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denisa-dellinger
Reviews
Gran Hotel (2011)
Secrets, suspense and family disfunction
Opulence, intrigue, suspense, and family disfunction at its best. At first glance the Alcon family, owners of Gran Hotel are at the top of their game but the opening scene finds a loving brother journeying to see his sister who is a maid at the hotel All is not well with her and he comes to see her only to find out she has disappeared. He gets a job as a waiter to find out from the inside what happened to her. Enter Alicia Alcon, youngest daughter of the owner of the hotel. When Julio first meets Alicia, they are bonded together as she agrees to help him find out what happened to his sister. Engagement to the director of the hotel Diego puts a roadblock to the investigation but resourcefulness are their strongpoint and they find there are more secrets and intrigue within the walls of the hotel than they thought.
I loved the time period chosen for this show, a transition between the old world and new of the early 1900s. The time between candles and electric lights and telephones and cars. Yet traditions of the old European marriage market were honored. The classes were differentiated but only in certain areas were they the same, the bedroom.
The actors were superb and those playing Alicia and Julio kept me watching. As I had watched the series on Netflix I was able to binge watch all three seasons. All the mysteries are tied up nicely in the end. Season 3 staggered and dragged some as far as pacing and story. I don't think that the writers knew where the story would end up from season 1 to 3. New Years eve at the hotel throws the show into a completely different direction but the suspense and mystery stayed at it's supurb pace.
Family and appearance were all important to the owners of the Gran Hotel as to not cause scandal and even though they fought and plotted around each other, they stood together. I guess that is what family is about.
I highly recommend this show. Its length of three seasons was just right. They knew when to wrap things up. American TV should take a cue from Spanish TV. Gran Hotel was seamless from one episode to the next and melted together like chocolate mousse, smooth as silk. Subtitles were very necessary but as I watched, I began to understand a little of the language. Go figure, there are almost a hundred episodes give or take a few. It was no easy fete to watch it but given I was sick in bed, I had plenty of time to spend with Julio and Alicia and I loved every minute of it.
Lady Chatterley's Lover (1981)
Womens erotica
I saw this film when I was in my twenties. Sylvia Kristal of the famed Emmanuel series of erotic films seemed to play this film straighter than her previous films. If she is making a film you can sure bet it has a little nudity and a little sex. I believe that the producers of the film chose her because that was what they needed and they knew she would deliver. And deliver she did.
I read this book years later and just watched the DVD I had bought for a couple of dollars. It follows an abbreviated plotline from the book but barely captures the characters in their full breadth. The actors that were chosen were almost perfect for their characters and I wish there was a little more time for development.
The location was beautiful as well as the twenties costumes.
The film should be attacked as a literary work of art, not so much sex although sex was an important part of it.
I would deem this version of Lady Chatterley's Lover as women's erotica. That's how it served me. 1981 and the era of the seventies seemed to produce lots of soft core frontal nudity and simulated sex and in viewing it again, I had to adjust my thinking to that era. The British miniseries made for Masterpiece Theater seemed to capture the spirit a bit more. I see there are other versions but the best way to view this story is to read the uncensored version.
Chato's Land (1972)
AN ENTERTAINING WESTERN THAT MAKES YOU THINK
This film would not be made today because it would be considered politically incorrect. I would not normally watch a western like this but because I was at a relatives house, it was his TV so I watched. From the first scene of Charles Bronson quietly standing in a bar having a drink, to the end scene, I could tell this was not your ordinary western. I would call this a psychological exercise that turns morality and motivations of men on its head in the period after the civil war in the old west. With the simple back drop of the barren land of the old west ( which was really shot in Spain) Chato's land becomes one of the main characters of the film. The actors in the film are the heavy weights of old westerns who did an excellent job portraying their characters. Chato led these men into his land and basically let this posse of men battle themselves. It seems that the basest of natures resides in a small place in men's hearts and here we see that nature come to the forefront as they hunt Chato in order to "string him up" for shooting a sheriff in self defense. Just who is the bad guy and who is the good guy is questioned in this film. The fight between good and evil is challenged in this film. I would highly recommend this film. Be prepared to stick it out and look at the film as a study in human nature. If you do that the film can be viewed as both entertaining and an exercise of your brain.
Mansfield Park (2007)
Shame on you BBC!
If you are a Janeite, as people who love all things Jane Austen, you are not gleeful about the latest adaptation of Mansfield Park. This latest BBC version of the classic seems to leave a sick feeling in ones stomach from the very beginning. Where does one begin? Characters: no character development whatsoever, wrong character traits in all of the characters and whole characters essential to the story left out. It seems that the writer just jumbled a few plot lines from the book and added a few of his or her own and moved the story along so quickly that no one had a chance to identify with the main character Fanny Price or any of the Bertram family for that matter. What or who brought the Crawfords into the neighborhood? Even these characters were shortchanged. Any hour and a half film would not do justice to any story but why with Masterpiece theater the main distributing network seek to put together a piece of shoddy work like this? They have done such mini series such as Downton Abby and other book adaptations so well that they have taken awards. Why slight poor Jane? or Fanny Price for that matter? It seems like they just decided one day to update the timeless stories written by the mistress of the 19th century novel and had a third grader write the screenplay. I have to say that the definitive Mansfield Park adaptation was done as a miniseries in the 80s. Fanny may have been a little stiff but she is by no means a hoyden or a perky girl with stringy hair worn down. Fanny never ran through a house in her life and would not be caught dead doing so, in fact, she was not a hardy strong girl at all although she did a lot of walking and was known to be a avid rider. There was nothing wrong with the casting. They only acted to the lines they were given so I do not fault them. I would like to give BBC a tip. When next considering adapting Jane Austen to the small screen, please use do use real authentic dialogue and real plot lines. Do not veer off and do your own thing. Those who watch are more knowledgeable that you and will catch you in your shoddy work and eviscerate you in it as seen in these previous reviews.
Screen Two: Northanger Abbey (1987)
a mixture of modern and period drama nightmare.
I am a Janeite, a die hard died in the wool lover of all things Jane Austen. Like all Janeites, I have found that the film adaptations do not do the book justice and indeed the book is better than the film. I am willing to put up with some of the little deleted plot line to view the a film displaying my beloved book characters. Northanger Abby 1987 was no different. The actors playing the characters did a fairly good job. The screenplay contained most of the plot lines with a few omissions and a few additions. I just don't get the reason for additions of plot, the adding of extra characters or the complete leaving out of others. This adaptation passed my test for that, only one new character added not in the book. The part I hated was the music. It was a mixture of saxophone, synthesized keyboards and a woman howling out some oohing. These are not period accurate! I couldn't take it! It made the film seem like a senior high film project. Was it a low budget film? The dream scenes were not necessary. This was a playful story poking fun at novels. There was nothing playful about it.
Risen (2016)
The resurrection Roman Style
I just saw this film today. I had seen the previews several months back and finally had my chance. Seen from a different view entirely. It is seen from the view point of a Roman soldier at the time of the crucifixion. The assignment, to make sure Jesus was dead and his body not stolen by his followers from the tomb because of his predictions that he would rise from the grave. The assignment became sort of an obsession for him and it led him straight into a truth that he was not prepared to see. Would he abandon all of his beliefs?
The film was produced by a big studio with the actors able to pull it off. The premise was a good one. The producer had the right idea. Make a film comparable to those of years past such as Ben Hur or other biblical movie themes that brought large audiences to the theater.
Christians should have flocked to the movie and the talk about it should have made the film larger than it was. I heard no such accolades. It doesn't mean that there were none. War Room which is a Christian themed film made by a smaller Christian film company received more than Risen.
The biblical account was followed very closely which is a deal breaker for me.
I urge Christians and non Christians to see this film. It was written with the viewpoint of an nonbeliever as he observed the events of the crucifixion and resurrection. It was the Roman's story, not so much the disciple's.
I urge the movie studios to continue making biblical engaging stories such as Risen. They have a wide appeal to everyone. If the story is a good one and is accurate biblically, then the people will come to the theaters to see it and buy the DVD.
Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens (2015)
Reuniting with old friends and meeting new ones in a galaxy far far away.
May contain a spoiler. Just saw Star Wars VII The Force Awakens. I was like a child anticipating Christmas which was exactly the time frame the movie was released. When I heard that the original cast was going to reprise their beloved roles I just knew it would be a winner. In the time of 3D, this seemed very appropriate to experience the film in all of its glory. The movie ran for what seemed like an hour before I saw one of the original cast. Chewy and his buddy were up to their old tricks and seemed like nothing had changed in their MO but this time there was a story behind their scavenger ways. They did what they did best and saved the day for the young characters. The princess was also doing what was her calling and that was commanding the rebels against the dark side of the force. The new young heroes had secrets and mysteries surrounding them but they seemed to go together like peanut butter and jelly. The goal of the dark and light side of the force was to find Luke Skywalker. Where was he? Where was the heart of the original series? Where was the boy who saved the day? Where was the man he had become? That was the quest. Why was he hard to find? There is a twist in the story of good versus evil and it is not what one would expect but neither was the auspicious beginnings of Darth Vader. The dark side is very seductive and it takes from one those who matter the most. I have to say that I was getting very agitated with the resistance not finding Luke sooner in the movie. I left the theater let down a little for how the movie ended. There will definitely be a continuation. There has to be else why bring the original cast back at all? So many questions left unanswered. So much action and special effects. Industrial Light and Magic has not lost their touch. I found the film came one little hair short of what it could have been had the original film makers had the reigns instead of Abrams. Did it have the original heart? I kept saying all the way home in the car, "help me OBI Wan Kanobi, you're our only hope". I did sincerely wish Obi Wan was there to help these rag tag rebel resistance face their Darth Vader and the Empire.
Rich Relations (1937)
Rich relations?
I love old movies and so when this film came on a free movie app, I jumped at the chance to watch an old romance movie. As it comes out in 1937 and is of poor quality, I tried to look beyond the grainy features. This film is about a Mary Tyler Mooresque career girl trying to make good in the city as a secretary. She just happened to have the last name of a very wealthy family in Chicago which is where the story took place. When asked if she was related, she said distantly, which really was such a little fib that it could have very well have been true. Within two seconds of the film's beginning we see what pretty career women may have put up with in the thirties, sexual harassment on a grand scale. The men got close to her and began making innuendos and trying to get her to go out with them. As a working girl, I became very uncomfortable with this kind of lecherous atmosphere. Nancy, the main character was not a particularly strong character and began to play into the game. She was warned off one of the men by another coworker who seemed to think the man was her property. Nancy went out with him anyway. She went out with another male within the company, so there was a little competition. Nancy seems to fall in love with the wrong guy which always seems to happen with girls in romance movies. When her little white lie comes to light, it becomes not so little. A surprise ending made me scratch my head and say "What?"
Since You Went Away (1944)
Hearth and Home
I watched this movie on TCM but I had to buy it because I have come to enjoy the older films more than the contemporary ones. I pulled it out this afternoon and watched it. I love all the actors in this film and the theme of hearth and home. That was the reason the men and women fought that war. It was sentimental and old fashioned but not in a schmaltzy way. Everyone pulled together because they were Americans and did their part for the war effort. It was very interesting to see mother and daughters playing gin rummy for things to do at night and doing hairstyles that were in Vogue. For entertainment, they all played charades at a party instead of watching TV and looking down at cell phones. How refreshing.
Pride & Prejudice (2005)
New look at an old classic
I am an avid Jane Austin fan and have read all of her books several times. Her stories never get old. My favorite book of all time is Pride and Prejudice. The story of the romance of Elizabeth Bennett and Fitzwilliam Darcy is timeless. Whenever a movie comes out that tells the tale of my heroine, I am anxious to give it a look see. This version gave me a fresh look at my favorite. I always measure the film to the trueness it stays to the original. On that score, I was middle of the road. I have to say that the actors chosen for the main characters were a great choice, however Donald Sutherland as Mr Bennett is not British and fell short for me there, but in the movie he showed a more caring father than the original character ever was. The little add ins showing him in tender moments with his harpy wife and the scene he had with his bookish daughter Mary were sweet and a surprise for me. Keira Knightly was spot on for Elizabeth. Viewing Longbourne as a true farm sort of shocked me but that's what it really was I suppose, otherwise how is an estate to support itself? Time constraints of making a film two hours already takes out essentials and character development that is essential for a Jane Austin adaptation. Lots was left out and things added. I have to say as a film that stands on it's own, it was a good film and the period costumes and scenery were excellent. However, staying true to the book, it fell short for me.