MOVIES
06-21 Ron

Mr. & Mrs. Smith didn't work well for me. The part about their marriage was interesting but the gun-fighting was over the top. The director should have given us more drama or comedy and less action.

Batman (1989), with Michael Keaton, Jack Nicholson and Kim Basinger and directed by Tim Burton, was good. Batman Returns (1992), with Michael Keaton, Danny DeVito and Michelle Pfeiffer and directed by the same Burton, was dark. Batman Forever (1995), with Val Kilmer, Tommy Lee Jones, Jim Carrey and Nicole Kidman and directed by Joel Schumacher, wasn't bad. Batman & Robin (1997), with George Clooney, Chris O'Donnell, Uma Thurman, Alicia Silverstone and Arnold Schwarzenegger and directed by the same Shumacher, was a waist of time.

Batman Begins (2005), with Christian Bale, Liam Neeson and Katie Holmes and directed by Christopher Nolan, was disappointing. My biggest problem was the preposterous plot, how Batman came to be. Besides, most action sequences were sooo lame.

06-09-2005 Ron

The summer season in the United States, when the most expensive movies of the year are released, was kicked off by Star Wars' Episode III: Revenge of the Sith.

George Lucas, the writer, director, and producer, has become filthy rich as millions watched the other five parts of the Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader story. The last chapter of the saga (hopefully), in theaters around the world, is the least boring of the prequels but doesn't compare to episodes IV, V, and VI, starring Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, and Carrie Fischer, the films that George Lucas should be remembered by.

Among the many movies playing in my hometown, I strongly recommend Kingdom of Heaven, by Ridley Scott. The stories that Ridley directs are not always absorbing but they are, no doubt, visually stunning. Kingdom amazes because of the battle scenes and grips because of the tale of a man fighting for himself and others during the Crusades, when expeditions of Christian warriors tried to seize the Holy Land from the Muslims. Compared to Troy, by Wofgang Petersen, and Alexander, by Oliver Stone, it's the best epic.

Jewels on DVD you may not have watched:

The Life of David Gale, with Kevin Spacey, is a brilliant flick against capital punishment.
The Cooler, with William H. Macy, is an intense drama set in Las Vegas.
Criminal, with John C. Reilly and Diego Luna, is very effective in keeping us guessing.
Dodgeball, with Vince Vaughn and Ben Stiller, is a comedy that, although very silly, kept me smiling.
Elf, with Will Ferrel, is wonderful for children and the kids that don't seize to exist in all adults.
Under the Touscan Sun, with Diane Lane, is for the romantic.
Matchstick Men, with Nicholas Cage, is a smart con tale.

TOP 10 BOX-OFFICE HITS IN THE U.S. IN 2004


Shrek 2 ... $437 million
Spider-Man 2 ... $373 million
The Passion of the Christ ... $370 million
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban ... $249 million
The Incredibles ... $217 million
The Day After Tomorrow ... $187 million
The Bourne Supremacy ... $176 million
Shark Tale ... $159 million
I, Robot ... $145 million
Troy ... $133 million

Source: Rolling Stone



12-01 Ron

I recommend on DVD: the dramas The Quiet American, with Michael Caine and Bendan Fraser, and Thirteen, with Holly Hunter; the comedy Welcome to Mooseport, with Ray Romano and Gene Hackman; and the show/documentary Rattle and Hum, with U2.


Regarding the movies playing in theaters in your neck of the woods, Shall We Dance?, starring Richard Gere and Jennifer Lopez, is a light-hearted story.

On the other hand, The Manchurian Candidate is heavy stuff and does not work well as a thriller, although headed by Denzel Washigton and Meryl Streep.

11-29 Ron

Cellular, with Kim Basinger, is stuffed with good action. As unpretentious as Sky Captain it delivers a better punch, though, if you're only looking to forget reality for a couple of hours.

The Forgotten, with Julianne Moore, and Open Water premiered in Belo Horizonte around Halloween. They purported to be scary but just the latter thrilled. Actually it is one of the most agonizing and unnerving movies I've seen in recent years. Unfortunately, it was yanked from theaters in my hometown on Friday.

11-22 Ron

I had high expectations regarding Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow. The writer and director Kerry Conran created an action-packed film, visually stunning and incredibly well-made. Notwithstanding, the inventiveness is no match to the tediousness of many of the scenes, that seem to have been simply copied from other pictures. Kerry forgot to dazzle our hearts and minds.

10-13 Ron

TARANTINO! (CLAP,CLAP,CLAP) TARANTINO! (CLAP,CLAP,CLAP) TARANTINO! (CLAP,CLAP,CLAP)

Is he the greatest master of the trade or what? Kill Bill volume 2 proves that Quentin Tarantino is a one-of-a-kind writer and director. I thought Volume 1 was prodigious but I liked Volume 2 even more. The Kill Bill saga is the epitome of filmmaking because creativity, drama, suspense, and satire could not have been better presented, not to mention the photography and the music.

I also recommend The Bourne Supremacy and Man on Fire, now playing in theaters in Belo Horizonte.

The first is a spy thriller with Matt Damon. It is a follow-up to Jason Bourne's travails in The Bourne Identity, which tops most 007 films.

The second stars Denzel Washington as a bodyguard working in Mexico City and is directed by Tony Scott, the man behind Top Gun (1986, with Tom Cruise), True Romance (1993, written by Quentin Tarantino), Crimson Tide (1995, with Denzel Washington and Gene Hackman), Enemy of the State (1998, with Will Smith), and Spy Game (2001, with Robert Redford and Brad Pitt).


09-20 Ron

Films are, basically, retold stories and almost all of them are unoriginal. King Arthur, the tale of knights who lived in England centuries ago, follows the rule and is among the okay movies I've watched recently, nothing demeaning about it, nothing thrilling either.

09-13 Ron

I think I would have enjoyed The Terminal more if I hadn't watched the trailer. Despite Tom Hanks' performance the story about a man stranded in the U.S. is not told with passion by director Steven Spielberg.

Okay as well, Collateral stars Tom Cruise. The problem with this police drama is that Vincent's (Cruise) mastery of his trade is exaggerated. In addition, Michael Mann's shots of Los Angeles at night are sometimes too long.

09-09 Ron

Most critics lambasted The Village, written, produced, and directed by M. Night Shyamalan. On the contrary, I considered it great. As in The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable, and Signs, the gifted Shyamalan -- born Manoj Nelliyatu Shyamalan in India and raised in suburban Philadelphia, where he still lives with his wife and two daughters -- was able to create a story that not only arouses our fears and curiosity but also our feeling of astonishment, so rare on the silver screen nowadays. Notwithstanding, The Village is the least exciting of the four movies by Shyamalan.

09-03 Ron

Would you like suggestions on what DVDs to rent during the holiday?

DRAMA




ROMANCE





COMEDY


POLICE STORIES



ACTION / ADVENTURE







Most watched films currently on release in the U.S., as of August 29, and their earnings in millions of dollars:

  1. Spider-man 2 ... 368


  1. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban ... 248

  1. The Day After Tomorrow ... 186

  1. The Bourne Supremacy ... 158

  1. I, Robot ... 141


  1. Farenheit 9/11 ... 118

  1. Dodgeball: a True Underdog Story ... 113

  1. The Village ... 111

Source: yahoo.com

07-28 Ron

Spider-man 2 is the coolest movie of the American summer! It is much more of a touching drama than an action flick. And what special effects!

06-23 Ron

I would like to recommend five movies on DVD that you may have missed at your rental store.

The first is 12 Angry Men, a 1957 film with Henry Fonda about a jury deciding the future of an immigrant in a murder case. After almost fifty years it is still a powerful drama.

The second is last year's Oscar winner for best foreign film, the Canadian Les Invasiones Barbares. Another top drama.

The third is Personal Velocity, written and directed by Rebecca Miller. Three unconventional and sensitive stories beautifully acted by Kira Sedgwick, Parker Posey, and Fairuza Balk.

The fourth is the upbeat and colorful romantic comedy by Bruno Barreto, starring Gwyneth Paltrow, View From the Top.

Last, but not least, I suggest Dirty Pretty Things, which I would certainly include on my 2003 top five list. Directed by Stephen Frears -- who also brought us The Grifters (1980) and High Fidelity (2000) -- and written by Steve Knight it spotlights the travails of illegal immigrants living in London. The cast, headed by Chivetel Ejiofor, is wonderful.

Top summer movies in the U.S. ... Earnings as of June 20 ... Weeks of release

  1. Shrek 2 .....US$ 379,000,000 ..... 5

  1. Harry Potter and the

Prisoner of Azkaban ..... US$ 191,000,000 ..... 3

  1. The Day After Tomorrow ..... US$ 167,000,000 ..... 4

  1. Troy ..... US$ 129,000,000 ..... 6

  1. Van Helsing ..... US$ 118,000,000 ..... 7

Source: yahoo.com

06-11 Ron

Roland Emmerich, the German moviemaker who brought us Independence Day (1996) and Godzilla (1998), is back with The Day After Tomorrow. Unfortunately, the sensational visual effects do not save the film that condemns global warming by depicting the world's future. The plot is too bland.

05-17 Ron

The summer movie season -- that is, superproductions vying to become blockbusters, during America's school vacation -- has been anticipated with the worldwide release of two very expensive films this month.

Van Helsing is another Dracula story. Nonetheless, it is supported by elaborate visual effects, a twisty plot, and important parts played by Frankenstein and the Werewolf. Hugh Jackman is the star and Stephen Sommers the writer and director of this popcorn (palatable but not mouth-watering) picture.

Brad Pitt, as Achilles, Eric Bana, as Hector, Orlando Bloom, as Paris, Brian Cox, as Agamemnon, and Diane Kruger, as Helen, are the major stars in Troy, based on Homer's The Iliad. Not only is the plot fascinating. The movie directed by Wolfgang Petersen is pretty straightforward and not difficult to follow, which I consider a quality nowadays. Another likable aspect is the number of good characters, far more than the bad guys. Even Agamemnon, the most hateful impersonation, is not idiotically cruel. I also enjoyed Achilles as someone who, during the screening, sometimes brings about fondness, other times dislike or anger.

All these elements, however, are not enough to make it a must see production. The acting is surprisingly bad overall, except for a few scenes with Eric Bana and Peter O'Toole, and the film too few times electrifying.
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