Purple_Possum
Lifetime Total
5+
Lifetime Trivia
1+
IMDb Member
22 years
Reviews
Along Came a Spider (2001)
Err... well...
I'm a big, BIG fan of Patterson's Alex Cross books, and I don't think it's really fair to link this film (or 'Kiss the Girls') to them, because they're COMPLETELY changed, COMPLETELY different. WHY didn't they keep the original names? That just seems really dumb to me...
But, on the other hand, Morgan Freeman is his usual excellent self and the film was good. Not brilliant; it was good. Maybe I'd have liked the Cross films more if I'd never read the books... Do yourself a favour -- watch the stories, then READ them (in the correct order -- 'Along Came a Spider' comes first, then 'Kiss the Girls').
~Mieko
But, on the other hand, Morgan Freeman is his usual excellent self and the film was good. Not brilliant; it was good. Maybe I'd have liked the Cross films more if I'd never read the books... Do yourself a favour -- watch the stories, then READ them (in the correct order -- 'Along Came a Spider' comes first, then 'Kiss the Girls').
~Mieko
Ling (1999)
Scared the hell out of me
::SPOILERS::
Some friends were ranting about how damn good Ring and its sequel were, so I rented the first one last night to see whether all the fuss was justified.
It was.
Bloody hell. I've never been to terrified at a film in my life. Actually, I've NEVER been scared by a film. I can appreciate creepy moments and often feel mildly uneasy after watching a film, but never this level of fear. Oh, no. I had to sleep with the light on. What sort of fool am I?
The idea of a sort of haunted video tape is rather American High School Horror Film-ish, but Ring is so much more than that. It begins with a couple of teenagers in the uncomfortable (but brilliant) opening scene, then begins to concentrate on adults.
The tension builds slowly -- helped along by the magnificent soundtrack and the sound effects of the video -- and things that happen often have no build-up. For example, if it was a Hollywood film then THAT spectacular well scene would have been chock-full of intense music, building up to a crescendo when Sadako's hand comes out of the water. But was it? No, there was no sign that anything was going to happen. I mean, I had my suspicions but there was no build up. So, when it happened I jumped a good five feet into the air.
I thought that was it, but there was yet ANOTHER climax in which Sadako crawls out of the television. That scene should go down in history as THE creepiest film scene of all time. The bloodied fingernails, the twisted, clutching fingers, the hair over the face, and THAT eye combine with the inherent terror on her victim's face and the cliche baddie-always-moves-slowly-and-goodie-always-moves-quickly-yet-baddie-always-gets-goodie thing to create a scene that I fear will never leave me alone. There's a television in the corner of my bedroom. Did I turn it around so the screen was facing the wall last night? Yes I did. I feel stupid now in the bright morning sunshine, having to explain it to my sister. We've turned it back around, but don't think for one second that it'll stay that way when I go to bed.
I've turned off my phone. And I've forced my boyfriend to watch the film, and told him to show it to his mates.
Just in case.
Mieko xxx
10/10
Some friends were ranting about how damn good Ring and its sequel were, so I rented the first one last night to see whether all the fuss was justified.
It was.
Bloody hell. I've never been to terrified at a film in my life. Actually, I've NEVER been scared by a film. I can appreciate creepy moments and often feel mildly uneasy after watching a film, but never this level of fear. Oh, no. I had to sleep with the light on. What sort of fool am I?
The idea of a sort of haunted video tape is rather American High School Horror Film-ish, but Ring is so much more than that. It begins with a couple of teenagers in the uncomfortable (but brilliant) opening scene, then begins to concentrate on adults.
The tension builds slowly -- helped along by the magnificent soundtrack and the sound effects of the video -- and things that happen often have no build-up. For example, if it was a Hollywood film then THAT spectacular well scene would have been chock-full of intense music, building up to a crescendo when Sadako's hand comes out of the water. But was it? No, there was no sign that anything was going to happen. I mean, I had my suspicions but there was no build up. So, when it happened I jumped a good five feet into the air.
I thought that was it, but there was yet ANOTHER climax in which Sadako crawls out of the television. That scene should go down in history as THE creepiest film scene of all time. The bloodied fingernails, the twisted, clutching fingers, the hair over the face, and THAT eye combine with the inherent terror on her victim's face and the cliche baddie-always-moves-slowly-and-goodie-always-moves-quickly-yet-baddie-always-gets-goodie thing to create a scene that I fear will never leave me alone. There's a television in the corner of my bedroom. Did I turn it around so the screen was facing the wall last night? Yes I did. I feel stupid now in the bright morning sunshine, having to explain it to my sister. We've turned it back around, but don't think for one second that it'll stay that way when I go to bed.
I've turned off my phone. And I've forced my boyfriend to watch the film, and told him to show it to his mates.
Just in case.
Mieko xxx
10/10
Ballet Shoes (1975)
Fine adaptation
It's not the greatest book-to-film translation of all time (sorry, that honour has to go to Peter Jackson), but it's a damn fine one.
I remember my mother, a former ballerina herself, reading this to me when I was four or five. It held a strange sort of magic for me, and I made her read it over and over. I came back to it when I was twelve or so, and it was still as wonderful. The story seems rather lighthearted and tame in the present day, but it's still a nice view of teenage life in that time.
The acting, I thought, was very good, particularly by the three Fossil girls. Although I felt it would have benefited from more ballet and theatre scenes (after all, the girls DO go to ballet school), these were handled well.
My friend has this on video, and I was always under the impression that it was quite popular. I can't think why no one else has reviewed it, particularly as it's so highly rated (8.8 average).
I recommend it for fans of ballet/theatre, but in all honesty I'm sure it will appeal to people who aren't at all familiar with these as well. Similarly to 'Billy Elliot' (which is, admittedly, much better than this), you get a look at what goes on behind all the bright lights and perfection of 'stars'.
Over and out, Mieko xxx
I remember my mother, a former ballerina herself, reading this to me when I was four or five. It held a strange sort of magic for me, and I made her read it over and over. I came back to it when I was twelve or so, and it was still as wonderful. The story seems rather lighthearted and tame in the present day, but it's still a nice view of teenage life in that time.
The acting, I thought, was very good, particularly by the three Fossil girls. Although I felt it would have benefited from more ballet and theatre scenes (after all, the girls DO go to ballet school), these were handled well.
My friend has this on video, and I was always under the impression that it was quite popular. I can't think why no one else has reviewed it, particularly as it's so highly rated (8.8 average).
I recommend it for fans of ballet/theatre, but in all honesty I'm sure it will appeal to people who aren't at all familiar with these as well. Similarly to 'Billy Elliot' (which is, admittedly, much better than this), you get a look at what goes on behind all the bright lights and perfection of 'stars'.
Over and out, Mieko xxx
Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones (2002)
I'm a very impressed little movie-goer...
I saw AotC at eleven o' clock this morning, the very first showing at my local cinema. Bad points first: Most of the dialogue is DIRE, absolutely cringeworthy, and I'm still not too sure about Hayden as Anakin.
Good points: The acting is fine, on the whole (well, as good as they can get with the words they were given) -- Natalie Portman and Ewan McGregor are as good as ever, ditto Christopher Lee and Samuel L. Jackson. And YODA, of course. What a guy...
The scenery, effects, and battles are breathtaking. As a child, light sabres were the most fascinating things in the world to me, and in scenes like those in AotC (especially towards the end) all those happy memories came flooding back.
Is it as good as Episodes IV, V and VI?? Absolutely nowhere near. Is it better then Episode I? Hardly a high mark to shoot for, but yes. So it might not be the best film of all time... so what? Did anyone really expect it to live up to its legendary predecessors? Go to the cinema with the low expectations I'm sure everyone will have after reading press reviews -- you just might be surprised.
Over and out, love Mieko xxx
Good points: The acting is fine, on the whole (well, as good as they can get with the words they were given) -- Natalie Portman and Ewan McGregor are as good as ever, ditto Christopher Lee and Samuel L. Jackson. And YODA, of course. What a guy...
The scenery, effects, and battles are breathtaking. As a child, light sabres were the most fascinating things in the world to me, and in scenes like those in AotC (especially towards the end) all those happy memories came flooding back.
Is it as good as Episodes IV, V and VI?? Absolutely nowhere near. Is it better then Episode I? Hardly a high mark to shoot for, but yes. So it might not be the best film of all time... so what? Did anyone really expect it to live up to its legendary predecessors? Go to the cinema with the low expectations I'm sure everyone will have after reading press reviews -- you just might be surprised.
Over and out, love Mieko xxx
The Body (2001)
I'm not too sure...
* * * SPOILER * * *
See, the thing with me is that I'm a film student, so I watch the films for storylines, technical aspects, etc. But, I'm also female, young and shallow enough to watch a film for the actors, even when it looks slightly less than brilliant. That was the case with 'The Body', and I'm sticking by my first view. Aesthetically, it's great. Antonio Banderas is gorgeous, and certain aspects of the cinematography were spot on. But now we come to the storyline... it's a wonderful premise.
An archaeologist finds a body which is seemingly that of Jesus Christ. If it WAS him, it would disprove the whole Resurrection thing and bring the whole Christian world into chaos, so the Vatican sends a priest (Mr Banderas) to investigate. As I said, fantastic premise. They could have made a really powerful film based on that, bringing in all the religious and scientific elements such a discovery would have... only it sort of falls flat.
Antonio Banderas is a magnificent actor, especially in his earlier Spanish films, and anything that Derek Jacobi agrees to be in is usually fine by me. On the whole, the acting is good, but they struggle with the dire script, and are overshadowed by the sporadic explosions and terrorist attacks which occur often enough to seem important, but are never fully realised so they almost seem like add-ons.
It's not terrible, but I've definitely seen better. It's all right when there's nothing else on and you've watched half the contents of Blockbuster... and when you're a rabid Antonio fan, of course. 6/10
See, the thing with me is that I'm a film student, so I watch the films for storylines, technical aspects, etc. But, I'm also female, young and shallow enough to watch a film for the actors, even when it looks slightly less than brilliant. That was the case with 'The Body', and I'm sticking by my first view. Aesthetically, it's great. Antonio Banderas is gorgeous, and certain aspects of the cinematography were spot on. But now we come to the storyline... it's a wonderful premise.
An archaeologist finds a body which is seemingly that of Jesus Christ. If it WAS him, it would disprove the whole Resurrection thing and bring the whole Christian world into chaos, so the Vatican sends a priest (Mr Banderas) to investigate. As I said, fantastic premise. They could have made a really powerful film based on that, bringing in all the religious and scientific elements such a discovery would have... only it sort of falls flat.
Antonio Banderas is a magnificent actor, especially in his earlier Spanish films, and anything that Derek Jacobi agrees to be in is usually fine by me. On the whole, the acting is good, but they struggle with the dire script, and are overshadowed by the sporadic explosions and terrorist attacks which occur often enough to seem important, but are never fully realised so they almost seem like add-ons.
It's not terrible, but I've definitely seen better. It's all right when there's nothing else on and you've watched half the contents of Blockbuster... and when you're a rabid Antonio fan, of course. 6/10