Already Breaking Promises

I know I promised Conversations or The Simpsons Movie next, but that is not to be. Both this weekend, promise. As it is I unexpectedly saw Apocalypse Now! for the first time, and it is more heavily on my mind.

Apocalypse Now!
Director: Francis Ford Coppola
Featuring: Marlon Brando, Martin Sheen, Robert Duvall, Dennis Hopper, Lawrence Fishburne
IMDb

Synopsis: A soldier/assassin (Sheen) in the Vietnam War is sent up a dangerous river to find and assassinate a rogue US Corporal (Brando).


This movie defines what a war movie should be. Though I don't consider myself a fan per say of the genre as a whole, I have had the opportunity to see many over the years. This one, quite simply, leaves them all behind. Infinitely quotable ("I love the smell of napalm in the morning... smells like victory"), it manages to recreate the time and the chaos of the war, as well as artistically manipulating it for the director's purposes. It has an intriguing plot, and powerful characterizations.

Marlon Brando is typically the actor talked about most when this movie is discussed, and with good reason. While he only appears in the late half of the film, his character is deranged, much as Brando himself became late in life, but to the point that he is dangerous. And yet, it is only when he himself recognizes that he is a danger that Sheen can manage to actually go through the act that he was sent to do. And let's put it this way: Brando is easily one of the greatest actors that ever lived. I have long believed this, and thought that I had evidence enough: The Godfather, Streetcar Named Desire, Don Juan DeMarco, even his last film, The Score, when the man had completely lost it to the point that he had to be directed in the voice of Miss Piggy. This film holds the final proof: the oft mocked line "The horror... the horror..." This line is nothing without the rest of the film, and is ridiculous out of context. But even then, any lesser actor with this line to die on would have made the entire movie a joke. Only an actor of the caliber of Brando can make you hear that line at that time and not burst out laughing. Simply fantastic.

There is not a war movie made that can affect its viewer in the same way that this film can. Others can show the reality, the romanticism, the victory, the defeat, but only this one truly shows the horror. And that is the harshest reality of them all.

Direction: 5
Artistic Vision: 5
Acting: 5
Production Design: 4
Cultural Relevance: 5
Overall: 10/10

Croupier

Croupier (1998)
Directed by Mike Hodges
Featuring Clive Owen
on IMDb
Synopsis: The film centers on a writer (Clive Owen) and former croupier, named Jack, who gets back into the casino business to make ends meet while he writes his book. The casino is an addiction to Jack, although the stories he experiences find their way into his novel.



Croupier was certainly a surprise, and a pleasant one at that. I have always loved Clive Owen, but have mostly seen him in his more mainstream roles (Closer, King Arthur, The Bourne Identity). This film was a wonderful opportunity to watch the man completely dominate a film and bring me in to the demented world of Jack. The narration called to mind that of Fight Club in style, although not as abrasive, and that was certainly one of the high points to the film. Metaphors play beautifully, and while I didn't always understand why Jack was taking the actions that he was, but it was never unbelievable in the least.

This is part of a dying breed of film: the intense character study. The goal fleshes out a single person to the point that the audience believes him to be real. The story is quite engaging, as are most films that attempt this style, and unfortunately that tends to get in the way, making fascinating stories but losing something in the characterization. Croupier manages to avoid this trap, maybe because its story is not as fascinating as its central character. Overall, a movie that should be seen by far more audiences than it ever will be.

Trivia: Was planned to be an Oscar contender, but it was shown on TV before the nominations, thus disqualifying it.

Direction: 4
Artistic Vision: 4
Acting: 4 (Clive Owen is a 5, other characters leave something to be desired)
Production Design: 5
Cultural Relevance: 3
Overall: 9/10

Coming Soon: Conversations with Other Women, The Simpsons Movie

So It Begins

I don't expect that this will be getting any hits anytime soon, but when it does, surely someone would like to know who the hell thinks their opinion is valid enough to be writing movie reviews. Let it suffice that I am a college student in the Midwest who has seen enough movies to have a sense of a good movie versus a bad one. I haven't seen every movie on AFI's Top 100, but I personally also believe that AFI is unable to recognize that there have, in fact, been very good movies made within the last 20 years, and even though Citizen Kane may in fact be the greatest movie ever made (though that is certainly up for debate), it doesn't mean that half of their top 10 must be made within 5 years of it.

As you are probably getting a sense of already, I can be abrasive, opinionated, and, of course, a self admitted snob. I will probably resort to being crude, especially with some of the worse movies that I am sure to see as time progresses. This blog will consist mostly of reviews of movies, though with any luck, I will be inspired to write in regards to industry decisions, actor's careers, major awards, and so on.

I will also close every review with 1-5 ratings in the following categories:
Direction
Artistic Vision
Acting
Production Design
Cultural Relevance
Overall (out of 10)*
*Overall will not necessarily be directly resultant from the other categories. For example, Die Hard would get lower marks for Artistic Vision and Cultural Relevance, but it is overall a well made movie, and would get a 7 overall.

My taste in movies ranges all over the place, but things you can probably expect:
I will hate most comedies targeted at my age group and lower. The Wayans brothers are Satan's work in the world, and should not be allowed to touch movies.
I will tend to enjoy movies that have first person narration. I don't know why, I just will
Favorite genres of mine include cult movies, and movies that the mainstream would consider fringe, and that the fringe would consider mainstream. Movies like Fight Club, The Usual Suspects, Sideways, Reality Bites, Tim Burton films, etc.

That's all for this post. I was going to include my first reviews in it, but I will instead put those in another post.