An offbeat romantic comedy about a woman who doesn’t believe true love exists, and the young man who falls for her.
Director: Marc Webb
STC Genre: Buddy Love (Rom-Com)
Quite well done movie. Curiously, it is a highly non-linear narrative, and we know the ending in the first 2 minutes. And yet, it is captivating to watch what was happening throughout the relationship.
And of course, the true (surprise) ending is not revealed till the end 
Tags: 500 Days of Summer, Buddy Love, Marc Webb, Movie Reviews
On a mission to make the country forget the dangers of smoking, Big Tobacco spin doctor Nick Naylor (Aaron Eckhart) promotes his product everywhere he goes, and hushes those who bad-mouth cigarettes, all the while trying to remain a role model to his young son.
Director: Jason Reitman
STC Genre: Institutionalized (Business)
- “Group” – the tobacco industry, along with other “killer” giants
- “Choice” – pay the mortgage or be a role model dad? Why, take both!
- “Sacrifice” – in this case, your morals, your ethics, and perhaps even your soul. Well, something has to go, right?
Gotta love that movie! This is a brilliant move on behalf of filmmakers. The “good” guy is so bad, and is so good at it, that we have to love him just for his brilliance of spinning the evil, and come out making sense while denouncing those who should obviously be making sense in the first place. “The guy could disprove gravity!” – the highest praise out of his mouth.
MILD SPOILER ALERT
Tags: Institutionalized, Jason Reitman, Movie Reviews, Thank You For Smoking
Dr. Ellie Arroway, after years of searching, finds conclusive radio proof of intelligent aliens, who send plans for a mysterious machine. Based on Carl Sagan’s novel.
Director: Robert Zemeckis
STC Genre: Golden Fleece (Epic)
- “Road” – at first, metaphorical, but by the end quite literal travel in space
- “Team” – her colleagues
- “Prize” – originally looking for contact. “If we are alone, seems like a lot of waste of space”. But finding much more – and different – than she was hoping for.
Tags: Carl Sagan, Contact, Golden Fleece, Movie Reviews, Robert Zemeckis
Las Vegas magician Cris Johnson (Nicolas Cage) can see a few minutes into the future, a talent he uses to enhance his shows — and to win at blackjack. But when an FBI agent (Julianne Moore) wants his help thwarting a nuclear attack, Cris finds his psychic skills put to the test. Based on Philip K. Dick’s short story “The Golden Man.”
Director: Lee Tamahori
STC Genre: Superhero (Fantasy)
- “Special Power” – Cris’s ability to see a couple of minutes into his future
- “Nemesis” – the nuclear terrorists
- “Curse” – in part, the ability itself. I guess, it’s like knowing the ending of every movie before you watch it… However, on a deeper level, it is also the girl he meets who (unwillingly) meddles with his gift.
A very well done movie, I thoroughly enjoyed it. It is not too packed with action, but the pace feels good. Despite a few obvious shortcomings (what did he do with the stolen cars? who were the terrorists? – and a few other open loops like that), overall the movie actually feels quite well-balanced and satisfying. The model of the world (or the gift, rather) is well-defined and crisp. The fun and games is also quite impressive. And of course, the surprise ending is a total killer – those pieces are probably what really makes this movie work.
Tags: Lee Tamahori, Movie Reviews, Next, Superhero
When network news anchor Howard Beale (Peter Finch) loses his mind on the air, his outrageous rants reach viewers at home, boost the ratings and intrigue cutthroat network executives Diana Christensen (Faye Dunaway) and Frank Hackett (Robert Duvall). Max Schumacher (William Holden) contrasts their avarice as an old-school TV journalist.
Director: Sidney Lumet
STC Genre: Institutionalized (Business)
- “Group” – the Network
- “Choice” – in this genre, it’s always the same: go with the group or by myself. Both Howard and Max make their (opposite) choices, and each of them pays the corresponding price.
- “Sacrifice” – often “death”, in this case literally murder of Howard, and death of relationship for Max
This should be considered a classic of our time made 30 years too early. The television has become a heartless business of emotional drugs feeding its viewers with a daily fix while pumping their brains and money out for the ultimate profit. Who knew that what they fantasized about in mid-70s would actually become reality today?..
Tags: Institutionalized, Movie Reviews, Network, Sidney Lumet
Gwen Cummings (Sandra Bullock) never met a drink she couldn’t quaff. But when her drunken buffoonery ruins her sister’s wedding — and does some major property damage — a judge orders her to choose between rehab and jail.
Director: Betty Thomas
STC Genre: Rites of Passage (addiction)
- “Life Problem” – alcohol (and pills) addiction
- “Wrong Way” – “I don’t need any help, I can do it myself if I wanted to”
- “Acceptance” – well, literally that, and then some
Really funny beginning, and overall well done film. Basically, a classic rite of passage, and rightly so included in the Save the Cat Goes to the Movies book.
To be honest, I liked Sandra much better when she was drunk – she’s so much more fun. It seems, serious and especially “enlightened” character is not her best type. In fact, because of that the ending is somewhat less of a “triumph” than it could’ve been, because again, the beginning is so much more fun.
Tags: 28 Days, Betty Thomas, Movie Reviews, Rites of Passage
When an asteroid slams into the moon, it sends debris hurtling through Earth’s atmosphere. The damage seems minor — until unusual electromagnetic glitches begin to occur, leading scientists to a shocking discovery. With only 39 days to prevent Earth from colliding with the moon, astronauts set out on the most important space mission ever.
Director: Michael Rohl
STC Genre: Dude with a Problem (Epic)
OK, I actually watched it. I admit it. (See my previous post for context.) I watched it with one and only purpose – to find out how low a movie can go while still be a relative commercial success. Now I believe I discovered an entirely new movie genre – a Comedy-masquerading-as-Thriller. No, seriously, just like a bunch of reviewers on IMDB, I was laughing my ass off in all the wrong places at the incredibly ingenious idiocy of the screenwriters and the rest of the filmmakers of this, err… film.
To the filmmakers’ credit, the story structure, the cast, the acting, the cinematography, and even the special effects looked quite good. It’s the content that made my coffee go through my nose as another unexpected turn of “science” [pardon my French] “fiction” unfolded on the screen.
Let’s look at it more closely – just because it’s (a perverted kind of) fun.
SPOILER ALERT
Tags: Dude with a Problem, Impact, Michael Rohl, Movie Reviews
Computer scientist Hannon Fuller, the creator of a virtual reality world, has discovered something extremely important. He is about to share this discovery with his colleague and friend, Douglas Hall, when he is murdered. Douglas continues in Fuller’s footsteps to uncover the mystery, but what he finds is beyond anyone’s imagination.
Director: Josef Rusnak
STC Genre: Whydunit (Fantasy)
- “Detective” – Douglas Hall
- “Secret” – on the surface, the secret life of Hannon Fuller
- “Dark Turn” – the real secret
I think this one nearly trumps The Matrix (note – the same year). In fact, the model of the world is better thought through and is somewhat more believable in this movie. It is not as packed with action, but it has just as good a pace and a stronger sense of mystery, suspense, and a good B story (an actual love story) all throughout. I’ve really enjoyed it.
Tags: Josef Rusnak, Movie Reviews, The Thirteenth Floor, Whydunit
Bewildered astronaut George Taylor (Heston) crash-lands on a strange planet ruled by intelligent apes who use primitive humans for experimentation and sport. Taylor quickly finds himself among the hunted as he struggles to escape the apes’ power — and uncover their darkest secret.
Director: Franklin J. Schaffner
STC Genre: Golden Fleece (Epic?)
- “Road” – first space travel, than travel to the “forbidden zone”
- “Team” – Taylor and the ape-scientists
- “Prize” – Taylor’s proof of intelligence = his freedom. Only he finds something more…
As they say, this is classic, and a very good one. The film is over 40 years old, and yet it’s idea is still as fresh and timely, if not more acute today than it was back then. It is a bit long and slow at times, but if you discount for the time period, it would be quite packed with action. The costumes and special effects are awesome – they may look simple, but they are believable and don’t get in the way of the story.
Tags: Franklin J. Schaffner, Golden Fleece, Movie Reviews, Planet of the Apes
Шерлок Холмс и Доктор Ватсон – Знакомство
(Sherlock Holmes & Dr. Watson – the Introduction)
Director: Igor Maslennikov
STC Genre: Whydunit (law enforcement) – it’s elementary, Watson!
IMDB: this episode, and more from this series.
From a user review:
When you visit museum of Sherlock Holmes in London, Baker St., first thing that you see on the second floor is a number of pictures of all actors who ever played Holmes in the movies, and in the middle of that compilation you can see the biggest photo – the photo of Vasiliy Livanov.
All world cinematographers (including British ones) have admitted that Vasiliy Livanov is the best Sherlock Holmes that ever appeared on screen. And it is true. …
There is nothing much to add to that – it is totally true. The series produced 5 seasons in 7 years, total of 11 episodes (really, high quality feature movies) based on some of the best Conan Doyle stories. I loved the series since I was a kid (I watched it when it premiered!), and I’m still loving it after so many years. If you speak Russian, or can find the movies subtitled in your favorite language, it’s a must watch. It’s a classic of the classic.
Tags: Dr. Watson, Fool Triumphant, Igor Maslennikov, Movie Reviews, Sherlock Holmes
