Mini-Review

Mini-Review: The 99ers

Posted on by bernardovillela

Introduction

This is a post that is a repurposing of an old-school Mini-Review Round-Up post. As stated here I am essentially done with running multi-film review posts. Each film deserves its own review. Therefore I will repost, and at times add to, old reviews periodically. Enjoy!

The 99ers

I have to say this one has a tremendous hook. With the fact that Julie Foudy was by natural proclivity the de facto videographer on the team there are some great candid moments in this film. The editing really does well to incorporate them to establish a tone. However, they’re discussed up front and not so much the thrust. A lot of it is a chronicle and a reminiscing as several players meet.

Not that there are not great moments to be found, both in new footage and in the old, but the film buries both that and its most important question about where the game has come since then. The answer, when taken fully into consideration, is about as good as it can be, there’s just little lead up. The forays outside the personal chronology to the wider impact of the event since then are few.

This is still, overall, a very well done and compelling piece, it just had the potential to be a lot more than it was.

7/10

Blu-Ray Review: The Tall Blond Man with One Black Shoe (1973)

Posted on by bernardovillela

Film Movement Classics

This the first title I’ve had the pleasure of seeing from Film Movement Classics, which is a new imprint from Film Movement, which specializes in restorations of repertory titles. Recently, Film Movement, which first came to my attention for its film-of-the-month club, has been expanding its brand. First, came Ram Releasing with its focus on genre cinema, namely horror thus far. Then came Omnibus Entertainment which has a broader genre view as cited here. It’s an exciting time and bringing back older films, in new glorious restorations and transfers to an audience that mat not have know the film is the kind of important work you’d expect a company like Film Movement to do as they tend to unearth gems no matter what banner it flies under.

The Tall Blond Man with One Black Shoe

The Tall Blond Man with One Black Shoe (1972, Film Movement Classics)

The film in question is Yves Robert’s 1972 espionage farce The Tall Blond Man with One Black Shoe (Le grand blond avec une chaussure noir), my lack of familiarity with this film, and my subsequent admiration for it after having seen it, prove the above statements to be true and not merely lip service. Without Film Movement Classics launching I may not have even heard of this film much less gotten a chance to see it so that’s victory in and of itself. The fact that it’s an exquisitely crafted comedy whose gags are fairly smart, well-executed, and continue to roll without being an encumbrance to the plot are a massive bonus.

The film is positively hilarious and takes a fairly simple concept of mistaken identity, in this case rather fabricated one, as the man in question is the subject of scrutinous investigations by chance; an innocent caught in the crossfire of a professional rivalry between high-ranking spies. It also manages to do that and keep François (Pierre Richard) blissfully oblivious such that it not only makes it impossible to pity his situation but also renders those who believe is what he’s purported to be (a spy) seem further buffoonish.

The film works sight gags in a fashion that is eternally accessible and hilarious, and does indeed make gorgeous use of visual storytelling from Parisian backdrops, to instrument-adorned apartment walls, ornate opera houses and spy offices.

Add to that the catchy, cheeky score by Vladimir Cosma, the physical virtuosity of Pierre Richard, and the clockwork precision of the script crafted by Yves Robert and Francis Veber and you have an unqualified comedic success.

Bonus Features

The Tall Blond Man with One Black Shoe (1972, Film Movement)

The bonus features aren’t plentiful but they are well done. Aside from being able to take a glimpse at the movie marketing of another time and country with the film’s trailer there are trailers of other Film Movement offerings that are worth considering.

In an age when physical media is fighting for survival its rarer than ever to see packaging that goes a little above and beyond, but this disc is definitely one of those. It also includes a booklet with other Film Movement titles, but more noticeably there is one featuring a wonderfully written essay by Nick Pinkerton with a lot of great insights and information that I dare not spoil here.

Conclusion

Those who know the film will re-discover it in a gorgeous 2K restoration, and those who are discovering it for the first time will see the best possible version of it to first take it in. If you are a fan of spy films or just like a good laugh this newly re-released title is one to get familiar with.

Mini-Review: Storage 24

Posted on by bernardovillela

Introduction

This is a post that is a repurposing of an old-school Mini-Review Round-Up post. As stated here I am essentially done with running multi-film review posts. Each film deserves its own review. Therefore I will repost, and at times add to, old reviews periodically. Enjoy!

Storage 24

One certainly cannot complain that Storage 24 doesn’t try to develop its characters. However, it does so to such an extent that it very nearly turns the plot detailed in the synopsis into a MacGuffin. The tale is essentially a couple that recently broke up and their friends meet by chance in a storage facility. They make it there despite a suspected plane crash that shut down most of central London. The cargo was an alien creature that’s not trapped in there with them during a power outage. It’s a good set-up.

The sound design, however, isn’t always great and makes the characters seem more oblivious than they are to what is going on. The effects work is pretty good, as is the design of the creature. The alien does end up being a dominant story force you expect it to, but in a film that runs under 90 minutes about half the time is spent mostly in repetitive discussions that are cited as such, and don’t move things along quickly enough. When things do happen it gets better.

Another failing is that the film tries to have character-based connections to the creature à la Super 8, and to be not about the creature, but is more blunt about it, and far less successful for as much time is spent in development, there aren’t many facets to the characters created. They’re fairly basic.

The scenario doesn’t end up being a MacGuffin, but the narrative pendulum swings very wildly and ineffectively in the film. Lastly, the pace, which isn’t bad overall, takes a hit from one too many tracking establishing shots down the corridor, which are void of significance save to try and build suspense, but it doesn’t. Storage 24 tries its hand at a few things, but is too uneven and unsuccessful with regards to most in order to work.

4/10

Mini-Review: A Dark Truth

Posted on by bernardovillela

Introduction

This is a post that is a repurposing of an old-school Mini-Review Round-Up post. As stated here I am essentially done with running multi-film review posts. Each film deserves its own review. Therefore I will repost, and at times add to, old reviews periodically. Enjoy!

A Dark Truth

More and more in modern cinema, in part because audiences sense it and in part because it’s been seen/done, stories with a moral, considered important, or that have some sort of social or political statement, are harder and harder to make. As enthusiasts of film or sociopolitically aware individuals, there are things you’d like to see on screen. The wants of the latter group can be said to be more altruistic and deserving of representation, regardless, a good film is required to support the aesthetic or activist statement it seeks to make.

To be clearer, here are some hypothetical examples: a film fan can say I’d love to see a serious take on rabies as a horror motif, it’s been too long. Now, outside the world of film that has no real weight. Whereas, if you were to say it’d be great if a film could show the negative aspects of privatizing water, there could be real life impact and eventual change.

Now for either rabies to become a popular horror motif or for privatization of resources and utilities to garner serious attention, the film espousing these things has to be good. Which brings me to A Dark Truth, which deals with the latter subject matter. The film has some very good touches, and the finest intentions in the world regarding the aforementioned issue. However, the anti-corporate, water-should-be-free-and-here-are-the-consequences-if-it’s-not messages, which are very valid viewpoints, are squandered in a film that’s poorly executed on some technical levels, is overlong, has some unfortunate and questionable dialogue and a few questionable casting choices and some good actors in uncomfortable surroundings. The extra-long lead-in to this piece is essentially due to the fact that I like the concept and the goals, but the end product failed to live up to the promise, which is sad.

4/10

Mini-Review: Found Memories

Posted on by bernardovillela

Introduction

This is a post that is a repurposing of an old-school Mini-Review Round-Up post. As stated here I am essentially done with running multi-film review posts. Each film deserves its own review. Therefore I will repost, and at times add to, old reviews periodically. Enjoy!

Found Memories

This film is a perfect example of a translated title that doesn’t quite do the film in question justice. If you were to translate the Brazilian title of Found Memories literally it would be Stories That Only Exist When Remembered. Granted that is more of a mouthful but it gives you a better sense of the kind of film you’re getting I feel, because as I watched the film I realized there was perhaps one of the more subtle Magical Realism tales I’d seen, one with with extreme emphasis on the the realism. Yes, there is a rather mundane, repetitious nature to certain scenes but the equation is skewed as the film progresses by a newcomer. The framing of many shots is wonderfully precise and as the story unfolds you are taken in both by the stories being told by the characters themselves as well as the ones being told about them by the film, which in many cases are parallel but not identical. Found Memories is a tremendously subtle, yet at times rapturous, look at small town life in a Brazilian town that should still be able to play anywhere and I highly recommend it.

9/10

Mini-Review: Hiding

Posted on by bernardovillela

Introduction

This is a post that is a repurposing of an old-school Mini-Review Round-Up post. As stated here I am essentially done with running multi-film review posts. Each film deserves its own review. Therefore I will repost, and at times add to, old reviews periodically. Enjoy!

Hiding

Hiding in some ways reminded me of Beautiful Wave in as much as we see a teenage girl do a lot of brooding with minimal backstory given to the audience so it becomes tiresome. The good news is that this film is quite a bit better than Beautiful Wave. The bad news is that it still doesn’t end up being good. It concerns this brooding girl (Ana Villafañe) who is in witness protection and there’s a given that she’ll be found and there’ll be this dramatic showdown. What really matters is how do you get to that point and sadly much of it seems like they’re just trying to fill time. She is interested in two guys at her new school and has similar, nearly mirrored scenes with them, at times. There’s a psycho jealous cheerleader (Kelcie Stranahan) who does a lot of digging into her on a delusional whim, there are flashbacks some of consequence and some not; all with an an annoyingly unnecessary excess of camera jiggling. Many characters make really bad or dumb decisions, and we don’t necessarily have enough affection or interest to let that slide. The best part of the film is unquestionably Jeremy Sumpter‘s supporting turn. He remains a heinously under-utilized and under-valued talent.

4/10

Mini-Review: The Famous Five 4 (Fünf Freunde 4)

Posted on by bernardovillela

As mentioned in my review of the most recent film of this series, learning of the existence of this long-running book-series and subsequent frequent television and cinematic adaptations was rather a revelation. When all is said and done for those unfamiliar with the stories one could look at them kind of like The Hardy Boys plus a pair of Nancy Drews, one a tomboy and one not, with a resourceful Lassie-like dog rounding out the quintet.

Considering that that this is fourth in a series you immediately run in to one positive and one negative: first, as its clear the actors have aged and matured their storylines and characters have as well. The makers of this series rather than recasting their talented bunch have remained realistic avoiding one pitfall the book series seems to have embodied per J.K. Rowling when previewing further Potter books “in book four the hormones are going to kick in – I don’t want him stuck in a state of permanent pre-pubescence like poor Julian in the Famous Five!”

However, the comments on the book series that seem to have come to roost are those about recycled plots and structures. More so than any other film in this series this film seems to most transparently telegraph the very thinly-veiled ulterior motives of characters leaving far fewer surprises in store for the viewer if any. Taking the story to Egypt can add a lot of intrigue and raise stakes but there is little of that and not much overly-unique in the premise here.

Not that this was ever a series that reinvented the wheel but so much of this particular installment on the face of it seemed derivative of other works or redressed self-cannibalized plot points from the past. It doesn’t even move quite as well as the prior installments.

The constants are there, the kids are all right, and there is another very capable new kid on the block (Omid Memar) joins the fray. It’s a film that could be viewed out of continuity if you wanted to, but I’d not recommend it. If interested get to the start of the series, die hards only need apply here.

4/10

Mini-Review: Cupcakes

Posted on by bernardovillela

As it turns out when I viewed this film turned out to be serendipitous, I saw this just before this year’s Eurovision competition in Bulgaria. Since I’ve joined Twitter I have lamented the fact that Eurovision is not broadcast in America even more so as those I follow make me even more envious than I normally would be as I hear a lot of extemporaneous reaction. I’ve known of this song competition for a while, always seeking to broaden my horizons, and due to my innate curiosity; however, I never really was able to get it – only getting snippets I couldn’t see how it worked or an illustration of the fascination.

However, I think even if one is wholly unfamiliar with the song competition it’s an easy enough tale to follow clearly. It’s humorous, warm and more about the characters’ struggles than in-jokes. Clearly, knowing some things about Eurovision will only deepen the appreciation you have for the fun it pokes, and the spirit it tries to invoke.

The film is a welcome bit of escapism taking a group of friends from different walks of life who watch the show annually for a bit of ironic enjoyment into the contest unbeknownst to them in a whirlwind the following year. Its humor and tonality is a welcome departure for director Eytan Fox director of such films as Yossi & Jagger and Yossi.

6/10

Free Movie Friday: Little Men (1934)

Posted on by bernardovillela

Introduction

I wanted to start this series back in January. Basically, there are a lot of good movies out there that you can watch free and clear. Meaning you don’t have to pay for them <em>and </em>by streaming it free you’re not stealing it because they are in the public domain. Also, in some cases, these films are not all as ancient as copyright laws usually call for.

Little Men (1934)

Last week I discussed my history with filmic adaptations of this sequel to Louisa May Alcott’s classic. Another thing to note is that I slid into these adaptations sideways having known how tenuous the connection was and liking this story I’ve not looked into the original. The connection is such that if you’re a fan of semantics, like I am, it’s one you could call a follow-up rather than a direct sequel. It tracks a few characters many years later, to see what they’re doing rather than directly dealing with the events of the first story.

Last week, I also mentioned how I think this version may have had a better idea of how to deal with this story and casting it. Now you can decide for yourself, and if you’ve stuck with it through two versions rent or buy the 1998 version, which is quite clearly still under copyright.

This film is one of those that proves that my annual Poverty Row theme is not always fruitless.

To watch the film visit the link below:

Little Men (1934)

Mini-Review: No Place On Earth

Posted on by bernardovillela

Introduction

This is a post that is a repurposing of an old-school Mini-Review Round-Up post. As stated here I am essentially done with running multi-film review posts. Each film deserves its own review. Therefore I will repost, and at times add to, old reviews periodically. Enjoy!

No Place on Earth

When you see the logo pop up that reads History Channel Films you should know what you’re in for at least to an extent. The dramatization is a fine line between narrative and documentary cinema that this film likes to walk most of the time. The dramatization takes things a step further say than Flaherty did in Nanook of the North when setting up shots. Here there are reenactments that are cast, staged and immaculately lit. It takes a deft hand to weave talking-heads interviews (also immaculately lit) and staged reenactments and it’s a balance this film never strikes. Oddly, in trying to closer represent things visually much of the power is drained from the film.

If you contrast this with say Cave of Forgotten Dreams where Herzog instead moves about an uninhabited cave and films the art and people discussing it without having a visual representation of the work being made, you can see the power of the restraint. However, even closer in construction was this year’s Nicky’s Family that included modern-day interviews with refugees of the holocaust, stills and reenactments with great balance. Here the equation split the story, and as interesting as that is it levels out and fails to give us the best of either technique.

5/10