Operatic There’s a scene in this that will be a feature of film school classes for a long time to come. Nicole is an uneven actress, only sometimes rising to the world class of Kate and Cate and the young Julianne. The smallest part of this is the process of inhabiting a character, rare enough… Continue reading Birth (2004)
Tag: 2000s
Films released in the 2000s
Billy Elliott (2000)
Battle Dancer This is a replacement comment. Though the dance was passable here, the story is so vapid and unembellished, I sat there looking for another movie. And I found one, battling to get out. It was clever and true, overlooked because of the mediocrity placed in front of it. You can find the tragedy… Continue reading Billy Elliott (2000)
The New World (2005)
Matoaka’s Miranda (This comment was deleted by IMDb based on an abuse report filed by another user, because of some perceived religious slight.) Malick’s method is to frame films as remembrances. Remembrances of romantic notions, whether freedom, peace, war or love (as his four films trace). This way, he can exploit a languorous floating through… Continue reading The New World (2005)
Kung Fu Hustle (2004)
Comedic Self-reference You can read from others about the basic nature of this, and how widely it is admired and enjoyed. I myself admire and enjoy it. It is a movie about movies. Its something between a “Scary Movie” style parody and a “Charlie’s Angel’s” … What’s called an homage but is really more of… Continue reading Kung Fu Hustle (2004)
Cheeky (2000)
Nonchalant Openness Some films are simply about the appeal of one character. That’s all that matters. There seem to be two types: those that depend on the charm of attractive women, and those that have to work some other engagement. Often that’s the acting challenge. I’m thinking in particular of Audrey Hepburn and “Funny Face.”… Continue reading Cheeky (2000)
Beyond the Sea (2004)
Keyser’s Desire Like it or not, watching film is an accretive process: each film provides a context and more for the next. One of those threads of continuity is the unfortunate fact that we see the same faces in many presumably different roles, as if there weren’t as many talented actors as there are roles.… Continue reading Beyond the Sea (2004)
Bewitched (2005)
Tricky Folded narrative is all the rage among Hollywood writers now. And the Ephrons are hip, so they go along and here we have a simply folded story. Simple folding, the kind anyone can do, is based on the simple device of a show within the show, and then some simple tricks to blend the… Continue reading Bewitched (2005)
Behind the Green Door (1972)
Taxi Driver’s Eyes Wide No history of film can evade porn. Some of it contains some clever ideas and every once in a while it actually influenced something. That’s the case with this. Schrader has explicitly said that this influenced his “Taxi Driver” in the notion of someone driving around and creating a whole imagined… Continue reading Behind the Green Door (1972)
Being Mick (2001)
Walking Trousers I have such a long list of films to watch that there is often a long lag between the time it appears on the list and the actual watching. Then, part of the fun is figuring out why I was so excited about getting it. My watching during this hour was largely occupied… Continue reading Being Mick (2001)
Being Julia (2004)
Unaware This is a well made movie. Such things are rare, and when they come around, we celebrate them. Many extend this celebration to Bening, who is similarly competent. But something is ajar. The project is based on a familiar device: we see a film (really a play) which has a character who is an… Continue reading Being Julia (2004)