Category Archives: 2003

2003, Acceptable Trash, British, Comedy, Nudity, Slapstick

Johnny English (2003)

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From NetFlix:

There’s a Frenchman after the crown jewels and the throne itself — but not to worry, Johnny English (Rowan Atkinson) is on the case. Well, actually … maybe a little worrying isn’t out of order, considering how clumsy Johnny can be! Luckily, his zeal more than makes up for his bumbling manner. Let’s hope that can help solve the crime of the century; if not, love in the form of double agent Lorna Campbell (Natalie Imbruglia) might.

British slapstick is not for everyone. However, if you have enjoyed Rowan Atkinson (“Mister Bean”, “Blackadder”) in the past, then you may get some real belly laughs watching this farce.

Let us hope that John Malkovich who plays “Pascal Sauvage, the Greedy Frenchman” made a lot of money playing in this comedy because I found his performance embarrassingly bad.

Have fun and always remember — I LOVE TRASH!

1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, British Mystery Series, Crime, Detective, Mystery Film

Midsomer Murders (1997-2012)

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Beginning in 1997 British TV has offered 91 (by my count) episodes of a detective series called “Midsomer Murders”. As in much British TV of this nature you are immersed in a green, fertile, picturesque, made-for-gullible-Americans locale where everything seems so quaint, friendly, folksy, and what we hope is typically British. But that is precisely why Kathy and I enjoy the series. Yes, you do see blood and you could not very well have a murder mystery without a murder or three. But even the occasional torture scene is downright polite. All of this contrasts completely with another current British TV suspense culture which often goes out of its way to be gory, explicit, pessimistic, and gloomy in the extreme. Examples of the latter are “Waking the Dead” or “MI-5”. Whereas Kathy does NOT leave the room for “Midsomer Murders”, there are scenes from the rough series that send her flying in terror. Somehow the sex and violence does not seem to phase yours truly.

Another attractive feature of the series is the slower pace. Plots can be complicated but often there is discussion between characters that tries to explain what is happening.

Additionally an episode is willing to include some “sideshow attraction” such as fifteen minutes of a cricket match or a town’s tradition of a donkey race. That may sound stupid, but actually these extras only add to the charm of the series.

And again I applaud the intelligent tradition in British drama to use actors who are not handsome or beautiful but just plain interesting.

If you want a complete catalog of the series, go IMDB. In addition to learn all about the fictional county called Midsomer as well as the large cast of characters you can try Wikipedia.

Beginning in 2006 the DVDs offer subtitles which Kathy and I need. Therefore I have listed below only those episodes which offer subtitles.

Season 9

Four Funerals and a Wedding
Country Matters
Death in Chorus
Last Year’s Model

Season 10

Dance with the Dead
The Animal Withing
King’s Crystal
The Axeman Cometh
Death and Dust
Picture of Innocence
They Seek Him Here
Death in a Chocolate Box

Season 11

Shot at Dawn
Blood Wedding
Left for Dead
Midsomer Life
The Magician’s Nephew
Days of Misrule
Talking to the Dead

Season 12

The Dogleg Murders
The Black Book
Secrets and Spies
The Glitch
Small Mercies
The Creeper
The Great and the Good

Season 13

Sword of Guillaume
Made-to-Measure Murders
Blood on the Saddle
Silent Land
Master Class
Noble Art
Not in my Backyard
Fit for Murder

Season 14

Death in the Slow Lane
Dark Secrets
Echos of the Dead
The Oblong Murders
Sleeper Under the Hill
Night of the Stag
Sacred Trust
Rare Bird

Season 15

The Dark Rider
Murder of Innocence

Let me know when you have seen all of them.

2003, Based on true facts, British Mystery Series, Conspiracy, Drama, Gay theme, Made For TV, Nudity, Political statement, Sex Scenes, Spy Theme, Wonderful acting

Cambridge Spies (2003)

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From NetFlix:

In 1934, four brilliant Cambridge men are recruited to spy for Russia. Fueled by youthful idealism, a passion for social justice and a talent for lying, they take huge personal risks to pass Britain’s biggest secrets to Moscow.

At the start of the film there is a disclaimer that some of the details are fictional. Let us hope that at least we get some insight into why these four men decided to spy for Russia. If nothing else, the acting is superb and the scenes both in England and in Germany ring true. Sex, both straight and gay, seems to pervade the atmosphere.

Cambridge’s four young spies are as follows:

Give this British production a strong recommendation.

2003, Clever Plot, Complicated, Dark, Disturbing Image, Mediocre, Plot Twist, Psychological Thriller, Serial Killer, Suspense, Violent

Identity (2003)

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From NetFlix:

Complete strangers stranded at a remote desert motel during a raging storm soon find themselves the target of a deranged murderer. As their numbers thin out, the travelers begin to turn on each other, as each tries to figure out who the killer is. John Cusack, Jake Busey, Rebecca De Mornay, Clea DuVall and Ray Liotta co-star in this spine-tingling thriller that culminates in a surprising twist for everyone concerned — including the murderer.

Let me begin by quoting someone else’s opinion:

Good, smart psychological thrillers are so rare that we all ought to be grateful for James Mangold’s IDENTITY. It begins terrifically well and keeps up this pace for most of its running time. It also keeps you guessing right up to the end. Some may find this part over-the-top, but it has stayed with me longer than I expected, and I keep turning it ’round and ’round in my mind. Here’s a good idea, filmed with all the necessary follow-through of intelligent writing, good acting (from a top-notch cast) and clever directing. And considering the amount of corpses that pile up in the course of events, there is relatively little gore. All in all, IDENTITY’s a class act.

Not everyone will gush so much over the film, including yours truly. That phrase “over-the-top” describes how I reacted to the end of the film. With so many known good actors the film should have been better. When the actors shout A LOT, that is a bad sign.

Let us review the actors:

  • John Cusack was in “High Fidelity” and Grace Is Gone (2007).
  • Ray Liotta was in “Powder Blue” and “Crossing Over”
  • Alfred Molina was the girl’s father in An Education (2008)
  • Pruitt Taylor Vince is the actor that fascinates me. You might remember him from the TV series “The Mentalist” in which for many episodes he was the Mentalist’s boss’s boss. He is a corpulent bald man whose eyes suffer from nystagmus, a condition which causes a person’s eyes to move involuntarily. Once you see him, you will never forget him.

Although I don’t regret spending the time watching this film, you can do better.

2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, British, Complicated, Computer geeks, Conspiracy, Cynical, DO NOT MISS, Flirting, Love Story, Made For TV, Political Suspense, Suspense, Terrorist Attack, Torture, TV Series, Wonderful acting

MI-5

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From NetFlix:

This award-winning series dramatizes the professional exploits and personal lives of the “spooks” of MI-5, the British equivalent of the FBI. No-nonsense head officer Harry Pearce (Peter Firth) guides a band of dedicated spies who risk their lives every day. The team includes expert and junior members who must balance real life with the job’s requirement for complete secrecy, no matter the cost. Matthew Macfadyen and Richard Armitage co-star.

Beginning in 2002 and continuing at least to 2010, this British TV-series is “utterly smashing”. Intense, sometimes hard to watch, but incredibly exciting in just about every episode. What makes some episodes difficult to watch is that the members of MI-5 are forced at times to make hard decisions that involve “collateral damage” (meaning some poor soul dies), so much so that those members are often damaged themselves and actually leave MI-5 (i.e. leave the show). In fact, be prepared for many, sometimes disappointing cast changes. For example Rupert William Penry-Jones (the character Adam Carter) started the show and then disappeared for awhile to be replaced by Matthew Macfadyen (the character Tom Quinn) who then leaves the show and is replaced by Rupert William Penry-Jones.

There are too many wonderful characters to even mention them. You can find them all listed in IMDB.

In addition to spook plots, there are also many romances. But any romance for a member of MI-5 is next to impossible because even their significant others cannot know what these spooks do for a living.

2003, Complicated, Drama, Drugs, Grim, Medical Theme, Non-physical Violence, Not Feel Good, Nudity, Plot Twist, Prison, Redemption, Religious Theme, Revenge, Sex Scenes, Suspense, Violent, Wonderful acting

21 Grams (2003)

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From NetFlix:

A tragic car accident brings together three strangers — a teacher (Sean Penn) with a weak heart, a former drug addict (Naomi Watts) turned housewife and an ex-con (Benicio Del Toro) who’s found Christ — forcing them to face their darkest fears, reevaluate their lives and seek redemption. Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu directed this complex drama that earned Oscar nominations for lead actress Watts and supporting actor Del Toro.

Mexican directory Alejandro González Iñárritu is known for possibly disturbing films such as “Babel”, “Amores Perros”, “21 Grams”, and “Biutiful”. His “Nine Lives” did not please me very much.

“21 Grams” is a jigsaw puzzle. Scene sequences are scrambled and you eventually have to figure out what the complete story really is. Some scenes are repeated such that on a succeeding viewing you finally understand what that scene means. Not that the scrambling is random, rather the non-linear sequencing is done very well. What really keeps the film moving is the sudden changes in scene without any warning. Expect some sudden surprising plot twists.

Violence, infidelity, ill health, forgiveness, and possibly redemption are the major themes.

“Redemption” is debatable because Del Toro’s character possibly never forgives himself for what he has done (we are talking ambiguity here). He certainly was a horrible father in addition to his other shortcomings. His little son does a great job showing that he had to keep himself distant from his capricious and often violent father. His daughter accepts him unconditionally.

Sean Penn seemed to me a basically selfish man, mostly concerned with his identity (“who am I with this newly transplanted heart ?”). He finds it easy to abandon the woman who loves him.

Naomi Watts’ character asks the question: “How possible is it to forgive someone who killed your loved ones ?” Watching her life go down the drain is no fun.

Interest never flags in this intense, worthwhile, demanding film.

2003, Car Chase, Military, PTSD, Serial Killer, Suspense, Violent, War

The Hunted (2003)

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From NetFlix:

Tommy Lee Jones is Agent Bonhan, an FBI deep-woods tracker who captures an assassin (Benicio Del Toro) with a weird proclivity — he makes a sport of killing deer hunters. When the killer escapes in the city, Bonham must team up with another Bureau agent (Connie Nielsen) to hunt down the thrill killer before he starts to hunt them. William Friedkin directs.

Many Tommy Lee Jones films have a thought provoking theme or sub-theme. Interestingly enough, both In the Valley of Elah (2006) and this film “The Hunted” deal with the effects of warfare on the combatants. In the former the message was that after experiencing the violence of Irag the young military personnel became emotionally numb and could kill even their own without feeling any remorse. In “The Hunted” Tommy Lee Jones taught Benicio Del Toro to be an expert killer for the military to such a point that eventually Del Toro could not “turn off” and continued to kill in civilian life. Both films in their way are anti-war films.

In the second half of this film we watch Jones using the skills he taught in order to locate and capture Del Toro. Both men are expert trackers, woodsmen, trappers, survivors, fighters and killers. If you enjoy bloody hand to hand combat, then stay tuned for an exciting adventure.

2003, Biographical, Drama, Explicit sexual discussion, Gay theme, Lawyers, Mostly About Sex, Nudity, True Story, Unusual

Angels In America (2003)

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From NetFlix:

Tony Kushner’s groundbreaking, Pulitzer Prize-winning Broadway play about love, loss and loneliness — the basis for this six-hour HBO miniseries — took more than 10 years to make it to the small screen. Starring Al Pacino (as real-life legal counsel Roy Cohn) and Meryl Streep, the drama examines the first few years of the AIDS epidemic in the mid-1980s, set against the moral absolutism and unresponsive backdrop of the Reagan Administration.

After doing my best to discourage you from watching this long two-disc, six chapter theatrical production turned into a film, persist if you must. Although definitely not for everyone, I enjoyed this film. If nothing else, it is certainly original.

Why you should NOT see this film:

  • Much of the dialog is just psycho babble or worse. Sometimes it just doesn’t make much sense.
  • The lines are said as though you were watching a play on stage, that is to say, it is a declamatory style of speaking. It makes Meryl Streep seem wooden.
  • The plot centers on AIDS. Oh yes, and it is all about AIDS. Moreover there is a lot of discussion about AIDS.
  • Talk about Magic Realism. Emma Thompson as an angel is over the top. Have you even seen an angel have lightning bolt sex with a human ?

Still not convinced, hey ? Then Padre Antonio will give you a brief historical background. An excellent summary of the life of Roy Cohn may be found in the Wikipedia article.. For this film you only need to know that:

  • Roy Cohn is despised by the left as a conniving, self-serving bastard. Read ALL the Wikipedia article to see why.
  • Roy Cohn is closely associated with the anti-communist Senator Joe McCarthy and the FBI’s J. Edgar Hoover (enough said ?)
  • Roy Cohn was instrumental in convicting Ethel Rosenberg.
  • Roy Cohn was an active, closeted gay man who hypocritically persecuted gays in public offices.
  • Roy Cohn, though never convicted of a multitude of accusations, was eventually disbarred for many reasons.
  • Roy Cohn died of AIDS while protesting that it was liver cancer.

And now for Ethel Rosenberg. Again see the Wikipedia article. Notable items:

  • It is still debateable that Ethel was guilty.
  • Roy Cohn was instrumental in convicting Ethel Rosenberg.
  • Meryl Streep really was made to look just like Ethel.

OK, some reasons why you SHOULD see this film:

  • Al Pacino is pitch-perfect as Roy Cohn.
  • You get to see each actor play several parts. Can you spot them?
  • If you have a special place in your heart for Mormons, you will love this trip. Patrick Wilson is pitch-perfect as a gay Mormon who seems to have stepped out of Gentlemen’s Quarterly.
  • And where else could you see an angel having electric sex with a human ?

HAVE FUN !

2003, Could Be Hard To Watch, Detective, Drama, Explicit sex, Explicit sexual discussion, Mostly About Sex, Suspense, Vulgar

In the Cut (2003)

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From NetFlix:

Frannie (Meg Ryan) is a New York writing professor entwined in an erotic affair with a police detective (Mark Ruffalo) who’s investigating the murder of a young woman in Frannie’s neighborhood. But soon Frannie begins to suspect her lover’s involvement in the crime. Kevin Bacon and Jennifer Jason Leigh also star in this highly charged film directed by Jane Campion (The Piano) and based on Susanna Moore’s best-selling novel.

Sex – that’s mostly what this film is about. That and a lot of gory murders by a serial killer. You need a strong stomach for this film. Visually there is explicit sex. Verbally there is a lot of very frank sex talk and cursing.

So why would anyone in their right mind watch this gore-sex fest ? Well – Meg Ryan, Mark Ruffalo, Kevin Bacon and Jennifer Jason Leigh (as Pauline, Frannie’s sister) do a fair job of putting together a tense “who done it”. The core of the problem is that Meg Ryan is surrounded by a lot of characters, any one of whom could be the serial killer. This list of suspects includes Mark Ruffalo with whom she is having an affair. As much as you might guess the ending it is still scary.

But you have been warned that this film might offend you.

2003, Drama, Drugs, Rape, Redemption, Revenge, Suspense, Violent

I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead (2003)

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From NetFlix:

In this arresting film, retirement isn’t in the cards for mobster Will Graham (Clive Owen), who’s just settling into a quiet life in the country when he hears that his brother (Jonathan Rhys-Meyers) has met a brutal end. There’s nothing left for him to do but seek vengeance, even if it destroys his chances at peace and freedom. Charlotte Rampling and Malcolm McDowell co-star; Mike Hodges directs.

Revenge versus redemption is indeed the theme of this film. At one point a talk with a psychiatrist provides some interesting insight into male with male rape. But it is just this rape that inspires the revenge. Clive Owen fills the part of the avenger with his usual intensity. This film held my interest because it was never clear how it was going to end.