movies What's the last film you watched? And rate it!

Annie Hall directed by Woody Allen - 10/10
As I go through Woody Allen's filmography roughly in order, I am becoming more and more impressed. So far this is the best realization of Woody Allen's cinematic vision I've seen and one of the greatest romantic comedies. I loved the writing in this film, and scene for scene this is a very strong film, also unlike Allen's other films there aren't many failed jokes. Everything I love about Allen is here, his neurotic personality, the intellectual and cinematic references, his wit, but it's done better because it has a truthful bittersweet romantic story to go along with it. Diane Keaton and Woody Allen are amazing as the couple in this film, and their relationship always feels genuine. I have had some relationship struggles myself recently and I could relate to a lot of what happened in the film. I was also pleasantly surprised by the use of light experimentation in the film (breaking the fourth wall, animated sequence, nonlinear story, many scenes as essentially one long take, flashback sequences in which the present day characters interact with the flashback characters, etc.) that did not detract from the storytelling. This is just such an awesome movie all the way through, hopefully I get to see more masterpieces by Woody Allen.
 
The Girl Who Leapt Through Time directed by Mamoru Hosoda - 9/10
This is an incredible anime film, the story is awesome, the animation is awesome, the music is awesome, and the film just makes me very happy. I feel like the way the twist in the end is handled is kind of flawed, but then again that twist did add some of the most emotional moments of the film. I love this film, it shows that there is hope in anime after Miyazaki!

A Moment Of Romance directed by Benny Chan - 7/10
This is a fine entertaining Hong Kong film that takes lots of great elements of romance, melodrama, and action into a nice mix. The film is a little bit too much in its Hong Kong style with the over the top scene, crazy comedic relief, and Cantopop songs. The ending is just too crazy as well. Still I was very entertained and I liked the characters more than I expected.

Inherit The Wind directed by Stanley Kramer - 10/10
This is an awesome courtroom drama film. I love the way it takes a real life story and expands on it without making it stupid (for lack of a better word). While the film's themes of evolution vs. creationism are still relevant, it is its more universal theme of the freedom to think that resonates most. What I love this film most though is that it doesn't just care about ideas, it realizes that people and relationships are much more important than any ideas. This is best exemplified through the ending scene and through Matthew Harrison Brady's wife. This film simply has an amazing story and it is very well-written with great characters and a ton of diverse interesting characters with depth. The black and white cinematography is also amazing. Something that I also noticed is that this film does a good job of using foreshadowing in a subtle way, I haven't really experienced that in cinema before! This film touched my mind, my heart, and even my spirit, its definitely an underrated masterpiece!

The Actress And The Poet directed by Mikio Naruse - 4/10
And this is the bad part about Naruse, he not only had the opportunity to direct his own masterpieces and gems, he was obligated to make lighter affairs such as this film. This film only really works as a cultural/historical artifact of early Japanese sound cinema. There are some humorous moments to be sure, there is also some interesting ideas that are played with but ultimately this film is just forgettable. I did like some of the formal aspects of the film such as the opening and closing shots paralleling each other, and Ozu-esque shots of objects that are similar to his "pillow shots." If this film wasn't so short, I think I'd give it a 2 or something.

Noah directed by Darren Aronofsky - 5/10
I was surprised to see this film released so soon in my country due to the fact that we almost never get interesting movies here and due to the fact that this is a controversial religious movie. Unfortunately I was very very disappointed by this film. While I appreciate films that flesh out biblical stories or add in new more relevant messages, this film just didn't add anything interesting for me. All of the character development seemed superficial, the action scenes while great seemed too Hollywood, and even some of the great cinematography is ruined by too many cuts! I'd also add that my problems with Aronofsky are still present here. His 'unique' style works half of the time and the other half of the time it just feels unnecessary. The creation of the world scene was awesome but all those hip hop montages really did nothing for the film. The 'depth' that Noah has is really just meaningless to me. I think the film could've been more interesting if it took it one step further (as it has almost nothing to do with the biblical story) and suggest that Noah was actually sincerely confused about what was God's will and what was his own will. This would appeal to a greater spiritual struggle that Christians can relate to and it could give more psychological depth to Noah's character which would appeal to all viewers. Maybe Aronofsky tried to do this in a way but I didn't get that at all. What I saw was a Hollywood version of the Noah story (completely changed in plot but not really to add anything fresh) with Aronofsky's distinctive style. Oh and I also have to mention, Aronofsky loves the use of close-ups way too much for my tastes! Yes, a director like Ingmar Bergman has said that the most interesting thing to film is a human's face. But where Bergman used this to capture emotions and psychological states, Aronofsky uses them just because he lacks the ability to compose great complex shots. The best shots in the film are cut short and even they don't seem to take too much advantage of the film's awesome setting. For a Biblical film this film doesn't feel very spiritual (for me spiritual cinema is not necessary religious, in fact it can be a secular, atheistic, or agnostic spirituality) at all either, there are many more films in all genres that feel more spiritual than this film. I complain a lot about this film because it is very ambitious but seems to have failed for me. In the end, it's just a competent effort at bringing a Biblical story to the big screen but I expected much more!
 
I am still reeling from the stench that was 'The Legend of Hercules'.

I really don't know how we ended up watching this drivel. It looked like a more family-friendly version of the Spartacus TV series (inc some familiar faces). Sadly though, the more mature content in Spartacus was the main thing that kept it entertaining, especially the more visceral comic-book nature of the show, which is missing from Hercules.

There was non of the OTT murder porn craziness, just leaving the 'actors' to stumble thier way through the bland script, while playing slapsies with each other in poorly composited locations, doing a typically mainstream bodge-job of one of our classic myths.

Rating: Dontbother/10

Watch the Spartacus TV show instead. At least your missus might be kept entertained. :hmm: :blush:
 
The Graduate directed by Mike Nichols - 10/10
This is a wonderful comedy-drama because it just does so much. I'd say the first third of the film is a strong drama, the second third flawlessly goes into melodramatic territory, and the final third goes into an absurd comedy. The acting in the film is always awesome, the cinematography/editing is amazing, and the story always takes twists that keep the film interesting. One thing I noticed about this film is how widescreen is used so effectively. Just this morning I saw a lecture by David Bordwell on Cinemascope and its influence on filmmakers during the widescreen era, and this film has a lot of the techniques he mentioned. There was tableau staging at times (where there are longer takes and information is revealed through staging rather than cuts), there was sometimes objects blocking the frame in order to make it the traditional square frame, the characters are sometimes lined up, and the film focuses on using nice full compositions. There is just so much awesome filmmaking going on along with great storytelling so I think this film is definitely a masterpiece. I love how it just captures the 60's perfectly, it also criticizes the 60's youth as well.
 
The Gospel According To St. Matthew directed by Pier Paolo Pasolini - 10/10
In my opinion, there is no greater achievement in cinema than portraying a vision of truth on the screen. Now "truth" in the context in which I'm using it doesn't mean literal truth, it means an honest portrayal of the point of view of the filmmaker even if one is to disagree with it. Of all the Biblical films (and more particularly gospel films) there is no film closer to achieving this "truth" than Pasolini's version of the Gospel of Matthew. The film is shot more like a documentary simply telling the story of the gospel as honestly as possible. After several years of seeing different Biblical films or hearing preachers tell stories from the Bible, it is easy to get caught up in romanticized versions of the Scriptures. Pasolini does away with all this romanticized views of the Bible and takes it back to the basics, just as the original Gospels are. If you read the Gospel you'll see that it's flat, it's like a reportage in its way of just telling the events as they are without adorning the language much. It's kind of ironic that it took an atheist Marxist homosexual to bring the spirit of the original gospels to the cinema. The film has very good simple cinematography (with great use of close-ups that actually are used for a purpose and nice panning shots), in my opinion it just literally brings the words of the Gospel to life. The dialogue is almost all from the original book so there aren't major changes. And I think that's the brilliance of the film, it is just an artfully made adaptation of the original story. I think what makes it work is that Pasolini believes in the material, no he doesn't literally believe in the Bible as an atheist, but he believes that the material has artistic value inherent to it so he doesn't choose to alter it. Now, I don't think that all films based on books or the Bible should be unaltered, but sometimes a good honest telling just works best. I also love how Pasolini shows just how universal the story is by adding religious music of all genres and cultural origins. Some may look at the film and see some Marxist leanings, but I honestly didn't. I mean the dialogue literally comes from the gospel of Matthew so I think they're just wrong lol. This adds a lot to the film in sequences like the Sermon On The Mount which has a lot of power on the screen even in its simplicity. To be honest, I think every Bible should come with a DVD copy of this film lol. Yeah I'm bias now because I've shown that I don't like these mythic Bible movies that are made, but Pasolini achieved something that countless Christian filmmakers can only dream of achieving, and that is bringing justice to the gospel in an honest unadorned manner (Mel Gibson couldn't achieve this no matter how many torture scenes he used, Pasolini showed no torture by the way). This is such an amazing film to watch on Easter and I'll try to make that a tradition for myself and try to invite others Christian and non-Christians alike to watch this film.
 
Three Sisters With Maiden Hearts directed by Mikio Naruse - 6/10
This is probably evidence of my own uselessness as after formulating my opinion on this film I have come to discover that it is hailed as one of Naruse's early masterpieces and one of the early masterpieces of early sound cinema. But still, I have to honestly say that this film just didn't do it for me. Yes, I acknowledge that the film is amazing in terms of its use of visuals and sound, and even formal structure (which even includes a flashback within a flashback, this was definitely rare for the period!). However, the overall storytelling just didn't get to me. I never really cared about the characters too much, and aside from a few amazing scenes (esp. the ending) the film just didn't have anything to offer. I think mostly what hurts this film for me is the fact that the film lacks good pacing or really any narrative coherence (or maybe I wasn't paying enough attention). Still I have to say that the abstractions in this film are impressive in the beginning and middle parts of the film, and the ending is extremely powerful (it would be even more powerful if it was part of a greater story). While I have an opinion on the film already, due to the fact that many cinephiles and Japanese cinema scholars consider it to be an early masterwork I will have to add this to my re-watch film and give it another shot. Hopefully I'm just wrong and this is an incredible somewhat experimental melodrama!
 
Ah this week has sucked, I haven't had much time to watch movies but I finally saw one tonight!

Hard Boiled directed by John Woo - 10/10
I have finally seen all of John Woo's Hong Kong heroic bloodshed films and it has been a whole lot of fun! This is possibly his greatest pure action film, but it lacks the emotional depth of his other masterpieces such as The Killer, A Better Tomorrow, and Bullet In The Head. I love the action choreography here more than most of his films, and those tracking shots really are amazing. This film also stars both my favorite action star (Chow Yun-fat) and my favorite actor (Tony Leung Chiu-Wai) so that automatically adds awesomeness to the film. The non-action parts of the film are also good but not as good as in Woo's best films which have included all forms of melodramas about different relationships (family, gang partners, friends, romantic relationships, etc.). This film hints a few of those relationships that add emotional depth to Woo's films but I think it could've been developed more. However, the storyline and character development in this film is not as important as just engaging the viewer in the story and giving the viewer some awesome action sequences. Even more so than his other films, this film's action sequences feel like musical choreographies, it really is beautiful to watch. There are many elements of this film that I feel could've been elaborated on such as the jazz club, John Woo's elusive character, Tony Leung's background, the romantic relationship in the film, all of this could've been expanded a bit. Ah and I have to say I love the jazz music in this film, the final credits music is inappropriate in my opinion as it should've been the jazz music again! Overall I think this is an action film masterpiece that is amazing but I'd say John Woo has directed four heroic bloodshed masterpieces and this is the least of them since it has the least character development/emotional depth. Still this is a wonderful film and I hope that I appreciate it even more after other viewings.
 
To Catch A Thief directed by Alfred Hitchcock - 8/10
This is a light Hitchcock film but it is just beautiful to look at and it is fairly entertaining. While it lacks the sheer cinematic mastery of some of Hitchcock's other films it is just a very solid film. The fireworks scene in this film has got to be the best use of fireworks that I've seen in cinema, it is just so beautiful and expressive. The film is very engaging but it starts to wear off about 3/4 in and the ending is not very memorable but the best scenes are worth it. Don't expect a masterpiece and you'll enjoy this one.
 
Jaws directed by Steven Spielberg - 10/10
Easily one of the greatest genre films of all-time, here Spielberg proves to be a very good student of Old Hollywood masters such as Hitchcock with his great cinematic storytelling. The storytelling is just flawless here and there are very interesting formal elements in the film as well with the sound and editing making this film a masterpiece. This is a very entertaining film that is always engaging, I think it's timeless because it doesn't rely on any gimmickry, instead it tells a story with a mastery in cinematic language that I see in few Hollywood productions today.
 
Goodfellas - 10/10

First time seeing it, really impressed by the story and pacing. I love any type of mobster movie so I was easily suckered into it.

Acting was all on point, and that tracking shot in the club, mmm.
 
Judge Priest directed by John Ford - 4/10
Uh this is the first John Ford film that I dislike. The film just feels pretty aimless and it just doesn't have anything interesting going on in terms of story, formal filmmaking qualities, or characters. I do like the laidback feeling that the movie gives off but I only found some parts of the film to be funny and all of the black characters' portrayals are so stereotypical that they are borderline racist. I also found most peoples' voices to be irritating in this film. Will Rogers is pretty good in this film though and the film is so brief that it doesn't ever get too bad so I won't give it less than a 4/10. I can't recommend this film to anyone except for John Ford fans that want to see all of his films (but even they will probably not like this film).
 
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Sketches Of Frank Gehry directed by Sydney Pollack - 8/10
This is an interesting documentary because it never feels like a documentary, it feels like we just get to spend time talking with Sydney Pollack and Frank Gehry (who are friends) so it is a very welcoming film. I like how we get to learn about Gehry's story naturally without having to feel like the story has to take a certain direction. Sure the film doesn't have tons of biographical or architectural insights but I don't think that's what the film was aiming for. The film succeeded for me because it gave me creative inspiration as well as introduced me to facets of architecture that I didn't know about (the Bilbao museum was just amazing!) so I like this film a lot and would place it on the lower end of my favorites list.
 
Millennium Actress directed by Satoshi Kon - 10/10
Wow! As I go through Satoshi Kon's filmography the more that I realize that we truly lost a master too early in his life and the more I realize that Kon is possibly the greatest postmodernist filmmaker (yes even better than Kaufman, Tarantino, Aronofsky, Nolan, etc.) In this film Satoshi Kon continues the development of a distinctive visual/editing style as found in his debut Perfect Blue but he uses it to tell a more traditional love story. The film just works on so many levels: as a fan love letter to Setsuko Hara (Kon's favorite actress and my favorite actress as well!), as an homage to classic Japanese cinema in all genres, as an anime film, as a postmodernist film, and as a love story (maybe based on obsession). Once again Kon plays with images to make the audience think about the psychological implications of the narrative and it also just makes for some interesting images. All throughout the film I love how character development is done both in obvious ways and in more hidden ways (sometimes hidden from the viewer in the background of a composition), the film also does a good job at revealing character connections late in the film. The film is emotionally engaging, intelligently crafted, and is simply a masterpiece of animation in the way that it mixes different techniques to tell its story. This is not only one of my favorite anime films but one of the best postmodernist films I've seen so far and one of my favorites of the 21st century. While I love this movie a lot, I still feel that Perfect Blue mixed its story with Kon's incredible technique more naturally, but quite honestly I feel like Satoshi Kon is just as consistent as Miyazaki at developing his themes and stylistic concerns through his cinema. It's such a shame that Kon died so young. Anyone interested in anime (or just good cinema) should check his films out or his awesome mini-series Paranoia Agent.
 
Wife! Be Like A Rose directed by Mikio Naruse - 9/10
Going through Mikio Naruse's filmography in order is becoming an awesome experience as I see him grow as a filmmaker. In my opinion this is the first near-masterpiece that he has made because it combines the earlier visual and editing mastery of Three Sisters With Maiden Hearts but tells a much more compelling tale. All viewers should just ignore the title since it is very inappropriate to the film LOL, the title sounds pretty ridiculous. The film is one of the best melodramas on marriage that I have seen. There is just so much that is done well. The film does a good job at balancing sad moments and humorous moments, the film is a melodrama but it never feels excessive. The film handles a story about a husband who cheats on his wife without moralizing. The film also has Naruse's distinctive strong female characters which add depth to the film. The use of visual symbolism is pretty inventive, so is the use of flashback which actually feels modern when comparing it to the use of flashback in other films of the period. Like many great surviving Japanese films of the period this film has great visual compositions, but more importantly I think that the editing just feels very natural and hits every emotional beat perfectly. The use of music is also pretty good in some parts, serving as a transition to different related scenes. Something that also stood out in the film is the use of bold transitions that signal the passage of time. These transitions are more like Ozu's masterful pillow shots rather than the traditional cross dissolve. Naruse uses the combination of visuals and editing to be more poetic with his transitions than most filmmakers. Overall this is an incredible film, however I saw it with such horrible video quality and even worse audio quality so I'll wait to watch a restored version before calling it a masterpiece. So far this is my favorite of the Naruse films I have seen, however its ending lacks the sheer emotional power of the ending in Three Sisters With Maiden Hearts. Another slight flaw is the character of the mother, she's okay but she's not nearly as strong as the mistress, the daughter, or even the aunt in the film. The problem is that I honestly can't sympathize with her since there seems to be no real connection to her relationship with her husband. Still though I get the sense that nothing that's going on is right which strengthens Naruse's pessimistic vision in the film.

Made For Each Other directed by John Cromwell; produced by David O. Selznick - 7.5/10
I watched this film for an online college course on marriage films and there's no real complaints here. This is a fairly entertaining standard Hollywood film from the 30's. It's standard Hollywood filmmaking in a good way, the filmmaking is unobtrusive to the plot and pushes the story forward. I just like the story too because there are few films that just try to capture a marriage, and this one does it fairly well by adding several small conflicts but never being too melodramatic (I like melodramas but there's a time and a place for those kinds of films). I also like the performances here, especially James Stewart's performance (but he's always awesome). Other interesting aspects of the film include the use of wipes which were often well-done. There were also some very memorable scenes, particularly when the wife helps Stewart's character come up with a speech in order to get a raise. This leads to the most memorable line in the film "effective immediately!" I also like the film's portrayal of a black woman, it is just so much better than most films from the period since she is actually a nice normal realistic person lol. This is a very nice film but the ending kind of ruins the realistic marriage film that it was for the most part so I can't quite put it on my favorites list or give it an 8/10.
 
With internet problems it's been hard for me to rate and write about films so I'll try to keep these comments much shorter than usual. (EDIT: Okay I got carried away with my Pushing Hands review)

Die Hard directed by John McTiernan - 10/10
I can talk a lot about this film but I think that it is just self-evident that this is America's action masterpiece. What a wonderful film!

Watch The Birdie starring Bob Hope - 4/10
A barely amusing comedy that only is only slightly interesting due to historical value. I won't rate it lower though because it isn't incompetent or bad filmmaking.

Wild Orchids directed by Sidney Franklin; starring Greta Garbo - 6/10
A great example of the typical silent marriage film. This film is more interesting due to historical value but it actually does have pretty good filmmaking (esp. cinematography). However the film's story is too thin, the relationships are not very believable, and the focus on exoticism makes the film feel dated and less entertaining than it could be. Fortunately this film helped me discover Greta Garbo's beauty, she's amazing! The melodramatic ending is pretty awesome too! This is a decent movie, but its pretty interesting if you are studying marriage films (as I currently am).

Pushing Hands directed by Ang Lee - 8/10
The more I watch Ang Lee's films the more I'm convinced that he has the potential to be a master cinematic craftsmen, however he is not a true master of cinema like other Taiwanese filmmakers (Edward Yang, Hou Hsiao-hsien, and Tsai Ming-liang). This film is his debut, and it's very good but it could've been better. The film is pretty underrated, mostly due to the fact that no one seems to have watched it. I like that it has an almost Ozu-esque objective approach to the family drama, but the film is not consistent. Most of the film plays out like a family drama but then it places too much focus on the grandfather (which is okay because he is by far the most interesting character, but it changes the film's balance). The film is also inconsistent in its tone due to different kinds of scenes. Still the film is very strong in its pacing, although some Ozu-like pillow shots or cinematic transitions would've added another dimension of artistry to the film. The film just has some very great scenes and two great characters (the grandfather and the other old lady), unfortunately the other characters are not as well-developed as they should be. The filmmaking itself is very good with its Ozu-esque quality, but I think Lee focuses a bit too much on the mundane at times (especially in the unbearable first three or four minutes, hang in there it gets better!). Lee also takes the Ozu trademark of elliptical elements in the narrative which actually work well here. What I love most is how this film does all of this to present new themes that are unique to Ang Lee so he is not just an imitator. I also love how the ending seems like the beginning of a new story, this feels like Edward Yang's debut which is a great thing. I kind of feel like objectively this film may deserve a 7.5 and not an 8 due to its flaws but I barely see family dramas made like this during the contemporary period, and this is an awesome debut film. I'd actually like to make these kind of films that take Ozu's formalistic and stylistic elements to tell stories about families but with themes that I feel more strongly about. This film does a pretty good job at doing this, but I think it could've been a lot better.
 
Italianamerican directed by Martin Scorsese - 8/10
A nice documentary about the Scorsese family, I like how simple it is and it really just feels like spending time and talking with Scorsese's parents (and they are wonderful storytellers!).

Aguirre, The Wrath Of God directed by Werner Herzog - 10/10
A masterpiece! This is just a very haunting film with breathtaking visuals and a great descent into madness that I can't describe. This film has wonderful visuals, performances, and music but I can't quite describe how it affected me. I felt like I really was in this world going into uncharted territory and being driven by a desire for power, I have to watch this film again to properly analyze it though.

Amadeus directed by Miloš Forman - 10/10
This is another masterpiece by Miloš Forman who also directed One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest. It is simply a flawless period masterpiece. It was entertaining from beginning to end and some of the musical scenes are just incredibly euphoric. I saw the director's cut which is just under three hours and I really enjoyed it, I'm starting to get used to these longer films now :)
 
August: Osage County- 7/10

Decent film. Some scenes fell flat and the pacing was so-so, but the performances were amazing

Vanilla Sky - 6/10

Not bad. Although some of the Peter Gabriel-Radiohead-Sigur Ros felt a bit shoehorned in. It didn't get intense enough as well I thought.... could have pushed the tone of the film further. But I dug the dream-like feel, and the ending (except for the VERY VERY last shot).
 
The Tale Of Zatoichi directed by Kenji Misumi - 9/10
This is a great samurai film, I love the story and its themes of honor. I love how the film does not glorify the violence but makes it feel very intense. I love the emotions in the film as well. I only wish that there were so character development, but even that is mostly good. I look forward to watching all 25 Zatoichi films plus the Kitano remake.
 
The Miracle Woman (1931)
It seems really odd at first but after watching the entire movie I like it. To me it's about how a person finds truth and how that cannot be replaced by numbers or wealth. I wish movies in the 30s had better sound quality. This movie reminds me of a dream.

8/10
 
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