nanturn Reviews

Gran Torino (2008)

Not Among Eastwood's Best

[7/10 · 31 August 2009]

Although I am a big fan of Eastwood and have enjoyed most of his films, I found Gran Torino to be overly sentimental and I'm confused by the high IMDb rating. The plot thread is almost banal - why would the tough Asian gang devote so much effort in pursuit of the teenage boy who did not want to be a member? and lacked credibility - the sick old man was able to intimidate these gang members? and is too familiar - hardened racist comes around, honorable man sacrifices his life for justice and absolves himself of past sins through his last actions on earth, etc., etc. And I disagree with the comment that viewers were permitted to 'make up our own minds'. In this film, the moral of the story was in the viewer's face and an emotional response was overtly solicited. Compared to Unforgiven, a film that was both powerful and subtle, and avoided obvious moral judgments, Gran Torino is an amateurish piece.

Gone with the Wind (1939)

Not all that in my opinion ...

[6/10 · 2 August 2009]

I'm sorry, I generally don't like this film. Expansive, epic, picturesque, an achievement for its time ... OK. A compelling story about the devastation, hardship, suffering and brutality of the Civil War, and the courage and resilience of its survivors ... OK, but credit the novel for all that.

A key problem is the heroine, Scarlett O'Hara, who remains insufferably selfish and inhumane throughout this long movie. Are we supposed to admire her? I cannot. Another problem is that the film drags in many places. Too much screen time is focused on men professing love for Scarlett and Scarlett expressing her hopeless adoration for Ashley. Gosh, move on with it!

Even for its time, I can't see how its flaws failed to overcome its grandeur.

Derailed (I) (2005)

Good potential, needed the right casting

[6/10 · 2 July 2006]

This dark, suspenseful film is rather enjoyable, although not in a league with best-in-class thrillers for key reasons. While there were certain credibility issues and gaps in the screenplay, these are problems we've repeatedly forgiven in films with powerful delivery. The primary problem with 'Derailed' is that Jennifer Aniston is not effective in the role of evil seductress/vamp and there is a lack of chemistry between her and Clive. Think about Nicole Kidman in 'To Die For', Rebecca DeMorney in 'Risky Business', and the Ice Queen of them all, Kathleen Turner, in 'Body Heat'. Such casting decisions make film classics and have lasting impact on their genre. We've seen actresses such as Kidman and Turner deliver in both comedic and dramatic roles ... however, Aniston has not yet demonstrated that she can cross over, and the producers of 'Derailed' took an unfortunate risk on her.

Seabiscuit (2003)

The Right Stuff

[8/10 · 28 July 2003]

We read the book, we know horses, it's a wonderful story. And our opinion is that the movie does fair justice to the story. Naturally the film cannot be as rich in amazing detail as Hillenbrand's work, but the right elements are included ... most notably, the relationships among the amazing comeback of this horse, the humans he owned, and a beat-up American people. The emotion generated by the race scenes is breath-taking. Sure, it is possible to see that race footage has been sliced, diced and repackaged, and that mechanical horses are used for close-up shots. Still, the race action and the film overall have considerable impact, not a small feat when dealing with a true story of such proportion.

Frida (2002)

A Life Worth Viewing

[24 June 2003]

While watching Frida, I wondered how well the film is understood by viewers who haven't read the biography. True, the movie shows that Frida suffered physically and emotionally and depicted her suffering in her art. But the extent and depth of her physical hardships are not well revealed ... there's an accident, years later there is mention of pain, then after several more years there is mention of several surgeries, then toes are gone, then a leg is gone, then she is dead. Are we clear what killed her?

That issue aside, the Frida and Diego performances were very satisfying, and the movie was visually beautiful. The dream sequences and surreal art/life fusions were extraordinary and added the impact that the script somewhat lacked.