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Inglourious Basterds (2009)
Why that ending?
Inglourious Basterds is a movie that will leave thinking viewers utterly shattered. Its opening scene of the Nazi Jew Hunter and the French farmer is absolutely brilliant. It brings out the evil of the Nazi regime and the agony of the farmer who must choose between life for his family or life for innocent Jewish neighbours. It certainly puts a new spin on why some people in WW2 would have collaborated. After this amazing section the movie jumps crazily between scenes of cruelty, intense suspense, sadness and farce. I knew it was fiction but at least I could see a link between true history and the events of this movie. That was until the ending in the Paris movie theatre. I hated the ending so much as I know what happened in reality to those evil monsters who ruled Germany in World War Two. They got what they deserved. In this movie they get it years in advance. I actually expected a scene after the ending which would set this movie straight with historical reality but it was not to be. A shame as Tarantino is obviously a clever writer and director. Did he run out of steam? Result – would recommend it up to the last scene. Thus I would give it only 5 out of 10 (5 out of 5 up till the theatre events and 0 out of 5 for the ridiculous ending).
The Lone Ranger: Enter the Lone Ranger (1949)
Vital introduction to a wonderful series
This episode "Enter The Lone Ranger" is a vital episode to watch as it explains why the Lone Ranger is on a mission to bring about law and order to the Western states of America. It also clarifies why he wears a mask and a white hat. The brave Indian, Tonto, is introduced in this episode and it mentions a very interesting link between the two heroes back when they were young. Although the style of acting is dated and in black and white format it is an episode that a dad or mum could sit down and watch with the family (with, of course, a running commentary from them about how they enjoyed this series as a child and how it would be a great series for their children to watch too).
The Dark Knight (2008)
fantastic movie
This is a fantastic movie. It starts off immediately into action and never lets up. The Jack Nicholson version of The Joker was superb and when Heath Ledger had to reprise the role it would have be thought that all he could do was copy Jack's effort. But, he developed his own persona. And what a persona! No wonder he won an academy award. What a shame that he died before he had a chance to be rewarded for a wonderful acting effort. Similarly, Christian Bale was excellent in his portrayal of a tormented Batman. Watch this movie. It is incredible and has so many twists and turns. It deserves all the praise and profit that is coming its way - this is Hollywood at its finest.
Life on Mars (2006)
series 1 and 2 were great - how about a series 3
I was advised to look at this English police show by friends who were raving about it. I caught a few episodes on television and was immediately impressed. Later I purchased series 1 & 2 on DVD. I was happy that I did so because they were so engrossing. I related well to the main character Sam Tyler and his confusion at being mysteriously sent back to 1973. John Simm who plays Sam Tyler gives an outstanding performance as a modern police officer trying to fit into the police world of 33 years before his time. The other actors also were superb. I looked forward to viewing each episode and was intrigued by how Sam Tyler was trying to work out whether he was in a coma dreaming all of the events taking place or whether he had somehow been sent back in time. The last episode of series two gave an explanation of all that had taken place but it did leave it open for a third series to be made even though the creators of the series on the DVD's made it clear that it was over. They believed they couldn't better that which had already been done. This was disappointing to me and I felt it was really a lazy cop out for those people to avoid coming up with creative ideas to carry the story into a third series based on the Sam Tyler character.
The Edge (1997)
it restores one's faith in the goodness of humanity
This is a wonderful movie because it restores one's faith in the goodness of humanity. Anthony Hopkins gives an exceptional performance as he usually does in portraying a character who is humble, courageous, resourceful and forgiving in spite of his wife being adulterous. The events which the two main characters, Hopkins and Baldwin, are subjected to in the wilderness are so well put together that the audience is ensured of being both shocked and enthralled at the same time. If you really do not believe in the goodness of people then this movie will restore your faith in humanity. It is one of Hollywood's finest moments. The last scene between El Mcpherson and Anthony Hopkins is a classic moment. Watch it and be inspired.
Eminent Domain (1990)
A suspense movie which keeps us guessing till the very end.
"Eminent Domain" is quite a good movie. It keeps its viewers intrigued all throughout the movie. Its main character, Jozef Burski, is number six in the Politburo of the Communist Government of Poland in 1979. He is a person highly respected due to his honesty and sense of duty. He enjoys being in power but he uses his position for the good of others. His position also helps him to keep his wife and young daughter, who has learning problems, in comfortable circumstances. Suddenly his world is turned upside down when he finds he is excluded from his office in the Politburo and that his friends are avoiding contact with him. His mentor, the Chairman of the Politburo, whom he has served loyally, also wants nothing to do with him. Burski's daughter is taken out of her overseas school and brought back by the secret police to his home in Poland and his house is bugged. No explanation is given for this dramatic change of circumstances. Burski then decides to find out what is behind all of this and tragedy soon stalks his every move. Donald Sutherland plays the role of Burski well, giving him the confused persona that Burski certainly would have had during his experiences. The fact that this is based on a true story makes this story even more fascinating. "Eminent Domain" being a combined Canadian, Israeli and French production does not have the polished look of Hollywood movies but it nevertheless manages to capture its viewer's interest by focussing in on Burski's inner turmoil and on the effect his unexplained loss of position has on his family. This is a movie to look out for on the shelves of the local video store.
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
persevere and you'll be rewarded
The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Rings is a movie to persevere with. It is confusing at the start due to the need to explain what the rings are about and due to the need to introduce the main characters, whose names are not easy to remember. I found myself saying, "I am bored with this" for about half of the movie. I was glad I did not turn it off because it really came together in the second half which was most exciting and emotionally involving. I guess it would help to have read the book, The Hobbit, before viewing this movie because some of the characters in that are also in this movie. I am looking forward to the sequel with anticipation.
Car 54, Where Are You? (1994)
an absolute disgrace!
Everyone grows up with some cherished memories. One of mine was the T.V. series "Car 54, Where Are You?". It had a simple charm and the main characters Toody (Joe E. Ross) and Muldoon (Fred Gwynne) were gentle and the humour was good clean fun. Although they would mess things up at the beginning of each episode they would somehow get everything alright in the end without anyone getting into harm. Fred Gwynne's character (Muldoon) evoked sympathy and love from his viewers - especially children. With this in mind I got out the video of the movie remake of this series. What an absolute disgrace of a movie it turned out to be! The makers of this movie completely turned around the series two morally decent characters and made them into immoral fools. The key point of the T.V. series was that Muldoon was an innocent, naive policeman who did his job with a genuine love for those he served. The Muldoon in this movie remake is a repulsive character. The clean fun is also out in this remake. No wonder that this movie is listed by IMDb in its worst 100 movies of all time. It deserves it! The makers of this movie lost its main market (the nostalgics) by ignoring the behaviour standards of the original series. Not recommended!
Pearl Harbor (2001)
great yarn with one annoying feature
I watched this movie on video after avoiding it on the big screen because of all the hype that went with it. A big mistake! This is a great yarn. The action scenes are marvellous and breath catching. The romance in this movie is also quite touching. It can be enjoyed at various levels. If you want a war movie with a sense of history about it this is the one for you. If you want a love story in the midst of war then this is for you. The only annoying feature of this movie was the non-reaction of the medical corps officers to the heroine's pregnancy. I have my doubts that a unmarried serving nurse would have been allowed to continue in her profession in the 1940's once it was discovered she was pregnant. Perhaps I am wrong. But I did feel that she acted too much like a 2000's type of person in an era when her behaviour would have been frowned upon. Having said this I loved the story! I enjoyed the twists in the plot and have recommended it to all and sundry. The attack on Pearl Harbour was a tragedy for the U.S.A. and this movie should get a modern generation to reflect on that tragedy and to appreciate the dramatic recovery of the nation after such a morale shattering event.
Titanic (1997)
almost like a time travel movie
This movie,"Titanic", has great moments in it such as the dramatic sinking of the ship with all the intense desperation that event brought about in the crew and passengers as they struggled to live. There is no denying that movie has appealed to audiences around the world. Titanic fever has once again hit young and old and I'm sure books produced about this tragedy would have sold well. My frustration with the movie was not the special effects which were brilliant but rather the way in which the two main characters, Jack and Rose, acted in the movie. It was almost as if the two characters had hopped into a time machine and magically appeared on the deck of the Titanic behaving just as they would have done in our era. Who really would have tolerated the activities of Jack and Rose as they moved about the ship in such a free and easy way? The strict manners of 1912 were not the easy manners of our era. I for one did not shed a tear when Jack went under the water in 1912 as I would have done if he had drowned today (because today he would have been at least a real person of our time). The Jack in this movie is so out of place and time (and Rose is too liberated in her behaviour for that era - really the love scene in the car is a laugh a minute). The real heroes of the Titanic were the crew who sacrificed their lives for the safety of the passengers, the poorer passengers who lost their lives because of the preference given to the rich in allotting spaces on the lifeboats and those men who bravely remained behind to let their wives and children get onto the few lifeboats available. Fictional characters such as Jack and Rose simply created to appeal to a late 20th century audience do these real heroes of 1912 a great disservice. "Titanic" is a movie to see because of its special effects but it is hardly memorable in its presentation of its lead characters.
The Veil (1958)
A series worth a run on public television
"The Veil", a 1950's pilot series introduced by and starring Boris Karloff, concerned itself with ghostly tales and psychic phenomena. Although it was never taken up as a full series by a major network it still was quite entertaining. It is worth watching because of Karloff's own unique acting style and also because of the topics covered. One gets the impression that if it had been given a run then "The Veil" would have developed into a long running series investigating topics so well covered by future shows such as "The Twilight Zone" and "The X Files". It is a short series that a public television company would find useful in running in order to capture for a time a loyal viewing audience interested in ghostly tales or psychic phenomena. One of its best shows was the one about Jack the Ripper which will certainly get its viewers once again reading up books on this topic. A series well worth watching.