What movies have you seen recently?

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Frankenweenie

It was meh. I'm stumped as to why the critics loved this yet hated Dark Shadows, because in my humble opinion they are pretty much on the same level of mediocrity. I mean, yeah, Frankenweenie had its moments, but my biggest gripe about it is that the characters pretty much had no personality. I think that if Burton had taken the same approach as he did with Corpse Bride and fleshed out (no pun intended) a small number of characters instead of loading the movie up with a bunch of one-note characters, I would have enjoyed it more. I think I'm just getting burned out on Tim Burton's movies in general, after having obsessed over them so intensely for so long (2 years and 9 months, which is a pretty long damn time for someone with a short attention span like me).

The Quiet

Yesterday, we watched From Within when it played on IFC. Very good horror film about an epidemic of suicides in a small town dominated by fundamentalist religion, which turns out to have been caused by supernatural forces.

-Bill, otherwise known as Kraichgauer

300

King Leonidas holds his ground with 300 men against overwhelming Persian forces.

Yesterday, I saw Taken 2.

It was not a bad movie, nor a good movie either.

John Carter. It was a lot better than I thought it was going to be. One of the best recent movies I have seen in a while, despite the Mars gravity being mostly wrong. I liked it even more than the newest Spider Man.

Once Were Warriors.

Listen to Your Heart

That movie literally made me bawl my eyes out.

International Guerrillas...

Salman Rushdie is threatening to destroy the Islamic world and he commands an army from his island stronghold. He is affiliated with gangsters who control Pakistan and arranges the gunning down of protesters who don't like his Satanic Verses. Survivors of the massacre include a policeman and two brothers who are thieves who can't get jobs because of corruption who vow to become... The International Guerrillas ... to hunt down Rushdie and save the Islamic world. Rushdie is helped by corrupt oil sheikhs who "are not Muslims, they are profiteers", including one with giant glasses with windshield wipers upon them. Rushdie hangs some Muslims, slices the heads off others and uses the tape version of "the Satanic Verses" to torture prisoners. The guerrillas appear to kill Rushdie but it was a double! Rushdie plots a trap in "the largest casino cum disco" where the Guerrillas show up in Batman costumes but they encounter three Rushdies! The real Rushdie gets away. Rushdie then plots to kidnap the guerrillas' sister in law in order to capture them. They are crucified and sing a song that causes Allah to release their chains. Following a battle, flying Korans show up and zap Rushdie to ashes. The end.

This movie was made in Pakistan and contains several song and dance numbers. It was released in 1990. It lasts over two and a half hours.

Dark Shadows

Tim Burton's movie version of the TV series. Worth seeing for bits and pieces.

This afternoon, I saw a Dutch documentary about a man with an autistic disorder, that left me feeling violently sick. It basically showcases the man's misery and inability to cope with all the problems and issues going on in his life. There isn't much substance to the documentary, although it's 1 hour and fifteen minutes long. I'm sure some people would find the film insightful and perhaps even inspiring, but I, personally, it left me with a feeling of distaste and anger.

It's rare that a film generates so much dislike within me.

Irréversible (2002) - great movie but not recommended for those with a weak stomach

"The Game" - I'm a bit conflicted about this. It wasn't bad, although throughout the early part of the film, I kept wondering if the absurdly expositional dialog was an intentional bit of meta-cinema. Apparently not. I think they should have popped for a couple more re-writes before locking the script. In some ways the ending was obvious, but I feel it was the only reasonable ending for that story.

"Lonesome" This is a rather nice little film spanning the transition between the silent and sound eras. The story is about two people who each go to Coney Island to escape their loneliness. They meet and enjoy each other's company but are separated. The ending is a bit of a deus ex machina but it kind of nice, nevertheless. There are a few nice multiple exposures and color treatments that add a bit of spectacle to the film. The moments where the characters suddenly start talking in what has heretofore been a silent film are a bit startling and the acting isn't of the very finest, but on the whole, the film is worth watching.