by Felipe Rosa
Castello Cavalcanti: my appreciation for Wes Anderson’s quirky, very particular and recognizable films is well-documented here. This short, recently released, has done nothing but whet my palate for his upcoming feature, The Grand Budapest Hotel.
Categories: Non-Reviews • Tags: short
by Felipe Rosa
Thor: The Dark World: a coherent story in films of this genre is almost a luxury (even thought it, of course, can happen), but perhaps this time the writers went too far in that regard. They have, however, rightfully concluded that the titular character (however well-played by Chris Hemsworth, for what it is) isn’t interesting enough by itself; it is, by the other hand, a good straight man for other characters (that’s why it fits so well in The Avengers). […]
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: action, super hero
by Felipe Rosa
12 Years a Slave: a brutal experience, as a realistic film about the slavery needs to be. (One has to wonder if, and why, modern audiences need to be reminded of the cruelty of such obviously evil institution, but I digress.) The story is more emotional than the film, but probably it’s just as well, as it is quite powerful without the need of additional accentuating. Beautifully directed by Steve McQueen, from the superb acting by the whole cast (but […]
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: biopic / historic, drama
by Felipe Rosa
Moonrise Kingdom: a revisit confirms that the cute, charming story told by this film is its main asset, along with the central pair. Visually, the film is loaded with balanced, well-manicured frames. In other words, this is very clearly a Wes Anderson film: a universe of great precision, where characteristics (both for the world and the characters that inhabit it) are well-defined but the displayed emotions are small, subdued. The cold, distant tone and the very particular aesthetics are an […]
Categories: Film reviews, Revisit • Tags: comedy, drama, romance
by Felipe Rosa
The Counselor: gloomy film that, on paper, seems to be great fun. The reality is different, as it’s as drab as it can be. The main culprit is the writing, where all characters are both unappealing and uninteresting, always a bad combination; the great-looking cast can do very little with the material they are given. The dialogue, pretentious and monotonous, doesn’t at all help matters, and it’s treated with too much respect.
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: crime
by Felipe Rosa
All is Lost: the story told here could hardly be much simpler, or more powerful. The film would not be as effective, however, if not for Robert Redford’s commanding presence. His acting isn’t showy, but his quiet confidence tells a lot about the character (We learn what we need to learn, and not more). The cinematography, both underwater and above water, is great (yet another example on how to use a handheld camera effectively and justifiably). The sound design, along […]
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: drama
by Felipe Rosa
Captain Phillips: very strong, tense thriller; very efficiently told by Paul Greengrass, who as usual makes great use of handheld camera (Barry Ackroyd is one of the best in the business) and taut editing to keep the suspense up. Most importantly, the acting by Tom Hanks is superb, reaching high emotional notes in a few scenes; Barkhad Abdi also is able to create a very good, believable character (but the rest of his crew doesn’t have so much luck). Here is […]
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: biopic / historic, drama, thriller
by Felipe Rosa
Gravity: a revisit to this film showed how enthralling an experience this film is. In general, particularly when the second view is so close to the first one, the mind takes precedence over the heart and the attention is on the technical aspects instead of the story. However, while still absolutely in awe of the visual choices, the story was even more gripping and the anxiety level, higher. The banter, which at first seemed the weak spot of the film, […]
Categories: Film reviews, Revisit • Tags: drama, sci fi, top
by Felipe Rosa
Cabaret: while the narrative structure of this film is somewhat uneven (mostly because the musical interludes are used to comment, not advance the story), the story itself and the setting are so interesting that they make up for it. Liza Minnelli gives life to a great character, while Michael York was somewhat bland (even thought the character somewhat required it). The songs are all beautifully executed, but also somewhat uneven: a few are memorable, a few are readily forgettable. The […]
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: drama, musical
Fifth about The Seventh