iwasthewalrus
Pickering Public Library
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iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Mar 15, 2017
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Jul 25, 2016
White materialWhite material, DVD
DVD - 2011 | FrenchDVD, 2011. Language: French
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Jul 25, 2016
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Jul 25, 2016
BernieBernie, Blu-ray Disc
Blu-ray Disc - 2012Blu-ray Disc, 2012
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Jul 11, 2016
By the SeaBy the Sea, DVD
DVD - 2015DVD, 2015
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Jul 11, 2016
My life as a dogMy life as a dog, DVD
DVD - 2003 | SwedishDVD, 2003. Language: Swedish
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Jul 11, 2016
Damsels in DistressDamsels in Distress, DVD
DVD - 2012DVD, 2012
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Jul 11, 2016
The Osterman WeekendThe Osterman Weekend, DVD
DVD - 2004DVD, 2004
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Jul 11, 2016
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Mar 13, 2016
My Darling ClementineMy Darling Clementine, DVD
DVD - 2014DVD, 2014
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Mar 13, 2016
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Mar 13, 2016
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Mar 13, 2016
Old JoyOld Joy, DVD
DVD - 2007DVD, 2007
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Mar 13, 2016
Invasion of the Body SnatchersInvasion of the Body Snatchers, DVD
DVD - 1978DVD, 1978
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Mar 13, 2016
The TerminatorThe Terminator, DVD
DVD - 2001DVD, 2001
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Mar 13, 2016
FitzcarraldoFitzcarraldo, DVD
DVD - 1999 | GermanDVD, 1999. Language: German
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Mar 13, 2016
Mad MaxMad Max, DVDFury Road
DVD - 2015DVD, 2015
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Mar 13, 2016
On the BeachOn the Beach, DVD
DVD - 2014DVD, 2014
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Mar 13, 2016
Going ClearGoing Clear, DVDScientology and the Prison of Belief
DVD - 2015DVD, 2015
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Mar 13, 2016
The Hateful Eight (DVD)The Hateful Eight (DVD), DVD
DVD - 2016DVD, 2016
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Mar 13, 2016
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Jan 26, 2016
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Sep 02, 2015
IncendiesIncendies, DVD
DVD - 2011 | FrenchDVD, 2011. Language: French
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Sep 02, 2015
Comment:
Following the death of their mother, Simon and Jeanne are gathered for the reading of her last will and testament. It’s there they discover some shocking truths about their mother’s past. Her final wish is for her two children to return to her birthplace and find their father and their long lost brother to deliver a mysterious enveloped letter to each. Jeanne feels inclined to carry out her deceased mother’s request, whereas Simon is rendered bitter and reluctant out of grief. Alone, Jeanne begins to investigate her mother’s past as the film shifts back and forth from the present to flashbacks, slowly unravelling the disturbing secrets her mother left unspoken.
Incendies is a harrowing film, filled with powerful scenes that unflinchingly depict the horrors of war and hatred. A certain scene set on a bus feels almost like a sequence from Schindler’s List , except filmed with the restraint Spielberg can’t understand or handle. Denis Villeneuve is a talented filmmaker, and perhaps the most prominent evidence of this is during the aforementioned bus scene. The passengers have just been fired out by a swarm of machine guns, and the few survivors lie on the ground in silence, looking at the bodies that surround them. Everything is communicated non-verbally, but Villeneuve can tell so much using his actors’ wordless shock.
The ending of the film relies on a major twist which is absolutely unpredictable and undeniably surprising. But just as many of the previous scenes do, the twist relies heavily on a very unlikely coincidence and numerous implausibilities. The ending is completely contrived to the point of absurdity, but personally, it took some time for that fact to settle. When it was first revealed, I was taken aback and astounded. But then I considered it and realized just how poorly written it was. This is a reminder of a common flaw in movies; just because a plot twist is unexpected, by no means makes it good. If it can’t be both believable and effective, it’s useless.
At 130 minutes, the film occasionally feels overlong, but has enough brilliant scenes to re-tighten its grip on the viewer whenever it shifts into slight tedium. A curious device Villeneuve uses, which in the very least makes Incendies more interesting, is the Radiohead motif. A couple tracks from the album “Amnesiac” are played throughout. The choice of music seems somewhat strange at first. The film has a highly realistic feel to it, whereas Radiohead has an almost otherworldly tone. But it ends up giving Incendies a visceral feel, something which it lacked during the less intriguing moments.
It’s a film that thrives on marvelous performance, some very striking and memorable images, and Villeneuve’s ability to direct emotional passages. Yet other aspects are unforgivable. The general sense of realism and truth is marred by an ending with all the logic and likelihood of an M. Night Shyamalan twist.Following the death of their mother, Simon and Jeanne are gathered for the reading of her last will and testament. It’s there they discover some shocking truths about their mother’s past. Her final wish is for her two children to return to her…
Little Big ManLittle Big Man, DVD
DVD - 2003DVD, 2003
iwasthewalrus's rating:
Added Sep 02, 2015
Comment:
One of my problems with the western genre is how Native Americans are generally depicted. There’s an innumerable amount of films set in the Old West where the heroes are attacked by a group of “savage” aboriginals. This was the pervading perspective in Hollywood. Over the years, western movies have become more rare, but also more kind and honest in their depiction of natives. But in 1970, Arthur Penn made Little Big Man, one of the first (if not the original) major motion pictures to not only avoid vilifying aboriginals, but to depict them as heroes. It’s an important film, representing an essential stepping stone in the progression of American cinema.
The film follows a white American boy, Jack Crabb, who’s raised by the Cheyenne natives. He grows to embrace their customs and lifestyle, until he’s accepted as one of them. However, after a brush with death in battle, he’s taken captive by U.S. cavalry officers who force him to abandon his tribe. He’s then placed under the wing of white folk who take pity on him, and try to indoctrinate him into their culture. The results are successful, but short-lived. Crabb discovers the hypocrisy and cruelty in his newfound society, and leaves to rejoin the Cheyenne tribe. Over the years, he fights alongside them and grows older as one of them.
The opening shot in Little Big Man is of Dustin Hoffman. His face is covered in makeup so he can take on the appearance of Crabb as a 121-year-old man. But it’s more than the extensive makeup that’s drenched across his face. His voice and delicate motions fully emulate those of an old man. He proceeds to narrate his story (the overuse of narration becomes somewhat aggravating at points) and we drift back in time to his youth. Hoffman also plays Crabb as a young man, and while there’s hardly a noticeable transformation in those scenes, the actor is still magnificent.
After being taken by the cavalry officers, he’s adopted by Mr. and Mrs. Pendrake, the latter of which is played by Faye Dunaway. She’s a lustful housewife, dissatisfied with her dull life and her husband’s irate disposition. She’s sees her newly adopted son as means of excitement in her life, and tries to seduce him. Being unaccustomed to sexuality, Crabb’s puzzled responses are amusing, as is Mrs. Pendrake persistence and dedication to her cause. Dunaway’s career is filled to the brink with hefty dramatic roles, which makes the display of her comedic ability in Little Big Man somewhat shocking.
But as delightful as Dunaway’s presence is, she’s hardly important to the film. Arthur Penn makes an attempt to stretch out her role by including a scene later in the movie where Crabb returns to visit her. The scene is unnecessary and seems out of character for Crabb. There are a few other segments in the film that have the same lack of purpose, such as a section where our protagonist becomes convinced he’s a mighty gunslinger and parades around cheap saloons in leather, wielding a pistol. Little Big Man could easily be tightened if twenty-five or so minutes were cut out.
It’s the story of a man who (as the tagline reads) “was either the most neglected hero in history or a liar of insane proportion”. But its significance outweighs its craftsmanship. The battle scenes are large in scale but clumsily choreographed. What I took away from Little Big Man was a reminder of Hoffman’s versatility as an actor and a message about the outlandishness of prejudice.One of my problems with the western genre is how Native Americans are generally depicted. There’s an innumerable amount of films set in the Old West where the heroes are attacked by a group of “savage” aboriginals. This was the pervading perspective…
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