by Felipe Rosa
Boudu Saved From Drowning: to put it kindly, this film has not aged well. The acting, in particular the so lauded Michel Simon, sounds histrionic and manneristic. The social and humanistic aspects appear to be dated as well; there doesn’t seem to be enough for a feature here, sadly.
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: drama
by Felipe Rosa
The Descendants: beautiful movie, with amazing quiet moments that work so well. It’s a great drama that still remains funny at times, because that’s how life is. Acting is top-notch pretty much accross the board; no surprise with George Clooney, but Shailene Woodley is quite a find as well.
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: comedy, drama
by Felipe Rosa
J. Edgar: compelling, rich, delicate but ultimately the ponderous pace weights. It can’t be denied, however, the quality of the writing here: the structure, simplifying the events of 50 years by using very few of them, allow for a very deep, moving and humane view of the character. Leonardo DiCaprio gives yet another wonderful performance, but that’s to be expected given his own and Clint Eastwood’s pedigree. His score is again a perfect match for the movie.
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: biopic / historic
by Felipe Rosa
Puss in Boots: a typical DWA film will be well done and funny, a pleasure to sit through but empty and somewhat heartless, therefore easily forgettable. This one has the usual drawbacks, but not the usual strong points. It’s still quite well done, and the voice acting is good enough, but the humor is flat and the whole thing is almost boring.
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: adventure, animation, fantasy
by Felipe Rosa
Anonymous: heavyhanded film (to be expected from someone who destroyed the world 4 or 5 times in a row). It plays more the third movie in the Kapur trilogy then something about Shakespeare, but those were somewhat heavyhanded in their own right. The redeeming factors are the words of the Bard and Vanessa Redgrave.
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: drama
by Felipe Rosa
Margin Call: interesting case of a movie that alternates between moments of great tension and empty amateurism. What it does right, for me personally, is to treat the angst of the industry it portrays with propriety (the bridge speech resonates). It’s also courageous for not taking sides as one would expect. Great cast, more efficient because of the softness of the tone.
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: drama
by Felipe Rosa
The Rum Diary: the main issue of this film is that it fails to find the proper balance between the eccentricities of the setting and the story it’s trying to tell. As a result, it feels overlong and unfocused. Also, the voice of the main character is not well-defined enough.
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: comedy, drama
by Felipe Rosa
In Time: the smart concept deserved a better movie. The low-tech, retro sci-fi is pleasant enough, but the story devolves into the usual “many oppressed by few” theme that has been done time and time again. Additionally, the film takes itself way too seriously, without any humor whatsoever: it’s hard to believe that no one would enjoy themselves, even in such a bleak world.
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: sci fi
by Felipe Rosa
OSS 117: Lost in Rio: not as funny as the previous installment of the series. Not so much for sticking to the formula, but rather for some slow spells here and there that escape from it. Jean Dujardin remains great in his portrait of the arrogant nincompoop. See also: OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies
Categories: Film reviews • Tags: comedy
Fifth about The Seventh