Day 51: Ben-Hur

"Where there is greatness, great government or power, even great feeling or compassion, error also is great."

Hollywood was a very different place when Ben-Hur was made. Specifically, it's leading stars were, wait for it—Republicans! It's big box office spectacles? Not science fiction. Not superhero adventures. Not spy thrillers. They were sword and sandal films. This one in particular was made with the story of Jesus Christ serving as it's primary historical backdrop. It's quite genius. What better known historical event is there than the greatest story ever told? 

Day 50: Rosemary's Baby

Rosemary Woodhouse: "I dreamed someone was raping me. I think it was someone inhuman." 

Guy Woodhouse: "Thanks a lot."

(I have to say this: Woody Allen you fucked up son!)

Roman Polanski's "Rosemary's Baby" is known as perhaps the finest example of the "pre partum crazies". But the viewer need not be pregnant to experience the gnawing sense of an infinitely horrifying billowing black sail at the edge of perception. It is a horror movie of the first order. Often in horror movies, and suspense movies as well, the characters are subsidiary to the plot. Characters and objects become schemata. "Rosemary's Baby" feels like people are actually experiencing these things, no doubt due to the gradually diminshing chaste performance of Mia Farrow, the acerbic perfomance of Ruth Gordon(who won an Academy Award),and the tightly wound direction of Roman Polanski.

Day 49: Rashomon

"Don't worry about it. It isn't as if men are reasonable."

Rashomon is much more than a mystery film. It’s a close analysis of ethics and morals that us humans pretend to obey, in order to live in a civilized manner. Kurosawa is the blueprint. It’s well-documented that before Kurosawa, no director had the ability to combine thought-provoking plotlines with the appeal that most Hollywood films today have. In Rashomon, the idea that all man is evil is explored and put to the test while three witnesses of an alleged murder each give their own interpretation of the event. In this crime story, the murderer is the least important aspect of the investigation. It falls second to the point of view of all those who are involved and how in each of their stories, they are the ones who seem the most innocent.

Day 48: Good Will Hunting

“If the professor calls about that job, just tell him, sorry, I had to go see about a girl.”

Directed by Gus Van Stant, Good Will Hunting stars Matt Damon is what is considered to be his break through to fame. Alongside Damon is Ben Affleck and Robin Williams, who both deliver stunning roles. The film was written by both Damon and Affleck and earned nine Academy Award nominations and won two. The film also rolled in four Golden Globe nominations and won for Best Screenplay.

Day 47: Magnolia

"And the book says, We may be through with the past, but the past ain't through with us."

There is this notion that the sins of the father have a carry over effect on offspring. This is not only prevalent in a biblical sense, but also in a psychological one. The idea is that the trespasses of one’s parents can often seep into the persona of a child, which may or may not lead them down a righteous path. In the case of Paul Thomas Anderson’s “Magnolia”, the sins of the father stings the future of the son and daughter. Featuring an assortment of characters who are coming to grips with the distrustful behavior of their fathers, “Magnolia” is a film that heavily focuses on the dark path a human being can take. Amongst the family issues, the characters also face moral concerns and serendipitous events that seemingly magnify the coincidences and challenges that make up a life. Much like Robert Altman’s “Short Cuts”, “Magnolia” isn’t a film that’s hell bent on pushing the notion of ‘we’re all connected‘. As a matter of fact, works like “Babel” or everyone’s darling ensemble “Crash”, are too heavy handed in their approach as they attempt to capture a grand scale by trying to connect everything neatly. Instead, PT Anderson is far more focused on crafting a lush film filled with characters who are brimming with pain and regret. There are characters who do intersect and are connected, but their connection is through a rather frivolous  facet: the media. I must stress this particular connection is extremely loose. Rather the real connection these characters share is through their broken bonds and their ability to continuously set their lives back because they can’t get over a damaged past, or events beyond their control.

Day 46: A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints

"Cause me and Mike, we're going to California with our band and I want you to come cause I love you, and the Mets won."

Many times it is hard to find a good independent film that will satisfy you and hold your attention. I can speak from experience, as I have watched many independent films, but “A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints” is one of my favorite independent films that I've seen. This isn't your average independent film though. First off, its an autobiography film that shows the life of the actual director of the film, Dito Montiel. This movie also boasts a cast that would be recognized as a blockbuster hit, not a mere independent movie. The movie feature Robert Downey Jr., Shia LaBeouf, Rosario Dawson and Channing Tatum.

Day 45: This Is England

"Some people say we're racists, We're not racists. We're realists. Some people call us Nazis, We're not Nazis. No, what we are, we are nationalists and there's a reason people try to pigeonhole us like this. And that is because of one word, gentlemen. Fear.”

As a Sequel of This is England is on the horizon soon, I thought it would be fitting to review it. A movie about skinheads and racism was always going to be a touchy subject when released in 2006, especially at a time where the UK was cracking down on racism. Director Shane meadows does well in producing a movie that the majority of the UK can relate to in the 80’s.

Day 44: Richard III

"Conscience is but a word that cowards use."

[Alright, before I get to my review let me just get this out of the way. First, Ian McKellan sort of looks like Ron Paul in this movie. Second, Ian McKellen is such a damn good actor. Probably one of the best we'll ever see. Jesus, he's good.]

The film, Richard III, is an adaptation of the classic Shakespeare play of the same name. While it's "updated" it's actually a period piece. Set in an alternate history where Britain has become a Fascist state reminiscent of all the wicked glory that's carried with Nazi Germany, Richard III largely keeps the dialog of Shakespeare himself but slightly updates it, though not by much. Indeed it may have been a commercial success and critical darling had it have translated the film to modern English but then that would have been besides the point anyway.

Day 43: The Room

"What's bobbering you Mark"?

One of the things that draw people to film is the colossal possibilities. Like, what would it look like if we depicted a man aging backwards? What would it look like if we could create an avatar and enter an entirely new world? "The Room", released in 2003, asks a less visually striking question, but no less ambitious:

What would it look like if you kept a human being in an attic for 30 years with no human contact, gave him millions of dollars, and then told him to go write a film about the human condition? You would get this glorious train wreck of a movie.

Day 42: The 400 Blows

"Oh, I lie now and then, I suppose. Sometimes I'd tell them the truth and they still wouldn't believe me, so I prefer to lie."

Francois Truffaut’s “The 400 Blows” is the film that captures the affects that neglecting and under appreciative parents can have on a young child. It allows you to enter the psyche of an adolescent that has no one in this world to fall back on and is no longer able to control his disruptive behavior; constantly taking part in mischievous actions that only alienate himself even more from his family. I’d go far to even say that this film is perhaps one of the greatest arguments of Nature versus Nurture. Antoine Daniel (Jean-Pierre Laud) is a boy that’s been left with no choice but to run from his life at home and inevitably fall victim to a life of crime and corruption. The 400 Blows is an example of how once innocent young children can be lead in the wrong direction due to their selfish and uninterested parents.

Day 41: The Thin Man

"Waiter, will you serve the nuts? I mean, will you serve the guests the nuts?"

Let’s face it, the best things come in pairs. Peanut Butter and Jelly make for a formidable combo as does Bogart and Bacall. But, at least in the case of film history, there is one tag team that often gets overlooked: William Powell and Myrna Loy. Looking at Hollywood today, it appears to me it lacks an assembly of actors who can consistently get together and create magic on the screen. And no, I don’t mean the likes of Robert Pattinson and Kristin Stewart who merely get together for the sake of a sequel. I’m talking about actors who have chemistry to the extent that you can practically plug them into any type of film or situation, and they’d easily make the screen pop. William Powell and Myrna Loy are prime examples of this. Now, these two will never be confused with Bogart and Bacall, who had an uncanny sexual tension. Instead, they were comedic equals whose relationship lacked the heat of Hollywood’s old school couple, but they could carry a film on their shoulders and together, they had an incredible ability to stretch a scene’s hilarity to epic proportions by simply bantering about the most inane things. The most prominent set of films you can find these two together would be “The Thin Man” series, a popular film franchise that spawned numerous films in the 1930’s and 1940’s.

Day 40: 4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days

"We're never going to talk about this. Okay?"

There is a soft spot in my heart for films that challenge me, and I don’t entirely mean this from an intellectual level. More so, I like films that can make me feel uncomfortable, or uneasy. Films like Bergman’s “The Virgin Spring” or Kubrick’s “A Clockwork Orange” made me feel extremely uncomfortable in some spots, yet I relished the experience they gave me. Initially the discomfort I felt was due to the extreme subject matter that unfolded on screen, but once my stomach stopped turning with anxiousness, these films became very taut exercises in the unpredictability of life. When a film can do this, then they truly have the audience by the throat. It’s exhilarating for me to know that I’m watching a film that can go a variety of ways. One film that made me uneasy, aside from those mentioned above, would be the excellent Romanian film “4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days”. Written and directed by Cristian Mungiu, “4 Months…” is a provocative piece of cinema that challenges viewers to dive into the Communist abyss of Romania circa 1987. It’s a place and time where basic civil rights are nearly non-existent, so god forbid you get caught doing something the regime would deem unacceptable. With this social context in place, we can see that any character within this world faces an uphill battle. Yet things become a little more complex when we consider the film’s basic question: What lengths would you go to help a friend?

Day 39: Dakota Skye

"Sitting between in the past and your future doesn't mean you are in the present. "

Dakota Skye (Eileen Boylan) has an unusual super power. Now, this isn't the kind of super power that you get when you are bit by a spider or when you are exposed to a large amount of radio activity. She cant climb walls, fly across the country or shoot laser beams out of her eyes. Dakota's power is much different, but is very practical. Since the days of her early youth, she has been able to detect any lie that is thrown her way. Not only does she spot the lie, but she is also able to see the truth behind it. Whether it is just a little lie or something very serious, Dakota always knows the truth. The question though, is whether or not this is such a great power to have?

Day 38: Secrets and Lies

“Life isn't fair then is it. Somebody always draws the short straw”

Mike Leigh, an English director who with little money still pulls of movies that can be considered the best films in British history. I must admit, a lot of Leigh’s films don’t appeal to me, but I know if I gave it a try I would love it. I rarely see his films get bad reviews and most of his low budget films always become the favourite’s when shown in the Cannes festival.

Day 37: Johnny Got His Gun

"There is no more reality to the waking dream of mortal existence than there is to the dream we have in sleep."

This summer, Nolan released what will probably be the greatest film of the year, Inception, which he says s aimed to delve into the depths of the human mind that can be unlocked during sleep. After watching Johnny Got His Gun I can only say that at that level, he's clearly failed in many aspects. Johnny Got His Gun is able to accurately detail the kind of things we think and dream in it's own corny and humorous way that after awhile you'll begin to notice what was missing in Inception which was a small and more human take to the mind of it's main character.

Day 36: Capturing The Friedmans

"Who Do You Believe?"

As far as I know, this site has not reviewed any documentaries. If you adhere to the popular adage that "truth is stranger than fiction", you know how rewarding the documetary genre can be when done right. "Capturing The Friedmans", a 2002 work by Andrew Janecki(and winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival), is documentary film at its best.

Day 35: Election

What happens to a man when he loses everything? Everything he's worked for... everything he believes in? Driven from his home... cast out of society... how can he survive? Where can he go? New York City! For centuries people have come to New York seeking refuge from their troubled lives. Now I am one of them.

Like most Alexander Payne films, “Election” suggests the idea that mediocrity isn’t and should never been seen as characteristic of failure. This dark comedy is a film that is able to intertwine multiple point of views and storylines effortlessly, a task that most filmmakers aren’t able to pull off without seeming contrived or pretentious. Starring an ensemble cast that include Matthew Broderick, Reese Witherspoon, Chris Klein, and Jessica Campbell; it’s a film that plays into each actors strengths. Whether it be Broderick’s knack for playing the snobbish neurotic character or Witherspoon’s uncanny ability to pull off the annoying yet cynical high school teenager. This isn’t exactly a high school movie but it serves as a perfect backdrop for a story about a mans downfall and eventual realization of his own meaning in life.

Day 34: The Shining

"All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy."

The horror genre has gone by the wayside. What was once a provocative, if not dangerous form of film, has now become watered down to only grasp the attention of teens. More or less, Hollywood doesn’t see fear in the supernatural or the unknown anymore than they do in a fading bottom line. From this comes formulaic horror films with cheap jump scares, excessive gore, and 20 year old women running around with their breasts bursting through their tight, tight shirts. Ok, so maybe the latter is all right, but horror movies now have either been missing a sense of fear or have all been remakes of popular foreign films that have been diluted to reach that now essential ‘PG-13’ rating. It seems to me that in order for anyone to truly enjoy a film from the horror genre, they need to look back at a time when horror films were on the cutting edge and dripping in subtext.  For example, in the 70’s and 80’s.  And it’s in the past where you’d often find a serious film auteur delving into the genre which has now become starting points for studio directors. One auteur that dove into the realm of horror was Stanley Kubrick, a man known for his cold and calculated films that often feature subject matters that were fit for the horror mold. Well, in 1980, Kubrick ventured into the world of horror with “The Shining”. Based off of the Stephen King novel of the same name, “The Shining” is a surreal film that lets madness reign free in the shape of a fragile family and a daunting, snowbound hotel.

Day 33: Meet Me in St.Louis

" I can't believe it. Right here where we live - right here in St. Louis."

Back in the 1940’s and 50’s, musicals were one of the crowning achievements of film. Featuring glitzy stars, flashy set pieces, and intricate dance numbers, musicals were an escapist experience. I guess movies in general were a form of escapism, but films that heightened the senses, much like musicals, seemed to delve people further from their everyday lives. Yet, for as robust as the genre was in the past, there always seems to be a handful of films that take precedence when a conversation about classic musicals get brought up.  Said films tend to be “The Wizard of Oz” and “Singin’ in the Rain”. These films are obviously terrific, but they tend to overshadow one of the more impressive musicals to come from the 1940’s: “Meet Me in St. Louis”.  If I had to describe the film, I’d say it’s a film that calls back to the Saturday Evening Post. More specifically, stylistically and thematically, it calls upon the many illustrations of Norman Rockwell and how the importance of the American family was viewed back at the turn of the 20th century. But, instead of saying the film is a form of escapism in the vain of “The Wizard of Oz”,  I’d say it’s a film that’s more dedicated to magnifying an idealistic American life with a touch of whimsy.

Day 32: The Soloist

"Beauty is art, music is beauty."

At the start of the movie, we are set up with a scene where L.A. Times journalist Steve Lopez (Robert Downey Jr.) has a terrible bicycle accident that forces him into the hospital. Even though he is not in the hospital long, it becomes a major setback. You see, Lopez's biggest problem isn't that he badly cut and bruised his face, but its the deadline for his weekly column that is his fierce opponent. Struggling to find an enticing story, Lopez takes to the streets of L.A. to hunt down new material to write about.

Day 31: City Of God

“Have you lost your mind? You are just a kid!"

“A kid? I smoke, I snort. I've killed and robbed. I'm a man."

This was my first foreign movie I had watched (apart from American films) and didn’t know what to expect. I heard everyone rave about it and seen a lot of good reviews so I had high expectations of it, it didn’t disappoint! It was adapted by Braulio Mantovani from the 1997 novel of the same name written by Paulo Lins and directed by debutant Fernando Meirelles. For inexperience director to make a movie of this calibre with a low budget is really incredible, I guess it’s a compliment for Meirelles’s movie being compared to Scorsese’s “GoodFellas”.

Day 30: Casino

“Listen, if you didn't know you were bein' scammed, you're too fuckin' dumb to keep this job. If you did know, you were in on it. Either way, you're out.”

Casino’s always described as Scorsese’s Goodfellas Pt. II. The similarities between the two films are undeniable. Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci play very similar characters, almost identical. Including Casino in the company of many superior crime films makes Casino unremarkable, and quite frankly, uninspired. But Casino, to me, is a classic because it’s not a film about gangsters. It’s a film about our modern day outlaws. It’s a Western. Set in Nevada and the sunny dessert climate, it includes the blonde damsel in distress, the outlaw that takes a liking to her, and the webs that are naturally weaved because of these central relationships. Like all Westerns, it’s a relatively simple love story.

Day 29: I’m Here

"You can't dream."

“I’m Here” is the latest short film to come out of the mind of the innovative and often overlooked filmmaker Spike Jonze (Being John Malkovich, Adaptation, Where The Wild Things Are). It’s quite a shame whenever a director as ambitious as Jonze is penalized for being extremely experimental when it comes to the visual presentation of a film. That isn’t the case with Spike Jonze films, often due to the fact that two of his three films have had the screenplay written by perhaps the best screenwriter of our generation; Charlie Kaufman. The combination of Kaufman’s genius non-linear screenplays, combined with the imagination and surreal talents of Spike Jonze, have always produced movies that challenge the audience as well as entertain them. Although, “I’m Here” may be Spike’s most personal film to date.

Day 28: Escape From Alcatraz

“Some men are destined to never leave Alcatraz…alive”

Life in prison. It’s something almost everyone doesn’t want to experience first-hand. Escape From Alcatraz is a lengthy portrait of a life many of us fear to inhabit. It is also a gripping piece of storytelling, where the camera drives the scenes. The want of freedom is shown through little, minute compulsions, like chipping away at a wall with a nail clipper merged with a spoon.

Day 27: The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

"Hold fast to the human inside of you, and you'll survive."

There is a very fine line between a film that toils on sainthood and one that borders on at least some sense of honesty. Unfortunately, most Hollywood films border on the former as they hope to warm audience’s hearts with characters who seemingly do no evil deed. Whether it’s an underdog athlete, or a drug addled rock star, people love to see tragic or underestimated characters rise to top just as the music swells. These films obviously have a place in the world, but sometimes too much good is really a bad thing. With this in mind, I turn you in the direction of Julian Schnabel’s fantastic “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly”. As you can probably discern, the “Diving Bell” is the kind of film that has its good vibrations, but it also refuses to place its protagonist on a pedestal. Instead, our protagonist, Jean-Dominique Bauby (Mathieu Amalric), is a flawed man with a life full of regrets. Yet, these regrets only creep into Bauby’s mind when a stroke riddles his body, and consequently, he loses any control of his extremities. The medical term for this, as indicated in the film, would be locked in syndrome, where the patient has full function of their mind, but everything else might as well be concocted out of concrete. Despite his lack of control over most of his body, Bauby has control of two things: his left eye and his mind.

Day 26: The Life Of David Gale

"They wanted me to die, knowing the key to my freedom was out there somewhere!"

In today's society, there are two subjects that have become extremely controversial to the public. These two things are abortion and the death penalty. While both topics would be suitable for a good movie, the death penalty is viciously thrown at us in “The Life of David Gale.” Alan Parker's film clearly picks a side of the argument and delivers one of the best crime thrillers in modern times. Kevin Spacey and Kate Winslet make a great team and both provide mind blowing performances. This comes with no surprise though, as both have had great acting careers.

Day 25: Superbad

"Its like a three thing..its like ball, dick, ball. It's like a division sign... "

There are only a few selected films I have seen more than 5 times, and this movie is one them. I have watched this so many times I know every line and it still makes me laugh. Greg Mottola does a good job in directing his movie debut and it wasn’t hard to guess that Seth Rogan wrote this. Mottola hasn’t done much since Superbad, in fact all he has done is Adventureland which was an average movie. None the less it’s going to be tough to beat Superbad.

Day 24: The Last Days of Disco

"There's no chance of you getting infatuated with me again, is there?"

Walt Stillman has been described as the filmmaker that still makes "talkies." This description mostly comes from those who describe the current state of film as one with too much explosions, too much action, not enough insight and dialog. I'd say that's fairly accurate though somewhat unfair since these criticisms come from people who describe the highest grossing films as the only ones people see. (This reviewer must have written this before Tarantino came along.)

Day 23: Talk To Her

"Nothing is simple. I'm a ballet mistress, and nothing is simple."

Pedro Almodovar's 2002 feature, "Talk To Her", is undoubtedly a masterpiece of tone. I'm referring to that aesthethic shiver that goes down your spine when you observe mise en scene at it's best. One of the difficulties of writing about Almodovar films is that his plots tend to read as very flat, or melodramatic, on paper."Talk To Her" falls into the melodramatic category, telling the story of two men who form an unusual friendship. Beningo, a long time admirer of Alicia( a dancer he watches from his apartment) takes care of her when she is involved a car accident. Marco is a journalist who has been assigned to profile Lydia, a female bull fighter. He soon falls for Lydia, and when she suffers a catastrophic injury, spends most of his days at the hospital watching over her. Both women are in a coma, and we are left to observe the two men bonding over women they barely know.

Day 22: Blowup

"Nothing like a little disaster for sorting things out."

Michelangelo Antonioni’s first English film Blowup is easily his most popular film and my favorite of his. Blowup revolves around a day in life of a British photographer Thomas. The first half of the film is focused on showing the audience the artistic tendencies of Thomas and how seriously he takes his craft. Always searching for originality and finding the most common antiques as a source for inspiration. Thomas is found in the middle of a murder case, after taking pictures of a mysterious couple in the park and discovering a man with a gun in the bushes, when developing his prints back in his studio. It’s funny, this film contains one of the most sexual scenes ever caught on film yet I left my local cinema feeling like a kid all over again.