‘The Shawshank Redemption’, ‘Mallrats’, ‘Oldboy’ and ‘The Godfather’ A.K.A. THE FINALE

I’VE DONE IT! I actually managed to watch 212 films in 7 months! BOOYA!! However, I will not feel like I’ve fully completed this challenge until I type up my so-called ‘reviews’. I now have 43minutes to type all four of today’s movies up. Guess I kind of regret not typing up The Shawshank Redemption when I had the chance [I had a nap instead >.<]

Anyways, 3 of these films were amazing, guess which one wasn’t so *eye roll, glares at TheFilmFan* [lol joking, by the way]. Now, seeing as time is short and I now have 41 minutes left, these reviews might be short, brief, bullet points and I may miss some key points, especially in Shawshank, Oldboy and Godfather. At least this time I have a genuine excuse for my crappy reviews! 40 minutes to go!

Singin’ In The Rain

First time I’ve seen it! It was brilliant! I’m going to cut straight to the notes because I’m incredibly tired and feel like I could sleep for days! I’ve got to get up early if I’m to watch 14 films by Saturday night!! So this might mean that a lot of my ‘reviews’ will be short as I’m INCREDIBLY tight on time.

I love the opening shot of the three main characters having their backs to the ‘audience’ in trench coats and black umbrellas and their names appear on their umbrellas.

I loved that this movie pretty much says that anything that actors or publicists say is scripted and lies. Biggest example of it is when Gene Kelly’s character, Don Lockwood, told the story of how he became famous but the audience sees how it really happened and discover that everything he’s saying is a complete lie.

I loved Jean Hagen and her voice! I remember reading somewhere that some silent movie actors and actresses lost their jobs because their voices where actually quite silly. Also, I just love comedic actresses from ‘the past’.

“Call me a cab.” ‘Ok, you’re a cab.”

The Apartment

I watched it, it was lovely, it has a great unique storyline and is something I’d recommend to all. Can I leave it at that? No? Ok… sorry, I’m just soooo tired!!! Stayed up watching 2001 A Space Odyssey last night then woken up early because everyone thought I had to be awake at 8.

Back to the Future

This is a great, funky movie! I say funky because… well, it is! Goofy is probably a better word but its good goofy, you know? I’ll be honest, I’ve only ever seen one scene from this movie [the scene where Marty’s dad finally wins his mum’s heart in the 50s] and I wish I’d seen this film the whole way through. It wouldn’t be in my top 10 or even top 100 but its still a good film.

I apologize, for the millionth time, about my notes, I’m weirdly tired and I have severer sunburn all over my body [I DIDN’T KNOW SUN COULD GO THROUGH CLOUDS!!!], I’ve been feeling sick on and off all day today so my notes are gonna be crap due to lack of brain power.

The Big Lebowski

Its very good, very funny and totally random. For us young-uns, its kind of like Pineapple Express but with slightly less weed. I’d only just heard about this film recently because the guy from the show Cake Boss mentioned that this was his favourite film ever and that he keeps quoting it [to the point where there is a counter in the corner of the screen of how many times he quotes the movie]. It’s a shame that I hadn’t seen it sooner.

Dude gets mistaken for another Lebowski and stuff goes on from there. Most of my notes are quotes, which is what this movie is famous for, so I’ll try to get a few little lines in about the film then just leave the rest to quotes because that’s all the fans of this movie care about!

This film made me want to go bowling. However, I did laugh at all the people that take bowling seriously. Our main 3 characters do love bowling but they haven’t gone as far as having their own matching outfits and gloves. Those are the people that need to be whacked round the head with a bowling ball. And they’re normally always fat! This is the only ‘sport’ they can play.

I love Dude’s hair. Love it. I want my hair to look like that, the way its curly at the ends and stuff.

Julianne Moore shocked me with her surprisingly good British accent! And she was a pretty cool character too.

I love that Dude and Walter talk like 20-somethings but they look [so badly] like middle-aged men.

I kept cracking up at Dude’s high-pitched girly screams and his plastic jelly sandals! I had a pair like that when I was young! They were pink! I lost one in the ocean.

His Girl Friday

QUICK NOTE: If you look to the right of your screen, you will see ‘List of Movies’. I’m sorry it took me so long to work out how to get something there lol. So, basically, there is the list of the 212 films I hope to watch, along with links to the reviews I’ve done. I just think its a bit more organized and will save anyone who’s reading this time and hassell of having to go through pages and pages of ramblings to get to the review they want. Next to the films I’ve yet to watch will be ‘-coming soon’. They might not be watched in the order written there but they will be watched. There are also, I think, 2 spaces which I will fill with whatever movie I want to see in the cinema. Just to let you know ^_^ Anyways, onto the review:

This is a very good movie, fast paces and I wasn’t bored once! Its about an ex-newspaper reporter who’s about to get married to a boring insurance salesman until she gets roped into covering the biggest news story in years by her ex-husband the editor.

The characters are perfect, especially the lead female role who is one of the strongest, wittiest female characters I’ve seen. It was also interesting to see a woman in the 1940s being so accepted in the workplace; the rest of the journalists were male but treated her like an equal. It was funny though when she got really angry and screamed at them and broke the phone, you could tell the men were a little scared of her [when they should of be scared of the felon who was a ’murderer’.] However, she does have a little crying session when she realizes all her ex-husband has done to try and get her back with him which gives her another side women can look up to.

The script is very well written, and it works with two different plot lines; the ex-husband trying to get rid of his ex-wife’s future husband and the escape of a felon. Also, the dialogue often overlaps giving it a great sense of realism and natural pace. Also, I notice that there are really only 3 sets, the newspaper offices, the reporter room of the prison and the local jail [where the dull soon-to-be husband keeps landing in, its quite funny, feel slightly sorry for him]. That just shows the power of the script, that we were fine with them not jumping from place to place.

Sorry, the review is a little short but it is a very good movie, I advise you to watch it!

164/212

Kate
xoxo

The Graduate

I can’t really see why this movie is so great… it could have been made a lot better but oh well. Its good, but I’ve seen a lot better. The plot is a graduate who has an affair with Mrs. Robinson and ends up falling in love with Mrs. Robinson’s daughter.

I like the way it was shot, I like the dimensions. I don’t know whether its just my computer or it was all that they could afford or something but its so long but not very high. It looks almost artistic.

He’s graduated and his parents have this party for him but its filled with their friends and family friends who just fuss over the poor young man. I totally felt for him then.

I recognized the classic shot of Mrs. Robinson’s leg and Dustin Hoffman in the background with the classic line “Mrs. Robinson, you’re trying to seduce me.” However, they used the word ‘seduce’ too often that it lost its ‘meaning’ if you know what I mean.

The tan lines on Mrs. Robinson’s body were funny, but also a nice change as you normally never see tan lines on women in movies. It was quite clever how they angled the camera to be over Mrs. Robinson’s shoulder so we see Hoffman, but we get very quick cuts to show areas of her naked body. That actually made it more tasteful than movies these days that would go ahead and show it all.

It was interesting to see another side to affairs. Most of the time in movies, the affairs are done so gracefully but in this one, at least at the beginning of the affair, Hoffman’s character hasn’t a single clue what to do which seems realistic.

Little Miss Sunshine

8.33pm [May21] – Sorry, once again my mind is crawling with Ashes to Ashes but this is because it was the season finale and the final episode ever and that’s just crazy and there is so much to take in and yeah… I’ll type up the review for Little Miss Sunshine tomorrow when I’ve stopped thinking about Gene Hunt!

1.13pm [May22] – I’m sorry, I’m lossing my determination for this challenge [yet again]. All I want to say is that this is an amazing movie and that you should all see it, its a one of a kind and will make you smile and laugh. I’ve scanned my notes in case you cared, good luck reading my handwriting or making sense of what I’ve written down lol. Once again, sorry. Lets hope my feelings change sooner rather than later.

140/212

Kate
xoxo

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off

It’s a lovely film to watch in the afternoon after lunch which is what I did. Its funny [not laugh out loud funny but still funny] and have some great characters. The title of the film is the plot of the film, just like Snakes on a Plane.

The teacher’s voices are so relatable. If you have a boring voice that drones on, don’t teach, you’ll just bore the students into suicide.

The coughing/ill sounds on the keyboard are so gross and not what you want to hear when you’re eating lunch.

I found myself loving the best friend, Cameron, more than our leading man, Ferris. I think its his big blue eyes >.< Anyways, loved the scene where he’s deciding whether or not to go, you just got so much about the character from that scene and it is pretty funny.

The way they use phone calls in this movie is incredibly clever and would probably never work in real life. Wonder how many people have tried it since this movie came out over 20 years ago.

I normally don’t really care for cars but that Ferrari was beautiful.

I did some research as I was watching the movie and the guy playing Camera who’s 17 was actually 29! He aged very well! And I know where I saw him before, he’s in Speed as the annoying tourist!

Love the car/Star Wars moment, perfect use of music.

I have 1 problem with this movie. Why the HELL, on your DAY OFF, would you go to a MUSEUM?!

I love the float scene where everyone is just dancing and loosening up and having fun. I found myself grinning throughout the whole thing. I probably would of gotten up and danced if I had the energy [*glares at Mother Nature*]

I can totally relate to the brother vs. sister aspect of this movie. I totally empathize with the sister but at the same time, I’m glad she helped her brother as I probably would of done too, even if he is a pain in the bum and probably wouldn’t say thank you.

Sorry, 1 more problem…the ending… does the teacher have NO PRIDE!? Also, I hate the whole dog vs. teacher thing, its not funny and just annoying.

Nice, easy, relaxing film to watch.

137/212

Kate
xoxo

Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy

The following is based on actual events.

Only the names, locations and events have been changed.

The introduction to Ron Burgundy is perfect. You may think that the voice-over-man’s introduction is the introduction but I feel it isn’t, I feel it’s the ‘outtakes’ of Burgundy’s news reports which tell us exactly what this character is like.

In England, I watched this film looooads [and its still funny] but now that I’ve moved to USA and have watched the news over here on TV, I find the film even more hilarious.

The main 4 male characters are pure comic genius in my opinion. They’re in my top 5 favourite comedy characters [as a group, not on their own]. They’re all so wonderfully narcissistic [except Brick who is scared of his own reflection] and sexist [except Brick who doesn‘t know that a woman is not a man]. They’re just brilliant comedic characters! Ron is wonderfully dumb and egotistical, Brian is hilarious with his sex-drive, Champ is the annoying sports man with the biggest man crush and Brick is adorable with his ignorance and stupidity.

The costumes and makeup, and by makeup I mean hair, are fantastic. So 70s! The hair is amazing, they almost have characters of their own.

Baxter! Baxter is Ron’s dog and his voice of reason. I love the scene where Ron talks to Baxter like he understands his barks and then goes “what? You know I don’t speak Spanish.”

Its interesting [and hilarious] to see how the men reacted to the first female anchorwoman. You can imagine that it probably wasn’t that hard to write a script for four sexist men [sorry, three because Brick doesn’t count] talking about the female news reporter.

I’m not so much shocked by the cologne of Sex Panther but Brian’s collection of colognes! I didn’t know they made so many! And men, if you’re reading, for the love of all that is Holy, we don’t like it when you smell like you’ve bathed in the cologne. A little dab is fine, don’t wash your damn hair with it.

I love that the extent of Ron Burgundy’s stupidity goes to him saying literally anything that is on the teleprompter. To be honest, I think if I were on TV, I’d say whatever was on the prompter!

I have their version of Afternoon Delight on my iPod. Best cover song ever. Always makes me smile. And they do sound really good!

Champ hearts Burgundy! So funny!

The cameos in this movie! Oh, the cameos!!! Vince Vaughn Jack Black! Luke Wilson! Tim Robins! SUPERAWESOME Ben Stiller!

Love, love, LOVE the credits scene where the credits roll on the end of a show and Veronica and Ron [Burgundy] have smiles on their faces but they’re calling each other names and being really nasty to each other because we’ve all thought it at some point that when we see news people or TV hosts ‘talking’ over the credits that they’re actually arguing.

The News Team Fight. One of the greatest fights in movie histor, do you agree? And where did Brick get a hand grenade?

I thought it was great that there’s hardly any swearing in this movie. The comedy is purely the characters, not the swear words.

The outtakes at the end of movie are hilarious, I think all movies should have outtakes at the end. Even horror movies.

Now, for some of my favourite quotes: