Cattymiss Reviews

Masterchef (V) (2010– )

Enjoyed this first season tremendously!

[9/10 · 9 September 2010]

I have never seen the overseas versions of this show, so this was my first experience watching "Masterchef". I loved the premise of the competition. Amateur cooks, home cooking enthusiasts, foodies/cooks that are not professionally trained are competing for the title of "Masterchef". They may actually be in the industry, but have not had any classical finished training as a chef.

The winner gets $250,000 and a book publishing deal out of this. For many who might win, it very well could mean that they can stop what they are having to do day to day and attend culinary school and make this love of cooking in reality a true profession.

Watch this show with the understanding that you are truly seeing amateur foodies/ cooks, not professional chefs and you will enjoy this much more. Understand that some are really stepping outside their comfort zone and are handling ingredients that they have never had or used before. It has been exciting to watch because it is really showing those cooks who truly understand the technicality of cooking instinctively.

From the 1st episode, I have been hooked. I have enjoyed this show much more than the last two seasons of Hell's Kitchen, which I felt was more smoke and staging than a competition. This is nothing like Hell's Kitchen. It is all about the cooking and the creation of the dish.

Masterchef has stayed true to its format and has put the contestants thru some really tough challenges. While the 1st episode is as the critics said filled with a lot of back story and melodramatic emotion, I felt that this was needed. It introduced the contestants to the viewers at the beginning. Since that 1st two shows, that over the top emotional melodrama has given way to a really good and intense competition.

Without giving spoilers to any winners, the contest has been very interesting. They started with about 100 contestants cooking their signature dishes for the 3 judge. Out of that 100, 30 were picked to move forward in the competition. The 2nd show, those 30 were quickly weeded down to 14 in the first challenge, which was something basic that all good cooks/potential chefs should know how to do, how to slice and dice onions quickly.

Since that 2nd show, the format in my time zone has been 2 hours each week. The 1st hour usually contains a main ingredient or entrée challenge (for example: venison). The winner gets to pick the mystery theme for the next challenge, at the end of which someone will be eliminated. The 2nd hour has been containing a group challenge or a professional challenge whereby the contestants are cooking for a large group of people, or someone in the industry. At the end of that competition, the losing group faces an elimination test and one person will be eliminated.

There is a method to the shows madness. The judges are putting these cooks thru the paces for a reason. They are looking for consistency and creativeness. The challenges are meant to weed out those that have limited experience and do not understand the nature of cooking. I don't think any of the judges expect that these people to be professional chefs, but I do think they expect them to understand the technicality's of cooking and to have the ability to create quickly with quality.

I have truly enjoy this show and hope that they will renew this for another season.

Trailer for a Remake of Gore Vidal's Caligula (2005)

Just a clarification for Butler Fans

[8/10 · 24 July 2006]

This finally showed up on Mr. Butler's list of films. I just wanted to clarify something for fans collecting his films or looking to see all his films.

This is not a full length film or even a prospectus for a film length film. I know it looks like a trailer for a movie being made but it is NOT. I doubt you will be able to find this on any DVD anywhere or even in a festival.

This was an art short done in the form of a movie trailer. A kind of short parody of the original film. the director/writer is known for his short art video's. THERE WILL BE NO FULL LENGTH FILM TO FIND. The Whittney (a museum dedicated to film) selected this as part of the film short collection and it is showcases as art in a collection of art video's.

Mr. Butler has some friends in the Italian film industry and I am sure this was done as just a favor for art's sake.

On a side note, the reason for the parody, the original film that it was based on was a hot of bed of controversy at the time it was made. The author Gore Vidal even had his name removed from the movie tie in book because he was so disappointed in what he called the soft porn

What Lies Beneath (2000)

MAYBE TRITE,,BUT WONDERFUL SUSPENSE,,DON'T MISS IT!

[9/10 · 23 July 2000]

As always before going to see a film I check the reviews just so i won't waste my money on a stinker. I am extremely glad i ignored the reviews on this one and went anyway.

It maybe trite and have very few surprises but this movie is worth seeing and will still have you on the edge of your seat if not in the next lap. Michele Pheiffer and Harrison Ford do wonderful jobs portraying a couple facing major changes in their life with some surprising revelations. my only complaint would be that the director or editors left out a more detailed explaination about the accident that is referred to in the film.

The twists and turns are there and surprisingly not as obvious as some would have you think. This film would please any suspense nut,,i can't understand the hoopla,,no it is not art,,but its definitely entertainment! go see it!

The 13th Warrior (1999)

thoroughly enjoyable and entertaining! Some spoilers!

[9/10 · 22 January 2000]

i, like many others, had not previously read reviews or comments on the movie. i missed the theatrical release and discovered this film with its video release.

i thoroughly enjoyed this film. i had not previously read the book it was based on, nor did i realize that it was also based on the epic beowulf. i went into watching this film just to be entertained. i was.

the story is about a young moor ambassador or arab,Ahmad, who in his travels meets up with a band of norsemen(northmen) or vikings. their king has died and the young heir, Buliwyf, a respected viking warrior is about to be crowned their new leader. after the funeral of the old king, a young boy, the son of a neighboring kingdom, arrives to ask Buliwyf and his men for help. King Rothgar has sent his son to ask for help in fighting a legendary, gruesome, and greatly feared enemy. this enemy is so feared by northmen, that they refuse to speak its name.

they consult a sear to find out how to defeat this enemy and are told that 13 warriors must go to this battle. before a final warrior can volunteer, the sear states that the final 13th warrior can not be a man of the north and points to Ahmad. he must be the 13th warrior. so the adventure begins.

the next few scenes of the 13 traveling to the north by land and sea are wonderfully cinematic. the scenes where ahmad discovers and learns the northman's language were beautifully done. i realize that this may seem impossible, but remember this is a legend and legends are bigger than life.

what follows without giving too much away, is an account thru the eyes of ahmad, of how the northmen fight the chilling and gruesome enemy. of how, ahmad, originally horrified by the pagen rituals and uncivilized behavior of the northmen, comes to respect them for the great band of warriors they were. after watching this movie i will definitely go back and read michael creightons book. from many of the comments, it seems that some of the scenes that may have given more insights to some of the characters, were cut from the movie. i wish they had released a directors cut with this video.

without giving too much in the way of spoilers, one of the most chilling and appreciated scenes in the movie, was the final battle scene. knowing that they may die defending the village, the men gather and fortify themselves. Buliwyf, their leader, injured in a previous battle, is thought to be near death. as the villagers and men arm themselves, they realize they will be going into battle without him and they are afraid, worried that many will run in fear of so large and gruesome an enemy.

At the last minute, as the enemy are advancing, Buliwyf, struggling valiently, gathers his strength, and takes his place as leader of the group. as he stands, in front of his men, tall and proud, he watches the enemy approach and sees the dreaded leader of the ememy. Buliwyf begins to recite a viking battle prayer, and with each line, his fellow warriors join in, until all are reciting it with him, all drawing strength and resolve to face what lays before them. as the final words are spoken, Ahmad, joins in with them. the prayer is a wonderfully spoken plea for strength and courage:

"lo there do i see my father.. lo there do i see my mother, and my sisters and brothers... lo there do i see the line of my people.. back to the beginning.. lo, they do call to me.. they bid me take my place among them.. in the halls of valhalya.. where the brave..may live..FOREVER!"

i replayed this scene over and over again. it was chillingly beautiful and showed why the norsemen, even a small band, were revered and greatly feared and respected warriors. how they drew their strength and courage from their generations old pagan beliefs and superstitions. and that death, faced with bravery and courage, led to a joyful and happy afterlife.

while this movie is not an great epic of the proportions of "braveheart", it was wonderfully and chilling entertaining. my only wish is that the director had spent more time developing the individual characters, or spent more time giving us information about who the 12 warriors actually were and where they came from. more about them as a people or clan.

those that are offended by graphic violence, beware, this movie has plenty. the revelation of who and what the enemy actually are, is as gory and graphic as it gets. but the resolution is a wonderful triumph of the human spirit.

see this film if you wish to be entertained, you will not regret it.

La maison de jade (1988)

What a Wonderful movie!

[10/10 · 6 March 1999]

What a wonderful movie! Unfortunately for the american viewing public, it does not come with subtitles. (When will the french movie industry learn?) Fortunately for me I happened to find this movie on video and have a french speaking contact that gave me an overview. Even without subtitles, the emotion of this movie, expressed thru the acting craft of Jacqueline Bissett and Vincent Perez, is wonderful. The story told by the film is one of love affairs, betrayal, and the resolve and strength of character to move on with life. Jeanne,(portrayed by Bissett), a writer living in France meets an exciting new man, Bernard (Perez). The storyline is shown to the viewer in retrospect by Jeanne's character. Using flashbacks of their relationship, the film shows Jeanne pondering the relationship from beginning to end, trying to determine what has gone wrong. They begin a passionate and wonderful love affair. As the relationship progresses, Bernard asks Jeanne to marry him and she declines stating that she is barren. Bernard professes to love her and states that it does not matter. Jeanne argues that she had a previous relationship that started out the same way and it ended because it did eventually matter. Bernard argues that it will not happen to them. Jeanne, loving this man as she does, believes him and they begin their engagement. Jeanne and Bernard begin making plans, buying a house etc, ie committing themselves to things longterm. This film offers wonderful scenes of love, passion, and eventually betrayal. Bernard reached his 30th birthday and secretly begins an affair with another woman. Jeanne, thru her flashbacks realizes that he has attempted to tell her something is wrong several times. She is caught off guard when Bernard finally tells her that he does need children and has been seeing someone else. Film watchers experience along with Jeanne's character, the ultimate act and feeling of betrayal, her desperation to try to hang on to and salvage this relationship, her despair which ultimately leads her to attempt at suicide. Thankfully unsucessful in her attempt, Jeanne realizes that she can't hold onto her hope for this relationship and using her talent as a writer, begins to write about this relationship as a form of therapy. As the movie ends the film watchers are satisfied that while Jeanne realizes that she has lost the love of her life, she's a stronger person and able to move forward in her life. J. Bissett and V. Perez give wonderful performances. I can't understand why this film has never been released in the USA with subtitles given the lead actress is so popular. The cinematography was wonderful and the direction of the film fast paced and held all the elements of a wonderfully passionate but sad love affair. If it is ever released with subtitles this would be a movie to watch.