Wednesday, July 28, 2004

THE BOURNE SUPREMACY




Action thriller

BACKGROUND
Adapted from the second of Robert Ludlum's three Jason Bourne novels.

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Matt Damon: Jason Bourne, retired C.I.A.-trained assassin with serious memory problems
Franka Potente: Bourne’s girlfriend Marie
Joan Allen: Pamela Landy, C.I.A. Deputy Director
Brian Cox: Ward Abbott, C.I.A. Mission Director and Pam’s boss
Julia Stiles: Nicky, C.I.A. agent who worked with Bourne in Paris
Karel Roden: Gretkov, a Russian oil mogul
Karl Urban: Kirill, a Russian assassin working for Gretkov

REVIEW
Starting from a lovely seaside resort where Jason is staying with his girlfriend, we are treated to a travelogue of India, Germany, Russia, the United States, Italy and England. During this time Jason is forced out of retirement because some bad guys are pursuing him. It takes him a while to figure out they are connected with his former employer because someone there thinks he killed a couple of their agents. Jason has to resort to his famous escapes and other talents just to stay ahead of these guys. The car chases are great.

CLASSIFICATION
for violence, intense action, brief language.

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY
Nicky when confronted by Jason has several strands of hair to the right side of her mouth; after a close up of Jason we see her again, now with her hair neatly in place for several scenes then once more it’s messy.

When Bourne leaves Irena Neski’s apartment and starts walking across the small park it is daytime; by the time he gets to the other side it’s dark with lights on in the apartment houses.

P.S.
The hand held camera technique is used extensively and could upset some tummies.

Friday, July 23, 2004

THE BEST OF YOUTH (PART 1)




Drama
In Italian with English subtitles

BACKGROUND
While North America and most of the rest of the world was experiencing the sexual revolution in the early 60’s, Italy was also experiencing social, economic, political, and religious revolutions. The late 1960s and early 1970s were characterised by a series of short-lived, mainly coalition governments. In 1968 students demanding educational reforms clashed with police on university campuses in Rome and other cities, and workers called general strikes to urge an overhaul of the social security system. As Italy’s economic problems worsened public confidence in the government declined and support for the Communist Party increased. Extreme left-wing terrorists preyed on politicians, police, journalists, and businessmen. In March 1978 former Prime Minister Aldo Moro was kidnapped by a fanatical left-wing group, the Red Brigades, which made Moro’s release contingent on the freeing of other terrorists from Italian jails. The government refused to deal with Moro’s captors, and he was subsequently found murdered.

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Luigi Lo Cascio: Nicola Carati in 1966 studying literature; later to become a psychiatrist
Alessio Boni: Matteo, his brother, studying medicine
Fabrizio Gifuni: Carlo Tommasi, their friend who becomes an economist
Jasmine Trinca: Giorgia, a young schizophrenic girl
Sonia Bergamasco: Giulia, a talented piano player with sympathies for the Red Brigade
Maya Sansa: Mirella, a photographer

REVIEW
This is an epic overview of the impact the changes in Italy had on one family during the course of some twenty years or so. In typical European style of movie making it moves along at a leisurely pace with lots of time devoted to character development.

CLASSIFICATION
for language and brief nudity (but compared to other R rated movies hardly deserving of this classification)

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY
While Nicola is taking an oral exam at university two pens in front of the professor are laying on the table in the shape of a V; when the exam is over and Nicola stands up the pens are parallel to each other.

Shortly after Nicola and Giulia enter an enclosed courtyard, she drops a big stone which lands near the edge of the walkway; when they sit down to talk the stone is no longer close to the edge.

P.S.
With a budget of over $10 million this is a major undertaking. It took the writers five years to complete the script whereas filming took just 6 months in 240 locations involving as many as 2,000 actors. The editing took one year and the film is being released in two parts because of its lengthy total run time of 6 hours (Part 1 is 3 hours and 6 minutes long). Originally intended for television, the producers were unable to get permission to air the film because it was deemed by the authorities to be “politically incorrect”.

THE DOOR IN THE FLOOR





Drama

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Jeff Bridges:Ted Cole, best selling rich author of children’s books and artist
Kim Basinger: Marion, his wife
Elle Fanning: Ruth, their 4-year-old daughter
Jon Foster: Eddie O'Hara, 17-year-old student and aspiring writer
Mimi Rogers: Evelyn Vaughn, a model

REVIEW
Summer is a special time: lots of things happen during these all too brief months of the year. Set in Easthampton, we see how one family copes with their problems and the impact it has on others.

There are several scenes that might be offensive to some. Although the subject matter is a serious one, there are more than a few chuckles. The acting is very believable throughout.

CLASSIFICATION
for strong sexuality (frontal nudity, self-gratification, two people making out) as well as graphic images (explicit drawings) and language.

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY
When Ruth is in bed with her teddy bear its face is turned to one side; when she sits up to listen to the bedtime story she doesn’t touch it but the teddy bear is now facing head on.

While Ruth and Eddie are having lunch together the Heinz label on the ketchup bottle is facing us but after a close-up of Eddie the bottle has turned around by itself and the label is hidden.

While in the framing shop Ruth’s hair is somewhat unruly on the right hand side; after Eddie speaks to the clerk we see that Ruth's hair is now in place.

Tuesday, July 13, 2004

NAPOLEON DYNAMITE




Supposedly funny

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Jon Heder: Napoleon Dynamite

REVIEW
From what I can see this one is geared to the early-teen set.

I’m way past that and after five minutes walked out so can’t tell you much about it except some of the cast are described as “first-time actors” and it shows.

CLASSIFICATION
for thematic elements and language.

THE CLEARING




Crime thriller

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Robert Redford: Wayne Hayes, self-made millionaire in the car rental business
Helen Mirren: his wife Eileen
Alessandro Nivola: their son Tim
Melissa Sagemiller: their daughter Jill
Willem Dafoe: Arnold Mack, one of Wayne’s former employees
Matt Craven: F.B.I. Agent Ray Fuller

REVIEW
This is more of a laid back type thriller than most with hardly anything to get excited about. Actually it’s two stories as the action flits back and forth between what is happening at the home and what’s going on some distance away.

Although Redford is the better know star, best acting goes to his wife Helen and Arnold.

CLASSIFICATION
for a few bursts of strong language…so brief I didn’t even notice it so the rating hardly seems warranted.

Sunday, July 11, 2004

THE MOTHER






Drama

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS
Anne Reid: May, a 65-year old homemaker
Peter Vaughan: her husband Toots
Steven Mackintosh: their son Bobby, a successful business man with an upwardly-mobile wife
Cathryn Bradshaw: their daughter Paula, a single-mother, teacher and aspiring writer
Daniel Craig: Darran, handyman friend of Bobby's

REVIEW
This movie is not for everyone: some of the subjects it deals with are disturbing. It’s about relationships and dealing with people’s behaviour, human weakness and the truth (or lack of it).

The acting throughout is excellent.

CLASSIFICATION
for sexual content including graphic images of sexuality, language and brief drug use.

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY
When May first enters Bobby’s home while standing in the living room area talking, the bright spot of sunlight on the floor jumps about from one scene to another.