Sunday, April 15, 2012

Shut Up 'n' Watch Yer AndroidTube Some More

More mobile film fodder...

Milk (2008): excellent film about the life and death of San Francisco's first openly gay elected official, Harvey Milk. A career-defining performance from Sean Penn.

Flags Of Our Fathers (2006): tells the true story behind the historic photograph showing American soldiers planting a flag on a Pacific island hilltop during WWII. It's a bit long and fairly dry overall, but it does feature some of the most amazing footage of a beach landing since Saving Private Ryan.

Das Wunder Von Bern (2003): heart-warming story about West Germany's victorious world cup campaign in 1954 in which, against all the odds, they triumphed over the hitherto invincible Hungarian team. 

Shine A Light (2008): over-hyped Rolling Stones concert film directed by Martin Scorcese. The concert, like the whole project, seems lazy and self-indulgent and doesn't really change my long-standing opinion that --- Keif's classic riffs notwithstanding --- the Stones are one of the most overrated acts in rock music history.

Hancock (2008): incredibly silly, but surpisingly watchable, action-hero flick with Will Smith and Charlize Theron. 

Black Orpheus (1959): film adaptation of a Brazilian musical based on the classic Greek love story of Orpheus and Eurydice. The soundtrack by Antonion Carlos Jobim and Luis Bonfa includes several classic Bossa Nova standards ("Manha de Carnival" and "A Felicidad"). It's a bit dated but quite interesting.

Big Business (1988): camp and ridiculously contrived comedy starring Bette Midler. Strictly for 80s purists (as such, I rather enjoyed it).

Indian Runner (1991): fairly depressing yarn about a pair of brothers in the post-Vietnam American heartland. Directed by Sean Penn and featuring a young (pre-Strider) Viggo Mortensen.

Distant Voices, Still Lives (1988): a film about working-class life in Liverpool in the 50s and 60s, before the Beatles. Not really my cup of tea.

The Ides Of March (2011): recent political drama with George Clooney, Paul Giamatti and an ever-more-spherical Philip Seymour Hoffman. Not bad, but not great either.

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