Amour

Amour
(2012) [Trailer]
Director: Michael Haneke [IMDB]

I've been reading a lot of buzz about this film. It picked up the Palme d'Or at Cannes, has been atop many "best of 2012" lists, and almost gave the folks over at Gawker a heart attack. I decided to finally give into the hype machine and check this bad larry out.

Synopsis: An aging couple's love is put to the test when one of them falls ill and starts down the path towards death.

Now, if that synopsis didn't set off any bells maybe this will... this movie is bleak. It's not a feel good film in any sense and will probably make you want to have a drink afterwards... well maybe that's just me being an alcoholic. It's extremely sad and had me in tears throughout many scenes, I normally dont tear up in movies, but this one destroyed me. Wow... I don't know where to start, I was floored by this and the emotions it invoked in me. This is filmmaking at it's best and is truly worthy of terms like "masterpiece" and "a work of art." I haven't felt this moved by a film since I first saw Wild Strawberries, which actually shares a lot of the same themes. Both Jean-Louis Trintignant and Emmanuelle Riva are perfect, and Michael Haneke's direction is flawless in my book.

Love is something a lot of people look for in this world and often times... think they've found. People will confuse it with lust and will lose it as quick as they found it. But when it's real, it's really beautiful and when you see a film like Amour shed light on it in a unique way, it makes you appreciate it so much more. I finished this film and wondered how many people who say they are in love would go through this, this is really love.

The Comedy

The Comedy
(2012) [Trailer]
Director: Rick Alverson [IMDB]

If you follow my musings on this here website, you'll recall a review I made about Tim and Eric's Billion Dollar Movie a few months back.... oh, you don't remember? That's cool. Well, they (Tim and Eric) are back, but this time are getting a little more serious. I saw the trailer for this a few months back and it looked pretty interesting, so I decided to give it a whirl.

Synopsis: Tim Heidecker is a bored privileged hipster who's indifferent to everything and everyone around him.

The Comedy is avante-guard and "weird." Many people will automatically hate and write it off as shit. Others, who are willing to sit through it, may find it enjoyable. It is nowhere near perfect, but I did like The Comedy and it managed to do a rather effective job at keeping me entertained last night.

The Comedy is humorous at times, but as opposed to everything you've come to expect from Tim and Eric, it has a much more earnest feel to it. Heidecker does a good job at hopping between absurd and funny, into dark and somber. He is, pretty much, the movie... Eric is only on screen for a few scenes. Tim is also, as always, extremely adept at making the viewer feel really uncomfortable. One other thing The Comedy does well is exuding a feeling of emptiness about the protagonist, he feels like a man with no purpose and direction... which is something I wasn't expecting from this film at all.

The down side to The Comedy is some of the writing. For me, there were a lot of misfired jokes, or attempts at humor which didn't work.... who knows with them though, was that intentional? Also the film lacks plot, it really goes nowhere, I didn't mind that... but I could see that being problematic for a lot of viewers.

Re-Animator

Re-Animator
(1985) [Trailer]
Director: Stuart Gordon [IMDB]

I haven't seen this movie since I was a kid and I had honestly forgotten most of it. I remember there being lots of blood and nudity... you know what...  my memory is actually better than I thought.

Synopsis: A mad scientist invents a serum that brings the recently deceased back to life.

First, the good. The gore is amazing. You get tons of blood and guts... if you're squeamish I'd avoid this title. There's lots of nudity too, not just boobs, but like naked dead people trying to kill you... which is way better than plain old boobs. Stylistically, it's an impressive horror film with some of the best opening title credits out there and a killer score to boot.

Now, the bad. The acting is shit in many spots throughout its run time, it's a campy horror movie, so it's a little more forgivable I guess. The story is decent, but it's a bit predictable, especially the ending.

I'd definitely recommend this if you're into horror, especially from the golden age of the 80's.

The Queen of Versailles

The Queen of Versailles
(2012) [Trailer]
Director: Lauren Greenfield [IMDB]

We live in a society that's obsessed with things. We are so worried about obtaining wealth and making something of ourselves. All of us are guilty of this in some way and if you say you're not you are only lying to yourself. Some are definitely concerned about this more than others, the Siegel family may be some of the biggest offenders.

Synopsis: This documentary follows the rise and fall of the Siegel family, who are responsible for operating the largest time share company in America.

I enjoyed The Queen of Versailles on a few levels but felt like it lacked in other departments. Technically it's sound and feels like a reality tv show, only better constructed. The other impressive thing that I enjoyed was how the film crew came in on the up swing then were there to see things fall apart. It's always awesome when a documentary pulls off that kind of tenure.

The family dynamic is pretty interesting and like everyone says about shows like the Jersey Shore and Orange House Wives... it's like a train wreck... you're horrified but can't help but watch. I felt like husband was a pretty shitty guy and ultimately a sad man who doesn't have a lot of depth. I couldn't tell if the wife was dumbing it down for the camera, or if she really was that clueless, she seemed like a joke.

Either way, it's a interesting watch and worth your time.

Lawrence of Arabia

Lawrence of Arabia
(1962) [Trailer]
Director: David Lean [IMDB]

Piggy backing on my last review, I also decided to pick up another classic on blu-ray which I had never seen before, but read many positive things about... that film was Air Bud... I'm kidding, it was Lawrence of Arabia.

Synopsis: This film tells the story of T.E. Lawrence, an officer in the British military that infiltrated the Arab army and helped them fight against the Turks during the revolt against the Ottoman empire during WWI.

Also like my last review, this movie is also substantially epic and clocks in around the 4 hour mark. It's also does a superb job and drawing you into it's universe and making you forget about time and your shit life in the real world. Lawrence was an intriguing man and Peter O'Toole does a steller reenactment of his life in Arabia. I was also pretty impressed with the supporting cast... including my boy Claude Rains.

In my humble opinion, the greatest strength of the film is it's cinematography, it's as epic as the film itself. There are too many memorizing scenes and I'd say it's one of the most visually stunning movies I've ever seen. It also helps that the transfer to blu-ray is perfect, this looks like it was shot yesterday.

The score is also unreal and probably won lots of awards. It's like the music and the eye candy on screen are in a perfect symbiotic relationship.

This is another classic that I'm pleased to have represented in the growing hord that is my blu-ray collection.

Gone with the Wind

Gone with the Wind
(1939) [Trailer]
Director: Victor Fleming [IMDB]

I don't know, you may have heard about this movie before, it's kind of a big deal? Gone with the Wind tops many people's 'best of' lists and is considered widely to be one of the greatest movies of all time... so I figured a blind buy on the blu-ray for this may have been acceptable. That's right, I flew into this film blind... as a first timer.... and I was ready to be blown away. The question is... was I?

Synopsis: A story about love, slavery, and civil war down in the Old South.

I knew this film was long, but Jesus-- it's like 4 hours! To use the term epic is completely fitting here. Gone with the Wind really surprised me... it didn't feel like a 4 hour long film and it definitely didn't feel like a typical Hollywood movie of that time. It's really dark and depressing, which I honestly didn't expect. I'm actually really glad I've never read/talked about this movie or had it spoiled for me in anyway.

The performances of the entire cast were memorable, but Clarke Gable and Vivien Leigh own this picture. They are so perfectly cast and their tumultuous relationship unfolds in such an entertaining way... you keep wanting to go on to find out how things will unfold for the two. I think where they end up is very shocking and left me taken aback a little.

The other thing that stands out is the visuals in this bad larry. The sets and use of lighting were extremely impressive for the time. There is a scene where the camera pulls back on a field of dead and wounded soliders that is incredible... I haven't researched it yet, but I'm pretty sure it's probably a very famous scene. The shots of Scarlett (Vivien Leigh) under the tree at Tara (her home) during the sunset were also very striking.

This is a new old favorite of mine and a welcome addition to my blu-ray library.

Skyfall

Skyfall
(2012) [Trailer]
Director: Sam Mendes [IMDB]

I'm not gonna go to crazy here because my brother just reviewed this on here yesterday and I agreed whole heartedly with pretty much everything he said... SO READ HIS REVIEW.

I'll start by saying the real hero of this film is Roger Deakins, the DOP, he really did an outstanding job filming Skyfall. The film looks immaculate and there's a ton of stand out scenes, especially everything filmed in Asia. Sam Mendes borrows heavily from Christopher Nolan in this movie and I kept being reminded of The Dark Knight Rises left and right, particularly with the score and lighting.

I must say though, this is a highly entertaining film, dare I say best Bond film ever.

Now here's where I get to the most important part of the review. The movie theater I watched it in. I just recently moved to Queens (better start thinking of a new blog title) and I have a local theater right down the street. It's a pretty shabby looking theater from the outside, but it was close and had Skyfall... so fuck it, let's give it a shot. The wife and I meet up with our good friends Shawn and Doug and we arrive to find that the movie is only 5 dollars! That's right, 5 dollars! Which is insane for New York. Not only is Skyfall $5, but every movie is $5, everyday... before 5PM. I love my new neighborhood. So we enter and the inside is about as impressive as the outside. There are two big screens (that were playing Twilight and Cloud Atlas) and then all the other screens including ours, which were smaller. There were smudges on our screen and you could sometimes hear Wreck it Ralph playing next door when it was quiet, but for 5 dollars... I'm not complaining. I think I'm in love with the ghetto theater in Sunnyside.