Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)

In 1964, with the Cuban Missile Crisis fresh in viewers' minds, the Cold War at its frostiest, and the hydrogen bomb relatively new and frightening, Stanley Kubrick dared to make a film about what could happen if the wrong person pushed the wrong button -- and played the situation for laughs. Dr. Strangelove's jet-black satire (from a script by director Stanley Kubrick, Peter George, and Terry Southern) and a host of superb comic performances (including three from Peter Sellers) have kept the film fresh and entertaining, even as its issues have become (slightly) less timely. Loaded with thermonuclear weapons, a U.S. bomber piloted by Maj. T.J. "King" Kong (Slim Pickens) is on a routine flight pattern near the Soviet Union when they receive orders to commence Wing Attack Plan R, best summarized by Maj. Kong as "Nuclear combat! Toe to toe with the Russkies!" On the ground at Burpleson Air Force Base, Group Capt. Lionel Mandrake (Peter Sellers) notices nothing on the news about America being at war. Gen. Jack D. Ripper (Sterling Hayden) calmly informs him that he gave the command to attack the Soviet Union because it was high time someone did something about fluoridation, which is sapping Americans' bodily fluids (and apparently has something to do with Ripper's sexual dysfunction). Meanwhile, President Merkin Muffley (Sellers again) meets with his top Pentagon advisors, including super-hawk Gen. Buck Turgidson (George C. Scott), who sees this as an opportunity to do something about Communism in general and Russians in particular. However, the ante is upped considerably when Soviet ambassador de Sadesky (Peter Bull) informs Muffley and his staff of the latest innovation in Soviet weapons technology: a "Doomsday Machine" that will destroy the entire world if the Russians are attacked. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Running Time: 93 mins
Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)

Fritz Lang Epic Collection|Disk 3|Metropolis

Well, as the title link shows, this is a repeat viewing of Metropolis for myself. In the collection you can de-select certain disks in the collection but the individual titles are not spelled out.
Fritz Lang Epic Collection

Rendition (2007)

The director of the Academy Award-winning 2006 crime drama Tsotsi returns to the helm with this tale of a Middle East CIA operative who begins to have doubts about his latest assignment after witnessing the interrogation of a suspected suicide bomber by secret police. When Egyptian-born chemical engineer Anwar El-Ibrahimi (Omar Metwalli) mysteriously vanishes on a routine flight from South Africa to Washington, his wife Isabella (Reece Witherspoon) embarks on a frantic international search for her missing husband. At the same time, a CIA analyst (Jake Gyllenhaal) arrives at a clandestine detention facility outside of United States. As the interrogation of El-Ibrahimi gets underway, the CIA analyst is profoundly shaken by the unorthodox methods used by the man's captors, and quickly begins to reevaluate his assignment. Peter Sarsgaard, Meryl Streep, and Alan Arkin co-star in a topical political thriller penned by Kelley Sane and produced by Steve Golin. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Running Time: 122 mins
Rendition (2007)

Just a poor quality drama-IMO. Nothing sticks out as really earthshaking revelations. One person got caught up in the GWOT, and suffered. Yes that was a tragedy but compared to millions dieing all over the world, I can find other tragedies to mourn more important than US bashing. I see why it was quickly released to video as the acting and the dramatic effects were non-plus in this film.

Maybe I had already read enough about it ahead of time, but it did not even provoke an emotional response. The use of real life and documentary styles in this film failed miserably. It would have been better to make it one or the other.

Moulin Rouge (2001)

The third film from pop-music-obsessed director Baz Luhrmann tweaks the conventions of the musical genre by mixing a period romance with anachronistic dialogue and songs in the style of his previous Romeo+Juliet (1996). Ewan McGregor stars as Christian, who leaves behind his bourgeois father during the French belle époque of the late 1890s to seek his fortunes in the bohemian underworld of Montmartre, Paris. Christian meets the absinthe- and alcohol-addicted artist Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (John Leguizamo), who introduces him to a world of sex, drugs, music, theater, and the scandalous dance known as the cancan, all at the Moulin Rouge, a decadent dance hall, brothel, and theater that's the brainchild of Harold Zidler (Jim Broadbent). Christian also meets and falls into a tragically doomed romance with the courtesan Satine (Nicole Kidman), who becomes the star of the play he's writing, which parallels the couple's romance and utilizes rock music from a century later, including songs by Nirvana, Madonna, the Beatles, and Queen, among others. Loosely based on the opera Orpheus in the Underworld, Moulin Rouge was shown in competition at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide

Running Time: 128 mins
Moulin Rouge (2001)

An enjoyable musical that had plenty of funny parts. Nicole Kidman again shows that she loves neuvo-artistic films that stretch the boundaries.

Night and Fog (1955)

Sometimes classified under the decree known as "Nacht und Nebel," "night and fog"
Marked with two large Capital Ns.
Political prisoners wearing the red triangle meet those wearing the green triangle: common criminals, masters in the ranks.
At the top, the Kapo, almost always a common criminal.
Higher up yet: the SS, the untouchables, to be addressed from ten feet away.
At the top, the Commandant, who oversees the camp routine. He pretends to know nothing of the camp.

Night and Fog represents the peak of director Alain Resnais' activities as a short-subject filmmaker. Framed as a documentary, the film is an unsettling view of life inside the Nazi concentration camps of World War II. As he would in his later features (Hiroshima Mon Amour, Last Year at Marienbad et. al.) Resnais toys with chronology, with memory becoming present reality and vice versa at several critical junctures. Jean Cayrol, later responsible for the script of Resnais' Muriel (1962), wrote the narration for Night and Fog. The film was originally released in France as Nuit et Brouillard. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Running Time: 31 mins
Night and Fog (1955)

As this review show, it is a short documentary film. In addition to filming the empty concentration camps there was a lot of use of archived film the Nazis had filmed and notably some shots of the Nazis in parade from the film Triumph of the Will. And a short interview with Alain Resnais of about 5 minutes long.
This film does a good job describing the Kapos and the privileges they get.

Cleanliness is health.
Work is freedom.
To each his due.
A louse means death.

Soylent Green (1973)

Richard Fleischer directed this nightmarish science fiction vision of an over-populated world, based on the novel by Harry Harrison. In 2022, New York City is a town bursting at the seams with a 40-million-plus population. Food is in short supply, and most of the population's food source comes from synthetics manufactured in local factories -- the dinner selections being a choice between Soylent Blue, Soylent Yellow, or Soylent Green. When William Simonson (Joseph Cotten), an upper-echelon executive in the Soylent Company, is found murdered, police detective Thorn (Charlton Heston) is sent in to investigate the case. Helping him out researching the case is Thorn's old friend Sol Roth (Edward G. Robinson, in his final film role). As they investigate the environs of a succession of mad-from-hunger New Yorkers and the luxuriously rich digs of the lucky few, Thorn uncovers the terrible truth about the real ingredients of Soylent Green. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

Running Time: 97 mins
Soylent Green (1973)

The additional features were nice including: A Look at the World of Soylent Green. In a way it is so funny the dichotomy of orderly life for the rich and the presumed anarchy of the streets and the poor Father that has no "space" for his wards. People sleeping in hallways and stairs not even space to step between them without stepping on at least someone. The cops live by a different code (above the law) and even the rich are not immune to their blackmail and bribery.

Ultimately, it is a gloom and doom movie based on the idea of global warming. But no matter how barbaric it matters, does it really matter what happens to the dead once they die. Of course when they use dump trucks to scoop up more victims then there is some really bad things going on.

Overall well worth watching the movie.

They do seem to be promoting death with dignity as people get to choose lethal drugs to pass on while getting to see what the world was before the tragedies. But the film never addresses how to solve those problems about destruction of the world and only the cannibalism aspects.

Secrets of the Golden Compass

Literary critic Nick Tucker pays tribute to author Philip Pullman in this documentary comprised of extensive interviews with Pullman about the "His Dark Materials" trilogy among other works. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Running Time: 173 mins
Secrets of the Golden Compass

Well, I got this video out of order without seeing the film first. But I am intrigued by the portrayal of Adam and Eve as some glorious heroes that reject God and want evil instead. But it is not bold and daring for Pullman to create this story. Hell for something daring you need to criticize, condemn or complain about something in the Quran. And I would ask him to do it in a Islamic country like Iran.

I guess he does not say he believes in parallel universes but then why rely so heavily on his writings on this concept that can be nothing more than a fable that he criticizes Christianity about. Yes, you can not disprove that in some "universe" things are different including dropping a glass and a pink elephant will form. But then why so eager to reject Christianity when he has no proof that it did not happen also???

When he talks about all the different paths, then how can he explain that nothing is random in the universe? If we have no free will then the universe is set to do exactly what is preordained by basic chemistry and physics. We (the universe) have one path and one path only. Even me writing this passage was preordained by the cosmos. While an omnipotent God gives free choice but knows all the possibilities that could exist.

Well, I knew I would have to find something I could agree with. Theocracies are not a very good idea of running a government. He then describes how the Soviet experiment in Communism was a theocracy with the only difference being believing in "a" supernatural god.

Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004)

Sure enough I even decided to watch this crap. LOL. You know it is bad when my wife refused to watch it. After nearly hog-tying Dina to watch the first 1/2 hour she flatly refused anymore and switched the TV back to Seinfield.

Directed by Michael Moore, whose aura of controversy only grew after his Oscar acceptance speech at the 2003 Academy Awards, Fahrenheit 9/11, like Moore's Bowling For Columbine and Roger & Me, promises to expose the corporate wrongdoings and big-money scandals perpetrated by America's financial elite. This movie, however, looks beyond the inner echelons of General Motors and Lockheed Martin in hopes of outing the evildoers in the White House, particularly in regards to the 43rd President of the United States, George W. Bush. In addition to criticizing the administration's handling of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the Pentagon and World Trade Center, Moore digs deep into the surprising relationship with the Bin Laden family held by both Bush administrations, and questions whether or not potential Saudi involvement with the attacks has been ignored. As Fahrenheit 9/11's Cannes Film Festival debut approached, marking only the second time in 48 years that a documentary has been included among the festival's main competition, Miramax's parent company Disney announced it would not be distributing the film due to its partisan nature, and, according to Moore, out of trepidation that the Florida-based Goliath's multi-million-dollar tax breaks might be negatively affected by Florida Governor Jeb Bush, whose review within Fahrenheit 9/11 is less than favorable. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide

Running Time: 122 mins
Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004)

There is so many lies and half truths most have already been explored on blogs and TV and radio. So not sure I need to add anything.

I do like the "something called Fox News" announced Bush as the winner. Maybe as it turned out they were right and everyone else was wrong no matter how many times the votes were recounted. Maybe we should give them credit for going against the established "consensus". It was not like it would have actually had any effect on the actual counts to give the win toward any candidate and maybe they all should have held their mouth when the end results were less than a thousand votes difference for most of the recount process... How does someone like Bush get away with NOTHING you moronic fat pig (Micheal Moore).

Amazing that no Senators supported all the wing-nut Representatives in the House. I believe there was 5 black Senators at the time and some of the representatives mentioned about disenfranchisement of black voters. I guess those Senators or the many Democratic Senators at the time also did not buy this.

In hindsight, I love when people have a great conspiracy theory and even when nothing is stopping the agreements since all the characters have been in place. The pipeline through Afghanistan is another great conspiracy. While people easily forget the details or even what was suppose to happen, it allowed people to form a biased opinion that is not based on reality. More Paranoid Logic...
Well it does not look like the evil American Corporations are pushing the plan forward. Turkmenistan, partners to revive Afghan gas project

I like the subtly use of contradicting the speaker with captions.

Congressman Porter Goss (R-FL) Chair, House Intelligence Committee, Not really true,
But here's his private office line...
(202)225-2536

Yes, Michael Moore you should be considered a terrorist. Since you push WMD, that is LIES, INNUENDOS, DISTORTIONS and everything FALSE.

Sorry, what a fucking lier. Now he talks about how many State Troopers along the Oregon Coast. What a moron, complain to the state and they have been having a hell of a lot of problems with their state Troopers for a while. And who the hell cuts the budgets in OREGON. Yes that is right, OREGON decides the trooper level and where located at.

He sure is obsessed with Bush and et al being groomed for the cameras. I am sure that the fascist Michael Moore will have this clip in his next movie: John Edwards Feeling Pretty

Well 2 hours was not enough for our fascist pig Michael Moore, so he did provide a lot of extra propaganda for all the wing nuts out their. But the Arab stand up comedians were funny. I can always laugh at a good joke...

Yes for lies and just poor techniques of the art form film, I give this a one (1) rating...

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1919)

In one of the most influential films of the silent era, Werner Krauss plays the title character, a sinister hypnotist who travels the carnival circuit displaying a somnambulist named Cesare (Conrad Veidt). In one tiny German town, a series of murders coincides with Caligari's visit. When the best friend of hero Francis (Friedrich Feher) is killed, the deed seems to be the outgrowth of a romantic rivalry over the hand of the lovely Jane (Lil Dagover). Francis suspects Caligari, but he is ignored by the police. Investigating on his own, Francis seemingly discovers that Caligari has been ordering the somnambulist to commit the murders, but the story eventually takes a more surprising direction. Caligari's Expressionist style ultimately led to the dark shadows and sharp angles of the film noir urban crime dramas of the 1940s, many of which were directed by such German émigrés as Billy Wilder and Robert Siodmak. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Running Time: 70 mins
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1919)

This film also had the following special features:
1. Genuine: the Tale of the Vampire (1920)
2. Gallery of photos, posters and designs. Good since much of the movie was not in good shape and the pictures showed the whole scene design without all the distractions.
3. Two soundtrack options.
4. Excerpt with original German intertitles.

I had already watched the remake of this film Cabinent of Dr. Caligari (2006), so the plot was not new in my mind. It was unusual that this was such a short film at only 70 minutes-especially for the time and place in film history.

Bordertown (2007)

The celebrated Latino director Gregory Nava (American Family) helmed, scripted, and co-produced (with star Jennifer Lopez) Bordertown - a suspense thriller with an A-list Hispanic cast. Lopez portrays Lauren Adrian, an American correspondent from a Chicago newspaper, who longs to cover the U.S. occupation of Iraq. Instead, Lauren's mentor at the paper, George Morgan (Martin Sheen) reassigns her to Mexico. She is promptly shuttled off to Juarez, a troubled community on the Texas-Mexico border rattled by a series of brutal, unsolved homicides. The victims - all young women, employed in the maquilla plants that manufacture electrical components for exportation to the U.S. - are uniformly found raped and strangled to death. One of those women, Eva, manages to escape her captors (who believe her dead) and flees not to the corrupt police, but to the local newspaper. There, her life intersects with those of Lauren and Lauren's former boyfriend and lover, the reporter Alfonso Diaz (Antonio Banderas). Suddenly, Lauren foresees, in the prospect of reporting Eva's story, an assignment that could bring her closer to Iraq than she ever dreamed possible. Sonia Braga (Kiss of the Spider Woman), Maya Zapata and Juan Diego Botto co-star. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide

Running Time: 114 mins
Bordertown (2007)

A gripping story about the tragedy of the situation for women in Mexico. My wife was drawn into the story but she did understand that NAFTA has nearly zero to do with the situation for those women.

It clearly is a lack of "rule of law" and not secure Democratic institutions. If we really wanted to look at the history of Mexico then we would look at the grave and horrendous conditions that have and continue to manifest in Mexico City. I am sure similar types of abuses happened in their thousands of shanty towns also.

Just look at the buses themselves, no one is forcing those women on that bus. They are all choosing to board that bus to work. Thus there are no other alternative that is better even if just marginally.

Why pick women? I am sure that yes women may not complain as much and will accept more authoritarianism over their lives. But factories always consider hiring women since their is less alternatives for them to do. Thus this is actually providing these women a choice, no matter how unbecoming the choice is for us. Their choices for many Low Income Countries is getting married or prostitution. We should at least appreciate that now they have an opportunity that is one step above their present situation.

Pure propaganda about NAFTA but a nice story. Give that a 3.5/5

Briemhild's Revenge|Fritz Lang Epic Collection|Disk 2

Runtime: 1 hr 40 mins
Synopsis:
In KRIEMHILD'S REVENGE, part two of Fritz Lang's epic based on Nordic mythology, DIE NIBELUNGEN, the plot picks up immediately following the assassination of Siegfried, husband to the king of Burgundy's sister, Kriemhild. Hateful and angry as her family refuses to take action against... [More]
In KRIEMHILD'S REVENGE, part two of Fritz Lang's epic based on Nordic mythology, DIE NIBELUNGEN, the plot picks up immediately following the assassination of Siegfried, husband to the king of Burgundy's sister, Kriemhild. Hateful and angry as her family refuses to take action against Hagen, King Gunther's uncle, who engineered the plot to kill Siegfried, Kriemhild swears to avenge her assassinated husband. Kriemhild flees Burgundy to marry the king of the Huns and begins an intricately planned vendetta. She bears her new Hun husband a child, then invites the other Burgundians to the kingdom of the Huns. Unable to convince anyone to kill Hagen, Kriemhild schemes to get the Huns to start a wild party, and eventually a fight erupts between the two clans, during which the child is murdered. The Huns declare war against the Burgundians. Kriemhild offers to exchange all of the Burgundians for the life of the cursed Hagen, but when this fails, she torches the Hun palace where the Burgundians are barricaded. As the destruction spreads, Kriemhild has a final and fatal encounter with Hagen, as the Niebelungen saga comes to its visually stunning and dramatic close. Using the visual tricks of the expressionist school and his usual psychological tools of love, desire, and melodrama, Lang deftly evokes the far away days of magic, massacres and devastation. [Less]

Kriemhild's Revenge (1924)

It has been a while since I saw this movie, but it really did not make too much of an impression on me. The disk did not have any special features, which reduces the value of the film for myself.


Fritz Lang Epic Collection [5 Discs]

The Agronomist (2002)

The fifth in a series of documentaries revolving around Haiti's struggle for democracy, this piece from director Jonathan Demme revolves around the life of Jean Dominique, a Haitian radio personality who spent his life campaigning for reform within the notoriously oppressed nation. The Agronomist begins just after the 1991 overthrow of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, when Dominique and his wife, while at the radio station, came under fire from rebels involved with the coup. Referred to as an agronomist due to his background in agriculture -- which, consequently, brought him into contact with the feudalistic nature of Haiti's farming system -- Dominique's passion for reform landed him in exile. Rather than give up after his release, Dominique initiated a career as a radio communicator, and he allowed Demme access to the station and his personal life during key periods of unrest and political fluctuation. Sadly, the documentary ends with an account of Dominique's assassination in April of 2000. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide

Running Time: 91 mins
The Agronomist (2002)

Tonton Macoute
A basic documentary of a man struggling for freedom. Starting out as an "agronomist" and then branched out into radio broadcasting and a promoter of a films. One film he promoted was "Anita". None of the films he mentioned I see from Blockbuster except Night and Fog (1955).

The film has some nudity as some of the Haitians dance in the water and mud topless.

While welcoming the CNG's statement, the Haitian Chamber of Commerce expressed concern today. They are worried that the CNG has overstepped their role by engaging in acts of intimidation that violate human rights. The Chamber of Commerce hopes the rule of law is not jeopardized and is used for very specific goals:
*a society of laws, rights and responsibilities to which we aspire
*providing clear laws, respected by all, obeyed by all, lest our justice system will crumble.[Excerpt from film about the National Council of Government (French: Conseil National de Gouvernement, CNG)]

67% of the Haitian people voted for Aristide and his Lavalas movement.

December 16,1996-Live interview with President Aristide:

Jean Dominique: President, when you came back, you told 10 to 12 of the big, big millionaires in this country what we cal the big oligarchy those big bourgeois you said it's time for Reconciliation! And you began to shower them with gifts. Gifts to the left, gifts to the right. And in return these people have their own people working for the tax offices so they don't have to pay taxes. Their own people are working at the electric company so they don't pay for electricity and so on. Which means they repay your gifts with corruption inside your institutions and often this corruption is accepted by the militants within your Lavalas Party.
Aristide: I agree with some of your points, but not others. One thing I don't agree with--
JD: Reconciliation and gifts?
A: --No gifts--
JD: They were gifts--
A: No, I don't agree with you. Democracy is like a bicycle, One wheel is Reconciliation, the other is Justice. Deprived of one, democracy is not rolling.
JD: The Tevasa contract was a Reconciliation 'gift' but I don't see where the Justice lies!
A: Well now you are--

After that the relationship between JD and A cooled off tremendously.

I am sure that last part is something will never register in liberal minds. Something like a dog whistle to their ears...

For a biographical documentary, this film gave a nice feel for Haiti and Jean without it being a collection of trivial points randomly gathered together. And it did give me another view of Haiti that broadened my understanding of the people and the history.

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (2006)

It was unfortunate that I did not get to see the original The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1919) before seeing this one. Right off the bat, I see how some bad mixing of the various layers has distorted some of the actors faces-especially in background shots. Maybe the best part of the movie is the soundtrack. Even my wife had to ask about what some of the sounds were coming from the stereo were.

Bay Area digital effects wizard David Lee Fisher offers an enticing visual remix of the 1920 German expressionist classic with this innovative updating that places contemporary performers against scanned backdrops of the original and offers a detailed new script to create an exciting new vision. As the annual fair descends upon the sleepy burg of Holstenwall, Germany, Francis and his best friend Alan are unwittingly enticed into attending an exhibition by malevolent hypnotist Dr. Caligari that will have a sinister, life-changing effect on the pair. When the dreadful doctor awakens psychic sleepwalker Cesare (Hellboy's Doug Jones) from his profound slumber to predict Alan's future, the resulting prophecy is endlessly more terrifying than the frightened friends could have ever imagined. In the days that follow, the citizens of Holstenwell fall prey to a grisly series of unsolved murders that prompts Francis to launch a thorough investigation. With the killer fast closing in on Francis' unsuspecting fiancée Jane, the brave husband-to-be must uncover the secret of Dr. Caligary's strange powers before his one and only love suffers a particularly grim fate. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Running Time: 76 mins
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (2006)

Cesare-a somnambulist (somnambulism or noctambulism),

(From original film Wiki:)The film tells the story of the deranged Dr. Caligari and his faithful sleepwalking Cesare and their connection to a string of murders in a German mountain village, Holstenwall. Caligari presents one of the earliest examples of a motion picture "frame story" in which the body of the plot is presented as a flashback, as told by Francis.

The narrator, Francis, and his friend Alan visit a carnival in the village where they see Dr. Caligari and Cesare, whom the doctor is displaying as an attraction. Caligari brags that Cesare can answer any question he is asked. When Alan asks Cesare how long he has to live, Cesare tells Alan that he will die tomorrow at dawn — a prophecy which turns out to be fulfilled.

Francis, along with his girlfriend Jane, investigate Caligari and Cesare, which eventually leads to Jane's kidnapping by Cesare. Caligari orders Cesare to kill Jane, but the hypnotized slave relents after her beauty captivates him. He carries Jane out of her house, leading the townsfolk on a lengthy chase. Francis discovers that "Caligari" is actually the head of the local insane asylum, and with the help of his colleagues discovers that he is obsessed with the story of a medieval Dr. Caligari, who used a somnambulist to murder people as a traveling act.

Cesare falls to his death during the pursuit and the townsfolk discover that Caligari had created a dummy of Cesare to distract Francis. After being confronted with the dead Cesare, Caligari breaks down and reveals his mania and is imprisoned in his asylum. The influential twist ending reveals that Francis' flashback is actually his fantasy: The man he claims is Caligari is indeed his asylum doctor, who, after this revelation of the source of his patient's delusion, claims to be able to cure him.

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (2005 film)

One unusual segment of the film was when Francis asks Jane to marry him. Not only does he ask to Jane's back, but Jane does not even turn around when she says yes and then leaves the scene without looking at Francis once while Francis continues to mutter to himself. It is almost like a forgone conclusion and they only went through the motions for the proposal and acceptance.

Ultimately, this film was a good idea but the special effects was sorely lacking. Thus rated 3

Rollerball (1975)

It was never meant to be a game...

Jonathan E. meets the ultimate computer, "Zero". While Zero does not control men as in Alphaville but is the holder of all information and the "librarian" rambles on about them losing all the computers that held the information from the 1300s. All books were already transcribed into the computers and only corporate executives could access the information and are the deciders in the society. There were 5 corporations in control in this world. Zero was to indicate the beginning and the end-according to the director. Hal from 2001 was supposedly the inspiration for the computer Zero. Zero is the container of the "water of history".

The governing structure is so unrealistic and comical. I guess it is one big corporation that controls all aspects of life and for propaganda (control of the proletariat) they devised the game Rollerball. But like any propaganda, there is bond to be unexpected consequences or misinterpretation of the signals. Supposedly it was to show the futility of one man and only teamwork will win in the end. But any one watching the "FANS" of a game can see this behavior is more likely to instill a sense of violence than it is to squelch such actions. And we do get to see not only the outward actions of violence but fan on fan violence.

The person that praises the insights from this movie is "War"-ren so it understandable that such glorified violence would be the type of film he would so identify. But another aspect that goes against the "Liberal" mentality is that in this futuristic world everyone is provided for all their needs as in positive rights. This seems to be an Utopian world vision that Libs are always trying to achieve. Thus I have to wonder what this film really means for ren.

In the year 2018 violence has been outlawed and corporations have replaced government as the ruling party following the demise of politics. With the absence of war or conflict, a forcibly passive population's bloodlust is satisfied by a brutal new sport known as Rollerball. A high-octane melding of the outlawed sports of the past, the worldwide phenomenon of Rollerball has resulted in a corporate-backed sensation. The most popular athlete in the world, Jonathan E. (James Caan) has steadily risen through the ranks to become a legendary veteran of the sport. When the corporate backers of Rollerball begin to fear that Jonathan's popularity has instilled him with a potentially dangerous amount of power, a thunderous struggle between man's free will and the oppression of the masses threatens to shatter the fragile strings that the puppet masters use to manipulate mankind. His determination to remain with the sport flying in the face of the very reason Rollerball was conceived, the corporate rulers hatch a plot to abandon the rules in hopes that Jonathan will be killed and their grip of power will remain an unyielding chokehold on an increasingly bloodthirsty populace. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Running Time: 125 mins
Rollerball (1975)

If the director, writer, and producer were trying to not glorify violence, they failed miserably. Obscene violence attacking violence is a complete excuse for making the film. It was really nothing more than a snuff film with the excuse being that it was controlled by corporations. The whole game could have easily been written as a Great Socialist State as in 1984, or a Fascist State.

The most ridiculous scene for me was the shotting of the trees. While the director thinks it portrays destruction of nature, every scene outside and Jonathan's ranch was a large spread with no environmental degradation. He claims the trees were 125 to 150 years old that the lusty individuals blow up with the gun, but by the rings of branches only shows about 20 years old and the diameter of the trees would indicate less than 30 years old also. Ultimately it was just a few rich people having fun blowing up a few trees, and that from the surrounding area indicates to me that they would quickly be replaced.

Note the commentator and director for the film's special features was Norman Jewison which was recorded in 1997, December.

Angel-A (2005) "Angela"

A desperate man in serious debt attempts to wipe his account clean in the most permanent way imaginable, only to find himself saved from a grim, self-inflicted demise by his selfless attempt to rescue another would-be suicide in director Luc Besson's tenth outing as a director. Andre (Jamel Debbouze) is a debt-ridden twenty-eight year old who has until midnight to pay back 40,000 euros to one of Paris' most ruthless gangsters. When the menacing Franck (Gilbert Melki) has his thugs dangle Andre over the edge of the Eiffel Tower soon thereafter, the debtor who views himself as an American on a technicality seeks the help of the U.S. Embassy to no avail. After failing to convince the local police to lock him up for his own protection, Andre, sensing death is eminent, determines to end his life on his own terms. As Andre steps over the edge of the city's most awe-inspiring bridges and prepares to take that fateful plunge, he suddenly notices a statuesque blonde in a little black dress preparing to meet her maker in a similar fashion. As the woman leaps into the Seine, Andre instinctively jumps in to rescue her. Resting safely on the shore after looking death straight in the eye, the sorrowful pair soon finds their fates inexorably tied. Though Andre initially scolds the ravishing Angela (Rie Rasmussen) for attempting to deprive the world of such stunning beauty, she bitterly assures her one-armed savior that her physical perfection is without question only skin deep. Nevertheless the aggressive blonde betrays her own negative self-image by pledgeing to stick by Andre through thick and thin, and the unlikely duo soon sets out on a mission to solve Andre's formidable list of problems and get his life back in order again. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Running Time: 91 mins Angel-A (2005)

A nice love story of two completely different people and not the least being height. We did see Jamel Debbouze in another film I recently watched in Days of Glory. Which of course made me curious when in the opening dialogue André states that he is an American. I guess since I was curious how both parts had him where his right arm was either hanging loose or was not used at all-including he became the hand grenade thrower in Days of Glory. From Wiki:

On 17 January 1990, while crossing the tracks at the SNCF station in Trappes, Debbouze was struck by a Paris - Nantes train travelling at 150 km/h. As a result of this accident he lost the use of his right arm. In the same incident another youth named Jean-Paul Admette, who was known to Debbouze, was killed. Debbouze was prosecuted in connection with the death of Admette but was discharged from the charge of "homicide involontaire" due to lack of evidence. The family of Admette have maintained that Debbouze is responsible for his death. In 2004, Debbouze cancelled a tour of Reunion, ostensibly for reasons of health. It later emerged that the Admette family had planned to protest at the shows to draw attention to their position.[2]

Angel: How much are you willing to pay?
Man at Bar: I see. Why should I pay?
A: What you don't pay for has no value.
MaB: Good Point.
But I wonder how anyone, let alone two people, thought jumping off a short bridge (at most 50ft) into a deep river is going to kill themselves.

Misc. Items & James Bond is back in 'Quantum of Solace'

Oh boy! I am looking forward to:James Bond is back in 'Quantum of Solace'

This is some parts of Opus art experimental ruttmann vs alexis milant from List of German films 1919-1933. Just remember Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah...

King of Hearts (1966)

The French/Italian/British King of Hearts (Le Roi de Coeur) takes place during World War I, but it might as well have been the Vietnamese conflict so far as its youthful "core" audience was concerned. Overacting outrageously, Adolfo Celi plays British colonel Alexander MacBibenbrook, who orders mild-mannered Scotsman Pvt. Charles Plumpick (Alan Bates) to undertake a life-or-death mission in a tiny French village. While evacuating the town, the Germans have left behind a time bomb that will explode at midnight; Plumpick must defuse that bomb. Upon his arrival in town, Plumpick discovers that it is far from deserted. A group of inmates from the local insane asylum, left behind during the evacuation, have claimed the village for their own. Knocked unconscious, Plumpick awakens to learn that he has been crowned "King of Hearts" by the gentle lunatics. None of the inmates pay any heed to Plumpick's warnings about impending doom, and when he attempts to lead them out of town, they are terrified at the prospect and scurry back to the "safety" of the village. Plumpick is finally able to render the bomb useless, whereupon the grateful inmates decide to stage a three-year celebration. When Plumpick tries to leave, he is kidnapped by the loonies at the behest of beautiful inmate Coquelicot (Geneviève Bujold), who has fallen in love with him. Bound and gagged, Plumpick watches helplessly as the Germans and the British troops kill each other off in comic-opera fashion. Finally set free, Plumpick weighs the horrible insanity of war against the more benign brand of lunacy represented by the inmates. The final image -- of a nude Plumpick carrying a birdcage, knocking on the doors of the asylum, and demanding that he be "accepted" -- was reproduced for the print ads of King of Hearts, effectively giving away the ending. An essential "date" film of the 1970s, King of Hearts was often released to campus movie houses in tandem with a pair of cult-favorite short subjects, the animated Bambi Meets Godzilla and Lenny Bruce's Thank You Masked Man. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Running Time: 102 mins
King of Hearts (1966)

Got so busy with my studies that I did not get around to putting some notes for this movie. It was a funny movie and tried to present the horrors of war and mindlessness of humans killing others just for the sake of who is better. But the acting was little better than a small community play theater. The inmates were nothing more than children that could not identify with the suffering of others. After their child like playing with other people's property they got bored and went back to their gilded cages.

The most beautiful journeys are taken through the window.
FIN

The Spiders (1919)|Part One: The Golden Sea|Part Two:The Diamond Ship

This film prevented Lang from working on "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" which was assigned to him by producer Erich Pommer. He also planed on the third in the series being entitled The Secret of the Sphinx and For Asia's Imperial Crown, but unfortunately for the world they never materialized.

A film buff's dream, Spiders is comprised of two episodes from an unfinished silent serial from Fritz Lang. Filled with excitement and adventure, it tells the story of a brave explorer who is questing for the fabulous Incan diamond. To get it though, he must keep ahead of the powerful Spider cult, who want it for their own evil purposes. The episodes were originally titled "The Golden Lake" and "The Diamond Ship." Many of the techniques and production designs Lang experimented with in this aborted series, he later refined in his classic Dr. Mabuse films. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

Running Time: 137 mins
The Spiders (1919)

I am not usually bothered by poor film quality but this one had a distracting knack of changing color (sepia tones) for every scene from green, blue, red and etc. Also the scratches and imperfections on the film was also of the poorest quality I have seen.

For an adventure film much like Raiders of the Lost Ark it tried to create excitement and drama but with little special effects and mostly stationary film shots it lacked luster like more recent films have. It seems that the underlying story line could be redone to take advantage of the better cinematic skills of today. Anyone out there that wants to take on such a challenge?

Sorry Fritz, I only rated this a 3 just as the average Blockbuster person has rated it.

A Talking Picture (2003)

Elder statesman of Portuguese filmmaking Manoel de Oliveira directs the dialogue-driven drama A Talking Picture. Starting in Lisbon, the film involves a Mediterranean cruise with mother Rosa Maria (Leonor Silveira) and daughter Maria Joana (Filipa de Almedia). From France to Turkey, the tourists travel to various stops as Rosa Maria talks to her daughter about world history. Several international stars show up in cameo roles, including John Malkovich, Irene Papas, Catherine Deneuve, and Stefania Sandrelli -- each speaking in his or her native language. A Talking Picture was shown in competition at the 2003 Venice Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide

Running Time: 93 mins
A Talking Picture (2003)

At first I really did not understand their moving so slow to present their ideas, but in hindsight they made a nice little film about history. I also wondered how much information the small girl was going to absorb from such talks. A couple of years older may have been better for such an adventure.

Some could consider it propaganda for a positive Christian angle, especially the ending that implied some terrorist act. Yes a sad ending with John Malkovich of a still shot of him with a sad face.

General Idi Amin Dada (1974)

Ugandan dictator Idi Amin Dada was but a distant irritation to everyone but his own countrymen and the British Empire until his perfidy became headline material in the early '70s. The first director to provide an in-depth study of this gregarious madman was director Barbet Schroeder, with his General Idi Amin Dada. In this documentary, Schroeder and his crew travel to Uganda to spend several days with the despot, one-on-one. The uncomfortable truths revealed in the film are all the most amazing when one realizes that Schroeder could not release his documentary without Amin's approval. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Running Time: 90 mins
General Idi Amin Dada (1974)

General Idi Amin Dada: A Self Portrait

Général Idi Amin Dada: Autoportrait

Also Known As (AKA)
General Amin UK
General Idi Amin Dada USA
General Idi Amin Dada: A Self Portrait USA
No One Can Run Faster Than a Rifle Bullet (undefined)

Cult of Personalism

His Excellence Al-Hajji General Idi Amin Dada on The Middle East Crisis
The Middle East crisis: His Excellency the President Al-Hajji General Idi Amin Dada's contribution to the solution of the Middle East crisis during the third year of the Second Republic of Uganda (Unknown Binding)

Last audio line cut from the film:

After a century of colonialization, let us not forget that it is partially deformed image of ourselves that Idi Amin Dada reflects back at us.

as Dada looks around the room with his face filling the whole screen.

Even though it was meant as a propaganda film by Dada and the film crew did not have access to all areas of Uganda to give the complete picture of this man, it does play an important role in documenting the man of Idi Amin and what type of character he was.

After viewing this film, I have to give another kudo to Forest Whitaker in The Last King of Scotland in his portrayal of Dada...