Film Reviews by JD

If you think it was impressive that Renée Zellweger put on several pounds to play Bridget Jones you will be blown away by de Niro's commitment to this film. His performance is unquestionably outstanding and this film deserves to have the cult status I believe it to have. The boxer however was really not nice and this account of his life is quite difficult to engage with. There is no likeable character and no comfortable interlude between bouts of aggression and extreme jealousy. This film should be on a list of films to watch but not for idle pleasure.

I got this by mistake. This is absolutely not my preferred genre. I watched it to the end however so it was not as bad as I anticipated. If the description "goof-ball" doesn't make you cringe, this is for you.

All the plots, and there are many, which are played out not quite synchronously are connected but often only just. This degree of multiplicity is very engaging and invites comparison. The plots are very different almost opposite. The frustrations of a deaf Japanese adolecent, the dull incestuous life of a Moroccan goatherd boy, an illegal immigrant Mexican nanny trying to attend her son's wedding, two Americans trying to patch up a marriage by touring Morocco and a desperately poor Moroccan family helping the pretty demanding Americans, one of whom speaks no English. I would contest that there are several other smaller sub-plots. In any event the most compelling comparison is language or lack of it.

The most compelling reason for watching this is not just Brad and Kate who are good but truly amazing performances by the Japanese and Moroccan actors/actresses. I was greatly impressed and, in no little way, moved. The best director award was well deserved.

From the poem by William Henley the last verse is "It matters not how strait the gate,

How charged with punishments the scroll,

I am the master of my fate:

I am the captain of my soul." This inspiration was passed from Nelson Mandela to the captain of the South African Rugby team. Morgan Freeman and (a little more surprisingly) Matt Damon are believable and subtle. My main criticisms however would be the cinematography which is bland and the plot which although based on a fantastic political achievement (the abolition of apartheid) is itself otherwise not gripping.

The acting won't sweep you off your feet but this Victorian style fairytale has a quirky charm. It is a bit spooky for the very faint hearted but generally good family entertainment.

The impressive line up of class actors give a stunningly good account of themselves. The mythological plot is mixed with a tasteful background of hi-tech. The mythology is well laid out so that classicists and the not so scholarly can become engrossed in the quest to slay the Kraken. I really enjoyed this film but I don't think necessarily it has a broad appeal.

The acting was absolutely atrocious. Jonathan Pryce, rarely good, was disasterous. His American accent ranged from hysterical to absent. There was no saviour. I was not expecting much from Brendan Fraser and he disappointed. Dennis Quaid however was a surprise. I have never seen him acting so badly. It was at a junior school standard. What went wrong? I'm assuming a mixture of poor direction and infective paralysis of skill. Lots of action but I would strongly recommend to avoid.

Quite a lot of concentration is required to keep up with the character build up at the beginning but keep abreast and the reward is the interplay and plot twists in the latter half. I have not seen the French given war-hero status before and this is their moment. Acting clearly runs in the Depardieu genes.

Russell Crowe as superhero who would believe it ? Plenty of mud, huge jumps into water and explosions, plenty too of plot. I am weary of superhero romance films. I expect a new angle or character interplay. This is a standard: lots of gunfire, saving people from peril, running through jungle, film. I cannot remember any distinctive or memorable moments. However, the direction was good enough to keep some tension and Crowe is a good superhero.

This has Scandinavian drinking scenes, fighting an impossibly invincible monster, a blossoming romance a superhero and lots of hand to hand fighting. What could be more clichéd ? Against all odds it is very gripping with fight scenes which you actually see (usually done in the dark with a shaky hand held camera). It also has the unusual angle of time travelling into the dark ages from the future.

De Niro is not at his best. He plays a cop who has had a stroke as convincingly as Brad Pitt can do foreign accents. It is pathetic. A large part of this film however is about the hysterical or totally miserable life of drag queens. If screaming and scratching transvestites was meant to irritate it succeeded. Some of the self-pitying and self-loathing had a similar effect. There were moments of good drama and the scene depicted on the cover is one of them, where De Niro is learning to sing. There is another film of the same name. I hope that is better.

Few war films really capture the full flavour of the second world war. They are either too dramatic / heroic or their focus is too much about personality. This has the perfect balance of emotions. The oppression of overseas conscriptions is the second layer of the plot that keeps the film compelling but for me it is the very real feeling of being in a chaotic battle situation with death randomly about and a sense of helpless under-preparedness. Fierceomly well acted.

The picture of Jack Nicholson pushing his face through a smashed door panel must be one of the most famous film covers ever. The film itself has got to be in the best known horror top 10. Don't let this build up the film too much, because although it is a good horror film, it is not as horrific as many others and not to my mind either well scripted or well filmed. I did like some of the scenes particularly the young lad pedalling around the empty hotel the noise of the wheels on the rugs alternating with the parquet floor, and the best moment of tension is of the boy running through a snowy maze trying to cover his tracks. If I hadn't been expecting so much it would have been better.

Samuel L Jackson's character is utterly mesmerising as a reformed alcoholic trying desperately to claw his life together. It is a totally outstanding performance, I could totally understand his situation, even though as a very angry back American his is so far from my experience. Affleck is a good contrast to this, as an utterly contemptible lawyer so totally corrupt that it will be a while before I can forgive lawyers again.

A well deserved award for best actor. Denzel and Ethan give mesmerising performances. The film has a good flow to it an almost imperceptible increase in tempo and intensity through to the finale. Some of the plot is not well explained. I had to rewind and put sub-titles on a few times to understand the patois. Even then significant exchanges were incomprehensible. Towards the end the violence was generally gratuitous and not particularly gripping. Overall though I thought it was a good idea and liked most of it.