dolce's Official Reviews: (All Reviews Have Been Deleted)
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dolcevita
Extraordinary
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:24 pm
Posts: 16061
Location: The Damage Control Table
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 dolce's Official Reviews: (All Reviews Have Been Deleted) http://www.worldofkj.com/about/critics/Galia.phpRecent FilmsAkeelah and the Bee: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... theBee.php BAmerican Dreamz: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... Dreamz.php BArt School Confidential: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... ential.php B-Beauty Academy of Kabul, The: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... cademy.php CBlack Sun: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/BlackSun.php TribecaBrick: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Brick.php BCache: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/%20Cache.php B-Comeback Season: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... Season.php TribecaConversations with Other Women: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... swomen.php BDa Vinci Code: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/DaVinciCode.php B-Devil Wears Prada: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... sPrada.php B-Friends with Money: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... hMoney.php B-Half Nelson: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/HalfNelson.php A-Hammer and Tickle: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... Tickle.php TribecaHoot: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Hoot.php C+Idlewild: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Idlewild.php C+Illusionist, The: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Illusionist.php A-Inconvenient Truth, An: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... tTruth.php BInside Man: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/InsideMan.php A-Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/LeonardCohen.php B+Little Fish: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/LittleFish.php BLittle Miss Sunshine: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... nshine.php AManderlay: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Manderlay.php BMatador, The: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Matador.php B-Notorious Bettie Page, The: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/BettiePage.php C+Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... sChest.php B+Prairie Home Companion, A: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... panion.php B+Proposition, The: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Proposition.php B+Quinceanera: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Quinceanera.php DScanner Darkly, A: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... Darkly.php C-Strange Wilderness: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... erness.php BThank You for Smoking: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... moking.php A-Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... Shandy.php B+Tsotsi: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Tsotsi.php B-V for Vendetta: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/VforVendetta.php DVolver: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Volver.php A-Archived Films#8 1/2: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/8half.php A-40 Year Old Virgin: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/40YOV.php C2046: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/2046.php C+AAnatomy of a Murder: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... Murder.phpThe Aviator: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Aviator.php BBBad Education: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Badeducation.php ABatman Begins: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Batmanbegins.php A-Be Cool: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Becool.php C+Beauty Shop: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Beautyshop.php CBlow-Up: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Blowup.php A+Breakfast on Pluto: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... tPluto.php BBride and Prejudice: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... judice.php C+Brokeback Mountain: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... untain.php A-Broken Flowers: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... lowers.php B+CCapote: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Capote.php A-Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... actory.php B-Circle, The: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Circle.php B+Closer: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Closer.php B-Cold Mountain:http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Coldmountain.php B-Color Purple, The: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ColorPurple.php BConstant Gardener, The: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... ardner.php C+Control Room: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Controlroom.php A-Corporation, The: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Corporation.php C-Corpse Bride, The: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/CorpseBride.php A-Crash: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Crash.php DDDolce Vita, La: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Ladolcevita.php A+Double Suicide: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... uicide.php B+Downfall: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Downfall.php B+FFahrenheit 9/11: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... eit911.php B+Finding Neverland: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... erland.php B+GGood Night, and Good Luck: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... odLuck.php A-Guerilla: The Taking of Patty Hearst: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Takingpatty.php B+Gunner Palace: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Gunnerpalace.php C+HHero: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Hero.php C-History of Violence, A: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/HoV.php B+Hitch: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Hitch.php B-Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, The: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... sguide.php C+Holy Girl, The: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Holygirl.php B+Hotel Rwanda: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Hotelrwanda.php B+House of Flying Daggers: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... aggers.php C+Howl's Moving Castle: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... castle.php C+IIce Harvest, The: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/IceHarvest.php CThe Incredibles: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Incredibles.php A-Inside Deep Throat: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... throat.php BInterpreter, The: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Interpreter.php B-Intervista: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Intervista.php A-JJu Dou: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/JuDou.php BJunebug: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Junebug.php BKKung Fu Hustle: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Kungfuhustle.php B+LLemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... nicket.php BLife Aquatic with Steve Zissou: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Lifeaquatic.php B+MMad Hot Ballroom: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... llroom.php BManchurian Candidate (2004): http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... didate.php A-/B+Mandabi (The Money Order) : http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Mandabi.php B+Maria Full of Grace: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... fgrace.php A-Match Point: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Matchpoint.php BMe and You and Everyone We Know: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... weknow.php B-Melinda and Melinda: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... elinda.php B-Memoirs of a Geisha: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... Geisha.php C+Meet the Fockers: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... ockers.php CMemories of Underdevelopment: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... opment.php A-Million Dollar Baby: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... arbaby.php A-Miradas: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Miradas.php C-Miss Congeniality 2: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... ality2.php B-Mississippi Burning: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... urning.php A-Moolaade: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Moolaade.php A-Motorcycle Diaries, The: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... iaries.php A-Mrs. Henderson Presents: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/MrsHenderson.php B-Munich: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Munich.php AMurderball: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Murderball.php A-My Summer of Love: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... oflove.php ANNational Treasure: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... easure.php B-New World, The: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/NewWorld.php B+Night Porter, The: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Nightporter.php D-Nights of Cabiria, The: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... abiria.php A+OOfficial Story, The: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... lstory.php AOUTFOXED: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Outfoxed.php A-PParadise Now: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/paradisenow.php C+Passenger, The: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ThePassenger.php B-Phantom of the Opera: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... eopera.php C+RRaise the Red Lantern: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... antern.php A-Ray: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Ray.php C+Reeker: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Reeker.php B-RENT: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Rent.php B-Revenge of the Sith: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Starwars3.php B-Rumor Has It: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/RumorHasIt.php C-SSet It Off: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/SetItOff.php C+Seven Beauties: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... auties.php A+Shanghai Triad: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... itriad.php AShopgirl: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Shopgirl.php CSideways: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Sideways.php B+Sin City: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Sincity.php B-Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, The: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... fpants.php B-Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Skycaptain.php B-Smoke Signals: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Smokesignals.php A-Speaking Parts: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... gParts.php A-Steamboy: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Steamboy.php B+Strada, La: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Lastrada.php A-Syriana: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Syriana.php B-TTransamerica: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Transamerica.php B+Tropical Malady: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... malady.php BVVera Drake: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Veradrake.php B-Very Long Engagement, A: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... gement.php BVisages de femmes (Faces of Women): http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Facesofwomen.php AWWalk on Water: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/Walkonwater.php A-Walk the Line: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/WalkLine.php C+Witness for the Prosecution: http://www.worldofkj.com/reviews/Galia/ ... cution.php B-
Last edited by dolcevita on Sat Jan 06, 2007 3:01 am, edited 218 times in total.
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| Thu Oct 14, 2004 11:53 am |
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Eagle
Site Owner
Joined: Wed Sep 15, 2004 1:09 pm
Posts: 14631
Location: Pittsburgh
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Dolce you do a great job with your reviews. I was extremely impressed when I first recieved a few.
The only thing is ... it sux for me because I havent heard of alot of the movies you review 
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| Thu Oct 14, 2004 12:10 pm |
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dolcevita
Extraordinary
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:24 pm
Posts: 16061
Location: The Damage Control Table
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http://www.worldofkj.com/Dolcevita-NationalTreasure.php
dolcevita wrote: ...The movie, while being an enjoyable watch never quite manages to elevate itself to the point of actually being engaging in anyway more than casual. The story and characters are fairly palatable if not bordering on completely superficial, but are at least inoffensive. The steady emergence of secret society discussion in today’s grander conspiracy media, from JFK to The DaVinci Code goes mostly unaddressed in this Jerry Bruckheimer production. What National Treasure lacks in historical or even conspiratorial relevancy is mildly compensated by the familiar touch of Bruckheimer productions: decent but overly lengthy pacing, fun characters, and a healthy dose of comic relief...
All in all, the failures of the movie to tie into anything more engaging than two teams looking for wealth along the northeast corridor of the U.S. renders the film completely void of suspense or personal investment in the outcome. That being said, the language and style of the movie provide a lighter, more strictly action based alternative. Stretches of boredom occur, but are thankfully short and not too prevalent. Viewers looking for a typical “popcorn flick†will probably enjoy the ride, though not through repeated viewings. Those with any concept or concern for how brittle a piece of parchment 230 years old would actually be, perhaps because they’ve flipped through a phone book from 1902 as it shed all over the table, probably should stay away, or go but keep in mind that belief has to be checked in at the ticket counter.
B-
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| Wed Nov 24, 2004 12:09 pm |
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dolcevita
Extraordinary
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:24 pm
Posts: 16061
Location: The Damage Control Table
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Here's my new one, Finding Neverland B+
dolcevita wrote: ...The premises of the film explore how the turn of the century British author J.M. Barrie (Depp) created his magnum opus “Peter Pan.†Did Barrie fear his own imminent aging? Did the Indians and the Lost Boys have their roots in the ghosts of colonialist condescending England? Perhaps. But thankfully Neverland never bothers to overanalyze or create direct correlations between Barrie’s Peter Pan and potential outside experiences. For anyone that disliked Shakespeare in Love’s far too connected episodes between poet and muse and Romeo and Juliet, Finding Neverland will be a pleasant surprise...
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| Wed Dec 01, 2004 10:27 pm |
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zingy
College Boy Z
Joined: Mon Oct 11, 2004 8:40 pm
Posts: 36662
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I love reading your reviews, dolce. They're so well written. You need to teach me a thing or two. :wink:
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| Wed Dec 01, 2004 11:01 pm |
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dolcevita
Extraordinary
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:24 pm
Posts: 16061
Location: The Damage Control Table
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I'll give you input this weekend and update the archive thread this weekend. I have a final paper due tomorrow and Saturday, so I don't have all that much time before then. Most likely if I do it'll be to check over and give you some good crits on your reviews.
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| Wed Dec 01, 2004 11:13 pm |
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Maximus
Hot Fuss
Joined: Sat Oct 16, 2004 10:46 am
Posts: 8427
Location: floridaaa
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Beautiful review dolce. I can't wait to see Finding Neverland.
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| Sat Dec 04, 2004 4:40 pm |
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Eagle
Site Owner
Joined: Wed Sep 15, 2004 1:09 pm
Posts: 14631
Location: Pittsburgh
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Dolce's newest review is up for "The Incredibles".
Simply put I think its her best yet.
KJ
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| Sun Dec 05, 2004 10:25 pm |
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dolcevita
Extraordinary
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:24 pm
Posts: 16061
Location: The Damage Control Table
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 Thanks Eagle. That's quite a compliment coming from the guy that runs the show.
dolcevita wrote: ...Mature audiences everywhere revel in the ability to finally sit back and enjoy a youth friendly movie sans the sappy moral and the overly ingratiating levels of cuteness. “What,†one may ask, “but isn’t The Incredibles about love and acceptance of ‘different’ people?†No, it isn’t. Finding Nemo was about coming of age and realizing a youth with a stump fin can still make it in the everyday world, have friends, and be independent. The Incredibles is about super-freaks with stretchy arms, freezing abilities, and the strength to lift small buildings not wanting to make it in the everyday world. Anyone who doesn’t understand the parody of the situation in Pixar’s new set of protagonists will most likely miss the finer points of this season’s top animation film. Not that those viewers wouldn’t enjoy The Incredibles regardless, they just might not enjoy it quite as much...
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| Sun Dec 05, 2004 10:56 pm |
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Maximus
Hot Fuss
Joined: Sat Oct 16, 2004 10:46 am
Posts: 8427
Location: floridaaa
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dolce, im so ripping off your style of writing. its what ive been lacking...... humor, witty, snappy remarks, and... it doesnt put you to sleep! heh.
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| Sun Dec 05, 2004 11:54 pm |
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dolcevita
Extraordinary
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:24 pm
Posts: 16061
Location: The Damage Control Table
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My Newest Review, Shanghai Triad is up.
http://worldofkj.com/Dolcevita-Shanghai.php
dolcevita wrote:
Zhang Yimou’s most complex narrative and subtle character development, Shanghai Triad is the unsettling coming-of-age story of a young boy, Shuisheng (Wang Xiaoxiao), who is forced to attend to a drug lord’s demanding mistress...
Fat Yu, a rival lord instigates a drug war and forces Tang and his associates to flee and isolate themselves on a rural island. Clearly not in control of her own fate, Jinghao is forced to submit to the self-induced isolation as well, and manages her boredom by obsessing and trying to exert authority over a poor local woman. Her machinations have harsh repercussions in the face of Tang paranoia that someone within his own inner circle is feeding information to Yu. Jinghao desperately struggles to defend all the non-existent power she assumed her previous efforts had accumulated for her, while watching it slowly seep through her fingers like the water that now surrounds her. Her softer side emerges in the panic ensuing from her new consciousness, and Shuisheng clings to it despite his youthful inability to fully comprehend the changes within her or himself...
Interesting to look at in light of Yimou's upcoming release, House of Flying Daggers, which I will watch next week.
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| Mon Dec 20, 2004 12:17 am |
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dolcevita
Extraordinary
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:24 pm
Posts: 16061
Location: The Damage Control Table
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New Review, The Aviator is up: http://worldofkj.com/Dolcevita-Theaviator.php
dolcevita wrote:
...The Aviator follows the ambitions of a wealthy Texan, Howard Hughes (Leonardo DiCaprio), as he repeatedly puts his small fortune on the line in the form of megalomaniac film projects and savvy new flight technology. Beyond his Hollywood film career, Hughes invests in the aviation industry and takes control of TWA as well as receiving war contracts. As his notoriety grows Hughes becomes more and more obsessed with cleanliness and starts to have mental lapses...
Scorsese may be suffering from the plague of micromanagement that previous great directors have experienced. Aviator felt finished before it started shooting, and I doubt there was much struggle in bringing the film to fruition outside of technical aspects. There was no mid-way script resuscitation; there were no awkward voice-overs or thematically choppy moments. There was no sign that the process of putting Hughes to film in anyway fed or challenged the film’s actual production. The Aviator has its many moments and still remains more complex due to its incorporation of interesting archival material and multiple topic exploration...
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| Tue Dec 21, 2004 2:09 am |
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Maximus
Hot Fuss
Joined: Sat Oct 16, 2004 10:46 am
Posts: 8427
Location: floridaaa
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Good review. That seems like what I was anticipating, actually, So I am not too let down.
One question that is really important to me, in regards to the Aviator, is how is the score? :? Any good?
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| Tue Dec 21, 2004 9:46 am |
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dolcevita
Extraordinary
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:24 pm
Posts: 16061
Location: The Damage Control Table
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It didn't make me cry or anything. Its interesting you should ask, because its a bit like the rest of the movie. Well done and matching in tonality. Its not going to be stuck in your head the next day for better or for worse, see what I mean?
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| Tue Dec 21, 2004 2:12 pm |
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Dr. Lecter
You must have big rats
Joined: Sat Oct 16, 2004 4:28 pm
Posts: 92093
Location: Bonn, Germany
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Dolce, how were Kate Beckinsale and Alec Baldwin in it?
_________________The greatest thing on earth is to love and to be loved in return!
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| Tue Dec 21, 2004 2:24 pm |
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dolcevita
Extraordinary
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:24 pm
Posts: 16061
Location: The Damage Control Table
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Small roles. Baldwin was good, I think he's actually a great actor, but he fit the part well. Only on screen for less than 10 minutes total. Kate was mediocre, she's a decent actress but they don't give her much to work with. She just stands around looking sultry for a whopping 5 minutes in the movie total.
Don't look for supporting noms for either of them if that was why you were asking. There roles weren't big enough (especially not Kate) and weren't that impressive because the whole movie was just so uniformally buffed and toned that no one stood out in particular (except for maybe Blanchet) look for an oscar nod for her if anyone in that film gets one.
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| Tue Dec 21, 2004 2:27 pm |
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Dr. Lecter
You must have big rats
Joined: Sat Oct 16, 2004 4:28 pm
Posts: 92093
Location: Bonn, Germany
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I see...
Good review, Galia. So what is actually the main problem of the movie, to bring it to the point?
_________________The greatest thing on earth is to love and to be loved in return!
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| Tue Dec 21, 2004 3:04 pm |
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dolcevita
Extraordinary
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:24 pm
Posts: 16061
Location: The Damage Control Table
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It does everything from a distance. He hits a little upon all the topics and this highly stylized way but never gets around to delving in under the surface for any of them. Nothing bad per se, I just noticed that around three querters of the way through, I wasn't all that interested. Nothing to sink your teeth into.
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| Tue Dec 21, 2004 3:08 pm |
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Dr. Lecter
You must have big rats
Joined: Sat Oct 16, 2004 4:28 pm
Posts: 92093
Location: Bonn, Germany
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Style over substance?
_________________The greatest thing on earth is to love and to be loved in return!
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| Tue Dec 21, 2004 3:11 pm |
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dolcevita
Extraordinary
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:24 pm
Posts: 16061
Location: The Damage Control Table
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Dr. Lecter wrote: Style over substance? Not exactly. because there are other films like that including Triplettes and Good, Bad, Ugly, that I loved. It coaches itself as having substance perhaps, so you end up a bit dissappointed. Or to put it another way, its stylization isn't enough to carry the movie, since it was intended to support the substance and was not the point initself. Um, hard to explain beyond that, check it out and let me know what you think.
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| Tue Dec 21, 2004 3:15 pm |
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Dr. Lecter
You must have big rats
Joined: Sat Oct 16, 2004 4:28 pm
Posts: 92093
Location: Bonn, Germany
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dolcevita wrote: Dr. Lecter wrote: Style over substance? Not exactly. because there are other films like that including Triplettes and Good, Bad, Ugly, that I loved. It coaches itself as having substance perhaps, so you end up a bit dissappointed. Or to put it another way, its stylization isn't enough to carry the movie, since it was intended to support the substance and was not the point initself. Um, hard to explain beyond that, check it out and let me know what you think. I will...in a month or so when it finally comes out here. _________________The greatest thing on earth is to love and to be loved in return!
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| Tue Dec 21, 2004 3:18 pm |
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dolcevita
Extraordinary
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:24 pm
Posts: 16061
Location: The Damage Control Table
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Newest review: House of Flying Daggers in up
http://worldofkj.com/Dolcevita-HouseofDaggers.php
dolcevita wrote:
...The first half of the film does produce some dynamic and well choreographed scenes including Mei playing a sound and dance game in order to avoid incarceration, and several episodes that occur between Mei and soldiers in the woods. Yimou never quite manages to use the lush landscape appropriately and the sweeping vistas somehow add little to the movie. At least they are not drenched in saturated monotone with sheets floating in the breeze however. What never ceases to amaze is Yimou’s devotion to the fight sequences above all else. Above dialogue, above character development, and even above a narrative that could possibly connect the fights to a larger understanding. A consequence of the lack of any broader associations renders the scenes hollow. It’s hard to generate any emotion over their pain or even their passion. In typical precedence, Daggers comes fully equipped with an equal amount of character turn-abouts as its predecessor Hero had, and no one character maintains an identity long enough to allow for any attachment and investment on the part of the viewer. Well, since I have no idea who you are by now, I guess I don’t care if you die...
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| Wed Dec 22, 2004 4:22 pm |
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dolcevita
Extraordinary
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:24 pm
Posts: 16061
Location: The Damage Control Table
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Newest review is in. Hotel Rwanda http://www.worldofkj.com/Dolcevita-HotelRwanda.php
Quote:
...Hotel Rwanda struggles to find the proper way to weave the story of a conflict avoided by the international community and the personal experiences of a man who stepped into the momentous gap left by its retreat. Hotel does not wholly succeed, but is a valiant effort and a step in the right direction none-the-less.
...What went wrong in 1994 that allowed for the genocide of 800,000 Tutsis is still problematic of an issue to discuss today. George tries to handle it only as a peripheral space in the Hotel Rwanda, and one cannot help but wish more attention had been paid not just to the Hutu’s actions, but to the international community’s inactions...
The inclusion of all the peripheral narratives of self-preservation and international isolation ultimately give Hotel Rwanda its more profound explorations of the Tutsi massacres, and it is to these inclusions that Hotel owes its distinction from old raw shock discourse. A bit simple for a complex blot in world history, but despite all its shortcomings Hotel Rwanda is still a rich addition to the lengthy catalogue of war films, and a necessary viewing experience for everyone.
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| Fri Dec 24, 2004 3:38 am |
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dolcevita
Extraordinary
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:24 pm
Posts: 16061
Location: The Damage Control Table
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Coming soon....
Just a bit of a tease, Lemony Snicket, Phantom of the Opera, and the third istallment of the Fellini Archive, La Strada... :wink:
already been submitted starting last week, so will be up for your reading pleasure shortly. :wink:
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| Wed Dec 29, 2004 12:52 am |
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dolcevita
Extraordinary
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:24 pm
Posts: 16061
Location: The Damage Control Table
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Here they are:
The Phantom of the Opera - C+
http://www.worldofkj.com/Dolcevita-Phantom.php
dolcevita wrote:
Joel Schumacher just doesn’t quite get it. He is not skimpy with his most recent directorial effort, The Phantom of the Opera, and he is clearly meticulous in his attention to detail. Yet the gilded French baroque ladies that line the walls of Schumacher’s Paris Opera House have about as much character as gaudy reproductions of Cellini’s most famous royal saltshaker. Schumacher has made this mistake before...
...one cannot help but wish he had either embraced Baz Luhrmann’s true kitsch in Paris approach, or embraced Bob Fosse’s disturbing 1930’s Weimar Berlin as his source of inspiration rather than fluctuating between the two. All that remains is a Phantom’s abode where the candle laden chandeliers rising through the water feel like a Disney World ride. If you like the music, enjoy singing along, otherwise this new screen adaptation has only a few particular moments of entertainment to offer.
dolcevita wrote:
...Carrey’s Count Olaf continues to haunt their desire for happiness but his humor doesn’t quite match the rest of the film’s situations and setting. He is still a bit too Jim Carrey, and not quite enough Count Olaf. Perhaps Carrey’s recognizable facial and vocal gestures serve the purpose of lightening the mood of Lemony Snicket? They are successful in so doing, but the darker humor that runs throughout the film serves it far better...
...While Olaf makes the kiddies more comfortable, Carrey’s performance may begin to tire adult fans who aren’t part of his fan club. Luckily the obstacles, fresh range of eccentric characters, scripting, and design of the movie more than plenty compensate for anyone who wished the movie pushed its content towards PG-13 rather than in the PG, holiday safe, family fun fashion that it instead opted for. As it stands however, Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events should still please all ages and is a surprisingly entertaining watch.
dolcevita wrote:
Undoubtedly the film that launched Federico Fellini into the world stage spotlight, La Strada will always lurk in the shadows of the two Fellini films that followed it and never truly get the attention and recognition it so rightly deserves...The face of Giulietta Masina’s Gelsomina should be witnessed the world over for its potency. As the mute and slightly challenged Gelsomina, her facial gestures narrate the woman’s experience as no others have done before. Married away for a mere pittance to Zampano (Anthony Quinn), a circus traveling strongman, the couple travels the countryside roads performing for villagers...
...In typical later Fellini fashion, Federico externalizes the internal and internalizes the external. All the raw and depleted environments Gelsomina explores with Zampano become part of her. Zampano and his actions become part of her as well. In return her internal struggle becomes more external as it plays out on her face and across the screen...
...Rough around the edges but sincere in its simplicity and lack of superfluous embellishments, La Strada may not be Fellini’s magnum opus but it is definitely one of his most sincere and strongest works.
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| Thu Dec 30, 2004 11:40 pm |
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