Archives for May 2011

May 31, 2011 By iluvcinema 11 Comments

Tuesday’s Overlooked Film: Starter for Ten

For this week’s overlooked selection, I have chosen a film from 2007 – Tom Vaughan’s Starter for Ten. The screenplay is adapted by David Nicholls, who also wrote the novel.

This film has many elements to its credit:

It is a lighthearted coming of age story
It is set in the mid-1980’s in Thatcher’s Great Britain
It has an awesome cast: James McAvoy, Dominic Cooper, Benedict Cumberbatch, Alice Eve, Rebecca Hall and a well-played Catherine Tate.
The soundtrack is equally awesome and is currently in rotation on my iPod

If you are from the States like me, you may have to look past the rather obscure title (I have since figured out what it means). I suspect in many circles the title did not do it any great favors in broadening its appeal. This despite the fact that Tom Hanks is one of the producers of the film.

Here is the U.S. trailer:

Unfortunately the voice over in this trailer is rather annoying and it is obvious to that the film was marketed to the American audience with a strong “rom-com” emphasis. Of course, these are some of the thematic elements which run through the film, but this is not a fair or complete representation of the film. Take a look and judge it for yourself.

May 30, 2011 By iluvcinema 18 Comments

Fifteen Movie Questions Meme

Happy Memorial Day All! Currently watching the French Open (and loving it) but I have decided to take some time to do some browsing around the ‘net to see what is going on on some of my favorite movie sites. That is when I came across this fantastic meme (respect to Cinematic Paradox via my friends at Anomalous Material). The meme is called 15 Movie Questions. So without further ado, here are my answers:

1. Movie you love with a passion.

Sure I can find minor quibbles with stuff as I have watched it over the years, but I am always drawn A Room With a View.

2. Movie you vow to never watch.

I refuse to see Revenge of the Sith in its entirety. Sure I have it on good authority that this was the best of the prequels but I was so let down by the first two I gave up on the prequel franchise.

3. Movie that literally left you speechless.

Children of Men

4. Movie you always recommend.

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

5. Actor/actress you always watch, no matter how crappy the movie.

Kate Winslet!

6. Actor/actress you don’t get the appeal for.

Too many to name.

7. Actor/actress, living or dead, you’d love to meet.

It’s a tie: Rashida Jones and Drew Barrymore. They seem like cool ladies.

8. Sexiest actor/actress you’ve seen. (Picture required!)

Not a fair question … so much hotness out there at the present moment. Guess I will go old-school with Marlon Brando in A Streetcar Named Desire.

9. Dream cast.

Love Actually

10. Favorite actor pairing.

Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman, Notorious

11. Favorite movie setting.

12. Favorite decade for movies.

The 1960’s – it was such a turbulent decade outside of film but a lot of that unrest and upheaval became part of cinematic history.

13. Chick flick or action movie?

An action flick featuring a bad-a** chick 🙂

14. Hero, villain or anti-hero?

Anti-hero all the way ….

15. Black and white or color?

Cut my movie-loving teeth in the world of good ole B&W. But that is not why it is my choice. Over the years, I have come to really love the interplay between shadow and light that is so evident in the best B&W cinematography.

Well that’s me! Tell me what you think.

May 23, 2011 By iluvcinema 4 Comments

Tuesday’s Overlooked Film: The Naked City

For my first contribution to “Tuesday’s Overlooked Films,” I will take a brief look at one of my favorite films in the film noir genre, Jules Dassin’s The Naked City from 1948.

Synopsis

It is a hot summer night in the city that never sleeps. After glimpsing into the mundane activities of New Yorkers from various walks of life at play, we see the shadowy figures of two men in the act of murdering a young woman; the young woman is later idenitified as a model named Jean Dexter. Soon after, an equally sinister scene is visited upon us – the disposal of one of murderers (obviously overcome with a sense of remorse) by the other.

As day breaks and the model’s body is discovered, the police investigation begins. The investigation is headed by veteran detective, Lt. Dan Muldoon (Barry Fitzgerald) and his young partner, Jimmy Halloran (Don Taylor).

What follows is a step-by-step procedural of the murder investigation. Along the way, we are introduced to a variety of characters, who together are key to identifying the persons responsible for young Jean’s demise.

Why I Love this Movie

From its outset, we are told that The Naked City is “a motion picture unlike any other that we have seen.” Of the movies that I have seen in this genre, this film most ably combined the narrative of cinema with a very realistic portrayal of a post-war New York City.

This due mainly to the fact that the majority of the scenes were shot in various locations in and around New York City. This lends a “true-life” or documentarian feel to the film. At the time, the cinematopgraphy earned The Naked City several plaudits, including the Academy Award in 1949 for Best Cinematopgraphy.

I also love how, at times (especially in the beginning), the narrative is intercut with scenes of the city (and it people) as a living, breathing organism in which so many things are happening around the main story.

As for the narrative itself, while it may sound a bit mundane, the police procedural is actually quite gripping. The complexities of the people and places involved in the murder investigation is fascinating to watch.

Of course none of this would work if not for the solid writing, acting and directing.

The Naked City is indeed a city of “8 million stories” and we are given a glimpse of a very fascinating one indeed.