Apparently, ‘tis the season…
to watch really morose films.
This Christmas break, I’ve watched a whole lot more movies than the yuje. Here’s a few:
The Road
Started off with The Road. I know this is a movie that’s supposed to teach you about the extent of human possibilities. I think I wouldn’t have been in this film, however - I’m pretty sure I would’ve wound up dead before the opening credits.
The cinematic experience is spectacular in the most dreadful way. I haven’t read the book, and have heard that nothing measures up to it. There’s one scene that was just too much for me to handle (or, at least, it should have been a fast-forward couple of minutes for me), but apparently it pales in comparison to the imagery and the scenes that never made it from the book to the movie.
Shutter Island
I really enjoy this film. It has a bit of a Memento-esque feel to it, where you can think about it for at least a couple weeks after watching it. (Although, I’m still trying to figure out Memento, after a good few years.) The lead roles (Leonardo Dicaprio, Michelle Williams, Mark Ruffalo, and Ben Kingsley) play their characters well, too. And, since the entire movie takes place on a secluded island, at a mental institution, there’s sort of a homey, invite-your-viewer-on-in feel. You really start to take part in the unfolding of the drama. I’m not saying much more. Don’t want to ruin it for you.
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
I’ve kind of developed a crush on both lead characters after watching this film. Noomi Rapace plays an ultimate kick-ass twenty-four year-old (who isn’t at that age!?) who happens to be a stellar hacker and a really nimble motorcyclist. By the end of the movie, we know very little more about her. Michael Nyqvist plays a journalist who’s found himself in a load of convoluted trouble. When the two meet, they create an indefatigable team, ready to solve some pretty disturbing crimes. An amazing film, but definitely some fast-forward scenes for me.
127 Hours
Nothing will prepare you for the squeamish parts of this movie. Remember Aron Ralston? The climber who cut off his own arm? Who wouldn’t want to go see an extremely realistic dramatization of the event?
My favourite part was when all the theatre employees came in, just as a good ol’ sinewy nerve was being cut: they stood at the exit, smug as could be, watching the sea of near-vomitous faces in the crowd.
What made this movie really great, however, was not the moral message at the end (don’t be a selfish prick, and tell someone where you’re going), nor the juicy blood bits, but Danny Boyle’s cinematic treatment of the experiences of adrenaline and insanity. All sorts of interesting ways to keep an otherwise excruciatingly painful and potentially boring film engaging.
Harry Potter
I’ve been watching the whole set of films, start to finish. Exhausting. Why doesn’t Voldemort have a nose? I guess I’ll have to wait a couple more films to find out. In the meantime, my dreams have been seeing spells and curses all over the place, including email subject titles like “Horiblerus Longus” - don’t know what that horribly long email said, however. Couldn’t get it open, no matter how many spells I tried to use against it.
