Paris (2008)

Love and life pose dilemmas for a handful of friends in the City of Lights in this romantic drama from French filmmaker Cedric Klapisch. Pierre (Romain Duris) has enjoyed a successful career as a dancer performing in Parisian nightclubs, but when he's diagnosed with a serious heart condition, his doctor warns him that the strain of his work could kill him. Pierre must reinvent his life, and as he ponders his future and his mortality, he turns to his sister, Élise (Juliette Binoche), a social worker and single mother, for help. Élise is facing some life changes of her own; she's tired of being alone, and has developed an infatuation with Jean (Albert Dupontel), a grocer who sells his wares in the city's open-air market. But Jean is recently divorced and is still preoccupied with his former wife, Caroline (Julie Ferrier). Pierre also finds himself falling from afar for a lovely college student named Laetitia (Melanie Laurent), but he has a rival for her affections in Roland (Fabrice Luchini), one of her professors, who is considerably older than her. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
Paris (2008)

Not really a "handful of friends" but more like the lives intertwining and the relationships as they develop. We both felt the professor was clearly overstepping his bounds and did not have reasonable expectations for the relationship. The lives become more intertwined but on superficial levels when Élise pretends to do a survey on Laetitia so that she could find out if she was single and her younger boyfriend shows up. During the interview, Pierre is watching across the street in his flat and how he first saw her.

Basically a nice little film about life, love and death. It was one of the most funny French movies I have seen. The part with the professor and Laetitia is funny but sad.

Rocky (2005)

No review or much information at Blockbuster{Rocky (2005)} but funny the comment from another member:

Don't be misled by this title like I was, this is not "Rocky" with Sylvester Stallone, this is a foreign film! It may be good, but I didn't even watch it because I thought I was renting Rocky the boxing movie for my son. I didn't know there could be two movies with the exact same name. So beware and read ALL the small print when renting a movie.

Of course, I was just as silly to post a review of Kisna on Rocky. Duh.

I did choose this film based on desire to see more of Isha Sharvani from watching the film Kisna. The biography notes that Rocky was not successful. Maybe they should have used more of Isha's dance skills/physical talents! Some photos of her also at Isha Sharvani Photo Gallery.

Interestingly enough the second heroine of Rocky in the movie is born in the same year as Isha {1985} and is even more beautiful. Her biography is at Minissha Lamba.

It does not do credit for the beautiful dancing but this clip from YouTube is worth a watch: Junoon from "Rocky: The Rebel";. They also had a short 6 second clip of dancing in London at: Rocky Dance Clip - Zayed Khan. And lastly another longer clip: Rocky The Rebel Dil Rang Le Saavn com

Overall a nice film, and presents different sides of what is the role of citizens in a liberal democracy. Even one part presents an Indian that gets too involved for his own good and not knowing the whole story concerning an incidence of violence on the streets. He turns out to be the brother of the first heroine Isha.

Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism (2004)

While the Fox News cable network has promoted itself as a "fair and balanced" news outlet -- so much so that they've even trademarked the phrase -- not everyone believes that they're living up to their slogan, and this activist documentary by filmmaker Robert Greenwald takes a close look at the political perspective of Fox's coverage. Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism examines the right-wing slant of Fox News' reporting, as represented in stories the network chooses to cover and their shoehorning of editorial opinion into stories, revealed in interviews with former Fox employees and several noted journalists (including Walter Cronkite) who discuss the pro-conservative, anti-Democratic views of the channel's management and how they're manifested in their programming. The film also puts talk show host Bill O'Reilly under the microscope and offers potent examples of his frequently abrasive interviewing style. Production of Outfoxed was supported in part by the leftist political action network Moveon.org. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Theatrical Feature Running Time: 110 mins
Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism (2004)

For special features it contains a "Behind the Scenes Featurette" of almost 30 minutes. The producers and people working on the film seem like normal everyday people. I would even say every day working people and capitalists trying to make a buck. For example Michael Moore is the biggest capitalist around, literally and figuratively. But the people that watched and reported on the Fox News channel programs were completely and totally losers. They got together a bunch of libtarded idiots and then had them watch something against their ideology. About as useful as a bunch of ultra conservative ideologues watching MSNBC for 24 hours a day. I do have to admit that I have the same general feelings when I watch the propaganda from MSNBC. And historically, CNN was even more outwardly biased during the 80s and not much was ever mentioned about that at the time-at least from the left wing nuts.

This weekend I had the chance to listen and watched part of the NBC-Meet the Press program. Even though they are suppose to have a couple of conservatives it really was a hate fest of the right. They had Peter Schiff which was reluctant to say anything on the race issues except that all groups of people have racists in their midst as in Democrats and Republicans. And they had David Brooks, which he may be many things but not a true blooded conservative. The part that was most shocking was that "right-wing" or "ultra-right-wing" was thrown about with complete ease and not one "left-wing" was hurled. The conservatives were confined in their dialogue but not so for the Libtards at the meeting. Including one saying that Obama needs more outside advisers and implying more black representations. Obviously those advisers would be considered ultra-left-wing-wackos but was not even brought up.

Anyway, just as I suspected so supposedly my rating is too low at .5 but that was about the usefulness of the movie. One obvious problem with their approach is that while they accuse Fox of blurring the line between journalism and editorializing they also confuse the issues while bringing up the commentary sections without noting it is not even addressed as news. If they had wanted to uncover the differences they needed to get another example such as comparing Fox to MSNBC. It is like the scale then becomes whatever they desire with their liberal talking points and views.

Here is another interesting blog post at: Matthews: The NBA Uses Affirmative Action For Whitey.

McLibel: Two Worlds Collide (1997)

This documentary tells the story of two ordinary people that dared to take on one of the world's largest corporations. Viewers will see not only how the 1.8 billion dollars that McDonald's spends on advertising affects their bottom line, but how it manages to gloss over the unsavory aspects of their operations. The program also considers the extraordinary lengths a company like McDonald's will go to protect its own image. ~ Rob Ferrier, All Movie Guide

Theatrical Feature Running Time: 85 mins
McLibel: Two Worlds Collide (1997)

Basically a couple of Libtarded fools expressing their hate for the way society is formed and McDonalds was only a scapegoat and a symbol for their own self loathing. Most definitely not "heroes of our time" as one fat libtard said about them. In several locations they talk about what is happening to society, so to pick one target seems so ironic. The one question that never gets answered for me was, Why McDonalds? Why not all fast food and for that fact most diets in the UK and USA? Why not the hot-dog vendor down the street? He supplies a product that is harmful to the body and has a limited and thus unbalanced diet for a consumer. Heck, it probably is destroying the enviroment and destruction of the rain forest and his customers might not get everything into the garbage cans also. Heaven forbid!!!

The basic win for the two libtards was changes in Libel laws in the UK. Now that might be something to celebrate but the whole case clearly was a win for McDonalds based on the laws as they were at the time when McDonalds filed suit. There really is not freedom of speech in the UK at least at what most Americans would consider it, and similar situations seem to happen in Europe and Canada. All the good "Social Democracies".

The lies are like one after another. For example McDonalds is forcing people to do certain actions against their will. "This is not a battle between the two libtards and McDonalds"-lol. Actually it was as they had no other reason to go after McDonald's. They even brag about not paying the judgement against them of 60,000 £s.

I personally have no loyalty to McDonalds and rarely go there. But there is a something I detest most is biased attacks on "corporations" when all they hate is society. McDonalds will produce whatever their customers want-nothing more-nothing less.

1. Diets {}: Why would it be assumed that consumers would only be eating McDonalds food? Just like the silly movie 30 days {Super Size Me}. Just think of living off a hot dog vendor as mentioned earlier. Nutritious food is not the same as "Healthy food".

2. Advertising at children{}: So what? Adults have complete power as they have the purse-strings. Just grow up libtards. Oh, and ruined their self serving "good deads". "Exploit Children"?

Secret recordings seems a little underhanded and dirty. And allowed grandstanding by the two libtards.

3. Cynically exploit their workers???: That does not even have a logical bases of complaining. Dehumanizing is explained by a fat slob. The libtarded girl explains that she started a job at a bar. Probably no union membership there and just as exploited by the workers at McDonalds. Low wages depresses wages for others in the same industry is another example of the lies. If McDonalds did not hire then there would have been more supply of laborers and not less. Illogical libtards.

4. Detrimental to environment: Again just complaints about corporations and not necessarily any different for McDonalds-which is just a complaint about the society at large. The Libtards stated made the case that they are responsible for the litter of their packages. Destroying rain forests-which actually is right that McDonalds just purchases the raw meat on the wholesale level.

5. Cruel and inhumane to the animals. Again they are not directly involved with the raise of the animals. Here they should have gone after KFC or any other chicken supplier to the society. The judge went against McDonalds but that was pure stupidity.

McDonalds lost on:
Exploit Children.
Misleading advertising-Should have been the same for the Libtards.
Cruel to Animals.
Antipathetic to unions.
Pay low wages. The longer version talks about minimum wage which is a joke since many of the people probably would be unemployed if not for McDonalds.

Won on Libel for 60k pounds:
Heart disease & cancer.
Food poisoning.
Third world starvation. What a fucking joke that they even published such shit!!!
Rainforest destruction.
Bad working conditions.

They even brag about not paying and having no intentions to do so their moral obligations when they lost in court!!! Talk about hypocrisy! If McDonalds refused to pay in a court case, then the libtards would have protested that for decades and it would have ended up in a movie such as this.

As clearly can be shown here, these people are useful idiots...

Tera Naam

Blockbuster does not have a single bit of information and even the year made is not included in the title, Tera Naam. At Tere Naam - Wikipedia, they also don't have much to say:

Tere Naam (Hindi: तेरे नाम, English: In your name) is an Indian Hindi film. The film was directed by Satish Kaushik and released on 15 August 2003. The film stars Salman Khan and Bhoomika Chawla in leading roles. It is a remake of the 1999 Tamil film Sethu.[1]

The film is about Radhe Mohan (Salman Khan), a rowdy ex-college boy who, after a ragging (hazing) session, loses his heart to first year student Nirjara (Bhoomika), a traditional Brahmin girl. Just when Nirjara reciprocates his love, Radhe is attacked by a gang of thugs, loses his mind and is admitted to an asylum where, it is hoped, the more traditional means of treatment could have a therapeutic effect on him.

It nearly ends as the Shakespeare play "Romeo and Juliet" with at least one of them taking their own life which was needless and unnecessary. They also show the mental hospital as nearly worse than the conditions that Kalki had to suffer under in Matrubhoomi (2003). Living conditions that most people would die in within a short time especially with an open wound. The part that was unforgivable was his friends and family abandoning him there when they knew the conditions he was living under.

He "loses his mind" because they ram his head into a steel beam at the railroad station. We kind of expected the usual revenge and hero comes out on top and most definitely not this time.

Rated lower since it was badly written for reality. One actor said the asylum was a prison where they do nothing to cure and make people worse off and that certainly was the case.

Here is a video of the college where they meet Tera Naam. His dancing is funny especially the hip motions. It reminded us of the Red Fort although it is suppose to be a college campus.


lahorigate

Nada + (2002)

Juan Carlos Cremata's comic look at how the Cuban government affects its citizens, Nada + (Nothing More), is a film about a female postal worker. Thais Valdes plays the woman who dreams of living with her mother and father in Miami while dealing with her horrible boss (Daisy Granados). She livens up her existence by romantically responding to the correspondence she is supposed to deliver. Nothing More was screened during the Director's Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide

Theatrical Feature Running Time: 88 mins
Nada + (2002)

A cute little film that contains a lot of whispering of the letters she writes-supposedly in a romantic mood. Other than than the ridiculous romantic voice the rest is a funny film with a lot of slapstick comedy including one chase scene close to the end. The film is filmed in B&W with a little colorization for select items in the various scenes. Like her yellow pencil or a dress or a cartoon butterfly that flies around in the scenes. Along with the colorization the side characters are a motley crew of misfits of society including one of her supervisors that is cross eyed crazy lady and one that is a mad scientist and is protected by an overzealous subordinate, and of course her immediate supervisor that is filled with rage when she thinks that Carla is somehow stealing.

I was a little surprised at its portrayal of the run-down condition of Cuba. Maybe they think it is fine but even her job is just merely stamping the letters by hand one at a time at a desk. Clearly a job better suited for any simple machine to do. Carla is clearly bored with this meaningless job and ventures into people's lives to live vicariously through their writings. In the opening scene they show an outside phone that almost looked like it needed a crank to start it. Must have been 50 years old or older.

It is funny that she gets postcards from Miami and it is really fat women on the beach. I wonder if it was to portray Americans as fat slobs???

A nude scene in a bath tub which had little to do with the overall message of the film. Most of the bonus features were just text of the history of Cuba {Film in Context}, Director Biography, and a short photo gallery.

Jacket cover texts:

Carla, a postal worker in Havana, fulfills her romantic longings by opening letters and rewriting them into passionate prose before sending them out again to their intended recipients. After her co-worker Cesar catches her, Carla turns her amorous talents on him.

Beautifully filmed in black and white with accents of brilliant color, Cuba's 2003 Oscar entry combines visual humor, poetry, satire of Cuban bureaucracy and lighthearted love story.

Looks like I might have to check out more films with Thais Valdes. Rating: Rating: 4.5 (/5)

Kisna

Kisna is a Hindi film that was released in 2005, starring Vivek Oberoi (who plays the title role), Antonia Bernath, and Isha Sharvani. The musical film is set in the British India of the tumultuous 1940s when Indian nationalists fighting for the country's independence rose up as one[dubious – discuss], urging the British Raj to leave. It is a love story about two people who are torn between Karma (the noble deed) and Dharma (the duty). The film has two veteran composers, A. R. Rahman and Ismail Darbar; the lyrics were written by Javed Akhtar. This film also marks Amrish Puri's final performance. The film, however, did not perform well at the box office.
Synopsis
Kisna befriends a British girl named Katherine (Bernath), and then shields her from an enraged mob of nationalists including Kisna's own uncle and brother. Katherine is the young daughter of a ruthless British collector. Kisna takes it upon himself to escort Katherine to the safety of the British High Commission in New Delhi, who will arrange for her to board a ship home. A tender attraction develops between Kisna and Katherine during the journey. Latchmi (Shravani), Kisna's Indian fiancée, forms the third point in an emotional triangle involving the Indo-British romantic pair.
Cast
* Vivek Oberoi ... Kisna Singh
* Isha Sharvani ... Lakshmi
* Antonia Bernath ... Catherine
* Polly Adams ... Lady Katherine
* Amrish Puri ... Bhairo Singh
* Om Puri ... Juman Masum Kishti
* Yashpal Sharma ... Shankar Singh

Kisna: The Warrior Poet - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A beautiful love story about sacrifice and love even if the love can not be fully implemented and reciprocated by both parties. In classic Indian self sacrifice motif, Kisna could not partake of the love between them, even though Kisna risked all to save Catherine. He showed not only his Karma side by his stand to rescue Catherine from the mobs and even family members seeking revenge in Catherine's death but also his Dharma side by eventually stating his desire to go back to marry Latchmi.

All the women in the film were pretty and above average but Isha Sharvani was amazingly beautiful and her dancing was superb. The previews shows only her feet twirling on the ground at like a 45% angle. It was done with a rope she holds while twirling. She also does some very outstanding acrobatics including the lotus position with the ropes holding her up. She plays her jealousy well and her relatives try to explain and help her cope with these emotions. She is very devoted to her religion but it avails her little in calming her mad lust.

The older Catherine is used as a story filler and book ends which was similar to movie Titanic.

Kisna

Kisna videos, trailers, songs. Kisna Hindi Movie Film. Kisna Movie Clips, Music Videos and Trailers - SmasHits.com

Bewafaa (2004)

Anjali, the young, vibrant daughter of an Indian father and Canadian mother moves to New Delhi to marry her late sister's husband. At the time she thinks she is doing the right thing as she can help raise her two nieces. However, in doing so she leaves behind her first love, Raja. Will she be able to live with the personal sacrifices she has made for the good of others, or will her decision come back to haunt her?
Genres: Drama and Romance
Running Time: 3 hrs. 00 min.
Release Date: August 27, 2004 Limited
MPAA Rating: Not Rated
Distributors:
Eros Entertainment
Bewafaa (2004) - Movie Details - Yahoo! Movies

Definitely too long of movie again. The late sister's husband turns out to be a manipulator and not a generally nice guy but all Indian women have to suffer in the films so her fate and her decision is beyond her own self interest at heart including the two children she raises for 3 years before fate makes her decide again which direction and which man to follow. Of course the decision becomes easier as Raja also shows his dark side and unwillingness to just let it go...

Overall just an average film.
Nothing from Blockbuster at Bewafaa (2004).

WAQT: The Race Against Time (2005)

Nirmal K. {3 Stars}
Yes it definitely worth watching once!! Got some foot-tapping tracks and nice choreography!!
----------------------------
Bijal P. {5 Stars}
Excellent, tear jerker, but what a great family story. Amitabh was brilliant as usual. Still thinking about the movie! Classic!
-----------------------------
Samera J. {5 Stars}
This movies will stand the test of time, it is a classic. I cried every time I see it, the actors did a wonderful job!!!!

WAQT: The Race Against Time (2005)

No movie review provided by Blockbuster and the above are comments from Blockbuster members. We both gave it low marks as this film was nothing more than a long soap opera with endless maudlin dialogue. It could have been an interesting film if it was about 75 minutes in length and not so much crying even by the strong son that weeps at nearly every scene. We were like, you are a man, grow up!!!

Wiki treats it more like a comedy at Waqt: The Race Against Time. With nearly the last 20 minutes of crying then I could hardly call it a comedy unless you treat the characters as tragic worthless people. But this in fact is an important issue and how do families raise the next generation in a land of plenty. Not just for the rich but poor alike are getting obese and have an easy life filled with video games and TV.

Laxman was only mildly amusing and clearly no one I would have around as a "servant". I could only assume that at times he deliberately avoided work by being stupid. Thus, even though the father is trying to alter his son to become a man, he also has a problem correcting the behaviors of others including his staff. Thus, it would be hard to imagine that the father could have been as successful as they portrayed him to be. And the in-laws also were very rich. Pooja had a swimming pool in her bedroom. We thought about it and it sounds like a bad idea. They did beautifully contrast that with the "outhouse" the father offers them with not a stitch of furniture. Pooja plays the dutiful wife as willing to sacrifice greatly for her love for the son. She even refuses to either go back to her parents or move in to the father's house temporarily when pregnant. Pooja is the Mother India character in this film.

Matrubhoomi (2003)

Young Indian filmmaker Manish Jha writes and directs the French-Indian co-production Matrubhoomi (A Nation Without Women). In rural India of the near future, a small village has been reduced to a violent state of barbarianism. Because of the immoral tradition of female infanticide, the town is populated exclusively by brutish men. Nevertheless, wealthy Ramcharan (Sudhir Pandey) still tries to arrange a marriage for his eldest son Rakesh (Pankaj Jha). He manages to purchase the only woman around, Kalki (Tulip Joshi), who ends up serving all five of his sons. The violence only escalates from there. A Nation Without Women was shown at the 2003 Venice Film Festival. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
Matrubhoomi (2003)

Kalki not only has to serve the 5 sons but also serving the father which then in a twist of betrayal reveals her father to be simply a Pimp asking for more money as the number of men getting "servicing" increased. What they end up doing to her is clearly unimaginable and would have meant the death for most people as she was chained up and raped repeatedly.

I give this film high praise for dramatic script and originality. I would truly like to see more Indian films that delved into science fiction. Although this is meant to be in the near future as the villages just started getting cellular phones, it is still sci-fi in that the world has never experienced that degree of misogynistic. The opening scene is an ancient one of a female child that is drown in a tub of milk.

But honestly, although they are making a point about how many women are aborted or infanticide of females in India, it is very unlikely that such a scenario would come to fruition. It was even noted in the film that it was no longer the family of the women that paid dowry but the shortage of women caused the price of available women to skyrocket. Thus the economics would bring the pendulum closer to the natural selection process. There would be increased incentives for people to have women to fill the need for sex and marriage and to even have a son...

Watched any good Sci-Fi Indian films? Let me know.

Young Mr. Lincoln (1939)

John Ford's fine direction distinguishes this highly fictionalized account of the early life of Abraham Lincoln. The film shows Lincoln (Henry Fonda) as he rises from a country boy born in a log cabin to a lawyer in Springfield, Illinois defending two young men unjustly accused of murder. The film, produced by Darryl F. Zanuck, received an Academy Award nomination for "Best Original Screenplay" for its screenwriter Lamar Trotti. Henry Fonda perhaps the most American of actors, is at his best playing Lincoln as the quintessential, compassionate American hero. ~ Linda Rasmussen, All Movie Guide

Theatrical Feature Running Time: 100 mins
Young Mr. Lincoln (1939)

One of the most memorable scenes in the movie is the YouTube video: Lynch mob scene from Young Mr. Lincoln (1939), starring Henry Fonda and directed by John Ford.

Strangely, or just good editing and shooting techniques, I missed who did the murder. So in essence it was just as unexpected as it was to the jury. Of course this meant that Lincoln was playing the part of Perry Mason where the guilty break under pressure of the witness stand, and in this case even out of the box.

Interesting but not sure the worth in political science classes.

The World of Apu

Apu, a college graduate living alone in an attic apartment in Calcutta, spends his time working on a novel aspiring to become a writer. He marries his friend's sister, as a favor, but his wife soon dies during childbirth. Apu refuses to see his son and, overcome by grief, leaves Calcutta and wanders through the countryside, renouncing everything. His old friend looks for him and finds him working at a remote coal mine and implores him to return and take responsibility for his son. He goes back and finds himself drawn to his 5-year-old who is distrustful of him at first, but eventually, a bond is formed and, together, they set out for Calcutta.
Also Known As:
Apur Sansar
The Apu Trilogy
The Masterworks of Satyajit Ray
Production Status: Released
Genres: Drama and Sequel
Running Time: 1 hr. 46 min.
Release Date: October 4th, 1960 (limited)
MPAA Rating: Not Rated
Distributors:
Sony Pictures Classics
Produced in: India
The World of Apu (1959) - Movie Details - Yahoo! Movies

The movie ends as they decide to adventure to Calcutta but the son is not aware of the man being his father. A very delightful film that shows the strong societal influences on the father to do the right thing. The wife also feels emotionally divided as the life they start to live in Calcutta was not what she wanted as her family came from the upper castes. She alone carries this burden not wanting to upset her husband. She shows her love to him but decides to move back to her parents home-presumably to have the child. They state the separation is to be just a couple of months but the next scene has Apu receiving news that the mother died in childbirth. He physically attacks the messenger in his anguish that carries over to his relationship with his son.

The World of Apu - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Apu Trilogy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

DVD Cover:
"Rich and contemplative and a great, convincing affirmation." -Pauline Kael, The New Yorker

Named the Best Foreign Film of 1960, by the National Board of Review and winner of numerous festival prizes, The World of Apu is the crowning finish to Satyajit Ray's unforgettable Apu Trilogy.

Forced to abandon his education, Apu's prospects look bleak until fate intervenes in the form of an insane bridegroom. To save the abandoned bride from public disgrace, Apu marries her, beginning a new life as husband and father. Like the earlier films in the trilogy Pather Panchali and Aparajito, The World of APu is more than a mesmerizing look at Indian culture; it is a universal look at family love and personal sacrifice. "Rich and contemplative and a great, convincing affirmation." -Pauline Kael, The New Yorker

Although he was a father in the biological sense he was estranged from his son until the son was 5 years old and was not even present at birth.

Appu Raja????

The Americanization of Emily (1964)

The lively but somehow slightly distasteful The Americanization of Emily stars James Garner as a WWII naval officer who happens to be a craven coward. While his comrades sail off to their deaths, Garner makes himself scarce, generally hiding out in the London flat of his lothario navy buddy James Coburn. Garner falls in love with virtuous war widow Julie Andrews (the "Emily" of the title), but she can't abide his yellow streak. Meanwhile, crack-brained admiral Melvyn Douglas decides that he needs a hero--the first man to die on Omaha Beach during the D-Day Invasion. Coburn is at first elected for this sacrifice, but it is the quivering Garner who ends up hitting the beach. He survives to become a hero in spite of himself, winning Andrews in the process. Paddy Chayefsky's script, based on the novel by William Bradford Huie, attempts to extract humor out of the horrors of war by using broad, vulgar comedy instead of the light satirical touch that would seem to be called for. Americanization of Emily was Julie Andrews' second film; it should have led to a steady stream of adult-oriented roles, but the box-office clout of Mary Poppins and The Sound of Music consigned her to "wholesome family entertainment". ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Theatrical Feature Running Time: 115 mins
The Americanization of Emily (1964)

Quite an excellent film. I enjoyed it immensely and one of James Garner's best performances. I disagree with it being vulgar-at least by today's standards. But was surprised by the nudity-although only the backs of young women it still has the two men in the room unashamedly looking at them in the nude from their angle. The only part that might be over the top for distasteful dialogue was when Garner's character explained his opinions of war to Andrews' mother with the three of them there.

I liked to see the character development and the back and forth of the romance. Garner's character changed very little but Andrews' showed quite a bit of change in opinion of wars.

While this was portrayed as anti-war and anti-American, it clearly does not meet either criteria from my perspective. First the director even admitted as such on the director's cut commentary. He said that it was not meant as anti-war but over glorification of war, and clearly most good war movies have been that way including most versions of "All Quiet on the Western Front". And even thought the Americans are brass and pompous they still have admirable qualities including generosity. One aspect that might be considered distasteful is the idea of sacrificing individual soldiers for an idea that has no real value. In this case it was to have a Navy soldier be the first to die. I am sure that many died before even hitting the beach as the Germans used mortars, long-range artillery and long barrel riffles that could easily hit and kill soldiers in the open air transports. In real wars many men died as soon as the door of the transport opened up.

This film does a good job in showing the inherent problems of direct authoritarian hierarchical structures when one man decides the fate of an individual or any group of men. If that man is unfit for command because of mental and emotional problems then his/her decisions could be against the welfare of his/her troops.

My wife was right that Garner's character could not die off. I know that most films during that time period could never have a hero die off, I just could not help but think that the anti-war elements would see him die as both the witnesses said he died in battle.

Rodrigo D: No Future (1990)

Rodrigo D (Ramiro Meneses) is a Colombian youth who aspires to join a punk-rock band. His musical skills are negligible, but Rodgrigo feels sympatico with the punkers: he's angry, alienated and destructive. A member of a motorcycle gang that robs and pillages neighboring communities (several of the "actors" were actual street kids, six of whom were killed after the movie was completed), Rodrigo ends up a "big man" only through use of brute force. He finally ends up in the notorious city of Medellin, where he finds it impossible to escape the drug-and-violence syndrome that he thought he'd left behind in the slums. Rodrigo D: No Future is of historical interest in that it was the first Colombian film to be entered in the Cannes Festival. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Theatrical Feature Running Time: 91 mins
Rodrigo D: No Future (1990)

Part of the plot was hard to follow with cuts to seemingly random events. Ultimately this film proves their is no honor among thieves. In his effort to prove his worth he kills a police officer but his new friends quickly abandon him and ultimately actually kill him themselves.

The film also notes how many of the actors had passed away which tragically is the most interesting aspect of the film. Just like many from South America, I find stories like this as predictable and dull. They may have some social justice quality but those facts are not in dispute.

Buffalo Soldiers (2001)

Australian director Gregor Jordan makes his sophomore effort with this tale about crooked U.S. soldiers based in Germany during the waning days of the cold war. Special Fourth Class soldier Elwood (Joaquin Phoenix) guards against the Soviets while on duty, and rips off the U.S. military while off duty. Handsome, calculating, and thoroughly amoral, Elwood runs a profitable black-market business that operates just below the official radar. He and his associates make drugs to sell to his fellow GIs; steal Army supplies, selling them to a German connection; and a host of other dirty deeds. One day, he and his gang uncover some loot that will land them some real money -- high-tech military weaponry. As they try to quietly offload the stuff, the new sergeant, Robert K. Lee (Scott Glenn), catches on to Elwood's nefarious deeds and sets out to put him out of businesses. Elwood, in turn, catches on to the fact that Lee has a very attractive daughter (Anna Paquin) and sets out to bed her. This film was screened at the 2001 Toronto Film Festival. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
See All Buffalo Soldiers Trailers and Clips

Theatrical Feature Running Time: 99 mins
Buffalo Soldiers (2001)

Watched this with a close relative and she asked if I thought it was anything close to reality. Truly a fictional account but still has elements that appear in any bureaucracy especially government run. Some of the same elements are shown on a more benign level in films like "M*A*S*H" with Radar being similar to efficient Elwood. For example Radar in the last Mash episode I watched he got his CO to sign off a discharge for a sheep that the Greeks has donated to the unit for a party. Radar may have not been doing it for malicious reasons but still he was doing it for personal and not to the betterment of his unit. Stripes also comes to mind about this sentiment of the US military but more with regards to peace time operations.

Before watching the film I came across this: An Interview With Gregor Jordan.

MOVIE CITY NEWS: I imagine that one of the complaints you'll hear about Buffalo Soldiers is that it's just another attempt by Hollywood liberals to slander our proud fighting men and women. Guilty or not guilty?

GREGOR JORDAN: I grew up on an Air Force base in Australia, where my father was a pilot. He fought in Vietnam, so I grew up on war stories and around soldiers.

I don't see this film as anti-American or anti-military. It poses some interesting philosophical questions about warfare, aggression and the need for violence by certain people ... I think that idea really translates well in these characters.

MCN: Obviously, then, you don't see Buffalo Soldiers as being hopelessly dated by the swirl of events in Iraq and Afghanistan?

GJ: It's of its time, yes, but I think the film actually is way more topical now, than it was before. It says that war and warfare are things certain human beings really like and want.

There are warlike people out there who are aggressive and expansionist. Those ideals of the '60s and '70s - you know, "give peace a chance" - seem to be overly romantic.

MCN: That's a fairly extreme notion, especially for a Hollywood movie.

GJ: Warfare is something quite innate in humans ... war was invented way before diplomacy. Today, it is seen as this weird aberration, which only happens when diplomacy breaks down ... and no one really wants war.

This movie suggests that there are people out there who do. This may be a pessimistic viewpoint, but I think it's a fact.

I would say this is anti-military in the least. Mainly for the basic fact that it paints the military as not capable of being just a standing army and has to resort to self destruction. But I put that aside since it does have an important message about failure to value the standing army in peace times as well as war times.

Still worth watching it overall. Rating: 3.5 (/5)

The Cow (1971)

This highly symbolic Iranian drama (shot in black-and-white) revolves around the most important figure in a remote rural village. That figure is the village's sole cow, owned by Mashdi Hassan (Ezat Entezani). The beginning of the film makes clear just how vital the cow is to the life of the village and how much Mashdi and his neighbors cherish it. When the cow is threatened and then killed by members of a nearby clan, Mashdi becomes so distraught that he is gradually transformed into a cow himself. One highlight of this film is the glimpse it offers into a style of rural life which has gone unchanged for thousands of years. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide

Theatrical Feature Running Time: 100 mins
The Cow (1971)

Dust cover script:

Influenced by Italian Neorealism. The Cow has the beauty and simplicity associated with the great films that movement. In a small village in Iran, Hassan cherishes his cow more than anything in the world. While he is away, the cow mysteriously dies, and the villagers protectively try to convince Hassan the cow has only wandered off. Grief stricken, Hassan begins to believe he is his own beloved bovine.

The Cow won great acclaim at the Venice Film Festival after being smuggled out of Iran in 1971, and was twice voted best Iranian film ever made by a survey of Iranian film critics.

Quite a feat to be voted best especially considering the number of great films I have seen.

At the end, the group watching it will me wondered if the village and Hassan would have been better off if he had been told the truth and allowed a natural grieving process to develop naturally. As not seeing the body, Hassan reacted with disbelief and then the delusions of himself being the cow. If I had been there I would just have asked some questions and if all else fails-try to "milk" his cow.

DVD Bonus Features:
* Interview with Dariush Mehrjui
* Film Notes by Godfrey Cheshire
* Director Biography
* Photo Gallery

A funny little film although I seriously did not find as much substance as the film critics praised it. Not much on social commentary but some may have shown the benefit of showing a culture from the past.

Paths of Glory (1957)

Adapting Humphrey Cobb's novel to the screen, director Stanley Kubrick and his collaborators Calder Willingham and Jim Thompson set out to make a devastating anti-war statement, and they succeeded above and beyond the call of duty. In the third year of World War I, the erudite but morally bankrupt French general Broulard (Adolphe Menjou) orders his troops to seize the heavily fortified "Ant Hill" from the Germans. General Mireau (George MacReady) knows that this action will be suicidal, but he will sacrfice his men to enhance his own reputation. Against his better judgment, Colonel Dax (Kirk Douglas) leads the charge, and the results are appalling. When, after witnessing the slaughter of their comrades, a handful of the French troops refuse to leave the trenches, Mireau very nearly orders the artillery to fire on his own men. Still smarting from the defeat, Mireau cannot admit to himself that the attack was a bad idea from the outset: he convinces himself that loss of Ant Hill was due to the cowardice of his men. Mireau demands that three soldiers be selected by lot to be executed as an example to rest of the troops. Acting as defense attorney, Colonel Dax pleads eloquently for the lives of the unfortunate three, but their fate is a done deal. Even an eleventh-hour piece of evidence proving Mireau's incompetence is ignored by the smirking Broulard, who is only interested in putting on a show of bravado. A failure when first released (it was banned outright in France for several years), Paths of Glory has since taken its place in the pantheon of classic war movies, its message growing only more pertinent and potent with each passing year (it was especially popular during the Vietnam era). ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Theatrical Feature Running Time: 87 mins
Paths of Glory (1957)

Although this film was highly recommend by a friend, and deserves accolades for the film's outstanding portrayal of war {WWI}, it was not the anti-war film from my self appraisal. There is no denying the similarities with the film and book "All Quiet on the Western Front". As such, Paths of Glory was more along the lines of an anti-WWI movie. One that showed the horror of war with a set of strategic paradigms when the weapons of war had changed but the general's approach had not.

Throwing good men after a hill worth nothing proved the war was not worth the costs in young men's lives. When the Americans arrived, they set out to not be boxed by the paradigms currently employed. According to my history class. some strategists had assumed that when their side lost so many that they could calculate the amount lost on the opposing side without a complete assessment.

Ultimately in the end, the authoritarian hierarchical organization only wanted to preserve order and individual lives of the soldiers meant nothing. As the three executed were all innocent compared to what was expected of them and the truly guilty got free. One squad commander had killed one of his men and as such he selected the man that knew it to the court marshal hearings. And lastly, Colonel Dax was sent to the front again. Life expectancy was not long in the front lines and was a punishment for not accepting the field promotion.

PS: I know that I am a little thick but my review is more along that it was an anti-WWI type war. Every war has its own unique circumstances so much of that was specific to WWI, especially the fact that everything was so "civilized" and civil just a few miles away from the battle lines. War was glorious as long as you were a civilian or someone not in the trenches. Much as "All Quiet on the Western Front" portrayed.

Good Kurds, Bad Kurds: No Friends But The Mountains (2000)

Kevin McKiernan directs this passionate account about the plight of the Kurds, the world's largest minority without a nation. The film opens with McKiernan shopping around his painstakingly researched findings to ABC's Nightline and other news telecasts only to meet complete indifference. From there, he describes the Gunduz family, an exiled Kurdish family. The film cuts between grisly footage from the front lines of Turkey's bloody Kurdish repression to the struggles of Gunduz patriarch Kani, who works as a congressional lobbyist. ~ Jonathan Crow, All Movie Guide
Good Kurds, Bad Kurds: No Friends But The Mountains (2000)

It covers some interesting angles about the two brothers that their status regarding immigration is in peril including the one brother has to pay back student loans that he fraudulently obtained with a false ID. The courts set the bail at one time to the ridiculous amount of $250,000.

Dust Cover:
Filmaker and acclaimed freelance journalist Kevin McKiernan poses this question at the outset of this stirring, provocative film shot in part by legendary cinematographer Haskell Wexler. It's all in how you define "good" and "bad". "Good Kurds" are those in Iraq: they're Saddam Hussein's victims, whom we want to help. "Bad Kurds" are those waging an armed insurrection against Turkey, an American ally: they're at the receiving end of U.S. weaponry.

McKiernan went to northern Iraq to cover the uprising against Saddam Hussein. Just a few miles away, no one was covering the hidden war in Turkey. McKiernan determined he would report the story independently.

Good Kurds, Bad Kurds brings sharp clarity to a complicated history, while providing disturbing insight into immigration practices and U.S. foreign policy.

While a good introduction to the duopoly of how the US views the PKK, it left out a lot of the history of the PKK and how it has transitioned to more moderate positions. It also did not note any actions that the PKK and other Kurdish groups are doing in Iran, and they would also be defined as the "good Kurds".

Another aspect that I have studied before is how Democracy Now with Amy Goodman also defines in subtle ways the dichotomy of views of the Kurds/PKK being good or bad depending on who they oppose. Throughout the 90s and into 2000 Goodman reported a bias in presenting them based on what state they were acting against. It was like taking the US State Department typography of the ideologies and transposing them 180 degrees. Amy Goodman, et al was not opposing for the fact of being in the right but just opposing all US positions irregardless of facts and circumstances.

Lastly, the film did not note the ties between the Kurds and Israel. The film notes that the Kurds feel that if the Jewish/Palestinian issues are resolved then the world would be more responsive to the requests of the Kurds. These ties also make them "Bad Kurds" in the eyes of Amy Goodman and her ilk.

For presenting a side of the conflicts in Iraq/Turkey rarely discussed this was an excellent film. The film was shot and produced before 9-11 and as such it presents a certain historical picture in time. I am sure he would have produced a much different documentary now.

I see as late as September 2006 Kani "Xulam's" status was still undecided in the USA...
US: Kani Xulam could face deportation 9.2.2006 By Don M. Burrows| The people behind the persecution

Links:
Kani Xulam on Turkish Kurdish relations

American Kurdish Information Network (AKIN)

Chandni Bar (2003)

Heading to Bombay with her lone surviving relative after she loses her parents and her town is destroyed by religious strife, young Mumtaz (Tabu) has a difficult time adjusting to a place where jobs seems scarce and life is cheap. Informed by distant relative Iqbal (Rajpal Yadav) that the only job available at the time is a position in the sordid Chandni Bar, Mumtaz's guardian, Mamu Irfan, reluctantly accepts the position in order to provide for her young charge. Soon addicted to drugs, Mamu Irfan finds solace only in the company of her equally despondent co-workers. The arrival of corrupt political henchman Potiya (Atul Kulkarni) provides a glimmer of hope as he falls for Mamu Irfan, though after a brief marriage and a pair of children later, Potiya quickly disappears never to be seen again. Despite Mamu Irfan's best efforts to keep Mumtaz and her children shielded from the bleak realities of her own life, fate soon descends a series of crippling blows on the hapless family. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
Chandni Bar (2003)

Another long {over 2 hours} melodramatic film depicting the life and lives of women in India. The film is very predictable as characters portent the end result of their family-that destiny and background dictates the future. It was almost like a caste system in place as people are held down by poor decisions or such high level of constraints creating limited possibilities and opportunities.

It was much in the tradition of Mother India (1957) and even one character tells Mumtaz that she is basically Mother India and as such you sill suffer long and hard and same with your children.

The film started out as showing religious persecution but as soon as the two move to Mumbai all former religious out-showings disappear. Most of the men end up being "pimps" and the word is used quite frequently in the film {translation stated "pump" on my version}. Even in the end Mumtaz and her daughter to a lesser degree gets "pimped" out to try to raise money to save the family-specifically the son from prison.

Death of a President (2006)

The assassination of the most powerful leader in the free world is examined in this controversial mockumentary from British filmmaker Gabriel Range. On October 19, 2007, president George W. Bush is visiting Chicago when he impulsively stops to shake hands with supporters en route to a meeting, while a throng of protesters demonstrate nearby. Shots ring out, and Bush is fatally wounded. As America and its allies deal with the tragic loss of their leader, vice president Dick Cheney is sworn in as the new chief executive, and while he takes the reigns of the nation and pushes new and aggressive anti-terrorism legislation through Congress, the Federal Bureau of Investigation steps into action to track down the gunman. As Secret Service agents and law enforcement officers share their thoughts on how the murder of the president could have been avoided, and people around the globe discuss how Bush's death has tipped the delicate balance of relations between the United States and the Middle East, a Syrian Muslim activist living in Chicago, Jamal Abu Zikri (Malik Bader), is charged with the murder of the president. While no "smoking gun" connects Zikri to the crime, a wealth of circumstantial evidence points to him as the gunman, and he's tried, found guilty, and executed in short order. However, lingering questions persist as some wonder if the F.B.I. found the right man with the right motives. Created using a combination of newsreel footage, computer-generated images, and newly staged material, Death of a President (aka D.O.A.P.) received the International Critics Prize at the 2006 Toronto Film Festival, despite negative reaction from many American political commentators, many of whom were deeply offended by the film's depiction of the assassination of Bush, the sitting U.S. president at the time of the picture's production and release. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Theatrical Feature Running Time: 97 mins
Death of a President (2006)

The one special feature of the DVD was a compilation of interviews with the director and others about the film and specifically why they felt a sitting president should be the subject of an assassination film. While I got a better picture of why they did it, it still did not excuse the fact that it glorifies something that would be just as damaging to the USA as 9-11 (IMHO). The obvious reason to do it was because of the ability to use archival footage of news reels and to create a sense of reality that a pure fictional account would lack. So in that sense it had to be created as it was. The actual gun shot scene where the President gets hit, was very well done as it was the real president and then with in a few frames it appears as if he really gets shot and is falling down. I went frame by frame and was amazed at the technical skills for the transition.

The director states that maybe he will do one with Tony Blair but that never materialized. Wonder if he will do one with Obama? Not like he does not have his haters already too. No I am not one of them-although dislike is right up there.

The film is not really kind to all the people that would be likely to assassinate a president even to KKK members, al-Qaeda, war protesters and anarchists etc.