_Seen: March 2005

1. Dr. Strangelove or How I learnt to stop worrying and love the bomb
Seen: 01 (rewatched)
Director: Stanley Kubrick
Cast: Peter Sellers, George C. Scott, Sterling Hayden
Genre: Satire, Comedy, War

Sometimes it occurs to me that I have to watch certain movies twice (or even more often) to enjoy them. This is one of these films. While watching it for the first time, I had afterwards the impression that I had seen a good film, but nothing exceptional or extraordinary. A second viewing has now made me change my mind. The acting is astonishing (above all Peter Sellers, who showed here once more that he was a unique and incredibly skilled actor). The film as a whole is macabre and sometimes really bitter. But I think that is what makes us think so much about it. However Kubrick is not always able to hold the balance between satire and farce. In the moments when he decides to insist on the comic aspects, the movie becomes ridiculous and loses its power. Especially the title character is not really convincing and therefore not credible, sometimes even caricatured. These scenes are (fortunately) not numerous. A greatly directed and memorable scene is on the other hand Kong's ride on the bomb. The ending is pessimistic[/spoiler] and somehow the only possible way for such a film to end, without spoiling its message.
Rating: 8

2. Roger & Me
Seen: 02 (first time)
Director: Michael Moore
Genre: Documentary Feature

Ah, March is (at least concerning my viewing log) beginning great. Yesterday Kubrick, today Moore. Roger & Me, one of his earlier films, is a moving and well researched documentary feature that won't let you cold. This may not be his best film (that would be Bowling for Columbine). Honestly I was a little bit missing Moore's typical provocative and satirical wit. Nevertheless the director succeeds once more (probably through his subjective manner) to make the spectator participate in a catching and highly interesting topic, that is however not easy to treat in a film.
Rating: 8

3. Hang'em high
Seen: 03 (first time)
Director: Ted Post
Actors: Clint Eastwood, Ben Johnson, Dennis Hopper
Genre: Western

After Eastwood's big Oscar win last sunday, I decided to watch this Western (that established him in Hollywood and marked the first step of his long career towards a legend) and was rather positively surprised. Well, the plot may not be well-developped, but it is entertaining. And that is the least one can say. Clint Eastwood's good and charismatic performance together with the beautiful landscapes give an interesting mixture. Apart from that, I liked the fact the fact that there are not just Black and White characters in the movie, but the director tried (at least to some degree) to analyse the hero's (Jed Cooper) enemies from a psychological point of view. This again may be a little bit superficial, but as spectator one can at least recognize the good intention. Another point in the film's favour is the excellent score. On the other hand, something that irritated me quite a lot was that the film slows incredibly down after

. The whole story turns into a big déjà-vu and what remains is a disappointingly weak and predictable ending. This having been said, let us conclude that it is a good western nevertheless.
Rating: 7

4. Switchback
Seen: 04 (first time?)
Director: Jeb Stuart
Actors: Dennis Quaid, Danny Glover, Jared Leto
Genre: Thriller, Action

Four years after having written the great screenplay for Andrew Davis' The Fugitive, Jeb Stuart made this unoriginal and uninspired action thriller. The story is weak, the happenings either difficult to believe or predictable and the end extremely stupid. But stop, why do I give this movie 6 out of 10 points then? No, it isn't a typo! The film could have been much worse. I was positively surprised by the good actors (above all Jared Leto) and the many masterfully directed action sequences in great landscapes. These points equalize (at least!) the negative elements of the film. Not a masterpiece, but a good movie for a winter evening.
Rating: 6

5. The Company of Wolves
Seen: 05 (first time)
Director: Neil Jordan
Actors: Angela Lansbury, Sarah Patterson, David Warner
Genre: Fairy Tale, Horror

Wow, what a movie! I really dunno where to begin. It is just impossible to mention all the great aspects of this film. OK, I'll try it. It is amazing how director Neil Jordan managed to introduce (in a highly original) the sexual parts of the story into the tale of Little Red Riding Hood by the brothers Grimm. Apart from that, the film establishes an incredibly intense atmosphere and gives a psychologically correct portrait of the main character, Rosaleen. Visually the film is amazing, too. But it is above all Angela Lansbury who is mesmerizing as the grand-mother. Jordan's direction is perfect and this film complex and truly unique. Well, this is now a chaos, I know, but this descibes my feelings concerning this movie that nobody should miss. And always remember the brilliant epilogue:

Rating: 9

6. 2001: A Space Odyssey
Seen: 05 (rewatched)
Director: Stanley Kubrick
Actors: Keir Dullea, Gary Lockwood, William Sylvester
Genre: Sci-Fi

I'm sitting in front of my black TV screen and I know that I have watched one of the most impressive achievements in film history. It is difficult to sum up my impressions about Kubrick's milestone. Every scene is memorable, the symbiotic relationship between picture and sound genuine and the ways of interpretation innumerable. The only thing that disturbed me a little bit was that the middle part of the movie (which is certainly original and visionary) did not fit well enough together with the beginning and the end (from a stylistic point of view). But I think I will now stop writing about this... trip, and continue to think about it.
Rating: 10

7. Romancing the Stone
Seen: 05 (rewatched)
Director: Robert Zemeckis
Actors: Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner, Danny De Vito
Genre: Adventure, Comedy

My comment on this movie will be very short as I have already seen it way too many times. The chemistry between Kathleen Turner and Michael Douglas is excellent (as usual) and Danny De Vito steals the show. Apart from that, nothing really extraordinary in this entertaining action comedy full of stereotypes.
Rating: 6

8. The Fog
Seen: 06 (first time)
Director: John Carpenter
Actors: Adrienne Barbeau, Hal Holbrook, Jamie Lee Curtis
Genre: Horror

John Carpenter is really the master of great horror films. No one else could have done this better. The direction is genuine, the horror subtle, the self-composed score fabulous and the atmosphere unique. It is just amazing how Carpenter manages to establish such a tension with a very simple story. But as

, nightmares are guaranteed. The only problem of this film is that as spectator you automatically compare The Fog to Carpenter's masterpiece Halloween. And in this comparison, The Fog is clearly the weaker movie. In Halloween the danger is omnipresent and in form of Michael Myers more human. The tension is created from the very first minute of the film and exists till the last one. The Fog offers the spectator too many occasions to rest.
However, this is really a great film!
Rating: 8

9. Eyes Wide Shut
Seen: 06 (rewatched)
Director: Stanley Kubrick
Actors: Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Sydney Pollack
Genre: Drama

Kubrick's last work is first of all a complex and intelligent post-modern love story, greatly acted, but somehow way too long and therefore often tedious. The director needs too much time to find his subject and later isn't able to maintain its intensity. The orgy sequence is masterfully directed, but in that way it just underlines how indifferent one is about the rest of the film. Nevertheless Kubrick's intention is excellent and deserves to be mentioned. All in all a good film, maybe not intense enough, but above average.
Rating: 7 (tending to 6)

10. Taxi Driver
Seen: 07 (rewatched)
Director: Martin Scorsese
Actors: Robert De Niro, Harvey Keitel, Jodie Foster
Genre: Drama

I'm really speechless. I remembered (or at least thought it) this film very well, and even though I already considered as a masterpiece, I now realised that this film is (almost) perfect, nearly flawless. From the first till the last second, you feel the intense atmosphere, enjoy the brilliant actors and are breathless concerning the astonishing direction. This movie is the first one to really endanger Lawrence of Arabia's position as my favourite film. As for now, I am just confused. Give me a few more days to think about this...
Rating: 10 (tending to 11)

11. Der Golem, wie er in die Welt kam
Seen: 08 (first time)
Director: Paul Wegener
Actors: Paul Wegener, Albert Steinrück, Ernst Deutsch
Genre: Horror

Despite its simple plot and structure, the film manages (partly due to its excellent visual qualities and the pathetic music) to involve the spectator in the story of the Golem. This is really pioneer work and apart from that, an excellent example of a great parabole. I don't know what to say more about a film that lasts 67 minutes. Watch it, you won't repent.
Rating: 8

12. The Quiet Man
Seen: 10 (first time?)
Director: John Ford
Actors: John Wayne, Maureen O'Hara, Ward Bond
Genre: Comedy

Good, old John Ford. While we usually get (great) western from him, he shows with The Quiet Man that he is also up to direct good films in the genre of comedy. The humour may often be a little bit ridiculous and forced, John Wayne may sometimes appear as not being the best choice for the main part (even though he is still excellent), but all in all we get 125 minutes of good entertainment, with some very memorable quotes and moments. The direction is brilliant (and was honoured by the AMPAS) and the score pathetic, but well-chosen. Maureen O'Hara steals the show.
Rating: 7

13. The Sting
Seen: 11 (first time)
Director: George Roy Hill
Actors: Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Robert Shaw
Genre: Comedy, Crime

Rarely I was looking such a long time forward to a movie, and rarely I was so disappointed afterwards. OK, the writing and acting are surely great, but the whole film lacks of originality, and that's why it is not surprising that the end is easy to predict. Personally I prefer Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid in every possible way, and think that this film did not deserve 7 Academy Awards. But as I also think (yes, I think very much!) that I am unfair now (because I was probably expecting too much), I give it a (very) generous 7 out of 10 possible points. Nevertheless this film could have been much more!
Rating: 7 (tending to a 6)

14. Shadow of a Doubt
Seen: 13 (first time)
Director: Alfred Hitchcock
Actors: Joseph Cotten, Teresa Wright, Macdonald Carey
Genre: Thriller

For nearly 3 years I had this film on tape, and now I have finally watched it, and I do not repent. Hitchcock shows here (in own of his earlier films) his ability to combine humour and thrilling moments in a unique and almost perfect way. It is also interesting to note that

The acting is brilliant (above all Joseph Cotten and Teresa Wright, who sadly died last week). Also thanks to screenplay writer Thornton Wilder who was able to give us an accurate portrait of an average US-American family of the 40s.
Rating: 9

15. Barry Lyndon
Seen: 14 (first time)
Director: Stanley Kubrick
Actors: Ryan O'Neal, Leon Vitali, Patrick Magee
Genre: Drama

An emotionally surprisingly involving and brilliantly directed trip through a man's life, but also through a whole epoch. Technically the film is impressive: the score is subtle and absolutely well-chosen, the cinematography one of the best I have seen till today. But what astonishes me even more is that Kubrick, in all these costumes and beautiful landscapes, did not neglect the psychological portrait of the title character (which is extremely accurate, as the whole movie is by the way). The only problem of the film is the leading actor, Ryan O'Neal, who is not really up to carry a character like Redmond Barry.
Rating: 8

16. Carrie
Seen: 27 (first time)
Director: Brian De Palma
Actors: Sissy Spacek, Piper Laurie, John Travolta
Genre: Horror

From the first minute on, the idea did not seem very original. However I hoped that De Palma, director of the excellent The Untouchables would be able to make out of the uninspired storyline a refreshing and thrilling film experience. But Mr. De Palma has disappointed me (once more). The direction and the screenplay are quite weak and the acting (with the exception of Sissy Spacek) is just average. Yet, it is above all a good structure which would have made out of this a convincing film. Many shock elements are very predictable and the whole rhythm of the movie is just too slow. This is true for the first 70 minutes of the film. The remaining 20 minutes are full of events, so that the spectator cannot get rid of the impression that now everything happens too fast! All in all, the film has got its moments, but it is just not enough to make out of it a good movie.
Rating: 5