Cielo azul sin una sola nube

La Môme / La Vie En Rose
D: Olivier Dahan
Marion Cotillard, Sylvie Testud, Pascal Greggory, Emmanuelle Seigner, Gérard Depardieu.

Based on the childhood, adolescence and stardom of French singer Edith Piaf.

I must start by saying that I'm not at all familiarized with Edith Piaf, and that I've never been a great fan of that specific kind of music. And even with that, I was pretty satisfied with the movie. The thing is: the movie on itself (script, illumiation, photography, etcetera) are good on theirselves, but not doubt at all, what makes this movie extraordinary insteaf of just plain good is the performance of Marion Cotillard.

This was, no place for doubt, one of the best performances I've seen in my life - Cotillard gets inside the character, makes it real, and if it wasn't for her, the movie wouldn't be half as good as it is. As I've said, the script is good, and I've always liked non-linear narrative; but it's Cotillard's performace what makes it emotional, deep and touching. I must admit I spent the last twenty minutes of the movie crying - once I started I just couldn't stop. And yet, there's something that never quite clicked for me, I don't know what. I'm not sure I'll be able to see it again, for example.

There's this scene in particular, I'm not going to spoil anyone but it has Edith walking through long hallways time and time again, and it could very well be the climax of the movie, since in just one moment the viewers realize something horrible has happened, and the tension and emotion that that scene causes surprised me. The cinematography is forever changing according to the age and Edith's shifting moods (dark and opressive for the Paris of her childhood, elegant and smooth for the New York of the 30s, colorful and vibrant for California, and so on), but it never goes beyond the rule.

I give it a five out of a five, but I must add: this grading is for Marion Cotillard's superb acting. The movie is good, but not as good.

Cielo despejado con cielo demasiado azul

Across the Universe:

A dock worker Jude travels to America in the 1960s to find his estranged father. There he falls in love with sheltered American teenager Lucy. When her brother Max is drafted to fight in the Vietnam War, they become involved in peace activism. The film title and main characters are named after various songs by The Beatles.

I have to say that I’ve never been the greatest Beatles fan, and even yet I enjoyed this movie immensely – what’s more, it made me realize what I was missing and as soon as I came back from the theatre I started downloading assorted songs obsessively. But yes, a large part of the movie’s charm falls on the songs and their connection with the storyline – the emotional impact, let’s call it.

The movie opens with a wide shot of an English beach, a silent moment before the photographic and surrealist frenzy of the rest of the film. This might be one of the things that doesn’t leave me completely satisfied, seeing that while the surrealist feeling fits with the decade and it wonderfully made, it becomes a tad too much at times.

In contrast, the strength of the film falls on the parts that deal with the Vietnam war, which are emotive, well done and leave the audience thinking. The romance and the friendship themes are left a bit under the shadow of the war motifs, but they’re still attractive and are helped significantly by the music. The best performances were, to me, those of Jim Sturgess, Martin Luther McCoy and Joe Anderson, but I do have to say, all of the cast’s voices were impressing.

So yes, it worked for me. I do recommend it, and that’s even when you could never really call me a fan of musicals.



I also saw Yamakasi - Les samouraïs des temps modernes, and while it was fun, for a Luc Besson film, it was really weak, story-wise. The element that comes to life in this one is the use of Parkour and Free Running - which include roof to roof jumps, and fantastic acrobatics. It's about freedom, in a way. I saw it on the computer, but I've seen the dvd in my favorite video rental store for a couple of years now and I'd always wanted to see it. Why, you say? Because of the posters. My dream has always always been to be able to fly. Which is ironic, considering I'm mildly afraid of heights. So these posters? Seemed like my fantasy fulfilled.

Cielo lluvioso

Today I went to see 3:10 to Yuma and liked it very, very much. It was quite the bloodbath, though, huh? I have to start by saying I've never liked westerns, but this one had a certain punch to it that made it unique. For starters, it had wonderful performance by both Crowe and Bale - Bale is haunted, needy and the ultimate man of honor, while Crowe is charismatic and just a brilliant villian - both ruthless and charming at the same time. It's certainly not a perfect movie, and aside from falling into over-the-top action scenes at times, it can be too moralizying, but it was really interesting and entertaining and I just really liked the way Ben Wade and Dan Evans ended up circling each other, understanding each other far too much for their liking.

I spent most of the movie wondering just where the hell had I seen the dude playing Charlie Prince before, and seeing that I couldn't remember I started calling him beardy McHottie-pants in my head, AKA the guy with the awesome awesomely sexy white leather jacket I want to own. *cough* Turns out, he was Angel in X3. I guess it's not surprising I couldn't remember, seeing that I usually try and ignore that movie was ever made. Ugh. Seriously, though, what a dream of a role, that trigger-happy psycopath, and he pulled it off it really, really well.

Cielo despejado con luna nueva

I saw Sommersturm yesterday.

Synopsis: Tobi and Achim, the pride of the local crew club, have been the best of friends for years and are convinced that nothing will ever stand in the way of their friendship. They look forward to the upcoming summer camp and the crew competition. Achim's girlfriend Sandra is on the girl's team and he enjoys spending more time with her. Tobi becomes increasingly skeptical of their relationship. Anke, the pretty girl who has fallen for Tobi, doesn't make things any easier. Then the gay team from Berlin arrives and Tobi is totally confused. The evening before the races begin, the storm that breaks out is more than meteorlogical... A sensitive story about the complexities of growing up.

It was pretty nice, but nothing brilliant. Then again, it had some rather gorgeous moments, aesthetically, and there were some pretty interesting camera work going on there. As for the story, it was a pretty simple coming of age story, about Tobi, the boy in love with his best friend and trying really hard not to acknowledge it until it's painfully obvious he's seething with jealousy of Achim's girlfriend. The movie's set in a rowing camp (or whatever it's called in English) and based around Tobi's turmoil or accepting himself and having his friends accepting him in return. It was quite bitersweet, and a good portrayal of a slice of real life. So it was good, if not outstanding. And let's face it, it was pretty hot as well - I'm all for boys kissing each other. *cough*

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I did watch The Last King of Scotland yesterday, and was blown away by it. It was optimistic and colorful at times, and raw and painful and powerful at others, particularly at the last half. As everyone, I was floored by the acting, which were superb. Forrest Whitaker deserved his oscar, no doubt (what a stunning performance he gave! He became Idi Amin), but I am somewhat shocked at how little recognizment James McAvoy got out of the film, considering what a solid interpretetion he gave. Nicholas as a character, actually, was surprisingly well-developed for a fictional character in a movie based in real events, and it was rather an interesting point of view.

As I said, this movie's just really, really powerful - it strikes a chord, of sorts, and I ended up suitably traumatized and shaken but pleased. Another surprising detail: The photography was quite beautiful. And let us be shallow for a moment: Mr. McAvoy looked all sorts of good. *cough*

I--I hadn't seen a movie in nearly a month. WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME. Is it really me, anyway? Have I been swaped with aliens? How, how is it possible.



I saw Becoming Jane yesterday, and I have to say it was completely charming. The camera work was real good, and there were some really lovely shots. The music was lovely as well - I might have to get part of it. The cinematography was good, but with all the, uh, potential, the sets had, it could've been used better (I am thinking of Pride and Prejudice, which had an astounding photography). Oh, and the acting was wonderful! I was... quite dubious, of Anne Hathaway as Jane Austen, but her accent was actually somewhat decent and she gave a good performance. James McAvoy, on the other hand, was just a joy to watch. Oh, he was so good and cute and I like how he gets inside character's skins - he truly was Tom Lefroy. (Who, by the way, was such a well rounded character - I didn't expect that).

So yes, I liked it lots - it was hopeful and then not and while it still felt a bit on the fantastic side, it still felt quite real. So yes, it draws rather a bit too much from Pride and Prejudice* and it is in no wan an biographical film but it was still pretty good and I smiled throughout it.

Cielo lluvioso

This is me, today. Feeling horrible about myself and worse, deserving it completely.

My entry for this week's Illustration Friday, the theme is The Blues. Pretty fucking fitting, I'd say.

Cheap watercolors on cheap paper because the only paper I had with me at school was bond and I was feeling too shitty and too lazy to redo it in watercolor paper.

Cielo lluvioso

And this, kids, is why teenagers should be forbidden from marrying.

My entry for this week's Illustration Friday. The them was Weddings. Just a lazy doodle, but oh well, I've really been busy.

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Well, I finally got to see Stardust and my, but it was wonderful. Let's get the only bad thing out first, shall I? IT WAS IN SPANISH. NO ONE TOLD ME IT'D BE IN SPANISH. I HATE HATE HATE DUBBED MOVIES. So yeah. It was so good that I stopped focusing in my hatred for dubbing pretty soon, though, and I guess I now have an excuse to go see it again XD



Anyway, I loved it. I caught on to this fact when I caught myself grinning ideotically through every. single. scene. in the movie, lol. The Tristan/Yvaine relationship was really well treated, and they had so much chemistry and spark; Lamia was wicked and Captain Shakespeare made me laugh insanely. Also, the photography was real pretty, even if the music was a bit repetitive. I'm also really okay with the changes they made from the book - the only thing that rings untrue is that 'one week' deadline, but everything else? Really well made, and anyway, the book's ending was always somewhat plain, and it just made sense for the producers to spice it up for the silver screen. I didn't think it'd be that funny, though! That was a nice surprise, 'cause I honestly laughed and laughed at both the Captain's (hilarious) and princes' storylines. :) In short, I loved it to bits and so did everyone else in the theatre, it seemed.

And today I went to see The Bourne Ultimatum and, of course, it rocked my socks off. BUT. Y'ALL FAIL. WHY DID NO ONE TOLD ME DANIEL BRÜHL WAS IN IT? (ALL THREE MINUTES OF IT, WHATEVS.) In any case, it was much better than the second one and pretty on par with the first one, I'd say. I liked the development on Julia Stiles character, if I gotta be honest, and as always, Jason Bourne is souch an easy character to empathyze with, which is difficult considering who he is. Anyway, me ♥ spy stories, so of course I dig these movies. I still missed Franka Potente's character, though, she was cool. ;__; I'm considering reading the books.

Lluvia ligera

I went to the movies with my dad and we saw Paris, je t'aime and oh wow, it was so lovely. It truly is the mark of a good director/writer when they get the audience to empathize and understand the characters when they only have about five minutes onscreen. I only wish there'd be some marking as to who was directing which part, but my wikipedia-fu is nothing but fierce so now I can say which were my favorite segments:

The best one, in my eyes, was the one directed by Tom Tykwer (director of Run Lola Run, and it all fits now), the one with Natalie Portman - it was absolutely stunning and beautiful. The second best was the one directed by Isabel Coixet, about a man torn between staying with his sick wife or running away with his mistress. It was just lovely and so well shot - it reminded me of Amelie somehow, probably because of the narrator. I laughed the hardest with the one directed by Alexander Payne, the one about a tourist from the US talking about her love for Paris. My dad must have burst something laughing, he says he sounded just the same when he was backpacking through Paris, haha. (but he was with friends and was twenty something and sent passionate and wacky love letters to my mom, so he wasn't that pathetic, I guess)

The one with Elijah Wood made me laugh in all its B-series-ness and I went OMG IS THAT GASPARD ULLIEL, IS IT? IT IS OMG, AND HE'S TELLING ANOTHER DUDE THAT HE MUST BE HIS SOUL MATE OMG OMG. lol. I liked the one-shot format in Alfonso Cuarón's segment, and the mime one was so funny. In all, I really loved this movie, to capture such a different range of emotions with such different characters was definitely a task, and now I really, really want to go to Paris again.