ra_stiles Reviews

Match Point (2005)

A wonderful film

[7/10 · 13 September 2009]

I saw this movie again for the first time in a while, and I have to say that watching it again has been just as enjoyable as the very first time I saw it. I think it is a film well made, and I would recommend it to anyone and everyone (why I decided to review it now, of all times, I'm not sure, but I haven't been able to see anything new in a while, so bear with me here).

I don't know if I like this movie for its merit, or because the first time I saw it, I had recently been in The Elixir of Love, the opera from which the main operatic theme of the film comes. Either way, it is pegged as Woody Allen's comeback, and I wholeheartedly agree. There are so many references to classic film and literature that it's hard not to think of this piece as satire. One of my favorite scenes is when the detective is lying in bed and suddenly solves the murder and sits straight up; this undoubtedly came straight from Crime and Punishment. We all know how Woody Allen loves his Russian lit.

Only Woody Allen can make a movie about killing your pregnant mistress funny. This is definitely one of my favorites, and I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in a dark, twisted good time. Scarlett Johanssen does a commendable job, Jonathan Rhys Meyers is brilliant, and Emily Mortimer is good as the naive wife. It's a movie where you want to pity all the characters, but at the same time, all of them deserve the events that occur. Meyers deserves to be in a passionless marriage; Johanssen deserves to be shanked; Mortimer deserves to be in the dark the entire time. It completely fits all of their characters.

See the original review here: http://themoviemistress.blogspot.com/2009/09/match- point.html

L.A. Confidential (1997)

A good, old fashioned movie

[7/10 · 28 August 2009]

What I love about this movie is the film noir quality that keeps you wanting more. Each body in this film is not just a person, they're a character. They each have something to gain, whether noble or not, and that is what makes this film interesting. The shootouts are fun, but the plot and characters are what drives this movie.

My one criticism is the length. There were parts where the movie just seemed to drag a bit. In my opinion, the "Bloody Christmas" bit could have been cut altogether, or, if they needed a way for Guy Pearce's character to get his Detective badge, it could have started with him as detective and then been mentioned in passing. It wasn't really necessary to the rest of the plot.

Other than that, however, this movie is excellent.

Read my original review of this movie at http://themoviemistress.blogspot.com/

Inglourious Basterds (2009)

Inglorious Basterds: Bastards? Maybe. Inglorious? H*** no.

[8/10 · 28 August 2009]

I've read so many reviews of this movie that complain about the few action scenes there were in reality when the trailer promised more, but I thought that more scenes like that would have dragged the movie out and took away its biting nature. The thing I liked about this movie was the wit and irony which could only be accomplished through the long conversation scenes. I think the "modern" score in this "period" piece added to the irony in that we are looking back on history and wishing that this was how things had actually happened.

This is a movie that truly deserves to be seen in a theatre. It is a communal event, the way that a good movie should be. Films were designed to be seen in theatres, and this is one movie that would not be the same viewed otherwise, no matter how big your home kino is. I felt connected to the other people sitting around me as all one hundred of us clapped when a dick-head officer (I won't say which one and spoil the fun) FINALLY got shot. We laughed when two characters debated through subtitles over whether to start speaking in English. The facetiousness of this film is just too great to be experienced alone.

So, if I were you, I'd go see this movie. I'm probably going to see it again. Yes, it was that good. It made me feel good about being an American (which is something you don't experience too often these days). It made me want to go watch Pulp Fiction for the fiftieth time in a row. And it made me remember that there can be comedy in everything. Even explosions. Especially explosions. In short, this movie just kept getting better with every minute, and although at times it seemed almost too ridiculous, I remembered that that was the point, and if I am not a happier person because of this movie, there is no hope for this world.

Read my original review at http://themoviemistress.blogspot.com/2009/08/inglorious- basterds-basterds-maybe.html

I Love You, Man (2009)

I Love You, Man? Or Woman?

[3/10 · 26 August 2009]

So, I watched this movie for the first time the other day, and I have to say that while it had some funny parts, I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I was going to. The funniest part was Paul Rudd (Knocked Up, Clueless) and Jason Segel's (Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Freaks and Geeks) impression(s) of Andre the Giant. That was the funniest part. Of the ENTIRE MOVIE. Pretty sad, don't you think? OK, so, granted, it wasn't your usual romantic comedy, and I give them credit for trying something new. The film was about a guy who has no guy friends and has to find a best man for his upcoming wedding. He is supposed to be this "girlfriend guy" who is better with women than he is with men. But honestly, I found myself thinking throughout the entire movie that if I encountered this guy in real life, I would not date him because 1) I would assume he was gay, and if I found out he wasn't, 2) he's so painfully awkward that I'd want to punch him. I don't know what girl would ever date him, which made the idea of him moving from relationship to relationship completely unbelievable. Now, I think Paul Rudd is a great comedic actor, but his character in this movie is so much a girl that I honestly thought that he and Jason Segel were going to get together in the end. TOGETHER together.

The pacing of this movie was also way off. That coupled with Pete's awkwardness made it almost unbearable. I felt it dragging after the first twenty minutes, and the comedy suffered as a result. There were plenty of jokes, don't get me wrong. They were just.... spaced.... apart... so much.... that.... ooh, look! Something shiny on the floor of the living room. What's going on?

I wish we had seen more of Jason Segel's character in the film. When he was on screen, the movie's pace picked up, and the action got more intense. Plus, his macho attitude played really well against Rudd's girliness (which was the point of the movie, I guess, but because we didn't see much of Segel by himself to get a second view of him, you can see why I made the above comment about the end). When he wasn't on, though, it dragged. And dragged.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that this movie had so much potential for a really good bromance, and it let me down. It was slow and boring with one-dimensional characters. Go and rent it for yourself, though. If anything, watch it for the jokes, and for the awkwardness (if you can bear it). But don't expect something as good as Rudd and Segel's other movies.

Ponyo (2008)

This movie was an excellent update to a classic.

[10/10 · 23 August 2009]

The film was an updated version of the classic story of The Little Mermaid, and it was beautiful in the sense that everyone in the film seems to accept that the magic of Ponyo and her family exists. I think that not a lot of animators take advantage of the suspension of disbelief that persists within this genre, but Miyazaki creates a world in which anything is possible and in doing so breaks the divide between animation and real life. In his doing so, we are sucked into that world, and so while I was watching Ponyo turn into a little girl, I completely believed that it could happen. The thing I loved about it was that the mother, Lisa, accepts it too! A lot of children's movies (like Return to Oz) put this barrier between adults and children that allows children to believe and adults to not believe (in whatever the movie happens to be promoting). Yet, Ponyo made it completely natural for magical things to happen and for everyone to accept them.

Another thing I loved about the movie was the animation, which was drawn by hand. It has a softness and smoothness that Disney used to have before they discovered the use of computers. The attention to detail is astounding, and I found myself watching every inch of the screen so that I wouldn't miss anything. And I mean anything. The pictures are so fluid that upon watching I breathed a sigh of relief at not having to watch something created on a computer. It gets tiring, you know? It's nice to know that I'm looking at, well, art. Moving art, that is.

The only thing that disconcerted me was the ending. It came too quickly, and you'll understand what I mean if you watch the movie. I won't give anything away, but I was expecting more conflict. I have read the original story of The Little Mermaid, and I was interested in seeing what direction this story would take.