09-19 Ron
Director William Friedkin's most notable films were The French Connection (1971) and The Exorcist (1973). His others were okay, including The Hunted, his latest. It's about a man who is ... hunted. Starred by two good actors, Tommy Lee Jones and Benicio Del Toro, this thriller is not worthless but it's blunt, implausible, and heartless. It reminded me of First Blood (1982), with Sylvester Stallone as Rambo, which, on the other hand, I enjoyed.
09-15 Ron
I've watched two romantic comedies, Lisbela e o Prisioneiro and Anger Management. The Brazilian film is the better of the two. I can't give it four stars because it did not make me laugh much. Another problem I had was the photography's incredibly bland colors dominated by red and pink and the surprising lack of landscape and local people shots. On the other hand, the script is marvellous, far from corny and often poetic, and the actors spectacular (When I was in my teens and mid-twenties movies made in Brazil were mostly awful. I'm so glad and proud that the industry has turned itself around).
Anger Management is not as entertaining but the photography, showing New York, is much richer ( I believe that movies, unlike theater, must be visually appealing ). The script is decent and Jack Nicholson is incredible, once again.
*** Check out the site's page From Out There for info about Argentine films.
09-08 Ron
Have you ever slept in a movie theater? I remember doing it during Out of Africa (I was young then and didn't enjoy dramas), Almodovar's All About My Mother (Can you believe it?), and most recently this year's Pirates of the Caribbean: the Curse of the Black Pearl.
I was anxiously waiting to see Pirates but, unfortunately, Johnny Depp's most comercial film was spattered with boredom. The quality of the picture, grayish and lacking vivid colors, didn't help either. In the U.S., however, it was a huge summer hit earning more than 280 million dollars at the box office.
Among the other movies now playing in Belo Horizonte and that I've watched I don't recommend any. Far From Heaven, a depiction of homosexuality and racism, is really slow; Lara Croft Tomb Raider: the Cradle of Life is a much better adventure than the first Lara Croft but still full of cliches; and Terminator 3: the Rise of the Machines is a poor imitation of the fantastic Terminator 2.
Observation: shouldn't movie titles be short and objective?
09-03-2003 Ron
Regarding DVDs and videos there is a lot of junk out there. Here are some of the ones I enjoyed this year:
Romance - Serendipity, with John Cusak.
Drama - Kissing Jessica Stein, with Jennifer Westfeldt (2002), The Good Girl, a touching portrayal of our inner demons and conflicts, with Friend's Jennifer Anniston, and About a Boy, with Hugh Grant.
Comedy - My Big Fat Greek Wedding, with Nia Vardalos, who also wrote the script, and The Curse of the Jade Scorpion, another delightful film by Woody Allen.
Suspense - Signs, from one of my favorite filmmakers, M. Night Shyamalan, and starring Mel Gibson and The Unsaid, a 2001 film with Andy Garcia.
Crime - Road to Perdition, with Tom Hanks, and Bloodwork, with Clint Eastwood.
Action - The Bourne Identity, with Matt Damon, Reign of Fire, with Matthew McConaughey, and Swordfish, a lesser but watchable John Travolta flick.
One of the beauties of DVDs is being able to watch films from the past with good quality picture and sound. I recommend Casablanca (1942, Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman), The Great Escape (1963, Steve Mcqueen and James Garner), Hombre (1967, Paul Newman), and Once Upon A Time In America (1984, Robert De Niro and James Woods).
03-10-2003 Ron
Back on January 19 About Schmidt, Gangs of New York, The Hours, The Lord of the Rings: the Two Towers, and The Pianist were celebrated at the Golden Globe Awards, promoted by Hollywood's Foreign Press Association, as the best motion pictures of 2002 (the winner was The Hours). Last month the same films with the exception of About Schmidt, which was replaced by Chicago, were nominated for the 75th Annual Academy Awards that will take place on March 23.
I haven't watched The Pianist, Roman Polanski's Holocaust drama, nor Jack Nicholson's latest comedy About Schmidt. But I am sure that there were much better stories on the silver screen last year than the other ones above. Road to Perdition and Cidade de Deus are clear examples.
The Hours is an unusual drama about the misery of three women. I didn't like it much, though. Despite the superb acting by Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman, Juliane Moore, and Ed Harris the story is too monotonous, especially at the beginning.
Chicago, another Oscar contender, can't be compared to Moulin Rouge, a greatly superior musical. It is decent, pretty good at times, and didn't deserve the many walkouts that happened during the session I was watching. Richard Gere is a delightful surprise as an actor and dancer.
Leonardo DiCaprio stars in, Tom Hanks is in a supporting role, and Steven Spielberg directs Catch Me If You Can, based on a true and incredible story. Unfortunately the film is not incredible. This time Spielberg chose a better script to direct but it is too long and, many times, ineffective as an emotion jump-starter.
02-10-2003 Ron
I solemnly vow to never set a foot inside the movie theaters at Diamond Mall and BH Shopping, in Belo Horizonte, on weekends, again!!! My girlfriend Adriana and I can't stand the chit-chat, cellphone-answering, film-elucidation, and moronic comments that happen during screenings, by incredibly disrespectful moviegoers, especially at these two places. I am not able to understand why people, from all ages, do not see that talking thoughout a film is rude and disturbing to others. Parents, where art thou?
The final straw ocurred when we were watching Gangs of New York. What a disappointment! Martin Scorcese, the director, enjoys including brutal scenes in his films but I didn't expect them to be the highlight of his latest. Despite Daniel Day-Lewis' excellent performance I cannot recommend this bloody and uninspiring picture about immigrants in New York City during the American Civil War.
Hable Con Ella, by Pedro Almodóvar, is original. Masterpiece it certainly ain't. The first half is so slow that it may cause watchers to snooze. I did. The music score is beautiful but the photography's murk is a let-down.
Another displeasure is the last film written and directed by Brian De Palma, Femme Fatale, a thriller with Antonio Banderas. There is, undoubtedly, suspense. Unlike Almodóvar's, however, it lacks creativity and emotion. And I agree with my mother that Banderas does a poor acting job as a photographer.
I think I'm getting too old when I consider 007's Die Another Day amazingly boring and unreasonable. I like action films a lot but I definitely despise ludicrous situations in a non-comical picture.
If you are a surfer or simply enjoy nature, Blue Crush, in spite of the silly story, is worth your money. The photography is awesome and the music very good. Too bad this week it is only playing in Pampulha.
01-02-2003 Ron
I hope that Hollywood and Brazilian filmmakers produce a lot of great movies in the year that has just begun. 2002, like 2001, was a so-so year.
Have you stayed in line to watch Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers? If not don't bother because the hype isn't worth your precious time. The second film of the trilogy is long and mostly boring. The only spectacular and exciting moments are the fighting and battle scenes. Compared to The Fellowship of the Ring I don't know which is worse. And what a pain in the ass the hobbits are!
It's summer time and you can't go wrong with the following videos or DVDs:
Thriller - Ocean's Eleven, with George Clooney and Brad Pitt (2001); Spy Game, with Robert Redford and Brad Pitt (2001); and Panic Room, with Jodie Foster (2002).
Police drama - Training Day, with Denzel Washington (2001) and The Salton Sea, with Val Kilmer (2002).
Drama - Domésticas, a Brazilian film, released in 2001, directed by Fernando Meirelles, who also made Cidade de Deus; I am Sam, with Sean Penn (2001); A Beautiful Mind, with Russell Crowe (2001); Mulholland Drive, with Naomi Watts (2001); Monster's Ball, with Halle Berry (2001); Y Tu Mamá También, a wonderful Mexican picture with Diego Luna and Gabriel Garcia Bernal (2002); and Unfaithful, with Diane Lane and Richard Gere (2002).
Action - Blade II, with Wesley Snipes (2002).
Comedy - Small Time Crooks, with Woody Allen (2000); and Men in Black II, with Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith (2002).
11-19 Ron
I have finally checked Cidade de Deus. What a powerful film! The fact that the story is based on real facts and happens in our backyard is at the same time disturbing, touching, and eye-opening. It's the best Brazilian film I have ever watched and I would certainly include it on my top ten movie list of the 21st century. As many have already said, it is a picture that every Brazilian citizen should see.
A fine detective story playing in movie theaters is Blood Works, produced, directed, and starred by Clint Eastwood. Thirty-eight years after A Fistful of Dollars (1964) he is still able to seduce and entertain an audience. One aspect I particularly enjoyed was the participation of a Latin and a black woman, instead of pretty white gals, in two leading roles.
My Big Fat Greek Wedding is my recommendation if you're looking for a romantic comedy. Produced by Tom Hanks and his wife this big box-office hit in the U.S. is delightful, ideal for those feeling stressed.
11-05 Ron
Can you believe that a film buff such as myself has not watched Cidade de Deus yet? I know it's shameful but I prioritize American motion pictures during my leisure time.
Among the films in town I suggest The Bourne Identity, Red Dragon, and Reign of Fire. The first is a good secret agent film with Matt Damon.
The second is the first film of the Hannibal Lecter trilogy, a remake of Michael Mann's Manhunter, released in 1986. Edward Norton plays an FBI agent and Anthony Hopkins is Lecter, as creepy as in Silence of the Lambs and Hannibal. Red Dragon has fewer gory scenes than the other two and the best plot. I consider it the most entertaining of the three.
If you like monster movies check out Reign of Fire, a fast-paced adventure with awesome special effects.
10-21 Ron
Road to Perdition is a gangster film really worth watching. Tom Hanks and Paul Newman are exceptional and Sam Mendes, the director from American Beauty, excels again. Don't expect an unconventional ending, however.
09-23 Ron
What's been happening in movie theaters? In the last couple of months I have asked viewers to stop talking during several film sessions. Has chatting with a friend or on a cellphone while watching a movie become acceptable? Don't people realize it's annoying? Why don't those sitting next to the impolite ones say anything? Don't you think that certain behavior standards must be enforced by us and not an authority?
Back to the movie reviews. XXX was a complete bummer. The trailer was so wild and exciting that I believed it would be an improved 007 type of film. How foolish of me. The picture was silly, corny, and preposterous, to say the least.
The latest Cameron Diaz flick, The Sweetest Thing, was surprisingly delightful. I didn't expect much but this romantic story made me laugh.
- Night Shyamalan was born in India but raised in the U.S. He is the writer-director of the remarkable The Sixth Sense, with Bruce Willis, the terrific Unbreakable, again with Bruce Willis, and the special Signs, with Mel Gibson. The latter is his latest and most melodramatic of the three, reason why I didn't like it as much as the others. However, the more I think about the story the more I find it suspenseful and thought provoking. I'm so glad Hollywood has embraced Mr. Shyamalan's talent.
09-02 Ron
Here's a word about some of the movies playing in Belo Horizonte as of Friday, August 30, 2002:
About a Boy - with Hugh Grant. Above average. The British version of where a man's self-centeredness can lead him.
Bad Company - with Anthony Hopkins and Chris Rock. Okay. Despite the moments of laughter this spy story was too violent for me.
Eight Legged Freaks - with David Arquette. Very cool. This well-produced flick, which reminds us of some of the 50's and 60's horror movies, is about spiders attacking a small community.
Enough - with Jennifer Lopez. Okay. I can't tell you what my biggest problem with this drama was without spoiling the end.
Insomnia - with Al Pacino. Good. Christopher Nolan directed last year's terrific Memento but doesn't do the same job here. The film lacks suspense. It is worth your while, though, because Al Pacino, as an actor, is a god, Alaska, where the story takes place, is beautiful in the summer, and a couple of our moral values, which are basically conservative, are questioned.
Minority Report - with Tom Cruise. Disappointing. Another Spielberg direction that is a miss. The good premise and visual effects are unable to save this futuristic crime story. " Where have all your feelings and emotions gone, Mr. Spielberg? "
07-18 Ron
July, a normally tranquil month for teachers, has been incredibly busy for me. But here I am again writing about movies, one of my passions.
Attack of the Clones (Star Wars' second episode) was not a disappointment. Before I saw the film, I didn't expect much from George Lucas' story, just spectacular special effects. Sadly, I was right. An emotionless plot and the robot-like acting -- even Samuel L. Jackson, a great actor, was bad -- got me snoozing during the film. As Sérgio D'Avila from Folha de São Paulo wrote, it is better than The Phantom Menace but much worse than the first three episodes of the saga.
Another blockbuster movie, which premiered in Brazil last Friday, was Men in Black II. Between Attack of the Clones and MIB the latter provides much more fun. However, don't go expecting a succulent steak. It's a popcorn and soda type of movie.
A very pleasant surprise was Blade 2, a martial arts/vampire flick starring Wesley Snipes. It is far superior than Blade (1998), despite the number of fighting scenes. It certainly doesn't deserve the three and a half stars given by Roger Ebert from the Chicago Sun Times but if you're looking for an action-packed and suspenseful film that doesn't seem corny or silly go for it.
