This entry is the second part of the one I previously posted titled Life On Tube. This time I am going to talk about the movies I have watched lately.
THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION
Keeping hope alive amidst desperate and miserable conditions was the thought that struck (and eventually inspired) me after watching The Shawshank Redemption starring Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman. The movie is based on Stephen King's novella titled Rita Hayworth And The Shawshank Redemption which is one of the many works of King adapted into the silver screen. Other themes that revolve around the movie are the sense of freedom despite physical isolation and perseverance against all odds. The movie at the start was a little bit solemn for me which gave me the prejudice impression that it might be boring, but as it progressed, the mystery of Robbin's character named Andy started to intrigue me. Questions suddenly flocked my brain like Did he really murdered his wife and his wife's lover? He keeps on repeating time after time that he is innocent, what if he is? What's with the enigmatic smile? Why does it seem like he's always detached from the people around him although from time to time he does reach out to his fellow inmates? There's something fishy about the rock hammer Andy smuggled into his cell aside of course from the reason he stated that he is going to use it in carving chess pieces out of rocks. Is he going to use it to escape prison? But how? Does he have the intention to break prison right from the start? Why does he want his friend Red (played by Morgan Freeman) to find the cache he buried in a certain remote spot in Buxton? What does the box contain anyway? Most of all, what is his secret? As I reached the latter part of the movie, the climactic part I must say, it was like someone pounded a hammer at the back of my head! I was so surprised by the revelations that it made me gaped for a minute. For 20 years Andy had carefully and clandestinely planned his escape from the said maximum security prison. Well the 20 years of patience and hard work (not to mention the tortures) was all worth it. He broke free together with the warden's money (a karma I mus say for the corrupt warden). Genius! If there is one thing that the movie made an impression to me, it is the thought that in this harsh and cold world, clinging to hope is the only thing that can make us keep on living and likewise can maintain our grip to sanity.
RINGU 1, 2, & 0
Ringu is the Japanese horror movie where the American version The Ring was adapted. Even though I was only depending on the English subtitle to fully comprehend the film, it didn't fail to give me the scare I needed. The movie is about a video film whom after watching it the person will instantly receive a call from an anonymous caller who doesn't respond anyway. The said video, with disturbing and scary images in it, is actually a cursed one in which after a week of watching it, the viewer dies from unexplained death which is usually characterized with the victim's face disfigured in a gruesome manner. Ringu tells the story of a tv reporter named Asakawa Reiko whom after investigating the mysterious death of her niece led her to search for the cursed video tape attributed to her niece's death. Upon discovering the said video tape in the place where her niece and her friends found and watched it, Reiko was tempted to watch the video (and eventually received a call from an anonymous speechless caller as expected) and later realized that the curse was indeed true. With one week left, Reiko and her ex-husband Takayama ,who had also watched the video, ventured into seeking the history of the tape in the hope that they will be able to find a way to break free from the curse of death. Their investigation led them to Izu Oshima Island and eventually the discovery that a girl named Sadaku was responsible for the creation of the cursed video tape.
The film later revealed that Sadaku was a child with immense psychic powers. So immense that she could make a person dead on the spot by just thinking of it. Because of this ability, her father considered her as trouble and dangerous so he decided to throw her into a well and trapped her there until she died. But before Sadaku perished, she was able to imprint her thoughts of hatred and malice on a video tape thus the cursed video came into existence. With that scene of how the girl Sadako died flashed on Takayama's thought due to his clairvoyant ability, he and Reiko decided to uncover Sadaku's body in the well thinking that it was the only act that could save them both, including their son who had also watched the tape, from imminent death. Sure indeed they found Sadaku's body and reported it to the police. But just when they thought that it was over, Sadaku's vengeful spirit attacked Takayama the following night, leaving him dead and with a face that was badly disfigured. Reiko was baffled upon her ex-husband's death because she thought that they had already broke the curse but it seemed that they were wrong. And why was she still alive although a week had already gone by since she watched the video? As she thought about what she had done that spared her from Sadaku's wrath, she later realized that her act of making a copy of the tape was the one that saved her from the curse. And so Reiko went to her son to try and save him, thus, the cycle of copying the evil tape for the survival of anyone who watch it continues.
The killing ghost of Sadaku never actually scared me. What gave me the creep were the disturbing images in the video. Likewise the thought of living inside the well for almost 28 years for it was also revealed in the film that although Sadaku was thrown in the well 30 years ago, the autopsy finding of the police authority stated that the body was dead for almost 2 years only. So what was Sadaku been doing all along inside the well for almost 3 decades? Drinking murky water? Eating rocks? And one more thing, the nail-less fingers of Sadaku must be the result of her struggles of trying to climb up out of the well. Pretty creepy!
The sequel and prequel of Ringu, Ringu 2 and Ringu 0: Birthday respectively, are also sure hit scary. But the latter I must say took a twist by telling that it was not Sadaku who killed her victims but her evil twin sister who accompanied her in the spirit form while she was still alive. I just want to suggest not to watch these movies before going to bed. You may end up trying not to peek whose under your bed. Ha ha ha...
THE GODFATHER I
I am always intrigued with the Mafias. I am not a violent creature by nature but gang wars and criminal syndicates portrayed in movies, television, and literature fascinate me. Maybe it is their cunning and the dynamic of their "profession" ('cause you'll never know who's your real friend and who's your enemy) that draws me or maybe it is my own outlet of releasing my "sense of danger". Naks!
I watched The Godfather (based on Mario Puzo's novel) because a lot of modern literature wrote about it, because it is considered by the American Film Institute as the greatest American movie of all time, ranking at number one, because a lot of my friends recommended it to me, and because as I have said earlier, I love gang wars. I must admit that it is the first time that I have watched it though the film was made 33 years ago. I think the reason why it took me so long to watch this film was maybe because I had this impression way back that movies from the 70 era downward were kind of boring which was of course a wrong opinion for there are lots of good, even great movies, during the time I wasn't born yet.
The Godfather appealed to me greatly after watching it not because of the violence and the business of crime but because of the impression that the movie was trying to impart which was family must always comes first. The bond shared by the Corleone family towards each other was so strong that even the adopted members and the caporegimes felt that they were part of the Corleone's blood. I guess this is what makes the feudal system of the Mafias work, the lords make their vassals feel that they are valuable, that they are important members of a big powerful family. Thus, the lords (the dons in the case of the movie) hold their vassals reverence, loyalty, and service.
There are two actors in the movie that awed me with their performance namely, Marlon Brando and Al Pacino. Brando as Don Corleone successfully portrayed the man torn between power and the love for his family. For me, Don Corleone is a character which is an abstract to himself. He is compassionate but ruthless. Helpful to those who acknowledge him as the godfather and to those who ask his favor yet merciless to those who crosses his path. He seems like a silent and a somber person yet his mind is cunning and his actions are carefully planned. He protects all his subjects and crushes all his detractors. He is a doting father and at the same time the feared boss of crime business. With all these opposing qualities combined in the person of Don Vitto Corleone, no wonder he is a strong tower which the other families (a.k.a. groups of organized crime) in the US are trying to bring down. And no wonder too that all his subjects respect and revere him greatly. I guess I can say that no other man could play Don Corleone best but Brandon himself.
Al Pacino on the other hand just proved me in this epic that he is already a brilliant actor during his youth and even greater until now. His presence in the film commands attention I must say. His sudden transformation from a World War II military man and an enigmatic favorite son of the Corleone family into the big boss of crime syndicate (he replaced the deceased Don Vitto at the latter part) is I think the storyline in the movie that made a distinct imprint on the minds of the viewers. Just like Brandon, Pacino is indeed the perfect actor for the character of Michael. The two complimented each other and they've brought such spark to the movie that left viewers like me burning for more. I've got to watch the installments of the trilogy sooner. I must.
A Time To Kill
I love most of John Grishams' novels. The good plots, the vivid characters, the suspense, the legal concepts, and the philosophical question of what is right from wrong that often resonates in his works always stimulate my brain. That is why watching A Time To Kill's film adaptation was a blast. Joel Schumacher was great in trying to be true to the book although there were some alterations which was of course necessary because you can't put everything in the book to the reel. Matthew McConaughey was very feisty in his role as Atty. Jake Brigance and of course I must also give credit to Samuel L. Jackson for playing convincingly the character of Carl Lee Hailey, the avenging father of a raped 10-year-old girl.
The movie revolves around the themes such as racism, family and morality especially the question if it is right to avenge the brutal death the one you love? The movie also dwell in the question, What violent act can be considered as legal insanity? The film was a roller-coaster of suspense and emotion for me that it feels like I've been static in the couch for almost 2 hours. In the end Hailey was acquitted, thank goodness, and the series of threats against Brigance and those people helping him were finally put to an end. I really wondered what will I feel if I were in the place of Hailey. Will I kill the persons who violated by daughter's innocence? And what if I were Brigance, will I try to defend Hailey despite of all the odds that I will be facing in the future and that includes endangering my family's life just because I believe that what I am fighting for is the right thing to do? I love movies that raises questions in my head, they're like caffeine that keeps my neurons awake. He he he...
And oh by the way, Sandra Bullock was sexy in this film!
The Prince Of Persia: The Sands Of Time
Jerry Buckheimer, the man who gave us Armageddon, The Pirates of the Caribbean Series, and many other box-office hit movies had once again dished us with another action-packed adventure and this time, the setting was in the ancient empire of Persia. The Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time starring Jake Gyllenhall is the film version of the famous video game with the same title. The movie tells about the story of a young vagabond, rascal, street kid or whatever named Dastan (Gyllenhall), whose agility and skills in combat impressed the king thus adopted by the latter and as he turned into a full grown man became one of the leaders of the empire's army.
Together with his foster brothers and uncle, they led a legion of soldiers to conquer the sacred city of Alamut which was ruled by a beautiful princess named Tamina, played by actress Gemma Arterton (this Bond girl is hot!). The siege of the said city was a success leading to the capture of the princess and Dastan's secret discovery of the Dagger of Time. But Dastan's victory was short lived because he was tricked by his foster uncle through his innocent brother Tus to present the king with a poisoned robe which killed the king right after donning it. Dastan became at large and hunted leading to the unlikely alliance between him and Tamina which hated him for destroying her city and for stealing the the powerful dagger.
And so Dastan and Tamina were hunted. Nizam, the king's brother, adviser, and culprit of the king's death on the other hand, hired the Hassasins which was a group composed of skilled warriors who were wiling to slay anyone in exchange for payments to kill the "fugitives". But well, it seemed that Dastan was more skilled than them (he's the main protagonist anyway, duh!) so in the end all the Hassasins perished with a little help from Dastan's faithful minions and it's payback time for Uncle Nizam. The climax of the film happened in Alamut where Nizam's treachery was revealed which led to a battle between uncle and foster nephew. Of course, Dastan won at the end and peace was once again restored in the Empire of Persia and the sacred city of Alamut. I don't know if Dastan and Tamina will end up as husband and wife because it was not included in the movie but Dastan gave us a hint by saying to Tamina that he's looking forward to spend his life with her. Yehey! Toinks!
Ok there you go. I'll post more of the movies I've watched lately and my thoughts about them. As of now, I have to rest my tired eyes. Ciao!
-oOo-
THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION
Keeping hope alive amidst desperate and miserable conditions was the thought that struck (and eventually inspired) me after watching The Shawshank Redemption starring Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman. The movie is based on Stephen King's novella titled Rita Hayworth And The Shawshank Redemption which is one of the many works of King adapted into the silver screen. Other themes that revolve around the movie are the sense of freedom despite physical isolation and perseverance against all odds. The movie at the start was a little bit solemn for me which gave me the prejudice impression that it might be boring, but as it progressed, the mystery of Robbin's character named Andy started to intrigue me. Questions suddenly flocked my brain like Did he really murdered his wife and his wife's lover? He keeps on repeating time after time that he is innocent, what if he is? What's with the enigmatic smile? Why does it seem like he's always detached from the people around him although from time to time he does reach out to his fellow inmates? There's something fishy about the rock hammer Andy smuggled into his cell aside of course from the reason he stated that he is going to use it in carving chess pieces out of rocks. Is he going to use it to escape prison? But how? Does he have the intention to break prison right from the start? Why does he want his friend Red (played by Morgan Freeman) to find the cache he buried in a certain remote spot in Buxton? What does the box contain anyway? Most of all, what is his secret? As I reached the latter part of the movie, the climactic part I must say, it was like someone pounded a hammer at the back of my head! I was so surprised by the revelations that it made me gaped for a minute. For 20 years Andy had carefully and clandestinely planned his escape from the said maximum security prison. Well the 20 years of patience and hard work (not to mention the tortures) was all worth it. He broke free together with the warden's money (a karma I mus say for the corrupt warden). Genius! If there is one thing that the movie made an impression to me, it is the thought that in this harsh and cold world, clinging to hope is the only thing that can make us keep on living and likewise can maintain our grip to sanity.
-oOo-
RINGU 1, 2, & 0
Ringu is the Japanese horror movie where the American version The Ring was adapted. Even though I was only depending on the English subtitle to fully comprehend the film, it didn't fail to give me the scare I needed. The movie is about a video film whom after watching it the person will instantly receive a call from an anonymous caller who doesn't respond anyway. The said video, with disturbing and scary images in it, is actually a cursed one in which after a week of watching it, the viewer dies from unexplained death which is usually characterized with the victim's face disfigured in a gruesome manner. Ringu tells the story of a tv reporter named Asakawa Reiko whom after investigating the mysterious death of her niece led her to search for the cursed video tape attributed to her niece's death. Upon discovering the said video tape in the place where her niece and her friends found and watched it, Reiko was tempted to watch the video (and eventually received a call from an anonymous speechless caller as expected) and later realized that the curse was indeed true. With one week left, Reiko and her ex-husband Takayama ,who had also watched the video, ventured into seeking the history of the tape in the hope that they will be able to find a way to break free from the curse of death. Their investigation led them to Izu Oshima Island and eventually the discovery that a girl named Sadaku was responsible for the creation of the cursed video tape.
The film later revealed that Sadaku was a child with immense psychic powers. So immense that she could make a person dead on the spot by just thinking of it. Because of this ability, her father considered her as trouble and dangerous so he decided to throw her into a well and trapped her there until she died. But before Sadaku perished, she was able to imprint her thoughts of hatred and malice on a video tape thus the cursed video came into existence. With that scene of how the girl Sadako died flashed on Takayama's thought due to his clairvoyant ability, he and Reiko decided to uncover Sadaku's body in the well thinking that it was the only act that could save them both, including their son who had also watched the tape, from imminent death. Sure indeed they found Sadaku's body and reported it to the police. But just when they thought that it was over, Sadaku's vengeful spirit attacked Takayama the following night, leaving him dead and with a face that was badly disfigured. Reiko was baffled upon her ex-husband's death because she thought that they had already broke the curse but it seemed that they were wrong. And why was she still alive although a week had already gone by since she watched the video? As she thought about what she had done that spared her from Sadaku's wrath, she later realized that her act of making a copy of the tape was the one that saved her from the curse. And so Reiko went to her son to try and save him, thus, the cycle of copying the evil tape for the survival of anyone who watch it continues.
The killing ghost of Sadaku never actually scared me. What gave me the creep were the disturbing images in the video. Likewise the thought of living inside the well for almost 28 years for it was also revealed in the film that although Sadaku was thrown in the well 30 years ago, the autopsy finding of the police authority stated that the body was dead for almost 2 years only. So what was Sadaku been doing all along inside the well for almost 3 decades? Drinking murky water? Eating rocks? And one more thing, the nail-less fingers of Sadaku must be the result of her struggles of trying to climb up out of the well. Pretty creepy!
The sequel and prequel of Ringu, Ringu 2 and Ringu 0: Birthday respectively, are also sure hit scary. But the latter I must say took a twist by telling that it was not Sadaku who killed her victims but her evil twin sister who accompanied her in the spirit form while she was still alive. I just want to suggest not to watch these movies before going to bed. You may end up trying not to peek whose under your bed. Ha ha ha...
-oOo-
THE GODFATHER I
I am always intrigued with the Mafias. I am not a violent creature by nature but gang wars and criminal syndicates portrayed in movies, television, and literature fascinate me. Maybe it is their cunning and the dynamic of their "profession" ('cause you'll never know who's your real friend and who's your enemy) that draws me or maybe it is my own outlet of releasing my "sense of danger". Naks!
I watched The Godfather (based on Mario Puzo's novel) because a lot of modern literature wrote about it, because it is considered by the American Film Institute as the greatest American movie of all time, ranking at number one, because a lot of my friends recommended it to me, and because as I have said earlier, I love gang wars. I must admit that it is the first time that I have watched it though the film was made 33 years ago. I think the reason why it took me so long to watch this film was maybe because I had this impression way back that movies from the 70 era downward were kind of boring which was of course a wrong opinion for there are lots of good, even great movies, during the time I wasn't born yet.
The Godfather appealed to me greatly after watching it not because of the violence and the business of crime but because of the impression that the movie was trying to impart which was family must always comes first. The bond shared by the Corleone family towards each other was so strong that even the adopted members and the caporegimes felt that they were part of the Corleone's blood. I guess this is what makes the feudal system of the Mafias work, the lords make their vassals feel that they are valuable, that they are important members of a big powerful family. Thus, the lords (the dons in the case of the movie) hold their vassals reverence, loyalty, and service.
There are two actors in the movie that awed me with their performance namely, Marlon Brando and Al Pacino. Brando as Don Corleone successfully portrayed the man torn between power and the love for his family. For me, Don Corleone is a character which is an abstract to himself. He is compassionate but ruthless. Helpful to those who acknowledge him as the godfather and to those who ask his favor yet merciless to those who crosses his path. He seems like a silent and a somber person yet his mind is cunning and his actions are carefully planned. He protects all his subjects and crushes all his detractors. He is a doting father and at the same time the feared boss of crime business. With all these opposing qualities combined in the person of Don Vitto Corleone, no wonder he is a strong tower which the other families (a.k.a. groups of organized crime) in the US are trying to bring down. And no wonder too that all his subjects respect and revere him greatly. I guess I can say that no other man could play Don Corleone best but Brandon himself.
Al Pacino on the other hand just proved me in this epic that he is already a brilliant actor during his youth and even greater until now. His presence in the film commands attention I must say. His sudden transformation from a World War II military man and an enigmatic favorite son of the Corleone family into the big boss of crime syndicate (he replaced the deceased Don Vitto at the latter part) is I think the storyline in the movie that made a distinct imprint on the minds of the viewers. Just like Brandon, Pacino is indeed the perfect actor for the character of Michael. The two complimented each other and they've brought such spark to the movie that left viewers like me burning for more. I've got to watch the installments of the trilogy sooner. I must.
-oOo-
A Time To Kill
I love most of John Grishams' novels. The good plots, the vivid characters, the suspense, the legal concepts, and the philosophical question of what is right from wrong that often resonates in his works always stimulate my brain. That is why watching A Time To Kill's film adaptation was a blast. Joel Schumacher was great in trying to be true to the book although there were some alterations which was of course necessary because you can't put everything in the book to the reel. Matthew McConaughey was very feisty in his role as Atty. Jake Brigance and of course I must also give credit to Samuel L. Jackson for playing convincingly the character of Carl Lee Hailey, the avenging father of a raped 10-year-old girl.
The movie revolves around the themes such as racism, family and morality especially the question if it is right to avenge the brutal death the one you love? The movie also dwell in the question, What violent act can be considered as legal insanity? The film was a roller-coaster of suspense and emotion for me that it feels like I've been static in the couch for almost 2 hours. In the end Hailey was acquitted, thank goodness, and the series of threats against Brigance and those people helping him were finally put to an end. I really wondered what will I feel if I were in the place of Hailey. Will I kill the persons who violated by daughter's innocence? And what if I were Brigance, will I try to defend Hailey despite of all the odds that I will be facing in the future and that includes endangering my family's life just because I believe that what I am fighting for is the right thing to do? I love movies that raises questions in my head, they're like caffeine that keeps my neurons awake. He he he...
And oh by the way, Sandra Bullock was sexy in this film!
-oOo-
The Prince Of Persia: The Sands Of Time
Jerry Buckheimer, the man who gave us Armageddon, The Pirates of the Caribbean Series, and many other box-office hit movies had once again dished us with another action-packed adventure and this time, the setting was in the ancient empire of Persia. The Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time starring Jake Gyllenhall is the film version of the famous video game with the same title. The movie tells about the story of a young vagabond, rascal, street kid or whatever named Dastan (Gyllenhall), whose agility and skills in combat impressed the king thus adopted by the latter and as he turned into a full grown man became one of the leaders of the empire's army.
Together with his foster brothers and uncle, they led a legion of soldiers to conquer the sacred city of Alamut which was ruled by a beautiful princess named Tamina, played by actress Gemma Arterton (this Bond girl is hot!). The siege of the said city was a success leading to the capture of the princess and Dastan's secret discovery of the Dagger of Time. But Dastan's victory was short lived because he was tricked by his foster uncle through his innocent brother Tus to present the king with a poisoned robe which killed the king right after donning it. Dastan became at large and hunted leading to the unlikely alliance between him and Tamina which hated him for destroying her city and for stealing the the powerful dagger.
And so Dastan and Tamina were hunted. Nizam, the king's brother, adviser, and culprit of the king's death on the other hand, hired the Hassasins which was a group composed of skilled warriors who were wiling to slay anyone in exchange for payments to kill the "fugitives". But well, it seemed that Dastan was more skilled than them (he's the main protagonist anyway, duh!) so in the end all the Hassasins perished with a little help from Dastan's faithful minions and it's payback time for Uncle Nizam. The climax of the film happened in Alamut where Nizam's treachery was revealed which led to a battle between uncle and foster nephew. Of course, Dastan won at the end and peace was once again restored in the Empire of Persia and the sacred city of Alamut. I don't know if Dastan and Tamina will end up as husband and wife because it was not included in the movie but Dastan gave us a hint by saying to Tamina that he's looking forward to spend his life with her. Yehey! Toinks!
-oOo-
Ok there you go. I'll post more of the movies I've watched lately and my thoughts about them. As of now, I have to rest my tired eyes. Ciao!
