Recently Seen Movies

Here is a review of some of the DVDs I have watched over the past 2 weeks...

• Into the Wild (B)

This film by Sean Penn retells the true story of Christopher McCandless, a young college graduate who in 1990 decided to escape from the materialism of society to go live freely in the wild. It follows his journey as he travels from Atlanta to Alaska, and the many people he meets along the way. He eventually gets to Alaska, and lives in a bus for 4 months, until he finally succumbs to starvation. The story is very interesting, and has a great message in it. It captures the beauty of nature and a free life, yet emphasizes that true happiness can only be found when it is shared. Great acting performance by Emile Hirsch, yet the directing was somewhat off in my opinion. I think Sean Penn should just stick to acting. Yet all-in-all a great story with a great soundtrack.

• The Insider (B-)

Being a fan of Russell Crowe, I had wanted to see this film for some time, yet never knew what it was about. Well finally I sat through this political thriller that retells the true story of a tobacco executive, Jeffrey Wigand, a whistleblower who chose to expose the tobacco industries on 60 Minutes. In the 1990s, 7 of the biggest Tobacco CEOs testified in court stating that tobacco was not addictive, when in fact, they themselves knew that the nicotine in cigarettes would keep people coming back for more. Jeffrey Wigand therefore met with CBS producer Lowell Bergman, as well as the famous interviewer, Mike Wallace, to expose these CEOs. The interview then leads to a controversy of lawsuits, scandal, bribes, and flat-out corruption between CBS, Jeffrey Wigand, and the Tobacco Industry. It's a very informative film, with passionate performances by Al Pacino, Russell Crowe, and Christopher Plummer.

• 310 to Yuma (C)

Russell Crowe plays the fictional outlaw, Ben Wade, in this post-Civil War Western film. He and his gang rob a stagecoach full of money, and flee to a town in Arizona, where he is eventually arrested. There he runs into a poor rancher, played by Christian Bale, who decides to accompany the group of police as they transport Ben Wade to Yuma. The journey is a dangerous one, as they must travel across the desert, while being chased by Wade's gang. In the end as they await for the train, they must face Wade's gang in an impossible shootout. I guess this is my biggest complaint about the movie, finding the final scenes somewhat ridiculous... Crowe and Bale were decent yet the most notable performance goes to Ben Foster, as Wade's evil right hand-man.

• The Constant Gardener (B-)

Now this one is a very complex story about a British diplomat played by Ralph Fiennes and his activist wife, Tessa, played by Rachel Weisz. They travel together to Kenya where they get a firsthand look of the medical distributions. It is there that Tessa discovers that the major drug companies are using African citizens as guinea pigs to test their new products. She becomes passionate to expose these companies, and later draws her shy husband into the affair. Whether true or not, the story touches up on the corruption of these drug companies and the disregard for the poor African people. An overall interesting movie, with many different settings in Europe and Africa, yet once is enough for me. Strong performances from Ralph Fiennes and Rachel Weisz.

• Frost/Nixon (C+)

Following President Nixon's resignation due to the Watergate scandal he kept silent for 2 years, until he decided to go public in an interview with British personality David Frost. This movie basically goes behind the scenes in setting up those interviews, which would become a make-or-break duel for both David Frost and Richard Nixon. I have to admit I was very out of it when I watched this film, and dozed off in a few parts. It's a very informative, factual, film that demonstrates the corruption of the powerful. Although the interview was considered a victory for both Frost and Nixon, it clearly shows how Nixon abused his power in the Watergate scandal...

• Flags of our Fathers (C-)

Clint Eastwood has continued to amaze me, with his films starting back with Mystic River... Yet I have to bluntly say this one was somewhat of a dud. Let's face it World War II movies are starting to get old, and should just be retired with Saving Private Ryan. This one tries to take a different route by telling the story of the Battle of Iwo Jima, and the soldiers who raised the flag in the famous photograph. Yet the story is all-over the place jumping from America to the battlegrounds, which drag on and on... I fell asleep many times throughout this movie, with it's continuous battle scenes, terrible acting, and weak story. This film lacks the artistry and drama that Eastwood brought in his other WWII film, Letters of Iwo Jima. I'm sorry to say he could not deliver on this one.