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Reviews
Once Were Warriors (1994)
A brutal but good film.
This film is about a dysfunctional minority family in New Zealand. Beth, the protagonist defies her parents wishes by marrying Jake. In the beginning Jake seems to be a bit rowdy but an OK guy. Later you get to see the real Jake after Beth refuses to do something for him. In this film you witness the breakdown of this family. Nig, one of Beth's sons joins a gang for support. Boogie, Beth's youngest son is removed by child services because he's considered uncontrollable. This leaves Beth and her two daughters to deal with the abusive Jake.
This film was very good but hard to watch at times. The violence was brutally realistic and not over the top which made it effects you even more.
A Better Life (2011)
We appreciate through the eyes of a gardener.
I was lucky enough to see this film as a campus screening with Q&A from the director. One of the scenes mentioned was when Carlos climbs the palm tree and pauses to look out over the bay. The director Chris Weitz referred to this shot as beautiful eye candy. I couldn't put my finger on it at that moment but that shot seemed so much more to me. After thinking about it for a while I decided that one shot pretty much summed up Carlo's feelings and how he views America. You see, being born in this country we sometimes take it for granted. We are to busy going about our lives to notice little things. In that one moment, we slow down and appreciate through the eyes of a simple gardener.
Los olvidados (1950)
One of my favorite directors.
I like how Bunuel takes a common problem, injects it with dream like surrealism and give it a whole new meaning. In this film Bunuel addresses the problem of children living in poverty with poor or no family ties. We see through the children's eyes, what it's like to live on the streets in big City. Without proper role models, the children turn to El Jaibo who has just escaped from reform school. One of my favorite scenes is when Pedro breaks the 4th wall by throwing an egg at the camera. The egg is indeed on our faces.
Unfortunately, sixty years later, this film is still relevant to problems children face today.
La otra conquista (1998)
The way film should be.
The Other Conquest is reminiscent of film made before the late 70's. Carrasco uses story to entertain us, instead of empty special effects. Through Topiltzen's eyes, we witness the effects of two cultures colliding. I was pleasantly surprised that the filmmaker didn't choose sides. I felt he just laid his story out there and let us make up our own minds.
I find it hard to believe that this film was made for 3 million. I have seen other films made for 10 times the budget of this one that didn't look as good. The cinematography flowed well and pulled us into the story. The soundtrack sounded original and was appropriate for the film. The locations were very beautiful and interesting. The acting and costumes were well done. You could tell that this director is an artist influenced by past great filmmakers. In a way, he is Topiltzin, creating a codex of great filmmaking and passing it to other generations.
La battaglia di Algeri (1966)
This film is relevant to today.
The Algerians wanted their independence much like Iraq, Libya and Egypt of today. The people rise up and fight back against their oppressors. This film made me rethink American involvement in the middle east.
The FLN use proved methods of guerrilla style warfare. They begin to ambush the French authority through quick raids and shootings. This eventually escalate into terrorist attacks on multiple civilian areas. The French military turn to acts of torture in order to gain information from captured FLN members.
Things to think about:9/11, I.E.D'S, Israeli bombings, Arab Spring, protesters, water-boarding.