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Reviews
Eve's Bayou (1997)
A New Classic
Hitchcock was once famously quoted as saying, "You need three things to make a good movie: a good script, a good script and a good script." This citation does not just suit Eve's Bayou; it defines it. Kasi Lemmons, who both wrote and directed the film, has made an unrepeatable tour DE force about memory & magic and the consequences that they may bring. The script is full of twists and turns, and given that its narrated in a totally distinct way, the more credit that should go to Lemmons. The film is excellently acted. Jurnee Smollet(Eve) and Debbi Morgan(Aunt Mozelle) paints the whole film with a multifaceted assortment of emotions; grief, anger, irony, whatever feeling or sensation that they display is done wonderfully, not just with talent but with versatility, too. Samuel L. Jackson, Lynn Whitfield, and Meagan Good provide fine supporting roles. The characters in the film are all well illustrated; each one suffers from different things, but the most admirable concept (character-wise, that is) is that it's not all a matter of good and bad.
Despite all odds, Kasi Lemmons' direction is simply superb, both fooling and disorienting the viewers with the diabolically clever story, and managing to skillfully execute the complex narrative (which at the same time is very neatly edited, too). Her taut, hawk-eyed direction is mainly what makes the film work.
Finding Nemo (2003)
Masterpiece
It's been seven years since Pixar unleashed Toy Story 2, the first full-length computer animated feature film, on the world, and what a wild, whimsical ride it was. Working in tandem with Disney (an association perilously close to ending), Pixar has provided several equally wondrous rides -- Toy Story 2, A Bug's Life, Monsters Inc., all of which contained themes and characters perfectly suited to the hyper-realistic computer-generated style of animation. Pixar's films feature carefully crafted narratives, simple but not simplistic, offering an ebb and flow of action-stoked set pieces that, at best, stoke our adrenaline while keeping our funny bones on vibrating overdrive.
For it's 2003 release -- and perhaps greatest -- achievement, Pixar looks into the majestic depths of the ocean. The result -- Finding Nemo -- is a movie of extraordinary visual spectacle, astonishing emotional depth, and brilliant voice acting (Ellen deserved an Oscar nomination). It's every bit as inventive as the Toy Story franchise, every bit as charming as Bug's Life, every bit as colorful and vibrant as Monster's Inc. But it's even more compelling, more emotionally driven than these precursors. Everything, in a sense, has led up to Nemo, the best of all possible computer animated worlds.