Netflix DVD on 1/1/12
Happy New Year! Watching this brings my total of Best Picture winners that I haven't seen down to 10. I have been resistant to this movie for a very long time, since I watched the beginning a long time ago and was so disgusted by the singing, dancing street gangs that I turned it off. Turns out, this is not as painful as I thought. I don't like movie musicals - the theatricality of them doesn't work on screen for me - but I have seen far worse. This is the street gang version of Romeo and Juliet of course, and it's at least interesting to see how they translate some of the aspects of the play.
My Netflix rating: 3 stars
New Movies in Year Three: 121
Showing posts with label Best Picture. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Best Picture. Show all posts
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Sunday, May 1, 2011
All the King's Men (1949)
Netflix DVD on 5/1/11
Another down on my quest to see all of the Best Picture winners! I watched the remake of this with Kate Winslet not too long ago and honestly, I don't really like either of them. This one is better than the remake, but I still find all of the main characters detestable. Again, I find myself asking, what else was nominated for best picture that led this to win? When the characters are repugnant and the plot is boring, there is no reason to watch the film.
My Netflix rating: 3 stars
New Movies in Year Three: 29
Another down on my quest to see all of the Best Picture winners! I watched the remake of this with Kate Winslet not too long ago and honestly, I don't really like either of them. This one is better than the remake, but I still find all of the main characters detestable. Again, I find myself asking, what else was nominated for best picture that led this to win? When the characters are repugnant and the plot is boring, there is no reason to watch the film.
My Netflix rating: 3 stars
New Movies in Year Three: 29
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
177. January 4, 2011 - The King's Speech (2010)
This is a fantastic story and one that I think gets overlooked by history. Queen Elizabeth II is quite a wonderful Queen and she's one of the longest-reigning monarchs (the longest?) and all that, but this story of her father's paralyzing inability to speak clearly is fascinating. Not even supposed to be King, George VI (or Bertie) starts out bitter and hopeless about his speech impediment. Only after his sort of slimy brother (played fantastically by Guy Pearce) abdicates so that he can marry his divorced lover does he put his full trust in his speech therapist Geoffrey Rush. All of the performances are spot on and it's painful to watch Colin Firth struggle to speak. Look for Oscar nominations soon!
My Netflix rating: 4 stars
My Netflix rating: 4 stars
Monday, July 12, 2010
92. July 11/12, 2010 - A Man For All Seasons (1966)
I am totally striking out with the Best Picture winners from the 1960s. I can't stand The Sound of Music, it took me months to finally get through Oliver!, I was disappointed by Midnight Cowboy, and I can't stand to get more than 10 minutes into West Side Story (which is now the only one of the decade that I have yet to see). This movie, unfortunately, is boring. King Henry VIII wants to divorce Catherine of Aragon to marry Anne Boleyn (we all know how THAT turns out) and everyone is fighting over it. It's a sin, it's not a sin, it's treason, sign this oath, throw him in the tower, blah blah blah. Sounds like it should be exciting, though. Too bad it's not.
My Netflix rating: 3 stars
My Netflix rating: 3 stars
Friday, June 25, 2010
82. June 25, 2010 - Marty (1955)
Another Best Picture winner that I hadn't seen! It starts out well - the characters are nicely established and the conflict is not overstated or blatant - but as the story goes along, it devolves. Marty seems to regress in his character arc, not move forward along it, and comes dangerously close to "Matt Saracen doesn't leave Dillon because he feels guilty about Grandma" syndrome. Not until the last 60 seconds of the film does he win any kind of respect or warm feelings from the audience. The side plotline about the aunt also seems superfluous.
My Netflix rating: 3 stars
My Netflix rating: 3 stars
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
37. April 12, 2010 - The Lost Weekend (1945)
Watching this brings my grand total of Best Pictures I have not seen down to 14. Out of 82, I'd say that's pretty good! It's a very dark movie, both in look and in content, about a man left to his own devices for a weekend despite the worries of his girlfriend and his brother. They're right to worry, of course, since the main character Don is a raging alcoholic who scours the city for a drink, going to far as to pickpocket the woman sitting next to him at a restaurant and destroy his own apartment looking for the last bottle he knows he has hidden somewhere. I'm not wild about the end of the movie - I think that it's a cop out to go that far and not pull the trigger, so to speak - but it would be an even darker and more upsetting movie if they had. Plus, this was made during the Production Code, so there were rules about what could and couldn't be done in regards to that sort of thing.
My Netflix rating: 4 stars
My Netflix rating: 4 stars
Friday, February 5, 2010
February 5, 2010
Platoon (1986)
#18 on my Top 100 List
As far as Vietnam War movies go, this is not the hardest to watch, but it's definitely up there. The village scene alone is brutal - it doesn't shy away from showing some of the more horrific things that soldiers were capable of during that conflict. This might also be the one and only time that Willem Dafoe doesn't look at all creepy. There are bit parts by Forest Whitaker and Johnny Depp, an impressive starring turn by Charlie Sheen and a seriously-disturbing performance by Tom Berenger as the sadistic Sgt. Barnes. Oliver Stone does a very good job of making Vietnam seem a lot like hell, especially during firefights, through a lot of confusing camera work and a lot of rainy shoots. The audience, just like the soldiers, never knows where the next shot is coming from.
My Netflix rating: 5 stars
*Just one more day to go!*
#18 on my Top 100 List
As far as Vietnam War movies go, this is not the hardest to watch, but it's definitely up there. The village scene alone is brutal - it doesn't shy away from showing some of the more horrific things that soldiers were capable of during that conflict. This might also be the one and only time that Willem Dafoe doesn't look at all creepy. There are bit parts by Forest Whitaker and Johnny Depp, an impressive starring turn by Charlie Sheen and a seriously-disturbing performance by Tom Berenger as the sadistic Sgt. Barnes. Oliver Stone does a very good job of making Vietnam seem a lot like hell, especially during firefights, through a lot of confusing camera work and a lot of rainy shoots. The audience, just like the soldiers, never knows where the next shot is coming from.
My Netflix rating: 5 stars
*Just one more day to go!*
Thursday, February 4, 2010
February 3, 2010
Titanic (1997)
#25 on my Top 100 List
I am not going to comment on the box office war between this and Avatar except for one statement: this movie was made 13 years ago and if you want to talk box office totals, then it is not fair to do so without inflating the ticket prices from 1997 to 2010 prices. Plus, I would rather watch Kate and Leo (who are adorable, especially knowing that they're still best friends) than 10-foot tall blue aliens any day. I have a special place in my heart for this movie, because this is what made me want to become a filmmaker. It was big and explosive and moving, it was a technical wonder (they built a 40-foot model of a ship just to blow it apart in a giant tank of water!), and the love story between Jack and Rose is one that will be remembered for a very long time. The costuming is fantastic, especially Rose's myriad gowns, and I have yet to find even a tiny difference between the art direction on the film and pictures of the real Titanic. The sunset kiss on the bow that fades into the ghostly undersea ruins gives me chills and even though I have seen this probably a dozen times, I still cry when the band plays on and at the very end when Rose returns to the grand staircase. And though I feel bad every time, I can't help but laugh at the propeller guy.
My Netflix rating: 5 stars
#25 on my Top 100 List
I am not going to comment on the box office war between this and Avatar except for one statement: this movie was made 13 years ago and if you want to talk box office totals, then it is not fair to do so without inflating the ticket prices from 1997 to 2010 prices. Plus, I would rather watch Kate and Leo (who are adorable, especially knowing that they're still best friends) than 10-foot tall blue aliens any day. I have a special place in my heart for this movie, because this is what made me want to become a filmmaker. It was big and explosive and moving, it was a technical wonder (they built a 40-foot model of a ship just to blow it apart in a giant tank of water!), and the love story between Jack and Rose is one that will be remembered for a very long time. The costuming is fantastic, especially Rose's myriad gowns, and I have yet to find even a tiny difference between the art direction on the film and pictures of the real Titanic. The sunset kiss on the bow that fades into the ghostly undersea ruins gives me chills and even though I have seen this probably a dozen times, I still cry when the band plays on and at the very end when Rose returns to the grand staircase. And though I feel bad every time, I can't help but laugh at the propeller guy.
My Netflix rating: 5 stars
Monday, February 1, 2010
February 1, 2010
Schindler's List (1993)
#100 on my Top 100 List
In a lot of ways, this is one of the hardest movies to watch. At the same time, though, the end makes it one of the most moving. Oskar Schindler is kind of a smug bastard throughout the whole film, but his humanity becomes more and more obvious as his workers become more than just workers to him. I greatly respect black and white films when they're well-done - this one uses it to emphasize the bleakness of the subject, Good Night, and Good Luck. uses it for ambiance, and Ed Wood uses it to mirror the ridiculousness of the man it profiles. None of the gut-wrenching scenes in this movie are gratuitous. Seeing the Nazis repossessing the personal effects of the Warsaw Jews, even photographs, is a wake-up call at the beginning, while seeing ash from the furnaces over the city just like snow illustrates how commonplace the horrible events became. Ralph Fiennes is chilling as the villain (no wonder he plays such a good Voldemort) and though I'm not sure what I think she was meant to represent, I would be remiss not to mention the little girl in the red dress. Interpret her how you will.
My Netflix rating: 5 stars
#100 on my Top 100 List
In a lot of ways, this is one of the hardest movies to watch. At the same time, though, the end makes it one of the most moving. Oskar Schindler is kind of a smug bastard throughout the whole film, but his humanity becomes more and more obvious as his workers become more than just workers to him. I greatly respect black and white films when they're well-done - this one uses it to emphasize the bleakness of the subject, Good Night, and Good Luck. uses it for ambiance, and Ed Wood uses it to mirror the ridiculousness of the man it profiles. None of the gut-wrenching scenes in this movie are gratuitous. Seeing the Nazis repossessing the personal effects of the Warsaw Jews, even photographs, is a wake-up call at the beginning, while seeing ash from the furnaces over the city just like snow illustrates how commonplace the horrible events became. Ralph Fiennes is chilling as the villain (no wonder he plays such a good Voldemort) and though I'm not sure what I think she was meant to represent, I would be remiss not to mention the little girl in the red dress. Interpret her how you will.
My Netflix rating: 5 stars
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
January 12, 2010
The Hurt Locker (2009)
For a movie that's being heralded as one of the best films of the year, there is not a lot going on here. The plot is made up of a bunch of tense ten-minute scenes of bomb deactivation with no overarcing story that ties them together. It's like all of the individual firefights in Black Hawk Down without the overall story of the helicopter crash. There are a lot of big name actors in this, but don't get too attached to anyone, because people die left and right. The main character is an adrenaline junkie, who loses any respect that the audience may have had for him with his actions at the very end. I will say that when the movie is supposed to be tense, it's very tense. There's also a really cool shot of someone's eye through the sight on a sniper rifle.
My Netflix rating: 3 stars
For a movie that's being heralded as one of the best films of the year, there is not a lot going on here. The plot is made up of a bunch of tense ten-minute scenes of bomb deactivation with no overarcing story that ties them together. It's like all of the individual firefights in Black Hawk Down without the overall story of the helicopter crash. There are a lot of big name actors in this, but don't get too attached to anyone, because people die left and right. The main character is an adrenaline junkie, who loses any respect that the audience may have had for him with his actions at the very end. I will say that when the movie is supposed to be tense, it's very tense. There's also a really cool shot of someone's eye through the sight on a sniper rifle.
My Netflix rating: 3 stars
Sunday, January 10, 2010
January 8, 2010
American Beauty (1999)
#30 on my Top 100 List
This movie is all about performances. Kevin Spacey is absolutely phenomenal as a man who discovers that all of the beauty has been drained out of his life and decides to take it back. He won Best Actor for the role and I think that it was absolutely deserved. Allison Janney is very powerful as a suburban housewife driven deeper and deeper into her own madness by her cruel husband, even though she's onscreen very little. The look of the movie is very unique, between the lush and bright red rose petal Lolita fantasies that the main character has about Mena Suvari's character, the repetition of movement and slow-motion in the scenes between those two characters, and the dry gray look of everyday life. Kevin Spacey's monologue at the end is a very touching, appropriate ending.
My Netflix rating: 5 stars
#30 on my Top 100 List
This movie is all about performances. Kevin Spacey is absolutely phenomenal as a man who discovers that all of the beauty has been drained out of his life and decides to take it back. He won Best Actor for the role and I think that it was absolutely deserved. Allison Janney is very powerful as a suburban housewife driven deeper and deeper into her own madness by her cruel husband, even though she's onscreen very little. The look of the movie is very unique, between the lush and bright red rose petal Lolita fantasies that the main character has about Mena Suvari's character, the repetition of movement and slow-motion in the scenes between those two characters, and the dry gray look of everyday life. Kevin Spacey's monologue at the end is a very touching, appropriate ending.
My Netflix rating: 5 stars
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
January 4, 2010
Rebecca (1940)
#23 on my Top 100 List
Just one year after Laurence Olivier played Heathcliffe, he returned to play another dark literary character - but his Maxim de Winter is much more tragically sympathetic than Heathcliffe. Poor Maxim, just like everyone else in the film, is haunted by the memory of his dead wife Rebecca. Though she's never seen even in pictures, Rebecca is as much as character as anyone else in the film - maybe more. She and the estate Manderley form an atmosphere so foreboding that not even the unnamed narrator is able to be comfortable there. The creepy housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers, certainly doesn't help, as she is one of the greatest subtle and understated villains in cinema. This was Hitchcock's first American film - and his only to win Best Picture - and his career only went upward from there.
My Netflix rating: 5 stars
#23 on my Top 100 List
Just one year after Laurence Olivier played Heathcliffe, he returned to play another dark literary character - but his Maxim de Winter is much more tragically sympathetic than Heathcliffe. Poor Maxim, just like everyone else in the film, is haunted by the memory of his dead wife Rebecca. Though she's never seen even in pictures, Rebecca is as much as character as anyone else in the film - maybe more. She and the estate Manderley form an atmosphere so foreboding that not even the unnamed narrator is able to be comfortable there. The creepy housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers, certainly doesn't help, as she is one of the greatest subtle and understated villains in cinema. This was Hitchcock's first American film - and his only to win Best Picture - and his career only went upward from there.
My Netflix rating: 5 stars
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
December 9, 2009
Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (2003)
#4 on my Top 100 List
There is a scene toward the end of this movie where Merry, Pippin, Frodo and Sam are sitting at a table in the Green Dragon in the Shire. They look around for a moment, then toast each other. It's clear in their eyes - nothing is ever going to be the same. It's a very powerful scene that I think sums up the message of the entire trilogy: your experiences change you. It's just one of several amazing scene in this movie, including the lighting of the beacons of Gondor, the arrival of the Rohirrim at the Pelennor Fields, Gandalf staring down the Ringwraiths, Faramir's "death," Gandalf telling Pippin about Heaven, the entire Paths of the Dead sequence, the fall of the tower of Barad-Dur, Aragorn's coronation (which makes me cry), the reunion of the Fellowship and the final parting at the Grey Havens (which makes me bawl my eyes out). I love that Merry and Pippin both get to fight in battle in this one, that Legolas and Gimli finally admit their friendship, that Eowyn finally gets to show off how badass she is, and that when the Gondorians find their city under attack from the orcs, they start catapulting pieces of their broken buildings back at them. Take that, Mordor! But above anything else, the scene where Pippin is asked to sing for Denethor (the bat-shit insane steward of Gondor), who is eating dinner while his son Faramir rides to almost certain death, is one of the most beautifully shot and edited scenes that I have ever seen. Billy Boyd's voice is perfect - it gives me chills.
My Netflix rating: 5 stars
#4 on my Top 100 List
There is a scene toward the end of this movie where Merry, Pippin, Frodo and Sam are sitting at a table in the Green Dragon in the Shire. They look around for a moment, then toast each other. It's clear in their eyes - nothing is ever going to be the same. It's a very powerful scene that I think sums up the message of the entire trilogy: your experiences change you. It's just one of several amazing scene in this movie, including the lighting of the beacons of Gondor, the arrival of the Rohirrim at the Pelennor Fields, Gandalf staring down the Ringwraiths, Faramir's "death," Gandalf telling Pippin about Heaven, the entire Paths of the Dead sequence, the fall of the tower of Barad-Dur, Aragorn's coronation (which makes me cry), the reunion of the Fellowship and the final parting at the Grey Havens (which makes me bawl my eyes out). I love that Merry and Pippin both get to fight in battle in this one, that Legolas and Gimli finally admit their friendship, that Eowyn finally gets to show off how badass she is, and that when the Gondorians find their city under attack from the orcs, they start catapulting pieces of their broken buildings back at them. Take that, Mordor! But above anything else, the scene where Pippin is asked to sing for Denethor (the bat-shit insane steward of Gondor), who is eating dinner while his son Faramir rides to almost certain death, is one of the most beautifully shot and edited scenes that I have ever seen. Billy Boyd's voice is perfect - it gives me chills.
My Netflix rating: 5 stars
Monday, November 30, 2009
November 27, 2009
From Here to Eternity (1953)
#83 on my Top 100 List
I know that there have been quite a few from my Top 100 list lately - there are two reasons for that. One, I want to make sure that I get them all in before the end of the year and two, I'd forgotten how much fun it is to watch a bunch of movies that I truly love all in a row. It's fun to write bad reviews, but it's way more fun to watch good movies. I love this movie because it's about Pearl Harbor, but it's not. It takes place in Hawaii, if not at Pearl Harbor then certainly not far, and it's about a company of infantrymen and the attack on Pearl Harbor is the climax, but it's really about soldiers and what they go through both in peacetime and in war. Montgomery Clift, surprisingly, makes a believable soldier and Frank Sinatra truly shines as his hotheaded best friend Maggio. The other performances are great too, but those two overshadow them. The famous beach scene, so scandalous in its time, lasts barely longer than a second.
My Netflix rating: 5 stars
#83 on my Top 100 List
I know that there have been quite a few from my Top 100 list lately - there are two reasons for that. One, I want to make sure that I get them all in before the end of the year and two, I'd forgotten how much fun it is to watch a bunch of movies that I truly love all in a row. It's fun to write bad reviews, but it's way more fun to watch good movies. I love this movie because it's about Pearl Harbor, but it's not. It takes place in Hawaii, if not at Pearl Harbor then certainly not far, and it's about a company of infantrymen and the attack on Pearl Harbor is the climax, but it's really about soldiers and what they go through both in peacetime and in war. Montgomery Clift, surprisingly, makes a believable soldier and Frank Sinatra truly shines as his hotheaded best friend Maggio. The other performances are great too, but those two overshadow them. The famous beach scene, so scandalous in its time, lasts barely longer than a second.
My Netflix rating: 5 stars
Monday, November 16, 2009
November 15, 2009
The English Patient (1996)
As good as Ralph Fiennes is at playing really creepy villains, this movie reminds us of how good he is at playing gorgeous romantic leads. The story is told through three parallel stories, which gets a little confusing since multiple characters appear in different timelines, but it all works itself out in the end. The cast is amazing, from Naveen Andrews (Sayid on Lost) and Willem Dafoe to Colin Firth and Kristen Scott Thomas - they're all wonderful, though Juliette Binoche is the only one to win an Oscar for her role. The first time I saw this I wasn't a fan, but I'm pretty sure that I was too young to appreciate how beautiful and epic it is. Think of it as Lawrence of Arabia except stuff actually happens.
My Netflix rating: 4 stars
As good as Ralph Fiennes is at playing really creepy villains, this movie reminds us of how good he is at playing gorgeous romantic leads. The story is told through three parallel stories, which gets a little confusing since multiple characters appear in different timelines, but it all works itself out in the end. The cast is amazing, from Naveen Andrews (Sayid on Lost) and Willem Dafoe to Colin Firth and Kristen Scott Thomas - they're all wonderful, though Juliette Binoche is the only one to win an Oscar for her role. The first time I saw this I wasn't a fan, but I'm pretty sure that I was too young to appreciate how beautiful and epic it is. Think of it as Lawrence of Arabia except stuff actually happens.
My Netflix rating: 4 stars
Friday, October 23, 2009
October 22, 2009
Casablanca (1943)
#62 on my Top 100 List
Right off the bat, this movie is intriguing due to the exotic locale of a Moroccan bazaar. The plot quickly unfolds and envelops sinister Nazis, murdered Nazis, valuable letters of transit, a beautiful woman, a delightfully shady bit part played by Peter Lorre, and Humphrey Bogart as the jaded saloon owner Rick. The film's famous ending on the fog-shrouded tarmac was heavily influenced by the rules that Hollywood had to adhere to at the time known as the Production Code - Rick and Ilsa were in fact not allowed to end up together. The Production Code also accounts for the seemingly shortened love scenes, as "excessive and lustful kissing, lustful embraces, suggestive postures and gestures, are not to be shown." (A full copy of the rules is available if anyone wants to Google it.) There are several famous lines from the film, but don't trouble yourself straining to hear "Play it again, Sam." It isn't there.
My Netflix rating: 5 stars
#62 on my Top 100 List
Right off the bat, this movie is intriguing due to the exotic locale of a Moroccan bazaar. The plot quickly unfolds and envelops sinister Nazis, murdered Nazis, valuable letters of transit, a beautiful woman, a delightfully shady bit part played by Peter Lorre, and Humphrey Bogart as the jaded saloon owner Rick. The film's famous ending on the fog-shrouded tarmac was heavily influenced by the rules that Hollywood had to adhere to at the time known as the Production Code - Rick and Ilsa were in fact not allowed to end up together. The Production Code also accounts for the seemingly shortened love scenes, as "excessive and lustful kissing, lustful embraces, suggestive postures and gestures, are not to be shown." (A full copy of the rules is available if anyone wants to Google it.) There are several famous lines from the film, but don't trouble yourself straining to hear "Play it again, Sam." It isn't there.
My Netflix rating: 5 stars
Saturday, August 29, 2009
August 29, 2009
Gladiator (2000)
#97 on my Top 100 List
I forget how much I like this movie until I'm actually watching it. To me, the performances are what make it so good. Russell Crowe won Best Actor that year for his role as the general turned slave turned gladiator, but Joaquin Phoenix was robbed when he didn't win Best Supporting Actor for his role as the jealous and vengeful Emperor Commodus (who, in real life, did fight in the gladiator arena, but wasn't quite the villain that the movie portrays him to be). Richard Harris (who is sorely missed) and Djimon Hounsou also stand out as the dying Emperor and a fellow gladiator. There's a heavy ick factor in the amount of gore in the film, as well as with Commodus's lust for his sister Lucilla (Octavia/Octavian anyone?) but if you can stomach those, it's definitely a film worth watching. A lot of people claimed that it shouldn't have won Best Picture that year, but none of them could tell me what they thought should have won in its place. I definitely think it was deserving of the prize.
My Netflix rating: 5 stars
#97 on my Top 100 List
I forget how much I like this movie until I'm actually watching it. To me, the performances are what make it so good. Russell Crowe won Best Actor that year for his role as the general turned slave turned gladiator, but Joaquin Phoenix was robbed when he didn't win Best Supporting Actor for his role as the jealous and vengeful Emperor Commodus (who, in real life, did fight in the gladiator arena, but wasn't quite the villain that the movie portrays him to be). Richard Harris (who is sorely missed) and Djimon Hounsou also stand out as the dying Emperor and a fellow gladiator. There's a heavy ick factor in the amount of gore in the film, as well as with Commodus's lust for his sister Lucilla (Octavia/Octavian anyone?) but if you can stomach those, it's definitely a film worth watching. A lot of people claimed that it shouldn't have won Best Picture that year, but none of them could tell me what they thought should have won in its place. I definitely think it was deserving of the prize.
My Netflix rating: 5 stars
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
June 2, 2009
Shakespeare in Love (1998)
This is one of the handful of Best Picture winners from the past couple decades to be highly disputed. A lot of people say that it cheated Saving Private Ryan out of the win. But they're two such incredibly different films that I'm not sure how people can compare. This is a beautiful and entertaining story about where one of our most beloved plays came from (two actually, if you count Viola's inspiration of Twelfth Night at the end). Also, it includes the best acting of Ben Affleck's career. I love Saving Private Ryan and even though I picked this to win that year, I'm still not sure which one I think deserved it.
My Netflix rating: 4 stars
This is one of the handful of Best Picture winners from the past couple decades to be highly disputed. A lot of people say that it cheated Saving Private Ryan out of the win. But they're two such incredibly different films that I'm not sure how people can compare. This is a beautiful and entertaining story about where one of our most beloved plays came from (two actually, if you count Viola's inspiration of Twelfth Night at the end). Also, it includes the best acting of Ben Affleck's career. I love Saving Private Ryan and even though I picked this to win that year, I'm still not sure which one I think deserved it.
My Netflix rating: 4 stars
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
June 1, 2009
On the Waterfront (1954)
#26 on my Top 100 List
In 1952, director Elia Kazan testified in front of the House Un-American Activities Committee and named other members of the entertainment industry as Communists. Two years later, he made this film about a longshoreman who does the right thing in testifying in from the Waterfront Crimes Commission and stands up to the mob boss who runs the docks. Rationalizing propaganda for his own actions or honest portrayal of an oppressed blue-color community? I'll let you decide. Either way, it's a powerful film.
My Netflix rating: 5 stars
#26 on my Top 100 List
In 1952, director Elia Kazan testified in front of the House Un-American Activities Committee and named other members of the entertainment industry as Communists. Two years later, he made this film about a longshoreman who does the right thing in testifying in from the Waterfront Crimes Commission and stands up to the mob boss who runs the docks. Rationalizing propaganda for his own actions or honest portrayal of an oppressed blue-color community? I'll let you decide. Either way, it's a powerful film.
My Netflix rating: 5 stars
Monday, June 1, 2009
May 31, 2009
Midnight Cowboy (1969)
I'm not sure what I expected this movie to be, but it was certainly different than I thought. I had read that it was graphic and I suppose for the time, it was. It was X-rated in 1969 (and as such, is the only X-rated movie ever to win Best Picture) and most of what I had read condemned it as vulgar. Much like South From Granada, it is not nearly as bad as everything said. It's tough to watch, sure, but not for any kind of graphic content - it's tough to watch because it's an absolutely heartbreaking story about people who are naive, desperate, and down-and-out.
My Netflix rating: 3 stars
I'm not sure what I expected this movie to be, but it was certainly different than I thought. I had read that it was graphic and I suppose for the time, it was. It was X-rated in 1969 (and as such, is the only X-rated movie ever to win Best Picture) and most of what I had read condemned it as vulgar. Much like South From Granada, it is not nearly as bad as everything said. It's tough to watch, sure, but not for any kind of graphic content - it's tough to watch because it's an absolutely heartbreaking story about people who are naive, desperate, and down-and-out.
My Netflix rating: 3 stars
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