September 9, 2006
Snakes On A Plane (2006) ***
Seeing ''Snakes On A Plane'' in a movie theatre was like a screening of ''The Rocky Horror Picture Show''. Fans were waving rubber snakes, making rattle noises, and applauding furiously every time Samuel L. Jackson said something intense. Some of his lines actually weren't in the script. They originated in an anticipatory internet parody of the movie, and were added to the film long after the end of principal photography, during reshoots. It is probably the first known case of the film actually being co-written on the Internet, by its future fans. The blogs are taking over Hollywood! Needless to say, the film is great. It's campy to the extreme. Very funny, but also quite scary. Especially if you hate snakes. Predictably, the first victims of the snakes is a couple in a plane toilet. Their steamy attempt to join the ''Mile High Club'' is thwarted by an excited snake eager for a threesome. That scene, with Samantha McLeod, was also added in reshoots, due to intense pressure from bloggers. But the film also has a serious side to it. It is, quite clearly, an allegory about terrorism (it's no accident that it's being released just before the 5th anniversary of 9/11). The film was originally called ''Pacific Air Flight 121'' (a clear reference to ''United 93'') and it's quite obvious that the snakes refer to Islamic terrorists.
Offside (2006) ***
Excellent Iranian film about rebellious girls trying to sneak into a soccer stadium.
Prenez vos places (2006) ***
Excellent Canadian comedy about two former students trying to make a movie. A low-budget bilingual film (half of its hilarious dialogue is in French, and the other half in English) with a very sophisticated sense of humor.
Hostel (2006) ***
World Trade Center (2006) ***
Very different from Oliver Stone's other films - no stylistic fireworks like in ''JFK'' or ''Natural Born Killers'', no left-wing perspective like in ''Salvador'', ''Platoon'' or ''Born On The Fourth Of July''. The film is based on real life stories of two Port Authority cops, Will Jimeno (Michael Pena) and John McLoughlin (Nicolas Cage), who got trapped when the towers collapsed and were rescued after a few hours. And the man who rescued them was Marine Staff Sergeant David Karnes. Played by Michael Shannon in the film, David Karnes is the main reason to see the movie. While the stories of the buried cops, while touching and very moving, are ultimately quite predictable, the story of David Karnes is simply incredible. He wasn't even in New York when the planes hit the towers. But he nonetheless left his job in Connecticut, put on his Marine Corps uniform, drove his Porsche to Ground Zero, and began searching the rubble after sunset (while other rescue workers were ordered out of the site). "United States Marines," Karnes began shouting "If you can hear us, yell or tap!". Will Jimeno heard him.
September 8, 2006
.JPG)
August 8, 2006
.BMP)
Le Pressentiment (2006) **
French film about a famous lawyer to leaves his profession and chooses to live in a working-class neighbourhood.
Prête-moi ta main (2006) *
Confusing French comedy starring Charlotte Gainsbourg and Alain Chabat as a young couple pretending to be engaged in order to teach a lesson to his family. Or something.
July 7, 2006
Shadow Of Silence (2006) *
The first feature film from Saudi Arabia. Unfortunately, it isn't very good - a heavy-handed allegory about comfort and oppression.
Notte prima degli esami (2006) ***
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