Friday, March 21, 2014

Movie #885 ........................."The Grand Budapest Hotel"

Movie #885 "The Grand Budapest Hotel" is a wonderful caper film full of very funny, quirky moments and characters!  It's so fulfilling to watch a wildly unabashed film with beautiful sets and props and lighting --- this is truly a gem. And the story and characters are one-of-a-kind and engaging.  You must watch with attention to detail because the film is made that way, every prop, every costume, everything has the attention to detail that makes it such a good film.    I wouldn't recommend this film to everyone, because Wes Anderson is an acquired taste for some, but this is the one you might want to test the waters on because it is one of his best, if not THE best so far.










The Grand Budapest Hotel2014R   I would give this 4.8 out of 5.
Between the world wars, Gustave H, the concierge at a prestigious European hotel, takes a bellboy named Zero as a trusted protégé. Meanwhile, the upscale guests are involved in an art theft and a dispute over a vast family fortune.
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Movie #884 ........................."Gloria"


Movie #884 "Gloria" is truly an indie film about a woman in her 50s, divorced and pretty much ignored by her kids. She's bored with her job and the clock ticks on...........she dresses up occasionally and goes to clubs, trying desperately to meet someone she thinks might offer more permanent company for her ---- This is really a slow-paced study of this one woman , who is oftentimes filmed for minutes smoking a cigarette or staring off into space --- yep, it's that kind of film.  There are some funny moments, some sad ones, some very awkward ones (too many love scenes and nudity of people this age, to me anyway), but it gets its point across --- it's a tough life for a middle aged woman looking for love.  Everyone seems too busy living life to care.  I liked the film, but I wouldn't recommend to just everyone.  If the above sounds intriguing, maybe you want to search this one out; otherwise, you can skip it.













Gloria2012R                       I would give it 3.2 stars out of 5.
A middle-aged divorcée looking to fill the void in her life sees an opportunity for a permanent relationship when she meets a charming former naval officer. But baggage from the past may derail their romance.
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Friday, March 7, 2014

Movie #883 ........................."20 Ft. from Stardom"

Movie #883 "20 Ft. from Stardom"  is the Oscar -winning Documentary Feature for 2014, and it deals with music, like the doc. last year that was awarded the Oscar.  This time the film is about backup singers --- the film follows 4 of these singers as they work for the likes of Bruce Springsteen, Sting, Mick Jagger, Stevie Wonder, etc.  Darlene Love is the prominent one here, and she along with the others talk about what it is like to be so good, yet in the background, why they stayed in the background, what they did once they came out, and how they were treated by the  front talent.  The movie moves along really quickly, with music used for transition and main focus.  In that way, I can see why it won --- it has the personality, the energy, the pizzaz that the other documentaries didn't have, but I still would have voted for "Dirty Wars" --- that one made me react more emotionally to the topic, but I'm not a documentary expect by any means --












20 Feet from Stardom2013PG-1389 minutes  I gave this 4 out of 5 stars.
Winner of the 2014 Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature, this film takes a behind-the-scenes look at the world of backup vocalists, weaving together interviews with legendary singers with the voices that support them.
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Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Movie #882 ........................."Monuments Men"

Movie #882 "Monuments Men" was better than I thought it would be, but not as good as I wanted it to be.  The story sounded right up my alley ---- WWII, Hitler stealing great art and hiding it in various places in Germany, and then a crew is assembled to get it back ---right from the start it looked like we were in for another dirty dozen, but no such luck --- the actors are all fun, and they all have at least one good moment, just wanted more dialogue instead of the snippets we got --- there were so many places we were in, the film seemed to move quickly ---- in the background department, but slow going in so many other ways, esp. the dialogue.  However, the film did offer some wow moments:  one in an operating room juxtaposed with a singing of "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," another was the stealing of Michelangelo's Mother & Child, and the other is the ending.  A fun history lesson on a little known story up until now, and as the film so clearly says:  this story deserves to be told, so I'm glad it was told, and that I got a chance to learn a little about it.











The Monuments Men2014PG-13      I would give this 3.5 out of 5 stars
In a race against time, a crew of art historians and museum curators unite to recover renown works of art stolen by Nazis before Hitler destroys them. Written, directed and starring George Clooney.
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Movie #881 ....................... 2014 Oscar-Nominated Animated Shorts

Movie #881 2014 Oscar-Nominated Animated Shorts were just okay this year.  Only a couple we really liked.  Here is my breakdown and what I would rate them out of 5 stars.........

 "Feral" -- 3 stars.  It was beautifully done, had a very different look, but wasn't a clear narration when he gets back to civilization and the ending...

 "Get A Horse!" -- 5 stars.  This was the short film before the equally wonderful "Frozen" --- the Disney crew took an earlier black and white and played technically with it --- I esp. liked the "Play" atmosphere of this --- Mickey falls out of the screen (like Woody Allen's "Purple Rose of Cairo") and has to get back in to save Minnie from the clutches of Bluto.  At one point there is a big chase scene in and out and in and out of b/w and color.  I think this should have won the academy award, but it didn't.  It won several foreign awards, though, which is ironic because we gave the Oscar to the French film.  hah!

 "Mr. Hublot" --- 5 stars.  This one reminded me of "Wall-eye" with no dialogue, and it followed this OCD guy who feels sorry for this "creature" he sees in the street and takes him in, but the "creature" keeps getting bigger and bigger and bigger and throws his OCD into a tither --- cute ending, and really well done!  I thought it ranked equally with "Get A Horse" with the Disney one being just a tad more "fun" with the play aspect.

 "Possessions" --- 4 stars.  This was a bit better than okay because it was so creative looking, and it was a delight to watch. Because he has such fun with the objects, he becomes one with the objects -- nice theme.

 "Room on the Broom" --- 3.5 stars .  Cute characters, charming story, but went on way too long. 
ANIMATED SHORT FILM NOMINEES Estimated Running Time- 110 minutes "Feral" (Directors Daniel Sousa and Dan Golden, USA/Non-dialogue). Synopsis: A wild boy who has grown up in the woods is found by a hunter and returned to civilization. "Get a Horse!" (Directors: Lauren MacMullan and Dorothy McKim, USA/English). Synopsis: Mickey Mouse and his friends are enjoying a wagon ride until Peg-Leg Pete shows up with plans to ruin their day. "Mr. Hublot" (Directors: Laurent Witz and Alexandre Espigares, Luxembourg/France/Non-dialogue). Synopsis: The eccentric, isolated Mr. Hublot finds his carefully ordered world disrupted by the arrival of Robot Pet. "Possessions" (Director: Shuhei Morita, Japan/Non-dialogue). Synopsis: A man seeking shelter from a storm in a dilapidated shrine encounters a series of household objects inhabited by goblin spirits. "Room on the Broom" (Directors: Max Lang and Jan Lachauer, voices by Simon Pegg, Gillian Anderson, Rob Brydon in UK/English). Synopsis: A genial witch and her cat are joined on their broom by several friends as they set off on an adventure.
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