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Film
reviews often tell you what would be
commercially attractive or to the common
expectations. Therefore these descriptions
of movies you might want to see but did
not decide about yet.
The
latest films.
(Dutch
movies are discussed in Dutch)
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6.20
- 8.28 2000
 Hollow
Man
Seen:
08.28.00. Dir. Paul Verhoeven. Kevin Bacon. This movie
is about a scientist freaking out . Someone discovered
how to quantum leap cells and thus whole bodies making
them invisible. The other way around is a bit more
difficult though. The doubtful genius freaks out on
the secret life he can lead as an invisible man.
Everything runs completely out of proportion and the
man of goodness is suddenly the animal of prey killing
and going for the power. Bacon is a mighty fine
psychopath in this movie, or would it have been the
director that lost his marbles half way the movie?
Great for lovers of the action genre. Doubtful for
philosophers. Too black in the style of the old Alien
Science Fiction...
Man
on the Moon
Seen:
08.28.00. Dir. Milos Forman Starring JIm Carrey. The
life of the controversial comedian Larry Kaufman. He
was the man who knew to twist reality such a way in
his jokes that nobody knew anymore whether it was real
or not. Even his transcendental meditation fellows
doubted his integrity. Consequence: when he was dying
of cancer he could not be believed. Hilarious was his
last joke to make himself laugh: he went to the
phillipine miracle-'surgeon'. A kind of Peter and the
Wolf effect with this man. Good to have seen this
movie. Still a difficult aftertaste though (did he
really die?).
Galaxy
Quest
Seen:
08.19.00. (co-) Starring Sigourny Weaver. Is it an
insult to picture aliens as clumsy stupid people with
technical power only? In this movie a kind of
Star-Trek like science fiction series actors are
confronted with real aliens that request for their
assistance. The aliens are taking the series for
historical records of real happenings. Meant as a
comedy it is certainly funny and not bad set up at all
with still some really nice special effects. It is
entertaining as a successful parody on the usual
SF-stuff, but still raises a few questions on how we
really are thinking of extraterrestrial life. Are we
their gods and they just try to attain to paradise the
wrong way? But the story has a happy ending. The
aliens learn to take care for themselves and thus it
is a good story after all that alien dependency. We
earth people teach them independence. That's
it.
Gone
in 60 Seconds
Seen:
08.12.00. Dir, Dominic Sena, starring Nicolas Gage.
One may wonder why a movie full of sympathy for the
thieves of cars is so fascinating. Racing like maniacs
running for the matter only our hero has to save his
brother by stealing 50 cars in one night. My
conclusion is that these type of movies strongly
depend on the craftsmanship they are made with. The
Americans are specialized in the genre and hardly
anyone can do it better. It is a perfect movie the way
it is shot, the tempo of the story, the excitement and
everything. The true morality is explained in the
movie: our hero doesn't do it for the money, but for
the love of the job itself. He stopped doing it for a
living and this time he (as well as all the others
helping!) does it only for his brother. In the end,
bad guys defeated etc., he turns all stolen cars in
while the detective hunting him throughout the whole
movie lets him go. The non profit motive -theme
justifies everything. A good thing to remember, a wise
lesson. I had to pay an entry fee though, but
o.k.
Stir
of Echoes
Seen:
08.04.00. Dir, David Koepp starring Kevin Bacon. In
this movie a normal guy is 'opened' by hypnosis and
starts seeing things. He sees the spirit of a girl but
he doesn't know what it is all about. His whole life
changes; his inner self has broken through. His little
son also saw the ghost but couldn't tell either what
or how precisely, although he is a great help to his
seeming disturbed daddy digging for unknown reasons in
the garden and cellar. His wife doesn't get it. The
ghost turns out to be a murdered woman and the plot
defeats the perpetrators in the end. Its a well
written story and interesting highlighting the more
intuitive person. It is a sympathetic change towards
the normal man story showing how average citizens cope
with premonition and the beyond. Bacon is on his best
in this movie. Never saw him that intense
before.
Dogma
Seen:
08.04.00. Dir. Kevin Smith. Starring Matt Damon. Some
scenarist has been reading too much in the Holy Bible.
The result is a most curious movie about normal
looking people who turn out to be playing a biblical
game: two fallen angels want to return to heaven and
disprove the truth of God for which they were
abandoned. Disproving God would be the end of the
universe, so they must be stopped. Therefore two
prophets and some other characters drop (literally)
out of the sky inspiring an innocent (...) woman to do
the job. Also a couple of demons to defend the fallen
ones messing people up with hockey-sticks appear
skateboarding. Good/bad scheming etc. Well after a run
of peculiar plotting with another really shitty demon
(defeated by a spraycan), God turns out to be a woman
who chastises the bad by opening her mouth only.
Further a nice jewish girl... For lovers of the bible
maybe an interesting movie if they don't take offense
with a thumbs-up, winking Jesus... But the ignorant
might think this is a lot of crap. Funny... I don't
even think about it. Maybe its a very desperate
Christianity not knowing the true time of God anymore
that produced this picture. It's a bit worrying,
although not meant so.
The
Patriot
Seen:
07.28.00. Dir.Roland Emmerich. Starring Mel Gibson.
The struggle for american independence is measured
wide and grand in this true story about the american
patriot who first unwilling but later the more fanatic
fights the english nobles and army to defend the
rights for an independent existence. Though a
beautiful story with all ingredients and a classic
must see, the movie goes along the traditional line of
good and bad. Why not only the americans but the
complete of western mankind started fighting itself at
the end of our colonization period remains unanswered.
Of course is a righteous noble rule not bad, but the
only thing the patriot says about it before becoming
so is: ' better one dictator 3000 miles away than 3000
dictators around the corner'. I couldn't help thinking
of this all along the movie that fell short in
counterbalancing the patriot point of view. War...
what a karma!
Me
Myself & Irene
Seen:
07.20.00. Dir.The Farly Brothers. Jim Carrey the
schizoïd policeman has four sons from his
adultering wife who left him for the midged driver of
his marriage-limosine. These four sons are directing
this movie. It is indeed a good comedy fit for the
fine talents of Mr. Carrey. What happens to a man out
of touch with his assertion is hilarious to see. One
may also wonder what would happen if the complete
society would realize what split nature our timesystem
is confronting us with: our true nature betrayed by
our pragmatical motives stealing our honor and hope
for a happy life. But this kind of reflection is to
the audience. The Farlys just delight in the comedy
about an individual suffering it and if one wants
nothing more than that, then go see.
Final
Destination
Seen:
07.20.00. A class of highschool youngsters on a
schooltrip to France crashes with the airplane. One of
the guys sees it happening before in his spirits eye
and manages to save some of them. But death has been
planned for all of them. The movie is about the power
of death making patterns that normal mortals cannot
withstand. It is an original horror-movie and the
makers were quite inventive to produce schemes of
death that are almost laughable. Can one fight
destiny? If the makers would be as inventive to
discover patterns of life they could make a more
enlightened pictureshow on the art of coming to life
instead of finding death. Its a nice movie for the
ones in digestive need that oddly enough begins with
some scenes on the john.
The
Next Best Thing
Seen:
07.13.00. Dir John Schlesinger. With Madonna and
Rupert Everett. An alternative movie on alternative
people with alternative problems ending in a common
drama. This film shows how people living authentic
from their own realizations still can grow apart and
estrange. Facts: She is a yoga-teacher, he a
homosexual flower-man. They are friends and
accidentally they had some occasional sex. Funny to
see strange people getting excited on behaving normal.
But a child is born. The two take responsibility and
educate the kid like house-friends for the next best
thing after a love affair. After years she falls
really in love with someone else and then trouble
starts. The three don't get along and he doesn't want
to drop out of the lovebond. He is a good father after
all, or not... For three years she kept secret that he
wasn't the father at all. He loses the case in court.
The heart is broken. Lesson learned: keep on doing
yoga and believe in flowers; bondage is an
illusion.
28
DAYS
Seen:
07.13.00. Dir. Betty Thomas. Starring Sandra Bullock.
Imagine an alcoholic lady with difficulties to lead an
adapted straight life. She goes to a clinic to become
human again. She loses touch with her former
party-friend. She regains compassion with other
people. She is born again. In a clinic- kind of social
setting with all kinds of humanistic half religious
practices of chanting and serving. It reminds of a
monastery where one can find rebirth with a new self
discipline. Where is the real world? What is the
problem in the material world? How does the world of
the real human beings come about and how is it
maintained? Ultimately essential questions this film
doesn't all answer. But it lays a good foundation of
28 days out of a life for another life for further
exploring into the alternatives of human
consciousness.
Mission Impossible
II
Seen:
07.05.00. Dir. John Woo, starring (and producing) Tom
Cruise. The virus won't leave us with this action
movie: the simple good and bad scheme is nicely
wrapped in a fast and grand modern high-tech style.
The evil wants to sell the antidote spreading a
cultivated virus and the good hero must prevent it.
That's the story. Of course there is a beautiful lady
which makes it an impossible mission. The criminal
takes hold of her and threatens to win. The hero must
walk trough walls and jump of skyscrapers, but of
course he wins in the end. Although a bit overdone
here and there with all too unlikely comic-book style
transformations of persons it is still a high quality
product worth wile for the ones in favor of the
action-genre, especially knowing that Cruise did his
own stunting. It radiates the fun that one had making
it.
Reindeer Games
Seen:
07.05.00. Dir.John Frankenheimer. This is a criminal
X-mass comedy. A convict takes the place of a mate
after leaving prison. He thinks he can start a nice
life in freedom with the girl friend of his deceased
friend, but runs into a hell of trouble. It turns out
to be a set up in which he must help other
(inexperienced) criminals to rob a casino at X-mass
time. A lot of dead Santa's can be enjoyed as the not
un-funny victim escapes being the hero in a somewhat
constructed end. End good all good for the righteous
criminal who didn't really want all that money that
other bastards gave Him setting him up ..... but o.k.
one Santa must be good. A lot of fun.
L'Humanité
(France)
Seen:
06- 28-00 Dir. Bruno Dumont. Awarded Cannes '99. A
policeman has a deep crisis in his simple rural
existence in a village in the North of France. A child
is molested, raped and murdered. No one knows the
perpetrator. Nor the onlooker, nor the characters of
the movie. Very slowly, as slow as real life (with the
real local people for actors) the film drags on on
every trivial emotion and event. That makes it a very
realistic but tiring almost boring picture. Sometimes
maybe a bit too realistic showing all dishonorable
superficial of animal human life. The director takes
the viewer on a tour of paranoia. Who did it? The
policeman himself? Someone else. In the end when one
almost has fallen asleep sudden the most obvious
option appears to be the truth. Lesson learned: it is
the viewer that is corrupt and not the society.
Although difficult and slow, an interesting club-movie
going deeper than the average commercial
product.
Three
to Tango
Seen:
06- 20-00 Dir.: Damon Santostefano. Starring Matthew
Perry. This is a very hilarious original comedy about
a not too beautiful guy in love with a beautiful girl.
He is an architect and she an artist befriended with
the man who employs the architect. To keep his
contract he has to take care of the girl but falls in
love with her. But she very soon hears of his being
gay because his partner in business is a fervent gay.
So he plays the game of being gay getting very close
to the woman he loves. He wins the design-contest that
decided whether he would get the assignment of
millions of dollars and also wins the girl in a
classical american style: in a public confession that
he is not gay. Worth while seeing.
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