Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith This was your basic fantastical hero story complete with fight scene after pointless fight scene. I wonder if the makers of the Star Wars films are able to escape poor ratings for violence because they don't fight with "real" weapons and because there's no blood. Interesting. Well, Natalie Portman's character took a nosedive from the first episode so that was unappealing (since she was the only female role and was a strong one at that). Also, you can't tell me that with all the revenue they're bringing in by selling ten dollar movie tickets that they can't purchase a better makeup artist. Between making Ewan McGregor look 30 and the chancellor dude look zapped of energy through a lightening bolt that was supposed to take five minutes to kill him, the makeup crew had their work cut out for them. I guess. Maybe they let the intern handle those jobs. Overall, it was an all right movie, even if you haven't seen much of the other films in the series. Be prepared for an all night affair, however. I wasn't, so I fell asleep after the first four hours of film. At least I got a full night's rest that night.
Sophie's ChoiceSupposedly (as the title suggests) this is a movie about a choice that Sophie makes. Too bad it's really about an aspiring author from the south who moves to New York for some inspiration. While there he meets a couple, Sophie and Nathan, who befriend him. Nathan's insane, telling people he's a researcher for Pfizer, and Sophie's also insane, recovering from her time in a concentration camp. Meanwhile, the 22-year-old writer, Stingo, falls in love with Sophie and convinces her to tell him her story of her time in Auschwitz and the choice she made there. Too bad she lies to him throughout the whole movie. He kidnaps her and the two escape to Washington, D.C. for the night before finishing their trip to his family's farm in southern Virginia. He gets laid for the first time, wakes up and finds that she's missing. Then he has to deal with the loss of his first love. If you watch this movie searching for a plot line focusing on Sophie, you're hunting up the wrong movie reel. This movie is about Stingo. Sophie's choice is covered by approximately ten minutes of film. Also, I should mention that this is the first of two very seemingly long Meryl Streep films in my review.
Under SuspicionThis was a terrifically well done crime film that was less about crime and more about memory. It made me think of Elizabeth Loftus the whole way through. The intricate characters are compelling reason enough to watch this movie, just don't get too irritated with the assistant detective in the beginning. The way it's done, you'll never figure out whodunnit. At times when it seems most obvious, some new piece of evidence comes out and you're left wondering about your conclusions all over again.
Sixteen CandlesEven though this movie came out in 1984 and everyone else from that time period has seen it a million times, I only watched it for the first time yesterday. I think that as far as 1980s teen angst movies go, it was pretty good. Parts of it were highly unrealistic, but I suppose that's what makes it so appealing to younger viewers. Watching it as an adult, I can value the parts of it that make it a good film, but I will never swear my life to this film's testament of American teenagers. Maybe I don't relate to the girl in the movie; I never experienced wanting to date the high school hunk. I don't have an older sister whose wedding overshadowed my sixteenth birthday. The one part of the movie I didn't like was when the hunk and the geek were talking in the kitchen and the hunk basically said that he could go in the other room and rape his girlfriend ten different ways and she would never know because she's so drunk. Then he offered the same option to the geek, who took him up on it. The part I really liked was when the sister took four muscle relaxers just before her wedding ceremony. More brides should do that, I think.
The French Lieutenant's WomanThis movie was interesting in that 1980s British drama sort of way, but other than that was just a normal film. The actors played actors who were making a movie about a woman rumored to have slept with a married French lieutenant. Meanwhile, the actors have an affair and fall in love. Or do they? There's an interesting twist at the very end, leaving you to wonder who is falling in love with whom. Regardless, it's another Meryl Streep film where she has the all-endearing female role. It's also another Meryl Streep film that seems to never end, even though it's only as long as a regular full-length film. It's a good thing I was knitting at the time or else I would have fallen asleep during this one too. Actually, I was considering turning it off and cleaning my house. The only thing keeping me on the couch was my knitting.
Good Night and Good LuckIt's so fun to watch and actor go from a lame roll on a lame NBC program to lame romantic comedies to a lame attempt at edgey films to finally doing something really worth watching. This film is a fantastic display of talent from a number of people, including the suave George Clooney. I thought the use of black and white film mixed with the historical documents used throughout the text was stunningly brilliant. Best of all, the ending of this film was a real life ending. There was no patching up of stuff or answering of questions. Seeing the old TV studio from the insider's perspective was poignant, considering that the station was stressing out about terrorism in the form of Joseph McCarthy. My favorite part of this film was that everyone in it was able to talk about terrorism without being branded as terorists. If you listen closely, they're obviously commenting on the state of the nation. Why else would they make this movie when they did? But too many people take what they're handed...and those people will never know. *sigh* Genius.
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