jwv-823-79715 Reviews

A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)

Feisty acting coupled with delicate character building

[8/10 · 9 February 2014]

Phenomenal adaptation with top-notch acting. Especially Marlon Brando excels a playing the hard to the bone, patriarchal Stanley, which he does with incredible sprezzatura. Vivien Leigh also convinces with her descent into madness. A movie charged with loads of emotion and a lot of sparks when Brando and Leigh clash. Blanche's character is handled with great skill, as we notice how, bit by bit, she loses a grip on reality.

The movie is also not unproblematic. It makes you think about who is to blame for the deplorable state Blanche is in at the end. In the beginning, you may sympathize with the cultured Blanche against a rude and 'primitive' Stanley, but their characters are masterfully complicated throughout the movie when Blanche's mysterious history begins to emerge.

Man on Wire (2008)

Great documentary with a delicious directness

[9/10 · 3 February 2014]

A great documentary that left me thinking about my own life and dreams. Not only the content and larger-than-life feat performed in the movie are its strong points, but also the directness and authenticity of the interviews with the people involved in the stunt. The strength in this is that it doesn't make the documentary something far-off, distant and unrealistic idealistic, but rather something very close.

In my opinion, the scenes should have been rearranged. It would have been better to work chronologically toward one climax instead of flashing back and forward in time. This killed the tension. The whole should more closely reflect the natural accumulation of tension Philippe and his companions experienced when coming closer to their performance, not only making it a climax for Philippe, but for the viewer too.

Food, Inc. (2008)

More than a wake-up call

[9/10 · 28 January 2014]

Food, Inc. starts off strong with a curious intro that raises some questions some of us may not have asked themselves before, questions relevant even if we are not customers in America. The rest of the movie also focuses on the particular American food-production ecosystem but is applicable just about anywhere else I believe.

Special props to the few intimates who stand up, and have the courage to voice their concerns, even in the face of financial destruction.

Food, Inc. is a wake-up call that ideally also wants viewers to react, because it gives a strong message that the companies are not the only ones culpable. The real problem of the documentary is how to move the customer from awareness to action, and in my opinion it did a very good job at this. The documentary switches between revealing and criticizing the corrupted system, and some inspirational stories of people who stood up and acted. In the end, I was certainly convinced of the impact of our daily decisions. It's good to see the makers correctly identified the root of the problem and take pains to influence it, instead of just focusing on the sensation that revealing malpractice brings.

"So every scope by the immoderate use / Turns to restraint. Our natures do pursue, / Like rats that ravin down their proper bane, / A thirsty evil; and when we drink we die."

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (2013)

Beautiful, action-packed and overall a good adaptation

[8/10 · 28 January 2014]

From the very start, you can see that Catching Fire is a much bigger production than The Hunger Games. It's a good thing the movie elaborates more on the relationship between Katniss and Prim, because we finally get to see some real feeling behind Katniss' motive, which is a thing that the book lacked. Secondly, I also like how the movie elaborates on the precarious situation the president Snow is in, and how he copes with it. The movie does succeed in portraying an exotic lethal and especially dynamic arena, featuring great special effects, decors and non-stop action. The acting is good overall, although the two TV-commentators are amazingly flat characters, firing off meaningless and dull one-liners and acting ostentatiously. These are not the characters that Collins creates in the book that I criticize however, but the actual clumsiness by which the movie handles them. Actually every public appearance or speech of any kind is very empty of meaning and substance. In a repressive system where twelve districts are controlled (against their will) by a totalitarian regime, the power of propaganda should extend beyond the TV-set. What I mean is that not only the repetition of visual display of power is enough to sketch a believable world. The power of rhetoric is nowhere to be seen, which is a shame.

The movie does in certain ways improve over the book (ie. providing different points of focalization) and it does a great job in compacting the book into a consistent two hour movie.

Grizzly Man (2005)

An inquiry into the human psyche

[9/10 · 22 January 2014]

I must be frank; I didn't appreciate Werner's (the documentary makers) narration in the beginning. There is little intonation, his sentences are somewhat chopped and he has an unusual accent. During the whole journey however, we get to know Werner better because of his very personal opinion, sharp analysis and sensible and intelligent commentary. Near the end, I even viewed him as a companion with whom I was delving deeper into the mind of Timothy. Werner does an extremely good job of complicating Timothy's character with sharp analysis and good footage selection and arranging. I like the honesty of the selection process too; he both incorporates the opinions of Timothy's confidantes and of critics. The honesty and plainness with which the interviewees speak also touched me.

Like with the narration, I also adopted an opinion about Timothy polar to the one I ended with and for Werner to achieve this is a great feat. In the beginning, I thought Timothy was a great guy. Due to the directness and authenticity of his footage (this because of his own shot camera footage and the lack of social control thereabouts), the enthusiasm and pure, passionate love is tangible (and adrenaline too), even through the obstacle the medium is. You cannot but sympathize when Timothy talks about his life and how he found purpose in his lifestyle. He reminded me of Cesar Millan in the extreme, someone with a pure love and one vision. His genuine and childish enthusiasm and affection for nature is truly heart-warming, this man is all passion for his job. What's also great is Timothy's respect for the majesty of these grizzlies and his knowing that the only thing that keeps him from death there is the bear's tolerance that he wins by his own mental strength. He is a person to be admired because he lived the way he wanted, even in the face of danger and opposition. Sadly enough however, I don't admire him for his work because I feel from watching that Timothy was at fault in invading the bears' lives and playing their unwanted protector.

The documentary does a great job of complicating our initial image of Tim as a fighter for good. Timothy's diaries also reveal a flawed side, a side very hungry for recognition and being rebellious for the sake of it. It is quite disturbing to see Timothy talk to the bears as if they were humans, his long periods of loneliness may account for this, but it is still remarkable and strange. After finishing the documentary, the question of how Timothy actually helped these animals in doing what he does remains vague, and it doesn't help that the narrator explicitly states in the beginning of the movie that the bears filmed actually already live in a wildlife park. These and other facts suggest that Timothy might have actually lived among these bears not with the primary goal to better their lives, but that it might have been a solution for a broken man that was done with society and needed some time to figure himself out. I strongly suspect that his living in this wild, primordial nature might have largely been a therapy for him, a way out of the complicatedness and disappointments that human society brings, although I do not immediately condemn him for seeking this out. I'm convinced the bumblebee-footage answer our question about why Timothy wishes to die there of any places. Timothy liked living on the edge (as his childhood story suggests too), and I think he kicked on the adrenaline and tension that comes from the knowledge that to fail mentally in this wilderness is to die. It was a challenge to him to survive every day and every hour, of which each moment he lives works life- and character-affirming; each moment is a celebration of his mental strength. I believe he didn't want to die the way the bumblebee supposedly did, quite unexpected and in a very non-heroic and meaningless way. That was not his lifestyle, he wanted to live in the present and live to the fullest. Therefore I believe that while his friends talk about his death being tragic, Timothy is delighted in the fact that he died in this way, always fighting with something greater than himself. This is the second reason why I think Timothy was there more for himself than for anything else. Another problem comes in his revering of the poop of one of the grizzlies. He absolutely sees them as divine, which makes us again question if we should search more meaning behind his death than someone dying because he was enchanted by a crazy ecstasy. His direct interference in nature and crazy pleading for the help of higher powers also reinforce the belief that Timothy's problem was mainly a personal problem. Timothy seemed to have had appropriated this piece of Eden for himself and any offense to it he may have seen as offense against his person, which makes his fight too personal and vicious for what it should be. He has a way of wildly dramatizing the importance of his self-imposed and self-created mission and his narcissism. In the end, you do ask yourself whether this is a documentary on nature or a documentary on a troubled human psyche.

I think the message of this documentary is inspirational in that it shows that everyone can live their life to the fullest if they want to, however hard their dream may be. But coupled with that, there also comes the ironic, tragic lesson that we must accept the way things are and that we are not almighty, nor should act as Gods.

"I never have days when I grieve for Timmy, as I have for friends who have died. They feel dead, Timmy doesn't feel dead."

A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999)

Shouldn't this be a Shakespearean comedy?

[5/10 · 21 January 2014]

The acting in general was not very convincing, especially not as is required for a good Shakespearean rendition. Most lines are uttered without real feeling and with clichéd emotion, facial expression and gesture. Calista Flockhart (Helena), Sam Rockwell (Francis Flute; especially in the play-in-the-play) and Kevin Kline (Bottom) were best, my favourite being Calista Flockhart who brings Helena's emotions convincingly with great authenticity. I have read that "this was Kevin Kline's play", but I disagree because the character of Bottom has a lot of potential as a funny Shakespearean stereotype (but this was probably acted out under the director's guidance). Only in the end did he really show himself in the play-in-the-play. Michelle Pfeiffer (Titania) and especially Rupert Everett (Oberon) show us that the failing fairies' relationship was not only due to adultery and jealousy, but also because of the lack of emotional depth in their relationship - which speaks out of their performance. The biggest disappointment is that I don't see the Shakespearean stereotypes played out on screen, Bottom is supposed to be the idiot with a carpe diem lifestyle, but he is portrayed too gravely, which stifles a lot of potential humorous approaches to the character. Puck also didn't come to life as the witty and mischievous knave he is. I also feel that the director could have done more with the mute characters on screen, their short scenes are there to set a mood, but they seem superfluous.

The soundtrack was nothing spectacular and the sound-effects and background noises were cheap clichés we see everywhere nowadays (cf. forest background sounds). Most of the actors' voice-acting was also uninspired, and does not do homage to the verbal virtuosity of Shakespeare's play.

I sincerely wonder whether the director knows of the potential comedy that lurks in the play, because I did not have the feeling that I was watching a comedy at all. The play-in-a-play was in it's 10-minute totality more funny than the whole 100 preceding minutes. There were no genuinely funny situations, and the movie was absolutely not original in creating these, Instead, it relied too much on the inherent comedy of the incompatibility of some characters and emotions in certain situations, and so took a too passive and unoriginal approach. The movie lets a lot of very obvious occasions of potential funny situations slip by, even the potential very comic situation with the chink in the wall slip (hint: "I kiss the wall's hole, not your lips at all"). The only scene that comes closest to a comic situation is when Helena runs away from a chasing Demetrius and Lysander, but even this scene was more dramatic than funny. Bottom's lying with Titania too was also disappointing.

The Merchant of Venice (2004)

Popularized Shakespeare for a wide audience

[7/10 · 17 January 2014]

This is a great popularized and verbally simplified version of Shakespeare for a wide audience with a top-notch cast. Especially Al Pacino's performance is genuinely moving, in his assuming the role of an embittered and torn old man, with superior feel for emotional shift and outstanding voice-acting. Lynn Collins also convinces with a good performance. The soundtrack is likable, light and strangely enchanting, and the scenery is beautiful.

The movie does a great job of complicating the character of Shylock, and makes the viewer question his role as a victim or a villain. In the end, nobody will feel unmoved by the truly excellent and genuinely poignant court scene.

The courting prices are shallow stereotypes and constitute the only kind of (unintentional) humour this otherwise dry movie brings. I do not understand the choice of not giving the play-appropriated importance and weight in consequence to the casket-scenes. This is strange, since the movie is clearly a dramatized version of the play, and else there is not much that distinguishes Portia from a common harlot when every man can come make his suit without consequence. It saddens me to see the superficiality of these scenes, because Shakespeare did provide more complex and sympathetic characters in the original.

Tangled (2010)

A great example of the Disney formula of success on its best

[9/10 · 10 January 2014]

As the film starts, so will I start by saying that I really like the frame narrative. Everybody will be able to connect with it because of its reminiscence with bed-time stories, and it neatly ties the beginning and the ending together.

Throughout the film, there's a great momentum of action, singing and character building. The film succeeds in portraying likable, believable and funny characters that, although they may be cliché-esque types, do convince. The dialogues too may make you suffer from a certain feeling of déjà-vu, but they are witty, and the songs are enjoyable (props to Mandy Moore), with the usual accompanying trademark funny scenes. The voice-acting is top-notch, as are the sound-effects and the soundtrack, which provides just the right tune for just the right occasion. Going on about aesthetics, the animations were colourful and enchanting with jaw-dropping detail (which makes for an awful lot of beautiful screenshots for fans).

The story is no big mystery or surprise, even for those who are not familiar with the fairytale itself. The film however, does a great job of keeping it interesting with several sub-plots and an occasional plot-twist. It is the story about the confrontation between a naive teenager and the world, and also about the adolescent's growing awareness for the other sex. Tangled is a great example of the genius, albeit quite clichéd Disney formula of success on its best. We recognize the story of a sympathetic protagonist searching for freedom, and exploring the world. He or she encounters several evil characters on the journey, but in the end wins out over them, not only because of his or her intelligence and perseverance, but also by charming others with their innocence, likability and lack of prejudice.

This mix of elements forms the basis of the trademark Disney formula, with which Disney here proves they utterly ace the art of pleasing a mass audience, all age categories included.

The War Tapes (2006)

This documentary hits like a truck

[10/10 · 6 January 2014]

I very much like the idea of this kind of soldier-journalism. What I found particularly useful is the short introduction of every soldier filming. There's the immensely patriotic Mike Moriarty, the intelligent Zack Bazzi and then there's Steve Pink. It's interesting to see how the ideology and personality of each of these soldiers colours their journalism. I liked the parts of Zack best, he's not as ignorant and influenced as other soldiers and understands the problems the army has. He's a sharp analyst. What the army needs, as Zack rightly sees, is a cultural training before being shipped off to an unknown country.

When you have met the sensible and intelligent Zack, its hard to feel any sympathy for the average ignorant, patriotic American soldier, like when Moriarty and one of his friends criticizes Zack for socializing with the local people. Even though he puts his life on the line for his American home country, they still treat him as an outsider, which show their extreme ignorance and intolerance. "Today we kill Bazzi, and everyone that looks like Bazzi. That makes for a lot of targets today."

Steven Pink also brightens up this documentary by his writing. He too, sees the ignorance and barbarism of his fellow soldiers. "The debate we had earlier in the day over the consistency and texture of a severed limb was not some far-off grotesque assumption. It was a genuine argument between the guy who swears it resembles hamburger, ground up but uncooked, and the guy who believes it looks more like a raw pot roast." The film features some emotionally strong and violent scenes that you would be able to see anywhere else on the mainstream media. Not for the faint of heart.

Ultimately, even the ever so patriotic Moriarty begins to question the true motives for the war. Moriarty: "I feel like the priority of KBR (Burger King) making money outweighs the priority of safety." When the soldiers' deployment in Iraq ends, the film also looks at how the soldiers cope back home with the traumatic experience they went through. Hell and Back Again is a complementary must-see if you're interested in this.

The strength of this documentary lies in the directness of the account of these soldiers. A great deal of the film's intellectual thought provoking strength comes from the account of Zack Bazzi. For me, he is really the one that elevated the documentary to its intellectual level, and provided the documentary makers with what they were really looking after.

"I love being a soldier, the only bad thing about the army is that you can't pick your war." - Zack Bazzi

Jiro Dreams of Sushi (2011)

A film with a real, albeit cliché message

[8/10 · 6 January 2014]

A great feel-good documentary. The film succeeds in bringing forward an inspiring story of success. It's a good thing the film also focuses on Jiro's succession, but some deeper personal digging into the mystery Jiro still is after watching instead of focusing almost solely on his weighty philosophy, could justify the title some more.

I had the feeling that the director didn't really have a very cohesive and logic narrative in mind throughout the whole mid part of the film, and that the reorganization of some scenes could have provided a more intricate and seamless narrative structure.

What I thought was particularly great about seeing this movie from a European perspective was that it made me genuinely inquisitive and interested in this unknown Japanese culture.

True Grit (2010)

A movie with grit

[8/10 · 6 January 2014]

One thing we can expect from a Coen brothers' movie is strong character building and performance. And True Grit does not disappoint at all. The characters are generally strong and feel unique. However, Mattie stands out on a shining pedestal. Her performance is strong and her character - although difficult to bring - very convincing. Notable too is the performance of Jeff Bridges, who succeeds in setting down true grit.

A great movie, nice landscapes, nice historical research, but the story is surprisingly simple (nothing like Lebowski here) and predictable, and would not convince without good actor performances.

If you liked the movie, you should read the western novel 'True Grit' by Charles Portis.

Spirited Away (2001)

Successful before a dual audience

[8/10 · 6 January 2014]

For starters, and because the movie is originally Japanese, I have to speak of my admiration for the work of the voice acting department who did a great job in translating the movie for English audiences. I applaud in particular the work of Daveigh Chase who lends her voice to Sin, and performs very convincingly.

The animations in Spirited Away are probably the best I have ever seen. They are simple yet beautiful, and the creators have a real knack for detail. They succeed in making Sin feel very believable and lifelike in her actions as a teen girl.

The world Spirited Away presents is weird, and even after sitting through the whole movie, more questions will remain a mystery than answered. Although this can be seen as a deficiency, I see it as a pro. The world is so magically beautiful and unknown that, having answered no questions, it will stick in your head a long time after watching - keeping you wondering.

The story doesn't amount as much to the magnificence of this movie as the animations and fantastical world do, and is a mere classical child narrative. The protagonist heroine gets in trouble because of a mistake, is brought into a prickly situation by an evil character, but the resilience of the good-natured heroine - and some good-natured helpers - win out over evil. The story is not bad, considering Spirited Away has a child audience, and even add enough nuance in its characters to make them more interesting than black-and-white stereotypes.

The use of the theme of love and it's effect on the story is cliché here and will not surprise anyone in any way, but is not mellow and its subtle enough to be enjoyed by an older audience.

Spirited Away is a top-notch movie for children and can equally be enjoyed by an older audience. It successfully connects with a dual audience and should be applauded for that.

M (1931)

M for Mörder?

[7/10 · 6 January 2014]

The film does not follow the focal point of one person, but of some big communities in the city, a choice which strengthens an overall feeling of anxiety and impatience.

The beginning is strong, with some great suggestive, silent scenes that create an eerie tension. Lang should have incorporated more of these. Likewise, a pro for the moving camera work.

The mass hysteria and amateuristic manhunt does not feel believable, all the random arrests based on some citizen's anxieties feel unrealistic.

Good acting performance by Peter Lorre, the scene were he pleads his innocence is particularly strong.

The film raises a complex moral issue and concludes with an open ending in court after having heard both the defendant and the prosecutor, this challenges the viewer to make his own judgment over the guilt of M.

Hell and Back Again (2011)

Makes a very strong statement

[9/10 · 6 January 2014]

The documentary starts off with a thought provoking contrast. We land in the middle of a deadly Afghan war scene, only to see the marines' family reunion in America shortly after. This contrast suggests the frightful incompatibility of these scenes, and hints at the question of how the marines cope with this.

During the story of Nathan back home, our point of view shifts from time to time to the Afghan war scene. These suggest the flashbacks that Nathan experiences.

Ironic scenes from Nathan playing Call of Duty confront the viewer with the barbarity it is of reducing war to an enjoyable video game.

The strongest moment in the film features one of Obama's speeches touching on the Afghan war. The film suggests the ridiculousness, emptiness and idiocy of Obama's idealized speeches about war, and subtly subverts it when a wounded and indifferent Nathan comments: "Well, Afgan people aren't watching." This film suggests that even physically unharmed marines come home profoundly wounded, be it emotional. Nathan's neurotic and unpredictable behaviour makes us question what injury cuts deeper, the physical or the emotional.