Resurrecting the Movies thread...

[opinionista]

Sorry to change the topic here. But considering Penelope Cruz has been nominated for an Oscar, has any of you (other than Kirk) seen Volver? I'd like to know your opinions about it. I thought it was an amazing piece of cinematography but I think you need to understand a bit about Spain's culture in order to fully comprehend the characters, their ways of thinking and behavior, and in some ways the plot itself. I'm not sure if people who reviewed the movie were aware of it. Almodovar does an amazing portrayal of the female culture in Spain, especially women from La Mancha (as in Don Quixote), where he is from. I was totally taken by surprise, considering that he is a man.

[Meryl]

Sorry to change the topic here. But considering Penelope Cruz has been nominated for an Oscar, has any of you (other than Kirk) seen Volver? I'd like to know your opinions about it. I thought it was an amazing piece of cinematography but I think you need to understand a bit about Spain's culture in order to fully comprehend the characters, their ways of thinking and behavior, and in some ways the plot itself. I'm not sure if people who reviewed the movie were aware of it. Almodovar does an amazing portrayal of the female culture in Spain, especially women from La Mancha (as in Don Quixote), where he is from. I was totally taken by surprise, considering that he is a man.

Natali, check out page 9 of this thread.  I gave my impressions of Volver, and oilgun also made some remarks about it. 

[saucycobblers]

Just had to stop by and recommend 'The Last King of Scotland' starring Forest Whitaker as Idi Amin. I saw it at the weekend. Absolutely EXCELLENT. I had knots in my stomach by the time the credits rolled, which I always take as a good sign 

So pleased he's been nominated for an Oscar, as I've loved him since seeing him in the excellent Jim Jarmusch film 'Ghost Dog' and think he's criminally underrated. Go Forest!! 

[ednbarby]

Yes, wasn't it (and he) WONDERFUL???  Now you can see why this one is on my Top Five list for the year.  I find it better as a movie than all five Oscar nominees, and I find Whitaker's performance better than just about any I have ever seen on film.  For once, a juggernaut who *totally* deserves all the praise and awards he's getting and then some.

I add my enthusiastic recommendation that everyone see this one if you can, too, and SOON.  Then, for those who still care about the Oscars, when he inevitably wins, you'll be nothing but glad.

[saucycobblers]

And WHEN he wins I'll be a-cheerin' very loudly and hoping we'll be seeing more of him on our screens as a result!

Have you seen 'Ghost Dog' Barb? If you haven't then you should check it out. A completely different kind of performance from our man Forest, but equally as powerful. Man oh man, he's a huge talent. Even in the smallest of film or TV roles you can't take your eyes off him.

[ednbarby]

No, I haven't seen Ghost Dog yet, but you're the second person in as many days to tell me I should. 

[Meryl]

Barb, I saw "Venus" last weekend because you were so enthusiastic about it, and I loved it.  Peter O'Toole is just wonderful, as are all the actors.  It's both sad and funny, and I thought the direction by Roger Michell was very good, too--witty and illuminating.  I looked him up on IMDb and saw that he directed "Notting Hill" and "Changing Lanes" as well as a couple of films with Daniel Craig.

I'm so glad that Peter O'Toole found this great vehicle to remind us how good he IS, not just WAS.  It was a treat, too, to see Vanessa Redgrave in it, always so radiant no matter how frumpy and old they try to make her. 

[jpwagoneer1964]

I Like 'Venus' as well. I got to see it Jan 28 at my bud's, Chris Atkins.

Saw 'In Search of Happiness' last Sat with one of my oldest bud's (we have known eachother since we were ten). Very good Movie.

Mark

[Bucky]

I don't think I truly appreciated just what a complex, sad and moving movie Making Love was until I saw it again tonight.  For its time it was truly a pioneer movie.  The movie was made in 1981 and at that time many gay guys were afraid of long term relationships and were content with "one night stands."  This movie also was made prior to the outbreak of AIDS and many gay men did engage in alot of sex without true love.  Bard who was Harry Hamilin's character was like that.

 Michael Ontkean's character Zach in my opinion was the saddest character in the movie because he had homosexual desires most of his life but repressed them and married Kate Jackson's character(Claire).  They had a life together which had everything but sexual passion.  Zach loved Claire but mostly as a friend who had a lot in common with him but she wanted more out of him than he could give her.  He became attracted to Bard when Bard was a patient of his and spent an evening with Bard.  Bard knew who he was and he knew that he did not want a long term relationship with a man but that was exactly what Zach was looking for at the time.  Bard pushed Zach away and finally Zach told Claire that he was gay.  She didn't accept it very well at least not at first so they seperated and Zach went to New York. 

In the end Claire finally married another man and had a child that she always hoped that she and Zach would have.  Zach found a man in New York while he worked at the Sloan-Kettering Medical Center.  They met again when Zack went back to California to attend a funeral of a mutual friend.  The whole thing was sad.  It was a sad experience for Zach, Claire and Bard.  I can relate to the struggles of Zach trying to come to terms with who he was and his confusion about his sexual identity at first.  Claire was sad because she would always love Zach and Bard had to question his "one night stand" love style and his encounter with Zach made him think that perhaps a long term relationship might be better for him. 

[saucycobblers]

I was wondering whether or not to bother with 'In Search of Happiness'. I definitely will if you recommend it Mark!