Lawrence of Arabia

"So long as the Arabs fight tribe against tribe, so long will they be a little people, a silly people - greedy, barbarous, and cruel, as you are."

I've been interested in seeing this film for a while, just I've been too lazy to watch the film. It was great.

Title: Lawrence of Arabia
Year of Release: 1962
Director: David Lean
Genre: Adventure/Biography/Drama/War
Rating: 9.5/10

This film is about Lawrence, an English soldier who is viewed as a man who is foolish and quite useless, he is very educated and passionate about Arabia, and he goes there to investigate the Arab revolt against Turkey during World War I.

Well to anyone who has seen this film knows that the cinematography is absolutely amazing, the desert looks really beautiful and the shots are fantastic. It really helps make the scenes more enjoyable and the amazing scenery and great cinematography make the typically long scenes presented in a traditional "epic" film very amazing and jaw dropping. What initially attracted me to this film was definitely the desert scenes, I don't know what it is, but I just find deserts interesting and appealing. I love westerns mainly for that reason, the setting is great. I also think the attire the Arabians wear looks great, sure I wouldn't wear it myself, but in a film, it's very cool, I think. When you see them riding on their camels or horses riding into battle with their swords raised, those scenes are great, they really do look like modern warriors.

The character development is very good, probably only matched by the Godfather and Citizen Kane. There are no jumps in character personality, and the way it shows two sides to some of the characters, instead of showing them in a typical one-sided view. The character of Lawrence on the outside appears very likable but he has tendencies that can make him in some eyes unlikable. Which definitely makes him interesting. Lawrence is certainly not a simple character, there are a lot of complexities to his character, and he only becomes more and more complicated through the film, he's not quite a man you can guess what he does and what he is capable of, the only thing you can be sure of is, he is very determined to accomplish what he sets his mind to, despite all doubt.

Like Akira Kurosawa does in most of his films, there are a lot of long shots in this film, and there are few close shots, only a handful if even that many, but I remember seeing one, I cannot remember exactly of who, but it did feel strange to see it there. A lot of the time you won't notice the shots used in a film, but this is one you do, it's very effective, the use of long shots in this film in particular, more relevant than in a Kurosawa film, if I may say so myself. The long shots really help showcase the beautiful desert, the armies of men, as well, the empty vastness of the desert and how difficult of an adventure the men all go through, particularly through the Nefud desert, the desert which was considered impassable, there is no water for a long while and the sun constantly shines on you all the time, there is no resting in that area.

The battle scenes are astonishing, especially the "No prisoners!" battle scene. It's good they didn't dwindle on lengthy battle scenes for effect, because it doesn't seem relevant to this film in particular. This film is not an action film, and I don't think anyone should really watch this for the action, though the action is very good and whatnot, another example is with the trains. This film I think should be viewed because of it's amazing cinematography and brilliant character development, alone, the development as I've said is matched by Citizen Kane and Godfather, the cinematography in my opinion is matched by Apocalypse Now, 2001: A Space Odyssey (I guess that's debatable for some, but I loved it) and Seven Samurai, the two combined though are unmatched by any film, it is definitely a great achievement in film history.

If your interested in seeing this film, go ahead and watch it, if it interests you, it will match or surpass your expectations, no doubt. It's over three hours, so if you have a relatively short attention span like myself it MIGHT be a stretch to watch this, I had no problem, I even skipped the intermission, isn't it interesting how they had intermission actually edited into the film, how things change, eh? Expect amazing scenes, amazing acting and fantastic characters because that's what you'll get and more!

Click me to view the trailer!

Breaking Bad

"Some straight like you, giant stick up his ass, age what? Sixty? He's just gonna break bad?"

After hearing a lot of praise for this show, I have finally finished Season One, by god, it's amazing!

• Title: Breaking Bad
• Year of Release: 2008
• Creator: Vince Gilligan
• Genre: Drama/Crime
• Rating: 8.5/10

This show is about a man, Walter White, begins to have a midlife crisis around the time he discovers he has Lung Cancer, he decides turns to crime, and begins making meth to leave some money behind in fear that if he dies he may leave his wife in debt. To make things even more complex, his brother in law works for the DEA.

Bryan Cranston leads the cast as Walter White Sr, yes, Bryan Cranston, Hal from Malcom in the Middle. This show in the first episode alone outdoes his great success in any or all of the Malcom in the Middle episodes. With this show he certainly has brought a lot of respect for the man, people loved his character in Malcom in the Middle but once the show was over there was nowhere he could really go, he wasn't too big, and he hadn't shown any real talent and versatility. This show has done everything he needed to show the world he is a very good actor and now I don't doubt that he will become big after this, he deserves it, he really is amazing.

Not only is Cranston an amazing actor but so is the rest of the cast! They're all relatively fresh faces, which is always a good thing when they're all doing wonderful performances. Aaron Paul plays his part very well and doesn't become just another annoying "wigger", which makes the show so much more enjoyable instead of having to drag myself through the scenes with him in it. I was surprised to find out that RJ Mitte (Walter White Jr) actually does have cerebral palsy himself as well as play a character who has it, he does a truly fantastic job, especially in one episode in particular, those who have seen the show I'm sure know what I'm talking about, for those who haven't you can look forward to it.

When I was about to watch the show I was expecting a comedy, after watching brief commercials and whatnot it appeared relatively comedic and I just could not picture Cranston playing a serious role. To my delight this show is a serious one, there are some minor comedic parts in some of the episodes but those come with most good shows. I have no problems with comedy shows, I love them, it's just when it comes to a show that is simply funny, after watching it I can shrug it off despite having laughed my ass off for 30-60 minutes, but with a serious show that is really good, I may be left in awe awaiting the next episode.

The way the show approaches the issues that are in the show are dealt with quite well. Cancer, of course, is very serious, and it is not simply there for the story, it is properly implemented into the show and is taken very seriously, and deals with the issue whether you should get the expensive treatment, be miserable and maybe still die but you might live or just live your last days/weeks/months/years normally. The show is really strong in that aspect. It has a long range of what is presented. It deals with very serious family issues, of course, it isn't particularly easy having a son with cerebral palsy and it is briefly dealt with seriously, another thing the show touches on several times is the general moral issue of is what Walt doing justified? As well as dealing with those issues, the other side is the drug side, the crime side if you will, which is very interesting and entertaining, especially when you get Walter Sr, need for vengeance and mercury all in one room and trust me, that is one hell of a combo.

There are two things that bother me the most about this show though, and these are the MOST bothering things (yes, I repeated myself). I don't like the character Tuco to a small extent, just the parts where he tries too hard to be Joe Pesci's Tommy DeVito from Goodfellas. Another thing is the fact they don't seem to stress very much how incredibly bad meth really is, they do so well in every aspect, maybe they just haven't got around to it yet, I guess they only had 7 episode for season one, hopefully they improve that part, especially when they don't just make dirty meth, they make clean pure meth.

I recommend this show to anyone, honestly, open audience to those age appropriate. If your a fan of Bryan Cranston from his character of Hal in Malcom in the Middle, you will be shocked to see him show such diversity, it's really amazing, as I've said. It's a good all round show, it doesn't spend much time trying to be violent, it doesn't have an f-bomb every fifth word. There is some crafty scripting put into this show. So, please, even if you think it sounds a bit iffy, give it a shot, it's quite good, I promise.

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Re-Animator

"Who's going to believe a talking head? Get a job in a sideshow."

I simply got interested in seeing this film, I'm a fan of "Zombie" films, so I decided I'd give this a shot after reading all the praise for the film. It was decent enough.

• Title: Re-Animator
• Year of Release: 1985
• Director: Stuart Gordon
• Genre: Comedy/Horror/Sci-Fi
• Rating: 6.5/10

This is a film adaption of a tale by H.P. Lovecraft, in which a Medical student called Hupert West knows the way to "re-animate" the dead (bring them back to life).

Well, for those who aren't sure whether this is quite suitable to watch with your parents or little siblings, trust me, it isn't. It's filled with quite a lot of fun brainless (pun intended :D) gore and there is also a fair bit of nudity, now you sickos who have already grabbed their car keys to grab the film just because it has nudity, let me tell you, it's not beautiful, a lot of it is surrounded by either a headless dude or it's a whole lot of Zombie nudity. Yes, put your keys away, and continue reading. There is quite a lot of blood and guts in the film so I guess this goes without saying, but what the hey! Squeamish people, I don't think you should watch this. It's not particularly realistic violence or anything even to the level of violence in the mindless dribble flick Hostel, but still, there is a fair bit of violence.

This isn't one of those films where your puzzled by the explanations they give for how they managed to overcome the impossible and how great they are and whatnot, I can't recall any scientific explanation, simply "Well I got this thing right, what it does is re-animate people, k?", so don't go expecting some intelligent film, this isn't the one your looking for. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying this film is stupid, because it isn't, if you are interested in seeing this film, and have seen any footage or read anything about it, you should know what to expect, and it's rather obvious from footage whether it's a film you can or can't watch.

It certainly doesn't take itself seriously, some may view this as a comedy, something I guess down the lines like Evil Dead II, I personally didn't find it too funny, it had it's moments, but I wouldn't consider this a comedy, but then again after watching the film it does have that sort of feel to it, but I guess thats simply because it's not a dead serious film (pun intended, again, :D).

This was about how good I expected it to be, I had hoped though it would be better, but it was still enjoyable, it wasn't a magnificent film nor was it a bad one. It was worth the hour and a half because it was still quite enjoyable. There isn't much else in my opinion to say about the film, if you simply watch the trailer you get the gist of what to expect from the film. I'd recommend it to people who did like Evil Dead II and does enjoy horror films that aren't particularly scary but more just a have-fun and enjoy sort of horror.

Click me to view the trailer!

I'm Not There

"It's like you got yesterday, today and tomorrow, all in the same room. There's no telling what can happen."

Recently, I've gotten into Bob Dylan's music, I also watched a few interviews with him on youtube, etc. After reading up a bit on this, and watching the trailer I decided I'd watch this despite I reading that it apparently wasn't much of an accurate perception of Dylan. The person who said that completely misunderstood the film.

• Title: I'm Not There
• Year of Release: 2007
• Director: Todd Haynes
• Genre: Drama/Music
• Rating: 8.5/10

This film is about 6 characters who all play a different aspect of how Bob Dylan is viewed by the public, this is not a biography or a chronicle of his life. As I've said, it is how he is seen.

Christian Bale is Jack, he portrays Dylan's "Folk" music era (I don't like saying that, as said in the film "Everybody knows I'm not a folk singer") and is told by those who knew him like a documentary, reminiscent of Scorsese's Documentary on Dylan, "No Direction Home". Bale is definitely the weakest link in this film, his acting was mediocre at best, it felt very forced, he tried too hard to look and seem like Dylan and it was very obvious.

Marcus Carl Franklin plays Woody Guthrie, a young African-American boy who has traveled across the United States, whom is inspired by the real Woody Guthrie. The boy has the words "This Machine Kills Fascists" written on it much like Guthrie did too. The real Woody Guthrie inspired a large amount of "Folk" musicians. Franklin plays his part very well, he certainly doesn't feel like Dylan nor should he, really. This aspect of the film was quite interesting, and Franklin definitely plays his part with obvious pride and maturity.

Ben Whishaw plays Arthur Rimbaud (the real Rimbaud was a poet) who is quite rebellious and throughout the film is in the same room, it looks like an interrogation room where he talks about pretty much what is happening in the movie, narrating it if you will. I don't know if this is relevant to this aspect, but I do know some fans believe the government grabbed Dylan because of his songs being quite protesting and brainwashed him, which led to his new electric style. Regardless, Whishaw does a great job in his role, it is quite obvious too he is trying to do common traits of Dylan I've noticed in some of his interviews, but unlike Bale he does them smoothly and they feel like they are common.

Richard Gere plays Billy who is more focused on being the elderly Dylan of today, though it is set in a different time. Richard Gere performed well enough, much better than I had expected, I had my doubts about him. He was well supported with a brilliant script though. During his aspect it seemed more to me that he wasn't as much as Dylan as the surroundings were, an example of this I guess is when you see a man seeing a song during the memorial of the woman who has died, he wears white makeup much like Dylan did to mask his emotions during rough times, also wearing a similar hat as I've seen when Dylan had the makeup on, I can't really think of any other examples from this aspect, but you get my point.

Heath Ledger plays Robbie Clark who is a famous actor in the film, this aspect of the film focuses more on Dylan's disfunctional personal life. Ledger unlike Whishaw, Bale and Blanchett I feel Ledger makes the part seem more of his own instead of trying to become Dylan, or anything like that, sure I guess there are some minor elements which he is trying to implement to remind you of Dylan, but they aren't near as significant as those others. Ledger in my opinion shines the most in this film and after watching an interview with him on "I'm Not There" it is clear he "gets" the film, which is definitely a bonus.

Last but not least, Cate Blanchett plays Jude Quinn, Blanchett definitely had the hardest part to tackle of the entire cast, her part focuses on Dylan during the height of his fame. Her part starts just after he "sells out" and goes electric. Blanchett as well tries to feel and look like Bob Dylan, and she succeeds the most in this aspect, as well her acting was fantastic, it was easy to forget that it was a woman, which wasn't a problem in the first place anyway. Her part was not just the hardest but it was the most important and it was gone about perfectly. She deserved her nomination at the Oscars, but if you ask me, Ledger was the best in this film.

The music, as expected, was terrific, I'm not sure exactly what the theme was that kept going throughout the film randomly but it didn't sound like a part of a Dylan song (I feel ashamed with fear that it actually is) but instead an original score. The music was definitely an important part of this film, though the bulk of it was cover songs, minus the finale song "I'm Not There". The films cinematography was terrific, every frame seemed like art, 'twas amazing.

Another aspect (a word I've used a lot today) of the film I enjoyed was seeing parts which were quotes from Dylan himself, or references to his songs. As well, minor reenactments of some of his interviews, example, in the car where Jude Quinn says "How can I answer that if you got the nerve to ask me?", this just added to my enjoyment of the film.

I highly recommend this to Dylan fans, DO NOT expect a biography of Dylan's life, this is not what this is, and to be honest, I'm quite glad, because the way this was done was very creative and original. Anyone could watch this, I guess, but it may not make too much sense and it will be a lot less significant than if your a fan of Dylan. If you did want to see this film, I recommend you at least watch and read up a little on Dylan just so you know a little about the man, even if you don't like his music.

Click me to view the trailer!

Casablanca

"Of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world, she walks into mine."

More or less after watching On the Waterfront I was really in the mood for another timeless classic that is critically acclaimed, so I chose Casablanca. I don't think I've seen any other Humphrey Bogart films, so I was quite excited to experience a "Bogey" film.

• Title: Casablanca
• Year of Release: 1942
• Director: Michael Curtiz
• Genre: Drama/Romance
• Rating: 8.5/10

Rick is one of the most respected men in Casablanca, for some seemingly unexplained reason he cannot return home to New York City. While in Casablanca he runs a saloon. It is set during World War II in Casablanca, Africa.

From the beginning of the film I found Rick a very interesting character, everyone respects him. Some of the saloon workers and army officials feel they know him quite well, but really it becomes more and more clear they do not know him very well at all. The only person who seems to know him well is Sam, the saloon's piano player. Rick appears quite stubborn at the beginning, Captain Renault begins to think Rick is a sentimentalist. The character of Rick is quite complicated, he just becomes more and more interesting throughout the film.

The acting is phenomenal, from every word, movement and facial expression Rick (played by Humphrey Bogart) becomes a memorable character and Bogart's own. The smaller characters and Ilsa Lund (played by Ingrid Bergman) are also very good, not as great as the high level set by Bogart. Overacting and just plain bad acting which makes you cringe are not present in this film anywhere.

Throughout the film it has a nice feel to it. Maybe it's just me but the setting, and way everyone in the film was, and the plot just went so well together, it made me be able to get into this film so much more, because of this within the first ten minutes I was already right into the film. This film never drags on, bores or depresses you, it's not that sort of film. Really, it would be difficult for it to drag when it's only one hour and forty minutes. I felt very comfortable with this film, I say nice, but that's an understatement.

Some may be turned away from this film because it's usually referred to as one of the best romance films, if not the best, but it's more than just being simply put into a genre. It's not just about the romance in the film, there is a lot more going on in it, there is something for everyone present. It's sixty six years old and it still hasn't aged a day, the only thing that really shows it's age is the fact it's black and white which people should be able to get past very quickly, but I know there are quite a lot of simple minded people out there who are turned away by black and white films which is quite ridiculous and pointless, so, watch this film, it's a must see for anyone who considers them self a film lover.

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The Long Way Round

"I said, "Eve, I want you to look after my wedding ring while I'm away," and she started to cry and I said, "Eve. Eve, I can't wear my ring or I won't get laid on the trip!"."

A while back I saw some random episodes, I quite enjoyed what I saw, but I never watched the whole thing, only parts. My brother got into the show so I decided I'd watch the show too. What a great show it was..

• Title: Long Way Round
• Year of Release:
  
• Directors: David Alexanian & Russ Malkin
• Genre: Documentary/Adventure
• Rating: 8/10

The show is about Ewan McGregor and his best mate Charley Boorman who decide to go on an extremely difficult trip through Russia, Mongolia, Siberia, Kazakhstan, and then finish up flying over to North America where they will go to New York and finish their massive adventure. Throughout the show they struggle, and it is not quite as easy as they thought it would be.

Without Ewan McGregor this show more than likely would not have been made, the only reason I feel it was made, was because McGregor is an A-List celebrity, and to see how he can cope on a trip that could easily be made into a film, he doesn't act, he doesn't try to act like someone else, it is obvious throughout. It's very easy to go through the show and not realise there is more spotlight on McGregor because of his fame, which would generate most of the interest (worked in my case at least), but throughout the show Charley does grow on you and you really enjoy his presence in the show, he didn't just become "the other guy". Once you actually watch the show, neither of them make the sure better or worse than the other, they are equally as interesting in the show.

When the going gets rough in the show, mainly in Mongolia I feel, it was very exciting, and you could just feel their frustration build and build because they would constantly fall off of their bike literally every 20 or so seconds. Though you see them get quite frustrated at their situation, they do become more optimistic and try to keep their cool, which is obviously difficult. Having to go down some tracks that were so difficult only to realise it's a dead end and you have to go back would get quite annoying, and you really begin to feel it. Despite being in the middle of there is quite a few people that show up here and there that are very friendly, people offering a room, assistance, throughout. It looked like such an amazing trip.

The show is great in that it's entertaining to see these two men (and Claudio) go on this epic journey, the scenery they come across is really amazing, and again stacks up with the many different things that make this show so enjoyable. Charley and Ewan themselves picked out the music for the show, and all the songs throughout go perfectly with the show and only enhance the show. The theme is quite catchy and decent as well if you ask me.

So if your even remotely interested in this show at least watch the first three episodes. This show is very enjoyable and by the end you actually feel as if you know the two men on a personal level, similar to what Ewan says about the Orange County guys, you feel you know them because you've not only seen them for several hours, but you've seen them through good times and bad. Those interested in these sort of things, you'll love this.

Click me to view the trailer!

On the Waterfront

"I coulda had class. I coulda been a contender. I coulda been somebody, instead of a bum, which is what I am"

Well I got interested in this film, I had read by numerous places that this was one of the best films in the history of films, and the fact it had the Marlon Brando was a big push into me wanting to watch the film. I got an urge to watch the film and I got right into it, trying not to get my hopes up too much (I wasn't doubting the greatness, but merely not expecting the wrong thing). I loved this film.

• Title: On the Waterfront
• Year of Release: 1954
• Director: Elia Kazan
• Genre: Crime/Drama/Romance
• Rating: 8.5/10

Terry Malloy, an ex boxer who could of been someone lives in a dangerous area filled with corruption, after the murder of Joey Doyle he finds himself worried conflicted about his situation, all the while he meets Joey's sister, Edie Doyle, who he begins to feel a connection with.

Anyone who has seen this film will not say the acting was even remotely bad, or average, especially from Marlon Brando. Terry is enhanced so much because of Brando's performance, he made his emotions so perfect, the way Terry tried to bottle up his feelings, and the way he would try to overcome the odds, as some sort of representation he hasn't lost his skill, and that he would do anything for a second shot.

Throughout the film there are some very interesting, but quite subtle foreshadows for whats to come, which for me only made the film more enjoyable. The climax of this film was terrific, it wasn't quite like today where all the action builds into a final showdown of bullets and explosions, instead it's more intelligent and real, which I respect greatly. It concludes with a very good ending which is always a bonus.

Marlon Brando fans, this is a film you have to see. Film fans, this is a film you have to see. It shines very well in every aspect possible. It's not a boring film, nor a long one, it's easy to get into and one that hasn't aged a bit in it's fifty-four years it's been around.