Lately I have been incredibly lucky with the quality of the films I've watched. I'm becoming apprehensive that this streak will end, but for now I'm thoroughly enjoying it. Most recently I saw Pan's Labyrinth at the AFI in Silver Spring. Directed and written by Guillermo del Toro (Hellboy, The Devil's Backbone), it is Mexico's nomination to the best foreign picture category for the Academy Awards, and for good reason. Set just after the Spanish Civil War Pan's Labyrinth explores the pains and beauty of the human experience through the imagination of a young girl abruptly forced out of her childhood to confront the most troubling of life's choices. I'll stop there as I don't want to give anything away and hopefully you will soon be seeing for yourself what is so good about the movie.
A few weeks ago I was also fortunate enough to pick up a copy of the movie Brick on DVD. I had heard from several of my close friends that this was a good film, but hadn't seen it yet for myself. After checking it out I was definitely happy to have picked it up. A film noir murder mystery set in a high school, there was not much here not to love. Gritty, pointed and full of amazing diction (as well as a great mention of Tolkien, I know, random!) Brick sucks you in fast and leaves you wanting more of this director's gift of storytelling. One of my favorite aspects of the film was that despite the fact that there was no narration the atmosphere of the film was so enveloping I found myself playing my own narration in my head to the events unfolding on screen. Maybe I'm just going nuts, but I think you'll know what I mean if you see it. The main actor also provided a surprising turn from his days as the dorky lover of Bianca from 10 Things I Hate About You. Just goes to show you how you can never tell where people may end up.
The lat film I will mention here is Children of Men. Featuring stellar performances by Clive Owen, Julianne Moore, Michael Caine and Claire-Hope Ashitey, the film shoots you to a near future where humanity is on the brink of extinction as women can no longer bear children. Directed by Alfonso Cuarn (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Y tu mam tambin) and based on a novel by P.D. James the story is brilliant and is particularly effective in displaying the savages of urban fighting. In fact in that aspect the film was in many ways reminiscent of the Battle of Algiers, which along with the recent plot-line in the new Battlestar Galactica involving a freshly colonized human world occupied by hostile androids, are some of the few pieces in pop culture which give anywhere near the sensation of what it would feel like to have your country's sovereignty torn from you and show how even the best intended of occupiers will almost always end up being seen as villains by the occupied.
A few weeks ago I was also fortunate enough to pick up a copy of the movie Brick on DVD. I had heard from several of my close friends that this was a good film, but hadn't seen it yet for myself. After checking it out I was definitely happy to have picked it up. A film noir murder mystery set in a high school, there was not much here not to love. Gritty, pointed and full of amazing diction (as well as a great mention of Tolkien, I know, random!) Brick sucks you in fast and leaves you wanting more of this director's gift of storytelling. One of my favorite aspects of the film was that despite the fact that there was no narration the atmosphere of the film was so enveloping I found myself playing my own narration in my head to the events unfolding on screen. Maybe I'm just going nuts, but I think you'll know what I mean if you see it. The main actor also provided a surprising turn from his days as the dorky lover of Bianca from 10 Things I Hate About You. Just goes to show you how you can never tell where people may end up.
The lat film I will mention here is Children of Men. Featuring stellar performances by Clive Owen, Julianne Moore, Michael Caine and Claire-Hope Ashitey, the film shoots you to a near future where humanity is on the brink of extinction as women can no longer bear children. Directed by Alfonso Cuarn (Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Y tu mam tambin) and based on a novel by P.D. James the story is brilliant and is particularly effective in displaying the savages of urban fighting. In fact in that aspect the film was in many ways reminiscent of the Battle of Algiers, which along with the recent plot-line in the new Battlestar Galactica involving a freshly colonized human world occupied by hostile androids, are some of the few pieces in pop culture which give anywhere near the sensation of what it would feel like to have your country's sovereignty torn from you and show how even the best intended of occupiers will almost always end up being seen as villains by the occupied.