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El_Burro
Reviews
Besser als Schule (2004)
Boring standard plot, weak movie, but some great characters
Ok, for a movie with such a thin plot, the one-line-summary would be just enough...as I can completely support those two above me concerning the plot and the main characters. But there is one thing which really improved this movie: The unimportant characters are just great - the parents have nothing to do with the story, neither does the manager of "Marc", an ex porn-photographer, but they are really enjoyable. Not to a Coen-brothers level, sadly, but pretty far on the way up there. Therefore, there were some moments I just had to enjoy, just as rare as stars in space though. Tough decision here, but I give it 4/10, a bit more if you like romance-driven stories (but not much)
Erleuchtung garantiert (1999)
Fascinating, but best viewed with the right background
Warning, slight spoilers within To me, this was a fascinating Movie, about two Germans, leaving their (more or less)slowly eroding lives in Germany, and managing to live in Japan, a country they no pretty much nothing about (which surprised me concerning Gustav, a Zen Buddhist - I think it to be pretty much impossible to understand a religion without any knowledge about its cultural background). In Japan itself, they find two different worlds, the fast-paced metropolis of Tokyo, and the buddhist Temple, where time seems to stand still. All this leads to a huge amount of cultural "clashes", but of course, this is a comedy, so it doesn't end in prison. I really enjoyed these last two hours- but I was the perfect audience, so to say: As a German with huge interest in Japanese culture, a basic knowledge both of Japanese language and traditions(though in both I still have lots to learn) - I can understand many jokes which are often unnoticed. It was really entertaining to see how I myself would have reacted to being in Japan only two years ago. Therefore, much of the joy I had watching this movie may very well be coming from being proud of my own progress - which of course will not happen to most other viewers. Therefore I recommend this one to those who know a bit about Japan, knowledge about Germany might increase the fun, but isn't really necessary. Without knowing either country, this one is just a German comedy with fascinating pictures of a Japanese temple and an "artsy" touch - which isn't a bad thing, but not more than 7/10. For me though, i give 9/10.
Das Wunder von Bern (2003)
Quite Entertaining, especially for Germans
"Das Wunder von Bern", a movie about the first German World Cup victory of 1954, is surprisingly entertaining and one of the better German movies these years. The background is really good, featuring a war-torn Germany which is already in the middle of the "Wirtschaftswunder", showing the huge contrast between children of Coal Workers who do not own a real football, and a newly wed reporter with his wife, who are living in a modern house with lots of clothes, and would have made a trip to Africa if not for the world cup. In my case, the greatest part though was the heavy use of the different German dialects - it's hard to believe how funny simple jokes can sound if told that way - but at the same time, I doubt this will work in foreign-language versions. Therefore, for foreigners, I'd give only 6/10, because of the probably less interesting German history, and mainly because of the lack of adequate translations of language-related jokes. For Germans (or those few non-Germans out there who study German and watch the original version), I'd give 8/10, close to 9.
Neko no ongaeshi (2002)
Above average, but not worth to be from Ghibli
Neko no ongaeshi tells us ...well...a story about cats, I suppose. But there, we're already at the weak point of this anime..the story - it's short, just slightly more than half as long as any other ghibli film I remember (I guess I saw pretty much all of them, but I don't have their length stored in my head ;) , and this short duration is fully represented by a lack of background..if you don't know mimi wo sumaseba you know barely nothing about the baron and muta, and even if you did (which is highly recommended) see every ghibli at least once, the other characters, including the girl haru, will still be rather unknown to you. The music and animation are nice, as you can expect from ghibli - which is why I give this a 6/10, 7/10 if you love cats(and I don't mean just to like them like I do, but really love them..otherwise, those cats walking on two legs are rather irritaing instead of "sugoi" for you).
To sum it up: if you saw everything else from ghibli, some nice series (from clamp for example;), and still have way too much time on your hands - either go learning some japanese or watch this one..I recommend the former though.
Kumo no yôni, kaze no yôni (1990)
A sad tale of the passing of time
This Movie was really worth its time - While the coloring of the clothes and other spaces may seem a little "flat" from time to time, the backgrounds, especially the grass and the palace buildings, were really well done. Still, this is no sen to chihiro or porco rosso, so, if only for its visual aspect, I wouldn't give more than maybe 8/10 - very good, especially for `89, but not at the top. Why did I still give it 10/10? Well, first, I wasn't sure If I should give 9 or 10, but this movie with its sad tone of come and go just hit right onto my mood - which made me turn to the 10. *Spoilers* First we see Grass, then a palace in ruins, then the story itself begins with the old emperors death, following the order of his few hundred wives being sent home. Now, his son needs to find a wife as fast as possible, to regain control over both Palace an Country. The eunuchs are beeing sent out, and several hundred young women start their training in the inner Palace. As 6 months go by, Only Ginga, the main character(a 13[?] year old girl) and a few others are left, and they marry the emperor, with Ginga as his first wife. But a rebellion starts, exploiting the emperors weakness - to make it short, the rebellion succeeds, the emperor kills himself, just after having sex with ginga once, the wives flee, and Gingas son will have to reunite the country some decades later...then, we go back to a destroyed palace, and the wide open grass in the wind. This circle of death and rebirth is the overall story of the movie, the underlying motive. I do not know much(if anything) about asian history, so I have not the slightest idea if these wars actually took place - given the fact that exact dates are being used, this is very well possible. To sum it up: No Hayao , But Akira Myazaki is close enough to it ;) The mood is not as sad as Hotaru no haka, due to the heavy use of funny scenes, but if you think about it, its no comedy either.