Saturday 24 September 2022
Lost Horizon (1937)
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When a wise diplomat's plane crashes in the snows of Tibet, he and the other survivors are guided to Shangri-La, where they wrestle with the invitation to stay.
Big budget over-the-top fantasy, still entertaining after all these years despite the naive utopism.
Halliwell****: "Much re-cut romantic adventure which leaves out some of the emphasis of a favorite Utopian novel but stands up pretty well on its own, at least as a supreme example of Hollywood moonshine, with perfect casting, direction and music. If the design has a touch of Ziegfeld, that's Hollywood."
Maltin****: "A rare movie experience, with haunting finale."
Friday 23 September 2022
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Thursday 22 September 2022
Phoenix (2014)
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A disfigured Holocaust survivor sets out to determine if the man she loved betrayed her trust.
Intelligently plotted Vertigo-like post-war melodrama with excellent period detail and good cast explores on several levels the effects of Nazism and the war on German society.
Paradies: Liebe (2012)
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Teresa, a fifty-year-old Austrian mother, travels to the paradise of the beaches of Kenya, seeking out love from African boys. But she must confront the hard truth that on the beaches of Kenya, love is a business.
Once again Ulrich Seidl confronts his audience with a tough watch exposing in painfully realistic detail the downsides of our world; Margarete Tiesel shocks and surprises with a remarkably courageous performance.
Wednesday 21 September 2022
Fanny och Alexander (1982)
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Two young Swedish children in the 1900s experience the many comedies and tragedies of their lively and affectionate theatrical family, the Ekdahls.
From memory: Lovingly detailed and obviously autobiographical period piece is something of a summary of Bergman's previous work, made by a matured director in full confidence of his talents; immensely enjoyable and entertaining.
Halliwell****: "An interesting mixture of Dear Octopus and Wild Strawberries turns into something more akin to The Face and The Night Comers. A kind of Bergman compendium, and impossible to describe exactly for those who have not seen it."
Maltin****: "Haunting, engrossing autobiographical family saga...a summing up of Bergman's career...Scenes of joy, exuberance, pain, torment, exquisitely expressed..."
Sunday 18 September 2022
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Byl jazz (1983)
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Set in 1952, film tells the story of young musicians playing - then forbidden - jazz music in basements and attics around Poland. The group hires itself to social parties, youth dances, etc, each time waiting for the management to disappear in order to shift gears to hot music. The crowd either loves it or does not know what to do.
From memory: Amiable and heart-felt depiction of the situation jazz music faced behind the Iron Curtain in the 1950s is characterized by excellent period detail, atmosphere and a good cast.
Saturday 17 September 2022
Willy's Wonderland (2021)
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A quiet drifter is tricked into a janitorial job at the now condemned Willy's Wonderland. The mundane tasks suddenly become an all-out fight for survival against wave after wave of demonic animatronics.
A tongue-in-cheek cartoonish gore fest isn't really much more than that, but it delivers the goods, and Nicolas Cage brings the necessary madness to his once again over-top-top performance.
Echtzeit (1983)
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Ruth and Georg are part of a computer program, but don't know it. Georg is looking for the place where past, present and future coexist.
From memory: This experimental science fiction movie convincingly explores the possibilities of an imagined virtual reality and mixes found footage with staged scenes; a demanding but worthwhile watch.
Friday 16 September 2022
The Dark Crystal (1982)
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On another planet in the distant past, a Gelfling embarks on a quest to find the missing shard of a magical crystal, and to restore order to his world.
From memory: Magnificently made puppeteer animation fantasy, not quite suitable for children, successfully creates a dark fairy-tale world and convinces with an endearing, mystical story.
Halliwell**: "Surprisingly effective piece of mysticism performed entirely by puppets from the Muppet stable."
Maltin***: "Elaborate fantasy - a cross between Tolkien and the Brothers Grimm - ...Takes time to warm up to, but worth the effort."
Thursday 15 September 2022
Diva (1981)
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Jules, a young Parisian postman, secretly records a concert performance given by the opera singer Cynthia Hawkins, whom he idolizes.
From memory: Exciting, highly innovative thriller offers a suspenseful plot with a few twists and some spectacular action themes; plus it introduces us with a mesmerizing rendition of the aria "La Wally"."
Halliwll*: "A curious hybrid of violence and surrealism which doesn't seem to know what effect it's aiming at, or at least doesn't let the viewer in on the secret, being content to entertain in a flashy and sometimes shocking way."
Maltin***1/2: "High-tech melodrama occasionally rubs your nose in its technique, but still makes for whale of a directorial debut by Beineix. Subway motorcycle chase is an action classic"
Wednesday 14 September 2022
Tuesday 13 September 2022
Dies rigorose Leben (1983)
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Story of the traumas and problems of two immigrant German families who live in a remote area of south west USA.
From memory: A German movie about German immigrants in the American desert surprises as a big melodrama with an excellent cast and beautifully photographed landscapes and settings.
Sunday 11 September 2022
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The Day After (1983)
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The effects of a devastating nuclear holocaust on small-town residents of eastern Kansas.
From memory: Intended to shock and warn of nuclear devastation, this TV production does succeed with lots of harrowing moments, although it is also very melodramatic and sentimental.
Saturday 10 September 2022
Danton (1983)
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In 1793, as the Terror begins in France, Georges Danton, a champion-of-the-people, returns to clash against Maximilien Robespierre and his extremist party.
From memory: Gerard Depardieu is fully convincing as Danton in conflict with Robespierre in this accomplished, but quite demanding depiction of a decisive moment of the French Revolution, clearly evoking similar events in Poland at the time (although denied by the director).
Halliwell*: "Vivid historical re-creation which finally exhausts the spectator and is a little too concerned to make political points."
Maltin****: "Literate, absorbing, knowing drama...A brilliant film, with obvious parallels to contemporary political situation in Poland. Depardieu is magnificent in the title role.
Friday 9 September 2022
The Shallows (2016)
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A
mere 200 yards from shore, surfer Nancy is attacked by a great white
shark, with her short journey to safety becoming the ultimate contest of
wills.
OK thriller makes the best of its simple premise and has some effective sequences; Blake Lively makes it all work with her appropriate performance.
Thursday 8 September 2022
The Keepers (2017)
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A seven-part docuseries about the unsolved murder of a nun and the horrific secrets and pain that linger nearly five decades after her death.
Harrowing and mesmerizing alike, this excellent documentary sheds light on a still unresolved mystery, but makes it clear that the Catholic Church once again faces crimes amidst its realm and how it still is active in its cover-up.
Wednesday 7 September 2022
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Cujo (1983)
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Cujo, a friendly St. Bernard, contracts rabies and conducts a reign of terror on a small American town.
From memory: Competent, although not so inventive adaptation of the Stephen King novel comes up with the necessary thrills (and some gore), but offers not much more than that.
Halliwell (no star): ""Not much of a basis for a horror film, and this is not much of a horror film."
Maltin***: "Genuinely frightening...Builds slowly but surely to terrifying (but not gory) climax. Not for children."
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