Calum's Recent Reviews
Mary and Max
Unrated
Oscar winning (and proudly gay) animation artist Adam Elliot's acclaimed clay-mation feature film "Mary & Max" is astoundingly rewarding wonderful entertainment on the big screen.
It's an intriguing tale, starting in the mid seventies, of the ongoing true friendship of two long distance pen-pals, younger Mary in rural Australia and older Max in the rat-race of New York City. A significant element of the story involves Max's experience of living with Asperger Syndrome, knowing painfully full well that he senses the world in a radically different way to most. I've never seen any other project deal so honestly and powerfully with that condition. It's a genuine celebration of the value of difference.
There's lots to laugh and think about - and the attention to detail is staggering. Australia's living legend Barry Humphries excels as the narrator.
I loved the soundtrack which strongly featured two of my favourite Penguin Cafe Orchestra compositions. I've ordered the soundtrack CD already.
The Day After Tomorrow
PG-13
really enjoyed this film by director Roland Emmerich a great deal. It is a fast-paced, exciting, suspenseful film filled with wonderful images, great CGI effects, plausible acting, and even a coherent script. How realistic is it? I hope not at all, but the director made the film so that it seems very real and like something that MIGHT happen. The story revolves around some major climatic shifts that cause the entire Northern hemisphere to become Artic tundra. New York City is devastated as are other major cities all over Europe. Dennis Quaid gives a good performance as a climatologist that predicted some of these events. We see things through his perspective and that of his son for much of the movie. The acting in general is good in this film. I particularly liked Ian Holm's role as the British meteorologist stuck in the middle of nowhere while these changes advanced. Much of the credit for the film's success must go to Emmerich. This is easily one of his best films. He keeps his viewer on the edge of his/her seat through the entire film. Action is the film's primary objective, but Emmerich also uses a lot of humanity in what his character's motivations are, and I for one, enjoyed seeing that side of humanity rather than what I probably would see under similar circumstances. As a previous viewer noted, this is a great popcorn movie!
Calum's Favorite Movies
Rebel Without a Cause
PG-13
James Dean is an unbelievable actor. Basically his whole career consists of only three movies he acted in just right before his tragic death. Yet still, almost 50 years later people recognize his name and face. He's an icon of the 1950's and in the same line with Marilyn Monroe or Elvis Presley. That's simply miraculous, movie history knows no other example of anything like it. I personally consider Jimmy as one of my favorite actors too. Of course he is a sensational talent and maybe it's partly because he really had only three big performances so no one ever saw him actually doing something wrong, choosing a bad role or whatever. I personally think that James Dean would have been nearly as big if "Rebel without a cause" was his only movie. His devoted, stylish and touching larger-than-life performance as Jim Stark is just startling experience to watch. Legendary "Rebel without a cause" is a timeless drama and in many ways it's far from being old fashioned. It's moving, beautiful and incredibly impressive, the best movie of its decade and one of the best movies ever made. Period. 10/10.
Seven (Se7en)
R
Well-crafted and ingeniously clever, making it one of the greatest films of the 90's.
