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Reviews
A Weekend with Lulu (1961)
Hilarious comedy in the "Carry On" tradition
Nothing funnier than four Brits (two blokes, a bird, and a matron) heading off for a weekend in the English countryside and mistakenly ending up in France, a country which they manage to turn on its head during the Tour de France. The ad executive and his fiancé hoped for a quiet weekend at the seashore in Lulu the caravan (that's a camper for the American reader), towed by his unscrupulous friend driving an ice cream truck (he has 200 wt of ice cream he hopes to sell down at the shore for some side money). Of course, the future mum-in-law invites herself along and her stodginess provides some of the best comedic moments.
Very well crafted film and still funny after all these years. Great cast including Sid James in a small role. Many other faces you'll recognize from the Carry On films, as well.
Shown on TCM on American cable television.
Serenity (2005)
Joss Whedon is truly my new god!
As a browncoat, I expected to enjoy Serenity, but it was more than that. It is really the first scifi epic meant for an adult audience and by epic, I mean the entire series. There are no cutesy robots, no talking plushy toy creatures, no cartoonish one-dimensional characters. It is also refreshingly devoid of many of the cloying set pieces in other scifi series; there are no awestruck fanboy reverential views of Serenity like the interminable shots of the Enterprise in the first Star Trek movie, no awestruck fanboy reverential moments when characters pop up on screen for the first time ("Spock!" "Bones!" "Uhura!"). Serenity gets down to business from the first moment and like a good novel, not a word is wasted; like a good painting, there is not one misplaced brushstroke. Each character is real and complex and acts from their own motivation. There is never a sense that an unseen director is pushing them around like cut out figures; in fact, you get the real sense that if an unseen director tried to do that, the characters would rebel and kick his ass.
This movie will probably not win the Golden Globe or a Best Picture Oscar because the Academy seems to only give those to films about "star-crossed lovers" with English accents giving each other longing glances during World War Two or playing large concert instruments for the Nazis. The Academy may even become confused about Serenity and think it is a foreign film because there is some use of Chinese in this film without subtitles; in any case, the Academy has a history of only giving the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar to foreign films that are dubbed in English. None of the Serenity actors may win Oscars because for that honor, the Academy seems to favor people like the cute Italian guy who made that film about how hilarious the concentration camps were. Oh, those funny Nazis and their practical jokes!
But this series has already won the real honors in the hearts and minds of fans and has the ability to impress those who've never seen the original series or who don't even like science fiction particularly. It is not a fan movie, it is not a geek movie, it is a work of art. If you haven't seen it yet, go today. If you've already seen it, go again. I plan to do that for two reasons. First, because it is just one of the best damn movies I've ever seen (and I am a film buff!) and second, because it will send a financial message to Hollywood that this is the sort of visionary film I want to see, not some remake of a 1960's sitcom, not some ridiculous "action movie" written by a committee and watered down by focus groups. I want to see real character-driven films that take me somewhere I've never been before and that make me laugh, and choke up and think, damn it! And they can be scifi or westerns, or crime drama, or historical pieces, but they better be as good as Serenity or I will withhold from Hollywood the price of my admission ticket.
Passion in the Sun (1964)
A true unknown classic!
Very few living persons have had the privilege of seeing this cinematic masterpiece! It should be restored in a new digital print and included on the required viewing list of every film school. Like Citizen Kane, which lay hidden for generations, one viewing will change forever the way you view every other film you see for the rest of your life.
Here's a list of comparisons of Passion in the Sun with other great celluloid masterpieces:
Citizen Kane: both were filmed in black and white.
Gone with the Wind: both featured dialogue in the English language
It's a Wonderful Life: both had old cars.
Star Wars: both had scenes filmed in the desert
The Hustler: both featured human actors
Deliverance: both involved people swimming in a river
Pulp Fiction: had a Gimp, Passion had a Geek
Titanic: both featured Kate Winslet and Leonard DiCaprio.
Well, okay, that last one was a lie, but maybe they'll be in the remake.
Seriously, this is a film that is so ineptly made, so poorly acted, so abysmally written that it even needs a Rod Serling style narration at unexpected moments to help you figure out what's going on. Usually, the presence of narration is your first clue that the movie is a mess and this does not disappoint. It is so unintentionally funny for most of it's running time that those with abdominal sutures or loose dentures should only watch with extreme caution. Best scenes: a woman is being chased through the desert by a gun-wielding thug who she has seen murder his accomplice, but TWICE takes time out for nude skinny-dipping; a stripper at the club spins so fast that her secondary sexual characteristics actually achieve lift-off. Totally amazing.
You can find this at Something Weird Video.
La bête (1975)
Instructions for watching The Beast
This movie should come with the following instructions: (1)watch opening scene of horses copulating (2)watch scene of blonde rich chick taking Polaroids of horses mating. (3)fast forward to the last half hour where all the action takes place. This way, the whole film lasts about 35 minutes, almost an hour shorter than the running time, and you get to see the hilarious Beast versus Babe scenes. If you watched the overly talky hour that precedes it, you might fall asleep and miss the best part. Why was this controversial? It's like an explicit episode of Benny Hill type humor. Was there some message? Probably, but if it was that we all have a beast within us, that message sailed a long time ago and is now just too boring to talk about. In short, I recommend it for it's comedic value, but only if you follow the above instructions.
Titicut Follies (1967)
Uneven but disturbing artifact of the history of mental illness
Others have summarized this documentary well, so I would like to add my comments rather than go over ground covered by others.
It is hard to view this film and watch the dehumanization and brutalization of these patients. They are shown naked being provoked into angry outbursts by the guards, force-fed, locked in solitary confinement naked with a metal bucket for a toilet and hundreds of other indignities. Even the fact that the film-makers had such access is a shocking violation since patients committed involuntarily are unable to give informed consent.
But this was made in 1967 before modern anti-psychotic medications were developed. As a Clinical Social Worker who has worked extensively with the chronic mentally ill over the last decade, I was shocked to see how primitive the treatment methods were, even though I was prepared by my research in graduate school. Tranquilizers were being prescribed to mitigate the symptoms of paranoia, the psychiatric interviews with patients included lots of leading questions and they were treated rudely and dismissively even when the patients were making some good points about their commitments.
It was obvious that the staff and volunteers were just doing the best they could, but I have less sympathy for the Hungarian psychiatrist who at times seemed as disturbed as his patients. The volunteers running games and parties and shows reminded me of the Friendly Visitors to the Poor, those well-intentioned 19th C. socialites who volunteered to sing hymns and read the Christian bible to poor people in the tenements to "improve" their lives.
All in all, this is a very worthwhile film and highly recommended to professionals and interested others in the mental health field. Yes, there are some definite ethical problems in the way this was created, but as a historical record it is invaluable. I give this 9/10.
My Wrongs 8245-8249 and 117 (2002)
Funniest thing I've seen in quite a while!
I suppose some of the other reviewers here may think I am a really sick person, but I thought this was hilarious! Prior to this viewing, I had never heard of Chris Morris, probably because I live on the other side of the Pond, but I will seek out more.
I won't recap the content because others have already done so on this forum. My reactions to this material are quite different from others' reactions, however, and I encourage the reader to take a chance and see what their own reactions will be.
As a clinical social worker who has worked extensively with the chronic mentally ill, I was not offended by the portrayal of an obviously deranged person. Persons experiencing psychotic episodes involving command hallucinations, whether aural or visual, are human, and the content and logic of their experience, while bizarre, is recognizably human. You may recall something you once believed and later found to be false or inaccurate in some way. To the extent that this belief influenced your decisions at that time, you were sharing the same mechanism that causes a psychotic person to believe a dog is speaking to them or the television is blinking in some mysterious way that may or may not be revealing something important. The difference is in degree and, possibly, in the lack or over-abundance of certain brain chemicals.
I give this a 9/10.
Dværgen (1973)
The Sinful Dwarf Rulez!
Yes, this is a sleazy movie. Yes, it was filmed with cheap cameras on a budget of about 2 dollars. Yes, there is a lot of full frontal nudity. But it actually works! The film is certainly interesting and is now my favorite sleaze-ploitation movie next to People Under the Stairs. If you are easily offended, rent Bambi. If you want a dirty, grimy piece of Eurotrash early 70s film-making, this is a classic that you must see! Olaf the sinful dwarf is absolutely wonderful and his tone-deaf mother singing cabaret songs while he menaces the girls in the attic with his cane is over the top terrific. Not to everyone's taste, but a true gem to those who love sleaze.
Hold That Ghost (1941)
Just saw the newly restored print on the big screen
This is still just as good as the first time I saw it in the 1950's. Just saw it on the big screen at the Loews Jersey City, one of the last of the great movie palaces in the New York/New Jersey area. What a thrill! It was introduced by his daughter Chris Costello, who answered questions about her father and about Bud Abbott (both born in New Jersey, by the way). Fans of A&B should also visit the Lou Costello memorial on Cianci Street in Paterson right near the Great Falls.
Instinct (1999)
Hopkins=Superb as always; Gooding=Nice performance with bad material; Instinct=great ideas but needed better technical consultants for psych assessments
I like Anthony Hopkins a lot and in this movie he does not disappoint, especially the duct tape scene. I love the message about civilization, too. But the psych assessment style of Gooding's character was laughable. Leading questions, lack of boundary issues, lack of insight into his own counter-transference, where do I start? Having worked in several hospital psych units, I can speak with some authority about how psych assessments are conducted, including court-mandated assessments. It always annoys me that Hollywood mental health professionals seem to have never had any recognizable professional training. Surely there must be a psychologist in LA who could be a technical consultant on this type of film. So, good movie, but inept handling of the technical material.
Gin gwai (2002)
A ghost story with no sex and no cigarettes. Hollywood, take notice!
I enjoyed this film and I'm a little amused by many of the comments about it. Some commenters seem to think this is a Japanese movie, some wonder why if the action takes place in Thailand is everyone speaking Chinese, one commenter said her doctor seemed too young to be an eye surgeon and suggested the casting was just so that he could be her romantic interest.
Some of the commenters don't seem to have been paying attention.
This is a Hong Kong/Thailand production, not Japanese. The tip-off is that in the HK scenes they are speaking Chinese and all the signs are in Chinese; in the Thailand scenes, everything is in Thai (except that the psychotherapist speaks English at the hospital until he meets a doctor who speaks Mandarin).
The eye surgeon seemed about the right age and is NOT the romantic interest. The psychotherapist whose role is to help her to relearn her visual vocabulary (great scene with the stapler, by the way) becomes the romantic interest.
How can I take any comments seriously by people who can't get those basic facts correct?
Here are my own comments:
It's refreshing to see a movie containing no sex and no cigarettes. Hollywood productions (with the exception of Shyamalan and few others) always contain both. American horror movies since the 50s ALWAYS have some unnecessary risque material and those from the 70s on up have at least one unnecessary nude scene. I have no objection to sex but it is only part of life and most American movies seem to think it is all of life. I do, however, object to cigarettes because they kill tens of thousands of human beings every year, directly and indirectly, in the service of corporate greed. I have suspected for years that the American tobacco companies are secretly helping to bankroll Hollywood movies and I think someone should investigate what amounts to an insidious form of advertising.
****POTENTIAL SPOILER AHEAD*****
The Eye requires the viewer to bring some intelligence and some knowledge of Asian culture to it. Of course, it is marketed in the US and elsewhere as a "horror" film, because it shares some elements of the horror genre. I didn't find it very horrifying, but it was creepy and definitely moody. In some ways I was reminded of Ann Fadiman's book The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down, about the clash of traditional Asian and modern Western views of illness in the case of an epileptic Hmong child in California. Within the cultural context, the decision for Mun to go to Thailand halfway through makes sense and the importance of such a move is foreshadowed in the meeting of the Taoist and the parents whose child committed suicide over a lost report card. His prescription for closure is to find the report card and burn it so the child can have it in the spirit world. Actually, I found the scene of the spirit boy eating candles left at his shrine to be one of the film's most poignant and horrifying moments.
One jarring element for me was the instant and growing romantic attachment of the therapist and his patient. In the US, such a relationship is not only ethical, in many cases it would lead to loss of license. Maybe things are different in HK.
Bottom line is that it is a well-made entertaining movie that, like most international movies, is doomed to fail at the American box office for reasons too numerous to mention here. I also shudder to think what Hollywood will turn this film into. Hopefully not starring Ashton Kutscher and Reese Witherspoon and renamed "Dude, Where's My Eyes?"
Espiritismo (1962)
The perfect Mexican nightlight
I bought this DVD from half.com for $1.88 and the shipping was more than that. I am a fan of movies like the Brainiac and all the wrestling horror flicks so when I read about this on a fansite, I thought I'd give it a go.
I propped the Mintek on my lap, leaned back and watched...then fell asleep. I woke up, backed up to the last scene I remembered, pressed Play...and fell asleep. The next time I woke up, I made a strong cup of coffee, then another because the first tasted so good, went back to the Mintek, pressed Play...and fell asleep.
Maybe this is one of those weird tapes like in the Ring, only instead of dying in seven days you fall asleep in 7 minutes.
What I remember was a bunch of Mexican people talking about Ouija boards with dubbed voices. There didn't seem to be much action...maybe it happened when I was asleep. Somehow I don't think so.
I recommend this movie to anyone who is having trouble sleeping.
Gojira ni-sen mireniamu (1999)
There is a little bit of Godzilla in each of us...
The feel-good comedy of 2000! Monster eggs, recycled audio effects, annoying Japanese children who know more than the scientists, a Tokyo shopkeeper who shouts "Gott im Himmel!" when he sights Godzilla, and a final message and warning for all of us who foolishly insist on exploding atomic bombs on the ocean's floor near frozen monsters. Yes, there is a little Godzilla in each of us...what? you thought that was tuna in your Tekka-maki?
The Final Sacrifice (1990)
Zap Rowesdower & Tjardus Greidanus - perfect together!
There are many people who say that this is not the best film ever written & directed by Tjardus Greidanus, but I must disagree. In point of fact, this is the ONLY film ever written & directed by Tjardus Greidanus. This is vintage Tjardus Greidanus! A veritable pousse-cafe potpourri of Tjardus Greidanus. If anyone can show me a BETTER Tjardus Greidanus film, let them step forward RIGHT NOW, I say! No? I didn't think so...
Minority Report (2002)
Philip K. Dick would be proud!
This is a great film. Suspend your disbelief and enjoy it. And then read the incredible fiction of "Horse-lover Fat" (Dick), especially "Valis", "The Divine Invasion", "The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch", and any of his short fiction. You'll see how perfect Minority Report really is.
Planet of the Apes (2001)
And the winner is....
Tim Roth, for being the only decent performance in this whole mishmosh. Mark Wahlberg, for yet another uninspired characterization and yet another rung down on his descent from dubious stardom in that stupid porn piece of garbage Boogie Nights...next stop, sitcom guest appearances? Estella Warren, for Best Breasts in a talking monkey movie Paul Giamatti, for his convincing portrayal of Paul Giamatti in a rubber mask. Tim Burton, for his biggest fan disappointment since that overpriced book about the Oyster Boy or whatever that piece of crap was. Please Tim! Even a sequel to Franken-Weenie would have been better. 'Nuff said.
Mulholland Dr. (2001)
Huh????????
Now, don't misunderstand. I like David Lynch's work. I loved Twin Peaks, adored Wild at Heart & Blue Velvet, and almost named my first-born son Paul MuadD'ib after seeing the director's cut of Dune (actually, my wife nixed that idea before it became legal). But this film makes no sense whatsoever! Oh, I know...the true Lynchophiles nod and wink at each other knowingly and endlessly discuss this film's hidden meaning and structure. And I did watch the whole thing and loved the lesbian scenes and the weird Lynchian moments like tiny giggling elderly people crawling out of a paper bag. But if it had only made more sense, I would have liked it better. Yes, yes, I know that the Lychophiles are scoffing as they read that last line, but what's wrong with making sense? Would I recommend the film? Sure, why not? Just don't expect it to make any sense. The film is beautiful, the performances are at times brilliant, it's just lacking in any cohesive sense.
Xing xing wang (1977)
This is a MUST SEE!!!
Words cannot describe this movie, it must be experienced! Things to watch for: the explorers climb a cliff with no supplies, but somehow a huge tent filled with sleeping cots is set up in the next scene; the plane diary is in English in a Chinese movie and although the jungle girl can only grunt, she can read the handwriting in the diary with no trouble; the "costume" she wears keeps peeling off when she runs...you can even see some of the glue peeling in a couple scenes; AND, the tree-climbing scene is NOT to be missed!!!!!
Furankenshutain no kaijû: Sanda tai Gaira (1966)
translation: Why Children Should Never Flush Sea Monkeys
A green mutant monkey as big as the Tokyo Tower lives under the sea and only comes up to munch on the terrified citizens when the sun goes behind a cloud (he spits out their clothing after chewing them); a brown mutant monkey of equal size tries patiently but in vain to teach his green clone some better culinary manners; it all ends with at least a million yen in crushed micro machines, plastic soldiers and styrofoam buildings. Russ Tamblyn looks embarrassed as the scientist who comes up with the astounding explanation of the green monkey's origin and shows a range of emotions from boredom to disgust. A MUST SEE for Japanese monster fans. Look for Kip Hamilton's rooftop rendition of "The Words Get Stuck In My Throat" just before she gets stuck in the monster's throat.