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mrwhitekeitel
Reviews
Dear Frankie (2004)
Heartbreaking In A Good Way
It isn't often that you see a film that is memorable for all of the right reasons.
The acting in this little gem is superb. Though there are no huge stars in this film, (many of the actors should be household names) but it only makes the film better. Instead of being distracted by watching the actors you get sucked into the story.
Every once in a great while you see a picture that touches you so much you want to feel selfish and keep it to yourself. Even though you will feel this way too, I urge you to fight the feeling. Everyone should watch this movie.
I don't want to ruin it for you buy giving anything away, (I saw the movie knowing nothing about it) but I must say the story reaches across the pond and will touch you even if you can't identify on a personal level with any character. Though you should, because the backbone of the movie is the basic human condition.
I beg you, watch this movie as soon as you can. You will not regret it.
Jailbait (2004)
I want to see this as a play, not a movie
I started watching this movie with no pre-conceived notions. (I only decided to see it based on the presence of Michael Pitt, who has proved himself to be a very capable young actor, and that it was produced by the same producer as L.I.E. I had heard nothing about it.)I wish I had read a review before hand and saved myself some time and money. (Though the review I read here for it wouldn't have stopped me from seeing the film. They seemed to think simplicity means "art".) The acting was surprisingly good. That I am willing to say. If you want an acting class on how to react silently on film, Pitt's performance is sublime. Sadly, those moments do not save this clunker of a movie.
Some times you see a movie that was based on a play and you can feel the story not fitting the medium of film. This was a very similar experience to that. It was like watching a badly lit stage play with close ups. You are robbed of the joy of going to see a play while also being robbed of the pleasures of film. They are two completely different mediums and this movie fit neither one.
If it was play at a local theater, I would recommend it solely based on the mental exercise that would accompany the play on the ride home. But as a film, I must say this movie left me feeling flat. The camera felt intrusive. The pace felt forced. The violence seemed tame and unreal. Even the dialouge seemed as if it were written by someone who had never seen the inside of a prison. (Or if they had, it was in 1957.)The actors clearly did the best they could. They had to take this job for the chance to do good work and not for money, but sadly the direction and script didn't allow them to make a movie you don't forget about ten minutes before the credits even start.
Clue (1985)
As Good As Comedy Gets
When I was a kid I watched Clue every day, sometimes several times a day, and this lasted for years. To say I have seen this movie 1,000 times may be an understatement. Clue is truly a comic masterpiece.
There are few movies out there that you can enjoy while speaking every characters dialouge as much as you can by watching the film, and this is one of them.
Tim Curry, Martin Mull, Micheal McKean, Leslie Anne Warren, the great Madelline Kahn, Colleen Camp, Eileen Brennan, and Christopher Lloyd all give tongue in cheek performances that are both camp and realistic. The great cast makes this movie a must, but the script is what makes it an entertaining ride where other star studded films fall flat. Original and complete with 3 endings (3 solutions for Clue board game buffs) this movie is a must see.
If you haven't seen Clue, then you have missed the best comedy/mystery of the 1980's.
Conspiracy (2001)
Second Best WW2 movie ever
Conspiracy should be shown to all film students as a "how to" in making not only a historical drama, but film in general.
Kenneth Branagh proves once and for all that he is his generations greatest actor. To take the most horrific character and make him enthralling is tough, but to make you understand his lunacy and feel compassion for him is almost impossible. Branagh is one of a kind.
Stanley Tucci gives a superb performance as Eichman. Perhaps the best performance of his career.
Colin Firth brings such passion to his role that you start rooting for him even though he plays an awful man who helped remove Jews from German society.
Even though no character in this movie seems to have any truly redeeming qualities, the performances make you understand the passion and rage behind one of the worlds greatest tragedies.
Behind only Germany's own telling of the war (the last days of Hitler) in Downfall, Conspiracy is perhaps the greatest movie ever based on actual events. If you have not seen Conspiracy on one of the many occasions HBO showed it, please run out and check out this instant classic.