4.05.2009

Crazy Movie Lady 11

March 29-April 4, 2009
179. Chisolm '72: Unbought and Unbossed. Documentary about Chisolm's legendary run for president of the US and how she wanted to fight for change. Made me think about Barack Obama's improbable run and how he was opposed all the way but won nevertheless. It also made me think about paving the way for black women in documentary filmmaking who want to be successful on a massive scale and will make it happen. If it has to start with me, so be it.
180. This is Spinal Tap. Rock mockumentary. Silly movie. I won't become part of the cult following of this film but it did make me giggle in spots.
181. Definitely, Maybe. This movie about a divorcing father telling his 11-year-old daughter a mystery love story about how he met her mother was definitely too long, no maybe about it. If the plot was trimmed and they had removed about 20 minutes of unnecessary filler, it would have been a lot better. 1hr50 is way too much of a commitment to ask someone to make for a romantic comedy.
182. The Real Dirt on Farmer John. I was surprised to like this documentary about an eccentric farmer but I did. The story line flowed nicely despite the inclusion of a few scenes at the end that were completely irrelevant to the plot already in place and should have been in the extras.
183. My Best Fiend: Klaus Kinski. Werner Herzog documentary about his longtime actor and crazy man Klaus. The most annoying part of this movie wasn't even the antics of Kinski, but the too large percent of the film (about 25%) in German... without subtitles. Really? Why make an English version of the film if I can't understand most of Kinski's scenes?
184. The Education of Shelby Knox. Documentary about a Texas girl who tries to get comprehensive s.ex education in her school system. I wanted the story to move more cohesively. It meandered way too much for me.
185. Ma Vie En Rose. Belgian film about a little boy who desperately wants to be a little boy. Once again made me glad not to feel trapped in the wrong body. Poor thing. I kind of liked it.
186. Fatal Attraction. I don't even need to tell you what this one's about or that it's AWESOME!! I love to jump out of my skin while watching films! Wheee!!
187. The Man Who Knew Too Much. The 1934 version of the Hitchcock film about a man who's daughter was kidnapped because he knew too much after witnessing a murder. Me likey.
188. The Jane Austen Book Club. About a book club which reads only Jane Austen books. I liked it a lot. I wasn't expecting to. It made me want to read Jane Austen and also to get my book club going again. My first and only book club is now spread across 4 southern states (NC, SC, GA, FL).
189. Being There. Really bad old film with Peter Sellers and Shirley MacLaine about a slow gardener who's mistaken for a political savant. I had high hopes for this movie that were dashed by the few and far between comedic moments and shattered by the ending.
190. Bella. Movie about "two lost souls" who "find solace in each other." Yeah it was kind of corny in some parts and moved a bit slowly in some points but it wasn't terrible.
191. Keeping Mum. Very British comedy about a nanny with a few tricks up her sleeves who comes to right a family with issues. Wittily funny and quite fun.

4 comments:

Claudia said...

I love these....

Anonymous said...

I think all this movie watching has gotten you a bit snobbish. Definitely Maybe wasn't too long. You just didnt buy into the Flashback political subtext over the Clinton years. Perhaps because you were like 9 when it happened.

I LOVED watching Chisolm '72

Jameil said...

claud... thanks!

ink... i've always been a movie snob. if it's worsened, it's not from watching so many films, but from my need to view them with a critical eye as necessitated by being a film student. how do i look getting a master's in documentary film and i can't even tell where a film's flaws are? definitely maybe is flawed. the plot drags in places where it doesn't need to. though i didn't care enough and didn't have the internet to follow the clinton campaign like the obama campaign, i wasn't ignorant of it. those parts of the film were not the ones i found lacking.

Jameil said...

also, i have never liked long films. i'm steadfast in my belief that thrillers and dramas can extend to 2 hours, but romantic comedies and comedies of any sort need to stay around or under the 90 minute mark.