jessica biel

Review: The Illusionist

Chick 1 says:the-illusionist

No, this isn’t the Edward Norton/Jessica Biel period romance.  (Liked that one, though.)  This is an animated film fromSylvain Chomet, the director of The Triplets of Belleville.  (Another one I liked.)

The Basics:  This French (though largely without dialogue) animation follows the relationship of a lonely travelling magician and a young girl.

What I Liked:  The movie is really beautiful.  The animation and landscapes are enchanting.  There are some fun and quirky characters, my fav being the tipsy Scotsman.  And there was a sad, sweet quality to the story.

What I Didn’t Like: I really wanted to like this movie, and while there were many nuances that were fascinating,  I found it difficult to really follow what was happening.  The Triplets of Belleville had a similar problem of communicating without words but there was much more action (and comedy) to that movie.  The Illusionist has a decidely more meloncholy feel.   And that feel made it difficult to understand what was happening without dialogue.

Bottom Line: This is a really gorgeous movie in look and feel but I had a hard time following the central relationship.  Add to that the downer ending (rarely to my liking) and it just wasn’t my cup of tea.

Posted on by Chick 1 in Reviews, The 2010s Leave a comment

I Can’t Wait: It’s Summer!!!! Part 1

Chick 1 saysstartrek2:

I wanted to post this a week ago so I could kick off the summer.  I know summer is supposed to start Memorial Day weekend or, if you’re a stickler, June 21st, but I’m talking about the summer according to Hollywood.  This may not be quite as big a movie summer as last year but there’s still some great stuff on the way.  For this post, let’s just take a look at May. Read more

Posted on by admin in I Can't Wait! 14,107 Comments

Randomness: Oscar Notes

Chick 1 says:oscar2

I wasn’t going to start this rundown of the telecast until it actually started at 7:30 CST.  But after what just happened on the red carpet, it’s time to start.

5:50 pm: All six children from the cast of Slumdog Millionaire being interviewed by Ryan Seacrest.  Was that not the most adorable thing ever?!  I could have eaten them all for dessert.  Closely followed by the other cast members from Slumdog, all humble, excited, and a little giddy.  And they seem to handling the whirlwind surrounding their film quite well.  I hope this movie wins Best Picture! Read more

Posted on by Chick 1 in Randomness 2,099 Comments