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Relatos salvajes (2014)
Six really great short films packaged together with the common theme of revenge!
This film is from Argentina and was nominated for the Oscar for Best Foreign Film. I am usually not a huge fan of Foreign Films, but this one is actually really good. The movie is essentially six short films played back to back, all with the common themes of revenge and distress. The fact that the stories are only connected by their theme would normally have annoyed me, but the stories are extremely good. After each story the viewer is not only enthralled by the climax, but is eager in anticipation for the next one. You find yourself asking how can the next one possibly top the previous, but it always does. The stories get longer and more detailed as they go along, which allows the viewer to get much more involved with much increased character development coming in the later ones.
The first story starts in an airport and a seemingly normal day. We see some people going about a normal trip through an airport. It is only once they on the plane and two passengers begin a pleasant conversation that the passengers realize that the plane they are on is anything, but a routine flight.
The second story takes place in a normal cheap looking restaurant. A terrible man from one of the waitress's past, walk in and sits down to eat. The waitress struggles with what do to, while the much older cook has some pretty clear ideas.
The first two stories are very short, so there is not a lot more I can say about them without giving the whole thing away though. They don't need to be longer though because they are very poignant and really interesting. The first one is the absolute perfect way to set up for the rest of the film. I didn't care, as much for the second one though, it was definitely my least favorite of the six.
I'm going to sound a little uncreative here, but the best way to describe the third tale is wild. It starts off with a man driving down a road, when he encounters something everyone encounters pretty much everyday: a driver in front of him or her who is driving slower. After much effort the man eventually gets around him and leaves him with a nasty insult (something probably everyone has done at some point). The story really makes you questions the parting insult, because we all do it with the rational of "oh it doesn't matter because I'll never see him again." In this story though the driver does see the man again, and it turns out he took the insult pretty hard. The two men essentially lose their minds as the return blow after blow to each other each one so much worse then the one before. This story was so enthralling for me because it starts off with such a normal situation and escalates out of control so quickly.
The fourth story was my favorite one in the whole film. It starts with a man, who is clearly having a bad day already, when his car gets wrongfully towed while he is picking up the cake for his son's birthday. He has to go pick it up and ends up missing the whole party. Our man, Simon, is very against society as a whole and demands retribution for his ordeal. Unfortunately he doesn't receive that at all. The towing company refuses to repay him, which leads to an anger filled tirade at the Argentinian equivalent of the DMV (basically what everyone wants to do, but doesn't actually do it). The tirade ends up getting put on the news and his wife decides to leave him because of it and his job fires him. A little while later while trying to start a new life for himself his car is wrongfully towed again. Simon decides its time to do something about it. All I will say is that his previous job was as a demolition expert. This story is just plain cool, you root for Simon the whole time, and probably wish you had the courage to yell and throw trashcans at the DMV.
The fifth story begins with a news report saying that there had been a hit and run of a pregnant woman. We shortly find out it was a drunken teenager, from an extremely wealthy family. The parents have no idea what to do, until the father decides that he can pay the gardener to tell the police it was he driving. It leads to a whole lot of issues. This story is a lot darker than the others, and you don't really care for any of the character, but it is still very entertaining.
The final story is the longest one and definitely the most messed up. We see a very happy wedding going on. The bride and groom are happy, but then the bride notices something weird, her husband is talking to a really attractive guest. Through a little investigating she realizes that her new husband had cheated on her. She absolutely loses her mind. The rest of the story is just nonstop craziness, but you can't look away because it is so good.
These stories are so good and so original. I truly have never anything like any of them. The stories do flow pretty well together because of their common themes. Even if you don't watch all the stories, if you completely miss out you will regret it.
9/10
Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
Excellent Film!
This is the sequel to the original Star Wars (1977) and is the best film in the entire saga. It brings back all of the things people loved about the original and added more action and more great characters. This film and the original or considered some of the best movies of all time, and while this film did not receive as much critical acclaim as the first, most fans of the Star Wars saga will agree that this one is the best.
The film begins in the rebel base on the ice planet Hoth. The whole Hoth sequence is my favorite of the whole series. We see our hero Luke Skywalker get attacked by a yeti like monster and have to use the force to escape. The battle with the Empire's At-Ats and the rebels is the coolest scene in the movie. The AT-ATs are giant walking machines that are almost impenetrable so Luke and the other rebel pilots have to come up with a way to stop them because their guns won't stop them. Luke devises a plan where they circle the legs with a towing line to trip them. It is a really really cool scene. The Empire does shut down the bases power though our heroes must flee.
Instead of joining Han, Chewy, and Leia, Luke goes to the Dagobah system because of a vision he received from the ghost of his former master Obi-Wan Kenobi. On Dagobah Luke meets Yoda. Yoda is one of the most iconic Star Wars characters. He is the most powerful Jedi warrior even though he is only about a foot tall and green. Yoda trains Luke to become the ultimate Jedi Warrior.
Meanwhile Han and the Millennium Falcon are being chased by the Empire through asteroid fields. They decide to go to Cloud City to enlist the help of Han's old friend Lando, Billy Dee Williams. It ends up being a trap and Darth Vader captures Han, Chewy, and Leia. Sensing that his friends are in trouble Luke abandons his training to go rescue them. The result is one of the most iconic endings to any film. Including perhaps the biggest twist in Cinema History up to this point. I won't say it here and spoil it, but it is so iconic you probably know about it even if you haven't seen the film.
This film is Star Wars at its best! I love all the movies, but this is the one where they really did it right. It has tons of awesome action, and really expands the Star Wars Universe. This is the kind of movie that I could watch at any time and would just as in to it!
10/10