Movie | the m0vie blog

Three is the Magic Number: Why Do We Like Trilogies?

Posted on March 13, 2011 by Darren

Tomorrow I’ll be reviewing all three films in the Matrix trilogy. I sat down yesterday, watched all three back-to-back and wrote reviews of them. As I did, I found myself thinking about how nice the concept of a “trilogy” is. It’s even a nice word – it sounds much better to say “the [insert film name here] trilogy” than it does to say “the [insert film name here] tetralogy” (or, to quote the Alien films, “quadrilogy”) or even the more generic “[insert film name here] series.” So what is it about sets of three movies that we like so much?

Looking for a stellar trilogy...

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: 3, arts, batman begins, Batman franchise media, Christopher Nolan, dark knight, film trilogies, Movie, movie trilogies, number three, sergio leone, superman, The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, three, trilogy | Leave a comment »

Non-Review Review: Stone

Posted on March 13, 2011 by Darren

Stone began its life as a play. You get a sense of that watching the film – the only points during which it seems to come especially alive is when its two leads, Robert deNiro and Edward Norton, are playing off against each other. Both actors are genuinely great performers who have faded from the spotlight in recent years and, while the film isn’t consistent enough to put either back on the map, it does demonstrate some of the talent involved.

A Stone-cold killer?

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: christianity, Corrections officer, edward norton, film, John Curran, milla jovovich, Movie, non-review review, Probation officer, review, robert deniro, Stone | Leave a comment »

Non-Review Review: Piranha 3D

Posted on March 11, 2011 by Darren

You know, I wanted to like Piranha 3D. I really did. I like a certain level of schlock and self-awareness which a film like this really just promises. Hell, I’ll normally even acknowledge that a one-note film can strike that one note particularly well. Unfortunately, Piranha 3D is just… well, let’s just say I’d probably enjoy skinny-dipping with the eponymous monsters more than watching them.

Fish out of water...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: Adam Scott, Christopher Lloyd, Elisabeth Shue, Girls Gone Wild, monster movie, Movie, non-review review, piranha 3d, review, Richard Dreyfuss, schlock, ving rhames | 3 Comments »

Iron Man 3: Tony Stark to Face Real World Baddies…

Posted on March 8, 2011 by Darren

You know what? I was sad to hear that Jon Favreau wasn’t coming back to direct Iron Man 3, especially after Marvel so thoroughly mucked with his vision of Iron Man 2 – turning the second act into an extended infomercial for The Avengers. However, I was kinda glad to see Shane Black come on board, if only because his last collaboration with Robert Downey Jr. (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang) was pure gold. Anyway, Black – as a screenwriter – will be writing the new Iron Man film, and he’s promising a Tom Clancy plot and “real world villains.” So what exactly does that mean?

The other "Man of Steel" (well, gold-titanium alloy)...

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: avengers, Christopher Nolan, iron man, iron man 2, iron man 3, james bond, jon favreau, kiss kiss bang bang, marvel, marvel comics, matt fraction, Movie, robert downey jr, Shane Black, superheroes, supervillains, tom clancy, tony stark | 2 Comments »

Non-Review Review: Short Cuts

Posted on March 7, 2011 by Darren

Short Cuts is perhaps “the” big defining ensemble drama. Even those who haven’t seen it are familiar with Robert Altman’s epic three-hour twenty-two-character crisscrossing drama about life modern Los Angeles. It’s bold, ambitious and challenging. Personally, I prefer Altman’s skewering the studio system in The Player, there’s no denying that this big drama has its charms.

Altman casts a long shadow...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: arts, Bruce Davison, ensemble, ensemble drama, facebook, film, Jack Lemmon, Lily Tomlin, los angeles, Movie, non-review review, Player, Raymond Carver, review, robert altman, short cuts, short cuts (film), stories, tim robbins | 4 Comments »

In Defense of Blockbusters: Are We Unduly Harsh on Big Budget Hollywood Movies?

Posted on March 4, 2011 by Darren

I was just remarking how much I love cinema – how much I am predisposed to like a film – and I got thinking, why are we so harsh on big budget Hollywood films? Don’t get me wrong, the studio system produces its fair share of crap, but it seems to be the target of choice for any person looking to decry the death of modern culture. We’re assured, virtually everywhere, that the blockbuster is meant to be a cheap, disposable form of entertainment – and that it’s simply a “guilty pleasure”, if at all. I’ve noticed this trend quite a bit of late, as this is the time of the year that movie geeks look ahead to the summer season and realise… seemingly to their horror (though it can’t possibly be to their surprise)… that the summer is filled with big-budget mainstream blockbusters from wall-to-wall. Ignoring the fact that Hollywood’s annual cycle is highly predictable these days (save only the emerge of what I like to call “quirky March” in recent years), why is the arrival of the summer fare universally treated as a bad thing?

Swimming with sharks...

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: Academy Award, Academy Award for Best Picture, arts, blockbuster, Blockbuster Inc., blockbuster movies, blockbusters, film, hollywood, jameson dublin international film festival, King's Speech, Movie | 2 Comments »

Non-Review Review: A Somewhat Gentle Man

Posted on March 3, 2011 by Darren

This film was seen as part of the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival.

A Somewhat Gentle Man was a very pleasant little surprise to catch on the last day of the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival. It’s a delightfully dark Norwegian comedy about a man recently released from prison, trying to make his way in the world.

He's got snowhere to go...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: A Somewhat Gentle Man, film, jameson dublin international film festival, jdiff, Movie, non-review review, norway, Organized crime, prison, review, Scandinavia, Stellan Skarsgård | Leave a comment »

Critical Predisposition: What Preconceptions Do You Bring Into Movies?

Posted on March 3, 2011 by Darren

Over the last week, I had the pleasure to visit the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival. I saw a lot of films as part of that, and the reviews have been popping up all week. Anyway, they give out an audience award, which gave me occasion to actually score films. Regular readers here know that I am loath to try to objectively rank cinema, as it’s a very subjective medium and I have difficulty reconciling relative grades, but I went along with it. Anyway, they use a four-point scale and, long story short, I found myself using a lot of “3” grades, which is the second-highest rank. This kinda got me thinking: Am I a little too generous to films I really shouldn’t be? How do I approach the cinema? Do I look for things to love? Do I have a pre-disposed bias? Do I want to love films, even if they aren’t especially great?

Me, aged about eight...

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: Action film, Adjustment Bureau, avatar, bias, cinema, criticism, cynicism, demolition man, film, film critics, godfather, jameson dublin international film festival, Movie, Movies, optimism, outlook, watchmen | 4 Comments »

Non-Review Review: Lo Que Más Quiero (What I Love The Most)

Posted on March 2, 2011 by Darren

This film was seen as part of the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival.

The movie that will quite possibly be forever known as “the longest 70 minutes of my life.”

This is actually one of the more interesting shots of the film...

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: Argentina, arts, film, Film-out, Filmmaking, jameson dublin international film festival, Lo Que Más Quiero, Movie, Prelude (music), revie, Vancouver, w non-review review, What I Love The Most, zack snyder | 4 Comments »

Non-Review Review: Preludio

Posted on March 1, 2011 by Darren

This film was seen as part of the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival.

Preludio was an interesting second feature for Mexican director Eduardo Lucatero. After his debut with Corazón Marchito in 2007 – a relatively large-scale production for Mexican cinema – it seems strange for the director to move back to a film so minimalist. Preludio is a movie with one scene, two leads, five other actors (and not all of them are speaking roles), one set and one take. It sound like it has the making of an art house disaster, and yet the director manages to make it work.