Entries Tagged 'Drama' ↓
July 16th, 2011 — Comedy, Drama, Romantic
This movie was previously titled previously titled both “The Dream of the Romans” and “Arlen Faber”.
IMDB: The Answer Man
Basic Plot: Self-help writer and closet misanthrope falls for neurotic single mother/chiropractor in this indie romance.
Outburst: The characters are wonderful, but something unidentifiable makes this feel flat. There doesn’t seem to be enough romantic tension for a romance movie, enough ridiculousness for a comedy, or enough cynical wit for a ‘dramady’.
— It’s a nice movie; I wish I could say it was better than okay. May be slightly offensive to those who are deeply religious.
Official Site: The Answer Man
WATCH IT NOW: The Answer Man
July 7th, 2011 — Drama, Fantasy, Horror, X / Adult Themes
IMDB: Dorian Gray
Basic Plot: Loosely based on the classic tale by Oscar Wilde, a young man trades his soul for eternal youth with the aide of a supernatural painting.
Outburst: Colin Firth shines as an almost demonic version of Henry while Ben Barnes sometimes captivates with piercing dark eyes and lots of steamy sensuality. It’s a slightly different portrayal of the character of Dorian Gray, on a different path towards sin and redemption.
— Some of the expository scenes water down the tale for those intellectuals who have read Wilde’s work. Otherwise it’s a wonderfully twisted and dark horror of a movie.
WATCH IT NOW: Dorian Gray
BUY THE BOOK: The Picture of Dorian Gray (Unabridged)
Kindle eBook: The Picture of Dorian Gray – Unabridged Ver.
July 5th, 2011 — Action, Drama, Family, Martial Arts
IMDB: Karate Kid (1984)
IMDB: Karate Kid II (1986)
IMDB: Karate Kid III (1989)
Basic Plot: A martial-artist handyman agrees to teach a bullied boy karate. In the second movie, the two are embroiled in a family dispute after they journey to Okinawa so Master Miyagi can visit his dying father. In the third movie, the rival karate master from the first film attempts to gain revenge with the aid of an old army buddy.
Outburst: The first movie is a family drama classic. The second movie is a worthy sequel. We’re going to pretend the third movie is a nightmare that goes away when you wake up. That shouldn’t be too hard considering the plot makes about as much sense as a fever dream.
/DVD — The first two movies are gems and collectibles, worth watching at film festivals and at home.
0 stars — Ignore the third movie as truly awful with a terrible premise, nonsensical plot, and lackluster testosterone-fueled scripting.
BUY IT NOW! The Karate Kid I & II (Collector’s Ed.) [Blu-ray]
BUY IT NOW! The Karate Kid (Spec. Ed. DVD)
July 4th, 2011 — Biography or Based on Truth, Drama, Musical
IMDB: Great Balls of Fire!
Basic Plot: Biography covering a portion of the life of Jerry Lee Lewis, one of the wildest musicians of the 1950s.
Outburst: I chose to watch the movie because I enjoy rockabilly and Jerry Lewis, while knowing nothing about the scandal surrounding his life. Considering this musical biography centers around the marriage that nearly ended his career (to his underage first cousin, once removed) it’s one of those details that’s nice to know beforehand. Dennis Quaid feels overacted to me, but the young Winona Ryder is stunning.
— A great movie for dancing and rockabilly music, but not for the incestuously squeamish. This is a sensationalized, Hairspray-style version of the actual events, and not tied solidly to facts.
Wikipedia Entry: Great Balls of Fire! (film)
Wikipedia Entry: Jerry Lee Lewis
Cousin Relationships — explanation of ‘first cousin, once removed’
BUY IT NOW! Great Balls of Fire! (DVD)
But don’t take my word for it! You can compare Dennis Quaid’s acting with an original Jerry Lee Lewis performance on our Facebook fan page. http://www.facebook.com/pages/Movie-Outburst
July 3rd, 2011 — Comedy, Drama
IMDB: Little Man Tate
Basic Plot: Family drama about a young genius, trapped between the wants of his mother and the rich director for a school of gifted children who wants to cultivate him as her next project.
Outburst: While she did a credible job as director (rather impressive for a debut), I don’t think Jodie Foster was the correct choice for the role of mom. True to real life, child psychologists should never raise children. And something is seriously missing in the character development during the falling action phase of this movie — as if some crucial scene had been cut out just after the climax of the film.
— It’s short and totally watchable, but nothing that is going to blow you away. A nice family discussion movie, both for families and sociology classes.
BUY IT NOW! Little Man Tate (DVD)
June 23rd, 2011 — Comedy, Drama
IMDB: Sunshine Cleaning
Basic Plot: Single mom who does NOT have her life together starts a crime-scene cleanup business to pay for private school after her son is expelled.
Outburst: They had to use a quirky gimmick to get folks to watch an otherwise uninspiring movie. It’s basically a formulaic chick-flick, with the handsome new man role replaced by a disabled guy who reminds me of a pedophile — but hey, he’s good with kids.
— There aren’t many movies that even mention this industry, so if you want to know more about the field of CTS Decon, you’re going to have to sit through this. When all is said and done, at least the acting is good and the girls are cute.
Official Site: Sunshine Cleaning
WATCH IT NOW: Sunshine Cleaning
June 21st, 2011 — Drama, Romantic, X / Adult Themes
IMDB: The Pillars of the Earth
Basic Plot: Dramatic story of the building of a fictional cathedral, complete with love, war, and political intrigue.
Outburst: Within thirty minutes of starting this miniseries, I realized the plot as familiar from a book I had read years ago. The dramatic story of the cathedral builders was hard to forget. It was interesting to watch the plot adjustments, making the storyline more suitable for the screen, but I’m not sure if Shakespearian-style magical visions were necessary to provide foreshadowing.
— Before Game of Thrones blew the genre away, there was The Tudors and this. Lovers of medieval political action thrillers (which are nearly soap operas) will find this a welcome addition to their collections. The nice thing about completed miniseries is you don’t have to wait for another installment to discover the ending.
Official Site: Pillars of the Earth
Official Starz Site: Pillars of the Earth
BUY IT NOW! The Pillars of the Earth (DVD)
Wikipedia Entry: Pillars of the Earth (book)
BUY THE BOOK: The Pillars of the Earth
Kindle eBook: The Pillars of the Earth
June 14th, 2011 — Drama, Romantic
IMDB: I Capture the Castle
Basic Plot: British romantic drama surrounding two sisters in a family of eccentric artists, struggling to survive in a decaying castle. All hope seems lost until their young American landlords come to see the inheritance. Based on the Dodie Smith novel.
Outburst: It’s a Jane Austen story stripped of most of the ridiculous characters and the DayGlo happy ending. The actors artfully portray hopelessly romantic characters in a fantastical, yet still believable, setting. Also, I want some of those fabulous 1930s outfits.
— You girls are going to like this film. Boys, the verdict is still out but I smell an eye-roll.
Wikipedia Entry: I Capture the Castle (film)
BUY IT NOW! I Capture the Castle (DVD)
Wikipedia Entry: I Capture the Castle (original book by Dodie Smith)
BUY THE BOOK: I Capture the Castle
June 5th, 2011 — Drama, Romantic, Silent Movie
IMDB: Wings
Basic Plot: Two young men from different social classes, in love with the same woman, become fighter pilots in WWI.
Outburst: Watching a silent movie requires a whole different level of attention span. The musical score is often distracting rather than enhancing, and one must switch between reading (which is an auditory skill) and watching action sequences (a visual skill). Despite this, I enjoyed the movie more than I thought it would. The estimated $2 million budget was a bit of a surprise until the aerial fight scenes began, and before you think they put dirty words in a silent film, a Fokker is a kind of Dutch aircraft.
— Film students and silent movie buffs will probably have seen this one already (if they haven’t, they should). Anyone wishing to broaden their understanding about movie making and the film industry should take a peek at these old movies and this is a good silent film to start with.
Wikipedia Entry: Wings
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June 1st, 2011 — Biography or Based on Truth, Drama
Behind the Lines is the 1998 American release title for this film. The original title, released in 1997 in the UK and Canada, was Regeneration.
IMDB: Behind the Lines
Basic Plot: The story of World War I soldiers who are sent to an asylum, among them a famous poet.
Outburst: Eerie. Literary. Obviously this is not a comedy. Like all WWI British war movies, everyone is dressed and behaves in similar fashion, but their plotlines are dissimilar enough that they are easy to follow.
— If you are moved by poetry inspired by traumatic events, you will enjoy this film.
Wikipedia Entry: Regeneration (movie)
WATCH IT NOW: Behind the Lines (aka Regeneration)
Booknote: The movie holds so faithfully to the book one can almost interchange them.
Wikipedia Entry: Regeneration (novel) by Pat Barker
BUY THE BOOK: Regeneration
Kindle eBook: Regeneration
