Memories of Murder (2003)iMDB Rating: 8.1 Date Released : 2 May 2003 Genre : Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller Stars : Kang-ho Song, Sang-kyung Kim, Roe-ha Kim, Jae-ho Song. In 1986, in the province of Gyunggi, in South Korea, a second young and beautiful woman is found dead, raped and tied and gagged with her underwear. Detective Park Doo-Man and Detective Cho Yong-koo, two brutal and stupid local detectives without any technique, investigate the murder using brutality and torturing the suspects, without any practical result. The Detective Seo Tae-Yoon from Seoul ..." /> Movie Quality : HDrip Format : MKV Size : 870 MB
In 1986, in the province of Gyunggi, in South Korea, a second young and beautiful woman is found dead, raped and tied and gagged with her underwear. Detective Park Doo-Man and Detective Cho Yong-koo, two brutal and stupid local detectives without any technique, investigate the murder using brutality and torturing the suspects, without any practical result. The Detective Seo Tae-Yoon from Seoul comes to the country to help the investigations and is convinced that a serial-killer is killing the women. When a third woman is found dead in the same "modus-operandi", the detectives find leads of the assassin.
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Review :
nothing prepares me for this masterpiece
I read a review about this movie and am aware what business it made in Korea, but nothing (I mean NOTHING) prepares me for this great work. With the exception of, perhaps, SE7EN, serial-killer movie has never been this good. The story (about real-life killings of 10 women in Korea during the 1986-1991) is compelling enough, but the actors (Song Kang-ho cuts you deep even when he's silent, and his big-city partner offers emotional jolts at the end), the director (effectively plays some scenes in docu-style approach), the cinematography (a shadow creeps out in the paddy field will give you, well, creeps. big one.), and the music (haunting) are welcome bonuses.
One scene that impresses me most is the crime-scene midnight chase between a suspect, 2 local detectives, and a big-city detective (who doesn't know his local partners are there watching him). Humorously intense, or intensely humorous, whichever serves you well.
The only regret is I saw this one on DVD, while I believe a movie this big (in many senses) deserves to be seen in theaters. Korean movies rarely touch Indonesian theaters.
**** out of ****
Try to listen the song SAD LETTER in this movie and tell me it's not haunting you. A magnum opus.
Roman Holiday (1953)iMDB Rating: 8.1 Date Released : 2 September 1953 Genre : Comedy, Drama, Romance Stars : Gregory Peck, Audrey Hepburn, Eddie Albert, Hartley Power Movie Quality : HDrip Format : MKV Size : 750 MB
Princess Anne embarks on a highly publicized tour of European capitals. When she and her royal entourage arrive in Rome, she begins to rebel against her restricted, regimented schedule. One night Anne sneaks out of her room, hops into the back of a delivery truck and escapes her luxurious confinement. However, a sedative she was forced to take earlier starts to take effect, and the Princess is soon fast asleep on a public bench. She is found by Joe Bradley, an American newspaper reporter stationed in Rome. He takes her back to his apartment. The next morning Joe dashes off to cover the Princess Anne press conference, unaware that she is sleeping on his couch. Once he realizes his good fortune, Joe promises his editor an exclusive interview with the Princess.
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Review :
Lyrical relic of a vanished civilization
This charming comedy is justly famous as the film that made the whole world fall in love with Audrey Hepburn and half the world want to run out and buy a Vespa scooter. Hepburn was always beguiling, but in some of her later roles she tended to overplay the winsomeness. Here every note she hits is just about perfect.
And speaking of notes, pay special attention to the score by the great Georges Auric. If the film had been produced in the manner of modern romantic comedies, the sound track would have been larded with pop hits by Perry Como, Dinah Shore, and Frankie Laine, which would have done an awful lot to destroy the magic. Instead Auric's complex, vibrant, evocative music complements the story's inherent lyricism without upstaging it. In an era of bombastic film scoring, this seems a miracle.
Someone once said that Audrey Hepburn's was the beauty of possibility and transformation -- she was always in motion, always becoming something else. "Roman Holiday" is very much of a piece with that notion. On the surface, the film is about a princess who disguises herself as a "commoner". But in truth she's actually pretending to be a princess, at least at first. She finally becomes authentic -- is transformed and prepared to deal with her destiny -- only through the ennobling power of love and sacrifice. That's one heck of a mythic subtext and does a lot to explain "Roman Holiday's" enduring power.
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)iMDB Rating: 8.0 Date Released : 9 July 2003 Genre : Action, Adventure, Fantasy Stars : Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush, Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley. Blacksmith Will Turner teams up with eccentric pirate "Captain" Jack Sparrow to save his love, the governor's daughter, from Jack's former pirate allies, who are now undead." /> Movie Quality : HDrip Format : MKV Size : 850 MB
This swash-buckling tale follows the quest of Captain Jack Sparrow, a savvy pirate, and Will Turner, a resourceful blacksmith, as they search for Elizabeth Swann. Elizabeth, the daughter of the governor and the love of Will's life, has been kidnapped by the feared Captain Barbossa. Little do they know, but the fierce and clever Barbossa has been cursed. He, along with his large crew, are under an ancient curse, doomed for eternity to neither live, nor die. That is, unless a blood sacrifice is made.
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Review :
Depp for Emperor?
I am nearly fifty years old. A sober grown man. With children. Children with whom I have now sat through hundreds of movies. Many of which I have enjoyed. And I am not completely hardened in my sophistication. The opening music to The Lion King brought tears to my eyes when my little ones were but wee tots. But still, these are after all just children's movies. In another life, I would never have seen them. And, really, one can't take such movies too seriously, can one?
And so, this summer, after the ritual badgering, I dutifully trudged into yet another Disney "adventure" movie. Named after that tired old ride in Anaheim I first went on in 1965. I mean really, how much can you expect?
And then, it happened. The swirling intoxication. The stunned feeling. What? Who? How? Was this a movie? Or a religious experience? Perhaps more like an addictive experience...
I cannot remember ever willingly paying to see any movie not starring a relative of mine more than twice, and I can count those movies on one hand. I have now seen "Pirates" four times. The only thing keeping me from seeing it again is the sense that this whole thing is just getting out of hand. I cannot get enough of it. It's like walking into a painting that you never want to come back out of. My children ask, with a note of concern in their voices, "Dad, you really like Pirates of the Caribbean a lot, don't you?"
And that Depp fellow. My God. I never had any idea who he was, but his name sounded like something created for a pubescent cover-boy for magazines published to hook thirteen year-old girls on make-up and bad music. Wasn't Depp the name of some hair-goo product back in the 60s?
I am a straight male. I have several good friends who are gay, but have never fantasized about any gender but the female. But now I understand how women can experience swooning crushes on male film stars. He is simply extraordinary. So sly, so seductive, so canny! I read an interview in which Depp said he went through a slight depression when he had to stop playing Captain Jack Sparrow. I can see why. His inventiveness and sheer pleasure in inhabiting the character come through in every frame. How can I admit to my children that I now troll through fan websites about a former teen heart-throb?
I often don't even watch the Academy Awards, and I certainly never have any emotional investment in who wins.
Except for this year.
Go Jack.
And, in a time when many big-budget movies are little more than a hodge-podge of loosely- connected "money shots" this movie puts all the pieces together, with a sense of fun and light-heartedness in special effects that are simply dazzling. I find myself laughing with dizzy appreciation when Barbossa barks out, "You'd best be believing in ghost stories, Miss Turner, you're in one!" and the grinning skeletons come into view, with Badelt's pounding score keeping time to the beat of their maniacal deck-swabbing. And then there's the scene of the pirate-ghouls slithering up from the darkened sea on the mooring cables of the Dauntless, like infernal cats stalking their prey.
And now to the music. I can just hear the effete aesthetes dismissing this score, as Mr. Zimmerman anticipates with his winking "overproduced by" credit on the cover-liner. "Bombastic." "Overdone." "Absurdly Stupendous."
Well, perhaps it is, for those who spend their lives evaluating such things. To me, it is absolutely transporting. I first listened to it while doing a work-out on a rowing machine and found that I tripled my usual distance. It was like mainlining some hazardous tachycardic amphetamine.
Once again, the children were wondering, "What's up with Daddy? Is he OK?"
Perhaps I am just losing my grip, having an adolescent movie get to me this way. But when those final credits roll, and Captain Jack narrows his eyes and says, "Now, bring me that horizon. Drink up me hearties, yo ho" and the music swells ... it is difficult to put into words the effect it has.
At this point my children have to yank me forcibly from the theater, lest I persist in watching the credits to the bitter end, and bid good-bye to the little monkey once more, wiping tears of exultation from my eyes.
This is not just another "entry" in the summer blockbust sweepstakes. It is an exquisite work of fantasy and inventiveness, a true classic, on the order of "The Wizard of Oz." I do hope Depp's performance garners not just awards, but a place in the pantheon, something we old fogies -- and our gently fogeying children decades hence -- will show to our children and grandchildren like a revealed treasure. I cannot recall any movie having such an effect on me.
The Wild Bunch (1969)iMDB Rating: 8.0 Date Released : 18 June 1969 Genre : Western Stars : William Holden, Ernest Borgnine, Robert Ryan, Edmond O'Brien. An aging group of outlaws look for one last big score as the "traditional" American West is disappearing around them." /> Movie Quality : BRrip Format : MKV Size : 850 MB
In the Wild Bunch the movie opens with a group of aging outlaw's final score, a bank robbery. The event concludes with a violent and overtly bloody shootout that would generally mark the finale of a movie. This is correct in that it marks the finale of an era, for the characters and the world they live in. They simply can no longer keep up, the times are changing, technology advancing, and they're style of life is getting left behind in the dust that they spent so long galloping through. They abandon their careers for the simpler life of retirement. They enjoy this time, they live their fantasies. During this time the law is always on their tracks, bounty hunters. The further into their fantasy they get, the closer their demise seems to get. When one of their own is captured they are faced with the choice of escape or what is certainly a suicide mission to attempt and free their fallen behind comrade. For them it is not a choice. They all die in what can only be described as a ...
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Review :
A great period western...
Critics of Sam Peckinpah generally focus on the gore and violence in his films. "The Wild Bunch" will probably not assuage these critics, but the violence is not gratuitous. In fact, it is almost perfectly meshed in this story of a group of outlaws held together by some frail and some strong bonds who realize that their era - and probably their lives - are almost at an end. The story also deals with a man (Robert Ryan) who was wounded and forced out of the gang, and who must now capture and kill his friend (William Holden), with no option other than to succeed. This film is also about loyalty, choice and honor, and is carried by surprisingly strong acting and writing. Yes the violence is on a large scale (which seems to be commonplace for films portraying the Mexican Revolution), but it is completely in place with these characters and the era in which they live. This is not always a pleasant film to watch, but it is very rewarding, and may be the best film Peckinpah made.
Stalag 17 (1953)iMDB Rating: 8.1 Date Released : 10 August 1953 Genre : Comedy, Drama, War Stars : William Holden, Don Taylor, Otto Preminger, Robert Strauss Movie Quality : HDrip Format : MKV Size : 850 MB
It's a dreary Christmas 1944 for the American POWs in Stalag 17. For the men in Barracks 4, all Sergeants, they have to deal with another problem - there seems to be a security leak. The Germans always seem to be forewarned about escapes and in the most recent attempt the two men, Manfredi and Johnson, walked straight into a trap and were killed. For some in Barracks 4, especially the loud-mouthed Duke, the leaker is obvious: J.J. Sefton a wheeler-dealer who doesn't hesitate to trade with the guards and who has acquired goods and privileges that no other prisoner seems to have. Sefton denies giving the Germans any information and makes it quite clear that he has no intention of ever trying to escape. He plans to to ride out the war in what little comfort he can arrange, but it doesn't extend to spying for the Germans. As tensions mount and a mob mentality takes root, it becomes obvious that Sefton will have to find the real snitch if he his to have any peace and avoid the beatings ...
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Review :
Absorbing & Very Entertaining
This absorbing and very entertaining movie creates a believable and interesting cast of characters, puts them into an intriguing story, and uses its settings, props, and other resources very creatively. It is a fine combination of drama and comic relief that stands up very well against anything else of its type. The setting and atmosphere are quite believable, and they make it easy to enter the characters' world.
The opening sequence sets up everything nicely, with most of POW's helping two of the prisoners in an escape attempt, while William Holden as the cynical Sefton separates himself from the rest. Sefton is interesting enough as it is, a man who simply by remaining true to his nature cannot help arousing suspicion and antagonism, and Holden was quite a good choice to play him. The story builds up nicely, with developments coming at a careful pace, and some good stretches of lighter material.
There are numerous interesting characters and good performances among the other prisoners, and in particular Robert Strauss and Harvey Lembeck steal more than one scene with their antics which, though goofy, are also an appropriate complement to the main plot and the setting. The German characters are more stylized, but both Sig Ruman and Otto Preminger make them come to life, and help them fit in seamlessly with the others.
Billy Wilder's direction and the photography also deserve praise. Besides the way that each sequence fits together so nicely with the others, there are several individual scenes and shots that are done in an impressive fashion - not flashy, but creative and thoughtful. The scene with Holden lying on his cot while most of the others sing and celebrate is one particularly good example. There is a wealth of good material throughout, making "Stalag 17" a classic that has lost nothing over the years, and one that can be seen and enjoyed several times.
Rope (1948)iMDB Rating: 8.0 Date Released : 28 August 1948 Genre : Crime, Drama, Thriller Stars : James Stewart, John Dall, Farley Granger, Dick Hogan. Two young men strangle their "inferior" classmate, hide his body in their apartment, and invite his friends and family to a dinner party as a means to challenge the "perfection" of their crime." /> Movie Quality : HDrip Format : MKV Size : 750 MB
Brandon and Philip are two young men who share a New York apartment. They consider themselves intellectually superior to their friend David Kentley and as a consequence decide to murder him. Together they strangle David with a rope and placing the body in an old chest, they proceed to hold a small party. The guests include David's father, his fiancée Janet and their old schoolteacher Rupert from whom they mistakenly took their ideas. As Brandon becomes increasingly more daring, Rupert begins to suspect.
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Review :
Compromised mostly of dialog but always fascinating, a film experiment that never feels gimmicky. One of Hitchock's most unfortunately overlooked.
"Rope" is one of Hitchcock's most unfortunately overlooked films. It doesn't have the depth of some of his other works (such as "Vertigo" or "Psycho"), but its just as engrossing and entertaining. Hitchcock could take such a seemingly simple premise and effectively stretch it out to a feature length and have none of it seem like filler. "Rope" is one of the most innovative film experiments of the decade, and it never feels gimmicky. Hitchcock, the master of suspense, is at the top of his game here. The film may be mostly nothing but dialog, but its always fascinating.
The acting is very good, as usual when working with Hitchcock's skilled direction. John Dall is absolutely spellbinding as one of cinema's scariest villains, an intellectual whose disregard for human emotions and morals verges more on fascism than the sub-Nietschze philosophy he proclaims. James Stewart is also superb as the voice of reason throughout the tension. The rest of the cast is good if occasionally awkward in delivery, but both Dall and Stewart turn in phenomenal performances.
Another interesting aspect of the film is the homoerotic subtext. I'm surprised it made it past the censors of the day, but to modern viewers its obvious there's something more to Dall and Farley Granger's relationship than just roommates. "Rope" is an absolutely fascinating film from the master of suspense, and even if its not his masterpiece, this is probably my personal favorite of Hitchcock's next to "Vertigo". (9/10)
Infernal Affairs (2002)iMDB Rating: 8.1 Date Released : 12 December 2002 Genre : Crime, Mystery, Thriller Stars : Andy Lau, Tony Leung Chiu Wai, Anthony Wong Chau-Sang, Eric Tsang Movie Quality : BRrip Format : MKV Size : 750 MB
Chan Wing Yan, a young police officer, has been sent undercover as a mole in the local mafia. Lau Kin Ming, a young mafia member, infiltrates the police force. Years later, their older counterparts, Chen Wing Yan and Inspector Lau Kin Ming, respectively, race against time to expose the mole within their midst.
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Review :
Absolutely awesome
A seriously refreshing police thriller that cranks up the tension to the max. There's no overblown gunplay or buddy cop crap here, this baby is tight as a drum and will have your nails down to the quick. Superb performances, a tight script and tense direction make this a winner in every department. Pick it up if you can, it's fantastic.
Monsters, Inc. (2001)iMDB Rating: 8.0 Date Released : 2 November 2001 Genre : Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Family, Fantasy Stars : Billy Crystal, John Goodman, Mary Gibbs, Steve Buscemi Movie Quality : HDrip Format : MKV Size : 850 MB
A city of monsters with no humans called Monstropolis centers around the city's power company, Monsters, Inc. The lovable, confident, tough, furry blue behemoth-like giant monster named James P. Sullivan (better known as Sulley) and his wisecracking best friend, short, green cyclops monster Mike Wazowski, discover what happens when the real world interacts with theirs in the form of a 2-year-old baby girl dubbed "Boo," who accidentally sneaks into the monster world with Sulley one night. And now it's up to Sulley and Mike to send Boo back in her door before anybody finds out, especially two evil villains such as Sulley's main rival as a scarer, chameleon-like Randall (a monster that Boo is very afraid of), who possesses the ability to change the color of his skin, and Mike and Sulley's boss Mr. Waternoose, the chairman and chief executive officer of Monsters, Inc.
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Review :
Superb animation, a most inventive story, fun for the whole family.
"Monsters Inc" came out on DVD this week, and now I have my own copy!! It is not very useful to try to evaluate this one against others since such an evaluation is so subjective. But I put it in the same superb category that such animated films as "Toy Story", "A Bug's Life", "Shrek", and "Disney's Tarzan" are in.
First, the quality of the animation and the picture quality. Unbelievably good. I can categorically say it is the best picture quality I have seen on DVD, and the movement and facial expressions of the animated characters makes it almost feel like they are real.
Second, the story. How inventive! The only thing separating the monster world from the real world are the doors. The company, Monsters Inc, must have millions of them in inventory, computerized for quick call-up to send in a monster to get screams and charge up their energy cells.
The main characters are voiced by John Goodman (big, blue, hairy "kitty" with purple spots) and Billy Crystal (short, green, one-eyed monster) and their acting add so much. Plus the great music provided by Randy Newman. Overall and hour and a half of pure edge of your seat entertainment. And that doesn't even include the 3+ hours of extras on the second disk.
You can select either standard or widescreen format, and I watched mine widescreen on a 16:9 HDTV with 5-channel surround system with powered subwoofer. Almost like being in a theater!!
Fanny and Alexander (1982)iMDB Rating: 8.1 Date Released : 17 December 1982 Genre : Drama Stars : Bertil Guve, Pernilla Allwin, Börje Ahlstedt, Allan Edwall Movie Quality : HDrip Format : MKV Size : 870 MB
The title characters are children in the exuberant and colorful Ekdahl household in a Swedish town early in the twentieth century. Their parents, Oscar and Emilie, are the director and the leading lady of the local theatre company. Oscar's mother and brother are its chief patrons. After Oscar's early death, his widow marries the bishop and moves with her children to his austere and forbidding chancery. The children are immediately miserable. The film dramatizes and resolves those conflicts. A sub-plot features Isak, a local Jewish merchant who is the grandmother's lover and whose odd household becomes the children's refuge.
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Review :
"...Anything can happen, anything is possible. Time and space do not exist..."
"Fanny and Alexander" (1982) was announced at the time of its release as Ingmar Bergman's swan song, his last film for the big screen. It is his most optimistic and enchanting blend of romance, tragedy, comedy, fantasy, and mysticism. Set in Sweden in the beginning of the 20th century, the film follows the lives and adventures of two children, brother and sister Fanny and Alexander Edkahl.
I love Bergman in every mood and in every genre - I love him dark, bleak, harrowing ("Shame"), mysterious ("Persona"), merciless and devastating ("Scenes from a Marriage, "Face to Face", "Autumn Sonata). I love his lighter, smiling side ("Wild Strawberries", "Smiles of a Summer Night). Even for a master of Bergman's powerful talent, "Fanny and Alexander" is extraordinary - a profound film which is also one of his most accessible works.
Pablo Picasso said once, "When I was 9 years old, I could paint like Rafael; as an adult, all my life I tried to learn how to paint like a child". In his final film, one of the greatest masters of dark and sometimes morose psychological studies looks at the world with a child's eye. The words he chose to finish his film with reflect the hope, the happiness and the magic that can be fully felt only in one's childhood: "...Anything can happen, anything is possible. Time and space do not exist. ..On a flimsy ground of reality, imagination spins out and waves new patterns." --- August Strindberg's introductory notes for A Dream Play.
Major Ben Marco is an intelligence officer in the U.S. Army. He served valiantly as a captain in the Korean war and his Sergeant, Raymond Shaw, even won the Medal of Honor. Marco has a major problem however: he has a recurring nightmare, one where two members of his squad are killed by Shaw. He's put on indefinite sick leave and visits Shaw in New York. Shaw for his part has established himself well, despite the misgivings of his domineering mother, Mrs. Eleanor Shaw Iselin. She is a red-baiter, accusing anyone who disagrees with her right-wing reactionary views of being a Communist. Raymond hates her, not only for how she's treated him but equally because of his step-father, the ineffectual U.S. Senator John Iselin, who is intent on seeking higher office. When Marco learns that others in his Korean War unit have nightmares similar to his own, he realizes that something happened to all of them in Korea and that Raymond Shaw is the focal point.
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Review :
One of the best thrillers ever made.
To know that the human mind can be manipulated so easily is indeed a scary thing.The Manchurian Candidate is a thriller so intense it can almost be considered a horror film.If,in fact,things such as those depicted here really did occur,I imagine it did step on some pretty sensitive toes.Bravo to all of those involved in front of the camera and behind it.In particular,Angela Lansbury,whose versatility as an actress is proved here as she plays against the nice lady type roles that we know her for.Among all the film's from the era of the 1960's that I have viewed,I would definitely place this in my top 5.One of the best thrillers ever.
The Truman Show (1998)iMDB Rating: 8.0 Date Released : 5 June 1998 Genre : Comedy, Drama, Sci-Fi Stars : Jim Carrey, Ed Harris, Laura Linney, Noah Emmerich Movie Quality : BRrip Format : MKV Size : 870 MB
In this movie, Truman is a man whose life is a fake one... The place he lives is in fact a big studio with hidden cameras everywhere, and all his friends and people around him, are actors who play their roles in the most popular TV-series in the world: The Truman Show. Truman thinks that he is an ordinary man with an ordinary life and has no idea about how he is exploited. Until one day... he finds out everything. Will he react?
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Review :
The Boy In The Bubble
Having been bandied about the release schedules for the best part of a year, Carrey's first semi-dramatic film finally got a UK release last October. He plays Truman Burbank, a vaguely unhappy insurance salesman in the perfect little seaside town of Seahaven. Following some strange occurrences, Truman starts to think that he is being watched. Little does he know that his entire life is secretly filmed, his town is a gigantic sound-stage, everyone he has ever known was an actor and that his every waking and sleeping second is broadcast around the world as a top-rated docu-soap.
Critics have been lavishing enormous praise on this movie since it opened in America last June, and probably rightly so because it is a superbly crafted piece of work. Weir's direction is outstanding, frequently viewing events from the point of view of hidden spy cameras, such as the one in Truman's car radio. One stunning shot has the town's main street full of motionless extras, waiting for Truman to turn the corner. Jim Carrey's performance has been singled out for particular praise, and though his acting is of a much higher standard that his usual comedy antics, it is not exactly Laurence Olivier. This said, an Oscar nomination would have been well deserved.
The setting of a chirpy small town from which escape is impossible echoes cult 60's series The Prisoner, but the balance of reality and poetry is much more restrained here than it was then. The opening credits are especially clever, using those of the actual `show' (e.g. Truman Burbank as Himself). There are, however, a few problems. The film is simply too short to adequately explore Truman's situation, and the character of Meryl, his `wife', disappears about half-an-hour from the end. This kind of slightly sloppy scripting was not something I expected from writer Andrew Niccol, whose previous film Gattaca, which he also directed, was such an immediate classic. Gripes aside, this is an extraordinary and highly original film that really is worth seeing several times to fully understand the director's message. It doesn't even matter if you never liked Jim Carrey before. You will now.
Life of Pi (2012)iMDB Rating: 8.0 Date Released : 21 November 2012 Genre : Adventure, Drama, Fantasy Stars : Suraj Sharma, Irrfan Khan, Adil Hussain, Tabu Movie Quality : BRrip Format : MKV Size : 750 MB
In Canada, a writer visits the Indian storyteller Pi Patel and asks him to tell his life story. Pi tells the story of his childhood in Pondicherry, India, and the origin of his nickname. One day, his father, a zoo owner, explains that the municipality is no longer supporting the zoo and he has hence decided to move to Canada, where the animals the family owns would also be sold. They board on a Japanese cargo ship with the animals and out of the blue, there is a storm, followed by a shipwrecking. Pi survives in a lifeboat with a zebra, an orangutan, a hyena and a male Bengal tiger nicknamed Richard Parker. They are adrift in the Pacific Ocean, with aggressive hyena and Rickard Parker getting hungry. Pi needs to find a way to survive.
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Review :
Powerful storytelling and splendid performances presented in a brilliant 3D
With his latest movie, "Life of Pi", Ang Lee further establishes himself as one of the greatest contemporary movie directors. Starting from his Taiwanese beginnings, and his highly enjoyable, family-harmonizing "Father Knows Best" trilogy (1992-1994), through his Academy Award winning works on gracefully choreographed, highly spiritualized Far East martial arts tour de force "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" (2000, best foreign-language film) and on an uncommon yet nostalgic portrayal of the Old West in "Brokeback Mountain" (2005, best director), to his other titles like "Sense and Sensibility" (1995), "The Ice Storm" (1997), and "Lust, Caution" (2007), quality and Kubrick-like versatility shown in his movies offer continuous attraction for wide audience of his admirers.
Lee's latest and, so far, easily, greatest movie, "Life of Pi" is based on a screenplay adapted from the acclaimed fictional adventure novel written by Canadian author Yann Martel.
Throughout his childhood, due to matching pronunciation of French word "piscine" (pool, swimming pool) and English word "pissing", Piscine Molitor Patel, named that way after later abandoned Parisian swimming pool, so predictably suffers from being nicknamed "Pissing Patel". In order to avoid it, once in high school he finally shortens his name to Pi Patel... Nowadays middle-aged Pi tells the story of his life to a visiting writer, apparently a book author Yan Martel's alter ego, who is seeking for the literal inspiration. Retrospectively, Pi divides his childhood and adolescence into three segments. In the first segment he gives shorter account of his life until the age of 16, describing his interaction with his family and schoolmates, in particular his relationship with his father and a girlfriend, concentrating on his exploits of God and spirituality, meandering between multitude of religious practices… while in the last one he briefs about his testimonial given to officials from the Japanese Ministry of Transport, investigating the reasons why the ship his family was relocating on from India to Canada sank. Most detailed, and therefore the longest, is recollection of his 227 days in a lifeboat, an extraordinary ordeal he went through after the ship has capsized and everybody else, crew and passengers, died…
…Well, everybody human, but not everybody living. Namely, a number of terrestrial animals from their discontinued family zoo, offered for sale and brought along with other family belongings, have survived, too. But, not for long, because, while confined in the most limited space as they were, surrounded by vastness of the ocean, the law of the "survival of the fittest" prevails, takes its tall, and pretty soon Pi finds himself in a company of a single one topping the food-chain, a Bengal tiger curiously named Richard Parker.
Not to reveal the story further, it is with greatest pleasure to inform that cinematic excellence has been achieved in several categories: in an engaging tale—whether allegory or depiction of realistic, believable events, filled with protagonist's rarely matched curiosity, imagination and his often reasonably unanswered doubts, encouraging the same in viewers—of an uncommon character, indeed, brought to on-screen life by outstanding performances from two contributing leads, remarkably presented via ubiquitous, yet inconspicuous animation, exceptional, CGI aided visuals and superb usage of 3D photography, all along complemented with an uplifting score. All these assets work seamlessly together in unfolding an intense relationship between Pi and Richard Parker, complex yet basic, difficult yet simple, initially charged with Pi's dreadful fear, swiftly shifting to respectful care, instantly boosting his never overbearing confidence and relentlessly improving his survival skills. Wholesome artistic experience reaches and maintains its pinnacle particularly in clever tactics and constructive survival techniques 16-year old Pi uses—amply benefiting from his instructive lifestyle of a zoo owner's attentive son, certainly well acquainted with animal psychology—to suppress the fear and convincingly impose himself as an equal to the one of the most elaborate "killing machines" among mammals, desperately striving for his own survival, nevertheless, generously, for survival of his seemingly sufficiently tamed companion, but still, initially and ultimately, magnificent adversary, Richard Parker, as well.
"Life of Pi" is, certainly, one of the most impressive movies of 2012, year that has just come to a close.
Barry Lyndon (1975)iMDB Rating: 8.1 Date Released : 18 December 1975 Genre : Adventure, Drama, Romance, War Stars : Ryan O'Neal, Marisa Berenson, Patrick Magee, Hardy Krüger Movie Quality : HDrip Format : MKV Size : 850 MB
In the Eighteenth Century, in a small village in Ireland, Redmond Barry is a young farm boy in love of his cousin Nora Brady. When Nora engages to the British Captain John Quin, Barry challenges him for a duel of pistols. He wins and escapes to Dublin, but is robbed on the road. Without any other alternative, Barry joins the British Army to fight in the Seven Years War. He deserts and is forced to join the Prussian Army, saving the life of his captain and becoming his protégé and spy of the Irish gambler Chevalier de Balibari. He helps Chevalier and becomes his associate until he decides to marry the wealthy Lady Lyndon. They move to England and Barry, in his obsession of nobility, dilapidates her fortune and makes a dangerous and revengeful enemy.
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Review :
Different kind of a Stanley Kubrick movie
In some way almost all of Stanley Kubrick's movies are very gloomy, dreary and wicked. The idea of "Lolita" is definitely perverted, "The Shining" is maybe the most terrifying film ever made, "Full Metal Jacket" is still one of the most pressuring war movies, from time to time "Eyes Wide Shut" looks almost like a horror film and even "2001: A Space odyssey" has some pretty frightening visions.
"Barry Lyndon" was Kubrick's next film after his darkest masterpiece "A Clockwork Orange" and certainly a totally different kind of a work. Even though "Barry Lyndon's" second half is slightly darker and the movie certainly isn't a comedy of any kind it's still quite a nice, warm and genial picaresque story. It's hard to say is it a bit overlong because it's easier to watch in two parts but nevertheless it's a brilliant film from the very start. "Barry Lyndon" is full of unforgettable sequences. My favorite is probably the duel between Barry Lyndon and his stepson Lord Bullington.
One of the things I love most about this movie is the splendid epilogue. Closing words of "Barry Lyndon" brings hilariously together every event seen in the film. Ryan O'Neal makes a fabulous performance as Barry. He isn't all that well-known actor in the movie business but he does a great job in the difficult leading role. I'll give 9 out of 10 to "Barry Lyndon" and point out that although it's not Kubrick's finest flick it's still a very excellent movie and an extremely important part of his works and it should not be underestimate. If you have seen lots of Kubrick classics but not this one, take this chance to jump into 18th century and watch the entertaining adventures of Redmond Barry.
Guido is a film director, trying to relax after his last big hit. He can't get a moment's peace, however, with the people who have worked with him in the past constantly looking for more work. He wrestles with his conscience, but is unable to come up with a new idea. While thinking, he starts to recall major happenings in his life, and all the women he has loved and left. An autobiographical film of Fellini, about the trials and tribulations of film making.
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Review :
Impossible to discuss here
Swirling, kaleidoscopic rumination from Fellini. The other user comments here (as well as many professional reviews) show how difficult it is to discuss this film briefly, so I don't think I'm going to try. I would only say that, like other films that push at the boundaries of cinematic greatness--`Citizen Kane,' `Nashville,' and `Brazil' are three others that come to mind--it isn't really possible to place `8 ½' in any simple category. It is a comedy and a tragedy, a satire and a celebration, a movie about love and about the lack of it, a movie about making art and a movie about living, an autobiography and the most challenging kind of fiction, a masterpiece of style and a movie that's really about something. It's not for everyone, but it should be, and it's quite possibly the single greatest movie I have ever seen. 11 out of 10.
Slumdog Millionaire (2008)iMDB Rating: 8.0 Date Released : 23 January 2009 Genre : Drama, Romance, Thriller Stars : Dev Patel, Freida Pinto, Saurabh Shukla, Anil Kapoor. A Mumbai teen who grew up in the slums, becomes a contestant on the Indian version of "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?" He is arrested under suspicion of cheating, and while being interrogated, events from his life history are shown which explain why he knows the answers." /> Movie Quality : BRrip Format : MKV Size : 700 MB
The story of Jamal Malik, an 18 year-old orphan from the slums of Mumbai, who is about to experience the biggest day of his life. With the whole nation watching, he is just one question away from winning a staggering 20 million rupees on India's Kaun Banega Crorepati? (2000) (Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?) But when the show breaks for the night, police arrest him on suspicion of cheating; how could a street kid know so much? Desperate to prove his innocence, Jamal tells the story of his life in the slum where he and his brother grew up, of their adventures together on the road, of vicious encounters with local gangs, and of Latika, the girl he loved and lost. Each chapter of his story reveals the key to the answer to one of the game show's questions. Each chapter of Jamal's increasingly layered story reveals where he learned the answers to the show's seemingly impossible quizzes. But one question remains a mystery: what is this young man with no apparent desire for riches really ...
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Review :
Good movie, Highly overrated
I FULLY AGREE that it is a good movie, no doubt about it, but it is highly overrated. If u people like this, there are 100s of other Indian Movies that are made much better than this(Both old and NEW). As for Rahman's music, it is GREAT (again no doubt). But this is definitely not his best. Pls go hear "dil se" and u'll know what i am talking about! Compare this movie to previous Oscar winners like American beauty, and well, u'll know wat i mean.
Verdict : To everyone who has still not seen the film, It's definitely a one time watch. Good music,Good story and Good (kind hearted if i may add) cast and crew. But i request you to watch it with an open mind. And by the way, Mumbai is not just a "slum area". :-)
La Strada (1954)iMDB Rating: 8.1 Date Released : 16 July 1956 Genre : Drama Stars : Anthony Quinn, Giulietta Masina, Richard Basehart, Aldo Silvani Movie Quality : HDrip Format : MKV Size : 700 MB
Sad story of a waif, Gelsomina, who is sold by her mother to Zampano for 10,000 lire and a few kilos of food. Zampano is a traveling showman who exhibits feats of strength by breaking a chain wrapped around his chest. He performs in village squares and then passes the hat for whatever the normally small crowd is prepared to give. He teaches Gelsomina a drum roll as part of his introduction. He doesn't treat her well and when she tries to run away, he beats her. They eventually join a small traveling circus where they meet Il Matto but a disagreement leads to tragedy. Zampano eventually abandons the girl and it's only many years later that he learns of her fate.
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Review :
Pure, surreal, a treat for the mind and heart
Often it is hard to find a romance which does not include actual romance - i.e. - liplock, hugging scenes. The viewer is overflowed with emotion because the film itself focuses on human emotion, and is a pure amusement to watch because of the many symbols. When Zampano tries to steal a silver heart from the church and Gelsomina pleads with him not to, we can only think of the cold silver heart, his sad action of trying to "steal" such an emotion as "love", Gelsomina's soft nature - this film overflows with such subtleties, but such subtleties! so impactful in conveying emotion..
Gelsomina's faith to Zampano is heartwrenching - she is presented with opportunities to leave Zampano, such as leaving to the nunnery or joining the circus, but she declines all. This fidelity builds up, only to have.. well, let's just say that Fellini is especially skillful in drawing your sympathy and then channeling for it in a single scene.. he knows how to focus and concentrate your emotion, I felt sort of violated after watching the film, since I rarely cry for movies! Also, if the symbolism does not stir a reader to interest, the amazing cinematography will. The tightrope act atop the city buildings, the motorbike rides, the Christ ceremony-
This movie is unpredictable and is interesting to watch, since it keeps the mind afloat with the different scenes which are packed with symbols and metaphors, wonderful puzzles to decipher. Since Fellini does not present it straight-forwardly, and rather wraps meaning in several layers of symbols, uncovering the truth becomes fulfilling for the viewer.
The way Fellini develops his characters is unforgettable. We feel their demise, but urge to see and understand more. I feel only Fellini can accomplish such a remarkable quality. And in case you didn't get the gist of my rating (and my ranting).. 4 stars. Please rent this and enjoy, Fellini's incredible! :o)
In the Name of the Father (1993)iMDB Rating: 8.1 Date Released : 25 February 1994 Genre : Biography, Drama, Thriller Stars : Daniel Day-Lewis, Pete Postlethwaite, Alison Crosbie, Philip King Movie Quality : BRrip Format : MKV Size : 750 MB
A small time thief from Belfast, Gerry Conlon, is falsely implicated in the IRA bombing of a pub that kills several people while he is in London. Bullied by the British police, he and four of his friends are coerced into confessing their guilt. Gerry's father and other relatives in London are also implicated in the crime. He spends 15 years in prison with his father trying to prove his innocence with the help of a British attorney, Gareth Peirce. Based on a true story.
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Review :
A Very Sharp Film
What a clever film this was. Quite modest yet remarkably entertaining. Instead of blaring political bias, viewers are treated to a compassionate human drama without the preachings and irritating banter of most other "social dramas" (Dog Day Afternoon, All the President's Men, Norma Rae). It's shameful that this film didn't receive at least two academy awards, despite it having been nominated for 7. Now considering that this was the same year that Schindler's List and The Piano, two outstanding dramas, were released, it isnt surprising nor unreasonable that they beat In the Name of the Father for many of the awards.
The acting in this film is terrific. Lewis is low key and quite effective as the petty Irish thief Gerry Conlon. Pete Postlethwaite is spectacular as Gerry's father Guiseppe (certainly better than oscar winner tommy lee jones was in the fugitive). Emma Thompson's portrayal of attorney Gareth Pierce received much acclaim, and properly so. Beatie Edney, who had a small part as a wrongfully accused British teenage hippie, was so enamoring that its a wonder we don't see more of her.
Of course much of this film is exagerrated and perhaps fabricated for the purposes of entertainment (as all movies which are "based on a true story" tend to be) but it's so finely done that it doesn't seem to matter. Some terrific scenes include the beginning, when Gerry and his friends are chased by British soldiers after being mistaken for IRA snipers, the trial in London, the prison scenes (which expose the loneliness and honesty of the characters rather than the crude violence and gang rapes of so many other pathetic prison movies), and of course the powerful ending, where the marvelous dramatic talents of all the actors are evinced in a final crescendo. Be sure to see this film if you haven't, it will definitely stir your emotions and renew your faith in the human spirit. And for those who eschew political films, give it a try anyways, the acting and craftiness outweigh the civic themes.
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)iMDB Rating: 8.1 Date Released : 28 May 1962 Genre : Drama, Romance, Western Stars : James Stewart, John Wayne, Vera Miles, Lee Marvin Movie Quality : BRrip Format : MKV Size : 850 MB
When Senator Ransom Stoddard returns home to Shinbone for the funeral of Tom Doniphon, he recounts to a local newspaper editor the story behind it all. He had come to town many years before, a lawyer by profession. The stage was robbed on its way in by the local ruffian, Liberty Valance, and Stoddard has nothing to his name left save a few law books. He gets a job in the kitchen at the Ericson's restaurant and there meets his future wife, Hallie. The territory is vying for Statehood and Stoddard is selected as a representative over Valance, who continues terrorizing the town. When he destroys the local newspaper office and attacks the editor, Stoddard calls him out, though the conclusion is not quite as straightforward as legend would have it.
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Review :
Ford's chamber Western
Some films are slow to give up their secrets first time round and need some time to elapse before they are revalued. An opportunity to see "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" after a gap of several years turned out to be an unexpectedly rewarding experience. It had never been one of my favourite Ford films; indeed I was always puzzled why many rate it so highly in the canon. Its rather plain black-and-white visuals smack of low production values and it has little of the grand operatic sweep of many of his other Westerns. I can now see that I was rather missing the point: "Liberty Valance" is that rare thing, a chamber Western, a quiet and elegiac reappraisal of the legends of the West made almost at the end of Ford's creative career with "Cheyenne Autumn" the only Western still to come. A U.S. senator played by James Stewart returns with his wife (Vera Miles at her most attractive) to the small Western town, where, as a young man, he tied to set up a law business, to attend the funeral of the man (John Wayne) who saved his life when he tried to rid the community of its villain, Liberty Valance (Lee Marvin). Ford's Westerns had always been the stuff of legend. Now, towards the end of his career, he began to take the legend apart. The hero is not the one who goes on to become one of the town's most illustrious sons but the quiet man who fades into the background. It needs more than idealism to overcome evil, the film seems to be saying, Brute force has to be countered by brute force; moreover, true worth is not always rewarded or recognised by society. It is a bleak message that Ford is giving us. By homing in on character and plot to a far greater extent than usual, he gives us an experience that is often more akin to filmed theatre than cinema. There are unusually long sequences in studio built interiors, the diner, the bar and a theatre where an election adoption meeting is taking place. Outdoor sequences are few and far between. Instead of a large collective enemy such as marauding Indian tribes there is just the one baddy and his pair of sycophants. The pivotal action scene where Liberty Valance receives his just deserts takes place in a dark street and has none of the climactic sense of drama to be found in such shootouts as "My Darling Clementine" of Zinnemann's "High Noon". I can at last see that those very limitations that for so so long prevented me from appreciating "Liberty Valance" give it a sense of concentration and strength that the Western rarely achieves.
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966)iMDB Rating: 8.1 Date Released : 22 June 1966 Genre : Drama Stars : Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, George Segal, Sandy Dennis Movie Quality : HDrip Format : MKV Size : 700 MB
George and Martha are a middle aged married couple, whose charged relationship is defined by vitriolic verbal battles, which underlies what seems like an emotional dependence upon each other. This verbal abuse is fueled by an excessive consumption of alcohol. George being an associate History professor in a New Carthage university where Martha's father is the President adds an extra dimension to their relationship. Late one Saturday evening after a faculty mixer, Martha invites Nick and Honey, an ambitious young Biology professor new to the university and his mousy wife, over for a nightcap. As the evening progresses, Nick and Honey, plied with more alcohol, get caught up in George and Martha's games of needing to hurt each other and everyone around them. The ultimate abuse comes in the form of talk of George and Martha's unseen sixteen year old son, whose birthday is the following day.
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Review :
Distilled Human Viciousness
Ailing couple George (Burton) and Martha (Taylor) invite a young couple over for a late-night drink - much to quiet and repressed George's annoyance - and what starts off as a twisted game by sultry Martha to annoy her husband and get her way with young stud Nick (George Segal) ends up in a horrific duel of wits.
Adapted from the play and boasting very few locations, "Virginia Woolf" is notable for many unsuspected reasons. Designed for the stage, the film makes the story uniquely cinematic and tense, amped up by stunning photography (in Black and White, a daring choice in 1966). The younger leads are superb, but Burton and Taylor still manage to walk away with film, giving stunning renditions of the world's most demented couple. They make the surreal dialogue hurt and touch in ways never thought possible.
Though there are countless reasons to recommend this jewel of a film, there are also reasons why one would wish to avoid it. This is the kind of film that makes you feel like having a showing (or a very concentrated drink) to wash away the grit and human evil and pain absorbed. You'll feel dirty, but in a way you'll also feel enlightened: that a small character film can carry more punch than any explosion-packed blockbuster out there is a thing of beauty indeed!
Anatomy of a Murder (1959)iMDB Rating: 8.1 Date Released : 1 September 1959 Genre : Crime, Drama, Mystery Stars : James Stewart, Lee Remick, Ben Gazzara, Arthur O'Connell Movie Quality : HDrip Format : MKV Size : 700 MB
Frederick Manion (Ben Gazzara), a lieutenant in the army, is arrested for the murder of a bartender, Barney Quill. He claims, in his defense, that the victim had raped and beaten up his wife Laura (Lee Remick). Although Laura supports her husband's story, the police surgeon can find no evidence that she has been raped. Manion is defended by Paul Biegler (James Stewart), a rather humble small-town lawyer. During the course of interviews, Biegler discovers that Manion is violently possessive and jealous, and also that his wife has a reputation for giving her favors to other men. Biegler realizes that the prosecution will try to make the court believe that Laura was the lover of the bartender and than Manion killed him and beat her up when he discovered them together. Manion pleads "not guilty" and Biegler, who knows that his case is weak, sets his assistants to try to find a witness who will save Manion.
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Review :
Gray Anatomy
Anatomy Of a Murder is probably Otto Preminger's best film. It's certainly my favorite. Adapted from a novel by Robert Traver, it tells the story of a lawyer in northern Michigan and his defense of a particularly surly and violent murderer. As is always the case with Preminger, scenes are filmed mostly with all the characters present in the frame. There is no cross-cutting to speak of, which is to say the drama plays out with the assorted characters confronting one another, or at any rate with one another, and the effect is one of surprising warmth and good feeling in the movie's cosier scenes, which for once enhance rather than detract from the drama. I would have been quite happy to have spent much more time in lawyer Biegler's house and study, with its books, old furniture and broken typewriter, but alas this is a murder case so one has to get down to businss.
The question of whether the defendant, an army officer, was temporarily insane, is in fact insane, or is merely putting on a good show, is never fully resolved. The lawyer is by no means perfect. He's a little lazy, though he gets over it. One senses he's cheap. He enjoys his shabby genteel bachelor's life and isn't always responsive to the needs of his secretary, who would like to get paid more regularly. In the end he proves far more dedicated and brilliant than we might have first imagined him to be, but the fly in the buttermilk is that the better he gets the more complicated the case becomes, and the more ambiguous everything gets the more he finds out about his client and the man he killed. In this respect the movie is a masterpiece of ambiguity. Beautifully shot on location in black and white, it is more gray than anything else. Morally gray. No one is quite what he appears to be at first. And people change; or rather we learn more about them. The bartender at the resort where his boss was killed at first comes off as a jerk; in time he comes to seem more of a jerk. Then he seems maybe not so bad after all; and then he's a jerk once more, but a jerk we understand. The lawyer's assistant, an on-again, off-again recovering alcoholic, is also a mixed bag. He is dogged but sloppy, and always (or so it appears) on the verge of breakdown. Or at least this is how Arthur O'Connell plays him. The prosecuting attorney is a dolt, but he is aided by a legal bigwig the state has brought in, but this hotshot is no match for the cunning country lawyer. The defendant's wife, who 'started the whole thing' is gorgeous, sexy and provocative. She makes a play for her husband's lawyer, but he doesn't bite. One wonders about her. And one wonders about the marriage she and her hot-tempered spouse really have, and whether it will last.
This is a very sophisticated and adult movie for 1959, or for that matter today. The location filming greatly enhances the mood, chilly and very upper midwestern. Yet indoors one feels different, and the tone is often playful. The actors are superb. James Stewart is gritty, lovable, homespun, physically slow and mentally quick; and for all the familiarity there is about his screen persona, out of character, that is, in character he manages continually to surprise and delight. He was a true actor. Ben Gazzara is very Method actorish, which suits him well in his role as the volatile military man. Lee Remick is stunning as his wife, and one can well imagine a man killing for her, many times over. She is also a good actress. George C. Scott plays the state's bulldog prosecutor well, though he's an acquired taste at best. His hamminess contrasts with Stewart's folksy naturalism in interesting ways not ungermane to the plot, but he is out-acted and outclassed by the old pro he is presumably upstaging in this film.
The Exorcist (1973)iMDB Rating: 8.0 Date Released : 26 December 1973 Genre : Horror Stars : Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Linda Blair, Lee J. Cobb Movie Quality : HDrip Format : MKV Size : 750 MB
A visiting actress in Washington, D.C., notices dramatic and dangerous changes in the behavior and physical make-up of her 12-year-old daughter. Meanwhile, a young priest at nearby Georgetown University begins to doubt his faith while dealing with his mother's terminal sickness. And, book-ending the story, a frail, elderly priest recognizes the necessity for a show-down with an old demonic enemy.
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Review :
An intense and very terrifying movie that will make you sleep with the bible a few nights in a row
The Exorcist is one of the best movies to come out of the 70's and deserves better than slowly descending down the top 250. It's one of those essential films you have to see in order to understand what a movie truly is and this is more than a horror film. Unfortunately there are so many people who are saying they got bored, I think because they expected a terrifying movie, people! This isn't a slasher movie, this isn't some scary Michael Myers that you can shoot, this is a story about normal people in a normal house and upstairs there is a little girl who happens to be possessed by "The devil himself". Faith is so strong and when it's shaken, anything in your imagination can run wild.
First off the actors: Ellen Burstyn plays Chris McNeil, an actress working in Washington, D.C. on a film. She is the mother of Regan, the little girl who is possessed. I felt such sorrow for Chris, when she begs Father Karras to help her with Regan, I almost cried for her. Her daughter is not sick, this is nothing she can give Regan a pill and she'll be better. Her speech to Father Karras later on in the film: "You show me Regan's double, same face, same voice, everything. And I'd know it wasn't Regan. I'd know in my gut. Now, I want you to tell me that you know for a fact that there's nothing wrong with my daughter, except in her mind. You tell me for a fact that an exorcism wouldn't do any good! You tell me that!" sent shivers down my spine, this woman knows what Regan needs and will do whatever she can.
We have Linda Blair who plays Regan and she was so great for a 12 year old actress. This little apple faced girl became one of the most frightening images of the 70's and still to this day. She's not scary because she's swearing, this little innocent girl has been taken over by forces that she shouldn't even know about. Jason Miller as Father Karras, for a man who had never acted professionally before, he was quite amazing as a priest who just lost his mother and his faith has been shaken up. Max Von Sydow as Father Merrin was so strong and he was like in his 20's playing a man in his 90's. He was robbed of an Oscar, he was so believable and just amazing during the exorcism scene.
The effects? People! This was the 70's and they made a bed float! They turned this little angel's face into a hideous creature! If you watch the documentary "Fear of God: The Making of the Exorcist", Ellen Burstyn gets slapped by Regan in the film and she had kind of a rope tied around her waist. When the stunt man pulled her back, Billy the director told the guy to let her have it and he YANKED her back hard causing real pain in Ellen's back and that was an actual scream in the movie. They froze the room to the point as were moisture got into the set and there was a layer of snow in the morning they were shooting. There was no CGI, this was the real deal and I believe could truly help the actors. Linda Blair was being thrashed up and down during one of the possessed scenes where the bracing came loose and caused slamming of metal to her back repeatedly and her screams were also very real and bone chilling.
William Freidkin is the director of The Exorcist, and there was no better choice. This guy took this picture seriously, so far as to shoot a gun offstage or scream obscenities to get an actor's shocked reaction on film. He slapped almost punched Reverend William O'Malley who played Father Dyer to get him to shake during his reciting the Last Rites to Father Karras. He almost would have killed to make this picture and anyone doing it.
Weither or not the set of The Exorcist was truly cursed with a total of 9 deaths linked to the film, a fire on the set with no apparent reason, and the total feeling of evil around the room, we'll never know. But The Exorcist is a true motion picture never to missed or deserve no more than the true compliments it should get! This is the film that should be shown to any aspiring film makers. It's a masterpiece of a film that's more than a mere horror flick.
Rocky (1976)iMDB Rating: 8.0 Date Released : 3 December 1976 Genre : Drama, Sport Stars : Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Burt Young, Carl Weathers Movie Quality : BRrip Format : MKV Size : 870 MB
Rocky Balboa is a struggling boxer trying to make the big time, working as a debt collector for a pittance. When heavyweight champion Apollo Creed visits Philadelphia, his managers want to set up an exhibition match between Creed and a struggling boxer, touting the fight as a chance for a "nobody" to become a "somebody". The match is supposed to be easily won by Creed, but someone forgot to tell Rocky, who sees this as his only shot at the big time.
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Review :
The Raging Bull Named Rocky...
"Rocky" is about a man. It is the story of a man who exceeds past all normal expectations and makes the most out of what he is doing. What is he doing? Boxing. Why? As Rocky says in the film, "You have to be a moron to want to box."
Rocky is played by Sylvester Stallone, whose only other film before "Rocky" was "Weekend at Kitty and Stud's," and, as you can probably guess by the title, it was an X-rated movie. But Stallone gives just about the best performance of his career here. Before he started getting into recycled action movies and unfunny comedies, the man had talent, as seen shining through in "Rocky." Somewhere along the way he lost that talent, but it's pretty evident that he had it at one time.
Stallone wrote the script, which is about a down-on-his-luck Philadelphia man named Rocky Balboa. Rocky is your average tough-guy you see walking down the street, but this film takes a closer look INTO the guy walking past you, and not AT the guy walking past you.
He lives in a beat-up, old apartment, infested with roaches, and he barely makes enough money to support himself. His job? Rocky retrieves money for loan sharks. His real job, however, is to break the loaners' thumbs if they don't pay up. He's a muscle man.
After he returns from his "job" every day, he takes time to do what he has been doing for the past six years, which is boxing. Then, after that, he takes a trip to the local pet store to see the love of his life, Adrian, who works there. He constantly tries to impress her and talk to her, but she is shy and literally does not talk much throughout the entire film.
But things change for Rocky after heavyweight champion Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers) decides that he wants to make a big performance on the 4th of July. He wants to appear nice by letting a regular Joe Schmoe fight him in the ring. All for show, of course. As he is looking through a book of local boxers, he points his finger at the letters THE Italian STALLION, a.k.a. Rocky. He says that fighting an Italian is perfect. "An Italian found America," Creed says. If he fights an Italian-American on the 4th of July, it will be symbolic and will also make Creed look good.
But Rocky doesn't realize this is all for show. When he receives word that Apollo Creed wishes to fight him in the ring, Rocky begins to train long and hard with Burgess Meredith, which results in the famous scene where Rocky runs up an entry of stairs in Philly with the music "Gonna Fly Now" playing in the background. This scene is spoofed by films world-wide, and it's one of the cornerstones in film history. You will see it all the time. It's just one of those film moments that are marked down in history.
The most entertaining thing about "Rocky" is how innocent Sylvester Stallone comes across in his role as Rocky. You feel for him when he is trying to impress Adrian and she shrugs him off. The scene where her brother invites Rocky over, and Rocky keeps saying, "Are you sure she knows I'm coming?" is a sign of how the guy has been put down. And then when she comes over to his apartment, he acts nice and talks to her. He's not trying any moves on her. He just enjoys being with her. Rocky is a bit of an idiot, as he himself admits, but he's a sweet idiot.
And the end, when Rocky fights Apollo Creed, is amazing. A nobody who actually stands a chance against the heavyweight champion of the world. Creed and Rocky are being battered by each other. Creed goes into the opposite corner as Rocky, and one of Creed's managers says, "This guy thinks this thing is for real -- knock him out!" You feel sorry for Rocky there, because he is giving the fight all he's got, when it was just a publicity stunt from the beginning, but he didn't even realize it.
Things like that are what make "Rocky" what it has become over the years. It is a great film, and it has many classic moments that you will see spoofed in films all the time. You should probably see it just for that fact.
But the truth is, if you take away all the underlying intricacies, "Rocky" is just the story of a simple guy who gets a chance to do something amazing, and he gives it all he's got. I think we've all gone through something like that before, and if so, you will be able to identify with "Rocky" all the more.
The Hustler (1961)iMDB Rating: 8.1 Date Released : 25 September 1961 Genre : Drama, Sport Stars : Paul Newman, Jackie Gleason, Piper Laurie, George C. Scott Movie Quality : BRrip Format : MKV Size : 700 MB
"Fast" Eddie Felson is a small-time pool hustler with a lot of talent but a self-destructive attitude. His bravado causes him to challenge the legendary "Minnesota Fats" to a high-stakes match, but he loses in a heartbreaking marathon. Now broke and without his long-time manager, Felson faces an uphill battle to regain his confidence and his game. It isn't until he hits rock bottom that he agrees to join up with ruthless and cutthroat manager Bert Gordon. Gordon agrees to take him on the road to learn the ropes. But Felson soon realizes that making it to the top could cost him his soul, and perhaps his girlfriend. Will he decide that this is too steep a price to pay in time to save himself?
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Review :
Superb film by a great director.
Because of his tragically erratic, often interrupted career, Robert Rossen is rarely put into the pantheon of great Hollywood directors. However, he produced three films which deserve a permanent place among the classics, All the Kings Men( probably the best film about American politics), Lilith( one of the greatest films about mental illness) and this, a movie which DESERVES to be ranked with the hundred greatest, and possibly the fifty greatest, American films. It is superbly acted, brilliantly photographed and edited, and directed with clarity and assurance. In a just world ( if there is such a place), an special Oscar would have been bestowed on Newman, Laurie, Scott, and Gleason AS A GROUP. Piper Laurie was unforgettably poignant, Scott unforgettably sleazy, and Gleason... well, Gleason simply IS Minnesota Fats. Paul Newman almost certainly deserved the Oscar.It was an amusing irony, perhaps a little joke by God, that the bartender in the movie was played by none other than Jake LaMotta.
It has been nine years since we last met Jesse and Celine, the French-American couple who once met on a train in Vienna. They now live in Paris with twin daughters, but have spent a summer in Greece on the invitation of an author colleague of Jesse's. When the vacation is over and Jesse must send his teenage son off to the States, he begins to question his life decisions, and his relationship with Celine is at risk.
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Review :
Everything's better with maturity
I just saw Richard Linklater's Before Midnight his newest and third film about Jesse and Celine the couple who meet as young adults in Before Sunrise and re-meet as adults in Before Sunset (one of my five favorite films).
This is simply brilliant film making: funny, raw, emotionally honest and complicated. The couple (Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy who both co-wrote with Linklater) are now in their 40s and face some very real challenges to their menage. I started laughing and crying within about 3 minutes and both emotions kept up until the very end. Everyone sat through the credits so they could wipe their faces clean. Brilliant acting . . .
This film gives one hope for the state of American film making and reminds you that Linklater is one of our most underrated auteurs. I sincerely hope he continues and I live long enough to see the couple well into their senior years.
Even if you have never seen the first two movies, do not miss this one.
The Princess Bride (1987)iMDB Rating: 8.1 Date Released : 9 October 1987 Genre : Adventure, Comedy, Family, Fantasy, Romance Stars : Cary Elwes, Mandy Patinkin, Robin Wright, Chris Sarandon Movie Quality : BRrip Format : MKV Size : 750 MB
A kindly grandfather sits down with his ill grandson and reads him a story. The story is one that has been passed down from father to son for generations. As the grandfather reads the story, the action comes alive. The story is a classic tale of love and adventure as the beautiful Buttercup, engaged to the odious Prince Humperdinck, is kidnapped and held against her will in order to start a war, It is up to Westley (her childhood beau, now returned as the Dread Pirate Roberts) to save her. On the way he meets a thief and his hired helpers, an accomplished swordsman and a huge, super strong giant, both of whom become Westley's companions in his quest.
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Review :
A classic fantasy for all to enjoy.
The Princess Bride is a wonderful family film about a maiden named Buttercup and her "farmboy" Wesley. When Wesley goes away to seek his fortune, he is reported to be killed by the Dread Pirate Roberts. Hearing this really gets Buttercup down, and it only gets worse when Prince Humperdink chooses her to be his bride.( Hence the title) To make a long story short and not give away the ending, Buttercup's kidnapped for suspicious reasons and rescued by someone familiar. She's in love and nothing can stop true love! A couple of deaths, a would be wedding, revenge fulfilled, and a couple reunited end this gala of a film. But this doesn't even sum it up, I promise! I love this film because it does not take itself too seriously and flows well across the screen. The main characters and their supporting cast are quirky and memorable. You will be repeating classic lines like, "My name is Inigo Montoya, you killed my father, prepare to die!" over and over again. Through the adventures of Wesley and Buttercup you feel drawn to the characters and fall in love with their ability to amuse you. Do you want to be entertained with a light hearted fantasy/comedy? Then head on over to your local video store and pick up a copy. Ready to enjoy? "As you wish."
The Graduate (1967)iMDB Rating: 8.1 Date Released : 22 December 1967 Genre : Comedy, Drama, Romance Stars : Dustin Hoffman, Anne Bancroft, Katharine Ross, William Daniels Movie Quality : BRrip Format : MKV Size : 850 MB
Ben has recently graduated college, with his parents now expecting great things from him. At his "Homecoming" party, Mrs. Robinson, the wife of his father's business partner, has Ben drive her home, which leads to an affair between the two. The affair eventually ends, but comes back to haunt him when he finds himself falling for Elaine, Mrs. Robinson's daughter.
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Review :
Timeless masterpiece
Dustin Hoffman is outstanding in his breakthrough role as a troubled young adult who is worried about his future. His awkwardness is endearing and universal. To this day, there are people who can relate to his Ben Braddock.
The music is one of the biggest accomplishments of this film. Simon and Garfunkel perfectly depict Ben's moods throughout the movie with their timeless classics.
Overall, this movie is well-written, well-played, and well-directed. It is a humorous and sensitive account of the difficulties of a young adult. It is definitely worth viewing.
The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)iMDB Rating: 8.1 Date Released : 3 August 2007 Genre : Action, Crime, Thriller Stars : Matt Damon, Édgar Ramírez, Joan Allen, Julia Stiles Movie Quality : BRrip Format : MKV Size : 750 MB
Bourne is once again brought out of hiding, this time inadvertently by London-based reporter Simon Ross who is trying to unveil Operation Blackbriar--an upgrade to Project Treadstone--in a series of newspaper columns. Bourne sets up a meeting with Ross and realizes instantly they're being scanned. Information from the reporter stirs a new set of memories, and Bourne must finally, ultimately, uncover his dark past whilst dodging The Company's best efforts in trying to eradicate him.
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Review :
May be the best action movie I've ever seen
This is the first 10 out of 10 that I've given any movie. What made this movie so good for me? Constant action - there isn't any slow parts, great acting, smart writing. I also liked the filming style where the shakiness and different angles just made it feel like you are a part of the scene. Finally, I get to see an action movie that doesn't try to please all sectors of the public (i.e. there's no forced romance).
I liked the first two Bourne movies, but I loved this one.
Warning - after watching this movie, you will be full of adrenaline and you may want to calm down a bit before driving your car!
