Random Musings of the Month - May 2011

Random Notes of the Month  

As the poll results show, there was an overwhelming positive response to my new film sprocket background.  So it's here to stay.  Thank you to the 29 people who voted.

I recently replaced the default Blogger nav-bar with a cleaner looking search bar, a subtle change but I much prefer having the search box at the top right.

I've also been working on a few other cool design changes and tweaks that will hopefully be revealed soon.  Just having some issues with browser compatibility, IE is being a real pain in the ass.

I didn't watch as many movies as I usually do this month, but I had lots of fun following all the goings-on at the Cannes Film Festival, it was the best one I can remember in years.

Down Terrace (2009)

Down Terrace (2009)

Genre: Comedy/Drama
Director: Ben Wheatley
Starring: Robert Hill, Robin Hill, Julia Deakin, David Schaal, Tony Way
Duration: 89 min.
Rating: 7.0

Summary:

After release from prison, Bill and his son Karl return home to Down Terrace. With the help of his wife Maggie, Bill tries to find the rat in his criminal operation, while Karl grows increasingly uncomfortable with his dysfunctional family.

10 1/2 (2010)

10 1/2 (2010)

Genre: Drama
Director: Daniel Grou-Podz
Starring: Claude Legualt, Robert Naylor
Duration: 108 min.
Rating: 6.8

Summary:

The story of Tommy, a troubled 10-and-a-half year-0ld boy with a violent nature who is well known to social services.  Considered a danger to society and written off by everyone in his life, only Gilles, his guardian at the juvenile center, sees the slight potential for his redemption.

Miral (2010)

Miral (2010)

Genre: Drama
Director: Julian Schnabel
Starring: Hiam Abbas, Freida Pinto, Yasmine Al Massri, Ruba Jebreal, Alexander Siddig
Duration: 112 min.
Rating: 7.2

Summary:

The story of four women whose lives intertwine in the starkly human search for justice, hope, and reconciliation in a world overshadowed by conflict, rage, and war.

Julia's Eyes (2010)

Julia's Eyes / Los ojos de Julia (2010)

Genre: Horror / Thriller
Director: Guillem Morales
Starring: Belén Rueda, Lluís Homar, Julia Gutiérrez Caba
Duration: 112 min.
Rating: 6.3

Summary:

The story of a woman suffering from a degenerative eye disease who investigates the mysterious death of her twin sister.

We Are What We Are (2010)

We Are What We Are / Somos lo que hay (2010)

Genre: Horror
Director: Jorge Michel Grau
Starring: Francisco Barreiro, Alan Chávez, Paulina Gaitan
Duration: 90 min.
Rating: 5.2/10

Summary:

A middle-aged man dies in the street, leaving his widow and three children destitute. The devastated family is confronted not only with his loss but with a terrible challenge - how to survive. For they are cannibals. They have always existed on a diet of human flesh consumed in bloody ritual ceremonies... and the victims have always been provided by the father. Now that he is gone, who will hunt? Who will lead them? How will they sate their horrific hunger?

We Are The Night (2010)

We Are The Night / Wir sind die Nacht (2010)

Genre: Fantasy
Director: Dennis Gansel
Starring: Karoline Herfurth, Nina Hoss, Jennifer Ulrich, Anna Fischer
Duration: 100 min.
Rating: 4.9/10

Summary:

A sect of seductive lady vampires hide out in the city's alternative clubs and enjoy the luxury and pleasures their attained immortality provides them.

Neds (2010)

Neds (2010)

Genre: Drama
Director: Peter Mullan
Starring:  Conor McCarron, Martin Bell, Grant Wray, Marcus Nash, Linda Cuthbert, John Joe Hay
Duration: 124 min.
Rating: 8.0/10

Summary:

Struggling against the low expectations of those around him, John McGill changes from victim to avenger, altar boy to glue sniffer, scholar to Ned. When he attempts to change back again, his new reality and recent past make conformity near impossible and violent self determination near inevitable.

Barney's Version (2010)

Barney's Version (2010)

Genre: Drama / Comedy
Director: Richard J. Lewis
Starring: Paul Giamatti, Rosamund Pike, Minnie Driver, Scott Speedman, Dustin Hoffman
Duration: 132 min.
Rating: 7.5/10

Summary:

The picaresque and touching story of the politically incorrect, fully lived life of the impulsive, irascible and fearlessly blunt Barney Panofsky.

64th Cannes Film Festival (2011) Award Winners

It's been a fun couple of weeks but now its all over.  Congratulations to this year's award winners from the 2011 Cannes Film Festival (Festival de Cannes).

Joan the Maid - I & II (1994)

Joan The Maid - I: The Battles, II: The Prisons (1994)
Jeanne la Pucelle I: Les batailles, II: Les prisons  (1994)

Genre: Historical Drama
Director: Jacques Rivette
Starring: Sandrine Bonnaire, Andre Marcon, Patrick Le Mauff
Duration: 160 / 176 min.
Rating: 8.8/10

Summary:

The epic story of Joan of Arc in two parts.  The Battles: which recounts Joan’s life after her meeting in Chinon with the future Charles VII until the taking of Orleans, and The Prisons: covering the period from Charles VII’s coronation in Rheims to her trial and execution in Rouen.

The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928)

The Passion of Joan of Arc / La passion de Jeanne d'Arc (1928)

Genre: Silent / Historical Drama
Director: Carl Theodor Dreyer
Starring: Renee Jeanne Falconetti, Eugene Silvain, Andre Berley, Maurice Schutz, Antonin Artaud
Duration: 82 min.
Rating: 9.2/10

Summary:

A chronicle of the trial of Jeanne d'Arc on charges of heresy, and the efforts of her ecclesiastical jurists to force Jeanne to recant her claims of holy visions.

Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans (1927)

Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans (1927)

Genre: Silent / Drama
Director: F. W. Murnau
Starring: George O'Brien, Janet Gaynor, Margaret Livingston
Duration: 95 min.
Rating: 8.7/10

Summary:

A woman from the city bewitches a farmer and convinces him to murder his neglected wife.  Just as he is about to kill his wife, he comes to his senses and the married couple renew their love in the city.

64th Cannes Film Festival (2011) Report

The 64th Cannes Film Festival is now over, and many of 2011's most highly anticipated films have had their premieres.  Let's take a look at some of the early reviews and images from the Festival de Cannes 2011.

The hallowed Red Stairs at the Palais des Festivals

84th Academy Awards (2012) Key Dates

A couple weeks ago, the key dates for the 84th Academy Awards were announced by Academy President Tom Sherak.  Mark your calendars, the awards ceremony will take place on Sunday, February 26, 2012 at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center®. 

84th Academy Awards Timeline

Saturday, October 1, 2011:  Deadline for foreign language film submissions

Thursday, December 1, 2011:  Official Screen Credits forms due
Tuesday, December 27, 2011:  Nominations ballots mailed
Friday, January 13, 2012:  Nominations polls close 5 p.m. PT
Tuesday, January  17, 2012: Foreign language film shortlist revealed
Tuesday, January 24, 2012:  Nominations announced 5:30 a.m. PT, Samuel Goldwyn Theater
Wednesday, February 1, 2012:  Final ballots mailed
Monday, February 6, 2012:  Nominees Luncheon
Saturday, February 11, 2012:  Scientific and Technical Awards presentation
Tuesday, February 21, 2012:  Final polls close 5 p.m. PT
Sunday, February 26, 2012:  84th Academy Awards presentation, Kodak Theatre

Eleven Samurai (1966)

Eleven Samurai / Ju-ichinin no samurai (1966)

Genre: Action / Adventure
Director: Eiichi Kudo
Starring: Junko Miyazono, Koji Nanbara, Isao Natsuyagi, Ko Nishimura
Duration: 95 min.
Rating: 8.2/10

Summary:

Eleven samurai are sent to avenge their lord who was murdered by the arrogant and cowardly brother of the Shogun.

The Great Duel (1964)

The Great Duel / Dai satsujin (1964)

Genre: Drama / Action
Director: Eiichi Kudo
Starring: Toru Abe, Mikijiro Hira, Yoshio Inaba, Chiezo Kataoka
Duration: 118 min.
Rating: 7.1/10

Summary:

A group of revolutionaries hatch a plot for an assassination in an attempt to keep a corrupt, power-hungry minister from exerting control over the Shogunate.

Oldboy (2003)

Oldboy / Oldeuboi / 올드보이 (2003)

Genre: Drama / Thriller
Director: Park Chan-wook
Starring:  Choi Min-sik, Yu Ji-tae, Kang Hye-jeong
Duration: 120 min.
Rating: 9.1/10

Summary:

After being kidnapped and imprisoned for 15 years, Oh Dae-Su is released, only to find that he must find his captor in 5 days.

13 Assassins (2010)

13 Assassins / Jûsan-nin no shikaku / 十三人の刺客 (2010)

Genre: Action / Adventure

Director: Takashi Miike
Starring:  Kôji Yakusho, Takayuki Yamada, Hiroki Matsukata, Kazuki Namioka, Yûsuke Iseya
Gorô Inagaki, Masachika Ichimura, Mikijiro Hira
Duration: 126 min.
Rating: 8.5  

Summary:

A group of unemployed samurai are enlisted to bring down a sadistic lord and prevent him from ascending to the throne and plunging the country into a war-torn future.

13 Assassins (1963)

13 Assassins / Jûsan-nin no shikaku / 十三人の刺客 (1963)

Genre: Action / Adventure
Director: Eiichi Kudo
Starring: Chiezo Kataoka, Kô Nishimura, Ryôhei Uchida, Isao Natsuyagi
Duration: 125 min.
Rating: 8.1/10

Summary:

A group of unemployed samurai are enlisted to bring down a sadistic lord and prevent him from ascending to the throne and plunging the country into a war-torn future.

64th Cannes Film Festival (2011) Opening Day

Today is the big day!  Festival de Cannes the most important festival of the year commences with the Opening Ceremony, hosted by the lovely and talented Mélanie Laurent (Inglourious Basterds), who just last week released her first album titled En t'attendant, produced with the help of Irish songwriter Damien Rice.

During the ceremony, 71 year-old Italian director Bernardo Bertolucci (Last Tango in Paris, The Last Emperor) will be presented with the inaugural Honorary Palme d'Or award in recognition of his distinguished film making career.  The ceremony will be followed by the screening of this year's opening film, Midnight in Paris directed by Woody Allen.

The Sea (2002)

The Sea / Hafið (2002)

Genre: Comedy / Drama
Director:  Baltasar Kormákur
Starring: Gunnar Eyjólfsson, Hilmir Snær Gudnason, Hélène de Fougerolles, Elva Ósk Ólafsdóttir
Duration: 109 min.
Rating: 7.1/10

Summary:

An aging father summons his children home from various parts of the world to unload a secret that will cause long hidden resentments and desires to rise to the surface, this leads to a startling finale that will forever affect the whole family.

Blow Out (1981)

Blow Out (1981)

Genre: Mystery / Thriller
Director: Brian De Palma
Starring: John Travolta, Nancy Allen, John Lithgow
Duration: 108 min.
Rating: 8.3/10

Summary:

A movie sound engineer accidentally records evidence that proves a car accident was murder and consequently finds himself in danger.

Biutiful (2010)

Biutiful (2010)

Genre: Drama
Director:  Alejandro González Iñárritu
Starring:  Javier Bardem, Marciel Álvarez, Hanaa Bouchaib, Guillermo Estrella
Duration: 148 min.
Rating: 7.6/10

Summary:

The journey of Uxbal, a conflicted man who struggles to reconcile fatherhood, love, spirituality, crime, guilt and mortality amidst the dangerous underworld of modern Barcelona.

Cargo (2009)

Cargo (2009)

Genre: Sci-Fi
Director: Ivan Engler, Ralph Etter
Starring:  Anna-Katharina Schwabroh, Martin Rapold, Michael Finger
Duration: 120 min.
Rating: 7.0/10

Summary:

It is the year 2267.  After the earth has become uninhabitable due to an ecological collapse, the remaining people live on overcrowded space stations in Earth's orbit.  The young doctor Laura Portmann is one of them.  She hopes for a better future alongside her sister on the distant planet Rhea, but to get there, she needs money.  She signs up with Kuiper Enterprises for a job on the decrepit cargo ship Kassandra, heading for an eight-year flight to unmanned Station #42 and back.

Next Door (2005)

Next Door / Naboer (2005)

Genre: Horror / Thriller
Director: Pål Sletaune
Starring:  Kristoffer Joner, Cecilie Mosli, Julia Schacht, Anna Bache-Wiig
Duration: 75 min.
Rating: 7.4/10

Summary:

John, whose girlfriend has just left him for another man meets two sexy sisters living next door.  Soon the lines between reality and fantasy begin to dissolve, leaving him trapped in a twisted psychological game.  

The Killer (2007)

The Killer / Le tueur (2007)

Genre: Drama
Director: Cédric Anger
Starring: Gilbert Melki, Grégoire Colin, Mélanie Laurent
Duration: 91 min.
Rating: 7.7/10

Summary:

Christmas Eve in Paris.  Leo Zimmerman is a businessman who lives for his beloved little daughter’s smile.  Outwardly, his life is exemplary.  However, when Dimitri Kopas walks into his office, pretending to be a normal client, Leo understands that a contract is out on his head and that the young man has come to town to kill him.  Overcome with anxiety and paranoia, no longer able to sleep, Leo decides to meet the killer face to face and to broker a strange deal.

Filantropica (2002)

Filantropica (2002)

Genre: Comedy
Director: Nae Caranfil
Starring: Mircea Diaconu, Gheorghe Dinică, Mara Nicolescu
Duration: 110 min.
Rating: 7.2/10

Summary:

Ovidiu, a high-school teacher looking for an extra buck, finds an unexpected way to earn easy money.

10th Tribeca Film Festival (2011) - Award Winners

The 10th Annual Tribeca Film Festival announced its 2011 award winners last Thursday in a ceremony held at the W Union Square Hotel in New York.  I look forward to seeing some of these films in the coming months.   

Here are the major award winners:
   

The Way Back (2010)

The Way Back (2010)

Genre: Drama
Director: Peter Weir
Starring: Jim Sturgess, Colin Farrell, Ed Harris, Saoirse Ronan, Mark Strong, Dragoş Bucur, Gustaf Skarsgård
Duration: 133 min.
Rating: 7.8/10

Summary:

An epic story of survival, solidarity and indomitable human will.  A small band of multicultural convicts stages a daring escape from a World War II-era Siberian gulag, and embarks on a treacherous journey across five countries in a desperate race for freedom and survival.

Bedevilled (2010)

Bedevilled / Kim Bok-nam salinsageonui jeonmal / 김복남 살인사건의 전말 (2010)

Genre: Thriller
Director: Yang Chul-soo
Starring: Seo Young-hee, Ji Seong-won
Duration: 115 min.
Rating: 6.4/10

Summary:

Sick of all the inhumane treatment by others, Bok-nam tries to escape the island with her daughter, but her daughter gets killed in the process. When she loses the only thing that had kept her going, Bok-nam takes a sickle in her hand for revenge.