 This 1951 Italian Neo Realist film by Vittorio De Sica is very highly rated. I Saw De Sica’s other Neo Realist classic, ‘The Bicycle Thief’ at Uni, and really liked it, so was expecting big things from this movie…
It wasn’t for me. I just didn’t empathize with the protagonist, or any other characters in the film. Yes, it’s sad that the old people can’t survive on their pensions, but ‘Umberto’ as well as the other pensioners depicted, seem to lack any virtue. They’re ‘wheeler dealer’ type con men that lie their way into survival. Inevitably, that’s the only way they can survive, but it doesn’t mean that as an audience, I want to spend any time in their company. Other characters in the film also lack virtue, such as the pregnant girl who has two lovers; she also has to think about her survival through poverty, but again, as an audience member, I don’t really care for the dilemmas faced by people who cheat on their partners. Despite all the doom and gloom, the film has a hopeful ending; the main message being, ‘get a dog’! Because when you’re old and/or lonely, your dog will be your only steadfast companion. It was nice to see 1950s Italy depicted on film, but that’s about it.
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 As you all know, I loves me a good musical, and so I went to see this one, based on the story and songs of ‘K.C. and The Sunshine Band’.
I knew nothing of the story, but the songs are all recognizable, and very good. The actors did a good job, as did the backing dancers, but the overall story was weak. It kind of had the vibe of something that was just strung together so they could make a stage show featuring the songs. At the end, they invite the audience to stand up, and have a sing and a dance with the cast, which was fun, but may not appeal to everyone. I kind of get the feeling that they’re hoping for the ‘hen night’ or ‘drunken Saturday night’ crowd, which doesn’t really work for week-day performances! All in all, a forgettable show with great songs, which I enjoyed, but it’s not exactly something I’d recommend!  I’ve never seen any of the Timothy Dalton ‘James Bond’ films. I remember when they came out, and he just didn’t look like James Bond to me (my first Bond was Roger Moore), so I never bothered giving them a chance.
I finally watched his debut as Bond on ITV, completely spontaneously, just like we used to do back in the day. You flick through the channels, catch the start of a film and end up watching it, with no prior expectations. It was alright! Not only was Timothy Dalton a good Bond, but the film wasn’t bad either! Far-fetched action sequences aplenty, but not as ludicrous as other Bond movies by any stretch. I also liked the fact that he wasn’t depicted as a notorious womanizer, choosing instead to focus on a single female character throughout the entire movie. Anyway, looking forward to watching the next one now!  I didn’t have high hopes for this film. I’d seen the trailer, and I wasn’t impressed. I was disappointed to see that none of the main characters from the last movie were returning, and more importantly, neither were Daft Punk to do the soundtrack!
Still, I feel an obligation to support cinema, so I went to see it. I didn’t like it. Besides the weak, almost nonsensical story, the visuals were nowhere near those of ‘Tron Legacy’, and neither was the soundtrack. How is it that modern movies cost so much more, yet seem to have so little effort put into them, compared to films from decades ago? None of the characters were interesting, and the MacGuffin driving the plot was pretty ridiculous too. The only thing I enjoyed was seeing the original 1980s Tron set, featuring a cameo from Jeff Bridge’s ‘Flynn’, but even that couldn’t save this movie. I can’t even be bothered to break it down. It was crap. Yet more Hollywood slop; no wonder audiences don’t go to the cinema any more!  This film has one of the best soundtracks ever! That was immediately obvious when it was released. The story, however, didn’t quite hit the notes. ‘Sam’, the protagonist, just wasn’t as compelling as his father.
I liked this film when I first watched it, but I wasn’t blown away. Consequently, this was the first time I rewatched it since I first saw it in the cinema, all the way back in 2010! Man, this film is SO much better than I remembered! Yes, the digital Jeff Bridges still looks completely plastic (as he did in 2010), but everything else in the film is SO much better than most modern movies! The aesthetic is practically a work of art. All the design work; sets, costumes, vehicles, they’re all superb! The combination of an amazing soundtrack with amazing visuals, is.. amazing! It’s so enjoyable to behold! The story doesn’t seem as weak as it first did (times have changes, the bar is now lower), and although ‘Sam’ still isn’t as interesting as ‘Flynn’, he’s interesting enough. Olivia Wilde completely fits into the ‘visually appealing’ aesthetic of the film. It’s not difficult; create beautiful visuals, and populate them with attractive actors! Yet, time and time again, Hollywood fails to grasp this basic concept! Anyway, I really enjoyed revisiting this film. A rare case of it being so much better than I remembered!  I used to love ‘Tron’ when I was a kid (back in the 80s). A film set inside an Arcade game, featuring ‘futuristic’ visuals and cool vehicles, what was not to love? Even if the nuance of the story probably went over my head, it was all about how awesome it looked!
That said, it’s not a film I returned to over the years, and I don’t think I’ve seen it since the 80s. Anyway, in preparation for ‘Tron Ares’, I figured now was as good a time as any to re-watch it. It’s good! Almost surprisingly so! It makes more sense to me now that I’m an adult, with the idea of corporate takeovers etc. But the general story (a ‘fish out of water), about a guy in a strange place trying to get home, whilst making friends as he overcomes the bad guys, is timeless. It was definitely ahead of its time, so you can see why they’re still making sequels over forty years later. It’s no masterpiece, but it’s fun, and I can totally see why the kid in me liked it so much. Good film!  This talk at The Royal Society featured an Astronaut, who spoke about her experiences of going into Space, and was fascinating.
The main takeaways for me were that Space is really bad for humans! It has all kinds of negative effects on the body, such as muscle wastage, especially in the legs. The Astronaut made the point that disabled people may theoretically be better Astronauts than able-bodied people, because what if they didn’t have legs? Also, on average, an Astronaut will gain 7cm in height whilst in Space, because the lack of gravity means the spine elongates and loses its natural curvature, which causes a lot back-pain! She also floated the idea that there was accelerated ageing in Space. All in all, it was a great talk, that rid me of any desire I had to go up into Space!  Braveheart is a masterpiece! It was when it first came out, and it still is today.
What can I say about this film? The way it captures your emotions from the very beginning, giving the audience a full on romantic tragedy in the first half hour is nothing short of genius! You connect with, and feel more for those characters in that short time than you do for characters in films that last for hours! The events in the beginning of the film serve as motivation for the protagonist for the rest of the film, and because it does such a good job of crystallizing his emotions, we’re with him every step of the way! Emotion drives character! So simple, yet so many films fail to realize this. It’s a long film, but as an audience, you never feel it; because the pace and the sequence of events are all non-stop. The film has everything! High drama, betrayal, romance, tragedy, action! Great characters, beautiful actresses, amazing production design and a musical score that will live with you for the rest of your life. Truly a genius film in every regard, and proof that Mel Gibson is one of the most gifted filmmakers out there! The only drawbacks are Gibson’s wobbly Scottish accent, and the dubious historical accuracy, but as the saying goes, why let the truth get in the way of a good story?! Absolutely brilliant film! And the first to introduce me to the stunning Sophie Marceau, who I’ve adored ever since!  Like most people, I rolled my ideas at a remake of The Naked Gun, especially one starring Liam Kneeson (an actor that’s not exactly known for his comedy chops), but I was actually pleasantly surprised! It’s decent!
It’s so difficult to make a funny comedy these days, because everyone seems to have a right not to be offended, but somehow, this film manages to poke fun, not be offensive (unless you’re a policeman) and be funny! I ‘laughed out loud’ on more than one occasion, which is more than I expected. Liam Kneeson and Pamela Anderson are both great. The film is brisk, funny, and despite the bad guy’s evil plan being a straight rip off of ‘The Kingsman’, the film is enjoyable. What I didn’t like, however, was the cinematography; the film looks cheap and obviously shot in a studio (suffering from shots being overly lit, with warm soft lighting, and overly saturated hues). The illusion of the action taking place in a real environment is not there at all. Whilst nowhere near as good as the original, if you fancy switching off your brain and having a bit of a chuckle, it’s definitely worth a look!  Watched it for the first time, and damn, what a great movie!
How can a film from 1956 seem more fresh than the movies being made today? Kubrick’s genius aside, it’s because the current crop of filmmakers are mostly well-connected nepo-babies or rich kids, and the studio executives are, well… Just watch Seth Rogen’s ‘The Studio’ for a valid explanation! Anyway, I digress! The structure of the film is what really sets the film apart; not only that, the characters are compelling. As an audience, you want to see how their story is resolved; do they ride off into the sunset, or does a weak link in the chain ruin it for everyone? Strong characters, a strong story with a great structure; the film really is a masterclass, especially for new filmmakers. It also features a femme fatale that is the perfect example of a woman’s ability to manipulate the men around her! I love to see that, because for me, that’s how you show a ‘strong female character’; someone that can overcome a man, without lifting a finger! (it’s also far more realistic than seeing a woman beat the crap out of blokes three times her size, as seen in ‘modern’ movies) I really enjoyed the fact that the director wasn’t afraid of long takes (I know, it’s Kubrick), with very little in the way of cutting to different camera angles. It shows not only a confidence in the placing of the camera, but also a confidence in actors, and the audience, because the actor is given the opportunity to act, and the audience is trusted to not get bored. To top it all off, the film had a great ending! The icing on the cake was the brisk runtime! Definitely check it out! |
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