Nine Inch Nails: “Came Back Haunted.” The new single from the forthcoming album “Hesitation Marks,” out September 3rd. Download “Came Back Haunted” on nin.com and iTunes starting June 6th.
Hannah and Her Sisters (1986)
This is definitely one of the better Woody Allen films I’ve seen, up there with Annie Hall (1977). It’s a slice of life film that may seem a little meaningless and meandering at first, but comes together quite well in the end. It has a great ensemble cast, which doesn’t just focus on the titular character and her sisters. At first, I thought Allen had inserted his usual character where he didn’t belong, but I probably liked his character’s story the most. It was funny and insightful, and I liked it a lot.
The Fugitive (1993)
This is a decent thriller, but not a great one. It’s all a little too by-the-book and safe to be anything beyond your typical Hollywood popcorn movie. Still, I was kept entertained the whole way through, and the pacing was good. Harrison Ford, Tommy Lee Jones and the rest of the cast do just fine. I just wish the characters had been more complex and maybe that the big reveal was a little more interesting.
Cries and Whispers (1972)
Well, this is unmistakably an Ingmar Bergman film. I feel like I might have thought it was better if I hadn’t already seen other (superior, in my opinion) films of his. It’s very bleak, which I don’t mind, but I didn’t really feel a connection to any of the characters. Yeah, I don’t know, it was good, but I couldn’t quite get past the wall of pretentiousness it had. Maybe I just didn’t surrender myself to it enough. I’ll have to give it another watch sometime.
A Letter to Three Wives (1949)
This film is about three women who receive a letter from their mutual friend who says she has run off with one of their husbands - but she doesn’t say which one. It’s a fun idea, and it leads to a good character study. It had a good script and I enjoyed the story structure. The direction and performances were great, too. I also couldn’t help noticing that it must have been the inspiration for Desperate Housewives.
Warm Bodies (2013)
I was pretty disappointed with this movie, really. It looked like a lot of fun from the trailer, but that’s the thing - all the good and funny parts were in the trailer. The zombie movie craze won’t stop, and while I appreciate a new take on it like this, it just wasn’t very good. It didn’t strike that nice balance between drama and comedy, so I didn’t know whether I was supposed to care about the characters or laugh at them. It also relied way too much on music to convey emotion. Perhaps the biggest problem was the lead actress, Teresa Palmer. She was dull and did nothing with the character. Nicholas Hoult was much better, thankfully. Yeah, it was just a mediocre film with little to no substance and I didn’t like it much.
Dances with Wolves (1990)
Kevin Costner is about as dry as they come as an actor, so with him both starring and directing this film, it comes out pretty damn dry. However, that doesn’t stop it from being good. I actually liked it a lot. It’s almost 4 hours long, which might put some people off. I personally thought the length and slow pace were totally appropriate. We, the audience, got to truly explore and savour each aspect or experience, just as Costner’s character did. I really enjoyed the scenery. It’s far from perfect, but I enjoyed it. Also, I finally get why lots of people accused Avatar (2009) of ripping this off.
Hard Eight (1996)
I consider Paul Thomas Anderson to be one of the top directors working today, so it’s interesting to go back to his first feature film. And it was good. Not great, but good. It’s nowhere near as polished as his subsequent films, for sure. Still, you can see the emerging talent that he was. The film itself was reminiscent of Pulp Fiction (1994), and not just because of Samuel L. Jackson’s appearance. The performances were fine, and it had some really nice touches, but ultimately, the story didn’t do too much for me.
Killer’s Kiss (1955)
It’s actually kind of insane that I haven’t seen this film up until now, when I consider Stanley Kubrick to be one of my very favourite directors of all time. This is his second feature film, and it’s decent. The problem for me was the story - it just wasn’t that good and there just wasn’t that much of it, even with the film’s short running time. I also didn’t think much of the actors involved. A Kubrick film-noir sounds like an amazing idea, but this was too early in his career to be great. If you compare this with the film he did two years later, Paths of Glory (1957), the difference in quality is absolutely huge. Still, there are definitely flashes of his future brilliance in this - there were some beautiful shots. It’s a must-see for any Kubrick fan, but I wouldn’t really recommend it otherwise.
