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Reviews
American Splendor (2003)
American splendid!
i went on a small budget independent movie spree through realflix... just to see what's out there and came across this little gem. paul giamatti is excellent as the title character-- a gruff, sad-sack little man working a dead-end job but who has "delusions of grandeur" to be a famous comic-book artist. when he can't think of a good comic book, he ends up doing a series on his own life-- which leads him to fame, if not fortune.
supporting giamatti is an excellent cast-- and you'll find the filmmaker's technique of dove-tailing the real world characters the fictionalized characters are based on, with their ficitonal movie counterparts-- interesting and effective.
if you like performance... this is a movie you'll want to see.
Jean de Florette (1986)
simple and effective story-telling
i recently viewed jean de florette and its sequel, manon of the spring. florette is a strong cinematic experience than manon-- a beautifully told, simple story. what makes florette so wonderful is the strength of characters given simple, but well defined motivations that clash.
set in a small village in France, our villains are looking to protect a source of water for their thriving flower business-- but the source is on the property of a gentleman farmer who needs water for his crops but can't find any-- this simple plot carries an entire movie. and it's terrific! who needs car chases and love interests! character and motivation will win out every time!
Patriots (1996)
good little independent
i went on a realflix viewing spree recently and watched several independent films recommended by that site. "patriots" was one of those movies.
before writing this review, i noticed the previous reviewer's distaste for this picture but, to be honest, i don't share his view. you can certainly tell this movie was shot low budget-- there are no stars i recognized-- but i found the characters believable and the plot compelling.
i would caution viewers not to expect Hollywood here... this is an example of film-making on a shoe-string-- with that in mind, i give it a higher mark. still, it would have been nice to see a few more dollars thrown at this one.
The Last Waltz (1978)
sublime music
while viewing several films during an all night jag, i popped "the last waltz" in the DVD. what an experience! i've seen other music videos before, but this was cinema.
martin scorcese directed and his touch is all over this picture-- a documentary on the last performance of the seminal 60's band, "the band".
what you'll find fascinating, other than the array of famous singers brought in to jam with the band, is the way scorcese has mixed in a few studio-set pieces to go with the live-theater performance. these set pieces, especially the treatment of the famous 60's tune, "the weight", are beautifully lit, beautifully camera choreographed... and beautiful to watch.
someone else in these reviews mentioned this was a "ground breaking" concert documentary. i believe it!
Sin City (2005)
cinema-comics
i've never been a huge fan of the comics, and never read frank miller's work... but this picture was absolutely incredible to watch. stylistically, the black and white presentation with minimal color added worked well-- and i'm assuming this is how miller pens (or penned) his work. i look for moving-going experiences that give me something new... something i've never seen.
this movie fit that bill.
the plot-lines are pretty fundamental... and very violent in a comic-book sort of way... but the experience is visual-- and for that alone, it's worth the trip.