Singin' in the Rain (1952)

Genre

Comedy | Musical | Romance

Directors

Gene Kelly | Stanley Donen

Country

USA

Cast

Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds, Donald O'Connor, Jean Hagen, Millard Mitchell, Cyd Charisse, Douglas Fowley, Rita Moreno, King Donovan, Judy Landon, Madge Blake, Kathleen Freeman, Bobby Watson, Jimmy Thompson, Mae Clarke

Storyline

Set in 1927, the film follows a silent film production company and a cast making a difficult transition from silent to talking pictures.

Opinion

I am not a fan of musicals. I love both music and movies, but I just don't like people starting singing and dancing in the middle of nowhere. "Singin' in the Rain" however is different. Easily one of the best musicals ever made, it is so contagious you'll feel like singing and dancing along with the characters.

The story is a well-balanced mixture of comedy and romance, but more than anything it is about a very interesting and important period in the history of cinema, the transition from silent to talking movies, and it's told just beautifully. For me, that is what makes the difference between just a musical and something else, and this film is that something else.

And it doesn't happen very often - or maybe it does in classics like this one - that each song and dance number not only fit the story perfectly, but don't feel weird. People start singing and dancing for no reason at all and it feels like the most natural thing to do.

Those magical numbers - some of which are so famous I already knew them by heart - are divinely performed and show off the spectacular abilities/skills of the perfectly assembled cast that also happened to have a truly wonderful chemistry. Especially Gene Kelly and Debbie Reynolds.

Another strength of "Singin' in the Rain" is its characters. They are strong, developed characters, and the leads, Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds and Donald O'Connor, are absolutely likable.

The humour also plays an important role. Without the music, the film would indeed be one of the funniest comedies ever. Only if you like slapstick comedy though.

Hell or High Water (2016)

Genre

Crime | Drama | Western

Director

David Mackenzie

Country

USA

Cast

Jeff Bridges, Chris Pine, Ben Foster, Gil Birmingham, Marin Ireland, Katy Mixon, Dale Dickey, Kevin Rankin Melanie Papalia, John Paul Howard, Christopher W. Garcia, Margaret Bowman

Storyline

In order to save their family's ranch, unemployed oil and gas worker Toby Howard (Chris Pine) and his ex-con brother (Ben Foster) commit several armed robberies, and Texas Ranger Marcus Hamilton (Jeff Bridges) is tasked to track them down. 

Opinion

Western is not my genre, but, because of their interesting approaches, recent films such as "The Rover" and "Slow West" are making me appreciate it a little more. "Hell or High Water" is another of those movies as it is a very engaging and complex crime drama film with flawless performances.

The film, however, does have a few problems, the biggest being the story. After the watch, if you examine it, you'll realize how simplistic and basic it is. It's basically the typical and therefore predictable heist story.

But, and that's what makes this film different and better than movies of the same kind, the story focuses on four characters - two brothers robbing banks and the two cops tasked to track them down - and, as predictable as their moves are, they make the film very interesting. And the credits go to the writer. Those characters have such a depth, they really feel like real people. Also they are "fed" with witty dialogue, which is always nice.

David Mackenzie, who also directed the wonderful "Starred Up", did a wonderful job. Maintaining a slow pace to this kind of film was definitely a risky move, but it did pay off as he was able to make the interactions between the character highlight engaging. Something else I'd like to point out is Mackenzie's ability to make ourselves feel uncomfortable with the violence in this film.

"Hell or High Water" isn't just a movie, but it's a beautiful - probably I should say ugly - portrayal of America as it goes a little deep into the current economic state with banks and the country's use and misuse of weapons.

The film also features stunning cinematography that will stick with you even once the film is over, and, as mentioned above, great performances. Jeff Bridges is excellent as a xenophobic ranger, and he does have a great chemistry with Gil Birmingham who also does a great job as Bridges' partner. On the other side of the fence there are Chris Pine and Ben Foster, both giving fantastic performances - especially Pine - in the role of the two brothers, and they both deliver their characters' desperation.

Alien: Resurrection (1997)

Genre

Action | Horror | Sci-Fi

Director

Jean-Pierre Jeunet

Country

USA

Cast

Sigourney Weaver, Winona Ryder, Michael Wincott, Dan Hedaya, J.E. Freeman, Brad Dourif, Marlene Bush, Carolyn Campbell, David St. James, Raymond Cruz, Kim Flowers, Gary Dourdan, Ron Perlman, Dominique Pinon, Leland Orser, Tom Woodruff Jr., Joan LaBarbara, Archie Hahn

Storyline

Two hundred years after her death, Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) is revived as a powerful human/alien hybrid clone who must continue her war against the aliens.

Opinion

When I set my mind on watching the Alien franchise I was pretty sure "Alien: Resurrection" would be the weakest entry. I was wrong: this film not only ended up being superior to its predecessor - which wasn't that hard to accomplish - but it's also a solid-ish addition to the series.

I have to admit that the storyline didn't convince me much. I mean, bringing Ripley back from the death felt like one of those clichéd, last resort of filmmakers to make terrible sequels, but Joss Whedon wrote it. And even though the story itself is quite predictable and simplistic, this "fresh" new start was exactly what the film needed.

Whedon also did a wonderful job with the character of Ripley. He was indeed able to bring the character back from the death, both literally and figuratively, and find new things to do with a character that was pretty much done.

Unfortunately he didn't do the same with the other characters. The majority of the supporting characters, if not all of them, are basically action film clichés, and undeveloped. Actually Ripley is the only developed character.

But I guess I should be also blaming director Jean-Pierre Jeunet for that. He goes straight into the action, and doesn't leave much room for everything else. But at least the action sequences are very well done.

As for the cast, Sigourney Weaver kept doing what she did in the other three films of the series, a fine job. The same cannot be said about Winona Ryder though. Her (mis)casting and overacting were just a big no for me. But on the other hand there's Ron Perlman who shines as usual.

Moana (2016)

Genre

Adventure | Animation | Comedy | Fantasy | Musical

Directors

Ron Clements | John Musker

Country

USA

Voice Cast

Auli'i Cravalho, Dwayne Johnson, Rachel House, Temuera Morrison, Nicole Scherzinger, Jemaine Clement, Alan Tudyk, Oscar Kightley, Troy Polamalu, Louise Bush, Christopher Jackson

Storyline

When a terrible curse incurred by the Demigod Maui (Dwayne Johnson) reaches a Polynesian island, Moana Waialiki (Auli'i Cravalho), the daughter of the chief (Temuera Morrison) of the island, sets off on a journey across the Pacific to set things right.

Opinion

After the disappointing "Frozen", Disney comes with a summer-ish princess film for which I had pretty good expectations. I finally saw it the other night, and unfortunately it killed my vibes. Why? Well, all those positive reviews made me think Disney did great, but they just basically did the same film with different settings.

"Moana" is indeed a very typical, clichéd Disney princess movie. However, somehow - I frankly don't know how that was possible - the film managed to be entertaining. Still, not quite the movie one would expect to win awards.

Leaving the title aside - it sounds like moaning. Also, there's a porno actress with that name so I don't know how appropriate that is for a kids movie, but nevermind -, the biggest flaw of the film is the story. I knew it would be predictable, but what bother me the most is that it seems like the filmmakers didn't care much for it. It lacks ideas and proper development. And I wasn't really expecting that since earlier this year Disney delivered a way stronger story with "Zootopia".

The characters are pretty much the same we are used to see in every Disney princess film. There's the optimistic heroine, the self-absorbed douche, the funny character - the granma in this case -, and the animal sidekick. But they are very likable, especially the heroine, Moana, and the voice cast did a good job, with Dwayne Johnson providing the necessary humour to support Auli'i Cravalho in her debut.

On the good side there's also the catchy songs, the animation, and the breathtaking scenery. But most important, finally the filmmakers didn't feel the need to throw in a romance. It was about time.