Earth: Zemlya (1930)

This film is included in the "1001 Movies to See Before You Die" Book and is listed because of its historical impact in the Soviet Union. This silent film is about collective farming and a citizens uprising against the rich people in their town when they are given a tractor.

Highly censored on release in Russia and re-released in its complete format it is a neat film. Problem I have with most silent films is the lack of a storyline. There really isn't much going on here and would be a couple scenes in a modern film rather than a complete work.

For what it is and when it came out it was not bad. I have a hard time suggesting silent films, and this is not one of the better ones. If you want an American silent film about farming watch A Corner in Wheat, it is only 14 minutes long, but I wouldn't even recommend it, I have it a 4/10...

Vote: 6/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0021571/

Share:

Read More

Hannah and Her Sisters (1986)

It is kind of funny that there are two directors with a lot of films I have to watch. Woody Allen has a lot of comedies that have been recognized and Alfred Hitchcock has a number of suspense/mystery films recognized as well. The funny part is that I space out the Hitchcock's because I like them, and know that if I watch them all right now I will never get to see another new [to me] Hitchcock again. Where as watching Allen's films tends to be a chore, and I space them out because I can't manage to sit through more than one every couple months.

That being said this one was not that bad. Probably because Allen played a minor role in this film until the end and it centered around Michael Caine and Barbara Hershey for the majority of the film. I really like Caine, especially since his role in Sleuth (1972), a fantastic acting performance.

This film is about three sisters and their family relationships, and the relationships between them and the men in their lives. It was kind of boring at times. Allen's films always have a subtle comedic undertone. It is never laugh out loud funny, and usually not dark comedy either. I have trouble categorizing a lot of it as comedy and usually throw it in with the dramas. It takes a lot for me to like one of his films, his style doesn't agree with what I like to get out of a film, so it falls into the just average pile...

Vote: 6/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091167/

Share:

Read More

Crazy Heart (2009)

This is one I had planned on watching before the Oscars but just didn't have time. Jeff Bridges won the oscar for best actor and the theme song won best song. You probably know Bridges from his character "The Dude" in The Big Lebowski, or his most recent hit Iron Man where he plays the villain.

Sadly I just found this film boring. Bridges plays a washed up, alcoholic country singer who travels around playing gigs in bars around the southwest. I wasn't a fan of his character, I wasn't a fan of the pace of the film, and I really really don't like Maggie Gyllenhaal. Couple that with her classless interview on the Daily Show where she gave Jon Stewart crap for not going to the theater and seeing this film.

Like I said, I really wanted to like this film. It is almost 1/2 music, I liked Colin Farrell as Tommy, Robert Duvall turned in another solid performance as a bartender and friend. The film wasn't that long but sure did feel long. I can't see recommending it. If you want to see Bridges in his best performance, and the one that should have won the Oscar, watch The Big Lebowski. If you have already seen that one, then watch The Fabulous Baker Boys [and tell me how it is].

Vote: 6/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1263670/

Share:

Read More

Old Dogs (2009)

There are a lot of films that I watch, that I just know are going to be bad. Why do I watch them? Well, sometimes they surprise me. Daddy Day Care for example, it only had a 5.5 on imdb yet I gave it a 7/10.

With John Travolta and Robin Williams you always have potential for a good film, but the opposite can also be said for these two. Williams has had some recent failures with comedy, most notably RV, while Travolta has found success with Wild Hogs. Since Walt Becker directed Wild Hogs and this film I thought I might be in for a few laughs...

I was wrong. This turned out to be a lot more a kids movie than anything. Typical slapstick, unrealistic comedy with bad acting and plot throughout. As much as I like Seth Green he needs to get away from these types of films because he was incredibly annoying.

So some of my readers know I play "Ultimate Frisbee." To my surprise there was a scene where they actually played ultimate with the boy scouts. Very cool... but not... I was very happy to see ultimate in a mainstream movie, but not like this. It really showed me that Travolta, Williams, and the director didn't research their roles AT ALL. There is no tackling in ultimate. I've seen a lot of new players in my days as a player, played in camps growing up, and know what beginner ultimate looks like. This wasn't it. Yelling "prison rules!" then tackling while running around with the disc was just stupid and exemplified how many times this movie was just stupid and not funny.

Maybe someday ultimate will make its way into a good film... see I Bleed Black if you want to see a documentary on ultimate.

Vote: 3/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0976238/

Share:

Read More

The Endless Summer (1966)

This documentary film is about two surfers and their friend [the narrator, writer, and director] who take a trip around the world following the summer season. They start in California, head to Africa, around to Cape, to Australia, then finally to Hawaii.

It is a really fun story; encountering natives in Ghana, surfers in South Africa, wildlife across Australia, and beautiful beaches in Hawaii. It brilliantly captures a lifestyle and time in American history which I feel has been dead for a while.

The problem I have is that I wanted more story and less surfing. It is in essence a surfing film, and documents their travels, and there is a lot of surfing in the film. I like watching surfing and all, but it had some lull points. The overall film is pretty short and I don't see many surfing point they could have cut, mainly because it showcased all the different beaches they visited.

Worth a watch but not a repeat viewing, which drops it to a 7 instead of an 8.

Vote: 7/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0060371/

Share:

Read More

The Cameraman (1928)

Over the last year it has become clear to me that I am a much bigger fan of Buster Keaton than Charlie Chaplin. To me, slapstick comedies are some of the only silent films worth watching. Chaplin has an element of drama to all of his comedies, his Tramp character is actually pretty pathetic. Keaton on the other hand uses acrobatics, crashes, and stunts which keep his films exciting throughout.

Watching this film it made me think that some of the writers for "The Simpsons" must have been Keaton fans as well. The storyline starts in one place, takes you on a wild tangent, brings you back, diverges again, then finally gets you back where you started.

I really didn't think this would be one of my favorites of his until about 1/2 way through. Some of this shorter films are much more eventful and lack a thought out story. This one however develops well, and is highly influential to some modern films I've seen. Namely the setup after the boat scene, how he wins the girl reminds me of a lot of romantic comedies.

This one is worth your time.

Vote: 8/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0018742/

Share:

Read More

The King of Kong (2007)

This film is about uber-dorks [super dorks]. Die hard classic game fanatics who spend countless hours trying to set world record high scores in 25 year old arcade games like: Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, Missile Command, etc.

This storyline follows a feud between Steve Wiebe and Billy Mitchell over the Donkey Kong high score. Apparently Donkey Kong is considered the hardest of the classic games and there are only 6 recorded times that anyone has beaten the final level (the "kill level") and these two have each done it three times.

A very interesting sub-plot for me is Wiebe [weebee] maintaining a family at the same time. He clearly neglects his kids and wife throughout the film. The best quote of the movie comes after Steve explains to his daughter that it is important to be in the Guinness Book of World Records, her response is, "So a lot of people ruin their lives to be in there." Ironic that a 10-year-old girl can recognize that her father is wasting his life on this game, yet these adults still can't come to this realization.

Watching this film was very high on my to-do list this week with the Texas Pinball festival coming up this weekend. I've managed to attend two of the last three, only being able to handle a couple hours until being either sick of it or with a headache so bad I just have to get out. It is amazing to see what people commit their time, energy, and lives to, and to reap the result of their hard work for a few hours is well worth it to me.

I really enjoyed this documentary.

Vote: 8/10

IMDB Link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0923752/

Share:

Read More