2008, Animated, Could Be Hard To Watch, Docudrama, Explicit sex, Graphic Novel, Not Feel Good, Violent, War

Waltz with Bashir (2008)

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From NetFlix:

Utilizing vivid black-and-white animation in this Golden Globe winner for Best Foreign Language Film, director Ari Folman documents his quest to explore the memory gaps in his life during his service for the Israeli army in the Lebanese war of the early 1980s. Recounting several story vignettes based on recorded interviews with colleagues and friends, Folman explores the horrors of war and the curious coping mechanisms that mankind uses to survive and function under brutal circumstances.

Not everyone enjoys animantion. However, from the limited viewpoint of watching a Graphic Novel, “Waltz with Bahir” was for me captivating. Just watching the faces was enjoyable.

But these comments are superficial. For the historical background of the 1980 war in Lebanon and of this film and the various reactions to the film you could read the ample article in Wikipedia.

Just be prepared for the final portion in which the animation is replaced by actual film footage of the horror.

2007, Could be boring, Could Be Sad, Drama, Imperfect, Not Feel Good

Evening (2007)

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From NetFlix:

With daughters Constance (Natasha Richardson) and Nina (Toni Collette) by her bedside, terminally ill matriarch Ann Grant (Vanessa Redgrave) recounts a passionate romance that took place 50 years in the past yet defined the rest of her life. Claire Danes stars as a younger Ann, and Patrick Wilson portrays her lover. This adaptation of Susan Minot’s best-seller also features the megawatt talents of Meryl Streep and Glenn Close.

For all the big name stars (and their real-life children) in this film, the acceptably interesting story could have been told a lot better. Wife Kathy and neighbor Bev (a MovieFan) called a halt to watching it about a quarter of the way through. On my own I slogged through the rest just to see how it all ended. You have better things to do with your time than to watch this slow boat to old age.

1978, Autobiographical, Book Review, Medical, Novel, Sexual Episodes

The House of God (1978)

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Direct quote from Alex Beam in the Boston Globe:

Give the doctor his due: The staying power of Stephen Bergman’s 1978 novel, “The House Of God,” is astonishing. (Begman published the book under the pseudonym Samuel Shem.) Largely ignored when it first came out, with its author shunned by his colleagues for telling tales out of medical school, “The House of God” has since sold more than 2 million copies. It appears on med-school syllabuses and has become a cult classic in the shadowy insider world of aspiring doctors.

“The House of God” is a book to which few are indifferent. A dark, satirical bildungsroman set in the hurly-burly of Beth Israel Hospital’s emergency room, where Bergman worked as an intern, it has been dismissed – by a doctor, or course – as “a piece of trash.” John Updike loved the book and in 1995 contributed a near-fulsome introduction, comparing it quite aptly to Joseph Heller’s classic “Catch-22”; Bergman’s work “glows with the celebratory essence of a real novel,” he wrote.

My son and I confessed to each other that we didn’t read much past the iconic sex scenes in the middle of the 400-page novel. That’s OK: Updike loved the gamy parts, too. “The sex is most conspicuous,” he wrote, “an in the orgies with Angel and Molly acquires an epic size and pornographic ideality.”

But the clean parts stay with you too. Who can forget ER epithets like “LOLNAD” (Little Old Lady in No Apparent Distress) or “GOMER” (Get Out of My Emergency Room), taught to the impressionable young interns by the profane, countercultural resident, the Fat Man. Said Fat Man counsels his young charges that “the only good admission is a dead admission” (because they don’t have to be turfed out of the ER to another service) and to avoid touching patients at all costs. Why? Because they are sick!

In addition to lucrative sales, Bergman and his book have something else to boast about: newfound respectability. Writing in the British medical journal The Lancet, Anne Hudson Jones compared “The House of God” to Sinclair Lewis’s Arrowsmith.” Bergman contributed a long article about his book to an American College of Physicians Journal last year and guesses that he has addressed more than 50 medical school commencements in the United States and Europe in the past decade.

But none in Boston, where memories are long and fuses short.

2001, Comedy, Drama, Feel Good Not For Children, Imperfect, Sci-Fi, Unusual

Happy Accidents (2001)

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From NetFlix:

Ruby Weaver (Marisa Tomei) is tired of being the “enabler” in relationships and has decided to give up the role of doormat. She’s also on the verge of giving up on love. But a sweet, small-town guy, Sam Deed (Vincent D’Onofrio), changes her mind, and it seems Ruby’s finally found a sane boyfriend. Or has she? Soon, Sam’s divulging that he’s a time traveler from the year 2470 … and Ruby must decide whether love conquers all.

Why would I ever watch this film ? Two reasons: I am a Vince D’Onofrio (Law and Order Criminal Intent) fan, and I like quirky films. Of course that is redundant because D’Onofrio is synonymous with quirky. Rate this date flick a B. Some of the girl-talk conversations are insipid. But the idea behind the film is fun and the projections of what the future holds are thought provoking. Should I tempt you: He comes from Debuque Iowa which is on the Atlantic coast. Now are you interested ?

2007, Drama, Nudity, Sci-Fi, Unusual

Youth Without Youth (2007)

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From NetFlix:

Oscar-winning director Francis Ford Coppola spins a unique love story that combines elements of suspense and science fiction. Set in pre-World War II Europe, the film follows an academic (Tim Roth) who’s metaphysically altered after being struck by lightning. This begins a spiritual journey through time toward divine love, a journey in which the professor grows younger and more enlightened even as his nation is on the brink of war.

Francis Ford Coppola takes chances, judging from this pseudo-sci-fi film. Such a slow, quiet, strange, imaginative film will not be to everyone’s taste.

After our hero is struck by lightning at the age of 70 his body transforms into a younger man who can speak many languages and has other powers. He also now has a double of himself and they converse a lot. He outwits the Gestapo who want him for experimentation. After the war a woman much younger than our hero is struck by lightning and becomes his partner. She goes into trances and speaks languages that are progessively more ancient. The hope is that eventually she will speak the proto language from which the other languages developed. But each trance ages her. So our hero has to leave her in order that she regain her youth.

Hope I didn’t give away too much, but with limited viewing time at your disposal, you probably don’t want to watch this unusual film.

2008, Could Be Sad, DO NOT MISS, Drama, French

Summer Hours (2008)

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From NetFlix:

Sensing that death is close at hand, 75-year-old Hélène (Edith Scob) summons her three adult children to her home in the French countryside and tasks them with deciding the fate of her extraordinary art collection. This touching drama from internationally acclaimed writer-director Olivier Assayas stars Juliette Binoche, Charles Berling and Jérémie Renier as the three siblings forced to ponder their legacy and identity.

Finally a film that is suitable for everyone, although children may not appreciate the sadness of the situation.

Kathy and I saw the French film “Summer Hours” in the theatre. We loved it! The big screen makes all the difference in a film such as this. Sweet melancholy pervades the atmosphere as the inevitable passage of time forces a sequence of events. Two married brothers and their unmarried sister (a still beautiful but blond Juliette Binoche) truly love their mother and each other. Edith Scob seems just a little too stylish, healthy, sure-footed to be a 75 year old mother thinking of her death. In fact she dies early in the film. The camera follows the family’s every movement, at times seeming like a hand-held camera. If you are a francophile, you will fall in love with the old county estate and the artifacts therein. One brother will be living in China and almost certainly will never return to France. The sister will be living in the United States. The remaining brother is the most sentimental and dreads selling the estate and disposing of all the art works. Among so many details what moved me was the love between the siblings. None wanted to hurt the other or impose his or her own will. French estate taxes are horrendous, forcing the inevitable. Even the details (which child gets which painting, vase, etc.) are beautiful and important. What happens to the lifelong housekeeper ? One touching detail among many is that the sentimental son asks the housekeeper what things she would like to keep from the house as mementos. She says “Oh, there is that funny vase I always put flowers in, the vase with the bubbles on the outside.” That vase was a valuable artwork but the son gives it to the housekeeper without telling her its market value.

If you can get in the mood for a slow, moving, reflective film as only the French can produce, I urge you to see this film.

2008, Could Be Hard To Watch, Drama, Not Feel Good, Nudity, Redemption, Revenge, Suspense, Unusual, Violent

Blindness (2008)

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From NetFlix:

After a plague of blindness overtakes the residents of a city, all sense of order breaks loose in the hospital where the victims are being quarantined. It’s up to a woman (Julianne Moore) who’s keeping her sight a secret to lead a group safely to the streets. Gael García Bernal, Mark Ruffalo, Sandra Oh and Danny Glover also star in this psychological thriller, an adaptation of José Saramago’s gripping masterpiece.

“Blindness” is one of the most unusual films I have ever seen. Read carefully because it will not be everyone’s taste. Julianne Moore is excellent as the only secretly sighted person in a population where eventually everyone becomes blind. Ask yourself what would happen if in fact everyone went blind. To give you a taste of the unpleasantness you can expect: In the beginning the government sequesters all the afflicted persons into a kind of stone penitentiary. Moore is married to a doctor Mark Ruffalo. She can see, he goes blind. Saramago is careful with the details of just how people would even be able to move about, get food, etc. The prisoners are divided into groups. The guards shoot upon sight any blind person attempting to leave. Food arrives and must be distributed to the various groups. That is where the trouble begins. One group, led by Gael García Bernal decides to bully the other groups by capturing the food and demanding to be paid first with jewelry and eventually women’s sexual services. It gets ugly. If you can survive this descent into non-civilization, this movie is for you.

Another unusual aspect is the manner of vocal delivery. There is no actor voice projection. People speak as is there is no camera.

If you are still reading this review, then I should be a bit more positive and say that there is an underlying philosophy that once people stop seeing the superficial in others, then they begin to appreciate the real internal personalities. Despite the horror, the film ends as much as is possible on a happy note.

I dare you!

2003, Drama, Not Feel Good, Nudity, Redemption, Sports, Violent

Undefeated (2003)

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From NetFlix:

Lex Vargas (John Leguizamo), a Latino boxer from the mean streets of Jackson Heights, Queens, discovers that his success with his fists (and the big financial payoffs) alienates his friends. Question is, can he balance victories in the ring with life outside the squared circle? Robert Forster co-stars in this film, which marks Leguizamo’s directorial debut (he also co-scripted).

“Undefeated” is an unimportant, unexceptional, acceptable film. For this reason I might say it is a “B” film. However, there are no inconsistencies, all the actors do well, the story makes sense and offers a tale of partial redemption. For this reason I might say it is an “A” film.

There are many, many boxing scenes which prompted the “violent” category.

I don’t regret seeing the film, but then as a retired person I have a lot of time to do so.

2008, Could Be Hard To Watch, Drama, Not Feel Good, Revenge, Violent

Slumdog Millionaire (2008)

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From NetFlix:

After coming within one question of winning 20 million rupees on the Indian version of “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” 18-year-old Mumbai “slumdog” Jamal Malik (Dev Patel) is arrested on suspicion of cheating. While in custody, Jamal regales a jaded police inspector (Irfan Khan) with remarkable tales of his life on the streets, as well as the story of Latika (Freida Pinto), the woman he loved and lost. Danny Boyle’s film won a Golden Globe and Oscar for Best Picture.

Hollywood has produced a technically excellent film that successfully exploits the misery of Indian slum dwellers by coating the film with a thin veneer of Spielberg-like good feelings. I just couldn’t buy it. During this film, which in my opinion is NOT FOR CHILDREN, you will be treated to the following spectacles:

  • The police inspector beats Jamal and subjects him to electric torture. This is perfectly acceptable because Jamal, after all, is merely a slum dweller.
  • Hindus set muslims on fire as living torches.
  • Of course Jamal will jump into the cesspool so he can get a Bollywood actor’s autograph.
  • During the day poor Indians search the garbage dump for edible food.
  • At night orphans sleep at this garbage dump
  • Predators entice these orphans from the dump with cold Coca-Cola. The orphans are taken to a camp and fed. These orphans then experience the following:
    • At the very best they are turned into beggar slaves for the predators
    • Those male orphans who can sing are then blinded by pouring hot liquid into their eyes and sent out as singing beggars.
    • Female orphans are trained as prostitutes.
  • In one scene Jamal’s beautiful sweetheart Latika has both sides of her face scarred in revenge for her disobience to her owner.

Why did not India sue the filmmakers for exposing the savage underbelly of India ? Of course every country has it shame. Do not forget that in the American South, after a negro was lynched, the spectators cut the body into parts and saved the pieces as souvenirs.

There is a large article on this film in wikipedia. Hopefully none of the children actors from slums were sent back to the slums. There is also this link to one of the many organizations that try to help.

2007, Could Be Sad, Drama, Explicit sex, Not Feel Good, Nudity, Redemption, Revenge, Suspense, Violent

Crossing Over (2007)

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From NetFlix:

Boasting an all-star cast that includes Harrison Ford, director Wayne Kramer’s thoughtful drama weaves several stories together to create an emotionally charged examination of immigration in Los Angeles. Ashley Judd and Ray Liotta co-star in the powerful ensemble film, which provides a harrowing look at border crossing, document fraud, asylum seekers, naturalization, counterterrorism and the clash of cultures in America.

“Crossing Over” is one powerful, compelling tapestry of immigrant stories. Very few of the subplots end happily. Therein lies my only complaint: the film is very heavily slanted toward the viewpoint that the INS is unfair, uncaring, and in one case corrupt. Having said that, my heart was with the sad lives of the illegals. Most of the immigrants in the film are, in fact, illegals seeking desperately to become legal. I have met illegals in my neighborhood doing things like painting, mowing, etc. Their stories can be heart-rending as are the stories in this film.

As far as the craft of filmmaking is concerned, this is a very well made film. There are too many fine actors doing an excellent job to be able to credit any one in particular.