Elizabeth, The Golden Age
The initial successful ‘Elizabeth’ was produced in 1998, but this long awaited sequel is also a triumph. The movie is visually stunning, and director Shekhar Kapur has been able to instill new depth into some very well known historical events in the life of Queen Elizabeth the First. The execution of Queen Mary of Scots, the Spanish Armada, and Elizabeth’s turbulent affair with Sir Walter Raleigh, are all handled with insight and intelligence. Cate Blanchett is at the right age to portray a mature Elizabeth, and she is utterly captivating, ravishing, and fantastic throughout the movie.
I Am Legend
Will Smith’s latest action movie is one of those films that comes in at exactly 90 minutes. It kinda makes you think that some prudential pruning went on in the editing room, either to save the movie or to ensure that it fitted cinema screening schedules. Anyway, this movie, about the last man left alive in New York after a genetically engineered virus has decimated the population, spends much time establishing the mood. Then, new characters are suddenly introduced in the last ten minutes, and everything comes to an abrupt finale. It is perhaps better to wait for the ‘Director’s Cut’ on this one. That is, if anybody can be bothered putting the movie back together again.
Naked Boys Singing!
This movie is actually a cheap video documentation of a long-running Off-Broadway musical stage revue, performed in an intimate theatre somewhere in Los Angeles. The gimmick of the show is that it features totally ‘Naked Boys Singing!’. Like all musical revues, some of the songs work and some of the songs fall flat. Many of the songs will have appeal for sophisticated audiences in New York, Los Angeles or San Francisco, but they have little relevance to our more sedate life here in Bali. Seminyak and Petitengent’s gay enclaves will probably find the movie a hoot, but, after about 30 or 40 minutes of gratuitous nudity ‘Naked Boys Singing!’ starts to pall somewhat.
The Bucket List
Two hospital patients, both in their late sixties and sharing a room, discover that they each have terminal cancer. They put together a list of all the things they would like to do before they die, and set about achieving their goals. Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman may both be ‘old hams’, but they certainly know how to milk the most out of a sentimental script when they are presented with one. Jack and Morgan also seem to exhibit a genuine warmth and affection for one another. Director Rob Reiner’s ‘black comedy’ occasionally skates very close to the kitsch, yet it never veers into schmaltz.
A Few Days In September
I would love to tell you more about this movie, but, if I say too much I will give the game away completely. Lets just say that the movie is very French, and very oblique. After a while you begin to wonder why Juliette Binoche, a French secret service operative, is so interested in making contact with a rogue American spy who is about to come in from the ‘cold’. Then, when you are sick to death of Juliette’s chain-smoking, and touristy vistas of Venice, the mystery of the plot is suddenly exposed in a startling revelation.
The Flock
Richard Gere and Claire Danes star in this confusing story about a pair of Public Safety Officials, who are assigned to keep track of registered sex offenders in a nondescript and unnamed American city. A missing teenage girl, who may have been murdered, is also involved in all the shenanigans. There are many loose ends in this movie which are not tied up satisfactorily, and there also appears to be an ongoing battle between Richard and Claire to see who can perform the best, without any conviction or readable emotions.
The Great Debaters
In the mid 1930s in rural Texas, for many Black Americans the only avenue to a better life was through education. An English professor in an ‘all-black’ college puts together a debating team, which goes on to enjoy considerable success across the entire American nation. At the same time, the professor is involved in some very radical and unpopular politics. Based on a ‘true-life’ story, Denzel Washington directs and stars in this uplifting and inspiring movie about racial discrimination and political corruption in the Deep South.
The Marlon Brando Collection
Marlon Brando exploded onto the screen in 1950, after a short but controversial career as a Broadway actor. He was, and remains, the epitome of ‘method’ acting. This collection of movies presents the development of his early cinema career, when he was still young and handsome and relevant. ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ (1951) and ‘On The Waterfront’ (1954) are the two movies on which his legend is based. ‘Mutiny On The Bounty’ (1962) was an over-inflated epic that got financially and artistically out of control, while ‘Viva Zapata!’ (1952) and ‘Desiree’ (1954) were made while he was still a contract player, and not happy about it! It is a good collection of movies, which shows him at his very best, before he became obese and somewhat lazy as an actor. Other Movie Stars in this ‘Collectors Series’ don’t fare so well. Both the Marilyn Monroe and Elizabeth Taylor collections contain mainly movies that were produced early on in their careers, before their sparkling screen personas and fame were established.
Mr. Robet’s Best Buys
Elizabeth, The Golden Age
Cate Blanchett is simply fabulous in this elaborate historical costume-drama.
Red Road
This gripping Scottish mystery will have you glued to the edge of your seat.
A Few Days In September
A French ‘spy’ movie which makes some shocking and startling revelations.
In The Shadow Of The Moon
America’s awe inspiring trip to the Moon is retold through archival footage.
The Astronaut Farmer
Billy Bob Thornton stars in this great film about realizing impossible goals.
Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee
An amazing movie that investigates the fate of the Native American Indians.
Civic Duty
An American low budget thriller which makes pertinent political comments.
The Nanny Diaries
A humorous and anthropological look at the many problems of child rearing.
The Bucket List
A comedy that displays the talents of Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman.
Bee Movie
Jerry Seinfeld’s delightful ecological cartoon will amuse children and adults.
Waitress
A good low key American movie that succeeds in tugging the heart strings.
Rise of the Footsoldier
Though the movie is very violent, it has an intriguing plotline and structure.
The Jan Austen Book Club
Women especially will find this film about personal relationships enjoyable.
December Boys
A sentimental but charming film about a group of Australian orphaned boys.
