I AM Ebert and Roeper
I just realized I've seen a shitload of movies since I got home 2 months ago. I'm trying to keep track, but I'm sure I left some out...
all about my mother: not as good as I expected. but Almodovar can write like hell about women. And there were many beautiful moments that opened my eyes to what is possible in film-making. small things like a pen moving across the camera lens, and significant scenes - agrado's monologue, the view from esteban's eyes as he draws his last breath on the rain-drenched streets. I'm sure much was lost in translation.
after life: Japan, 1998. a small gem of a film. the premise: workers at a way station of sorts help process the newly dead by helping each person choose a memory from their lifetime. the memory will be the only thing they take with them into eternity. at times excruciatingly slow-paced, but intriguing, illuminating and touching. in particular, the storyline involving the actor Arata.
the lives of others: was psyched for it when Susie & Ana both said, omg SO good simultaneously. I wouldn't say the same, but the ending is strangely redeeming and stuck with me. word that comes to mind is "disciplined" - which is the stereotype I have of German people (ha). 1 of my biggest problems with the film was the centerpiece "Sonata for a Good Man" - it's bad! I literally cringed as I heard it. Have been wondering why the movie was so widely praised... but can't figure.
balzac and the little chinese seamstress: another small gem of a movie. it encloses you with its simplicity, so you get lost in their country life, the smallness of it -- of the village, and all the individual people, the little love story, and their tiny private means of escape. but I think it's forgettable in the long run. the ending was disappointing. the 2 main actors are great, and surprisingly cute.
sympathy for lady vengeance: part of the Oldboy revenge trilogy. disturbing but almost too controlled -- it has an air of having been meticulously put-together and meticulously paced. you're always aware that you're watching a movie, and one that's trying to push itself beyond your expectations to boot. still, it's weirdly inspiring to me as a lesson in edgy, powerful filmmaking. the main actress is amazing and has total command over the screen.
chasing amy: yo, this sucked. probably not going to waste any more of my time with other Kevin Smith films. shittiest element: Joey Lauren Adams. I know the script was basically inspired by her. but she sucks and is annoying and is a bad actress, contrived and totally not believable or empathizable (not a real word).
clean: the inimitable Maggie Cheung as a recovering heroin junkie fighting to get her son back after prison. another "critic's choice" that didn't do much for me. I felt the film stayed at more or less the same tone throughout... in its avoidance of maudlin, it stayed too flat. enjoyed watching Maggie show off her linguistic chops (French, English and Cantonese), and I am in sort-of-love with the 2 songs she recorded for the film.
knocked up: WHOAH, so NOT funny 85% of the time. my funny-tastes must be way out of whack with the maintream. Seth Rogen is endearing at first but after a while -- his witty jokes are just duds. and katherine heigl's character? a dud as well. best laugh - the stoned girlfriend.
little children: uh. precise and pitch-perfect. it's like the director made no mistakes whatsoever and yet the movie has a feel of mediocrity to it. you could say the same of Tom Perrotta's books. I liked it but don't even know why. Kate Winslet is due an Oscar, hopefully someday soon.
the prestige: you got me. I did not see it coming at all! it's pretty fucking good but some parts of the ending are maybe a little.. TOO crazy. and confusing as hell. god, i hate when the viewer is left to sort out the dangling not-tied-up strings and figure it out for himself, and maybe there's no definite answer after all.
a very long engagement: mediocre. although I did feel bad for the 5 soldiers. Audrey Tatou's character is hella pointless. what the fuck does she do all day?? why her aunt and uncle love her is beyond comprehension -- she's like a parasite, sucking off all their hard work while she mopes around pining after her missing lover. i know that's so NOT the point of the movie, but whatever, it bugged the hell out of me.
children of men: pretty good. the scary thing is how such an implausible plot can be so believable. The scapegoating of immigrants, and the extremism of the Fishes, who seem to have lost all perspective on the cause they're fighting for, bring it home for me, and make it seem real. the making of, and the interview with Cuaron, were almost as enjoyable. it made me go, fuckk... I want to make movies so bad. if only I had more confidence in myself. and the energy. production looks so huge and unwieldy.
jesus camp: some scary shit.
saving face: I really wanted to like this movie, and was prepared to. An Asian-American female director working with a mostly Asian-American female cast. but as with Better Luck Tomorrow, it left me going, Wow, that was SHIT. the acting is horrible. the plot is hackneyed and predictable. it felt so empty and pointless. you don't believe it for 1 second. no chemistry AT ALL between the 2 lead actresses. and I know they weren't supposed to speak fluent Chinese, that was the point. but their accents -- *cringe.* I felt embarrassed for them.
good night, and good luck: good stuff, but I wasn't blown away by any means. Murrow is a man who speaks for our time. It's McCarthyism all over again, except institutionalized and insidious -- gone underground with more subtlety, rather than propagated by a raging lunatic.
the illusionist: not as good as The Prestige, that's for sure. Giamatti and Norton are impressive. Jessica Biel, less so. props to the cinematographer - the best part may have been the atmospherics.
volver: Kind of boring. the narrative didn't speak to me at all, no resonance with any of the characters. 2 good things stick out in my mind: the surreal blend of vividness and fadedness of the set colors, and Penelope Cruz. I've always thought she's umm, how to say, ugly. But here, she rocks.
blade runner: can see why it was considered visionary 25 years ago. can also see why like, no one went to see it at first. I have no intention of picking it apart -- all the metaphors and layers of symbolism and philosophical meaning -- but would be very much interested in seeing it again, the director's cut of the director's cut, that's in theaters now.
annie hall: funny! and strangely charming. I laughed out loud many times. it would be so fucking annoying if woody allen made all subsequent movies in a similar vein though. i mean, isn't that what he did?
vera drake: compact and powerful movie. but in a way, it falls a bit flat, mostly for lack of conflict -- Vera is almost too virtuous and good to be true, and it has a clear, unequivocal message, which I agree with. so to me, it didn't set up any psychological or moral dilemma. For me, after 20+ years of performing abortions, Vera was bound to get unlucky, and she did. The prison scene at the end is deceptively simple and brief, but it gives an idea of the depth of the courage of these women.
kiss kiss bang bang: huh. whatever. suffers from the same Chasing Amy problem - ie., 2 men, super-annoying lead actress. I just hope Robert Downey Jr is truly, finally clean now. otherwise it'd be all that talent gone to waste.
the sting: my brain was barely hanging on, but when I just let all that confusing horse-racing shit go, it was a rollicking good time.
tim burton's corpse bride: light and sweet. didn't dig the garish musical numbers in the colorful underworld (I get the irony though, thanks). more importantly, has anyone seen the making of this on the special features?! fuck! I knew stop-motion was painstaking, but not THIS painstaking. the crew tried to put on a brave face for the behind-the-scenes. but really: how much screaming, teeth-gritting, and hair-pulling was involved in the making of this? and chicken run? the answer is, A LOT. SO FUCKING MUCH.
all about my mother: not as good as I expected. but Almodovar can write like hell about women. And there were many beautiful moments that opened my eyes to what is possible in film-making. small things like a pen moving across the camera lens, and significant scenes - agrado's monologue, the view from esteban's eyes as he draws his last breath on the rain-drenched streets. I'm sure much was lost in translation.
after life: Japan, 1998. a small gem of a film. the premise: workers at a way station of sorts help process the newly dead by helping each person choose a memory from their lifetime. the memory will be the only thing they take with them into eternity. at times excruciatingly slow-paced, but intriguing, illuminating and touching. in particular, the storyline involving the actor Arata.
the lives of others: was psyched for it when Susie & Ana both said, omg SO good simultaneously. I wouldn't say the same, but the ending is strangely redeeming and stuck with me. word that comes to mind is "disciplined" - which is the stereotype I have of German people (ha). 1 of my biggest problems with the film was the centerpiece "Sonata for a Good Man" - it's bad! I literally cringed as I heard it. Have been wondering why the movie was so widely praised... but can't figure.
balzac and the little chinese seamstress: another small gem of a movie. it encloses you with its simplicity, so you get lost in their country life, the smallness of it -- of the village, and all the individual people, the little love story, and their tiny private means of escape. but I think it's forgettable in the long run. the ending was disappointing. the 2 main actors are great, and surprisingly cute.
sympathy for lady vengeance: part of the Oldboy revenge trilogy. disturbing but almost too controlled -- it has an air of having been meticulously put-together and meticulously paced. you're always aware that you're watching a movie, and one that's trying to push itself beyond your expectations to boot. still, it's weirdly inspiring to me as a lesson in edgy, powerful filmmaking. the main actress is amazing and has total command over the screen.
chasing amy: yo, this sucked. probably not going to waste any more of my time with other Kevin Smith films. shittiest element: Joey Lauren Adams. I know the script was basically inspired by her. but she sucks and is annoying and is a bad actress, contrived and totally not believable or empathizable (not a real word).
clean: the inimitable Maggie Cheung as a recovering heroin junkie fighting to get her son back after prison. another "critic's choice" that didn't do much for me. I felt the film stayed at more or less the same tone throughout... in its avoidance of maudlin, it stayed too flat. enjoyed watching Maggie show off her linguistic chops (French, English and Cantonese), and I am in sort-of-love with the 2 songs she recorded for the film.
knocked up: WHOAH, so NOT funny 85% of the time. my funny-tastes must be way out of whack with the maintream. Seth Rogen is endearing at first but after a while -- his witty jokes are just duds. and katherine heigl's character? a dud as well. best laugh - the stoned girlfriend.
little children: uh. precise and pitch-perfect. it's like the director made no mistakes whatsoever and yet the movie has a feel of mediocrity to it. you could say the same of Tom Perrotta's books. I liked it but don't even know why. Kate Winslet is due an Oscar, hopefully someday soon.
the prestige: you got me. I did not see it coming at all! it's pretty fucking good but some parts of the ending are maybe a little.. TOO crazy. and confusing as hell. god, i hate when the viewer is left to sort out the dangling not-tied-up strings and figure it out for himself, and maybe there's no definite answer after all.
a very long engagement: mediocre. although I did feel bad for the 5 soldiers. Audrey Tatou's character is hella pointless. what the fuck does she do all day?? why her aunt and uncle love her is beyond comprehension -- she's like a parasite, sucking off all their hard work while she mopes around pining after her missing lover. i know that's so NOT the point of the movie, but whatever, it bugged the hell out of me.
children of men: pretty good. the scary thing is how such an implausible plot can be so believable. The scapegoating of immigrants, and the extremism of the Fishes, who seem to have lost all perspective on the cause they're fighting for, bring it home for me, and make it seem real. the making of, and the interview with Cuaron, were almost as enjoyable. it made me go, fuckk... I want to make movies so bad. if only I had more confidence in myself. and the energy. production looks so huge and unwieldy.
jesus camp: some scary shit.
saving face: I really wanted to like this movie, and was prepared to. An Asian-American female director working with a mostly Asian-American female cast. but as with Better Luck Tomorrow, it left me going, Wow, that was SHIT. the acting is horrible. the plot is hackneyed and predictable. it felt so empty and pointless. you don't believe it for 1 second. no chemistry AT ALL between the 2 lead actresses. and I know they weren't supposed to speak fluent Chinese, that was the point. but their accents -- *cringe.* I felt embarrassed for them.
good night, and good luck: good stuff, but I wasn't blown away by any means. Murrow is a man who speaks for our time. It's McCarthyism all over again, except institutionalized and insidious -- gone underground with more subtlety, rather than propagated by a raging lunatic.
the illusionist: not as good as The Prestige, that's for sure. Giamatti and Norton are impressive. Jessica Biel, less so. props to the cinematographer - the best part may have been the atmospherics.
volver: Kind of boring. the narrative didn't speak to me at all, no resonance with any of the characters. 2 good things stick out in my mind: the surreal blend of vividness and fadedness of the set colors, and Penelope Cruz. I've always thought she's umm, how to say, ugly. But here, she rocks.
blade runner: can see why it was considered visionary 25 years ago. can also see why like, no one went to see it at first. I have no intention of picking it apart -- all the metaphors and layers of symbolism and philosophical meaning -- but would be very much interested in seeing it again, the director's cut of the director's cut, that's in theaters now.
annie hall: funny! and strangely charming. I laughed out loud many times. it would be so fucking annoying if woody allen made all subsequent movies in a similar vein though. i mean, isn't that what he did?
vera drake: compact and powerful movie. but in a way, it falls a bit flat, mostly for lack of conflict -- Vera is almost too virtuous and good to be true, and it has a clear, unequivocal message, which I agree with. so to me, it didn't set up any psychological or moral dilemma. For me, after 20+ years of performing abortions, Vera was bound to get unlucky, and she did. The prison scene at the end is deceptively simple and brief, but it gives an idea of the depth of the courage of these women.
kiss kiss bang bang: huh. whatever. suffers from the same Chasing Amy problem - ie., 2 men, super-annoying lead actress. I just hope Robert Downey Jr is truly, finally clean now. otherwise it'd be all that talent gone to waste.
the sting: my brain was barely hanging on, but when I just let all that confusing horse-racing shit go, it was a rollicking good time.
tim burton's corpse bride: light and sweet. didn't dig the garish musical numbers in the colorful underworld (I get the irony though, thanks). more importantly, has anyone seen the making of this on the special features?! fuck! I knew stop-motion was painstaking, but not THIS painstaking. the crew tried to put on a brave face for the behind-the-scenes. but really: how much screaming, teeth-gritting, and hair-pulling was involved in the making of this? and chicken run? the answer is, A LOT. SO FUCKING MUCH.