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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An Education

Dec 22, 2009 by Sami

In life, when you try to take shortcuts it will likely not go well. That’s what we learn from watching An Education. This is a story of a master manipulator. A story about being young and wanting to run off with more experience that your young soul can handle. It was painted with lovely music, smiles and giggles. It reminded me of being young and so full of naive love. There is also much betrayal and deceit in this film. Even better, it’s filled with the intoxicating voices of Brenda Lee, Beth Rowley and Juliette Greco as the soundtrack. I would have to give my biggest musical mention to Duffy‘s Smoke Without Fire. It might be one of the best finales of a film I have ever heard.

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SPY(ies)

Oct 18, 2009 by Sami

I believe that most of our lives go on unplanned. As much organizing and effort one puts into having a straight line from point A to point B, most of the time, line has lots of curves and waves. If you did have a straight line, then the points you can stop at between A and B are infinite. Or so my math teacher taught me.

For me, a very important stop happened when I needed an elective and the only class offered was a photography class. What on Earth am I going to learn at a photography class?! I learned things I wish to never forget. My professor once told me, when she was in France, she witnessed something that she did not expect. Artists there are treated like doctors and lawyers. With so much respect and admiration. I was reminded of that by director Nicolas Saada when he said something very similar. He said “by declaring yourself an artist you are removing yourself from the class system”.

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A Place of One's Own

Oct 15, 2009 by Sami

I have two entries, one for Plastic City and another for Raging Sun, Raging Sky. I wrote them, read them and rewrote them again and still was not satisfied for what I have given birth to. Just like any sensible parent would do, I hid them away from the world so no one would be see them. I was not sure why I wasn’t happy with the results…until tonight.

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