ninoguapo Reviews

Torzók (2001)

Harsh but excellent coming of age movie

[10/10 · 15 June 2007]

Abandoned also known as Torzok is a powerful movie. It was made in Hungary and is a fine example of the East European cinema. Its director Árpád Sopsits shows the reality of a reformatory school during a communist regime in the country. He uses the yellow color to separate the dream like scenes from the rest - this color technique is later used in the movie Traffic. The movie portrays the harsh reality of the live in Hungary from that time because it is actually based on the writer/director's own childhood.

The main character is Áron - a boy send to a reformatory school not because he has some something , but because his mother is sick and the father does not want to take care of his son. Once in the school Áron has to face the initial hostility of the lands there towards the newcomers - including beatings and hard words .He manages to survive through all those harsh moments and is soon accepted and befriended by the boys from the school.

The actors in the movies are exceptionally talented despite their young age and the characters they portray come to live - each with its own uniqueness. The overall atmosphere is dark and the movie can be considered as hard to watch by anyone - probably the only one witch harsher atmosphere on a similar topic was in the movie Song for a raggy boy . The few moments of hope which the viewers can observe are directly related to the friendship between Aron and another student Attila as well as the one with his melancholic teacher Gálffi - who seems to be the only teacher from the reformatory school who cares of his students and opposes even the despotic director of the institution.

Some of the scenes are really cruel - in one of them one of the teachers makes few boys to beat a friend of theirs themselves because he prayed to God - which was forbidden during the communist years. The cruelty in which the boys in the school are treated is awful and I do not buy the statement of their directors - that this is the only way to prepare them for the reality outside .

The soundtrack is very powerful -classic music mostly - a bit of melancholic as well - it really contributes to the overall atmosphere.

Hearts in Atlantis (2001)

Movie that inspires

[7/10 · 18 April 2007]

Not only this is a good coming of age movie – but when it finished I had to question myself who actually learned more – Bobby Garfield or me. I felt inspired – somehow I was able to relate a lot of the experience of the boy to my own when I was his age and am wondering now if other people who have seen "Hearts of Atlantis "would feel the same way? Take only this quote that refers to the first kiss for example: It will be the kiss by which all others in your life will be judged… and found wanting.

Or that one: Why do we always expect home to stay the same? Nothing else does.

Before seeing the opening credits I did not know that the movie is based on a book by Stephen King. He is one of my favourite writers and he has that talent not only for horrors but and for coming of age stories – just take "Stand by me", "Silver bullet ", "IT "and many, many others.

"Hearts of Atlantis " has crates a unique atmosphere – real one – soon after I started watching it I associate myself with the some characters and somehow knew what the others think – not that am a medium myself – but one can really trace the development of the personages . The acting, the cinematography, the story itself – even the soundtrack itself – were exceptionally good - the ending songs still echoes in my mind. (I remember hearing it in another movie as well) The friendship between the 11 years old Bobby Garfield and Ted Brautigan -the much older stranger that rents an apartment in his house seems to be growing stronger and stronger and stronger. Ted (played remarkably well by Anthony Hopkins) is becoming a role model for Bobby and has such a huge influence on his life that the boys remember their friendship even when he becomes almost as old as his friend once was. ( official web site )

Ciske the Rat (1984)

Powerful drama about a lonely boy

[9/10 · 10 April 2007]

Much more than another coming of age movie – Ciske the rat is a fine example of the Dutch cinema. If you are found of the treble music you will definitely notice the song at the beginning performed by the Danny De Munk (famous singer from Netherlands) who plays the role of the troubled young lad – Ciske.

The childhood of Ciske in not easy – his father is sailing away and his mother does not really care about him. With rebellious spirit the young Ciske spends most of his time on the streets of Amsterdam. No one pays attention to the lonely boy. Trying to cope with the harsh live and attract some love and sympathy he has troubles with the law and even spends some time in prison. I really admired the way he protected himself there – if only all people were as strong as he turned out to be. Ciske has generous heart and when his teacher notices that he tries to help the young lad to take the right path.

Ciske the Rat is powerful and graphically brutal drama which is sure to leave a long lasting impression to anyone who had a chance to see it. I truly enjoyed watching it and highly recommend it.

Pelle the Conqueror (1987)

I am speechless

[10/10 · 31 March 2007]

Sometimes I stumble on a movie which all of the sudden turns out to be a real masterpiece. Pelle the Conqueror really surprised me – touching story told in a unique way. Pelle is a boy from Sweden who immigrates to Denmark with his dad after the death of his mother. They are both full of hope – hope for a new beginning – and there is a scene in the boat on which Pelle wants to hear over and over about the new country they will be living at: "Tell me about it again, papa. It's very different this new country.

• You'll hardly… - You'll hardly believe your eyes. They put raisins in the pork roastand butter on your bread…Some places they put butter on your bread.- And kids are free all day.

• Yes, Pelle, yes. Wages are so incredibly high, that kids…That kids don't have to work." It sounds too good to be true – may be not for you – but imagine what those words meant for a boy who is used to live in a missy , probably due to the hard life he had to live after the death of his mother. As soon as the boat reaches the shore the reality of this new world came out of the dream mist. Finding employment is not as easy especially considering the age of the Pele's father and the fact that he has a small boy with him. At the end they are offered an employment at a large farm, but find the life would present many challenges to them.

The acting is very good – the young Pelle Hvenegaard who plays the role of Pelle is so good that one can thing that he has a dozen of movies in his carrier and probably that is the reason for which 2 years after the movie is released he wins two award for the Best Young Actor in 1988 at the European Film Awards and for Best Young Actor in a Foreign Film in a Foreign Filmat the young artists awards for his role in Pelle the Conqueror.

I watched this movie with constant hope to see happiness in the eyes of Pelle and the moments in which he felt happy was shining like a real diamonds surrounded by the dust of the harsh live he had to deal with. Although Pelle is often refused friendships from the local Danish boys he shows his good heart befriending a boy who has some physical disability – and their friendship through a little odd at times shows that people can find someone to care for , even in the toughest places.

Pelle the Conqueror is classic movie and although some may thing that the story gets a bit depressing at times I recommend it to anyone who treasure excellent coming of age movies.

Duma (2005)

Nature , friendship and courage

[7/10 · 23 March 2007]

Duma reminded me of one of my favourite books "Rules of the Bone '. It is a movie about friendship between a boy living in South Africa and a cheetah named Duma. At first the story line may seem a bit simple, but then you will notice all the serous issues Duma deals with. The role of the young Xan is played by Alexander Michaeletos – he has really cute English accent which made me seek some more information about him. I found out that he is leaving in a farm in South Africa like the character he plays so well in the movie – real you can almost sense his feelings and fears. Duma is also a fine example of a coming out of age movie – I would like to quote some of the dialogue:

"Change, yeah. That's what happens. All the time. The little boy that left home......is not the little boy that is with me now, eh? See? Change."

Duma is a movie you would enjoy watching with your younger friends and relatives – they will like it and learn many things from it.

The cinematography is brilliants –you will enjoy the beautiful nature scenes or the animal scenes – I almost felt like I was watching a documentary about animals at times – so believable were those scenes.

Close to Leo (2002 TV Movie)

Excellent french COA movie

[8/10 · 22 March 2007]

This movie was for a while in my collection, but it wasn't before a friend of mine reminded me about it – until I decided that I should watch it. I did not know much about Close to Leo – just that it was supposed to be excellent coming out of age movie and it deals with a very serious topic – Aids.

Although the person who has aids – is Leo – the scenario wraps around the way in which Marcel (the youngest brother of Leo) coupes with the sickness of his relative. At first everyone is trying to hide the truth from Marcel – he is believed to be too young to understand the sickness of his brother – the fact that Leo is also a homosexual contributes to the unwillingness of the parents to discus the matter with the young Marcel. I know from experience that on many occasions most older people do not want to accept the fact that sometimes even when someone is young this does not automatically means that he will not be able to accept the reality and act in more adequate manner then even themselves . With exception of the fact that the family tried to conceal the truth from Marcel, they have left quite an impression for me – the way they supported their son – even after discovering the truth about his sexuality and his sickness. The fact that they allowed the young Marcel to travel along with Leo to Paris to meet his ex boyfriend was quite a gesture from them– most families I know will be reluctant to do that. There is a lot of warmth in the scenes in which the brothers spend some time together – you can see them being real friends , concern about each other.

Close to Leo is an excellent drama, which I strongly recommend

End of the Spear (2005)

Chase Ellison - in a great movie with a lot of powerful messages

[15 March 2007]

Chase Ellison – just that name is enough for you to know that the movie you are going to watch will be a good one. And he is not the only star that shines amongst the actors in that production - Chad Allen who plays the role of a missioner (Chase plays as his son) acts amazingly and I truly enjoyed the father- son relationship they portrayed at the begging scenes. Here is a quote from the movie illustrating that relationship:

Nate Saint: Do you know how far away the sun is? Young Steve Saint: 93 million miles. Nate Saint: Do you know that that's just a fraction of how much I love you?

The cinematography of the movie is really nice – there are many beautiful nature scenes most of which are very vivid. Most scenes have powerful messages hidden in them – messages about love, forgiveness and complete dedication.

12 and Holding (2005)

Coming out of age story - at its best !

[7/10 · 1 March 2007]

"12 and holding" is another great movie directed by Michael Cuesta, who recently became my favourite movie director. If you are looking for a fine Coming Out of Age story – chances are that that you will find it all in "12 and holding " . It is a simple story – without much special effects or famous actors playing – but the way the story is shown will make you remember what you've seen .One could say that the movie was disturbing – as it showed things most people would never want to happen to them or their kids – at the same time everything seems to real. One just couldn't miss the exceptional performance of the young Conor Donovan who plays two roles – and does it so well, that I have to admit that I haven't noticed that both boys are played by the same actor.

The soundtrack is extremely powerful – especially the melancholic music in some scenes. I did not notice any flaws and felt quite related to the actors. My opinion that all viewers would able to sense something similar to what they felt when they were growing up – that sense of anger, or desire for revenge …or the will to protect your relatives and friends .

Despite of what some other reviewers wrote – I did not find the movie tough to watch – yes it deals with violence even death , but it does it in quite an unique way .

Jesus Camp (2006)

Manipulation

[4/10 · 18 February 2007]

Watching this movie made me really, really sick – it is like a horrible fairly tale or even worse that that – because what thee movie showed is actually happening – in the US and in other countries. I am watching how the kids are being manipulated and wonder why there is not anyone there with some brain in his mind – to stop all that madness. How can these people do that – religion – playing with the feelings of the people, with their beliefs? Organizing weird shows – getting the politic involved with the religion and vise versa. Honestly I am glad that this is not happening near me – but it will soon – just few months ago there was an American organisation advertising a movie of Jesus for kids – and after seeing this movie I feel really shared that someone is trying to plan those filthy weeds . There are normal churches, and normal people who are Christians or not – have believes and live by them, but do not manipulate other people – especially kids – this is so sick.

Bastards (2006)

Good Russian war movie

[6/10 · 13 February 2007]

Recently I have noticed that the Russians began to make very good movies – and Svolochi is for sure one of them. The action is really moving – while the viewer has a choice - to sympathize with the young criminals who seemed doomed to die or to look at them from a different perspective. Some of the boys were caught for committing crimes such as murders and they were given a chance between death and training in a military preparing them for risky missions behind the enemy lines. The movie does not do very good on the realistic scale but still seeing it is worth it as it has some quite emotional moments and the acting was pretty decent.

This Special Friendship (1964)

True friendship do exist !

[2 February 2007]

At first I did not think that the movie will be interesting. But I soon changed my opinion. The fact that the movie is in black and white makes it even more appealing than if it was in colour. The action takes place in a boarding school located in France. Actually the scenes from the dinning room reminded me of the movies for Harry Potter.

The main characters are Georges de Sarre – 16 years old student and the young Alexandre (age 12) who is a student at the same school. Their friendship is really beautiful – and heart touching. It sure brought some old memories too. There is a lot of poetry in this movie – it seems that I am getting hocked to poetry- again! Few years ago there was a girl who was sending me sonnets of Shakespeare. I even tried to write some poems myself. I still haven't finished watching the movie – it turned out to be on two CDs and I only got one of them, but will get the second one soon- then I will complete this review.

I have finished watching the movie and its ending made me sad – sad and disgust. Disgust that there are such people who refuse to accept that a true, special friendship can exist and interfere – to hurt everyone, but their pity selves. And do I know of such people – because they are not only shown in the movies you know – they lurk amongst us – trying to make the rest believe and thing what they do – such people really disgust me….

Les amitiés particulières is based on 1943 novel by French writer Roger Peyrefitte.

Goodbye, Children (1987)

Friendhip - and the WWII

[4/10 · 1 February 2007]

One movie of Louis Malle , Au Revoir Les Enfants was an OK movie – but probably only because of the excellent acting of Gaspard Manesse in the role of Julien Quentin who is a boy sent to a catholic school in the countryside away from the bombing of Paris during the WWII. In the school Julian meets Jean Bonnet – who is actually a Jew boy who is hidden in the school under fake name.

The issues of the friendship and betrayal are the main pillars around which the acting evolves. There are quite a few social issues explored as well. Looking at the latest movies I have seen I notice a trend – most of them are French movies , about friendship and have something to do with a boarding school or some similar institution – and I guess can be all characterised as coming out of age ones.

Not the best movie I have seen , but still pretty good one and I am glad that I had the chance to see it.

Song for a Raggy Boy (2003)

Powerful movie

[10/10 · 31 January 2007]

I watched this movie with tears in my eyes. No other movie until know was able to make me feel such pain – almost physical just from watching the story that unfolds on the screen. With risk to repeat myself I must note that this was probably the hardest movie to watch from all I have seen until the moment.

I made few notes when it started – there were about the interesting characters, the song of Libera I noticed – but now I can not really write about that. Shocking, painful, cruel, realistic to the core – I can go on like this for a long time. The fact that "Song for a raggy boy" is based on a true story contributes to the powerful effect this movie has on its viewers.

The acting is quite good as well – so good that I felt like I knew some of the characters in person. The young actors were really convincing and I felt Delaney and Mercier almost like my friends. But let me tell you a bit more about the movie – it is set in a reformatory school run by the catholic church – as it often happens the boys who are send there find anything , but help and support – instead they are beaten and abused mentally and physically ( some even sexually ) from the priests. One of them Brother John is in charge of discipline – here is the line with which he tells the new teacher for the kind of job he is expected to do: "The creatures you are going to teach are not to be confused with intelligent human beings." Only this line itself was enough for me to imagine the horrible manner in which the boys are treated. The new teacher however tried to change all that – and as the story unfolds I began to really like him – he was strict, but at the same time caring with the boys he taught. Brother John becomes his enemy almost from the very beginning and after failing to persuade the superior at the institution to dismiss the new teacher he directs his anger to the school pupils. You will have to watch the movie to find out how it all ends … This movie gets 10 out of 10 for me – since it is sure one of the best ones I have ever watched.

Similar movies: Sleepers, Dead Poets Society

The Reflecting Skin (1990)

Good coming out of age movie - but weird one.

[4/10 · 28 January 2007]

The movie did not impress me with its story. The nature scenes and the acting of the young Jeremy Cooper was what did impress me. Actually from what I saw I was almost convinced that all characters in the movie except the three boys the movie starts with are crazy or something. As one other reviewer wrote "In The Reflecting Skin, nobody behaves like a normal person would, and the viewer is left as a patron at a freak show." The sheriff for example – I felt the desire to kick his …..you know what for the way he spoke to people, including Seth ( the leading character) .

It was an entertaining movie nevertheless – especially the first scene with the exploding frog. There are some disturbing scenes – like a father who commits a suicide in front of his nine years old son – or an English Lady who is acting as weird as it can dreaming of her dead husband.

As I mentioned the brilliant cinematography was probably the best asset of this movie. I watched it at home, but am sure that on a cinema screen the sunset's scenes or the nature one would look absolutely amazing.

Reflecting Skin is not the best movie I have seen, but I guess some scenes will be stuck in my mind for a while. After all being characterised as Coming out of age movie – it does a great job in the genre if you look at it from that perspective.

Uroki v kontse vesny (1991)

Serious , but brutal Russian movie

[6/10 · 24 January 2007]

Not an easy film to watch – "Lessons at the end of the spring" tells the story of a boy who is arrested by mistake and is locked in prison. Everything is happening in Russia – but you know every day people who are empowered do that to innocent victims from in many other countries – my own is not an exception.

The movie lifts the curtain of the horrible scenes behind bars – and does a good job of portraying the horrors of the life behind the bars, and the loss of innocence of an eight grader (Danya Tolkachev). His life is changed forever.

This movie reminded of My Name is Ivan, which is another masterpiece of the Russian cinema. I got angry while watching it – angry that some dorks who are in position of power can be so brutal to people.

There is no justice – and this movie shows this reality so clearly – may be you won't be able to feel that, but I doubt it. As they say "If someone say that your sister is pregnant, go prove that do you do not have a sister ".

Watch this movie if you want to see something serious but be aware that there are scenes of psychological and finally physical torture and some other which are not suitable for everyone.

Few Quotes from this movie:

"What do you know about prison " "I love people! And I hate them " "Where have you been mother? Why didn't you protect me? " "Don't tell anyone what happened here "

Saint Ralph (2004)

Inspirational movie

[6/10 · 21 January 2007]

I really liked "Saint Ralph ". It is great movie full with inspiration. Ralph is a fourteen years old teenager who chooses to chase his own miracle – winning the Boston's marathon. He believes that since people say that such achievement will be a miracle – his mother will wake up from the coma. It is a drama movie and as such there are quite a few scenes which can evoke emotions in its viewers.

The movie starts with a fun scene in which Ralph is having something to confess – what – well he is a teen and have teen " sins " . I like the attitude of Ralph – the way he handles girls for example, or accusations …etc. He is a cute kid as well – and probably one of the reasons for me liking this movie is that I somehow relate to him.After all I have been in the Cross Country Team while studding in the States and when I was his age I took part in many running competitions. You should have seen me watching this movie, as another reviewer (samurai2347) wrote "I was cheering Ralph on as much as the other characters in the film were." The soundtrack was really good – and the music contributed to the overall good impression that the movie leaves. Looking at the storyline – I find similarities with Billy Elliot, trough of course this movie has its own uniqueness.

Sin destino (2002)

Interesting movie about a young hustler

[5/10 · 13 January 2007]

When I watched this movie few days ago I had to admit that it is one of the most original ways to address a difficult subject. The acting was fine – and trough I have read comments that the actors were not professionals I could hardly say that judging from their performance in the movie. A lot of sexual references are present in this movie as well as harsh language – but with the issues it addresses this couldn't have been avoided. The main character is a young street hustler in Mexico – and by the end of the movie you will not know if you should sympathy, pity or will simply hate him – even trough the question of whether he should be blamed for a single thing he does or not is not that simple to answer.

Children's Island (1980)

Weird movie

[3/10 · 9 January 2007]

I did not quite get Barnens O – it is one of the weirdest ones I have watched. The soundtrack was quite unusual as well – written and performed by Jean Michel Jarre - it makes the movie weirder than it was. I have to admit that I was almost going to change it and watch another one instead –at times the movie seemed plain dumb to me, or boring – or confusing. There are quite a few sexual references in that movie – trough they too are kind of messed up . Probably the only phrase that I will remember out of it is going to be "When you are alone, you can control things "– and "I will show them "- or something like that .The boy in that movie was obsessed with the idea of not growing up – "the last summer as a child "he thought once – and he sure lived it to the max. So if you have few hours to spare you can watch this movie – but you won't miss much if you don't.

The Flavor of Corn (1986)

Sapore Del Grano - The Flavor Of Corn (1986)

[9/10 · 8 January 2007]

My guess is that this movie is going to evoke different feelings in different people. I felt disappointed- not of the movie – I like it a lot, but of the way the leading character (a first year teachers) choose to follow – I almost screamed " how dare you " – even trough I know that some people would say that he did the right thing. The scenes were filmed very professionally – the river, the barn, the fields – you just have to see it for yourself. There is one thing that I find strange – the open minded people that live in the rural Italy in the 80s – this is almost unbelievable - for its time I am sure that this movie was considered very controversial – I won't be surprised if it is considered controversial even today . Feeling such as friendship and love are portrayed very good and there is a lot of romance – even trough sometimes it gets between all that clusters of the routine live. Trough I enjoyed the movie – it made me sad – it did not surprised me much , as I know that there is rarely a thing which one could consider perfect – even if thing is called love – and probably especially if that thing is love. I can only hope that someday people will realise that the important thing is the love itself

Goodnight Mr Tom (1998 TV Movie)

Brilliant movie

[10/10 · 8 January 2007]

Sometimes I watch a movie and am really impressed by it – and still it is not easy to explain why I liked it that much. This is mostly true for the uncommon movies – the ones one can hardly compare with the rest out there. Goodnight Mister Tom is one of these special movies. There is a lot of emotion in that movie – and the acting was so good that while watching the movie, I was crying and laughing as the story went on. The young Nick Robinson – is a young boy (William) evacuated from London because of the air strikes there during the Second World War. Mr. Tom played by John Thaw is an old man leaving in the village the evacuated children were send to.

At first Tom refuses to take any responsibilities - such as taking care for a troubled young lad – but accepts since he is left without a choice. During the stay Mr. Tom discovers how horrible the life has been for the William – alongside his luggage his mom sent a belt and written instructions to the host of her son – not to hesitate to use it. This belt is berried in the field – never to be used in such a brutal manner. Mr. Tom provides a real home for William, and the boy is happy with his new life, he goes to school, makes new friends and discovers hidden talents. All of the sudden a letter William is called home in London with a letter mentioning that she is not feeling well…and it starts all over again – only this time it gets much worse… There are many feelings you can sense in this movie – love, fear, sadness, happiness, pain, hope – and much more. Goodnight Mr. Tom is another masterpiece of the British cinema comparable only with others such as Dear Frankie and Billy Elliot – if one is to compare. I have truly enjoyed watching it and highly recommend it. Before finishing this review I would also like to mention the great performance of Thomas Orange in the role of Zac – reminded me of a friend of mine from my own childhood ( :

Second Best (1994)

Second best- a heartbreaking movie

[10/10 · 15 December 2006]

Second best is a touching and moving masterpiece directed by Chris Menges . The plot reminded me of another great British movie – "Dear Frankie ".I guess it is that father – son relationship that makes movies like these two so special. The loyalty of the son both in the characters of Jimmy played by Nathan Yapp and Graham Holt (William Hurt) is touching and I am not ashamed to admit that there were moments of this movie which truly brought tears to my eyes.

One other reviewer wrote: "Chris Cleary Miles' apparently initial screen performance as the troubled youth is near amazing." And I just couldn't agree more with that – the acting of Chris Cleary Miles, William Hurt and for that matter all the other actors in this movie is first class – their gestures, the words they say , the way they say them – you just have to watch it to experience the movie – because that is what you are going to get an unforgettable experience.

The flashbacks moments (the memories of the little Jimmy) were very careful chosen and I felt really weird watching them , knowing that there is something more hidden out there– this feeling stayed with me until the final scenes in which these flashbacks became more revealing … There is also a lot of symbolism is Second Best –the scene in which the boy looks at the man who wants to adopt him trough a broken window is just one example and if you watch it more than once you will sure notice many other symbols – the letter, the scars ... etc You just couldn't watch the movie without noticing how much the music contributes to it – piano or guitars, it fits the scenes really good - making the emotional impact they have on the viewer's powerful and overwhelming.

The Child I Never Was (2002)

" sad glimpses of the stunted boy inside the beast"

[10/10 · 24 November 2006]

Shocking as it may be – this movie shows a unique viewpoint of a boy/ young man- the storyline is full with possible answers to the question – why Jürgen committed the horrible crimes portrayed in the movie.

I can hardly believe that someone will see this movie and fill find the guilt in the only boy himself – the parents and the surroundings of Jürgen played their role too to shape his mentality. "…sad glimpses of the stunted boy inside the beast" was written in what review – and that seems to me the most important point of the film – but I wonder if too many people will be able to see trough …" The movie was disturbing indeed, especially since it is based on a true story. Some of the reviews I went trough about this movie were pointing out that the fact that Jürgen doesn't want to grow up is essential part of his "ill mentality " – and I strongly disagree with such opinion- what he did – those killings are evil , but they can not be associate with such desire of youthful life.

Chronicle of a Boy Alone (1965)

Interesting but hard to understand at first

[3/10 · 18 November 2006]

The movie was interesting , trough I admit that the main ideas was missed by me while watching it. The comments posted previously in IMDb helped me to sort some things out. The version I watched was not that good in terms of quality , but still the movie itself seemed to me like a earlier version of " Bad Education " - trough it has its own uniquenesses .

Some of the scenes were very meaningful - starting from the first one on which we see the stairs and the boy standing alone in the middle. The movie really does a good job showing how brutal some adults could be - and that locking people out probably is not the best solution - especially for youth.

There were scenes in which you can't see what is happening - but the previous ones and the ones to follow provide ideas and the viewer imagination could make up for that. I personally liked that.

Godsend (2004)

Excellent thriller/ horror movie

[8/10 · 13 October 2006]

When you have several good actors, a producer who knows what should be done and an extremely interesting time line – the good movie is guaranteed. After seeing "Godsend ", the movie took its well deserved place in my all time favourite titles list.

While watching the movie I there were few moments when my heard miss a beat – the bathing scene is for sure one of them, but that it is just one amongst many. I happened to watch half of the movie on my notebook while waiting for a bus – and it was just a bit embracing watching my emotions. I did notice that the soundtrack was chosen very carefully. Soft piano music is probably the best for this kind of movies. And then there are those moments in which the music itself could make your hair stand on end.

Robert De Niro is playing really good (as always); trough seeing him with a beard in the role of genius scientist is a bit unusual experience. Here is the place to mention that Cameron Bright truly amazed me with his fine performance in " Godsend " – I have watched 3 other movies in which he plays " The butterfly effect " , " Birth " and " Ultraviolet " but his performance in " Godsend " is so far his best role – trough I have heard that he does well and in the movie "Thank You for Smoking " – but I still have to watch that one .

The ending wasn't that good trough I could say and the opposite since it left me wanting for more.

Barely Legal (2003)

Fun way to waste some time

[3/10 · 30 September 2006]

This movie was just what I expected - nothing more , nothing less than a fun way to waste an hour and a half – especially if you don't have anything else to do , or just don't feel like watching something more serious. For one thing I thought that it was really funny - and at the same time some of the scenes were hot – but I guess you will have to be like the characters starring- a horny teenager or something to appreciate that. The soundtrack isn't anything special – but you won't notice that if you don't pay attention to the music in the movies. To summarise it was one of the good comedies around there – and if you enjoy movies such as "American Pie "you will enjoy this one as well.