Up B+
I must slightly dissent from Lawyer’s review here. The opening and closing sequences of this film are breath-taking both in their emotional heft and their subject matter, plowing new ground for an animated film. Beyond that, this is a a good if not great kids film. Unlike Toy Story, The Incredibles, and Wall*E, all of which are as fun for adults as children, the middle of this film feels like kiddie entertainment first and foremost. It just doesn’t hold-up with the adult frame (which children really can’t fully appreciate) involving grown-up dreams and disappointments, including the inability to have children. A very good film, but not among Pixar’s best. B+
Chinatown A
AFI named this Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, John Huston 1974 gumshoe masterpiece from the hands of Roman Polanski the greatest mystery movie ever made. Jack Nicholson as hard-boiled dick Jake Gittes in 1930’s L.A. is hired to look into an affair that turns into murder that at first blush appears to pull Jake into a political scandal. Faye Dunaway is the daughter of a millionaire married to his murdered ex-partner who Jake in turn suspects and loves. Meanwhile, John Huston as Dunaway’s father Noah Cross steals every scene he’s in as a cold-blooded capitalist beast. The film is neo-noir and draws heavily from the film that launched Huston’s directorial career, The Maltese Falcon, especially the character of Sam Spade, the spiritual father of Jake Gittes. However, unlike Falcon which has a hard-boiled morality at its core, Chinatown, as its name ultimately alludes to, has an unbeating nihilistic heart. Great film. A
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix B
In preparation for the newest film I went back and watched its immediate predecessor and the fifth film of the series, The Order of the Phoenix. This is Yates (the eventual director of the remaining films) first time at the helm and it shows. Similar to the first two films, he’s too scared to cut anything out and more interested in dazzling with CGI than with character development or emotional wallop. That’s a shame, because Harry’s godfather Sirius Black’s (a magnificent Gary Oldman) death should be devastating and, instead, is a little confusing. Still, Maggie Smith as pink-loving McCarthy-ist Minerva McGonagall is perfect, Evanna Lynch as space cadet Luna Lovegood is far better than the book, and the final battle between Voldemort and Dumbledore is everything a war between grand wizards should be. At just over two hours, it should have been longer, especially since it contains all the conflicts and clues that drive the final three films. B
The films as I rank them are as follows:
Half-blood Prince (#6) A-
Goblet of Fire (#4) B+
Prisoner of Azkaban (#3) B+
Order of the Phoenix (#5) B
Sorcerer’s Stone (#1) B-
Chamber of Secrets (#2) C+
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
A Few Reviews
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
Up gets an A- from me. The emotional payoff as he looks through the scrapbook and reads his wife's final note is enormous. I can see it meaning even more in longer (and more difficult) marriages than mine. The talking dog stuff worked better than I expected. The message of the "journey being more important and rewarding than the destination" was more subtly and effectively rendered than in Cars. The "kiddie" stuff was still pretty harrowing - with things like species extinction, revenge, and divorce being thrown around. And all the while, dazzling animated visuals fill every frame.
A+ for Chinatown. It's been copied to death by a million TV detective shows and movies. Dunaway does get Nicholson's heart beating again, but it costs him and he ends up worse than where he started. With all this Maltese Falcon talk, I may have to work in another viewing.
As for the HP series, I remember liking #3 the best and #4 and #5 better than #1 and #2.
i guess it's one of those married vs unmarried things. i cry in movies, but this one left me dry.
i loved chinatown. my highest rating has always been a "A", i guess because i'm in the education world and we don't give A+. so, chinatown got my highest ranking as well. the maltese falcon is in my top 20 all time. love it.
#3 of the series is probably the best put together film and really marks the beginning of these films being taken as more than just cash cows. But #4 is just more fun.
Post a Comment