Another Batch

Here is what I have watched on DVD since I posted my last list. They are listed in declining order as I rated them. The ratings I give are on my own number system as explained previously in this blog.

How about letting us know if you have any comments regarding any of these films and about what you have been watching at home or in the theater?

Snow Cake - 2006. This quiet Canadian film takes place in a small town in Ontario and tells the story of the affect of an unexpected tragedy on the lives of three people who don't have much in common. Good performances and a worthwhile script make for a 3.2 movie.

He Knew He Was Right - 2004. This BBC filming of the Anthony Trollope novel had all the expected qualities of these productions, good script, excellent acting and wonderful production values. The story of the naive indiscretion of a young wife and the excessive jealousy of her husband is played with the usual commentary on the norms and mores of society, but not with the depth and subtleties of Jane Austen pieces, so my 3.2 rating is not as high as for Jane's.

The Hidden Blade - 2004. This middle film of the trilogy by Japanese director Yoji Yomada is set in 1861 and tells the tale of a very honorable lower level unmarried samurai who struggles with the coming of Western ways to Japan (including something so simple as learning to move the arms when running) and the affect these changes have on the samurai. He must also deal with changes in his personal life and confronting the corruption of his superiors. This 3.1 movie is well made and creates a good feel of that time in Japan.

War Games - 1983. It is always fun to look at high tech of the past and marvel at how far we have come. The computers in this movie look ancient, but they were fourteen years newer than the ones that put a man on the moon. The film itself is well written enough to hold its age fairly well and gets my 3.1 rating. The cold war issue of the role of computers versus humans in national defense is still relevant today when we are using "smart" weapons and drones to pinpoint terrorists and avoid friendly forces and civilians. The lesson of the movie about the non-winnable game of nuclear war will always be true; if only we would learn it. The Seattle setting as the hometown was inadequately exploited. However, as an aquatically challenged Seattle native, I had to answer in the affirmative when Ally Sheedy asked, "What kind of an a__hole grows up in Seattle and doesn't know how to swim?"

Lea - 1996. This Czech film is like a dark fairy tale with glimmers of sun. There is nothing of pure beauty to look at, but the dark cinematography has an appropriately haunting quality. The music goes from intentionally annoying to quiet and back to annoying at the end. The acting is very good and the plot enough to provide some movement while still concentrating on the strange relationship between the two leads. Some summaries of the plot make it sound like a cliche, but they are not accurate. If you turn the movie off at 1:30, when Lea starts to dance and twirl, you get a very different movie than if you watch the final few minutes after that. I give it a 3.1 based on the full story. I cannot say what I would have given it if it had ended sooner, since I did watch it in full. You might try watching the short version and reflecting a while, then play the final minutes and see what you think.

Up - 2009. I found the first few minutes of this Pixar animated movie quite touching as it told a capsule version of the life of a young couple into old age. Having an elderly sympathetic central character is a bit unique for a cartoon. If the whole movie had been like that, it would really have been something special. But that is not where the Disney market is, so the rest of the film was fairly conventional, putting it overall at my 3 rating.

The Bank Job - 2008. This British thriller is based on a true story involving government intrigue and the use of petty thieves to break into safe deposit boxes. A tight script abetted by true basis and good acting make it a 3 rating for a genre of which I am not particularly enamored.

Beyond Desire (Deseo) - 2002. This Spanish/Argentinian thriller told a story of the interesting time in Madrid around the time of Hitler's suicide, and of an Argentine agent for the Nazis who was smuggling German officials off to new identities in Argentina. This man complicates his life by becoming involved with a Spanish woman whose Communist husband is about to be released from prison. Despite the interesting possibilities and the good production, I only gave it a 3 rating, because the script did not tell us enough about the relationship of the husband and wife before she got involved with the Nazis, and I also thought the ending was hastened. Stories should have a beginning, middle and end and this one had little or no beginning, too much middle and not enough end.

Family Law - 2006. Another Spanish/Argentinian film, this time lighter, but with an intended message about parenting and fathers and sons. Though pleasant enough to watch, and with fun lawyer life vignettes, the message did not seem to be much other than spend time together and recognize individuality, and I gave it only 2.9 because it did not leave any particular impact.

Little Voice - 1998. This may technically be an American movie, but the cast and setting are English. The story is a bit of a fable about a reclusive young girl who has learned to imitate the singing voices of many famous female singers. The actress, Jane Horrocks, actually did all the singing, but the show seems more a vehicle for the three older stars, Michael Caine, Brenda Blethyn and Jim Broadbent to play really over the top roles. A little different, but not really much of a story, and my 2.9 rating is for the old hams.

Cold Comfort Farm - 1995. In this 2.9 British film an orphaned young lady of societal standing is economically challenged and ends up staying with some oddball shirt tail relatives on their farm. Being an aspiring writer, she expects them to be fodder for her creative mill, and self-assuredly sets about to right all their lives and fill them with new hope, before blissfully moving on to her own happily ever after. If you want something for simple fun, with no dramatic tension or downturns, this is it.

Seven Beauties - 1975. This Italian movie was one of the first films of acclaim written and directed by a woman, Lina Wertmuller. This story of a petty Neapolitan at the time of WWII who believes he has a special gift for attracting women, in spite of his lack of goods looks or money, is told, somewhat unnecessarily, through non-sequential flashbacks. The treatment of male honor and female virtue and what war does to them is interesting, especially coming in 1975 from a woman film maker. The cinematography has a certain grittiness but the camera movement and zooming in the first part of the film is dated. After bordering on farce, the film becomes quite serious once the hero is put in a German war camp. At a 2.9 rating, it is worth a watch if you have any particular interest.

Michael Clayton - 2007. This formulaic thriller was well acted by a good cast and was slickly done, but did not rise above 2.8 for me, because the story of an evil corporation hiding its foul deeds at any cost, while truly terrible, deserves a better telling than this rehash.