Blake over at Bitchin’ Film Reviews posted that his blog was featured on the Total Film Website and while browsing their list of 600 Blogs You Might Have Missed, I discovered The World According to Ness (on page 2). How exciting! You should browse the list as well, I am sure your (film) blog is on it. I saw a lot of my favorite blogs on the list.

Well, I’m gonna be busy browsing 599 blogs now

Alright everyone, what’s the deal with this movie? So many people said that it is really great. I thought it was kinda entertaining but seriously nothing special.

The premise of the story is easy: Four guys are celebrating a bachelor party in Las Vegas, they wake up the next morning and don’t remember anything about the night before. Their hotel room is destroyed, they are mysteriously rooming with a tiger and a chicken and one of the guys (the one who is supposed to get married) is missing. The three guys that are still there go on a quest to find their missing friend and to find out what happened the night before.

(Spoilers!) Apart from the tiger who turns out to belong to Mike Tyson nothing truly original happened though. One guy got married to an escort girl (Heather Graham), they accidentally stole casino chips from a Chinese mobster and had a party with a lot of stripper like looking girls. These seem like the obvious Vegas choices to me. Some scenes are moderately funny but I never actually laughed out loud.

I’m not sure I want to get into the acting because there basically was none. Obviously I don’t know the actors personally but it seemed like pure typecasting to me. The “stupid” guy was a bit funnier then the others but he over-acted the role for my taste. I can see how the movie could possibly be amusing when you are with a group of friends having a few drinks. But I am so glad that I didn’t watch it at the cinema!

And why on earth did it get a Golden Globe? For what? How did they justify this decision? I mean, it ran against (500) Days of Summer, Julie & Julia, It’s Complicated and Nine. That’s tough competition. What were the guys on when they voted for The Hangover? I am using “guys” on purpose because it is definitely more aimed at male viewers.

Could someone please explain to me what is so special about this film that it deserves so much attention and a Golden Globe?

(If The Hangover had not gotten a Golden Globe, I might have given it 2.5 MovieStars but out of protest, I’ll only give it 2)

Before I write about  Avatar, I wanted to officially thank RTM over at Flixchatter who was kind enough to award me a second Kreativ Blogger award. This is very exciting since I just recently got to know her blog and already love it. So if you don’t know her fabulous blog yet, go and check it out!

Now, I finally managed to see Avatar. We wanted to see it in IMAX 3D which was constantly sold out, so it took a while. It was actually sold out again and even though we arrived at the cinema at 9pm and the movie was supposed to start at 9.45pm, we were already in the continuing  waiting line. After a while, they even stopped the escalator from running so that people started queueing down the stairs, two flights down the stairs to be exact. It was crazy! This movie has been out for weeks! I know that the visiter numbers have gone down in normal 3D and I don’t know who would even watch it without any 3D but I think it will stay in the IMAX cinemas for a while longer.

So, why all this madness? Well, the movie is extremely well made. No question about it. The world of Pandora is so gorgeous, I wish I could go there on my next vacation. Screw it, I want to move there! The glowing colors, all the animals, the flying mountains, all of it is so well thought out and stunning that it is a joy to be a part of this foreign world for almost three hours. Even though the natives look a bit like fish and their faces are not really human like, they are still very gorgeous and attractive. Who wouldn’t want to glow in the dark?

I had been warned (read this, it’s so funny) that the story is like Pocahontas but I guess I didn’t quite believe it. I thought they would at least change it a bit. I was wrong. It is exactly the same story, not only as Pocahontas but as so many films that I have seen before. It was absolutely predictable to the last little detail. I am hoping that now that they took this giant step into a new world of filmmaking, that they can be bothered to also come up with a unique script. Having said all that, the setting of the film is very unique. As I said, Pandora is gorgeous.

As beautiful as this film was, I didn’t fall in love with it as everyone else did. While watching it, I was thoroughly entertained but when the credits came up the feeling didn’t stick. The end song is so much like “My heart will go on” from Titanic that all I could think about was how unoriginal James Cameron really is. He knows how to make a block buster but doesn’t actually come up with his own ideas. And even though I am not criticizing the way that the movie was made, I don’t think I will ever see it again and I also don’t think that many people will buy it on DVD because it really only works in 3D. I mean, it was a very special sensation (especially in IMAX) to almost be flying on my own dragon along with Jake and Neytiri but on a small TV it just won’t work the same way.

Since this movie is very difficult for me to rate, I will split the rating up:

The Look: 5 MovieStars + The Story: 2 MovieStars = Over all:

I don’t actually have a TV but I found a way to watch The Golden Globes online. I am completely guilty of loving to watch award shows which a lot of people look down on. But its fun to see all the stars all together in one room. Although tonight it really made me think of Inglourious Basterds and that it would be the perfect event for someone who wanted to wipe out America’s movie elite…

Tonight it really felt like this movie elite is really a very small circle of friends. If Meryl Streep has to run against herself (in the same category!) it seems like they seriously need some new faces in there. Meryl also said that everyone knows her parents and they were never even part of the movie industry. That just goes to show how small the circle really is.

The winners and losers:

There were a lot of obvious choices but some surprises. I really wanted A Single Man to get something but they left empty handed. Avatar seems to be the obvious choice (I still haven’t seen it so I can still bitch about it) and I thought James Cameron’s speech was quite funny. He said something like (addressing everyone in the room) “We are creating entertainment for the whole world.” It’s funny because he certainly is making movies for the masses but a lot of films that are not made for everyone never get nominated for these kind of awards.

I haven’t seen the Blind Side or Crazy Heart and I don’t think I ever will so I can’t comment on Sandra Bullock’s and Jeff Bridges’ wins. + Meryl Streep was the obvious choice (it would have been quite embarrassing if she hadn’t won because the odds were certainly on her side). She does deserve the Golden Globe and I love her but she has so many already. Let someone else have it for once! + I absolutely adored Robert Downey Jr.’s anti-speech. Very funny! + Congrats to Christoph Waltz! It’s great to see a German and a Strasberg alumni up there. + It is strange that Inglourious Basterds didn’t get any other award. + I probably would have chosen The Fantastic Mr. Fox but absolutely adored Up so that’s alright, too. + As I already said, I don’t have a TV so I can’t comment on those Golden Globes. + What’s with the Hangover? Has anyone seen it? It looks so rubbish…

Looking forward to the Oscars!

It happens very rarely that I absolutely fall in love with a movie but tonight was one of these scarce occasions. I have literally just come home from the cinema so I am still completely “in” the film and haven’t really processed it. But I thought just this once I want to write a review that is completely subjective.

Normally I only feel that connected to films if they somehow remind me of my life or myself which really isn’t the case with A Single Man. In fact it couldn’t be further away from me. I am obviously not a gay middle-aged man who has lost the love of his life and is about to commit suicide and has some sort of sexual interest in my student. But there was something deeper then the visible story that I connected with. It had a lot to do with Colin Firth’s excellent performance as George. I thought it was an extraordinary moment when he picked up the phone and gets the news of his lovers death. The camera stayed so close (too close, really) on Firth that there was no way to fake the emotion. I am very aware of the fact that for some people it is very easy to cry on command but that is not what Firth was doing. He wasn’t just crying, he was truly but quietly suffering. One of my teachers (George Loros (The Sopranos)) always says that we shouldn’t show all of the emotion that we are feeling and that holding back tears can be more powerful then completely braking down (which he calls emotional masturbation). And for this movie that is absolutely true. This moment (others as well but this in particular) made the character so real to me and I think that is what I could connect with.

A big part of A Single Man is its beauty. It is just unbelievably gorgeous. Like one photograph next to another. Or maybe it is a bit like looking at Vogue Magazine (which I thoroughly enjoy doing, they have stunning photos). But it wasn’t just beautifully framed, the really interesting aspect of it was the saturation of the color. The more pain George feels, the less saturation the picture has and the happier he is, the fuller the color gets. It is done in a very subtle way, not “in your face,” some people might not even notice it and that makes it perfect. Obviously the fashion in this movie is perfect. Firth is wearing gorgeous suits all through the film, Moore gets to wear a truly fabulous dress and even though Hoult is wearing a slightly outrageous outfit, it still looks great. It was always obvious in his Fashion that Tom Ford (who directed this movie) has a real eye for beauty but it is still very surprising that his first film is that stunning. I hope he will continue making films.

The title really does explain the movie. It can not only be read as a single man (instead of being in a couple) but the film is actually about one single man. Everyone else is a side character. I am not even sure what Julianne Moore is doing on the film poster. She doesn’t have a bigger role then anybody else. She is just more famous than Matthew Goode and Nicholas Hoult. (Hoult is really making it by the way. I just remember him as the boy in About a Boy but we just finished watching the British TV-series Skins and he has a major role in it. I am sure we will see more of him soon!)

I could easily go back to the cinema now and watch the movie again. Or maybe just dress up to the nines with lots of make-up, light up a cigarette and have some gin or whiskey (even though I don’t smoke and don’t really drink gin or whiskey and come to think of it, I don’t even normally wear make-up or fancy clothes) and just listen to a record and enjoy the rest of the evening. Because even though the film is ultimately very sad I went away with a happy feeling. The feeling of having fallen in love with a movie. It happens…once in a while.

Sorry guys…the new term has started so I’m gonna be a lot busier again…I will try to write more than last term though! The first couple of weeks are the worst, I am reading about 5 Plays at once and also have to memorize some scenes, monologues and a song. If you have any suggestions for great scenes (or monologues), let me know! Now, back to movies:

Inglourious Basterds Right up front I have to say that I wasn’t as impressed with this film as most of you were. I generally am not interested in war films so I was expecting to not fall in love with it. I can say this much though: Christoph Waltz was as amazing as everyone is saying (coincidentally, he went to Strasberg, too ). He was the ultimate bad guy, enjoying every cruel thing he did so much that it was immensely fun to watch him. Actually, pretty much everyone was good in the film. Quentin really got the German acting-elite to be in his film. I also like the change in history because I was rooting for the Basterds (and the French girl) to succeed but didn’t expect them to. I can’t quite put my finger on what I didn’t like. Just a general feeling I guess. When it ended I didn’t think “Wow, this is a great film!”.

Waitress There was a preview toWaitresson theOnceDVD which looked funny so I put it on our Netflix queue. But I was really disappointed by it. It had so much potential! The main character Jenna (Keri Russel) was fun and likable, there was a lot of pie in the movie (which is always great) and the story was cute and had very good ideas. The problem was that it never quite followed the intention it had. I always thought “this could get funny” and then the scene ended. The editing was also strangely slow. It is a pity but I just can’t give this movie more than two MovieStars.

Four Weddings and a Funeral I absolutely love this movie. Of course I have seen it before but I hadn’t seen it in a really long time. Watching it again just made me remember how great it is. This film is just about everything there is. It is tragic, loving, witty and most of all hilarious. Hugh Grant is so great in this film. Normally I am not a fan of typecasting but he just plays the floppy haired, confused but sweet guy so well.

Iron Man I thought this film was gonna be absolute rubbish but I actually quite enjoyed watching it. I love how much of a bastard Robert Downey Jr. is. The plot is certainly new when it comes to Super Hero films. Although Iron Man did remind me a bit of Batman with the difference that Bruce Wayne is only acting being a macho guy who is in love with himself whereas Tony Stark (Iron Man) just is like that (obviously he does have a good side to him as well). I am looking forward to the sequel that is coming out soon.

I am very happy to tell you all that Steph from The Flick Chick passed on the Kreativ Blogger Award to me. This is very exciting news to me since I am only writing this blog for fun and am mostly surprised that some people (other then my mother) do read it once in a while.

The rules of this award are as follows:

1. Thank the person who nominated you for this award.
2. Copy the logo and place it on your blog.
3. Link to the person who nominated you for this award.
4. Name 7 things about yourself that people might find interesting.
5. Nominate 7 Kreativ Bloggers.
6. Post links to the 7 blogs you nominate.
7. Leave a comment on each of the blogs letting them know they have been nominated.

So here go the 7 things that you might find interesting about me (and some you might already know):

(1) I have a B.A. (Hons) in Film Production and majored in production design. (Now you are probably wondering why my reviews aren’t more in depth)

(2) I am currently studying acting at the Lee Strasberg Institute in NYC.

(3) One of my real passions is traveling and I’ve lived in seven different cities (so far).

(4) I have the same kind of scar on my cheek as Arwen in LOTR but didn’t get it from fleeing from the Nazgul.

(5) I have an unusually bad long term memory and tend to forget whether I have seen films or not after a couple of moths (this is one of the reasons why I started this blog).

(6) I am obsessed with face cremes and body lotions and go crazy if I don’t have any hand creme after I have used soap.

(7) My friend and I made a kick-ass adaptation of Titanic when the movie first came out. We had no boat and we had no water and we were the only actors in it. Best film ever made!

Here are some of my favorite blogs (if you are not on this list, it probably just means that you have already received this award from somebody else):

(1) Hoping For Something To Hope For I have been following David Bishop’s blog for a really long time now and always enjoy his reviews. It is a real pity that lately he hasn’t been writing much and I am hoping for a comeback soon!

(2) Bitchin’ Film Reviews I don’t only like this blog for its great title but also for its fantastic film reviews.

(3) M.Carter @ the Movies This is a blog that I found receintly and have been following it ever since. I especially like her Listmania! It’s always great to read another girls opinion!

(4) CinemaWatch Thomas writes about all the movies he sees and I find his opinions very interesting.

(5) Anomalous Materiel Movies I have recently discovered Castor’s blog (or maybe he discovered mine) and very much like the style of it. His opinions on movies are opposite to mine quite often but I always like reading what someone very much unlike me thinks.

(And two non-film related blogs that I love:)

(6) Where the Lovely Things Are Mallory posts a lot of really lovely art/design/fashion links. I don’t know how she finds all of them but its a real joy to look at everything.

(7) Color Me Katie This blog really makes me happy. Katie is a photographer with a very unique vision and I find her joy of life very inspiring.

As the director says on the special features of the DVD, the story of Once could be written on the back of a postcard. Guy (Glen Hansard) is a street musician in Dublin, working at his fathers hoover repair shop to earn his rent, when Girl (Markéta Irglová) comes up to him one day and changes his life completely. She is a Czech immigrant trying to make some money any way she can (selling flowers and Big issues). They discover a similar passion for music which leads to a close friendship and a recording of Guy’s first demo CD. There is always the possibility of something more then friendship.

The film is not about the script as much as it is about the music and the way the music affects the viewer. The director (John Carney) made the choice to use musicians as actors because for him it was more important that the songs were well performed. He even used tricks to make the performances better, such as filming from far away so that the two main actors weren’t aware of the camera. It works well though. It was also made in a documentary style on a very low budget. The style somehow manages to make these two people become real to the audience. Like it is a documentary about their friendship rather then a fiction film.

I personally really like the songs. They were mostly written by Glen Hansard which really helps his performance. He is very much in the moment when he sings and I always like to watch people perform their own songs. The film is very unusual and extremely subtly and slowly told. I thought Once was a very beautiful film. It felt a bit like watching a very long music video with a bit of a story in between the songs. And it was very refreshing to see real looking people on screen and not polished Hollywood stars.

After retiring from being a night guard at the Natural History Museum in New York City and becoming a successful inventor and TV salesman Larry Daley (Ben Stiller) is shocked to find out that the museum is being re-invented. All the museum’s items are being shipped to the underground archives of the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, DC. Larry has almost forgotten about his friends, the museum pieces which come alive at night and which we learned to love in the first movie, Night at the Museum. But when the tiny cowboy figure Jedediah Smith (Owen Wilson) calls him to tell him that they are all in big trouble at the Smithsonian’s, Larry doesn’t waste any time and flies right down to Washington to help them.

Thus the great battle of the Smithsonian’s begins. Some fun new characters and ideas are being introduced in this movie. My personal favorite is Kahmunrah (Hank Azaria) who plans to unleash his undead army. I absolutely love Hank Azaria and always wonder when he is going to get a leading role. I’d watch him for 1 1/2 hours! The giant statue of Abe Lincoln (Hank Azaria) also comes to live. I wasn’t too impressed with Amy Adams in this movie. She plays Amelia Earhart and although she seems to do a good impersination, she doesn’t seem believable as a human being. You could argue that she is not a human being in the movie but there is a little love story going on between her and Larry and I somehow didn’t buy it.

Overall the movie is great fun. It is almost as good as the first one, although it is missing the surprise effect, because we have already seen the museum collection coming to live. Some funny new things were added though. In this movie, even paintings and sculptures start moving.

We went on a short trip to Washington this weekend (alright, I’ll admit it, the trip was slightly inspired by watching the movie) and went to a few of the Smithsonian museums as well as Abraham Lincoln’s monument. Seeing it all up close really showed how much is invented or changed to serve the movie. The distances that they walked or ran between all the museums are really a lot further then the movie leads us to believe. Especially Abe’s statue is quite a way away from the rest of the museums. One museum shown in the movie doesn’t even exist in real life. Neither do the underground archives. Well, they do exist, but not in Washington. It is absolutely worth the trip to see the Smithsonian Institute though. The Air and Space museum is beautifully made. The others are, as well, but that one really stands out. And the admission to all of them is free, so go and see it for yourself!

Another movie with so much promise that just didn’t hold up to its expectations. This film suffered a set back by Heath Ledgers sudden death. Ledger was supposed to play the lead but died half way through filming. Instead of leaving Parnassus unfinished, the makers decided to use several other actors to play Ledgers part (Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell and Jude Law). This choice has been criticized a lot which I disagree with. It doesn’t further the story to have more then one actor playing the role but it doesn’t hurt it as well. We all know why it was done so I don’t think there is anything to criticize about it. I was quite amazed at how well it worked out with the changing faces.

The film is divided into two worlds, one is the actual world, modern London and the other world is inside Doctor Parnassus’ imagination. I thought the real world was done brilliantly. I lived in London for a while and Gilliam’s London is really spot on. Parnassus’ horse drawn circus carriage had some wonderful details and Christopher Plummer was great as Doctor Parnassus. Even though I have an unnatural hatred of Lily Cole I thought she was perfect for this role. So were Heath Ledger, Tom Waits  and newcomer Andrew Garfield. Just looking at the real world, this was a great movie.

What didn’t work at all for me were the parts inside Parnassus’ imagination. What’s annoying about this is that I expected Terry Gilliam to make this the magical part of the story. But it was just awful. Instead of doing the wonderful cut out, self made sets he (and Monty Python) is famous for, the dream sequences were all done in really bad 3D animation. I don’t see why he should have used 3D animation at all but he should have at least gotten someone who is really good at it to do it. I know students who could have made it look better then it did.

I probably could have overlooked that fact slightly if the story had been told well. But even though I liked the story it was written or told in a very sloppy way. As if it needed to be finished quickly and nobody had re-read it before it went into production. The ending was completely foreseeable although it seemed like it was supposed to be a surprise ending. Also some important details (Tony’s flute, for example) were never really explained. The film seemed to jump around a lot as well (I don’t mean between the worlds, just in itself).

In my opinion even Terry Gilliam fans should wait for the DVD to come out. At least on the small screen you can’t tell how bad the rendering really is.