The Ten Commandments - (DeMille;1956;USA) - ****
A Hebrew raised as an Egyptian carries out God's will to free the Hebrews from slavery.
Definately beats Spartacus as an epic. DeMille seems to know just how to make an epic and I hope to see more of him. This is the best Biblical film I have seen and its hard to find anything wrong with it. Great music, great cast, great director. Charlton Heston gives a great performance as Moses and the cast carries the film perfectly as well. Yul Brynner is perfect as the villian and gives off a good job as well. The special effects were great for their time and although dated are still superb. A classic film that could be enjoyed by anyone, religious or not. Edward G. Robinson was good but I like him better in Double Indemnity. Did anyone see H.B. Warner? This was his last speaking role. I also loved Vincent Price and John Carradine in their roles. A classic with just about everything a film should have. The way they showed God make the tablets was excellent.

Vercetti -

Does the DVD have any extras worthwhile? I have the movie on VHS, but I'd consider buying the DVD if the extras are good.

The one I have is the hsitty firsto ne with three trailers. Both look similar so watch out, the SE has a painted stone border. An SE was released that has...

Commentary by author/historian Katherine Orrison

New 6-part documentary

Photo gallery

Trailers
---------
From what I heard, this is the DVD where Heston revealed he was the voice for God mixed in with other sound effects.

Well I just got done watching The Ten Commandments. It was great, no doubt about it. A little long with some slow parts, but still a great movie. Charlton Heston, Yul Brynner and Anne Baxter were all very good in their respective roles. As DV said "The way they showed God make the tablets was excellent." I couldn't agree more. I would like to watch it again because I couldn't hear about a forth of the movie with the noise downstairs & my roomates, but from what I got it was great (just a little slow and I was getting tired of lying down).

Meet the Fockers (1st Time)
2004, Roach, US
Greg's in-laws-to-be take a trip to meet his parents on the run up to the wedding.
Watchable and entirely forgettable, this struggles to provide new jokes for two hours straight; Hoffman and Streisand liven things up, but do little to compensate for a succession of crude jokes on the connotations surrounding a suggestive surname.

Viridiana *** (1st Time)
1961, Buñuel, Spa
An altruistic nun decides to give beggars shelter in her dead uncle's house, but they turn against her.
A black satire on all things religious; always compelling viewing, and, at the time, understandably offensive in its bitter portrayal of, in particular, the Last Supper.

Mick

Unforgiven - (Eastwood;1992;USA) - ****
After a prostitute is slashed in the face, they hire a reformed gunslinger who's new lifestyle clashes with his old ways as he takes on the job.
Better after seeing Million Dollar Baby and Mystic River this time around. Even in the slower parts the cinematopgraphy makes up heavily. A western that is both gritty and beautiful at times. Great performances from Eastwood, Freeman, and Hackman. Richard Harris is also very good as the minor character English Bob. Usually I find circular stories to be cliche, but in this instance it works well. An excellent western that is truly one of Eastwood's best, and one of the best westerns ever. A real gem, maybe a little overrated by some, but still excellent.
#18

"I've killed women and children. I've killed everything that walks or crawls at one time or another. And I'm here to kill you..."

Just finished watching the first special feature on The Fellowship of the Ring. It was titled J.R.R. Tolkien - Creator of Middler-Earth. Only about 20+ minutes or so but interesting because I never really knew a lot about the man. I'm looking forward to watching all of the special features (if only I could find the time)

Damn, I'm gonna be watching six hours of film on Saturday in a row. Welles' "The Lady From Shanghai," followed by Hawks' "The Big Sleep," and finally my third or fourth viewing of "Double Indemnity." Kickass Saturday. Thug, didn't you say "Lady From Shanghai" was mediocre?

EDIT: Meh, TLFS is also playing on Sunday so I might skip it and see that on Sunday with "The Lost Weekend."

I'm off to rewatch "Five Easy Pices" later.

Five Easy Pieces - (Rafelson;1970;USA) - ****
A forsaking oil rigger discovers his father is ill and returns with his devout girlfriend to the life he ran away from.
Jack Nicholson gives off one of his greatest performances as Robert Dupea, who gave up his life as a pianist in his upper class family to go on a road to nothing. The piano music is great for the film and has several great supporting actors including Karen Black, Lois Smith, Susan Anspach, and Ralph Waite. From the great opening playing "Stand By Your Man" to the end scenes that are so true to the character, especially the talks with Catherine and his father. This is a highly underrated film that deserves much more praise. The characters are shown as real as they can be, with no sugar coating most films have to make people likable. Nicholson is truly one of my favorite actors. This makes me wanna rewatch "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest."
#31

"I move around a lot, not because I'm looking for anything really, but 'cause I'm getting away from things that get bad if I stay."

Man am I tired, but I did get to watch a lot of the special features on disc 3 of The Fellowship of the Ring. So far the stuff's not too bad, and most of the material is broken up into 20 minute incraments. But the last one ran over 40 minutes and I decided that was a good place to stop because, as I said before, I am tired. Plus I gotta pack my stuff up to leave for my spring break tomorrow

Irishman
What year was your JFK DVD released? I don't see those special features offered in my version. I was home sick yesterday and thought I'd watch the deleted stuff, but nothing was there. Just curious.

Finally saw Million Dollar Baby --- WOW. I don't get all the political hoopla.. it is a terrific story.

Also I must say I thought the performance in Ray was wayyyy overrated, and as for the Best Supporting Actress in The Aviator....I don't get it. FOr me her awful impersonation of Hepburn ruined an otherwise decent picture.

Sunset Blvd. - (Wilder;1950;USA) - ****
A corpse in a pool tells his story of how he met and worked with the delusional former silent film star Norma Desmond, a job which begins to bind his life more and more.
A true masterwork that was not only bold for its time but is also very compelling. Gloria Swanson returns to the screen as the silent film star Norma Desmond. An excellent psychological drama that has a great narrative for its time although today it would be overused. This is without a doubt one of the greatest films ever, wonderfully portraying the dark side of Hollywood. A classic film that has stood the test of time and always packs an impact even today. Great performances from William Holden, Gloria Swanson, Erich von Stroheim, and a wonderful cast with several cameos from C.B DeMille to Buster Keaton. My MFA review will be on late tonight.
#21

Funny, how gentle people get with you once you're dead.

Ladder 49 - (Russell;2004;USA) - ***
A firefighter is trapped on the 12th floor of a burning building. As his team desperately tries to rescue him, he recollects how he got to where he is, from his day as a rookie through his marriage and the dangers of his job.
A film that adds to its characters what most movies lack. This could've easily been an average action movie or a melodramatic mess, but it proves very good. The characters are given depth, such as Jack's wife. Their relationship is realistic, as well as the relationship between the firefighters. Even the narrative, which in this day and age could be less then creative is used for the right reasons. Why he is flashingback has meaning, not just a tool to catch the audience in the film's grasp. Very good performances by Phoenix, Travolta, and a cast of memorable characters that are convincing, not cardboard cut-outs. One of the better things is the fact that the film doesn't try to make the characters look like action heroes, but true heroes who risk their lives for others.

Eastwood on Eastwood - (1997) - ***1/2
Directed/Written By: Richard Schickel
Narrated By: John Cusack
Autobiography of Clint Eastwood up to his movie "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil."
A great documentary on the life of Clint Eastwood with an equally great narration by Cusack. The major problem I had with it is the fact several films were skipped in showing his career. Eastwood talks of what attracted him to roles he liked and what roles he thought were dull, such as his distaste for the shoot-em-up movie he starred in "Where Eagles Dare." A great documentary for Eastwood fans.

Los Amantes del Circulo Polar/Lovers of the Arctic Circle *** (1st Time)
1998, Medem, Sp/Fr
Two young people meet in school by coincidence, and become lifelong lovers, before they are separated and struggle to find one another again.
Exceedingly clever film which utilises, and perhaps makes fun of, a recurring pivotal moment in mainstream romances: the coincidence. Each scene is based around one of some sort, and the circular narrative consumes its audience like a lyrical poem whose only depth is deceptively on the surface.

Mick

Irishman
What year was your JFK DVD released? I don't see those special features offered in my version. I was home sick yesterday and thought I'd watch the deleted stuff, but nothing was there. Just curious. [/b][/quote]Mine is the 2 disc special edition. I think it was released in either 2002 or 2003. As for me, I started watch the Raging Bull special features and it's pretty interesting. I had no idea that Marty didn't even want to do the movie and that De Niro talked him into it. Has anyone else seen them? Pesci looks old in his interviews! Tonight I also plan on watching Once Upon A Time In America. I've only seen the first hour of it. I was disappointed because I thought it was about Italians and not Jewish kids in New York so I lost interest (plus I felt it started off slow) and I saved myself 3 hours.

Enjoy, "Once...in America" is one of the best films ever and Sergio Leone's masterpiece.

Goddamn, I missed Lady From Shanghai because of dinner and forgot about Big Sleep until about a half an hour after it began.

I just tuned in to "Minority Report" with Tom Cruise. It looks pretty good, but I missed the first hour of it. You guys think it's a good movie???


TIS

Double Indemnity - (Wilder;1944;USA) - ****
An insurance agent is seduced into murdering a woman's rich husband for insurance money.
The greatest Film-Noir ever made. Wilder is definately one of my favorite directors, especially in dialogue. This is my third or fourth view and it doesn't get old. The screenplay is also written by popular Noir writer Raymond Chandler. MacMurray and Stanwyck are both great in their roles, but IMO the acting glow comes from Edward G. Robinson as the clever insurance worker. The music is also very good in keeping with the film's pacing, tense in all the right moments. A true classic among the 40's. It's a shame the DVD is coming out two years from now.
#15

Unless you buy it from China, like I did.

Its a great movie!!!

Meh, I don't have one of those all region players. Those goddamn Brits are getting it this year though. :p

We Were Soldiers (mel gibson) I liked it thought it was pretty good

The Lost Weekend - (Wilder;1945;USA) - ****
A writer with a horrible alcohol problem struggles with finding something to drink over the weekend his brother and girlfriend are away from him with his limited money, and slips further into madness.
Wilder's third best film, and an excellent script. Ray Milland gives a riveting performance as the alcoholic protagonist. The narrative is great, straightforward with a few flashbacks that create wonderful character development. The film strongest point is showing the depravity of alcoholism making us feel sympathetic for the character while at other times making us dislike him. As for the supporting cast, Jane Wyman gave a good performance but I liked Phillip Terry's job as the brother. One thing I loved right away was the ghoulish score to go with the cravings and degenerations of the protagonist.
#33

Unforgiven **** (3rd Time)
1992, Eastwood, US
A widower and father returns to his brutal killing ways in order to collect a bounty to provide for his children.
Gritty, complex revitalisation of the Western, drawing upon and putting to rest the myths of masculinity and tough-guy reputations; the acting is marvellous.

Mick

I didn't really like it that much. I mean, I started to get into it and it wasn't horrible at all. I did enjoy it, but from what I heard from other members on the board was that it was this great movie and I just think it didn't live up to it. Plus, I was confused with the last 20 mins of the movie!

Tonight I just watched Independent Film Channel's " A Decade Under the Influence " -- a documentary exploring American cinema of the 1970's.

It was pretty interesting, and you'll hear from Coppola and Scorsese plenty, among many other classic directors. Any student of film should catch these 3 one-hour segments on DVD. (It won't blow you away, but, I've certainly learned a few things, as you may as well....)

I didn't really like it that much. I mean, I started to get into it and it wasn't horrible at all. I did enjoy it, but from what I heard from other members on the board was that it was this great movie and I just think it didn't live up to it. Plus, I was confused with the last 20 mins of the movie! [/b][/quote]First of all, don't think of it as a Goodfellas type of movie, drop that right away. It's a film that has much depth. As I said, the plot is a man who returns to his home after many years to discover how he regrets his old decisions. Every single scene is not only essential, but it all adds up to a masterpiece, and one of the greatest films ever IMO. Not one single scene should be deleted. There is much symbolism that even I have not gotten all of. One of my favorites is the constant ringing phone in the beginning.

There are two main interpretations of the movie, one being the way you see it, and one being that all the old man scenes are an opium dream (urban legend is opium makes you dream of the future). Look at past threads in the mob movie forum. But hell, I'm not the least bit surprised you didn't like it.

Finished this at school today.

Thirteen Days - (Donaldson;2000;USA) - ***
The Soviet Union is placing weapons in Cuba. JFK, RFK, and Kenny O'Donnell must deal with the situation.
A good film with good performances. An annoying thing was the random use of black/white that served no purpose other then adding something different for no apparent reason. Costner is good but the best acting comes from Greenwood and Culp as the Kennedy brothers.