Cendrillon (Cinderella) (1899) - 5 stars out of 10

Cendrillon (Cinderella) (1899) - 5 stars out of 10

“Cendrillon” is a silent film by George Méliès that tells the story of Cinderella.  It is amazing to compare the simplicity of the first Cinderella motion picture with the extravagance of the latest version by Disney.  It is even more amazing to comprehend that 116 years have passed between the creation of these two films.  Like many films by Méliès, this story created an opportunity to experiment with special effects as the Fairy Godmother creates Cinderella’s footmen and turns a pumpkin into a carriage.  The final product is very raw but quite incredible within its historical context.  A prior knowledge of the Cinderella story is necessary to understand the film, but all of the key elements from the story are present and it is interesting to see these early dance sequences.  “Cendrillon” may not successfully compete with modern films in the entertainment category, but it is certainly an important film in the scope of film education.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFARE1Z9qZg

[Pictured: Cinderella and Fairy Godmother]

Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day - 6 stars out of 10

Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day - 6 stars out of 10

“Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day” is exactly what you expect.  I don’t mean that in a negative way, it just typifies the family-sticks-together-when-everything-goes-wrong comedy.  The film is a very loose adaptation of the children’s book (in fact, only the title and several minute details are the same as the book) but it delivers a complete story with a moral at the end.  It is full of slapstick humor that will have the entire family laughing out loud.  We can all relate to having a day where nothing goes right, which is why this chaotic embellishment of “the bad day” will resonate with everybody; unfortunately, it strikes me as the type of movie that kids will want to watch over and over again but parents will only want to watch once.  Disney provides a nice cast with veterans Steve Carell and Jennifer Garner.  Unlike the book, the family takes the brunt of the unfortunate events while Alexander, played by Ed Oxenbould, ties the story together.  His acting isn’t anything spectacular but I feel as if his delivery makes this character one to which kids can relate.  I was disappointed in some inappropriate references to male body parts which were entirely unnecessary but, aside from that, the film is entirely family friendly.  “Alexander and the…Bad Day” isn’t the best family film that I have seen but it’s definitely worth a watch.

[Pictured: This says it all]

Cinderella (2015) - 10 stars out of 10

Cinderella (2015) - 10 stars out of 10

It isn’t often that I watch a movie and see perfection unfold before my eyes, but “Cinderella” is truly flawless.  Kenneth Branagh’s adaptation is the greatest telling of Cinderella that has ever been and that ever will be.  Unlike many films that have reimagined the classic fairy tales, this one preserves the original story and captures that traditional fairy tale feel.  There are some departures from the 1950 animated version but each one adds a new dimension to the characters without altering the key elements of the story.  By exploring Ella’s childhood, we get to experience her love for her parents, see where she learned the values that so strongly shape her character, and understand why she doesn’t simply run away when things get bad.  The naming of Cinderella creates a definitive moment where she literally and figuratively becomes a servant.  Lady Tremaine’s discovery of the shoe allows her to explain why she is so mean.  Most of all, I love the meeting in the woods.  It changes the entire message of the story as Prince Charming’s love for her is based on her beliefs and her inner goodness instead of a more superficial love-at-first-sight.  Every reimagined moment is a success and the themes of courage and kindness resonate from start to finish.  Unlike the animated version, this one takes its time and never feels rushed.  We get to enjoy the Fairy Godmother for a significant portion of time, the political importance of the ball is emphasized by exploring the event in greater detail, and an extra layer is added to the search for the mystery princess.  I also think that it helps for the mice to be included enough that they are seen as her friends but not so much that they story begins to revolve around them.  The script set the film up for success, but it was realized with its magnificent visuals and incredible acting.  For many young princesses-at-heart, the most important part of the film was the dress and the shoes.  I believe that an Oscar nomination for Best Costume Design is inevitable - they were everything that we could have hoped for.  The film locations and cinematography capture the fairy tale world with relatively little CGI which makes the story more realistic.  I would’ve loved a CGI replica of Disney World’s Cinderella Castle but it would’ve taken us out of the moment.  The story was great, everything looked amazing, but the actors are what sold this film.  Lily James is enchanting.  Each facial expression, the delivery of every line, her body language, and even her soft singing out the window all created the perfect embodiment of Cinderella.  She makes an elegant Disney princess and yet, she was an equally convincing peasant.  Meanwhile, Cate Blanchet brought a lot of depth to Lady Tremaine.  Her abusive behavior progresses slowly enough that we do not realize when the transition from disinterest to cruelty has occurred.  Richard Madden transforms Prince Charming into more than just, well, Prince Charming, especially with the added focus on his relationship with his father.  The evil stepsisters were comical (I was particularly impressed with Holliday Grainger) and Helena Bonham Carter brought the perfect blend of classiness and peculiarity to Fairy Godmother.  Everything in this film is tied together by Patrick Doyle’s romanticized score which is subtle and epic, all at the same time.  I found myself emotionally on-edge the entire film because it was so magical to experience this classic fairy tale in such a real way.  Disney has set the bar very high with “Cinderella” and I don’t know if it will ever be surpassed.

[Picture Perfect]

Movie 43 - 1 star out of 10

Movie 43 - 1 star out of 10

Words cannot describe how bad “Movie 43” is and I am offended that it even exists.  It is literally intended to be the worst movie ever made.  The story is about a desperate writer pitching the worst movie idea ever and forcing a studio executive to listen under gunpoint.  Each segment is worse than the last with their themes of violence, extreme bathroom humor, immorality, and things too explicit to discuss in this review.  It amazes me that thirteen directors managed to create such a distasteful series of shorts.  You would have to consider this an anti-movie without an ounce of entertainment value.  It is criminal that they were able to get the following list of stars to appear:
Dennis Quaid, Greg Kinnear, Seth MacFarlane (well, no surprise there), Hugh Jackman, Kate Winslet, Naomi Watts, Liev Schreiber, Anna Faris, Chris Pratt, Emma Stone, Justin Long, Jason Sudeikis, Uma Thurman, Kristen Bell, Richard Gere, Kate Bosworth, Jack McBrayer, Chloë Grace Moretz, Patrick Warburton, leprechaun Gerard Butler, Johnny Knoxville (again, no surprise), Seann William Scott, Halle Berry, Terrence Howard, Elizabeth Banks
Reading this cast list, you have to wonder how they could combine for such an unpleasant filmgoing experience.  The pointless 90 minutes of crude, obscene, offensive material drags on and on without reprieve.  Some of the actors tried to get out of it but they were stuck.  I watched this film out of curiosity, having developed an appreciation for terrible movies like “Birdemic” over the years.  This is not like that.  Instead of it being so bad that it is entertaining, “Movie 43” is so bad that it will make you question whether you want to watch another movie ever again.

[Pictured: Halle Berry blows out a blind boy's candles. Surprisingly, it is one of the least offensive moments in the film]

The Village - 7 stars out of 10

The Village - 7 stars out of 10

“The Village” is a fascinating thriller that creates unexpected twists by altering our perspective of events after they occur.  The film has been polarizing for individuals as they either highly praise or deeply criticize director M. Night Shyamalan’s ending.  I am on the side of those who love the ending and see genius in Shyamalan’s sleight of hand, which focuses our attention on the creatures while the magic trick is occurring out of our sight.  The other side calls the ending anticlimactic and transparent, but it had me fooled all the way.  Your opinion of the ending will cause you to either love or hate the movie, but nothing in between.  I really appreciate the atmosphere of the story.  The blend of a traditional 19th century town and the monsters that live in its woods puts the entire film on edge.  This combination of realism and fantasy allows for anything to happen.  The acting is a bit odd, which makes everything seem even more mysterious.  It is full of big names William Hurt, Joaquin Phoenix, Adrien Brody, Sigourney Weaver, and Bryce Dallas Howard, though no particular performance steals the show.  But this film is all about the storytelling and it truly captures that aura of a Grimm fairy tale.  In an age of special effects, “The Village” succeeds because of the simplicity of its story and the exploitation of our perspective.

[Pictured: The combination of realism and fantasy makes this film unpredictable]

Cinderella (1950) - 8 stars out of 10

Cinderella (1950) - 8 stars out of 10

“Cinderella” is the quintessential Disney classic but it is certainly not the best.  I find that the film’s reputation exceeds the effectiveness of its storytelling; still, the beautiful animation pales in comparison to the film’s importance in changing the landscape of the Disney company forever.  Following the commercial failures of “Bambi” and “Pinocchio,” Disney was $4 million in debt.  It is hard to imagine a world without Disney’s theme parks and animated features but, without “Cinderella,” the company would have likely fallen into bankruptcy and forever shelved its plans for Disneyland.  Thankfully, the critical success of this film led to proof that animated features could be lucrative in the film industry, the completion of Disneyland in 1955, and the company has been at the head of the film and entertainment industry ever since.  The significance of Disney World’s Cinderella Castle goes beyond a park icon because it stands as a reminder that dreams can come true… even when a company is deep in debt.  The film’s iconic Disney moments have cemented its place in film history, from the animals fixing up the dress to the Fairy Godmother’s song and the fitting of the glass slipper.  It has three songs that have remained popular for over 60 years (“A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes,” “Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo,” and “So This Is Love”).  The music is perfectly integrated into the story, from “Bibbidy” being the spell that transforms Cinderella into a princess, to “A Dream” working as a part of her opening conversation while establishing one of the main themes of the film.  This is one of the best fairy tale stories and the animation is absolutely marvelous.  The voice acting is great, particularly Ilene Woods as Cinderella (I could listen to her sing “So This Is Love” all day), Verna Felton as Fairy Godmother, and Eleanor Audley as Lady Tremaine (though she’s much scarier as Maleficent).  Mickey Mouse even makes a cameo as his "voice" (Jimmy MacDonald) provides the voices for the high-pitched mice.  So what is wrong with “Cinderella”?  The entire thing feels rushed.  Cinderella barely has one dance to establish an important connection with Prince Charming before midnight, there is little time between the ball and the arrival of the Grand Duke, and the ending (Cinderella’s return to Prince Charming/the wedding/the closing of the storybook) is condensed into a few minutes.  Moreover, I’m shocked that the Fairy Godmother, one of the most famous Disney characters with one of the most popular songs, is in the film for less than 5 minutes.  We've seen the Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo scene replayed so many times that it is easy to forget that it is Fairy Godmother's only scene!  Yet there is plenty of time for Gus Gus to drop and stack his food multiple times and Lucifer earns more screen time than Lady Tremaine.  I suppose that this story is less complex than that of “Sleeping Beauty” or “Aladdin,” but I wish that I got to enjoy the important moments without feeling so rushed and that the writers would focus more attention on the main characters than the mice.  “Cinderella” is one of the first films that come to mind when someone mentions Disney and, while I don’t find it to be one of the best Disney films, it certainly is one of the most memorable.

[Pictured: Classic moment, wish that it had more time to develop]

Sense and Sensibility (1995) - 8 stars out of 10

Sense and Sensibility (1995) - 8 stars out of 10

“Sense and Sensibility” is a well-executed adaptation of Jane Austin’s first published novel.  Between the stunning scenery, perfect casting, and director Ang Lee’s delicate treatment of the story, Elinor and Marianne Dashwood step right off of the page and into our hearts.  As one might expect, the film moves a little slow but the story is so addictive that you won’t mind.  The atmosphere of the English countryside is magic and the indoor shots of high class homes have a true transporting power; however, the true power of this story comes from unexpected surprises and the need to know what happens next.  Emma Thompson is stunning as Elinor and it is easy to see why she received four Oscar nominations in the early 90’s.  On top of her Best Actress nomination for this role, she won the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay.  She is perfectly matched with Kate Winslet, who earned a Best Supporting Actress nomination.  This was only Winslet’s second feature film role but it is easy to see the natural acting ability that has enabled her to be a significant presence in the film industry.  These leading ladies deliver the rich dialogue in a flowing manner that makes it as beautiful to hear as it is to comprehend.  The supporting characters are also well-cast, from the deep voice of Alan Rickman (Colonel Brandon) and the good looks of Greg Wise (Willoughby) to the character acting of Imelda Staunton (Charlotte) and a young Hugh Laurie.  I did not care for Hugh Grant at first, but his delivery of Edward’s final dialogue brought a tear to my eye.  I wouldn’t call myself a Jane Austin fan but this rendition of “Sense and Sensibility” has inspired me to look deeper into her world and experience more of her stories.

[Pictured: The film was destined to succeed with two leading ladies this good]