What DVD have you just watched?

..and now from the sublime (Detachment) to the gor-blimey:

The Knot

Thought I'd get this out from Lovefilm as it is marketed as a RomCom, which my wife might enjoy and, if you put me in an arm-lock, I might admit to enjoying too.

This film is NOT: Romantic, it is base and gross; or humorous. This feels like a script that was knocked out in a couple of days by a group of drunk seventeen year olds.

This may make me sound like a prude, but keep in mind that I do enjoy American Pie - so how BAD must this be!

M

The Inn of the Sixth Happiness

I haven't seen this since I was about sixteen, but the film had lived on in my memory pretty accurately.

The only element in the film that smacks of artifice to me is the love interest played by Curt Jurgens, and I think that this movie would have been stronger without it. I would have loved them to have given far more screen time to the journey to China, the setting up of the inn and the relationship between Gladys Aylward and Jeannie Lawson.

The film ends after the children are walked out of the war zone, and leaves the possibility of requited love in the air. In the real history Aylward did not abandon the children. She returned to the UK for the remainder of the war after which she tried to return, and was refused by the Chinese authorities. She moved to Taiwan where she set up and ran an orphanage, dying there in 1970.

Remarkable woman.

M

Haim, did you like "A Late Quartet"?

I will see it 'just because' it is a movie which has 'props' in that I find personally endearing.  The idea may be interesting but Hollywood likely has ruined it and will miss the point by a country mile in its typical fashion, I'd suspect.  From the preview, the first thing you notice is that these four do not (nor could ever) look like musicians while playing.  OK, I admit I am just a plain old nitpicker but for me it would be like coaching an actor over a few weeks/months to look like an Olympic gymnast.  No matter how much they try they will always look uncoordinated and out of place and I can't see past this fatal flaw.  Better to use monkeys if you can't use real musicians.

The second thing I notice is that of the seating arrangement.  While putting the Cellist in the third position from the left is done it is probably only the second most common arrangement (l-r => 1st violin, 2nd violin, cello, viola).   The most common arrangement these days is (l-r => 1st violin, 2nd violin, viola, cello).   Most rare is (l-r => 1st violin, viola, cello, 2nd violin).  My point is I would bet anyone that some Hollywood big head dictated the arrangement to have Walken in that position to give his face the number one prominence and then Hoffman 2nd in line in prominance but much lower.

Third, before I see it I have to get out of my mind the image of Walken as a crazed manipulative killer wielding a butcher knife rather than a beautiful stringed instrument.

Hotel Transylvania - wholly unexpected, such a sweet feel good movie. Watched it with my wife, we both loved it.

EJ

Doug,

"A Late Quartet" is not a masterpiece but it is definitely worth watching, especially if you fancy Beethoven's String Quartet OP. 131. I would have much preferred though if the musicians were unknown actors, becoming more believable artists.

What I did not like at all were the colors of the film which seemed constantly off and over saturated. Let me know what you think of it.

Everything must go - really good, but a hard film to recommend because it finds Ferrell out of character, here he plays a serious, good natured guy in a series of unfortunate events, who gets by on his quirky humor.

EJ

Life of Pi. Not the sort of movie I usually watch but thoroughly enjoyed it.  Good story-line and wonderful cinematography.  Very hard to tell the difference between CGI and footage of the real tiger. Highly recommended.

MDS 

There was no footage of a real tiger in the movie.

I stand corrected. About 15% was real. But you're right. Hard to tell.

"Nora’s Will is a tale of lost faith and eternal love from one of Mexico’s most new filmmakers, writer/director Mariana Chenillo. Nora’s Will was named Mexico’s Best Picture of the Year, taking home seven Ariel Awards. Chenillo is the first female director ever to win Mexico’s Best Picture award.

When his ex-wife Nora dies right before Passover, José (Fernando Luján) is forced to stay with her body until she can be properly put to rest. He soon realizes he is part of Nora’s plan to bring her family back together for one last Passover feast, leading José to reexamine their relationship and rediscover their undying love for each other."

Hadn't seen this in years:

Pompous, pretentious, preposterous... A godawful mess really.

I rather enjoyed it:

I enjoyed this one but my girlfriend hated it. 

http://www.rogerebert.com/revi...ar-at-marienbad-1961

Friday, Alien

Saturday, Aliens

Sunday...took a break

Tonight...Alien3

Tomorrow night, Alien 4

It's an Alien weekend because the wife's away on travels!!

Regards,
Frank.
All opinions are my own and do not reflect the opinion of any organisations I work for, except where this is stated explicitly.

GREAT movie Haim. Although when I went to see a new print of it at the cinema a couple of years ago, the gentleman next to me was fast asleep!

Casino Royale was way much better. Too much hype and quite a boring plot  saved only by Bardem's performance.