Which Way Home (2009)

Netflix Streaming on 1/26/12
I was expecting this to be a different story than it is. It's not about the US Border Patrol or about the influx of illegal immigrants into the United States - it's actually about the journey of illegal immigrants from Central American going through Mexico on their journey to get here. And, it focuses entirely on children traveling alone. It's heartbreaking to see parents telling the stories of their children who died of exposure while trying to get to America. It's short and mostly subtitled, but worth watching.
My Netflix rating: 4 stars

New Movies in Year Three: 130

The Other Conquest (1998)

Netflix DVD on 7/27/11
I'm nearly positive that I read about this in Variety a couple years ago and that's how I heard about it - I certainly wasn't getting Variety in 1998. I didn't even know what Variety was in 1998. So I'm not sure why they were listing it recently. In any case, it's not at all what I expected when I heard it was about the fall of the Aztec empire. The film follows an Aztec princess and a warrior who may or may not be her half-brother (though I really hope he isn't, because they start sleeping together halfway through the film) and their forced "conversion" to Christianity. Of course neither does, and violence ensues. It's not badly made - it just doesn't capitalize on the more interesting parts of history.
My Netflix rating: 3 stars

New Movies in Year Three: 61

Miral (2010)

Netflix DVD on 7/26/11
This was getting a lot of Oscar buzz for a while, and even though it was a decent film that should have had an engaging story, it just didn't hold my attention. Willem Dafoe felt oddly out of place and the story is divided over two timelines that are not blended well. Miral is not nearly well-developed enough as a character and the tension in the plot requires one to have more knowledge of Middle Eastern politics and history than the average person does I think.
My Netflix rating: 3 stars

New Movies in Year Three: 60

The Illusionist (2010)

Netflix DVD on 7/21/11
This is just as weird as The Triplets of Belleville, but without the charming whimsy. There is nothing at all wrong with the animation (you know I'm a sucker for hand-drawn), but what little spoken language there is seems not to be any language known to man. Triplets of Belleville had enough visual story to make up for that, but this one just doesn't. Disappointing. The rating is based on the quality of the animation and that's it.
My Netflix rating: 3 stars

New Movies in Year Three: 57

4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days (2007)

Netflix DVD on 6/28/11
I feel like this film should come with a warning - it's very graphic. I was not at all prepared to see a back alley abortion being performed on-camera in a hotel room OR to see everything wrapped in a bloody towel after. It's minimalist, as a lot of European cinema tends to be, and the story is very powerful. Other than seeing far more than I was prepared for, I found it very moving.
My Netflix rating: 4 stars

New Movies in Year Three: 55

Living Goddess (2007)

Netflix DVD on 6/28/11
First of all, I'm surprised there was never any backlash about the handful of goats and cows they sacrifice onscreen by very graphically chopping their heads off (I understand that it's a part of religious/cultural ritual, but you know how extremist groups jump on anything and everything that they can...) This story is really frakked up. They seclude these young girls because they think that they are reincarnates of a Hindu goddess and spoil her to the point where she believes that she is entitled to things like her parents and siblings bowing before her and kissing her feet. This practice goes back thousands of years, apparently. And then, once the girl gets her period, she's not a goddess anymore. It's an odd religious blend, as the girl says, since she's a Buddhist who is the reincarnate of a Hindu goddess. The story is fascinating and disturbing at the same time.
My Netflix rating: 4 stars

New Movies in Year Three: 54

Ajami (2009)

Netflix DVD over 6/24/11 and 6/25/11
I watched this because it was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film a year or two ago - it's technically well-made, but it relies on a convoluted non-linear storyline that never becomes completely clear. It is never established how the characters know each other, nor how their stories are connected or any character's motives. It is supposed to combine characters of Christian, Jewish and Muslim faiths in the Ajami district, but if that's the goal, it does not put nearly enough emphasis on it.
My Netflix rating: 3 stars

New Movies in Year Three: 52

Biutiful (2010)

Netflix DVD over 6/8/11 and 6/9/11
I should probably start off with saying that I really don't like Javier Bardem. I've never seen him in anything where he really wowed me (even No Country For Old Men, but that may be more because I couldn't stand that whole movie). He's decent here, and the movie is okay, but there's not much that's memorable. The plot is muddled, which I expected since it's Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, and what parts are clear are just sad. It's dark and depressing, though not in a moving or affecting way. It just leaves you feeling blah.
My Netflix rating: 3 stars

New Movies in Year Three: 42

The Fox and the Child (2007)

Netflix DVD on 4/5/11
This is sort of a fairy tale about a young girl who befriends a fox and her kits living in the woods around her house. It's cute and the girl is a pretty good actress (which is good since she's literally the only one) but I have to take issue with the idea that's central to the story. People should not befriend wild animals. Growing up in a fairly rural area, that was one of the first things I was taught. Wild animals can be cute and exotic and intriguing, but trying to tame them is a bad idea all around. It is potentially disrupting to the animal's life and potentially dangerous if it has any sort of disease. Cute movie, but bad message.
My Netflix rating: 3 stars

New Movies in Year Three: 22

I Am Love (2010)

Netflix DVD over 2/19/11 and 2/20/11
Drama abounds! A wealthy Italian family has secrets all over the place, between secret lesbian affairs abroad, extra-marital affairs with much younger men, and a mother-in-law who seems to be everywhere for no apparent reason. It's never made clear who's sleeping with who (except for Tilda Swinton and the chef) and let's be honest - Tilda Swinton is just weird. I can never get past how odd she is. And there is nothing effective enough about this movie to compensate for that.
My Netflix rating: 3 stars

New Movies in Year Three: 5

198. February 5/6, 2011 - Dogtooth (2010)

Um, creepy. That's the only way I can describe this. Creepy and confusing. It's a family drama about two sisters and a brother who live entirely isolated on their family's ranch/compound and make up twisted competitions like who can hold their hand under scalding water the longest. From there it devolves into a creepy incest story where the two girls perform oral sex on each other and the older sister is pimped out by her father to satisfy her brother's sexual needs. She then knocks out her own tooth (they aren't ready to leave home until their "dogtooth" falls out, hence the title) and runs away. Nominated for Best Foreign Language Film...why?
My Netflix rating: 2 stars

184. January 18/19, 2011 - Animal Kingdom (2010)

Australian family crime drama at it's height and still not all that interesting. The pace is too sluggish, the characters aren't engaging enough and the actors mumble way too much. I think that the acting was solid, but it was so hard to hear them that I'm not sure. Perhaps this is a sound mixing problem? Also, Guy Pearce shouldn't ever wear a mustache like that again. This has received a lot of critical acclaim but I just didn't see it.
My Netflix rating: 3 stars

166. December 16, 2010 - The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest (2009)

This last installment of the original Swedish version of the Millennium Trilogy feels like it's made up entirely of falling action from the second film. Lisbeth Salander recovers from the horrific injuries that she ended the second one with only to find herself in court still suspected of those murders. Plus, she's now suspected of trying to kill her father, Zalachenko. Which, of course, she did, but only because he had his freak son shoot her multiple times and bury her alive. Personally, I think she's totally justified. It's a descent story, but not nearly as exciting or attention-holding as the first two. Plus, the final scene with her and Blomkvist is nothing more than a tease.
My Netflix rating: 4 stars

161. December 8, 2010 - The Secret of Kells (2009)

This is the kind of fanciful fairy tale that American animated films seem to be lacking nowadays. The animation style is a little like that of The Triplets of Belleville, but even more basic and simple. It's very flat, but I'm pretty sure that's intentional - it refers back to when films were shot as though on stage, where the action takes place inside the proscenium. I can see why this got nominated for Best Animated Feature last year (though its unavailability at the time was the reason that I couldn't see all the nominees for 2009), if only because it's so fresh and different from the glut of CG animation that's out now.
My Netflix rating: 4 stars

136. October 20/24, 2010 - Let the Right One In (2008)

Swedish cinema has a certain feel to it. The color palette is often very pale and gray (though I suppose that may have something to do with the fact that 90% of the time, it's snowy) and, regardless of the details, the story seems bleak. Even this, which definitely adds an element of horror (what with the blood-drinking 12-year-old), still has that hopeless, empty air. The two child actors are very effective, especially the boy with his platinum blonde hair and ice blue eyes. I'm very curious to see how the American version is later this week.
My Netflix rating: 4 stars

121. September 13/14, 2010 - The Orphanage (2007)

This may not have been directed by Guillermo del Toro, but it has the same chilling and moving feel that Pan's Labyrinth and The Devil's Backbone have. J.A. Bayona definitely channeled at least some of del Toro's filmmaking talent. The story walks the line between paranormal horror and pyschological thriller, allowing the audience to piece together what they think is happening before throwing them for a loop at the very end. The performances are all pretty good, but this movie is truly about the story and the tone - though I will say that I greatly enjoy the surprise appearance of Geraldine Chaplin as a medium who is brought in to commune with the ghost children. Don't watch this alone late at night, but definitely watch it at some point.
My Netflix rating: 4 stars

117. September 9, 2010 - The Girl Who Played With Fire (2009)

This is definitely a very different story than the first one. It's less graphic than events in the first, though the story gets more intense and has higher stakes for the main characters. Also, Mikael and Lisbeth spend the majority of this one apart, so the dynamic is completely new. I read in Entertainment Weekly that some people wonder whether author Stieg Larsson had issues with women. After seeing this, I disagree. I think he had major family issues. There is not a single functioning family anywhere in these stories! (At least not the first two - I have yet to read/see the third.) A couple of new characters are introduced (who I've been assured are important in the third installment), but the movie doesn't spend quite enough time establishing them. I guess that will have to come in The Girl Who Kicked the Hornett's Nest. Technically this seemed a little subpar when compared to the first one, but it's certainly not bad. I look forward to seeing the third movie (whenever it makes up to my corner of the country).
My Netflix rating: 4 stars

69. June 2/3, 2010 - Water (2005)

This is a fantastic film illustrating the oppression of widows in India during the height of Gandhi's popularity. Chuyia is seven when her husband dies, leaving her a widow forced to live in an ashram with dozens of older widows. The film is deceptive, at first seeming to be Chuyia's story, but quickly becoming a tragic love story between the widow Kulyani and one of Gandhi's followers, Narayan. It's deeply moving and teasing in the middle, hinting at an idyllic future for the two of them plus Chuyia, but that soon falls apart. There are some questions - most obvious of which being why is Kulyani allowed to have long hair while the other widows shave their heads - but the story doesn't suffer for them. I highly recommend it.
My Netflix rating: 4 stars

59. May 12, 2010 - The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2009)

It's not quite fair to say that I like all Swedish cinema, since I have not seen much. All of the Swedish movies I have seen, though, I have really liked. This movie was filmed beautifully and doesn't shy at all away from the dark nature of the book on which it's based. There are several scenes (both rape scenes and the graphic glimpses of the cold case murders especially) that would need to be sanitized and drastically edited to be included in a Hollywood film. David Fincher is set to direct the American version of this, and while I love him and most of his work, I'm not sure that a story that needs to be this dark and gritty will get its due justice as a mainstream film. Hopefully I'm wrong! The performances in this were flawless, especially Noomi Rapace as Lisbeth Salander. I eagerly look forward to the American release of the second two films in this trilogy, set to be released in the US this fall.
My Netflix rating: 4 stars

32. April 4, 2010 - The Betrayal - Nerakhoon (2008)

The major problem with this documentary is that it doesn't know what it's about. The first segment is about the consequences of the US occupation of Laos during the Vietnam War, but then it shifts into a story about Laotian immigrants living in New York. That's nice and all, but the two stories don't really go together and frankly, the first one was more interesting. There are a lot of interviews, most of them subtitled, and very little story. Picture quality is also lacking. How did this get nominated?
My Netflix rating: 3 stars