Film reviews | Fifth about The Seventh

A Most Wanted Man

October 10, 2014 by Felipe Rosa

A Most Wanted Man: Anton Corbijn weaves this tale, even if there is a certain emotional distance in the final result. The film has not so much a plot as a sequence of events that serve as basis for a character study. The gallery of characters leans towards shades-of-grey, therefore more interesting to watch. Philip Seymour Hoffman has a great, nuanced performance; the whole cast is, indeed, solid. Beautifully crafted: well edited by Claire Simpson and shot by Benoît Delhomme (the handheld style is thematically […]

Categories: Film reviews • Tags: thriller

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Double Indemnity (1944)

October 4, 2014 by Felipe Rosa

Double Indemnity: Billy Wilder’s great movie starts from the basics: a seedy, engaging plot from James M. Cain’s head, enriched by the snappy dialogue of Raymond Chandler. Such dialogue calls for precise line reading, and the cast obliges. Barbara Stanwyck, Fred MacMurray and Edward G. Robinson are all great; Stanwyck gets the edge by playing such a great femme fatale; in fact, there’s just one character that is “virtuous”, but they are all well-written and great to watch. Elegantly done through and through. A masterpiece.

Categories: Film reviews • Tags: noir, top

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Gone Girl

October 2, 2014 by Felipe Rosa

Gone Girl: David Fincher’s methodical, detail-oriented filmmaking is probably the best way to tell this story that, more than most, depends not only on what is told, but also on the way it’s told. The plot doesn’t hide its pulpy origin (nothing wrong with that) and is fun to follow; furthermore, it touches many different issues that make it richer than a first look would suggest. Technically, the film is a beauty: Jeff Cronenweth’s camerawork is simple but precise, always spot […]

Categories: Film reviews • Tags: drama, thriller

Sin City: A Dame to Kill For

October 2, 2014 by Felipe Rosa

Sin City: A Dame to Kill For: Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez’s work is more of a charicature than a film; it’s a very profane and violent experience, but far from an interesting one. While its stylized visuals adhere to the original source, they are interesting for only a while. Which is more than can be said about the characters (with one notable exception) and storylines, truth be told. The cast, for the most part, is not given much to do; Joseph Gordon-Levitt […]

Categories: Film reviews • Tags: action, crime

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Beauty and the Beast (La Belle et la Bête – 2014)

October 1, 2014 by Felipe Rosa

Beauty and the Beast: Christophe Gans’ film tells an old, well-known story, making liberal use of visuals: the art direction, costume design, makeup and visual effects are all very rich and innovative. (It does, however, get excessively dark and desaturated at times.) The film portrays well the traditional fairy-tale sense of wonder and terror; however, there is certain coldness when dealing with the love story, the most important of the three aspects. Vincent Cassel is not given much to do, but Léa Seydoux […]

Categories: Film reviews • Tags: fantasy

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What If (2013)

September 27, 2014 by Felipe Rosa

What If: a romantic comedy with a somewhat run-of-the-mill story, Michael Dowse’s film is nevertheless made more interesting and pleasurable by the smart dialogue (if at times a little bit too calculated to be cute) and charming pair of characters. Zoe Kazan and Daniel Radcliffe (despite his stardom) have a common-people quality to them; he is awkward, but the role calls for it. The occasional slapstick is out-of-place.

Categories: Film reviews • Tags: romantic comedy

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The Equalizer (2013)

September 26, 2014 by Felipe Rosa

The Equalizer: Antoine Fuqua’s film goes with a vigilante story that has been told countless times before; constant repetition, however, doesn’t make it particularly interesting or engaging. One distinguishing factor is Denzel Washington, as he is a charming and strong presence, even when the character he plays is a cypher such as this one. Another one is how enamored the film is with needless graphic violence; it’s tiring. The action scenes, while stylishly done, are repetitive, and more often than not, their […]

Categories: Film reviews • Tags: action

The Immigrant (2013)

September 20, 2014 by Felipe Rosa

The Immigrant: this film is impressed by James Gray with ponderous, careful pace, which allows the melancholic mood to percolate. It’s a sad, touching story; the characters are interesting, complex. Marion Cotillard and Joaquin Phoenix play with a great touch of humanity, escaping from clichés given the many shades of grey. Darius Khondji works the light beautifully, adding immensely to the mood and sense of time. This film is not an easy to digest journey, but a deserving one nevertheless.

Categories: Film reviews • Tags: drama

L.A. Confidential

September 17, 2014 by Felipe Rosa

L.A. Confidential: Curtis Hanson weaves a great tale; the writing here is superb, telling a plot that is far from straightforward, thematically rich and full to the brim with complex, interesting characters. The cast clearly appreciates and responds with uniformly great, layered performances; the stand-outs are Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce and James Cromwell, but every other name could be here and it would be equally fair. Very carefully done, displaying great art direction and costume design; Dante Spinotti’s camerawork is classic, clean, […]

Categories: Film reviews • Tags: noir, top

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