27 May 2009

Movies I've Been Watching

Holy crap! I love watching movies but lately, with Pete's little project, I've been watching a lot more. Some I've been meaning to see for a long time, and others I've never heard of, and some I don't care about at all.

The Umbrellas of Cherbourg has long been on my list to see - it's AMAZING.

Reasons it's amazing:
1. Super colorful
2. Takes place in France
3. Entire movie is SUNG - all the dialogue is...singing! It's weird at first but I got used to it so quickly.
4. The main characters sell umbrellas. THEY HAVE AN UMBRELLA SHOP. Hello, how awesome is that?!
5. The opening credits - look at Pete's blog. I was instantly captivated.

Heartbreaking and lovely. Please rent it, watch it illegally - just feast your eyes on it somehow.

Before Sunrise/Before Sunset

It seems that not many people are into these movies, which is sad. I remember when Before Sunset was released. I thought it looked good but never saw it, since I never saw Before Sunrise. But, oh boy. These films a treat, really. Both of them are pretty much about two people who meet randomly on a train and spend the day/afternoon walking around, talking about EVERYTHING, and they fall in love. Before Sunrise leaves the characters in a tricky position, as they want to see each other again, but since they live in different countries...can they? They make plans to meet in six months, back in Vienna. Then, nine years later, Before Sunset was created. This time the duo meets up in Paris, wanders around, talks about their infamous night nine years earlier, and, well...you should just watch it.

Grey Gardens

Another heartbreaking movie. Why are all these movies sad?? I have yet to see the original, but since I'm living at home now, I took advantage of the fancy satellite/DVR system we have and recorded the Grey Gardens made recently, with Drew Barrymore. I'm a sucker for Never Been Kissed and Ever After, but WOW - she did not disappoint in this. She stuck with her character so well, from when she was 17 up until she was in her 50s. I was very impressed, the scenery was gorgeous, and, as previously stated, the story was heartbreaking. The old version of Grey Gardens is in Pete's Netflix queue but it's been hard to track down.

Love in the Time of Cholera

I read this book awhile ago and knew there was a movie, and (taking advantage of fancy TV again) I found it on our OnDemand thing and thought, "hmmm, might as well watch it while I study for biology!" I had forgotten how sad the book is, and also...well, how sexual it was! Jeez, the movie is kind of making me blush at certain parts. Regardless, the story is still beautiful. Javier Bardem plays Florentino to perfection, which makes me happy (he's so good). The casting was also great, with Benjamin Bratt as the loving husband/doctor who can do no wrong. However, I don't know if I could read Love in the Time of Cholera again because it was soooo long and wordy and hard to get through at certain points.

What movies have you been watching lately? Looking back at all these picks as I code the post, I've realized that I currently have a type: drama, with beautiful costumes, handsome leading actors (uh, HELLO Ethan Hawke! Benjamin Bratt! The dude from Umbrellas!), gorgeous scenery (Spain, Vienna, Paris, Cherbourg) and general heartbreaking endings.

Let me know if you have any good picks!

2 comments:

Bridgett said...

Just watched Up the Down Staircase (netflix) which is like a female american version of To Sir With Love. Except the thing that makes it ring truer--that it's never the kids that make you want to quit your teaching job; it's the administration.

Interesting about Cholera. I've never read that one (read several other GGMarquez)...

Rosemary/sonrie said...

love love love Before Sunrise/Sunset