NEW ADDRESS - please change your bookmarks etc

hey guys, i have just bought a new address for the blog formerly known hopeandbullshit. due to the language of the old title i have decided to clean my act up, so to speak, and am the proud owner of hope lies at 24 frames per second, which is located at

www.hopelies.com

everything has been ported over there from here.

the chorus (2004)

coming soon.

stolen kisses (1968)

after the relatively out of character piece fahrenheit 451 and the film that would later go on to inspire quentin tarantino's kill bill series the bride wore black, francois truffaut returned to the antoine doinel series in 1968 with stolen kisses.

we pick up with antoine freshy discharged (dishonorably) from the army, and on the lookout for his sweetheart (although not colette from the previous antoine and colette). through a series of events antoine ends up working for a private detective agency, fall for the boss's wife and finally end up working as a tv repairman. its all very scattershot but works incredibly well on screen.

i found the use of the private detective agency of particular interest, seeing as truffaut was so keen on the hollywood cinema that was largely dominated by such figures. it was a nice tribute i thought, and didnt seem to falter as parody too much, which is one of my complaints with his shoot the pianist. the use of tv repair man as an occupation seemed to me to be a sly nod to the television industry too, courtesy of the cinema world. as a result this film seemed to fit in with the whole ethos of the new wave much stronger than the earlier films in the series. the nod to laurel and hardy is blatent too, another example of the sort of thing i would expect of the nouvelle vague.

the film is perhaps the best shot work of truffaut's career, with the lingering camerawork an obvious inspiration to the aesthetics of modern american independent cinema and the like. the scene of the letter tubes is outstanding, genuinely one of the all time great scenes.

antoine and colette (1962)

this follow up to the 400 blows is a wonderful tale of young love. antoine and colette is the second in director francois truffaut's antoine doinel series of five films. while this film is only a short it still manages to fit plenty of story into its brief running time.

we learn in the opening minutes that antoine was captured after the escape attempt that brought with it the close of the previous film in the series the 400 blows, and that in the years since antoine has somehow made it through the reform system and is now living the life he aspired to as a boy and is fending for himself.

thematically the film insnt particularly disimiliar to its predecessor, with antoine dealing with the familiar tomes of rejection and the seemingly impossible pursuit, for him at least, of attaining some kind of stability in his life (with regards to relationships at least). his plight with the young colette, a girl he meets at a concert hall is one of the strongest realisations of what it feels to be a young man in love that i have ever seen. the hope and the rejection are born out of genuinely universal themes, that we can all relate to. the comparison between that of antoine's attempts at stealing a kiss from colette and the journey that a skiier makes down a treacherous hill is a particularly wonderful moment, and the final scene of antoine sat (emotionally) alone with colette's parents captures a scenario that is all too uncomfortable, even as a viewer.

terminator 3 - rise of the machines (2003)

the third outing for the architypal ''brand-arnie'' character is basically a retread of the second film, albeit with a couple of awful comedy touches (the 'star' glasses scene? just awful), and while the seemingly endless cycle of different comedy vehicles becomes incredibly tiresome, the film as a whole isnt too bad, mainyl down to one reason - the ending. the ending of terminator 3 is gloriously downbeat, and genuinely surprising. the faults of the preceeding 90 minutes are completely overshadowed by the events of the last five minutes.

synecdoche, new york (2008)

i have been sitting on my review of synecdoche, new york for a good few days now. while im making an effort to remove any overtly foul language from my blog at the moment (a new title is en route folks) this film is the new benchmark when it comes to that most beloved of cinematic event, the mindfuck. move over inland empire there's an heir to thy throne, in the shape of charlie kaufman's directorial debut. kaufman is best known as writer of the likes of spike jonze's being john malkovich and adaptation as well as eternal sunshine of the spotless mind from michel gondry.

synecdoche, new york is a hard film to summise, but basically it tells the story of caden cotard, a theatre director whom suffers a breakdown of sorts. we follow caden throughout the course of his breakdown; during which he attempts to stage a production based on his own life (and the lives of his family and friends), within a large warehouse in new york. within the warehouse he rebuilds the settings and scenarios of the outside world, building effectively a life size model of new york within it. all this without a mention of the smoking house, the tattooed ten year old child, miniature artwork and a bizarre obsession with tootbrushes, time (and the subsequent timekeeping) and hairstyles. its all very odd, but wonderfully realised.

i thought of the film as a comment on many aspects of film and art, with particular note made on the role of the actor within the picture. there's a great scene whereby one of the actors is attempting to perfect he way his character walks. considering the genuinely epic scope that this film exhibits, to make note of such a trivial moment may seem odd, but i found the moment strangely telling of the true nature of the piece.

philip seymour hoffman continues his recent good run (following doubt) with perhaps his most interesting role to date. there is great support from the triptych of women in coden's life.

it goes without saying that synecdoche, new york will have many a different interpretation, but that eally is the joy of this kind of cinema. the discussion factor is endless, with the film already proving incredibly devisive amongst those that have seen it.

the night of the hunter (1955)

french film bible, cahiers du cinema recently named charles laughton's sole directorial effort as the second greatest film of all time, which in anyone's eyes is quite the achievement, but in the mind of someone whom regards the french magazines opinion very highly its even more of an endorsement. having not seen the night of the hunter for around five years, it was with the poll that im conducting at the moment (see the 400 blows) in mind that i revisited it.

has there ever been a more chilling villain in all of cinema than robert mitchum's 'preacher'? this is the performance that defines mitchum's career for this viewer, and it is a portrayal that affected me many years before having actually seen the film. you see, i have fond memories from my childhood, of seeing a photograph of robert mitchum, hands adorned with love/hate, leaning against a white picket fence and smiling affably into the camera. it would later transpire that this photograph was a (rather oddly chosen) promotion still from the night of the hunter, although at the time i genuinely didnt have a clue where it was from, and in a similiar vain i dont actually remember where it was that i saw the photo. it was from this brief tease that i searched out the night of the hunter on VHS. i must have been around 15.

having finally discovered the film that had lingered in my mind for so long i wasnt disappointed, although i will admit that some of the films deeper subtext did go over my head at the time. it wasnt until this most recent viewing that i was fully able to comprehend the entire scope of the picture. understanding the logistics of the silent film and german expressionism helped a great deal too, in providing further enjoyment, as i feel that laughton's film owes as much to murnau or lang as it does to the contemporary cinema of the mid-1950's. the stark blacks of the starkly star-decorated skies add a depth quite unusual for typical hollywood fare of the time, and while the general concept is dealt with in a fairly laconic manner, the horror on display is rather heavy and forebearing. the controversial nature of the representation of the 'preacher' in the film may have drawn protest too, although i sincerely doubt his actual credentials. in spite of all of this, the fact that the film is one of cinema history's all-time great failures is still beyond me, with the repurcusions felt by the films director one of the biggest crimes of the incident.

charles laughton's reluctance to work on the other side of the camera is one of the great injustice's of the cinema, the enticing question of "what if...?" has rarely been more apt.

terminator 2 : judgment day (1991)

james cameron's celebrated follow up to his 1984 creature-feature is regarded by many to be an example of a sequel bettering its original. i personally dont agree with that notion, but it is a great showcase of the evolution of character. sarah connor, potrayed by linda hamilton, is the real focus point of interest in this film as far as im concerned. the way in which the character has developed between pictures is genuinely interesting, but believable all the same. technically the film was a huge leap between the two, with the gritty future hinted at in the first film developed more fully in a brilliantly realised opening sequence. the development of arnold schwarzenegger's terminator from monster to hero works much better than one would expect, especially in the face of the the genuine terror that is robert patrick's T-1000, truly one of the great film villains of the late 20th century.

watchmen (2009)

when it comes to comic books and superheroes my knowledge and attention is fairly lacking. i have a historical love affair with captain america and a bunch of other marvel superheroes, and have a good grasp of the universe they exist in and the industry they are a part of. i am not an unreasonable man. i understand the technicalities that come with any adaptation, be it comic strip, tv show or prose novel, therefore i have never been one to bemoan the changing of aspects of a particular piece of source material to suit its newfound cinematic audience. with the unveiling of watchmen though, for the first time in my life, i found myself in the rather worrying predicament of acting a bit like a fanboy. i felt as though i had a god-given right to act as if the source material mattered enough to me so much that i had an opinion. ''this isnt like iron man, or batman" i thought, those films can exploit 50 plus years of history to their benefit, origins can be manipulated, scenarios can be changed, they do it in the comics so feel free to do it within the realms of film. with 'watchmen' though it was different, very different. the puzzle like nature of the book dictates that if a single ingredient is missing then a disaster could be afoot.

first of all changes to the ending were announced. many exclaimed blasphemy, whereas i wasnt hugely fussed. as long as they kept the message, the subtext if you will, then i will be happy. the second major negative mark against the films production was the employment of my chemical romance, pop-punk emo-supremo's to provide the films "theme-tune". not only that but it was a cover of one of my most beloved of songs, bob dylan's ''desolation row". "desolation row" provides what i feel to be one of the key inspiration points for the original ''watchmen'' book, in the shape of the line "now at midnight all the agents/and the superhuman crew/come out and round up everyone/that knows more than they do''. indeed the song is credited in the book, and the line is used to bookend one of the issues of the original comic that was collated to make up the now famous graphic novel. now my big problem doesnt lie in the fact that the song is one of my favourites, nor does it lie within the fact that my chemical romance are a terrible band (following record label ethics that surely contradict the message within 'watchmen'?), my problem lies in the very fact that zack snyder chose this band and this version of the song for his film. in his artistic opinion, this was the best he could come up with? really? the third and final negative pre-release woe came in the shape of the 30 second clips that were unleashed upon the internet just a few weeks ago. knowing full well that i would be seeing the film i didnt particularly want to check out the clips, for fear of spoiling the one aspect of the film that i didnt already know, but in the case of one scene i buckled. it was the scene involving nite owl 2 and the comedian on "crowd control" duty. in less than 30 seconds of footage i learnt 3 things. well i say i learnt 3 things, only 2 of those were new, whereas 1 was a confirmation of an earlier worry. the first piece of information was the confirmation that snyder really cant choose music. the scene in question, in which civil disruption turns into carnage at the hands of the comedian, features a riot, and is set in the 1970's. now whatever gave snyder the impression that 'im your boogie man' by k.c and the sunshine band was the soundtrack of choice for the keen rioter in the late 1970's i do not know, but it was a ridiculous decision, and indictive of his other musical choices, of which i will get to later. secondly, for all his good intentions, snyder just didnt get the look of this scene right. there was an ominous red glow involved in the original composition, and one which i always took to be a parallel with the scenes on mars. alas it wasnt replicated here. finally, thirdly, and perhaps most obviously was the apparent overuse of slow motion. in this one 30 second segment there were two uses of the damn technique. now im not exactly against the use of slow motion, but if ever there was a technique that required it be used in moderation then this is it.

so the run up to 'watchmen' wasnt particularly positive.

having seen the film this afternoon im actually confused as to how i felt about it. there were some great moments, and the film has a lot going for it, but i cant help but be ultimately disappointed by it.

as a literal translation of the comic strip-based action of the book then it worked fine. i was particularly impressed with jeffrey dean morgan as the comedian, and didnt find any of the performances especially lacking. the sidelining of 'moloch the mystic' and 'hollis mason', the first nite-owl was particularly annoying, being that they represent an area of the graphic novel that i found to be particularly of interest; the roots of the demistification of the superhero if you will. the pacing, obviously a victim through circumstance more than anything, really didnt work. the film didnt feel epic, as much has been made of it on various reviews, it felt slow, and lacking any kind of real heart. the all important subtext, without the contextual background provided within the book, didnt really exist. sure there was a mythology in place, plenty of opportunity for those who would like to seek out more to seek something out, but the subtext and message that were inherent throughout the source material is all but missing. a point that really got to me was the fact that the key point within the book that spells out the comedian and ozymandias' fate isnt in the film. there's a scene in the book whereby the comedian gives the young ozmandias. its a fleeting moment, but the nature of the assault mirrors the image of the opening section of the film perfectly; the roles are reversed and there was something rather poetic about the whole encounter. quite why the comedian fights back is again, beyond my comprehension. he has already accepted his fate by the time his killer strikes. for him to fight back (in the film) reaks of the filmmakers attempt at shoehorning action in. the fact that we lose the wonderful little bit of mirroring with the earlier (in the time frame of the narrative) event just adds salt to the wound.

the music, both score and found was awful, with particular woe being aimed at the use of leonard cohen's 'hallelujah' throughout the most embaressing sex scene i have seen in quite some time. seriously its just incredibly lazy filmmaking when you rely on such well known songs to project a feeling upon the audience. add in the use of 'the sound of silence' during the funeral march and you have something that i would expect from a student film.

one last negative - richard nixon? what on earth went wrong there?

as i mentioned above, the film translates the literal image of the book onto the screen in a very faithful manner. at times it genuinely does feel like the book has come to life, yet at others it feels like a shoddy rip off of the product it claims to be. the overuse of slow motion does wear at first, but after a while it blends into the edit and isnt especially noticeable. it would be nice to see snyder lay off on the slo-mo a bit tho, the final fight in particular would have benefitted from a bit of speed and realism, especially considering the nature of the participants attire. and while its the negatives that stand out the most, the overall experience was fine, just not necessarily alan moore's 'watchmen'; it wasnt great, but it wasnt awful either. it was just "ok", which is probably the most disappointing thing of all.

the 400 blows (1959)

i took in a repeat viewing of truffaut's masterpiece this afternoon in aid of the poll being conducted over at empireonline, in which a group of fifty must choose the ten films that they deem to be the greatest of all time, before the results are colated and put into a hopefully definitive "best ever" type list. as a rule, im making an effort to rewatch each of the 20 or so films that have made my shortlist, before deciding upon my final ten.

"the 400 blows" was one of the films that shaped the way in which i look at and appreciate the "art" of cinema. while topically it wasnt literally relevant to the 16 year old boy that was watching it, visually it felt incredibly fresh, especially compared to the hollywood and mainstream cinema that i had only been exposed to at the point in which i saw "the 400 blows" for the first time. alongside jean-luc godard's "a bout de souffle" my interest in film was formed. i was sold on the notion that film as art was a viable concept.

having spent time in paris since last seeing the film i can suddenly appreciate just why the film and the city are so closely associated. obviously the very fact that the film is set in the city dictates that a close association comes fitted as standard, there is a deeper connection. the opening credits, still an all time favourite, captures the love/hate relationship that the city has with the concept of the tourist, or the outsider. while attractions like the eiffel tower may not have been intended as the "attraction" that i have just deemed it, that is exactly what it is, and i feel that, based upon personal experiences, the opening credits of the film are almost claiming back the tower to the city. throughout the remainder of the film areas regularly associated with tourists (the champs elysees, the basilica, etc) are shown in a light expected more of bresson than the 'nouvelle vague'.

despite having seen the film inumerable times ''the 400 blows" remains as watchable as ever. the charm of the character of antoine doinel remains as affable as ever, with jean-pierre léaud playing the character that would become his most popular for the first time.

the final shot fo the film still manages to be staggering in its existence. one of my oldest memories of the film is just how haunting i found this final shot to be, and can confirm that this is still the case. a beautiful shot that leaves the viewer with more questions than ones it answers throughout rest of the running time of the film. this is cinema, this is film, this is art.

the visitor (2008)

tom mccarthy's follow up to ''the station agent'' proved to be a sleeper hit last summer, with a reinvigoration of interest after richard jenkins' oscar nomination. more importantly the film won the best director award at the independent spirit awards, a more telling sign of quality in my opinion.

"the visitor" tells the story of walter vale, a widowed college assistant who has all but given up on his work and life. when visiting new york for a work assignment he finds that a pair of illegal immigrants are living in his apartment. rather than removing the couple, he decides to let them stay, and over the course of the next 30 minutes or so we see their relationship bloom. vale learns how to be passionate again, through the course of learning to play the traditional drum instrument that tarek plays for a living. through a chance encounter the film takes a decidedly grim turn, and the focus is turned on topic of the american governments post 9/11 foreign policy.

richard jenkins is fantastic as walter vale, just fantastic. im not hugely aware of his work, i remember him from ''six feet under'', and have seen him in the recent "burn after reading'', but he is simply a revelation in this post. his character is reminiscent of that of finbar in mccarthy's previous "the station agent", in the respect that we dont feel like we want to like the character, or that the character doesnt actually want us to like them either. throughout the picture the character is unveiled though, and we learn to feel empathy towards him, and are willing him onto develop.

the themes of the film are pretty hard hitting, in the sense that injustice and political wrong-doing is on the screen for all to see. the film doesnt cop out and offer unrealistic answers, it simply shows us the cause and the realism that is the fact that very little can be done by the average person with regards to the situation we are witness to. visually the film is outstanding. the stunted pace of the film i complimented by languid, sparse arrangements that tie into the tone perfectly. mccarthy's style works as a counterpoint of sorts to wes anderson, with a similiar low key style but understated theatrics.

i was really affected by "the visitor", much moreso than i expected to be. its a wonderful piece of cinema that shows that the talented man at the helm is developing greatly as a cinematic force.

the station agent (2003)

tom mccarthy, a sometime actor probably best known for his role in season 5 of the wire burst onto the independent film scene in 2003 with this gem of a film. "the station agent" concerns a man named 'fin', who inherits an old train depot station after the death of his boss, and his subsequent relationship with the locals of the small town that the property resides in. the core character trio of fin, joe the local hotdog vendor and olivia, a local artist rules the core of the film, and with it comes some pretty heavy topics. each of the characters has a severe characteristic flaw, be it olivia's trauma as a result of her sons death, joe's inability to remove his fathers influence, or the chip on his shoulder that fin carries due to his dwarfism. the resulting 85 minutes brings us a combination of dark rooted hope and a study in the irony of specific relationships. the films "feelgood" nature, a term i despise yet attach to this project is genuinely lovely, despite the nature of which it flows.

mouchette (1967)

robert bresson's final black and white feature, "mouchette" tells the story of the eponymous 12 year old girl of the title, and in particular, her rape and suicide. ninety minutes of joy it may not sound, but "mouchette" is a surprisingly uplifting film.

there are many parallels between "mouchette'' with bresson's earlier film "au hasard balthazar". the plight of the young girl is very similiar to that of balthazar the donkey, with both being the centrepoints of each's respective story. obviously both are heavily put upon by their surroundings. the protagonist doesnt speak until 35 mins into the film. the lack of dialogue suggests more about mouchette's relationship with the world around her than any explanation could. again this is similiar to the silent balthazar, although the fact that mouchette's silence is through choice as opposed to by nature says a lot. the accompanying sound is sparse and diagetic for the most part. this is most effective at the end of the film, wherein the by now familiar sound of mouchette's shoes and the splash of impact upon the pond tell the whole end of the film. incidentally, the incidental music is amazing. this isnt unusual for bresson at all, the little dialogue and heavily visual look combine to create the usual pace for a breson film.

one of my favourite examples of the subtlety within bresson's work is during the scene at the fairground. at one point the barmaid from the village pub, embroiled in the midst of a three way love affair, can be seen riding a fairground ride with one of her suitors. within this short scene that contains no dialogue and is actually confined to the limited scenario of a fairground ride the actual truth towards her feelings are revealed by the simple movement of her arm. its a beautiful scenario, and telling of bresson's style completely. add into this the preceeding scene involving mouchette's naive flirtation on the bumper cars and you have a great telling of bresson's spectrum, with the joy and the immediately following heartache.

there is a comparison to be made between the juvenile delinquency on display in ''mouchette'', with that of the actions of antoine doinel in "the 400 blows". the stylistic overtones and political allegory of truffaut's work is much more apparent, but perhaps that is telling of what seperates the work of bresson with that of the french new wave. interestingly, jean-luc godard cut the trailer for "mouchette". the piece he created was perhaps an insight to what might have been, had bresson embraced the movement.

finally, its worth pointing out that "mouchette" contains what is possibly the most distressing scene that bresson ever shot. the pre-title sequence involving the poaching of a bird is genuinely disturbing.

alone across the pacific (1963)

"alone across the pacific" is my first kon ichikawa, and was a highly positive experience. "alone across the pacific" tells the story of a young man that betrays his father's wishes and embarks on a journey taking him from his home of osaka to the shores of san francisco. the subtext tells of a young man that wants to break free from the shackles that society have deemed upon him, with the story of the journey being as metaphorical as it is practical, and one that most can relate to in some way. contextually the film message may strike deeper tho, with the plot being a slightly veiled look at the way in which japan as a nation was controlled to a large extent by the americans in the wake of the second world war. the scene in the passport office as well as the american sailers obsession with protocol would suggest this is the case.

rather uniquely, the film's structure follows the emotional plight of our unnamed protagonist. that is to say, that rather than as would usually be expected in this sort of film, wherein a person takes a journey of some kind, the joy doesnt come at the end, it comes at specific points along the journey. when our protagonist finally makes it to san francisco his happiness is hampered by the reality of what is effectively "the end".

the dreamers (2003)

bernardo bertolucci's love letter to the cinema of the "nouvelle vague" is a film i have avoided for quite some time. i was under the impression that it was rather embarassing in its adoration, and while i wasnt proven right, i dont feel as tho i was entirely wrong.

first things first; im a huge fan of the period of cinema that bertolucci is aspiring towards with "the dreamers". alas i feel as though he has pandered his view somewhat, and although the film is incredibly enjoyable, it falls short of being addressed as a serious piece of cinema. the main fault lies in the script. the wording seems aspirational as opposed to authentic, and the characters lack genuine characteristics, and are at once incredibly shallow. performance wise eva green steals the show. her engenue provokes michael pitt's rather tepid performance to no end, while louis garrel seemes nothing if not peripheral, and wasted.

while it wasnt entirely successful i did really enjoy it. the geek in me really enjoyed the numerous film references, and i feel like it is definately a worthwhile experience, even if it did feel very much like a student film as opposed to the films it was a celebration of.

the new look list. march 2009.

its been a whole month since i last put the list together, there's been a couple of major changes. im looking at making a number of changes to the list over the next few weeks, more info to be posted soon.

1. pierrot le fou (jean-luc godard)
2. the passenger (michelangelo antonioni)
3. au hasard balthazar (robert bresson)
4. se7en (david fincher)
5. sunrise (f.w murnau)
6. i've loved you so long (Philippe Claudel)
7. a man escaped (robert bresson)
8. the wrestler (darren aronofsky) *
9. hunger (steve mcqueen)
10. doubt (john patrick shanley) *

11. the outlaw josey wales (clint eastwood)
12. pickpocket (robert bresson)
13. milk (gus van sant) *
14. bottle rocket (wes anderson)
15. gran torino (clint eastwood *
16. revolutionary road (sam mendes) *
17. twelve monkeys (terry gilliam)
18. red desert (michelangelo antonioni)
19. mon oncle antoine (claude jutra)
20. bronco billy (clint eastwood)

21. l'argent (robert bresson)
22. gomorrah (matteo garrone)
23. rome, open city (rossellini)
24. shadow of a doubt (alfred hitchcock)
25. unforgiven (clint eastwood)
26. traffic (steven soderbergh)
27. che - part one (steven soderbergh) *
28. f for fake (orson welles)
29. the brothers bloom (rian johnson)
30. changeling (clint eastwood)

31. lancelot du lac (robert bresson)
32. oss 117 ; cairo nest of spies (michel hazanavicius)
33. the element of crime (lars von trier)
34. the shining (stanley kubrick)
35. rear window (alfred hitchcock)
36. the dark knight (christopher nolan)
37. wall-e (andrew stanton)
38. the silence of the lambs (jonathan demme)
39. five easy pieces (bob rafelson)
40. slumdog millionaire (danny boyle) *

41. frost/nixon (ron howard) *
42. man on wire (james marsh)
43. blow up (michelangelo antonioni)
44. the limey (steven soderbergh)
45. che - part two (steven soderbergh) *
46. spellbound (alfred hitchcock)
47. europa (lars von trier)
48. the shop on main street (ján kadár and elmar klos)
49. before the devil knows youre dead (sidney lumet)
50. the adventures of baron munchausen (terry gilliam)


51.the curious case of benjamin button (david fincher) *
52. the usual suspects (bryan singer)
53. lars and the real girl (craig gillespie)
54. out of sight (steven soderbergh)
55. days of heaven (terence malick)
56. la ricotta (pier paolo pasolini)
57. blindness (fernando meirelles)
58. killer's kiss (stanley kubrick)
59.letters from iwo jima (clint eastwood)
60. jcvd (mabrouk el mechri) *


61. dirty harry (don siegal)
62. mad detective (johnnie to & wai ka fa)
63. the idiot (akira kurosawa)
64. in bruges (martin mcdonough)
65. gone baby, gone
66. time bandits (terry gilliam)
67. tideland (terry gilliam)
68. play misty for me (clint eastwood)
69. bigger than life (nicholas ray)
70. hellboy - the golden army (guillermo del toro)

71. bolt 3D (disney) *
72. pale rider (clint eastwood)
73. the pianist (roman polanski)
74. withnail & i (bruce robinson)
75. the terminator (james cameron)
76. the wizard of oz (victor fleming)
77. capturing the friedmans (andrew jarecki)
78. monty python's life of brian (terry jones)
79. firefox (clint eastwood)
80. hancock (peter berg)

81. iron man (jon favreau)
82. saboteur (alfred hitchcock)
83. the gauntlet (clint eastwood)
84. breezy (clint eastwood)
85. the day the earth stood still (robert wise)
86. rope (alfred hitchcock)
87. total recall (paul verhoeven)
88. wanted (timur bekmambetov)
89. the international (tom twyker) *
90. mallrats (kevin smith)

91. die hard (john mctiernan)
92. magnum force (ted post)
93. casino royale (martin campbell)
94. valkyrie (bryan singer)
95. the reader (steven daldry) *
96. space cowboys (clint eastwood)
97. the young victoria (jean-marc vallée) *
98. body of lies (ridley scott)
99. solaris (steven soderbergh)
100. hancock (peter berg)

101. the trouble with harry (alfred hitchcock)
102. indiana jones and the kingdom of the crystal skull (steven spielberg)
103. the hunt for red october (john mctiernan)
104. the puffy chair (duplass brothers)
105. "the birds" (alfred hitchcock)
106. i am legend (francis lawrence)
107. the rock (michael bay)
108. quantum of solace (marc forster)
109. superbad (greg motola)
110. frenzy (alfred hitchcock)

111. transformers (michael bay)
112. the magnificent ambersons (orson welles)
113. speed (jan de bont)
114. australia (baz luhrmann)
115. star trek - the motion picture (robert wise)
116. coogans bluff (don siegal)
117. the enforcer (james fargo)
118. joe kidd (john sturges)
119. spider-man 3 (sam raimi)
120. dear wendy (thomas vinterberg)

121. goldeneye (martin campbell)
122. night watch (timur bekmambetov)
123. judge dredd (danny cannon)
124. armageddon (michael bay)
125. strangers on a train (alfred hitchcock)
126. jamaica inn (alfred hitchcock)
127. robocop 3 (fred dekker)
128. robocop 2 (irvin kershner)
129. my bloody valentine (patrick lussier) *
130. a nightmare on elm street 4 (renny harlin)

131. a nightmare on elm street (wes craven)
132. zack and miri make a porno (kevin smith)
133. goldfinger (guy hamilton)
134. a nightmare on elm street 2 (jack sholder)
135. you only live twice (lewis gilbert)
136. mad max - beyond thunderdome (george miller & george ogilvie)
137. die another day (lee tamahori)
138. a nightmare on elm street 3 (chuck russell)
139. a nightmare on elm street 5 (stephen hopkins)
140. a nightmare on elm street 6 (rachel talalay)

141. W. (oliver stone)

cinema total = 16

hunger (2008)

steve mcqueen meant a lot to me as a young art student. his work was much more accessible to the eyes of someone who held godard in as high a regard as an artiste like klimt, and especially stood out when compared to the late nineties round of british enfant terribles, a group with whom i just couldnt relate. it was with great pleasure that i left "hunger", an oxymoron if ever there was one, and perhaps not the right word.

as mentioned elsewhere, the way in which mcqueen brings european sentimentalities to a british film production is inspired, with the complete picture bringing together a largely unique final piece, especially for a film that was a borderline commercially successful product. visually the film reminds of bruno dumont, with his stark yet epic visuals that draw upon bringing the beautiful out of the less than average.

german actor michael fassbender is the closest thing the film has to a "star", asbobby sands, and charts the hunger strikes that lend themselves to the films title. fassbender is outstanding, going to the lengths of suffering for one's role that would impress even de niro. while the after thought of the film is all but concerned with the plight of bobby sands its easy to forget that sands doesnt appear until the films second act. much of the lead into the film revolves between that of a young inmate arriving at the maze prison, and the story of one of the prison guards. the story of the prison guard has an especially interesting body, showing that the film isnt completely one sided and unfairly sympathetic towards the other side.

the success of the film has been a great indication as to the quality of films that audiences are seeking out in britain at the moment, its taken me by surprise actually, but is no doubt a great thing.

man on wire (2008)

and now for a film that the academy did get right... and a british film too.

james marsh's "man on wire", the tale of philippe petit, a young french man and his attempt to cross the two towers of the world trade center by rope, is the best reviewed film of all time. quite an impressive feat, but then so is the film itself. the fact that no actual video footage of petit crossing the towers actually exists doesnt prevent the film from being a towering achievement (pun intended), as instead we follow his plight and plan to scale and cross. the film is told in the manner of the heist film, with each detail and problem explained and tackled in the appropriate manner. the forty year old opinion of those involved is shown too, with each displaying a huge amount of emotion and reverence to the event.

analogy towards the events of september the eleventh are left to be made by the viewer, but the detailed shots of the buildings themselves are enough to provoke thought and exploration into those later events. the manner in which petit describes the towers as things of unimaginable beauty comes across as a striking anchor point for how the towers are now remembered.

gran torino (2009)

part two in my current series of academy award "upsets"....

i kid of course, its just a funny coincidence that i saw "i've loved you so long" and "gran torino" back to back, but quite why clint eastwood was all but missing from this years oscars seems a tad odd to me, especially if you take into account the fact that this may well be the last time we see him up on the silver screen. let's just ponder that thought for a moment; clint eastwood, american icon, hell, american IDOL, may well have performed his final performance. its the end of an era, of that of the great american motion picture. a symbol of the old hollywood that no longer exists. what with newman passing last year, eastwood is one of the few familiar strands from yesterday.

"gran torino" originally existed as the final chapter in eastwood's "dirty harry" series, yet prior to hiiting the screen the character has seemingly become an amalgamation of several of eastwood's key roles. we see the obvious, be it harry callahan or ben shockley (courtesy of "the gauntlet"), and the not so obvious in the shape bronco billy (providing the light humour over the dark themes). the role certainly seems to be a celebration of eastwood's career, and the fact that the film exists in such a workmanlike and unglamourous fashion is a testament to eastwood's no-nonsense attitude. if "gran torino" does prove to be eastwood's final role then it will mark an outstanding era of american cinema in a suitably just fashion, although personally i dont see him quitting just yet...

the international (2009)

an action film with a topical beating heart, "the international", from director tom twyker of "run lola, run" fame stars clive owen in full-on james bond mode as a british policeman involved in an international case involving illicit bank dealings. naomi watts stars as his new york-based associate, with able support from a cast selected from around the world, the most impressive of all being 'brian f. o'byrne' as the impressively titled 'the consultant'.

"the international" opens with a great scenario, involving one of owen's colleagues, poison and a car wing mirror. from then on we are led through a gripping journey across the globe as we follow owen's 'louis salinger's' attempt to indict a high profile bank. there's an over the top, yet scarily real shoot out at the guggenheim, which is one of the most impressively realised action scenes iv seen in some time, managing to outdo not only its closest comparrison in the shape of the bond flicks, but also the bourne films too.

while it wont change the world, "the international" proved to be an impressive piece of mid-afternoon entertainment.

i've loved you so long (2008)

many have referred to sean penn winning the academy award for best actor as an "upset". many referred to the exclusion of ''the dark knight'' from this years big awards as an "upset". i myself deemed the lack of a nomination for bruce springsteen and his eponymously titled theme to "the wrestler" as an ''upset". alas, ladies and gentlemen, i introduce to you the biggest academy award "upset" of 2009; philippe claudel's "i've loved you so long". now im not simply suggesting that "i've loved you so long deserved a shot at "best foreign picture", i think it should have been in the running for "best actress", "best adapted screenplay", "best director" and "best picture" too. its just a magnificent film, absolutely beautiful and tender, yet raw and unreliable in mood at the same time. iv never been a fan of kristen scott thomas, in fact im not sure if i have actually ever seen her in anything, but she just owns the role in this film, moreso than either sean penn, katie winslet or mickey rourke in their respective roles.

this film is outstanding and perhaps the greatest oscar snub in recent history.

the hunt for red october (1990)

not my usual sort of film, but interesting none the less. alec baldwin is great in the part that harrison ford and ben affleck (and perhaps ryan gosling?) would later go onto portray, but sean connery plays the same role he plays in everything and just comes across as lazy. the technique used to control the use of language and accent is very interesting though. i had to watch this for my studies, so will be checking out the follow-up jack ryan films over the next few weeks.

oss 117 : cairo nest of spies (2008)

this gallic pseudo-satire of the james bond genre proved to be a great experience. the film combined all out spoof with drama and action to create a film that i enjoyed thoroughly.

strangely, the oss 117 series predates the bond series by some years, hence the tag of pseudo-satire. jean dujardin, a former french talent show contestant, proves formidible in the title role, with bérénice bejo great as the archetypal bond girl. the quality of the film is impressive, its high concept and a blockbuster in the visual sense of the word. knowing nods to the production techniques of the time that the film is set (1960's), with the use of back projection and limited camerawork prevailant. in turn the film reminds of the early bond films, albeit with a great deal of modern political allusions and references. the film is incredibly funny too, with the scene involving the prayer leader a particular standout. comparisons to inspector cluseau and the pink panther films will no doubt attach themselves to this, but personally i have never been a fan of those films.

not only is "oss 117 : cairo nest of spies" a great satire, but its a great film too, and much more interesting than the actual films that its spoofing.

the pianist (2003)

roman polanski's oscar winning film boasts perhaps my favourite oscar winning performance of modern times, in the shape of adrian brody. having not seen the film for quite some time, it was with the recent oscars in mind that i looked to ''the pianist'' again. as iv grown older the attrocities on display have grown to shock me even moreso than they did when i was younger, and some scenes in "the pianist" feel genuinely hard to stomach. and while brody's performance is a tour-de-force, some of the supporting performances fall fairly flat (the early scenes within the family home feel like something out of an enid blyton tale). all in all though, it is a great film, with adrian brody genuinely affecting in his role and a deserved winner of the best actor oscar.

the young victoria (2009)

emily blunt stars as queen victoria in this martin scorsese produced pseudo-biopic. french filmmaker jean-marc vallée helms a competent enough picture, that is pleasingly enough while it lasts, but leaves little in the way of after effect. emily blunt and paul bettany both provide great performances, with rupert friend as prince albert being the key performance. he brings genuine sense of emotion towards the relationship between albert and victoria, with the final moments proving incredibly touching.

post oscar 2009 report

well our predictions werent too bad (although i am aware that beth beat me in best director!). in hindsight sean penn was a much safer bet than expected, with him taking the SAG award and whatnot, but it was still a shock to see roure lose out. i did love penn in ''milk'' though, and if i could be so bold as to quote my own review of the film from january 12th -

for me the oscar race has heated up. i didnt really consider milk to be much of a contender, but after tonight i find it difficult to believe that there has been a better performance this year than that of sean penn as harvey milk.

it would have been great to see rourke take it tho, if not for some academy recognition for aronofsky's "the wrestler".

winslet's win came as no surprise to anyone, although i do think the win being for "the reader" was undeserved when compared to her turn in "revolutionary road". i would have been pleased to see her take it for that, but "the reader" winning just reaks of hollywood politics in action (with the vile harvey weinstein back to his manipulative ways of old).

"slumdog millionaire" winning everything else also proved to be no surprise. im pleased that the film won so much, and the internet backlash is beyond annoying. sure there are films that i would have prefered had beaten it to best picture, but i am still really pleased to see danny boyle's film take home so much praise. the genuine happiness that everyone involved displays is refreshing when compared to the stoic nature usually associated with this sort of thing. "wall-e" really should have taken the sound awards tho.

one final thing, the obituaries were incredibly moving this year, due in no small part to the inclusion of paul newman. the way in which the lights all fell upon his moment, and the quote rang out amongst the auditorium was just perfect.

firefox (1982)

a surprisingly successful attempt at post-star wars casual science fiction for clint eastwood, with the film boasting a much more experimental element than one would have expected. eastwood fuses casual sci-fi with the espionage thrillers he was familiar with at the time of the films production to combine a winning formula. the advertised notion of a plot revolving around a super-fi jetplane takes a back seat for the first hour, as we see eastwood's vietnam vet attempt to infiltrate the russian military. the latter half of the film takes place on and around the plight aboard the plane, in a vein that is perhaps the direct opposite of similiar fare like "top gun". "firefox" is to be commended as a very different piece of work to the usual clint eastwood film, and it succeeds much better than expected.

the shining (1980)

another jack nicholson performance, and another tour de force. the scale of madness on display in kubrick's stephen king adaptation is awe-inspiring. i looked to "the shining" for academic reasons on this occasion, im looking at symetrical screening, and this is a great example of it. the camerawork, the framing and the editing of this film are incredible examples of the language of cinema, and display why kubrick was such a great filmmaker. the use of steadicam is especially of note, with kubrick being one of the earliest advocates of the device.

oscar predictions 2009

with it being the oscars this weekend, my girlfriend and i decided to do a bit of a sweepstakes as to the results. she hasnt seen most of the films so we kept to the big categories. we also employed the will/should/should have been nominated rule too.


best actor -

bethan;
should- mickey rourke- the wrestler
will- mickey rourke- the wrestler
nom- benicio del toro- che

adam;
should- mickey rourke- the wrestler
will- mickey rourke- the wrestler
nom- leonardo dicaprio- revolutionary road


actor in a supporting role -

bethan;
should- heath ledger- the dark knight (tis the only one she's seen)
will- heath ledger- the dark knight
nom- michael kelly- changeling

adam;
should- philip seymour hoffman
will- heath ledger- the dark knight
nom- jason butler harner- changeling


best actress-

bethan;
should- meryl streep- doubt
will- kate winslet- the reader

adam;
should- angelina jolie- changeling
will- kate winslet- the reader
nom- cate blanchett- the curious case of benjamin button

best supporting actress-

bethan;
should- marisa tomei- the wrestler
will- amy adams- doubt

adam;
should- marisa tomei- the wrestler
will- amy adams- doubt
nom- kate winslett- the reader (i still stand by the fact that this was a supporting role, in context if not length)


animated film -

bethan;
wall-e

adam;
wall-e

best foreign film

bethan;
the baader meinhoff complex

adam;
will- the class
nom-gomorrah

direction-

bethan;
should- danny boyle-slumdog millionaire
will- danny boyle-slumdog millionaire
nom- darren aranofsky- the wrestler/ steven soderberg-che


adam;
should- david fincher- the curious case of benjamin button
will- david fincher- the curious case of benjamin button
nom- darren aranofsky- the wrestler/ clint eastwood-changeling


film-

bethan;
should- the curious case of benjamin button
will-slumdog millionaire
nom- changeling/the wrestler

adam;
should- the curious case of benjamin button
will- slumdog millionaire
nom- changeling/the wrestler/doubt/revolutionary road

capturing the friedmans (2003)

for a long time in the years following its release ''capturing the friedmans'', andrew jerecki's film charting the disintegration of a seemingly normal middle class family held the honour of being my favourite documentary of all time. alas that isnt necessarily true, having not seen the film for a while its importance had flailed in my mind. with that i decided to give the film a spin late at night. in doing so i was reminded just how great a film it is, and although i dont hold it in as high regard as i once did, it still has a magnificent grasp over its viewing with its intriguing, interpretative and downright shocking story.

burn after reading (2008)

the coen brother's most recent film is more in the vein of "the ladykillers'' than it is "no country for old men", which is hardly a good thing. at times i felt like screaming at the tv, and while it was fairly inoffensive and fairly free-wheeling, one cant help but be of the attitude that the talent on screen would have been better utilised in an alternative film. brad pitt is great tho, as is richard jenkins in a supporting role. frances mcdormand is beyond annoying tho, and while i understand that this was the intention she still grates beyond belief. john malkovich once again proves that no one can do angry quite as well as him, with tilda swinton great as his wife and george clooney as affable as usual as her lover.

all in all it was ok, but ok isnt really expected or downright good enough coming off of the back of "no country for old men".

true lies (1994)

james cameron and arnold schwarzenegger's third collaboration is probably their most downright entertaining. "true lies", a remake of a french film, basically turns the conventions and expectations of the spy genre on its head, creating a film that comes off like james bond crossed with a sitcom. the film also has the unique selling point of tom arnolds finest moment, as arnie's wingman. sure the film is ridiculously over the top, but its a significantly more entertaining film than any of the pre-daniel craig bond flicks. interestingly i noticed the use of scope and depth that cameron seems to be keen on. perhaps this was an indication of the 3D-obsessed direction he would undertake in the years after.

the exorcist (1973)

watching william friedkin's seminal adaptation of william peter blatty's novel for the first time since i was a teenager, and off of the back of a screening of ''doubt'' proved a very positive experience. as a boy it was the overtly shocking moments of the film that i was attracted to, but as i have grown (and hopefully developed!) it is the thematic notions that strike the most fear. as an exploration into the themes of questioning ones faith rather bizarrely brought to mind scorsese's ''mean streets''.

i have every intention of returning to this review at some point, in the vain of a proper analysis.

gone baby, gone (2007)

i first came across ben affleck's impressive directorial outing on region 1 dvd several months before it saw release in british theatres, due to the similiarities between the madeline mccann case and the one in the film. when attempting to 'sell' the concept of a ben affleck picture to my friends (most people still associating the guy with the whole ''bennifer'' circus) i used the notion that ''gone baby, gone'' felt like a big screen spin off of the television show ''the wire'', which i feel to be the greatest television show in the history of the medium. thats not to say that ''gone baby, gone" is as good a film as ''the wire'' is a television show, but the similiarities in tone and style are definately there. michael k. williams, ''the wire's'' 'omar' manages to make an appearance too.

on second viewing, some years after my initial one, the film held up greatly. casey affleck, ben's brother, shines in the role of a local private detective, employed by the family of a missing girl. while the ending of the film almost jarres with what has gone before, its not enough to distract from what is an all round great piece of film.

pale rider (1985)

it amazes me just how much variation clint eastwood brought to the western genre. from the days of "rawhide", through the european revisionist time of the dollars trilogy (wherein he learnt his craft), the late 70's revisionist period he kickstarted with "the outlaw josey wales" and the 90's post-modern of "unforgiven", he has continually managed to update what is considered by many to be an overly familiar genre. "pale rider" fell between "the outlaw josey wales" and "unforgiven", with eastwood starring as a mysterious preacher with a mysterious past.

as is to be expected with the later work of eastwood, we are given the topics of fidelity and authoritarian abuse to deal with. the anti-corporate message underlying the plight of the gold miners is clearly a reaction to the politics and business ethics pf the 1980's.

gomorrah (2008)

originally i missed gomorrah theatrically, due to a summer in paris, alas i was looking forward highly to catching up with the film on dvd. matteo garrone's insight into one of the worlds 'silent' mafia's proved a great watch, if a little more inaccessible than originally expected (not that thats a negative thing, im just a little surprised that the film received such high crossover appeal). the film consists of several intertwining stories, each of which revolve around a different aspect of the camorra, the naples organised crime group. the story of two young upstarts is the most immediate and forthcoming, and i can understand just why their visages adorned the marketing campaign, yet for me the story of the haute couture tailor turned truck driver proved to be the most memorable segment, and the one that stuck with me greatest afterwards.

considering the nature of the story, ''gamorrah'' is a staggering achievement. the way in which, alongside the source material book, ''gamorrah'' single handedly managed to bring to light a previously little known crime bracket is interesting to, as prior to this films exposure i had never actually heard of the camorra. the title itself is an interesting commodity, with it being a biblical take on the name of the camorra. comparisons between naples and gomorrah may be a little brash, but understable all the same.

doubt (2009)

ever the fan of philip seymour hoffman, its great to see him back in the sort of role that he would have produced prior to his breakthrough success in capote, and exactly the sort of role i have been eager to see him in for what seems like quite a while. the uneasy nature of our relationship as a viewer with the character of 'father flynn' is left in a similiar position to that of the way in which we relate to hoffman's 'scotty j.' in paul thomas anderson's ''boogie nights''. part of us pities the man, yet part of us cant help but be disturbed by him (well maybe thats going a bit too far for poor 'scotty j.'). regardless of this, hoffman is electric in the role.

enough of the philip seymour hoffman love-in, there is no mistaking that ''doubt'' is very much meryl streep's film. empire magazine recently declaired that her entrance as 'sister aloysius beauvier' was the most iconic since that of darth vader's, and while i may not agree with that point entirely, its still pretty great and sums up the mood of the picture from the out. as a former catholic schoolboy myself, albeit in the later days of the sort of school on display in ''doubt'', i can wholeheartedly relate to the sense of fear, ambiguity and sheer menace that 'sister beauvier' projects. similiarly i can relate to the way in which 'father flynn' comes across as a comfortable figure, and the naivety and frailty in which amy adams' 'sister james' signifies.

the film is beautifully shot by roger deakins, the british cinematographer behind the dark hues of andrew dominik's ''the assassination of jesse james by the coward robert ford'' and ''no country for old men''. the film looks as good as one would expect from deakins, and is especially surprising considering the restrictions imposed by the fairly limited number of locations. despite this deakins manages to craft a film as cinematic as anything else i have seen all year.

the films core theme, of one dealing with their own faith leaves us with a rather ambiguous ending. the core story is largely tied up, with the eleventh hour revelation from 'sister beauvier' all but confirming 'father flynns' guilt, but the larger question is to what her tears concern. is it because she has reached a crisis of faith herself? despite what she projects on the outside, did she secretly doubt her own concerns internally? as a fan of ambiguity in cinema i was pleased with such a conclusion, and while i hold my own beliefs as to what the tears signify, im sure that there will be many that beg to differ.

superbad (2007)

a guilty pleasure, this comedy from the judd apatow stable is perhaps the most significant film from that group of performers. unlike the majority of their films, 'superbad' is genuinely funny in parts, thanks mainly to the affable core cast of michael cera, jonah hill and christopher mintz-plasse, and while the film wont change the world, as a piece of popcorn entertainment it satisfies heavily.

letters from iwo jima (2006)

"letters from iwo jima" marks a distinct departure from the type of work one would expect from clint eastwood. for a start, the films dialogue is pretty much all in japanese, a bold undertaking for an american filmmaker. im going to use ''letters from iwo jima'' as a point with which to examine the myth that east wood is racist. people get mixed up with the character of dirty harrys right wing stance and him. eastwood cleared a lot of paths for the preconceptions of black people in his films (see the drug dealer in ''dirty harry'' and the morgan freeman character in ''unforgiven'', one that shatters the legacy of one of americas only true artforms - the western). funnily enough it was spike lee, hollywoods resident loudmouth race card playing has-been that accused eastwood of maintaining such a stance, based solely on the untrue premise that there are no black soldiers in ''flags of our fathers" (the companion piece to "letters from iwo jima"). frankly this claim is riduculous, especially when you consider the place of "letters from iwo jima" in this equation. personally i find lee's recent picture "miracle at saint anna" to be a much more thinly veiled racist attack upon american and white culture. seriously, were living in 2009, there is a black president in the white house and still spike lee manages to have a chip on his shoulder. maybe the guy should concentrate on making a decent film instead of constantly being pseudo-offended by the white man.

its interesting to compare the way in which the japanese are portrayed on screeen in "letters from iwo jima" to the way in which the japanese are portrayed in michael bay's work. they are no longer the one sided pastiches that they appear to be in "armageddon" and are instead fully fledged human beings! its refreshing to see an american filmmaker take such a stance. maybe spike lee should aim his hate in the general direction of michael bay... for once we get to see the different side of the story. we see how afraid and doubtful of their cause the men that would generally be categorised as "evil" really were, and we get to see the nobility of the men too. the scene in which a large number of the soldiers commit suicide is incredibly moving, but at the same time incredibly tense. having not seen "flags of our fathers" recently enough to compare fairly i cant say definitively, but im sure that i didnt feel as moved during that film as i did here.

stylistically the film marks a bit of a departure from the usual war effort. we get to see the action from the point of view of the attacked, which while as a notion is hardly unique, the manner within which it is cut is. we never see the faces of the attacking fighter pilots, or the ensuing soldiers (except for pivotal moments), and as such we never have an opportunity to engage with them as characters, pushing our emotional attachment towards the japanese. the initial bombing campaign on the island is shot from the level of the soldiers themselves. we see bombs hit at head height, we see men fall around us, men whom we had only moments earlier engaged with as viewers, and we feel baron nishi's pain wholeheartedly as he tends to his dying horse. there is a wonderful moment, that lasts literally just that, of a japanese flag flying atop a mound. this draws obvious parallels with the famous image of the american flag atop iwo jima, and reminds the viewer of what is still to come. its a magnificent subtle moment, and a testament to the subtlety of eastwood's work.

five easy pieces (1970)

produced five years before nicholson's turn in antonioni's "the passenger" (our current number 2 on the list), bob rafelson's "five easy pieces'' sees jack on similiar form. while "one flew over the cuckoos nest" is the nicholson film of point that exhibits his talent for playing angry, and kubrick's "the shining" pushes his angle of sheer madness, "five easy pieces" straddles the two perfectly.

nicholson is just amazing in the role of robert, a young man who has thus far drifted through life. a talented musician who has withdrawn from his calling in life, either through ignorance or mental illness. unusually a definitive reason is never actually given, which leads me onto my next point; ''five easy pieces" is an example of subtly intelligent filmmaking. the viewer is given much more credit than usual, for instance, we dont have the reasoning behind the attraction to jack's character of robert to that of his brothers girlfriend, as we can read between the lines. the director has enough faith in his audience to let them come to their own conclusions. this sort of filmmaking was rife in american cinema of the 1970's, alas lowest common denomination rules the studios these days.

JCVD (2009)

i mentioned in my previous post on bolt 3D that disney's "the aristocats" was the first film i saw at the cinema. well, funnily enough jcvd marks a landmark of sorts in my viewing history too. the first film i ever went to see alone, without the aid of parentage was "street fighter", the film based on the video game, and starring jcvd himself; jean claude van damme. at the time it was the greatest film in the world, i remember the monday morning at school after the saturday viewing, the playing fields of st georges seemed alive....


hindsight of course, is a great thing. the fact that "street fighter" could be seen as a high point in his career surely suggests the dire quality of the sort of film van damme made afterwards. but jcvd, adored in france and beloved of the art house circuit aims to change that, and it suceeds incredibly well. im not sure if it will give van damme's career the kick start it needs (i have a feeling it wont), but as a piece of film its genuinely great fun, with heart to boot. a lot has been made of the fact that this film exhibits to the world the fact that jean claude van damme can act, which i think is a moot point, but less has been made of the humour. obviously the fact that the film exists suggests an amount of good nature on its stars behalf, but im talking about the more subtle attempts in the project, the humour that is actually on the screen. ''jcvd'' is very, very funny. the "roundhouse-kick" conversation is a highlight, as is the banter between the store clerks that meet van damme at the start of the picture, and its the sort of huour that isnt crass or cheap or easy or lazy, it has heart. all of which leads to the way in which we as the viewer sympathise with van damme. he doesnt plea for our empathy, in fact at times he actually seems to discourage it. he knows hes done wrong and that seems to be the station hes happiest in, emphasised by a downbeat ending that is happier than any we could have actually imagined without going too overboard.

the basic premise of the film plays out like a post-post-modern take on sidney lumet's "dog day afternoon", with our anti-hero caught up in a bank robbery for which he has been mistaken for the purpetrator. through the course of this situation it is revealed how van damme came into being into there, which is a metaphor for his entire career, easily laid out over the course of 90 minutes. a great monologue to the camera, beautiful sypia-based photography and a great supporting cast add up to create a very entertaining and interesting film.

as a sidenote, i would just like to quickly point out the hideous nature of the dvd artwork, which seemingly goes against everything that the film is criticising. there arent even any explosions in the film! oh well...

bolt 3D (2009)

the first of disney's output that has genuinely been affected by the appointment of john lassiter as head of animation proves a great success. i genuinely believe this to be the best disney film in many a year, in fact i claimed it to be the best since 1970's "the aristocats" (my first theatrical experience fact fans), upon first leaving the screening. the effect is helped greatly by the use of 3D. gone are the traditional 3D gimmicks of spikes coming out of the screen every five minutes, or shards of glass floating in front of the viewers eyes, and in comes a subtle technique adding a layer of depth previously unseen in such a film. it also helps to take the gloss off of the sterile nature of some computer generated animation. the use of 3D really does put that seen in last months ''my bloody valentine 3D'' to shame, and shows how imagination is once again rife at disney.