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Reviews
High Ground (2020)
An amazing gut-wrenching story of early Australia.
Diane and I watched this remarkable film yesterday, and we both had similar feelings regarding the beauty of the cinematography as it captured the raw beauty of outback Australia. We both agreed on the gut-wrenching impact of the two cultures that collided militaryly over all the country but is overlooked in popular school education. It is commonly thought that the indigenous people did not organize military-like resistance to the invading British convicts; this film puts the ly to those thoughts. Although the organization was of a guerrilla-type formation in this instance, it was the formation that confronted the British military establishment.
Lady Bird (2017)
A thoughtful "coming of age" but from a female perspective.
As I always do, I first read the comments of those reviews at the bottom of the list because they give me a "rudder" as to the believability of the comments to follow. After seeing the film, I must admit that I find these comments dare I say, silly.
Diane and I viewed the film and emerged with similar thoughts as to its intentions. It is an obvious thought to report that the film was just a copy of male traverses through adolescence but set in a female perspective. The lead actor relates situations about maturation from a female perspective, but that is what distinguishes this film: it is a FEMALE perspective rather than the more typical male passage. I do not consider it detrimental that the script deals with similar occasions in the life of young adults.
I trust that the considerable talent behind this film will continue examining the difficulties of female adolescent passage through the minefield of maturation. I consider it a critical examination of both sexes and both generations.
Sweet Country (2017)
One of the strongest films I have ever watched.
Diane and I watched this movie this afternoon and were the final two people to leave the theatre. We are both migrants, and that may have clouded our judgment about the film; I believe that many people went as soon as the film ended because they were unsatisfied with what they had sat through; just a passing thought.
I thought as I wrote in the early review that it was powerful; the script was sharp, the acting matched the writing and grittiness of the NT Outback contributed hugely to the overall effect. Wallace's costume design added mightily to the grittiness of an already strong film.
If pressed as in a Film Class I am not sure what this film is about. It surely is about race because of the confrontation of the people in the movie who regard skin colour as paramount. It touches on our modern concept of feminism, education and money and finally the rule of law and how far it can extend. It is so good that Australia makes films like Sweet Country because no one else will do certainly not with the brilliance of this film.
I, Tonya (2017)
We do not think that this film is as successful as 3 Billboards-the decision is yours.
Diane and I saw this problematic movie this afternoon, and it has remained a topic of conversation since then. The handout describes it as "A hilarious tragedy" or again "Hilarious.". But we thought that it was tragic and having so-called comedy sections was totally wrong. Diane is a suburban woman, and I grew up in the deep country. Therefore, my upbringing was not anywhere near Tonya's I saw enough people that lived like her minus the swearing for it to ring a bell of recognition.
Diane and I recognised the beauty of the acting on the part of the primary figures. She felt the film was not edited well, it should have been shorter, and we both felt that there was a universal pall over the entire movie. Of course, there are many commentators who think that this mood is entirely what the writers wanted, but there are ways that this mood can be accomplished accurately or not: this movie missed that accuracy.
Diane and I saw this problematic movie this afternoon, and it has remained a topic of conversation since then. The handout describes it as "A hilarious tragedy" or again "Hilarious.". But we thought that it was tragic and having so-called comedy sections was totally wrong. Diane is a suburban woman, and I grew up in the deep country. Therefore, my upbringing was not anywhere near Tonya's I saw enough people that lived like her minus the swearing for it to ring a bell of recognition.
Diane and I recognised the beauty of the acting on the part of the primary figures. She felt the film was not edited well, it should have been shorter, and we both felt that there was a universal pall over the entire movie. Of course, there are many commentators who think that this mood is entirely what the writers wanted, but there are ways that this mood can be accomplished accurately or not: this movie missed that accuracy.
Diane and I saw this problematic movie this afternoon, and it has remained a topic of conversation since then. The handout describes it as "A hilarious tragedy" or again "Hilarious.". But we thought that it was tragic and having so-called comedy sections was totally wrong. Diane is a suburban woman, and I grew up in the deep country. Therefore, my upbringing was not anywhere near Tonya's I saw enough people that lived like her minus the swearing for it to ring a bell of recognition.
Diane and I recognised the beauty of the acting on the part of the primary figures. She felt the film was not edited well, it should have been shorter, and we both felt that there was a universal pall over the entire movie. Of course, there are many commentators who think that this mood is entirely what the writers wanted, but there are ways that this mood can be accomplished accurately or not: this movie missed that accuracy.
Diane and I saw this problematic movie this afternoon, and it has remained a topic of conversation since then. The handout describes it as "A hilarious tragedy" or again "Hilarious.". But we thought that it was tragic and having so-called comedy sections was totally wrong. Diane is a suburban woman, and I grew up in the deep country. Therefore, my upbringing was not anywhere near Tonya's I saw enough people that lived like her minus the swearing for it to ring a bell of recognition.
Diane and I recognised the beauty of the acting on the part of the primary figures. She felt the film was not edited well, it should have been shorter, and we both felt that there was a universal pall over the entire movie. Of course, there are many commentators who think that this mood is entirely what the writers wanted, but there are ways that this mood can be accomplished accurately or not: this movie missed that accuracy.
Diane and I saw this problematic movie this afternoon, and it has remained a topic of conversation since then. The handout describes it as "A hilarious tragedy" or again "Hilarious.". But we thought that it was tragic and having so-called comedy sections was totally wrong. Diane is a suburban woman, and I grew up in the deep country. Therefore, my upbringing was not anywhere near Tonya's I saw enough people that lived like her minus the swearing for it to ring a bell of recognition.
Diane and I recognised the beauty of the acting on the part of the primary figures. She felt the film was not edited well, it should have been shorter, and we both felt that there was a universal negative pall over the entire movie. Of course, there are many commentators who think that this mood is entirely what the writers wanted, but there are ways that this mood can be accomplished accurately or not: this movie missed that accuracy.
The Shape of Water (2017)
Take it from a SciFi sceptic this is a brilliant film that should be seen.
Diane and I saw this marvellous film in Fremantle yesterday and although I am not a SciFi buff in reading nor in visual media I thought the movie was brilliant in all respects.
The ability of the film to transcend reality was remarkable; the script was, and resulting screenplay made the unreal real such that the sceptical viewer like myself sat there engrossed in what should be laughable, but everyone concerned made it so reasonable that, "...of course these things can happen." As a SciFi sceptic, this theme has got to be the bolt that holds the entire concept together otherwise the film turns into a comedy. Unfortunately, I have sat through a number of those, and they have not been pleasant.
All of this film works: the acting is superb as are the many other segments that keep an outrageously good movie like this assembling accolades from around the world. Miss it at your own regret.
The Vietnam War (2017)
It was a wonderful documerntary but the pain of reliving was too much.
I never comment on TV shows or series because I believe IMDb has always been for movie reviews; however, after reading a movie review that made a comment about this film and the thoughts of some people that thought it was too kind to the Communists I could no longer remain silent. Since I reserve a special place in hell for these American conservative cretans, I had to write my thoughts about this singularly fabulous series.
I have admired all of Burns work, and indeed, his series on the Vietnam War was no exception. Thankfully, I did not have to participate in that miserably stupid piece of American overseas diplomacy ( I cringe to think that diplomacy is my choice of words). Just think about its premise to stop the dominoes falling: no dominoe countries have fallen except Vietnam, and it merely wanted to reunite itself after WW II; the disaster of taking the armistice by the USSR rather than a Western country from the various countries in Asia have meant the deaths of countless millions. All of the killing just to save a little Yankee pride.
My only problem with Burn's film was that there were not more Vietnamese interviews; I would like to have heard more of what the Vietnamese thought about the destruction of their once beautiful land by the indiscriminate bombing by the Americans. Then the horror of napalm must be considered a War Crime of the highest degree; America cannot just pull the rug over the inhumanity that they inflicted on Vietnam.
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017)
There is little that can be said about a perfect movie in this space.
Diane and I saw this brilliant film yesterday; it is a film that will not dissipate from our minds like a morning fog when the sun begins to shine. Both of us found the movie something that will remain in our thought for a long time.
In commenting on the film, the first thing that comes to mind is the richness of the pool of acting talent that becomes available to the director. The first is the Little person, besides the leads, he steals the screen whenever he appears. The mother of the "bad guy" takes scenes equally quickly. In short, the Director placed marvellous actors in all the roles needed; there were no soft spots where actors regardless of screen time were felt by the viewers to be "playing" at their roles.
Finally the mains: the actors that wrestled with the primary roles. The primary sources have had a field day distributing well-deserved accolades to all the great actors spread throughout the movie. Out of many such remarkable speeches that stood out was the mother's criticism of the Catholic Priest; it is worth the price of entry by itself.
Call Me by Your Name (2017)
Be prepared for a film longer than Hollywood kids expect but it is well worth it
Diane and I saw this gorgeous film in Fremantle this afternoon, and we both thought highly of the movie: I think my highly out vaulted her highly.
Be prepared: the film is quite long; the various pieces of the script take time to fall into place meaning that the completed movie is like one of those one thousand piece jigsaw puzzles that seem too complicated at the beginning but are hugely compelling when finished.
Please don't get me wrong the film is not an Agatha Christie mystery; however, it does contain many pieces that need to be carefully joined: parents and son, girlfriend and son, lover and another girlfriend. The viewer will quickly fit them together, but they do require patience as the movie will be considered slow-moving by contemporary standards.
My recommendation is to make every effort to see this film; however, don't bother if you are homophobic or do not want to see female breasts on the movie screen. Other than those caveats it is a brilliant film.
Murder on the Orient Express (2017)
Where else would you want to kill somébody?
Diane and I viewed this beauty of a film this afternoon, and we both thoroughly enjoyed a magical cinema event: I use these words because the movie takes you out of your own reality and places you in another world that is not macabre or dangerous but filled with beautiful people, costumes and settings.
Perhaps the reader can tell that I love being removed from the mundanity of our ordinary existence. This beautifully constructed film filled with marvellous actors who are dressed in gorgeous timely costumes and set to work in spectacular train compartments and asked to use a perfect script will leave many cinema-goers anticipating more.
If I were much younger, I would not hunger for the movies from the Directors Period in the 70s and 80s when they were allowed to make Great Movies rather than only the money-men. In any event, see this film for its sublime attractions painted by Kenneth Branagh.
American Made (2017)
Hollywood finally gets it right
When Hollywood gets it right and stops making movies for children they can actually make a beauty like this one. My wife and I just returned from such an accomplished film some minutes ago: American Made.
We have seen Tom Cruise in a number of his previous films (not necessarily by choice) and both of us kind of cringed at his screen presence. He delivered his lines well enough, but we did not see him as a genuine character; he seemed always to be playing his roles rather than living them. The exception was the movie we attended this afternoon; Cruise "stepped into the role", he became Barry Seal and us, the audience lived his demise with him from airline pilot to cocaine courier to arms smuggler for the American government.
This movie could not have been made while Ron Reagan was alive and the other principles like Ollie North sat in positions of decision-making power close to the Oval Office. This movie was about Barry Seal, Drug Smuggler and tangentially about the evil and stupidity that lurked in the minds of people that ran the American government and caused the deaths of many thousands of people in Central America.
This is a brave and thoughtful film that all lovers of America should see; besides its political strength see it because of it is a high film making aptitude.
Madame (2017)
Sober, thoughtful and introspective for all in its audience
Diane and I just returned from a delightful, unHollyhood but strangely moving film about love, not having it but grappling to snare it again; grappling is the significant word here.
The plot is relatively straightforward: wealthy Americans in Paris; marriage souring and maid makes contact with a rich associate. Seems to be a rickety plot to string a movie script on but in the hands of a superb writer the result is a film to remember.
It is an adult movie that spins itself around a relatively minuscule plot, but the quality of the thread and the talent of the tailor accounts for the particularly excellent script.
The Big Sick (2017)
The clash of cultures often leaves many casualties.
I thought the film had taken a little screen time before it moved along. I was afraid that this movie was going nowhere but I was certainly wrong. Once the Director had established the background and fleshed out the characters at this point the movie took off.
The film's structure encompassed the sudden and traumatic illness of the Anglo woman and her Pakistani boy friend with her family; the problem of him being a young Pakistani man had many rendering moments. Beyond the obvious tensions that could be felt even by a withdrawn audience here in Perth, Western Australia these relationships difficulties are certainly not unknown.
The substance of the movie was this trauma between the sexes and it does, indeed, provide a suitable structure for an absorbing film. The significant subplot of the film, in my opinion, further bolstered the excellent writing of this tremendous film.
Svet-Ake (2010)
The movie is far better than its negative comments
Diane and I just viewed this marvellous film from Kyrgyzstan and although it was simple by Hollywood standards it was infinitely more engrossing.
No, The Light Thief has nothing that would hold the interest of a pre-adolescent; it is a caring, sensitive film that delves into a number of human emotions that are far too deep for Hollywood script writers.
I must allow my comments to end at this point because of the simplicity of the script; the script is simple not because it is childish, no it is infinitely more profound than my simple words can explain. In fact, the script éxplores complex issues that are beyond that which Western viewers are comfortable. These issues are not complex but they demand a degree of appreciation that overly sophisticated audiences today are, perhaps, incapable.
Far from the Madding Crowd (2015)
A definite "do see" movie
Diane and I watched this engrossing anð captivating movie version of a book that she had read in high school; obviously, we viewed the film at her behest because I avoided the book when it when it appeared on my reading list in my lower class.
I mention all of this background to give the readers, such as they may be an idea of why I rated the film as a Ten. I did so because I thought, as well as Diane, that it was a superbly moving film that the Director had rather meticulously adapted from an older book into a faultless adaptation as a brilliant movie.
I was unfamiliar with the story in any way so the entire unfolding of the beautiful film was completely new to my philistine ways. The film followed the story line of the book in a journeyman like manner but in a precisely soft adaptation of the book's story line. The dialogue was never arrant or off-putting. In short, it was a wonderful movie that could easily be viewed on several occasions.
A Quiet Passion (2016)
A sublimely delicious movie with a particularly delectable script
Diane and I watched this engrossing film yesterday at the Paradiso in Northbridge, Perth. We both loved the film and this time I thought that the film was better than Diane particularly because she regarded Emily Dickinson highly enough to be one of her favourite poets which is a considerable compliment considering that Diane has read the U.K. greats.
Of course, we both consider Nixon's performance of the, shall we say, difficult role of the poet herself to be outstanding. In fact, all the major performers carried their roles superbly. I was struck, even as a self-confessed Philistine, by the extraordinary script written by Terrence Davies who also directed this marvellous movie. Perhaps because I was so unfamiliar with Dickinson's poetry that I was so embraced by the facility by which the actors play with the words with which they were so at ease.
Admittedly I am a philistine considering poetry regardless of who wrote it. However, I do love listening to an Australian Bush Poet named Banjo Patterson while listening to his rough poetry around a fire when the stars have come out (sorry readers I got distracted).
Wonder Woman (2017)
Only if you really want to see it
Yesterday afternoon, Diane and I attended a Hollywood remake of the old comic book hero, Wonder Woman. Diane and I, who usually agree on the worth of movies, thought very differently about this film.
I admit at the very beginning of this comment that I am an old codger who dislikes modern Hollywood productions. Diane wanted to go because Hollywood broke their age-old pattern of making male centered movies so I accompanied her against my better judgment because I loathe popular "blockbuster" movies and this turned out not to be an exception.
I also admit to falling asleep during the first part where Wonder Woman is growing up but then saw the second half where she fights in the First World War. The last 2/3rds that I saw were pretty bad; the war scenes were typical "god guys beating up the bad guys" that Hollywood seems unable to discard. I am sitting here shaking my head at those terrible war bits towards the completion of this bad movie. Please read the One Star comments because they said what I think except they write better than I and they remember the scenes far better than I.
I thought Gal Gadot who played the mature Wonder Woman was either directed badly or could not act well because the faces she pulled during the scenes in England and particularly during the battle scenes in France were Beyond the Pale. Admittedly she had terrible scripted scenes to work with and the Director should never have kept all of her close-ups. You can forgive all of these complaints but you cannot all of the Hollywood German-bashing in the second half of the film.
Dangerous Beauty (1998)
I am a little late in viewing but it was worth the wait.
I loved everything about the movie except the terrible soundtrack; the music was a definite detraction from the action on the screen. Admittedly, I saw this film on TV last night and I enjoyed everything about the film besides the musical background.
I thought, as did other commentators, that the historical epic blossomed fully, the costumes, the physical settings and the sprinkling of real historical figures: how many films are produced with the personage of the Venetian Doge sitting amongst his Senators and other governmental officials.
Given contemporary schooling, this could easily be the last generation for decades that would ever know about Venetian Doges or about the Ottoman attack on Malta and its importance to European history or what the Inquisition was all about.
The film was a delicious compendium of choice morsels of historical dishes that allowed the viewer to leave the TV table well satisfied.
Viceroy's House (2017)
Movies are in the eye of the beholder and I loved it.
I admit at the beginning that I only know about movies from what I see on thé screen and this film satisfied me in all respects. Of course, thé subplot was more than a little overworked and had I been more knowledgeable concerning the minuscule of the dialogue I perhaps could be more inflammatory regarding my comment, but alas I am far more uneducated than my fellow commentators.
I loved the beauty of the film; the costumes, the buildings and the makeup of the individuals. I loved the street scenes, the fact that the extras were really there and not just computer composites.
These components of the film are more important to me than the nuances of dialogue or the accuracy of that dialogue that took place seventy years ago.
It is easy to understand why some commentators object so strenuously to unhistoric or inaccurate dialogue but to me, "close enough is good enough."
It is a wonderful historical epic about a little-known facet of history so please attempt to see it before it is buried by the nay-sayers.
Frantz (2016)
It is as good as its awards from around the various festivals.
Diane and I viewed this brilliant film yesterday at Fremantle's art cinema and we both shared the absolute same high regard for the wonderful film that we had just seen. The film was so rich in cinematography, dialogue, acting and scripting that both of us were totally absorbed in this cinematic experience. I am old to the point where I have difficulty following subtitles: either they are too quick so that I can't read them before they disappear or they are too small and in the wrong print colour for this film they were perfect. The print was not too small, too fast or the wrong colour so for an old guy the visuals were perfection personified. As to the substance of the film's script, the action takes place two years after the end of WW I and involves two soldiers who met during the war and the family of one of these soldiers after the war. The drama is intense and its intricacies are sobering and manifest. A film to anticipate and make every effort to attend.
Lion (2016)
An India you expected; a story that perhaps you didn't.
Diane and I saw this memorable film today and she, more than I, (her words, found it "enthralling"); however, I saw it as a movie that captured my attention and kept that attention throughout the film.
Diane is more sensitive to the soft nuances of a screenplay, and she thought that, particularly the Direction, brought out the best in the actors. I know that this comment seems to be more about her thoughts than mine; however, I did see in the movie all her comments about what we saw on the screen.
The plot is known to all aficionados of the moving screen but to see the actors draw substance out of a script that devours so many minutes of screen time is a delicious watch. The fact that the action takes place in the visually delightful country of India is a feast for the eyes to use a trite saying but the cinematography brings out India's horrendous poverty. SEE THIS MOVIE!
Captain Fantastic (2016)
A movie old beyond its time
Diane and I viewed this, stick in your mind, film yesterday at the theater on Essex in Fremantle. Diane and I leave a movie, and our impressions are much the same but with Captain Fantastic it is different; our perceptions of what we just watched were based on her background in studying literature and mine were mere opinions of a movie attendee.
We both, probably because of our ages, have seen the theme worked a few times before and earlier to the germination of the entire idea of "dropping out." This film version at the beginning, when they were still in the forest, pressed too many buttons, "we've seen this done before and better because it was closer to the source." These scenes with the father acting like "army drill sergeant." didn't ring true.
We were also skeptical of the placidness of the children; only the one boy rebelled and the other five just absorbed all of the direction. I was happier with the movie during the last two-thirds when they left the forest and confronted the world as it is not as their father would like it to be.
Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)
A Totally Enjoyable Film
Diane and I saw this film in Fremantle yesterday and both of us greatly enjoyed it. This film will soon point out its origins because of the quite staggering beauty of the backgrounds: one might say unequaled in the world.
Leaving my obvious enamor of New Zealand I enjoyed the script and the two lead actors: Sam Neill and his young sidekick, Julian Dennison. Neill plays a gruff Grey-bearded Bushie who is married to a young woman who heads a cast of exceptionally good fill-ins who take roles in this massively enjoyable film that devolves into a man-hunt for this very unlikely pair by equally unlikely searchers; however, the film does not in any way lose its enjoyment factor in the least.
Of course, there will be commentators who will trot out the "usual suspects": slack script, cardboard characters, actors that just mouth their lines, we have read all of these comments before if they have any pretension of "true film academia" but in my opinion forget that film is for enjoyment and Hunt for the Wilderpeople is for pure enjoyment.
A Month of Sundays (2015)
A delicious film about difficult life issues.
We saw this great film at Luna Essex several days ago and both of us relished the film; it was superbly completed with an equally superb cast of film experts working at their best in all aspects of movie construction. I should not demean any one of them by mentioning our favourites; however, the actors led by LaPaglia, Julia Blake as Sarah, plus the two Clarkes bring Australian actors centre stage for this marvellous Australian movie.
We were moved by the humanity of this movie; albeit, the plot may stretch the credulity of some viewers but do not worry, it is a simple movie that examines simple life conflicts. The pieces of the plot fit very snugly together and lead to a satisfying completion.
The movie's examination of our life's passages will be reflected in viewer's acknowledgement that these instances are prevalent in the simple act of being alive. Those pieces are manifestly part of the human condition and it was a pleasure to see them handled so gently in this sweet movie.
Where to Invade Next (2015)
I dare conservatives watch it
We watched this delightful movie yesterday and we both enjoyed it hugely. Yes, it had elements of typical Moore films in that it took major swipes at American society not so much in an anti-American diatribe but simply to present them with life alternatives so they might begin the long climb down from their red state arrogance.
As other commentators have pointed out, Moore is at pains to show segments of American society that, in my opinion, do not live up to segments of other greater or lesser socialistic models in other countries. Of course conservatives probably would not be caught dead watching a Moore film because they have their own preconceived notions of how America is to be operated and those notions have nothing to do with governmental interference with any aspect of capitalistic life.
The one or two-star reviews write at length about Moore's misconceptions regarding American society but they never come to grips with the substance of the reality of the situation in Europe. One commentator wrote at length about the troubles caused by foreign immigration into their heretofore uni-nationality homelands and they took advantage of freedoms that they had not known before.
If you are not already a closed minded conservative then view this film by all means; if you are a Red State conservative then continue pulling your shell over and dumb-down your mind until America dies from internal disease of its own making.
Woman in Gold (2015)
Brings reality to a strange historical episode
Diane and I watched this superb film last night on CD; we both thought that it was meaningful and brought an interesting perspective on a situation that we knew about but had not seen it take shape as a film. This film brought substance to situations large and small that confront people on both sides of the political/social spectrum. Even the two of us living on the edge of the cultural world, have heard stories of the concern felt by people inhabiting dwellings throughout Western Europe who see cars moving slowly past their homes wondering if they lived in the home previously owned by Jews; the people in the car were their relatives and perhaps wanted it back. There are a huge number of stories that revolve around these circumstances, not just concerning houses but artefacts such as this movie define so well.
This was a true story involving a very famous painting and the role played by Mirren and Reynolds was virtually perfect. Her role was enacted superbly in that she conveyed that anguish of not: wanting to return to Vienna, wishing to force an issue regarding the ownership of the painting and confronting old memories that had long-since been mentally buried.
The script revolves around her attempt to access the painting and as such she is involved in myriad court cases in America as well as Austria. Reynolds is the lawyer that handles her case; the film also revolves around the legalism of her attempts to regain the picture. Therefore, the film has these two sides: the legal and the emotional/historic.
I believe the Director did a marvellous job of taking the plot back to the original characters, as of 1938, when Anschluss joined Hitler's Germany to Austria. It was a very good technique in that the viewer could get some idea of the time period when all of this activity took place. Everything about this film is without error and extremely timely and therefore should be sought out and viewed.