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It's been a long time since I wrote a review, but I need to do this one.

I was 12 in 1977, saw Star Wars in the theater and things were never the same. I've always been positive and optimistic about the development of Star Wars since then, but there's no denying it's been a bumpy ride.

THE FORCE AWAKENS held so much promise and had almost everything I was looking for in Star Wars. Unfortunately the sequels didn't really pan out after that and I figured that was that. Star Wars was done.

But... I liked the first season of The Mandalorian and it did again bring back some of that old style Star Wars I was looking for. And now this season, even better. A little uneven, some filler stuff, but overall very good.

However, they caught me off guard, because nothing could have prepared me for this final episode. I'm not going into details, because everybody is saying the same, but it hit me hard to the core. I had never expected to feel that same wonder, excitement and sheer happiness from something Star Wars related ever again.

This one did. In the grand scheme of things Star Wars is 'just' a show, fun, entertainment so I understand many people may find this weird.

The last 10 minutes absolutely destroyed me in the best possible way. At the end I was crying like a baby. And it felt great, cathartic, and everything in the world seemed right.

What a stunning finale. Thank you to Dave Filoni and Jon Favreau, all the cast and the production team at Disney for making time travel real and allowing me to go back to being a 12 year old kid for a couple of minutes.

Released in cooperation with the Library of Congress and under auspicien of Fritzi Kramer of website 'Movies, Silently' the film is part of a complete presentation by the Edison Film Company under their 'Conquest' brand, which ran in the mid-10s of the last century.

The entire program also includes 4 shorts which were shown in theatres back then before the Main Event. So, by playing the entire set you are basically experiencing a movie night out like it was in 1917.

KIDNAPPED is a solid adventure yarn based on the same-titled novel by Robert L. Stevenson. At a mere 65 minutes it moves along at a brisk pace and while omitting some elements from the novel it follows the plot nicely in a cohesive and clear way.

The film looks remarkably fine. Apart from a couple of scratches here and there the image is crisp and clear. There's a few tinted sequences, which work well to separate between the events. Also interesting is the use of the camera. Most of the time it's static, shooting the action from a standard theater-front point of view, but there's a few instances when the camera moves along with the action and it even has a handheld feel to it.

While a large portion of the action takes place on a ship at sea, unfortunately the ship is never shown in full. Probably due to technical and budget issues, it's clear the ship never left the harbour and all sequences were shot while the ship was in the harbour.

However, there are some really gorgeous outdoor shots in the final act, when protagonist David Balfour and his companion have to make a run for it in a snow covered forest.

The movie obviously is not one of the great cinematic achievements of the silent era, but combined with the four shorts it offers a fascinating glimpse at early 20th century 'family movie entertainment'.

Here's a couple of reasons why and how THE FORCE AWAKENS works and succeeds.

It's fair to say TFA revisits the O.T. to a large extent. The basic set-up and the structure follow various acts (as in film-acts) in the O.T. to a tee. Abandoned youth, trying to survive on an isolated planet gets pulled into a conflict of galactic proportions, and accompanied by a few unlikely wanderers joins rebellious forces fighting a huge evil force.

Remake, rehash? Sure. But with a few interesting twists allowing it to work as full fledged sequel to the O.T.

1. The happy end that wasn't. One of the most controversial developments is Luke, Han and Leia not getting the happily ever after life implied by the end of RotJ. Quite the contrary, something went terribly wrong, and the three heroes are now dealing with the consequences. This makes them an integral part of the narrative and storyline of the new trilogy. And it adds (heartbreaking) drama.

2. The balance that wasn't. By wiping out the Emperor many figured evil was eliminated from the Galaxy, maybe some conflicts here and there, to be resolved by a New Jedi Order. That turned out to be quite the mistake. As we know from our own history evil has the tendency to get back up at any opportunity. And yes, while maybe wearing different insignia, it is often the exact same type of evil rising again. And also, using the same weapons, only bigger and louder. TFA in a way shows how history does repeat itself along a remarkable pattern. And that is a depressing thought.

But what is true for evil is also true for good.

I'd say the message of TFA - if you want to go that deep - is that good and light is not the natural state of the galaxy, and you can not take it for granted, but it is something that is vulnerable and needs protecting and fighting for. And the good thing is, there are always sources of hope, people ready to stand up, no matter the hardship, no matter the price, no matter the sacrifice. Do not give in to the Dark Side.

3. Reversed roles. In the O.T. Han, Leia and Luke were the young generation rebelling against the establishment. Luke actually fought his own father. In TFA they are now the parents. Han is now the father of a young revolutionary who suffers a similar fate like Vader in the O.T. Kylo is now the son fighting his father, but this time from the Dark Side's perspective. Now, what will this mean for Leia? Will she protect her son, or go after the killer of her husband? What's the morality there?

4. The new batch. Granted, we didn't get any tangible information about who they are and where they are from. Rey has abilities that point in the direction of her having a special heritage and history. We don't know, and she doesn't know/remember either. She is probably the 'Luke' of the new Trilogy. But one fascinating difference is Luke wanting to join and find out, while Rey certainly has no interest at all. A subtle but fundamental difference in positioning a protagonist. Kylo Ren is by far the most interesting new character. Where Vader was the established bad-ass evil guy from the very first moment we saw him in the O.T. , Kylo is not quite there yet. He has the swag, the outfit and a damn big light saber, but he is unstable, to say the least. And that makes him vulnerable and above all, unpredictable. And therefore interesting. And don't tell me you're not curious to see how the confrontation between Leia and Kylo would play out.

5. And this one is iffy, I know, but TFA feels like Star Wars as it was originally introduced to the world. We have built up close to 40 years of ideas, theories, opinions related to the O.T. Star Wars has become bigger than the films themselves, but somehow TFA manages not to collapse under this weight and show us a an exciting, adventurous, space fantasy with fantastic imagery, relatable characters, geeky droids, and the utter desire to own a light saber and go 'swoosh'.

5.a Cinematography. Just one example. Remember the opening shot of STAR WARS (a.k.a. ANH), Tatooine, shining bright, with this massive grey/white star destroyer moving in overhead from the top of the screen. When I saw this in 1977 - in a theater on a big screen, mind you - I was literally gob smacked. This is visual story telling.

The opening of TFA is a beautiful play on this. Jakku, shining bright, and now a massive black destroyer coming in from the bottom of the screen - the dark force rising from the grave - until it almost entirely obscures and clouds Jakku. Also notice the top of the cruiser, a long antenna of sorts with sidebars, shaped like the light saber used by Kylo, piercing the planet. This is visual story telling.

Anyway, these reasons may not work for other people, and that's fine, but for me TFA has worked out just fine.

I've just watched it and this is by far the most complex and demanding Godard movie I've seen (I've seen about 15 of his movies now).

Colin Maccabe's introduction on the DVD helped in getting bits and pieces of what was going on. But five minutes in I realized I was again trapped in the idea of (desperately) wanting to find a narrative thread, which only lead to confusion and even frustration.

Then I just decided to let go and try and forget about cinematic restrictions and just let Godard have his way. Obviously in the end (what end?) I still could not get my head around it, but it had quite a lot of impact all the same.

It feels profound and important and confrontational and provoking. It looks beautiful. That suffices for now.

If you like watching unsympathetic, at times seedy characters messing up their own lives and those of the people around them, then this is the movie for you. It's about people in New York, struggling with their life and character. No less, but certainly nothing more. There's nasty divorce, drugs, perversity, troubled-son-who-can't-communicate-with-dad stuff, the usual. Overall I found it totally unengaging, pretty predictable and without any real purpose. The actors are not to blame, as most of them, despite the occasional over-the-top scene, did a good job.

The movie itself wasn't all bad as it did have one interesting character, Gus (great performance by Nick Sandow), who has at least a few interesting observations. He has by far the best scene in the movie when he confronts a girl who after a month of Yoga lessons thinks she has 'discovered who she really is', and that she now 'knows'. Gus ruthlessly dissects her reasoning and shows her she knows absolutely nothing.

I'm afraid this character Gus would have had no trouble ripping a movie like Hungry Ghosts completely to pieces.

Tense, yet restrained movie about a boy who discovers that war is more than just an exciting adventure.

When he finds the escaped pilot from a crashed British fighter plane, lead character Michiel's first emotion is one of excitement. Disappointed in his father's - the town mayor - seemingly lacking resistance towards the German occupation forces he guards his find like a coveted treasure.

It's his way to not only be part of the resistance but also to rebel against his father who does not want Michiel to get into any kind of trouble. Michiel wants to be like his live-in uncle Ben, who as a smuggler is more like his concept of a resistance hero.

The story obviously centers on Michiel's attempts to get the British pilot safely back to Britain, and this is presented in an exciting way with plenty of thrills and narrow escapes. At the same time the underlying theme of Michiel's growing up in extraordinary circumstances is just as interesting. The changes in his character, his motivations and his perception of the world around him are shown in a subtle and convincing way.

Good directing and generally fine acting help move the story along nicely, with both exciting action scenes and a realistic portrayal of 'normal' rural life during war time.

Director Martin Koolhoven successfully manages to balance all story elements and underlying themes in a movie that is both accessible as a straightforward adventure movie but offers some character driven themes as well.

Only minor criticisms are the dialogue which at times is difficult to understand (a common problem in Dutch movies) and the sometimes excessive use of hand-held cameras.

Edit: Original review below, but since then a hunt for 'lost' material has proved successful. From various sources videotapes have been found and these have been used to restore another 9 full colour episodes, to be released on DVD early 2013).

Original review from 2006: One of the most legendary and beloved TV-series ever produced in The Netherlands. Originally broadcast in the early-mid seventies unfortunately only 6 full episodes of a total 45 have survived to this day. All the other episodes were lost when the original tapes were erased and re-used for other t.v.shows. Aimed specifically at a young audience it nevertheless captivated grown-up audiences as well. Besides beautiful sets and great characters, the imaginative and inventive storyline was helped along by 120 delightful songs, courtesy of composer Joop Stokkermans. These songs thankfully did survive and have been released on a 4-cd album a few years back. Maybe the most important aspect of "Hamelen" was the use of language and the delicious word-plays by writer Harrie Geelen. His remarkable ability to create a language for the fantasy land that our heroes fell into is absolutely unique and can perhaps be considered as unparalleled in Dutch t.v.writing. The 6 remaining episodes were released on DVD a few years back and though the acting and effects are obviously somewhat dated, the story itself is as fresh as 30 years ago. Highly recommended.

What a fantastic movie! The absolute best of classic Hollywood movie making. Burt Lancaster (literally) shines in this pirate adventure romp. Beautiful settings, fantastic camera work, great special effects, and captivating music make this film one of my all time favorites. I've seen it many times as a kid in our local cinema and only recently I got the DVD to see it again for the first time in over 25 years. It is as much fun now as it was back then. From the moment Lancaster swayed from one mast to the other the smile never left my face.

Entertainment in it's Purest form. Absolutely wonderful.

Preparing espresso is a genuine ritual fusing art and science. and it has its Rules.

The Blend: Only blend made up exclusively of Arabica coffees provides a harmonious, well-balanced taste striking happy compromise between bitterness and acidity as well as imparting rich, fragrant aroma and full body.

The Grinder: You can experiment with an adjustable grinder until you find the perfect setting (to allow an extraction time of between 15 and 20 seconds for home brewing). The exact dose of coffee: 6 to 7 grams per cup!

The Machine: Espresso machine must be able to heat water up to 90'C (194'F) and to exert pressure equal to 9 atmospheres or more.

The Operator: His or her main function is to follow the other three rules and to tamp down the coffee with just the right turn of a hand