August Rush - an overly sweet Musical Fairytale

by Paul Grant (follower of Basho)

I went to see August Rush without any preconceived notions about the movie, other than those having to do with the title (none of those panned out). What I saw was a movie that had elements of bot the Cinderella story and Oliver twist. Even though some moments bordered on the ridiculous, and the acting was not the best, and the screenplay was heavily flawed, I enjoyed the movie and the music. I especially liked the line "I love music more than food."

The basic conclusion I made after reflecting on the movie (with a friend), was that
it truly was a fiery tale (a far-fetched sequence of events) with a fairytale ending (a happy ending). If you are into that sort of thing, or are in need of a surgery sweet sappy tale then this might be for you.

These type of tales are not just for children though I suspect children (over 8(? )will tend to enjoy it more than most adults. If you are into realism, like true story with a happy ending, or simply a realistic plot, then this tory will fall short.


Basic Plot:

August Rush involves three stories, the first the story of a woman is a cellist who has one night d and becomes pregnant only to loose the child. Th second is a bout Irish rock musician wo gives up music , but not his desire to find again his true love, a woman he had a on night stand with. And third, the story of an orphan, unknown at first to himself , a music prodigy, who holds the belief that his biological parents are out there somewhere and want to be reunited with him.


Key Players:

The original music by Mark Mancini is a highlight of the film. At the beginning of the film, we see Lyla perform a classical cello solo. At the same time, Louis (the unknowing fatherof Evan) is making his own music with his band at a gig. Mancini shows the contrasts between the two musical styles but soon begins to meld them together into an organic one. There are also August’s original compositions and their energetic execution that are underlined with an impressive percussive beat. The great rock classic, Moon dance, is used to fine affect as that tune in integrated into the music of August Rush.

The director: Her father is Jim Sheridan, whose films such as My Left Foot and In America (for which Kristen shared an Oscar nomination with her father and sister, Naomi, for Best Original Screenplay)

Writerswriters responsible for such forgettable films as "Hook," "The Boy Who Could Fly," "Sahara" and other cinematic flops, though Hart did also give us this year's "The Last Mimzy.



Alfred Thomas Highmore[(born February 14, 1992) Highmore began acting with small parts on TV at the age of 7. In 2004, he had a major breakthrough with his critically acclaimed performance as Peter in Finding Neverland. Highmore received several nominations and awards for the role, including a Broadcast Film Critics' Award and a Screen Actors' Guild Award nomination. In 2005, he played the part of Charlie Bucket in the blockbuster film Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (adapted from the book by Roald Dahl). He was allegedly recommended for the role by Johnny Depp, who was very impressed by the young actor's performance in Finding Neverland.

Highmore, only 14 when the film was shot last year is English, and Evan/August is American. He pulls off the accent amzinglly well.



Keri Lynn Russell (born March 23, 1976) is a Golden Globe-winning American actress and dancer. After appearing in a number of made-for-television films and series during the mid-1990s, she came to fame for portraying the title role of Felicity Porter on the series Felicity, which ran from 1998 to 2002. Russell has since appeared in several films, including We Were Soldiers, The Upside of Anger, Mission: Impossible III and Waitress.

Russell first appeared on television as a cast member of the New Mickey Mouse Club variety show on the Disney Channel.[1] She was on the show from 1991 to 1993 and co-starred with future pop stars Christina Aguilera, Britney Spears, JC Chasez, and Justin Timberlake.



Jonathan Rhys Meyers (born 27 July 1977) is an Irish Golden Globe-winning actor.
The very handsome Rhys Meyers has starred in television series including Gormenghast (2000) and in the CBS 4-hour mini-series Elvis (2005) as Elvis Presley alongside Rose McGowan as Ann-Margret. The latter earned him an Emmy nomination and a Golden Globe win. He is currently starring in the Showtime series The Tudors (2007) as young Henry VIII.

Among many movie credits Rhys Meyers starred in Woody Allen's brilliant film Match Point, for which he received a Chopard Trophy at the Cannes Film Festival.

On Sunday 18 November 2007 Rhys Meyers was arrested in Dublin Airport and charged with being drunk and in breach of the peace. He was later released on bail to appear at the Dublin District Court on 5 December 2007.[6] He was in Dublin to promote his new movie August Rush on the Irish television programme Tubridy Tonight.

Two days later, on November 20, the actor's mother, Geraldine Meyers-O'Keeffe, died after being admitted to the Mercy Hospital in Cork. She was 50 years old.[7]

Rhys Meyers also has experience as a singer, and sings several songs in this movie.

Notes on Fairy tales:


Bruno Bettelheim, the author of the book The Uses of Enchantment, (which I read in a literature course in college) wrote: ".. if children are allowed to read and interpret these fairy tales in their own way, they will get a greater sense of meaning and purpose in their lives." Therefore I will refrain from suggesting what meaning this movie seeks to present.

A Russian scholar by the name of Vladimir Yakovlevich Propp (1895 — 1970) analyzed the basic plot components of Russian folk tales to identify their simplest irreducible narrative elements. These plot components that he identified turned out to cross over from just Russian folk/ faerie tales to folk/ Fairy tales in general.

The movie August Rush fits into his sequence easily:

After the initial situation is depicted, (In flashbacks, we see how Lyla Novacek (Waitress's Keri Russell), an acclaimed classical cellist, met and shared a romantic evening with Louis Connelly (The Tudors' Jonathan Rhys Meyers), a singer and guitarist with an Irish rock 'n' roll band.)

1. A member of a family leaves home & the hero is introduced - In this case Evan (Freddie Highmore) is orphaned.

2. An interdiction is addressed to the hero ('don't go there')-In this case Evan is told not believe that he will ever be reunited with his biological parents.

3. The interdiction is violated (villain enters the tale); -While taking the search for his parents on his own by running away from the orphanage Even meets Wizard (Robin Williams)), a Faginesque former musician who lives off the musical talents of his young, errant wards.

4. The villain makes an attempt at reconnaissance ( a preliminary survey to gain information)

5. The villain gains information about the victim-

6. The villain attempts to deceive the victim to take possession of victim or victim's belongings
7. Victim taken in by deception, unwittingly helping the enemy

8. a member of family lacks something or desires something

9. Misfortune or lack is made known

10. Seeker agrees to, or decides upon counter-action

11. Hero leaves home;

12. Hero is tested, interrogated, attacked etc, preparing the way for his/her receiving magical agent or helper (donor);

13. Hero reacts to actions of future donor

14. Hero acquires use of a magical agent

15. Hero is transferred, delivered or led to whereabouts of an object of the search;

16. Hero and villain join in direct combat; T

18. Villain is defeated (defeated in contest)-

19. Initial misfortune or lack is resolved (object of search distributed, spell broken, slain person revived, captive freed);

20. Hero returns; Evans

26. Task is resolved; Evans goal in writing his musical piece was so that many would hear it- and perhaps his real parents

27. Hero is recognized :Evan is recognized by his mother as he conducts.

28. False hero or villain is exposed; left alone the wizard play his music, but no one an hear him

29. Hero is given a new appearance (is made whole, handsome, new garments etc);

31. Hero ascends the throne (is rewarded)


What others are saying:

By Carina Chocano, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

"August Rush" feels like the cinematic equivalent of being stuffed with fruitcake and doused with a gallon of egg nog, so if that's the sort of thing you go in for around the holidays . . . Freddie Highmore ("Finding Neverland") stars as a Dickensian orphan with an ear so prodigious that he can hear the music in everything.
-----------------------------

August Rush is perfect for people who like good stories and music. I know I do and therefore am excited about this movie.

August Rush is about an orphaned boy that uses his musical talent as a clue to finding his birth parents. Dramas combined with adventure and fairy tale elements can never go wrong. I remember the last movie I saw in this similar genre is Big Fish, which is yet another reason to expect good things (but don't compare it with this one too much

by FilmPeek http://www.filmpeek.net/2007-10/

The Mist (2007) Draws you in quickly, then disappoints, then depresses

Stephen King's The Mist (2007)
Starring: Thomas Jane, Andre Braugher, Laurie Holden, Amin Joseph, Frances Sternhagen, Alexa Davalos, Sam Witwer, Jeff DeMunn, Brian Libby, Marcia Gay Harden, Toby Jones
Director: Frank Darabont
Rated: R for violence, terror and gore, and language
U.S. Opening Date: 21 November 2007

There are no cheap thrills in the Mist that make you jump out of your seat . The Mist deals with serious issues like politics and religion and about how fear can cause people to believe anything.It's also a doomsday thriller. Unfortunately it is burdened by a dialogue-heavy pace; when something weird will happen several haracters will spend the next 10 minutes discussing the event. And much of the dialogue is campy and/or cheesy, or just plain stupid.

One of the first images you'll see in "The Mist" is a movie poster of John Carpenter's "The Thing." That 1982 classic which also tried to be intelligent while at the same time filled with a growing paranoia and a good amount of gore. The mist falls way short of that film.

And then the conclusion.... I will not give it away at all, but I'll comment on it in this articles conclusion.


Plot

The plot is rather simple. On the morning after a hurricane hits a a small East Coast town artist David Drayton (Thomas Jane) and his son (Nathan Gamble) decide to head into town to get some groceries and supplies to fix up their busted house.when everyday citizen Dan Miller(Jeffrey DeMunn) runs into the supermarket yelling, "There’s something in the mist!" A strange, all-encompassing gray mist proceeds to swoop in and cover the entire town, forcing David and many others to take shelter inside the supermarket Soon, giant eel-like tentacles slip under the loading-dock door and drag away Norm the bag boy, ( a good scene filled with interesting male competitiveness) unbelievably only Drayton and three others witness, and no one in the store hears. The witnesses have to convince the other shoppers of their peril. (It's also unrealistic that the Mist didn't attempt to come in when it had the chance.)

Grocery-shopping religious zealot Mrs. Carmody(Marcia Gay Harden) preaches to her fellow shoppers how the mist represents the time of judgment(not to mention how God’s will demands blood), as human casualties rise, supermarket civilians begin listening to Carmody’s preaching. Now, Drayton must decide which group rests as a bigger threat to his son: violent mist or religious fanatics.

So, there you have it: the set-up. an elaborate monster in the house type of film. "The Mist" raises the inevitable question of who the real monsters are.


ACTORS

Thomas Jane plays the ever-resourceful David and is easy to root for, a hansom-wholesome man of action and a sensitive artist.

Marcia Gay Harden plays the religious extremist who whips up the crowd with her fire-and-brimstone denunciations and shrieks "Now do you believe?!" Is harder to root for or like or find very believable as a character. Not the actresses fault -rather the script.

The actor Toby Jones ( who played the lead character of Truman Capote in the movie Infamouse (2006) )plays the runtish but resourceful grocery checker very well.

Jeffrey DeMunn, is an actor who has been in all of Darabont's films plays a rational man, rationally. Nothing stand out in the role - his presence just adding that sense of continuity for film buffs and fans of Darabont.

About the director

Frank Darabont was born in a refugee camp in 1959 in Montbeliard, France, the son of Hungarian parents who had fled Budapest during the failed 1956 Hungarian revolution. Brought to America as an infant, he settled with his family in Los Angeles and attended Hollywood High School. His first job in movies was as a production assistant on the 1981 low-budget film, Hell Night (1981), starring Linda Blair.


In 1977 Steven King sold a 23-year-old Darabont the rights—for all of one dollar—to an old story, The Woman in the Room. The short film that followed was Darabont's ticket to Hollywood.

Darabont is one of only six filmmakers in history with the unique distinction of having his first two feature films receive nominations for the Best Picture Academy Award: 1994's The Shawshank Redemption (1994) (with a total of seven nominations) and 1999's The Green Mile (1999) (four nominations). Darabont himself collected Oscar nominations for Best Adapted Screenplay for each film (both based on works by Stephen King)

The Mist based on King's 27 years old novella, is the shortest recent movie Darabont has made, (and it's still too long).


Conclusion

The Mist" contains intense moments but it is slowed down too much by bad dialog.

And about the conclusion.... Darabont abruptly abandons Steven King's text in the movie's final minutes. I think Darabont should have kept the original ending, and instead taken the time to update the dialogue which comes almost verbatim from the 27 year old original text.

And though this has no bearing on the movie and is just a piece of trivia, the last word in King's story was "hope,".

Official Site:http://www.themist-movie.com/

The Darjeeling Limited 2007 Movie Review

After sharing my opinion with a fellow movie lover, she conveyed the following wisdom: If you didn't like The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004), The Royal Tenenbaums (2001) Rushmore (1998) then you won't like this film. it is all about appreciating the work of director Wes Anderson."

The Darjeeling Limited 2007 Movie Review

My immediate after the movie review: Bad writing. Plot Boring. Mishaps that become 4. not so much predictable as unsurprising. Exceptional cast - Angela Houston the stand out performance. A lot of time building up characters that never brings any value to the whole. Exemplifies the stupid rich on a spiritual quest and mocks those who see themselves as spiritual & Indians in general. Movie is quite literally, about letting go of your baggage. Pretty good music at beginning and end. Quirky to the point of being funny at times but at other times the `love-me-I'm-so-quirkily-vulnerable' is unapealing. Could be considered a extra-dry exposition in humor.

Basic plot: Comedy about three brothers (Jason Schwartzman, Owen Wilson and Adrien Brody) who, to gain emotional healing and closure after the death of their dad, travel across India to find their mother who is living in a monastery.

A few additional notes on this movie.

First I did not see the pre-movie. In Venice, the movie screened with a 13-minute short, "Hotel Chevalier," identified in the end credits as "Part 1 of 'The Darjeeling Limited.' " Completed in 2005, this short shows the character Jack (Jason Schwartzman) and his ex-girlfriend (Natalie Portman) iat a Parisian hotel.

Supposedly, the short provides a potent prologue that further serves to make Jack the most sympathetic of the brothers and adds resonance to visual motifs that recur in the feature. Per Anderson, "Hotel Chevalier" will not be shown in theaters, but rather on the Internet (Itunes), at festivals and on DVD.

(I will watch the short and update this review after.)

2. I went back and watched this movie because of Owen Wilson's recent suicide attempt. I have enjoyed Wilson in movies, and it has been his lightheartedness that has been so appealing to me.

I wondered about the serious nature of this film (Boys who loose thier father, feel the need for a spiritual quest - seeking a mother who has run away to live in a remote monastery)- and the fact that Wislson's face is completely badaged.

If Wilson had died after this movie, perhaps more could be read into it. Wilson's characters injuries come from a motorcycle accident, that the script seems to allude to as a possible suicide.

Maybe when I was watching the film I was hoping to gleam some sort of clues to Wilson's sadness. The closest I got was the scene when Wilson removes his bandages, giving us a glimpse at the hidden injuries. In the next scene the bandages are back on. Message being - his injuries are covered by his outward persona.

3. Other critics have said tha this is a companion pice to the Tenenbaums which I have not seen in some time. Maybe having that movie fresh in ones mind would make the experience a little better.

4. Other critics feel that this was a masterpiece (Roger Ebert liked it). For example Bill Gibron in PopMatters writes:

"The Darjeeling Limited is a classic curry covered confection. It seems superficially sublime, only to underscore its surface with deep, philosophical power. It’s about never wanting to grow up, and discovering that responsibility ain’t so bad. It’s like listening to a beautiful song and then realizing the lyrics describe a particularly disturbing issue. Anderson may be continuously labeled as strange and unconventional, but there is something most critics can’t deny. He is a master of the medium he is so frequently called out over, and The Darjeeling Limited is both a wonderful rebuttal, and recognizable explanation, for such fractured feelings.


A telling quote from the Director Wes Anderson:

I want to try not to repeat myself. But then I seem to do it continuously in my films. It's not something I make any effort to do. I just want to make films that are personal, but interesting to an audience. I feel I get criticized for style over substance, and for details that get in the way of the characters. But every decision I make is how to bring those characters forward.-Review by Pul Grant (follower of Basho) 12/2007

Hitman (2007 movie)- Best suited younger males and video game efficianados

20th Century-Fox presents a film directed by Xavier Gens. Written by Skip Woods. Running time: 110 minutes. Rated R (for strong, bloody violence, language and some sexuality and nudity).

Hitman is the hot action thriller in movie theaters right now. It's number one problem is it's getting terrible reviews.

A movie review forms their opinion based on their collective knowledge of other moves - and in comparison to other movies- Hitman doesn't win over the competition of say - the Bourne Ultimatum, Mission Impossible or Le Femme Nikita.


But Hitman is not as unwatchable, as some claim.

The second major problem this film has is the pre-understanding that the film is based off of a video game. A person reviewing the movie (the genre of movies based off of video games) ethically should state if they know and/or play the video game from whic the movie is based. {I have never seen of heard of the video game before seeing this movie.}

The teasing question becomes, does knowledge of the game enhance the viewing pleasure? I cannot answer that question. But I can propose that by `basing' the story on a video game, as opposed to say a real life saga as in American Gangster, that there has to be a meta-language that needs to be understood.

Meta-language meaning a language that is specific to it's context.To make that more simple, here is the premise- the nameless hitman kills people. He uses a variety of tools/weapons- the best one for any given situation. He is cold and disciplined. He is
most successful when he plans his moves multiple steps ahead (as in chess). He receives assignments for which he gets benefits for, usually currency, sometimes a favor. He doesn't miss his target.

Many who analyzed the movie the Sixth Sense discovered that the director had set up for himself a set of rules in which to work; this movie operates in much the same way. Suspension of disbelief is a must. For example, after the Hitman tries to kill the President of one of the most powerful nations in the world and has Interpol, Russian police, and the Russian Secret Service all breathing down his neck, he tries to make his escape at the St. Petersburg train station. Of course he succeeds, evn though he is most probably the only bald guy with a bar code on the back of his head. In another fight scene, all the characters put down their guns in favor of small swords. In real life, that just doesn't happen.

About the Direction

It should also be noted, at the beginning of this review, that this is the director Xavier Gens second major film. His first film, the French-language horror item "Frontiere(s)," is still awaiting stateside release. Frontiere(s) (which I have not seen) earned legitimacy by playing at the 2007 Toronto International Film Festival. This is the guy's second film, and on that point alone it is notable.

Second- there were reported problems between the studio and the filmmaker, who at one point was reported to have been fired. Director Gens, and screenwriter Skip Woods (2001's "Swordfish"),and the studio (20th Century Fox) allegedly clashed with their visions.The novice filmmaker vision was certainly altered by studio pressures. We can hope that in DVD that there will be a directors cut.



About main actor Timothy Olyphant

Originally Vin Diesel was to play the hitman. This could have been a major break for Olyphant- but the almost unanimous panning of this movie also often includes criticism that he was not the right man for the part. He seems neither the mettle nor have even vocal density necessary. Olyphant tries to personify the ninja male, think total modern ninja the ultimate oriental assassin/spy/chameleon. I think Olyphant adds a sensitivity to the role.

A larger star than Olyphant might have with brought more positive reviews. The character Olyphant is challenged to play is supposed to be emotionless,

Female Lead Olga Kurylenko

Despite what the advertisers try to portray, the movie is about men, and being serious. So the feminine character is left being basically meaningless- not even an object of anyones desire, a very unusual approach. The character attempts to bring her femininity into the movie - but is continually rebuffed.

She is not the strongest actress that might have been chosen for the part. Though she is nice to look at when naked.



Flaws

The hitman actually raised his voice emotionally to the female lead. The real The hit man would never raise his voice.

Its been done

So it's been done before. For centuries people have gone to movies and plays with similarities in scripts. At a certain point including as many `stolen' ideas becomes the goal. Like: head tattooing, gratuitous double silver .45's, chain
bondage, threatening a man with a machete, an exploding body, boobytrapping a hotel room, talking to a computer handler (think Mission Impossible), exploding suitcase, Interpol, gratuitous high tech Russian SWAT team, exploding door,jumping out of hotel windows, guns hidden in ice, sliding down elevator cables, elevator music in elevator filled with dead guys, a helicopter shooting in on office (think Matrix.) dead guy in a trunk, gratuitous transvestite, Russian mob party with drinking, drugs, arms dealing, double machine gun Russian mob club massacre, pseudo religious medal, and on and on. In this movie there is almost nothing new- but a hell of a lot of the old ideas mashed in together.


Conclusionis is an movie about a hitman. He kills people. Little plot. The bad guy is the good guy being chased by good guys some of whom are bad guys. Through it all the hitman kills people.

Outstanding opening credit scean showing early indoctrination to the song Ave Maria.

Movie leaves a lot of room for sequals.

Best lines: "You shouldn't have stolen from me, brother. Now you must pay," "What bothers me is he missed," "If you set me up I will find you and I will burn that building down around you," "Do not give that order," "How about dying with a little dignity?," "You think it's done? It's just beginning," "Don't be dramatic. I brought you breakfast," "If you're looking for a
reason not to kill me I don't really have one," "So you don't want to fuck me and you don't want to kill me. I don't think I've ever felt so much indifference in my life," "You know, you are quite charming when you're not killing people," "When I was a
little girl, my father raised grapes""What color underwear am I wearing? You're not wearing any underwear," "Why do you buy these magazines? For the advertisements," "How does a good man decide to kill?,"


Trivia:

# When the project was first announced, Vin Diesel was going to produce and star as Agent 47.

# The car Agent 47 drives is an Audi S5.

# When 47 jumps through the hotel window into the kid's room,

they're playing ‘Hitman 2: Silent Assassin’ for the Playstation 2.

#Timothy Olyphant is Seth Bullock in the HBO series "Deadwood"

***

If you like this type of movie I urge you to rent Jean-Pierre Melville's "Le Samourai" (1967), which is about a lone-wolf assassin in Paris (Alain Delon). He too works alone, is a professional, cuts off his emotions, seems lonely and cold. But
the movie is about him, not his killing score.

Overall rating C (Most suited for younger males)

American Gangster - Not Very Good

American Gangster Rated R 2hrs 37 minutes

Overview: For me- boring, slow, predictable and contemptuous in parlaying hero status on scum.

The hype that surrounded the opening of the movie I think was caused somewhat by the void left by the ending of the television series the Sopranoes. (James Gandolfini aka Tony Soprano was offered the role of Detective Trupo, but turned it down.) I should point out my bias that I felt the Soprano's was brilliant.

You have a great team with director Ridley Scott, Denzel Washington and Russle Crowe. The weakest link, in my opinion was the script, followed by the unexeptional directing, followed by the ineffectual acting of Washington (whom I really do like as an actor.) The storyline itself, a retelling of an actual story, never really satisfies. The attempt at redemption at the conclusion, though real, was far less than satisfying, for me, almost nauseating.

At the end of the movie, I simply said: "I didn't like that."

And heaven forbid that it be compared to the Godfather or Scarface. In both movies the directing pull out an intensity that is nowhere to be found in this movie.

I rate this movie 4 out of ten.

Synopsis:

Following the death of his employer and mentor, Bumpy Johnson, Frank Lucas establishes himself as the number one importer of heroin in the Harlem district of Manhattan. He makes a mint cutting out the middleman by acquiring his goods straight from Vietnam and then peddling them in his Harlem hometown. It is also the story of a honest policeman, Richie Roberts. Based on a true story.

More:


The hero of the movie is also, really, the greatest villain, Frank Lucas, the real-life Harlem drug lord. He was `the' unlikely black man to best the white mafia in drug trafficking. The movie portrays Lucas as a black man who rises to the heights of society by his dedication to "order," and his strives to be a businessman and a "gentleman," who values hard work and loyalty, being smart and at the core disciplined and caring (he gives away free turkeys at Thanksgiving to the poor as his mentor did.)

On the down side - the characterization is second-hand: the bad cop on the take is bad through and through, the good cop so obsessed by the job that he neglects his family; the gangster seems a charmer but has ferocious streak. The same gangster follows the lead of the Corleones (of the Godfather movie)in family loyalty - setting up his mouth in a grand home and relying on his brothers as his first lieutenants.

What is not as predictable as the characters is how boring the end would be.

On the plus side it is a history lesson about heroin addiction in late 1960s and early 1970s in New York.

Read more about the director Ridley Scott -a look into the life of the director.

Full trailer



The soundtrack album gives you a diverse introspect on the film featuring artist such as Hank Shocklee, The Staple Singers, Public Enemy and Bobby Womack. The focus single (Do You Feel Me) on the album features platinum recording artist Anthony Hamilton. The song is also written by Diane Warren, one of the most successful and prolific songwriters to ever work in the music industry.

The movie poster: