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15 Best Movie Musicals
Wicked (2024) with Ariana Grande production was originally supposed to be made by Stephen Daldry in 2021...
I was lucky to see Wicked in London, as well as Chicago, Lion King and Miss Saigon in New York.
Who will do Miss Saigon this decade?!? Lin-Manuel Miranda stars in one and directs another, while Bill Condon directs two of below musical masterpieces!
Runner Ups: Signing in the Rain (1952) Mary Poppins (1964) My Fair Lady (1964) Cabaret (1972) The Little Mermaid (1989) Aladdin (1992) In the Heights (2021)
Best Biopics about Painters
Poll: [link]http://www.imdb.com/poll/ns_tw4yTLrw/[/link]
Poll discussion thread: [link]http://www.imdb.com/board/bd0000088/thread/250356365[/link]
Reviews
Blink (2024)
Wonder, Awe and Acceptance
I travelled the world for a year with my son when he was 3 months old. I travelled the world with him since then and met a few other families that travel with their children and sometimes home school them. I think it is the best gift and education to give them. When we see the beauty and diversity of the world we learn to be happy with less. We learn to see less differences and divisions. We also remember our role, our mortality and the smallness of our local thinking.
This film explores these themes including the fear of losing our sight from illness. 3 out of 4 kids are already losing their sight and cannot see stars or well at all at night. This National Geographic doc explores the world with stunning footage from Egypt, Ecuador and Nepal among others. More importantly, it exposes the family dilemmas and joys. Their quest to live a bucket list now and not wait until it is too late. A reminder we should all have.
The editing and storytelling are superb and many intimate scenes bring these profound questions to light with lightheartedness. How to accept the difficult. How to accept illness (and even death) with courage, kindness and love.
A beautiful scene in a dessert sunset has the mom and daughter on a sand dune try to imagine traveling with no sight. Can we still connect with our other senses and with different people and cultures? Surely, yes. There is this constant hope and beauty in face of despair.
A tribe in the amazon gives advice to accept life as it. Easier said than done. The dad reflects on how to let go of fear. Children play together and make new friends. No one wants to go home from this wondrous voyage. But will the awe transcend and stay after the tumultuous travel time?
Back in my native Montreal, Canada, they reconnect with family and start school again. One kid mentions that being home is simply another voyage. The journey continues and the growth is constant. As adults we have to stay playful and open to possibilities. This film reminds us of so many reasons to be grateful to be simply alive. Awesome!
More films like this should be made. It reminded me both why I travel and why I live with awe, wonder and gratitude in any circumstance. Very courageous and enlightening project to share with the world.
Bravo!
Kurîpî: Itsuwari no rinjin (2016)
Best Horror from K Kurosawa in 15 years
After the unmatchable Cure (1997) which share the theme of "power of suggestilon" with this new entry on J Horror classic, Kurosawa delivered 2 solid scares in Ko-rei (2000) and Kairo (2000). I saw 14 of his films and he managed a few very good dramas, but no horror as good in a decade in a half.
I just saw this gem on the underappreciated Criterion Channel streaming platform. The directing and acting is stellar, especially from 4 leads, including actress Yuko Takeuchi who would die a few years later at 40 in mysterious possible suicide
The opening scenes are very good and srt the tone. Some philosophy and psychology. The charcter and story buildup is a bit slow for the firstt hour or so, but dont worry the last 45 minutes are simply riveting and different enough with real psychological horror and tension.
Enjoy at night and be thrilled.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023)
Not as Good as the 1st Besides All the Hype
This movie is good and has some interesting scenes but missing the good writing of its predecesssor. Miles' relationship with his parents start to feel contrived and simplistic. The movie is not that interesting until the 90-min mark when a spectacular chase scene makes for the best patt of the movie. Not the sequel that eveyone claims it is. For a better sequel go see Dune Part 2 or Terminator 2.
For me the writing was not as innovative or heartfelt as part one and only served to have some cool grafics with much less substance. Hope part 3 can find the right balance and bring the best spiderman back to the screen.
Creating Christ (2022)
History of the World and Religions
War, power and propaganda. From pagan, polythesis and previous monothesis ideas, symbols and stories comes the New Testament in a precise political time period. To understand the New Testatment as a peaceful and pacifying messiah story opposing force to the war messiah ideas of the Dead Sea Scrolls.
The forensic anthropological/archeoligical of coins and catacombs are compelling. Constatin made Christianity legal but it was never truly persecuted and Flavius created the intial cult with inclusive narrative that had pagan ideas and symbols. Very good propaganda!! Positive portrayal of Jew and non-Jew real histrorical figures in Paul's gospel Power people pulled psychological strings lomg time ago. People do not eant to ser the truth and seek safety, stories and comfort. They allow themselves to be controlled until today, believing they found the way when the way was paved for them and they cannot think beyomd the bonds they were exposed to.
Catholic comes from "universal" in Greek. This story of poltics, power and religion is universal. We see all this before and after. In Asia (Zoorastrian, Hindu, Islam, etc.) and the Americas (Aztec, Mayas, Chimu, etc.)
Faith and fear are human everywhere amd every time. Nicely done doc about a specific place, time and contezt to create the world #1 Religion today.
Anselm - Das Rauschen der Zeit (2023)
Wenders' Genius and Kiefer's Craft (& Challenging Curiodity)
Win Wenders is a German filmmaker with a prolific career of decades of daring features as well as acclaimed documentaries. Wender has been nominated 3 times for the Best Documentary Features Oscar: Buena Vista Social Club (1999), Pina (2011) and Salt of the Earth (2014). They are progressively better and the last one of the three should have won. It is one of the best docs I have ever seen. This new doc is not as good as the last, but worth a serious watch. It could have been nominated for its thematic exploration and better than Buena Vista Social Club in my eye. Maybe it got overlooked because it is not as perfect as Perfect Days (2023), his feature film of the same year which got Best Foreign
Instead of doing focused biographies of musicians, a dancer and a photographer, Wender examines with Anselm a visual and fine art (plastic art) icon who grew from drawings, paintings, photos to sculptures and massive productions. Anselm Keifer moved from and eventually bought bigger and bigger workshops to accomodate ambitious projects with over 40 assistants.
The art shines, especially in the controversial photography series with the Nazi salute to put a mirror in front of the German amnesia The movie shines with its well planned cinematography and the storytelling, including the writing that hits it stride in the last 20 minutes. The beginning is bogged down by Paul Celan's lackluster poetry and perhaps a lack of focus and fluid momentum.
If Celan's work was certainly a strong influence for Keifer, it did not translate well in the movie. I would have preferred another construct or toget more personal,including exploring family like in The Salt of the Earth. Keifer has 5 children and 2 ex-wives who are never mentioned for instance, yet it may be for lack of permission of people or because of the strong contrast between young, older and present day Anselm that might have been affected by other actors and taking away from the artistic pursuit focus.. in the end,it comes with a solid dose of solitude.
The Unbearable Lightness of Being as Milan Knndera influences Keifer better than Celan. The inevitability of death looms with the unending creation and curiosity, Besides a few less suitable cues, this movies shines in the end with a strong vision, message, execution, contemplation, creativity and details.
Symbolism is strong. Brilliant connectors are many. Think also that Wenders and Keifer are born in the same year (1945) and same country. They both started their world-renown art in the early 1970s and are as dedicated to it over fifty years later. Parallel worlds like the 3 Anselms.
Aku wa sonzai shinai (2023)
What Are the Title and Story Saying?
The Guardian called this movie a "stramge uneasy poem" and seems to frustate many moviegoers. What is the ending scene? Why is thr begining so excruciatingly slow?
The setting is the minimalist village society, linked with nature and mental reality that rewuires a slow pacr to ponder and understand. When the Tokyo tycoons arrive, dialog starts and is very well written. Hamaguchi's directing is potent yet different than famous and endearing Drive My Car (9/10) and even lomger and better film Happy Hour (10/10)! Unlike Wheel of Fortune amd Fantasy (9/10) and Asako I & II (8/10) urban explorations of love, here It takes place in a small village called Harasawa where the theme of loss is explored instead. We do not know why the main character has lost his wife but it obviously affects him and his daughter. We he cut woods or carries water, we can only imagine in retrospect what is in his head.
The duo advertising agency Tokyo infiltrators in the community are stuck between stock return mentally (budget and profits) versus lowkey loyalty to human nature and reasonable community comcerns. They return from their 1st encounter changed. But must return faced with typical careless lip-service (acting agent after all). Will the career con and the ex healthcare worker with a itch for change succeed in career, love and life after their intimate car talk to pursue a coporate mission they do not really believe in?
Potential murder, mayhem, suicidal ideation arise from human nature which is also symbolized by animal nature (deers) and nature...
Is there a balance? We all return to the source like the nearly sacred spring water.
Good and evil are human constructs. I know this from a long time. Philosophically, there is no good or bad, there just is. This movie remimds us of that. The greedy corporation, the glamping trend , the goverment covid subsidies or the villagers like deers caught in headlights are not at fault. They all have external and internal forces. No one is the culprit. Life continues.
Beautifully writing and directed. Hamaguchi is a versitile filmmaker and has many more films to come I certainly hope. 8/10.
Ru (2023)
Out on Crave Soon - Beautiful and Moving
Ru was theatrically released in Fall 2023 and should soon hit CraveTV in 2024.
I was lucky to see it in theater where director and. Writer of the book the movie is based on thanked us for seeing it in the big screen. The cinematography is stellar in many scenes.
This Quebec production shines in many ways with good acting, set design, custumes and more. This late 1970 period piece shows beautiful vibrant city and nature landscape in Canadian snowy winter. What shines even more is the source material and adpated screenplay that showcases trauma, human atrocity, adaptation, acceptance and awkard cultural exchanges. Some dialogue will reaonate long after the viewing and same goes for the imagery.
The directing and editing are fluid and make us feel the inner worlld of a caring, yet scared, confused and lost, growing teenager trying to make sense of the world and her place in it.
Many characters bring depth to the story while a few remain superficial yet crucial to the whole picture. The journey does not have a clear end. Life itself is but a journey, but it does have some key awakenings and realizations. Resilience, gratitude and humbleness in this both cruel and giving world.
The video montage near the end is very impactful as well as the music throughout. A movie about family, immigration, hospitality, life circumstances, survival and transendence.
"If you appreciate the nuances and shades of the blue sky, you appreciate life..."
Los colonos (2023)
The Settlers Does Not Settle for Safe Mediocrity and Melodrama
"Los colonos" (aka "The Settlers") is an international production with a solid screenplay and measured directing by Felipe Gálvez Haberle. It may not be the best film of 2023, yet it deservedly won several international awards and is a haunting social commentary on colonialism to raise consciousness with an artistic flair. You would be hard pressed to find a more impactful movie in the last few years about indigenous atrocities. Even Martin Scorsese's superior "Killers of the Flower Moon" fails to express so viscerally and intellectually the lingering injustice and the inherent flaws of the system that prevails to this day.
The recent trend to, only when confronted, publicly acknowledge aspects of the world's most horrific genocide and culturicide in recorded history still lacks real solutions, salvation and changes necessary to avoid these types of atrocities in this new century. We are still faced with largely sanitised native history with selected omissions or distortions making there way to the classrooms and overall culture. Many think natives died of disease because of weaker or unprepared immune system and long time ago. This film shows 20th century history way after massacres like the Bloody River in St. Kitts, where roughly 2000 Kalinago natives were massacred by British and French forces in an unlikely alliance in the 17th century. We also now know that tens of thousands of native children were taken from their parents for "reducation" in Canada and hundreds massacred in a system that was active as late as 1996!
"Los colonos" forces us to look at our collective colonial past and present. The editing is poignant and the sudden switch in the narrative to a future with a more benevolent and supposedly peace-seeking politician, after the fact, to salvage the reputation of the government, inquire, blame and benefit is sublime. Doctrines of violence or pacification with docile "allies have always had the same aim: to solve the troublesome "problem of the savages on their ancestral land" that the colonisers claimed and simply took. This film's depiction (and deception) is marked with nuances and relates to current climate of "truth, reconciliation and inclusion" which has to date failed to produce tangible or real results.
Felipe Gálvez Haberle said in an interview that the history of cinema is also stained with blood in terms of what has been shown and how. Here, he examines this systemic colonial mindset that seeps into every aspect of our lives without much afterthought or questioning. He uses a 4:3 aspect ratio that is much less gimmicky than Bradley Cooper's "Maestro" and more aimed at providing a claustrophobic and time-capsule atmosphere, like perhaps the beautiful "The Lighthouse" from Robert Eggers in another genre of movie-making. Haberle and cinematographer Simone D'Arcangelo still manage to capture breathtaking Patagonia scenery along with some intimate interior shots and more graphic gut-wrenching scenes. It is not however overly graphic and let's the dialogue and unsaid or unseen events creep into the viewers mind as the story unfolds and is expertly exposed with a few satisfying and surprising twists.
A must-see for cinephiles, teachers and school children!
(8/10)
Maestro (2023)
Netflix Best Oscar Hope Misses the Mark
Even with its 4 strong nominations at the Golden Globes (Picture, Director, Actor, Actress), I must say my appreciation of Cooper's new film is not as stellar, as organic and fantastic as A Star Is Born (2018) - 8 Oscar noms.
Netflix's firs real Oscar contender was Alfonso Cuarón's Roma (2018) which won 3 of its 10 nominations. Last year's Germany's remake of All Quiet on the Western Front (2022) was nominated for 9 Oscars and won 4. My all-time Netflix favorite is Noah Baumbach's Marriage Story which I rewatched recently. It is much better than that year's Best Picture co-nominee Martin Scorsese's The Irishman (2019) which was still as solid movie. Neither won and Netflix's overall 8 Best Picture nominees did not win since a decade at the Oscars.
This year, Scorsese produces Maestro (2023) with Spielberg, but his own slow burn of a movie Killers of the Flower Moon (2023) has more flair yet not a Netflix production (he produces it with DiCaprio). I think this year's Netflix better picture is Todd Haynes's May December (2023 - also nominated for 4 Golden Globes). So why did Bradley Cooper not exactly deliver?
Carey Mulligan's performance is certainly good, yet his directing lacks the creation of intimacy like he did with Lady Gaga in A Star Is Born. Most interactions are superficial, and you have to wait until the 75th minute to see the first powerful scene with strong dialogue and directing. The intro scenes are compelling up until the two main characters meet, but I found the rest of the first hour a mess. The second half of the film is surely better yet lacks urgency or dramatic tension in directing, even in the hospital scene. There is also a shortage of real wisdom or realisation in the script. We are left with a light and superficial understanding of the two main characters, even to the point where their respective love for music and acting and their love for each other is not really felt. Nolan's Oppenheimer (2023) was much more successful in that aspect and Emily Blunt's performance.
Cooper's acting also lacked some charm in my view, save perhaps a few scenes like in the end when he teaches a young conductor.
Finally, Cooper's directing choices for cinematography left the very talented Matthew Libatique with not much to work with. In Black & White, 4:3 aspect ratio or even 16:9 color, few scenes seem to tell the story like a more claustrophobic The Whale (2022) was able to with his Darren Aronofsky collaboration. Libatique was nominated for an Oscar for his work with Aronofsky's fantastic Black Swan (2011) and with Cooper's sublime A Star is Born (2018).
Better luck next time Coop! Good effort. 6.5/10.
We can still see growth, grit and gusto, but misses the mark as a whole.
Gojira -1.0 (2023)
Anti-War Monster Movie and More
Yamazaki's Gozkilla (Gojira -1.0) is Godsent, especially in a climate of so so super hero stories and poor monster movies. Tom Cruise can still put some action stunts (Top Gun and Mission Impossible) but not action movie with a story this strong since Avatar.
Ryunosuke Kamiki who himself had a brush with death in infancy plays the main character Koichi Shikishima with gusto and conviction. Shikishima is a Kamikaze pilot who failed to complete his mission and is guilt-ridden from his fallen comrades and perceived cowardice. Like much of postwar Japan he also suffers from general survivor's' guilt and struggles to find a place for himself to rebuild alongside the crippled country. The character is well-written and surprisingly well-played for a film heavy in special effects. The acting is poignant, emotionally charged, and both subtle and strong. Yamazaki's directing for him and the other actors is spot on, and the director's vision over all is what makes movies worth going to the theatre in this streaming era. Yamazaki also wrote the screenplay and directed the visual FX.
Noriko and the other supporting characters are also effective. The music and sound are riveting and accentuate tension and emotions. My senses were heightened most of the movie.
Now the story has some typical elements we expect, yet a few personal character arcs, philosophy and social commentary on war are strongly explored. The movie questions the need for war, patriotism and dying for your country. It asks who are the heroes, what is the price of war and the value of life.
The monster may not have been as much a metaphor as the original 1954 Honda version, yet the common threat it represents was utilized to examine the lessons learned by the losers of a costly war they initiated. The plot elements worked to support the suspense, narrative, action and likeable characters. The main disaster scene in Ginza's area of Tokyo is action and suspense at a high level with stunning visuals and innovative directing and cinematography. It has nothing to envy from the five Michael Bay's Transformers movies or the latest 2023 one with over 10 times the budget.
Even if the story is key, the visuals do not suffer and we are left with a complete package of drama, soundtrack, substance, suspense, and action.
This not the 1998 awful American version of starring Matthew Broderick. I did not think I could say monster movie and masterpiece in the same sentence but there it is. Best movie coming from Japan in a while along with The First Slam Dunk (2022). Godzilla Minus One (2023) gets a Ten.
New Amsterdam (2018)
How Can I Help? (5 Seasons FULL Series REVIEW)
New Amsterdam was a New Kid on the Block of Medical Dramas that all paled in comparaison to iconic "ER (1994)" which lasted for 15 solid seasons.
New Amsterdam Riveting Series Finale "How Can I Help?" even has a hommage to ER with Dr. Wilder's childhood hero being Dr. Ross (George Clooney). In New Amsderdam the ER is the ED and Dr. Bloom is in charge. She battles drug addiction and has a wealthy family (a bit like Dr. Carter in ER).
The show starts stronger than any other TV.medical dramas I have seen (Chicago Hope, Scrubs, House, Grey's Anatomy. Etc.) and offers 2 solid seasons albiet not perfect by any stretch. Characters and story arcs come to life and the personal traumas of Dr. Goodwin (and Luna) are equal to his on screen charisma. Solid writing brings characters to life, until season three tries to be a bit too PC, woke and make Dr. Goodwin a bit cartoonish and foolish.
Season 3 is still good TV drama. Then Season Four soars above anything else and offers a run of over ten 10/10 episodes!! The best season I have seen in a while in any shows. Season 5 was still high quality. Better than season 1-3, but not as good as 4.
Season 5 has lots of space to immerse ourselves in the world of Dr. Wilder who is deaf. The sign langage is often not translated and the ambiguity and acting creates an atmosphere of patience and nonverbal communication perhaps trying to non ASL-speaker. I personally liked it and thought of the brilliant film Sound of Metal.
The series ends on a high note with a high calibre episode, epic surgery and amazing surprise at the end of the show! ENjoy the next best thing after ER (331 eps). I could have done with 1 season more, yet it is a satisfying 89 episodes. Kudos to the writers, directors and actors of this top notch show!
New Amsterdam: Paid in Full (2021)
Best NA Episode So Far!!
The premise of the entanglement of tech and medicine, life with computers, robots, databaaea and drug prescriptionsnia interesting enough.
The threat of randsom, the conflict and prize paid to potentially save patients is well played until the end of the episode with a heart-wrenching punchline.
The most important part of the episode is when Iggy confronts a psych patient who had Aderal overdose, psychosis and loss of brain function and must confront his new self. Iggy's response is so poigant, philosphical and practical. Be present now and accept yourself. Mourn your past if ypu have to but be there and grateful. Brilliant!!
Best episode so far in many accounts and definetely best scene in 4 years with delectable dialogue.
Billions: Winston Dick Energy (2023)
WDE underrated like a small Winston
WDE is hugely underrated by reviewers who miss the essence of the episode and get nostalgic of the glitter of the show. This episode lacks some of the iconic banter scenes, yet has 3 main strong points
-Chuck transformation and final scene of the episode glow after wise quasi-monologue
-Wag's baddass dealing with Winston in 2 scenes to redeem his mojo after feeling withering away
-Wendy's self-inquiry, doubt and real challenge about her role as a jailor in a capitalist threadmill and rat race with very good scene with competitive psychiatrist on a human scale. Amazingly well-written scene and setup.
Karem Abdul-Jabber's appearance is odd yet still works in the context of getting Chuck to see beyond and go forward.
Rewatch if you missed these 3 high level up moments of the show.
9.5/10
Best episode of season 7 (out of 7] so far. Billions is back!
George Carlin: Jammin' in New York (1992)
Classic cutting and intellectual humour
Politics, media manipulation, environmentalism, war-mongering, social issues, airplanes are well explored. The wit is evident and the wordplay stellar. Delivery is slightly uneven in the middle as the words are much stronger than any physical comedy. Then George steps up the sarcasm about a rant of sensational media macabre reality and brings it home with the Save The Planet concept flipped around.
A precious standup with a few quirks and amazing content. Highly recommended. 30 years later it works well, except maybe for the fashion (lol). A timeless funny classic with lots of deep social truths!
Da-eum So-hee (2022)
FantAsia Premiere with Best Director Winner
Writer/Director July Jung was in attendance to present her film after over 20 hours flights to Montreal, Canada. She was humble and pleasantly surprised to receive the Best Director Cheval Noir Award in front of a packed Audience for the FantAsia Film Festival closing film.
NEXT SOHEE (Da-eum-so-hee) stars international star Doona Bae in probably her best performance as a determined detective and relative newcomer on the big screen Si-Eun Kim as a distraught dance-dreaming, hard-hitting high school student stuck in an inhumane system. Si-Eun Kim also shines in her difficult portrayal and we can imagine Jung's direction was crucial for both.
July Jung uses a true story to illustrate flaws in the system, in people, culture and mentality that are specific to South Korea, yet resonate with international audiences. She states that the purpose of the film is not necessarily to create reform, yet to start awareness and an awaking process of what I would call warped societal and personal values.
Is high performance more praiseworthy than peace or purpose? Where is the qualitative in the mostly quantitative economy and politics? Where do we have agency instead of acceptance, avoidance, anger and despair?
The movie is envisioned in two distinct parts with the second one being much better in my view, yet exploring aspects of the first one in new light. All 134 minutes are necessary in the end to tell the story of a person, of a generation, of a system and society in all its universality.
The final shot is primed with primal emotion, as well as intellectual realisation. Analysis concludes a very well constructed and executed narrative. This is a high achievement from South Korea cinema once again.
I feel privileged to have witnessed this hard yet crucial artistic creation in fine company.
FANTASIA FILM FESTIVAL 2022
SOUTH KOREA
KOREAN W/ ENG SUB
134 MIN
DIR.: JULY JUNG.
La Piedad (2022)
Weird Funny take on Human Fragility
A dramatic alegory of human manipulation and pulsions. This movie contrats North Korea effect on people from idolatry to murdee and despair with a troubled Spanish family affair.
Suicide, murder, mothers and birth. Sickness and safety, comforr and failed liberty. The juxtapoaition of the two worlds and stories is innovative. It strikes both the dramatic chords and the humourous situations and dialog.
A macabre undertone with well-written material hoñds the viewer entranced, shoked, unsure.. A choice of decor and colours tell a story with intelligence and litlle condescendence. Beautiful and successful diligence.
A worthy effort from Spanish writer/director in one of many fine Argentinian co-production.
80min Fantasia Film Festival 2022.
Murina (2021)
Award-Winning Amazing Debut
Writer/Director Antoneta Alamat Kusijanovic's debut feature is all it could be from a director who also used to dive in the film's idyllic Croatian coast setting.
This films builds on the director's underwater camera work in her enjoyable short Into the Blue (2017), and in acting and screen presence of actress Gracija Filipovic. This feature was in fact written with this teenage actor/non-actor in mind after the short. Gracia was 12 yr old then and showed promise and shines 4 years later in this character study.
The story has strong writing as it tackles teenage rebellion, family and relationship dynamics with evolving dreams of love, sexuality, freedom and purpose.
The father, mother and daughter relationships are complicated in this small village and when a wealthy, well-travelled long-time friend comes to spend some time with the family, much is revealed of the desires and dissatisfactions of all three family members.
The directing, cinematography and editing of this evolving drama are so strong that every shot of the 96 min movie is a pleasure. The acting is nuanced and elevated from the four leads. The underwater shots are beautiful and tell the story with images, sounds and occasional music. The first and final long shots of the movie tell a tight story visually that induce emotions viscerally and intellectually.
It is no surprise that the film won Camera d'Or at Cannes and over 20 other awards in 65 film festival worldwide.
Looking forward to Antoneta's next film which centers on a mother and daughter relationship and perhaps also catching some of her previous shorts, including If We Must Die (2016).
In short, this is a melancholic, beautiful drama with stunning cinematography and deft directing. A simple story with substance. Highly recommended.
Belfast (2021)
Realness, family and cinematography
Well-deserved Oscar win for a tight and touching screenplay in plain Irish English. "If you they don't understand, they are not listening" says the family patriarch. Both grandpa (Ciarán Hinds) and grandma (Judi Dench) were nominated for best acting in supporting roles.
Besides the best music and sound noms, the real winner is Kenneth Branagh for his screenplay and who also got nominated for best director and best film. His directing of actors, his choices of décor, location, costume, look, color (or lack thereof), and camera angles are simply amazing!
7 Academy Award nods but the surprise is perhaps the lack of nomination for cinematography. Every shot of this 90 is exquisitely beautiful in mostly B&W. My congrats to a recurring Branagh collaborator, DOP from Cyprus Haris Zambarloukos. He also did an interesting job in claustrophobic Steven Knight's Locke with Tom Hardy. In Belfast, he uses all the planes and makes the frame an invitation to "feel" part of the family, community and Belfast reality.
The realness aspect of a difficult life is constrated with great warmth and love of a 3 generation family and a resilience and unity without much negativity or complaining. A real example of best human nature traits, genuine love, communication and community rising above hardship. Many scenes exhibit this and are cumulative. By the end, we have lived their journey, understand, feel and move on with them.
From beginning to end, Branagh outdoes (and in much less time) his 1996 version of Hamlet (over 4 hours) as his undisputed best work.
È stata la mano di Dio (2021)
The Hand of An Assured Filmmaker
After The Great Beauty (2013) Best Foreign Language Oscar and Golden Globe, with the exploration of Rome and life through the eyes of an older man, Paolo Sorrentino explores his native Naples and the discoveries of a virgin boy in The Hand of God (2021).
From abundant humour, bravado, sexiness and tension in the first act of the film, the movie evolves into a dramatic, philosophic and artistic quest of echoing loneliness and search of purpose in a sometimes-unforgiving world.
The main characters are confronted with challenges bigger than themselves, yet seek to find glimpses of hope, nostalgia and forward-looking momentum. Fabietto and Patrizia connect by going beyond their circumstances and Baronessa Focale imparts her wisdom in a unique way. Practical jokes and real consequences abound, while the tapestry of a town and quirky family coalesce.
Past his crazy family and his love for football, Fabietto meets two new friends who will embark him into two very different voyages.
A key scene at the theater and its aftermath are the mark of genius. Our main character is challenged in so many ways. His changing dreams start to take form. Will he have the courage to pursue them?
A charming tale with a historical backdrop, drama, creativity and unquestionably something to say, may be exactly what we need today.
Guts and gusto. Sorrentino, we are rooting for you like Maradona.
From a very strong start, the film finishes as distinctly.
Uncompromising cinema. Bravo!
tick, tick...BOOM! (2021)
Tick, Tick... Boom! Lin-Manuel Miranda & Jonathan Larson
Rent is late Jonathan Larson's musical masterpiece with a 12-year success on Broadway and excellent 2005 film adaptation (itself a modern homage to Puccini's opera La Bohème). Tik Tik... Boom is his semi-autobiographical Off-Broadway musical written before that came out after the success of Rent theater success in 2001. Lin-Manuel Miranda played the main role of Jon in 2014 after In the Heights and before Hamilton, both of his for which he starred and wrote the music and lyrics, before they were turned them into films in 2020 and 2021.
Lin-Manuel Miranda's sensibility to the role and material allowed him to make his directorial debut in cinema which is extremely well executed. He lets the music to be central anchor along with strong acting performances, with Andrew Garfield's vulnerability well displayed and directed. Steven Levenson adapts Larson's play beautiful to screen and the whole music department, especially Nancy Allen & John M. Davis as music editors are phenomenal.
Hamilton was the Golden Globes-nominated musical and perhaps movie of 2020 and Tick, Tick... Boom! Is a very close contender and should top many lists of Oscar Favorites for 2021. Acting, music, song, editing, adapted screenplay and even directing are all possible nominations, with Andrew Garfield as the most buzz, but also strong contenders this year with Will Smith, Javier Bardem, Denzel Washington etc.
It is different and perhaps better than Rent (2005) because more philosophical, personal and emotional, even if Rent will always be better musically. The only aspect I believe could be improved slightly is the Jonathan and Susan relationship. Rent character romances were much stronger. It is hard to say, but small shortcomings do not deter from the overall panache and powerful message of this movie.
Art and love versus vanity and money. Communication, purpose, fears, friends, struggles, memories and melodies. This movie elevates and asks more question than it answers.
Can Superbia be a metaphor for our modern society of zombies?
Very watchable and rewatchable cinema and memorable music.
Happî awâ (2015)
Minimalist Introspective Exploration of Art and Life
We get to know these characters so intimately, we feel they are our friends and at the same time strangers we discover more and more. The 5 hours 17 mins are perfect and every minute worthwhile. I would even love to continue another 5 more hours and continue to see these interesting lives unfold.
It is my first Ryûsuke Hamaguchi film and surely not the last. His incorporation of art and amazing stories into the narrative with vignettes of every day contemplation mixed with big events and poignant scenes are masterful. A few standout scenes are:
A life-affirming course by an artist
A writer reading a short story and sublime Q&A
A stranger in the bus talking about her father
An estranged wife unwelcoming her husband into her temporary home
A couple dealing with their son's transgression
A nurse scolding a younger nurse about life and death
A woman talking to the sister of the man she likes about sex and love
At the center, there are often friends around a table with sublime dialog and lowkey acting. The nonverbal interactions are extremely effective at conveying intrigue, tension and sympathy. We understand the complicated lives of these four women and the people around them in great detail with non-judgmental equanimity. The story is poetic like
Edward Yang's "Yi Yi", but not as funny. It also reminds me of Chang-dong Lee's "Poetry". It is however very much its own film and with its on pace and universe.
At times, it shows a somewhat bleak reality of failing relationships and discovery but with so much insight and artistic enhancement. A masterpiece in all aspects that never feels forced, by always allowing introspection and growth, and showing the complexity of life and people. It invites us to observe, it expands our boundaries slowly, it questions and reflects. The moving parts are so well woven together, and the attentive viewer never misses a beat or gets bored. We are there with the characters and events, at the table with them, in their homes or in vacation, at the tumultuous crucial reading and its aftermaths.
A movie that redefines movie-making in its impeccable vision and visceral journey.
Andrey Rublyov (1966)
Tarkovsky's Best
I have now seen most of Andrei Tarkovsky's fine films including Ivan's Childhood and Nostalghia. The sci-fi masterpiece Solaris was surprisingly my least favourite and I enjoyed Steven Soderbergh's take on the famous Plish noel better. The fact that I didn't quite enjoy Tarkovsky's original film as much at first viewing may also mean I need to revisit it like Villeneuve's Arrival I appreciated much more the second time. In any case, as it stands Stalker and The Mirror were my favourite Tarkovsky movies until I finally got through the long 205 minutes if Andrei Rublev.
Andrei Rublev is not the best painter biopic ever made, Frida (2002), Mr Tuner (2014), Lust for Life (1956) or the 210min Edvard Munch (1974) would be better.
Andrei Rublev is however much more than a movie about a painter or painting. Instead, it paints a painful and powerful portrait of life of the fifteenth-century, Middle Ages or medieval period in Europe, which we now sometimes refer to as the Dark Ages. Russians were fighting with Tatar (Turko-Mongol) raiders and invaders and with their religious Orthodox Christianity dogmas cemented since the 10th century. Rublev was a religious iconography painter with undoubted artistic skills, yet he serves to also represent the power of institutional organized religion over the unconvinced and terrorized population as we see eloquently when a non-believing woman is chased by menacing men near a river. Atheism came into vogue in Russia during the Soviet era when this movie was made and released in 1966 so we can wonder what the reactions of the audience to a lot of the religious focus of the film were.
Beyond religion, Tarkovsky touches human themes of purpose and passion. He questions the human condition with loyalties and the vagaries of war, rape, plunder, and pillage. What does it that to raise a kid? A village? What does it take to murder nearly everyone in a village?
Maybe not so much. I am also thinking of Elim Klimov's soviet WWII masterpiece Come and See (1985) where villagers in the "Enlightened" Modern Ages suffer a similar fate in different times and context. Are we doomed to repeat this savagery today in different ways? Will 2022 be different than 1422?
Technically Tarkovsky manages exquisite visual scenes with trusted DOP, Vadim Yusov from Ivan's Childhood. This time he manages even more poignant composition, wide lens, motion and a mix of beautiful slow contemplative shots and actions sequences including invasion, fire, fighting, and horse falling, among highlights. The images are seriously superb and carry the story with immersive sensibility.
The images are stunning and stay with me, the questions too. A haunting reminder of humanity's penchant for masked or overt savagery with self-appointed superiority and rationalization of control of ideas, people and property.
Billions (2016)
Contrary to other Reviews - I find Billions gets BETTER with time
This show has a good premise but even better witty writing and execution throughout. Yes it gets as convoluted as House of Cards with a power-hungry power couple that is perhaps more nuanced in character development and ethical dilemma.
Acting-wise, Oscar-nom (Cinderella Man) Paul Giamatti is superb as Chuck Rhoades throughout and his dominatrix wife Wendy (Maggie Siff) gets more and more likeable, nuanced and badass. Paul Giamatti had similar strong performance in the John Adams (2008) mini-series. Maggie Siff and the writers manage to make Wendy a tour-de-force as a corporate coaching mastermind and meaningful partner for both Chuck & Axe. She manages to influence much on the sidelines and keep two loyalties in the midst of clear hostility.
Opposite is Damian Lewis, who is brilliant as brainchild bully Bobby (Axe) Axelrod and his character journey is incredible and understandable. Season 3 & 4 sees less of his wife and more of the loveable Wags character (David Costabile) who gets more depth with time, formidable friendship and even funnier. Taylor Mason also gets more screen time which some viewers dislike, but to me it is exactly the type of excitement and change the show needed to stay fresh and look at new storylines.
Taylor is a complex, complete and compelling character. You may not like THEM for whatever reason, but it adds some spice and very different perspective. It is a character we have rarely if ever seen on screen and not because of their nonbinary aspect. Is it a robust robot with human flesh and feelings?
Another Oscar (twice) nominated, John Malkovich, also brings some amazing acting to another key mysterious character in Grigor starting in season 3. His deadpan, playfulness and veiled or not so veiled threats are nail-biting and rich.
Lastly, let's not forget Chuck Senior as a character and Jeffrey DeMunn's charisma as an actor to unstill chaos, love, loathing and wisdom in an unorthodox fatherly presence. Often funny, his lines are written and delivered to much delight.
All in all, for all the intrigues in Season 1 (especially last 3 eps) and even better Season 2, I find Seasons 3 & 4 to be exactly what the show could stretch and explore with us. Thanks for a solid series that delivers show after show.
Hope Season 5 doesn't resemble House of Cards' cowardly Season 6. If you have no good writing or cast, please stop on a high and say bye. As Axe may say "Don't short a position when there is momentum and fundamentals". Until then, I will be eagerly watching!
Shtisel: Mame, Mame (2021)
The VERY BEST Shtisel Episode
This episode carries 4 amazing storylines and execute them all above any expectation. Everything is heartfelt, conflicted and strong. Emotions are stirred at every corner.
1) Shulem and Nukhem difficult fraternal relations have ups and down. Nukhem & Nechama's happiness is palpable as they prepare for their small wedding. The value of providence, money, love, family, friendship, fame, generosity and humility are all explored with the dilemma of what to do with an unclaimed winning lottery ticket. Will financial concerns, greed, lust or justice corrupt this precarious harmony and happiness?
2) Akiva thanks Racheli for saving his daughter in front
of the authorities from his past mistake, but their sham marriage that could be more is now in final jeopardy. Before the divorce, Akiva asks to paint his wife but cannot get his deceased previous wife, Libbi, out of his mind. He visits the art gallery to see the paintings of Libbi, but will have to visit her grave before the episode or the relationship ends. Racheli's reactions are real and supernatural at the same time, Akiva's acting is stellar as he struggles to love and let go. He will need personal deep dive and introspection, as well as a metaphor from his wise dad who tells him Racheli is HIS lottery ticket and he shouldn't let a once in a lifetime opportunity slip away from lack of sincere will beyond simply trying.
3) Yosa'le pure love for Shira Levi makes him confront his fiancé Shira Levinzon and his parents Giti and Lipa. All the scenes are high drama and romance with a Romeo & Juliet / Tristan and Iseult, forbidden and almost adulterous love. He confronts his father even though he is the only one trying to understand and help and Giti and Lipa's own tumultuous love and past is put into question. Yosa'le and the Shiras scenes are bittersweet and very human.
4) Unorthodox (2020) newest Netflix series' star Shira Haas plays a series of masterful monologues as Ruchami prepares tapes for her unborn baby, knowing full well she may not live through her risky pregnancy. Poignant moments and realization of life, death and parenthood.
Writing, directing and acting is exceptional with two masterpieces scenes of Akiva trying to paint Racheli and Akiva getting a loving sermon from his father. Imagination and reality mix with fire, fiction, facts and beautiful storytelling, Wow! Todah rabah.
La dolce vita (1960)
Scenes of Aristocratic Life
This movie is often more a collection of scenes than an impactful narrative. It has some beautiful black ane white camerawork, fine acting and above all directing. After an hour or so of pleasantries and drama, the beat scenes come in the middle starting with Steiper's wife (at 1:16) inviting Marcello and you the viewer into a fantastic, funy and philosophical party of artists and intellectuals. Iris, the self-proclaimed alcoholic prophet, and others are charming and wise. Then Marcello's father arrives and makes a big impact to the storyline. Finally Magdelena's tour of the opulent and artitic grounds and the "room of serious conversation " offer exquisite dialogue, intrigue and beautiful setting. The ending and surprise arrival is especially poignant closing the movie's best offering. Lastly the outside and inside further exploration of the amazing decors and costumes lead to a sexy spirit conjuring scene to end the best hour of this almost 3 hours long multi-faceted film.
The next 35mins are slightly melodramatic and even the striptease scene and Marcello's sexually charged rant at Nadia's party can't save the lower level of interest endured.
The ending puts everything in perspective and closes with a high note. It is beautifully shot from the forest clearing to the beach. Marcello's spontaneous smile sitting on the beach says a lot and the nonverbal communication exchange over the sound of the agitated sea is beautiful to see. Happiness can be as simple as that
Even with its few flaws and less titillating moments, La Dulce Vita remains a masterwork and classic that must be seen and experienced.