jenjen-7 Reviews

Kiss Me Kate (1953)

Bright and enjoyable

[19 September 1999]

This is a well-paced musical with a few good Cole Porter songs, and the great "So In Love".

I am not a fan of Howard Keel, but he is bearable and appropriate in this role of an actor. All of the singing was fine, and Ann Miller's dancing was diverting. This is one of my favourite musical films because it is passionate rather than soppy. The theme of a divorced couple's mixed feelings about one another perhaps will connect even more with today's audience than it did in the 1950s.

My husband particularly enjoyed the "I Hate Men" song, and the way Grayson threw things. He likes girls like that... :-)

The Efficiency Expert (1991)

A gentle film

[2 August 1999]

This film shows us a slice of Australian work life as globalisation takes over. The workers in a small shoe factory, having grown up with the "job for life" paradigm, are examined by an efficiency expert called in by the boss, a man who wants to "modernise" without cutting staff.

Many well-known Australian actors appear in this film. It is a gentle and sympathetic look at the effects of economic change. The film also has comic moments where adolescent boys try to ask out a good-looking girl without much success.

This film is not a "must-see", but it passes the time acceptably.

Bus Stop (1956)

A stupid and annoying film

[22 July 1999]

If you like young men with the social skills of a five year old, and young women with low self esteem, watch this film. The only relief is when the bus driver beats the cowboy up to stop him from pestering the poor young woman any further.

There are some comic moments in the film, but it's too frustrating watching Monroe's character treated like an animal. This is not the mood of the 1990s.

If you want to enjoy Marilyn Monroe, watch "Some Like It Hot". At least her character in that film has self-respect, even if she's no more than a likeable bimbo.

Shakespeare in Love (1998)

Enjoyable film.

[1 June 1999]

This was not the best film of the year but it was good, solid fun. It is a film to remember fondly.

The story is very much in the Shakespearean vein - "play within a play", cross-dressing, concealed and mistaken identity. There is nothing gained in comparing it to a contemporary plot: it is a tribute to Shakespearean plot devices.

This film makes up for all the lacklustre study of Shakespeare we did at school. The characters are bright and sympathetic. Their speech is intelligible. No footnotes required! :-)

Do not be put off by the fact that it won an inappropriate award. That is not the film's fault, so don't hold it against it. Forget about the award and just enjoy the film. It's a cheerful romp that's well worth the price of a ticket.

The Matrix (1999)

A very tedious film. I yawned all through it.

[18 May 1999]

This is the most disappointing film I have seen in years.

"The Matrix" had special effects galore, but no plot, character depth or development, and dreadful music. I actually yawned out loud several times during the screening, but no-one would have been able to hear me over the never-ending sounds of violence coming from the screen.

This film seems in some way to be a *summary* of other recent films such as "Dark City" and "The Truman Show". The writers did not bother to go into many details in the story. The script was also full of stupid-sounding lines that were obviously intended to sound "deep and meaningful".

It appears that there were lots of violent scenes the authors wanted to put on film, but it was too much trouble to fit a story to them.