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Short movie reviews by Adriana Popovici

Kill Bill: Vol. 1

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Image source: Wikimedia

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Year of release: 2003
Director: Quentin Tarantino
Writer: Quentin Tarantino
Starring: Uma Thurman, Lucy Liu, Vivica A. Fox, Daryl Hannah, David Carradine, etc.

For more information on “Kill Bill: Vol. 1”, visit Wikipedia and/or IMDb

 

General impression:
The kid inside you will be thrilled. If you ever liked martial arts movies, this is a movie you’ll enjoy. If you ever played pretending you’re Bruce Lee or you’re fighting with him, you will love it. Familiar elements skillfully combined in a fresh and artsy manner.

Highlights:
It is very well done, entertaining, and memorable too. It’s like great patchwork that takes a life of its own, making all pieces synergize into a more polished, homogeneous final product.

Downside:
Lots of violence, little emotion, not much depth.

Would I see it again? – Yes

My Rating (1 to 10): 9

Recommended: Yes

Suggestion:
Watch it with friends and popcorn, the old-fashioned way.

 

Yes Man

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Image source: Wikimedia

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Year of release: 2008
Director: Peyton Reed
Writers: Nicholas Stoller, Jarrad Paul, Andrew Mogel, Danny Wallace (book)
Starring: Jim Carrey, Zooey Deschanel, Danny Masterson, Molly Sims etc.

For more information on “Yes Man”, visit Wikipedia and/or IMDb

 

General impression:
Based on a great idea with far more potential, it’s a… nice comedy, not hilarious, but entertaining and somewhat romantic. Jim Carrey is a little toned downed, which, in my book, is a good thing.

Highlights:
Zooey Deschanel is remarkably lovely.

Downside:
It’s another romantic comedy. Another Jim Carrey comedy too.

Would I see it again? – Yeah, while doing something else 🙂

My Rating (1 to 10): 6.5

Recommended: Yes, although you can safely skip it

Suggestion:
Expect a romantic comedy suited for a themed movie night.

 

Julie & Julia

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Year of release: 2009
Director: Nora Ephron
Writers: Nora Ephron, Julie Powell (book)
Starring: Meryl Streep, Amy Adams, Stanley Tucci, etc.

For more information on “Julie & Julia”, visit Wikipedia and/or IMDb

 

General impression:
Sweet and almost heart-warming, charmingly easy on the eye, definitely a movie made by and for women. It’s a two-hour-long culinary marathon with everyone “mmm”-ing in French cuisine delighted, very rich acting, and an unsatisfying ending.

Highlights:
Meryl Streep, Amy Adams, Stanley Tucci – all actors I like a lot! Food – which I like too. True stories of women who enjoy cooking (and eating), their paths to notoriety and success, their supportive spouses, writing, getting published, blogging, confronting fears, overcoming obstacles. The movie touched me for the subjective reason that I can relate to all these things.

Downside:
I was disappointed with the ending – a lot for the eye, and not much closure for the heart. The movie focuses on building the two main characters and their worlds, and it seemed (to me) not engaging enough.

Would I see it again? – Mmm… most likely by chance

My Rating (1 to 10): 7

Recommended: If you enjoy its genre…and great acting

Suggestion:
Don’t watch it on an empty stomach. Oh, and if you’re curious, here’s the link to “The Julie/Julia Project”: http://blogs.salon.com/0001399/

 

Lost in Translation

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Year of release: 2003
Director: Sofia Coppola
Writer: Sofia Coppola
Starring: Bill Murray, Scarlett Johansson, Giovanni Ribisi, etc.

For more information on “Lost in Translation”, visit Wikipedia and/or IMDb

 

General impression:
Overrated. Very overrated. Some Tokyo, some sexiness, and lots of pretentious shallowness. It’s supposed to be about deep issues – redefining yourself, finding yourself, and what you lose when you go from a chapter of you life to the next, but it really is about people bored with themselves and their lives, who almost feel sorry for themselves, despite having all the means to get out of that state. I was not impressed with the story or the characters, and felt clearly out of this movie’s target audience – too “delicate” for my taste.

Highlights:
Bill Murray’s acting and Scarlett Johansson’s curves. Oh, and some colorful Japanese eye candy.

Downside:
Scarlett Johansson’s acting and Bill Murray’s curves. I’m joking. Anyway, Scarlett is not convincing; Murray saves the movie. I almost felt like Bill Murray did all the work for this movie, and that’s a pity, because I expected better from Sofia Coppola.

Would I see it again? – No

My Rating (1 to 10): 7

Recommended: Not necessarily…

Suggestion:
It’s a movie with good reviews, so if you care about that, it’s a must-see. But, please, don’t let the Oscar (for Best Original Screenplay) influence your opinion.

 

Memoirs of a Geisha

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Year of release: 2005
Director: Rob Marshall
Writers: Robin Swicord, Arthur Golden (book)
Starring: Zhang Ziyi, Ken Watanabe, Gong Li, Michelle Yeoh etc.

For more information on “Memoirs of a Geisha”, visit Wikipedia and/or IMDb

 

General impression:
Nicely done, mesmerizing visuals, a valid definition for “geisha”. The movie is part fairytale, part beautiful illustration of a culture and its lifestyle. It shows the lack of freedom that independence means for a geisha, the effort that it takes to become one, and the fact that a geisha is not a prostitute, but an artist who embodies beauty.

Highlights:
It has a gorgeous look, the kind that distracts your attention from any flaw.

Downside:
Maybe it doesn’t engage emotion as much as it pleases the eye, and it has a dimension of idealization that doesn’t do much to sustain its aesthetics.

Would I see it again? – Yes. In a few years though.

My Rating (1 to 10): 8

Recommended: Yes

Suggestion:
I haven’t read the book. Maybe it would help. I’m curious which one is more entertaining, the movie or the book. If you read it, tell me what you think 🙂

 

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