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sunnysusan12
Reviews
The Devil Wears Prada (2006)
Funny chick flick
This was a very enjoyable watch. Meryl Streep has long been one of my favorite actresses and she did not disappoint in this role. Indeed, I can only imagine what a fun time she must have had revving herself up to be the biggest b*tch imaginable every day for work.
While Anne Hathaway is fast becoming a favorite with me, it was strange to see her living with her boyfriend - the film didn't sell their being a couple or spend much time on their relationship from the get-go and I didn't really buy into it much. I don't know that the movie needed to explore that relationship more but frankly, for the amount of time spent on developing that side of things, they could have been shown as two people dating in separate cities.
Of course, part of the movie takes place in Paris, so that was lovely, lovely. As far as anything else goes, do yourself a favor and watch the gag reel. I always find it interesting to see the deleted scenes and listen to the director's commentary on them but the commentary on the full film was a bit blah and I didn't bother going through it all.
The Snow Queen (2005)
Diverting to children, disappointing to adults
I really wanted to like this movie, especially when I saw that Patrick Stewart was in the cast as the voice of the raven since I'm a long-time Patrick Stewart fan. I realize I'm a snob when it comes to "The Snow Queen." This was one of my all-time favorite children's stories. I also realize that anytime you read a story and create your own image of things, a movie will have a hard time living up to your creation. That being said, I really enjoyed "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe" but, alas, I cannot say the same for this movie.
The CG effects were cool but distractingly obvious. It was sort of like watching somebody's first attempt at a video production using CG. Gerda's mother was played by an actress (Juliet Stevenson) I had seen before but couldn't remember where. To give a gauge as to how emotionally engaging the movie was, I spent most of the movie trying to figure out where I had seen her before.
I would say that, for young children not familiar with the original story, this would be a good 'pop it in the VCR for an hour so I can get some cleaning done' movie. But if it wins any awards, I'd be shocked.
Walk Don't Run (1966)
Sometimes it's best to just stick with the original...
While this re-make of the 1943 film "The More the Merrier" starred my favorite heart-throb Cary Grant in his final screen role, I have to say that his performance in said movie was about the only thing that made it an enjoyable watch. One viewing was enough. It was too...60's formulaic romantic comedy movie-style...Exceedingly dated. It was interesting to see the setting of the 1964 Tokyo Olympics and it was a delightful surprise to see George Takei unexpectedly in a small role, but aside from some amusing acrobatics on Grant's part & some cute scenes of his interactions with a pair of local kids, catch it on late-night re-runs if you like but I wouldn't shell out money to see it.
The More the Merrier (1943)
They don't make them like this anymore.
Through a series of comic misadventures brought on by a very humorously devious Charles Coburn, Jean Arthur ends up sharing her apartment with Coburn & Joel McCrae in Washington D.C. during a WW2 housing shortage. One of a suite of major movie hits (along with "Woman of the Year" & my all-time favorite starring Cary Grant & Jean Arthur, "Talk of the Town") directed by George Stevens before he joined the U.S. Army and headed a combat motion picture unit during WW2. It is a wonderful, truly wonderful, piece of work. If you enjoy romantic comedies, do yourself a favor and rent it. The film was nominated for several Academy Awards, including Best Actress for Jean Arthur (although she didn't end up winning that year) and Best Supporting Actor for Charles Coburn, who very much deserved the statue he received for this picture. What a delight. Just a pure delight.
Bend It Like Beckham (2002)
Nice coming of age story with some cute moments.
This was an enjoyable film to watch but nothing I feel compelled to add to my collection. It's certainly not the toe-tapper that director Gurinder Chadra's "Bride & Prejudice" is, but then I may be biased since I am really quite averse to most sports-oriented/coming of age films to begin with.
The most enjoyable portions for me were: 1. Seeing the girls' skills with the exception of Parminder, Keira Knightley & Shaznay Lewis, the rest of the girls were serious players - & even the actresses did a great job on the field. 2. Juliet Stevenson as Keira's mum hysterical. Anupam Kher as Parminder's father - heartwarming & believable. Not that the rest weren't believable in their roles but many of them seemed a bit over the top/stereotypical/flat to me. 3. Seeing the introduction of Indian Sikh culture as expressed in a second-generation family facing modern realities in England. Just seeing this on screen is important, IMHO.
Being as this is near the beginning of Gurinder's directing career, the film is still a bit disjointed. Much of the movie tugs away from the main story to seem more like her personal platform to put a spin on her personal history, introduce her own culture to a new audience, show that people (regardless of culture) really aren't that different, & haul in her relatives to have fun than a contribution to the overall whole. For example, the fight scene at the wedding didn't contribute anything to the storyline & really should have been edited out.
On the other hand, Gurinder's tendency to give the actors a long leash ended up bringing in the parallels between the discrimination Parminder's character faced as an Indian & Sikh & those her coach must have faced as an Irishman in England as well as a more personal side of Parminder as she explains how she ended up with the horrific RL burn on her thigh which adds depth to her character and draws the viewer closer to the actress and overall story.
It was fun to see that the actors, crew & Gurinder's family had fun on the project but it's not a film I feel overly compelled to watch again.
50 First Dates (2004)
Enjoyable & fun but not Academy Award winning material. Good for a rainy Sunday afternoon.
To twist the immortal words of Marlon Brando, "This coulda been a contenda..."
I enjoyed this film a lot for what it was. It's fun & works, mostly because of the chemistry between Sandler & Barrymore. It's too bad Sandler's propensity for juvenile potty humor kept it from being an Oscar-winning classic.
Wonderful things about this movie? 1. The music totally, totally rocks. I sooo need this soundtrack. 2. The Hawaiian scenery & marine wildlife are gorgeous. 3. The vast majority of the principal actors are spot on with their performances, helping draw the audience into the story & setting. Drew Barrymore amazing, wonderful, heartwarming performance. Sean Astin hilarious. Rob Schneider surprisingly believable. 4. The storyline/movie premise gets an A++. Not only was it original, but it dealt with Traumatic Brain Injury in a respectful way without magic Hollywood fixes.
Things that will keep me from buying this movie? 1. Vomiting animals as humor 2. Unnecessary crude language/humor 3. Rob Schneider's channeling of Cheech & Chong. The part could have been so much more had he not turned it into a stereotype. 5. The fact that Adam Sandler while believable as an intelligent man who really cared for Drew's character was completely unbelievable as a veterinarian. I mean, c'mon...Sandler going through medical school??? There's just no way on God's green earth that would happen & he would retain the juvenile sense of humor he exhibits throughout the film. Not to say that Sandler's interpretation of the role isn't amusing/heartwarming, etc. but I'm sorry, I just don't buy him as a vet. Part of the zoo cleaning crew? Now that, I would have bought.
All in all I'd say that this was sort of like watching a bunch of friends who enjoyed one another do their own silly spin-off of a movie they liked. I can only hope that a less adolescent re-make is made someday because, in the right hands, this script could be a masterpiece.