Neiba's reviews

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Neiba's Reviews

This is where I'm going to post all my reviews from time to time.
I hope this generates a bit of fun discussion, so feel free to drop by anytime you want!

I'm not an expert on film critic as many on this forum and english is not even my native language so any feedback is welcome!

How does my rating system works:

I usually rate movies from
to
+. I use + and - a lot, but you'll find that I rarely rate a movie with a perfect score on my first watch and I try not to use the 0 rating, because I believe there's always something positive in every movie.


I hope you enjoy!




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Judgement at Nuremberg

Stanley Kramer
1961



Judgment at Nuremberg is a 1961 film directed by Stanley Kramer and starring Spencer Tray, Burt Lancaster, Richard Widmark, Marlene Dietrich and Maximilian Schell.
Based on the homonymous novel by Abby Mann, which is based on true events, it portrays the events following the World War II in Germany, focusing on the trial of four Nazi judges by an American courtroom.

Much can be said about the technical work and the acting of this movie:
Kramer’s camera work explores the confined space of the court (stage to 90% of the movie), managing the plot development in a masterful way. His way of solving the language issue of the plot may look strange at first but it gradually turns into the most natural and simple option.
As a whole, the brilliant direction places the viewer directly into the courtroom. Once there, one of the strongest casts in the history of Hollywood does the rest. There is no less-shining star on this brightful constellation, one can almost feel that every actor realized the genius of the script they had in their hands and gave it a life that a thousand of years of cinema won’t surpass!

And this takes us to the writing. To tell you about how much the whole premise and the writing meant to me I have to tell an episode from my own life:
Last year I had the opportunity to visit Anne Frank’s House in Amsterdam. After 2 hours of waiting under a cold rain to enter the house, I finally started what would become one of the most terrifying and unforgettable experiences I ever had. I left completely overwhelmed by the whole atmosphere inside those walls, practically bursting in tears and I had to walk for hours to ease my mind. I still have a poster with Anne's face on the wall of my room - so I won't forget it.
This movie made all those memories come back. Made me have to pause a lot of times to take a deep breath, made me want to scream of frustration and of hate for all that made so many deaths possible. I have to think really hard if I want to think of any movie better written than this one, and being me a huge fan of great scripts, that says a lot.
This is what cinema is all about, in my opinion - create situations and atmospheres that resonate inside oneself like as if they were real. I am not German nor Jew. I wasn't born when World War II took place. My country didn't take part in it. But I felt like I was ageless and countryless. I felt like all mankind should feel about what happened in Europe during the Third Reich.
The fact that the Europe is slowly going in that direction again is as frightening as is infuriating. Another reason this masterpiece should be exhibited world-wide – so they won’t forget.

Thank you Stanley Kramer.





I'm getting a strange sense of déjà vu right now.

There are better ways to celebrate your birthday than by creating a review thread, but your loss is our gain. I always enjoy reading your thought on movies, Neiba, so I hope you keep this thread alive. I haven't seen Judgement at Nuremberg, but I'll try to get around to it before the 60's deadline.

Oh, and Happy Birthday!
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I'm getting a strange sense of déjà vu right now.

There are better ways to celebrate your birthday than by creating a review thread, but your loss is our gain. I always enjoy reading your thought on movies, Neiba, so I hope you keep this thread alive. I haven't seen Judgement at Nuremberg, but I'll try to get around to it before the 60's deadline.

Oh, and Happy Birthday!
I don't use to give to much importance to my birthday! I worked all afternoon and now I'm going to have a rehearsal (big concert tomorrow) so I didn't even have time to think about my birthday!

Thanks for the feedback Captain, you should check it out!

Happy Birthday!

I think this is a great idea, otherwise, you wouldn't have done it..

What other languages do you speak?
Thanks Matt. I speak Portuguese (my native language), English and Spanish fluently. I am also studying German and French.



Very nice review of Judgement at Nuremberg, which is an outstanding movie. There was a little something that it was missing for it to be a favorite of mine, but still, I think it's at least an easy



Good review Neiba. You know I want to see this and was planning to this weekend but it looks like I am going to have a hard time getting a hold of it. Hopefully soon.
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Letterboxd



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I decided to edit a bit my review of Interstellar, based on how my opinion changed since I first wrote about it:

Interstellar is a science-fiction film directed by Christopher Nolan, starring Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain and Michael Caine, soundtrack by Hans Zimmer and cinematography by Hoyte Van Hoytema.

In a near future, Humanity is close to exhausting the planet's natural resources. The Earth is now an inhospitable place, pests and constant dust storms destroy the little food that remains and life is becoming unaffordable. Cooper (McConaughey), a former aerospace engineer, now works as a farmer. He lives with his father-in-law and his two children, Murph (Mackenzie Foy) and Tom (Timothée Chalamet), to whom he tries to teach the entrepreneurial spirit lost by a society that only tries to survive. It's because this way of being that Cooper is eventually chosen to lead an expedition through space-time with a mission to find a planet that has conditions favorable to life and where the human race can continue to write its History.

The first section of Interstellar has a very slow pace which is actually alright, because the acting of Matthew McConaughey and the editing of Lee Smith make the ride worthwhile. There's also some interesting cinematography but all this don't really compensate for one of Nolan's endemic flaws: the uninteresting, basic and anti-natural writing.
In the second half of the movie, we witness some brilliantly orchestrated action scenes and a very clever usage of CGI. This is complemented by an impressive use of the sound atmosphere in which the total silence in the scenes in space contrasts with the intensity of a soundtrack that brings together all the typical elements that Hans Zimmer already showed us in the past. Casey Affleck - as adult Tom - and McConaughey show us some really good acting but is Jessica Chastain as Murph in adulthood who really steals the spotlight. On the other hand, Hathaway is the less shining star, lacking strength and sincerity in some moments.

Nolan referred to 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) as the biggest influence to the creation of Interstellar, and it shows. This affinity is both conceptual and visual and even the robots in Interstellar are a clear reference to the mysterious monolith of 2001. However, Nolan forgets the reason why 2001 is such a masterpiece: Kubrick didn't want to make it easy for the audience to understand. The beauty of 2001 is its ability to be interpreted in various forms, as every work of art should be. Well, Interstellar fails big time on that chapter!

Although it's a daring work in view of the current reality of Hollywood, this film does not break completely with all the premises of the American film industry as it should, in my opinion. You may leave the theater completely overwhelmed by it, but it's highly likely that you start liking it less and less, the more you think about it. If that's the case, please go back to IMDb and change your rating (8,8 for this film is way high).

Nevertheless, Interstellar presents itself as a breath of fresh air in the science-fiction film production of the last two decades and that is worth something.

+



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Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb





--------------------

Year Of Release:
1964

Directed by: Stanley Kubrick

Screenplay by: Stanley Kubrick, Terry Southern and Peter George (based on the novel Red Alert by Peter George).

Cast: Peter Sellers, George C. Scott, Sterling Hayden, Keenan Wynn, Slim Pickens, Peter Bull, James Earl Jones and Tracy Reed.

--------------------


A psychotic American general launches a nuclear attack on Russia during the Cold War, threatening the life of all mankind. His excuse? Bodily fluids.

This is the basic premise of Stanley Kubrick’s “Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learn to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb”, arguably one of the most controversial and yet brilliant anti-war films of all time. It was shot in 1964, when the world was at the verge of a third World War, less than 20 years after Nazi Germany’s downfall. So, how did Kubrick manage to create a film where the possibility of nuclear Holocaust is faced with laughs instead of panic? Due to a brilliant use of irony.

From every character idiosyncrasy – an ex-Nazi scientist whose hand did not forget his past ideology; a patriotic American general who’s so proud of his pilots he forgets their success means the end of the word; a soldier who prefers to risk the national security to vandalize a Coca-Cola vending machine; the presidents of the two enemy countries talking by phone like two 15 year-olds madly in love, etc. – to every piece of dialogue like: “Gentlemen, you can’t fight in here – this is the War Room”, the movie is a giant and sarcastic critique to the hypocrisy of war and of those who think of themselves as being on the right side.

On top of all that we have a historic triple performance by Peter Sellers (Dr. Strangelove, Group Captain Mandrake and the President of USA) and remarkable performances by George C. Scott and Sterling Hayden.

Stanley Kubrick was a man that believed in the worse of every human being, his filmography tells us that. He knew that we tend to repeat the same mistakes over and over again. On the last scene we hear Vera Lynn singing “We’ll meet again”. Is there a more clear warning?





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De grønne slagtere
a.k.a.
The Green Butchers





-----------------

Country: Denmark

Year: 2003

Directed by: Anders Thomas Jensen

Screenplay by: Anders Thomas Jensen

Cast: Nikolaj Lie Kaas, Mads Mikkelsen, Line Kruse, Ole Thestrup, Bodil Jorgensen, Aksel Erhardtsen

-----------------

De Gronne Slagtere is perhaps one of the darkest comedies I ever watched. In fact, it’s so dark I even hesitate before calling it a comedy.

Two socially awkward friends who work in a butcher’s shop are tired of being constantly mistreated by their boss and they decide to open their own shop. Their anti-social behavior doesn’t help them and the business doesn’t go well until one unfortunate accident changes everything - suddenly, their butcher’s shop becomes a success and it improves drastically their own personal lives.

What impressed me the most about this film is the huge amount of things that could have gone wrong. It could have been so terribly bad and yet, it’s brilliant!
The whole premise is very original but dangerous. There were two ways this could easily have gone – or it could be absolutely ridiculous or overly dramatic. However, Jensen manages to create an incredibly realistic way to tell the story and surprisingly, it works.
Of course that wouldn’t have happened without the two main actors, Mads Mikkelsen and Nikolaj Lie Kaas. They both have very difficult characters – especially Mikkelsen – that any average actor could have ruined by overacting. But these two are not any average actor and they deliver two astonishing performances that bring to life all the realism Jensen was looking for.
Having solved that, a strong script, great soundtrack and very interesting cinematography do the rest and the result is an atmosphere so heavy that you can barely breathe.

De Gronne Slagtere it’s not a film for everyone, that’s guaranteed! It’s dark, twisted, scarily realistic and its humor can be hard to swallow sometimes. Nevertheless, it’s a must-watch for everyone who likes to feed his dark side once in a while.



De grønne slagtere
a.k.a.
The Green Butchers





-----------------

Country: Denmark

Year: 2003

Directed by: Anders Thomas Jensen

Screenplay by: Anders Thomas Jensen

Cast: Nikolaj Lie Kaas, Mads Mikkelsen, Line Kruse, Ole Thestrup, Bodil Jorgensen, Aksel Erhardtsen

-----------------

De Gronne Slagtere is perhaps one of the darkest comedies I ever watched. In fact, it’s so dark I even hesitate before calling it a comedy.

Two socially awkward friends who work in a butcher’s shop are tired of being constantly mistreated by their boss and they decide to open their own shop. Their anti-social behavior doesn’t help them and the business doesn’t go well until one unfortunate accident changes everything - suddenly, their butcher’s shop becomes a success and it improves drastically their own personal lives.

What impressed me the most about this film is the huge amount of things that could have gone wrong. It could have been so terribly bad and yet, it’s brilliant!
The whole premise is very original but dangerous. There were two ways this could easily have gone – or it could be absolutely ridiculous or overly dramatic. However, Jensen manages to create an incredibly realistic way to tell the story and surprisingly, it works.
Of course that wouldn’t have happened without the two main actors, Mads Mikkelsen and Nikolaj Lie Kaas. They both have very difficult characters – especially Mikkelsen – that any average actor could have ruined by overacting. But these two are not any average actor and they deliver two astonishing performances that bring to life all the realism Jensen was looking for.
Having solved that, a strong script, great soundtrack and very interesting cinematography do the rest and the result is an atmosphere so heavy that you can barely breathe.

De Gronne Slagtere it’s not a film for everyone, that’s guaranteed! It’s dark, twisted, scarily realistic and its humor can be hard to swallow sometimes. Nevertheless, it’s a must-watch for everyone who likes to feed his dark side once in a while.
He forgot to add.. that I recommended it to him...

Cricket .. you are going to get cut soon!



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He forgot to add.. that I recommended it to him...
I actually added it on "Rate the last movie you saw" thread! I still need to see the other two! But I'll take care of that soon!



The thing isolated becomes incomprehensible
I'm not a big fan of Strangelove but The Green Butchers looks interesting. Too bad it has that sissy Mads in it.
Someone has a death wish!



Enjoying your reviews Neiba, thanks. Particularly liked your very personal reaction to Judgement at Nuremberg. Europe will be safe if your generation all think like you



Very good reviews, Neiba.

I'm looking forward to Interstellar. I'll probably rent it sometime soon. I admire Nolan's ambition and I like science-fiction films that are full of big ideas, which Interstellar seems to be. Not surprised to hear that the writing is a weak point, however, or that the film explains too much. Those are two issues that seem to arise in all of Nolan's work.

I plan on re-visiting Dr. Strangelove before I make my 60's list. Your review makes me more excited to do so. Hopefully some of your passion rubs off on me. I liked, didn't love, Dr. Strangelove the first time I watched it, but I caught some of it on TV a few weeks ago and found myself smiling at every scene. I think my opinion of it is going to improve with a second viewing.

I've added The Green Butchers to my watch list. Judging by your review and the fact that MovieGal recommended it to you, it must be pretty sick, but that appeals to me. I'm also a fan of Mads Mikkelson. He's a strange looking guy (and he looks ugly as a dog's a$$hole in that poster), but he's a great actor and possesses a true magnetic quality.

Keep up the good work.



Very good reviews, Neiba.

I'm looking forward to Interstellar. I'll probably rent it sometime soon. I admire Nolan's ambition and I like science-fiction films that are full of big ideas, which Interstellar seems to be. Not surprised to hear that the writing is a weak point, however, or that the film explains too much. Those are two issues that seem to arise in all of Nolan's work.

I plan on re-visiting Dr. Strangelove before I make my 60's list. Your review makes me more excited to do so. Hopefully some of your passion rubs off on me. I liked, didn't love, Dr. Strangelove the first time I watched it, but I caught some of it on TV a few weeks ago and found myself smiling at every scene. I think my opinion of it is going to improve with a second viewing.

I've added The Green Butchers to my watch list. Judging by your review and the fact that MovieGal recommended it to you, it must be pretty sick, but that appeals to me. I'm also a fan of Mads Mikkelson. He's a strange looking guy (and he looks ugly as a dog's a$$hole in that poster), but he's a great actor and possesses a true magnetic quality.

Keep up the good work.
Cap... they gave him a really bad hairpiece and he constantly sweats....




Good review neiba, and +1 for it being a danish film.
MM, I think the other two films I recommended were

Efter brylluppet, which I know he will enjoy and Valhalla Rising.