Topic: Tom's Random Reviews

[Critter]

Did you go to one of the APS schools? If so I might know it, my school often competed against Melbourne APS schools in sport.

[Dr. Hasslein]

What is a APS school? I just went to a regular public high school.

[Critter]

It means The Associated Public Schools of Victoria. If you hadn't heard of it then your school probably wasn't in it. It was basically a system of all the schools competing against each other each Saturday. I personally hated it. But a list of the involved schools can be found here: http://www.apssport.org.au/index.php?id=3

[Dr. Hasslein]

My school wasn't apart of anything like that. They couldn't organise a cup of cofee let alone a whole day of activities.

[Critter]

Consider yourself lucky! I loved my school but being forced to spend every Saturday driving up to Melbourne and back, often taking most of the day was awful! We sometimes had to leave as early as 5:30 or 6am  .

[Achim]

I actually much prefer the shorter cut. I think some of Mathilda's "training" feels over the top and poorly paced.

Pacing...? Maybe. But the scenes are crucial to actual understand the character's development.

In the theatrical cut the training is very short and I always felt that she was rather stupid thinking she could go to the police station by herself. In the extended cut you got tosee that she learned many things and, while maybe still not enough, explains why she felt the confidence to try. For me, the extended cut works much better

[Najemikon]

I actually much prefer the shorter cut. I think some of Mathilda's "training" feels over the top and poorly paced.

Pacing...? Maybe. But the scenes are crucial to actual understand the character's development.

In the theatrical cut the training is very short and I always felt that she was rather stupid thinking she could go to the police station by herself. In the extended cut you got tosee that she learned many things and, while maybe still not enough, explains why she felt the confidence to try. For me, the extended cut works much better

I feel the opposite. With more training, she should have understood her attempt was futile. I always liked the idea that simple Leon wasn't actually trying to train her properly, he just wanted an excuse to keep her around. To actually take her on a proper job with him just felt like a step too far for me.

[Achim]

I feel the opposite. With more training, she should have understood her attempt was futile. I always liked the idea that simple Leon wasn't actually trying to train her properly, he just wanted an excuse to keep her around.

Still my same point (not trying to cxonvince you). At least it explains why she thinks shed can do it, even she wasn't trained enough to actually do it. Hit-Girl she is not.

To actually take her on a proper job with him just felt like a step too far for me.

Neither version say he actually did that.

He very much knew his job was dangerous, which made him setting things up so she would inherit his wealth (which he didn't care about anyway).

The latter makes me think about Danny Aiello's character again. Seems shady at times; always wondered if he was being honest about the money

[Najemikon]

It's a while since I saw it, but wasn't the guy in the apartment a real mark? I must watch this again soon anyway.

[Achim]

It's a while since I saw it, but wasn't the guy in the apartment a real mark? I must watch this again soon anyway.

The drug dealer...? I forgot about that one. I remember the runner in the park was shot with paintball bullets. I too must rewatch this (extended cut, of course ). Maybe Friday...?


EDIT:
I watched Lėon yesterday and it's still an amazing film. I laughed, I cheered and I cried. Natalie Portman is wonderful as Matilda and Gary Oldman is buckets of fun to watch. Danny Aiello' character is still as shady as ever.

So, it appears the guy in the apartment was a real mark, but he gets killed by Léon after Matilda is done shooting her paint bullets at him. Then comes the dinner scene followed by a whole montage of them working together, taking out at least 10 targets. However, during the montage no actual kills are shown and we never see Matilda shoot at a human with real bullets.

The added restaurant scene (and others where Matilda expresses her love to Léon) have always been more controversial, I think. The restaurant scene itself, where she gets drunk even, could be dropped, but then we'd miss this wonderful moment of Matilda laughing.

[Tom]

Roman Holiday (1953/United States) IMDb | Wikipedia Paramount Home Entertainment (Canada) Director: William Wyler Writing: Ian McLellan Hunter (Screenwriter), John Dighton (Screenwriter), Dalton Trumbo (Story By) Length: 118 min. Video: Full Frame 1.33:1 Audio: English: Dolby Digital 1, French: Dolby Digital 1 Subtitles: English

Stars:
Gregory Peck as Joe Bradley, Correspondent
Audrey Hepburn as Princess Ann/ Anya 'Smitty' Smith
Eddie Albert as Irving Radovich
Hartley Power as Mr. Hennessy, Joe Bradley's Boss
Harcourt Williams as Ambassador

Plot:
Audrey Hepburn's Oscar®-winning performance in her first starring role.

Roman Holiday was nominated for ten Academy Awards®, and Audrey Hepburn captured an Oscar® for her portrayal of a modern-day princess rebelling against her royal obligations who explores Rome on her own. She meets Gregory Peck, an American newspaperman who, seeking an exclusive story, pretends ignorance of her true identity. But his plan falters as they fall in love. Eddie Albert contributes to the fun as Peck's carefree cameraman pal. Stylishly directed by William Wyler, this romantic comedy ranks as one of the most enjoyable films of all times.

Awards:
Won:

Academy Award (1953)		Best Actress (Audrey Hepburn)
Academy Award (1953)		Best Costume Design, Black-and-White (Edith Head)
Academy Award (1953)		Best Writing, Original Story (Ian McLellan Hunter (1993 corrected to Dalton Trumbo))
AFI (1953)		100 Years... 100 Passions (2002)
BAFTA (1953)		British Actress (Audrey Hepburn)
Golden Globe (1953)		Actress in a Leading Role - Drama (Audrey Hepburn)
Writers Guild of America Awards (1954)		Best Written American Comedy (Ian McLellan Hunter, John Dighton)

Nominated:

Academy Award (1953)		Best Art Direction, Black-and-White (Hal Pereira, Walter Tyler)
Academy Award (1953)		Best Cinematography, Black-and-White (Frank Planer, Henri Alekan)
Academy Award (1953)		Best Director (William Wyler)
Academy Award (1953)		Best Film Editing (Robert Swink)
Academy Award (1953)		Best Picture (William Wyler (Producer))
Academy Award (1953)		Best Supporting Actor (Eddie Albert)
Academy Award (1953)		Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay (Ian McLellan Hunter, John Dighton)
AFI (1953)		100 Years... 100 Laughs (2000)
BAFTA (1953)		Film And British Film
BAFTA (1953)		Foreign Actor (Gregory Peck, Eddie Albert)
Directors Guild of America (1954)		Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures (William Wyler)

Extras:

• Closed Captioned
• Featurettes
• Photo Gallery
• Scene Access
• Trailers

My Thoughts:

A great movie. Always fun to watch. And the two hours running time fly by fast. Audrey Hepburn has deserved her Oscar for her work here.
Even though it has been over ten years since I have been to Rome and the movie being almost 50 years old, it is still nice to recognize a lot of the locations used in the film as places I have personally visited.

Rating:

[Tom]

Heavenly Forest (2006/Japan) IMDb | Wikipedia CN Entertainment (Hong Kong) Director: Takehiko Shinjo Writing: Kenji Bando (Screenwriter) Length: 117 min. Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.78 Audio: Japanese: Dolby Digital 5.1, Cantonese: Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo Subtitles: Chinese, English

Stars:
Aoi Miyazaki as Shizuru Satonaka
Hiroshi Tamaki as Makoto Segawa
Munetaka Aoki as Ryo Shirohama
Keisuke Koide as Kyohei Sekiguchi
Meisa Kuroki as Miyuki Toyama

Plot:
A shy amateur photographer Makoto (Tamaki Hiroshi) and endearing Shizuru (Miyazaki Aoi) meet each other at university. The two often go to a forest together to take photographs. Shizuru secretly loves Makoto, but he only has eyes for another girl. After Shizuru asks Makoto to kiss her in the forest to create the perfect picture, Shizuru disappears!

Extras:

• Scene Access

My Thoughts:

A wonderful movie. Aoi Miyazaki, who I know as one of the leads from the movie "NANA", is great and really adorable as the child-like Shizuru. I enjoyed the movie throughout. Although I have to admit I was thrown by the ending.

(click to show/hide)

Even though I should have expected it, as it is categorized as a romantic drama and not a romantic comedy. It has a bittersweet ending. Often the only difference between a romantic comedy and a drama is, that a comedy has a happy ending and in a drama, one of the couple has to die. It fits here and works with the rest of the movie. But a side of me just wanted to have them happily ever after. Reminds me of the point of the movie "Stranger Than Fiction".

Rating:

[Tom]

Hana & Alice (2004/Japan) IMDb | Wikipedia (Hong Kong) Director: Shunji Iwai Writing: Shunji Iwai (Writer) Length: 135 min. Video: Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85 Audio: Japanese: Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo Subtitles: Chinese, English

Stars:
Anne Suzuki as Hana
Yu Aoi as Alice
Tomohiro Kaku as Masashi Miyamoto
Sei Hiraizumi as Alice's Father
Tae Kimura as Ballet Teacher

Plot:
Hana (Anne Suzuki) and Alice (Yu Aoi) are childhood friends. Alice is unrestrained and free-spirited. Hana is always picking up the pieces as a result of it. But there are good things that Alice brings too, like Hana's first ever crush.

Following her sudden proclamation of "love at first sight," Alice decides to follow her "love", a high school student, dragging the reluctant Hana along with her. It is then that Alice recommends Hana to consider the boy's friend, Miyamoto (Tomohiro Kaku), as a possible boyfriend. Although not interested at first, Hana soon finds herself falling for him...

Extras:

• Production Notes
• Scene Access

My Thoughts:

Even though it is fairly long and slow-moving, I quite enjoyed it. The most fun was how Hana and Alice convinced the guy he has amnesia and just forgot about their relationships.
The ending is fitting but

(click to show/hide)

I would have liked to see more of how they resolved the situation with the guy after he found out that he really didn't have amnesia.

Rating:

[Tom]

Ichi (2008/Japan) IMDb | Wikipedia Manga Entertainment (United Kingdom) Director: Fumihiko Sori Writing: Kan Shimosawa (Original Material By), Taeko Asano (Screenwriter) Length: 119 min. Video: Widescreen 1.85 Audio: Japanese: Dolby TrueHD 5.1 Subtitles: English

Stars:
Haruka Ayase as Ichi
Yukina Kashiwa as Ichi (Youshouki) (Early childhood Ichi)
Sayumi Kimura as Ichi (Youshouki) (Early childhood Ichi)
Takao Oosawa as Touma
Kazuma Chiba as Touma (Youshouki) (Early childhood Toum)

Plot:
Ichi (Haruka Ayase) is a blind minstrel searching Japan for her childhood mentor: a master of the martial arts. In a town beset by bandits, she comes to rescue Toma (Takao Osawa), a samurai unable to use his own sword. Refusing to believe that a blind woman was his saviour, the townsfolk want Toma as a lawman, and the bandits want him dead. Ichi is their only hope for survial... she may be blind, but darkness is her ally.

Extras:

• Scene Access
• Trailers

My Thoughts:

This is a sequel to Zatoichi. I enjoyed it more than its predecessor. It stars Haruka Ayase ("Cyborg She") as the blind swordswoman.
At times a little dull, it is overall worth a watch.

Rating:

[Tom]

Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (2001/India) IMDb | Wikipedia Alive, Rapid Eye Movies (Germany) Director: Karan Johar Writing: Sheena Parikh (Screenwriter), Karan Johar (Screenwriter) Length: 210 min. Video: Widescreen 2.35 Audio: German: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, Hindi: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 Subtitles: German

Stars:
Amitabh Bachchan as Yashovardhan "Yash" Raichand
Jaya Bachchan as Nandini Raichand
Shah Rukh Khan as Rahul Raichand
Kajol as Anjali Sharma Raichand
Hrithik Roshan as Rohan Raichand

Plot:
Yashovardhan Raichand (Amitabh Bachchan) and his wife Nandini (Jaya Bachchan) have raised their sons, Rahul (Shah Rukh Khan) and Rohan (Hrithik Roshan) showering them with love and affection. Yash has tried to pass on to his sons the values, heritage and traditions of their family. Nandini has different dreams for her sons. Dreams of love that she wanted both her sons to experience, more so Rahul as she shares a special bond with him. A bond that has been cultivated with love for a child that was never meant to be... a child who was adopted. Rahul's adoption was a secret never discussed in the Raichand household. Ever since Rahul found out at the age of 8 years, it became the reason for his unending gratitude for his parents- especially his father. His father's every wish became a command for him. A command which he never breaks until he falls in love with Anjali (Kajol)- a bubbly girl from Chandni Chowk, who dotes on her younger sister Pooja (Kareena Kapoor). Rahul marries Anjali and brings her home but his father doesn't approve of her. Rahul thus decides to leave home causing his mother's every waking moment to be spent eagerly awaiting his return. Seeing this the younger son Rohan makes a promise to reunite the family and bring back the happiness they once shared.

Awards:
Won:

Filmfare Awards (2002)		Best Actress Award (Kajol)
Filmfare Awards (2002)		Best Art Direction Award (Sharmishta Roy)
Filmfare Awards (2002)		Best Dialogue Award (Karan Johar)
Filmfare Awards (2002)		Best Scene of the Year
Filmfare Awards (2002)		Best Supporting Actress Award (Jaya Bachchan)
IIFA Awards (2002)		Best Male Playback (Sonu Nigam)
IIFA Awards (2002)		Best Supporting Actress (Jaya Bachchan)

Nominated:

Filmfare Awards (2002)		Best Actor Award (Shah Rukh Khan)
Filmfare Awards (2002)		Best Lyricist Award ("Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham": Sameer)
Filmfare Awards (2002)		Best Lyricist Award ("Suraj Hua Maddham": Anil Pandey)
Filmfare Awards (2002)		Best Male Playback Award ("Suraj Hua Maddham": Sonu Nigam)
Filmfare Awards (2002)		Best Supporting Actor Award (Amitabh Bachchan)
Filmfare Awards (2002)		Best Supporting Actor Award (Hrithik Roshan)
Filmfare Awards (2002)		Best Supporting Actress Award (Kareena Kapoor)

Extras:

• Bonus Trailers
• Deleted Scenes
• Featurettes
• Interviews
• Scene Access
• Trailers

My Thoughts:

It was great to finally have a chance to see this movie with a good picture quality. It benefits a lot because of all the great and colorful dance numbers. This movie is one of the most well-known modern Bollywood productions. Deservingly so.
Most Bollywood productions have song and dance numbers in it, but they usually are more or less thrown in. This movie is one of the few I would call a real musical. I had forgotten how much singing is in this one. Almost the complete movie is in songs. All of which further the story.
This is one of the longest Bollywood movies I own (only beaten by a few minutes by "What's Your Rashee", "Lagaan" and "Jodhaa Akbar"), but it never gets boring for a minute, even now after I watched it for the fourth time.
On Blu-ray I could enjoy it more than I did the DVD version, whose picture quality greatly suffered from having a 3.5 hour movie pressed on one DVD. I don't regret my first real Blu-ray double-dip. And as a bonus I have all the extras which were originally part of the two-disc DVD release (I only had the single-disc release).

Rating: