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The Wild Bunch - R
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While Peckinpah lacks the visual poetry of Kurosawa, he definitely reminds us of the kinetic energy of Kurosawa's movies. The violence comes close to Tarantino's movies but in a more realistic way. Think of it as a grittier, less romanticized "Butch Cassidy".
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April 26, 2009
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N/A
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Straw Dogs - R
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One of the most psychologically intense movies you'll ever see. Be warned: the movie has some extremely violent scenes that you may want to avoid seeing. That said, directorially it is Peckinpah at his best.
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April 26, 2009
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N/A
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Lars and the Real Girl - PG-13
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Worth watching for Ryan's Gosling's sensitive portrayal of a delusional individual. Equally impressive supporting cast. Stands out in a crowd of repetitive movies and for its unique script.
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April 19, 2009
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N/A
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Slumdog Millionaire - R
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A movie that's Shakespearean in ambition and Bollywood by tradition. There's no way, you're escaping the charms of this classic rags to riches story. Flawed characterization of one of the 2 leads and the fact that the characters speak English doesn't diminish from the directorial, cinematographic, musical and editorial brilliance of this crowd pleasing masterpiece! A must-see!
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April 17, 2009
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N/A
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Quantum of Solace - PG-13
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Bond so badly wants to be Bourne and in this movie comes close to pulling it off. But while the Bourne series trades in reality and a strong script, Bond is all about operatic flourish and a non-existent storyline. That's the part I'm not a big fan of.
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April 12, 2009
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N/A
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A Woman Is a Woman (Une femme est une femme) - Unrated
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Where do I begin?! Part II in Godard's trilogy of brilliant, inventive, mischievous and pure revolutionary story-telling, deserves a fuller appreciation than I can muster. Check out the NY Times review - http://is.gd/qWhn
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April 5, 2009
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N/A
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Elegy - R
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Please do NOT waste your time on this slow moving, painful to watch "Lifetime" movie that wastes the talent of Ben Kingsley. Even Penelope Cruz's hotness couldn't save this film! Skip the DVD.
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April 5, 2009
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N/A
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La Nuit Américaine (Day for Night) (The American Night) - PG
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This is one of those movies that I enjoyed watching because it gave an insider's look at how movies are made and the drama behind it. Plus, it's directed by Truffaut and has the spectacular Jacqueline Bisset star in it.
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March 22, 2009
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N/A
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Synecdoche, New York - R
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It's a searing dissection of the banality of our world and the little moments that give it the semblance of purpose. The movie fast forwards through mortality, life, love, pain, vanity, and more pain in an unconventional script that defies rules. It will leave you speechless and searching for answers. The world will never look the same again.
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March 22, 2009
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N/A
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The Godfather, Part III - R
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Testing review through flixster's Facebook connectivity on the iPhone. Pretty cool! Btw, this movie sucked!
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March 19, 2009
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N/A
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Milk - R
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After a slow start, the movie built up to be one of Sean Penn's best performance yet. Franco and Hirsch excelled in their roles as well. However, I'd recommend the documentary "Life and Times of Harvey Milk", which covers most of what this film describes, far more effectively.
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March 15, 2009
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N/A
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Les Quatre Cents Coups (The 400 Blows) - Unrated
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Great films, are simple stories told with a measure of honesty that most films lack. And, by that measure "400 Blows" is a masterpiece. One can see why this movie bowled over critics at Cannes when it was released. Watch the criterion edition, where you can see the audition tapes (and understand why Leaud was cast as the lead), 3 interviews with Truffaut that explains the autobiographical nature of the film, etc. Must-see movie for cinephiles.
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March 8, 2009
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N/A
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Harold and Maude - PG
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One of the greatest joys of watching this film is to see how it has influenced a generation of directors including Wes Anderson and Sean Penn. There was even a scene in the movie that Heath Ledger replicated in the "Batman Begins" as the Joker. Interesting companion piece to "Breathless" and "Bonnie & Clyde". The editing, cinematography and soundtrack are flawless. Definitely a classic!
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February 28, 2009
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N/A
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Ghost Town - PG-13
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A simple story, well told, Ghost town elevates the mundane, cliched, ridiculous nature of its premise to something enjoyable - thanks to Ricky Gervais' comedic sensibility. There were some LOL scenes, which seemed like they were Gervais' stand-up bits adapted to a screenplay. Plus, I always love a good soundtrack. A must-see DVD.
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February 28, 2009
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N/A
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Burn After Reading - R
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It's the best film on the state of Americana, materialism, war on Iraq, warts et al. If you're not into psycho analyzing your movies, just watch it for Brad Pitt & George Clooney play really dumb idiots.
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February 21, 2009
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N/A
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Breathless (À bout de souffle) (By a Tether) - Unrated
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"between grief and nothing, I'll take grief" - faulkner, embodies the temperament and the story arc of one of cinema's greatest character portraits. The movie is a cinephile's delight and the DVD commentary by David Sterrit is a must-hear. There's so much more that I'd like to say about this film, but I don't know where to begin! If you truly love movies/cinematography/photography, please do yourself a favor and watch it.
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February 20, 2009
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N/A
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Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist - PG-13
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Quite the perfect Valentine's Day movie. Flawed yet lovable storyline. Michael Cera's BORING performance nearly kills the film (somebody please tell him his 15 minutes of fame is up), although Kat Dennings is a revelation. The saving grace of the film is its soundtrack. Love it!
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February 15, 2009
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N/A
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Vicky Cristina Barcelona - PG-13
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A candid yet insightful commentary on the ambiguous nature of "love" by Woody Allen! Definitely a return to form, but this time he's ably assisted by Javier Bardem and the 3 beautiful women in the movie. Penelope Cruz in particular impresses, but Scarlett Johansson and Rebecca Hall are equally eye-candy and talented.
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February 15, 2009
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N/A
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Pineapple Express - R
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A genre-bending roller-coaster bromedy classic! It's like the "Bad Boys on weed" comedy! I could go on. Plus, it's Apatowian in that it ponders existential relationship issues. If you liked Knocked Up and Superbad, watch it.
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February 8, 2009
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N/A
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The Fall - R
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If Guillermo Del Toro and Spike Jonze were to make a movie this is what you'd get. An emotional roller coaster that's purely driven by spectacular visuals that's drawn on a vast global canvas. Must-see if you love cinematography or photography. Else, give it a miss.
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February 7, 2009
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N/A
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Religulous - R
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January 4, 2009
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N/A
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Orange County - PG-13
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December 7, 2008
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N/A
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Tropic Thunder - R
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December 4, 2008
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N/A
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Semi-Pro - R
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November 29, 2008
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N/A
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Get Smart - PG-13
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A character who alternates between super smart and downright dumb is definitely an illogical premise for this "Get Dumb" movie. Steve Carrel is funny in "The Office" and happens to repeat his shtick in every other movie he attempts to do. Not funny. IMO, not worth watching even on DVD.
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November 23, 2008
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N/A
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1384 ratings
200 reviews
