Love. It’s a beautiful feeling. And it’s the worst pain one can experience. But “Love Actually” is a celebration of both sides of love. Longing, happy marriages, and crushes, and oh so much more. Deep down it’s a dedication to the people of 9/11, as the introduction declares, and it’s plenty resonant in the all-star tribute with a humongous cast of talented actors from Liam Neeson to Colin Firth right down to Martin Freeman, Elisha Cuthbert, and Billy Bob Thorton. In this episodic Capra-esque fairytale, we meet a large group of people experiencing life and love in all ends of the terminology. There are really too many sub-plots to mention, but I’ll try.
Tag Archives: Foreign
Ali G Indahouse
“Ali G Indahouse” is a lot like that funny joke you told someone, and you kept telling it to people; and the more you told it, the less funny it got. That’s the sad thing here that Sasha Baron Cohen should have learned; sometimes you just can’t take a funny character and extend it into an hour and a half film because it’s very hard to muster up enough material for a large amount of time. It’s not that “Ali G Indahouse” is bad—well it’s bad—but it’s also unfunny, very unfunny. Not once did I laugh, not even with Martin Freeman from “The Office” co-starring, not once did I chuckle or guffaw, seriously this was so damn stupid and painfully obvious in its jokes.
Battle Royale (Batoru rowaiaru) (2000)
I’d heard about “Battle Royale” in the underground film circuit, and this Japanese thriller has become an instant cult classic amidst the masses of true movie fans. Violent, disturbing, and controversial, this is one hard to find movie, but it’s worth it once you find it. You can’t get it at a chain store. Adapted from the novel written by Koushon Takami, In the not too distant future, kids basically rule over the adults, terrorizing them and banding together to rebel against them. One day on a field trip, a group of students, oblivious to what is happening, awake in a classroom, when their teacher who quit after being cut by one of them appears. Confused and frightened, they’re surrounded by armed guards and soldiers and discover they’re being trapped in a game. The game is really a secret law that has 42 students captured and collared and they’re pitted against one another on an island where they must kill one another in three days.
Ju-on (2002)
“Ju-On” is a sheer test of terror, tension, and heightening suspense, and director Takashi Shimizu who also writes the script gives some inspiring direction that echoes Hitchcock’s directing style of silence and horror within everyday aspects. Though the haunted house movie has been done as far back as movies have been around, Shimizu does one hell of a job with the formula creating not a movie with ghosts, but demons. Starting off with a gritty and frightening sequence in which a man murders a woman, her cat, and proceeds to make his way up to a young boy, and we skip to present day where we watch victim after victim fall under the unrelenting spell of the demonic entities that live in the house.
Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust (2000)
I loved the original “Vampire Hunter D,” I remember watching it for the first time with my jaw hanging down, drool and some snot hanging down. So, I was obviously excited to see this, and after I popped this bad boy into my DVD player, I was not disappointed. I was weary about the new design for Vampire Hunter D at first, I wasn’t sure what was wrong with the original design, but he looks so much better here. With a design that Universal ripped off in 2004’s “Van Helsing” he’s just so stylish here with a beautiful costume that not only acts as a shroud but protection from the sunlight and they make his vampiric appearance better here with a white pale face and just a cold exterior that makes him such a great character to watch.
Shaun of the Dead (2004)
If you were to ask me right now which I prefer, British comedy or American comedy, I’d reply without a moment’s hesitation: British comedy. Uh-oh someone’s being unpatriotic! Think about it: they gave us “Monty Python”, “The Office”, “Coupling”, and inspiration for “All in the Family” and “Three’s Company” (and so much more), I love all British comedy because it’s just so utterly brilliant. Regardless, the British have comedy down to a tee, down to an art and theirs is subtle, so sharp and so unbelievably funny and sometimes weird, case in point: Shaun of the Dead. It’s quite obvious when watching this film that creators Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright are not only pop culture buffs, but also horror buffs as they pay homage to the great George Romero with every aspect of a good zombie film, and yes there’s walking zombies, no runners here.
Swimming Pool (2003)
Sarah, a renowned author making a decent living with a series of books with the character of Inspector Dorwell somewhat shies away from the throws of recognition and seems to hate almost being worshiped. She’s experiencing a creative meltdown of a sorts and is sent by her publisher, with whom she’s having an affair with, to his country house in the far end of France away from civilization to work on her new book, though she isn’t sure what she’s writing yet. She gets more than she bargains for asking for inspiration when her publisher’s daughter Julie comes to stay at the house unannounced. The two instantly dislike one another, and are exact opposites; Sarah played by the elegant and stunning Charlotte Rampling is a somewhat withdrawn, cold and uptight woman while Julie played by Ludivine Sagnier is stunning, very, very sexy, seductive, adventurous, and very mysterious, but the two don’t like each other.