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Title: The Village
Year: 2004
Plot: An isolated 1800s village lives in an uncomfortable peace with the creatures that surround their woods, with no knowledge of violence or hate, and in fear of the towns beyond the woods. When a violent crime shakes the entire village, a young woman is the only one brave enough to risk entering the woods in the hope of finding medicines to save the life of the man she loves.
Rate: 10/10
My review: Everything you think is real, isn't. The plot is deeply emotional, the acting is excellent, and the old-fashioned feel should please fans of classic films as well as people who enjoy BBC period dramas.
The film is rated PG-13. There's no profanity, sex, or nudity of any kind. There are a few quick images of dead/skinned animals (very discreet), and one off-screen death involving a man falling into a pit. Brief dialogue mentions a violent murder but there are no flashbacks to this event. A main character is stabbed (not fatally); this scene may disturb children but it's not graphic.
Critics and viewers hated it for the most part, no doubt largely due to the fact that it was billed as a horror/thriller/suspense, which it definitely was not. It's a romance, a quiet, innocent one at that, with beautiful slow filming and a haunting final twist. It's my favorite film ever and I highly recommend it.
 
inkspot said:
Wow, thanks for the review! I thought it was a horror film/thriller, too.
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I thinks it's really a shame it was presented that way. That turned off the people who would have gone to see a romance/period drama and disliked horror, and horror/thriller fans were angry because they didn't get what they were expecting. It's really a gorgeous film and it's so wrong that it wasn't better represented in theatres.
 
Title: The Mists Of Avalon
Year: 2001
Plot: This miniseries adaptation of Arthurian legend focuses on the women - his mother, wife, and sister - behind Arthur's destiny.
Rate: 9.5/10
My review: All adult content is handled discreetly. Teens and up should be ok; younger children might need a parent with a fast-forward button. ;)
There's no profanity but a couple references are made to an illegitimate child (as fact instead of insult). There are two sex scenes, neither with obvious nudity and both from legend and necessary to the plot. The character, Mordred, is the child of incest between Arthur and his half sister (neither were aware who the other was). Due to the fact that it's based on ancient legends, themes include adultery and religious rituals, and an evil character attempts to kill a rival for the throne by exposure but the child is rescued. Violence is limited to a final confrontation and following battle in which four main characters die (all stabbed), a non-fatal injury with a crossbow (a few knights are implied to have been killed in the same attack), and a brief image of a hanged man. Morality is black and white - all evil actions are punished in the end.
A near-perfect, beautiful adaptation of the stories. The acting and direction are gorgeous and the miniseries' long length means the plot is more complex and detailed than most adaptations. Recommended for fans of Arthurian legend, Celtic history, and middle ages dramas.
 
inkspot said:
Is anyone going to see "Rock of Ages"? I grew up with the 80's music, so I would love to hear that and see the dancing, which I am sure will be great. But the story line sounds offensive, and Plugged In Movie Review said it was the raunchiest/nastiest PG13 movie ever. So, I probably will not go. Too bad they could not do the music without having an anti-Christian message and a lot of sex. :( But if you see it, post your review here. Thanks!
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It made it with a PG-13 rating? Shocking. From what I know, I was positive it'd receive an R. No interest in seeing it though.
 
Two in a day! WHOOOOOO

Movie: Super 8 (2011)
Storyline: During the summer of 1979, while making a zombie movie, a group of friends witness a train crash and investigate subsequent unexplained tragic and mysterious events in their small town.
Positive Elements: Characters. That is this movies STRONGEST element by far. With the close to 100 "bad words" be warned. Yes, bad words are bad words, but in a group like this, this is exactly how it would be, each character is played out so well, not too much, but just enough that you know all the characters VERY well by the end. Next I'd say effects and filming (Directing, Lighting, Camera Angles, CGI etc.) is this movie's next strongest link. I was constantly surprised by how REAL the explosions and, at one point, floating metal objects looked. Really? Past there, every thing was GREAT. to me, Characters and Filming and Effects get 150%. This movie exceeded usual standards. Everything else, above 90%
Negative Elements: The only reason I would say some things got 90% was because there was a hint of cheesy lines and bad acting. JUST a hint.
Summary: This movie is AMAZING. I would not suggest to everyone though. I think you should at least have to be past 10 (at least) to see this. But past 10, I would suggest this to just about ANYONE. 10-10 Amazing. I came away from this movie wanting to watch it again.
 
Thanks for the reviews.

I had watched the beginning of Mists of Avalon when it first ran on TV -- our girls were younger, and they got bored, so we never watched the rest of it. Maybe I will get it on DVD. I loved the novel -- although it is quite anti-Christian and pro-Pagan in many ways. Stil very well-told version of the Arthur story, from the pov of the women involved.
 
That Touch of Mink (1962)

Starring: Cary Grant and Doris Day

Rating: 6/10

Summary: Cathy Timberlake is an old fashioned country girl who meets the man of her dreams, Philip Shayne, after his Rolls Royce splashes her with mud on her way to a job interview. Philip is a romantic businessman who is taken by Cathy's honest heart. There's one problem, he's not interested in marriage while Cathy has never thought of anything else. (from IMDB.com; in addition from me: Philip is only interested in a casual relationship, or i.e. sex, while Cathy is not really for it, however, I'm going to address that in my review).

Review:
Boring. Unfunny. Cary Grant was monotone, uninteresting, and aloof. This was the first movie starring Cary Grant that I'd seen...and I was not impressed by him. Oh sure, he was good looking, but his acting ability was really sub-par. The movie seemed to drag, and I had a hard time paying close attention to anything. The last 10 minutes were kind of funny, but this was a Doris Day film I don't plan on seeing again. While Cathy is not necessarily for having sex with Philip outside of marriage, she doesn't turn down an offer to go to bermuda with him. Alone. In the same hotel/hotel room. Cathy never allows Philip to influence her to sleep with him, but they come pretty close to it. One thing that bothered me about the film is that, while Cathy clearly wasn't comfortable with the idea of having sex outside of marriage, she also had no qualms about going on an island trip with a man she had just met.
 
Movie: [Rec] ²

Storyline: The action continues from [Rec] (2007), with the medical officer and a SWAT team outfitted with video cameras are sent into the sealed off apartment to control the situation

Review: A must see movie for fans of Spanish movies and sci fi.
 
The Legend of Hell's Gate: An American Conspiracy (2011)

Starring: nobody I know, out of Michael Spears, Eddie Spears, and Zahn McClarnon. Even that's not very noteworthy, because they show up in the last 30 minutes and only are on screen for about 15.

Synopsis: Surrounded by whisky-fueled outlaws and a treacherous wilderness, how is one to survive? Based on real events, this Texas based tale uncovers the mystery of the events surrounding the legendary Hell's Gate, a cliff formation that rises out of Possum Kingdom Lake in Texas. When a curious errand boy catches wind of one of America's most infamous crimes, he falls in with two desperate men on the wrong side of the law. Crossing paths with some of the West's most notorious figures, these three outlaws fight for their lives in the pursuit of fame and riches. Few are to be trusted, as their interwoven stories prove that everyone has a hidden agenda, and by no means is anyone innocent. Fueled by a talented ensemble cast THE LEGEND OF HELL'S GATE blends legend and history into a Western spectacle that recounts the treacherous existence in post Civil War Texas (imdb.com)

Rating: 2/10

Review:
Waste of 2 hours. Granted, some of the cast may have been talented, but the female leads? Didn't see it. The story? Choppy, hard to follow, and hard to understand. It didn't help that the only subtitles available were in Spanish, and I don't speak Spanish. It drives me CRAZY when movies like this don't feature English subtitles because the dialogue was kind of hard to understand. I only watched this movie because a) I lived in the area the movie was set in, and b) it starred (or so I thought) Michael and Eddie Spears, who I am a big fan of! Big disappointment in the latter area, though, since they only showed up during the last 30 minutes, and weren't really featured for that period of time. Also, Eddie never spoke. That aggravated me. I'm not trying to pick on him, but I feel as if he's had way too many roles in which he plays the strong, silent, angry Indian type. Not a fan of that. Apparently, the character of Quanah Parker showed up in this film...but I never saw him. The thing that aggravates me about any film 'featuring' Quanah Parker hardly ever draws attention to the man! I mean, he was probably the greatest Comanche chief to ever live, who was not only a great leader and warrior of his people, he was also an educated diplomat who rubbed elbows with President Teddy Roosevelt! Gah!

I don't recommend this movie to anybody. One positive thing: it's surprisingly clean for a Western. It said there would be partial nudity, but the 'partial nudity' was barely even there. But if you're looking for a good quality Western: this ain't it.
 
I might also add that the added element of the John St. Helens/John Wilkes Booth bit was poorly written and carried out (though the whole movie is supposedly based on true events that led to that cliff formation being named Hell's Gate). But Tanner Beard, the main character, writer, and director of the film, pulled off a very convincing Irish accent.

I'm going to watch the movie again this weekend to make sure my first opinion is the final one...but I imagine it is.
 
I went into 'Snow White' with the impression that I was in for a visually excellent , but subpar story film.
I was wrong.
But , only partly.
Snow White, IS visually impressive, fully realizing the world she lives in (names and the original tale suggest Germany, but the film is set in a strange mix of German and celtic. Celtic knots are part of regular decor, and for being a costal kingdom, the place seems better set in England or Ireland than on the Northern sea). The story, itself does a commendable job amblifiying the classic Grimm's tale into an Epic fantasy tale. It also takes it's character strength's from the original's emotional underlines and themes of Maternial connection, vanity, purity, among other things. The creators of this film were certainly inspired, especially by the LOTR trilogy and the Narnia films. Sometimes this is a bit too obvious, Snow White's theme sounds like a crippled arrangement of portions of 'High Kings and Queens' , the Narnian franchise theme. The Drawfs also seem to smack of Tolkien,and Snow White's escape from the castle feels similar to Prince Caspian's escape in the begining of Narnia 2. Snow White's meeting with the White Stag was built up the same way the Narnia franchise does the apperance of Aslan, as noted by my sister, who isn't familar with the White Stag's symbolic history.
Speaking of Narnia, it was surprising how many alligories or possible alligories one can find in the film. I have no idea if their intentional or mearly due similar themes to Christian stories and vitrues. Snow White is protrayed as completely pure, and an innocent. The film seems to subtly imply this by having Snow recite the Lord's prayer in captivity (noticably ommiting 'for thine is the kingdom, the power and the Glory', but that may be to a screenwriter's own religious traditions), and indeed the girl comes across as sort of a Messiah to the opressed and hopeless of her kingdom. Her presence heals several, and she has a resurection and speaks of seeing the light. Snow White leads her people against her Step Mother, who herself is a wonderfully fasinating and empithetic creature. She's scarred, cursed by a spell, but her own vanity and lack of love, kindness and other Christian virtues posion her and those around her as well as her kingdom (noteable she's the only throneholder not crowned by a man of God in this film). She's the perfect devil character if I ever knew one, her quest to crush Snow White drives her to her own death. The film also shows that those following Snow also are the underdogs, many dying but all striving toward the hope and goals that Snow White represents. Lastly, during the credit montage we see several detailed close ups of several shots, a unadentified Knight from Snow White's side (possibly the girl herself) slaying knights of the enemy, a crow's wings and interestingly a red curtain being torn in half, reminding this viewer of a similar incident in the Temple of David after Christ's death. The end credit song also makes several illusions to wanting a Heavenly breath of Life in attempt to rise to see the Sun (Son?).

All that gushing doesn't stop a few flaws from coming through the cracks, the romance that's implied between the Huntsman and Snow is dead from the start, and while it never really bothered me, it comes into the plot later , and the lack of chemistry doesn't give the plot point the power it should. Also, the end scene is strangely silent and long, the Huntsman narriates the begining of the film, making me think Universal intended to have a Narrated ending. I wish they had done so, as the scene seems to just hang there, with the background sounds muffled before the film closes.
all together though, the film WILL be joining my Blu-ray collection. Beat that 'Brave'.
 
Monsters, Inc.

I'm not sure why really, but this film gave me the creeps when I was a kid, and the first time I watched it with a friend, I immediately turned it off within the first five minutes. I hadn't even tried to watch it since then. So, I saw it for the very first time last night, and I was impressed. Okay, maybe the whole 'city running on children's scream' part is a little disturbing, but the plot? Typical Pixar: well done. Billy Crystal (not a fan of him in anything) was hilarious as Mike, and they picked the best actor for that part. I thought it was creative for doing a film about monsters in the closet; I mean, how original is that?

This review is rather short, but I plan on watching the movie again this weekend during a study break. I really enjoyed the film, but give it a 7/10 since it's not one of my favorite Pixar movies.
 
SoA, thank you for the review of Snow White, I am impressed. Maybe I will go see it. I had been thinking I would skip it, but your review interests me.

AK, I loved Monsters when I saw it with the step-girls, when they were younger. I thought it was cute and funny and sweet. Glad you rediscovered it!
 
inkspot said:
SoA, thank you for the review of Snow White, I am impressed. Maybe I will go see it. I had been thinking I would skip it, but your review interests me.

AK, I loved Monsters when I saw it with the step-girls, when they were younger. I thought it was cute and funny and sweet. Glad you rediscovered it!
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It was cute, and I really thought Pixar put a lot of emotion into the plot (Particularly the last few minutes) that is typical of their films.

As for Snow White, it's not even 50% fresh on RottenTomatoes...which leads me to believe it's not worth watching. I mean, it has Kristen Stewart in it. That alone is enough to warrant a below-fresh rating. Personally, I was disturbed enough by the previews to stay away from the movie, considering it's rather dark and grim. Not even getting the dvd for 'free' from netflix would ever entice me to watch it.

From RottenTomatoes: "While it offers an appropriately dark take on the fairy tale that inspired it, Snow White and the Huntsman is undone by uneven acting, problematic pacing, and a confused script." Yeah. Anything done by Kristen Stewart can be construed as uneven acting. :rolleyes: And I've heard that Hemsworth's character mumbled and spent the majority of the film drunk as a skunk.
 
"Salt" 2010

Title: Salt


Storyline/plot: 7-10. At times, this plot was AMAZING! It brings forth a Russian-spy-group-trying-to-destroy-America plot, and I thought that was amazing, because of how realistic the plot seemed to be! There were parts I did not like, like for example, the nonstop confusion about who is on who's side, and who got killed, etc. I also wasn't 100% happy with how it ended

Acting: 10-10 I haven't seen Angelina Jolie in anything until this, but she did a PHENOMENAL job, as well as the rest of the cast!

Filming: 9-10. Better-Than-Average, not over the top or perfect though.

Special Effects/Animation: 9-10. A couple of scenes, like the elevator scene, just LOOKED fake. Other then that, I loved it! The explosions were awesome


Summary: My overall rating? 8-10 I felt like it had a strong storyline, characters, and actors, but went a TAD too far, and ended up being WAY too over-the-top, so that, by the end, it came to an abrupt awkward ending.
 
Brave

I have been watching Pixar movies for almost my entire life, and I've never come away from one feeling disappointed. However, some left me feeling far more impressed than others. Brave definitely did not let me down, but it didn't blow me away like Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, or Wall-E did. Although it stood out as superior to most family-oriented films, it still didn't have that WOW factor I was looking for.

Some elements that Brave really succeeded in were the setting, animation/visual effects, and historical accuracy. I was surprised by the attention to detail in all of these areas. I give the filmmakers a lot of credit for not being sloppy in their research and execution - they really made the Scottish atmosphere come to life. On the other hand... these were the things that held my attention in the film, and not the storyline. The plot wasn't awful, but it lacked the complexity and imagination of previous Disney/Pixar films. It was a little abnormal in that it seemed straightforward, but the messages it was trying to convey were convoluted.

It was clear from the beginning that bravery was a central theme. However, as the story progressed, more complex messages came to light. The friction between Merida's independence and her mother's allegiance to tradition appeared to be resolved in the end, but it was unclear what exactly the "lesson" or compromise was. The ultimate reconciliation within the family was emotionally poignant, but it seemed to happen out of nowhere; I wasn't quite sure HOW they arrived at that resolution.

Overall, though, this movie was worth seeing. The lack of a romantic element made it fresh and interesting and helped place focus on the familial relationships. I would recommend it to anyone, although I think mothers and daughters will find it especially relatable. I'd give it an 8/10.
 
Aravis Kenobi said:
It was cute, and I really thought Pixar put a lot of emotion into the plot (Particularly the last few minutes) that is typical of their films.

As for Snow White, it's not even 50% fresh on RottenTomatoes...which leads me to believe it's not worth watching. I mean, it has Kristen Stewart in it. That alone is enough to warrant a below-fresh rating. Personally, I was disturbed enough by the previews to stay away from the movie, considering it's rather dark and grim. Not even getting the dvd for 'free' from netflix would ever entice me to watch it.

From RottenTomatoes: "While it offers an appropriately dark take on the fairy tale that inspired it, Snow White and the Huntsman is undone by uneven acting, problematic pacing, and a confused script." Yeah. Anything done by Kristen Stewart can be construed as uneven acting. :rolleyes: And I've heard that Hemsworth's character mumbled and spent the majority of the film drunk as a skunk.
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Snow White isn't as dark as it seems, It's probably in line with the LOTR films, with the exception of a short scene early on it in the film where the queen eats a heart out of a dead bird (YECK!). Kristen did better than I expected, and any fault with her performance would seem rooted in the script. It's not perfect but it's very enjoyable, and shockingly takes note and influence from Narnia and LOTR. :D I think it was well worth the 15 bucks.

Inkspot, I think the film is well worth the look. It does respect Grimm's gothic tone, and Christian viewpoint while presenting a very interesting plot, even if said plot isn't as quite polished as it should be.
 
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