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The Doors: Live at the Hollywood Bowl (1987)
Video doesn't always match audio
I like The Doors, and there was a lot of good concert footage, and concerts audio to enjoy here. However there are places where the audio does not match the video. This is not pure footage of a concert in 68. This footage has been altered to create the illusion of a concert in 68. I noticed this especially in the rendition of "light my fire". There are parts where it looks like a lip-synching contest.
Órbita 9 (2017)
Very good movie.
Oriber 9 is a very well-done science fiction/romance film. I don't know how other reviewers can justify their low reviews. Yes, it's in Spanish, with subtitles. That shouldn't be considered a negative. It does have 1) A thought-provoking plot. 2) Good actors and writing 3) Good cinematography . . . . and a beautiful lead actress. Watch it (on Netflix) and enjoy.
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (2017)
Just Wonderful.
This show is terrific. The stand-up is truly funny and the inter-personal relationships ring true. The 1950's 'look and feel' is, to the best of my somewhat young (59-yr-old) recollection, spot on. There are a lot of Jewish stereotypes in the show, but they're very, very funny to me.
Last, and definitely not least, I absolutely love Rachel Brosnahan. For those who don't remember, she was 'Rachel Posner' in House of Cards, and that performance was more than poignant. Here, we can throw away most of the pathos, and just enjoy a vibrant, funny, smart, beautiful young actress.
What Happened to Monday (2017)
Excellent Scifi Action movie
My first reaction: Arnold's 'Total Recall' meets Dayworld (by Philip José Farmer).
This movie has the pace and scifi feel of the best Arnold Schwarzenegger movies of the 90's. It's a Dystopian World movie where the streets are clean and the government is evil.
Noomi Rapace is marvelous as seven very different sisters. I loved her in the original, subtitled 'Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,' and I loved her just as much in this movie. (She's not an native English speaking actress, but nevertheless, has NO ACCENT at all.) Granted, as other reviewers have said, nothing is mindblowingly different from other futuristic, dystopian film worlds, but it's done very well.
And it's a Netflix movie! Kudos to them!
His Double Life (1933)
Wonderful Old Movie
This is a terrific movie . . . charming, sweet and funny. Roland Young is deadpan hilarious and Lillian Gish is enchanting. As far as I'm concerned, it's a 'must-see'.
The movie has three serious themes: 1) Rich vs. Poor. The 'upper class' are very rude to Priam Farrell when they think he's the butler. 2) The meaning of 'Art'. Art critics love 'Farrell's work, except for those who aren't convinced that the work is genuine. Farrel himself doesn't care what the critics say at all. He has his own opinion of his art and leads us to believe that's the only opinion that matters.
3) Love & Marriage. 'Alice' doesn't care if he's Farrel or not. She loves him. She thinks his paintings are nice, but irrelevant to the feelings she has for her husband. They both take 'love' and 'life' a day at a time.
Corsair (1931)
A morals time-warp.
(Contains spoiler info) Definitely not a 21st century movie. The female lead is out to catch a man any way she can. Her men are either overtly dominant and aggressive to her, in a way that no (few) modern women would accept, or else they are entirely passive and destined to be passed over.
The male lead becomes a pirate, which is OK with the film's audience because he's stealing from a 'bad guy'. One of his men gets killed when the screen villain double-crosses him, and nary a word is said about it.
Drunks are 'funny.' No one goes to AA :) .
I enjoyed the movie, but it's a fantasy that no modern audience would accept.
Surveillance (2008)
Violence for the Sake of Violence
I enjoyed the movie, but it was ultimately violent trash. It has no message or meaning, whatsoever (I think it gave the Lynch girl some practice in directing movies.) Bloody . . . Gratuitous violence. Gratuitous nastiness.
Spoiler Alert: The two cops are comically, unbelievably corrupt. Over half the movie is devoted to showing how corrupt they are, but their actions are irrelevant to the main plot. Their professional behavior doesn't directly relate to the killings. It's not clear what they gain out of their harassment of speeders. I'm not sure if they steal the speeder's money or just do it for the thrill. Are we supposed to believe that no one has ever complained about them?
Super Spoiler: Ormand and Pullman turn out to be the killers. They stole IDs and assumed the identities of FBI agents they had killed. We have to assume that the FBI badges didn't have picture IDs. At least, Bill Pullman was a believable psychopath (by the end of the film). Julia Ormand was far more believable as an FBI agent.
Bottom Line: It was worth watching because Jennifer Lynch has some of David's Lynch's ability to create tension and an unsettling atmosphere, but it's no cinema classic!