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StevenPlaymountain
Reviews
Gracie's Choice (2004)
Some people shouldn't be parenting ...
It's not because you claim you love your children, you actually love them. This is the premise for Gracie's Choice. How the person that gave birth to you betrays you, makes your life miserable, this is what this movie is about, and how to overcome all that. This movie is based on facts. Meet Gracie, a 17 year old girl (played by the adorable Kristen Bell) who sacrifices her own life to make sure her brothers are safe and sound. Her drug addict mother (played by the wonderful Anne Heche) changes boyfriends like underwear, and makes her children put up with it by dishing them fairy tale stories about horses and tasty meals. All and all, the mother is just a ghostly projection, a tantalizing dream, an empty promise. She doesn't love her kids, although she doesn't realize this herself.But the movie reveals this in a dramatic way. The mother yells Gracie can go to hell. Gracie responds fittingly: "I was born in hell." Gracie's hell is her mum messing things up, her redemption is her will to take care of her family, despite her own ambitions. In a way Gracie is too good for this world. She sacrifices herself for her little (half)brothers. The casting of Kristen Bell for the role of role model Gracie Thompson was an excellent choice.
The first time I saw Kristen Bell was in the Emmy winning TV-show The Shield. In this movie, Bells character ís The Shield.
De zaak Alzheimer (2003)
Gods gift to cinema? Naaah!
So this movie is above par? Big deal. If this was a Hollywood flick, it would be 'just another police movie'. Because it's Belgian, this movie is considered God's gift to cinema ... mainly by Belgians. What I really hated about this one was that the director put all his effort in copying 'americanisms' ('hollywoodisms'). Example: in America cops eat donuts; in Belgium (according to director Van Looy) cops eat éclairs (a typical Belgian/French pastry with pudding). Come on, we all know Van Looy adores Hollywood, but this is just plain ridiculous. Our cops don't do that!
Jan Decleir (playing main character Angelo Ledda) is a good actor, but again: this is little old Belgium, so we instantly hail him as God's gift to acting. It's like every movie that comes out has to have Jan Decleir in it. 'Oh? It has Jan Decleir in it? Well, then it MUST be good!' Compared to a Gene Hackman or an Al Pacino, Jan Decleir is just plain mediocre. Jan Decleir is no Al Pacino, hell, he's not even a Richard Gere. But I admit, in Belgium, he's one of the best we've got. Which is rather depressing, really.
Our Flemish (Dutch speaking northern part of Belgium) cinema is mediocre, let's face it. Let's come up with something original, and do it with our own means and ideas (cf. Scandinavia: dogma; the brothers Dardenne in Belgium, so many European directors who come up with decent stuff). If we want Hollywood, we'll watch Hollywood. Mr. Van Looy, you're just a mediocre copycat.
Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (2004)
Grab life by the dodgeball!
Dodgeball is one of the most stupid, retarded movies I ever saw, and I absolutely loved it. The jokes in this movie are so bad, they're actually good. The story is standard good versus evil. The good guys are the underdogs from Average Joe's Gym, the bad guys are the muscular show offs from Globo Gym. And of course there's the love interest in the middle of the two protagonists: Christine Taylor (aka ms. Stiller). From there on it's all about slap stick and absurd dialogues. Try picturing a bunch of losers getting hit by wrenches thrown by a lunatic in a weelchair. Picture Ben Stiller as a wacky mustached work out guy getting aroused by putting a slice of pizza in his pants. This is what Dodgeball has to offer. One of the sparkling high lights of this movie is Stillers overacting in contrast with Vince Vaughns easy going 'play'. You're in for some stupid dialogues, man o man. If you want sophisticated humour in the likes of Woody Allen, than you rang the wrong door bell mister. But if you're actually smart enough to see through this thick layer of stupidness, and you can picture with how much irony this pic was made by Stiller and company, then you'll be a Dodgballer for life! I dare you: watch this movie without being cracked up. If you pull it off, I'll buy you dinner. If you can't: surrender yourself to the ball for it is your god.
Brokedown Palace (1999)
Great, but too short
I saw this movie a million years (5 years to be exact) ago for the first the time. In the light of recent events with the Australian woman Schapelle Corby being imprisoned in Indonesia for so called smuggling pot, I decided to watch this movie again. I excepted to cry my heart out, 'cause I'm sucker for hot girls in need (just read my review of 'the stalking of Laurie Show'). Some moist escaped my eyes, but it were hardly buckets filled with tears. Why? Not because the two heroines weren't utterly adoring and helpless, not because the movie wasn't heartbreaking at the sight of these two kids in the prime of their live locked up in almost inhuman conditions. Why then? Why did I not cry? I wanted to cry! When I rent a movie like this, I except to be moved, to sob like there's no tomorrow, to feel miserable and like it. This movie was simply too short to do this. It was just like the script was reduced to the main plot elements, and while doing this the psychological aspect was thrown aside. Clare Danes and Kate Beckinsale did an excellent job portraying the emotions of the two friends, but this movie just screamed for more footage of these girls in their depressing (and oppressing) surroundings. The mental journey is missing here for some reason. You only get to see the key moments of it (which are very touching, I admit), probably because of bad editing. Sometimes I felt these girls were walking around in a postcard. The relationship with the family members could also have used a bit more attention. What's up with the relationships between the girls and the parents (especially between Alice and her dad)? You catch a glimpse of it, but the film doesn't quite offer the whole picture, sadly enough.
Nonetheless this was a great movie, and at the end I even had to bite my lip a bit. But I guess this has more to do with the acting skills (and the looks) of the actresses (and the music) then with the merit of the director. To be honest, I hardly knew who Kate Beckinsale was before I watched this movie (again). Now, I am a fan! Great movie, as long as you don't expect it to be classic cinema.
Rivals (2000)
Must protect Jennifer!
Mostly whenever there's a TV-movie on television, I turn it off, or switch the channel. I didn't with this one. I guess it was Jennifer Finnigans strangely attractive pale sweetness that kept me watching this flic. This movie was a bit over the top at times, but still, it moved me a great deal. I couldn't help myself, all the time I was yelling in my thoughts:'for crying out loud, somebody help this girl!' But no one helps her, and constantly having to watch this injustice is excruciating. I don't know much about real high school life in the USA, but the struggle for fitting in certainly is universal. Be hip or be square. Be popular or die, would be the tag line in this movie. The heroine is just so sweet and innocent and you don't want anything to happen to her, and you think nothing will, just because she is ... sweet and innocent. Maybe the flash forwards at the beginning were just nightmares of Lauries mother, or one of her friends? But no sirree bob, she dies. Just like that. Lauries mother says something which sums it up: 'There are no laws to control sick people'. Constantly you're scared of this Michelle character, and at the end you're just deeply saddened and angered by her deeds (the beautiful 'amazing grace' which plays in the background can't possibly heal the wounds). There's no room for positive emotions or a fairy tale-ending in this movie, and strange enough, exactly this was what I liked and didn't like about it. Hard to believe this movie is based on facts. What a world... The last time I felt so shocked about the injustice done to an innocent person was while watching 'dancer in the dark' with Bjork. Be warned: watching this movie will make you depressed. And probably, when you go to sleep, and close your eyes, you'll see Jennifer Finnigan, and you'll think: Why? Why? Luckily Jennifer is alive and well, which can't be said of the real Laurie, poor thing.
Signs (2002)
Great science fiction movie, although it is basically a movie about faith and meaning.
'Signs' is the movie you'll either love or hate. I loved it. To describe it in a nutshell: Close Encounters of the Third Kind meets Hitchcocks 'The birds'. It's a Sci-Fi movie showing a widower (a former preacher) who finds mysterious circles in his crops and the way he deals with this problem. And again, I really, really loved this movie. Sure, it has flaws, but name one movie that doesn't. But for the sake of objectivity I'll sum up some of these imperfections. For example, the introduction of the 'menacing elements' (I call it like this to avoid spoilers) has been done much too sudden and much too overt. As a result the fear-provoking factor is slightly reduced. Still, there's a scene where a home made video reveals those so-called 'threatening elements' very explicitly and I must say, it is one of the scariest moments in the movie. Anyhow, maybe this film lacks the power of suggestion, all the more when compared to Shyamalans other movies. But come on, let's not split hairs.
Another 'flaw' is the obligatory end twist. It is after all a movie from the creator of 'The sixth sense', so you can expect a huge eye-opening surprise at the end of the film. I admit, when you have just seen the movie, and you analise the story and all the plot elements, this end twist makes the whole movie seem a bit artificial because every little element in the movie has been introduced for the sake of making this twist plausible. But on the other hand, when you're actually watching the movie, the twist really does work. And I guess that's the most important thing, how you feel while watching it. Any post-movie gibberish is trivial.
But like I said before, I loved this movie. First of all the acting is marvelous. One particular emotional scene comes to mind: 'the last supper'-scene. In this scene former preacher Graham Hess (played by Mel Gibson), his brother Merril (played by Joaquin Phoenix) and his children (some will perhaps recognize Macauly Culkins younger brother) are trying to have dinner, but the emotions of fear are just too overwhelming, so they break out in tears. This is really a tear jerking scene. But even in less dramatic scenes the acting is above standard.
Another positive element in 'Signs' is the subtle humor, which is rather unseen in the work of Shyamalan. It certainly relieves the constant tension of the story, and therefore it is appropriate within the movie as a whole. What was Shyamalan to do anyway? After all, he hired Mel 'funniest man alive' Gibson. Rest my case.
The camera-work in this movie is very artistic and calculated, but I didn't expect any less from this director. So, I won't go into this any further.
Some find it a bit restrictive that the movie takes place for almost 95% in the farm-area where the family lives. But to me the limitations of space added to the genuine feeling of imprisonment the family must have had being threatened by unknown forces, and tied to the memory of their departed wife/mother/sister-in-law. This claustrophobic feeling works, just like it did in Shyamalans 'The Village'.
What strikes me about Shyamalans movies 'The Village' and 'Signs' is that each of these films is cemented with an universal message. There's always a moral to be found. While the search for pure, unconditional love was the main topic of 'The Village', 'Signs' focuses on the loss of faith and the search for meaning in misery. Okay, being a Shyamalan fan I'm biased, but what the heck: 9,5 out of 10.
The Village (2004)
A moving love story starring the incredible Bryce Dallas Howard
First of all, let me tel you I'm a believer when it comes to 'the Shyamalan-concept', a mix of weird, surreal, almost illogical plot elements, shown in such a way that the viewer is constantly mislead. Only by the end of the film, the viewer experiences some sort of 'katharsis', by means of a spectacular surprising plot twist. Within a few minutes, a secret story-element is revealed, and the viewer sees the story he has just witnessed in a whole new (logical) light. This trademark of M. Night Shyamalan made me view his masterpieces "The Sixth Sense" and "Unbreakable" (which strangely has got a lot of negative reviews) over and over again.
The main question is now, how does "the Village" incorporate this specific concept, and how well does it work in the movie? When I first had seen the movie, I couldn't help but feel that Shyamalan was 'reluctantly' giving the critics and the audience what it craved for, namely a huge, surprising plot element which would blow the viewers away at the end of the movie. Why reluctantly? Because, to my humble opinion, the 'Shyamalan-concept' is totally superfluous within the story of "The Village". And this story is, above all, a love story. It's about two young people in an isolated, gloomy, 19th century village trying to connect emotionally and spiritually with each other.
Shyamalan did not deliver what I expected. He delivered far beyond my expectations. Instead of rattling off the same old thriller he's famous for, he comes up with a moving, picturesque film backed up by an incredible cast. Surprisingly imposing is débutante Bryce Dallas Howard (the charming daughter of director Ron Howard) who plays Ivy. She easily holds ground among all those great actors (Joaquin Phoenix, William Hurt, Sigourney Weaver, Adrien Brody). The charming serenity and honesty by which she portrays her character Ivy, reveals a great talent. Every single scene she's in stunned me. The DVD even got an extra feature called 'Bryce's diary', and even there she left me in awe. She's a really, really promising actress, I can't stress that enough. Her performance is simply radiant and carries the whole movie. And herein lies the strength of "The Village": a simple, touching love story, performed in an inspired manner by a wonderful group of actors. And the 'Shyamalan-concept'? It's there, but there's plenty more to look for in "The Village".