Horror movie in disguise

I've found many descriptions that dub Pan's Labyrinth as a fairy tale for adults, but I'd say that it's a well-crafted horror movie in disguise as a fantasy film and period piece, like a haunting "Alice in Wonderland" in civil war Spain.  I heard nothing but rave reviews about it since it came out, but it wasn't until almost five years later that I got around to watching it; it's not the kind of movie that I would toss into the DVD player and run in the background as I do chores or surf the web because its subject matter and it's spoken entirely in Spanish.  Initially I was daunted by the prospect of watching this movie but I was handsomely rewarded when I finally saw it.  If the story doesn't linger in your memory, the theme/melody will.  I don't really do horror movies, so this would be the film I would watch tonight (and I could because, after 20 hours, the power has come back on!  Alas, this is one of  the holes in my DVD collection.)

thoughts on Pan's Labyrinth

Stream of consciousness writing, vomit draft, raw & largely unedited thoughts on the aforementioned film.

“Pan’s Labyrinth” is another one of those movies I had meant to watch for ages but kept finding one reason or another to put it off until later.  I have this feeling against casually watching movies that demand more attention.  This seemed like a fairly prestigious film, one that had been nominated for an Academy Award and therefore made me sort of sigh reluctantly at the thought of having to block out time to watch it.  Plus, it’s a foreign film and necessitates the reading of subtitles for the duration of the film.  I hate to fall under the figure of stupid ugly American who won’t watch a good movie because she has to read subtitles.  Basically it was an accumulation of little excuses that deterred me from discovering this gem, and I’m glad to have finally watched it.

 This film is deserving of its R rating.  I’ve definitely seen more grisly, bloody violence in other movies but there’s something very primal and psychologically disturbing about the violence in this movie, which I admire of it.  Having seen the film more than once I know when to close my eyes and ears—not just the sights but also the sounds that accompany them are equally terrifying.  It is very much an adult fairy tale.  This sounds misleading, as if there is some “adult content” that children should not know of until they reach a certain age, but it is not the case with this movie.  It is just that children would probably have nightmares about it, and there are heavy topics that would have more of an impact with adults who can process the psychological and historical occurrences.

I’m not sure if I would go as far to say that director Del Toro is a feminist but he certain puts a lot of womb-like elements into the set direction.  There is something very pro-woman in this film, which goes against and in contrast to the very male, fascist antagonist figures.  I know that he went against typecast with his actresses; for the deferring mother he cast a woman known for playing strong independent females, and for the strong surrogate mother maid he cast an actress who typically plays more of a femme fatale, lusty eye candy for men.

A real grown-up fairy tale, very well told by director Guillermo del Toro.  A wonderfully brave and not too precocious nine year old actress plays the protagonist.  Wi would tell anyone who dismiss fantasy as kids stuff to watch this and have them change their minds.  Some truly gripping, terrifying scenes that don’t show violence but hint at it, which makes it all the more gasp-inducing.  I’ve read somewhere that its really a horror film disguised as a fantasy, which it may well be.  And really, if I hahad known it was so violent I probably never would have seen it.  However, that wasn’t the only impediment/deterrent that prevented me from getting around to watching this.  Sometimes I like to watch something that I can put on in the background and sometimes I want something “meaty”, something I can chew over, some food for thought.  I heard much acclaim about this movie and worried about finding the time for such a prestigious work.

Movie Review Haiku: Justin Bieber: Never Say Never

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This talented kid!

Put hair, hype aside-- watch and

be a Belieber

Quick reaction to "X-Men: First Class"



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 I saw X-Men: First Class more than a week ago. Overall I liked this movie.  I wouldn't mind seeing it in theaters again but I'm not terribly passionate about this film.  Some lingering thoughts:

Update (sort of) and mini movie review

This clip, from the 2007 film Persepolis, does a great job at capturing the way I feel at the moment. 


I have to admit that the last few posts have been cop-outs and poorly planned.  This month I have several posts already in the works, so hopefully they'll be more cohesive and thoughtfully written.  I was going to make today's post a long one but have decided to postpone it and post it when it's more...finished.

I did recently watch Persepolis, having finally read both of the graphic novels upon which the film is based.  The film is gorgeously rendered in flat animation that is mostly black and white, doing a great job retaining the style of the graphic novel.  The story is autobiographical and deals with some Serious Stuff, and some of the most suspenseful scenes are done in silhouette.  I chose to watch the film in its original French version while reading English subtitles, but the film has also been dubbed in English with great actors like Iggy Pop and Sean Penn.  At its core it's a coming of age story, and is masterfully put together.  I know that a lot of people are put off by animation and/or black-and-white films, but I think even they would enjoy this one.

Encounters at the End of the World (2007): a haiku and review

Yes! Antarctica!

Here dwell curious creatures--

not solely penguins

* * * * *

Movie Review Haiku: Dogtooth

Playful, subversive

This sparse indie film left me

Breathless and speechless

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Movie Review Haiku: The Fighter (2010)

What does it take to

become the Pride of Lowell?

Strength to fight for it.

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Movie Review Haiku: Everything is Illuminated (2005)

Searching for the past

Three wanderers in Ukraine

A premium film

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Movie Review Haiku: The Sting (1973)

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Newman and Redford

The Original Bromance

Best con of their lives

Movie Review: The Wrong Trousers

I have "The Adventures of Wallace and Gromit" on DVD, which includes the following 30-minute short films: A Grand Day Out, The Wrong Trousers, and A Close Shave. Yesterday I watched the second film, which features ex-NASA robo-pants, the machinations of penguin disguised as a chicken, and a chase sequence on a model train set. Fantastic stuff.

The Wrong Trousers is the second film starring Wallace and Gromit but it isn't necessary to have seen A Grand Day Out to enjoy it. It's not a sequel but the first scene gives a tacit nod to the first film by means of a newspaper headline. It starts on Gromit's birthday, and Wallace has spent quite a bit of money for gifts for the dog. One present is a collar and lead (leash); the other is the titular trousers, which feature vacuum-suctioning feet and can be programmed to walk the dog. Wallace, the man and inventor, is thrilled about this, but Gromit is...not. And much to Gromit's chagrin, Wallace sublets a spare room to a penguin in order to recompense the money spent for gifts. Gromit has a bad feeling about the penguin, and his suspicions are confirmed when...well, you'll have to find out for yourself.

The animation is much improved but still maintains charm, soul and inventiveness. Like the previous film, Wallace has the only dialogue in the film--if it can be called dialogue. He speaks but gets nonverbal responses. Gromit has a mouth (somewhere in that head) but doesn't use it to speak. He conveys a range of emotions with his expressive little brow and gestures. The music does a lot to give more weight to the actions, and has a sort of 1950's-B-horror-movie vibe to it. Ah, and there are so many little visual gags put in, some that are quietly tongue-in-cheek and others that are laugh-out-loud hilarious. This is cinema: great storytelling, artfully directed visuals and complementary soundtrack. A half-hour very well spent.

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Movie Review: No Strings Attached

I enjoyed this film as much as I expected. Good romantic comedies are hard to come by so I didn't expect this one to be the apotheosis of this genre. The cast is solid and the b-plot supplied by supporting characters was actually sweet and interesting and given an appropriate amount of time. Ashton Kutcher does his charming rom-com nice guy character and it's obvious that he and Natalie Portman had a lot of fun making this movie. I think slightly more time is given to Ashton Kutcher's character but Portman's garners more sympathy and empathy. Even though this is just a fun romantic comedy where good-looking people make kissings with other good-looking people there are some genuinely lovely parts. But the movie is essentially "Zach and Miri Make a Porno" with more romance than comedy and more commodified attitude toward sex. I can think of a more enjoyable way to have spent time with my friend, but I didn't mind going with her to see this and don't regret it.

In short:

Movie Haiku & Review: Matchstick Men (2003)

(Image from movieberry.com)

Nicholas Cage cons;
Daughter and protégé, too.
Dangerously fun.

~

I watched this movie this morning on tv, because it happened to be playing on USA Network*. I remember seeing the trailer when it was in theaters and I was vaguely interested in seeing this. Today I watched Matchstick Men for the first time, and I enjoyed it enough to not mind watching it again. During the commercial breaks I'd channel surf and ended up missing small chunks of the movie in addition to whatever the network cut out for cable tv.

The plot isn't anything too complicated: Nicholas Cage is Roy, a not con man but a con ARTIST, who lives a neurotic, lonely life and works with protégé Frank (Sam Rockwell) and working their mark Chuck (Bruce McGill) when his teenage daughter (Alison Lohman) unexpectedly shows up. Cage is fun and not too campy/crazy/lacking irony like he's been for the last few years in the his last few movies **. Lohman is energetic, earnest, and eager to please Cage's character; plays a pretty convincing 14-year-old (she was 24 when the movie came out). Rockwell is solid, balances Cage well, and in retrospect his character is a little unnerving but in a good way. It's not a showy or glamorous film, but it's still solid and has a good balance of of scenes with levity and intensity. It's by Ridley Scott, but doesn't really feel like it's BY RIDLEY SCOTT, DIRECTOR OF "GLADIATOR". I don't mean that in the perjorative sense, it's just that it has a smaller, low-key feel, and the characters are modeled after real people who are imperfect and not always heroic or likeable. It's a serviceable film that doesn't demand too much of the viewer and would be fun to watch over and over-- or until you've had your fill of neurotic Mr. Cage.


*I think that waking up on Saturday mornings to watch TV is so deeply ingrained in me that, even if there's nothing particularly interesting on, I'll still end up watching an hour of whatever's on at that time. Hence, how I ended up watching this movie; I enjoyed it but wouldn't have seen it in any other situation.

** But as terrible as it looks and probably is, I still kind of want to see "Season of the Witch". Ron Perlman is in it (a plus), and Christopher Lee has some sick prosthetic makeup (double plus). I won't shell out the money to see it in theaters, but I'm sure it'll be fun to watch it with a gaggle of friends (...because my friends are geese?) when its comes out on DVD.