cal_007 Reviews

Thesis (1996)

Could've been a classic

[5 July 2002]

**SPOILERS** Most directors would kill for a first full-length effort like Amenabar delivered with "Tesis"- well paced, well shot, and well acted. The movie has a deliberate tone and interesting story without getting bogged down and confused like the miserable "8mm", a movie that on the surface deals with a similar theme.

One fatal mistake though, and one that burns me personally in movies where you really have a vested interest in characters that have been well developed for over an hour, is when they suddenly become idiots.

(Spoilers) The heroine finds the corpse of her professor in a classroom and does not report it to anyone, for no apparent reason. Later, she is tied up, two seconds from being killed in front of a recording video camera, and is saved by a friend who kills the perpetrator in self defense- in front of the video camera while it is still rolling. They don't go to the police. Her savior seems to think that both their testimonies, along with a full video tape of what really happened, won't swing with the cops. From that point on, the movie took a nose dive for me- I had it at a solid 8 out of 10 but ended up giving it a 6, with a big grumpy guy 'Harumph'.

Topkapi (1964)

Hidden gem (pun intended- ha ha)

[5 July 2002]

Except for the 60's-tastic kaleidoscope opening sequence and a kind of creepy female lead, this is a classic heist flick that not too many people (that I know anyway), have heard of. If you've stumbled across this page looking for a good heist flick and haven't seen this one yet- you've found it. Don't read any more, just go find this one and rent it. Great location shoots, decent characters, and some unexpected plot twists are all just the bread and condiments that lead up to the huge, juicy 1/2 lb hamburger patty that is the actual heist. Puts any recent heist movies you've seen like "Entrapment" or "Mission: Impossible" (which borrows heavily from this flick) to shame. And a fun ending to boot.

Don't Look Up (1996)

Spooky Japanese horror

[7/10 · 11 March 2001]

Not on the same level as Ring (or Ring 2) but still a good Japanese horror flick nonetheless. I wish North American horror producers would take a page out of the Japanese horror template and put more 'spookiness' and less cheap shocks in their flicks. Lots of good examples in this one, scenes where a whited out face is scene staring behind a young actress, photographs on a wall are suddenly glimpsed smiling, just for a second, and more. Worth checking out if you like the genre.