My Project/Sunset Boulevard

I decided last night at about 11 p.m. to go through my beloved book of 101 movies one must see before they die and try to watch as many of them as possible, beginning with Billy Wilder's "Sunset Boulevard." Here goes.



While attempting to escape his growing debt, a struggling screenwriter stumbles upon the mansion of silent-film star Norma Desmond. He cannot imagine what horror will follow when he agrees to look over the aging glamour queen's script.

I love everything about this movie. I didn't know much about it, except what I gathered from watching clips of The Carol Burnett Sow on Youtube, and I was surprised at just how amazing the film was. The acting is electrifying. Gloria Swanson gives the performance of a lifetime as the self-centered, delusional Miss Desmond, and William Holden is subtle and conflicted as our narrator and hero. His inner monologues are melodramatic, and yet perfect for a story about movies and how they can consume lives, The very title "Sunset Boulevard" is reflective of the dying star Norma Desmond represents, a person caught in the sunset of her life, but who can't accept it. Get the family together, pop some popcorn, turn out the lights, and watch this movie in rapture. This is what cinema is all about.

Eden Log (2007)

A man wakes up deep inside a cave. Suffering amnesia, he has no recollection of how he came to be here or of what happened to the man whose body he finds beside him. Tailed by a mysterious creature, he must continue through this strange and fantastic world.

When I saw the trailer, I knew I HAD to see this movie. I searched online for hours until I found a Japanese website that offered a streaming version that loaded at about two minutes of film for every ten minutes of real time. It was the most unusual movie I've ever seen. It played out more like a video game than a movie, starting out with zero knowledge of our character or where he is or what's happened to him, and gradually he collects clues as he moves up "levels" in this strange grid of steel and plant-life. It's a French movie with English, but I'd rather it was just in French. The plot itself isn't original, it has a classic sci-fi vibe to it, a horror story of what happens when humans become consumed by the body of society and forget the individual. However, the execution is what makes it unusual, though it's not well-done. There is essentially no dialogue, no character development, and no visibility. The entire movie is bathed in darkness and the action is done in painful strobe-and-cut scenes, like a manic-depressive disco ball. Just as a movie-watcher, and not a critic, I would say this is a terrible movie. However, if one wants to think really hard about the filmmaker's choice of story and such, it's a really interesting experience.

Ice Age 3: The Dawn of the Dinosaurs (2009)

Following the events of Ice Age 2: The Meltdown, life has become relatively stable for the self-proclaimed "weirdest herd." Manny and Ellie are expecting a baby, leaving Sid eager to become a parent and Diego insecure about his age. When Sid steals three dinosaur eggs and is kidnapped by the mother dino, the herd is forced underground to the world of the dinosaurs in search of him, led by the clinically insane weasel Buck. Meanwhile, Scrat is torn between his beloved acorn and a foxy flying squirrel pursuing the same acorn.

The Ice Age franchise always struck me as trying desperately to fall in place with the Pixar masterpieces. The first one, I thought, was very close, and then went down hill with the second and now third. The simple plot and small cast of the first made it so charming; it left lots of room for every actor's voice work. When they added Queen Latifah and those very annoying possums, it started getting cluttered. Now, with the third, it gets even more chaotic, with a multi-layered world of ice age creatures and dinosaurs. However, the addition of Simon Pegg's character was a good move, his voice work was hilarious and overshadowed every other actor, even everybody's favorite sloth, Sid. It's a kid's movie through and through, though, as in the second one, there are some clunky, awkward sexual innuendos, but nothing that isn't encountered in every day life ANYWAY. The animation has moved in leaps and bounds since the first chunky shapes of the first movie, and the new technology is used to its fullest in creating colorful, spiky dinosaurs, furry creatures and the lush jungle of the underground world of the dinosaurs. The music is always cute, too, with old-fashioned sounding tunes and glittery instrumentals. I'd give this about two and a half stars, take the kids, but don't expect to be as entertained in Pixar's "Up."

Pan's Labyrinth (2006)

In the fascist Spain of 1944, the bookish young stepdaughter of a sadistic army officer escapes into an eerie but captivating fantasy world.

This is one of those rare films where every frame is soaked in beauty. It's nearly impossible to believe that the story is original, it seems like it was pulled right from the pages of some ancient fairy tale. Its Oscar win for Best Original Screenplay was deserved. The characters are either beautifully or terrifyingly drawn. The young heroine and her stepfather are exact opposites of each other in every way, where she is innocent, he is corrupt, where she is good, he is evil incarnate. There were so many aspects to the film, it was fascinating to see. It combines the history of Fascist Spain with eternal concepts found in fairy tales like good, evil and obedience. The soundtrack is tailored exactly to the movie's mood, and has some of the most haunting melodies I've ever heard. The movie is excellent, but not for everybody. My mother watched it with me and some of the images really disturbed her. The stepfather character's actions are repulsive, and some other people I know who watched it said he made them physically ill. All in all, the lines of good and evil are clearly drawn, and the ending is victorious. This is one of my favorite movies of all time.

Up (2009)

By tying thousands of balloon to his home, 78-year-old Carl Fredricksen sets out to fulfill his lifelong dream to see the wilds of South America. Right after lifting off, however, he learns he isn't alone on his journey, since Russell, a wilderness explorer 70 years his junior, has inadvertently become a stowaway on the trip.

I remember seeing the teaser for this months ago and thinking, "How can they do it? How can Pixar make a movie about a grumpy old man and balloons a hit?" They succeeded, in fact, they made one of their best movies. After the initial introduction to the movie, there's about a minute of no dialogue, just animation and music which describes the course of 40-odd years. It's brilliant. The next hour that follows is funny without trying. There's no unnatural gags or set-ups, just naturally humorous situations and conversations, which is perfect considering the movies' message of embracing the simple pleasures in life as the most significant. The voice work is excellent (my personal favorite is Dug the dog) and the soundtrack, though repetitive, fits perfectly. This is the kind of movie that proves animated films are just as credible as live-action, and, after seeing Bride Wars on cable the over night, much more credible. It's a story for those who have lived life and experienced its joys and pains. When I saw in theaters, there was a very young child in the audience, and I found it interesting her parents were enjoying the movie more than she (she got bored and starting singing to herself and chatting). "UP" is definitely one of Pixar's masterpieces.

Cthulhu (2007)

A homosexual Seattle history professor, drawn back to his estranged family on the Oregon coast to execute his late mother's estate, is reaquainted with his best friend from childhood, with whom he has a long-awaited tryst. Caught in an accelerating series of events, he discovers aspects of his father's New Age cult which take on a dangerous and apocalyptic significance.

This was a bizarre movie, but strangely fascinating. The plot is based on famous horror author H.P. Lovecraft's short story "The Shadow Over Innsmouth," which was written in 1926. Cthulhu has since then become a media icon of Pagan horror, present in other stories, films and video games. The story is interesting, but extremely incomplete and confusing. The ambiguous ending made me very angry; the movie had succeeded in getting me wrapped up in itself, and then completely slapped me in the face. I liked the eerie atmosphere; it would be a really good video game. It's an indie film, which I'm not especially "experienced" in, but still worth it to burn a couple hours on a Saturday night when nothing's on T.V.

Max Payne

Coming together to solve a series of murders in New York City are a DEA agent whose family was slain as part of a conspiracy and an assassin out to avenge her sister's death. The duo will be hunted by the police, the mob, and a ruthless corporation.

Saw this on Saturday instead of HSM3. YES!!!!!!! I was very relived.

I loved the cinematography of the movie, it was all carefully planned out and glossy and detailed. Very grungy, very dark, like the pages of a graphic novel, almost, which makes sense since the movie is based on a video game.

Having never played the game, I thought the story was engaging. The trailer is mysterious: I wasn't quite sure what was going on for the first half-hour, which is a good thing.

Acting not great, but they didn't pretend they were. They played their parts well enough, it really wasn't about them anyway.

A good movie to burn a Saturday night with. Better than wasting money on a Disney flick, that's for sure.