December 2013

47 Ronin

/ / Movie Reviews
  • Title: 47 Ronin
  • IMDB: link

47 RoninIt has been said the story of the Forty-seven Ronin is the definitive Japanese tale dealing with themes on honor, revenge, and the code of Bushidō. Although the events described in the tale actually took place, over the years the story has morphed into something between legend and a morality tale, however the new film certainly takes the licence to add a far more fantastic spin on the proceedings.

The crux of the original tale is the centers around the greed and deviousness of Lord Kira (Tadanobu Asano) who uses the strict rules of his land to disgrace the rival lord in the neighboring province. The film’s version increases the level of machination by Kira by several degrees adding the use of a witch (Rinko Kikuchi), poison, mind control, and dark magic to force Lord Asano’s (Min Tanaka) rash actions.

By striking Kira, or in the film making an attempt on his life while under enchantment, Asano’s honor is lost, his lands are given to his rival, and his samurai are exiled from province.

…

47 RoninRead More »

47 Ronin Read More »

The Wolf of Wall Street

/ / Movie Reviews
  • Title: The Wolf of Wall Street
  • IMDB: link

The Wolf of Wall StreetBased on Jordan Belfort‘s own accounts, The Wolf of Wall Street stars Leonardo DiCaprio as an aspiring stockbroker whose discovery of penny stocks, and how they could be used to earn a broker far more profit than an investor, led to his meteoric rise and eventual downfall. Reuniting with DiCaprio and choosing The Sopranos‘ Terence Winter to adapt Belfort’s book, director Martin Scorsese‘s three-hour comedy highlights the absurdity and tragedy of Belfort’s life on Wall Street while making a pretty strong argument for the entire industry’s inherently-flawed nature which only feeds on humanity’s worst impulses.

Three hours is too long for a comedy, any comedy, but I’ll give credit to Winter and Scorsese for producing the funniest movie I saw all year. Part of this is due to the nature of the story and how Scorsese chooses to frame it for maximum effect and part is in the casting. Jonah Hill (as Belfort’s best-friend and partner) and Matthew McConaughey (in the far smaller role of Belfort’s mentor) both provide bizarre, but also often hilarious, moments.

…

The Wolf of Wall StreetRead More »

The Wolf of Wall Street Read More »

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

/ / Movie Reviews
  • Title: The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2010)
  • IMDB: link

The Secret Life of Walter MittyAs was true of the 1947 film starring Danny Kaye, the new version of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty is loosely based on the short story of the same name by James Thurber about an otherwise unexceptional man who daydreams heroic realities rather than deal with the far less exciting truth of his humdrum existence. As with Kaye’s film, the lesson of the film is Walter Mitty (Ben Stiller) finally having a real adventure and learning up to stand-up for himself in the world outside of his imagination.

Set in the final days of Life Magazine‘s print edition, Walter spends most of his time daydreaming about what he’d like to actually say to his ridiculously-bearded new boss (Adam Scott) and a fellow co-worker Cheryl (Kristen Wiig) whom he’s fancied from afar for some time. The loss of the negative for the magazine’s final issue forces Walter out of his comfort zone, with a little prompting from Cheryl (both the real and Walter’s imagined versions), to seek out the photographer (Sean Penn) and find the missing negative.

…

The Secret Life of Walter MittyRead More »

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty Read More »

Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom

/ / Movie Reviews
  • Title: Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom
  • IMDB: link

Mandela: Long Walk to FreedomAdapted by sreeenwriter William Nicholson, Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom is a solid biopic based on the autobiography of Nelson Mandela (Idris Elba). After a brief montage of his life as a child and a glimpse at his role as an attorney in Johannesburg, the film focuses primarily on the events that led to his involvement with the ANC as a leading voice in the fight against apartheid (without getting too specific about his exact role when the organization moved away from nonviolent resistance) and his eventual imprisonment of 27 years for his crimes.

The highlight of the film is the performances, particularly Elba taking on such a daunting role and Naomie Harris as Mandela’s wife Winnie who we see faced several of her own hardships. During the early part of Mandela’s imprisonment the film’s focus momentarily shifts to Winnie’s various battles against the government including her own incarceration. The film introduces the idea of how Nelson and Winnie both react differently to their situations but, as with other aspects of the story, the theme is presented but never fully developed.

…

Mandela: Long Walk to FreedomRead More »

Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom Read More »

Atlantis – White Lies

/ / Television Reviews
  • Title: Atlantis – White Lies
  • wiki: link

Atlantis - White Lies

When a messenger (Daniel Adegboyega) is caught in the palace and mistaken for a thief, Ariadne (Aiysha Hart) learns that the brother she thought she had long lost to treason and death is still alive. However, after some torture and witchcraft, Queen Pasiphae (Sarah Parish) discovers the thief’s true intention to reunite the fallen prince (whose treason she concocted to remove him as an obstacle to her quest for power) with his sister. Knowing she can not allow Ariadne to know the truth behind why Therus (Darwin Shaw) fled the city a decade ago, the witch takes steps to prevent the sibling’s reunion.

…

Atlantis – White LiesRead More »

Atlantis – White Lies Read More »