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The Stunt Man, a review by Achim

The Stunt Man (1980/United States) Severin Films (United States) Director: Richard Rush Writing: Lawrence B. Marcus (Screenwriter), Richard Rush (Writer), Paul Brodeur (Original Material By) Length: 131 min. Video: Widescreen 1.85:1 Audio: English: DTS-HD Master Audio: 5.1, English: Dolby Digital: 2-Channel Stereo, Commentary: Dolby Digital: 2-Channel Stereo Subtitles:

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Stars:
Peter O'Toole as Eli Cross
Steve Railsback as Cameron
Barbara Hershey as Nina Franklin
Allan Goorwitz as Sam
Alex Rocco as Jake

Plot:Extras:

• Audio Commentary
• Feature Trailers
• Deleted Scenes
• Featurettes
• Interviews

Not knowing why the young veteran is on the run (one of the funniest things in the movie when we find out later on) gives him a mysterious edge, as we don't know how dangerous he just might be. The director has his own agenda why he protects the young veteran from the police. The lead actress of the movie being filmed creates a triangle among those three, that will slowly but steadily get out of control. There is comedy, action and romance and the director balances all elements competently throughout; I only found one scene misjudged (when the young veteran tells the lady he loves why the police is after him). The ending lacks a bit of closure for some of the plot lines, but the open endedness is rather typical for the time the film was made in.

Good acting, Peter O'Toole gives a particularly great performance (hence the Oscar nomination) although Steve Railsback seems to struggle occasionally, an interesting story and occasionally inventive camera work make this a pleasant watch.

Rating:

(From The Movies from Within My Lifetime on July 16th, 2011)

Yi Yi, a review by Achim

Title: Yi Yi
Year: 2000
Director: Edward Yang
Rating: NR
Length: 173 Min.
Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85:1
Audio: Mandarin: Dolby Digital: 2-Channel Stereo, Commentary: Dolby Digital: 2-Channel Stereo
Subtitles: English

Stars:
Nien-Jen Wu
Elaine Jin
Issei Ogata
Kelly Lee
Jonathan Chang

Plot:
With the runaway international acclaim of this film, Taiwanese director Edward Yang could no longer be called Asian cinema's best-kept secret. 'Yi Yi' swiftly follows a middle-class family in Taipei over the course of one year, beginning with a wedding and ending with a funeral. Whether chronicling middle-aged father NJ's tenuous flirtations with an old flame or precocious young son Yang-Yang's attempts at capturing reality with his beloved camera, Yang imbues every gorgeous frame with a deft, humane clarity. Warm, sprawling, and dazzling, this intimate epic is one of the undisputed masterworks of the new century.

Extras:
Scene Access
Audio Commentary
Feature Trailers
Featurettes
Production Notes

Hmmm, the synopsis above from Criterion really says it all. The film follows the family and a neighbor through "every day life". We see the father dealing with his business partners, who don't have the same ethics as him, and his fist love who suddenly appeared. The wife is troubled with her mother's coma and the can't cope. The teenage daughter Ying-Ting deals with relationship issues (not just her own). The 8-year old son Yang-Yang is being bullied in school and discovers the hard ships of life. We also get glimpses of the father's brothers life, the neighbors (a divorced mother with her daughter, friend of Ting-Ting).

Describing the story of the film almost does it a dis-service. It is not about what happens, but about the people and how it affects them. We, the audience, are watching this family's every-day life, which is often emphasized by the framing of the shots; through a window (which reflects the street life at the same time) or door way so that we keep a distance to the people we observe. I don't recall any or at least not many close-ups in this film. Everything is carefully framed, mostly with static shots, again emphasizing the nature of us looking into these peoples life. The camera often lingers on the subjects for a long time, given us chance to see what is going on in their minds, almost to the extend that some shots look like still photographies.

It's all in the details, how little things make an impact later on or on other people. Like Yang-Yang, the eight year old taking pictures of the back of the heads of the people around him. The father's past being reflected by his daughter's actions. Or the japanese business partner providing wise insightful comparisons.

Acting is very good throughout the cast.

If you generally enjoy ensemble films like those of Paul Thomas Anderson (Magnolia) or Robert Altman (Short Cuts) I strongly recommend to give this one a try. The Criterion Collection has taken good care and provides a good looking transfer (I noticed a few drop outs on the audio) and a few extras (short featurette, comentary)



(From Achim's entirely random reviews on July 18th, 2010)

My PILOT Marathon, a review by Rich

Title: Fat Friends: Series One

Certificate:15
Year:2000


Plot:Series 1 of ITV1's BAFTA nominated comedy drama Fat Friends has finally arrived on DVD.

Meet Betty, Kelly, Lauren, Alan, Val, Jamie, Aysha and Joan. They are all shapes and sizes and come from all walks of life but there's something which unites them all - a constant struggle with their weight. Every week, the group meets up at 'Superslimmers' for the all-important weigh-in. Will it be euphoria at the loss of a couple of pounds - or desperation when the scales reveal that elusive target weight is slipping further away?

Written by Kay Mellor (Girls' Night, Playing the Field, Band of Gold) and starring Alison Steadman (Abigail's Party, Shirley Valentine), Gaynor Faye (Coronation Street), Josie Lawrence (Whose Line Is It Anyway?) and Janet Dibley (Eastenders).

1 Love Me Slender


My Review:
Family friendly comedy, focussing on the current fascination of dieting and fat clubs, with the obvious jokes associated with such.
Some good laugh out loud moments, but generally not enough to inspire immediate further viewing of the series nor anything but an average rating.
Interesting to see Ruth Jones and James Corden (writers and stars of Gavin & Stacey) in early roles. plus Alison Steadman who plays Gavins mum.
 



(From My PILOT Marathon on September 28th, 2009)