akapellaakademy865 Reviews

Jiphaengja (2009)

Three guards, three prisoners, a 12 year lapse in executions

[12 February 2015]

Disclosure: I've read the book and seen the film, Execution of Private Slovik, same with the book and film on Caryl Chessman, Cell 2455 Death Row. And of course dozens of films and TV shows on the subject. But not the Dead Man Walking (and nun).

This film really grabbed me by the throat with its simple story line, magnificent dialog, artistic cinematography, and overall direction. I can't believe it hasn't won a Palm D'or, an Oscar for Best Foreign Film or other popular honors. Drama is often told with 'gallows humor' -- and this one is no exception. It did not play to my emotions, it is presented in factual style. A year ago in another Korean film I noticed the condemned do not have set dates with appeals and stays. They are just taken out to walk the Last Mile without advance notice. Good system. I especially noted the snowflake falling on the palm of the old guy. Nice touch.

Back to 1942 (2012)

Large cast of characters but Master Fan was my favorite.

[10/10 · 29 July 2014]

Master Fan is the land owner, the area's 'baron' or country gentleman. Family values are important to him, observing the proper tributes to his forebears, and interacting with the less fortunate in his domain. But even wealth is useless when there is no rain for a year, when locusts come and consume all the crops in storage, and again when the locals swarm his 'castle' to consume his hoarded victuals. As a traveling refugee he is humbled and given the tribulations accorded to JOB in the Old Testament. He was loyal to his staff and they exhibited loyalty to him as well. Of course he was protective of his mother, his wife, and daughters and it must be galling for him to realize that wealth can be fleeting or useless.

My Girlfriend Is an Agent (2009)

Excellent Comedy, terrific written script, great action characters

[10/10 · 8 July 2014]

I'll vote 10 because it was the first Korean film I watched when I subscribed to Netflix streaming. It inspired me to watch several dozen Korean films and television series because the stories and productions are so well made. By the way, Kim Ha-Neul was great 3 years after AGENT in a TV series called A Gentleman's Dignity. Didn't care for the gentlemen, though. This AGENT film grabbed me by the funny bone in the opening scenes when the Na-Neul appears as a model in wedding dress, a toilet cleaning maid, and a Japanese speaking travel agent. I loved the recurring dialog Who trained you? from the higher ranking NIS agents.

The scenery was great -- I loved in Korea for a year Aug. 1996-Aug. 1997 and miss those days, but thanks to Netflix, I'm back home there again in my mind.

Fiesta (1947)

It was a terrific movie from 1947

[10/10 · 13 March 2014]

I applaud the Esther Williams for agreeing to be Ricardo's fraternal TWIN sister, tomboy, would-be bullfighter. An audience doesn't expect a fine tuned rendering of a story -- we kind of KNOW it's only a dramatization, not REAL life.

This was a pro-Mexico film in its day when Mexican-Americans were limited to patronage of Los Angeles movie theaters only one day of the week.

I watched from start to finish expecting to see a dance sequence found on You Tube - where Cyd Charisse and Ann Miller compete for the attention of Ricardo. Maybe it was cut from this film and released as a Music Short Suject???? Anyway it is well written, well acted, a slimmer Akim Taaaroff feigns a nice Spanish accent. Viva Esther, Cyd, and Ricardo in a nice family story -- would have been rated G.

Desert Sands (1955)

A 1955 film that plays like 2014 politics

[8/10 · 22 January 2014]

Reviewers panning the whiteness of the Arabs, the diction of the Arab revolutionist? It's a drama, made in the USA as entertainment, not a documentary. The Arab princess, Marla English,had me excited in the 1950s and I loved how her servant assisted her escape from close confinement. Of course it's all implausible, but I don't watch movies for plausibility. Of course the officers of the Legion are supposed to be French and the enlisted fighters all foreigners. Again, I have to complaint that might demonstrate my 'intelligence' as a critic. The plot is a pan Islamic uprising against the French annexation of North Africa as colonial affront to the locals. The 'bad guy' is a fanatic with murderous ambition to rule as Mohammad had ruled, with an iron fist and discipline. I still prefer Ten Tall Men and Jody Lawrence in that, but this film was delightful in unexpected timeliness, after the Arab Spring. Now I'll go look up Marla English and find out what happened to her.

The Secret Diary of Sigmund Freud (1984)

Irreverent peek at the Freud brand of brain analysis

[7/10 · 22 January 2014]

I've seen funnier movies and I was at first thinking, oh no, it's a terrible vehicle for Carol Kane, Carol Baker, and Bud Cort. But it seduced me with humor. I overlooked the "European Farce" sense of humor and just went with it. Discovered many, many thought provoking gems that actually resonated with what I've read about the Freud phenomenon that explores our hidden thoughts and desires, according to his own neuroses. I've read serious writers that describe his distaste for blood and avoidance of established medical fields for that reason. It seems obvious that you can't establish scientific theories and test them if the data is hidden in disparate peoples unconscious. Most recently I've looked into his foot fetish ideas concerning a bas relief in the ruins of Pompeii. The film is not for serious admirers of psychoanalysis. It's a romp of making fun of Freud's theories and the wit is sharp. Dick Shawn was super. The ladies were enjoyable to watch.