recently watched The Mist (2007). not at all what i expected. dont want to blow the plot, but for those who've already seen it, would you agree it was a mind-!@$# or what? i was genuinely disturbed, and for that i give the movie big props. seriously, i very seldom feel -- with other movies -- how i did after watching this one, and it had very little to do with the gore.

also watched special features interview with S. King and director Frank Darabont. Frank seems like a pretty laid back and modest guy -- also a big surprise, considering how i was just freshly tramatized by his film. lol. hollywood needs to mix it up with more movies like this one; dare to test the audience with more unique and non-standardized screenplays.

i give it 8 out of 10 acorns.

Watched it last night and disagree.

The first 15-20 mins was promising enough, but it quickly disintegrated with overblown script and directing (by the same guy). It ended up being a cut and paste of numerous (far better) horror movies and it was rather disturbing just how many elements, including the ending were very predictable.

Very surprising after The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile, but this thing is crap.

touché...

The ending got me good... it will never have the same effect though, that is, if I ever watch it again. I really dug the whole half-lifish (game) story line. Besides a few Outer Limits/X-files episodes, I have never seen anything like this -- which probably accounts for my being easily amused. I really expected something super cheezy too -- at least from my own limited horror-movie prospective.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

disappointing.

Don’t get me wrong though; the graphics were state of the art -- a couple scenes of which I thought were particularly cool. But the film was like a compilation of superstitious new-age campfire stories -- some of which, from what I understand, are historically inaccurate, but incorporated anyways to fit the plot. A lot of the acting seemed artificial, many scenes were just plain boring, and the whole thing reeked of mainstream Hollywood hype. Big yawn.

not what i remember feeling as a kid watching the first three, but that's probably why -- i was a kid.

i rate it: C-

Ok, here's a few films I feel are certainly worth mentioning:

American Gangster) Based on a true story. I think Ridley Scott did this one very well. I watched the extended uncut version on dvd last night -- highly recommended.

We Own the Night) Another good guys/bad guys flick. Gritty and suspenseful. Immersive and believable acting, thanks to the likes of Joaquin Phoenix et al.

Before the Devil Knows You're Dead) Yet another movie that drags the viewer through a tedious emotional drama. Superb acting by Philip Seymour Hoffman, among others.

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly) French film -- also based on a true story. A juxtaposition on the extremes of freedom and captivity. A must see.

feedback/recommendations welcome

There Will be Blood.

10/10

Manufactured Landscapes

Quite revealing. If you've ever wondered how all the junk you have (at least a good majority of it) gets made, this is a good documentary to check out.

I think the best film I saw this year in theatres was the Swedish vampire film "Let The Right One In". I knew only about the vampire angle going into the film and found myself swept up in the story. The film depends on the abilities of two young teen actors to cary the film and they did a spectacular job in doing so. A slightly different twist to the vampire lore, this film rates an 8/10 for me.

If any of you want to blow your mind away, try the independant feature "Decasia". This film is made with found film elements, in varying degrees of decay and has the original soundtrack of Michael Gordon to help fuel the fire. Too difficult to describe; just do yourselves a favour and seek out this dvd. It is as required viewing as Lynch's short film "The Grandmother" and E. Elias Merhige's masterpiece "Begotten".

I must confess, I've never really cared much for comics, but I thought Ironman was pretty good. Robert Downey Jr. did a good job bringing to life the character of Tony Stark. Out of all the "super-hero" movies, if I was asked to choose one I identified with the most, it'd be Ironman.

After seeing the Incredible Hulk -- which I thought was also a decent action movie -- I learned about the unfolding Marvel Comics film series currently in production; Ironman II and Thor (scheduled for 2010), then Captain America and The Avengers (scheduled for 2011). The cast for these films is looking good so far, in my opinion. Just hope they don't over "hollywoodize" them.

After diving into a wide range of material, I would recommend going to your library or netflix and looking for obscure material. The Criterion Collection seems to hold a lot of interesting older works that are otherwise hard to find.

Anyway, after looking through filmmakers such as Cocteau, Fellini, Svankmajer, Brakhage, Bunuel, (to name a few), and seeing films like La Jetee and Koyaanisqatsi, I can really only say that I would not prefer one over another. They are all just different and interesting in their own right. They take me to a different atmosphere and most times I find something to take away, even if I don't plan to come back to them.

I don't think you'll find what's available on Criterion to be "obscure".




A great series of releases (I used to buy them on Laserdisc) now finally making their Blu-ray appearance.

just watched this movie myself, it was really a great film.

the soundtrack, to me at least, was dead on amazing. i had absolutely no idea the guitarist for radiohead was the composer for the soundtrack - i'm not a big radiohead fan at all anyways so i guess thats why i didn't know. the better parts were really from arvo part, but regardless, the music and sound fit extremely well...and at times the lack of sound was just as powerful.

Come on, you gotta be kidding me... That's one of the worst films I've ever seen. Along with every other Swedish film ever made. We just won't stop making movies, even though everyone except 38-year old housewives knows that they all suck. No matter the theme, whether it be comedy, drama, drama, comedy(the only two genres known to Swedish filmmakers, with the possible exception of crime thrillers) or those devastating moments when we actually try to produce something in the vein of action, sci-fi or fantasy, Swedish films ALWAYS teem with the dull and grey melancholy that infests this whole goddamn country and its inhabitants. The pathetic welfare country, always just the right amount of everything, always balancing on the exact middle ground between capitalism and socialism, everyone's alike, nobody's better than others at anything, you're not allowed to be rich but it's cool to be poor, burned-out divorced mothers who smoke cigarettes non-stop and shout abuse at their children before daddy comes and takes them for their shared custody-weekend with him, just as the rules say... No wonder that everybody's depressed. Not suicidally depressed, but just depressed enough with no superfluous elements, the Swedish way.

And then, along came the movie that encapsulated the whole Swedish mentality in an hour and a half... De Ofrivilliga, or Involuntary as the international title is. All the melancholy, humble shyness, political correctness, vodka-chugging teenagery and marriage-related misery of this grey, frozen hellhole of a contry, in one film. If any of you, for some completely incompehensible reason, should ever be interested in getting to know Sweden and its mentality in detail, watch this. If every country produced a film like this, there would no longer be any cultural misunderstandings and differences left in the world.

Do most Swedes recognize this? Yes. They're just too uncomfortable and humble to admit it. Instead we praise this shitty fucking vampire movie and send it to represent us at film festivals etc. Because of the fact that it's the first Swedish film to ever contain tiny supernatural element instead of the grey realism and total lack of fantasy that's always been our major characteristic. Look at the scenes in the beginning of that film, with the little boy looking out the window into the darkness, the snow falling, sub-zero temperatures, and identical grey concrete apartments stacked endlessly besides one another. Everyone living out their unhappy lives by meticulous routines. That's Sweden right there. Endless bleakness. No life, no dreams, no ambitions. No soul.

iReview: Personal film reviews

Everyone likes movies, most people watch them but sometimes you just wish you hadn't wasted your time or money on them. With all of the recent crap but only occasional worthwhile film making it out of Hollywood these days, iReview is intended to help other film viewers decided to spend their time and hard earned money on a comparable movie experience for their buck or pass on a flop, *without giving too much away.

This resources will not be limited to Hollywood's new releases but is also intended to be used for Indies, Rentals, "Direct to" DVD/Blu-ray releases, Internet Films, TV and what ever else is out there in the entertainment world.

So what's your Review?

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This is what I've recently seen in the past month or so and what's worth sharing/warning about.

iReview: Daybreakers
Now playing: In theaters now.
Opinion: Crap.
Review: I went on the premise of the cast not the actual story. Sam Neill has always been a humdrum actor IMO, Ethan Hawke had impressed me many years ago in the movie Gattaca but I have been a long time admire of Willem Dafoe's talent and ability. Their acting in this case was mediocre at best. Though the story was actually an interesting concept and had potential, the direction they went with it half way through was the disappointment. Particular parts of the story were actually quite comical in execution. I found myself unable to contain an outburst of hysterical laughter (though it was not shared by the other viewers in the theater) during a "feeding frenzy" scene. Slow motion violence with flying body parts set to dramatic music is just idiotic.
Regrets: Yes. I wasted my time and money.

iReview: Avatar
Now Playing: In theaters now.
Opinion: Entertained. Inspired.
Review: If you haven't seen this, GO! My first. 3-D movie. Entering the movie with no expectations I was completely blown away with the depth of it. What a nice breath of fresh air coming out of Hollywood. James Cameron is not only capable of visually translating his art for mass consumption but he is an awesome story teller. A true paragon of what Hollywood should aspire to. I wont go into my view of the movie itself, it's a MUST see to believe.
Regrets: None. I don't view movies twice in theaters but I did for this one.

iReview: Caprica
Now Playing: Cable. SyFy Channel
Opinion: Indifferent.
Review: This drama fallows the template for a soap opera rather than entertaining TV series. I don't watch/like soap operas. I've only seen 1 episode and found that the story is slow. The motivation of the story is classically based off of loss and obsession, a short term plot line IMO. I hope they find something else to focus on that with help the series endure.
Regrets: I don't know yet. I tend to give new TV series an air of leniency to prove themselves, especially those that ride the coattails of proven entertaining forebears.

I honestly felt that Avatar didn't live up to the hype. It was fine to look at but I only like Sigourney Weaver's character and I just don't like the particularly archetype he decided to dress up as a plot.