Change Your Image
chencho
Reviews
Elipsis (2006)
I wouldn't recommend this one...
We all have seen a lot of movies which get you thinking "if only they have done this or that, if only this actor had done his job..." and so on. I have to say that in this one, my first thought was "This is a great work, for a 3rd semester student". The visuals, the interesting changes between shots, the sets, almost everything but the story and the acting made me think of an unexperienced director and though they are not very convincing -have you ever seen news interviews with no signs all over the screen????- they did show me the will of accomplishing a good job, only fell short in many cases. The acting has, with the noticeably exception of the drug dealer and the gallery curator, the worst part in this movie. Although in a number of scenes you can see convincing acting, all the top-model-looking women have no good parts to do something with them, nor seem to be able to act at all. They convinced me they are top models, and were given this job by their agents, and brought all their own make-up to their scenes. Sad. It is a brave and heroic deed to make a motion picture with small budgets, poor distribution, and a number of challenges that have nothing to do with the actual making of the movie. Usually I think one has to believe sincerely in your own work to get past all that. Having that in mind, the whole story, and all the "twists" at the end, seem to me a slim reason to go through all the process. If you are curious or have the time, or if something of this movie appeals to you, go and see it... but I wouldn't recommend it. 4/10
Apocalypto (2006)
the damage has been done
This is not a hate-review. That said, and being a Mexican of little or none Mayan descent, I feel I have to explain why I see apocalypto as a poor movie. From IMDb posts and comments elsewhere you can see a lot of people feel angry and aggravated. It's comprehensible if you take your time to read a bit about Mayan culture, which is not only mispictured, but mistaken in several occasions for the Aztec culture. A lot of the movie is just historically impossible. Taking as an example "Braveheart", one could simply accept the errors and misconceptions which happen in both movies as an effort for thrusting visually or emotionally some takes just to make it a blockbuster film. But the truth is that in Apocalypto they just invented a family-hero story, with the Mayan decadent surroundings as a subplot. It is very disheartening to see the amount of racist, uninformed, furious, and just plain stupid discussions taking place over what could have been a great movie, if the makers only took some time to research. I thank Mel Gibson for using the actors and locations he did, and taking an interest on a culture that is seldom pictured or referenced by Hollywood. The thing is he missed the chance of portraying a magnificent culture, and turned into a mere fictional and historically misleading story. That mislead is damage already done. People are wondering about nonsense, and insulting each other for being stupid or illiterate, weather they like the film or htey hate it. I'll just write some of the errors: 1.-The Spaniards never arrived by ship to Mayan land -not a spoiler, don't worry. 2.-The mayans did perform human sacrifice, but no hearts nor heads were offered "as a way to calm kukulkán (the sun god)". The whole sacrifice scene is incorrect. It seems the "advisors" thought of Aztecs, which did take out human hearts of the captured warriors.(None of the main story elements are spoiled by saying this) 3.-The filthy huts, the clothing, the hunting, and almost every day to day reference of how people lived in those days are falling short of a lie. It is true the time frame is upon the decadent part of the Mayan empire, but sadly no mention of the bright parts of Mayan life are shown. Even the History channel knows about that part. 4.-(possible spoiler) The place in which the slaves are told to run and get hunted down in a cat&mouse fashion, resembles a lot to a "ball game" court, a game named in Maya "pok-ta-pok", which is a sacred practice and would have never been used in that way. If you believe it, people still play that game -some 500 years after the conquest, and say a 1500 years since it started. 5.-The Mayan pyramids never ever had wooden stairs nor woodwork beside them. That much I'm certain of. 6.- (possible spoiler) The steps had the purpose to be climbed over, not to serve as a bowling alley for human heads, as its shown on the movie. Again, bloody sacrifices were performed by the Aztecs in very particular times. 7.- (possible spoiler) The eclipse is shown as a coincidence, and a surprise to all but the "grand-priest". Such occasions would have been addressed in a very different manner, even in the worst times of Mayan rule.
My words try not to enlighten, educate, tell-off, nor to insult no one. This is only a movie, yes, but think of all the people that take all they know of history from movies, and believe Spartacus is make-believe but rocky is alive and boxing again. Shalom
White Men Can't Jump (1992)
Truly great...!
That of course, if you like basketball. More precisely, street ball, cause I wont presume to know what those involved in the making were trying to achieve, but it makes you laugh, it makes you think, and if you ever feel the Epiphany in sports when you dunk, goal, KO, complete a 40y pass, or whatever puts color in your face, well its exciting to watch. A very risky choice to cast Rosie Perez as the girlfriend, but I believe she did fine. And the ending, to me, seems the best way to end a picture where you think you know where this is going before opening credits are done. I specially enjoyed how accurately women-men relationships are pictured, and please, do not try to make racist issues out of the title. If I had to choose a single best value from this movie I'd take that things are not what they seem.
Les nuits fauves (1992)
Came out about the same time that Philadelphia....
...but pictures a completely different perspective on HIV and AIDS. No supportive family here. No struggle with society for it to acknowledge on our humanity, regardless of sexual preference or health status. This picture is an invaluable reference for all those trying to understand terminal disease -AIDS in particular- or in the process of facing death. Just seems important to mention that Collard's actual treatments were filmed and included on the final cut. The bouncing around of high-low's, from absolute certainty of overcoming the disease to deep depression and sending everything -love included- straight to hell. But also the dangerous and sometimes silly sense of humor with which the director plays his role, is what makes this movie invaluable to me. To my knowledge this is the first film in which HIV positive blood is used as a defensive weapon, and saves the life of two of the characters. I sincerely hope that there is some form of afterlife, and that they have cable. Collard deserves to know he was, is, deeply appreciated, as so many others who where "cheated" out of time, to see their work achieve recognition. One is what one does, they say.