Winter
has definitely arrived here in the Netherlands and what is the best
way to get through it? Yes, you got it, movies. So, a nice film, some
warm chocolate (probably wine) and good company are the basics you
need for this winter. Here, I have a list of some of the films I
managed to watch the past week(s). This list can be used as a
suggestion for a film when you don't know what to watch and as an
informative critical piece about films you might have already seen or
planning to – either in the cinemas or at home.
(You
can find detailed plots through each title linking to Imdb)
The
following reviews are from my Letterbox profile.
Based
on the novel of Jack Kerouac, this film unfortunately failed to keep
up with the expectations it raised. It is a road movie (?), but the
constant drunk and sex scenes dominate the meretricious beat
narration. The actors, along with the story, are trapped in nice
shots and seemingly meaningful narration. It tried too hard to
represent the beat generation and to follow that sense of life. OK,
the beats were using drugs and were experimenting in
all levels, but this film wanted to show too much of it, becoming
that way something very 'small' in the film world. Sex and drugs were
something new back then, but today they have become obsolete. And
what really matters today is the beat generation's literary heritage.
Two guys are working on a
remote highway road, having to deal - except for the solitary
challenges of this construction job - with mostly each other. Alvin
is the oldest and seemingly the wisest and Lance the youngest,
ignorant one. Alvin is maintaining a relationship with Lance's
sister, something that complicates their relationship even more. They
don't like each other, but they do need each other. To work, to
survive, to get over anything that seems to trouble them from their
previous urban lives.
The multiple gaps in the
story and the many information we never learn about the character's
background, are the main disadvantages of this film. It really lacks
in content. Some beautiful shots in the remote Texan nature are not
enough to elevate this film from a below medium position to a
decent one. It is funny at times and the actors show their
potential, but again they stumble on the weak narration and the
almost absent story. We don't see any character development, anything
to prove that there is a story. Only their relationship is shown with
long shots and funny lines. But is there really anything more to it?
What can I say for a movie
when thousands of reviews and articles have already been written for?
Nothing more than my humble and honest opinion. It really amazed me
with how much love and dedication Nolan made this film. He didn't do
anything at random. He wrote a story, dealing with the exploration of
time travel, black holes and gravity, that has a deep human base:
love.
He took the logical
scientific facts and put them in a frame of purity and tenderness
about the essence of our nature. He really knows how to make high
quality cinema that also becomes a sensation selling thousands of
tickets. But this doesn't really say anything to me. What does is his
devotion to his vision, his profound intelligence and his talent to
dive into space with total conscience of his abilities, his
restrictions, his imagination and most of all his modest humanity.
Space is vast and is mostly
depicted with fear and awe from humans. The fact that we haven't
discover all its secrets makes it even more dark and mysterious.
Nolan managed to unlock - even if it is not completely scientifically
correct - this big chest of those mysteries and explore the deepest
of our imagination and potential. The key he used to open this chest,
the key with which he gave meaning to all the uncertainties of our
universe is our own human nature. Our love and affection moves around
our existence. Our emotions and memories are the fuel that keeps us
moving, that makes us who we are, that makes us humans.
An extremely powerful story
about a middle aged woman and a 17 year old boy, who shared a
passionate love affair in Post-WWII Germany. After the abrupt ending
of this relationship, the - now law student - boy discovers that the
woman he fell in love with, almost 10 years ago, is on trial for war
crimes.
A deep and emotional film
with three different narration points and an extraordinary Kate
Winslet giving the performance of her life (she won the Best
Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role Oscar in 2009). I really
found this a breathtaking story that blew me away. And when you like
a movie so much instantly, you tend to ignore some faults in
direction or in narration that might have occurred. To me, it made
perfect sense exactly how it was made, even if my critical thinking
tries to remind me at times of all the flaws.
I am still amazed of how
this proud woman overflows with guilt about her past and actions and
prefers to carry the burden of her illiteracy all by herself. Her
strength is proving to be her greatest weakness. All those
contradictions of her character make sense only though the filter of
true love. Because she was (and still is) loved. So intense and so
deep by a young ignorant boy that everything else seems trivial.
This
boy will later also be torn apart by this awful burden of guilt
because of his choice to turn his back to his one and true love. The
tragedy of the story finds peace somehow to its core. Their true
love. Because they both shared that in their lives. At least they had
the chance to experience each other's love.
I found this film
enormously funny and enjoyable. Bill Murray was made for this role.
He took it and made it his. Vincent is a filthy old drunk, completely
rude and hateful towards everyone he meets. He is bitter with life
and sarcasm is his second nature. He soon dries up from money and
realizes he can be the baby-sitter of his neighbor's son, when one
day the kid gets bullied and with his keys stolen he asks Vincent for
help. It sounds like the typical story of bad-grumpy old guy meeting
young kid and becoming good again, but here something is different.
Vincent doesn't seem to
change and it becomes clear enough that he always had a good heart,
he just needs to be reminded of it. The young boy, Oliver, enters his
life abruptly and becomes something like the son Vincent never had,
somebody to show the filthy world we live in, somebody to trust. Even
if Vincent doesn't really trust anybody.
One of the last scenes of
the film is one of the most touching- like ever. Oliver is presenting
his assignment about a saint he knows, revealing to the crowd that
saints are endurable, tough people who are not afraid to be
themselves and make a difference in the world. And his saint is
Vincent of course.
The story has a lot
of ups and downs. A lot of stuff is being revealed about Vincent and
his past, the possible reasons behind his behavior. Generally the
film contains a lot of info about him, leaving the other characters
under his shadow. But we don't care about that, because we only think
of him and we subconsciously consider of our own Vincents, or even
better, our own Vincent side.
This is an honest film with
loads of awesome funny moments, especially if you are a fan of
Murray. Let your heart go with it and you will realize its true
magic, even if not everything in it is perfect. Just like Vincent
himself.
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