The Sakura Dojo

Watched this Nicholas Cage vehicle, Lord of War, last night. Deals with the exploits of an arm smuggler, weaving actual events in and around his fictional story. The portrayal of Andre Baptiste, (fictional) president of the (real) civil war destroyed Liberia, was particularly striking as it draws upon actual feature of the African civil wars such as drug-addled teenaged soldier, insanely corrupt governments and bands of thugs masquerading as "freedom fighters". But at the end, they had to make it a morality play instead of letting the events speak for themselves. Still, some good scenes. My Grade: C/C+

Another remake of the famous Scarlet Pimpernel, this one a series from 1999 starring Richard E. Grant as Lord Percy Blakeney aka the Scarlet Pimpernel. The stories do not show either the Royalists or Republicans (especially) in a very favorable light, which is quite interesting and, I suspect, quite accurate. The cast is good and the stories are enjoyable. Lots of good ideas for adventures and drama. My Grade: C+/B-

The Golden Compass, based on my favorite of the 'His Dark Materials' trilogy, very pretty with an amazing cast but not good. The plot is fragmented, the characters are not well developed and it just does not hang together. I am not sure how much sense it would make without having read the book it based upon. On the plus side, the appearance of the world is good and Dakota Blue Richards is quite a credible Lyra. My Grade: C-

On Sunday we watched:

Session 9 set at Danver State Mental Hospital (and using the actual buildings as the set) which is a perfect location for this kind of movie. A dark brooding film, playing on dread and fear, not shock. The film's continuity and cinamatography are both superb, the acting is solid and even if the plot did not sell me 100% it is still worth watching for the scenery and the technique. My Grade: B-


Rio Bravo, a classic western starring John Wayne, Angie Dickinson, Dean Martin (!) and Ricky Martin (!!!). A bit long but otherwise excellent, with Wayne as the sheriff and the other as the people who help him. Excellent character interaction, great scenes where the characters screw up and then think and fight their way out of it. Just really, really solid. My Grade: B/B+

Just finished watching Dexter, Season 2, as a reward for yardwork and cleaning up around the house today. Quite good, the actors are more settled in their roles and the plot was stronger than in the first series. Unfortunately, one of my favorite characters gets killed at the end which I think will weaken the series in the future. Still, quite enjoyable if you like dark police/criminal dramas. My Grade: C+

More recent movies this time.

Doomsday, a science-fictiony post-apocalyptic story. Plot is lacking but the special effects, real things blowing up not much CGI, are quite good. Has a good pool of actors too but the plot is weak, incoherent and simply fails to work. My Grade: C-

The Wyvern Mystery, an adaption of a Gothic piece and a lovely period piece. Unfortunately, it is very much a genre story and predictable. The acting is solid, the costumes and sets beautiful but it is ultimately unsatisfactory. My Grade: C

Both interesting and occasionally enjoyable movies. However, my new music is fantastic.

Al Stewart released his new CD Sparks of Ancient Light! So good. Especially Hanno the Navigator which is just amazingly delightful. Drop by and I'll play it for you. My Grade: A-

I realized that the last three movies I have seen in theatres have been sequels . . .

The Dark Knight, superior to Batman Begins which was a solid movie. Considering it clocks in at two and a half hours, the pacing is amazing and it does not feel that long. Bale is still a solid Bruce Wayne and a decent Batman (though his "Batman growl" is terrible, distracting and less than intimidating in my opinion as it is so hard to understand). Ledger does do an amazing Joker, not the Joker I would have written, but fascinating all the same. Crazy and vicious and dangerous. The plot keeps looping back on itself, weaving several plot lines into a single epic one, which is quite a neat trick (and what I think Noland tried, unsuccessfully, to do with Batman Begins in retrospect). Not convinced with Nolan take on heroism and the symbolism of a hero, but better to have flawed philosophical debate than no philosophical debate. The special effects are good, the city feels real, and the soundtrack works (though Danny Elfman would have done it better). My Grade: B+/A-

The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, sadly the weakest of the three Mummy movies. While Jet Li is great, he hardly gets to act at all once he returns to life in the modern era. Frasier and John Hannah are still great, thought the writing does not give them enough to do. Maria Bello is pretty but has no flair as Evelyn and almost no chemistry with Frasier. Luke Ford plays Alex O'Connell as a young Brendan Fraiser would, except that he lacks both the talent and charm. The Chinese side of the cast are all excellent however. But with the film clocking in at only 112 minutes, none of the actors really get a chance to shine. The special effects are good and the army of undead against the terra cotta warriors was pretty darned cool. My Grade: C-/C

Man for All Season telling the tragic story of Sir Thomas Moore (played by the talented Paul Scofield). Very well done period piece with Robert Shaw playing Henry VIII as a complete and utter bastard. Quite interesting and fairly good at handling the complexities of the religious and political questions that are so integral to the story of Moore. With appearances by Leo McKern and John Hurt. My Grade: B-/B

Smokin' Aces which drops into my Shadowrun movie pool. Basic plot is Buddy "Aces" Israel is going to turn states evidence and the mob wants him dead, one million dollars worth of dead. So, a variety of killers close in for the loot ranging from the insane Tremor Brothers (who are entirely punked out killers), a knife master, a pair of lethal ladies and a master of disguise. Opposing them are Aces' bodyguards, a pair of FBI agents (with back up later) and a trio of bail bondsmen who want to return Aces. Violence abounds and the set up is very, very slick. The actual execution of the action gets confused however and the big reveal is weak. Still, a good Shadowrun movie as those people with plans do well, those who do not, suffer. My Grade: C

And finished Northern Exposure, Season 3, some time ago (working on finishing up S4 now) and it is still going strong. Has the standout final episode that plays out the history of Cicily. Great fun. My Grade: B+

Finally got to watch Erik the Viking, "the Director's Son's Cut", quite fun if not entirely sure where it wanted to go or what story it was telling. John Cleese's villain, Halfdan the Black, does not get nearly enough to do, and a great bit piece by Eartha Kitt. But fun, though the special effects are occasionally painful to watch. My Grade: C/C+

Watched Hot Wet American Summer on Sunday, a parody of the 1980s Summer Camp genre (which I have little experience of). Has a lot of former members of the State comedy troupe, Janeane Garofalo and David Hyde Pierce, so a lot of comedic talent and some good scenes. Probably would have been funnier if I knew the source material better but still some good schtick but also a lot of padding. Overall, not bad with a very few stand out moments. My Grade: C-/C