[Spain]
A passionate movie about two men whose women they love are in comas. Deals with movement, love, freedom of movement, freedom to love, and how can one know what another is thinking. Of all the Almodovar movies I've seen, this is the most comfortable to watch and seemingly natural, and therefore my favorite.
Good. Based on the true story of an ex-tobacco executive and a 60 Minutes producer. Deals with loyalty, confidentiality, the importance of truth and the difficulty in telling it, and, centrally, how business decisions interact with the public's need to know.
Stunning. Like a graphic novel brought to life. Tells three short stories all set in Sin City. Unparalleled in its visual effects and mood. Makes especially good use of color: with most of it shot in black and white, color does an exceptional job highlighting certain objects and effects.
Beautiful. A tender story of two people that meet on a train and decide to spend the night together in Vienna. Feels very real, surprising given the deep discussions the characters have about love, relationships, marriage, fulfillment, upbringing, spirituality, and more. Despite lack of a plot, maintains forward movement well.
Good, but I think I've outgrown the (fairly simplistic) story. At times it felt a little too amusement park-ish (designed for rides and games). Indeed, this hypothesis was confirmed by games appearing as special features on the DVD. (On the other hand, I enjoyed those games...) Fun songs and special effects. Willy Wonka's (played by Johnny Depp) amazingly rapid changes of mood / expression are unnerving and even horrifying at times. Good acting all around. Directed by Tim Burton (Bettle Juice, the first two Batman movies, Edward Scissorhands, ...).
Mesmerizing and sad, All About My Mother follows the tale of a single mother who loses her son on his birthday. It's about love, sickness, prostitution, and death, and about acting and appearances and the face we put forth to face the world. An uncomfortable heart-wrenching story that, while very well done, has too many men-who-look-like-women for my tastes.
[I estimated the date I watched this movie.]
Well done movie about 1950s McCarthy-ism. Using black-and-white film, appropriate costumes, and many cigarettes, effectively capture the feel of the time. Good acting. Only flaws were that one side-story felt irrelevant and some camera movements felt too modern.
[I estimated the date I watched this movie.]
Hugh Grant's premier movie. Decent romantic (?) comedy. To me, felt like a dark movie about the difficulty in finding true love and committing, but with a happy ending tacked on at the end.
[I estimated the date I watched this movie.]
The story of a boy with a dying mother, an absent father, some nervous problems, and a dog that no one else seems to like. Follows the boy's coming of age, his changing relationships, and his marginalization. A good artsy film.
[I estimated the date I watched this movie.]
