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last resort
director: pawel pawlikowski
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This beautifully shot sad little film is diverting but ultimately
nothing special. A Russian woman and her son get political
asylum in England when an arranged marriage doesn't pan
out; it has it's moments, none of which are really jumping out
at me right now. |
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reviewed by: JohnLawton |
March 2001 [link] |
recommend
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leap year
director: arnand tucker
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| Even though I could predict every single moment of this film from beginning to end, I don't think it's as awful as all the critics say. If you want to escape from the awards season prestigue picture blahs, you can go to Ireland for ninety minutes on a rom com romp with good looking leads and not get wet. |
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reviewed by: jen |
January 2010 [link] |
recommend
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legally blonde 2: red, white & blonde
director: charles herman-wurmfeld
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| Legally Blonde 2: Red, White and Blah - seeing that the word blonde was in the title twice should have been clue number one that this installment wasn't going to be repeating the kicky vibe of its predecessor. Oh how I wanted Elle to go to D.C. and show those Washington fat cats that the law needs some heart and highlights and that's exactly what she did but somewhere along I-95 the fun blew out the window. |
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reviewed by: rachel |
July 2003 [link] |
recommend
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les triplettes de belleville
director: sylvain chomet
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| This surprising beautifully-drawn flic about a cyclist kidnapped from the Tour de France is a delight to watch - especially the opening number a fantastic 30's style floor-show. The Belleville Triplets themselves, France's answer to the Andrew Sisters who transform into a wacked-out-frog-eatin'-avant-garde jazz act, are the brainchildren of creative genius. |
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reviewed by: raquel |
January 2004 [link] |
recommend 6 thumbs up
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life of david gale, the
director: alan parker
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| This death penalty thriller has a novel and engaging premise (even if some of the acting is not good, and the debate scenes were seemingly transcribed from a high school forensics club meeting) and in the last third you're treated to the creepiest and least sexy lovemaking scene you've seen since your last date with me. Hey THE LIFE OF DAVID GALE -- television's BATMAN called; it wants its cheesy spinning-camera dissolves back. |
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reviewed by: matthewS |
March 2003 [link] |
recommend
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lilja 4-ever
director: lukas moodysson
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| Magnificently acted and brilliantly shot film about likeable teenage girl in post-Soviet Russian slums who is abandoned by her mother and tricked into going to Sweden for a better life. Stretches the limits of how much a human being can withstand and explores how one can survive in desperate times. |
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reviewed by: robin |
May 2003 [link] |
recommend 2 thumbs up
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limbo
director: john sayles
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| John Sayles is a national treasure, his characters are so fully developed they could be people plucked from your own life. The first hour of the film sets up a group of compelling characters, then something big happens (I won't spoil it) and you have so much invested in these people that you will be (quite literally) dying to see what happens next. |
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reviewed by: JohnLawton |
July 2000 [link] |
recommend
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limey, the
director: steven soderbergh
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| Dazzling editing saves this mediocre film from being completely innocuous. As in "Out of Sight" the director plays with non-linear storytelling and interesting cross-cutting but the end result is a flat uninspired revenge drama. |
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reviewed by: JohnLawton |
July 2000 [link] |
recommend
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little otik
director: jan svankmajer
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| Inspired film based on a Czech fairytale, a childless couple raise a log as their offspring (really). Reminiscent of David Lynch’s Eraserhead, this is another great film about the fear of reproducing (a legit fear at that), while it runs a bit long it is still fresh and entertaining throughout. |
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reviewed by: JohnLawton |
February 2002 [link] |
recommend
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lord of the rings: the two towers
director: peter jackson
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| As a show of sensitivity, I thought this film should have been titled "THE TWO TOWERS (NOT THOSE TWO TOWERS -- TWO OTHER TOWERS)," but what do I know? The second film in this trilogy lives up to the high standard of quality set by the first: the story is enthralling, Gollum is astonishing, and some of the long shots of big battle scenes (probably wholly digitally invented) are so gorgeously composed that they look like masterworks in oil. |
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reviewed by: matthewS |
December 2002 [link] |
recommend 5 thumbs up
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lost in the translation
director: sofia coppola
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| A great little film about two disaffected Americans (Bill Murray, still hilarious, and Scarlett Johansson, the personification of youthful irony) who find each other while stuck and bored in Tokyo. The movie offers a fascinating glimpse of Japanese culture in all it's bizarreness AND beauty, and a study of the tender friendship that forms between Murray and Johansson (both 'happily' married to others). |
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reviewed by: eric w |
August 2003 [link] |
recommend 6 thumbs up
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love's labour lost
director: kenneth branagh
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| The script is true to the text of Shakespeare and at the same time this film looks like it could have been made in the 30's. While far from perfect, once again you have to give props to Branagh for taking an audacious chance, giving one of Bill's lesser known plays a Cole Porter makeover, I know this one is getting panned quite a bit but I think it's worth checking out. |
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reviewed by: JohnLawton |
August 2000 [link] |
recommend
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