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The Great Gatsby (2013)
Hated It
I think DiCaprio was only cast as J. Gatsby because of his looks. His affected accent was inconsistent throughout the film. Part southern drawl, part New England, and mostly just DiCaprio made it impossible to focus on any acting he may have been doing. And was he really supposed to look like a young, blond Orson Welles?
I also had a serious problem with the music in the film. Sorry, but there was no rap in the 1920's. Just guessing, but could that be the influence of "Jay Z." as a producer? Jazz was just being recognized as music in the early 1920's, and I feel rap was a poor substitution.
The outdoor sets also left something to be desired. Watching actors walk across AstroTurf as opposed to a well-manicured lawn was definitely a poor choice.
Overall, I feel this movie was poorly conceived and executed.
For Colored Girls (2010)
An Amazing Film
A rainbow of "colored girls" come together for a beautiful, emotional, and shocking story. The film is based upon poems written by Ntozake Shange. The poems led to a book called For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Enuf. They also became a stage performance referred to as a choreopoem, which melded dance and the spoken word.
The cast of the film includes women coping with the hardships life has handed her. The film deals with a spectrum of issues like teenage pregnancy, domestic violence, pedophilia, poverty, rape, and religion. Tyler Perry (director) brought these stories together in a film that acknowledges life's difficulties while affirming our ability as people to rise above and find strength in each other.
Notes on a Scandal (2006)
Tensely Written Thriller
Who would turn down the chance to watch Dame Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett in the same film?
Sheba Hart (Blanchett) begins a new term as a teacher while trying to deal with the boredom of her marriage to an older man. She quickly becomes friends with Barbara Covett (Dench), a disillusioned teacher several years her senior.
As Sheba and Barbara become closer, Barbara finds out that Sheba is doing more than ordinary teaching. Barbara then uses her information to slowly strengthen her hold over Sheba. The complexity of the secrets they both have leads to a highly-charged climax when Sheba discovers disturbing information about Barbara.
Gosford Park (2001)
Highly Entertaining Film
The film is set at an English country house where guests have been invited for a weekend of shooting. What makes this film unique is that it is mainly concerned with the servants "below stairs." It is a hilarious look at the inability of the English aristocracy to care for themselves without assistance. Although the upper class can't seem to get by without them, the servants are totally ignored if they aren't catering to some whim. And that's just the beginning of the antics in this modern-day farce.
When a murder occurs, even the police are treated as an inconvenience by the guests. There are plenty of intrigues going on as well, and there's more than one surprise in the final reel!
Robert Altman directs this wonderful film starring (among others) Helen Mirren and Maggie Smith. To those who say it is boring or slow or cliché, I can only say you've missed the point. The film is designed as a combination of a comedy and a drama.
Dangerous Liaisons (1988)
A Rococo Delight
Who are these characters? The Marquise de Merteuil, Monsieur le Vicomte de Valmont, Madame de Tourvel, Madame de Volanges and her daughter Cecile, and the Chevalier Danceny become entwined in a plot thicker than most writers of the last half century could imagine.
Glenn Close, John Malkovich, Michelle Pfeiffer, Swoozie Kurtz, Uma Thurman, and Keanu Reeves -- respectively -- portray these characters.
The movie is based on a novel written over 225 years ago, which consisted of fictional letters written by various characters to other characters, some of whom do not appear in this film adaptation.
Who really loves whom? Who wins the game being played cannot be decided easily.
The Grifters (1990)
If This Wasn't a Graphic Novel...
...It should have been.
Anjelica Huston, Annette Bening, and John Cusack star in this tightly-woven drama of estrangement and betrayal. The film is set in the late 1980's.
Roy (Cusack) loves Myra (Bening), but Lilly (Huston) isn't so sure they are right together. All three are on "the grift," but everyone has their own objective.
Who is conning whom? Lilly works for Bobo Justice by evening out the odds at the horse-racing track. Myra is a long-con "roper" in need of a partner. Roy is strictly short-con flipping $20's for $10's in bars and conning players in dice games.
Everyone is playing the game to the best advantage he or she can muster. When the three of them come together, there are bound to be problems. Through several plot twists, you find out why Myra wants Roy, why Lilly objects to Myra, why Lilly wants to hold on to Roy for herself, and the tragic ending all of them face.
Huston, Bening, and Cusack all provide stunning performances in this film.
Queen of Outer Space (1958)
Camp Classic!
This film is a hysterical camp classic. My rating of 7 out of 10 is on the "camp" scale. If you're looking up this film, you must know it's very campy.
Just watching the men squirm around on their beds or seats after takeoff will make anyone roll on the floor with laughter.
I won't "spoil" the film by telling you the lines you have to learn to quote, but there are a couple...even if those lines are only one word.
The skimpy costumes on the 1960's amazon-style women provide plenty of eye candy. The campy dialogue (a la Zsa Zsa, Dahling) make it a flick everyone can enjoy.
Somewhere between "duck and cover" and "Barbarella," this film is a lot of fun.