A British drama directed by Nicolas Roeg, starring Miranda Richardson and Donald Sutherland.
an architect and her boyfriend move into a farmhouse that their new neighbors used to live in. The women in each house are dealing with pregnancy issues and the neighbor grandmother is a witch.
The award for least ability to tell a story in film goes to Nicolas Roeg. The plot of this, as with his other films, doesn't make much sense. There is a surface level where we see the people in locations and hear their dialogue, but the deeper level of meaning is a mystery. This was produced like a horror film. The grandmother was talking to someone or something that was never visible (maybe she was crazy and talking to the dog). There were these close-up shots of the puffball fungus that were so menacing that I thought there would end up being a monster in it. After one of the grandmother's chats with the dog, the screen is engulfed in flames. All of this buildup of horror elements led to the anticlimax where nothing really happened. There was also sex. Lots of loud sex. The video and audio were great though. The composition, framing and camera-work were phenomenal. There were even well-done special effects that looked like something magical. Overall, exactly what I should have expected from Roeg. With Mike Leigh, it seems like nothing is happening when the deep meaning is being presented. With Nicolas Roeg, it seems like deep meaning is being presented when nothing is happening. Crazy Brits. I rate this o.k. because it was such a well-made disappointment.
A British Italian thriller directed by Nicolas Roeg, starring Julie Christie and Donald Sutherland.
The daughter of a married couple drowns in a pond. The husband is then working on restoring a church in Italy when the wife meets a mysterious duo of older women. One of the women seems to have psychic powers and is predicting disaster in the family. The wife is called away back to England where her son in school has had an accident. The husband thinks that he sees the wife still in Italy, with the old women and goes to the police.
The pros outweigh the cons on this one, making it worth watching. The plot was a little confusing and choppy. There were some sections that were unclear, like the daughter's death. The characters were memorable and acted their roles very well. The dialogue seemed poorly written, though because it led to some of the plot confusion. An example of this is the Husband calling his wife at the school in England. It seemed like she was lying to him or evading his questions, but it turned out that she was being honest. Video is where this shines. The shot compositions, framing and editing were amazingly artsy. Everything from the English countryside with the pond to the ancient labyrinth of Italy looked good because of proper lighting and exposures. They used steady tripod shots and rough, handheld shots in all the right places and there was some compositing. The daughter appearing in the waters of Italian canals was done very tastefully. There was an extended sex scene which was interspersed with footage of the couple putting their clothes on. I know that it makes a bold statement, but am at a loss for what that statement is. The audio was another good point. I could hear all of the dialogue. Even though some was in Italian, it did more to establish the setting than drive the plot. The all-classical music soundtrack worked wonderfully to set the mood. Overall, watch this for the video aspect. I rate it good.
An American comedy directed by John Landis, starring Donald Sutherland.
Various comedy skits are shown as if one were watching television and everything went bonkers.
This was funny. It is so rare that I see a comedy and get the humor. Although most of the material is dated and would seem absurd to today's audiences, I remember growing up when this was not a "vintage" film. The movie theater that only charges one dollar for popcorn is a stand-out moment of being dated. Isn't that shit like $15 these days? Anyway, I liked the joke commercials, news broadcasts and movie trailers. There was even a poster for Schlock at the theater. My favorite part was "Catholic High School Girls in Trouble"(picture) Female Anatomy Points! This is a film to not think about or analyze. Just watch and maybe laugh. I rate it adequate.
A German French Canadian adventure directed by Werner Herzog, starring Mathilda May, Donald Sutherland and Brad Dourif.
An experienced mountain climber competes with a young rock climber to climb a mountain. A television newsman documents their struggle and a local crazy guy pops in every once in a while.
This was alright. The plot was simple and characters relatively well developed. The female love interest character seemed like an afterthought, but the crazy guy was awesome. The technical aspects were o.k. with good shots of the mountain. The audio was a little messy on the version that I saw, mostly with loud wind sounds. Overall, not bad and not good. I rate it o.k.
A British crime adventure written and directed by Michael Crichton, starring Sean Connery and Donald Sutherland.
A team of professional criminals make copies of 4 keys that unlock a safe on a train that contains a large amount of gold so they can steal it while the train is moving.
This was good. From opening to triumphant finish, I really liked it. The plot (although fitting the universal plot summary) was interesting and the characters were acted very well. The period costumes looked very authentic as well. The camera-work was excellent, with lots of movement. The crane or helicopter shots that pulled back from the moving train were really well done. Some of the beginning was a little dull, but once things got moving it was very good. I noticed that the criminal who climbs well was referred to as "King Willie, the Snakesman", a phallic title to say the least. Since I have very little bad to say and am full of compliments, I rate this good. This is one of those solid green ratings that define what film is supposed to be.
An American drama thriller directed by Barry Levinson, starring Michael Douglas, Demi Moore and Donald Sutherland with music by Ennio Morricone.
A businessman at a technology company finds that an old girlfriend has been hired as his new boss. They have a meeting that is half sex and half violence and deal with the aftermath of it.
I just started a screenwriting course in school and the professor gave a quick outline of the plot of "every film ever made". I was following along with this and Disclosure did not deviate from it. Here is that outline:
Ordinary World: Heroes at home
Inciting Incident: Something different happens
Big Debate: Should the character act?
New Journey: Action is taken
Fun and Games: Character Development
Bad Guys Close In: Enemies approach the heroes
Big Reversal/Midpoint: plot twist, new story direction
False Victory/Defeat: Seems that the heroes are winning, but not really
Loss of Hope: Things look grim, more problems
New Path to Success: Victory, winning, happy ending
So I was not surprised by anything in the plot. The characters played their roles in it and were acted well. There were a few artsy camera shots thrown in here and there. Of course, being the '90s, we had the mandatory virtual reality sequence. I think that I've said enough to explain a good many things about film, cinema, movies and video here. I'll just rate this o.k. and be done with it.
