Malcolm1980's 2011 Review Thread

malcolm1980 · Posted: Sat Jan 22, 2011 6:24 am Post subject: Malcolm1980's 2011 Review Thread

1/22

Hereafter (Clint Eastwood) *** - Yes, it is not one of Eastwood's best works but it is still a very watchable, solid film thanks largely to his sensitive direction as well as the excellent performances he gets from his actors. Peter Morgan's script, to his credit, does make an effort to tackle the theme of the existence of the afterlife intelligently but its flaws keep this from being truly outstanding.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sun Jan 23, 2011 9:04 am Post subject:

1/23

The Long Voyage Home (John Ford) ***1/2 - It's easy to forget that John Ford isn't only a great Western director, he's a great director period. This film is an excellent example of that. 4 one-act plays by Eugene O'Neill set aboard a merchant ship is woven into one feature. John Wayne is topbilled and plays a Swedish (!) crew member, suffice to say he isn't all that convincing as one. However, the rest of the ensemble is simply outstanding especially Thomas Mitchell. This film also features Gregg Toland's beautiful black & white cinematography (you can definitely see why Orson Welles picked him to lens Citizen Kane).
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sun Jan 30, 2011 6:02 am Post subject:

1/30

Alamar (Pedro Gonzalez-Rubio) ***1/2 - This film blurs the line between documentary and narrative filmmaking since it contains plentiful elements of both but that shouldn't count as a point against it. It's about a half-Italian, half-Mexican/Mayan boy who goes off to sea with his fisherman father for a few weeks before departing for Rome with his mother. The film is endlessly fascinating and quite moving and elegantly shot.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sat Feb 05, 2011 7:10 am Post subject:

2/5

Tangled (Nathan Greno/Byron Howard) ***1/2- I'd be lying if I said this is as great as The Little Mermaid or Beauty and the Beast but it's still a pretty darn good film. The animators did an excellent job of translating the Disney style into a 3D CGI environment. It still feels as if it belongs to all the classic Disney princess tales despite its different format. Alan Menken's score isn't his best it's still pretty good ("I See The Light" is great though).
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sun Feb 06, 2011 9:01 am Post subject:

2/6

Animal Kingdom (David Michod) *** - This is a very solid (though somewhat imperfect) Australian crime drama and a highly respectable debut film from writer-director David Michod. Jacki Weaver totally and completely deserves her Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress and indeed, she really pulls off the twists and turns and nuances of her character masterfully. However, the entire cast is also pretty great.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sat Feb 12, 2011 6:04 am Post subject:

2/12

127 Hours (Danny Boyle) *** - This is NOT one of Danny Boyle's best works. It does work however mainly due to James Franco's great performance. He pretty much takes up much of the entire running time of the film yet he's endlessly watchable and compelling (with help from Boyle's showy direction though I felt some of it wasn't needed). I was expecting something worse with the arm amputation scene. It was grisly but I've seen worse.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sun Feb 13, 2011 9:04 am Post subject:

2/13

The Kids Are All Right (Lisa Cholodenko) ***1/2 - I have to admit that despite all the nominations and awards it got, I had low expectations overall with this film. The premise is a bit on the slight side and the script had its share of flaws but I loved the performances of the cast (especially the three leads) and the film's inherent sweetness and sincerity that I was completely won over in the end.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sat Feb 19, 2011 6:05 am Post subject:

2/19

Unknown (Jaume Collet-Serra) **1/2 - This is a high-concept thriller: A man meets an accident and suddenly finds his life and everything and everyone he's ever known taken away and the key to high-concept thrillers is to make the big reveal of what-the-hell-is-going work. The film does a good job of setting everything up with nice Hitchcockian touches here and there but the payoff is a bit of a disappointment. The film still manages to entertain thanks to Liam Neeson who, once again, keeps everything together.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sat Feb 26, 2011 9:01 am Post subject:

2/26

Black Swan (Darren Aronofsky) **** - The best way I can describe this film is "pretentious camp" but I personally don't mean it in a negative way at all. Quite the contrary. This absolutely thrilling and intriguing blending of highbrow (classical ballet) and lowbrow (psychosexual horror) and the beautiful and grotesque to depict a young ballerina's descent into madness. I can see how some people would hate this. The film blends many recognizable elements from filmmakers like Powell/Pressburger, Polanski and Dario Argento and throws them all onscreen in a way that will probably turn some people off. But as for me, I was on board with this from the first scene onwards. But then again, I'm a bit of an Aronofksy fan boy (I even liked The Fountain). This is best I've seen from Natalie Portman since The Professional.

True Grit (Joel Coen/Ethan Coen) - ***1/2 - This is probably the least Coen Brothers-y Coen Brothers movie. And that's not really necessarily a bad thing. You can definitely see their fingerprints all over this fine second version of the Charles Portis novel (and following John Wayne's footsteps no less). Their trademark snarkiness is at a minimum in their pretty much straightforward adaptation creating really a very classic, old-fashioned Western. Not their best but a very worthy effort. The cast is excellent.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sun Feb 27, 2011 8:35 am Post subject:

2/27

Fox and His Friends (Rainer Werner Fassbinder) ***1/2 - I'm way behind on my Fassbinder and this is one of his more famous works. A lowly occasional gay hustler wins the lottery and acquires new friends and a high-status lover. It's safe to say it's not gonna end well. What's really fascinating about this is that the plot could have just as easily have been an out and out comedy but Fassbinder opts to go for the tragedy of the title character's both good luck, bad luck and poor decisions and being a social misfit. Beautifully shot and acted by a great group of actors headed by Fassbinder himself and Karl Bohm of Peeping Tom fame.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sat Mar 05, 2011 5:13 am Post subject:

3/5

Never Let Me Go (Mark Romanek) ***1/2 - The film is basically The Island without any bullshit action scenes and it's a hell of a lot better for it, as far as I'm concerned. Three children who are basically clones raised for their organs in a dystopian alternate reality. Instead of focusing on the question of medical ethics and the sci-fi-ness of the story, it instead of focuses on character in the form of a love triangle between these three kids as they grow into young adulthood. Although far from perfect, it is beautifully acted especially by Carey Mulligan and the film does manage to take its themes and make them resonate.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sun Mar 06, 2011 5:40 am Post subject:

3/6

The Adjustment Bureau (George Nolfi) *** - Romantic thrillers are kind of rare in films these days. Rarer still are romantic thrillers with philosophical and even religious undertones. This is just what this film is. It's also very well-made and very well-acted and very entertaining but it's also quite sweet, moving, romantic and has more substance and intelligence than your average thriller or romance. It's a very respectable effort.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sat Mar 12, 2011 8:47 am Post subject:

3/12

Rango (Gore Verbinski) ***1/2 - Oh my. This is not only Gore Verbinski's best work, this probably displaces Monster House as my all-time favorite non-PIXAR CGI-animated film. This film is such a fun spoof/homage to spaghetti Westerns (I laughed when I recognized that familiar sound effect from Once Upon a Time In the West). The film is chockful of references but unlike most other animated films that uses them, this one's actually clever and organic. Johnny Depp redeemed himself after Alice in Wonderland here. It's the first great film of 2011.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sun Mar 13, 2011 9:02 am Post subject:

3/13

The Crucified Lovers (Kenji Mizoguchi) ***1/2 - It's not quite the masterpiece on the level of Ugetsu or Sansho the Bailiff but this is still quite an exemplary film. It's about an employee of a rich merchant who through a series of misunderstandings and the hot-temperedness/arrogance of the merchant runs away with the merchant's wife and is falsely accused of adultery but then things get complicated when he confesses his love for her. The film, all of Mizoguchi's films I've seen so far, features great acting and is beautifully shot. It's a moving, heartbreaking love story.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sat Mar 19, 2011 10:01 am Post subject:

3/19

Battle: Los Angeles (Jonathan Liebesman) ** - I went in with way lowered expectations due to some harsh critical drubbing it got. It has a wonderful solid concept: an alien invasion movie shot like an intense war film a la Black Hawk Down. It has a decent cast and great special effects and action sequences. Unfortunately it's still quite a huge disappointment. The plot, characterizations and dialogue are painfully cliched, copy/pasted from hundreds of war movies from the past, it's almost a parody in its predictability. This film really needed a more imaginative screenwriter to bring it to life. It's more a very disappointing film than a truly godawful one.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sat Mar 26, 2011 8:35 am Post subject:

3/26

Limitless (Neil Burger) **1/2 - This is a film that has a concept with a lot of rich and intriguing ideas which could've had more substance but the script opts instead for easy (and silly) popcorn thrills. The result is an entertaining film that's very well made but could've easily have been more. It's a shame since Bradley Cooper IS pretty good in the lead and shows that he does indeed has what it takes to carry a film. Great supporting work from Abbie Cornish and Robert De Niro as well.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sun Mar 27, 2011 12:05 pm Post subject:

3/27

Violent Summer (Valerio Zurlini) **** - I have not heard of this film until it was strongly recommended to me and I've only vaguely heard of the director. It's about a love affair between a draft-dodging son of a fascist and an older, recent widow of a respected navy officer. It at times feels like a Douglas Sirk film transplanted into an Italian World War II drama and that's a compliment. It features excellent performances between the two leads and contains some brilliantly directed scenes which made me wonder why director Valerio Zurlini isn't quite as well-known as other Italian directors Fellini, de Sica, Rossellini, etc.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sat Apr 02, 2011 5:49 am Post subject:

4/2

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Niels Arden Oplev) *** - I've read the best-selling source material so this film has little surprises HOWEVER, it still managed to be a gripping, taut mystery-thriller althroughout despite its 2.5 hour running time. The film is a near-perfect adaptation of the novel, retaining most of its strengths and even reducing some of its weaknesses. I particularly liked the change it made to a deus ex-machina resolution to one of its plot points (those who have read novel know what I'm talking about). Noomi Rapace, as the title character, is quite excellent.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sun Apr 03, 2011 4:51 am Post subject:

4/3

Source Code (Duncan Jones) ***- This is an intriguing high-concept sci-fi thriller where a man takes the identity of another man in the last 8 minutes of his life in order to thwart a terrorist plot. It's kind of like Groundhog Day played as a thriller. It MOSTLY works. The actors pretty much sell the crazy premise. I have yet to see Duncan Jones' other notable work, Moon but based on this, I would say he is an intriguing filmmaker. The ending, however, kind of made me scratch my head. I don't think it worked completely.

Easter Parade (Charles Walters) *** - This is not my favorite Fred Astaire musical. It's not my favorite Judy Garland musical either. Not even my favorite Irving Berlin score. But goshdarnit, there are lots of moments of greatness in this that a huge musical fan like me can't help but love. The story's a bit below-average even for a musical that favors the charm of the leads and lavish musical numbers over plot. But still overall, very good.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2011 7:55 am Post subject:

4/9

Rio (Carlos Saldanha) **1/2 - I was forced to see this in 3D because it's the only screening available and apart from the price, it wasn't so bad since it was animated and there's a lot of flying scenes which 3D enhances rather than detracts. As for the film itself, it has plenty of charm. The voice cast is pretty great plus the animation is gorgeous (the carnivale sequence in particular is spectacular). However, it does not, excuse the pun, soar to greatness. It's a nice little entertaining animated feature. Nothing more, nothing less which is really its only problem.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Thu Apr 21, 2011 5:31 am Post subject:

4/21

Election (Johnnie To) ***1/2 - I picked up this film upon the very enthusiastic recommendation of a friend of mine. And although I probably didn't like it quite as much as he did, this is still a pretty great crime drama. It's about politicking, in-fighting and power struggle surrounding the election of the Chairman of the organized crime ring in Hong Kong/China, the Triad. Probably one of the best gangster/mob flicks of the 00's. Some great direction and performances. Between this and Sparrow, I definitely need to see more Johnnie To films.

F for Fake (Orson Welles) **** - This is a one of a kind film. In some ways, it's a crazy documentary that's sort of the ancestor of Exit Through the Gift Shop and maybe even the documentaries of Michael Moore, etc. In some ways, it is...not. This documentary (sort of) film concerns the concept of fakery and explores this through interviews with a famous art forger and his biographer who himself has faked a biography of Howard Hughes. This is Orson Welles' last completed film and even at this stage, he's still offering something fresh and innovative. This one just begs for repeated viewings.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Fri Apr 22, 2011 4:33 am Post subject:

4/22

The Flowers of St. Francis (Roberto Rossellini) **** - Perfect for Good Friday. You'd have to be an extremely cynical nihilist to not be moved and fascinated by this film. This is actually a series of vignettes on the life St. Francis of Assissi and his fellow monks. It's often quite moving, sometimes even funny and all-around very intensely heartfelt film on the value of simplicity, selflessness and faith that I often feel is lost these days on organized religion for the most part. A wonderful film from Rossellini.

Young Frankenstein (Mel Brooks) **** - You know, I've seen most of Mel Brooks' major works (and a couple of his minor works) except for this one. I have to admit that when it comes to the measure of laugh quotient, Blazing Saddles registers higher. It is, however, Brooks' most artistically accomplished and polished film, thanks to the gorgeous black and white cinematography. Hilarious performances by everyone involved. This film is a pitch-perfect parody and loving tribute to the classic original film.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sun Apr 24, 2011 8:15 am Post subject:

4/24

A Canterbury Tale (Michael Powell/Emeric Pressburger) **** - I'm a huge fan of Powell-Pressburger films (aka The Archers). This film just further deepens my admiration for their work. Three rather different characters meet and go on a "pilgrimage" of sorts in a story that unfolds sort of in a "modernized" (at its time) version of Chaucer. Powell-Pressburger has this, to me at least, this uncanny ability to feel new and innovative while at the same time have that classical, old-fashioned cinematic storytelling aura about it. Though this film is not my favorite work from them (Black Narcissus and The Red Shoes still hold the title), it is still a beautiful piece of cinema.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sat Apr 30, 2011 6:01 am Post subject:

4/30

Thor (Kenneth Branagh) ***1/2 - Making a film adaptation of Thor is extremely tricky. Lots of things could go wrong. It could've easily have been a campy, loud and stupid. That's why it's such a minor miracle that director Kenneth Branagh delivered such a solid piece of pop entertainment. This film is a near-perfect balance of great action, operatic drama (somewhat Shakespearean, I mean it IS Branagh, after all) and humor (all the laughs to be had are intentional but not trying-hard snarky type of humor). NOTE: Stay until after the end credits.
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malcolm1980 · Posted: Sun May 01, 2011 7:57 am Post subject:

5/1

A Star Is Born (George Cukor) **** - I was totally blown away by this film. This is Judy Garland at her absolute very best. She sings, she dances, she acts, it's absolute showcase and it completely and totally works. What really puts this film over the top is that she is complemented by the great James Mason and the stunning direction of George Cukor (I daresay this is probably my favor Cukor film I've seen so far). Beautiful technicolor cinematography where the colors really pop and the subtle changes in the devastating last 20 or so minutes. The queer in me (which all film buffs have anyway) was crying and applauding. This definitely has a place on my all-time favorites and it's truly an enthralling cinematic experience.
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