I remember the title, but I do not really remember much of this short film (12 min). I guess it did not make a very big impression.
A disabled boy has to flee when the Nazis march into his village, but he does not get very far.
As expected, not a happy movie. I apparently did not remember much of the documentary of 2015.
In stead of being a documentary, this is a film about Amy Winehouse (1983-2011). The movie starts with a young Winehouse in a musical family. Both her father and his mother, were singers. When the story starts, Winehouse lives with her mother though. The whole family knows that Winehouse is a gifted singer and she takes after the jazz of her father and the 1960’ies look of her grandmother.
Just wanting to write her own lyrics and play her own music, Winehouse does not care much for success. She gets picked up anyway. Her lyrics are directly based on her life and are brutally honest. She sings about what goes on in her head, often to the dismay of her (ex) partners and people she knows.
When music prevents her from living, and thus, from inspiration to write new songs, Winehouse takes a break and meets the man whom she would be madly in love with for the rest of her short life: Blake.
The relationship catalyzes both the highs and the lows of the couple. Two times Blake ends the relationship throwing Winehouse into an even deeper pit than those her usual mood swings take her to. Tragically, these dark episodes bring her best songs and her star rises rapidly. She cannot live with or without Blake, but the entire world wants to feed into her music and misery.
Constantly harassed by journalists, stadions full of screaming fans, there is only one thing that Winehouse wants and that is Blake. We all know what that led to.
Just like the earlier mentioned documentary, there is more focus here on Winehouse’s hard times and because you mostly see her spiraling downwards, “Black To Black” makes the title true. A story known by now, perhaps a story that needs to be repeated, as Winehouse was not the first, nor will be the last, who gets crushed under mass attention.
Worthy of note, the actress who played Winehouse, Marisa Abela, also sings most of the music in the film. Quite a feat.
Pierce Brosnan is Charlie Swift, a contract killer with over three decades of experience. His equally aged boss is slowly becoming senile and Charlie takes care of him. Then a young and ambitious member of the organisation tries to take things over by force and Charlie cannot let that happen.
Rather than an action comedy, “Fast Charlie” is more of an action romance. Early in the film Charlie meets the ex of his victim, Marcie, played by the beautiful Morena Baccarin. In spite of the age difference, the two grow towards each other.
Besides that, you will get the usual black humour, violence of a hip action film.
Scarlett Johansson can play anything. From “Black Widow” action, “Under The Skin” vagueness or ‘romcom’.
The story here is about the race to the moon. After the Russians managed to fly to the moon, the Americans want to be the first to actually land on it and that before the end of the 1960’ies. As enthousiastic as the race is picked up, world events start to get the upper hand.
Kelly Jones (Johansson) and her advertising company is hired by Nasa to retrieve the attention of both the general audience, but mostly that of the politicians who have to provide the funds. Jones sets out to find sponsors, brush up the image of Nasa, enthuse politicians and when the day of the launch of Apollo 11 gets nearer and nearer, even another, much more far reaching assignment.
“Fly Me To The Moon” is an amusing romcom drama, of course overly patriotistic, but with a good story and subtle humour.
Iron Man / Tony Stark is not exactly my favourite Marvel character, so I skipped the “Iron Man” movies so far. Actually. In “Iron Man 2” he is not so bad. Perhaps because he is a bit of the tragic character.
In “Iron Man 2” we have both Gwyneth Paltrow (as Pepper of course) and Scarlett Johansson (as Natalie Rushman / Natasha Romanoff, apparently not yet “Black Widow“) which is a plus. And Mickey Rourke is an amusing bad guy. We also see the dawn of the Avengers, as Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) yet has to recruit Iron Man for his team.
For the rest, Iron Man is hunted by Ivan Vanko, plus the competition tries to outsmart him. Together these opponents wreck havoc which Iron Man sets right, without the help of the other Avengers, as that team appears to be non-existent yet.
So perhaps “Iron Man 2” fits in the larger Marvel story and was it a good idea to watch it after all. I suppose I might now also watch “Iron Man 3” (2013).
Donald Sutherland (RIP) is mr. Harrigan, a wealthy businessman who spends his last years in rural USA. When his sight becomes less, he hires a young boy to read for him three times a week.
For about six years Craig goes to Harrigan’s enormous house to read for him. Of course Craig ages and the world changes as well. Smartphones are introduced and Craig gives mr. Harrigan’s an iPhone 1.
Initially Harrigan is sceptical, but when he finds out that the information on the phone is more current than that in his newspaper, he becomes interested.
One day Craig finds mr. Harrigan dead, but somehow his telephone lives on.
The film is based on a short story of Stephen King, who also produced the film. It is mostly a drama with some ‘supernatural’ elements, but no horror or even reach thriller elements. Not bad.
Based on the memoirs of Priscilla Presley (1945-) and also produced by her, Sofia Coppola told her side of the story of the famous marriage to Elvis. Unfortunately, Coppola did not use ‘her style’ as much as in other films.
Stationed in West Germany, Elvis misses the USA and he meets a girl of 14 who had just moved there with her family. In spite of her age, Elvis takes a liking in Priscilla and the two meet more and more often. Elvis can move back to the States before Priscilla does. Even though he is successfull as a musician and is a rising star on the silver screen, always having countless women swarming around him, Elvis remains in contact with Priscilla. He even has her come over.
Elvis is portrayed as an honorable man who wants to be no more than a friend until Priscilla is of age. When she is, the two get married. Another side of Elvis is clearly shown as well: he knows exactly what he wants and when and Priscilla is to have no opinion of her own. The two get a daughter, but the marriage is not meant to last, as Priscilla also wants a life of her own.
Coppola made a nice biography showing the events from the meeting of the two, until when Priscilla leaves the house. The story is not exactly the same as actual events, which suggests that we are really looking at Priscilla’s side of the story.
James is a weird and silent kid. He likes taxidermy and considers killing a human being. At school he meets the extremely disinterested Alyssa and the two outsiders team up. They decide to run away from it all and end up killing a man. That makes them killers on the run.
The series have a bit of a grim, Fargo style, but in spite of black humour, the series are more of a drama. Two awkward adolescents are condemned to each other, but they are both attracted and distant.
In the first season we follow the traveling teens and their chase. In the second second season the duo has been apart for a while, but their paths cross once more. Then there is another type of chase.
Alyssa is both annoyingly, yet amusingly cold. James is an over-nerd who overthinks everything. We hear the thoughts of both and even though their bad decisions are somewhat relatable, the two surely manages to mess up their lives.
Not bad for a teen series.
We see a family at a riverside. When they leave in two cars, it is clear that this is not your average, German family. In the next scenes, we follow the family in their busy home. Lots of personnel and many children. The family has a nice house and the lady of the house built a little paradise of a garden with a part for the children (with pool), a vegetable garden with greenhouses, places to sit, etc.
The man of the house does not have to travel far for work. Out of the garden and into the gates of the concentration camp Auschwitz that Rudolf Höss helped to build and which he manages. The house and the garden of the Höss family borders immediately to an outer wall of the camp.
Glazer mostly shows the daily life of the Höss family. Raising children, tending the garden, receiving family, but also receiving Rudolf’s colleagues and subordinates for business meetings. In the background you constantly hear the low rumbling of the ovens and every so often a guard shouting to a prisoner, gunfire, etc. The family seems to have grown used to these sounds (and the smell?) and live their quiet lives outside the wall enjoying the sun and the river that flows nearby.
Höss is portrayed as a man good as his job. He makes the institute ever more efficient and even though he makes long hours, he finds time to spend with his children, in the garden or in nature and to read a book. In spite of him doing a great job, Höss is told that he will be transferred. His wife goes far in order to be able to stay in her paradise.
There are a few scenes outside of the Höss house, first at Rudolf’s offices and later at a meeting of camp managers.
It is mostly what you do not see that makes this film a fairly hard watch. Everybody knows what is going on in the camp, but that is good for the country, is it not? The Höss family is just doing their part and we are watching them do just that.
It is not all Bollywood that comes from India. “Gandu” is a very raw rap-punk drama.
The title is a swear word, but used as a reappropriation by the young main character. Apparently living with his mother and her new partner (and off his money) Gandu does nothing with his life but writing rap lyrics and use drugs. His lyrics are about everyday life in an Indian slum with no perspective in life. It are his more adolescent lyrics that make him being picked up as an artist.
We mostly follow Gandu as he steals money from his parents and hangs out with a friend. Cut between these scenes are videoclips of Gandu punk-type rap music. Towards the end he is also able to perform on a stage, making followers and finally losing his virginity in an explicit sex scene.
As I said, a raw film with videoclip-type montage, going from black and white to colour and with explicit lyrics and scenes. A coming raw coming of age from the country of sweet Bollywood.