THE HUNT FOR GOLLUM – FULL Trailer 1 from Chris Bouchard on Vimeo.
This is the trailer to a fan film project based on Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings”. It’s inspired by the appendices of the book and tells the story of Aragorns hunt for Gollum. Holy Moly! This looks freakin’ good! I can’t wait to see it!
Update: The official site recently announced the release date to be May 3rd, 2009. Looking forward to it 
Anybody out there who’s got the feeling for a taste of good old Star Wars like it was back in the times of Episode IV? I just ran across a fan-made Star Wars movie and I think it rocks! Consider what you get with no budget at all just pure idealism… check it out! It’s been made in 2005 — how come I never heard of it until now?!
It’s set before Episode IV, the Empire trying to track down the last surviving Jedi with the help of a powerful artifact… The story really blends in nicely with the Star Wars universe. And where in the world did they get all those costumes??
Opinion: One of the best movies I’ve seen this year. Unconventional, very imaginative and without compromise it tells a story really worth telling. It’s very touching but doesn’t refrain from showing violence as it is: dirty, mean and senseless.
Story/Review: Set against the repression of Francos postwar Spain the movie tells the story through the eyes of little Ofelia, who moves with her mother to her new stepfather. This Capitan Vidal is as hard and cruel as he is arrogant. Commanding a rural military outpost (“The Mill”) it is his duty to find and kill the last remnants of resistance fighters in the hills and woods behind it. Ofelia is to him a nuisance from the beginning and he treats her accordingly. What Vidal wants is his son her mother Carmen is carrying. Facing all this cruelty and harshness Ofelia escapes to her own private world — which isn’t less cruel and menacing. The difference is, that in her own world of fairy tales she is able to fight evil — and win.
The performance of the actors is spectacular, especially Ivana Baquera as Ofelia is simply incredible. I liked how the movie respects the reality of Ofelias world. You’ll leave the theater thinking: “well, it might has been real after all”, depending of course on how imaginative you are in general. Critics call it “A fairy-tale for grown-ups” and I think this hits the point. Pan’s Labyrinth isn’t for kids. It’s too graphic in violence for that although on the other hand it’s never glorifying it. Ofelia demonstrates how it’s possible to resist evil without recurring to the same cruel means. This movie will give you a lot to think and talk about.
Of course it’s graphically overwhelming, the special effects support the story without dominating it. The designs are intrigueing, Del Toro spent a lot of work in creating these fantastic environments. Many little details contribute cunningly to create this sense of myth and lost wisdom that haunts the labyrinth. It’s worth watching just to see these splendid fantastic creations.
Music is another strong factor of the movie. I don’t know if they’ve created the lullaby-theme for it especially or if it existed before, but it’s so beautiful and fits rightout perfectly. You’ll love it and I bet you’ll be humming it leaving the movie.
All in all: If you get the chance and consider yourself a “grown-up” who likes fairy-tales: go watch it you’ll love it.
Release Date in USA is 29.12.2006
Release Date in Germany is 15.02.2007
In Spain it’s already been released.
Recently during my visit to the Black Forest my friends and me wanted to watch a movie. Unfortunately we couldn’t find one we agreed upon and so we ended up with the Sneak-Preview. This is the movie we’ve got there. Funny: the Movie-Theater had a technical problem, so we had to change to another projection room. To recompense us the effort each one got popcorn for free and they left out the advertisements.
Opinion: Interesting plot twists, credible characters, a bit of black humor — but the subject is old and cold.
Story/Review: This could have been a good movie. If only it would have been made a few years earlier. Once again the hell of American suburbia is conjured, a hell we Europeans know, although we’ve never lived in it. We know it from socially critical movies like “American Beauty” or “The Ice Storm”, from series like “The Simpsons” or “Desperate Housewives”. The Problem of this movie is, that it doesn’t tell anything new, you leave it with the impression, you’ve already seen this in another place, and better. All Students are on drugs, and all parents are seriously wacked. The story is basically the following: Quiet Dean one day finds his best friend Troy has hanged himself. Problem is: Troy was supplying little feel-well-pills for almost all students in this shining suburbia. A group of teenage sub-dealers formerly supplied by Troy decides to blackmail Dean into getting the pills out of Troys room. To do this they kidnap a Charley who supposedly is Deans brother, but in reality is the son of the woman the mayor wants to marry (still with me?) — they’re really stupid, so they’ve messed it up and got the wrong Charley. There’s a little love story, and there are a lot of unsuspected plot twists, where characters decide to act completey brainless and unforseen, which adds to the absurd wit this movie is brandishing. It really seems quite thoroughly thought and planned. For example the Chumscrubber already is introduced at the beginning, without the spectators realizing who or what this could be. Later in the movie this theme is gradually being explained more and more. Sadly, this is not reflected in the German title.
Acting also is great, throughout the movie. It even boasts some famous names like Carrie-Ann Moss (Matrix), Ralph Finnies and Glenn Close. Best performance for Jamie Bell who plays Dean more than credible in my opinion (one review mentioned him as a modern James Dean, a reference made obvious by his name).
Starts in Germay October 5th, although it’s already been more than a year since the first screening at the Sundance Festival (Jan 2005).
I don’t really recommend viewing it, since it’s nothing extraordinary but on the other hand it isn’t bad either. If you’re a fan of strange humor and surreal drug stories you might even like it.
Opinion: Great costumes, great atmosphere, great acting, great story — now, how come it doesn’t make a great film? I guess it’s the script, too much of what could have been great stories of it’s own right appear wasted here and you find yourself wishing it would end sooner. Nevertheless it entertains and especially the historical setting is excellent.
Story/Review: It’s difficult to sum up the story, because the movie just fails to tell it. Anectdotical scenes appear back to back without much to hold them together. This is the movies biggest fault, it’s just not possible to condense 5 (although short) novels in one big movie. I don’t understand why they haven’t spared some material for possible sequels as of late it has become so fashionable making trilogies out of everything. I haven’t read any of the books (but I will) and even so, it’s sadly obvious that here goes a lot of potential just to waste.
A word of advice: This movie is in some scenes quite violent and doesn’t refrain showing blood and gore. It’s never over the top though. There is also some nudity and sexual explicit content, just for your consideration.
Having that said, let’s turn to the good sides of the movie. First one Viggo Mortensen — he is just great as Don Diego Alatriste. Many Spanish find his voice strange, perhaps due to a slight Argentinian accent but I rather think they’re just not used to the original voice of Viggo. In this one he adds a slight rasping to it which suits the character perfect. Mortensen through his acting really saves a lot of what the script has failed to add in depth to Capitan Alatriste.
Although the storytelling is a mess, and almost never explains sufficiently why characters act like they do, there are some truly emotional scenes, which one can enjoy. I’d especially like to mention the plot around the necklace which is very touching.
Music was also a strong point about the movie, there are beautiful atmospheric pieces of classical Spanish Guitar changing with haunting flute/clarinette (? it’s some blown instrument I fail to recognize) passages, creating acoustic scenery that just works really well with the images.
The really great thing about this movie and also the reason why I would recommend viewing it is the art direction. Just have a look at contemporary paintings of people like the Conde Duque de Olivares or Francisco de Quevedo and you will instantly recognize them on screen. They just seem transferred right out of the paintings and brought to life before you. And where the hell did they find that modern Habsburg that incorporates Felipe IV? He is just perfect! If you’ve visited the Prado Museum in Madrid you will have a lot of deja-vu experiences more as the movie takes great effort to rebuild the atmosphere and settings of famous Spanish painter Velázquez. That and the splendour of the historic setting in this very intersting period of the Spanish Empire, those glimpses of the power of the church, the intrigues at court and the desperate battles fought by exhausted soldiers is what saves the film a bit of recommendability. It really wakes interest in reading the books and get to know the history behind the events depicted.
All in all this movie has some great moments but sadly fails to reach it’s full potential. Go see it to wake your interest in Spanish history but be aware of its flaws.
Release Date in Germany is 27.10.2006
A real classic I really enjoyed watching. If you haven’t seen it yet (like me until recently) you’re in for 2 hours of great entertainment.
Quote: “Are you telling me, you built a time machine into a DeLaurean?!”
– “If you’re gonna build a time machine into a car, why not do it with some style!?”
Edit: Just finished watching the other two installments of the series and they continue the story very good. Great entertainment!!
Opinion: BBC Movie about what happened in Rwanda 1994. It’s cruel and sad and true. Very authentic as it was filmed on original sites and with a local cast. Probably the best movie tackling this theme.
Story/Review: Well, I don’t really like the tag “based in real events”, but this movie bears it with dignity. Of course it has some dramatization nevertheless it really gets close to be authentic. It provides sufficient information to understand what happened, what explanations were given by the killers and how propaganda worked it’s way to drive the masses crazy. It requires some stomache to view, although the scenes are a lot less bloody than they could have been. It’s not about cheap shock or gore effects, but deeply emotional and very touching. Adding to the value of the movie is the fact, that many of the cast are people who have actually suffered from the violence in Rwanda. With so many eye witnesses on set, I’d like to think they provided valuable information as to set the movie right. You will get very emotionally involved, and have some interesting questions to think about afterwards — just pay close attention to why the movie is called what it’s called to start with one. I strongly recommend watching it, this movie is definately worth your time!
Sunday I went with some friends watching “Over the Hedge”. I was nearly laughing my head off. This movie is great fun! I just loved Hammy the hyperactive squirrel, RJ the sophisticated raccoon, Verne the cautious turtle, the melodramatic opposums and the cute porcupine family. And I’m pretty sure you’ll love them, too. And you will laugh good. It does have some really awesome gags that don’t lose their charm in the second viewing. For the cineastically sophisticated there are some hat-taps at movie-classics hidden (anyone noted the reference to ‘Citizen Kane’?). Apart from that is does also some social commenting I found noteworthy. Of course it’s all a bit overdone and caricatured, but I think there is some truth in what RJ explains about humans. Quote: “Animals eat to live, but humans live to eat”. Now, what do we really live for? If you’ve got the opportunity I recommend viewing the original version as it has quite a cast to feature: Bruce Willis, William Shatner, Nick Nolte and Avril Lavigne just to mention some of them who are — at least in the German Version not even remotely matched.
Sidenote: Today I discovered, that there exists a cartoon with just these characters so you might want to check it out.
Opinion: Boring, blasted superflop. The triangle-love story was simply annoying and the rest of the plot was an unrealistic piece of crap. Best thing in the movie is Kevin Spacey but even he can’t give a credible explanation to what he’s made to do. You have been warned — go see it and be sorry.
Story: After a long time identity-crisis-trip to his home Krypton Superman returns to earth. And realizes he still has an identity-crisis. Lois Lane’s got a husband (who to the watchers great pain is a really nice guy), she’s even got a kid (which of course is not poor husband’s but Superman’s — I really do feel sorry for this guy) and wrote a convincing article about why the world was better off without Superman.
Well the rest of the story is quickly told… crazy old Lex Luthor (Kevin Spacey) has a crackpot-plan: he’s going to build a new continent out of krypton-cristals (which miraculously grow when they get in contact with water…). This continent will drown half of america, leaving Lex “Lord of Real Estate” Luthor incredibly rich because he owns the new continent and everyone will want to have a nice and cosy home there. What a nutty plan. Well that’s pretty much all the movie, folks. Of course Lex gets a kick in the butt and Superman wins at the end, but — man, I didn’t even care, because as I slowly realized after the first half of the movie that it wouldn’t get any better (in fact it got worse), I just rued bitterly the money I spent on this waste of time. Instead of this: go see something that’s worth your time and money!
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