Change Your Image
marina-31
Reviews
My Last Day Without You (2011)
Watched it twice so far
I recorded this from the UP channel and though it wasn't in HD, I still found myself loving it and couldn't bring myself to delete it when done watching it as I usually do after watching something DVR-ed. I can't really figure out how to describe what I loved about it, but I think mostly it's the interesting culture clash and, as Niklas points out, the attraction between his left-brain temperament and her right-brain creativity. The dialog was so real, so honest, and I felt like a fly on the wall getting to watch a very real human connection develop over the few hours they had together - a connection that neither expected. They each learned a lot about themselves and each other because they were both very real and honest with each other more and more as the day went on. My primary criteria for liking a movie is whether I am given a reason to care about the characters, and this story did draw me in to caring for all the characters from the start.
Shadowheart (2009)
Couldn't bring myself to care
The first thing I pay attention to in watching a movie is whether I care about the characters. I couldn't bring myself to care about these people, mostly because the writing and acting was not good enough. The feel of the whole thing was that it was amateurish. The story didn't flow in a way that felt real. Also, I don't like stories where there's not a good resolution or denouement, even if not a happy ending. This didn't leave me with the feeling of satisfaction. The theme seemed to be relentless evil without any real hope of the good guy winning out in the end. Without giving away the end, I'll just say that if it was meant to tie up the plot, it failed to work for me. I wouldn't recommend this movie to anyone.
Lovely & Amazing (2001)
Why should I care?
My first question in evaluating a movie is, "Why should I care about these characters?" There was no reason to care about any of these characters, and if a film doesn't start out "hooking" me into caring, I get irritated with it. These women were annoying, self-absorbed, unlikeable, and demandingly selfish. I tried to care, but was glad that I had kitchen work to do while I watched it or I'd have given up on it as a waste of time. The only reason I give it a 3 is that the acting was OK.
Why do "women's movies" think that we want to see real-life to the point that there is little redeeming value to what the characters are portrayed as going through? This movie reminded me of a person I work with who comes in every day assuming I'll be thrilled to hear about the boring details of her life and relationships.
Danny Deckchair (2003)
Surprisingly laugh-out-loud
I didn't know what to expect, but found myself laughing out loud many times, which surprised my family to hear. I mostly keep movies on-hand to keep me distracted as I work in the kitchen, but had to just stop and watch this one. And I'm going to make the rest of the family watch it.
The development of the main character was so human and endearing. The changing emotions visible on the faces of the two main characters required attention, so I couldn't just listen and glance over while doing other things like I usually can.
One thing that I always ask myself in reading a book or watching a movie is, "Do I care about these characters?" If there's no reason to care what happens to someone, why spend the time? In this movie, which I found by searching for movies to add to my Blockbuster online queue, one can't help but care for Danny right from the beginning as his holiday plans are forced to change.
There wasn't the usual approach of jumping into bed together out of lust and examining feelings after the fact. The relationship of Danny and Glenda felt plausible, handled with sensitivity and realism with neither of them starting out "looking for love" which really means "wanting sex with someone, anyone" that most Hollywood romances think we want.
Julie Walking Home (2002)
Oh, Now I get it!
I knew nothing about this film when I watched it on Sundance Channel the other day. So I was able to let it "hit me" with no preconceived ideas. If you haven't watched it yet, please do so before reading anything else.
Now, in general: Great acting, very realistic feel, and the children were amazing. It felt unscripted whenever they were on screen, their characters and personalities seemed so realistic! And all the adults were also very human and real.
The ending: I've had to ponder this a lot, and someone else's comment helped me sort through it. It doesn't end neatly with all the loose ends tied up--like real life, with choices bringing effects and consequences. I was shocked at first how Alexei just disappeared at the hospital after discovering his powers were gone. I agree with someone who said that his passions must have been diverted away from healing when he set them on Julie instead, and I was not surprised when this happened. In fact, as they were pursuing their romance, I suspected he was making a choice whether he realized it or not, and he said he didn't want to do the healing anymore and wanted to be with her, so maybe he did know. He was human after all, facing and giving in to human nature temptations of lust and desire for romance and relationship. I admit I feel some worry about him, what would have happened to him. But then the end of the movie comes suddenly, with time having passed, Julie growing large with Alexei's baby, and everyone seeming to be at peace with life at that point. That is what was so thought-provoking after the movie ended. Bottom line, we live in the here and now, making the best of bad or less-than-ideal life circumstances, and that is where this family seemed to land. But I still worry about what happened to Alexei!
The Mighty (1998)
Discovered by channel surfing, it hooked me
I'd never have known to check this film out, so it was pure luck to find it by channel surfing on a slow TV night. I remembered seeing a Sharon Stone interview back when it was coming out, and she seemed very passionate about it, but I had no idea what it was about. I didn't really intend to sit and watch a movie at that time--just keeping my husband company for a bit, and we debated whether to watch it, but couldn't quite tear ourselves away and enjoyed every minute, probably more because we didn't have any expectations and were able to be carried along freely by the story, the music, the whole thing--a very well-made film that we taped later and will keep in our collection. It had the good feel of Radio Flyer and Sandlot, better than Simon Birch.
Déjà Vu (1997)
Love it or hate it--I love it!
This film seems to be either loved or hated, as even the user ratings show. I'm one of the ones who loves it. It seems either one "gets it" or one misses the point. You have to be able to overlook some of the low budget feel of some of the technical aspects, not be in a critical frame of mind, and just sit back and let it hit you. I'm a very big Stephen Dillane fan, think he's so real in each role he plays, and this film gives many moments of enjoying his honest-feeling responses to the events of the story. I recommend viewing it alone, at least at first, because then you can really be free to enjoy it without the additional dynamic of wondering if others like it. I got my husband to watch it with me, and it was hard for him to let it hit him. It is more of a woman's film, anyway, as the male lead is much more attractive than the female lead, not like another romance, Firelight, with Stephen Dillane and Sophie Marceau, a sexy female lead.