Change Your Image
epb22
Reviews
Sanrizuka: Dainitoride no hitobito (1971)
A remarkable moment in the history of civil disobedience
It's the mid 60s. Tokyo needs a new airport. There isn't anywhere in Tokyo to put it, so the government decides on displacing some adjacent villages. The peasants of these villages are not having it. What results is a remarkable act of protest and civil disobedience. The peasants construct wooden fortresses and tunnels and dig in for a long siege. They end up holding out for years. The peasants are impressively passionate and organized in the face of hundreds of riot police, who are determined to evict them. The movie shows a series of "battles" between police and peasants. But these are a very strange kind of battle, in which each side is very reluctant to use force that would cause serious injury. Recommended to anyone with an interest in civil disobedience, eminent domain law, or Japanese socialist movements of the 60's.
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (2005)
Even more flawed that the Phantom Menace
This movie is a terrible distortion of Hitchhiker's Guide book that you know and love. With the exception of Trillian and Slartybartfast, the characters are poorly acted. Zaphod, once "cool" and self-centered, is now just a jerk. Ford no longer has the tragic angle, but is just weird. The plot has been reworked to go as fast as possible, so that no one who hasn't read the books can have any idea what is going on. In their rush to pack things in, many jokes and themes are skipped, and other jokes delivered so poorly that it is easy to forget to laugh. All this rush, and yet time is wasted on contrived scenes not in the book and the endless and banal dolphin intro. 2/10 for great art in the planet construction scenes and the vogon costumes. These are the exceptions to the overall feel of the artwork, which is cheap and unimaginative. The artwork in the 80's movie is better, if lower budget. The acting there is far better. DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY.
The Sum of All Fears (2002)
The best Clancy book distorted into the WORST Clancy film
This movie was a serious disappointment. Afflek is TERRIBLE as Jack Ryan; the plot is very predictable; many interesting cinematographic opportunities that could have been taken were missed. Most of the shots are uninteresting, in a movie that ought to have lots of impressive effects and camera work. It is as if the director and screenwriters were forced to make the movie when they didn't want to do it. Save your dollar and rent almost any other action movie. Tom Clancy is listed in the credits as an executive producer; I hope he got something out of this film because I know I didn't.