Week 52 in film

Christmas + lousy weather = cinema overdrive!

It's A Wonderful Life (Frank Capra, 1946)
Another classic I still had to watch. Christmas felt like a good time to do it. James Stewart is endearing as ever and the fantasy angle in a very sweet and sappy Christmas tale is original and more compelling than I expected. The moral is impossible to miss, but more relevant than ever. 8/10



Star Trek Into Darkness (J.J. Abrams, 2013)
Amongst all the action-scifi crap made these days Abrams proves to be a good action-director. I liked the third Mission Impossible, Super 8 and this one, which surprised me, to be honest. The balance between action and plot is a bit off at the end, but thanks to a great start very sufficient overall.  7/10

The Quick and the Dead (Sam Raimi, 1995)
Raimi honours all these Western classics with some 'comic-book-like' action and directing. The plot development is not surprising or original but I couldn't help enjoying it for its full length. 7.5/10

Tabu (Miguel Gomes, 2012)
One of the most original films of the year comes from Portugal. The history of an old Portugese lady is told by her ex-lover whom she met when living in Africa. Beautiful black and white photography, poetic undertones and a relaxing pace. 8/10

Juliet and the Spirits (Federico Fellini, 1965)
Giulietta Masina seems to be playing herself in this visual treat from Fellini. Keep in mind: Fellini loved women. He was dreaming the biggest boobs and asses you can imagine, as visible in last years Eye-exhibition. He also loved Masina, who was always by his side. Knowing this makes this film very interesting. Giuletta her husband is cheating on her and she struggles with the thought of sexual freedom haunted by memories and (beautiful) visions. A very personal film by the Italian master. Did he 'borrow' the shot shown below from that other Italian master? 8/10



Lawrence of Arabia (David Lean, 1962)
A hiatus in my film knowledge (there are a number of them...): the sword-and-sandal-genre. I decided to dedicate 4 hours to what is supposedly the best film in this category. Reminded me why I am not a fan. After two hours of sand and camels I felt bored. Of course the cinematography is stellar, and the ending makes up for a lot, but still, not a masterpiece if you ask me. 7.5/10

Paradies: Hoffnung (Ulrich Seidl, 2013)
Third and last film in the Paradies-trilogy. The worst. A group of teenage girls at fat camp are more boring than Seidl may have considered. Stays on the surface pretty much the whole film, there are a lot of possible angles here, the doctor-girl relationship is not the best one. 4.5/10

Stagecoach (John Ford, 1939)
A very young John Wayne in a film that is more classic than good. The chase with the Indians is great, some of the characters are funny but the whole love-interest-angle didn't work for me at all. 6.5/10

Miracle on 34th Street (George Seaton, 1947)
Week of the (Christmas) classics. This one is just as endearing as It's A Wonderful Life. Due to a simpler plot and mediocre acting not in the same league, though. 6.5/10

Week 51 in film

Inside Llewyn Davis (Coen Brothers, 2013)
I didn't really like A Serious Man, by some considered as the best Coen-film. This film has many similarities. It is about a guy who doesn't have luck on his side, but can somehow blame himself by being an ass at times. He is a charismatic guy, a good musician, but he can't really control what happens to him and if luck is on his side faith manages to interfere. Coen territory for sure. The scenes with John Goodman, who gained a lot of weight again, are gold and extremely funny. It is a highlight in a film that is mostly a bit of a drag if you ask me. There is a lot to discover (the cat...) but some of it is not that interesting or urgent, like in A Serious Man. I like this one a bit better. 7/10



Mouchette (Robert Bresson, 1967)
I liked L'Argent and Pickpocket from Bresson. His minimalistic acting and showing events worked in those films and make him a unique filmmaker in the good sense. In this film, about a girl who has a horrible life, to say the least, it didn't work for me. Somewhat dull I am afraid, a state I also experienced when I was watching Au hasard Balthazar.  6/10

Runner Runner (Brad Furman, 2013)
Contender for worst film of the year. Totally ridiculous story, horrible acting (Ben Affleck...).  2/10

Last Vegas (John Turteltaub, 2013)
The Hangover for over 60? Yes, a bit. A group of four childhood friends in their sixties are going to Vegas because one of them (Douglas) is getting married. Of course there are some unresolved issues between the guys, and of course they win a lot of money, and of course they end up partying in Vegas. Actually quite funny at times and the cast makes it worthwhile. The lazy script and cheesy ending doesn't. 5/10



The World's End (Edgar Wright, 2013)
Not as funny as Hot Fuzz or Shaun of the Dead. Basically the same setup. Instead of zombies we now have aliens...sort of. Some of the action scenes are directed very well and I liked the social criticism. Not too good, not too bad. 6/10

The Blues Brothers (John Landis, 1980)
Never seen this classic before. Not much of a plot really, a lot of good music and A-team-like car chases, which are done pretty well. Has a nostalghic 80's vibe on which I can't really lay a finger. It does help me appreciate this film. 6.5/10

Week 50 in film

Total Recall (Paul Verhoeven, 1990)
My favorite Schwarzenegger ('Relax, you'll live longer'), probably my second or third favorite Verhoeven, who I think has made a handful of really great films. Like most of his films this one is highly entertaining and provides a lot of fun, humor and Cronenbergian body-horror. In this particular film he also shows how to balance action, plot and snappy one-liners. Something easily forgotten nowadays in films in the same genre, I am not even mentioning the terrible remake of this film. Seen it three times now, could easily watch it again, always a lot of fun, great example of how to make a good action-scifi flick. 8.5/10



Berberian Sound Studio (Peter Strickland, 2012)
Toby Jones as a stiff mommiesboy Englishman in a sound studio with Italians producing a giallo. Yes, the sound editing of this film is great, the editing itself as well. There is one problem however, this film lacks suspense. To me it wasn't clear why I should feel suspense, let alone that the individual scenes were directed well. Descend into madness is a craft to film not everyone masters, as it turns out.  4.5/10

A perdre la raison (Joachim Lafosse, 2012)
A mediocre, dark and somewhat pointless film about depression in a marriage. Not a common marriage. The husband still lives with the man, a docter, who raised him. Even when the family has four children they still live with the doctor, who made the family financially dependent of him. Not very plausible if you ask me. 5/10

Honeymoon in Vegas (Andrew Bergman, 1992)
Only one reason to watch this: a raging Cage. He is hilarious at times. The rest of this film, a comedy version of Indecent Proposal, isn't. 4/10



A Late Quartet (Yaron Zilberman, 2012)
Typical arthousepic. Four musicians have a very established quartet. When the eldest (Christopher Walken) is diagnosed with Parkinsons all the relations in the quartet are under pressure. Not a bad film, not very good, read very memorable. The acting performances are solid, Walken is somewhat touching. Not much more to say.  7/10

Les Salauds (Claire Denis, 2013)
Another dark, french film this week. Claire Denis her films are almost always interesting, not always that good. This one can be seen as a stylish 8MM (remember, with Nicolas Cage). I am sure Denis didn't have this crappy film in mind. Not sure what she wants with this. It is not as tense or styleful as some of her better films. I have to admit I got bored towards the end. And why didn't we see more of the beautiful and very talented Lola Creton? 6.5/10

Week 49 in film

El secreto de sus ojos (Juan Jose Campanella, 2009)
The film that kept Das Weisse Band from winning an Academy Award. I can't see why. It is original in the sense that it plays with the conventions of the crime-genre. Halfway this suspenseful film about a brutal rape and murder from the past it turns into a love story that didn't convince me really. Maybe I was hoping for a puzzle/detectivefilm too much. Somewhat original, but lacks the depth the ending requires.  7/10



The Wire - Season 5
Unfortunately, it ends. For a while I was afraid it wouldn't end in style but all in all I think it does. The last season chooses another interesting angle with the newspaper editorial department. This season has more politics, McNulty and a bit less gangster-shit. It tends to become improbable at some point, and the writers may have chosen some developments as a metaphor. It does make a strong point (I won't spoil...). Yes, best series I've seen so far. Well worth the investment of 50 to 60 hours of my life. If I haven't made it clear already, comes highly recommended!  9.5/10

Rising Sun (Philip Kaufman, 1993)
As stated before I am really into the early nineties Hollywood films. This one with Wesley Snipes and Sean Connery is a perfect example of the many many films that have been produced in this era. A mystery, ridiculous plot but great characters in this case portrayed by the great Sean Connery. Not very good, but so enjoyable and almost melancholic. 5/10

Drop Zone (John Badham, 1994)
Second film this week with Wesley Snipes. Again, not a very qualitative film but oh so much fun. A lot of skydiving, Hans Zimmer soundtrack and Gary Busey. Guarantee for 1,5 hours of entertainment. The plot is absolutely not important.  6.5/10

Week 48 in film

Elysium (Neill Blomkamp, 2013)
Example of why and how science fiction can be utterly boring. Just because there is a new planet with some extremely improbable technology doesn't mean it is original. Blomkamp didn't impress me that much with District 9 and even fails to entertain with this one. Before the shaky action starts it is bearable but when Damon becomes a radioactive RoboCop with a love-interest we've seen 988223 times in other films (just like the flashbacks, the bad guy etc.) this film falls apart. Can be added to the long list of bad writing disguised as original scifi.  4/10



Like Father, Like Son (Hirokazu Koreeda, 2013)
How important is your upbringing and the love of parents? Koreeda manages to answer this question in his natural and realistic way. Two totally different families meet when the hospital finds out that their sons were switched after they were born. The families are asked to make a tough decision about their sons and for the somewhat workaholic father of one, this confronts him with his own youth and how it is translated into bringing up his only son. Typical Koreeda territory. Not his best is still pretty good.  7.5/10

Secretary (Steven Shainberg, 2002)
Considered classic by some. It has some 'Cronenberg-like' quality in its main theme. Of course, James Spader helps a lot in this. Couldn't help thinking about Cronenberg's Crash. Unfortunately this isn't a Cronenberg, the psychological element is only interesting for the first half hour, the remainder feels repetitive. 5/10

The Specialist (Luis Llosa, 1994)
Guilty pleasure from the nineties. Watched it often as a kid, and still I find it enjoyable at times. Has James Woods, Eric Roberts, Stallone and Sharon Stone must be one of the hottest women ever in film history. What I didn't remember well was that this is not a very good film. Nevertheless, I prefer it over the action films that are made nowadays. Too much 'cheap' action, special effects and 3D abuse. In the nineties at least there were character actors armed with snappy dialogue.  5.5/10