May viewing
The Beat that My Heart Skipped – French film about a young man who is embarked on a life of petty crime when he sees his old piano teacher and considers a different path. His mother was a famous pianist who killed herself when he was young and he let his own talents slide. An interesting portrait, unsettling.
Last King of Scotland – strong performance from Forrest Whitaker. Not as violent as it could have been, which makes it all the more shocking when it gets really extremely violent at the end.
Keeping Mum – British comedy about a housekeeper with a murderous past who comes to live with a new family.
Fast Food Nation – I admire the effort made in trying to create a fictional frame for this adaptation, but …. It skipped around so much you didn’t get to know the characters well enough, and most of the storylines had no closure. When Slacker come out I thought Linklater was so cool. I loved Waking Life. I love the Sunset/Sunrise movies. Richard, please come back.
Firefly – hadn’t watched the series in awhile. Some of the funniest damned lines ever.
Alien – hadn’t seen this in a long time. We watched the director’s cut/anniversary edition. It remains one of the scariest space monster movies ever. Too bad the sequels all sucked so bad.
Marie Antoinette – second time for this, had a very different reaction this time. Not sure what to say.
Strangers on a Train – one of the great Hitchcocks
The Life Aquatic – I like this movie, but Tennenbaums is just so much better. We also watched the extras on this – some interesting stuff on there.
The Dead Girl – I liked this, if you can say that you like a movie about serial murder. The movie is told from several points of view. First up is the portrait of a young woman who discovers a body in a field near her house. This is a disturbing vignette of an emotionally disturbed young woman, her abusive mother, and her new boyfriend. Next is the sister of a girl who was kidnapped and has been missing for 15 years. Her mother will not give up the search, and it has affected her life in major ways. She works in a morgue (perhaps a bit much) and becomes convinced that a Jane Doe is her dead sister. Turns out she’s wrong. The middle segment follows the wife of the man who is doing the killings. Next is the dead girl’s mother, who comes down from Washington State to Los Angeles find out what happened to her daughter, who left home at 16. The final segment follows the dead girl herself, offering an eerie glimpse into the last day of her life.
Kinky Boots – a cute British comedy about a young man who takes a big chance in order to save his family’s struggling shoe factory. Chiewetel Olafor does a great job as drag queen Lola.
Serenity – had to watch this after finishing all the episodes. I don’t think I’ll ever get over Whedon killing off Book and Wash. Damn. He really needs to make a prequel about Book. Joss, are you listening?
The Hoax - saw this over at the K. Not too compelling. When I realized I was most fascinated by the early 1970s style Coke and Tab cans and CutRite wax paper box, I realized this movie wasn't doing it for me.
Last Life in the Universe - odd Japanese film about a young Japanese man living in Thailand who befriends the sister of a girl who dies in a car accident that he witnesses as he is contemplating jumping off the bridge near the roadway. Yeah.
Ten Items or Less - I loved this quirky little movie about a semi-washed up actor, played by Morgan Freeman, who hangs out at a grocery store in the barrio to research his upcoming role as a store manager. He befriends sassy cashier Scarlet, played by Paz Vega, and they spend the rest of the day together, as he helps her rescue her car from her philandering violent husband, helps her get some new clothes and makeup for her job interview at an office, coaches her for the interview, etc. Lots of humor and a bittersweet ending.
Stranger than Fiction - liked this as much as the first time. Will Ferrell is in so many dumb movies, but this one, like Melinda & Melinda, shows that he has some real skill.
Last King of Scotland – strong performance from Forrest Whitaker. Not as violent as it could have been, which makes it all the more shocking when it gets really extremely violent at the end.
Keeping Mum – British comedy about a housekeeper with a murderous past who comes to live with a new family.
Fast Food Nation – I admire the effort made in trying to create a fictional frame for this adaptation, but …. It skipped around so much you didn’t get to know the characters well enough, and most of the storylines had no closure. When Slacker come out I thought Linklater was so cool. I loved Waking Life. I love the Sunset/Sunrise movies. Richard, please come back.
Firefly – hadn’t watched the series in awhile. Some of the funniest damned lines ever.
Alien – hadn’t seen this in a long time. We watched the director’s cut/anniversary edition. It remains one of the scariest space monster movies ever. Too bad the sequels all sucked so bad.
Marie Antoinette – second time for this, had a very different reaction this time. Not sure what to say.
Strangers on a Train – one of the great Hitchcocks
The Life Aquatic – I like this movie, but Tennenbaums is just so much better. We also watched the extras on this – some interesting stuff on there.
The Dead Girl – I liked this, if you can say that you like a movie about serial murder. The movie is told from several points of view. First up is the portrait of a young woman who discovers a body in a field near her house. This is a disturbing vignette of an emotionally disturbed young woman, her abusive mother, and her new boyfriend. Next is the sister of a girl who was kidnapped and has been missing for 15 years. Her mother will not give up the search, and it has affected her life in major ways. She works in a morgue (perhaps a bit much) and becomes convinced that a Jane Doe is her dead sister. Turns out she’s wrong. The middle segment follows the wife of the man who is doing the killings. Next is the dead girl’s mother, who comes down from Washington State to Los Angeles find out what happened to her daughter, who left home at 16. The final segment follows the dead girl herself, offering an eerie glimpse into the last day of her life.
Kinky Boots – a cute British comedy about a young man who takes a big chance in order to save his family’s struggling shoe factory. Chiewetel Olafor does a great job as drag queen Lola.
Serenity – had to watch this after finishing all the episodes. I don’t think I’ll ever get over Whedon killing off Book and Wash. Damn. He really needs to make a prequel about Book. Joss, are you listening?
The Hoax - saw this over at the K. Not too compelling. When I realized I was most fascinated by the early 1970s style Coke and Tab cans and CutRite wax paper box, I realized this movie wasn't doing it for me.
Last Life in the Universe - odd Japanese film about a young Japanese man living in Thailand who befriends the sister of a girl who dies in a car accident that he witnesses as he is contemplating jumping off the bridge near the roadway. Yeah.
Ten Items or Less - I loved this quirky little movie about a semi-washed up actor, played by Morgan Freeman, who hangs out at a grocery store in the barrio to research his upcoming role as a store manager. He befriends sassy cashier Scarlet, played by Paz Vega, and they spend the rest of the day together, as he helps her rescue her car from her philandering violent husband, helps her get some new clothes and makeup for her job interview at an office, coaches her for the interview, etc. Lots of humor and a bittersweet ending.
Stranger than Fiction - liked this as much as the first time. Will Ferrell is in so many dumb movies, but this one, like Melinda & Melinda, shows that he has some real skill.
posted by Beth at 9:40 AM
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