Change Your Image
L. Hamm
Reviews
Instinct (1999)
Excellent adaptation of Quinn novella
For the umpteenth time a book has been made into a movie. But rather than dwell on the differences Instinct was not a movie based on a book: it was an application of Quinn's book to people. The result is an excellent movie, but you really need to read the book to understand much of the subtlety.
Cuba Gooding, Jr plays a rough approximation of Quinn's anonymous narrator in the book, except he's not a rebel, until the end. Cuba's acting is some of the best its been. Opposite is the part of Goliath the Gorilla (read the book he's not the one in the cage) played by Anthony Hopkins, and his acting is much better than in the Mask of Zorro. Basicly what has happened is Hopkins is a primatoligist that comes to live with a docile family of Gorillas and finds what humans have been missing all this time: then the family is attacked and Hopkins kills two of the hunters. He's caught and taken to the US to stand trial. Cuba gets the job of deciphering Hopkins.
More of the depth in this film is from a big combination of acting, editing and sound track which combine to make a really memorable film.
Approved from the Aerodrome
Marie Baie des Anges (1997)
Pictograph and perhaps more.
I must confess that I read several reviews of the film before actually seeing it, and despite a mixed greeting I tried to keep my mind open to it. It is a beautiful film.
The shots, unlike many of our formula movies, are not centered directly on what can be called a plot. But the quick snaps of seemingly unrelated material when taken as a whole becomes the entire atmosphere of the film and if those quick shots are so beautifully crafted as this then you have created a beautiful piece.
I digress, the film itself may be too deep for us Americans. most Americans when they sit down to watch a foreign film expect depth but in our V8 world we sometimes feel entitled to a clearly defined plot and story. "Whats all this about boats and a party!? What's this got to do with anything??" I can hear my contemporaries cry to which I can only answer emote don't analyze.
I won't compare the film to any others all films are works of art and deserve to be treated as such if you truly wish to recognize them. Marie Baie des Anges, with its haunting interconnectedness or perhaps disconnectedness weaves with beautiful images to create a truly beautiful film.
To vlemma tou Odyssea (1995)
A feast for the senses.
I first saw this movie when it was aired on a local public television station at midnight. I was exhausted but the movie was so intriguing that I could not fall asleep. Director Angelopolous' use of a single camera per scene are very innovative. Excellent work, too, by Harvey Keitel.
Sirens (1994)
The beginnings of free thought in Australia.
The sleeve of the movie is misleading. Ms. MacPherson has a smaller role in the movie than does the main character portrayed by Tara Fitzgerald who does a magnificent job. I enjoyed this movie because it wasn't blunt in its eroticism, it leads the viewer along until the viewer becomes a part of the scene. Ms. MacPherson's acting is fair but is not spellbinding. I didn't find anything terribly interesting about the cinematography but the screenplay was good enough to make up for that lack.
Reservoir Dogs (1992)
An innovative piece.
The first Tarantino movie I saw. It overcame my expectations of a "Tarantino" film and became, in my own eyes, something better. Tarantino casts the right actors, such as Harvey Keitel. Reservoir Dogs also shows Tarantino deviating from the normal cinematography of the American Film Industry. Tarantino limits his use of locations to the warehouse, the restaurant and the bank and further limits his characters to twelve. An excellent film that shows many new ideas.