Film#21 - (500) Days Of Summer, 2009, dir. Marc Webb
10/10
Film#22 - The Pianist, 2002, dir. Roman Polanski
I can't say I've seen much by Polanski, so I'm unsure what his style is usually like, but this film does have a definitive style to it. Spanning the entire Nazi occupation of France and Poland, the story follows Wladyslaw Szpilman (Adrien Brody), a Polish Jew forced from his home. His family travels through a gauntlet of situations, separating as they go. There is very little piano to be played in a time like this, but the way it ties into the story was sensational.
8.5/10
Film#23 - Adventureland, 2009, dir. Greg Mottola
As the film ended, I imagined it was a 6/10. I looked at it as a failed comedy, something I expected to be in the vein of typical teenage comedies due to the way the film is first presented. I found myself looking for the jokes and overlooking the serious drama unfolding. Some characters are weak, as well as a few plot points that are illogical, but this movie succeeds where I didn't expect it to. A coming of age tale, it was much more enjoyable than expected, as well as the acting was often superb (namely Kristen Stewart, a pleasantly surprising performance).
7.5/10
Film#24 - Dead Reckoning, 1947, dir. John Cromwell
I believe this is my first Humphrey Bogart film, and was fairly decent. Some overly complex plot points, (not to mention that particular articles on this film focus on underlying homosexual and hypermasculine portrayals) really detract from the heart of this film. With all that happened in the film, I'm still somehow at a loss for words, but not in the 'speechless' sense. It was middle of the road; a fine film, nothing I'd care to see again.
6/10
Film#25 - The Mist, 2007, dir. Frank Darabont
I was absolutely thrilled to get a chance to watch this film, especially after I realized it was not 2005's The Fog, which is quite terrible I must say. Instead, The Mist is a phenomenal story, based on a Stephen King novella, done by a man I consider to be one of the best filmmakers today. Darabont, who continually makes Stephen King stories into extraordinary films, makes no exception with The Mist. I somehow think this film was overlooked compared to his past hits with The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile. However, The Mist is definitely in the same caliber, bringing fantastic acting by Thomas Jane and an ensemble cast together with a story of a town thrown into the unknown horrors of an enveloping mist. Nearly all of the film takes place inside the local grocery store, where the movie chooses to focus less on the abominations roaming outside and focus more on the tensions inside the store. As the film progresses, you can clearly see several characters become increasingly entrenched in their own views while others sway in uncertainty. Beautifully executed, this is one of my favourite movies of the year already.
10/10
