What was the last movie you've seen?

[Bradtemple87]

we own the night

i absolutely love when the main character goes undercover to the drug house. the suspense and all that shit is just fantastic.

I liked that one as well, never get enough of Eva Mendes

[final fight cd]

we own the night

i absolutely love when the main character goes undercover to the drug house. the suspense and all that shit is just fantastic.

I liked that one as well, never get enough of Eva Mendes

it was on f/x so unfortunately you don't get to see her nipple in the censored version

[Bradtemple87]

we own the night

i absolutely love when the main character goes undercover to the drug house. the suspense and all that shit is just fantastic.

I liked that one as well, never get enough of Eva Mendes

it was on f/x so unfortunately you don't get to see her nipple in the censored version

Ouch, that's what we call a FAIL

[Michi]

I watched Videodrome last night. I don't know what I was expecting, but it was very good. It just helps cement my love for David Cronenberg movies.

[final fight cd]

toy story 2. i dvred this a month or two ago when it was on abc family and completely forgot about it. i enjoyed it.

[Bootaaay]

The Killing Fields (1984) by Roland Joffé



The Killing Fields tells the real-life story of American journalist Sydney Schanberg (played by Sam Waterson) and his experiences as the last American journalist in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh as American forces flee in the face of Pol Pot's brutal Khmer Rouge regime seizing power. The first half of the film is an unhinged jumble of events as we follow Schanberg and his Cambodian assistant Dith Pran (played by Haing S. Ngor) in their attempts to report on the chaos that unfurls in Phnom Penh and show the outside world the real, unsanitised face of the war in Cambodia. However, as the Khmer Rouge party prepares to march on the capital American forces and civilians flee, but Schanberg is determined to stay despite the danger and convinces Pran to stay with him. As the situation further escalates Schanberg, Pran and the other journalists still in Phnom Penh find themselves isolated in the capital and at the mercy of the brutal Khmer Rouge. They hold up in the French embassy and although arrangements are made to evacuate the foreign journalists, the Khmer Rouge demand that all Cambodian citizens be handed over to them. Schanberg and his fellow journalists attempt to doctor a fake American passport to get Pran out of the country, but it's to no avail and Sydney is forced to abandon Pran to the hands of the brutal regime.

After the dizzying pace of the films first third, which is accompanied by a syth soundtrack that keeps the tension at a fever pitch at the best of times and veers too closely to awful-80's-syth territory at the worst of times, the second half of the film is a much more sombre affair as both men struggle to deal with their situations. Sydney, now back in the US, is convinced Pran is alive and sends letter after letter hoping to find some information as to his whereabouts, but is also struggling with the guilt he feels over abandoning Pran to his fate, while Pran himself is languishing under the savage rule of the Khmer Rouge. It's through his eyes and narration that we see the brutal crimes committed by Pol Pot's regime, as all traces of culture, learning and foreign influence are suppressed and eradicated, and it's through Pran's eyes which we see the titular Killing Fields that so shocked the world and where hundreds of thousands of innocent Cambodians met their deaths.

Despite the manner in which director Roland Joffé quite clearly often attempts to manipulate the viewer, tug at the heart strings, rationalise the Khmer Rouge's insanity and condemn American foreign policy in one fell swoop, the film never really feels too preachy or schmaltzy (except for the musical choice for the ending - Lennon's 'Imagine', really? Ugh) and that's largely thanks to wonderful performances from the lead actors. Waterson is brimming with indignant, righteous anger as the American journalist on a mission at the films outset, but paints a picture of a diminished, pained and guilt-ridden man by the second act. Haing S. Ngor on the other-hand provides a startling and powerful performance as Dith Pran that surely was accentuated by his own experiences in the Cambodian war where he lost his wife and child. Ngor won Best Supporting Actor for his role, and remains the only Asian man to have won the award to date. It was certainly well deserved as without Ngor's touching and emotive performance I seriously doubt that this film dealing ostensibly with the atrocities of the Cambodian war, but ultimately with themes of friendship and guilt would stand up to the test of time half as well.

4/5

The Mourning Forest aka Mogari no Mori (2007) by Naomi Kawase



Machiko (played by Machiko Ono) is a junior nurse working at a care home, but she herself is recovering from the death of her son and the burden of guilt her husband places on her, blaming her solely for their son's death. Under her care is Shigeki (played by débutante Shigeki Uda), an elderly man suffering from dementia and the death of his wife Mako some thirty years past. One day, while practising calligraphy, Shigeki notices that the characters of Machiko's name share characters with that of his dead wife's name and this sets him on a pilgrimage to her grave, unbeknown to Machiko, who is tricked into taking Shigeki on a drive for his birthday, where he escapes into the woods to find his wife's grave leaving Machiko to follow him.

'The Mourning Forest' is a somewhat perplexing film - it's often very subdued, sedentary and even jovial at the outset, but becomes thematically very heavy and much more melancholy as the film progresses, dealing with the grief both characters share and the redemption they seek. As they progress through the forest, their situations become reversed - Machiko, the care giver, has to rely on Shigeki, the cared for, and his insistence that he knows where he is going, but she becomes increasingly perturbed as the situation becomes more perilous and it falls to Shigeki to console her, offering cryptic advice that "running water will not return to it's source" which speaks not only of their immediate predicament, but of their individual personal losses.

I imagine some will have difficulty with this film. It doesn't offer much in way of explanation, many viewers even seem to miss the fact that Machiko is mourning a loss too, it requires a fair amount of patience for any sort of progression or pay-off and features a lot of symbolism and imagery that won't be apparent to non-Japanese viewers or those without an understanding of certain aspects of Japanese culture. For instance, the film's Japanese title translates to 'Mogari Forest', 'mogari' being a term to describe an ancient Japanese funerary ritual of temporary burial, while the number of years since Mako's death (thirty three) mark the time when Buddhists believe the soul of the departed travels to Buddha and the last chance for loved one's to say farewell.

Cinematically speaking, 'The Mourning Forest' features some wonderful cinematography and scenery, long, lingering shots of nature predominate much of the film when not directly following either character. However, when pointed at the characters the camera work often leaves something to be desired - shot in a shaky-cam documentary style, the camera moves far too much when centred on the characters and often switches between observing both characters, or presenting things from either of their perspectives. For a film that seems to seek to disengage itself from the need for exposition, this seems an unnecessary measure and the shaky-cam gives it an unwarranted amateur feel.

Overall I feel that 'The Mourning Forest' is at equal measures a beautiful and frustrating film. While I admire the director's decision to break from the need to explain every detail, this works both against and in the film's favour as at times it helps create a feel of intrigue and tension (especially towards the films latter stages) but it also makes the film somewhat impenetrable. However, for patient viewers who are happy to sit back and revel in the beautiful scenery and sedentary tone until the film gets around to explaining itself, 'The Mourning Forest' is quite a touching and sincere film with good performances from the lead actors and some arresting visuals.

3/5

[Jrecee]

we own the night

i absolutely love when the main character goes undercover to the drug house. the suspense and all that shit is just fantastic.

I love that movie. It's a huge inspiration behind a movie I'm writing, which has almost nothing to do with We Own the Night's story. But the realism/suspense/overall vibe of that movie sort of transcended genres.

[BurningDoom]

Just saw Inception. It was good. I liked the ideas in it. But I was just expecting more because of the hype.

[ilovesega]

im watching Powder right now, from '95. They don't make them like this anymore, why do all the movies nowadays have to so dark and depressing or just a complete mindtrip to be considered a good film? Even disney isnt what they used to be. oh well

[Redline9]

I watched Videodrome last night. I don't know what I was expecting, but it was very good. It just helps cement my love for David Cronenberg movies.

Yeah, that's a movie that could really catch you off-guard with its weirdness if you aren't familiar with Cronenberg. Have you seen The Brood? That's another Cronenberg movie that keeps topping itself with weirdness as it progresses to its climax.

Last movie: Drive Angry - I saw it in 3D and it was fun and over-the-top. Grindhouse-style.