Posts with the tag 'Foreign'
35 SHOTS OF RUM- Premise by Netflix. “This heartfelt slice-of-life drama by filmmaker Claire Denis tells the story of widower Lionel (Alex Descas), a train driver, and his grown daughter, Sophie (Mati Diop). The two spend most of their time together, but change is in the cards. A neighbor (Grégoire Colin) becomes attracted to Sophie, a family friend retires and Lionel tries to maintain a friendship with his ex-girlfriend (Nicole Dogue).”
4/10- This film got uniformly excellent reviews but I can not see why. Boring as hell and I would have turned it off if not for the reviews. Nothing of significance happens. TRDB.Netflix.
Tags: drama, Foreign
April 16th, 2010
AFGHAN STAR- Premise by Netflix. “AFGHAN STAR- Premise by Netflix. “Director Havana Marking’s eye-opening documentary captures the resurgence of pop culture in Afghanistan after three decades of Taliban rule. Following four “American Idol”-type contestants from auditions to finals in Kabul, Marking reveals a precedent in this suppressed and war-torn nation: all ethnicities, genders and age groups are equal — but everyone competing risks their lives to sing for enthused audiences.” Great reviews and I look forward to seeing this movie.
4/10- It tooK talent plus courage to make this documentary as death threats were a constant companion with dancing and music being against Sharia law. I liked the movie. TRDB.
Tags: documentary, Foreign
April 6th, 2010
THE WEDDING DIRECTOR- Premise by Netflix. “Movie director Franco Elica (Sergio Castellitto) unexpectedly finds himself in Sicily, where a local nobleman presses him into videotaping the wedding of his daughter. Instead, the director tries to sabotage the union when he falls for the bride himself. Will he win her love — or are things not at all as they appear? Marco Bellocchio directs this labyrinthine drama, which also stars Donatella Finocchiaro.”
4/10- I was bored throughout most of the movie. TRDB.
Tags: drama, Foreign
April 6th, 2010
WOMEN WITHOUT MEN- Premise by Netflix. “Amid the tumult of the American- and British-backed coup that reinstated the Shah in early-1950s Tehran, the heart-wrenching tales of five very different Iranian women converge in a lovely orchard garden, where they find both freedom and friendship. Director and acclaimed visual artist Shirin Neshat brings a striking aesthetic style to this stirring drama, an adaptation of the magical-realist novella by Shahrnoush Parsipour.” Good early reviews.
6/10- A wonderful film (the director’s first feature) with marvelous photography and a very interesting story. TRDB.
Tags: drama, Foreign
April 1st, 2010
GIGANTE- Premise by Netflix. “Shy supermarket security guard Jara (Horacio Camandule) becomes transfixed by Julia (Leonor Svarcas), a cleaning woman he spots through a surveillance camera. Soon, he becomes obsessed with watching her in this drama about isolation and loneliness from director Adrián Biniez. Jara designs his life around Julia’s schedule, following her to the movies, the beach — even on dates with another man. Will he ever drum up the courage to approach her?”
3/10- Somewhat slow but I liked it. His obsession at no time seemed dangerous. TRDB.
Tags: drama, Foreign
April 1st, 2010
LOURDES- 2009. Premise by Netflix. “Confined to a wheelchair for most of her life, lonely Christine (Sylvie Testud) devises a plan to change her circumstances by journeying to Lourdes, the small town in the foothills of the Pyrenees, where many flock to be healed. The journey yields startling results for our isolated hero in director Jessica Hausner‘s Austrian drama, an official selection at the Toronto International Film Festival and the Venice Film Festival.” Great reviews.
10/2/11- Despite the many great reviews of this movie I felt that it totally lacked any degree of passion and it took a long time to end. TRDB. Netflix.
Tags: drama, Foreign
April 1st, 2010
AGATA AND THE STORM- Premise by Netflix. “The pleasant life of middle-aged Agata (Licia Maglietta) — owner of the most popular bookstore in town — is turned topsy-turvy when she begins an uncertain affair with a man 13 years her junior (Claudio Santamaria). Meanwhile, life is equally turbulent for her brother, Gustavo (Emilio Solfrizzi), who discovers he was adopted and sets off to find his biological brother (Giuseppe Battiston) — a married traveling salesman with a roving eye.”
3/10- Just OK. TRDB. Netflix.
Tags: drama, Foreign
April 1st, 2010
THE THORN IN THE HEART- Premise by Netflix. “Oscar-winning director and writer Michel Gondry(Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) turns the camera on his own family in this documentary about his aunt Suzette, a teacher in rural France from 1952 to 1986. Raised in Versailles in a family of musicians and educated in Paris, Gondry is keen on understanding a life very different from his own. In the process, he stumbles on a wealth of new stories about the family he thought he knew.” A few great reviews and a few miserable reviews. I’ll give it a try.
8/10- The biggest complaint about this movie is that nobody cares about Gondry’s aunt Suzette but I think that misses the larger point of the movie which is a depiction through narrative and film of life in rural France. As for the family stuff, you can fast-forward through lots of it. Over all I liked the movie. TRDB. Netflix.
Tags: documentary, Foreign
March 29th, 2010
THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO- 2009. Sweden. Premise by Netflix. “Journalist Mikael Blomkvist (Michael Nyqvist) and rebellious computer hacker Lisbeth Salander (Noomi Rapace) team up to investigate the unsolved disappearance of wealthy Henrik Vanger’s (Sven-Bertil Taube) teen niece (Ewa Fröling), only to uncover dark secrets about Vanger’s powerful family. Niels Arden Oplev directs this Swedish thriller based on the first novel from Stieg Larsson’s best-selling trilogy.”
3/10- I found it a bit difficult to understand at times but enjoyed it a lot. TRDB.
Tags: drama, Foreign
March 29th, 2010
LA CAPTIVE- Premise by Netflix. “Simon (Stansilas Merhar) is a wealthy man living a sheltered life in an affluent Paris neighborhood. He’s smitten with his companion Ariane (Sylvie Testud) and spends all his time by her side. His obsession deepens when he sets out to discover everything about Ariane, including her past, her secrets and even her most private thoughts. He even begins to follow her, stopping at nothing to allow his complete vision of her to take shape.”
3/10- Boring as hell and I turned it off. TRDB. Netflix.
Tags: drama, Foreign
March 26th, 2010
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