Dan Rockwood here with another report on cinema available now at the cinema getting place. You will be interested to learn I just saw a major motion picture titled I’m Not There.
The titular absence refers to one Robert “Bob Dylan” Zimmerman a popular entertainer of some note. In his place is not one but five or six (depending on how you count) actors all playing different aspects (or something artsy like that) of the same dylanesque character. Here’s the run down of how that worked out: Cate Blanchet does the impersonation part the best which is weird cause she’s a woman; Ben Whishaw was my favorite but gets the least amount of screen time; Marcus “The Black Kid” Carl Franklin has three first names and was great; I don’t know what to think about Richard Gere unless his footage was part of a different movie that got edited in on accident; Heath Ledger is in the movie but I regrettably don’t have an accolade for him; and Christian Bale does the best musical numbers.
Continue reading ‘Review of I’m Not There’

Popularity: 86% [?]

Share This

Right before getting to finally see the Coen’s latest No Country For Old Men; in a packed theater Sunday night; I happened to be reading in New York Times Magazine where they said they didn’t consider NCFOM to be a western…
Well too bad, because it’s about border towns, and bounty hunters, and desperadoes and sheriffs and the main character, Llewellyn (the suddenly great actor Josh Brolin) wears a cowboy hat fer chrissakes. How many western movie cliches are you allowed to cram into your western cowboy movie while claiming it’s not a western? This is just like when the Coens claimed Fargo was based on a true story, they’re always trying to pull one over on us.
Continue reading ‘Review for No Country For Old Men’

Popularity: 23% [?]

Share This

Before getting to my review of Ridley’s Scott’s prestige gangster picture you should read Jeremy Smith’s article on the use of pop music in cinema.

“Ten years after the triumph of Mean Streets, the wedding of the image to popular music was now an industry in and of itself.

For true connoisseurs of cinema and music, the cheapening of this marriage has not completely eroded its ability to inspire. Until the failure of Bringing Out the Dead, Scorsese was still astonishing with counterintuitive uses of classic pop songs, his master thesis being Good fellas. From Tony Bennett’s “Rags to Riches” to Sid Vicious warbling “My Way” over the closing credits, the film is a miraculous blending of musical eras and genres.”

Continue reading ‘A Review of American Gangster’

Popularity: 24% [?]

Share This

The Invisible was a little flick that came out early in the year (2007). It looked a little bit interesting to me but was completely ignored and panned by critics. Neither of which were enough to dissuade my curiosity. There’s a whole genre of forgettable teen-marketed sci-fi movies, movies like Butterfly Effect, that seem unappreciated by everyone but me.

The director is the unspectacular but not quite deserving of derision David S. Goyer. The plot involves a teenage boy Nick (played by Justin Chatwin, who I harbor found memories of from War of the Worlds) who gets himself killed by the wrong crowd at school. It’s partly a case of being at the wrong place at the wrong time, and partly the fault of his wussy best friend Pete (played by the very deserving of derision Chris Marquette). Since he’s in a movie he doesn’t just die and rot in the ground but instead his “soul” wanders the earth non corporeally. He attempts to avenge his death but it’s not easy because he can’t communicate with any of the living. Since he doesn’t have the ability to actually affect any change it’s sort of a futile effort. Our protagonist Nick spends most of the running time of this movie a) watching his wussy friend Pete cry like a little bitch. b)falling in love with his troubled but attractive murderer and c) screaming a his loved ones who hilariously ignore him.
Continue reading ‘Review of The Invisible’

Popularity: 19% [?]

Share This

Definitely my favorite theater here in Portland, OR is the Clinton. It’s the kind of place that’s not supposed to exist anymore. One screen, unglamorous, dirty floors, a built in cafe with cheap beer an snacks, absolutely terrible snacks, and probably all of their revenue comes from the frequent showings of Rocky Horror Picture Show. It’s a place that has simultaneously lots of charm and absolutely none. The perfect place to hide away an afternoon watching weird films that would otherwise fall through the cracks.
Continue reading ‘Review of Nam’s Angels’

Popularity: 21% [?]

Share This