AT THE MOVIES - MY BEST FAVOURITE OSCAR NOMINEES

My best favourites

I really hoped to see them in the prestigious lists after the recognition they got at the Golden Globes, but we can never be sure, can't we? I'm not so into awards, but I love good movies and  I'm happy when beautiful, brave, touching stories make it to the spotlight. Call me by your name,  Lady Bird and Dunkirk are the movies I've liked the most. The other nominees as best movies are “Darkest Hour”, “Get Out”, “Phantom Thread”, “The Post”, “The Shape of Water”, “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri”.
I saw Christopher Nolan's epic war movie when it came out in September. It was an extraordinary full immersion experience into war I will never forget. A two-hour-long adrenalin rush kept my heart beating fast all through the movie. But it was watching the other two films that I was totally smitten, literally blown away.

Call Me By Your Name: going back home, at 17

This film has just turned one year old and after winning several awards in different festivals, it has received 4 Academy Awards nominations: Best Movie, Best leading actor, Best Song, Best adaptation.
For the New Yorker it's an erotic triumph, for the New York Times it's an ecstasy for the senses, for the Rolling Stone there's magic in every shot, for Entertainment Weekly it casts an erotic and sensual spell, for The Guardian it's the number one movie of the year, for Esquire it's one of the most moving movies in the history of cinema, for Vanity Fair i's a film of vertiginous beauty, for the New York Observer it's a breathtaking masterpiece. What more could I add?

MOVIE REVIEW - A CURE FOR WELLNESS

        

A cure for wellness sounds rather contradictory. Nevertheless, it does exist. At least in a movie by Gore Verbinski,  which this article is going to be about.

It is the story of a young and ambitious worker of a New York company who is given an important mission to visit a forsaken health center in Swiss Alps in order to get his boss back out of the prolonged vacation. He warned everyone that he is not going to be back by means of a strange letter. It makes it to where everyone worries in the company and which is why a man was sent there to solve this problem. There are rich and powerful people having a rest, stressed due to hectic life for a treatment with a water with curative powers.

On arriving and spending some time within its walls, he realizes that miracle-working procedures of spa-saloon are not what they seem to be. While the main character begins to unwrap scary secrets of the place, his sound mind undergoes a checkout for stiffness. Despite all the attempts, Lockhart is not allowed to meet his boss due to some reasons.

Failed to accomplish the mission, he is going to go back to New York but it looks like now he suffers from the same weird illness, which is the reason why all the rest guests of the center are there wishing to get their dose of the cure. With each new day, hopes of Lockhart to be cured and returned home are fading away. Instead, he has thrilling hallucinations and borderland between fact and fiction disappears.

I'VE SEEN MANCHESTER BY THE SEA

Lee Chandler is a brooding, irritable loner who works as a handyman for a Boston apartment block. One damp winter day he gets a call summoning him to his hometown, north of the city. His brother's heart has given out suddenly, and he's been named guardian to his 16-year-old nephew. As if losing his only sibling and his doubts about raising a teenager weren't enough, his return to the past re-opens an unspeakable tragedy . Throughout the movie Lee relives past memories  and the viewer discovers what caused him to leave Manchester and distance himself from everyone there (from imdb). 

With six Oscar nominations and several Baftas and Golden Globes received, Manchester by the sea has been acclaimed as one of the best 2016 movies. I agree, of course. Especially after being disappointed by pluri-awarded La la Land, I can't say the same for Kenneth Lonergan' s small-budget movie.

AT THE CINEMA - ALL HAIL, MACBETH !

 "... a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”  

At the cinema with my students

It came out on the 5th this month and,  at last, I came to see it this morning. It's the latest film version of Shakespeare's Macbeth. I saw it at the cinema with one of my classes. 

It is a great movie: dark, gloomy, violent, impressive. It was not my first Macbeth, of course, but it was certainly an outstanding one. Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard are giant actors and I expected them to be remarkable  as the two protagonists.  But they were beyond perfection. As Macbeth was doomed to be king and Lady Macbeth his Queen, Fassbender and Cotillard were born to embody these two icon figures.  They were not simply remarkable but incredibly intense, impeccable in their renditions. 

"The film is a grimly visceral version of the classic play and offers a fresh take on the tortured rise and fall of the Bard's darkest anti-hero". (Mail Online)

AT THE CINEMA - BET THEY WILL BECOME HITS? SEEING THE FUTURE OF MOVIES FOR 2015

Rosamund Pike and Ben Affleck in Gone Girl

Seeing the future of movies for 2015 is pretty predictable!

In recent years, I have had a bit of an epiphany. As a movie lover, I am continually buying my ticket and my ridiculously expensive popcorn (but it really does taste better!), in order to see movies, the ads for which have piqued my interest. I have come to the conclusion that the types of movies that are destined to become box office hits reflect political/societal phenomena and the attempts to resurrect old standards that worked well before. 2015 will be no different.

Political/Social Phenomena

Boyhood - Official still

2014 saw film hits like Boyhood, a poignant story, to be certain, but also a treatment of divorce and children of divorce. Then there was Gone Girl, a thriller, of course, but still addressing the issue of marriage and relationships gone wrong.

2015 may not treat divorce and relationships as much as it may return to political and social phenomena from both historical and contemporary perspectives. Consider Unbroken, a story that will take us back to World War II and the theme of the indomitable human spirit. Another opener for 2015, The Sniper, will treat the horrors of contemporary warfare and its devastating impact on the human spirit.

AT THE CINEMA - TORNERANNO I PRATI - WWI SEEN BY ERMANNO OLMI

Why this movie now? Not only to join the celebrations of  WWI 100th anniversary. At  83, one of the greatest contemporary Italian directors, Ermanno Olmi,  makes up his mind to direct a new  “useful” movie, committed and lyrical at the same time, which is a visual poem against all and any war. In “Torneranno i prati”, each frame is poetic imagery and each line is true poetry wrapped in simple, direct words. 

War is absurd and terrifying. This is something Olmi has always been convinced of, since he and his brother were made the addressees of painful war tales by their own father, a veteran from WWI, who had experienced the trenches in first person.

PERIOD & MORE PERIOD - AT THE CINEMA: A PROMISE

Germany 1912.  Friedrich  is a young man of humble origins with a degree in chemistry employed by Karl Hoffmeister,  who immediately understood the character and potential of the young man and decided to make him his protégé. Suffering from a serious heart disease, Hoffmeister is forced to work at home, where he lives with his wife,  Lotte,  and her son Otto. Impressed by Friedrich’s   zeal, he promotes him as his personal secretary and  urges him to move into his large mansion.

Happy but confused by the feelings he starts feeling for his master’s and benefactor’s young wife, Friedrich accepts both accommodation and challenge, anyhow. The proximity feeds the feeling and reveals an affinity difficult to control,  at least until Hoffmeister decides to send Friedrich to Mexico to follow a new and important project. Lotte can’t hide her own feelings any longer, especially because the idea of living without Friedrich is now unbearable.  However the two young lovers resist their passion and promise one to the other to wait until Friedrich is back and Lotte free from her duties to her husband.

PERIOD & MORE PERIOD - AT THE CINEMA: IL GIOVANE FAVOLOSO

“Freedom is the dream you dream

While putting thought in chains again --” 

― Giacomo Leopardi, Canti

Il Giovane Favoloso directed by Mario Martone is an Italian movie which participated in Venezia Film Festival last September. I was lucky enough and I could see it in a special premiere for teachers in Rome, before  it will be released in theatres on 16th October.

The film is a biopic of Italian Romantic poet, Giacomo Leopardi (1798 - 1837). Italian students inevitably meet him on their path through high school and two are the chances: either they love him or they  hate him. Impossible to remain indifferent.

For me it was love at first line, when I studied his poems in my final year at high school. I felt like that genius young man from a distant time could read my deepest thoughts and put them on paper in powerful words.

Touching and at times disturbing, his pessimism and his humanity, his melancholy and his sufferings, have stayed with me while turning into an adult.  I still treasure those poems as remarkable moments of  self-realization and growth.

Said that, you may guess my watching this film couldn't be nothing less than an emotional experience: it was something like meeting Leopardi in the flesh and finally giving him a body and face, while in my mind he had only been a voice.

ROME - A MUSEUM, A FILM, A PIZZA

Going to Rome is in itself a very exciting occasion for me. Being with friends, visiting a museum, watching a good film, having a good pizza, made my going pretty special.

Musei Capitolini at Centrale Montemartini 

Situated on Via Ostiense on the left bank of the Tiber, opposite to the former General Markets, the Centrale Montemartini is an extraordinary example of an industrial building transformed into an exhibition space. It was originally the first public electricity plant in Rome, named after Giovanni Montemartini; now it is the second exhibition centre of the Musei Capitolini, and contains an outstanding collection of classical sculpture from the excavations carried out in Rome at the turn of the 19th century.

AT THE CINEMA - OKAY WILL BE OUR ALWAYS: THE FAULT IN OUR STARS IN ITALY (COLPA DELLE STELLE)

“The world is not a wish-granting factory.” 

I was so proud of myself because I had read all through John Green's book smiling or laughing, getting sad or moved,   but never giving way to tears.   I read The Fault in Our Stars not long ago and in a very short time,  appreciating Mr Green's talent at creating a brilliant YA romance (my review). 

Now, it is not that I'm not proud of myself anymore for what happened, but, you know, it is not easy for me to get moved to tears in public and it is always quite embarassing when the lights in the theatre are switched on and you are in a flood of tears and blowing your nose, isn't it?

In this case there were many wet eyes and noses blown here and there at the end of  The Fault in Our Stars (Colpa delle Stelle) which opened on 4th September here in Italy, so I felt a bit less foolish.

Anyway, what I especially loved in this movie is that, just like the book, it is not whining or melodramatic. What prevails is teenage lightness and bitter irony,  which becomes harsh, if not paradoxical,  sarcasm some times.

Cancer and young love, death and life, hope and desperation: tough dichotomies to deal with without ending up with sappiness or melodrama. I couldn't find traces of either in this touching story, honestly.

AT THE CINEMA - INTO THE STORM

What we can certainly thank Richard Armitage for is the variety of experiences he has been granting us, the ready-to-almost-everything RA well-wishers. Let's add a disaster movie experience to all the previous ones, then!

I went to Rome to see Into the Storm with the same friends who were with me in London for The Crucible experience (except one - we missed you, A.!)

The first part of the movie was the worst, I mean, it was a bit boring.  They thought we needed a proper introduction of all the characters while waiting for something to happen. So we meet them one by one:  the Vice Principal of the local high school, Gary Fuller (Richard Armitage) wearing   a greyish suit, a tie and glasses,  and  a don't-bother-me frown;  then his  two sons, Donnie the good (Max Deacon) and Trey the smart (Nathan Kress). Donnie is 17, he is sensitive and shy, he is working on a personal film project, he is going to film the upcoming graduation ceremony for daddy - if only he hadn't a crush on one of the prettiest girsl in school, Kaitlyn (Alycia Debnam Carey). Trey is 15 self-confident, resourceful and a bit rebellious. Donnie finally finds the courage to talk to Kaitlyn and the two head off to finish the girl's film project just on Graduation Day. The same day he had promised to help his father,  the same day in which a superstorm, a series of tornadoes,  will devastate  their town and the entire area they live in. 

MOVIE REVIEW - THE HUNGER GAMES, CATCHING FIRE

(by guest blogger Paul Smith) 

Catching Fire is the second part of the Hunger Games trilogy, produced by Lionsgate and directed by Francis Lawrence. Based on Suzanne Collins' novel, this film was released in November 2013.  Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson played such main characters as Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark. It is a dystopian, science fiction movie with disturbing and uplifting plot at the same moment. The story is immensely emotional, dramatic and exciting. Many important political events and strategies are performed here. The various expensive special effects were used during film’s production in order to make it more engaging and attractive. The topic is of a real current interest, because everyday a lot of people become pawns in their lives as well as our heroes do. Catching Fire is much better than the first film. The director added more bright actors, unsurpassed action scenes and improved the quality of shooting.

AT THE CINEMA - ABOUT TIME

                     "To live is the rarest thing in life. Some people just exist" (Oscar Wilde)

I'd wanted to watch this film since I first heard about it but I wanted to see it even more when I discovered  it would be Richard Curtis 's last. 

Richard Curtis directed or wrote cult Brit comedies like "Four Weddings and a Funeral", "Notting Hill", "Bridget Jones's Diary", "Love Actually"  and, last but not least,  the irresistible BBC series The Vicar of Dibley.

Maybe his thinking about retiring and leaving his profession has made this new comedy, "About Time", more than a sweet romance, a poignant reflection about how precious our time is. Sweet, funny and poignant.

Though the movie is as careless and bizzarre, as light and hilarious as his previous works, in "About Time", Richard Curtis added deeper,  bit existentialist thoughts.

Tim (Domhnall Gleeson) is 21, clumsy and insecure, and  lives in a wonderful corner of Cornwall . Out of the blue, one day his father (Bill Nighy) reveals him their family's secret: the men in their family can time travel . They can't change History, but they can go back and change their own personal past history.

WE ARE THE MILLERS - MOVIE REVIEW

This is an unoriginal, but very ridiculous “adult” comedy in which you can see really charming actors and striptease performed by Jennifer Aniston.

We’re the Millers (2013)

Comedy

Director: Rawson Marshall Thurber

Starring: Jennifer Aniston, Jason Sudeikis, Emma Roberts, Will Poulter, Ed Helms, Nick Offerman.

David (J.Sudeikis) is a drug dealer “with the principles”. Of course he sells drugs but he does not sell it to children and in general he is a good guy.  One late evening he intercedes for a girl who is attacked by three street gangs. As a result he loses all his “goods” and personal savings. His source (E.Helms) is ready to forgive the David’s debt if he goes to Mexico and brings “a little” marijuana from there. But how is it possible not to raise suspicions of the custom officers? Very easy! You can “hire” your neighbors to pretend an average respectable American family.

AT THE CINEMA: THE MORTAL INSTRUMENTS CITY OF BONES - SEEN WITH MY KIDS

Note added on Wednesday 5th September 2013: I've seen the movie again at a week's distance. Different theatre, different audience, in my niece's company: second time it was much better! I'd write a different review, honestly. But I won't. I'll only give you this "legenda": the first part was just very good rewatching it (see the "What didn't work" section of present review).  I didn't have the same impression I had the first time. I'd like to re-watch it a third time now  to see what happens but... I'll have to wait for my digital copy when it will be released. I've pre-ordered it. 

_________________________

I’ve been looking forward to seeing this film for a while.  I told you how it all started, do  you remember? 

Mission City of Bones accomplished today.  I saw the movie,  I made a new shadowhunter  without needing any mortal instrument - seeing Jamie Campbell Bower on screen was enough for her  (my niece, 16).   I can go to bed  happy and satisfied.

The first film of what is supposed to become a saga has arrived  today here in Italy and I was at the nearest theatre (one hour’s drive)  in time  for the first afternoon screening. The Italian title of the movie is “Shadowhunters - Città di Ossa” , based on Cassandra Clare's series of books, The Mortal Instruments, YA urban fantasy,  which sold 22 millions copies all over the world.

Young people in my family  were at  first puzzled for my sudden, unexpected enthusiasm for a YA series but, teasing me,  they decided they had to discover why The Mortal Instruments had succeeded where the Twilight Saga , Harry Potter , The Lord of The Rings and all the others hadn’t.  Hence, a few of them brought me to the cinema with them or was it more “I brought them to the cinema with me”?

THE GREAT GATSBY? NOT QUITE, BUT THERE IS GOOD TO BE FIND

Baz Luhrman's latest movie is still in some  theaters and has so far divided audiences - as expected - and overcome any promising financial plan. Either you love it or you hate it. This is   what usually happens after you watch one of Luhrman's films. Lisa Keys has seen The Great Gatsby and wants to share her musings with us, here at FLY HIGH. Do you agree with her? Did you like Leonardo Di Caprio's Gatsby? 

Having seen the trailer for The Great Gatsby, which plays like a pretentious R&B/Rap video, one can be forgiven for entering the cinema with fairly low expectations of this adaptation of the American literary classic. Was this to be another flashy, CGI laden, piece of film making folly, all style, no substance? It teeters on the brink at times, as the occasionally over the top set plays threaten to drown the heart of the movie in a soup of visual trickery, modern music and rather out of place slow motion violence. However, the film does manage to remember that at it's heart is the 1925 novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald, constantly referring back to the book almost word for word at times. This, combined with some notable lead performances, serves to save the film from itself.       

THE GREAT GATSBY: THE BOOK, THE MOVIES AND THE VALUES

(by guest blogger Prima Santika)

When I heard that Baz Luhrmann was taking on this classic novel into his production, I was thrilled with great expectations. And to put a long story short, after seeing the movie at its first day screening in Indonesia, May 17th 2013, I walked out from the cinema with GREAT satisfaction. Baz Luhrmann did a remarkable job! I do LOVE the movie!

AT THE CINEMA - YOUNG BEAUTIFUL CREATURES LONGING TO BE ... INFINITE

Aging is not always easy. Growing up can, instead,  be hard but exciting and thrilling at the same time. Young people tend to be  full of hope, dreams and possibility.  That's what youth is made of. That rubbish idea  of  "feeling young inside" can't really work nor help when all that is actually  just part of your memories.  Past. Over.

It must sound like I'm not in an enthusiastic mood today, but  that is not the case. I feel grateful I can age surrounded by young people: my sons, my nieces and nephews, my young cousins,  my students, ex-students sticking around. I feel the gap but not suffer from it. I can smell dreams, energy, future and ... find some hope. 

I happen to like young people pretty much and I'm really curious about what they like, think and long for. They are not simply my task, not only my job. They are my life,  people I deeply care for.  I don't know if this is why I often watch films or read books they seem to be fond of or that tell  their stories. Stories of kids or teenagers.  I do that. Quite often. 

For instance, I've seen two movies targeting a teenage audience these days. Both have just been released here in Italy, both are adaptations of successful books: Beautiful Creatures (La sedicesima luna) and Noi siamo infinito (The Perks of Being a Wallflower).

AT THE CINEMA - THE HOBBIT: AN UNEXPECTED PLEASURE

As usual what you find here is just a very personal approach to the movie and nothing like a professional review. So, get ready to my very subjective vision of a film I just wanted to see for Thorin Oakenshield, or better  Richard Armitage. or go to the end of the post for a link to a proper review. I wouldn't mind you reading my post at all, if you have a few minutes, though. 

After waiting for a couple of years and after booking a ticket to see it with my friends in Rome as soon as it came out,  I was really disappointed when I felt sick overnight and had to give up going.

I was, however , very happy to go and see it later on with the Tolkien expert in my family, my elder son , who wanted to see it again with me in the English version after watching it in Italian with his friends.

AIDAN TURNER AND ROBERT SHEEHAN, YOUNG TALENTS FROM THE EMERALD ISLE

Will they become as popular and universally acknowledged as Liam Neeson, Colin Farrell,   Pierce Brosnan, Gabriel Byrne, Ciaran Hinds and  Jonathan Rhys Meyers? All these fascinating men share their talent at acting and their being Irish. All of them made it in the movie industry,  getting to a huge popularity. Will Aidan Turner and Robert Sheehan, young, Irish and talented, make it too? I'd say, they've got great chances and , in fact, they are already on their way to stardom. I bet you'll soon hear of them if you haven't yet.