countdown to Claus: A Christmas Story (1983)
Christmas just would not be the same without it.
Ralphie (Peter Billingsly) is part of the all-American family in the 40′s trying to survive the Christmas season. It is also his quest to finally get from the big man himself what he’s been wanting and been warned about for so long…an Official Red Ryder Carbine-Action Two-Hundred-Shot Range Model Air Rifle. Hey, he said it best.
Come on now! You had to know that this was coming around sooner or later. This is basically the definitive classic film for Christmas and it only gets better with age, considering I remember always watching this way back when I was still hanging out in my Superman undies on the 24th of December.
The reason why this film works so well is because it’s so damn memorable. I mean almost every line of dialogue is something everyone all over the world still remember to quote and even the events that happen as well are memorable as hell too. Who doesn’t want to go to a Chinese place on Christmas? Who doesn’t want that leg-lamp? Also, who doesn’t want a damn BB-gun for Christmas? These are only a couple of things that are memorable, but they aren’t the only ones I can promise you that.
I think the best part about this flick is that it really hits some reality points, especially if you’re a kid because a lot of what goes on here and said here, is actually how a kid is. Ralphie is just like any kid during Christmas time: he wants presents, he tries his hardest to stay on the nice list, and he day-dreams all day about getting good grades in class and having the whole class lift him up over their heads. I always thought like that as a kid, and in other ways still do but it’s just easy to say that if you’re a kid now watching this, you will see a lot to relate to and realize that you are not alone in the way you act. Then again, I don’t think any little kids are reading this anyway.
I don’t know where all of the stars in this film went because everybody here is memorable and perfect for their roles. Peter Billingsley at least directed the terrible flop ‘Couples Retreat’; Darren McGavin kept on doing his own thang for awhile, even appearing as Billy’s dad in ‘Billy Madison’, but tragically died in 2006; and Melinda Dillon kept doing on doing whatever the hell it is that she was doing but the last time I saw her in anything was in ‘Magnolia’ and even then I had to look up who she was. Yes, three random-ass films like ‘Couples Retreat’, ‘Billy Madison’, and ‘Magnolia’ all share something in common.
The reason why this flick is just such a classic is because it just brings me on home some of the nostalgia that I love seeing in any film. This just reminds me of hanging around my house, drinking some egg nog and getting in the whole mood and spirit of Christmas which I always truly love. This is definitely a flick that will love on for as long as Christmas goes on for and I’m proud to call this one of my all-time favorite films no matter what.
10/10=Full Price!!
Merry Christmas everyone!!!
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
Maybe there are some chicks that I wanted out of my memory, maybe….
After learning that his mercurial ex-girlfriend, Clementine Kruczynski (Kate Winslet), has undergone an experimental medical process to purge all memories of him, mild-mannered Joel Barish (Jim Carrey) opts for the same procedure. But during the operation, he decides he doesn’t want to lose what’s left of their relationship and tries to conceal her image in his memory cells.
The script here is done by Charlie Kaufman, who has done scripts for films like Being John Malkovich and Adaptation, so already you know this is going to be some crazy shit. And crazy shit, is exactly what you get here.
The one thing about this script that separates itself from other romantic comedies is that this is painfully honest at times. The sci-fi premise is used as a metaphor as to whether or not we would be better off eliminating that heartbreak from our lives. The fact is that we need heartbreak to learn from it and make sure not to make the same mistake again, and thus it makes us the person we are today. This script really does show love in a beautiful yet painful way because this love that Joel and Clementine has, isn’t a pretty one. This love/relationship isn’t one of those instant love-at-first-sight kind of deals, it’s more that for almost every single great memory of Joel and Clementine there is an equally painful one, one that I wouldn’t want, but not every single relationship a person has, is going to always be happy-go-lucky. This script is just so beautiful and breathtakingly honest because it shows that people change over time, and no matter how much you have your mind want to believe that truly do hate that other person, your heart will never forget that one person. I know it may sound cheesy and a little schmaltzy, but the way the film tells this fact, is just beautiful.
Let’s not also forget that another reason as to why this film works, director Michel Gondry. I don’t know how Gondry took a look at this script and came up with this piece of beauty, but I have to say he absolutely makes every single scene here, his own. Since this takes place in the mind, and as we all know, a lot of crazy things happen inside of our minds, Gondry has the opportunity to let some real trippy stuff happen on screen. The visuals are amazing and are amazing without hardly any use of CG special effects. There’s a lot of beautiful lighting tricks, setting movements, and just overall breath-taking scenes that take us inside of the mind, and give us this wonderful fantasy that life really is something you can’t imagine.
The cast here is also something to praise. Jim Carrey gets rid of his goofy faces, and give us a spot-on performance as the quiet, sweet, and endearing Joel. Carrey owns this performance because he has you believe that somebody this serious could actually have the type of relationship he has with Clementine, and go through all the things he does to keep her in his mind forever. Kate Winslet is almost even better as the eccentric and quirky Clementine, who actually carries her character into being more than just that zany chick, that is almost too hard to believe. Winslet is hilariously likable in this role, but at the same time believable, and wins the crowd over almost throughout the whole film. The rest of the cast in this film is good with the likes of Elijah Wood, Mark Ruffalo, Kirsten Dunst, David Cross, and the always reliable, Tom Wilkinson.
Consensus: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is twisty and trippy, but beautifully filmed, with a brutally honest script that shows heartbreak as something in life we always need, no matter how painful, or rewarding. Perfect film all around for anyone who wants to get inside a mind, and possibly get inside their own. I wish I could say more about this film and it’s utter greatness, it’s just one of those things you have to see to believe.
10/10=Full Pricee!!
Happy Friday everyone!
Toy Story 3 (2010)
Makes me wanna go and play with all of my old toys, not like I already still don’t.
In this installment of the Pixar animated franchise, toy cowboy Woody (voiced by Tom Hanks), his astronaut pal, Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen), and their friends cope with their owner’s departure for college — and their new home in a day-care center.
I have basically grown up with these films. The Toy Story franchise has always been something so meaningful to me, because it practically sums up my childhood. And to see the franchise, as well as my childhood, come to an end, it really does make it the best farewell.
First off, the film does a great job at doing everything right. The humor is in the right spot, with a lot more jokes hitting more towards the adults than before, and it all still works. There’s a lot of surprisingly gay jokes here, that aren’t as bad as I thought, because it brings more humor with the story. I also found the whole idea that they were practically living in a prison, very, very funny, and it’s always cool to see toys acting like their in real-life situations.
The whole tone of the film is different, in that it’s a lot more darker. These toys aren’t afraid their going to be sold away, their afraid their going to die. It’s kind of crazy thinking since their only toys, but none the less, the tone didn’t bother me as much, since the warm-hearted feel, and jokes kept the smile on my face. Let’s also not forget that there is also plenty of cool and fun action going on in this film, with plenty of cool set pieces that you wouldn’t expect to be really cool, until you see it.
Everybody who was in the first two basically return for this one, with the exception of Jim Varney, who tragically died. RIP Ernest, I’ll never forget your crummby-ass movies. I can’t really point anybody out since everybody does a magnificent job in this, as they did with the first two, so I’m just going to say good job to everyone. However, their are still some new characters. Ned Beatty plays Lots-O’-Huggin’ Bear who reminds me of an old-Western folk, who is all nice and simple. But a lot of the laughs from this movie, came from Michael Keaton, who is playing Ken. There are a lot of jokes to him being “gay”, and the funniest thing is to hear Keaton’s voice basically sell every line he has. I can never get enough of that man, I’m so glad he hasn’t stopped doing anything.
But everybody, let’s face it, this is the last Toy Story, so of course there are going to be some tears, and although I may always try to be the big manly-man, I will not lie. I did cry during this film. The fact is that when Andy first has all these toys in the first one, he was about 5, or six. I was about the same age, so when he was growing up with these guys, so was I. I know it may sound crazy, but these guys were kind of like my toys too, and as always with anything, it’s sad to say good-bye. I was a fool for this movie right from the beginning, and it all started off pretty fine and dandy, but then those last 15 minutes come up, and I was just straight up balling. I mean the emotional core is just set so high, that when those last words from Andy are spoken, you cannot just feel that not only is Andy growing up, you are too. Therefore you are always going to be connected to these little guys, no matter how big, tall, old, or strong you get. Woody, Buzz, Jessie, and the whole rest of the gang will always have a special place in my heart, I’m never going to forget you. Never.
10/10=Full Pricee!!!
Chasing Amy (1997)
If only my girlfriend was a lesbian. Then things would be very interesting.
After comic book artist Holden (Ben Affleck) falls in love with the perfect woman, Alyssa (Joey Lauren Adams), he discovers she is a lesbian in this comedy from writer-director Kevin Smith. With no help from his friend, Banky (Jason Lee), Holden tries to make a relationship with Alyssa work. Although Holden knows Alyssa cares deeply about him, her homosexual past may conspire to come between them and ruin everything.
Look at every film that Smith has written/directed, and compare it to this. You’ve got Clerks, Mallrats, Zack and Miri, Clerks II, Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob Strikes Back, and Cop Out. There are all crazy, stupid, and raunchy comedies, this is the farthest thing from.
Kevin Smith has always been perfect with showing how real people actually speak, especially when it comes to talking about dirty shit, but with this he explores more into the world of sex, love, and desire. Yes, there is that occasional raunchy bit, but Smith never gets too wild with it to the point of where we lose main focus of where we’re at. We see and hear the sexual politics that go into both sides of the sexual desire, and gender, and both sides are equally understandable. The insight is huge, and it all seems to realistic to be from a movie by slacker Kevin Smith.
The film shows us how we look at sex from one gender to another, and can either see it as something wrong, or something that has to do with love. We are always quick to judge somebody or something for what they love, or do, and never to get down to the core of what love really is. This point struck a huge core with me, and it moved me as the film went along. Smith doesn’t just badge the other sex and stay with the guy’s point of view, he gets sensitive with his points and never seems like he’s ranting or telling us how we should treat others, he’s just simply showing us the world we live in where sexual criticism is around every corner. There is also some big points on friendship brought up, and how far it gets to a point of where it actually may become something more. Smith never lets loose of the brutal reality that we face when we are in love, where we start to alienate others, and we focus on the big mistakes our lover has made in their past. We sometimes never see a person for what they are in front of our faces, but what they did in the past, and as sad as it may be, I know I have defiantly done that in the past.
However, despite all this raw and emotional stuff about love, there still is a lot of comedy, and humor that will have you chuckle. Theres crude dialogue, blunt descriptions of sex, and obviously an overkill of Star Wars and Comic book references, but it all pertains to the story, and shows how all these people live, and makes the subject material go more deeper and more accessible.
The whole cast, that was fairly un-known at the time, does a great job here. Ben Affleck in the main lead, as Holden, is kind of a deuchy character to begin with, but after awhile you get to see him as somebody more. There is one scene that really does show off his great emotional strive he can go into as an actor, where he is telling his love for Alyssa, and it seems so true and genuine. Joey Lauren Adams is perfect with the bisexual Alyssa. Her high-pitched voice may get annoying with some characters, but with her it adds on a lot more to her likability as female lead. She’s funny, raw, and overall very confused, just like any other woman in her shoes would be. The chemistry her and Affleck have feels genuine, and as the friendship builds up, you can feel the love between these two also build up. Jason Lee is also great as Affleck’s best friend, who is funny, but also jealous in a way of Affleck and his love for Alyssa.
I just wish there was so much more I could tell you how much I loved about this film. It will take you by surprise by how loving, touching, insightful, funny, and moving it really is. There is so much to see here, but don’t take my word for it, get out right now and go and see it.
Sorry guys no consensus, this is just too great for that.
Do the Right Thing (1989)
A title in which nobody in the film does.
On a sweltering hot day in a Brooklyn neighborhood, everyone has their own issues to deal with and tensions between Blacks and Italians rise. Issues of pride and prejudice, justice and inequity come to the surface as hate and bigotry smoulder–finally building into a crescendo as it explodes into violence
Spike Lee’s films are ones that I thoroughly enjoy, as hard as they are to get through, their enjoyable. This is probably one of his most challenging ever, but also his best.
Lee’s screenplay is what really makes this film click, mostly cause it’s all so real. You have comedy, drama, racism, tension, political justices, all of these things are talked about or happen in one day, and it all seems too real. I mostly like how Lee controls the camera to keep up with all the stories in one day. You see all these people in one close-knit community, how they react with each other, and what their differences are as people. Everybody has something to say, and I enjoyed hearing almost every word of it, because this is how real people actually speak, especially when it comes to the subject of racism.
The main reason why Do the Right Thing is so memorable, is because of its final 30 minutes, and main message at hand. The huge ass riot at the end, is filmed so well, you can just feel the intensity coming off the screen, and you feel like this is how a real riot would ensue and end. Also, Lee ponders the question that hits us many times throughout this movie: “who does the right thing?”. To be brutally honest, it may seem like an easy answer, but after watching this film, you can’t really tell who does, or who should have, everything is just based on first instinct. Lee also does something that almost never happens in race films such like this, he shows us both sides of the story. Lee doesn’t always back up black people, and with this you can see that he shows the white people, as good people too. Lee raises us with a lot of questions, and instead of just having us answer them right away by what he shows us on film, he makes us keep pondering the questions to ourselves, even after the film is over.
Spike Lee as Mookie, is good, because the guy is so laid back, so chill, and so cool, that he really is a great character to watch, as he basically walks through the streets of Brooklyn, delivering pizzas for about 2 hours each. Danny Aiello as Sal, is also very powerful here, playing a guy that seems so tough with his work, but then you see the people that come into his place, and you can understand why he is, like he is. There are just so many more memorable characters in this film, like Ossie Davis, playing the neighborhood drunk, or John Turturro, playing the son of Sal, who is just a total d-bag. So many more characters but I would be taking forever if I had to explain every single dynamic one.
Everything about this film will just make you understand racism a whole lot more. Even though it is about 20 years old, it still holds up today showing us a look at just a small little neighborhood, that can still have racial tensions, as much as any other place. Just remember to be ready for a second viewing, and always raise the question: “who does the right thing?”.
Consensus: Lee’s masterpiece, although about 20 years old, is just as powerful as it was then, with it’s powerful performances from memorable characters, and a direction and script from Lee that shows the many people that live in the world, who deal with racial tensions, just almost every day.
10/10=Full Pricee!!!!
Anatomy of a Murder (1959)
Nothing like watching a great classic, on a crappy Sunday.
Nominated for seven Oscars, this legal thriller profiles the attempts of country lawyer Paul Biegler (James Stewart) to exonerate Frederick Manion (Ben Gazzara), who’s charged with a local barkeep’s murder but claims the victim raped his wife (Lee Remick). Employing a temporary insanity defense, Biegler tries to outmaneuver slick celebrity prosecutor Claude Dancer (George C. Scott) but discovers there’s more to the case than meets the eye.
You know sometimes, when you watch old films, from like 50′s and 60′s, and they are so dated, that they are actually boring. Well, this for me, was not that kind of film.
Never in film has it quite been done so well, that a film can have such a great message about the world we live in, that stands the test of time. In the nature of another great courtroom classic from a similar time period, To Kill a Mockingbird. Both of these films touch on the matter that we as humans in our society have motives that are both mixed and dubious, and therefore our uncertainty is that we don’t know what the world is like.
I love courtroom dramas, and I really have no idea why. I don’t want to be a lawyer or anything like that, they have just always interested me in a weird way. And this one here is surely one of the best of all-time. The film moves and is shot in real-time, with a time limit of 2 hours and 40 minutes that does not once feel over-played one bit. Director Otto Preminger keeps this film at a nice pace for all of us to understand, and easily not get bored at. The film’s first 1 and 30 minutes are dedicated to the gathering of evidence, which is used effectively, cause you get to see all the steps a lawyer must make in order to make sure he has taken the right case. Also, the black-and-white is for some reason so special here, cause it does add a lot to the moral effect, to where nothing at all seems right.
The film’s screenplay is also very noticeable cause it is one of the very first few films to test the boundaries, of the movie ratings. The film makes a lot of frank references to sex and rape, which back in 1959, was definably a no-no. However, this film tests those ears, and gets its point across, with some of the most intelligent dialogue I have ever heard in my life. It’s funny, visceral, thought-provoking, and overall brilliant, of how such a film can create such dialogue that can be seen as something in today’s world. In the screenplay, there are no good-guys and there are no bad-guys, just like real-life, we are chosen by our decisions.
How is it that a film, can have so many great performances packed all into one film?? James Stewart leads the crew with his usual “lovable loser” look, but still defines class, and how it was presented in the late 1950′s. He’s funny, powerful, and overall believable, making this one of the more very believable people I have seen in recent films. George C. Scott shows up latter in the film, but adds some more of his cocky attitude to the film to show us more why we should just forget that he played Patton. Also, the one performance that really stands out in my mind especially, is the one given by Lee Remick, who plays this tease so perfect, so sexy, and so believable, that you can see how looks and talent can go hand-in-hand in most cases, as well as when you got a chick that in today’s world that can be viewed as very good-looking.
Consensus: How can a film be thought-provoking, realistic, well-acted, beautifully written, heavily stylized by black-and-white, and stand the test of time even though it was filmed in the 50′s? Well that’s why Anatomy of a Murder is a classic for all to see, whether you like courtroom dramas or not, there’s always a message that is in today’s world.
10/10=Full Pricee!!!
Moulin Rouge! (2001)
I don’t care what you people say, I FREAKIN’ LOVE THIS MOVIE!!!
Satine (Nicole Kidman), the star of the Moulin Rouge and the city’s most famous courtesan, is caught between the love of a young writer and another man’s obsession. Christian (Ewan McGregor) is a writer who finds himself plunged into this decadent world where anything goes – except falling in love.
When it comes to some of the greatest musicals of all-time, I think this would have a nice spot on my list.
I love this movie just because of how it is, without being anything else. Director Baz Luhrmann is the real star of this movie because he doesn’t follow all these other musicals that are known. He uses licensed songs such as “Like A Virgin”, “Heroes”, and “Your Song”. The film isn’t afraid to be silly when it needs to but its not all the fun that gets this film really at me, its more about the true story of love. The film is so original with everything it does, because it doesn’t play by the same rules all other musicals do, it basically is laying down the ground that this is what film should be: fun. It has a plot from 1400s operas, look from 1950s broadway productions, and it has a visual style from current music videos.
The film obviously takes some notes from Romeo & Juliet (Luhrmann directed that back in 1996), because this is also about forbidden love, but is also about the joys and also the tragic heart-breaks that love can effect you with.
I have to mostly credit the way this film looks cause this world that they live in, is very unrealistic, but it seems all too much fun. I actually wanted to go there and live in this place as this film was going on. The set designs look so lavish, with all the beautiful colors and costumes coming right at you, bringing this whole world of fun, love, and heart break to glorious life.
The songs are what makes this film great, because as I mentioned before, its licensed songs. The songs that they choose for these particular moments in the film, work so well, and actually seem like they could be real songs that these people were actually singing. They combine a lot of different variety of music, like “Smells Like Teen Spirit” and “Roxanne” but most of it all works so well here.
The performances from this whole cast are just stunning, cause not only is it their real acting that’s good, but all of them can basically sing. McGregor plays his lead character with so much charm, but yet so much unknowings about love, and thats why it makes him a great protagonist to cheer for. The real show here is Kidman who is just a total knock-out with her performance. She plays this character with so much beauty, charisma, and also tragedy without once hamming it up for the camera. The way the two interact with each other on-screen seems so real and genuine that its hard not to want these two together in the end. If anything the only problem I had with this film was that its main villain played by Richard Roxburgh seemed too cartoonish at points, and I couldn’t take him seriously as a bad guy.
Consensus: Moulin Rouge! is a musical that is fun, energetic, and so original with an inspired direction from Luhrmann, beautiful performances from McGregor and Kidman, and great look, feel, and sound that its hard not to love this film and hail it as one f the all-time best.
10/10=Full Pricee!!!!
City of God (2002)
Brazil is such a fucked up place to be!
Buscapé (Alexandre Rodrigues) is frightened he’ll end up like the countless others around him — troubled, violent or dead. But his saving grace is his photographer’s eye, through which the stories of several people who live in his forsaken Cidade de Deus unfold. Fernando Meirelles and Kátia Lund direct this sobering look at life inside a Rio de Janeiro housing project, reputed to be one of the most dangerous parts of an otherwise magical city.
Before I start this review I just want to say one thing, and that is that this film none other than simply a masterpiece. I never thought I was going to be as astonished with this film as I was, and I’m so glad I’ve seen this.
Director Fernando Meirelles does a great job at constructing this film. Its spans over three decades, and features so many twists and turns with many different characters that you barely even know. He goes back and forth between decades without you even realizing he has, and your not confused one bit by all these characters and their reason for being in the film.It has this look of Pulp Fiction, and Memento as it shows an event happening but from different view points so that we fully understand what and why it happened.
The film is utterly disturbing. There are plenty of scenes that just contain random and innocent people being killed, women being killed, and the most disturbing children being killed. It’s all so very very disturbing but in a way it doesn’t feel exploited. I started to get used to the killing and I felt like I was there with them as this was happening. The violence is relentless and mostly done in a casual way so it doesn’t quite surprise anyone. The gritty look mixed with a lot of the drug abuse, and violence doesn’t feel fake at all, it effects you and makes you understand what these people go through on a day to day basis.
The cinematography is something that will really get you watching as well. The way the camera moves along with the action and the scenes it gets you in a sense of energy, and I’m kind of sure that some of the techniques used here were somehow used in Slumdog Millionaire, but I’m just saying. Also, the writing here is top-notch and it all feels like actual real dialouge and spoken by true and real people.
The best part of this movie is the characters that inhabit it. From the beginning we understand who these people are just based on by the actions and their morality choosing. Enough screen-time is given to enough of these characters for us to fully relate to them and understand who they are as a whole person, instead of just these savage gangsters. The acting here is really something to watch. They have ll these little kids from about 6 and 7, to about young men of like 18,19, and 20, but every one act as if they were all natural-born thespians. The best performance here and probably the most sinister is Douglas Silva who plays the main bad guy Li’l Ze and does an amazing job at being one of the biggest villains in any film that i have seen in a long time.
Consensus: City Of God is a masterpiece. It has wonderful and inspired direction, with a gritty and violent look that is disturbing but doesn’t feel exploited in any way, and great characters that are backed by increcible performances. This is one of the greatest films I have seen in a long time, and anyone that likes good movies should give this one a try, cause you will not be dissapointed.
10/10=Full Pricee!!!
BTW: Here is just one of the most Iconic Images in cinema history that will soon be hanging somewhere in my room very shortly.
Raging Bull (1980)
Proof that you don’t fuck with Robert De Niro!
Raging Bull stars Robert De Niro as Jake LaMotta, a middleweight boxer whose sadomasochistic rage, sexual jealousy, and animalistic appetite exceeded the boundaries of the prizefight ring, and destroyed his relationship with his wife and family. Also featured in the film are Joe Pesci as Joey, La Motta’s well intentioned brother and manager who tries to help Jake battle his inner demons, and Cathy Moriarty as his abused teen-aged wife.
So when it comes to boxing films, none can ever top my favorite, and probably everybody else’s, Rocky. That film is one of the timeless classics that the whole family can watch and recite for years and years to come. However, when watching this boxing classic take the family away.
Raging Bull is the best sports film of all-time, close to one of the greatest but you know me I can’t go that far yet. I mean there are so many reasons why it’s just great but I just don’t know how to put it all out.
This is a film that is way different from many other sports films. We never get a look at La Motta’s childhood, we just see him when he becomes a star, and then to where it starts to die out. This is great cause we get a sense that this guy was always like this and really was never happy.
The whole film is beautifully filmed in black-and-white, and to be truly honest it couldn’t have worked any other way. The fighting scenes are what is mostly perfect about the look, cause they are shot in such unrelenting and graphic detail that I really did fully get an idea of exactly what boxing is all about. This whole film looks so realistic that I actually felt like I was in the 40′s with La Motta at the time all this was going down.
One of the main reasons why this film is so great is because of De Niro. Obviously, La Motta is a real person, but De Niro takes this real person and turns into what I may say one of the best characters ever captured on film. His performance is so wonderful that at the end I totally forgot that this was De Niro, and felt like I was just watching La Motta himself. His temper is short and there are plenty of scenes where he just loses it, and you, the viewer, are even scared just watching this man. But one of the better reasons why he is so great, is cause the character himself is so unsympathetic. Now this is what I love to see in movies that is played real well here. Here we have a guy who just doesn’t give a shit about what he does: he cheats on his wife plenty of times, beats the crap out of anyone he wants to, basically just doesn’t care what other people have to say about him cause he knows they will get destroyed by him, and at the end of the day he will say “FUCK YOU!”. This is the kind of character that I want to see in any film, De Niro plays this character with such anger and aggression, that I’m not just scared of this man, but I also have to just say he is one of the greatest tragic hero’s in any film still to this day. Also, the supporting cast with Joe Pesci and Cathy Moriarty who do their very best jobs just to at least handle this crazy S.O.B.
But surely this film wouldn’t even be amazing without one of the greatest, Martin Scorsese. You can just tell with every single scene he is just swinging for the bleachers and is trying so hard to make this film as effective as still is today. He shows us the little spaces in between the high points, but mostly its a film about a life and the end of it, and what is left to say. I was just right away destroyed by the film even as it started, with those beautiful and glorious opening credits, don’t tell me that doesn’t just deserve a 10/10 itself. Honestly, I will never watch another Scorsese film without thinking of this and to be truly honest, nothing that he does in the future will ever, and I mean ever come close to this beautiful piece of work.
Consensus: Without a doubt one of Scorsese’s best films of all-time, that shows a life that is filled with violence and anger, that is often too hard to watch. De Niro plays his greatest role ever as La Motta the unsympathetic hero, and puts so much depth into this performance, that I really felt like I knew who this man truly was.
10/10=Full Priceee!!!!
Psycho (1960)
Truly the definitive horror film that will never get old.
When larcenous real estate clerk Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) goes on the lam with a wad of cash and hopes of starting a new life, she ends up at the notorious Bates Motel, where twitchy manager Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) cares for his housebound mother. The place seems quirky but fine … until Marion decides to take a shower.
What could possibly be said about Psycho that hasn’t been said before? It certainly must be one of the most famous movies of all time. Having heard so much about it, I really doubted if the movie could live up to my expectations. Amazingly, it actually exceeded my expectations.
Psycho is basically a horror film that was the first to ever come out, and it might as well be one of the greatest. I’m not a huge fan of those gore-fest films with over excessive nudity, blood, and violence. So because this film was basically made back in the 60′s there really is none of what we get nowadays with these horror films.
The one amazing thing about Psycho that not many other films do is that it really is a timeless film that really has aged perfectly. It isn’t corny nor is it dumb now that we look at it, it is still a great thrilling horror film.
Alfred Hitchcock really is one of the greatest director’s of all-time. I’m not talking in the horror genre, I’m talking of all film. He uses these camera angles and looks during each scenes to really have us capture the essence that something just isn’t right. The famous shower scene that almost everyone knows is great, and really is worth, just to see.
Anthony Perkins shines in this film as the creepiest mo fo in the whole film as Norman Bates. He creates one of the first great creepy characters on film, and he actually does make this person seem creepy as he talks more and more.
Consensus: Alfred Hitchcock shows he is the greatest director of all-time with Psycho. A film that has aged really well, and is an amazing watch of how much it’s influence in the horror genre that we see all today is in.
10/10=Full Pricee!!
Up (2009)
An old geezer takes flight.
After a lifetime of dreaming of traveling the world, 78-year-old homebody Carl (voiced by Ed Asner) is lured into an unbelievable adventure, thanks in part to the persistence of Russell, an 8-year-old Wilderness Explorer (Jordan Nagai). Together, the unlikely pair embarks on a thrilling odyssey full of jungle beasts and rough terrain.
This is Pixar’s first hit at a 3-D film and might as well be their best work to date. With Up they dive into a world vivid and alive, rich in detail, and somehow despite the obvious lack of realism, completely authentic.
Pixar’s one great thing about their films is that they can create this mashing of heart and humor in one film to make it work, but I think this is one of their best work combining the two. In the beginning of the film we get a montage of Carl and his wife together throughout the years of their marriage, is some of the best animation in a film to date. It’s gut-wrenching, and true showing all the high’s and the low’s of marriage.
Up is actually one of those really special films that when it comes out you must see. It’s a very timeless film tat doesn’t act like many other Pixar films. It doesn’t have those jokes that are more for the adults and go right over the children head, there all for everyone in the crowd to understand.
Never in my life have I come closer to crying at a Pixar film in my life. Up really deals with some tough and heart-wrenching themes, such as love, death, and most all life in general. There are some scenes that just bring out a huge batch of emotion from inside of you out into this movie, and it was all worth it, cause it really does mean something when you cry watching this film.
Ed Asner voices Carl, and if there is anybody that can do the voice of an old grumpy man it’s him, because he does an amazing job right here. Also the voice of the little kid was also very good, along with the talking doug ,Dug, who every time talked made me laugh every time. Christopher Plummer also comes out of nowhere and does a great voice over playing the villain.
Though Up was sad and serious it still has some comedy that stays with you throughout the film and is well-worth it. Also, there is a message that really means something that is saying that you did accomplish something in life and life is an adventure.
Consensus: Up is exciting, heart-felt, and also hilarious. This is one of more Pixar’s most serious work to date, but has a great message and brings out the best within you.
10/10=Fulll Priceee!!!
500 Days of Summer (2009)
No not the time of season, a chick.
When his girlfriend, Summer (Zooey Deschanel), unceremoniously dumps him, greeting-card copywriter and hopeless romantic Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) begins sifting through the year-plus worth of days they spent together, looking for clues to what went awry. As he recalls the good and bad times he spent with the commitment-phobic girl, his heart reawakens to what it cherishes most.
This is surely one of the best romantic comedy’s, if you would like to call it, that I have seen all year. I was totally suprised by this film and its deliverance of the story. I expected this film to be showing the days of their relationship from day 1 to day 500, but instead you get a totally original way of showing these two relationships’. We go from day 43 to day 3, and from day 147 to 79, and we begin to string together their relationship.
The heavily inspired and originality of this film is what really got me. There are some really original moments that are both memorable but also very true and I just wish that more directors would take as many chances as director Marc Webb has. The non-linear telling of the story is not distracting one bit and falls into total order and fully gives us the ups and downs of their relationship.
Many other things about this film are just so amazing but one imparticular is that this is not your regular romantic comedy that you come by. It’s true about love and life unlike many other romantic comedy’s that have come and gone and surely shows what its like when two “real” people get together. The stylized scenes are there and not very show off and through these scenes you can actually feel the sense of being in love.
Chemistry between the two leads is so perfect that I actually thought I was watching a documentary on a couple. Gordon-Levitt is amazing, and sort of reminds of a John Cusack type guy who is your normal everyday dude but he’s not boring. He’s also very believable and very entertaining to watch and I caught myself loving this guy throughout the whole movie. Deschanel is also very good playing the character she always plays but this one adds a little twist and you like this one a lot more than anyone she’s ever played.
The feelings I felt during this film I cannot explain. I never have come around a film in my life that has made me feel so happy and mesmerized about my life and this film, and overall it was a very touching experience.
Consensus: This film is so original with great chemistry, true screenplay, real-life people, very fresh soundtrack, and overall a very different but touching unconventional love story that I loved from beginning to end.
10/10=Full Pricee!!!
One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest (1975)
The showdown between a nurse and a patient. Let the games begin.
Implacable rabble-rouser Randle Patrick McMurphy (Jack Nicholson) is committed to an asylum and inspires his fellow patients to rebel against the authoritarian rule of head nurse Mildred Ratched (Louise Fletcher).
The film has one of the greatest feuds between 2 characters I have ever seen on film. A nurse and a patient doesn’t seem so heavy you say, but after you see this then you will question no more. Nurse Ratched is all about order and discipline. Randle on the other hand represents everything anti-establishment, who is in the nut house pretending to be crazy to escape being in incarcerated.Both feud and show dislike towards one another and its surely something great to see.
The film has a great sense of the human qualities to it. Randle treats these patients as if they are normal old human beings and not some drugged out nut cases that have to follow a same routine everyday. This makes you think and makes you feel about life in a great and wonderful way of who you really are.
There are scenes that are just simply unforgettable much of due to the charisma of the stars portraying these characters. They all seem so real in a creepy kinda weird way. Jack Nicholson gives an amazing performance that is too great to be true and brings all of the energy to the film. Having Louise Flecther playing the quiet but very strict nurse is totally effective as she is a lady that doesn’t talk too loudly and wants everything done her way but when that flip switches, oh god it sure as heck switches. The rest of the cast do very exceptional jobs as many will see great debut films for such stars as: Danny DeVito, Christopher Lloyd, and Brad Dourif.
The mixes with comedy and drama throughout but ultimately is the most effective tragedy of all-time. The on-going feud between Nurse Ratched and Randle are simply one of the greatest feuds on screen of all-time and set the grounds for many more effective feuds in cinema history.
There is nothing bad I can say about this film other than it truly is a wonderful American Classic. All should see if you want a film that will make you laugh, cry, think, and overall be happy about your own life, and not many films nowadays do that.
10/10=Full Price!!!
Pulp Fiction (1994)
Now I have seen this film about 4 times but only on TV so everything was censored. Then I got the director’s cut and oh god did I miss a lot.
An inside look at a memorable community of criminals. Prizefighter Butch Coolidge has decided to stop payment on a deal he’s made with the devil. Honey Bunny and Pumpkin are a couple of young lovers and small time thieves who decide they need a change of venue. Meanwhile, two career criminals, Vincent Vega and Jules, go about their daily business of shooting up other crooks who are late on payments to their boss. While one is asked to babysit their boss’ dangerously pretty young wife, the other suddenly realizes that he must give up his life of crime.
OK let me just say this about the film it is great!!! Tarantino makes one of the greatest films of all-time right here. This is film making of an high order. This is a narrative movie that walks a long rope so complicated that if you don’t stop to think about the movie it starts to kinda double-back itself.
This is surely one of the greatest and probably on of the first that mix humor and crime together in one movie. Tarantino has made some of the most original material in the whole world of film. The stuff these characters talk about are hilarious but also very true. The topics of conversation range from foot massages, pot belly’s, double cheeseburgers, and of course crime. But all conversations are equally as funny as the last, and you don’t want these people to stop talking. Another great film from Tarantino is that he prepares us for one thing and gives us something else we weren’t expecting. The pop culture insight is surely a life of its own during this film.
The humor gets blind sided by some violence and pretty graphic violence but it’s not the violence that will make you turn away. Each story is not shown in chronological order but its still shown and well told through the stories that you don’t become confused. This is a movie you have to think about and when you do, you will love this movie even more by its cleverness.
The ensemble cast is purely amazing. There are many big name stars who don’t have huge parts but still do amazing and make their presence known on camera. The one thing I mostly loved about some of these big names is that they were sort of poking little jokes at themselves if you watch carefully. Travolta does the same walk at the end of the story that he did in Saturday Night Fever and Bruce Willis pokes fun at his character from Die Hard with the tough-nosed character that has a soft side. Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson’s story is probably the most entertaining and best well-acted where in which every scene with them the always steal the scene. This was a movie that made a lot of careers such as Uma Thurman, Ving Rhames, and Tim Roth. Also be on the lookout for a cameo from the great Christopher Walken who is actually pretty funny in his 5 min. scene.
There basically is nothing bad about this film other than I wish there was more. I know 154 minutes is a long time but this film could’ve added so much more and been even better. But still I loved it no matter how long it was.
The greatest movie ever, ummm…maybe. But it’s clever, funny, violent, well-told, greatly acted, and surely an amazing classic for everyone to see.
10/10=Full Pricee!!!
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