The english patient movie review

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

This is a movie that divided audiences. A lot of people complained about how slow it was. ("Hurry up and die!") The script is only 135 pages long, and much of that was left on the cutting room floor, yet the movie still runs for 150 minutes!

[ What's missing from the movie? Hana's fiancé makes several appearances in the script and it's sad when Hana learns he is dead. In the movie, she suddenly becomes depressed after somebody prattles on about "Picton", as if that meant something. Kip had a major story of his own, all cut from the movie. At one point in the movie he tells Hana he "wants to be found." That has a corollary in the script, but it was cut, leaving the line dangling. There's stuff about the sexuality of some of the other team members, almost all cut, but with a couple of tiny, unexplained moments left in the movie. ]

STORY

The scene is set by a reading from Herodotus (ancient Greek historian) of the story of Candaules, king of Lydia, and Gyges, a soldier. Candaules wants Gyges to be impressed by the beauty of his naked wife, so he sets up an opportunity for Gyges to spy on her when she undresses for bed. The nameless Queen learns of what happened and tells Gyges he must either submit to death for what he's done, or kill Candaules and take his place as King. Assassination follows, with the Queen and Gyges living together happily ever after.

When Geoffrey Clifton leaves his wife Katherine behind in the desert while he goes off adventuring, she comes close to dying in a sand storm. Almásy brings her through safely. Subsequently Katherine jumps into bed with Almásy, Geoffrey finds out and, consumed by jealousy tries to kill the three of them by crashing his plane into Almásy on the ground. He dies at once, Katherine dies some undefined time after, and Almásy much later.

TIME

The dates in the movie don't make much sense. They meet in the desert in 1938. Start the affair during that year and snatch a grubby bonk in a cupboard during the 1938 Xmas Party. The desert story ends after everyone goes home in May 1936, by command of the British Government. Almásy is supposed to be collected by Geoffrey in the plane and be taken out, except he tries to crash the plane into him instead. This must be May 1939. Almásy places the injured Katherine in a cave and heads off for help. He is arrested by the British Army, from whom he escapes, and is assisted by the German Army with fuel to fly another plane back to the cave. This suggests the military situation in North Africa of 1941 or 1942. The plane, with a perfectly preserved corpse in the front seat, is shot down by the Germans (date unknown). Almásy then appears as the Patient in an Allied Hospital train in 1944 in Italy. He lingers until after the European war ends in May 1945.

ROMANCE

This is, allegedly, a romantic movie. The "romance" consists of a married woman having an affair with a bloke she meets in the desert. The high point is the second time they're shown getting together, on her first wedding anniversary, while the cuckolded husband sits in a taxi outside the hotel waiting for her to reappear. He is aware of what is going on inside, but confines his response to sucking warm champagne out of a bottle. If that is "romance", I know I could live a long time without any, thank you so much.

BODICE RIPPER

At the high point of passion, Almásy rips Katherine's blouse open. He is rewarded with sight of a chest to match that of many adolescent males. As compensation, Kristin Scott Thomas provides a view of her pubic region as she decamps a bath. Sexy? No. This is followed by Almásy sewing the blouse together again, which is as close as the movie comes to unbridled excitement.

True blood , getting better every season ??

The words above describe this show perfectly and here is why...

Impressive: For a show thats not even on one of the major networks in the USA, the shows visuals and sets are fantastic. Clever direction, help the show to rise above any budget constraints the show may have. However its not the action that keeps the viewer gripped, though it does administer light relief from the often deeply affecting story lines.

Expressive: The acting is really very good, Anna Paquin is an obvious standout. The supporting actor/actresses are also brilliant. They manage to keep a grounding of reality even when the storyline goes to the absurd. The humour of the show is often dark, but very tongue in cheek making fun of its own stupidities. So even when the stories go to places that are totally unbelievable the humour helps rise above it. The drama is well executed and could rival that of most "real life" drama's.

Sexy: The characters are beautiful and unashamed of their bodies. The displays of flesh are often shocking, but never anything other than arousing. The sexier moments in show stem from vampires natural abilities to brood and entice. Eric and Bill provide some incredible displays of eye contact.

Gripping: The shows narrative meanders in and out of reality and fantasy based stories both of which hold your attention. Most episodes end with a cliff hanger, something that definitely works for the show, especially whist watching in a DVD box set. The writing is brilliant and characterisations are superb, even with characters that are aren't in the show a lot.

Overall: True Blood is the best piece of television to come for a long time. It owes much to Buffy the vampire slayer and other vampire movies, but it still retains an originality that most fantasy shows lack. As an antidote to the toothless vampires of Twilight, True Blood is perfect. Its imperfections are never thought about due to clever direction and writing. Its a must watch!

The Whistleblower Movie review

I always proceed with caution when a movie is based on actual events or words to that effect. Often directors have an axe to grind when it comes down to politics or history which leads to an inherent bias or distortion of facts. Usually scenes which tug at the audience heartstrings are added for effect, The Whistleblower being no exception. The presence of a well known anti-establishment actress in a supporting role also had me worried. However the subject matter here makes this a no brainer. Surely no one except those profiting from the exploitation of human trafficking can condone such behaviour. The movie also makes us privy to a world of kickbacks and sweetheart contracts associated with an organisation that is supposed to be helping people.

As this is a movie and not a documentary it is necessary to play out as a thriller and on this level it succeeds. Weisz is good in a lead role were she strikes the correct balance. The parallel story regarding the abducted girl from the Ukraine dovetails into the Weisz story seamlessly. The unfolding of the girls story puts a human face onto the tragedy as we see how she was betrayed by members of her own family and then witness her mothers false hope and ultimate despair.

Ironically legislation was passed in the UK to offer some legal protection for whistleblowers and in this story although a constructive dismissal case was upheld not one single person faced criminal prosecution for trafficking. Its called diplomatic immunity. Events in the world of current affairs post dating this film have simply reinforced the message of this movie, that the world of the whistleblower is a cold, lonely and dangerous place.

As others have commented there would appear to be some problems with the authenticity of on screen accents. Not being familiar with the languages makes it impossible for me to verify, however if it is the case it shows poor attention to detail from those concerned.

It's a Wonderful Life movie review

Is It's a Wonderful Life the greatest Christmas movie ever made, or the greatest film ever made, period? Certainly many people on the IMDb think so; although a strong contender for the former, I'm not sure about the latter. One is hesitant about pronouncing any film something that eclipses all others, because that means every film you watch thereafter will seem inferior somehow, and I love movies too much to be pigeonholed.

The film's genesis is an interesting one; to my knowledge, It's a Wonderful Life is the only movie in history to originate from a Christmas card. Written by Philip Van Doren Stern, and originally titled The Greatest Gift, it told the story of George Bailey, and how his guardian angel Clarence shows him a glimpse of what life would be like if he had never been born. Stern shopped the story to various studios, and many of them turned their noses up at what sounded like such a frivolous idea for a movie.

But when it fell into Frank Capra's hands, he loved it, and wanted it expanded into his first feature after World War II had put his directing career on hold. After selecting fellow war veteran James Stewart as his leading man, and a rather troubled production, It's a Wonderful Life got the go-ahead.

But the film was met with indifference, where the public seemed to share in the studio heads distaste for the source material. It wound up forgotten about for several years, until the 1970s when copyright expired and the film landed in the hands of the public domain; suddenly It's a Wonderful Life was hailed as not only a Christmas classic, but a shining icon of cinema itself.

What is it about It's a Wonderful Life that has earned it that distinction? When reading other reviews on various sites, one thing that doesn't come through about the film is how little of Christmas there is in it. The framework Capra was working from only took up the last half-hour of the movie; nearly everything before that isn't even set at Christmas. It's a long road that we're on before we even get to George on that frigid bridge, considering suicide on that dark and snowy Christmas night.

Frank Capra takes his time with the story, investing plenty of development in the character of George Bailey. George has lived his whole life in the town of Bedford Falls; he has lofty ambitions that take him far, far away from this place, but he's forever having to make sacrifices for others.

Although he puts on a brave face while giving up his dreams of travelling the world and a college education, secretly a frustration burns deeply within George. He has to take over the Bailey Building & Loan, a job he really has no love for, and he watches friends and family go off and live their dreams and even become war heroes in the case of his brother, while he feels trapped in Bedford Falls.

This type of story could easily become saccharine in the hands of a lesser director, but Frank Capra's skillful direction makes sure the film avoids all of the obvious pitfalls (something the film's imitators often fall into). If George had taken each setback with a smile and a kind word, that is unrealistic, and I'd agree the film is worthy of the term Capra-corn that It's a Wonderful Life coined. 

In fact this is a dark, relentlessly harsh Christmas film. Just look at George's face fall when he knows he must take over the BB&L to thwart the ambitions of the town miser Mr Potter, or when he forces a smile at the news that his brother Harry has gotten married and accepted a job offer, meaning the burden of responsibility over the future of the BB&L now rests in George's hands.

James Stewart was never better as George Bailey; as his life snowballs into an avalanche of misfortunes, he handles the increasingly depressing situation perfectly; even he believed this was his finest role. But equally good, if not better, is the film's villain, the heartless and chilling miser Mr Potter, played to perfection by Lionel Barrymore.

Potter makes Ebeneezer Scrooge seem a wimp; this is a man with no redeeming qualities, none whatsoever. He leans on the town of Bedford Falls like the Devil atop of Bald Mountain; he has no respect for the people who live there, and crushes anyone who dares challenge him, with George his favourite victim. He delights in seeing George's ambitions come to nothing, and vindictively pockets money that if not recovered, will bankrupt the BB&L and ruin George. He doesn't even get any kind of comeuppance; Potter is one of cinema's most chilling villains.

The final 30 minutes is where It's a Wonderful Life becomes ever more wondrous, and is the film at its blackest. George's failures have finally bested him, but just as he's about to end it all, Clarence Odbody, his guardian angel falls to Earth and shows him what Bedford Falls would be like without him. The town becomes a dark, twisted shadow of its other self, with Potter as its king and the people as his subjects. It's the film's darkest chapter, and a stunningly nihilistic vision of how things might have been.

The fact that things end on a happy note is never in doubt of course, but those who say seeing the townspeople come to George's rescue is Capra giving in to the soppy stuff before the end missed the point. After such a thoroughly miserable ordeal, George deserves his happy ending, and truly earns his redemption, like all the great film heroes. It's a Wonderful Life is often thought of as an upbeat, sentimental Christmas fable. What utter tosh! This is a film that takes us on a journey fraught with raw emotion, and rightfully earns a hallowed place in the Christmas pantheon.

2 guns movie review

Relies heavily on chemistry between its talents and quintessential gunslinger bravado, 2 Guns excels with classic explosion and slow-mo bullet dispenser moments. Mark Whalberg and Denzel Washington are well cast, they seem comfortable in their roles and exhibit the action oriented partnership patented in the late 80s. However, the story might have some inconsistent rhythm and convenient coincidental occurrences that could hamper the experience, considering it tries to put quite a few twists along the way.

Story revolves around the two main protagonists, Robert Trench (Denzel Washington) and Michael Stigman (Mark Whalberg), who are undercover DEA and undercover Navy officer, respectively and unbeknownst to one another. Each plans to rob a bank for 3 million dollar and pins the deed to the other. They eventually find much more than they expect in the vault and will be hunted for this abundance of cash by drug lord and other shady organizations.

There are arguably many angles to cover, especially since the perspective shifts quite a lot.

The movie does a decent job of stringing these events together, but there are some cases which seems overly rushed. Timeline is used in a back and forth manner, locations could be identified more clearly. These sudden changes may perplex some viewers who aren't accustomed to crime action movies.

For a movie that focuses mostly on the duo, Denzel Washington and Mark Whalberg deliver. They are fun to watch, give life to compelling characters and legitimately look compatible. It's good to note that Whalberg fits more in rugged debonair with quips as he doesn't revert to his confused face too often. Denzel Washington is as charismatic as ever with somewhat threatening air at appropriate times.

Bill Paxton as the corrupt agent shows capable eerie remorseless performance as a corrupt agent. Paula Patton gives a certain feminine touch, although a little less quixotic. The stars are aligned and script is suitable to the theme. There are some lines that could sound overly childish, but for most the dialogues are aptly written and properly delivered. Expect some violence every now and then, mostly intimidating grunts and point blank shots, common bread and butter of gunslinger movies.

The movie has certain heist and conspiracy flair, even though they are sadly not utilized too effectively. It's also nice to see some degree of variation so the movie isn't all mindless bullet-fest. Ultimately, it thrives on old school appeal of underdog vagabonds with lots of ammunition, and in this case, isn't necessarily a bad thing.

Whats eating gilberts grapes movie review

What's Eating Gilbert Grape is one of those little treasures that for the most part most people do know about, mainly due to Leonardo DiCaprio's knock out performance as Arnie Grape. But both he and Johnny had this great chemistry together that made what could have been a very boring movie into an extremely touching piece of film that meant more and more to me as I grew up. When I was a kid and watched this film, I just loved laughing at all of Arnie's jokes not realizing why he was so silly. As a teenager I could start to relate to having a little more pressure with a job and school. Then as an adult and having my mother become ill, I could relate completely to Gilbert in his frustrations of just wanting to be young and enjoy his life. I think that's why this film is special to a lot of people, those who have felt the added little pressures in life and makes you think on what's eating at you? This is the story of Gilbert Grape.

In the small town of Endora, Gilbert Grape is busy caring for his mentally handicapped brother, Arnie. His morbidly obese mother, Bonnie has done little except eat since her husband died, and longs only to see Arnie live to the age of 18. With Bonnie unable to care for her children on her own, Gilbert has taken responsibility for repairing the old house and looking after Arnie, who has a habit of climbing the town water tower, while his sisters Amy and Ellen do the rest. The relationship between the brothers is of both care and protection, as Gilbert continually enforces the 'nobody touches Arnie' policy. A new "Foodland" supermarket has opened, threatening the small Lamson's Grocery where Gilbert works. In addition, Gilbert is having an affair with a married woman, Betty Carver. The family is looking forward to Arnie's 18th birthday. A young woman named Becky and her grandmother are stuck in town when their car breaks down. Gilbert's unusual life circumstances threaten to get in the way of their possible romance. His affair with Mrs Carver ends when she leaves town in search of a new life following her husbands death,. Becky becomes close to both Gilbert and Arnie and as she talks to Gilbert she begins to unlock some buried hopes, dreams and happiness. Later on, Arnie tries to run away yet again from his bath and in his frustration Gilbert finally snaps, hitting Arnie several times. Guilty and appalled at himself, Gilbert takes the car and runs out without another word, fearing that he is leaving his family just like his father and brother did.

What's Eating Gilbert Grape is just an incredibly beautiful and touching movie that will always have a special place in my heart. It makes you laugh, cry, and think about how precious life is. All the characters are relatable or likable in some way. Even in the smallest of all towns where it seems like it's just dead, there is life. That's what this movie is about to me, everyone has a story and everyone has an experience to share. This is just a terrific film, quality acting and a heart felt story, I very much recommend that if you get the chance to watch it. If anything for Leonardo DiCaprio's incredible performance and Johnny Depp singing to him "Match in the gas tank, boom boom!".

Reservoir Dogs Movie review

Bloodily violent, irreverently shocking, politically incorrect, inventively funny and so on and so forth… I'm trying to find the right expression to describe "Reservoir Dogs" and I finally got it, it stands in three letters: N-E-W. There was something waiting in the abyssal wombs of cinema, so repressed it was waiting for deliverance with a fierce impatience, a deliverance with a quite original and cool-sounding name: Quentin Tarantino, the new incarnation of modern violence with STYLE. "Reservoir Dogs" is more than a debut; it's a sensational entrance that consecrated Tarantino among the most influential directors of his generation, and THE reference in independent film-making.

Tarantino invented a new style that would never desert his films, and would make each of his creation, the epitome of coolness. It's so fresh to watch "Reservoir Dogs" now and to realize how new it was at that time. I remember the first time I watched the film, I was 17, and the movie literally blew me away in every single aspect, and I guess the fact that I wasn't familiar with the Internet or IMDb was a good thing since it didn't intercede with my approach of the film. I didn't want to know what's so cool about Tarantino, I just discovered him with his film, shortly after watching "Pulp Fiction", and for some reason, I loved "Reservoir Dogs" a little more. Tarantino quickly became my favorite director as a teenager, and in my early 20's because of this level of creativity in the writing, the directing, and the editing.

The writing is Tarantino's trademark and his greatest quality, the movie starts with a whole discussion about the meaning of "Like a Virgin" told by a fast-speaking Tarantino, himself as Mr. Brown, then a whole debate starts about tipping and non tipping. That's the question raised by the first minutes of "Reservoir Dogs" and the least we could say is that the talk is so trivial it sounds real and authentic in its rawness and makes the characters more human, if not sympathetic. More generally, the whole characterization is driven by dialogs so delicately vulgar you never miss the action, or wait for something 'to happen'. Script 'happens' in Tarantino's films, like meals you've already eaten but with a new special taste, something juicy, creamy, and spicy. It's almost an indigestion of creativity … I don't need to tell you the lines, if I start them, you know the rest : "You shoot me in a dream …", "Are you gonna bark all day, little doggie?" etc. etc. And these dogs not only bark, but they do bite a lot.

Indeed, if the movie was all dialogs, it wouldn't have had the same impact. It's like Tarantino already knew his lesson, and wanted to make something big, from the beginning. From the iconic slo-mo walking scene down the alley with the opening credits, you get the idea that this "Little Green Bag" song will be the 'hallelujah' glorifying the birth of a new style of film-making, and instinctively, you know something special will happen after these credits, and you're not disappointed by what follows. Blood, blood all over the car seat, and probably one of the most convincing painful screams ever. You really can feel for Tim Roth in that scene, it's like the real actor got one real bullet, and the rest is the touching expression of a growing friendship between Roth as Mr. Orange, and Mr. White, his mentor played by Harvey Keitel. He combs his hear, whispers something that provoke Orange's cute but heartbreaking smile: the chemistry is so believable, you understand that the movie is not just about cool dialogs. Then, comes Mr Pink as Steve Buscemi, asking who the rat is! Because this is the first serious element we have. It's the story of a botched jewel robbery, with a traitor among these gangsters. This question will be the starting point of the narrative with three specific back stories told in flashback.

The three characters depicted in flashback are Mr. White, Mr. Orange, and Michael Madsen as Mr. Blonde. And in the memorable-action department, the winner is undoubtedly Mr. Blonde: the one who provided the most iconic and recognizable moment of the film. The iconic ear-cutting scene with the "Stuck In the Middle With You" music, like a reminiscence of "A Clockwork Orange" rape scene with 'Singin' in the Rain' as a musical background, the scene is disturbing, violent, bloody, but also … iconic. The violence is not meant to be cool, but just to show how psychotic Mr. Blonde, one of the most twisted gangster villains, is. And his torture is also crucial because it will unmask Mr. Orange as the snitch, and will make his relationship with White, even more complex. In one minute, the movie raises a new dimension, deeper and more tragic.

Forget the cool and raunchy dialogs, the creative editing, where flashbacks interfere with parallel stories, as when we witness a great scene where Orange tells a story within another story. Too many insertions as to create a confusing feeling until the last iconic scene : after the slo-mo opening, the ear-cutting, the Mexican stand-off, as the last memorable scene that would lurch this movie into Pop Culture. Forget the wonderful ensemble cast with so many colorful characters (literally) and such believable actions and reactions like childishly arguing about nicknames instead of preparing a serious job. All these elements are great, but it would have been nothing without the tragedy … 

The beauty of the film relies on this profound relationship between Mr. Orange and Mr White, made of respect and honor, and the last minute of the film was something that reminded of Peckinpah's films, a moment of honesty and loyalty, incarnated by Orange's last confession, and White's heartbreaking gesture as to redeem the act of a man he still loved as friend … Keitel's last look before the movie ends will haunt me forever.