tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33508899644540881522024-02-07T19:41:29.666-08:00A Fistful Of MoviesColin C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16235082158307960641noreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3350889964454088152.post-20769456259250939162013-06-23T09:25:00.001-07:002013-06-23T09:34:59.281-07:00TOP 30 GAME OF THRONES CHARACTERS<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="text-align: left;">This is basically what it says on the tin, a list of my thirty favourite characters from the HBO series Game of Thrones. I should however point out a few things before I start. </span></div>
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1. I am currently in the process of reading the books. The ordering of this list is based on a mixture of the show and the books. There are some characters I prefer in the show, and vice versa. </div>
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2. The ordering of this list is also somewhat based on how long I've been familiar with some of these characters. A few of them I will have only seen for a few episodes thus far, some I will have loved from the very start. It varies. </div>
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3. If you don't agree with my choices, tell me. I want to argue. </div>
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4. This is a list of my favourite characters. Not the ones who I think are the nicest. Keep that in mind.</div>
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5. I've decided not to reason myself on this post, so if you have any questions or inquiries regarding my choices please make them on whatever social media I decide to post this on.</div>
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6. Enjoy!<br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">30. <b>Meera and Jojen Reed </b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">29. <b>Jon Snow</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">28. <b>Ramsay Snow (Bolton)</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">27. <b>Drogo</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">26. <b>Jeor Mormont</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">25. <b>Sansa Stark</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">24. <b>Yara (Asha) Greyjoy</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">23. <b>Varys</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">22. <b>Shae</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">21. <b>Syrio Forel</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">20. <b>Jorah Mormont</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">19. <b>Melisandre the Red</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">18. <b>Gendry</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">17.<b> Bronn</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">16. <b>Davos Seaworth</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">15. <b>Osha</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">14. <b>Joffrey Baratheon</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">13. <b>Tywin Lannister</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">12. <b>Ygritte</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">11. <b>Margaery Tyrell</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">10. <b>Barristan Selmy</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">09. <b>Sandor Clegane (The Hound)</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">08. <b>Petyr Baelish (Littlefinger)</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">07. <b>Catelyn Tully</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">06. <b>Jaime Lannister</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">05. <b>Daenerys Targaryen</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">04. <b>Cersei Lannister</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">03. <b>Brienne of Tarth</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">02. <b>Tyrion Lannister</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">01. <b>Walder Frey</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">JUST KIDDING!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">01. <b>Arya Stark</b></span></div>
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Colin C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16235082158307960641noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3350889964454088152.post-17049213799578786392012-09-17T13:58:00.000-07:002012-09-17T18:16:44.414-07:00God Bless America Review<br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Director</b>: Bobcat Goldthwait</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Year</b>: 2012</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Starring</b>: Joel Murray, Tara Lynne Barr</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Country</b>: USA</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Language</b>: English</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Runtime</b>: 105 minutes</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>God</u> <u>Bless</u> <u>America</u></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I love films like <i>God Bless America</i>. I'm a sucker for dark satire and cultural commentary. I love films that mock pop culture, and expose the many flaws within it for our entertainment. When the trailer for <i>God Bless America </i>was released, I was naturally interested. I expected all of the aforementioned qualities that I enjoy to manifest themselves in this new film. I was bitterly disappointed. What I ended up viewing was a pathetic, extreme and somewhat perfunctory attempt at satirising modern culture. The film never really seems to know what it wants to be, switching from dramedy to borderline action flick at the drop of a hat. It seems that the characters are supposed to be likable, but they are the exact opposite. Good dialogue is wasted in an overall failed product, making the viewer frustrated that it hadn't been put to better use. This, and many other things, contribute to making <i>God Bless America</i> one of the most disappointing films of the year.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The story is, in a word, ridiculous. Middle-aged Frank works in an office. He is sick of the downward spiral of American culture and the seemingly decreasing intelligence of the American population. He is told by his doctor that he has an inoperable tumour in his brain. Frank plans to kill himself, but just before he does so, he is prevented by something he sees on television: a girl named Chloe on a reality TV show screaming at her parents because they got her the wrong car for her birthday. Delaying his suicide, he goes down to Chloe's high school, and handcuffs her to her car. Does he give her a long-winded rant about her wrongdoings? Does he attempt to open her eyes to the bigger picture? Does he try and show her how to be a better person? Nope, he shoots her in the face. The only witness to the murder (which I find very difficult to believe considering it happened directly outside a highly populated high school) is Roxie, a by-the-numbers withdrawn type of girl. "Did you just kill Chloe? Awesome!" she says, in the tone that one would use if they were describing a solar eclipse. This is where <i>God Bless America</i> begins, as Frank and Roxie go off and pump everyone they hate full of lead for no apparent reason.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I'd be lying if I said that I didn't find it entertaining. It was rather amusing watching this pair blasting people away, simply because it was done in such a playful manner. However, it's clear that the film was trying to convey a deeper meaning. This is where it completely falters. As Frank and Roxie begin to list off their targets, one would expect rapists, abusers and maybe even robbers to be on the agenda. They would be incorrect. Instead, a man who takes up two parking spaces is gunned down without hesitation, as Frank and Roxie stride off with grins on their faces. Uh, okay. The only people in this film that Frank and Roxie hunt down that are even close to deserving such punishment are a crazy church group, obviously intended to parody the infamous Westboro Baptist Church. Everyone else that is a victim of their deluded spree are seemingly irritating people, but in the case of most of them, their actions aren't even punishable by a kick to the nuts, never mind a bullet in the head. It's impossible not to feel that director Goldthwait's message is unnecessarily exaggerated in this film. Perhaps he thought this would benefit the film in terms of effect. He was wrong.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The first twenty or so minutes of the film are actually very impressive. Frank's rant to a colleague at the office about how people are exploited on shows such as America's Got Talent and The X Factor actually resonates and is delightfully relevant. In fact, pretty much everything up until the point where he meets Roxie is enjoyable enough. However, I'm not criticising the character of Roxie. It's their actions that make the film take a downturn. Tara Lynne Barr's turn as Roxie makes me very interested to see what else the young actress can offer. She has a certain unique disposition about her that is very fascinating, and she suited the role of this disturbed character very well. Likewise with Joel Murray. I don't think anyone else would have suited the role of Frank, but both main performers have been put in a film that offers them nothing more than bad attempts at cultural relevance and dark humour. It manages to point out flaws in culture, but doesn't deal with them well within the context of the film. It's full of plot holes and silliness. It's almost as if an operating police force does not exist in the world of <i>God Bless America</i>, as Frank and Roxie spend days killing people going largely undetected.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Overall, the film is just far too mean-spirited to be a success. It's almost as if Goldthwait wasn't even trying to make an effective film. The film is just one giant downward spiral into an unbelievably dumb conclusion that will leave a very small minority of people satisfied. The film has some strong aspects, but they are placed in a feature that is unsound and weak as a whole. The film is desperate to be meaningful, and just ends up being cruel and crass. In a consistently disappointing film, it's low point has to be a scene that takes place in a movie theatre, where a group of young people are among the first victims of the murderous duo. Why are they brutally gunned down? They didn't turn off their cell phones. Right.</span></div>
Colin C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16235082158307960641noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3350889964454088152.post-78514537530980360752012-08-11T17:48:00.004-07:002012-08-16T10:16:25.534-07:00Top 30 LOST Characters<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Having just finished the masterful six-season show LOST, created by J.J. Abrams, Jeffrey Lieber and Damon Lindelof, I felt it appropriate to list my 30 favourite characters from the show. A lot of my choices will be unusual and might not go down well with fellow fans, but what do I care. Here goes:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">30. <b>Frank Lapidus </b>(Jeff Fahey)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">29. <b>Michael Dawson </b>(Harold Perrineau)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">28. <b>Jack Shephard </b>(Matthew Fox)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">27. <b>Boone Carlyle </b>(Ian Somerhalder)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">26. <b>Cassidy Phillips </b>(Kim Dickens)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">25. <b>Rose & Bernard Nadler </b>(L. Scott Caldwell and Sam Anderson)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">24. <b>Mr. Eko </b>(Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">23. <b>Alexandra "Alex" Rousseau </b>(Tania Raymonde)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">22. <b>Danielle Rousseau </b>(Mira Furlan)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">21. <b>Ana-Lucia Cortez </b>(Michelle Rodriguez)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">20. <b>Miles Straume </b>(Ken Leung) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">19. <b>Vincent </b>(Madison/Pono)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">18. <b>Walter "Walt" Lloyd </b>(Malcolm David Kelley)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">17. <b>Elizabeth "Libby" Smith </b>(Cynthia Watros)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">16. <b>Charlotte Lewis </b>(Rebecca Mader) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">15. <b>Penelope "Penny" Hume </b>(Sonya Walger)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">14. <b>Shannon Rutherford </b>(Maggie Grace)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">13. <b>Claire Littleton </b>(Emilie de Ravin)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">12. <b>Daniel Faraday </b>(Jeremy Davies)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">11. <b>John Locke </b>(Terry O' Quinn)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">10. <b>Hugo "Hurley" Reyes </b>(Jorge Garcia)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">09. <b>Kate Austen </b>(Evangeline Lilly)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">08. <b>Benjamin Linus </b>(Michael Emerson)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">07. <b>Jin-Soo Kwon </b>(Daniel Dae Kim)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">06. <b>Sun-Hwa Kwon </b>(Yunjin Kim)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">05. <b>Sayid Jarrah </b>(Naveen Andrews)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">04. <b>Juliet Burke </b>(Elizabeth Mitchell)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">01. <b>James "Sawyer" Ford </b>(Josh Holloway)</span></div>
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Colin C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16235082158307960641noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3350889964454088152.post-1060959865748080822012-06-03T06:58:00.002-07:002012-07-13T15:56:58.421-07:00Prometheus Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglxJR1KI1hhFWp3iUn6YPnAY4fBAt0IZ5KGyZIFbNX8CNZFkyABFQTmCrA19Cn3jCo4LTdr_aaufSz5zCH8KhieUVD7U-sMbUQmKb3mYa5F_cpHv4c-x6behVEupqWA-KpQNs5qezW80I/s1600/prometheus-poster-a-header.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglxJR1KI1hhFWp3iUn6YPnAY4fBAt0IZ5KGyZIFbNX8CNZFkyABFQTmCrA19Cn3jCo4LTdr_aaufSz5zCH8KhieUVD7U-sMbUQmKb3mYa5F_cpHv4c-x6behVEupqWA-KpQNs5qezW80I/s320/prometheus-poster-a-header.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Director</b>: Ridley Scott</span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Starring</b>: Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender </span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Runtime</b>: 124 minutes</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><b><u>Prometheus</u></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Earlier in 2012, people were buzzing with anticipation for releases such as <i>The Dark Knight Rises </i>and <i>The Avengers</i>, myself included. But ever since its trailer was released, one film caught my eye and filled me up with excitement - <i>Prometheus</i>. Prometheus follows the story of a group of scientists - led by Elizabeth Shaw (Noomi Rapace) and Charlie Holloway (Logan Marshall-Green) - who discover a star map on the Isle of Skye, which leads them to the moon LV-233. They arrive here aboard their ship Prometheus in 2093, hoping to discover the origins of the human race: the "Engineers" who created us, and why they did it. Piloting the ship is Janek (Idris Elba), and also aboard is Meredith Vickers (Charlize Theron), a Weyland Corporation employee sent to monitor the mission. The founder of this Corporation, Peter Weyland (Guy Pearce), funds the creation of the vessel, but he is apparently dead by the time the mission is activated. </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Eager to explore, the group - which includes the android David (Michael Fassbender) and an array of other scientists - heads out to an alien structure near where Prometheus has landed. They discover many alien artifacts, a colossal statue of a a human head and the body of a giant alien, believed to be one of the "Engineers". An approaching storm cuts the expedition short, but two scientists are left behind. The rest of the crew manage to return to the ship safely, with the head of the Engineer. However, the mission begins to go awry when the two scientists are killed by snake-like creatures in the night.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Prometheus </i>is as beautiful as it is disturbing, as challenging as it is fascinating, and as powerful as it is resonant. The story builds wonderfully, bracing the audience with a slow start, building up suspense as things start to go wrong. The scenery is absolutely mind-blowing - from the very first frame I was engrossed by the panoramic landscapes and the detailed settings. Ridley Scott uses CGI among other special effects to create a brooding, effective atmosphere, rather than just for flash. There isn't any overuse of violence here, we are given just the right amount that prevents there being too little or too much. Ridley Scott obviously knew exactly what audiences wanted from <i>Prometheus</i>: a film that is effective and entertaining, but challenges the viewer at the same time. It will leave you asking many a question, perhaps wanting answers, but what's important is that Ridley Scott does this craftily and without ramming anything down our throats. Comparisons to the <i>Alien </i>franchise are unfortunately inevitable, as they are set in the same universe, but all in all, <i>Prometheus</i> really doesn't have much to do with the <i>Alien</i> films. It is a different story that stands on its own two feet, so referencing any of those films in this review would be completely unnecessary. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The acting in <i>Prometheus</i> is top-notch. Noomi Rapace gives a career-defining performance as Elizabeth Shaw, displaying the character's capriciousness with great effect, going from excited, to eager, fascinated, distraught, desperate and hopeful, among many other emotions. Her line delivery is spot-on: during the latter stages of the film, some of the the lines that she comes out with are truly heartbreaking, and leave the viewer begging for her survival. Michael Fassbender is phenomenal as the android David. I was entirely convinced throughout by his performance. I cannot begin to fathom how difficult it must have been for him to turn himself into an android, but he did it successfully, and made his character suitably eerie and fascinating. Also giving another great performance is Charlize Theron, who transforms her character from a simple crew member into a cold, vicious, merciless woman. All other supporting performances are above average, including Guy Pearce, who tranforms so much I barely even recognised him. It's a shame that Prometheus probably won't get much attention around Oscar-time, but the acting truly is wonderful. Every main character was unique and had enough meat for me to care about them, thanks to brilliant character development and powerful acting.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another thing that contributed to my love of <i>Prometheus</i> was the philosophy that came with it. As the story advances, the film will ask more and more metaphysical questions: how did the human race come to be? Who created us? Why did they create us? Where did they come from? The film will answer these questions within its own fictional universe, but it will also leave you asking these questions for our universe. <i>Prometheus</i>' interpretation of these questions is gripping, cleverly done and interesting enough to keep the viewer hooked. Another element that makes this film work is the soundtrack - the songs vary from uplifting to dark, to set the tone appropriately - crafted skillfully by Marc Streitenfeld. All of these aspects - the atmosphere, the acting, the character development, the plot, the direction, the philosophy, the music - are perfectly great on their own, but when they all come together in this film, it is simply out of this world. There isn't a dull moment in sight in this film, thanks to Ridley Scott's masterful direction and all who were involved in making this excellent feature. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In conclusion, I would recommend this film to pretty much everyone. An exception would be people who are going to do nothing but criticise the film based on the <i>Alien </i>franchise. The two are barely alike, so making these comparisons would do nothing but spoil the experience for you. I think most people, including fans of the <i>Alien</i> films, will enjoy <i>Prometheus</i>, a satisfying, powerful and resonant film that will please anyone who loves intelligent sci-fi. I don't know if I could have wanted anything more from <i>Prometheus</i>,<i> </i>a top-line, engaging, eerie, visually mesmerising, gripping, atmospheric, riveting metaphysical study. It is without a doubt the best film I have seen this year thus far. It has set a high standard for the summer releases of 2012, and perhaps even the later releases. </span></div>Colin C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16235082158307960641noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3350889964454088152.post-87695355097041376242012-05-19T16:58:00.003-07:002012-05-20T03:43:15.280-07:00War Horse Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: xx-large;"><u>War</u> <u>Horse</u></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Labels akin to "Typical Spielberg pat" have been placed on <i>War Horse</i>, a picture that was destined to divide audiences. One aspect of the film that has been overwhelmingly one-sided with audiences are the visuals, which have been described as breathtaking, and they are worthy of such praise. I was engrossed and swept up by almost every meticulous, stunning scene. However, the visuals weren't enough for many - the complaints that I have heard vary from the film being sickeningly sweet to the film attempting to tell too many stories - but upon watching the film, I have come to a realisation: cheesiness isn't always a flaw. The film is undoubtedly sappy, and the events so miraculous that a five year-old would struggle to believe them, but this begs the question: isn't that one of the reasons that we go to the cinema? For miracles, for extraordinary tales, and to have, well, great cinematic experiences. For me, who enjoys these experiences, <i>War Horse </i>succeeded with flying colours. However, visuals and cinematic aesthetics are not the only areas in which <i>War Horse </i>shines.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I liked pretty much every character. Each one had some essence of individuality, and I enjoyed watching them progress, whether their screen time was brief or prolonged. Jeremy Irvine succeeds in making Albert Narracott a classic Spielberg lead, offering charm and personality at every turn. Peter Mullan and Emily Watson are strong as Albert's parents; Ted, a struggling farmer who purchases a horse - later named Joey - to plough his field so he can grow crops and pay his landlord Mr. Lyons (David Thewlis), and Rose, a strong-headed, family-orientated housewife. Joey, who initially struggles to perform his task, eventually manages to plough the field, thanks to arduous and thorough training from Albert, whom he forms a friendship with. This friendship is torn apart, however, when the war begins, and Ted sells Joey to Captain James Nicholls (Tom Hiddleston) for the war, after heavy rain destroys the crops that had been planted. Despite Albert's protests, Joey is taken to war, on a promise from Nicholls that he will look after Joey just as closely as Albert did whilst raising him. We are then taken on a journey through the lives of Joey and Albert, both affected by the war, yet still connected by friendship.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As cliche as it may be at times, the story is nonetheless gripping. The narrative is essentially your typical underdog story; but instead of the central character being a human faced with a fight or a crucial sports match, we are shown a horse who has to overcome war against all odds. This tale is shown beautifully and lovingly, with the horse encountering various people and issues. Joey, along with his fellow war horse Topthorn, are taken into care by a little girl named Emilie (Celine Buckens) and her grandfather (Niels Arestrup), albeit briefly. In the short while that we are with these two characters, they are developed fantastically. I grew swiftly enchanted with the little girl because of what is revealed about her as a person: how fragile she is physically, but how strong-willed she is mentally. I was slightly miffed about how short her time onscreen was, as I feel she could have developed even more over the course of the film, if she had been included. Despite this, engaging characters are plentiful, and the story was gripping enough to allow me to forgive this.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At certain points, the pacing doesn't flow too well. The transitions between a few of the stories are slightly jarring, and the film does burn through a lot of characters in a short period of time. However, I am willing to forgive this, as I interpreted it as a method of relating back to war, the setting and theme of the film. Perhaps Spielberg's intention was to make certain patches of the film incoherent to represent what war can mean for many: separation, confusion, heartbreak and loss. In all honesty, I felt that the film reflected war in a very moving and gritty way. All of the scenes which included battles were very powerful, and a particular scene in which Joey runs through No Man's Land, jumps trenches, falls over multiple times and eventually is caught in barbed wire nearly brought me to tears. The subsequent scene - where we see two soldiers of opposing British and German sides travelling to the middle of No Man's Land to free the horse from the barbed wire - was probably my favourite in the entire film. It's an unlikely scenario, but beautiful nonetheless.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">War Horse concludes with what many will interpret as a happy ending. While this is true, we are reminded that many of the side characters have died, and also of the loss of around fifteen million people during the war. I personally felt that this ending was pitch-perfect, reflecting the tragic theme of the film, but offering us solace in the joy of some people. <i>War Horse </i>is undoubtedly recommended to anyone who loves cinema and enjoys being swept up by gorgeous scenery, a wonderful score and a strong story with (mostly) memorable characters. For anyone who hates cinematic miracles and can't handle a little bit of pat, stay clear. I expected to like <i>War Horse</i>, but not nearly as much as I actually did, and I wouldn't have a moment's hesitation in watching it again. Everyone involved has helped to construct an entertaining, moving, cinematic and aesthetically pleasing picture in <i>War Horse, </i>an authentic Spielberg venture worthy of my 146 minutes.</span></div>Colin C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16235082158307960641noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3350889964454088152.post-87147594218009660032012-01-24T11:54:00.000-08:002012-01-27T06:16:25.073-08:002011-2012 Oscar Winners Predictions/Hopes<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPcJJRdlfBB3Ox8vsGs3gld6Y_zWiJ6pQYD6VtBMkYU2VB9D0wQ-1MU9op092K5YbvUYc8UfvMHt_Dt8yg95uVMulTNHQ1ANDeUj3GeLzr2zXE3mxogfKqfoUzmRAcZcLR3RGn2rkZ47A/s1600/oscar2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="262" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPcJJRdlfBB3Ox8vsGs3gld6Y_zWiJ6pQYD6VtBMkYU2VB9D0wQ-1MU9op092K5YbvUYc8UfvMHt_Dt8yg95uVMulTNHQ1ANDeUj3GeLzr2zXE3mxogfKqfoUzmRAcZcLR3RGn2rkZ47A/s400/oscar2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Despite the fact that every time the Oscar nominations flood in, we are riddled with disappointment and left reeling with what could have been, it's hard not to get at least a little bit immersed in the buzz. So it is here, in my 1st Annual Oscar Winners Predictions, I give you my predicted winners, whilst I'm still in the buzz. Also, I'm only listing the more major categories. I really don't see the point in spending time editing pointless categories that no one really cares about anyway. NOTE: The people that I think will win are in <b>bold</b>, who I WANT to win is <u>underlined</u>. If more than one nominee is underlined, it's because I wouldn't mind either or winning. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><u>BEST</u> <u>PICTURE</u></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>Midnig</u></span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>ht</u> </span><u style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In</u><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><u style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Paris</u></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hugo</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>The</u> <u>Artist</u></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>The Descendants</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Help</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Moneyball</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Tree of Life</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">War Horse</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><u>BEST</u> <u>DIRECTOR</u></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Woody Allen - Midnight In Paris</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>Michel</u> <u>Hazanavicius</u> - <u>The</u> <u>Artist</u></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Terrence Malick - The Tree of Life</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Alexander Payne - The Descendants</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Martin Scorsese - Hugo</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><u>BEST</u> <u>ACTRESS</u></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Glenn Close - Albert Nobbs</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Viola Davis - The Help</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Rooney Mara - The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u>Meryl</u> <u>Streep</u> - <u>The</u> <u>Iron</u> <u>Lady</u></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>Michelle</u> <u>Williams</u> - <u>My</u> <u>Week</u> <u>With</u> <u>Marilyn</u></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u><br />
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</u></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><u>BEST</u> <u>SUPPORTING</u> <u>ACTOR</u></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>Kenneth</u> <u>Branagh</u> - <u>My</u> <u>Week</u> <u>With</u> <u>Marilyn</u></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jonah Hill - Moneyball</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Nick Nolte - Warrior</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Christopher Plummer - Beginners</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Max von Sydow - Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><u>BEST</u> <u>SUPPORTING</u> <u>ACTRESS</u></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>B<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 16px;">ér</span></u><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 16px;"><u>énice</u> <u>Bejo</u> - <u>The</u> <u>Artist</u></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 16px;">Jessica Chastain - The Help</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 16px;">Melissa McCarthy - Bridesmaids</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 16px;">Janet McTeer - Albert Nobbs</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><b><u>Octavia</u> <u>Spencer</u> - <u>The</u> <u>Help</u></b></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><b><u><br />
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</u></b></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><u>BEST</u> <u>WRITING</u> - <u>ORIGINAL</u> <u>SCREENPLAY</u></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><b><u>The</u> <u>Artist</u> - <u>M</u></b></span></span><b style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 16px;"><u>ichel</u></b><b style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 16px;"> <u>Hazanavicius</u></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 16px;">Bridesmaids - Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 16px;">Margin Call - J.C. Chandor</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><u>Midnight</u> <u>In</u> <u>Paris</u> - <u>Woody</u> <u>Allen</u></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 16px;">A Separation - Asghar Farhadi</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><br />
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</b></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><u>BEST</u> <u>ANIMATED</u> <u>FEATURE</u>*</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A Cat In Paris - Alain Gagnol and Jean-Loup Felicioli</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Chico and Rita - Fernando Treuba and Javier Mariscal </span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kung Fu Panda 2 - Jennifer Yuh Nelson</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Puss In Boots - Chris Miller</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Rango - Gore Verbinski</b></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><br />
</b></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>*</b>Have only seen Rango, which I didn't enjoy. This will be updated at a later date.</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>BEST</u> <u>FOREIGN</u> <u>LANGUAGE</u> <u>FILM</u>*</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bullhead </span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Footnote</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In Darkness</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Monsieur Lazhar </span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>A Separation</b></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><br />
</b></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="line-height: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>*</b>Haven't seen any, updated at a later date.</span></span></div>Colin C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16235082158307960641noreply@blogger.com31tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3350889964454088152.post-50474043942455030652012-01-14T13:33:00.000-08:002012-02-11T12:33:27.424-08:00Mary and Max Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTd1C1H2U_5EdqVt_cdLlZrSXvrzTDr-f6i6pC6VdcSW2Kx6TYJ11klyl54g6SRreQYlG07DxBQtgIJ_XYprmVi8tkGSJZvdF_MmHDTmr0rN-shtPy3cNrHhLvmkBff9T9Tw-LMwH5dko/s1600/220px-Mary_and_max_poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTd1C1H2U_5EdqVt_cdLlZrSXvrzTDr-f6i6pC6VdcSW2Kx6TYJ11klyl54g6SRreQYlG07DxBQtgIJ_XYprmVi8tkGSJZvdF_MmHDTmr0rN-shtPy3cNrHhLvmkBff9T9Tw-LMwH5dko/s1600/220px-Mary_and_max_poster.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Director</b>: Adam Elliot</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Year</b>: 2009</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Starring</b>: Toni Collette, Philip Seymour Hoffman</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Country</b>: Australia</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Language</b>: English</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Runtime</b>: 90 minutes</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAgj1xq1MCtVmBt4yh0fo6qRiY6sNbHm0lLvlSXu-OyusvfpLtr40wwjegYqyfbs9axObX2OkWPt3aqjHFJp4osdqylm6FvcS7i0CUz0T5Q0WvVFQKtIAbU3Ij51ouueRlJgnaV_YzQgU/s1600/6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAgj1xq1MCtVmBt4yh0fo6qRiY6sNbHm0lLvlSXu-OyusvfpLtr40wwjegYqyfbs9axObX2OkWPt3aqjHFJp4osdqylm6FvcS7i0CUz0T5Q0WvVFQKtIAbU3Ij51ouueRlJgnaV_YzQgU/s1600/6.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><b><u>Mary</u> <u>and</u> <u>Max</u></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Striking, deftly stylised and emotionally resonant. Usually, that is what one searches for within the realms of the animation genre; and <i>Mary and Max </i>duly delivers in that department. Toni Collette imparts an enchanting, warm voice to the character of Mary - a small, fragile 8-year-old girl, paranoid and lonely due to the neglect represented by her mother, a cold, alcoholic and arrogant woman - and her father, a conspicuously unsatisfied man; both in life and his monotonous occupation. Mary finds solace in Max, a forty-four year old man living in New York, who has suffered from obesity and autism from a very young age, after finding his number in a phone book whilst trying to discover where babies come from in America. The relationship is atypical (making way for a very profound and confounding societal commentary) but the two are able to relate in social neglect, taste in television and their love for chocolate, cake and other confections. Their friendship valiantly fights on through many significant events as the pair grow older, such as Mary's marriage and brief spell of success with a book about Asperger's (which infuriates Max) and Max winning the lottery and overcoming people's judgmental views and standpoints on him. It does all of that brilliantly, but <i>Mary and Max </i>didn't quite live up to the grand eulogies bestowed upon it by many fellow film lovers.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of the critical problems I found within the film, is that it has damaging pacing problems. Instead of slowly and skillfully moving through the time periods embroidered with the film, it scarpers through them, leaving less time for emotion to resonate. When a friendship starts - especially in the unusual circumstances of this particular one - it takes time for the relationship to become strong and flourish - when the film simply rushes through the character's ages, how are we expected to see, admire and enjoy this happening? <i>Mary and Max </i>succeeds thoroughly in a lot of areas and aspects, but unfortunately, structure isn't one of them, and it shows vividly. It's also very difficult to become immersed, involved and engrossed with a character's development when crucial parts of their development are skipped to speed up the story line. Perhaps a longer running time would have been a little bit more appropriate for this film to evade such problems, but there's always the unfortunate barrier that the film might grow boring if the running time is extended. Nonetheless, I was left bitterly disappointed and unimpressed by the chronological route that the narrative took.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Returning to where the film succeeds, the soundtrack is absolutely BEAUTIFUL - the use of 'Perpetuum Mobile' by <i>Penguin Cafe Orchestra </i>blends stunningly with the contrasting light and dark atmospheres reflected throughout <i>Mary and Max</i>, along with many other delightful tunes of differing genres, each slotting perfectly into their selected scenes. Secondly, the majority of the film is narrated, and although I don't always enjoy narration - it works wonders here - with Barry Humphries adjusting the tone of his voice skillfully to be apt to the mood. The dialogue is very sharp, witty and not susceptible to cliche and niches; it is unique and distinct. The animation - although having been done before - feels original and authentic, likely due to it being melded with a distinctive broody atmosphere and fresh characters for the genre; ones you wouldn't usually find in your quintessential animation. In general, the animation is animation in its finest form - beautiful to look at, exhilarating and due to its feel of originality, it doesn't get boring - making way for some pretty solid eye candy. <i>Mary and Max</i> has many thriving minuscule aspects, but the ones mentioned are the ones that are heavy and dense enough as to stand out from the crowd.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My next complaint is not so much a devastating flaw within the film, but instead a personal reason: the film never really 'clicked' for me. Normally when I watch a film that I consider masterful, I am usually comfortable within the opening segment of a film, but here, I never genuinely felt comfortable. I don't think it was anything to do with the unwonted feel of the film in terms of genre, but perhaps because every time I almost became fully accustomed with the film, I found a slight flaw that would retract back to the uncomfortable sensation that I had prior. Another personal problem that I had with it is that I could never help but compare it to <i>Fantastic Mr. Fox - </i>one of my person favourite animations - and if you were to ask me why I continuously made these comparisons, I honestly wouldn't be able to tell you. This never-ending subconscious feeling of similarity between the two films throughout the viewing experience has probably deteriorated my overall opinion of the film, as I probably felt subconsciously that <i>Mary and Max </i>had to live up to <i>Fantastic Mr. Fox </i>to garner a higher rating from me, which is why a second viewing of this film is guaranteed from me, and next time, I shall train myself not to make the comparison. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you have consistently read my reviews, you will know that if I give a film a rating any lower than 3.5/4, I'm very critical of it, it's just the way I write. However, a lot of films that I roast are in total, good films - and that's exactly what <i>Mary and Max </i>is. I found a lot of flaw - personal and impersonal - but it compensates by being a very enjoyable, fresh and praiseworthy venture. It undoubtedly warrants a second viewing from me, and in all honesty, I'm looking forward to it, because despite the difficulties I had watching it, it was a unique and unparalleled viewing experience, and the audacity and daring intentions of Adam Elliot and all involved with <i>Mary and Max </i>shine through. A fair warning - don't watch this film if you're in a good mood, and don't want that mood to be disturbed - this film will destroy, jolt, and revive your emotion within the proximity of a few scenes. To conclude, if you haven't seen <i>Mary and Max</i>, it is, evidently, worth a watch. Even if you feel similar to me on initial viewing, it has enough cute quirks and strong aspects to follow through from any flaw. As I said, I look forward to watching this again, and I also look forward to contemplating the intricate and singular experience that I have just sustained.</span></div>Colin C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16235082158307960641noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3350889964454088152.post-52490075603982312692011-12-23T14:22:00.000-08:002012-01-03T14:58:58.888-08:00Audrey Hepburn<div style="text-align: center;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmhC7ggbfUtQZxCCn4I9Zn3RW7ukEqLx4nuxW5McLZSVFmqGyfKC2MVdD9awdBZfFlrJZ0g7h5Sf68KLHW7E1p5c7mgV8bkwIvWaAba-CecI12rIc_ZavNRDrFtg3TR3gSkRKZj7CVSm8/s1600/willoughby+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmhC7ggbfUtQZxCCn4I9Zn3RW7ukEqLx4nuxW5McLZSVFmqGyfKC2MVdD9awdBZfFlrJZ0g7h5Sf68KLHW7E1p5c7mgV8bkwIvWaAba-CecI12rIc_ZavNRDrFtg3TR3gSkRKZj7CVSm8/s320/willoughby+%25281%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The greatest actress of all time, in all her glory.</td></tr>
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</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For my entry to Thomas Pollock's 100k Writer's Competition, I have decided to do it on my favourite actress: Audrey Hepburn. As cliche as it may be, there's no denying that she is my favourite actress. I love everything she did, onscreen and offscreen. But, before I go any further into that, here's some facts about Audrey Hepburn:</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>Childhood</u></b></span></div><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Audrey Kathleen Ruston was born an only child in a small town called Ixelles in Belgium on the 4th of May 1929, to parents Ella van Heemstra and Joseph Victor Anthony Ruston. As a young child, she spent a lot of time travelling between different areas of Belgium, England and The Netherlands, in an attempt to evade the Nazi onslaught. Her family survived the war, although her father became a Nazi sympathiser and left the family, but Hepburn remained in contact with him until his death. </span><br />
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<div style="text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hepburn was educated from 1935-39 at Miss Rigden's School, an independent girl's school in a small village called Elham in southeastern England. When the war started, her and her mother relocated to Arnhem in The Netherlands, where she attended Arnhem Conservatory throughout the time of the Second World War. Due to her English sounding name, she was forced to change it to a pseudonym, Edda van Heemstra, a derivative of her mother's name. </span></div><div style="text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">During her time at the Conservatory, Hepburn trained in ballet, which eventually led to her raising money for the Dutch Resistance, performing in her then proficient ballerina skills. Shortly afterwards, Arnhem was devastated by enemy artillery fire, causing a famine. Hepburn and many others lived in terrible conditions until the end of the war, but the entirety of her family, consisting of her two half-brothers and mother, survived. It was these wartime experiences that ignited her devotion to UNICEF later in her career.</span></div><div style="text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>Career</u></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hepburn moved to Amsterdam shortly after the war, and trained further in ballet, and it was there that she starred in her first role as an air stewardess in an educational travel film by the name of <i>Dutch In Seven Lessons</i> (1948). Shortly afterwards, she traveled to London with her mother, and in the same year as <i>Dutch In Seven Lessons</i>, she starred in a theatre revue called <i>High Button Shoes</i> and then in the following two years respectively, Cecil Landeau's <i>Sauce Tartare </i>and <i>Sauce Piquante</i>. During her theatrical experiences, it was noticed that her voice was not as strong as it could be, and needed developed. During her voice training, she obtained minor roles in four 1951 films: <i>One Wild Oat</i>, <i>Laughter In Paradise</i>, <i>Young Wives' Tale</i> and <i>The Lavender Hill Mob</i>. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Audrey's first major film, The Secret People (1952).<br />
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</tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Audrey received a major role in a Broadway play called <i>Gigi</i>, when she was noticed by French novelist Colette, who whispered "Voila. There's your Gigi.", pointing out Hepburn. The play ran for 219 performances. </span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">However, it was after her voice training and <i>Gigi </i>that she received her first major role, in Thorold Dickinson's </span><i style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Secret People </i><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(1952), in which she played a prodigious ballerina, and performed all of her own moves. A year later, however, Audrey Hepburn received the role that would make her famous - the 1953 Italian-set romantic comedy, <i>Roman Holiday</i> - directed by William Wyler, in which she played a British princess by the name of Ann, who simply wants to live a normal life. She would star alongside Gregory Peck.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A collage of shots from Roman Holiday (1953).<br />
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</tbody></table><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Roman Holiday</i> garnered acclaim from all angles, but what got the most attention was of course Hepburn. She lit up the screen with her sophisticated yet innocent persona, and it was with this role that she won herself her only Oscar in her first major role. Despite only winning one Oscar, she received many nominations and wins from other major award organisations:</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Key: Win = <span style="color: lime;">Green. </span>Nomination = <span style="color: red;">Red.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: red;"><br />
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</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>Academy Awards</u></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: lime; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Academy Award for Best Actress (Roman Holiday 1953).</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: red; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Academy Award for Best Actress (Sabrina 1954).</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: red; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Academy Award for Best Actress (The Nun's Story 1959).</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: red; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Academy Award for Best Actress (Breakfast At Tiffany's 1961).</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: red; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Academy Award for Best Actress (Wait Until Dark 1967).</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: lime; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award (A special award for her dedication to helping children in poverty across the world throughout her life in 1993, shortly after her death).</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: red; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>BAFTA'S</u></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: lime; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">BAFTA Award for Best Actress (Roman Holiday 1953).</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: red; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">BAFTA Award for Best Actress (Sabrina 1954).</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: red; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">BAFTA Award for Best Actress (War And Peace 1957).</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: lime; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">BAFTA Award for Best Actress (The Nun's Story 1960).</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: lime; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">BAFTA Award for Best Actress (Charade, 1965).</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: lime; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">BAFTA Lifetime Achievement Award (1992).</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: lime; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>David Di Donatello Awards</u></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: lime; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">David Di Donatello Award for Best Foreign Actress (The Nun's Story 1960).</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: lime; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">David Di Donatello Award for Best Foreign Actress (Breakfast At Tiffany's 1961).</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: lime; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">David Di Donatello Award for Best Foreign Actress (My Fair Lady 1965).</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: lime; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>Emmy Awards</u></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: lime; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Outstanding Individual Achievement - Informational Programming (1993).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>Golden Globe Awards</u></span><br />
<span style="color: lime; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Golden Globe Award for Best Actress (Roman Holiday 1953).</span><br />
<span style="color: lime; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Golden Globe Award for World Film Favourite -- Female (1955).</span><br />
<span style="color: red; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Golden Globe Award for Best Actress (War and Peace 1957).</span><br />
<span style="color: red; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Golden Globe Award for Best Actress (Love In The Afternoon 1958).</span><br />
<span style="color: red; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Golden Globe Award for Best Actress (The Nun's Story 1960).</span><br />
<span style="color: red; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Golden Globe Award for Best Actress (Breakfast At Tiffany's 1962).</span><br />
<span style="color: red; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Golden Globe Award for Best Actress (Charade 1964).</span><br />
<span style="color: red; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Golden Globe Award for Best Actress (My Fair Lady 1965).</span><br />
<span style="color: red; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Golden Globe Award for Best Actress (Two for the Road 1968).</span><br />
<span style="color: red; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Golden Globe Award for Best Actress (Wait Until Dark 1968).</span><br />
<span style="color: lime; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Cecil B. Demille Award -- Audrey Hepburn (1990).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Audrey also managed to accrue many other awards for various reasons. She won awards from the Grammy Awards, the New York Film Critics Circle Awards, Screen Actors Guild Awards, Theatre World Awards, Tony Awards, and countless awards for her humanitarian efforts. </span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>Post-Roman Holiday</u> </b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After the huge success of <i>Roman Holiday</i><b style="font-style: italic;">, </b>Audrey Hepburn became far more prevalent within the film world. Her next success came with <i>Sabrina </i>(1954) a romantic comedy directed by Billy Wilder, in which two wealthy brothers (played by Humphrey Bogart and William Holden) battle for the love of Hepburn's character, who carries the name of the titular character. <i>Sabrina</i>, like most Hepburn works, received critical acclaim.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE-sIZVZWOo24jiITeY0QBmC5PViOqCH2iayQANOHKGY31GEO2qcnBLE3L7T7bdTqzvDP0Jglrhi9ntntcgsZ8JbnJWTpLPSCTfbwMDEtrYMF8iiAbxLVVIqyZQ4WXgHZx1rrJg_oJe4o/s1600/Annex+-+Hepburn%252C+Audrey+%2528Sabrina%2529_08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="245" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE-sIZVZWOo24jiITeY0QBmC5PViOqCH2iayQANOHKGY31GEO2qcnBLE3L7T7bdTqzvDP0Jglrhi9ntntcgsZ8JbnJWTpLPSCTfbwMDEtrYMF8iiAbxLVVIqyZQ4WXgHZx1rrJg_oJe4o/s320/Annex+-+Hepburn%252C+Audrey+%2528Sabrina%2529_08.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An iconic image from Sabrina (1954).</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By the mid 50s, Hepburn was becoming one of the most loved Hollywood icons around. She was adored by fans worldwide for her bravura performances and her stylish charm. Hepburn, who was garnering fame by the minute, went on to star in many more successful films which attracted box office attention. First up, there was <i>War And Peace</i> (1956), a film set during the Napoleonic war starring Henry Fonda and then husband Mel Ferrer. Next up was<i> Funny Face </i>(1957), a musical starring Fred Astaire, followed up by a similar film called <i>Love In The Afternoon</i>. She then start in <i>The Nun's Story</i> (1959), a film starring her and Peter Finch in which she plays a nun struggling to succeed as one. These films were all successful to some degree, and skyrocketed Hepburn's success in the late 50s. A poster for <i>War and Peace</i>:</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJT3BqIDKKJm-PIvil_TZw-R7JFFhTnMVP0HeqN7HcSfMggKMRv9swEnGXWZ4l18FWUgU39OOJIGnBYOE80oiPmwMpUOXT2UembzFNp49h7bux7B3pQ8B2fHuIFO__9CED5WumxYptx2o/s1600/220px-War_and_peace_1956.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJT3BqIDKKJm-PIvil_TZw-R7JFFhTnMVP0HeqN7HcSfMggKMRv9swEnGXWZ4l18FWUgU39OOJIGnBYOE80oiPmwMpUOXT2UembzFNp49h7bux7B3pQ8B2fHuIFO__9CED5WumxYptx2o/s1600/220px-War_and_peace_1956.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">War and Peace (1956), starring her then husband Mel Ferrer.<br />
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</tbody></table><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And for <i>Funny Face</i>;</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQp4NHJdFVUsW0dDNtge6vqFNBERO_T4U_djelZki1B_-XOv_pf6tw8vS8iimuXrv_li1VfmIBrKS-uCYs1xsRjft9AILdmFwlAPmF0oOI2vMVCX6j2yFa5MZlF3bCif8fvkAo5OoiUMg/s1600/Funny+Face+poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQp4NHJdFVUsW0dDNtge6vqFNBERO_T4U_djelZki1B_-XOv_pf6tw8vS8iimuXrv_li1VfmIBrKS-uCYs1xsRjft9AILdmFwlAPmF0oOI2vMVCX6j2yFa5MZlF3bCif8fvkAo5OoiUMg/s320/Funny+Face+poster.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Funny Face (1957), perhaps one of Hepburn's more well-known ventures.<br />
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</tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And to conclude, <i>The Nun's Story</i>:</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwy8hZ3M8d_P6s3Yabo1kyHwEVnbRuUt7jaYxeoQvJIx2UbvKzksDduRWwJWDjRNvuCw31CJRDAl0Sb1HKwV3mVocwAUIBipAQ1TajkvQwzCncrJSngn_7OwzVutZBICDV6U_uYHfYEH4/s1600/THE_NUNS_STORY.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwy8hZ3M8d_P6s3Yabo1kyHwEVnbRuUt7jaYxeoQvJIx2UbvKzksDduRWwJWDjRNvuCw31CJRDAl0Sb1HKwV3mVocwAUIBipAQ1TajkvQwzCncrJSngn_7OwzVutZBICDV6U_uYHfYEH4/s320/THE_NUNS_STORY.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A less known endeavour of Hepburn's but still successuful.</td></tr>
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>Breakfast At Tiffany's</u></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In 1961, Hepburn partook in a film which would produce (arguably) her most iconic character, Holly Golightly. This film was <i>Breakfast At Tiffany's</i>, a quaint, hilarious, legendary film starring George Peppard and Hepburn and directed by Blake Edwards. To this day, few films can compare to <i>Tiffany's </i>irresistible charm and iconic scenes, including Hepburn's rendition of Moon River, (which won an Academy Award for Best Song), and the hunt for the cat. Audrey Hepburn managed to idolise the character and the film in many ways - her clothes (particularly the little black dress she wore), her mannerisms, and her sublime delivery of lines.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_Pa9ObkZIJ4CO0qcwNsf6mLntW0p-dCGMgJJ5E0YgTFtEvkJ6SZHi82TFAfQmx4ppA0fMp_31nkI-HfGyOKEjkVQR3BBpqCTcVXrYsSgGH46vwBwhItw30n8U7-DWnpz-jwyujMVD43U/s1600/lgpp30403%252Baudrey-hepburn-stars-in-breakfast-at-tiffanys-breakfast-at-tiffanys-poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_Pa9ObkZIJ4CO0qcwNsf6mLntW0p-dCGMgJJ5E0YgTFtEvkJ6SZHi82TFAfQmx4ppA0fMp_31nkI-HfGyOKEjkVQR3BBpqCTcVXrYsSgGH46vwBwhItw30n8U7-DWnpz-jwyujMVD43U/s320/lgpp30403%252Baudrey-hepburn-stars-in-breakfast-at-tiffanys-breakfast-at-tiffanys-poster.jpg" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The legendary poster for Breakfast At Tiffany's (1961).</td></tr>
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<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hepburn went on to star in more successful films, including <i>Charade</i> (1963) and and <i>Wait Until Dark </i>(1967). But perhaps her final extremely famous role came with <i>My Fair Lady</i> (1964), an iconic comedy in which she played Eliza Doolittle, which also starred Rex Harrison. <i>My Fair Lady </i>was branded as "the most exciting thing to come out in the film industry since <i>Gone With The Wind</i>", and it did indeed accrue success. Audrey Hepburn had many acting credits that were perhaps less known. Here is a full list of her credited performances during her illustrious 41-year career, and any relevant facts:</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>Filmography</u></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dutch In Seven Lessons (1948)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Monte Carlo Baby (1951)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Laughter In Paradise (1951)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One Wild Oat (1951)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Lavender Hill Mob (1951)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Young Wives' Tale (1951)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Secret People (1952) -- first major role.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We Will Go To Monte Carlo (1952) -- French remake of <i>Monte Carlo Baby</i>.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Roman Holiday (1953) -- won her the only Oscar she won.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sabrina (1954) </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">War And Peace (1956)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Love In The Afternoon (1957)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Funny Face (1957) -- her first musical.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Green Mansions (1959)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Nun's Story (1959)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Unforgiven (1960) -- her only Western.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Breakfast At Tiffany's (1961)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Children's Hour (1961)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Charade (1963)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Paris When It Sizzles (1964)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My Fair Lady (1964)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">How To Steal A Million (1966)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Two For The Road (1967)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Wait Until Dark (1967)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Robin And Marian (1976)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bloodline (1979) -- her only R-rated film.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">They All Laughed (1981)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Always (1989) -- cameo.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>Marriages, Miscarriages and Children</u></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hepburn was involved in two marriages. Her first was with Mel Ferrer, which lasted from 1954 to 1968. She met Ferrer at a cocktail party hosted by Gregory Peck, and starred with him in one of her films, <i>War and Peace</i>. She had one child with Ferrer - Sean Hepburn Ferrer. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hepburn and Ferrer on the set of War And Peace (1956).<br />
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</tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Her second marriage was to Andrea Dotti, lasting from 1969 to 1982. She also had one child with Dotti, by the name of Luca Dotti. She and Andrea Dotti met on a cruise, where she fell in love with him and eventually married him. Hepburn unfortunately suffered two miscarriages, in 1955 and 1959. </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>Death</u></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In late 1992, Hepburn discovered that she was suffering from abdominal cancer, which has metastasised, covering her small intestine. Unfortunately, the surgeons operating on her decided that it was too late to remove the cancer. After coming to terms with the seriousness of her illness, her family decided to spend one last Christmas with her in her home in Tolochenaz, Vaud, Switzerland. On the 20th of January, 1993, Hepburn succumbed to her illness and died in her sleep in her home. Shortly after her death, Gregory Peck weeped as he recited Hepburn's favourite poem, "Unending Love" by Rabindranath Tagore. Funeral services were held at the church in Tolochenaz, and Hepburn was buried on a small hill overlooking the village.</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><u>Why I Love Audrey</u></b></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now, after that huge abundance of facts (that I'm sure you all found inherently interesting), I'm sure you're bursting with anxiety to find out why I actually love her. Well, thanks to Thomas' endlessly general word limit of FOUR THOUSAND, I have the space and lenience to tell you. Just to get it out of the way first, Audrey Hepburn is one of the most unique and beautiful people I've ever seen - there is no denying that she has an ethereal beauty that is unmatched - but this is more about her acting talent and personality rather than what she looks like - so I thought I'd just clarify that before I go any further.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A perennially iconic shot from Roman Holiday (1953), in which Hepburn and Peck drive a moped manically through the streets of Rome.<br />
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</tbody></table><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of the most special (and often delectable) things about Hepburn, is that every seemingly ordinary character that she tackles turns into something unparalleled and unique. Take Sabrina Fairchild from <i>Sabrina</i>, simply a chauffeur's daughter and a maid to a rich family. Hepburn transforms her into a deep, fascinating and enchanting character, by manipulating her role and putting passionate profundity into it. The result of Hepburn's (likely arduous) efforts is always something to be astounded at, a character to love and to care for - which is perhaps why many women apotheosize many of Hepburn's characters - and also why her characters will always have a high class within the vast landscape that is cinema. Hepburn never fails to give you a warm, fuzzy feeling every time she pops up on the screen, which is exactly where she belongs - delighting people, young and old.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hepburn performing her rendition of "Moon River" in <i>Breakfast At Tiffany's</i> (1961). The song won an Oscar.<br />
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</tbody></table><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Audrey Hepburn has a vast range of character traits that only add to her magnificent splendour. She always manages to balance out her characteristics - be it innocent, charming, strong-willed, strong, weak - or be it her social class - upper, middle, lower, rich, poor - she always manages to deliver and capitalise on whatever qualities or traits she possesses, which is wholly admirable. In every role, she exudes emotion and intricate personality. She always manages to connect exceedingly with her audience and delivers beautifully on every single line and scene that she performs in, which is perhaps why many people rank her among the greatest.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hepburn gazing upon her hometown in Belgium.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another stupefying ability that Hepburn holds is her aptitude and capacity to maintain a strong chemistry with anyone accompanying her in a lead role (usually a male). In <i>Roman Holiday</i>, Hepburn and Peck are the perfect duo; a stunning contrast between people of differing social class, perhaps my favourite onscreen couple of all-time. Her relationship with George Peppard's character in <i>Breakfast At Tiffany's </i>is oddball but nonetheless bewildering, enjoyable, bright and pleasant. Hepburn is (and will always be) the most recongised and acclaimed film about <i>Breakfast At Tiffany's</i>, but a lot of the atmosphere and quality within that film is down to her connection with Peppard. In <i>Sabrina</i>, Hepburn had the task of trying to bind two strong relationships with two separate actors - William Holden and Humphrey Bogart - in a film which radiated the message that when it comes to love, age doesn't matter. Therefore, Hepburn had to adapt her personality to suit the older character and the younger character, and succeeded admirably, solidifying <i>Sabrina </i>as one of my favourite love stories of all-time.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hepburn with shorter hair, a style she used for many of her characters.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hepburn makes roles that could be easily interpreted as difficult look effortless, even with here divine sense of potency that is embroidered into each individual persona she takes on. Just by doing one certain thing in a scene, Hepburn can create many interpretations and sentiments. For example, when she takes a tantrum within the character of Princess Anne in <i>Roman Holiday</i>, you are immediately given an insight as to some of the possibilities as to the problem that her character is facing - perhaps she is a princess who despises the life she leads and wishes she could live the life of a normal person, or contingently she may have trouble with someone that she knows within the royal family, or potentially she is just breaking under the stress of her aristocratic duties. Whichever it may be, Hepburn encloses us into her role and keeps us gripped, because in an instant, we care about the character. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Audrey Hepburn modelling for fashion.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As much as I love Hepburn as an actress, I also have a love for the person she was. She was genuine, seemingly intelligent and endlessly charitable. As I previously mentioned, she aided and worked with UNICEF for the most part of her adult life. I am aware that plenty of celebrities are involved with charities, but rather than just giving money to charity, Hepburn went to various sterile and destitute countries across the world, in various different continents, which is something I (and most other people) can respect. Hepburn never appeared to be too indulged with herself and appertained to helping others more than herself. Her efforts are among the most noticed in terms of charity by countless charities, despite her main reputation deriving from her efforts with UNICEF, evidence of her kindheartedness as a human being.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An older Hepburn carrying a child, whilst aiding a poverty-stricken Chad.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I have little no doubt that I will one day have seen all of Audrey Hepburn's films, and that I will always admire her, as an actress and as a person. She astounds me with her sheer beauty, outside and inside. I can't help but fall in love with every single character she plays and every feature that she performs in. Little can compare to her majestic and magical charm and her godlike capacity to make a character that is in one word: unforgettable. She lights up the screen as soon as she comes onscreen and continues to do so until her final frame. She is acting in its finest form. I do truly believe that Audrey Hepburn is up there with the best actresses, such as Meryl Streep, Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor, Ingrid Bergman and Bette Davis. There isn't a single thing that I dislike about Audrey Hepburn, and I look so much forward to experiencing all that she has to offer.</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Audrey Hepburn.. well, grinning.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This may not be a masterpiece essay on the life of Audrey Hepburn - well, maybe it is, who knows - but all I can say is that what you read here is pure honesty. It is a detailed description of her productive and fruitful life and an equally detailed description of my eternal love for her. Without trying to repeat myself too much, Hepburn is the most colourful, genuine, honest, charming, delightful, wondrous, enjoyable and remarkable actress or actor that I have ever come across, and to sum up in a few words the previous few paragraphs I have written, that is exactly why I love her. She epitomises a great actress and is the quintessential innocent, sweet yet solid and strong character for just about any film. So, as much as it saddens me that she met a rather untimely death, I am comforted by the knowledge that she will be regarded irrevocably as a sublime actress, who will be forever remembered for her beyond amazing films and for being such a largely amiable person. </span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrel7zOx_Dp3cYSHvb0JAPY3kl7xS8_8kba1KWLjRrBb6XjlPRN0IqeSfyPpIbwOcj_PE9qhRfwTQY0qxAofGqrKvoGEIEcejxgacWtXGGzW6a0GgCRlXA42sORsNucPUXJ4ZwwjsaKgE/s1600/Audrey-Hepburn-Photograph-C10101762.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="322" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrel7zOx_Dp3cYSHvb0JAPY3kl7xS8_8kba1KWLjRrBb6XjlPRN0IqeSfyPpIbwOcj_PE9qhRfwTQY0qxAofGqrKvoGEIEcejxgacWtXGGzW6a0GgCRlXA42sORsNucPUXJ4ZwwjsaKgE/s400/Audrey-Hepburn-Photograph-C10101762.jpg" width="400" /></a></div></div></div></div>Colin C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16235082158307960641noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3350889964454088152.post-55587461549383092832011-12-16T14:21:00.000-08:002011-12-18T05:23:28.019-08:00Top 15 of 2011 Thus Far<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Because you're all eternally interested in what I have to say, I have decided to construct a Top 15 of 2011 list, with pictures and explanations, instead of just printing it in numbers and names without a hint as to why they even deserve their place. So, read on if you please, it's not pivotal (in all honesty, this is about 40-50% due to boredom), but any comments and opinions would be appreciated. On with the list.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">P.S: These short reviews I'm giving are not full depth analysis' of the films, they are merely just a few, simple points on why I loved them, but enough to get a general idea. Enjoy.</span><br />
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</span></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">15. <b>Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR5Rqx9XmwIL6ZLP-ioG3nV5MNg_r17zWWdaT3aXSG4Ye00R3u8Z7IlIsUnXK6Lc4etel2gIbIkTg1D7jA6f93EIciSU4CYIai6mnCmWM3aG6qubSwE0aV6aqG8m7TcNMURBYyB3o05YA/s1600/Tinker+Tailor+Soldier+Spy+UK+Quad+Poster+Gary+Oldman+as+Smiley+code.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR5Rqx9XmwIL6ZLP-ioG3nV5MNg_r17zWWdaT3aXSG4Ye00R3u8Z7IlIsUnXK6Lc4etel2gIbIkTg1D7jA6f93EIciSU4CYIai6mnCmWM3aG6qubSwE0aV6aqG8m7TcNMURBYyB3o05YA/s320/Tinker+Tailor+Soldier+Spy+UK+Quad+Poster+Gary+Oldman+as+Smiley+code.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Despite being slightly disappointed by how underwhelming this film ended up being after months of intense anticipation, <i>Tinker, Tailor</i> is still a brilliantly crafted, finely acted, extremely clever film that just happened to have a few major pacing problems, which thoroughly deteriorated my enjoyment of the film. Nonetheless, this will be a lot of people's cup of tea. I thought it would be mine, but sadly, I misjudged. One thing has to be said though - if the film was this difficult to follow in film form, I would hate to imagine what it would be like trying to keep a track of the plot whilst reading the original John Le Carre book. Anyway, to conclude, thus far, <i>Tinker, Tailor</i> is in my Top 15 of the year, and even though it probably won't be by the end, this does not mean it's not worth seeing, because believe me, it is.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;">Rating: 3/4</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">14. <b>Thor</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT3mO2WJOF0XsCPgCL36Qjz_bq1TFwOXb2hzeqivC0cHSRV6uS6CEjuZxlQWEHrLs4OmdvVP8mKuGxYeSwHx8auvV-LalrFh6U3WG5QtTT1S6K_m_mRRpLXTthN1LHh3NmX8tCPikVBwk/s1600/Thor41.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT3mO2WJOF0XsCPgCL36Qjz_bq1TFwOXb2hzeqivC0cHSRV6uS6CEjuZxlQWEHrLs4OmdvVP8mKuGxYeSwHx8auvV-LalrFh6U3WG5QtTT1S6K_m_mRRpLXTthN1LHh3NmX8tCPikVBwk/s320/Thor41.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Thor</i>, although not a flop among Marvel fanatics and critics, didn't receive nearly as much praise as it ought to. <i>X-Men: First Class</i> and <i>Captain America: The First Avenger</i> were two of the biggest disappointments of the year for me, yet they seemed to get more acclaim and notice from fans - <i>X-Men: First Class</i>, yet another entry in a tired out franchise, being drawn out for the sake of money; <i>Captain America</i>, a vapid film with no character development and an unconvincing villain get praise, yet <i>Thor</i> doesn't? <i>Thor</i>, for me, was one of the most entertaining films I have seen in a long time, and not only that - I thought the characters were solid, the script was a mixture of many emotions, which all slotted perfectly into the film's atmosphere, and enjoyment all the way through. My favourite superhero film of the year, without a question asked.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;">Rating: 3-3.5/4</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">13. <b>Super 8</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEJ-cK1jcKCJs2e6xT0mVhn8aK1zSZbfogsaJtMpbgi_tl8kGZlTY5mxDv7r53TNYxhVxXkkMV_x_S79oxiRxigPSfP1cRjFkWSTpfpf3H6XJ-7oZhwj2X-Uz8ahyphenhyphenmm_vr6m0h4ZYgEMg/s1600/super_8_poster_03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEJ-cK1jcKCJs2e6xT0mVhn8aK1zSZbfogsaJtMpbgi_tl8kGZlTY5mxDv7r53TNYxhVxXkkMV_x_S79oxiRxigPSfP1cRjFkWSTpfpf3H6XJ-7oZhwj2X-Uz8ahyphenhyphenmm_vr6m0h4ZYgEMg/s320/super_8_poster_03.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">To absolutely nobody's surprise, everyone was a sucker for <i>Super 8</i>, myself included. What's wrong with it? A lot, actually. The ending is absolute dog feces, it milks the absolute crap out of this cheesy kid relationship and the character of the father is as bland as watching paint dry. But I had a lot of fun with it, I really did. Led by two impressive child actors, (despite the cheesy relationship) Joel Courtney and Elle Fanning, <i>Super 8</i> thrives on wonderful cinematography and a delightfully Abrams/Spielberg feel, which is probably why most people fell over in love with it. <i>Super 8</i> is by no means even close to perfect, but as a nostalgic film and in simple terms of enjoyment, <i>Super 8</i> is absolutely brilliant, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It's not something that I'm in a huge rush to watch again, but I will, someday, because it's worth it.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;">Rating: 3-3.5/4</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">12. <b>Hanna</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3b_ktfNpf4Qd4LlJ7GNCUUMPDwsZ0tZrWaz96nP3Aea9yG4nB-88xnaJbB7tRfNq2_eNzOD42A1VK1bnLF_6xtsjS4Ag737FOHM_tESQjc72fSBxzlb7m47rhwSnrV9JIm88IBpTDCnc/s1600/hanna_poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3b_ktfNpf4Qd4LlJ7GNCUUMPDwsZ0tZrWaz96nP3Aea9yG4nB-88xnaJbB7tRfNq2_eNzOD42A1VK1bnLF_6xtsjS4Ag737FOHM_tESQjc72fSBxzlb7m47rhwSnrV9JIm88IBpTDCnc/s320/hanna_poster.jpg" width="309" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">With two females that I have the utmost respect for (Cate Blanchett and Saoirse Ronan), I was bound to enjoy this, and that's how it ended up. With solid performances, stunning cinematography and a very unique feel to it, <i>Hanna</i> impressed me a great amount. I was taken on a thrill ride, and of course a contributing factor to my enjoyment was the fact that I live films of<i> Hanna's </i>ilk, with the father figure and the badass killer girl, but <i>Hanna</i> was more than that to me, it had a justified level of emotion without shoving it down your throat in extreme amounts and it never lost its pacing. With sharp, often humorous dialogue, <i>Hanna</i> wraps up a place in my Top 15 as an enjoyable, well directed thriller with technical advantages to back it up.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;">Rating: 3.5/4</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">11. <b>Moneyball</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN7HC8nJGdHmNxiLxGu3c330FZvt8CiOvyjYztzb3PwZSCeFviZGXRqqXw-Y206MTq6g1KQhnvO2Tab7-DobRIt6hbVN0besVUVD1ybVL2VSicJFmzp9-OnsTusr6UDrh8M7GVhRjgd58/s1600/Moneyball.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN7HC8nJGdHmNxiLxGu3c330FZvt8CiOvyjYztzb3PwZSCeFviZGXRqqXw-Y206MTq6g1KQhnvO2Tab7-DobRIt6hbVN0besVUVD1ybVL2VSicJFmzp9-OnsTusr6UDrh8M7GVhRjgd58/s320/Moneyball.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Just to clarify straight away, you DO NOT have to be a baseball fan to enjoy <i>Moneyball</i>, a film that is more about the integrity, teamwork and togetherness of being in a baseball team, and perhaps the stress of trying to point one in the direction of success, with thousands of fans hearts on the line of the decisions you make, and the strategies you choose to use. Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill make the absolute most out of the characters they have, and also the solid script they are given. <i>Moneyball</i>, like any other film, has its flaws - the players aren't explored nearly enough and the director obviously seemed to concentrate on making the baseball scenes look nice rather than any other scene, but <i>Moneyball </i>is strong in heart and strong on a technical level, and is worth seeing, baseball fan - hell, even sports fan - or not.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b><br />
</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Rating: 3.5/4</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><br />
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</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">10. <b>Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part ||</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIQhjpA_2gZTGlsK8_zhVIGwEQci2xwGJ_98U1SaxtUsW0zDIARcLxf1-AfqL525UHkm0dETZW4GhY6dHl_jJuOOsnS4pi8C2gFNAKag2Jrp1vGk_xFNzJKJXlinR4SDIoZtZ3sYB0EMs/s1600/harry-potter-and-the-deathly-hallows-part-2-jobs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="229" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIQhjpA_2gZTGlsK8_zhVIGwEQci2xwGJ_98U1SaxtUsW0zDIARcLxf1-AfqL525UHkm0dETZW4GhY6dHl_jJuOOsnS4pi8C2gFNAKag2Jrp1vGk_xFNzJKJXlinR4SDIoZtZ3sYB0EMs/s320/harry-potter-and-the-deathly-hallows-part-2-jobs.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Harry Potter</i>, until the sixth entry, never really matured - but thanks to David Yates, we were given three wonderfully made<i> Potter</i> films right at the last, the strongest being this film's predecessor, but only marginally. <i>Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part ||</i> is glowingly magical, enticing and exciting, and is everything that I could have hoped for after the thoroughly impressive previous entry. Yates concentrates on bringing out the characters in full right before they disappear off our screens forever and his effort is shown throughout, by Alan Rickman, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint especially. <i>Deathly Hallows: Part ||</i> is one of the strongest entries in the <i>Potter</i> series and a film that I feel I will enjoy watching on countless occasions.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;">Rating: 3.5/4</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">09. <b>50/50</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7MfGSPzSOYlZwMmp71P1J9y2KBbf5qxN0xcUi_nLTdFQ56U2ZTemTeaEQ6ucgvxTgdI-S1Ex0kKZ_LmFJNPW4J8e5p5bQDGKMmVEnYJXt0VCBCZ_eT3zrYrgYvZ9oeEoKqKyK5hk7bSM/s1600/50-50-UK-Poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7MfGSPzSOYlZwMmp71P1J9y2KBbf5qxN0xcUi_nLTdFQ56U2ZTemTeaEQ6ucgvxTgdI-S1Ex0kKZ_LmFJNPW4J8e5p5bQDGKMmVEnYJXt0VCBCZ_eT3zrYrgYvZ9oeEoKqKyK5hk7bSM/s320/50-50-UK-Poster.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>50/50 </i>is not only one of the most touching, heartfelt films of the year, it's also one of the funniest, something many films would struggle to do, and do struggle to do. When you put <i>50/50</i> as "a comedy about cancer" it doesn't sound particularly amusing, but when you actually sit down and watch this film, it embroiders itself in your heart and takes you on a moral journey through the eyes of Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Seth Rogen. To no surprise, Gordon-Levitt was impressive, with a charming and often sarcastic performance, but I was seriously surprised by Rogen, an actor I usually can't stand, who added an array of emotions into his performance, and made a perfect partner to Levitt. Anjelica Huston, Anna Kendrick and Bryce Dallas Howard also impress to formulate one of most charming films of the year, earning a deserved spot in my Top 15.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;">Rating: 3.5/4</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">08. <b>The Help</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi85sxKemLanB3F3Pkbg-pT9Cb1_WO6QMcfAk4qxa9Pg-8dBl_g694-DHVxxBXZLGncU9YIClh-7-awdzZseJ6CVGbSr4MnvFg4EYinSA-p28JAE3dfTvLyFS2o1E8KwAOx7iFr2V33md0/s1600/the_help01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi85sxKemLanB3F3Pkbg-pT9Cb1_WO6QMcfAk4qxa9Pg-8dBl_g694-DHVxxBXZLGncU9YIClh-7-awdzZseJ6CVGbSr4MnvFg4EYinSA-p28JAE3dfTvLyFS2o1E8KwAOx7iFr2V33md0/s320/the_help01.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Oscar-Bait or no Oscar-Bait, I adored <i>The Help</i>. It has one of the best assembled female casts in a long time, featuring Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer, Emma Stone, Bryce Dallas Howard, Allison Janney, Sissy Spacek and Jessica Chastain, all with apt and enjoyable performances. <i>The Help</i>, despite milking as much as it can out of its PC topic, is relevant and enjoyable and touching to watch. It is a colourful and bristles with snappy dialogue and powerful scenes backed up by being well filmed and powerfully acted. <i>The Help</i> will inspire you and lift you up on a bad day, because it succeeds at doing what it was always supposed to do - make audiences feel good. <i>The Help</i>, whether you like emotional films or not, is worth a watch.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b><br />
</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>Rating: 3.5/4</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><br />
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</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">07. <b>Hugo</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXyydEaVc3-INtcYontcxcpK2EdljzVQPM7x-Zensj2lFiGipbD9Y5KDNngclvZx77ZAHplmgCPAxxNrGHWZjFleMyjatY2BLHLyzZ3h5MRTPt1gpSe_TG_Cd-Bf9gCZXqW0DFIZRJvzs/s1600/Hugo-Poster.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXyydEaVc3-INtcYontcxcpK2EdljzVQPM7x-Zensj2lFiGipbD9Y5KDNngclvZx77ZAHplmgCPAxxNrGHWZjFleMyjatY2BLHLyzZ3h5MRTPt1gpSe_TG_Cd-Bf9gCZXqW0DFIZRJvzs/s320/Hugo-Poster.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Hugo</i> is a magical journey, fit for all ages, full to the brim with ancient movie references (most of which I got) and a terrific performance from everyone involved, especially my favourite child actress, Chloe Grace-Moretz. Scorsese offers us what most kid's films cannot - maturity - and although that it sounds stupid to say that, considering that IT IS a kid's film, but watching the maturity of the picture flow throughout really is joyous, and maturity often suits kid's films. The film is without a doubt entertaining, I was never bored. The film has a few minor flaws, such as some jarring tonal shifts and Sacha Baron Cohen for the first hour of the film, but <i>Hugo</i> makes up for it by being enticing, joyful and an absolute pleasure to watch. I stick to the fact that I said that the film looked bad, but I am equally as willing to say that I have been indeed proved wrong.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;">Rating: 3.5/4</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">06.<b> Drive</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTEbnv5Z14IDPwBFUC8DIpzZGPQCrQDdezysHKn6M636vPFsSU_5R4_sc9MaiLHrJv77Iw3HrbQRtL7g-mqey-n6AcLHbtQoHojzlDzURY2_7JcWkZp0KmhzNJDTl601H8vVuvqke51xo/s1600/550w_movies_drive_poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="237" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTEbnv5Z14IDPwBFUC8DIpzZGPQCrQDdezysHKn6M636vPFsSU_5R4_sc9MaiLHrJv77Iw3HrbQRtL7g-mqey-n6AcLHbtQoHojzlDzURY2_7JcWkZp0KmhzNJDTl601H8vVuvqke51xo/s320/550w_movies_drive_poster.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Drive</i> should be the dictionary definition of 'encapsulating'. In fact, <i>Drive</i> should be the dictionary definition of many complimentary words, but there are so many that it would be far too challenging for my tiny little brain to go into. <i>Drive</i> features a standout performance from Ryan Gosling, an apt and wonderfully funky soundtrack that I can listen to again and again, some mesmerising cinematography, especially some simply unforgettable scenes in slow-motion, and a gripping plot. But one thing, as the great Rohit Ramachandran once said - "Multiple viewings are mandatory." These words are nothing but truth. I thought the film was weak when I first watched it, but upon multiple viewings, I have found its greatness. Carey Mulligan accompanies Ryan Gosling with a sweet, subtle performance as per usual, and all other supporting performances are solid.<i> Drive </i>is an essential of 2011.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;">Rating: 3.5-4/4</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">05.<b> We Need To Talk About Kevin</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmGm12EJbdCLFpv98KBvaMnGIy76D3P4PNDU7CaqP0cYidQvThlgsydzk_GqNU264beeMFCze34CeChskEKu5jT3weABU5vcw1MA8yO7nSEp0Azdr4O7XxxHSoSELsQUBL2cMk8MFPt1A/s1600/We-Need-to-Talk-about-Kev-007.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmGm12EJbdCLFpv98KBvaMnGIy76D3P4PNDU7CaqP0cYidQvThlgsydzk_GqNU264beeMFCze34CeChskEKu5jT3weABU5vcw1MA8yO7nSEp0Azdr4O7XxxHSoSELsQUBL2cMk8MFPt1A/s320/We-Need-to-Talk-about-Kev-007.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">We Need To Talk About Kevin</i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> is a tale of torture, pain and struggle, yet somehow manages to be beautiful in the meantime. Perhaps down to its wonderful cinematography, or maybe even the award worthy performances from Ezra Miller and Tilda Swinton, but I think mostly it's because the director managed to make a menacing killer deceive the audience by changing his persona throughout, looking sweet and innocent at certain times and looking beyond salvation at others. The other wonderful thing about </span><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Kevin</i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> is that almost every point and moral issue brought up in the film is moot, leaving room for wonderful post-watching discussion. On a film level itself, </span><i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Kevin</i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"> is simply unforgettable, worthy of every piece of praise it receives, and a must-watch for any lover of psychological thrillers - you'll get a bit more than that, too.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;">Rating: 3.5-4/4</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">04. <b>La Piel Que Habito (The Skin I Live In)</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSr9sE7sqUOTxxBqlTDRsbbcpe70_g7qW_Szns4LokKonVH93NpAPUI3ASgMcI1aPLPupwZJT_cJH02chn5BghkaCtGnmIZMu1tTvSy2bKV_ODINjdeCYBXyyMlMTp0DwgsPKbG4OENsw/s1600/The-Skin-I-live-In-Huge-Poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSr9sE7sqUOTxxBqlTDRsbbcpe70_g7qW_Szns4LokKonVH93NpAPUI3ASgMcI1aPLPupwZJT_cJH02chn5BghkaCtGnmIZMu1tTvSy2bKV_ODINjdeCYBXyyMlMTp0DwgsPKbG4OENsw/s320/The-Skin-I-live-In-Huge-Poster.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Pedro Almodovar, being the genius that he is, has spurned another masterpiece out of his beautifully twisted mind, that being The Skin I Live In, a hypnotic journey through moral standpoints, trust and issues. Full to the brim with cultural/technical codes, differential decoding and preferred reading, The Skin I Live In thrives upon its fine performances all round, from Antonio Banderas and Elena Anaya particularly. The Skin I Live In has some of the most impressive and captivating scenery I have ever come across, and some of the topics that are embroidered within this cavern of fascination and beauty are as effective as you can get. The Skin I Live In is by far my favourite foreign film of the year, and one of my favourites of the year overall. An absolute must-see.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;">Rating: 3.5-4/4</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">03. <b>Midnight In Paris</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMq1t6CadMYbg8gkQmWwr8MLDRBZNSGCl5a4GndQtGEvLSWmtZ0VzrOwjlBiiFmhbnXH2HwNrAykPRB87DxFNpBm6SlYeuWv5r-Gs65bOOXcL0GgpDYJRRg8_7eVLOXOOZR2YQbrmbWFI/s1600/Midnight+in+Paris+Movie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMq1t6CadMYbg8gkQmWwr8MLDRBZNSGCl5a4GndQtGEvLSWmtZ0VzrOwjlBiiFmhbnXH2HwNrAykPRB87DxFNpBm6SlYeuWv5r-Gs65bOOXcL0GgpDYJRRg8_7eVLOXOOZR2YQbrmbWFI/s320/Midnight+in+Paris+Movie.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Midnight In Paris</i> is essential for any lover of history and quaint, anachronistic settings. That is just one reason why I love <i>Midnight In Paris</i>, but although you're probably asking why I love this film, my question is - how can you NOT love this film? It's charming, it has Owen Wilson NOT being a stuck-up prick, it has Marion Cotillard at her peak (which is a joy to watch) and its unforgettable screenplay should nab it a nomination at the Oscars this year, and if it doesn't - they're even stupider than they were prior to not nominating this. Woody Allen has crafted a modern masterpiece in <i>Midnight In Paris</i>, and I will buy this upon release simply for the reason that it will make me feel on top of the world if I ever feel down, and that also the fact that it is a fantastic film, and one of the most impressive of the year.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;">Rating: 4/4</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">02. <b>My Week With Marilyn</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrOc1L3i4Xih4rXLMS1VlfYH4MkJDmocDhMuEnALNQOpSrLDhs_UwGOV9oDjWLCOTrzX1hzSM0NyqYuMLa4uylAbR197cW8qtYrTKJf3imRBY7I9d_4huG-boCwCwQG91_TkuHKwWyiJM/s1600/My-Week-with-Marilyn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="209" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrOc1L3i4Xih4rXLMS1VlfYH4MkJDmocDhMuEnALNQOpSrLDhs_UwGOV9oDjWLCOTrzX1hzSM0NyqYuMLa4uylAbR197cW8qtYrTKJf3imRBY7I9d_4huG-boCwCwQG91_TkuHKwWyiJM/s320/My-Week-with-Marilyn.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>My Week With Marilyn</i> is a deep, beautiful study of a star (played by a PERFECTLY casted Michelle Williams) torn between her love for show business and fame and the overwhelming desire to lead a normal life. Williams is accompanied by Kenneth Branagh, Eddie Redmayne, Emma Watson among others, all of whom impress. <i>My Week With Marilyn</i> is my kind of film, and this was definitely a contributing factor to my undying love for it, but I do believe that by itself it is a fantastic film, one with little flaw, and perhaps the best one based on the life of the late star. The touching dialogue will tear you apart as Marilyn has to make her choice after falling in love with a normal man, and the fun aspects of the film will balance out a mellow, enjoyable experience, regardless of whether you love it as much as me or not.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;">Rating: 4/4</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: lime; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">01. <b>Melancholia</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPa5gT2o_C9Dpk5Q0EhGi3CLJlFNF8umOBzAJzUHAdhggTAecEOT0FKtty6Q1VWk8h-i476gV5ideQmq7pd5lnfYtjea1pqPk69FvDP9ahft2dxCIcRsv-a1AYuJmy2LKMSmr8kVqL3H0/s1600/Melancholia-poster-008.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPa5gT2o_C9Dpk5Q0EhGi3CLJlFNF8umOBzAJzUHAdhggTAecEOT0FKtty6Q1VWk8h-i476gV5ideQmq7pd5lnfYtjea1pqPk69FvDP9ahft2dxCIcRsv-a1AYuJmy2LKMSmr8kVqL3H0/s320/Melancholia-poster-008.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The moment I set eyes on Lars Von Trier's <i>Melancholia</i>, I knew that not only would it be my favourite of the year, but perhaps one of my favourite films of all time: a fascinating study of human life crossed with an emotional journey with two sisters, one, Justine, who fears nothing due to her deep depression (studied beautifully) by Von Trier and her sister Claire, a paranoid woman who believes that passer-by planet Melancholia may strike Earth, eradicating all life. Dramatic irony is shown within <i>Melancholia</i>, as the depressed Justine (played by the mesmerising Kirsten Dunst) who is supposed to be vulnerable and feeble, fears nothing of a planet threatening to kill all life, yet a woman who has a husband, who continuously assures her that nothing bad will happen, and a child, is living in fear of death. <i>Melancholia</i> is intrinsic, captivating, and in all honesty I could probably write for hours about my love for this film, but for times sake, I will leave it here - but if you have not seen this film, make it your priority.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Honorable Mentions</b>:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The Adjustment Bureau</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Bridesmaids</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Friends With Benefits</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Horrible Bosses</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Source Code</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Rise of the Planet of the Apes</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Thank you for reading. </span></div>Colin C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16235082158307960641noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3350889964454088152.post-55664498391893635692011-11-18T09:30:00.000-08:002012-02-11T12:36:51.738-08:00El Laberinto Del Fauno (Pan's Labyrinth) Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh38iZYQxN39FgWOLLY5KsTjxAAn_AKTrDgq0Q6yWWkOsLN_3JJdKbVU1qO3KGX0lnjas1Pb0u2O1TGlbkY8v89S6aMUAvPsR9Ct5K5aE8RR9QmUTn9wNU7G6rGP5G9YmUrHXaI9u8MHo/s1600/pans-labyrinth-poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh38iZYQxN39FgWOLLY5KsTjxAAn_AKTrDgq0Q6yWWkOsLN_3JJdKbVU1qO3KGX0lnjas1Pb0u2O1TGlbkY8v89S6aMUAvPsR9Ct5K5aE8RR9QmUTn9wNU7G6rGP5G9YmUrHXaI9u8MHo/s320/pans-labyrinth-poster.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Director</b>: Guillermo Del Toro</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Year</b>: 2006</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Starring</b>: Ivana Baquero</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-small;">, </span>Adriana Gil</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Country</b>: Spain</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Language</b>: Spanish</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Runtime</b>: 112 minutes</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHqY3da-576I-B7BqxOPAw1u6Js4FY35GAF-pOZD9hSBjXl2Lw1jb_htnKgPRPvpUdy6HP1RZK7iJwQGvUexyQy2f__sdPBXDmA_AA9gEfnaEG8U0tO-QPWHsLR24lLSqwS8T4Nwekmlk/s1600/8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHqY3da-576I-B7BqxOPAw1u6Js4FY35GAF-pOZD9hSBjXl2Lw1jb_htnKgPRPvpUdy6HP1RZK7iJwQGvUexyQy2f__sdPBXDmA_AA9gEfnaEG8U0tO-QPWHsLR24lLSqwS8T4Nwekmlk/s1600/8.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-size: x-large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b><u>Pan's</u> <u>Labyrinth</u></b></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ofelia is just like any other little girl. She loves fairy tales with princesses, adores exploring the world and believes in fairies. When she stumbles upon an ancient labyrinth at the mill where she is now living with her pregnant mother Carmen and her fascist stepfather Captain Vidal, she is informed by a faun by the name of Pan that she is a lost princess called Moanna, who died </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">an extremely long time ago after her curiosity got the better of her and decided to explore the outside world. To prove that her "</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 19px;">essence is intact", she is told that she must complete three tasks, and then she will be sent back to the underworld to be with her real parents again. As Ofelia ventures off on her quest to become a princess, problems face those around her - her mother is ill because of her pregnancy, the doctor and one of the maids at the mill by the name of Mercedes try their hardest to supply the rebels opposing Francisco Franco's fascist regime undetected, and everyone - in some way or another, is being badly affected by Vidal's narcissistic and demonic ways and personality. Each character deals with the problems at hand in their own ways, with twists and turns pleasantly appearing along the road. But the film mainly concentrates on the character of Ofelia - whose desperate attempt to become a princess leads her into numerous problems and troubles. And that is where one of the greatest films ever made begins.</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 19px;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Pan's Labyrinth isn't just an adventure film - it is a magical journey, an enticing one, a completely unforgettable one. It takes you through the roller coaster story of such wonderfully developed characters, and albeit the fact that these characters are all in situations more extreme and unlike any that most people have ever had to face, they are so easily related to in such an intriguing manner. However, do not reflect the adjectives I have used to describe this film thus far onto the overall mood and atmosphere of the majority of the film - it is, in reality, an extremely dark and shocking experience. The film starts off not happily, but at least comfortable. The thing you do not expect to happen next is to see the captain smashing an innocent man's face in, only to shoot his father moments later. This is what makes the film so artistically brilliant though - it doesn't hesitate to shock its audience. It is honest and brutal about its villain almost right from the start, which automatically constructs emotions for the audience to feel towards the character - hate, anger, and sympathy towards the characters that suffer from his actions. Captain Vidal is indeed a ruthless, cold man, yet he is one of the most interesting characters that I have seen develop in a film.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Although throughout the film you are going to feel a high level of hatred towards Vidal, the film always gives you a slight benefit of doubt. The man does seem intent on raising his child to be brave, strong and fit for the world, and while it is blatantly obvious that he doesn't want his son to put this to a good cause, I still felt a slight hint of admiration for his passion and aspiration. Although they seldom appeared, I felt there were also scenes where there were morsels of redemption within the character, that perhaps he regretted some of his past actions, and that he is not completely soulless and hasn't been completely overwhelmed by the idea of fascism. Sergi Lopez (who gives a mesmerising and perhaps career defining performance) gives off an aura of this simply with body language and facial expression. This villain was one of my favourite things about Pan's Labyrinth, mainly because he was a deep character study - villains are often just placed in films as an obstruction to the protagonists, but Vidal is rather unique - you see it as much from his point of view as you do from the protagonists, which has a stunning effect and reflects Del Toro's lenience to show the film from the perspective of the antagonist in an equal amount to the protagonist.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">All of the other characters also live up to the depth of Vidal. Ofelia can be related to by children of almost any age, and not only by the female species - the character captures the adventurous spirit of almost any child growing up. As an individual character, Ofelia is also an absolute joy to watch. She aspires to what a large percentage of little girls aspire to, but she does it in her own way and adds her own flavour to everything she does, says and the way she communicates with others. She is the most effective and brilliantly characterised child character I have ever had the pleasure to view in a film. This is of course thanks to the obvious passion and effort put into the character by child actress Ivana Baquero. The third character I admired greatly was Mercedes. Her character showed a lot of stereotypical attributes and emotions displayed by characters in similar situations to her in films - courage, faith, unity, passion, love - the list goes on - but again, like Ofelia, she adds her own twist to it, although she holds similar attributes to other characters, she is not like any other character. Maribel Verdu created yet another unique character within this modern masterpiece.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Pan's Labyrinth does not at all falter on technical and dialogue levels either - the script is beautifully written and in the wonderful language of Spanish, it sounds all the better. All the dialogue is extremely apt to the atmosphere and personalities within the film. The camera work is statuesque and captures all the emotion and commotion throughout. The entire film is a reflection of Del Toro's direction, which is culminating, exciting, untarnished and skillful. I will be completely honest, I did expect to love this film. It contains a lot of what I love to see in a film - a mystical and dark atmosphere, a strange feeling of nostalgia and very well crafted shocks along the way. Those are obviously personal things that I love within a film, but I don't see how anyone could dislike Pan's Labyrinth. It is stunningly made and it is one of the best films of the past decade. This is, evidently, recommended to anyone who has not had the fortune of setting eyes on this almost faultless work of genius. There really aren't many films akin to this, it is unique in almost every way. I have absolutely no hesitation in saying that I absolutely adore this film. I have such a huge level of admiration and adoration for it.</span></div>Colin C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16235082158307960641noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3350889964454088152.post-17546845666632165452011-10-15T17:36:00.000-07:002012-02-11T12:38:53.687-08:00Elephant Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2lW4mX0UPMVOxz0c-s0Q4WR1oWtuMUgyB-Wj06xPlsZA-0tOBvmZ7f-EVhPC3TyV8e8POT-s0IgH5U4p-NTYEhG8NKTOVo4eJqaCMjLIHOTj2hGWFHfcumuVTkF3sLFzQzTbl47Q-yxU/s1600/elephant.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2lW4mX0UPMVOxz0c-s0Q4WR1oWtuMUgyB-Wj06xPlsZA-0tOBvmZ7f-EVhPC3TyV8e8POT-s0IgH5U4p-NTYEhG8NKTOVo4eJqaCMjLIHOTj2hGWFHfcumuVTkF3sLFzQzTbl47Q-yxU/s400/elephant.jpg" width="257" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Director</b>: Gus Van Sant</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Year</b>: 2003</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Starring</b>: Alex Frost, Eric Deulen</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Country</b>: USA</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Language</b>: English</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Runtime</b>: 81 minutes</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyTIugT_BMjxNByE7x3XXVOFmpOYjcG2SYW9dKYqTelXmNvhwrlk1jZL-TBleSpvIWqo0fopDoEw-tDGAmqdAnzbc4eVCnyV_bpksUAPLd7mAVXUBJ3GVYIwYGupiq3qxtm-oiUN-XsH0/s1600/7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyTIugT_BMjxNByE7x3XXVOFmpOYjcG2SYW9dKYqTelXmNvhwrlk1jZL-TBleSpvIWqo0fopDoEw-tDGAmqdAnzbc4eVCnyV_bpksUAPLd7mAVXUBJ3GVYIwYGupiq3qxtm-oiUN-XsH0/s1600/7.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><b><u>Elephant</u></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I can't begin to imagine how challenging and arduous it would be to make an emotionally disturbing, compelling and haunting picture loosely based on the events of the Columbine High School Massacre of 1999. There is no way to escape controversy or complaint when making a film like this, whether it be fanatics yelling about how inaccurate and disrespectful it is to the victims, or perhaps even family members of those who were murdered on that horrific day. On an accuracy level, they may have the right to be angered - but as a film on its own, it is quite a wonderful spectacle. It is well crafted, brooding and features stellar camera work.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of the main complaints that I have heard about this film is the long shots of people walking down halls and corridors in the school - I however, was hugely impacted emotionally by these scenes. It gave off a hugely effective message of alienation from society, peers and the world in general. It also helped emphasise how all of these children were simply going about their daily lives, unaware of the horrifying events that were to occur in the coming hours, how doing simple things in a day can suddenly turn to running for your own life. It may not be a message that is relevant to everybody, but for any child who attended Columbine or any school where events like this have taken place, it's extremely relevant, and these scenes were absolutely necessary. One complaint that I do have about these shots is that most of them were to the back of characters, so the emotion that these children felt whilst going through a normal day weren't as thoroughly shown as they could have and should have been. Apart from this, they were very well crafted, emotionally resonant scenes that didn't even have the slightest level of superfluousness about them, to me anyway. They helped to display high school life accurately and made the film even more simple to relate to. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another flaw within this film is that some of the characters weren't explained nearly enough - we knew barely anything about most of them, and whilst this may have been intended, it is nice to have area for character development. This didn't stop the characters being interesting however, and as we are taken on the differential routes of their daily lives, we begin to get attached to each character, regardless of how much we actually know about their personal lives. The lack of talking in this film added to how haunting the atmosphere and build-up were, and I feel as though if there were lots of talking within the film, it would have deteriorated the emotion that is supposed to be felt towards the characters and the trauma that they had to go through. Showing the different high school stereotypes had a huge effect on me, showing how much we actually care about cliques and groups, but that when something like this happens, all of that disappears and becomes irrelevant, you are not superior to anyone else - you are just another person. Displaying individuality in this film was hugely important as it emphasised the mindlessness of the killings, and the lack of consideration for the emotions of others by the killers.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A slight problem I noticed within this film was that the bullying scenes towards the future perpetrators didn't show their mental deterioration thoroughly - it was almost as if they were bullied and then out of the blue they decided to go on a shooting rampage. I don't know if Van Sant noticed, but that doesn't really construct much emotion for the audience to feel towards them. The film concentrates on far too many characters for us to feel highly emotional towards them, which is why in that respect, I preferred the documentary 'Zero Hour'. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">'Zero Hour' was more effective because it concentrated mainly on the perpetrators of Columbine, Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris, and whilst I respect Elephant for attempting to concentrate on many characters, it didn't work quite as well as I had hoped it would.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> However, 'Zero Hour' was based purely on Columbine, whilst this was just a loose adaption of the events. Perhaps also characterisation was not Van Sant's main target for this film, but how the day unfolded and the sheer fact that some people were just in the wrong place at the wrong time, and to add an eerie and intense atmosphere throughout the build-up - and this is helped wholly by the lack of dialog in the film. I just felt as if many of the characters weren't explored fully in an emotional sense, and perhaps they could have been if the film had been slightly longer - there are also a few relationships that we are shown over the course of the film, that never feel necessary and are never really explained.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One thing I really admired about this were the transactions that showed the effects of conversations from the perspectives of both characters involved - it was very well done and it emphasised how the smallest things can have the largest and most tragic outcomes. The dark, broody cinematography reflects the emotion and atmosphere within the film brilliantly and chills you to the core. One scene that I am going to pick out is where a pupil at the school is sitting watching television, and on the television there is a documentary about Nazis. If I assume correct, they were attempting to compare Nazis to the perpetrators of the attack - considering that the attack hadn't commenced yet, this felt a little bit rash. It felt as if Van Sant was trying to emphasise how horrific the events were by comparing the attackers to one of the most evil, vindictive groups ever in history, and it felt a little extreme. Nonetheless, I will move on to the most acclaimed part of the film - the massacre itself. It is very moving and powerful. The relaxation on the faces of the killers shows their mental instability and is tremendously haunting. The calmness of some of the students during the massacre also added to this feeling. We are then given a conclusion that will either strangely satisfy you or purely disappoint you. A movie based in these events could be better, and probably will be made better in the future, but it could have been a whole lot worse. Without a doubt, this is worth a watch.</span></div>Colin C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16235082158307960641noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3350889964454088152.post-16588309889108089662011-10-02T05:58:00.000-07:002012-02-11T12:41:32.866-08:00Ed Wood Review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_H3c_uvP1H9xhoLdODw_CMFQYi-zvnGgkEwFD7jJWiZ4QiYYGlK7i6p9dHNbDj7fNfhQ51mmJ54Bfdm3H6l2Zrqs3Yqgqu5peZww_w8-2zA4fKp6qBHUwTwOqa4G5Yd9iO6zhOTwbLLU/s1600/191959ed-wood-posters.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_H3c_uvP1H9xhoLdODw_CMFQYi-zvnGgkEwFD7jJWiZ4QiYYGlK7i6p9dHNbDj7fNfhQ51mmJ54Bfdm3H6l2Zrqs3Yqgqu5peZww_w8-2zA4fKp6qBHUwTwOqa4G5Yd9iO6zhOTwbLLU/s400/191959ed-wood-posters.jpg" width="258" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Director</b>: Tim Burton</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Year</b>: 1994</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Starring</b>: Johnny Depp, Martin Landau</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Country</b>: USA</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Language</b>: English</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Runtime</b>: 127 minutes</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One thing that pisses me off more than anything is when a film constantly throws obscurity at you when there really isn't need, and it doesn't really work well with the rest of the film. Ed Wood is an exception to this rule, as the strangeness of the film is actually rather beautiful at parts, as it mirrors the personalities of the characters in a very charming and understanding way. The obscurity of this film actually makes the character of Ed Wood, among many others, intriguing and fascinating to watch, as their personas begin to develop over the course of the film. Each character appeared to be in a world of their own, with different aspirations, which was interesting to watch. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The way this film was made actually made me forget about the fact that this film was made about one of the worst directors of all time. The fact that the film was entirely in monochrome effect really blended with how bland Ed's life often was, and how many times he was close to giving up, due to so many rejections. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Aside from Ed Wood, a particularly fascinating character was Landau's Bela Lugosi, the legendary star of Dracula who relies on Ed for help, and features in many of his pictures, as he is displayed as a warm, kind yet eerily unstable human being. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The camerawork in this film really brings out the emotions and social points that this film was obviously attempting to bring out, and Burton succeeded brilliantly in doing so. I've never been a huge fan of the Burton-Depp collaborations, but this is hugely different from all of the other ones - it's funky with reason.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There's numerous other things that make this film special - the sweet, often melancholic score that almost always displays the emotions that the characters are feeling. The chemistry between the characters, particularly Ed and Bela, or Ed and Kathy, is absolutely fantastic and is a complete joy to set eyes upon. The dialogue in this film is never superfluously random like many other of Burton's works, it's sharp and the delivery is wonderful. Not many films can blend all of the aspects that Ed Wood features and make it work at the same time. This film truly made the year of '94 that little bit solider in my books.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As you may have picked up from things I have said earlier on in the review, I'm not a big Tim Burton fan. I think that he packs unnecessary amounts of randomness and quirkiness into his films that just comes out as stupid. He constantly relies on the same style over and over again, and I honestly think that's why his crazy fan base go nuts for him. But Ed Wood is different - Burton's style actually works in this. Ed Wood really is a one of kind experience - it's touching, it's smart and almost every aspect of it blends well. This is a stylish, fun filled and surprising deep film that is sadly not noticed among the large part of Burton's cult followers.</span></div>Colin C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16235082158307960641noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3350889964454088152.post-7558473151955827452011-09-16T11:09:00.001-07:002012-03-16T14:27:15.877-07:00Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy Review<div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHk8a8UPNoIco6IxOOzorKAq6DvEIzgTZnHVdl1ixH8HO4q2BPNAKJX1l7XcPdyJ17sE12USPdI6p1863h2BmZPv7olxQoHInksqAJaJEn2EqZldwGIqChJydAyeEImy3AHuldzL_piWc/s1600/5020_14096340532.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHk8a8UPNoIco6IxOOzorKAq6DvEIzgTZnHVdl1ixH8HO4q2BPNAKJX1l7XcPdyJ17sE12USPdI6p1863h2BmZPv7olxQoHInksqAJaJEn2EqZldwGIqChJydAyeEImy3AHuldzL_piWc/s400/5020_14096340532.jpg" width="270" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Director</b>: Tomas Alfredson</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Year</b>: 2011</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Starring</b>: Gary Oldman, Colin Firth</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Country</b>: UK and Hungary</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Language</b>: English</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Runtime</b>: 127 minutes</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqy1SkHYlNwsOXdxAcNl_fBY8o5Fve5DK-8z3Hpw-HdymJWT8fLoip4zOq6jah4yBv_QK4sXmpe8godfmJJMkvMpdQAX9Nr1f3IXNAkcRXyE-aVcbG-bfma2dzhKkGaeZ6jgXRUXC9cco/s1600/5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqy1SkHYlNwsOXdxAcNl_fBY8o5Fve5DK-8z3Hpw-HdymJWT8fLoip4zOq6jah4yBv_QK4sXmpe8godfmJJMkvMpdQAX9Nr1f3IXNAkcRXyE-aVcbG-bfma2dzhKkGaeZ6jgXRUXC9cco/s1600/5.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><b><u>Tinker,</u> <u>Tailor,</u> <u>Soldier,</u> <u>Spy</u></b></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For most people, this was one of the most anticipated films of the year, and I can hardly blame you for your anticipation. It has one of the most exciting casts assembled in recent years, featuring names such as Gary Oldman, Colin Firth and Tom Hardy. It is also an espionage movie, a sub genre that people seem to adore. Sadly though, I maybe got a little bit too excited, and started expecting a masterpiece. This was also influenced by the brilliant feedback from Rotten Tomatoes, currently holding a 97% rating, and the first ever 5-star review from my local newspaper that they have ever published. So, you Americans can anticipate November however much you want, I just expected a little bit more. It is still, however, a good film.</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One thing in this film that certainly does live up to its expectation is the cast. Every performance is unique and nothing short of award worthy. Gary Oldman is as subtle and versatile as ever, and although he doesn't get as much screen time as I initially thought, Colin Firth is also a joy to watch. A standout however, for me, quite surprisingly, was Benedict Cumberbatch. This is not because he has a reputation as a bad actor, it's because I've never really heard of him or seen him in anything else. His performance fits in perfectly with the narrative and he deftly blends in with the rest of the cast. The conflict between some of the characters is fascinating and gripping, and the chemistry between all of the characters is brilliant, considering how well developed each of them are. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For me, this film went through long stretches of tedious scenes that although were indeed necessary, could have had a little bit more flare or taken a bit more of an impact. Some of the scenery in this film was really, really dry, which quite honestly put me off the scene as a whole, so the dialog between the characters didn't have as big an effect as I had hoped it would. The dialog is good and coincides well with the genre, and whilst the dialog isn't anything revolutionary, it's perfectly suitable for the film. Despite the fact that he was working from a novel and a TV show, I felt that Alfredson could have tried a little bit harder to pack some punch into the film, to get the audience going and exhilarated, which is an aspect that I felt was a little bit lacking. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The filming in this movie is as close to perfect as you can get. Each shot is perfectly placed, positioned and the characters are fitted very well into each shot. This was one of the best aspects of the film as a whole. Unfortunately, the film never really decides what pace that it's trying to go at, which really deteriorates the emotion that is supposed to be displayed within the film. Although the narrative is extremely interesting, it is slowed down by this constant confusion of what the film is trying to do - whether it's trying to garner emotion throughout, whether it's trying to be a thriller, or whether it's just trying to be interesting. All of these conflicting attempts at making a good film really left a bad taste in my mouth as I walked out of the theater.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Although I have pointed out a few flaws here, this is by no means a bad film by any stretch of imagination. It really does have more good aspects than bad, as I have pointed out - superb acting by an already superb cast, wonderful filming, peculiar yet interesting narrative, and these all bond together to make for a pretty darn good movie. I just felt that it could have been a little more thrilling, a little more captivating, it just felt as though it jumbled its paces a little bit too much. I think a steady, edging towards fast pace would have benefited this film, but it went in all guns blazing, and for that, I give it credit, I just expected a little bit more. This review is in no way supposed to put you off, because I will tell you this for nothing, America - you still have a hell of a lot to look forward to.</span></div></div>Colin C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16235082158307960641noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3350889964454088152.post-10298618127163105492011-09-12T09:10:00.000-07:002012-01-21T04:23:25.942-08:00The Art of Getting By Review<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><b><u></u><u></u></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBo4PmnLlLJ3RJ3QiumhhnTDLcydPSOqe4E9oWEhdTpJq7jUaximd6grB7aVIdGwaBHLcg1Ih5nkbV_hzV5AcdtXdX9iYpMKHpTsP07MdA3vC_2aowf1jWIWTYy-RioqmX7397eLzhvQE/s1600/emma-roberts-art-of-getting-by-poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBo4PmnLlLJ3RJ3QiumhhnTDLcydPSOqe4E9oWEhdTpJq7jUaximd6grB7aVIdGwaBHLcg1Ih5nkbV_hzV5AcdtXdX9iYpMKHpTsP07MdA3vC_2aowf1jWIWTYy-RioqmX7397eLzhvQE/s400/emma-roberts-art-of-getting-by-poster.jpg" width="270" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Director</b>: Gavin Wiesen</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Year</b>: 2011</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Starring</b>: Freddie Highmore, Emma Roberts</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Country</b>: USA</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Language</b>: English</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Runtime</b>: 84 minutes</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQiTV7iY25HGRNlCEVziULZ1XfZqE8IME_zxMYeWZNsoGAtj91_SvX5QtOV2rB0KSdA761v2v5q1aPqX1wMl9sn007THkxryTDxGSXbX_K8Mk7LZotVElL0JrxyI1uxkYLlBtVkVO2wWM/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQiTV7iY25HGRNlCEVziULZ1XfZqE8IME_zxMYeWZNsoGAtj91_SvX5QtOV2rB0KSdA761v2v5q1aPqX1wMl9sn007THkxryTDxGSXbX_K8Mk7LZotVElL0JrxyI1uxkYLlBtVkVO2wWM/s1600/1.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><b><u>The</u> <u>Art</u> <u>of</u> <u>Getting</u> <u>By</u></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">"The Art of Getting By". It's a real shame that such a smooth, flexible title has been wasted on such an obnoxious, pathetic load of drivel. It sounds like a film that you would go to see to get a realistic, effective outlook on teen angst and life in general. However, if you go and see the film for these reasons, you will be sorely disappointed. I am seriously struggling to find a speck of social relevance in this film, or absolutely anything that I even enjoyed in the slightest about it. Even if there was redeeming factors, they have probably been overshadowed by the other aspects of this horrid piece of cinema.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"></span></div><a name='more'></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In one scene of the film, Freddie Highmore's character George is sitting in a taxi with Emma Roberts' character Sally, as they are discussing an art show they have just been to, which was created by George's friend Dustin. He labels Dustin as "a blow off" and "derivative". I don't think I have ever heard a more hypocritical comment made in a film in my entire life. Even when this film does come up with something that even hints a morsel of originality, which it seldom does, it ruins it by being corny, badly filmed and horribly played out. Both of the main characters have absolutely zero presence, and this reflects badly on the narrative of the film as a whole.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The delivery and timing in this film is truly despicable. The character Dustin is completely sprung out of nowhere, and you have no idea why he is even there. In one part of the film, he ends up dating Sally, much to George's dismay. However, when Sally decides that she wants to be with George instead of Dustin, their relationship is never finalised. For all we know, she's sleeping around. Not even a small section of the dialog indicates that she has ended her relationship with Dustin to be with George, and it really makes you question the structure of this film. Even after her and George get together, you don't feel happy for them, due to the horrible lack of chemistry between the two leads.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The obvious aim of this film is to be emotionally resonant, but instead it is the exact opposite. The scenes in this film that are supposed to be funny are so awkward and stupidly placed that they end up being horrifyingly unfunny, and has the viewer checking their watch to see how much more of the torture they have to endure. The only slightly likable character in this film is George's art teacher, but I refuse to give a film marks for a developed character that features in five, maybe six scenes. The acting as a whole is completely bland, and as a result, anyone in the right mind who watches it won't give a flying monkeys about the characters. The characters in this film are constantly making points, which are never related back to later in the film. The characters also contradict themselves regularly, for example, George says at the start of the film that death comes to everyone, so he has no fear of it - yet two minutes later exclaims that he is afraid of dying.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This film constantly tries to convey this deep meaning of life, but every single important aspect of it is so lame, obnoxious and unlikable that it completely fails in doing so. To add insult to injury, every scene within the first 40 minutes of the film is shaky. Some films benefit from shaky filming, because it suits the film that its in, but this film didn't even need shaky filming, at any point. Characters were repeatedly in the center of the screen which is just blatant stupid, 95% of the characters are persistently annoying and undeveloped, and the dialog tries so hard to be relevant and meaningful that it turns out plain dumb. The narrative is formulaic and doesn't pay homage to so many classic teen angst comedies that it so blatantly rips off.</span></div>Colin C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16235082158307960641noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3350889964454088152.post-17460886007077438052011-09-09T13:14:00.000-07:002012-02-11T12:52:03.265-08:00La Piel Que Habito (The Skin I Live In) Review<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><b><u></u><u></u></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzMDmGQw-k_LkGbMqOfOhT2COJdKLqcx5lfve2M2Ym1BuPdchjTZ3qRuJQSquJJF6ajyBCydFldKIZEa_ORkvT5Tv2yVc2B9VlgjVPhvNwEJq-KlQG4WDd0cBGVaWbeYgDgVnYX2zqaaU/s1600/the-skin-i-live-in-poster.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzMDmGQw-k_LkGbMqOfOhT2COJdKLqcx5lfve2M2Ym1BuPdchjTZ3qRuJQSquJJF6ajyBCydFldKIZEa_ORkvT5Tv2yVc2B9VlgjVPhvNwEJq-KlQG4WDd0cBGVaWbeYgDgVnYX2zqaaU/s400/the-skin-i-live-in-poster.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Director</b>: Pedro Almodovar</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Year</b>: 2011</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Starring</b>: Antonio Banderas, Elena Anaya</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Country</b>: Spain</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Language</b>: Spanish</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Runtime</b>: 117 minutes</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The plot of this film often felt slightly disjointed to me. This doesn't, however, stop it from being incredibly gripping and fascinating. The cinematography in this film adds to the absolute sublimity of the picture as a whole, and really enhances the plot past its disjointed areas. Before I go on to analyse the rest of the film, I must point out that this is truly one of the most beautifully made films that I have ever seen. It is filmed with such effort and it really shows in the picture. Never have I been so engrossed by the way a film looks. Even if the other parts of the film don't blow you away, the way it looks certainly will. The direction from Almodovar in this film is almost perfect in the way that it completely suits the content of the film.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This film has a few hugely disturbing scenes that the viewer will most likely not expect. They will have you in your seat thinking, "what the fuck just happened and why?" These scenes are hugely effective, though, and they actually make the film a lot more memorable. This film went places that a lot of films are scared to go, and the result has a huge impact and stays with the viewer. But it has to be said, this film might not be for the faint of heart. Almost every scene in this film is made completely by its wonderful actors and actresses, who give a rather melancholic yet extremely exciting performance. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The huge twist in this film, for me, was a little predictable, but that doesn't stop it being truly amazing when it arrives. The scenes where the twist is revealed are some of the best scenes in the entire film, they are stunningly shot and the atmosphere of them will have you falling in love with the film. Although the trailer for this film made it look quite timid, the film is really quite gritty. It really doesn't hesitate to throw everything it has at you, and honestly, this is a good thing. You will feel completely satisfied after the credits start rolling, and the main reason for that is that because the film doesn't pull any punches. The dialog in this film is wonderful as well, and thank god they didn't dub it in English, because the Spanish language truly defines this film.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The only other real complaint I would have about this film is that some of the side characters are disgustingly undeveloped, so much that they feel pointless to the film, even if they are an essential part of the narrative. For someone who can't look past things like this, it might disrupt their overall enjoyment of the film. Luckily, I don't let one aspect of a film destroy my experience of a film. Some may not even think that some of the characters are undeveloped, but if you do, please try and look past it - because if you do, you will realize what a truly wonderful film it is as a whole. The Skin I Live In is my favorite film of the year so far, and is an essential viewing experience, with wonderful camerawork, stellar performances on the most part, and beautiful dialogue. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Colin C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16235082158307960641noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3350889964454088152.post-49117720741157812232011-09-05T15:40:00.000-07:002012-02-11T12:50:27.394-08:00Ghost Town Review<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><b><u></u><u></u></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEEaZKHeQQhxHIbWFYvuRw7EzdUk0iIZiMV1zh5I4sJ1A0DrTw4i1Tg1napEQyMeflCq2A3Iv0aGq4a8YsjKiu2zBeo6qfefWw3VrT3Cv5w25d4JffDS_vK0DLOfsOuExnw6CeH4QXY1A/s1600/Ghost+Town.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEEaZKHeQQhxHIbWFYvuRw7EzdUk0iIZiMV1zh5I4sJ1A0DrTw4i1Tg1napEQyMeflCq2A3Iv0aGq4a8YsjKiu2zBeo6qfefWw3VrT3Cv5w25d4JffDS_vK0DLOfsOuExnw6CeH4QXY1A/s400/Ghost+Town.jpg" width="278" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Director</b>: David Koepp</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Year</b>: 2008</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Starring</b>: Ricky Gervais, Greg Kinnear</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Country</b>: USA</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Language</b>: English</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><b>Runtime</b>: 102 minutes</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;"><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Watching the character of Gervais trying to come over his arrogant personality is amusing throughout the film, yet Gervais manages to give this character his own little tweak of charm, which really resonated with me. Being a bit of an arrogant asshole myself, I managed to relate thoroughly with his character. The film takes on the often debated topic of ghosts and turns it into an amusing tale that truly entertains the audience whilst also giving them something to think about. Though the film doesn't delve too deeply into the topic of whether ghosts exist or whether they have unfinished business, you still find yourself questioning your own beliefs on the matter. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Gervais' sharp humor and witty acting accompanied by the surprisingly charming Kinnear keep this film from sliding down the path of its formulaic plot. The charm of both characters relates to its target audience perfectly and the chemistry between the two is brilliant. You will struggle not to laugh at the quick dialog from Gervais and the simple minded yet witty delivery from Kinnear and even Leoni at certain points. The casting in this film overall is great, there was no one that really looked out of place in their roles at all.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For some reason, sadly, the writers decided that this film needed some cheesy/emotional scenes, and although they aren't awful at all, some of them feel a little bit unnecessary. Any viewer of this film will probably often find themselves a little bit surprised, as the film slants from verging on dark comedy to a sappy heart to heart scene. Whilst this isn't necessarily bad, it feels a little too rushed and out of place. The film needed emotional scenes for sure, but they managed to slide some of them into the wrong slots. This doesn't stop the film from being entertaining, however, and it doesn't stop the healthy flow of laughs and entertainment that any viewer was probably already experiencing.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As a conclusion, this is definitely worth a watch. Even if you don't find it to be a comedy masterpiece, it's still hugely enjoyable and it fills its purpose, unlike most of the formulaic, putrid, misfire comedies that get spewed into our theaters and terrorize our weak, human existence every other week. Despite its worn out plot, it will still feel fresh in its own little way, and Gervais will entertain as usual with his dark, yet charming sense of humour, accompanied with some great dialog and decent side characters.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"></div>Colin C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16235082158307960641noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3350889964454088152.post-9327058751760289812011-08-16T17:59:00.000-07:002011-08-19T04:38:52.631-07:00My Top 20 Films of 2000-2009: Part 2 (#10-1)10. <b>Brokeback Mountain</b><br />
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<div align="justify">A touching tale of love that explores deeply the lives of two men barricaded by the society that they live in. This film is moving in almost every single aspect and features fantastic performances from Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger. This film packs a lot of emotion into it whilst also having stunning cinematography and beautiful scenery.</div><br />
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9. <b>Let The Right One In</b><br />
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<div align="justify">The greatest vampire film ever made. This film is made in such a subtle and beautiful way that you can't help but fall in love with it, along with it's fantastic child actors and gripping love story. This is one of my favorite foreign films of all time, and that is simply because of the chemistry between the two main characters, Oskar and Eli. Truly sublime.</div><br />
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8. <b>Spirited Away</b><br />
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<div align="justify">My favorite animation of all time, and for obvious reasons. This film has a beautiful script, developed characters, a mystical charm to its wonderful plot, and is just a joy to watch in every way. Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli never disappoint me with their masterful animations, and this is in my opinion, the best. A pinnacle in the animation genre.</div><br />
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7. <b>Monster</b><br />
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<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb4yT8aGTSWdEFvmmsUZhqvBHenh4YGoruGxGQqPh0qnachpZggBRySTcT22vPOFf_UvCWDhCYCbSZGhmUhxqm51lvJAqM1aCHizRxgI-8XX6HYqT2zQE3gJb4OtqHyAnIZCRodcqQCYk/s1600/Monster.jpg" width="360pt" /><br />
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<div align="justify">A disgustingly overlooked tale of love, murder and prostitution that is all the more shocking because it's based on a true story. Charlize Theron gives the best female performance of the 00s, and possibly even beyond. Cristina Ricci is also fantastic, but is overshadowed by her counterpart. This film had me shivering, but deeply in love with it at the same time. Unmissable.</div><br />
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6. <b>Chicago</b><br />
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<div align="justify">Blending wonderful jazzy numbers, a gripping storyline, fantastic acting to accompany fantastic characters, Chicago reaches to the top of my favorite musicals list, making for a truly unforgettable tale of crime and showbusiness. This is yet another film that I simply never tire of watching. Catherine Zeta-Jones gives the performance of a lifetime as the sassy Velma Kelly, and is brilliantly accompanied by Renee Zellweger, Richard Gere, Queen Latifah and John C Reilly.</div><br />
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5. <b>Juno</b><br />
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<div align="justify">A sweet, smart, witty tale of commitment and teen angst. With mesmerizing screenplay, a charming performance from Ellen Page and a worthy accompanying performance by Michael Cera, Juno stands high in my favorite films of all time. This film is relaxing, but you will definitely feel enlightened when the credits start rolling.</div><br />
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4. <b>V For Vendetta</b><br />
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<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipXBfOnh-EjOo_k0Hz7GN37VjgSE97A5y0NrNuuJBvTS4LqtL9p_0ulqHboiR-yNOV0M60O-7mjLMmWHwkPTv-OUk56p7x9sV1kcunDKU5immG050tX7JOcx22Oc0T5mNoV83ZuYRDGiU/s1600/V+for+Vendetta+-+In+the+Archway.jpg" width="360pt" /><br />
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<div align="justify">A wild, brilliantly scripted political adventure that explores the deepest aspects of life whilst also being thoroughly entertaining. Some of V's lines are the best and most quotable I have ever heard in a film, and the performances from Hugo Weaving and Natalie Portman are great. This film may take a few viewings to fully understand, but once you do fully understand, you will truly love this film.</div><br />
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3. <b>Battle Royale</b><br />
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<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4xDBX6PEvdirKWhAW9Xg4bFN_l8a6ZLl5F0eEgVDxdIUe3doQ7qNms3gYslqfUBBhcGfwgSK8ish2KgjtmuTUz6WPcASS6G8IqmC3wVka9KKQyEoGWweGFRGB-O9mhO3JRU7w9Vd1kKU/s1600/br_logo_1024x768.jpg" width="360pt" /><br />
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<div align="justify">A harsh, violent, gritty tale of friendship and trust, with fantastic performances and a gripping plot. I have never been so entertained yet so mesmerized by a motion picture at the same time. There are 42+ characters in this film, and each of them has their own, fascinating personality and reaction to the situation that they are placed in within the film. A must see film for lovers of Tarantino, also, because it has inspired him to make some of his later films.</div><br />
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2. <b>The Dark Knight</b><br />
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<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsMYQhKzWSPwyvvd20B_sSF96aFDbadf3yuJ2vvptuZ06ngP4fSFUkJIsVJTKiaxcH21Xt1KH3q0LoCI2XPid2kBcZrCeF1Qh3gSmEssBGMpcoWQwEV1Tux0ppw9XqTJaKIunYGhipwpI/s1600/Batman+The+Dark+Knight.jpg" width="360pt" /><br />
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<div align="justify">No list of this ilk is complete without this mesmerizing, dark, fantastically scripted, wonderfully acted and completely unforgettable superhero thriller. The plot to this film is gripping, and all the aspects that I previously mentioned deftly blend with the plot to create not only one of the greatest films of the 00s, but one of the greatest films of all time. A film that is without a doubt, for the ages.</div><br />
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1. <b>The Lord Of The Rings</b><br />
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<div align="justify">Amazingly acted, impeccably scripted, wonderfully adventurous, and undeniably fascinating, Lord of the Rings stands with many feats - being the greatest trilogy of all time, being the greatest films of the 00s, and being some of the greatest films of all time. These films are so fantastically made, and even though they are long, they are not boring in any way. Watching these films is somewhat akin to being thrown into a whole new world - a world filled with wonder.</div><br />
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Thanks for reading.<br />
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Colin C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16235082158307960641noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3350889964454088152.post-33899516507851936152011-08-13T16:49:00.000-07:002011-08-16T18:19:42.544-07:00My Top 20 Films of 2000-2009: Part 1 (#20-11)20. <b>Shaun of the Dead</b><br />
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<div align=justify>I watched Hot Fuzz before I laid eyes on this film, and to be quite honest, I wasn't very impressed. I thought that it tried far too hard, and had characters that lacked likability. So, after hearing the humor in this film was similar to that of Hot Fuzz, I wasn't really looking forward to it. But from my point of view, the humor in Shaun of the Dead is nothing like that of Hot Fuzz. I find it to be a lot more witty, a lot more subtle, and to be honest, a lot funnier than that of Hot Fuzz. This film is a great comedy, and for me, it's one of those films that you can just never get bored of watching. </div><br />
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19. <b>A Single Man</b><br />
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<div align=justify>Colin Firth and Julianne Moore truly show what talented actors they are in this sweet yet sad film about the simplicity and complexion of everyday life. This film will leave you asking so many questions not just about the life of the main character in the film, but questions about your own life. The chemistry between Firth and Moore is truly exquisite, and even though this film never reaches any exciting moment, I felt entertained throughout the whole experience, and was extremely glad that I had had the experience after watching the film.</div><br />
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18. <b>Requiem For A Dream</b><br />
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<div align=justify>Requiem for a Dream is a harsh, gritty, yet heartbreakingly true tale of people trying to achieve their dreams but being obstructed by the tragedy and danger of drugs. The performances in this film are mesmerizing on the most part, and the beautiful editing and wonderful soundtrack combine with this to make a shocking film that you will struggle to forget quickly. It truly is a must see film, even if you don't think it's one of the greatest films ever made.</div><br />
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17. <b>Ratatouille</b><br />
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<div align=justify>In my opinion Pixars best film, this is a tale that is sweet, subtle, and very emotionally involving. The film has charming and interesting characters, an obscure yet witty plot, great voice acting and wonderful animation. This film is enjoyable for people of all ages, and one that I will treasure for a long time. This film is so widely brandished as the most overrated Pixar film, which in my opinion, is completely untrue and also unfair.</div><br />
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16. <b>The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button</b><br />
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<div align=justify>This film takes such a smooth and fascinating look into an obscure type of life that you can't help but feel involved with it. The acting is sublime, and the whole way the film is put together by Fincher is entirely engrossing. The ending to this film is one of the best I have ever seen, and is barely short of perfection. This film shows very well that life probably wouldn't be much different if The Curious Case of Benjamin Button really existed, and that life is a lot more simple than we make it out to be.</div><br />
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15. <b>No Country For Old Men</b><br />
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<img src=https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO6LGej13_RWHitslGgEIjUDV2LYG-qXN4IdKdRhstT7mVZMKJCbfZKYZzUB-b9isSHykXB9PcMUGR0njuVnwdHmkTEwnlQy_MbRznFcDG4r2kvjObXU5uDJXtqZQIcHLaNRL1dFuiIXw/s1600/no-country-for-old-men.jpg width=360pt><br />
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<div align=justify>This film is a strange, yet deep and brilliant look into the mind of the criminally insane and the desperate. This is one of the most fascinating films that I have ever seen - I found myself asking my questions after the credits started rolling. On a technical level, the acting was very good, especially from Javier Bardem as the batshit insane yet awesome Anton Chigurh. The way the film was filmed, directed and put together also helped to give it a fantastic gloomy atmosphere. The plot is also thick and interesting, and all these brilliant aspects make for a film of the same ilk.</div><br />
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14. <b>(500) Days Of Summer</b><br />
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<div align=justify>This film is unique in the way that it portrays love as something that can pass us by, and doesn't necessarily always have to last forever. Remember, this isn't a love story, it's a story about love, and it's a deep, insightful one at that. This film will have you laughing all the way through but will also leave you emotionally touched and your mind relaxed. It's just one of those films that calms you down and makes you think about life and all of its numerous aspects in a calm, delightful kind of way.</div><br />
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13. <b>Kill Bill Vol. 1 & 2</b><br />
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<div align=justify>These two films differ quite largely from a lot of the previous entries on the list, but I truly do believe they deserve to be hear. This film shows in a violent yet somehow subtle way the deep pain and determination for revenge of a woman who thought she had lost her daughter. These films are mainly recognized for nothing more than their Asian style entertainment, but I see a whole lot more to these films. I see deep analysis of the main character and two brilliantly put together action flicks.</div><br />
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12. <b>Million Dollar Baby</b><br />
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<div align=justify>This film is very unique to me on a personal level due to the fact that I hate boxing films, but I found this film to be very engrossing, with fine performances and a heartbreaking tale that will keep you interested throughout the entire experience. This film shows reality in a gritty way, which is honestly the way it should be shown in any film. Like Requiem for a Dream, this is an experience that will stay with you long after watching the film itself. Hilary Swank is absolutely sublime in her lead role.</div><br />
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11. <b>Little Miss Sunshine</b><br />
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<div align=justify>I never know where to start when describing why I have an eternal love for this film. Well, to get started, I love this film because it manages to cram 6 main characters in and give them all their own unique, touching and fascinating personality without lack of explanation or concentration on one certain character. This film displays perfectly the problems that can be caused within families, and how different people within the affected families react to the problems. This film also somehow manages to be funny during this experience. Little Miss Sunshine is a very deep film that may take more than one viewing to truly understand.</div>Colin C.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16235082158307960641noreply@blogger.com3