Sep 28 2008
Dir & Writ: David Mamet
See also: IMDb ; Other reviews
When is a martial arts film not a film about martial arts? When it is a David Mamet film of course.
Chiwetel Ejiofor in Redbelt
Jun 17 2008
Writ & Dir: M. Night Shyamalan
I just don’t know. I really wanted to like this film. The few trailers I saw really seemed to hint at an interesting film. And despite the low-key opening weekend I was expecting some form of entertainment. I didn’t get it.
Mar 07 2008
Dir & Writ: Paul Thomas Anderson
Based on book by Upton Sinclair
It is hard to know how to describe this film. It is more of a character study than a story. Of course there is some plot, an oilman and his desire to suceed, but the story isn’t too important. What is important is the character of Daniel Plainview, as played by Oscar winning Daniel Day-Lewis.
The opening scenes show just how driven Daniel is. We watch him, working on his own, in a mine. No dialogue at all for around 15 minutes, just this man in a hole, digging, dynamiting up the earth, falling down the hole, injured and yet still having the drive to pull himself out of that hole and struggle back into town to get his bit of dirt evaluated.
Feb 14 2008
Writ: Diablo Cody
Juno is 16. And pregnant. At first she thinks she’ll have an abortion, but changes her mind, she’ll continue to be pregnant but she isn’t interested in being a Mommy. She’ll give the baby up for adoption. So she takes a look in the PennySaver, which I’m guessing is similar to our Buy & Sell, and finds a couple she thinks will make good parents.
Don’t you just hate plot summaries? Rarely do they make a film/book sound good. But don’t let that put you off, go see this film.
Feb 05 2008
Dir: Marc Forster
Writ: David Benioff based on book by Khaled Hosseini
I haven’t read the book this film is based on so I can’t comment on how well the story makes the translation from one medium to the other. The film tells the story of a young boy growing up in Afghanistan before the Soviet invasion, and so before the Taliban came to power. He is best friends with a younger boy who is the family’s servant’s son, Hassan. We first meet Amir and Hassan when they are flying kites above Kabul. Hassan is the best kite runner in the city; he chases, or runs, down the kites that have had their strings cut. But Hassan is of a different tribe to Amir and so both have to put up with a lot of bullying. As Amir’s Baba laments, Amir rarely stands up for himself, it is always the younger Hassan who fights back.
Jan 19 2008
Dir: Francis Lawrence
Writ: Mark Protosevich & Akiva Goldsman, based on book by Richard Matheson
After the end of the world as we know it Robert Neville lives in New York. All alone apart from his dog, Sam, he drives around hunting deer, chatting to mannequins and going through the stock of a local video store. He also makes sure to be home and locked away by the time night comes. Because at night the rest of the survivors come out. And they aren’t so friendly.
Jan 08 2008
Writ & Dir: Andrew Dominik ; based on the book by Ron Hansen
I loved this film.
I loved everything about it. The acting was brilliant. The way the story unfolded. The narration. The casting. The scenery. The cinematography. The soundtrack. Everything was just great. Best film I’ve seen this year. Which’d be a higher compliment if this wasn’t the first film I’ve been to see so far this year. But I’m guessing it’ll be up on the top ten list by the end of 2008.
