Pan's Labyrinth

by Guillermo del Toro, with Ivana Baquero, Sergi Lopez, Maribel Verdù, Ariadna Gil, Mexico/ Spain/USA 2006, 119'. The Labyrinth of the Faun (International: English title), El laberinto del fauno (Spanish), Il labirinto del fauno (Italian). --

Ofelia is a little girl who lives two parallel lives. A real one, in the young and cruel Spanish dictatorship (but could be any other similar place), where the challenge is defending her mother and herself from her primitive and machist stepfather (an unrecognizable Sergi Lopez). And a fantastic one, in her imagined fairy tales, where once she was a princess then become a human to experience the World, and now she has to succeed in different challenges to get back to her kingdom. The two parallel words overlap continuously in Ofelia’s existence, and will end up to become as one. Will Ofelia turn into a princess again? Yes, she will, but in the real Wold, reaffirming life over everything else. --

Poche altre parole, per un bel film molto centrato (forse anche troppo perfetto), pieno di vita vera, in cui la fantasia è una riuscita estensione della realtà. Riferimenti mitologici (il labirinto di Creta) a parte.

Oscars 2007

Last Sunday I met with some Pittsburgher friends to watch the Oscar parade on television. They decided to bet on the competitors, for each category. We filled the Excel sheet they had prepared (wow!) and we all put 1 $: the first and only prize was a free access to the movie theater. I had actually seen only a half of the movies “in the arena”, so I didn’t bet at all in several minor categories. The only movie I had really enjoyed was Babel, by Alehandro Gonzales Inarritu: so, if you have followed the Oscars, you can imagine which could have been my final ranking. I ended up to be the last one classified out of about 15 people (only 8% of right guesses). Which other possible justifications besides the bed result of Babel? I could comment, paralleling Aesop’s tell “The fox and the grapes”, that I am not really interested in the Oscars – and yes I do really prefer European film festivals! – : in facts, I spent half of the Oscar night playing table tennis in the basement with a couple of other guys.

Shortcuts of my impressions about this Oscar edition: The Departed, by Martin Scorsese, was a fair movie. Good idea, well directed, good rhythm, but the last 10 minutes spoiled the entire picture. And I think it’s a limited movie, lacking of an own weltanschauung, of a more broad meaning or message. I really appreciated the performance of Leo Di Caprio, who unfortunately didn’t win (I generally like Forrest Whitaker, but I didn’t watch “The last king of Scotland). Scorsese is a great director, and he had to get the prize, that’s it! Babel was not very new in his format (and it seemed to me less perfect than “Crash”), but had a human tension and was very well built. Little Miss Sunshine was a very nice little movie, even if I found it kind of slow in some parts. I have not seen Pan’s Labyrinth, by Guillermo Del Toro, which got several prizes as well, and I haven't watched yet An inconvenient truth, by Al Gore. Did you?

Anyway, I really don’t know if you cared about my opinion…if you didn’t, let’s hear yours!

Bloc de Donat Putx: Mozart a l'iPod

Bloc de Donat Putx: Mozart a l'iPod

Les Invasions Barbares

By Denys Arcand. Quebec (Canada), 2003. Drama. 99'.

Directed by Denys Arcand, this Quebecois movie won the 2003 Oscar award to best foreign language film. Following the last days of a womanizer college professor suffering from cancer, the film develops a story about live, friendship, family and the troubled moments of those sixty some who face ageing and death after a live of joy and soul-searching.

Oblidant que el cinema és un mitjà fonamentalment visual, en Denys Arcand té l’encert de construir aquesta pel·lícula entorn el diàleg. D’aquesta manera, la història dels últims dies d’un professor universitari progre i hedonista, ens regala converses delicioses a l’alçada dels diàlegs de “Martin (H)”, un film d’Adolfo Aristarain amb el que té paral·lels evidents.

El personatge central de “Les Invasions Barbares” és Remy, un professor universitari que retrata perfectament l’intel·lectual de tercera fila, compromès amb ell mateix, que habita en massa les universitats europees i americanes. Malalt de càncer en fase terminal, el fill “yuppie” amb qui té una relació difícil, arriba de Londres per facilitar els darrers dies de vida del pare. Amics, ex-amants i família, giren entorn el llit del malalt, conversant sobre la vida i la mort, resumint en algunes frases brillants el desconcert ideològic i vital de finals del segle XX davant el sentit de l’existència.

Una obra recomanable que combina ironia, realitat i dramatisme, amb l’habilitat d’encabir-ho tot en poc més de noranta minuts de bon cinema.

Frase destacada (aproximada) : “Hem sigut de tot: indepentistes, sobiranistes, socialistes, marxistes, leninistes, maoistes, estructuralistes, situacionistes... només ens falta ser: CRETINISTES!”.

lartederzogno

A different point of view about the same movie reviewed by Dawood some days ago. You can try to compare! Sorry, it was impossible to translate it from Romanesco dialect!

"GLI ARTISTOMATTI"

Recinzione di Johnny Palomba (link)

cestà uregazzeto rincoiionito peruvano che và avvive incittà essepenza io sò nartista incredibbile eallora poi va drento anufficio affà lefotocopie eppoi allora infatti sengarella della vicinadecasa perché è rincoiionita pure lei chenfatti è pure morto artistica allora poi lui sesogna deecose che umpo' sò vere e umpo' forse e umpo' no e umpo' sì eppoi fà delle invenzioni incredibbili tipo lascatoletta detonno modificata ercicciobbello ripieno deviti lasmart decartone eallora poi la regazzetta ie dice aregazzetto peruvano atté tevoiio bene massei troppo rincoiionito e nunzò seteposso amà perché te teconfonni tra la reartà e limmagginamento chenzomma magari popo mò che testòapparlà magari nunè manco vero. allora erperuvano ie dice osai checcè? allora pessicurezza namano in caciara telametto lostesso.micuggina seammucchiata couno inunsogno. mò infatti sotto lapanza cià uncuscino.

trentagennarodumileccincue(Holiday 20.20 centrosinistra. Con il consueto odore di traghetto che ha questo cinema

This one and other Recinzioni at the Johnny Palomba's website (in www.fandango.it)

Forum: contemporary italian movies

After Dav’s post I was wondering if Italian cinema is dead…this is something that we repeat very often, in a typical Italian attitude. And I think it’s not! The best 5 movies of this century I could remember off the top of my head…feel free to comment, to suggest different movies and your personal ranking...in the language you prefer, of course!

1) "Le conseguenze dell’amore", Paolo Sorrentino (2005)
International titol: The consequences of love

2) "L’ora di religione (il sorriso di mia madre)", Marco Bellocchio (2002)
European title: The religion hour
International titol: The religion hour (my mother’s smile), or only My mother’s smile

3) "I cento passi", Marco Tullio Giordana (2000)
Canadian title: One hundred steps
International title: The hundred steps

4) "L’imbalsamatore", Matteo Garrone (2002)
International title: not found

5) "La meglio gioventù", Marco Tullio Giordana (2003)
International title: The best of youth

Dreamgirls

by Bill Condon. Beyonce Knowles, Jamie Foxx, Eddie Murphy, Danny Glover, Jennifer Hudson. DreamWorks Pictures and Paramount Pictures, USA 2006. Gen. Musical / Drama, 131'.

The tribute to the modern American popular music is becoming trendy: Dreamgirls shortly follows “Radio America”, by Robert Altman, who started this movie genre in 1975 with “Nashville”. Dreamgirls, adapted by a Broadway musical, is the story of the Supreme, leaded by Diana Ross, and in general of the renaissance of the Soul music in the ’60. A picture of the rise and fall of the protagonists of that era. The songs are too many, but the music is more exciting than the play. Some voices are outstanding, as well as the beauty of Beyoncè Knowles (Diana Ross) and Eddie Murphie wearing a red shining jumpsuit. Not bad, only if the theater is not showing something better on Friday night… ---

Non molto da aggiungere…il film scorre, se non fosse per un sopravvento della musica sulla trama verso la metà. Quando per ogni dialogo sembra che debba partire un pezzo. Ma le canzoni, Soul and R&B, sono forse la cosa migliore. Insieme ad alcune voci nere, alla bellezza di Beyoncè, e al mitico Eddie Murphy, che calza alla perfezione il personaggio (in particolare nella scena in cui prova al piano con tuta rossa in acrilico luccicante). Se non c’è niente di meglio venerdì sera… ---