"A" All Films Watched 2000-2010 |
|
All
films are rated on a scale of **** (A+), *** 3/4 (A), *** 1/2 (A-), *** 1/4
(B+), *** (B), ** 3/4 (B-), ** 1/2 (C+), ** 1/4 ( C), ** (C-) , * 3/4 (D+), *
1/2 (D), * 1/4 (D-), * (F) |
|
Links
are to longer reviews on site. A film defined as 70 min.+ visual
event. |
The
year included with the film is the year I watched each film. |
(V)
= TV, Video or DVD ( +) = repeat viewing
(W/O)= walked out |
|
A
DIOS MOMO (2005, d. Leonardo Ricagni) W/O |
A
SIDE, B SIDE, SEA SIDE (2006, d. Wing-Chiu Chan) ** 1/4 |
À TOUT
DE SUITE (2007, d. Benoît Jacquot) V. Jacquot doing 60's Godard pretty
darn well. *** |
AACHI &
SSIPAK (2007, d. Joe Bum-jin) 1/2* |
ABANDON
(2002, d. Stephen Gaghan) *** |
ABANDONED
(2001, d. Arpad Sopsits) *** 1/4 |
ABBUFFATA
L' (2008, d. Mimmo Colopresti) *** |
ABOUNA
(2003, d. Mahamet Saleh Haroun) Chad AFF. Two young brothers and their
trials finding their father. ** |
ABOUT
A BOY (2002, d. Chris & Paul Weitz) ***
|
ABOUT
ELLY (2009, d. Asghar Farhadi) *** |
ABOUT
SCHMIDT (2002, d. Alexander Payne) *** 1/4
|
ABOUT
THE LIVING (2002, d. Jorge Aquilera) ** |
ABSOLUT
(2005, d. Romed Wyder) Fascinating, complex thriller about 2 computer hacker
political terrorists & memory restoration. *** 1/4 |
ACCEPTED
(2007, d. Steve Pink) V. ** 1/2 |
ACCOMPLICES
(Complices) (2010, d. Frédéric Mermoud) . *** 1/2 |
ACCORDING
TO SPENCER (2001, d. Shane Edelman) *** |
ACNÉ (2008, d.
Federico Veiroj) *** |
ACROSS
THE UNIVERSE (2007, d. Julie Taymor) The '60s film I've been waiting 40
years for. **** |
ACROSS
THE UNIVERSE (2008, d. Julie Taymore) + Even on 2nd view, this is my
fave film of decade so far. **** |
ACTRESSES, THE
(2010, d. E. J-Yong) ** 1/2 |
ADAM
& STEVE (2005, d. Craig Chester) Silly at times, but also funny
& touching romantic comedy about 2 quirky, mature gay men. ** 3/4 |
ADAM (2009, d.
Max Mayer) *** 1/4 |
ADAM'S
APPLES (2005, d. Anders Thomas Jensen) *** |
ADAPTATION
(2002, d. Spike Jonze) *** 1/2 |
ADDICTION
(2005, d. Minna Virtanen) ** 3/4 |
ADMIRAL,
THE (2009, d. Andrei Kravchuck) *** 1/2 |
ADORATION
(2009, d. Atom Egoyan) + Not quite as stunning the 2nd time
around...but worse: 2nd time this week I went to a film I didn't realize I'd
seen before! *** 1/4 |
ADORATION
(2008, d. Atom Egoyan) *** 1/2 |
ADULTS IN THE ROOM,
THE (2010, d. Andy Blubaugh) *** |
ADVENTURELAND
(2009, d. Greg Mottola) Jesse Eisenberg, like Michael Cera is the ideal
pomo hero. Pleasant, if subdued, rom-com. ** 3/4 |
ADVENTURES
OF FELIX, THE (2001, d. Olivier Ducastel & Jacques
Martineau) *** 3/4 |
ADVENTURES
OF SEBASTIAN COLE, THE (2003, d. Tod Williams) V. Coming of
age/disfunctional family story nicely, if eliptically realized. Adrian
Grenier! ** 3/4 |
AE
FOND KISS (2005, d. Ken Loach) Ill fated love of a young 2nd generation
Paki for a white woman in today's Scotland. Subtle & affecting. *** |
AFFAIR
OF LOVE, AN (2000, d. Frédéric Fonteyne)
*** |
AFFAIR
OF THE NECKLACE, THE (2001, d. Charles Shyer)
** 3/4 |
AFGHAN
STAR (2009, d. Havana Marking) *** |
AFTER
INNOCENCE (2005, d. Jessica Sanders; docu) V. *** 1/4 |
AFTER
MIDNIGHT (2005, d. Davide Ferrario) Whimsical paean to film à la Amélie
without the irony, a charmingly cockeyed love triangle. *** 1/4 |
AFTER THE LAST ROUND (2010,
d. Ryan Pettey) V. Docu about boxing & brain damage. Definite point of
view; but a tad too obviously heart tugging. *** |
AFTER
THE WEDDING (2006, d. Susanne Bier; Denmark) *** 1/2 |
AFTERLIFE
(2003, d. Alison Peebles) Affecting drama: ambitious man forced to care for
Down's Syndrome sister. Tear jerker, never goes over the top. *** 1/4 |
AFTERMATH
(2004, d. Paprika Steen) Emotionally shattering, beautifully acted chamber
drama about the affects of grief on a couple & the people around
them. *** 1/2 |
AFTERSCHOOL
(2008, d. Antonio Campos) *** 1/4 |
AFTERSHOCK (2010, d.
Feng Xiaogang; China) *** 3/4 |
AFTERWARDS
(2008, d. Gilles Bourdos) ** 1/4 |
AGAINST
THE CURRENT (2009, d. Peter Callahan) *** 1/2 |
AGENT
CODY BANKS 2 (2004, d. Kevin Allen) Silly, but coherent kids
film. At least miles better than Inspector Gadget, which is saying
something. ** 1/4 |
AGITATOR
(2002, d. Miike Takashi) ** 3/4 |
AGORA (2010, d. Alejandro
Amenábar) ** 3/4 |
AGRONOMIST,
THE (2004, d. Jonathan Demme) V. Doc. about Haitian radio radical good guy
Jean Dominique. Interesting, but slow mid-section disappoints. ** 3/4 |
AGUA (2007, d.
Verónica Chen) *** |
AHEAD
OF TIME (2005, d. Ágúst Güdmundsson; Iceland) * 3/4 |
AHEAD OF TIME
(2010, d. Bob Richman) *** |
AHIMSA
STOP TO RUN (2006, d. Leo Kittikorn; Thailand) * |
AI
(2001, d. Steven Spielberg) **** |
AIME
TON PERE (2003, d. Jacob Berger) Swiss AFF. High gloss road picture
about Literature Nobelist and his estranged son. *** 1/4 |
AIMÉE
& JAGUAR (2000, d. Max Färberböck) ** 3/4
|
AIMÉE,
L' (2008, d. Arnaud Desplechin) ** 1/4 |
AIN'T
SCARED (2008, d. Audrey Estrougo) ** |
AIR DOLL
(2010, d. Hirokazu Kore-eda) ** |
AIRES
DIFICILES, LOS (2006, d. Gerardo Herrera) ** 3/4 |
AJAMI
(2009, d.Scandar Copti & Yaron Shani; Israel) *** 3/4 |
AKA
(2004, d. Duncan Roy)V.+ Complete re-edit from multi-screen festival version
2 years ago. Well done British lower class gay imposter story. ** 3/4 |
AKEELAH
AND THE BEE (2006, d. Doug Acheson) Predictable, manipulative, moving
film about an 11 yr. old black girl spelling genius. ** 1/2 |
AL
FRANKEN: GOD SPOKE (2006, d. Nick Doob, Chris Hegedus) *** 1/4 |
ALAMO,
THE (2004, d. John Lee Hancock) Mediocre script with too many levels of
flashbacks; but otherwise fairly well made historical pic. ** 1/2 |
ALATRISTE
(2006, d. Augustin Diaz Yanes) ** 3/4 |
ALBINO
ALLEGATOR (2005, d. Kevin Spacey)V. Hostage film in a bar with some
good perfs, but pretty average script and direction. ** 1/2 |
ALCATRAZ
AVE. (2000, d. Tom Edgar) *** |
ALEGRE
MA NON TROPPO (2004, d. Fernando Colomo) Slick, high gloss '94 Spanish
sex farce on confused sexuality with clever plot and some fine acting.
*** |
ALEX
& EMMA (2003, d. Rob Reiner) Romantic comedy. A novelist & a
steno who are writing and acting out a novel. A real turkey, both novel and
script. * |
ALEXANDER
(2004, d. Oliver Stone) Epic with a confusingly constructed script but some
great battle scenes. Jolie's accent inexplicable; but Farrell is pretty
good. ** 3/4 |
ALEXANDRA
(2008, d. Alexander Sokurov) *** |
ALFIE
(2004, d. Charles Shyer) Jude Law is an attractive star playing a cad in this
somewhat boring, mediocre comedy. Shyer is a hack director; but his casting
works. ** 1/4 |
ALI
ZAOUA, PRINCE DE LA RUE (2000, d. Nabil Ayouch) *** |
ALI
(2001, d. Michael Mann) *** 1/2 |
ALI:
FEAR EATS THE SOUL (2003, d. W.R. Fassbinder) V. Indictment of conformest,
xenophobic German character; old woman marries nice young Moroccan. *** |
ALIAS
BETTY (2002, d. Claude Miller)
*** |
ALICE
AND MARTIN (2000, d. André Téchiné) *** |
ALICE IN WONDERLAND (2010, d.
Tim Burton) Visually inventive, story deficient. ** 1/2 |
ALICE UPSIDE DOWN
(2008, d. Sandy Tung) ** 3/4 |
ALICE
(2006, d. Marco Martins; Portugal) ** 3/4 |
ALIVE (Zhivoy)
(2007, d. Alexander Veledinsky) ** 3/4 |
ALIVE!
(2009, d. Artan Minarolli; Albania) ** 3/4 |
ALL
ABOUT LILY CHOU CHOU (2002, d. Shunji Iwai)
** |
ALL HAT (2007, d.
Leonard Farlinger) ** 3/4 |
ALL
IN (2008, d. Nick Vallelonga) V. I usually like poker movies; but this
barely watchable drama was terrible. * |
ALL OR
NOTHING (2002, d. Mike Leigh) ** 3/4 |
ALL OR
NOTHING (2004, d. Mike Leigh) V. Finally caught Leigh's miserabilist version
of Life is Sour. As usual, fine filmmaking; but depressing. *** |
ALL
OVER THE GUY (2003, d. Julie Davis)+ V. One of the better gay
films...bittersweet romantic comedy which has the ring of truth and
originality. *** 1/4 |
ALL
OVER THE GUY (2001, d. Julie Davis) *** 1/4 |
ALL THAT I LOVE
(2010, d. Jacek Borcuch; Poland) + *** |
ALL THAT I
LOVE (2010, d. Jasek Borcuch) *** |
ALL
THE KING'S MEN (2006, d. Steven Zaillian) Why was this film critically
savaged? Maybe a little over-ripe; but fantastic drama. *** 1/2 |
ALL
THE PRETTY HORSES (2000, d. Billy Bob Thornton) **
1/2 |
ALL
THE REAL GIRLS (2003, d. David Gordon Green) Appalachian love story; poetry
of the ordinary. Schneider & Deschanel are great. *** 1/2 |
ALL
WILL BE WELL (Wszystko Bedzie Dobrze) (2008, d. Tomasz Wiszniewski) ***
1/2 |
ALLEGRO
(2006, d. Christoffer Boe) ** |
ALMOST
ADULT (2007, d. Yousaf Ali Khan) ** 1/2 |
ALMOST
BROTHERS (2005, d. Lúcia Murat) Confusingly structured Brazilian story
mixing City of God with Carandiru and inferior to both. ** |
ALMOST
FAMOUS (2000, d. Cameron Crowe) *** 1/4
|
ALMOST
ORDINARY STORY, AN (2003, d. Milos Petricic) Romantic comedy about a
couple who may or may not be fated to marry. ** 3/4 |
ALMOST
PEACEFUL (2003, d. Michael Deville) Post WWII Jews trying to return to
normal life in Paris dressmaking atelier. Gentle, pastoral, slow.
** 3/4 |
ALONE
IN FOUR WALLS (Allein in vier wanden) (2008, d. Alexandra Westmeier)
*** 1/4 |
ALONE
(2005, d. Thomas Durschschlag) 2nd film in a row about a wounded girl: this
one a German who cuts herself from psychotic low self esteem. ** 3/4 |
ALONG
CAME POLLY (2004, d. John Hamburg) Big stars, but a terribly tasteless
script...even Philip Hoffman overdid his slob schtick. * 1/2 |
ALONG
THE RIDGE (2007, d. Kim Rossi Stuart) *** 1/2 |
ALPHA
DOG (2007, d. Nick Cassavetes) Better than expected. Timberlake &
especially a game Ben Foster outstanding. *** |
ALQUIMISTA
IMPACIENTE, EL (2003, d. Patricia Ferreira)
Thriller/policier...lurid murder of a nuclear plant worker. ** 3/4 |
ALTIPLANO
(2010, d. Peter Brosens & Jessica Woodworth) *** 1/4 |
ALZHEIMER
CASE, THE (2005, d. Erik Van Looy) Polished thriller about a French
mafia assassin whose Alzheimers is affecting his contract hit in
Antwerp. *** |
AMANDLA!
A REVOLUTION IN FOUR-PART HARMONY (2001, d. Lee
Hirsch) ** 3/4 |
AMATEURS,
THE (2007, d. Michael Traegar) A silly comedy with a fine cast, mostly
wasted. * 3/4 |
AMATI
GIRLS, THE (2001, d. Anne DeSalvo)
** |
AMAZING
GRACE (2007, d. Michael Apted) Earnest, but sort of boring film with
great perf by Ioan Gruffuid. ** 3/4 |
AMAZING
MRS. PRITCHARD, THE (2007, d. var.) V. Involving, realistic British
political what-if fantasy miniseries. *** |
AMELIA
(2009, d. Mira Nair) Straightforward romantic biopic which informs
rather than involves. Borderline boring for a Hollywood pic. **
1/2 |
AMÉLIE
(2001, d. Jean-Pierre Jeunet) *** 1/4 |
AMEN
(2003, d. Costa-Gavras) Shattering Holocaust drama from pov of conscientious
SS Lt. and an Italian priest with the ear of the pope. *** 1/2 |
AMER (2010, d. Hélène
Cattet) * |
AMERICAN
COUSINS (2003, d. Don Coutts) The mob (Ukraine and New Jersey versions)
come to Glasgow. ** |
AMERICAN
FORK (2007, d. Chris Bowman) ** |
AMERICAN
GANGSTER (2007, d. Ridley Scott) A classic gangster flick, reminiscent
of Heat. *** 1/2 |
AMERICAN
GUN (2002, d. Alan Jacobs) ** 3/4 |
AMERICAN
HAUNTING, AN (2005, d. Courtney Solomon) * 3/4 |
AMERICAN
JOBS (2004, d. Greg Spotts) V. Informative, reasoned docu about the effect of
NAFTA etc. on the American worker. Good polemics and filmmaking. *** |
AMERICAN
OUTLAWS (2001, d. Les Mayfield)
* |
AMERICAN
PIE 2 (2001, d. J.B. Rogers) * 3/4 |
AMERICAN
PRIMITIVE (2009, d. Gwen Wynne) ** 1/2 |
AMERICAN
RHAPSODY, AN (2003, d. Éva Gárdos) V. Maladjustment of child of
Hungarian emigres. Well acted, subtle, true to '50s & a little
stolid. ** 3/4 |
AMERICAN
RULING CLASS, THE (2005, d. John Kirby) V. *** 1/2 |
AMERICAN
SHOPPER (2007, d. Tamas Bojtor & Sybil Dessau) *** 3/4 |
AMERICAN
SON (2008, d. Neil Abramson) *** 1/2 |
AMERICAN
SPLENDOR (2003, US d. Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini)
Clever biopic/documentary about Harvey Pekar, comix writer. *** 3/4 |
AMERICAN
TEEN (2008, d. Nanette Burstein) *** 1/4 |
AMERICAN
VIOLET (2009, d. Tim Disney) Prdictable "based on true" story
of ACLU victory over Texas racial injustices. Good intentions &
acting; but so so. ** 3/4 |
AMERICAN
VISA (2006, d. Juan Carlos Valdivia; Bolivia) ** 3/4 |
AMERICAN
WEDDING (2004, d. Jesse Dylan) V. A new scatological nadir for this
series; but I have to admit that I laughed at some situations despite
myself. * 1/4 |
AMERICAN, THE (2010, d. Anton Corbijn) Art film disguised as
thriller. Also a Sergio Leone film in modern drag, only lacking Morricone's
score. Slow, but Clooney shines. *** |
AMERICANESE
(2006, d. Eric Byler) ** 3/4 |
AMERICANO
(2005, d. Kevin Nolan) Contrived travelog with little plot (young Americans
in Spain finding themselves) and some poor acting. * 1/2 |
AMERICA'S
SWEETHEARTS (2001, d. Joe Roth)
** |
AMNESIA
- THE JAMES BRIGHTON ENIGMA (2006, d. Denis Langlois) Dusan Dukic
shines, based on true story. ** 3/4 |
AMNESIA
( 2004, d. Nicholas Laughland) V. BBC mystery-thriller about an amnesiac cop
on the trail of a possible wife murderer. Nice script, but too pat. **
3/4 |
AMORES
PERROS (aka "Love's a Bitch") (2000, d. Alejandro González
Iñárritu) *** 1/2 |
AMREEKA (2009, d.
Cherien Dabis) *** 1/2 |
AMY'S
ORGASM (2001, d. Julie Davis) *** 1/4 |
ANALYZE
THAT (2002, d. Harold Rntwamis)
** |
ANARCHIST
COOKBOOK, THE (2002, d. Jorday Susman) *** |
ANARCHIST'S
WIFE, THE (2009, d. Marie Noelle, Peter Sehr) *** |
ANATOMY
OF HELL (2004, d. Catherine Breillat) Opaque narrative about a girl who
hires a "gay" man to ravage her. Squickily sexually explicit. ** |
ANCHORMAN:
THE LEGEND OF RON BURGUNDY (2004, d. Adam McKay) Totally unfunny (for
me) silly, even stupid comedy take on '70s newscasters. * |
AND
ALONG CAME TOURISTS (Am Ende Kommen Touristen) (2007, d. Robert
Thalheim) *** |
AND
NOW...LADIES AND GENTLEMEN (2003, France d. Claude Lelouch)
Fine, lush melodrama about a jewel thief & a chanteuse each with memory
blackouts. *** |
ANDER
(2009, d. Roberto Caston) Closeted Basque farmer tenderly falls for
Peruvian immigrant. Slow, but well observed & touching. *** 1/4 |
ANGEL (2010, d. François
Ozon)V. Ozon's English lang. bodice ripper: great cast; despite Romola
Garai's technique in despicable title role film is eye rollingly ridiculous.
** 1/4 |
ANGEL
AT SEA (2010, d. Frédéric Dumont) *** 1/4 |
ANGEL
EXIT (2001, d. Vladimir Michalek) ** 1/4 |
ANGEL, THE (2010, d.
Margreth Olin; Norway) *** |
ANGELA
(2003, Italy d. Roberta Torre) Slow, impressionistic drama based on the
true story of a drug running family in Sicily-a torrid love triangle.
** 3/4 |
ANGELS
IN AMERICA: MILLENIUM APPROACHES (2003, d. Mike Nichols) V. Superb
adaptation, utterly absorbing, fabulous acting. Great tv. **** |
ANGELS
IN AMERICA: PARESTROIKA (2003, d. Mike Nichols) V. Uneven...some parts
superlative, some long political speeches I phased out. I'm in lust with
Patrick Wilson. *** 1/2 |
ANGELS
OF THE UNIVERSE (2000, d. Fridrik Thor Fridriksson) *** 1/2 |
ANGER
MANAGEMENT (2003, d. Peter Segal) Star power. Nicholson mugs &
Sandler is quite fine. Embarrassingly bad script & even worse
direction! * 1/4 |
ANGST
(2003, d. Oskar Roehler) Drama about a failing marriage, he has sex problems,
she's an hysteric. Well acted, if over-the-top, hard to watch. **
1/2 |
ANIMAL
FACTORY (2000, d. Steve Buscemi) ** 1/2 |
ANIMAL KINGDOM
(2010, d. David Michôd) V. Watched again. This time slight
downgrade for some plot problems. *** 1/4 |
ANIMAL
KINGDOM (2010, d. David Michôd) *** 1/2 |
ANIMATRIX
(2003, US/JAPAN d. Various) 9 animated shorts from the
Matrix universe. Some better than others. ** 3/4 |
ANITA
TAKES A CHANCE (2001, d. Ventura Pons) *** |
ANNAPOLIS
(2006, d. Justin Lin) An average, predictable film with another charismatic
perf by James Franco as a boxer-plebe. A guilty pleasure. ** 1/4 |
ANNIVERSARY
PARTY, THE (2004, d. Leigh & Cumming) V. An almost perfect video
film of today's Hollywood creative types & their screwed-up fabulous
lives. *** 1/2 |
ANNIVERSARY
PARTY, THE (2001, d. Jennifer Jason Leigh & Alan
Cumming) *** 1/2 |
ANONYMOUS
(2004, d. Todd Verow) Verow tries arty French porn (a la Porn Theater). He's
not up to it as director or actor. Degrading, despicable disaster. 1/2* |
ANOTHER
GAY MOVIE (2006, d. Todd Stephens) * 1/2 |
ANOTHER
LIFE (Ovunque Sei) (2008, d. Michele Placido) *** |
ANOTHER
LIFE (2005, d. Michele Placido) Stephano Accorsi's makes it worth
sitting through this strange, eerie romantic film. ** 3/4 |
ANOTHER YEAR (2010, d. Mike
Leigh) Wonder of wonders, a sensitive, slice-of-life film purely about my age
contemporaries. Ending left much unresolved. *** 1/4 |
ANSWER
MAN, THE (2009, d. John Hindman) *** |
ANTARCTICA
(2008, d. Yair Hochner) Multi-character Israeli gay story of hot men &
their sex lives. Well acted, somewhat involving. *** |
ANTARES
(2005, d. Götz Spielmann) Circularly constructed, sexually explicit slice of
life drama about denizens of a Vienna housing development. *** |
ANTIBODIES
(2005, d. Christian Alvart) *** 1/2 |
ANTITRUST
(2001, d. Peter Howitt) * 1/2 |
ANTWONE
FISHER (2002, d. Denzel Washington) ** 3/4
|
ANVIL!
THE STORY OF ANVIL (2009, d. Sasha Gervasi) V. Real life version of
Spinal Tap, sort of sad, sort of involving; but by the end I was
unaccountably moved. *** |
ANYTHING
ELSE (2003, d. Woody Allen) A failure. Occasionally funny romantic
comedy; but Allen's dialog seems false coming from 20-somethings. **
1/4 |
ANYTOWN
(2009, d. Dave Rodriguez) ** 3/4 |
APARTMENT,
THE (2008, d. Billy Wilder) + Holds up remarkably, still Lemmon's and
MacLaine's triumph; but also a fine original script. *** 1/4 |
APOCALYPTO
(2006, d. Mel Gibson) Gotta hand it to him, an art film with stretches of
boredom; but overall it worked as an action film. ** 3/4 |
APPALOOSA
(2008, d. Ed Harris) I like westerns; but despite a fine cast this one seems
derivative (e.g. 3:10 to Yuma) & lacking convincing motivations. ** 1/4 |
APRÈS
VOUS (2004, d. Pierre Salvadore) Annoying and contrived French
farce. * 3/4 |
ARARAT
(2002, d. Atom Egoyan) *** |
ARCHANGEL
(2008, d. Jon Jones) V. TV thriller from Robert Harris book with a dead
fish Daniel Craig perf. pre-Bond, but quite authentic Soviet feeling.
*** |
ARCHANGEL'S
FEATHER, THE (2003, d. Louis Manzo) Venezuela AFF. Allegory,
maybe about Archangel Gabriel vs. Big Brother.. ** 3/4 |
ARDILLA
ROJA, LA (2003, d. Julio Medem 1993) Romantic thriller about a
man's fascination with an amnesiac woman. *** |
ARISTOCRATS,
THE (2005, d. Paul Provenza) 100 great standup comedians do
history's worst dirty in-joke. 90 minutes of constant wracking
laughter. *** 3/4 |
ARMIN (2007, d.
Ognjen Svilicic) ** 3/4 |
ARMORED (2010, d. Nimrod Antal) V. Nicely mounted caper
film, but clichéd, predictable script spoils some good action
direction. ** 1/2 |
ARMY OF CRIME,
THE (2010, d. Robert Guédiguian) *** 3/4 |
ARMY
OF SHADOWS (2009, d. Jean-Pierre Melville) Eerily austere depiction of
French resistance cell in Lyon, fascinating and strangely moving. *** 1/2 |
ARO
TOLBUKHIN, EN LA MENTE DEL ASESINO (2003, d. Agusti Villaronga etc.) Faux
documentary about mass murderer in Guatemala. ** |
AROUND
THE BEND (2004, d. Jordan Roberts) 4 generation of a family's secrets
made into a road picture, similar to Last Orders, but rather
pedestrian. ** 1/4 |
AROUND
THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS (2004, d. Frank Coraci) A ridiculously overblown
remake of a movie which didn't need to be remade. * 1/4 |
ARSÈNE
LUPIN (2005, d. Jean-Paul Salomé) Big film, bigger mess. Anachronistic
narrative, a lead actor without enough gravitas, but gorgeous production
design. * 1/2 |
ART
AND COPY (2009, d. Doug Pray) *** |
ART
OF CRYING, THE (Kunsten at Graede I Kor) (2006, d. Peter Fog) *** 1/4 |
ART
OF NEGATIVE THINKING, THE (Kunsten A Tenke Negativt) (2008, d. Bard
Breien) *** |
ART OF THE STEAL, THE (2010,
d. Don Argott) V. Docu about public violating the Barnes Found.trust, looting
$25B of art. Fascinating, if one-sided & confrontational. *** 1/4 |
ART
SCHOOL CONFIDENTIAL (2006, d. Terry Zwigoff) Amusing black comedy
satire. Broadbent is great; but this is no Ghost World. *** |
ARTHUR
AND THE INVISIBLES (2006, d. Luc Besson) Luc should stick to live
action; predictable, badly acted & animated. * 1/2 |
ARYAN
COUPLE, THE (2004, d. John Daly) Sometimes cheesy melodramas just work,
as this well-cast, politically incorrect Holocaust story does for me. Judy
Parfitt is wonderful. *** |
AS
GOD COMMANDS (Come Dio comanda) (2010, d. Gabriele Salvatores)
*** 1/2 |
AS
IT IS IN HEAVEN (2004, d. Kay Pollak) Uplifting & emotionally
satisfying drama about an artist who brings enlightenment to his backwater
Swedish home town. *** 1/2 |
AS IT
IS IN HEAVEN (2005, d. Kay Pollack)+ Watched again; some of the plot
manipulations more obvious a 2nd time; but still fine, affecting film. ***
1/4 |
ASH
WEDNESDAY (2002, d. Edward Burns) ** 3/4 |
ASOKA
(2002, d. Santosh Sivan) *** |
ASSASSINATION
OF JESSE JAMES (2007, d. Andrew Dominik) Great looking; but the
narrator on downers annoyed. ** 3/4 |
ASSASSINATION
OF RICHARD NIXON, THE (2004, d. Niels Mueller) Sean Penn is remarkable
as a '70s loser who becomes a plane hi-jacker. *** |
ASSASSINATION
TANGO (2003, d. Robert Duvall) Thriller on valium. Duvall is a
fine actor; but lousy writer/director from this film. * 3/4 |
ASTRONAUT
FARMER, THE (2008, d. Michael Polish)V. Subdued Thornton in gentle
mode; pretty, feel-good fantasy not typical of Polish Bros. ** 1/2 |
ASTRONAUTS
(2004, d. Santi Amodeo) Slight, wry romantic comedy about an ex-junky and a
16 yr girl. Not as cute as it tries to be. ** |
ASYLUM
(2005, d. David Mackenzie) ** 3/4 |
AT THE
DEATH HOUSE DOOR (2008, d. Gilbert & James) Low key docu
about former Texas death row chaplin, esp. his remorse over past injustices
& the penalty itself. ** 3/4 |
AT
WEST OF PLUTO (2009, d. Myriam Verreault & Henry Bernadet) *** |
ATANARJUAT:
THE FAST RUNNER (2001, d. Zacharias Kunuk) ***
1/2 |
ATHLETE, THE (2010, d. Danny
Frankel and Rasselas Lakew) ** 3/4 |
ATONEMENT
(2007, d. Joe Wright) Wright's direction & McAvoy's acting make this a
special tearjerker. Oscar? Maybe. *** 1/2 |
AU REVOIR
TAIPEI (2010, d. Arvin Chen) *** 1/4 |
AUBERGE
ESPAGNOLE, L' (2003, France-Spain d. Cedfric Klapisch) Crowd
pleasing comedy about a young Frenchman's defining school year in
Barcelona. *** |
AUDITION
(2001, d. Takashi Miike) * |
AUGUST
RUSH (2007, d. Kirsten Sheridan) As delirious & affecting as
Sheridan's Disco Pigs, but too many plot holes. *** |
AUGUST (2008, d.
Austin Chick) *** 1/4 |
AURA,
EL (2005, d. Fabián Bielinsky; Argentina) *** 1/4 |
AURORA
(2007, d. Oxana Bayrak; Ukraine) ** 1/2 |
AUSTRALIA
(2008, d. Bazz Luhrmann) Reminiscent of Giant, a gigantic, yet intimate epic
focusing on ranching & a country's ethos. Ambitions almost
fulfilled. *** |
AUTISM:
THE MUSICAL (2007, d. Tricia Regan) Moving, heart-rending docu...nice
editing & photog. *** 3/4 |
AUTO
FOCUS (2002, d. Paul Schrader) *
1/2 |
AUTUMN
BALL (2007, d. Veiko Ounpuu ) * 1/2 |
AUTUMN
IN NEW YORK (2000, d. Joan Chen)
** |
AUTUMN
OF THE MAGICIAN (2009, d. Vaheh & Reuben Gevorkyants;
Armenia) Fascinating docu about artist screenwriter Tonino Guerra who should
be world famous. *** |
AUTUMN
SPRING (2003, d. Vladimir Michátek) Czech comedy/drama about an old
couple. Academy bait...so why did Czechoslavakia nominate another
film? *** |
AVATAR (2009, d.
James Cameron: 3D) The most sense-of-wonder instilling film since 2001:Space
Odyssey; a visual triumph with story to match. Bravo! Cameron. **** |
AVATAR (2010, d. James Cameron) +++ Extra 9 min. seamlessly
integrated. 1st time in IMAX (not much different). Still amazing,
unparalleled experience. **** |
AVATAR (2010, d. James
Cameron) + Still amazing 2nd time around. No other film in memory provided me
with such a pleasurable immersive experience. **** |
AVELLANEDA'S
MOON (2005, d. Juan José Campanella) Long, high-gloss social comedy
about an Argentine social club & its member's struggles to survive. **
1/2 |
AVENUE
MONTAIGNE (Fauteuils d'orchestra) (2006, d. Daniele Thompson;
France) + *** 1/2 |
AVIATOR,
THE (2004, d. Martin Scorsese) Powerful biopic, visually splendid with
great perfs by Di Caprio and Blanchett. Too sprawling, but it worked magic
for me. *** 1/2 |
AWAKE (2010, d. Joby Harold)
V. Thriller with a truly absurd claptrap plot, but involving, gotta give it
that. I like Hayden Christensen, even if he's remarkably wooden. ** |
AWAY
FROM HER (2007, d. Sarah Polley) Julie Christie is aging gorgeously.
And her Alzheimer's is totally convincing. *** 1/2 |
AWAY
WE GO (2009, d. Sam Mendes) Wildly variable road flick, social satire.
John Krasinski is becoming a major star. ** 3/4 |
|