Slew of Movies...

Hello Loves-

I apologize, but with this holiday (more on that in "A Day In the Life") and crazy winter session (my upcoming graduation for Spring 2011!!) I've been spread PRETTY thin (unfortunately). Hopefully I don't overload myself like I did last semester.

Too many nervous breakdowns to speak of...

ANYwho

I have for you

(not in any particular order)

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part I

G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra

Dinner For Schmucks

24: Season 7

State of Play (American Version)

My boyfriend and I are about to start Boardwalk Empire, so I'll let you know how that goes...

MORE TO COME!! <3

"The Wall" (1998)

This was a movie I had to watch for a French culture class (of which I am actually cramming at the moment, and am churning out this review ASAP!)...

It is a bit satirical, but since I am really completely ignorant of French/Belgian history/culture/issues (yes, I suppose I am an ethnocentric, pig-headed américaine), I at first thought "The Wall" represented a TRUE wall that was erected à la the Berlin Wall.

"le mur" tells the story of a Walloon (French-speaking person in Belgium) man named Albert (Daniel Hanssens) who runs a fish and chips cart/stand that sits right on the border of Belgian Wallonia and Flanders--two (basically) warring factions within Belgium. The Flemish speak Dutch and the Walloons speak French, and they do not like each other!!

The female lead (Pascale Bal) resembles a Linda Evangelista/Milla Jovovitch-type look. She plays Wendy, a pretty, flirty, confident sort of free spirit.

The meet at a New Year's Eve Party and somehow fall in love.

The following events that transpire make up the reason behind the title.

I do not quite know what to make of the opening sequence between a man and woman that resemble (well, the actors are the same) Albert and Wendy--and they are a Walloon and a Flemish girl.

It seems that much of the movie could realistically be happening in Albert's head.

The military or the special squadron of "round-up" thugs are so power-trippy that they are reminiscent of Draco Malfoy and the Inquisitorial Squad in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. (Perhaps the way the Gestapo were in Nazi Germany)

Like Clive Owen's character says in "Shoot 'Em Up"--"I hate a pussy with a gun." or something along those lines.

Sorry.

Not to go off on a random tangent (And if you haven't seen "Shoot 'Em Up," WATCH IT!).

And that makes me think of WHAT HAS CLIVE OWEN BEEN UP TO LATELY??

More on that later (I'll post once I find out) (o;

BUT--"Le Mur" is interesting and has its comical moments. I think the movie is there as a message, but also there to entertain.

I enjoyed it, but it probably won't make it on my Top 10 List.

Overall, it gets a B/B- from me. (maybe closer to a 78%~81%, if that helps)

Enjoy!

[the following link may not work in a month's time, but I won't know till then... Hopefully it still works by the time somebody reads this!!]

LE MUR scroll down the list

Also listed are "Germinal" and "Michou d'Auber" which star everybody's favorite French actor---Gerard Depardieu.

Well, let's see... Jean Reno and Marion Cotillard are a couple of other names...

Another movie I'd like to check out (and have yet to do so completely) is the Canadian/American movie "Bon Cop, Bad Cop." When I was still taking French classes at De Anza College, we had some projects we had to do and one of the ladies in the class showed us the difference in accent between Canadian French and French French. It looked pretty funny from what we saw in class.

I also urge you to check out "Persepolis," another engaging and delightful French film.

I have yet to check out "The Triplets of Belleville" but will let you all know how that goes...

There are just SO MANY films!!

Le Mur (1998)

--

Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

Whew! My first movie blog EVER.

Everytime I think of this title I think of "Mr Magorium's Wonder Emporium" (which I rather enjoyed).

The first thing I always make sure I do is to get into the mood of the movie. I do this with books, too.

Otherwise, all your movie-going/movie-viewing experiences will be much less than they could be. Of course there are the occasional horrendous films (which shall not be named), but for the most part, movies are rather decent.

This one is no exception. It's not mind-boggling, jaw-dropping philosophical stuff, but it's enjoyable enough.

It's what you'd expect.

With a title such as "Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus", you're in for a weird ride. It's quirky and all over the place, but isn't that kinda the point of such a movie?

When you look past that it has Heath Ledger, Johnny Depp and co. in it, it's more for fun than it is for thought.

Now that you have that particular thinking cap on (you still need to think, b/c if you zone out, the movie will get confuzzling), just be ready for Tim Burton-esque eerieness and the bright eyegasm that such Tim Burton-esque movies give you. (Think "Alice In Wonderland" and "Big Fish")

It's on the tip of my tongue, but at the moment it escapes me... It reminds me of another film.

Oh well.

The point is--without giving away (well, anything so far), only watch this if you don't mind the weird, quirky and whacky movie types. Otherwise, skip it. You'd probably think it was a waste of your time.

On a lighter note, Andrew Garfield of "The Social Network" fame (who is soon to star as Peter Parker in a Spiderman reboot--man, are we at that age already??) stars in this film as well. Some surprising actors make cameos.

SHORT SUMMARY:

basically, the title character makes a deal with the devil (before the events of the film) and chaos and random happenings ensue.

I won't bore you w/the details. You either wanted to watch this. Or you didn't. Hopefully I helped tip you in one direction or another.

Oh--And to draw a comparison--"Alice in Wonderland" dragged a bit for me, but "Dr Parnassus" kept me interested enough.

Overall it gets an OK rating-- B-/C+ --from me.

However, if you're bored or want some stuff to fill your head and your moment--watch it.

At least it'll be something you can cross off your list.

NEXT REVIEW: "Secret of Kells" ; "Planet of the Apes (1968)" ; "Harry Potter and the Deadly Hallows, Part I"

If you want to know about a movie before you watch it--I'll do that for you! I'll let you know if it's a skipper, or if you should go ahead and waste 1.5-2 hrs of your life (let's face it--most movies aren't really productive, but it's a good way to blow of steam and enjoy yourself) ! (o;

I'm out. Until next time.

PEACE.