JANUARY 2006 MOVIE REVIEW #789 -#808

31 Tuesday
Brokeback Mountain (Ang Lee 2005) 2.5/5
[Sun Theatre Grand) #808
Underwhelming story of two straight cowboys who fall in love on Brokeback Mountain. A film built around so much expectations of both the director and actors that ultimately it fails to deliver the emotional impact required. Jack Gyllenhal is the best of the two leads, and there are some startling scenery shots, but without an emotional connection to Ledger, this film fails.

28 Saturday
Rocky (John G. Avildsen 1976) 1/5
[DVD] #807
Quite a disappointing film, considering for its time it inspired alot of people with the 'underdog feel'. But this film has lost much of the last 3 decades, the fight scenes are unconvincing and unmotivational, the performance of Stallone in some scenes is awkward and the sub plot with Talia Shirt and Burgess Meredith is unfulfilled. Disappointing.

27 Friday
Munich (Steven Spielberg 2005) 3.5/5
[Highpoint Cinema 6] #801
Eric Bana is wonderful as Avner, the leader of 5 men employed to track down and eliminate the masterminds of the 1972 Munich Olympics tragedy. Infact all of his assistants are very well portrayed, and although the film is quite long, the look (colour, tint) of the film along with the lighting is really first class. Some very powerful scenes and memorable scenes, including the 'telephone assassination' and the introductory scene of the Munich killings.

26 Thursday
Family Plot (Alfred Hitchcock 1976) 3/5
[DVD] #800
The Master of Suspense's' last ever film, and it still has some exciting Hitchcock touches. The story of a phony psychic whose life intercepts with that of a pair of kidnappers. William Devane is truly wonderful as Arthur Adamson the kidnapper, his delivery in particular is a highlight of the film. Some thrilling touches by Hitchcock especially nearer the end of the film.

25 Wednesday
Hard Rain (Mikael Salomon 1998) 1.5/5
[DVD] #799
Basically a cat and mouse film about a group of men trying to locate $3 million hidden by security guard Christian Slater during a small town flood. Your standard good guy vs bad guy vs good guy who is actually bad story, along with the typical last minute rescue of all main cast from near death. Nothing special about this at all, although they do get right into the story from the start.

24 Tuesday
The Hunt for Red October (John McTiernan 1990) 1.5/5
[DVD} #798
Not a bad film about a Russian submarine captain who may or may not be defecting to the USA. Some nice shots and scenes on here, and Connery is quite convincing, especially when he puts on a russian accent. Sam Neil and Tim Curry are both horribly miscast. Special effects at the end are quite poor considering the high quality during the film.

Napoleon Dynamite (Jared Hess) 1/5
[DVD] #797
Disappointing and unfunny look at an alienated teenager and his dysfunctional family. Enough said.

22 Sunday
Dantes Peak (Roger Donaldson 1997) 1/5
[DVD] #796
Disappointing disaster film, mainly because Pierce Brosnan is terribly miscast, some scenes in the film as so unrealistic it takes away from any suspension of disbelief (ie: paddling through lava with a coat wrapped around the arm), and part of the story of rescuing the grandmother didn't work because we weren't given enough time to care for the grandmother.

21 Saturday
Deep Impact (Mimi Leder 1998) 1.5/5
[DVD] #795
Standard disaster film about a comet hurtling towards earth, on the path to total destruction. But rather focussing on the impact itself, the film is focussed more on the attempts to stop the comet, the relationship of key characters and the decisions people make to continue life. Having said that, the character of Jenny Lerner (Tea Leoni) was lacking an emotional connection with the audience and infact several scene of her as a newsreader were unconvincing. A good cast all round, with Richard Schiff and Vanessa Redgrave the standouts.

King Kong (Merian C. Cooper / Ernest B. Schoedsack 1933) 3/5
[ABC] #794
A film crew travels to a tropical island where they encounter a giant gorilla who takes a fancy to the female blonde star. A film which still remarkably holds up well today. Several of the stop motion action sequences between Kong and other Dinosaurs are realistic and in some cases brutal. The big improvement this film has over sequels is the speed at which the story is told- in particular the return to New York and scaling of the Empire state Building. In retrospect, this film is mainly a silent film, with little dialogue during key scenes on the island. Quite a good film.
And yes, the pilot and gunner who eventually kill Kong are none other than the directors of the film.

13 Friday
Mr and Mrs Smith (Doug Liman 2005) 2/5
[DVD} #793
A better film than what I expected. this is the film the Pitt and Jolie supposedly fell in love on. It is interesting to watch this film for their chemistry, which is really good amongst some cringe worthy staged conversations. A film that really flows quickly, but, with no real knowledge of the bad guys in the films, we really don't care what happens to our 'heroes' or for that matter anyone else. This is merely a star vehicle to show off Pitt and Jolie. Nothing else.

12 Thursday
Crash (Paul Haggis 2004) 2.5/5
[DVD] #792
Multiple storylines set in Los Angeles around two night culminating for some, in a crash and explosion of belief, taunts and racial issues. This film is quite good at creating the importance of first impressions and how often they are wrong or merely hide further issues under the skin. Whilst there were no standout performances Matt Dillion did have two crucial character scenes as a racist cop. This style of film jhas been down several times before (especially Magnolia), and I felt that all the characters seemed to be weighed down by this racial prejudices for me to really feel anything for them.

9 Monday
Birth (Jonathan Glazier 2004) 3.5/5
[DVD] #791
Nicole Kidman encounters a ten year old boy who claims to be a reincarnation of her former husband. A really fascinating and thought provoking film. What if reincarnation exist ? How would you and your family handle the sudden unexpected appearance of it? Kidman is quite convincing as the desperately confused, broken heart wife who yearns for the past with her husband. Lauren Bacall is quite good as her mother but the standout is Cameron Bright- as the 10 year old Sean- a truly powerful controlled piece of acting. Whether you believe in it or not, this film is worth a look, apart from the last shot of Kidman on a beach (why didn't they stop the movie the shot before!)

3 Monday
GroundHog Day (Harold Ramis 1993) 3/5
[DVD] #790
Bill Murray experiences the identical day each morning, until it teaches him to become a better person and values other peoples lives. A really original idea executed well. Murray is quite good in the role of the cynical weatherman who eventually realises what is needed to court the love of his life Andie MacDowell. The scene where Murray befriends a homeless man, only to have die that evening, and then attempt to alter the man's life is a great cinematic moment.

2 Sunday
Rat Race (Jerry Zucker 2001) 1/5
[DVD] #789
Basically a remake of 'It's A Mad Mad Mad World', guests at a hotel/casino all invited to locate 2 million dollars hidden in a locker in New Mexico. A cast full of many wonderful comedians, but which fails to deliver in all parts. Disappointingly, the majority of the jokes are corny, or simply unfunny, although the ending itself was the best that could be salvaged from the script.