Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Link Swan


Owwwwwwwwwwwwwwww. My mouth is hurting like crazy since that dentist appointment. How do I cure the pain? By watching two of the most excellently acted films of last year - The Fighter (which I missed when it came out last week, so I decided to sneak it out) and Black Swan (which I'm watching tonight and then buying tomorrow). I just can't wait until my mouth isn't numb anymore so I can eat some popcorn to make my night complete.

So while I watch a skinny Christian Bale, a slightly insane Natalie Portman and sit here in horrible pain, you read these posts:

Well, it looks like Woody Allen is back to his best. There's a doubleheader review of his latest, Midnight in Paris, over at Anomalous Material. I must say, even though I loathe Allen's later works, this looks brilliant!

Kai did a pretty sweet list of his favourite Christian Bale movies. Christian Bale is a top bloke.

Jack at Jack L. Film Reviews did something different: he reviewed a pretty awful film from last year, The Expendables.

Lesya did a really wonderful job of going through Audrey Hepburn's filmography. Check out her recap!

Andy shares a good deed he did at his awesome job at the cinema. I feel like we can relate, to a degree.

Rachel at [film] girl, interrupted is so popular that she got her own fan art from someone! I'm officially jealous.

There's a top 10 list of the best character names over at Big Thoughts from a Small Mind.

An A-Z of favourite directors? Southern Vision makes their list.

So, happy reading!

Monday, May 30, 2011

A Conversation with 'THE ROOM'

Y'all seemed to like the first one, so I thought, why not make this a weekly feature? It is pretty fun, after all.

Now I shall transform myself into 'the worst movie ever' The Room, which was a real pleasure to watch. And just like last time, Christopher shall be my interviewer, and shall remain that way until my Mum gives in and lets me have a cat called Christopher. It's my dream, Mum!

CHRISTOPHER: Hello, The Room.
THE ROOM: I did not hit her, it's not true! It's bullshit! I did not hit her! I did naaahhht.
Oh, hi Mark.

C: My name isn't Mark.
TR: You don't understand anything, man. Keep your stupid questions in your pocket.

C: Obviously, my pocket isn't big enough to do that. Now tell me a bit about yourself.
TR: Me? Well, I may as well just be the worst film ever. But I'm so bad I'm good. As far as plot inconsistencies, odd shots of the city which have nothing to do with anything and really bad lines go, I am a freaking masterpiece of cinema. I was supposed to be a serious drama about a love triangle, but, well, things changed. I may be the funniest comedy ever to be made. It's just a shame that people are laughing at me, and not with me.

C: That must be hard. But don't you think it's impossible to take you seriously?
TR: Well, yeah. I mean, one of the ladies in it had breast cancer. That's a pretty serious thing.

C: She had breast cancer?
TR: Yes, didn't you know? There was one line explaining that in the film. It was a great thing to throw into a conversation casually.

C: Tell me about Tommy Wiseau. He seems like a top bloke.
TR: Oh, he's brilliant. He realises that the audience needs to see the city every minute for a little bit of escapism from all of the seriousness of the project. He must have his voice dubbed over so it sounds extra quality. He must have his actors play football in tuxedos standing just a few feet apart. And his script-writing is amazing.

C: How so?
TR: He doesn't want the audience to get confused in any way. For example: "Did you get your promotion?" "Nah." "You didn't get it, did you?" People like knowing the same thing twice in one conversation.

C: Wiseau is also great at choosing songs to accompany his film. 

TR: Yes, that's particularly on show during any one of the many sex scenes in here. Pop love songs and sex scenes make for a really uncomfortable experience, but isn't it all just so fun to watch?

C: Of course. This film is really fun to watch. I actually forgot what the thing was about because I was too caught up in how bad it was.
TR: That's the beauty of it. I should have won a few Oscars.

C: Anyway, any last words for anyone who hasn't seen you yet?
TR: You're just a chicken, chirp-chirp-chirp-chirp, cheep cheep.

What I got (entertainment value):









What I got (actual quality of the film):

Sunday, May 29, 2011

Rooney Mara...Can She Be The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo?


This morning I woke up to the news that the teaser trailer for David Fincher's version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo had been leaked online, and I watched it in amazement. It looks as bad-ass as ever, even if the quality is a bit shonky because the trailer hasn't actually been released online. I must have watched the trailer about seven times today. There's just something about it which makes me very excited. But of course, any film made by David Fincher has the power to make me bloody excited.


Of course, the original Swedish version was a very good movie. The performances were all pitch perfect, the direction was tense and it was a very clever yet disturbing film. I actually preferred the film version to the book (mind you, I was rushed through that book and I have major troubles with reading). However, the biggest key to that films success was the amazing performance by Noomi Rapace. She was something new; an utterly fearless performance who was willing to put herself through just about anything to play the interesting role of Lisbeth Salander, a tortured, damaged girl who is also brave and intelligent. Noomi Rapace was so widely loved for her performances in the trilogy that many campaigned for her to reprise her role in the American version. She turned that opportunity down, and so Fincher went on a campaign to find his Lisbeth Salander, with early front-runners being young actresses like Carey Mulligan and Kristen Stewart, but yet, Fincher hadn't found his 'girl' yet.


Enter Rooney Mara. She had worked for Fincher before in The Social Network, but that remains as her only widely known flick. Sure, she was in A Nightmare on Elm Street, another remake, but it would be better if we just forget about that one, and also Youth in Revolt, which isn't widely regarded around here. Other than that, Mara was just as likely as any of the other candidates, but many disregarded her as she didn't seem like a true candidate because of her select filmography. However, it's like when David O. Selznick picked Vivien Leigh for the role of Scarlett O'Hara, he was taking a risk, and it paid off in the long run. We're yet to see if Fincher's risk will be worth it, but I think Rooney Mara will be beyond excellent in this film.

Now Lisbeth Salander is a role which isn't for the light-hearted. First of all, whoever is playing her must be prepared to put their appearance on the line. The hair has to go, and the short, uneven cut has to be died jet black. Piercings have to come in, wherever possible, especially around the face area. An already thin frame has to become even thinner, to the point that a scarecrow would be a similar figure. And you could probably forget about wearing pretty clothes. Black is the only likely candidate in a closet full of Salander clothes, and the accessories aren't exactly inviting either. Oh, and of course, as the title suggests Lisbeth has tattoos, a huge one of a dragon sprawled across her back, to be exact.


Then comes all of Lisbeth's problems. She has some less-than-gentle people surrounding her, including a dodgy guardian who believes that no deed goes unpunished. She distances herself as far away from the rest of the world as she can, hence the odd clothing and such. But she simply doesn't give a crap, because she won't change for anybody. She sleeps with whom she wants, when she wants, and won't give up without a fight. And boy, she can fight. She fights for herself. In fact, she is determined to do everything herself. If someone ticks her off, she'll get revenge, herself. Lisbeth is as tough as ever on the outside and the inside, and she's certainly not stupid, as she has more intelligence than she knows what to do with.

Lisbeth is undeniably one of the greatest female characters to pop up over the past few years, which is why she is such a coveted role. So, of course, the person who took the role had to be more than capable of carrying a film. When Rooney Mara was announced as the next girl with the dragon tattoo, people were sceptical over the choice. Was this because they felt that no-one but Noomi Rapace could fill the role? Or was it because they felt that Mara was too inexperienced to be handed a role as big and complex as this one?

Well, here here. First of all, at this point in time, I have trouble seeing anyone but Rapace in the role, because with those three films, she made Lisbeth entirely her own. While Mara is a very delicate and pretty looking girl, I think we can all see from the shoot she did a long time ago in Lisbeth mode that she has made a stunning transformation. She looks tough, less like a woman and as bad-ass as ever. The only thing that pisses me off is the fact that she doesn't have that beautiful long hair anymore, but sacrifices, right?


As for the inexperience problem, I feel as though if someone like Natalie Portman starred in it, it wouldn't be as surprising. Portman has starred in many films, and has built up a persona of being an innocent, sweet girl, which is far from what is required here. We all know what to expect from someone like her, and while the role would provide a great showcase for talent, that's not what makes this role special. What makes it special is someone who people barely even know to come in and have their own take on the character. Because, who says that someone inexperienced doesn't have talent? Sure, people get better as their careers go on, but people are born with talent. What they choose to do with that talent is entirely up to them. I thought Mara's performance in The Social Network was actually the best of the whole film, and if she can blow me away in three scenes, then what can she do with a whole movie? She'll be bad-ass, no matter what.

So basically, I think Rooney Mara's casting in this film is a stroke of genius. People don't really know what to expect from her...will she be a carbon copy of Noomi Rapace or bring the role into her own? But obviously, Mara is smart enough to know a good thing when she sees it, and I'm sure she'll do anything within her power to be awesome. Having the midas-like hands of David Fincher helping her along will only make it better.

So what do you think? Do you think Rooney Mara is a good fit for the role, or would you have preferred someone else? Also, are you looking forward to the remake?

Saturday, May 28, 2011

Manners vs. Manners: Please Give and Happythankyoumoreplease


On Saturday night, the world was supposed to end. Well, if it did at the time it was supposed to, I would have been mega-angry, because then I wouldn't have been able to finish watching Please Give (I would actually be dead...or whatever happens to you when the world ends). So anyway, as you probably know, the world didn't actually end, so I got to finish watching Please Give. After I finished watching that at about 11pm, I tried to get to sleep but I was scared that Harold Camping got the times wrong and the judgement day was near. And what do I do when I can't get to sleep? I usually toss and turn and throw pillows all around the room until my frustration makes me unconscious. But this night, as I waited for the judgement day, I watched Happythankyoumoreplease until 1am, like the little 'insomniac' I am.

Now I didn't intend to watch two movies on the same night that both have 'please', a word which I learned of when I watched Barney all those years ago. I also didn't intend to watch two films which are at the same level of 'indie' in them. So let's have a little face-off between the two:

The cast


Please Give has the always excellent Catherine Keener playing a mother who feels the need to save the world; Oliver Platt as her long suffering husband who takes a shine to his neighbour; Rebecca Hall as a breast cancer radiology technician who spends her time looking after her grandmother and sometimes her sister; Amanda Peet as an over-tanned cosmetologist who's portrayed as cold and heartless; Ann Guilbert as the old grandmother living next door to Keener and Platt, who closes herself off from the world and proceeds to make everyone's life miserable; and Sarah Steele as Keener and Platt's teenage daughter with skin problems and all over confidence problems, with a slight hatred towards her mother's kindness.


Happythankyoumoreplease stars Josh Radnor, also the writer and director of the film, who is a down-on-his-luck writer who gets stuck with a foster child who changes his life; Kate Mara as Radnor's love interest, a pretty waitress with aspirations of a singing career; Malin Akerman as Radnor's friend who suffers from Alopecia, and believes the fact that she has no hair is the reason why she hasn't found love; Zoe Kazan as Radnor's cousin Mary Catherine, an artist who doesn't know whether to leave New York with her boyfriend (Pablo Shreiber); and Richard Jenkins in a small role as the man who decides that Radnor's novel may not be good enough.

The premise


Please Give is about a woman, Kate, who sells furniture with her husband and likes to give away her money to homeless people in the streets of New York. They buy the apartment adjacent to theirs so they can expand their house, but they have to wait for the elderly and cranky woman Andra to die before they can do that. As they wait, Kate and Alex, along with their teenage daughter Abby, get to know Andra's two granddaughters, Rebecca, a kind and generous woman who is too busy to have anything distract her, and Mary, a cynical and often harsh woman who has an affair with Alex. Meanwhile, Kate decides to try and erase her guilt of being so well-off that she tries to volunteer for certain groups, which usually end in disaster.


Happythankyoumoreplease centres around a writer, Sam, who is hoping that his novel will get picked up by a major publishing house, but he finds a foster child alone on a train and feels compelled to help him. This child ends up ruining his chances of getting his book published, but he decides to look after him anyway. Sam ends up meeting, and instantly falling for, a waitress named Mississippi, who wants to make her big break in singing in New York. The film also focuses on Sam's cousin Mary Catherine and her boyfriend Charlie, who have opposing views on living in New York, and also Sam's ill friend Annie, who is desperately looking for love in all of the wrong places.

Pros


Please Give is really cleverly written by Nicole Holofcener. She makes everything realistic and never allows her characters to become overly neurotic, as they could have been. The characters that she created, though, are brilliant. Especially the dynamic between Kate and Rebecca. Kate is a woman who feels the need to be generous and kind, but only out of guilt. Rebecca, however, seems like she might be taking a leaf out of Kate's book, but instead, she is kind and generous by default. This also spills over into the relationship between Rebecca and Mary, who are two very different people, and it just shows how Rebecca can cope with it all. It's a beautiful character piece which has some fantastic ideas on relationships. The cast really deliver, too, with a surprising Amanda Peet stealing the show as the cold-hearted sister.


Happythankyoumoreplease is a very nice comedy with some really sweet moments within it. The performances are all great, especially the one from Kate Mara. She will be a big star if she continues to choose brilliant lively roles like this one, and also if she continues to sing, as well. Malin Akerman is also lively without a single piece of hair. I really enjoyed Zoe Kazan as well, but that's because I have been continually impressed with her rise to fame. It has an interesting look on three different stages of love (trying to find it trying to hold onto it, and just coming into it) and also a nice take on the 'adoption tale', where one man helps out someone who is less fortunate.

Cons


There aren't that many cons for Please Give. There were some slight niggles in the movie and I felt that Kate's guilt was never properly explored, and I was also disappointed with the fact that Alex and Mary's relationship was never revealed, even though it had the potential to be. But I guess that's just trying to convey the film's main point...guilt.


Happythankyoumoreplease is lacking the necessary spark it needs to get it going, and it unfortunately wavers under a large amount of dullness and often succumbs to predictability. Also, the relationship between Sam and Mississippi is strangely done, as one minute, Sam is wildly in love with Mississippi, but the next, the tables have turned. I feel there isn't much of an explanation to this and it makes their story have less potential than the others.

Final word

Please Give is a film not to be missed. It's sharply acted, written and directed, with a great indie vibe.

What I got:








Happythankyoumoreplease is a very nice comedy of sorts let down by some major problems in the script, but Josh Radnor is on to a good start with his writing/directing career.

What I got:

New Look...

As you may have noticed, Cinematic Paradox has a new look. Swanky, isn't it? I spent hours changing all the code so it met my specifications, and for my first try at trying mess with html coding, I think I did pretty well. There are a few little things I still need to attend to, but I'll get there all in good time.

Moreso, what do you think of it? Do you miss the old one or do you welcome the change?

Thursday, May 26, 2011

What's Happening Where I Am: Cinema and DVD releases here, 26/05/11

Cinema releases


The Hangover Part II: The Hangover was the best. Practically everyone has seen it, and we all quote this film like we were in the thing. But now the second one is out, it's received some pretty mediocre reviews, and everyone is saying the same thing: "It's much of the same". I knew that was coming. But the problem is that when The Hangover came out, we didn't know who any of the people were. And since it's come out, we've seen 20-gazillion movies with Zach Galifianakis appear, Bradley Cooper being sexy on every surface of the Earth and Ed Helms has been showing up in all sorts. Anyway, I'm still amping to see it, because, hey, the WOLF-PACK IS BACK!


Agora: This one was supposed to come out on DVD here three months ago. But no, it's found itself in cinemas. Which is weird. I don't really know much about it, other than the fact that it has Rachel Weisz and Max Minghella in it. Reason enough to see it.


Biutiful: I like my depressing films, but this looks really depressing. Javier Bardem got given a surprise Oscar nomination for his performance in this, and it looks really well deserved, considering how dark the material looks. I'll probably check it out when it comes out on DVD...but I don't really have much interest in it at this point.

DVD releases


The King's Speech: Does this need an introduction? No. I had fun watching it on Tuesday night, though. I made a bed on the couch and my cat curled up next to me to watch it with me. I started having this major cry during the speech part, and my cat was looking up at me wondering what was wrong. It was a cute moment. Anyway, the movie is awesome. Helena Bonham Carter is absolute perfection in it, too.


The Fighter: Whenever the trailer for this comes on when I'm at work, I have to stop what I'm doing and watch it. That trailer just lifts me. It just reminds me of how brilliant the performances are in this film. But one thing that annoys me is that, at the time that trailer was made, Christian Bale had never been recognised by Oscar. I still, for the life of me, can't believe that. Even if the guy haunts my dreams and I now have Christian-Bale-a-phobia.


The Romantics: This has a really impressive cast: Josh Duhamel, Katie Holmes, Anna Paquin, Malin Akerman, Elijah Wood, Adam Brody, Dianna Argon and Candice Bergen. But, well, it looks extremely simple and the poster is a bit of an eyesore (no one uses bright fuchsia on their posters). I'll probably save this for when I get my tonsils out.

Any thoughts on any of these films?

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Being a Young Movie Lover...


When I was eight years old, I was wildly obsessed with horses. Every picture I drew, it was of a horse. Every story I wrote, a horse was probably the main character. Every thing I talked about, I was probably talking about horses. This problem got so bad that my teacher basically told me off for doing anything to do with horses, and that I had to focus my interests elsewhere. So I did. I did random projects on current events. Every now and again I would try and tell the teacher that I wanted to do a project on a specific type of horse, which I claimed to "not know a lot about". That, of course, was met by a swift no.

Around came 2006. I was over my horse obsession, yet I continued to write many Pulitzer Prize winning short stories on talking horses. When I was 10, Dad decided that he'd buy the local Blockbuster. I was just like "Meh, okay", and went on with my life. I'd only been in there a couple of times before, and I got some videos out about...guess what...horses. So yeah, unless I was going to get a free pony out of it sometime (I actually did get a pony that year, I must admit), I wasn't too bothered.


That was until I discovered that I got free movies. Free movies. Oooooh, how exciting. And all of the suppliers would give you preview discs with all the movies that were coming in store soon. So I could brag about how I saw some really popular movie before everyone else (this was before piracy took over Dannevirke). Late 2006, I'd seen a lot of movies. I'd begun voting on IMDb. I looked at film magazines. Movies became my horses.

Now, a lot of people have those stories about how their whole family sat down to watch some really awesome film and they just sat there marvelling at it thinking "I LOVE MOVIES!!!" No, that's not me. I didn't marvel at any movies. My Mum showed me Psycho (my first R16 film) when I was 11 years old and I loved it, but that doesn't count as the moment when I decided I loved movies. Because, to be honest, I don't actually know when I had the moment. I think it was around the time when I had my mad crush on Jake Gyllenhaal. He was in movies. I loved him. If you combine the two, you get a similar result, right?

October 2009. I started writing short movie reviews in this little book which I was reading over the other day, which gave me the idea for this post. I think at this time I thought I was useless at watching movies, because I decided to do 'A Movie a Day'. And then I thought, people put this kind of shit on a blog, right? So I did. First film: Let the Right One In.

When I started this blog, I was practically just writing for myself, trying to keep myself busy (which was hard, because up until August last year, I only had internet at my Dad's, so I didn't do a fantastic job of keeping the blog going). I had no aim. I still don't. But I was here for one reason: I love movies.

Movies are something which I'm known for everywhere. If people are telling me 'what they like about me' on Facebook, they're all like "I like how you're really into movies". If people wanna have a conversation with me, they're like "Seen a good movie lately?" (I personally hate this question, I don't really like discussing movies with people I barely even know). Even teachers are like "This stuff would be so much easier for you if it was a movie, wouldn't it?" And I don't mind all these people thinking that my world begins and ends with movies. Because, even though it actually doesn't, it makes me different...or something.

However, being a 15 year old girl from a small town in New Zealand who loves movies isn't all peaches and gravy. First of all, when I try and tell work what they should and shouldn't get on the shelves, no one listens to me, because I'm young. And time and time again, many orders have been stuffed up because they've done the opposite to what I advised them to do. Like getting 18 copies of Fair Game. I don't care if that is a good movie, but I can guarantee you that the people of Dannevirke won't be rushing in at once to see a political thriller. 5 would have done just fine.

Because I'm quite young, I haven't seen all of the films I probably should have. I've never seen a Stanley Kubrick film. In fact, I'm not sure I really want to. Sure, I watch some really crap films that didn't deserve my attention in the first place, but they're all part of the way I love films. I'll watch anything (apart from The Human Centipede) and I'll be able to point out at least five things that went right for the film. I just love films so much that I haven't ever 'hated' one. Sure, there are some really horrible ones, but I'd never bestow a word as annoying as 'hate' on one.

And, well, when I first really got into the blogosphere, I felt so small compared to everyone else. Perhaps I still do, but the fact that people think I'm cool because I'm young and I've watched so many movies really brightens my day. I mean, I thought there'd be heaps of people blogging about films that were my age. Nay. And I thought that there'd be heaps of NZ based film bloggers. I actually only know of three other NZ film blogs. So, I'm practically as rare as our native bird.

Anyway, the point of this post (if there is one) is to thank everyone who has ever come on this site (apart from you spammers, I don't care if you liked the van dropping into the river in a layer of dream in Legion), and just, well, tell you how I came to love movies so much at such a young age. And, in the hope that one of my parents will be reading this (haha, whatevs)...that they shall understand that when I'm typing away at the computer every night I'm not always on Facebook. Anyone who voted for me at the LAMMYs...anyone I have told has absolutely gone nuts about the news that I got nominated (Dannevirke...we'll get excited by anything). Because, being a little girl who's not even legal yet from Dannevirke, I don't even know how you even make time to visit the site. But you're amazing!

SORRY I'M FEELING VERY SENTIMENTAL AT THE MOMENT! ("I just have a lot of feelings...")

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

The Link's Speech


I should be studying for my maths exam, but instead I am all tucked up on the couch with my nice pyjamas, eating popcorn and lollies an giving The King's Speech another go. I think I'll probably start crying during the speech part.

While I use a box of tissues and question my sanity, I offer this reading to you:

The full LAMMY nominations are up now. Who nominated me for Best Blog? Because I love you.

There have been lots of reviews of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides coming through. Check out the ones from Eternity of Dream, The Dark of the Matinee, Andy Buckle's Film Emporium and Movie Reviews by Tom Clift.

Bonjour Tristesse offers up a review on Barney's Version. I'd love to see this movie, I think Rosamund Pike is awesome!

Jack at Jack L. Film Reviews is just about finished his awesome Silent Movie Marathon. Be sure to have a look at his review on Charlie Chaplin's City Lights.

Andrew at Encore's World of Film and TV is turning 20, and he's counting down the days with a Birthday Marathon.

Have you ever checked out Filmsite? This site has taught me everything I know about films. It's so interesting!

Cherokee continues being awesome with an amazing post on The Killer Inside Me. It's an awful film, but the post is worth it!

While I did my awfully long review on Let Me In, a fellow NZ blog Southern Vision compared Let the Right One In and Let Me In.

James at Cinema Sights is officially my idol. He watched, and reviewed, Justin Bieber's movie. Bravo!

Yup, that's it, I'm getting too engrossed in The King's Speech. Happy reading!

15 Questions Meme

The lovely Anna over at Defiant Success made this new meme up. It's simple, she gave us 15 questions, now you answer them. So here are my answers:

1. Movie you love with a passion.


Yeah, I know Gone with the Wind isn't my absolute favourite movie of all time, but I will throw a fridge off a cliff if I find out someone doesn't like it.

2. Movie you vow to never watch.


Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww x10000000000000.

3. Movie that literally left you speechless.


My friend started talking to me as the credits rolled and I just started crying. God I'm strange.

4. Movie you always recommend.


Working at a video store, it's my job to recommend the latest movies. But really, I hate recommending movies. However, in order to be my friend, you must have watched Juno. I guess that counts as a recommendation.

5. Actor/actress you always watch, no matter how crappy the movie.


Proof: I watched Amy Adams in Moonlight Serenade last night. At that time she was a two-time Oscar nominee. What the hell was she doing in that film?!

6. Actor/actress you don't get the appeal for.


Johnny Depp actually kinda scares me. I JUST WANT TO KNOW WHAT HE LOOKS LIKE NORMALLY!

7. Actor/actress, living or dead, you'd love to meet.


Like, Jeremy Renner just seems like a really chill guy. I mean, when he's had enough of walking down the red carpet, he just kneels down on the ground and poses like a boss. He must be a real bad-ass too, because he always is in his movies. And he's pretty sexy.

8. Sexiest actor/actress you've seen. (Picture required!)


I couldn't pick just one. Andrew Garfield is an obvious, since I've been obsessing over him since I saw The Social Network. Leonardo DiCaprio is just King Sexy. And, well, as for Jon Hamm...how is he even alive? He's such a good looking man, it almost hurts to look at him. I don't even watch Mad Men, so I'm basing all this love for him around The Town.

9. Dream cast.


I don't know what kind of movie this would make, but I'm just combining all of my favourite people at the moment: Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, Olivia Williams, Jesse Eisenberg and Rebecca Hall.
10. Favorite actor pairing.


Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet = It never gets old. Make another movie, or better yet, get together!
11. Favorite movie setting.


Sweden. After watching Let the Right One In, you have no idea of how much I want to go to Sweden.
12. Favorite decade for movies.
I love movies from the 1930's. And the 1940's.
13. Chick flick or action movie?
As much as I'd love to say action movie here, I love watching chick flicks. They're bad, but they're easy to watch.
14. Hero, villain or anti-hero?
Anti-hero. I love my anti-heroes.
15. Black and white or colour?
I love black and white, but colour does a lot more for me.

So, if you made it down here, then it is your turn to do this quiz!


Monday, May 23, 2011

A Conversation with L.A. CONFIDENTIAL

I'll admit, I have a lot of trouble reviewing films that are already regarded as 'classics'. I don't know why that is, but I just feel so late to the party or something to that effect. So, instead of going 100% on a review on the great L.A. Confidential, let's just imagine for a second that I am the movie, and I'm going to tell you why I rock.

No more Stevee, just L.A. Confidential. And let's call our interviewer...ah, Christopher, since I really want a cat called Christopher.

CHRISTOPHER: Hello, L. May I call you that? It's a lot easier.
L.A. CONFIDENTIAL: You're the first man in five years who didn't tell me I look like Veronica Lake inside of a minute.

C: Ah...okay, L it is. So tell me a bit about yourself.
L: I'm a cop movie. You see, these three cops, Vincennes, White and Exley, they're all trying to figure out this murder case, in their own ways. Vincennes, he likes to arrest movie stars so he can get a bit of money off his tabloid-editor friend Sid Hudgens. White is a bit of a violent one, and he ends up with this hooker who looks like Veronica Lake, who may know a thing or two about this case. Exley is the rookie cop kind of guy who like to think that he is better than everyone else, when really, everyone likes to make fun of him and his ridiculous glasses. Their stories all combine into a film that rivals some of the old film noir, with plenty of intrigue and style.

C: Your stars?
L: They may have liked to bill Kevin Spacey first, but I promise you that was only for promotional reasons. Russell Crowe and Guy Pearce, two Aussies at the beginning of their big-time careers, are probably the most prominent stars in the film, with Spacey becoming a secondary character. Kim Basinger, who seems to have vanished of late, plays the Veronica Lake-lookalike hooker Lynn Bracken. That earned her an Oscar. Danny DeVito is quite funny as that reporter Hudgens. James Cromwell plays the dodgy detective and David Strathairn is the owner of an escort agency which has girls cut out to look like movie stars. Hence why Lynn looks like Veronica Lake.

C: In one sentence, describe what type of movie you are:
L: I would say that I'm a very stylish film noir, exquisitely made and always interesting to watch.

C: Why are you so stylish?
L: Being a movie set in the 1950's, everything has to look great. Especially because I'm set in Hollywood, amongst the movie stars. But while I'm glamorous and everything, I still look cheap. I'm not really set amongst the movie stars...sure, they pop up sometimes, but really, all the people that you think are movie stars are probably hookers. Or there are the people who really want to be movie stars. How annoying they are. Basically, people drink in bars that don't look that great, they hang around the back-streets and they take drugs which aren't high class. Cheap. But it's stylish.

C: How about the violence in this film?
L: Oh, there's a lot of violence. People bashing each other senseless, guns shooting everything in view, people with their throats slit...it's not pretty.

C: Would you say that it is needlessly violent?
L: *scoffs*  I doubt you've ever taken a stupid breath. Don't start now.

C: Okay...What would you say your greatest feature is?
L: Obviously the good looking Guy Pearce. *awkward silence* Okay, the script. My script is really good. It's filled with some great lines. In fact, I think I'm pretty funny.

C: So, final question, recommend yourself to someone who hasn't seen you before?
L: I'm the best movie of 1997, not that movie about that boat sinking. I didn't even cry in that once.

C: That's an adequate description. Anyway, must be off. Got a hot date.
L: Yeah? Who is she and what did you arrest her for?

Anyway, my rating:

Guess who got a couple of LAMMY nominations?

Well, lotsa people got some nominations. And congratulations to y'all. But, amazingly, Cinematic Paradox managed to score a couple of nominations: Best New LAMB and Best Rating System.

LAMMYs

Now, the latter one amazes me, considering those ratings were the result of half an hours boredom at some late hour on a school night. I didn't exactly put much thought into them. Anyway, I am so grateful for the nomination, you have no idea!

I like goats. This one is happy.

Anyway, I totally thought I was gonna get Chris Nolaned (a.k.a snubbed), so this news has been pretty exciting! Now you just gotta help me win! Well, I'm not bothered entirely about winning, because the nominations have been enough. People voted for the 15 year old New Zealander! The one who comes from a town so small it doesn't have one traffic light! Weird, huh?

I guess now is the right time to say "I'M THE SWAN QUEEN!"

This has been all very exciting, but I have study to do. If anyone has extensive knowledge on genetics, I would love some help...

Sunday, May 22, 2011

DVD - Let Me In *mild spoilers*

or: That Let the Right One In remake.


One word to sum it up: Surprising.

Growing up is hard. You go to school, and suddenly you are surrounded by people who are all competing to be the best. There are those cliques who like to show that they're the best, and they're happy making everyone else miserable. They never spare one thought for their victims and they see bullying as something that will make them cooler. But what's life like on the other side? Let Me In's protagonist, Owen (Kodi Smit-McPhee) shows exactly that. He would put on a mask and make these fellas beg for mercy, but of course, he's a little too scared. So instead, he suffers in silence, and when he's not at school he's living with his mother in an apartment block in New Mexico, hoping that he might have enough courage to stand up to his tormentors. One day, he comes across a new neighbour, Abby (Chloe Moretz), a young mysterious girl who seems to have a heater installed inside her, because she walks around in the snow with bare feet. Along with her comes an older man (Richard Jenkins), which leads Owen to wonder about what this young girl is. The pair strike up a friendship, and Abby becomes something similar to a mentor to Owen. All the while there have been a few unexplained murders going on around town and Owen discovers that his new friend - however good she might be for his confidence - isn't all she seems.


Now, you're probably expecting me to spend the rest of the review comparing this to Let the Right One In. I thought I would too. But I have very few things to say about that. First of all, you probably know that the original is my ninth favourite movie of all time. I absolutely love it to bits. So naturally, unless Let Me In burst out of my screen and made a pretty fireworks display outside of my house, I wasn't going to like it as much. In fact, I was adamant that I would hate it. I thought the Americans would, well, tarnish it with their American-ness. Alas, this did not happen. Everything was kept slow and restrained, as beautiful as ever. The only things that bugged me in the way of comparison is the fact that I'm so used to this film being in Swedish that I got pissed off that they were speaking in a language I could understand.


Let Me In does the inevitable, though: it improves on the original. This film starts in the middle of the story when Abby's 'father' is in hospital, and then centres the film around that scene. They also bring in a cop, played by the ever-brilliant Elias Koteas, which brings the story fluidity, even if it reduces the role of Virginia (Sasha Barrese) and her boyfriend, slightly. Let Me In also cleans the story up, as it doesn't have all of the strange subplots coming out of it. It just picks a point and it runs straight for it. I imagine, if I saw Let Me In before Let the Right One In, then I may actually find myself gravitating towards this version much more, but I don't imagine I would have been as taken by it as I was taken by the original. I still love my Let the Right One In to death, and nothing can take that away from me.


The vampire genre has become something of a phenomenon, ever since they started sparkling in the sun and going to school like old Edward Cullen. Now, those Twilight fans are looking for every blood-sucking fragment of air they can find. Unfortunately, they'll be disappointed by Let Me In, as it's as slow as anything. Well, sorry guys, but this is the way a vampire movie should be. Abby is evil trapped in an innocent facade, not a bloody wimp stuck in a wimpy facade. She's 12 years old, the ripe age when kids start learning more about themselves and start to become more wary of who they are because they are trying so hard to find their feet. Well imagine being stuck in that exterior for 400-odd years? Having to see people live the life that was given to them, while you stay paused in reality? Not only that, the only way of surviving is at the expense of others? Let Me In does a brilliant job of portraying that, really getting into the psychology of being a vampire. Which is why it isn't like all of the other vampire movies. It's just a movie about being different, and having to deal with it, in whatever way possible.


Matt Reeves is obviously being faithful to being a wonderful tale of friendship with a supernatural theme rather than being a movie supernatural movie with a bit of friendship. He keeps things as beautiful as they ever were, with long, lingering shots that prove that the film hasn't been made just to give gore and guts fans a good time. However, he definitely remembers the fact that this is still a horror, and there is a lot of blood. Abby, as cute as she seems, is terrifying when he goes into full vampire mode. Her eyes glowing while her face loses colour and has blood dripping from everywhere is enough to give me nightmares. One scene that works really well is the scene where Virginia catches on fire due to sunlight. One minute, she's sucking on her own blood (a sight which is haunting my dreams at the moment), the next, she's turned the whole room into a sea of flames. There are plenty of genuinely scary moments, just like this one, which are hard to shake after watching the movie.


Last, but not least, the performances are absolutely brilliant. Kodi Smit-McPhee continues to impress with his performance as creepy loner Owen. He just looks like the type of boy who would be bullied, and isn't the kind who could possibly stand up for himself. He does the fragile thing really well, and holds really nice chemistry with his co-star Chloe Moretz. With this film, Moretz confirms herself as not only a very capable young actress, but probably the most exciting we've seen in a long time. Her performance in this is absolutely amazing. I don't know how she played such a tortured soul so well at just her age, but I have to admit defeat to jealousy. Richard Jenkins, too, is great, even though he only has a small part. I personally think that his character is the most interesting, considering he is the one who has to commit most of the evil for Abby since she is too young to be anything but innocent, and Jenkins brings this emotional integrity to the role which is absolutely great. But considering 85% of this films success comes down to a pair of young actors, it does extremely well for itself, and makes for a wonderful adaption/remake.

THE VERDICT: Fans of the original need not worry: Let Me In doesn't tarnish that film in any way. It's scary, beautiful and haunting, which is exactly what a vampire movie needs to be.

What I hoped for:







What I got:

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