trut Reviews

Apocalypto (2006)

Interesting visuals, fairly simple story

[6/10 · 20 January 2007]

In story, a fairly simple capture-escape-chase movie which is enjoyable to watch for its interesting cinematography alone; I understand that much of it was shot on video, not film, to interesting effect.

This is not the most sophisticated story ever. Fairly basic in plot - lots of running through the forest and being chased - though it seemed to end at the right moment. Interesting take on Mayan civilisation from within. See it in the cinema for its interesting photography. Be prepared for subtitles.

One minor sub-plot involving a 'prophecy' slightly annoyed me - it seemed too supernatural for the story. However, it did not detract too much from the impressive photography and scenery.

The Girl in the Café (2005 TV Movie)

Very touching, with only a slight disappointment

[8/10 · 22 October 2005]

This story is a very caring depiction of a man so crippled with shyness that he has great difficulty meeting women and relating to them. Bill Nighy skilfully and believably externalises the internal frustrations and anxieties of his character. We feel his awkwardness when he meets a woman in a café and we are joyed at each instance in which he is able to overcome his fears.

The story quickly takes a turn into tense, edge-of-seat suspense, triggered by a series of uncomfortable events.

Where this movie fails, I feel, is that it loses its focus two thirds of the way through the story, deviating too far from the story of a shy man and his beautiful romance that was established earlier.

Blue Velvet (1986)

The 'dream world' of Lumberton.

[5 June 2004]

Blue Velvet is certainly not an 'optimistic' film -- much of the film is a dream - a fabrication.

Lynch is very fond of presenting two separate worlds in each of his movies. One world is the 'dark' world, which represents reality. The other is the 'light' world, which represents a dream. In Blue Velvet, the dream world is a fabrication dreamed up by the entire community of Lumberton. In other films, such as Mulholland Drive for example, the dream world is the delusion of just one person.

The dream world in Blue Velvet is characteristically 'improbable'. Its innocence, and its blind optimism, are almost too much for us to believe, and at times are embarassingly naive. The opening shots of red fire engines, yellow tulips and blue skies are trite, and present an impossibly clean, innocent world. Sandy's speech about her dream and the accompanying diegetic organ music is bizarrely improbable; the situation is almost child-like in its denial of reality and positive outlook on life. The final and most complete improbability is the robin--it looks as fake as the dream world 'feels'.

In reality, the world of Frank and of violence, corruption, excitement and arousal continue to exist despite the end of Frank himself; it was purely by chance that Jeffrey even uncovered this world. There are countless other Franks and countless other things that are bizarre.

* Spoilers *

The ending of Blue Velvet serves not to restore peace to the world, or to reassure us that the world is once again an ideal, perfect place to live. Instead, its hackneyed dialogue and embarrassing naivity and cuteness remind us of the repression that the people of Lumberton are taking part in; they are once more in denial of the uncomfortable feelings, the violence, the sex that occurs in secret all of the time. Jeffrey himself is too uncomfortable with his feelings for Dorothy that he represses them, and lives a dream life with his improbably innocent and child-like Sandy.

I see Blue Velvet as a celebration of uncertainly and of the bizarre. David Lynch expertly forces us to take part in emotions that make us uncomfortable. In watching Blue Velvet, we feel uncomfortable at the sexual desire we feel toward Dorothy. We feel uncomfortable when we enjoy watching the antics of Frank or Ben. Lynch also forces us to consider uncomfortable thoughts using ambiguity: we wonder if the yellow man really is dead. Is he dead? It is a very unpleasant thought, and one we really would rather repress. We wonder if Jeffrey really did want to hit Dorothy. He did, but he would rather not admit it to himself. We wonder if Frank really loves Dorothy. He does, but it's not something we are comfortable with, because we see that Frank is very violent to her. Lynch plays with our disbelief. Are those firemen waving to us because they're happy, or are they pretending to be happy because they would rather not think uncomfortable thoughts. Does the robin look fake because Jeffrey and Sandy's happy life together is ultimately a false reality? The world cannot possibly be full of love for ever more--we know that there are still unpleasant things in the world.

Very interesting.

8 Mile (2002)

Enjoyable movie let down by story

[19 January 2003]

I found "8 Mile" thoroughly enjoying, however it wasn't the best movie I've ever seen. I don't think the story was original well structured or had a decent ending. I also found that a lot of it seemed to consist of hackneyed "large group of extras cheering and snarling" shots, while many of the scenes were of the "gang meets gang and they get angry" variety.

Eminem's performance was very good. I was disappointed that Brittany Murphy had such a small insignificant role, given the way the movie was advertised.

Kim Basinger was also good, although there were a couple of moments where I found her accent not convincing enough (it wasn't THAT bad).

The movie was well shot and the sound was done well. I liked the handheld, sweeping feel and the dirty, brown PD and cinematography was quite suitable to the setting (Detroit). It reminded me a bit of "Ali". As I've mentioned, the acting was good (I would go so far as to say some of it, including from Eminem, was excellent). Dialogue was good - and not just in the rapping.

The humour was good. I found myself laughing, however most of this was at Eminem (rabbit)'s words in the finale.

The only thing that I think caused a number of problems was the story. With a more original, more structured story, with better conflict and resolution, and cause and effect, the movie could have been better.

The characters in the group were not well developed and were based on trite stereotypes - the white, stupid guy provided comic relief (as does the fat guy), the taller intelligent guy with glasses spent the movie saying things that were supposedly 'intellectual', and so on. The characters in the rival gang 'free world' seemed to be even more devoid of personality.

However, the good direction, art, sound and technical quite an enjoyable movie. Utimately a good movie that has been let down by what is, in my humble opinion, a weak screenplay.

I won't see it again in cinemas. Maybe I'll get it on DVD one day.

A Kiss Goodnight (1994 TV Movie)

Like Fatal Attraction, but bad

[3/10 · 3 November 2002]

I think 'A Kiss Goodnight' suffers mostly from a poorly written screenplay. I found myself frustrated as the protagonists made one unrealistically bad decision after another, throughout the entire movie. Unfortunately there's no way we can identify with characters who make so many stupid choices. Many of the plot points do not seem to be well thought out and require some suspensions of disbelief that are just beyond me. The cops' attitudes were not believable, and our main character's behaviour was disappointingly predictable given the situation she was in.

The acting was quite good, and the concept, while not entirely original, nevertheless exciting. However, what frustrated me to tears was the unrealistic decisions made by the characters. A few more careful script revisions could have solved many of the problems before production started. 3 out of 10.

Mulholland Drive (2001)

Amazing

[9/10 · 13 July 2002]

I bought and watched the DVD of this movie for the first time recently and was shocked and amazed.

I am a major fan of David Lynch films, and yet Mulholland Drive managed to catch me off guard and present me with a truly terrifying, cynical and quirky masterpiece containing some brilliant moments.

Naomi Watts was outstanding. I barely recognised her from her soap opera career here in Australia. She truly gave an amazing performance and showed a very wide scope and variety. Her brilliant performance made at least one outstanding and memorable scene.

There are some truly beautiful moments in this movie. There are also some delightfully quirky events, enveloped by an undertone of terror. I found myself on the edge of my seat the entire time, wondering what was going to happen next, how long it would take, and how creepy it would be.

The usual David Lynch signatures make their appearance: the room with red curtains, the stage, the mysterious and bizarre characters, the transformation of characters, and the slow, drawn out pacing. I found that it heavily references Lynch's previous works, such as Lost Highway (1997), which also features Los Angeles and the road named Mulholland Drive. I really cannot give away anything else. The movie makes an abrupt transition half way through and I still don't know what is going on.

Certainly I have not pieced together the plot yet - I have been told it takes multiple viewings to do so. I look forward to it.

The bad points? There were just two moments of the film where I sat back and thought "that's been done before."

The movie is very long and tense. Clear your mind before you see this. Also, make sure you don't watch this movie with somebody who has seen it before. 9 out of 10.

The Hamster Factor and Other Tales of Twelve Monkeys (1996 Video)

Interesting and intelligent documentary

[8 June 2002]

This documentary is included in full on the DVD of Twelve Monkeys that I have.

It documents the difficulties encountered in trying to make a relatively un-Hollywood movie inside of the Hollywood system. It tells the story of how Twelve Monkeys got to be made under exceptional circumstances, and is very effective at conveying the frustrations and problems encountered in dealing with the various collaborators.

Nevertheless, it remains light-hearted and candid, and is presented in the true off-beat style of Terry Gilliam. It also gives us a fascinating look at Terry Gilliam's unique style of filmmaking.

Very interesting.

Eraserhead (1977)

Interesting

[7 June 2002]

Lots of the reviews of Eraserhead are vastly different from each other, both reviews from users on imdb, and from movie critics of today and of 1977.

For example, many critics describe Eraserhead as a "horror" movie, while some reviewers strongly insist that this is a misinterpretation of the movie.

I think that a lot of the negative feelings about Eraserhead come about because of preconceived ideas that people have had. For example, some people have the idea that everything in the film is from the viewpoint of Henry.

In my opinion, and only an opinion, this is a one-sided way of analysing the film. Such a reading would explain that the film's imagery is the hallucinations of a mentally abnormal person. This would be disappointing, because it would destroy the idea of the 'world' in which Henry lives.

I see Henry as a character living in a particular world, the world which is the movie and in which the movie takes place. Henry is mostly passive - we see the world he lives in, and what happens to him, but he doesn't actually get much done. Henry does some things that we don't understand, and his reactions to things are sometimes unexplained. It is all part of the movie, and part of the world in which Eraserhead takes place.

Not everything in this world relates in an expected way, or a way that would be possible in our world. I think that David Lynch loves to do this and does it very interestingly. It is not just in this movie in which a world is created that doesn't quite fit together. Some things are familiar, yet behave in unfamiliar ways. Some things are extremely bizarre. This seems to be something that Henry has accepted as a result of the world he lives in.

I think that if a person reads all of the unexplained events and images as being in the mind of Henry, they end up trying to figure out what is happening in reality - separating this 'reality' from the events that are supposedly 'imaginary'. This may lead to the idea that all of the 'imagined' events are due to an explained mental condition, and are all a result of unexplained things that are happening in the 'real' world (these being the 'story'). Nothing, of course, is explained, and thus a lot of people who see the film in this way complain that none of the 'story' makes sense.

The idea that Eraserhead is a world in itself, where normal rules don't apply, I think allows for a more 'free' viewing of the film. We can see the images of the film and experience them in our own way, and we aren't limited to thinking that they must somehow explain "Henry's condition" or "what's really happening". It is hard to explain how this affects me and it probably affects everybody differently.

My opinion of the film? I enjoy the film. I think the sound design is particularly interesting. I really like a lot of the moments in the film.

The Majestic (2001)

Enjoyable story. Some good parts.

[2 June 2002]

After "Shawshank" and "Green Mile" my expectations were high. I must say that I was impressed by the movie. If found the first two acts most enjoyable. The third act (the ending) I found a little bit hackneyed yet implausible. If you have seen it then you may know what I mean where I claim there is too much clapping and cheering.

I enjoyed most the middle part of the movie. Seeing Jim Carrey adapt to the life thrust upon him was great. A mystery develops and that mystery is: what is the true identity of the Jim Carrey character? Some genuinely good moments.

The Birds (1963)

Refreshingly creepy

[15 May 2002]

There's something about birds in general that is just unpleasant. The beaks, the flapping wings, the claws and dirty feathers. I've always found birds to be a little bit unnerving and that's why I found Hitchcock's "The Birds" to be refreshingly creepy.

Surprisingly, the effects (the birds) were remarkably realistic and effective. The number of birds alone was uncanny. There appeared to be thousands of them. Certainly this excessive number of birds added to the horror of the film.

The performances of the actors were very straightforward, and the story contained a number of bizarre story points or red herrings. Hitchcock has used a large number of devices to surprise the audience just one more time, and keep us expecting more. For this reason, I highly recommend watching this film more than once.

Raising the Mammoth (2000 TV Movie)

Fascinating

[21 March 2002]

Rarely do I find the time these days to watch a nature documentary but one day, I accidentally found myself hooked on this one.

Of course, I am fascinated by the idea that a perfect specimen of an extinct species has been found, preserved in hard, heavy permafrost of northern Siberia. A small team of men, with help from the local nomadic people, dug it out in between storms and lifted it, encased in the concrete-like ice, by helicopter.

See the mammoth. 4 out of 5.

Snatch (2000)

The hilarious fast-paced followup to the Smoking Barrels

[9/10 · 29 April 2001]

That's right. While the film serves as a great compliment to Lock Stock, it is by no means a remake.

This is Snatch, the fastest, funniest hoot I've had in a great long time. The film has some fantastic edge to it with strong performances from Alan Ford, Vinnie Jones (wow), and of course Brad Pitt.

The first 40 minutes of this film is so overwhelmingly fast-paced, you rarely get a break from laughing. A large number of intertwined stories eventually link up, following the path of a BIG stolen diamond, and an illegal boxing manager.

See it.

Boiler Room (2000)

Impressive

[9/10 · 29 October 2000]

A very impressive and gripping film. It was fast-paced and tense, and very technical. It definitely requires complete attention from the audience. It had strong emotional moments between Seth (Ribisi) and his father, and to some people this may have seemed to drag in pace, but I interpreted the father-son relationship to be a crucial and driving force to the narrative. This was especially emphasised later by a series of "what if" sequences.

Watch the film but only if you are prepared to concentrate. The energy of the film is very impressive in parts.

Seth's moral dilemma is put into direct competition with his desire to get a decent job and earn respect from his father when he is inadvertently thrust into a fast moving career of frantic trading and mega money.

Houseboat Horror (1989 Video)

Poor

[1/10 · 26 October 2000]

It is very unfortunate when a movie such as this is made. A great deal of work and money has been put into a film that is amateur at best.

The editing drags on, there are obvious mistakes that could have been corrected easily in a second take, and the soundtrack is unimaginative. So much more could have been done with this video movie. I guess they ran out of time, or videotape.

Hand-held shots have a distinct amateur feel to them.

Above the Law (2000)

Tedious and without talent.

[6 June 2000]

The style of this television series is tedious. Lines are delivered in a flat manner by untalented actors, reaction shots prevent us from knowing who is talking at any given time, and poor timing and pace makes it extremely boring and tedious. No wonder is was an instant flop and quickly went to late night television. The opening title sequence is alright, though.

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)

Ford and Connery: A winning combination

[10/10 · 5 June 2000]

It's quite true. They don't make movies like this anymore. It would be impossible. The combination of Sean Connery and Harrison Ford just worked. These are two very talented, established and expensive actors and they were at the time it was made, too. Only George Lucas could afford this kind of talent, and perhaps it was the best way Lucasfilm have ever spent their money. If only they could have remembered how to produce a good movie when they made the expensive but disappointing The Phantom Menace, recently. Perhaps it was just luck. The chemistry between Connery and Ford was a jackpot. It is a classic movie and it has been one of my favorites for years.

Mission: Impossible II (2000)

Well executed action film. It certainly was impossible.

[8/10 · 3 June 2000]

I think that this movie achieves what it has set out to achieve. After all, the heroes are supposed to do things that look impossible. The stunts are supposed to be over the top. And they were.

John Woo lends an experienced hand to direct this action movie, providing an alternative to the expected. Some scenes, such as the "white dove and fire" shot, may have seemed a little hackneyed, seemingly irrelevant in a film with little other symbolism. Tom Cruise's rock-climbing and motorcycle-riding was nothing short of amazing, and the stunts in general were extremely far-fetched - brilliant.

The Interview (1998)

Tense, psychological thriller with paranoid twists

[9/10 · 25 May 2000]

You wouldn't think that a film could be shot almost entirely in a single bare room and still be interesting.

But Hugo Weaving and Tony Martin deliver an intense performance in this claustrophobic, paranoid thriller which draws you in the entire film with the unbelievable twists and changes and leaves you stunned afterwards.

Hugo Weaving gives a relentlessly chilling performance as a suspected murderer, his character showing us brief glimpses of both pure evil and naive innocence at once. Tony Martin, from the chilling television series "Wildside", reprises his frustrated detective role and leaves us begging for the truth as we become more and more frustrated with the inconsistencies in Hugo Weaving's story.

The film must be seen.

Looking for Alibrandi (2000)

Somewhat disappointing

[4/10 · 24 May 2000]

I was looking forward to viewing this promising new Australian movie, yet I was disappointed at its lack of depth of emotion, and film style.

The story, once a novel, is well written and warming, and the father-daughter relationship is quite touching, yet I felt that some of the strongest emotions were only lightly dismissed.

The film is visually quite colourful, and has a slight Australian teen soap feel to it.

I recommend that you see this film, if only once, for the story at least.