Change Your Image
elysiafionn
Reviews
Ladies in Lavender (2004)
Bring a box of Kleenex!
I really enjoyed this film, although I had no idea I would be weeping and sniffling halfway through the movie, all the way to the end! I am a complete sap, and this movie plays to the sap in all of us.
I adore both Judi Dench and Maggie Smith, and was very happy with both of their performances in this movie. They outshone the other actors by a country mile. But who's surprised? The scenery (Cornwall) was incredibly beautiful, and the sets were spot on for the story line. I loved the circular feel of the film, the way it began and ended at the same point - emphasizing the circular path of life, the seasons, and love.
Brief Encounter (1945)
Yes, they do kiss! Twice, actually.
This movie was excellent (drama, lighting, atmosphere, tension, etc.) although it left some questions unanswered. Perhaps that was just to make us think on our own...
I'm not sure if the husband ever knew what the heck was going on with her - he is portrayed as a self-involved, oblivious person who just "tut tuts" her and pats her on the head absentmindedly for most of the movie, and then at the last three seconds we're supposed to believe he's all wrapped up in her and grateful that she stayed. Oh, that's right - without her, his dinner would not be on the table at six every evening. He was a complete dork.
They did a great job making those other women in the film come across as gibbering idiots - I never knew people could talk so fast and say absolutely nothing! Especially that one that interrupts Laura and Alec in the café at their farewell. Jeez, you just want to knock her one on the head with a baseball bat to get her to take a breath! I didn't see what was so special about the doctor, though, that she should go so nuts over him. He was nice to her, but I would have thought he would have been a little more dashing or better looking or something... I don't know, he seemed a little geeky to me. Not that Laura was all that, either - she sorta reminded me of an Edsel with the headlights set a little too far apart... those googly eyes! Goof: In the final café scene, the distance shot shows Laura sitting in her chair wearing just her suit and hat. But when they show the close-up shot of Alec putting his hand on her shoulder, she's wearing a fur around her shoulders.
Pushing Tin (1999)
Funny Movie With Serious Point
At first glance, this movie is one big romp. A real scream - Billy Bob Thornton is one of those guys who can be hilarious (and kinda scare you at the same time) without ever opening his mouth. His eyes are silent movies. John Cusack is funny in a cute, desperate sort of way that makes you totally relate to what he's feeling. Cate Blanchett amuses us yet again with her chameleon-like ability to completely become a character you've never seen her as before, complete with appropriate accent, effortlessly carried.
Watch it a second time, though, and you'll realize that this movie portrays how completely a person can screw up their own life by the attitudes they decide to adopt, and the way they react to the people around them. Cusack's character, "The Zone" Falzone, would like to think that his life is falling apart because of the new guy at work, but in reality every problem he's got is his own damn fault... a good lesson for all of us to chew on.
Interesting note: The guy who plays Cusack's work buddy is currently starring as Patricia Arquette's husband on the TV series "Medium". He's very cute, now that he's lost the 80's "stache" and grown his hair out. He kinda reminds me of Steve Perry, with lighter hair. Not a bad thing.
As always, the presence of Angelina Jolie in a movie adds a whole lot of sexual tension, and a little bit of insanity. I love, love, love her. I want to bite her lips off, chew them, and blow bubbles. I'm pretty sure they're strawberry flavored.
- Elysia
A History of Violence (2005)
Remember "Cold Creek Manor"?
This movie was almost as bad as "Cold Creek Manor".... god-awful script writing, implausible plot, the works.
I kid you not - the entire theater erupted in uncomfortable, uncontrollable laughter.... during the lovemaking scenes! They were creepily graphic - the characters were greasy - a suggestion of intimacy would have gone over much better than the "too much information" approach used here. You know the feeling you get when you think about your grandparents having sex? Multiply that by ten and that's how these moments in the film hit you. Ick.
The best moments in this movie (I think there were three) were the few frames depicting extreme, bloody violence. That's my commentary on the remainder of the miserable minutes that seemed like weeks... tick.... tick....tick....zzzzzzzzzzzz.
The first five minutes of the film make you want to run screaming from the theater in boredom.
JUST DO IT.