Well, the end has come at last. Due to other gigs, and the busy state most of us are in right now, we've decided to permanently halt this review spot. It's been a really fun run, and I'd like to thank all the contributors who made this blog such a blast. I'm planing on taking down most of the reviews- if there are any you'd like kept up please let us know.
All the best!
14.11.08
14.10.08
The Shop Around The Corner
The story is lovely : A young girl seeks the mental companionship of a young man. She wants there to be no names, no specifics or particulars of any kind, just letters. Their letters would discuss life, love and the human condition but never dull things like personal traits or descriptions. The Shop Around the Corner follows the story of the young man's side of the letters. Alfred Kralik (James Stewart) is an esteemed clerk at Matuschek Company. We watch as he falls in love with the mystery girl he is exchanging letters with without knowing all along she is none other (Spoiler Alert) than the young quippy shop clerk that he had been bickering with for months. After some roadblocks and fairly predictable plot twists the movie has, of course, a lovely ending.
The characters are winsome. Jimmy Stewart brings a lovable personality to the screen (as always) and though his costar Margaret Sullavan is the slightest bit harder to relate to they make an oddly comforting pair. You have probably seen the work of Frank Morgan, who plays the owner of the shop, Mr. Matuschek, in The Wizard of Oz as the wizard himself. At first I felt this would be distracting but he was able to cross the board and create a new character without hesitation.
The movie, being almost seventy years old has little going for it by way of cinematography. The music however is perfectly unobtrusive but is still lends a hand to the atmosphere of the story.
All in all this was a very pretty movie that I personally could watch time and time again, although I will allow that The Shop Around the Corner hardly fits into everyones favorite genre!
The Bottom Line
Score: 4.7 out of 5
Grade: A
Rating: This movie was pre-rating. But basically G.
Ideal: A snowy girls night with Hot Chocolate, popcorn and a room full of silly romantic young women.
Reviewed by: Kaley Rachelle
The characters are winsome. Jimmy Stewart brings a lovable personality to the screen (as always) and though his costar Margaret Sullavan is the slightest bit harder to relate to they make an oddly comforting pair. You have probably seen the work of Frank Morgan, who plays the owner of the shop, Mr. Matuschek, in The Wizard of Oz as the wizard himself. At first I felt this would be distracting but he was able to cross the board and create a new character without hesitation.
The movie, being almost seventy years old has little going for it by way of cinematography. The music however is perfectly unobtrusive but is still lends a hand to the atmosphere of the story.
All in all this was a very pretty movie that I personally could watch time and time again, although I will allow that The Shop Around the Corner hardly fits into everyones favorite genre!
The Bottom Line
Score: 4.7 out of 5
Grade: A
Rating: This movie was pre-rating. But basically G.
Ideal: A snowy girls night with Hot Chocolate, popcorn and a room full of silly romantic young women.
Reviewed by: Kaley Rachelle
6.10.08
88 Minutes
88 Minutes was in fact 107 minutes of not-so-bad thriller mind games. Jack Gramm (played by Al Pacino) has been putting away the worst of the worst serial killers for years now as a forensic psychologist, when a controversial case is reopened. People around him are being murdered in what appears to be an elaborate setup to frame Jack and clear a prisoner’s conviction. And he has 88 Minutes to solve this one, before he is killed.
The premise seems solid enough, and has the parts built right in for a heart-racing thriller. And it delivered to a degree, but I wasn’t entirely impressed. When I watch a thriller, I want the euphoria of anxiously following the protagonist, I want to be confused as to whether I should sit or stand up, I truly want my heart beating out of my chest. Shooter (2007) did that for me, and in contrasting this golden experience with my time watching 88 Minutes, I can’t help but be slightly disappointed.
But don’t get me wrong. This is a good movie. First of all, AL PACINO. This man is epic, and I really liked his character in this film (although you’ll never beat Scarface). He was so collected and on top of things as Jack Gramm throughout the film, when he became unhinged by something, it jumped out at you as stark and very believable. Al Pacino was definitely the most enjoyable aspect of this film.
And this movie had you guessing all the way through. In fact, there were so many people introduced as potential suspects to the viewer, that it actually hindered the film a bit. I could not follow all of the names to be honest, and some of the suspects seemed unnecessary. The movie was, in a sense, chucking useless information to confuse you. But it did the job. The ending, while not entirely as climatic as I should have liked, was a bit of a surprise.
One more complaint. The movie sort of rips off the voice from Saw, when the killer is contacting Jack to tell him he has 88 minutes to live. It’s not a big deal, but it irked me, and I think anyone who loved Saw would agree with me here.
Despite all of this complaining, I’m giving 88 minutes quite a good score. Because whether it was Al Pacino’s performance, or some other intangible aspect I missed here, the movie was fun to watch. And isn’t that the point?
The Bottom Line
Score: 4 useless suspects out of 5
Grade: B+
Rating: R
Ideal: Saturday night film to watch with anyone itching to work their brains. Warning: the murder scene even made me queasy, and I’m pretty good with that kind of stuff. Definitely for a mature audience.
Reviewed by: Aviator Trev
The premise seems solid enough, and has the parts built right in for a heart-racing thriller. And it delivered to a degree, but I wasn’t entirely impressed. When I watch a thriller, I want the euphoria of anxiously following the protagonist, I want to be confused as to whether I should sit or stand up, I truly want my heart beating out of my chest. Shooter (2007) did that for me, and in contrasting this golden experience with my time watching 88 Minutes, I can’t help but be slightly disappointed.
But don’t get me wrong. This is a good movie. First of all, AL PACINO. This man is epic, and I really liked his character in this film (although you’ll never beat Scarface). He was so collected and on top of things as Jack Gramm throughout the film, when he became unhinged by something, it jumped out at you as stark and very believable. Al Pacino was definitely the most enjoyable aspect of this film.
And this movie had you guessing all the way through. In fact, there were so many people introduced as potential suspects to the viewer, that it actually hindered the film a bit. I could not follow all of the names to be honest, and some of the suspects seemed unnecessary. The movie was, in a sense, chucking useless information to confuse you. But it did the job. The ending, while not entirely as climatic as I should have liked, was a bit of a surprise.
One more complaint. The movie sort of rips off the voice from Saw, when the killer is contacting Jack to tell him he has 88 minutes to live. It’s not a big deal, but it irked me, and I think anyone who loved Saw would agree with me here.
Despite all of this complaining, I’m giving 88 minutes quite a good score. Because whether it was Al Pacino’s performance, or some other intangible aspect I missed here, the movie was fun to watch. And isn’t that the point?
The Bottom Line
Score: 4 useless suspects out of 5
Grade: B+
Rating: R
Ideal: Saturday night film to watch with anyone itching to work their brains. Warning: the murder scene even made me queasy, and I’m pretty good with that kind of stuff. Definitely for a mature audience.
Reviewed by: Aviator Trev
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
