The ending to A Very Long Engagement may not be as direct and clear as it may seem.

SPOILERS BELOW:

There are some interpretations (see the imdb.com forum) that the five men did actually die--that when Audrey Tautou meets up first with the other soldier, it is not an encounter with a mortal. "I am dead, just like your fiance." And what you see at the end where she walks through the doorway into the beautiful garden is symbolic of crossing into the afterlife ("Garden of Eden").

Spoilers below:

You think she committed suicide? I doubt it. Look at everyone she mets first before going into the room. The arguement is in fact that they were all considered dead, and then the situation kept changing on who got away, until ultimately it was identified as him, but that he had no memory. Seriously? I thought the german woman gave it away, because Tatou does find the other soldier who dropped his identity, and I have no reason to believe that guy would be mythic and/or lie. I guess I see what you're saying, but I think the I am dead like him is more a scathing commentary on experiencing the war. That and he didn't know the events, he just had the box, he thought they were all dead as well. There's nothing in that movie to lead my to believe that there was any supernatural type play in it. All the characters were visible to other people, etc. I just thought the garden was meant to be angelic, and youthful, thats all.

What did you think personally? Side with the imdb ones that expressed doubt?

In order of how I liked them

1. Superman: The Movie (1978) -- 1.13 A+
2. Million Dollar Baby (2004) -- 1.21 A+
3. Live and Let Die (1973) -- 1.27 A+
4. Dr. No (1962) -- 1.16 A+
5. The Aviator (2004) -- 1.7 A+
6. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) -- 1.18 A+
7. Sleepless in Seattle (1993) -- 1.25 A+
8. The Terminal (2004) -- 1.12 A+
9. Superman II (1980) -- 1.15 A
10. On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969) -- 1.20 A
11. Anchorman: Unrated (2004) -- 1.9 A
12. Assault on Precinct 13 (2005) -- 1.19 A
13. Super Troopers (2002) -- 1.23 A-
14. Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle (2004) -- 1.8 A-
15. Coach Carter (2005) -- 1.17 A-

16. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004) -- 1.22 B+
17. Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004) -- 1.28 B
18. Comedian (2002) -- 1.10 B
19. Napoleon Dynamite (2004) -- 1.11 B
20. Diamonds are Forever (1971) -- 1.27. B-
21. The Big Bounce (2004) -- 1.25 B-
22. The Village (2004) -- 1.13 B-
23. Are We There Yet? (2005) -- 1.26 B-

24. Paparazzi (2004) -- 1.22 C+
25. Elektra (2005) -- 1.14 C+
26. Day of the Dead (1985) -- 1.23 C+
27. Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004) -- 1.11 C
28. The Forgotten (2004) -- 1.22 C-
29. Open Water (2004) -- 1.22 C-

30. Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987) -- 1.22 D

I should watch a Bond movie tonight.

Maybe You Only Live Twice.

I had this really long, multiple-paragraph response typed up, but it got lost in the process of submitting the post. Basically it mentioned several specific things to notice that gives a lot of depth to the other interpretion (which I want to restate again, but I kind of lost my ability to re-express it, even if the ideas are still fresh in my mind).

Like you, I was somewhat underwhelmed by the movie taken literally (which itself required a certain suspension of disbelief). But my appreciation of the film increased after exploring the figurative interpretation and the layers of texture suggesting it.

I didn't get to watch anything yesterday either. It's been a busy week. I'll make it up this weekend with atleast 6 movies. :razz:

1. 1/7/05: Troy (2004, Wolfgang Petersen) - C+
2. 1/7/05: Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring (2003, Ki-duk Kim) - A-
3. 1/8/05: Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle (2004, Danny Leiner) - B
4. 1/9/05: Akira (1988, Katsuhiro Ôtomo) - C
5. 1/9/05: Being John Malkovich (1999, Spike Jonze) - A
6. 1/9/05: Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (2002, George Lucas) - B
7. 1/9/05: Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004, Alexander Witt) - B+
8. 1/10/05: Cruel Intentions (1999, Roger Kumble) - A
9. 1/11/05: Infernal Affairs (2002, Wai Keung Lau & Siu Fai Mak) - B
10. 1/11/05: Before Sunrise (1995, Richard Linklater) - A
11. 1/11/05: Before Sunset (2004, Richard Linklater) - A-
12. 1/13/05: The Lion King (1994, Rober Allers and Rob Minkoff) - A
13. 1/14/05: Moulin Rouge! (2001, Baz Lurhman) - A+
14. 1/14/05: Maria Full of Grace (2004, Joshua Marston) - A-
15. 1/15/05: The Manchurian Candidate (2004, Jonathan Demme) - B
16. 1/15/05: The Stepford Wives (2004, Frank Oz) - B
17. 1/16/05: Mean Girls (2004, Mark Waters) - A-
18. 1/17/05: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004, Michel Gondry) - A
19. 1/17/05: The Phantom of the Opera (2004, Joel Schumacher) - A
20. 1/18/05: The Village (2004, M. Night Shyamalan) - A-
21. 1/19/05: Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (2004, Rawson Marshall Thurber) - C+
22. 1/21/05: Open Water (2004, Chris Kentis) - D
23. 1/22/05: Kill Bill Volume 1 (2003, Quentin Tarantino) - A
24. 1/22/05: Kill Bill Volume 2 (2004, Quentin Tarantino) - A
25. 1/26/05: Freaky Friday (2003, Mark S. Waters) - B+
26. 1/26/05: Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004, Kerry Conran) - B+
27. 1/26/05: Mean Creek (2004, Jacob Aaron Estes) - B+
28. 1/27/05: Schindler's List (1993, Steven Spielburg) - A
29. 1/28/05: Spider-Man 2 (2004, Sam Raimi) - B+

1. 1/7/05: Troy (2004). Grade: 9.5/10 - A
2. 1/8/05: White Noise (2005). Grade: 8.1/10 - B+
3. 1/8/05: Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle (2004). Grade: 8.3/10 - B+
4. 1/8/05: Open Water (2004). Grade: 5.3/10 - D+
5. 1/9/05: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003). Grade: 9.4/10 - A
6. 1/9/05: Mindhunters (2005). Grade: 9.5/10 - A
7. 1/9/05: Face/Off (1997). Grade: 9.7/10 - A+
8. 1/9/05: Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (2004). Grade: 8.4/10 - B+
9. 1/10/05: Cruel Intentions (1999). Grade: 9.3/10 - A
10. 1/10/05: Reindeer Games (2000). Grade: 4.2/10 - D-
11. 1/11/05: Napoleon Dynamite (2004). Grade: 6.2/10 - C
12. 1/12/05: Paparazzi (2004). Grade: 7.3/10 - B-
13. 1/13/05: Not Without My Daughter (1991). Grade: 7.5/10 - B
14. 1/13/05: Bad Boys II (2003). Grade: 9.6/10 - A+
15. 1/14/05: Hotel Rwanda (2004). Grade: 9.7/10 - A+
16. 1/15/05: Elektra (2005). Grade: 7.8/10 - B
17. 1/15/05: Without a Paddle (2004). Grade: 7.1/10 - B-
18. 1/16/05: In Good Company (2004). Grade: 8.3/10 - B+
19. 1/16/05: Coach Carter (2005). Grade: 8.8/10 - A-
20. 1/17/05: The Village (2004). Grade: 6.8/10 - C+
21. 1/17/05: Pirates of the Carribean (2003). Grade: 9.5/10 - A
22. 1/18/05: Secret Window (2004). Grade: 7.8/10 - B
23. 1/19/05: Friday Night Lights (2004). Grade: 8.5/10 - A-
24. 1/19/05: Cellular (2004). Grade: 7.7/10 - B
25. 1/19/05: The Forgotten (2004). Grade: 8.0/10 - B+
26. 1/20/05: The Cookout (2004). Grade: 4.5/10 - D
27. 1/20/05: I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997). Grade: 9.0/10 - A
28. 1/20/05: Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgandy (2004). Grade: 9.3/10 - A
29. 1/21/05: Spider-Man 2 (2004). Grade: 9.8/10 - A+
30. 1/22/05: Million Dollar Baby (2004). Grade: 8.9/10 - A-
31. 1/23/05: Final Destination 2 (2003). Grade: 8.4/10 - B+
32. 1/24/05: Half Past Dead (2002). Grade: 8.2/10 - B+
33. 1/24/05: Assault on Precinct 13 (2005). Grade: 8.8/10 - A-
34. 1/25/05: Payback (1999). Grade: 5.8/10 - C-
35. 1/25/05: Alien vs. Predator (2004). Grade: 9.4/10 - A
36. 1/28/05: The Beach (2000). Grade: 5.0/10 - D+
37. 1/29/05: Hide and Seek (2005). Grade: 8.9/10 - A-

The Beach is a very stupid movie. The performances suck. The plot is horrible. You have gotta be high (like the people in the movie) to really watch this movie and like it. :wink: But seriously, it's not good at all. What seemed interesting from the previews turned out to be a more current, "island"-type version of The Village, only 10x worse. Two hours I'll definently never get back.

Hide and Seek is a great horror/thriller. It's not scary, but it's quite a good movie. I liked how the so-called "twist" ending actually made some sense, unlike recent horror movies like White Noise and The Forgotten. The twist made sense, and it didn't require you to think about the movie forever. It came instantly. I guess it was a little predictable, because my first guess in the movie turned out to be the right guess. However, the movie does a good job of throwing off the audience, so I was still a little surprised with the ending. Another positive thing about the movie was Dakota Fanning. She gave the audience a "oh my god, that's one freakin' creepy little girl" vibe. She was excellent. De Niro was good too. Overall, I thought it was well done. A few plot holes, but the movie was very well crafted, and definently better than White Noise.

01. 01/07/05: Yi Yi (Edward Yang, 2000) ****
02. 01/08/05: Vertical Ray of the Sun (Anh Hung Tran, 2000) ***
03. 01/08/05: Ran (Akira Kurosawa, 1985) ****
04. 01/09/05: Sleeper (Woody Allen, 1973) ***
05. 01/09/05: Key Largo (John Huston, 1948) *** ½
06. 01/09/05: Out Cold (Brendan & Emmett Malloy, 2001) * ½
07. 01/10/05: Frankenstein (James Whale, 1931) * ½
08. 01/11/05: Just Married (Shawn Levy, 2003) * ½
09. 01/11/05: Battleship Potemkin (Sergei M. Eisenstein, 1925) *** ½
10. 01/12/05: Airplane! (Jim Abrahams, et al, 1980) ****
11. 01/12/05: The Good Girl (Miguel Arteta, 2002) **
12. 01/13/05: Castle in the Sky (Hayao Miyazaki, 1986) ****
13. 01/14/05: In Good Company (Paul Weitz,2004) *** ½
14. 01/14/05: Léon (Luc Besson, 1994) ****
15. 01/15/05: House of Flying Daggers (Yimou Zhang, 2004) *** ½
16. 01/15/05: The Triplets of Belleville (Sylvain Chomet, 2003) *** ½
17. 01/15/05: In the Mood for Love (Kar Wai Wong, 2000) *** ½
18. 01/16/05: Meet the Fockers (Jay Roach, 2004) * ½
19. 01/17/05: Kiki’s Delivery Service (Hayao Miyazaki, 1989) ***
20. 01/18/05: Cries and Whispers (Ingmar Bergman, 1972) **
21. 01/19/05: Star Runner (Daniel Lee, 2003) *** ½
22. 01/20/05: Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter...and Spring (Ki-duk Kim, 2004) ****
23. 01/21/05: Iron Monkey (Woo-ping Yuen, 1993) ***
24. 01/22/05: The Laramie Project (Moisés Kaufman, 2002) ** ½
25. 01/23/05: Chungking Express (Wong Kar-Wai, 1994) ****
26. 01/23/05: Princess Mononke (Hayao Miyazaki, 1997) ****
27. 01/24/05: Twilight Samurai (Yoji Yamada, 2004) *** ½
28. 01/25/05: Before Sunrise (Richard Linklater, 1995) *** ½
29. 01/26/05: The 400 Blows (François Truffaut, 1953) ****
30. 01/27/05: A Very Long Engagement (Jean-Pierre Jeunet, 2004) *** ½
31. 01/29/05: The Last Wave (Peter Weir, 1977) ****
32. 01/29/05: Million Dollar Baby (Clint Eastwood, 2004) ****

Please go watch The Last Wave. Thank you.

And as for Million Dollar Baby, what can l say? A masterpiece, and easily the best of the 2004.

1. 1/8/2005: Scream 2 -- 8.0/10 (A-)
2. 1/9/2005: Scream 3 -- 7.5/10 (B+)
3. 1/10/2005: White Noise -- 7.0/10 (B)
4. 1/10/2005: Garden State -- 9.0/10 (A+)
5. 1/12/2005: Meet the Parents -- 8.0/10 (B+)
6. 1/12/2005: Hotel Rwanda -- 9.5/10 (A+)
7. 1/14/2005: Saw -- 8.3/10 (A-)
8. 1/14/2005: Elektra -- 5.8/10 (C+)
9. 1/16/2005: The Village -- 8.5/10 (A-)
10. 1/17/2005: Meet the Fockers -- 7.6/10 (B+)
11. 1/17/2005: Urban Legend -- 4.3/10 (C)
12. 1/19/2005: Assault on Precinct 13 -- 7.6/10 (B+)
13. 1/23/2005: Are We There Yet? -- 6.8/10 (B)
14. 1/29/2005: Little Shop of Horrors (1960) -- rating pending

1. 1/7/05: Troy (2004, Wolfgang Petersen) - C+
2. 1/7/05: Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring (2003, Ki-duk Kim) - A-
3. 1/8/05: Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle (2004, Danny Leiner) - B
4. 1/9/05: Akira (1988, Katsuhiro Ôtomo) - C
5. 1/9/05: Being John Malkovich (1999, Spike Jonze) - A
6. 1/9/05: Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (2002, George Lucas) - B
7. 1/9/05: Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004, Alexander Witt) - B+
8. 1/10/05: Cruel Intentions (1999, Roger Kumble) - A
9. 1/11/05: Infernal Affairs (2002, Wai Keung Lau & Siu Fai Mak) - B
10. 1/11/05: Before Sunrise (1995, Richard Linklater) - A
11. 1/11/05: Before Sunset (2004, Richard Linklater) - A-
12. 1/13/05: The Lion King (1994, Rober Allers and Rob Minkoff) - A
13. 1/14/05: Moulin Rouge! (2001, Baz Lurhman) - A+
14. 1/14/05: Maria Full of Grace (2004, Joshua Marston) - A-
15. 1/15/05: The Manchurian Candidate (2004, Jonathan Demme) - B
16. 1/15/05: The Stepford Wives (2004, Frank Oz) - B
17. 1/16/05: Mean Girls (2004, Mark Waters) - A-
18. 1/17/05: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004, Michel Gondry) - A
19. 1/17/05: The Phantom of the Opera (2004, Joel Schumacher) - A
20. 1/18/05: The Village (2004, M. Night Shyamalan) - A-
21. 1/19/05: Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (2004, Rawson Marshall Thurber) - C+
22. 1/21/05: Open Water (2004, Chris Kentis) - D
23. 1/22/05: Kill Bill Volume 1 (2003, Quentin Tarantino) - A
24. 1/22/05: Kill Bill Volume 2 (2004, Quentin Tarantino) - A
25. 1/26/05: Freaky Friday (2003, Mark S. Waters) - B+
26. 1/26/05: Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004, Kerry Conran) - B+
27. 1/26/05: Mean Creek (2004, Jacob Aaron Estes) - B+
28. 1/27/05: Schindler's List (1993, Steven Spielburg) - A
29. 1/28/05: Spider-Man 2 (2004, Sam Raimi) - B+
30. 1/29/05: Shakespeare in Love (1998, John Madden) - A

In order of how I liked them

1. Superman: The Movie (1978) -- 1.13 A+
2. Million Dollar Baby (2004) -- 1.21 A+
3. Live and Let Die (1973) -- 1.27 A+
4. Dr. No (1962) -- 1.16 A+
5. The Aviator (2004) -- 1.7 A+
6. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) -- 1.18 A+
7. Sleepless in Seattle (1993) -- 1.25 A+
8. The Terminal (2004) -- 1.12 A+
9. Superman II (1980) -- 1.15 A
10. On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969) -- 1.20 A
11. Anchorman: Unrated (2004) -- 1.9 A
12. Assault on Precinct 13 (2005) -- 1.19 A
13. Super Troopers (2002) -- 1.23 A-
14. Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle (2004) -- 1.8 A-
15. Coach Carter (2005) -- 1.17 A-
16. True Colors (1991) -- 1.29 A-

17. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004) -- 1.22 B+
18. Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004) -- 1.28 B
19. Comedian (2002) -- 1.10 B
20. Napoleon Dynamite (2004) -- 1.11 B
21. Diamonds are Forever (1971) -- 1.27. B-
22. The Big Bounce (2004) -- 1.25 B-
23. The Village (2004) -- 1.13 B-
24. Are We There Yet? (2005) -- 1.26 B-

25. Paparazzi (2004) -- 1.22 C+
26. Elektra (2005) -- 1.14 C+
27. Day of the Dead (1985) -- 1.23 C+
28. Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004) -- 1.11 C
29. The Forgotten (2004) -- 1.22 C-
30. Open Water (2004) -- 1.22 C-

31. Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987) -- 1.22 D

I watched Schindler's List today, but I'm not adding it to my list until I watch it again. It's amazing, but I don't think my first viewing was the right time for me to watch it. I was also doing other things today. It's been a busy day. So, I don't know what grade I would really give this movie until I watch it once more. I'm going to try and watch it again tomorrow, hopefully.

1. 1/7/05: Troy (2004, Wolfgang Petersen) - C+
2. 1/7/05: Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring (2003, Ki-duk Kim) - A-
3. 1/8/05: Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle (2004, Danny Leiner) - B
4. 1/9/05: Akira (1988, Katsuhiro Ôtomo) - C
5. 1/9/05: Being John Malkovich (1999, Spike Jonze) - A
6. 1/9/05: Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (2002, George Lucas) - B
7. 1/9/05: Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004, Alexander Witt) - B+
8. 1/10/05: Cruel Intentions (1999, Roger Kumble) - A
9. 1/11/05: Infernal Affairs (2002, Wai Keung Lau & Siu Fai Mak) - B
10. 1/11/05: Before Sunrise (1995, Richard Linklater) - A
11. 1/11/05: Before Sunset (2004, Richard Linklater) - A-
12. 1/13/05: The Lion King (1994, Rober Allers and Rob Minkoff) - A
13. 1/14/05: Moulin Rouge! (2001, Baz Lurhman) - A+
14. 1/14/05: Maria Full of Grace (2004, Joshua Marston) - A-
15. 1/15/05: The Manchurian Candidate (2004, Jonathan Demme) - B
16. 1/15/05: The Stepford Wives (2004, Frank Oz) - B
17. 1/16/05: Mean Girls (2004, Mark Waters) - A-
18. 1/17/05: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004, Michel Gondry) - A
19. 1/17/05: The Phantom of the Opera (2004, Joel Schumacher) - A
20. 1/18/05: The Village (2004, M. Night Shyamalan) - A-
21. 1/19/05: Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (2004, Rawson Marshall Thurber) - C+
22. 1/21/05: Open Water (2004, Chris Kentis) - D
23. 1/22/05: Kill Bill Volume 1 (2003, Quentin Tarantino) - A
24. 1/22/05: Kill Bill Volume 2 (2004, Quentin Tarantino) - A
25. 1/26/05: Freaky Friday (2003, Mark S. Waters) - B+
26. 1/26/05: Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004, Kerry Conran) - B+
27. 1/26/05: Mean Creek (2004, Jacob Aaron Estes) - B+
28. 1/27/05: Schindler's List (1993, Steven Spielburg) - A
29. 1/28/05: Spider-Man 2 (2004, Sam Raimi) - B+
30. 1/29/05: Shakespeare in Love (1998, John Madden) - A
31. 1/29/05: Eyes Wide Shut (1999, Stanley Kubrick) - C+

1/11 - A Rape In A Small Town (2004) - B
1/11 - A Certain Kind of Death (2003) - B
1/12 - Anchorman Uncut (2004) - A+
1/13 - Garden State (2004) - A+
1/14 - Napoleon Dynamite (2004) - B
1/15 - King Arthur Unrated (2004) - B
1/16 - Stevie (2002) - A+
1/17 - Year of a Bull (2003) - C
1/18 - The Killing (1956) A
1/18 - Paths of Glory (1957) A
1/19 - The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964) A
1/20 - The Big Bounce (2004) B
1/21 - Cast A Deadly Spell (1991) A
1/21 - All The Little Animals (1998) B
1/21 - B.Monkey (1999) B-
1/22 - Girl With A Pearl Earring (2003) D
1/23 - Something To Scream About (2002) B
1/24 - Ride The Bullet (2004) D
1/25 - Dirty War (2004) C
1/25 - Control Room (2004) B

1/26 - Tupac: Resurrection (2003) B
Solid and sleek documentary. You don't need to be a fan to enjoy it.

1/27 - Wake Up Ron Burgundy (2004) C

It's just like Anchorman, same basic storyline just different plot devices. So odd.

1/28 - Sideways (2004) A+
One of the best films I've seen in years. Wonderful performances all around. Funny, sad, it's everything you need in a movie.

1/29 Million Dollar Baby (2004) B
Really good film, not great. Shitty supporting players, weak script, and a few odd production choices kept it from being perfect. Still, Freeman, Swank, and Eastwood own the film.

1/29 The Aviator (2004) B-
Incredible production value, great acting, lousy screenplay.

1. Mean Girls A
2. Spider-Man 2 A+
3. Troy B
4. Are We There Yet? B
5. Catwoman C
6. Elektra A-
7. Meet the Fockers A-
8. Coach Carter A
9. Napoleon Dynamite B+
10. Along Came Polly B-
11. Bruce Almighty B
12. Max Keeble's Big Movie D+
13. Daredevil B-
14. Anchorman B
15. First Daughter D+
16. Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow D
17. Daredevil: The Director's Cut B
18. Alien vs. Predator D
19. Without a Paddle C
20. The OC: The Complete 1st Season (Episodes 1-20) A+
21. One Tree Hill: The Complete 1st Season (Episodes 1-4) A

hey can I start playing this now or am I too late?

Well, it is a little late, but you can just make a list of movies you've seen lately. We may do another one, since people have asked.

01. 01/07/05: Yi Yi (Edward Yang, 2000) ****
02. 01/08/05: Vertical Ray of the Sun (Anh Hung Tran, 2000) ***
03. 01/08/05: Ran (Akira Kurosawa, 1985) ****
04. 01/09/05: Sleeper (Woody Allen, 1973) ***
05. 01/09/05: Key Largo (John Huston, 1948) *** ½
06. 01/09/05: Out Cold (Brendan & Emmett Malloy, 2001) * ½
07. 01/10/05: Frankenstein (James Whale, 1931) * ½
08. 01/11/05: Just Married (Shawn Levy, 2003) * ½
09. 01/11/05: Battleship Potemkin (Sergei M. Eisenstein, 1925) *** ½
10. 01/12/05: Airplane! (Jim Abrahams, et al, 1980) ****
11. 01/12/05: The Good Girl (Miguel Arteta, 2002) **
12. 01/13/05: Castle in the Sky (Hayao Miyazaki, 1986) ****
13. 01/14/05: In Good Company (Paul Weitz,2004) *** ½
14. 01/14/05: Léon (Luc Besson, 1994) ****
15. 01/15/05: House of Flying Daggers (Yimou Zhang, 2004) *** ½
16. 01/15/05: The Triplets of Belleville (Sylvain Chomet, 2003) *** ½
17. 01/15/05: In the Mood for Love (Kar Wai Wong, 2000) *** ½
18. 01/16/05: Meet the Fockers (Jay Roach, 2004) * ½
19. 01/17/05: Kiki’s Delivery Service (Hayao Miyazaki, 1989) ***
20. 01/18/05: Cries and Whispers (Ingmar Bergman, 1972) **
21. 01/19/05: Star Runner (Daniel Lee, 2003) *** ½
22. 01/20/05: Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter...and Spring (Ki-duk Kim, 2004) ****
23. 01/21/05: Iron Monkey (Woo-ping Yuen, 1993) ***
24. 01/22/05: The Laramie Project (Moisés Kaufman, 2002) ** ½
25. 01/23/05: Chungking Express (Wong Kar-Wai, 1994) ****
26. 01/23/05: Princess Mononke (Hayao Miyazaki, 1997) ****
27. 01/24/05: Twilight Samurai (Yoji Yamada, 2004) *** ½
28. 01/25/05: Before Sunrise (Richard Linklater, 1995) *** ½
29. 01/26/05: The 400 Blows (François Truffaut, 1953) ****
30. 01/27/05: A Very Long Engagement (Jean-Pierre Jeunet, 2004) *** ½
31. 01/29/05: The Last Wave (Peter Weir, 1977) ****
32. 01/29/05: Million Dollar Baby (Clint Eastwood, 2004) ****
33. 01/30/05: Koyaanisqatsi (Godfrey Reggio, 1983) *** ½

Koyaanisqatsi, Hopi for Life Out of Balance, is nothing more than a series of filmed scenes set to music. With no actors, plot, or dialogue, one may think the film would be boring. However, boring is probably the very last adjective l would use to describe it. What it is, is an absolutely stunning, beautiful film, with some of the best cinematography l've ever seen (due mostly to what is filmed, rather than how), and a great score. If either one of these failed, so would the film, as they are really the only 2 aspects of it. Luckily the don't.

However, there were a couple problems. One, there was far too little focus on nature. Only the first 20 minutes or so were about nature, and the last 65 or so were all man-made, and people oriented. So, yeah, more rivers, forests, animals, etc woulda been great. More stuff like the "plastic bag" part of American Beauty would been cool as well.

Also, during some of the fast-motion portions towards the end, it woulda been nice to see how sped up they were. l mean, some werent necessary; everyone knows approximately how long it takes to get groceries bagged, and to wait for an elevator. But how fast were those hot-dogs really moving? How much faster than normal were those cars being built? l'd have liked to know that.

Finally, for a movie so supposedly clear in message, namely that...well, life is out of balance, it really didn't show it very well. The wonderful paralells between ocean waves and clouds, for example, show quite a lot of balance. In fact, most of the movie seems very balanced. Maybe l'm misinterpreting something. Oh well, still a great, great movie.

okay I will

I have seen (since january 7th):

White Noise
Troy
Anchorman
Dodgeball
King Arthur
Coach Carter
Napolean Dynamite
Papparazzi
Bourne Supremacy
Friday Night Lights
Elektra
Assault On Precinct 13
The Aviator
House Of Flying Daggers
Aliens Vs Predator
Sky Captain And The World Of Tommorow
Are We There Yet
Hide And Seek
Alone In The Dark

Friday: Before Sunset - B

Saturday: Ferris Bueller's Day Off - A
Million Dollar Baby - A+
Texas Chainsaw Massacre (Remake) - D+

01. 1/07/05: Troy (2004). Grade: 9.5/10 - A
02. 1/08/05: White Noise (2005). Grade: 8.1/10 - B+
03. 1/08/05: Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle (2004). Grade: 8.3/10 - B+
04. 1/08/05: Open Water (2004). Grade: 5.3/10 - D+
05. 1/09/05: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003). Grade: 9.4/10 - A
06. 1/09/05: Mindhunters (2005). Grade: 9.5/10 - A
07. 1/09/05: Face/Off (1997). Grade: 9.7/10 - A+
08. 1/09/05: Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (2004). Grade: 8.4/10 - B+
09. 1/10/05: Cruel Intentions (1999). Grade: 9.3/10 - A
10. 1/10/05: Reindeer Games (2000). Grade: 4.2/10 - D-
11. 1/11/05: Napoleon Dynamite (2004). Grade: 6.2/10 - C
12. 1/12/05: Paparazzi (2004). Grade: 7.3/10 - B-
13. 1/13/05: Not Without My Daughter (1991). Grade: 7.5/10 - B
14. 1/13/05: Bad Boys II (2003). Grade: 9.6/10 - A+
15. 1/14/05: Hotel Rwanda (2004). Grade: 9.7/10 - A+
16. 1/15/05: Elektra (2005). Grade: 7.8/10 - B
17. 1/15/05: Without a Paddle (2004). Grade: 7.1/10 - B-
18. 1/16/05: In Good Company (2004). Grade: 8.3/10 - B+
19. 1/16/05: Coach Carter (2005). Grade: 8.8/10 - A-
20. 1/17/05: The Village (2004). Grade: 6.8/10 - C+
21. 1/17/05: Pirates of the Carribean (2003). Grade: 9.5/10 - A
22. 1/18/05: Secret Window (2004). Grade: 7.8/10 - B
23. 1/19/05: Friday Night Lights (2004). Grade: 8.5/10 - A-
24. 1/19/05: Cellular (2004). Grade: 7.7/10 - B
25. 1/19/05: The Forgotten (2004). Grade: 8.0/10 - B+
26. 1/20/05: The Cookout (2004). Grade: 4.5/10 - D
27. 1/20/05: I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997). Grade: 9.0/10 - A
28. 1/20/05: Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgandy (2004). Grade: 9.3/10 - A
29. 1/21/05: Spider-Man 2 (2004). Grade: 9.8/10 - A+
30. 1/22/05: Million Dollar Baby (2004). Grade: 8.9/10 - A-
31. 1/23/05: Final Destination 2 (2003). Grade: 8.4/10 - B+
32. 1/24/05: Half Past Dead (2002). Grade: 8.2/10 - B+
33. 1/24/05: Assault on Precinct 13 (2005). Grade: 8.8/10 - A-
34. 1/25/05: Payback (1999). Grade: 5.8/10 - C-
35. 1/25/05: Alien vs. Predator (2004). Grade: 9.4/10 - A
36. 1/28/05: The Beach (2000). Grade: 5.0/10 - D+
37. 1/29/05: Hide and Seek (2005). Grade: 8.9/10 - A-
38. 1/29/05: Schindler's List (1993). Grade: 9.5/10 - A
39. 1/30/05: The Recruit (2003). Grade: 8.4/10 - B+

Schindler's List - I'm a little in the middle of the grades so far. On the one hand, the movie is technically flawless. It's one of the best movies ever made, in terms of acting and all. I loved it, but my only problem was that it didn't affect me emotionally as much as I thought it would have, due to all the great things I had heard before watching it. To say that it didn't affect me at all is ridiculous, but I somehow expected a little more. I once heard that out of every movie ever made, this had the best chance of bringing you to tears. And though Hotel Rwanda didn't bring me to tears either, I was affected more by that than Schindler's List. I'm sure it was different for others, but that's just how I felt. I loved it, but it was missing a little something. Technically, though, it was perfect. For being perfect, it deserves a high grade, but it's not "top 10 of all time" worthy in my book, like it was for others.

The Recruit - Definently an above average action/thriller. Colin Farrell and Al Pacino were both excellent in their roles, and the twists, though not immensly surprising, were well done. One of the better CIA-type movies I've seen.

1. 1/7/05: Troy (2004, Wolfgang Petersen) - C+
2. 1/7/05: Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring (2003, Ki-duk Kim) - A-
3. 1/8/05: Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle (2004, Danny Leiner) - B
4. 1/9/05: Akira (1988, Katsuhiro Ôtomo) - C
5. 1/9/05: Being John Malkovich (1999, Spike Jonze) - A
6. 1/9/05: Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (2002, George Lucas) - B
7. 1/9/05: Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004, Alexander Witt) - B+
8. 1/10/05: Cruel Intentions (1999, Roger Kumble) - A
9. 1/11/05: Infernal Affairs (2002, Wai Keung Lau & Siu Fai Mak) - B
10. 1/11/05: Before Sunrise (1995, Richard Linklater) - A
11. 1/11/05: Before Sunset (2004, Richard Linklater) - A-
12. 1/13/05: The Lion King (1994, Rober Allers and Rob Minkoff) - A
13. 1/14/05: Moulin Rouge! (2001, Baz Lurhman) - A+
14. 1/14/05: Maria Full of Grace (2004, Joshua Marston) - A-
15. 1/15/05: The Manchurian Candidate (2004, Jonathan Demme) - B
16. 1/15/05: The Stepford Wives (2004, Frank Oz) - B
17. 1/16/05: Mean Girls (2004, Mark Waters) - A-
18. 1/17/05: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004, Michel Gondry) - A
19. 1/17/05: The Phantom of the Opera (2004, Joel Schumacher) - A
20. 1/18/05: The Village (2004, M. Night Shyamalan) - A-
21. 1/19/05: Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story (2004, Rawson Marshall Thurber) - C+
22. 1/21/05: Open Water (2004, Chris Kentis) - D
23. 1/22/05: Kill Bill Volume 1 (2003, Quentin Tarantino) - A
24. 1/22/05: Kill Bill Volume 2 (2004, Quentin Tarantino) - A
25. 1/26/05: Freaky Friday (2003, Mark S. Waters) - B+
26. 1/26/05: Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004, Kerry Conran) - B+
27. 1/26/05: Mean Creek (2004, Jacob Aaron Estes) - B+
28. 1/27/05: Schindler's List (1993, Steven Spielburg) - A
29. 1/28/05: Spider-Man 2 (2004, Sam Raimi) - B+
30. 1/29/05: Shakespeare in Love (1998, John Madden) - A
31. 1/29/05: Eyes Wide Shut (1999, Stanley Kubrick) - C+
32. 1/30/05: Million Dollar Baby (2004, Clint Eastwood) - A

I'm not positive, but I think we should consider Million Dollar Baby the odds-on favorite to win Best Picture at the World of KJ Awards :razz:

1/11 - A Rape In A Small Town (2004) - B
1/11 - A Certain Kind of Death (2003) - B
1/12 - Anchorman Uncut (2004) - A+
1/13 - Garden State (2004) - A+
1/14 - Napoleon Dynamite (2004) - B
1/15 - King Arthur Unrated (2004) - B
1/16 - Stevie (2002) - A+
1/17 - Year of a Bull (2003) - C
1/18 - The Killing (1956) A
1/18 - Paths of Glory (1957) A
1/19 - The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964) A
1/20 - The Big Bounce (2004) B
1/21 - Cast A Deadly Spell (1991) A
1/21 - All The Little Animals (1998) B
1/21 - B.Monkey (1999) B-
1/22 - Girl With A Pearl Earring (2003) D
1/23 - Something To Scream About (2002) B
1/24 - Ride The Bullet (2004) D
1/25 - Dirty War (2004) C
1/25 - Control Room (2004) B
1/26 - Tupac: Resurrection (2003) B
1/27 - Wake Up Ron Burgundy (2004) C
1/28 - Sideways (2004) A+
1/29 Million Dollar Baby (2004) B
1/29 The Aviator (2004) B-

1/30 Aliens of the Deep (2005) A-

As I young boy, I was obsessed with the ocean. I would read book after book about sea life. I would stay up late at night to watch Arthur C Clarke talk about the mysteries of the deep. All through secondary school, I knew I would attend a university to study Marine Biology, in particular mammalian life.

Then I caught the acting bug, and soon after, film. But I never lost my love of the ocean. Just three weeks ago, I dove in some 12 meters of South Pacific water in New Zealand. My heart ached, I am meant to be in the ocean.

Jim Cameron seems to have a similar love for water. Since The Abyss (perhaps as early as Piranha II), he seems to have water constantly on his mind. After Titanic, he continued to dive the historical wrecks of the ocean, improving the technology throughout the years.

As a follow up to Cameron's last Imax film Ghost of the Abyss, Aliens of the Deep Imax 3D does not disappoint. Thanks to the 3D, incredible animals seemingly fly across and out of the screen including giant protoplasmic "aliens" and untold fields of microbes and shrimp.

If I was to have any complaints, it would be that the film at 50 minutes runs too short (but considering the cost associated with 3D IMAX processing it's somewhat understandable). I also thought the narration device failed to connect, perhaps because the scientists, though young and diverse, come across as nerdy and more or less uninteresting. I also failed to see the point of spending nearly 10 minutes talking about the sun, humans, and animal life on the land, when really the story could and should have started in or near the water.

There's been some discussion about the third act and ending to the film. The film tells us that by learning about alien life in the darkness of the oceans, humans will be better prepared to explore the depths of space and alien worlds. And it shows us what an exploration to Europa, one of Jupiter's moons would look like. It's all very exciting up until what looks like a lost reel to The Abyss pops up. I didn't dislike the ending entirely but it did open a can of worms that a 50 minute film isn't prepared to deal with.

One would guess Cameron and the co-director expected a "wow" response to the final shot but it came across as more "oh".

I highly recommend this film for fans of space travel, Jim Cameron, and the dark, dangerous abyss.