The dependables: Hitchcock and Pixar

I watched two films and I'm here to talk about them blah blah (I'm not very imaginative :p)




The 39 Steps


I love Hitchcock and it would be really hard for me not to enjoy this movie but I have to say I was a bit underwhelmed. I liked it but I found it more of a technically successful film than a strong experience. I would have liked to care more about the romance and the mystery wasn't that engaging. Still, a good movie.

7/10




Toy Story 3

No, you're not on a different blog. That's me commenting on a new film!

Well, I can't say my life has changed or that I'm still crying like a baby (or Big Baby) but I sure enjoyed it. It was witty, funny, pretty to look at, touching and careful about details (script- and animation-wise). I have a few problems with the use of story tricks (like it's the only Pixar movie using formulas..) such as "we're going to make the good guy help the bad one but the bad one is going to..." etc but on the whole I thought it was pretty good.

7/10

I've missed you too

It feels good to be back after 10 years! It wasn't that long? Really? Any way.


In case you thought I saw a new release and came here to talk about it.. Do you even know me?? :p


I watched The Scarlet Empress and I liked it a lot.

I liked the visuals, the music, the acting and the story. I only give it a 7/10 but I'm not sure why. I'm surely difficult but I find it odd that I can't give it at least an 8/10.

There are so many things in this movie to get you excited. The difference between an idea of a world of silly rules regarding one's behavor and how that world actually works. It was a great gift to watch Dietrich show how her character changes over the course of the movie. I liked the Empress's cynisism and practical mind. So many things.

I think my favorite part is the sexual innuendoes. This 1934 movie is sexier than many erotic films I've seen. Which are.. zero. Of course.

This was my first Sternberg movie and it made me want more although I think this is regarded as his best or second best or something.

He rocks

I just watched him live. I didn't know much about him (I'm ashamed) but I really enjoyed watching him. I cried when he sang (in his own way, of course) Somewhere Over The Rainbow.

A unique talent.

What I think of Lost

Do I remember everything that happened in Lost? No way. Have I forgotten a few dozens of things that at some point felt very significant? You bet. But what I do remember is that there were some characters who I really cared about and still do.

What is common between those people is the fact that they're ordinary as extraordinary as what surrounds them may be. They're not boring but they have many things we see in ourselves and others around us. They need to do good but they err a lot and often act selfishly.

Jack wants to fix things which is welcome but it's become an obsession. He also wants to think he knows what's best for everyone and regards himself as the worthy leader.

I won't analyse all the central characters but I think one of the most important things they showed us is how difficult but rewarding it is to respect and love yourself and others.

I loved how the circumstances forced (again and again) the characters to make choices and to watch what those choices were in each case. I loved how diffirent their backgrounds were and how that affected their interactions. I loved how everyone seemed to learn from the others (not those Others). I loved how everyone seemed (and was) important. I loved how the series was smart and emotionally powerful at the same time.

Sure, Lost would have been much less interesting if there weren't so many physical, metaphysical etc mysteries and twists. We all wanted to guess correctly what's going on and await for the next "wow" moment.

Many of these elements were not thought through and many were unexplainable and cheap (and lazy and manipulating etc).

The last episode was not very well made and sentimentalism seemed to have the upper hand but I did find it satisfactory.

Many people are angry because there seem to be an awful lot of questions left unanswered and even if it sounds easy and even if I have no intention to exonerate the writers, I say "Does it really matter that much?"

Did the creators fool me a little? Yes.
Did they give me something I am grateful I experienced? Oh.my.God. YES!

Ladies and gentlemen, we have a 9!

I finally watched (re-watched, actually) a movie which forced me to give it a 9/10.

A Streetcar Named Desire is so powerful that I felt incapable of not doing whatever it wanted me to do. It asked for a 9 and I had to please it.

Very well-made, well-acted and well-everything. Leigh had my kindness long before she asked for it.

To everyone involved in this production: Thank you

The end of an era

No, I will not stop writing. :p

What ends is an amazing journey that goes by the name "Lost".

Tonight! It! ENDS!

My feelings?

:( + Excited + Anxious

More grades and commenting

Films I watched recently (I have become a very lazy writer :p)






Some Like It Hot (1959)

Enjoyable but unspectacular.

7/10









A Woman Under the Influence (1974)

This film should be called "We're gonna make you uncomfortable but you're gonna like it".

Mental illness sucks! I had no idea how bad it sucks until I saw this movie. Not even Streetcar made me realise. You can have a totally nice and loving person and just wait what mental illness can do to him/her. It made this woman behave like a child at an age when that was a big problem. Healthy people can realise their bad habits and try to fix them. Rowlands' character was not able to understand what was wrong with her behavor. I felt sorry for her and the people around her. All I was thinking about was what a shame it was to have a problem like that. Thankfully, the movie pittied me and didn't leave me depressed but the thought that in many cases things end up much worse than in this film is certainly joyless.

I thought the movie succeeded in depicting a situation I'm sure many families have experienced and in making me understand how everyone must have felt.
Rowlands' performance was brilliant. I think that what she had to do was find what a normal person would do and then do the opposite. Difficult role but she nailed it.

8/10