305 days, 305 films-Shortbus

Mar 16, 2010 by Sami

Film #8 Shortbus

“New York is where everyone comes to stop being alone”

“Don’t ever say that relationships’ normality lies in it’s complicated nature”

“I wanna do it by myself, in the dark, like a warm”

Last year, I was feeling a bit uncreative. I went to work, played with friends and traveled across the country but it still felt “odd”.  I know that many of you have felt that way at some point. It’s feeling stuck, claustrophobic and completely at a loss of creative energy.

I saw Shortbus many moons before that but didn’t really remember it well. When I told a friend about how I was feeling, she suggested I see it again. I own so it wasn’t going to take me a lot of effort to see it again.

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305 days, 305 films-500 Days of Summer

Mar 10, 2010 by Sami

Film #7 5oo Days of Summer

I was unable to produce an entry for today so my dear friend @FrequentLee lent me a hand and agreed on me posting the below review for 500 Days of Summer that was originally posted on his great blog . I do highly recommend watching 500 Days if you haven’t done so yet.

SPOILERS

Because I really want to discuss this film. I can’t get the formatting to be pretty, so because a large “SPOILERS” sign is needed, we’re just all going to have to suffer. More you than me.

If you’re trying to decide whether or not to watch it, watch it. At worst, you’re out a few bucks and a little under 2 hours, with another view on relationships. At best, you get a deeper understanding of relationships and realize that all people suck. And not in the “happy ending” type of way. The “sad ending for you” type of way. Which is the opposite, and not really an optimal outcome.

I knew very little going into the film, other than that it severely changes the dynamic of relationships upon being watched. The Ring for relationships? If you watch that film, your relationship will die in 7 days? Well, nobody scary will crawl out of your TV, I guess. Unless you ALSO saw that video tape, in which case 1) you’re just plain screwed and 2) you had a very, very busy night and I sort of envy you. You know, minus the “the spectre of certain death looms heavily over you.” That, not so much.

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305 days, 305 films- Hard Candy

Mar 8, 2010 by Sami

Film #6 Hard Candy

Many people will tell you that Juno was Ellen Page‘s breakout roll. I beg to differ; I think Page’s breakout role was playing Hayley in Hard Candy. I just watched the trailer to refresh some of the missing pieces in my memory which only led to my heart rate increasing for the duration of the clip. I  realized then that I forgot how suspenseful this film is.

Why do I think Hard Candy is deserving of your time? Well, for once  Ellen Page is genius in it. She portrays one of the most innocent girls I have ever seen on film. At least for a little while. At the beginning of the film I might have actually yelled out “no don’t go with him, you’re so naive!”. Turns out, I was the one that was so naive. So was  Patrick Wilson‘s character, Jeff Kohlver. Also, the fact that the majority of Hard Candy is shot with only both Page and Wilson reinforces their impeccable acting skills because the duty of capturing the audience falls on, only, them; unlike most of the films labeled “thrillers” out there. For what might be my first time, I actually felt remorse for the bad guy. Want to know why? Check out Hard Candy at your local or cyber video rental store.

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305 days, 305 films-20 Centimeters (20 Centímetros)

Mar 7, 2010 by Sami

Film #5 20 CM

I’m going to start by saying that I’m not a fan of musicals. I, think, most musicals are also categorized as dramas which does not make much sense in my head. How does someone’s death promote you to start singing, I often thought. That said, once in a while a musical falls on my laps and strikes the right note with me. I still remember seeing Singing In The Rain and how happy it made me feel. Many moons have passed since then and I still couldn’t find another musical that I admired as much as Singing In The Rain…then I stumbled upon 20 CM on Netflix. As I’m typing I am suddenly overcome with chuckles, remembering how dysfunctional a group of characters this film consisted of.

2o CM is about Marieta, a pre-op transsexual who longs to get rid of her 2o CM member but unable to do so due to financial restrictions. Played wonderfully by Monica Cervera, she tries to collect the cost of the surgery by moonlighting as a prostitute. One problem, Marieta has narcolepsy; at any given moment she falls into deep sleep. Once Marieta falls victim to this curse of hers we are transformed into her dreams that consist of the most beautifully colored environments, surrounded by people singing alongside her while she covers popular songs that range from Spanish to English to French. For the sake of not spoiling the film for you I will end by saying that she has a very amusing group of characters surrounding her at all times; from her neighbor who is involved with illegal business to the man that loves her for the wrong reason. More than anything I love the fact that 2o CM doesn’t take itself seriously. 20 CM should be readily available in your local video rental store if you’re a non-Netflixer.

There is one other musical that has a special place in my heart, but that’s for another post.

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305 days, 305 films- The Band’s Visit

Mar 5, 2010 by Sami

Film #4- The Band’s Visit.

Do you know Chet Baker? See this film and you’ll understand.

I’m actually worried that this post will not be noticed since it will be published on the notorious #FollowFriday and this film needs to be noticed. The solution? This post will be published today and again tomorrow, in the midst of my #ShakesepeareSaturday . Don’t worry, you’ll still get 305 films! I am only trying to make sure The Band’s Visit gets the exposure it needs because it’s such a good film.

I don’t like talking about Mid-East politics. In the words of Rodney King, “People, I just want to say, you know, can we all get along? Can we get along?” Seriously, why isn’t anyone taking that man’s advice?

Why bring up this topic? Because The Band’s Visit is the first film I have ever seen about an Israeli and an Egyptian group of people and it doesn’t even begin to touch any kind of politics. It’s a brilliant love story with a very honest feel that you don’t get from a lot of films these days. A Police Orchestra is trying to navigate their way to a metropolitan city in  Israel to perform for a cultural event. Thanks to some words being lost in translation, they end up in a remote town where there is “no culture at all”. That’s where The Band gets its funny, charming moments. Something needs to be said about the clever idea of creating a communication barrier between two groups of people but involving the music variable in the equation. The Band is also a story about self discovery and trying to close the door on pasts that have tortured the souls of some of these characters. It actually made me think that maybe one day we’ll look past where we came from and concentrate on the future ahead.

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305 days, 305 films- Fish Tank

Mar 4, 2010 by Sami

Film #3 Fish Tank

I wasn’t going to write about Fish Tank because it’s still in that unfortunate purgatory state. Not at theaters but not at your friendly neighborhood video rental store either. It’s somewhere in between and therefore you cannot be provided with the instant gratification of seeing it after you read this. There are some good news, however.  You can “save” it to your Netflix que, forget about it then be pleasantly surprised when it’s finally available to be mailed out to you. 

If you’ve read Catcher in The Rye and enjoyed it then I can tell you that you’ll enjoy Fish Tank. I couldn’t help but keep thinking about Holden Caulfield every time I witnessed the delusional ambitions that belonged to Mia. One scene that keeps coming back to memory is one when she gets into a fight with her peers by vocalizing her dislike of their dance routine. Mia, who is 15,  is a horrible dancer herself but she is also depressed (rightfully so) and the only way she chooses to cope with it is by living in the illusion that she’s much more talented then everyone surrounding her. There’s also the  undeniable  sexual desire she harbors for her mother’s new boyfriend that you know will lead to terrible results.

Fish Tank has a great cast and does a great job portraying a fatherless lower-class family in Essex, England. Katie Jarvis received much praise for her role as Mia but I can’t help but give my thumbs up to Sarah Bayes for her captivating portrayal of Mia’s mother, Keely. Finally, the film also contains an unpredictable twist or two in it’s storyline.

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