Lincoln plays in theatres now. So see it. I admit, that perhaps one third to halfway through Lincoln which rolled before us on the screen in this crowded cineplex theatre I did sense: obligation: I should sit through this film; it will benefit me. Read more »
Guest review by Isaiah Cambron. You can read more of Isaiah’s work at
http://www.barcelonafootballblog.com
There’s something about modern man and the fearful journey through life that we all lead somewhere in The Dark Knight Rises, but I’m not sure I’m capable of breaking it down, especially since the movie plunges off a plot cliff about 10 minutes in. Is it about justice? Justice is integral to the entire Batman saga, especially in this incarnation where Harvey Dent and his image as Gotham’s shining star is the device upon which the whole of Rises rests, yet it is only mentioned in brief moments. Scarecrow judges the rich and condemns them to death in a courtroom symbolically piled high with the tomes of the learned. That is not justice, declares a defiant and soon-to-be-condemned-yet-obviously-also-saved-by-Batman Commissioner Gordon. He smirks. Scarecrow smirks. But it doesn’t matter, because the next scene is Batman lighting up the Brooklyn Bridge with the bat symbol while saving Gordon from the East River. Read more »
The Artist took home Best Picture last night. Here’s contributor Daniel Picker’s take:
The Artist starring Jean Dujardin, and Berenice Bego, also stars Uggie, a Jack Russell Terrier and scene stealer. This trio trumps a supporting cast which includes the larger – than – life John Goodman as the demonstrative Al Zimmer, the capable James Cromwell as Clifton, the Valet, and the able Ed Lauter as Peppy’s Initial Chauffeur, along with Malcolm McDowell as The Butler.
But this silent, black & white film belongs to the eponymous “Artist” George Valentin as portrayed by Jean Dujardin. Dujardin’s performance exhibits brilliance, and he, along with Berenice Bejo as Peppy, and the dog, should be sufficient inspiration for delinquent film lovers as Oscar season approaches. A mirror, and a large plate – glass shop window figure prominently in “The Artist.” Early on in the film Valentin faces a mirror and his subtle and brief shift in facial expression illuminates the dilemma of the artist: am I myself or the character I portray? And is either sufficient? And for whom? While Valentin silently meditates on his fate a filmgoer cannot help but be drawn into this motion picture. Read more »
Thanks to some rain and a bad pair of shoes, I was pretty cold throughout The Iron Lady. That seemed appropriate, though, at least at first, given the dreary British landscape and political history I thought I was going to witness. Meryl Streep playing Margaret Thatcher! Dowdy British men fighting against women in power! Read more »
In “My Week with Marilyn” actress Michelle Williams delivers a revelatory performance as Marilyn Monroe. Of course portraying Miss Monroe, a 20th century icon presents a unique challenge. This film, “My Week with Marilyn” is based on the “Diaries” of Colin Clark, a British filmmaker who at 23 served as 3rd Assistant Director on the film “The Prince and the Showgirl” of 1957. That film starred Marilyn Monroe and Sir Laurence Olivier. The film of Clark’s “Week with Marilyn” takes place in 1956, and the period detail of this picture is spot on.
Colin Clark was the son of the eminent art historian Sir Kenneth Clark; Colin, the younger of two sons was educated at Eton College and Christ Church Oxford. In the film “My Week with Marilyn” Clark, as portrayed by another Etonian, Eddie Redmayne serves as a sort of go–between for Olivier who is portrayed by Kenneth Branagh. Read more »
Most of us know the story: Thierry Henry slaps the ball down with his left forearm, crosses for William Gallas to head home, and Ireland is eventually left fuming and out of the 2010 World Cup. There are calls for the summary execution of a whole host of people, from Sepp Blatter all the way down to the grounds crew. The most vitriol is, of course, reserved for the referee, a Swede named Martin Hansson.
Rättskiparen, directed by Mattias Löw, documents the year leading up to Hansson’s great mistake. It follows him in all of his endeavors on the field and is granted access to him in his home and behind-the-scenes at the stadium. For those interested in the world of high-level referees, there are scenes where he jokes with stadium guards, tours the field before kickoff, and has a post-match hug with his colleagues after a good match, but the meat of the film is him as a private citizen.
Read more »
Produced and Directed by Chris Bridger, Blind Ambition is the story of an Englishman who has risen to the top of the soccer world, but despite his serious talent is nowhere near being a household name. Simon Hill, who you’ve never heard of is, is blind. If it weren’t real, it’d be a great piece of comedy, but it is real and it is about the sightless playing the beautiful game.
The rules are different—a ball that makes noise, you have to verbally declare when you’re making tackles, the goalie can see—but the passion is the same and, truth be told, the skill levels are pretty high.
It’s a short, only 12 minutes long, and I would have liked it to be about a hundred times longer. Chris isn’t particularly compelling, but then again, we have so little time to get to know him that we’re left with a sort of cliché blind guy doing great things feeling. He plays for West Ham and England and we don’t have any idea what that means, really, other than it means there’s a lot left to be explored here.
I know very few blind people, truth be told. Some legally blind folks, yes, including a woman my brother dated for a few years, but no one who is blind blind. Like, would play blind football blind. Yet I still relate immediately to this movie because it’s not about being blind, it’s about playing a game and loving doing it. And at this point I’m pretty seriously considering giving it a try.
This post is written by Isaiah Cambron. It was originally published on
http://www.barcelonafootballblog.com/9778/bfb-box-office-shorts/
120 minutes of soccer hardly does a game justice, especially not if it is witnessed by 2 billion people and is the crowning jewel of a month-long, quadrennial tournament. As the first to be held on the continent in tournament’s 80 year history and couple with today’s digital age, the FIFA World Cup inSouth Africawas bound to be both heavily celebrated highly scrutinized.
Match 64 deals primarily with the major players in behind the World Cup, such as Sepp Blatter and Danny Jordan, FIFA president and head of South Africa’s organizing committee respectively, but also takes time to focus scenes on the players, coaches, and refs in the match and winding down to the stewards, flag bearers, and even the owner of a bike rental shop. Read more »
Man did he write some winners and he did f/x for Star Wars. The horror and science fiction fans of the universe will miss you, good sir.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/21/movies/21obannon.html?_r=2&ref=movies
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