I Love You Phillip Morris (2010)

"I Love You Philip Morris" tells the real life story of Steven Jay Russell, who in 1998 received an unprecedented 144-year prison sentence for fraud, conning, impersonating, and multiple escapes from Houston's Harris County Jail. The film shows us sequences that seem utterly impossible, but in fact actually happened, which only goes to show that truth really is stranger than fiction. No, I will not describe them to you. Enjoying the film depends on the audience's reaction to Russell's actions. It's a little like a magician revealing his secrets; the trick itself is a lot of fun, but seeing what went into making the trick work can be quite fascinating, especially when you realize just how much effort goes into making something look simple. The apparent ease with which he executes his schemes is equally mind boggling.

Jim Carrey's portrayal of Russell is a delightful bag of contradictions. He's funny but touching, exaggerated but believable, contemptible but justified, caring but manipulative. There are times when it seems like he's thinking of no one other than himself, and there are other times when it's clear that he does what he does out of love. It's a daring, complex performance, and it's for reasons other than the fact that his character is gay; it establishes that Carrey is capable of something deeper than outlandish personalities and extreme physical comedy. His take on Russell is engaging, although it's not necessarily understandable. This isn't a criticism. Sometimes, it's preferable for audiences to figure out characters for themselves, for them to put their own spin on why certain people are they are way they are.

We're given a small glimpse of his childhood, in which he learns that he was adopted. We then flash forward to his early adult years; he's married to a woman who's a bit too religious and perhaps a little ignorant but sweet nonetheless, he has a delightful daughter, and he's the manager of a Texas food service company. But after surviving a car accident, he decides to live his life as an openly gay man, and he leaves his family behind for Miami. It's there he realizes that living a gay lifestyle is more expensive than his salary as a sales manager will allow. So he does what any man vowing to live authentically would do he becomes a conman. After relatively simple schemes like feigning slips and falls in public places, he plunges headfirst into various types of fraud, including credit card, passport, and insurance. He even sells bad tomatoes.

Unfortunately, his crimes catch up with him, and he's arrested and sent to jail in Texas. He learns the ropes quickly; everything essentially boils down to a choice between paying someone off, learning how to fight, or giving someone oral sex. He knows who to talk to and where to guide someone should they need something. He spends all his free time in the library, where he reads nothing but law books. Into his life enters Philip Morris (Ewan McGregor), a soft spoken gay man who was tried and convicted for theft of service. He wants to see if there's a legal way to help an AIDS patient lying in the infirmary. Russell lies and tells Morris that he's a lawyer. The two immediately hit it off. Over the next few weeks, they form their own little slice of heaven in a jail cell, oblivious to the yard beatings and the cell searches.

At this point, I'm going to stop describing the plot, for I want you to be surprised by the lengths Russell will go to be with Morris. I will say that what the film, in its own offbeat way, is surprisingly sweet. Glenn Ficarra and John Requa's screenplay, based on Steve McVicker's book "I Love You Philip Morris: A True Story of Life, Love, and Prison Breaks," reveals a delicate and finely crafted balancing act between humor and drama; it's funny, though it never resorts to desperate slapstick or gross-out vulgarities, and it's heartfelt, yet it steers clear of broad, contrived sentimentalism. It's bold and appealing a romantic comedy that refuses to follow the rules of a romantic comedy.

Apart from Carrey and McGregor, I was pleasantly surprised by Leslie Mann, who appears briefly but is no less important as Russell's ex-wife, Debbie. Even after learning that he's gay, even after they get divorced, even after he gets sent to jail, the two remain on fairly good terms. This is amazing coming from a woman perpetually hung up on what the Lord does and does not intend to have happen. She believes that Russell is a man who doesn't know who he is and is always searching for something. I guess that makes sense. Why else would he be so reckless in his attempts at pretending to be what he isn't? Part of what makes "I Love You Philip Morris" such a good movie is that it presents Steven Jay Russell without forcing us towards any definite conclusions about him. True, he may be serving an unusually long jail sentence (in solitary confinement, no less), but you have to admit, he is a romantic.

I tend to underestimate Jim Carrey and then I see him in one of his better movies and realize what a serious mistake it was to do so. Typically I've been thinking of him as "just a comic" and not an actor. He is really a superb actor who is also a very funny comic.

I normally adore Ewan McGregor and he is just fine here. However, Carrey is just fantastic. I did not realize this was based on a real life con man until the end of the film. I thought it was fictional. The plot is Carrey as con man supreme who falls in love with McGregor when they are in prison together. The only problem is that Carrey can't stop himself from continuing his cons. The cons are terrically entertaining.

This is a dramedy, a comedy mixed with drama. It really works as both and I would not want one to dominate the other. As it is, a perfect blend is achieved.

These two do an absolutely superb job of playing gay men. I've seen a lot of films about gay men but never one like this. By having two major film actors play gay men in love, there are nuances and depths which are brought forth in this film which I don't think have ever been seen before.

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I simply couldn't wait any longer for this film to open in America, so I bought the DVD from AmazonUK (yes, I have a region free DVD player).

OMG this is one of the best films I've seen this year. Jim Carrey gives a performance worthy of year end award consideration in this funny, absurd and poignant romantic comedy about a gay con-artist. This is the Carrey of The Truman Show, Man on the Moon and Eternal Sunshine, and he shines in an often challenging role. Ewan MacGregor is equally affecting in the role of Carrey's love interest. There are some broad and outrageous moments; this is a comedy after all. However, there are an equal number of lovely, tender moments of romance and passion.

This film has been in some legal battles and so the American distribution has been held up. I hope these problems get resolved and this finds its way to a theatre near you. Don't miss it.

Read Best Reviews of I Love You Phillip Morris (2010) Here

Jim Carrey was the singular reason I watched this film. The problem with this movie is that its not really a comedy, its not really a con-artist movie, its not really about gay relationships. It does all of these 3 things in somewhat equal measure and then loses out overall. I liked bits and pieces of it but too many times lost interest and was left with the feeling that if the director had focused on making a good con-artist movie, Jim Carrey could have turned it into something spectacular.

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Some have suggested that Jim Carrey is poorly cast in the role of Steven Russell, the con artist whose story is told in I LOVE YOU, PHILLIP MORRIS. It's been said that his performances are too glossy, too on-the-surface for us to believe him as lovestruck and will to do everything and anything for that love.

I believe he is IDEALLY cast because of that. It's true that Carrey is not a classically trained actor...he is just very good at faking emotion (lots of actors do that, of course). But think about one of his most acclaimed performances, as Andy Kaufmann in MAN ON THE MOON. Kaufmann was a cipher, a man who deliberately avoided showing his real self by faking one "public persona" after another until he had no real persona at all. Carrey was pitch perfect. In PHILLIP MORRIS, he plays a gay man who initially lives a lie of being straight. He also joins the police force, not because he wants to fight crime, but as an avenue to getting access to paperwork that will show him who is real mother is. (And when he finally meets her, she slams the door on him. He was the middle child, and he wants to know why she kept her first child and her third, but not him.)

Eventually, he amicably ends his marriage and perhaps over-compensates by living a lavish Key West lifestyle...flamboyantly gay. He funds this lifestyle elaborate con games. The way Carrey plays Russell, we're never sure if Russell is actually a little self-deluded and half believes the cons...or is he just so good at them because there's no real Steven Russell inside the body. This disconnect from reality allows Carrey to jump everywhere emotionally with great facileness but we also never know when or if what we're seeing is really what Steven Russell is feeling. I liked this. Does this man have any self-insight, or is he faking everything...even love?

For when he is sent to jail, he falls BIG TIME for a fellow inmate, Phillip Morris (Ewan MacGregor). The feeling is mutual...or is it. Certainly, Morris loves Russell. Does Russell really love Morris, or is he just fulfilled in some way by being loved, and thus will do anything to keep winning the approval. And does it matter? They both seem happy with each other.

Eventually, both are on the outside, and the question becomes, will Carrey go straight, or will his desire to keep Morris living in the lap of luxury drive him to further cons? The answer is not hard to guess, and where the film goes from there is too much fun for me to ruin now.

In reality, although based on a true story, the entire film lives at an exaggerated, slightly fake level. It's just so hard to believe Steven Russell did all the things the movie says he did. (Although apparently he did!). But it strikes such a rich tone that frankly the film is a blast from beginning to end. Russell has seemingly endless depths of trickery that he can go to...and Carrey plays the role with gusto. "Gusto" is a word I seldom trot out...but it is SO appropriate here. He's having a ball playing a guy having a ball. And MacGregor is a delight as Morris. He's filmed in such a way that he practically glows. He's slightly fey, slightly effeminate...but it never struck me as a caricature. We DO believe he loves Russell.

There are plenty of plot hi-jinks throughout the film...including one of the funniest and cleverest prison breaks since SHAWSHANK. It's certainly quite entertaining just at that level. But watching these two guys absolutely grab the screen is the enduring pleasure. And yes, there is plenty of relatively graphic smooching and sex in the film. I say "relatively" because if what we saw was between a man and a woman, we'd scarcely bat an eye. But because it's two men, some of the physicality is a bit surprising to see in a mainstream movie. Carrey & MacGregor play it with nary a wink or a hesitation...and thus their relationship has real spark. It's sexy and fun and romantic.

The film is too lightweight and frothy to really be great...but it is a wonderfully good time nonetheless, and should be enjoyed by any adult audience not afraid to see Carrey and MacGregor do some serious smooching.

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48 Hrs. (1982)

"48 HRS." is a terrific action-comedy that gets everything right for its genre. The action is tough, but not overdone; the comedy is funny, but not over-the-top; the direction by filmmaker Walter Hill is skillful, edgy and playful; the San Francisco location shooting makes for a wonderfully dark, atmospheric and gritty backdrop; the dated-but-effective soundtrack is awesome in its own "1980s" sort of way; and the script is tight and witty, with sharp characterizations and crackling dialogue that is sometimes vulgar, yet always smart. Best of all, the two leads are at the apex of their star power, making the film a joy to watch.

Indeed, this is the film that made Eddie Murphy a superstar, and it's easy to see why. Raw, dynamic and totally charismatic, it is not hyperbole to state that Mr. Murphy's first film performance easily ranks as one of the greatest film debuts in cinematic history. Young, lean and hungry, Murphy plays a semi-tough street hustler/convict with just the right combination of streetwise smarts, slick charm and youthful defiance. While Eddie exudes a certain level of cockiness throughout the film, there are (thankfully) very few signs of the (often unbearable) egocentric smugness that would later come to define much of Mr. Murphy's later 80's film roles. On the other hand, Nick Nolte is no less great, playing a burnt-out, casually racist cop that somehow manages to retain a gruff charm even as his character alternates between being obnoxious and racially offensive. The two actors have distinctly different acting styles, yet the contrast works, as the two performers have genuinely great chemistry when performing together.

If I have one caveat with the film, it's the rampant male chauvinism (a typical characteristic trait that many of Walter Hill's films share) that permeates throughout "48 HRS.", a quality that hasn't aged particularly well over time; fortunately, it's not enough to taint one's overall enjoyment and respect of the film's achievements as a superior piece of pop culture entertainment. Thanks to the many knock-offs' this film has spawned over the years (e.g. "Midnight Run", "Lethal Weapon", "Bad Boys", "Rush Hour", etc.) aspects of "48 HRS" undoubtedly seem hackneyed by today's standards, but even so, the film manages to engage and thrill in a way that still feels fresh after all these years. A five star film (out of five).

Unfortunately, Paramount has never seen fit to release this highly influential film in a home video release worthy of its quality. The first DVD release from 1999 is in non-anamorphic widescreen, and barren of any type of special features. The second DVD release from 2007 is a decent (if minor) step-up, a budget title that paired up "48 HRS." with its inferior sequel "Another 48 HRS" on one dual-layer, single-sided disc with no extras. While this guaranteed a rather anemic bit-rate for both films, the presentation for both films is in 16x9 anamorphic widescreen and (surprisingly) both look and sound pretty good, all things considered; unfortunately, as with the 1999 release, the 2007 edition contains no special features. Finally, a third release followed shortly in 2008, an "I Love The 80's" DVD edition of "48 HRS.", which unfortunately is the exact same bare-bones non-anamorphic widescreen edition that was released in 1999. It seemed that "48 HRS." would never get its due respect on DVD, leaving fans to hope that the inevitable Blu-Ray release would finally do the film some justice.

Well, prepare to have your hopes dashed, as Paramount has released an incredibly weak Blu-Ray catalogue title. The 1080P picture quality is certainly sub-par, as the master used for this Blu-Ray release looks worn, faded and tired; in other words, the film master used for this release is crap. There is dirt and excessive film grain rampant throughout. Contrast is mediocre, with blacks alternating between looking pretty good and dark grey. Colors pop slightly better than the DVD, but generally come across as muted and flat. Sharpness wavers from scene to scene, with some scenes looking pretty good, and other scenes coming across as so soft, you'll swear you're watching a shoddy DVD. About the only thing this Blu-Ray picture has going for it is that there isn't any noticeable DNR or edge enhancement... but considering the overall disappointment of this Blu-Ray release, this is a small consolation at best. This is not the worst Blu-Ray title I've ever seen, but it is certainly one of the most disappointing, considering the caliber of this film.

The audio fares little better, with the Dolby True HD 5.1 sound coming across only slightly better than earlier DVD iterations. Bass is decent at times, but stereo separation overall sounds weak and muddled, even for a 1980's action film. Overall, about the only thing you'll notice different about this Blu-Ray soundtrack from its 5.1 Dolby Digital DVD counterpart is that its mixed louder.

To add insult to injury, there are no extras to be found outside of the included trailer.

At a ridiculous sticker price of $24.99, this throw-away catalog release is absolutely sure to disappoint both hardcore and casual fans. While the picture and sound quality is a step-up from the non-anamorphic 1999 (and 2008) DVD release, it is in fact only barely superior to the 2007 16x9 anamorphic widescreen release, and has no special features to speak of. Therefore, unless you can grab the Blu-Ray for $10.00 or less, I recommend the 2007 double-feature DVD release of "48 HRS" over the Blu-Ray release. The picture and sound quality on the 2007 edition is good for a DVD (especially when upconverted), the price is right at 9-12 dollars brand new, and it's the only home video version of "48 HRS." that comes with any special features, namely the sequel "Another 48 HRS" (as a side note, the "48 HRS." DVD double feature is still the only way to see "Another 48 HRS." in 16x9 anamorphic widescreen, as the stand-alone release is presented in non-anamorphic widescreen only).

If Paramount chose to release "48 HRS." on Blu-Ray as a double bill feature similar to the 2007 DVD release, the $24.99 sticker price would be far more tolerable; in fact, this is exactly what Warner Brothers has been doing recently with the release of some of their catalog titles (e.g. "Analyze This"/"Analyze That" and "Presumed Innocent"/"Frantic"). While those double feature releases carry no special features, the comparable $24.99 sticker price certainly feels a lot less painful. Of course, the most ideal situation would be for Paramount to wake up and (finally) show this film some respect, by giving "48 HRS." a proper home video release, remastered and full of special features... because ultimately this is what a classic film like as "48 HRS." really deserves. Chalk this up as yet another Blu-Ray disappointment.

This is absolutely Eddie Murphy's best movie! Certainly better than most other stuff he's done this century, and the past decade! I saw this movie for the first time in the theater, and also have it on VHS. I have watched this movie easily 50 times. I'm sure it might be more though.

It is a true classic, highlighting the true natural talent of Eddie Murphy. He and Nick Nolte play off each other well, and Nolte isn't too bad himself in the comedy department. Though his type of humor is much more subtle. He does get his digs in, on Mr. Murphy's expense, mind you.

To the best of my knowledge, this was one of the first movies that combined excellent humor scenes with extreme violence and emotion. And while many tried to duplicate it, in later years, including other Eddie Murphy vehicles, such as Beverly Hills Cop, nothing can compare to the original!

A true classic. I will probably buy this on DVD soon, but I'm kind of holding out for an "extras loaded" special DVD, if it were to come out! Don't know that for a fact, but I'm still holding out hope!

Two very enthusiastic thumbs up!!!

MC White said: Check it out!!!

Buy 48 Hrs. (1982) Now

First of all, I truly LOVE this movie! I was 27 years old when it was released and have seen it a good 30 times since then, first on VHS rentals, then repeated HBO showings , the DVD release and finally on HD Net Movies. I know it has never fared very well on ANY of those formats and I was hoping for even a modest amount of improvement with the Blu Ray. I knew going in that this was NOT a remaster of the original film elements and I knew not to set my expectations too high. The disc has no artwork printed on it and looks like a cheap rental with the title etched into the flat gray paint. The case is an el cheapo "Eco" which consists of more air than plastic.

Was it worth the upgrade? In a word, YES! Here are my reasons:

Better overall color, sharpness and depth than any other released version. This is not to say it is a nice rendering. For the most part , it is NOT. Colors are faded all over the place. Contrast levels come and go, sharpness shows in some scenes and the image goes flat in others. Sometimes grain is horrendous, other times it is a nice addition to the picture. The best scenes are any of the Chinatown shots during the film and the morning shots in front of the parking garage. The fight between Nick and Eddie looks pretty good but the interiors of the police station are hideously awful.

I can describe the video quality in one word: UNEVEN !!

This is 100% the fault of the print used to make the production master. It is the same print that was used for the DVD from years ago. The film needs to be cleaned up and rescanned at the least and totally remastered for best results. I doubt either of these things will ever happen, and that I why I chose to own 48 Hours in the best presentation currently available, warts and all.

The film would have easily been made better by presenting it in it's original aspect ratio of 1.85:1 The image has been slightly enlarged to fill a 16:9 HDTV screen and some picture info on the sides has been chopped off. There is also some evidence of pan and scan even with this 16:9 release. By enlarging the image it has literally magnified flaws in the print and reduced our perceived resolution and sharpness of the image. I hate when studios adjust the image to fit a 16:9 screen. When I buy a Blu Ray I expect the films original aspect ratio. In the case of 48 Hours, doing so would have given us a good 8 to 10% perceived improvement in image quality.

Many times I found the image to be very pleasing, while other times I was cursing my television. Bottom line, this is the best it has ever looked for home video and may always look like this in my lifetime. (phooey) For those that have seen this on Pay Cable channels it is the same master but looks a BIT better in 1080p and you are not dealing with cable system compression artifacts.

The sound is another matter. I heard little bits of dialogue and sound effects that were never revealed before on either my VHS or DVD copies. The one thing that REALLY stood out, at least for me was Nick Nolte's character of Jack Cates breaks wind after getting out of bed and then excuse himself. Yes that is a weird thing to notice but in over 30 viewings I had NEVER noticed this before so this does say something for the Dolby Tru HD 5.1 soundtrack. For those of you that do not care about audible farts, the dialogue is for the most part VERY intelligible and the sound effects and music have never sounded better. Some of the surround effects seem a bit artificial, car noises, gun shots, etc, but overall this is the very best I have ever heard 48 Hours sound and that includes it's original theatrical release. The sound is much better than the video quality.

The included "extra" is the original theatrical trailer which suffers from such poor video quality that I don't even recommend viewing it. However, it DOES show you just how much better the film looks now in comparison.

As I stated earlier in my review, 48 Hours has been one of my favorite films for many years now and purchasing this Blu Ray disc was something I was gonna do, come hell or high water. People are calling this a bad transfer, and it really isn't a bad transfer. It is just transferred from a very poor print. I even wonder if the original film elements would yield better results or if they even exist in any usable condition. These are things we as fans of this film may never know.

Regardless, I love 48 Hours, the picture IS better than any other current option and the sound is much improved. On a 1 to 5 scale I give the Video Quality 3 stars and the Audio 3 and 3/4 stars.

If you love this movie, you won't regret this purchase unless you expected a remaster. If you like your DVD copy, this is better. How much better is in the eye of the beholder but I do not regret this purchase one bit although I recommended you wait for a sale with a price around 10 bucks or buy it used.

Recommended for rabid fans of the film, otherwise stick with your DVD or give it a rent!

Read Best Reviews of 48 Hrs. (1982) Here

Jack Cates is a cop who doesn't exactly play by the rules and is not a team player. He works alone. When he runs into two cops who are going to arrest someone for a misdemeanor, he joins them. When they knock on the door, they're shot at. Eventually Jack comes face to face with them and when one of them has his gun trained on the other cop, the other guy tells Jack to give up his gun which he does. He then shoots the cop and tries to shoot Jack but misses. Later part of the department thinks Jack was a coward for giving up his gun and the others think that Jack's wild ways got the cops who was with him killed. Jack learns that the guy who told him to give up his gun is an escaped convict and the other guy was the one who busted him out. Jack also learns he's been killing his former associates. Jack learns that another associate, Reggie Hammond is in prison. Jack goes to see Hammond; initially Hammond doesn't want to help until he learns of the man's escape but insists that Jack has to get him out to help with him. Jack does and Hammond takes Jack all over town hoping to find the guy but Jack suspects Hammond is holding back. The movie is exciting and tight, one of the best action movies of the eighties.

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Bad, crappy, horrible picture quality!!! 48hours is the best action comedy of all time! Why doesn't the director, producers , studio, or someone involved with it feel the same way I don't know. Someone needs to fix the picture quality. Don't buy this Blu Ray version unless you have to have it.

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Chesty Morgan's Bosom Buddies (1975)

Doris Wishman's Deadly Weapons (1973) and Double Agent 73 (1974), both starring 73FF(!)-32-36 Chesty Morgan, makes for a bizarre double feature, and a bizarre Something Weird Blu-ray release. This set (entitled "Chesty Morgan's Bosom Buddies") also includes a third feature The Immoral Three (1975), which does not include Morgan (who had, remarkably, taken the star bit between her teeth and was promptly sacked by Wishman). We focus on the first two features starring Chesty.

John Waters had the incomparable Divine. Wishman had the incomparable Chesty Morgan. The big difference is that Divine could actually act. Morgan, an exploitation freak of nature, was the energizer bunny rabbit to Wishman's directorial enthusiasm.

Wishman's influence on John Waters cannot be underestimated. Her films are a visual smorgasbord of bad taste with attentive detail. Wishman's nonsensical lens focus is so mercurial it brings to mind Harry Langdon`s frozen camera in Three's A Crowd (1927). Repeated, dumbfounded concentration on queer inanimate objects disrupts the narrative flow and coats Wishman's films in loving disjointedness. Cut-away shots of hedges, a repellently hued yellow-ochre telephone, the most beautifully ghastly wallpaper ever captured on celluloid, and nonsensical extreme close-ups of Morgan's 73 fleshbags creates a visually surreal train wreck of a movie.

Morgan's voice is dubbed in both films. Apparently, her polish accent was so thick as to be indecipherable. Unfortunately, her acting range is nowhere near as mammoth as her breasts. Morgan begins with leathery boredom and ends with celluloid sleep walking. Now, dress this big breasted zombie up in bad wigs and garish clothing to enact a zany plot!

Well, yes, there is a plot of sorts to Deadly Weapons. It has something to do with Morgan as an office manager (!) wearing 8-inch platform heels and a blouse at least two sizes too small. She has a mobster boyfriend with sideburns that probably smell like mildew. Perhaps this is why Morgan acts like all of her co-stars have poison ivy. Regardless, she gets mauled by pornstar Harry Reems.

Morgan turns into a revenge-seeking 007 type; only, Morgan's weapon is her killer cleavage, rather than a loaded pistol. Yes, you guessed it: she suffocates her victims with her "DEADLY WEAPONS." Morgan also has some issues with Daddy, but that's veering too close to spoiler territory, and God knows that we all watch these wacky Doris Wishman/Chesty Morgan movies for the well-constructed, sophisticated plotting.

Double Agent 73 is, possibly, even more of a live action, softcore looney-tune than the previous film! Wishman's love of the medium is, again, on display, and again her talents do not make for a film as orthodox storytelling medium. But then, film does not have to be a repeater of well-worn narrative formats.

Endless shots of a cookie-cutter house and pimp shoes walking across cheaply tiled floors collide with stock footage of flowers, a jet plane, and nudist volleyball. The nasty ochre telephone from the previous film has been replaced with a tasty peach-colored one. And there's even a lovely shot of a dixie cup, and of a door that looks like it might have been stolen out of a Target warehouse.

Morgan is so comatose that she often looks like she is literally on the verge of falling asleep. Her platform shoes have, amazingly, grown about six inches and now are screaming red. It is no wonder Morgan removes them more than once, because she clearly has trouble in walking them (later, she trades them in for some cant-colored yellow pumps which shave about two inches off her height). Oh, and Chesty is a secret agent with a hidden camera surgically implanted in her mammaries. In addition to being assigned to bust up a heroin ring, Morgan is instructed to take pictures of everyone she kills (!?!), which gives her plenty of reason to remove her top. There's even nearly full-blown full-frontal nudity (whether we want to see it or not).

Morgan, with her license to kill, surprisingly, uses a variety of weapons, although choking someone to death with an ice cube may not qualify as a conventional murder scene. There is less plot in Double Agent 73 and, depending on one's perspective, this may be all for the better. If Wishman was naively channeling the dreaminess of Buñuel and Kafka in Bad Girls Go To Hell, here she lives up to her deserved reputation as the godmother of grindhouse, and parallels John Waters' early body of work. For that reason, I probably have more pronounced affection for her later films.

Deadly Weapons and Double Agent 73 are stuck in a 1970s dream style at its best/worst, and are tailor made for the Something Weird catalog.

* my review originally appeared at 366 weird movies.

Chesty Morgan is truly a stunner. The acting is subpar but that is not why you purchase something like this. You get it strictly for the visuals. As for the visuals this is a 10. As for the acting this is a 5. Worth the buy if you like big boobs.

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This is a true classic. Has to be seen to be believed. You will need a strong stomach to get through most of this. Sent your kids to out to their friends. One frame of this could cause brain damage.

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Mars Attacks! (2010)

Hollywood has made movies from books, TV shows, even other movies. However, "Mars Attacks" may be the first time a movie was made from a trading card.

Back in the late 1960s, Topps Cards created a line of Mars Attacks trading cards. However, these cards were pulled off the shelves after only a few months because the aliens depicted on them were considered to be too gruesome. My, how times have changed.

Director Tim Burton has taken those old trading cards and recreated them into this Sci-Fi B-movie throwback. In the process, he has created a movie that is pure, guiltless fun.

"Mars Attacks" also benefits from an all-star cast, including Jack Nicholson (in a dual-role), Michael J. Fox, Sarah Jessica Parker, Pierce Brosnan, Martin Short, Danny Devito, Glenn Close, Natalie Portman, Tom Jones, Annette Bening, Lukas Haas, Jim Brown, and many others. The fact that you get to watch the aliens disentegrate (and otherwise kill) many of these stars only adds to the fun. Unfortunately, Tom Jones wasn't one of those unlucky stars. Maybe someday a sequel will be made that will rectify that. :)

Oh yeah........ did I happen to mention that Congress gets vaporized? This proves that the Martians aren't all bad!

The DVD comes with many extras, including quite a few production notes that helps you to understand how the movie came to be. This is one movie that you will want to see over and over again (especially anytime that Congress is getting on your nerves).

Tim Burton outdoes himself with this silly, but funny, spoof of 1950s flying saucer/alien invasion movies. It is absolutely zany and quite funny. There is also nothing politically correct about it, as there are no sacred cows. The film is totally irreverent of American culture and icons. Everything and everyone is fair game.

Martians have come to Earth, and they do not come in peace. Diabolical and deadly, they are bent on wreaking havoc wherever they go with their death ray guns, which serve to incinerate living beings. These bulbous headed martians with their own brand of deadly humour are hell bent on destroying Earth, while laughing and cackling maniacally.

The special effects are meant to to be reminiscent of those found in 1950s UFO flicks and in this it certainly succeeds. The cast is stellar with Jack Nicholson playing dual roles, that of President James Dale and that of entrepreneur Art Dale. Glenn Close, Annette Bening, Pierce Brosnan, Danny DeVito, Martin Short, Sarah Jessica Parker, Michael J. Fox, Rod Steiger, Jim Brown, Natalie Portman, Sylvia Sydney, Paul Winfield, Pam Grier, Lisa Marie, Christine Applegate, Lukas Haas, and Tom Jones round out the star studded cast. With tongue in cheek performances, the viewer is bound to get a good laugh out of this film.

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Having spent an hour or so reading every review of this movie on the site, I have come to the conclusion that most of the people who did not like it, were simply not bright enough to "get it". Most of the humor in this movie is sophisticated satire and irony. i.e. you need a brain to understand what the joke is. Unfortunately it seems that that leaves about 70% of the population out in the cold sort of speak.

Also, a lot of the reviewers here trash the acting and imply that the big name actors were "only in it for the money", yet are unaware of the fact that most of those "big stars" clamored to be in this movie at lower pay scales than they are used to. Then they go on about how 2 dimensional or "broad" the acting is. Well, ..Duhhh! It's a cartoonish satirical comedy based on a series of bubblegum cards. It's *meant* to be that way.

Finaly, a lot of those who hate this movie compare it unfavorably to (their favorites), ID4 or Armageddon or some such trash as that.

Nuff said.

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There is nothing serious about this film. It is satire all the way and it is very good satire which takes potshots at all sorts of institutions.

The story is as simple as an old B/W science fiction movie. Earth is being invaded by Martians with superior techology and little reguard for eathlings. Instead of being an "end of the world" type picture, however, it is comedy. It is comdedic because there is a grain of truth in the elements used for the comedy:

The President is worried more about poll numbers on reactions to the Martians than about invasion.

The first lady is worried more about interior decorating than advancing ray guns.

The egghead professor manages to be wrong about just about everything he speaks of.

Reporters are shallow and vain.

The military just wants to play with its toys.

Bad music can be a deadly influence.

New Age people haven't a clue as to the real world.

Teenagers often have a better handle on things than the grownups.

It's enough to make you root for the Martians. This one is fun, irreverant and a feast of oddball ideas. What else could be expected from Tim Burton?

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The first time I saw this movie, I thought it was a big dissappointment. Then I started to think about it. Usually, when I dislike something for no reason that I can really put my finger on, it is because it has challenged my expectations in some way. For this reason, I like to re-examine my feelings about those things. And often, after reflection, I realize what it is that disturbs me, and I realize why the thing that I hate addresses that, and often it makes me enjoy the thing I "Hated" more.

This movie is like that. One of the things that bothered me so much was the lack of reason for the alien attack, and their resulting brutality. A little after I watched the movie, I found out why this is so, while reading a book "Lies My Teacher Told Me," which related the following tale concerning Columbus:

In 1492, Colomubus landed in what is now the Dominican Republic. He got off of the boat, and read a short proclimation that said (essentially,) "I am taking this place over, you must now immediatly renounce your pagan gods, convert to Christianity, claim Isabella of Spain as your ruler, or I will make you slaves, and you will work until you die, and I will not be held responsible for your souls." Columbus read this proclimation in Spanish, which of course, none of the native people of the Dominican Republic could understand. They greeted him with a huge party, and Columbus proceeded to decimate the natives. The Spaniards forced the Indians to work, and rode on their backs rather than walk from place to place. Does this not strike you as ridiculous? The same kind of mindless destruction for the sake of destruction that the movie portrays?

What disturbed me about the movie was it's quiet censure of our society, our modern world, our own arrogance. In this movie we get our comeuppance, and it is delivered with the same heartless passion that our uncivilized ancestors imposed on the indigenous populations. There is no why or how, there is only the relentless onslaught of a technologically superior race that finds glee in our destruction, who no doubt, intend to usurp our world.

In the War of the Worlds, we are saved by Influenza, in real life, Influenza and small pox, brought by Euroopeans, decimated indigenous populations. Wells original parallel was intended to be a subtle irony, a tribute to our tiniest, and most unobtrusive weapon.

Here we are saved by Slim Whitman's "Indian Love Call," an outrageous twist, but not one without it's irony. Whitman wrote the song as an appeal to the romanticization of the American Indian that occurred in the late 50's. It bears no real ties to native american lore or tradition, other than it's name. It is a romantic view of a past that never happened, our "plasticization" of the very people we've killed. Isn't it odd that we would be saved by a cheesy lounge song written about a people we killed with smallpox and war, while we are being decimated with no hope of survival, in much the same manner? Its doubly ironic that something so insidious, both in sound, and concept, should turn out to be invariably fatal to our invaders. Our bad taste killed them.

I might suggest to those that are easily angered when their expectations of an "Independance Day" style romp are foiled, that they examine their dissappointment and ask themselves, "why did this bother me so much?" When you do, you'll often find that you are being challenged to think or look at a thing in another light by your brain, which is often smarter than you might think.

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Wonderful World (2010)

"The only crime left in the f*****g world is negative thinking," laments Ben Singer (Matthew Broderick) who holds the worldview that everything is fixed, yuppies are the root of all evil, and we're all doomed anyway so why bother. A failed children's singer (his sole album long relegated to the dusty cutout bins of history), the divorced Ben now works a dead-end job as a proofreader. When one of his co-workers chastises him for not sharing in the congratulatory excitement surrounding the news that another co-worker (an aspiring actor) has just landed his first television acting gig, he dismisses the scold with a shrug and says "I don't delude myself with hopes and dreams." He's a real piece of work.

Interestingly, however, he does have friends. He participates in a weekly after-hours jam session in the back room of a music store with a small group of pals, and proves to be a decent guitarist; it makes us wonder exactly why he's squandering his talents. As the music store owner surreptitiously observes, "That's a shame, to be good at something no one cares about." His roommate Ibu (Michael K. Williams) a Senegalese immigrant, doesn't let Ben's chronic glumness dampen his perpetually sunny disposition, and considers him to be a good friend regardless. Ben does approach a state approximating enjoyment when he spends time with his precocious 11-year old daughter (Jodelle Ferland); although his negative waves are markedly straining their relationship and becoming a source of concern to Ben's ex-wife (Ally Walker). Ben seems quite happy to continue wallowing in his half-empty glass bubble of apathetic detachment, until a series of unexpected and personally challenging events shakes his world up, not the least of which arrives in the person of Ibu's sister (Sanaa Lathan) a Senegalese national who shows up on his doorstep one fateful day.

While this is a somewhat familiar narrative (the self-pitying mope gets snapped out of his myopic torpor by the Free-Spirited Other), writer-director Goldin delivers it in a fresh and engaging manner. I was initially expecting the film to go in another direction (i.e. another black comedy about a bitter children's entertainer like "Shakes the Clown" or "Death to Smoochy"); but was pleasantly surprised by the genuine warmth and humanity at its heart. Broderick gives a nicely nuanced performance that I would put up there with his work in "Election". Lathan does a lovely job, as does Williams, whose gentle and endearing character here is quite a contrast to the character "Omar", who he played so memorably on the HBO series, "The Wire". Not a major film, but a rewarding one in the vein of "The Visitor".

"Wonderful World" was written and directed by Joshua Goldin, his first directing project. It follows Ben Singer played by Matthew Broderick who is a really big pessimist. Ben had a successful career as a children's folk music singer, but after no one bought his acoustic album, he became jaded and withdrew from the world and spends his days in a boring, safe desk job proofreading papers. His best friend and roommate, Ibu (Michael Kenneth Williams) goes into a diabetic coma and Ben's world changes when Ibu's sister, Khadi (Sanaa Lathan) comes to stay with him while her brother is ill.

The movie feels very obvious in the opening sequences, yes, he's so pessimistic, no one invites him to parties because he's a Debbie Downer. He even says at one point that the two worst inventions were the TV remote and positive thinking. The movie really improves after more challenges are put into Ben's life through the absence of his friend, the introduction of a beautiful woman from Dakar, the diminishing relationship with his daughter, Sandra (Jodelle Ferland), and the loss of his job, and his attempt to sue the city for depraved indifference. Oh and not to mention, hallucinations of "The Man" (Philip Baker Hall) as an obstacle for him to mouth off to when he smokes weed. The simple life of sitting around playing chess is put on hold.

I had a hard time seeing Matthew Broderick who is excellent at oozing a positive attitude do such an about face here. It definitely plays more funny-grouchy than dark and I think that was the director's intentional choice. Everything he does still has a certain charisma, even when he's shutting others out.

Young Jodelle Ferland as his daughter was a great choice. When I looked her up on IMDB, I had to gasp because I knew I recognized her from something and it was "Kingdom Hospital", the Stephen King mini-series where she played the creepy little girl ghost! In this film, her character has a lot of self-doubts and she is shy and has trouble really communicating with her father even though she desperately wants to. Their estranged relationship begins to repair after interacting with Khadi and watching her gradual coming out of her shell was very sweet.

Sanaa Lathan as Khadi was a breath of fresh air. She really delved deep into the culture and came out looking and sounding so authentic. I didn't realize until the DVD extras that she was using an accent, it sounded amazingly good. The way she communicated and the way she moved really grab your attention and hold it in a good way, she almost glows as Ben begins to fall in love with her.

Ally Walker plays Ben's ex-wife, Eliza. I just recently saw her in "Toe to Toe" so another appearance so quick after so long not seeing her work was unexpected. Her role in "Toe to Toe" was so depressingly indifferent toward her daughter to an almost unrealistic level, but here she plays the opposite as a mother who is more overprotective of her daughter and before even asking her about her day, she assumes Ben has said something destructive to her again and shuts him out. On the flip side though, she has a great scene where she shows some vulnerability and reveals that while she isn't 100% happy with her new life, she prefers it to being dragged down on a daily basis.

I wish there had been more music in this movie! Broderick plays a little guitar in a scene, we hear a quick sample of his CD, and we don't hear him sing till the finale. It's just such soothing melodic acoustic guitar and I am tempted to try and find a soundtrack somewhere. My favorite quote in the film was "It's such a shame to be so talented at something no one cares about." When Ben performs his children's folk music finally, the kids are uncharacteristically ecstatic.

Looking at that group of kids, I really don't believe they would have been impressed by something so nice and pleasant with today's short attention spans. If he had been playing to a crowd in the 60s maybe, but today's kids would rather play outside or video games unless it's an ice show or Disney rock concert in front of them. That deviation from reality aside, it was still nice to see the character Ben get back to his roots eventually. Everything in this movie is a matter of perspective and some people might find that boring but I felt it all added up to a very pleasant movie. As he warms up to people and the idea of the world being a better place than he's seen it as of late, you too will be warmed watching it. I loved the exploration of another culture and the comparisons to America and making Ben enjoy the freedoms he has instead of criticizing his ex-wife for living in a big house with a big shot. I felt like the parting message here was a quote from a different movie, "Death to Smoochy", "You can't change the world, but you can make a dent." By changing his own corner, Ben finds a way to bring happiness to people around him again instead of misery.

DVD Extras:

There are three featurettes, "As Soon as Fish Fall Out of the Sky: Character and Story of Wonderful World", Working with the Director and with Matthew Broderick, and a Behind the scenes montage. All three are very short, probably two to three minutes a piece and are pieced together from interviews done with individual cast members. While more is explored about the characters in the first one, the director and actor one is just people heaping praise on them, and the montage is just shots of directing and camerawork put to music. A fourth featurette: "HDNet: A Look at Wonderful World" feels like one of those behind the scenes previews they play at my local movie theater and doesn't cover any new ground.

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I'm a super late Sanaa Lathan fan, and I only know Matthew Broderick as Ferris Bueller so I wasn't quite sure how I was going to feel about this film, but I've started revisiting so many Sanaa films that I originally didn't enjoy. This is one I knew nothing about up until this month. This film had interesting timing for me because I cut a visit short yesterday, with someone who reminds me of Ben Singer--super negative but thinks he's doing the rest of the world a favor by telling his truth. I think if you know a Ben Singer, you might want to run this film by him in hopes of some soul searching. Truth is one thing, but the guy in this flick was looking for reasons to hate everything.

As far as Sanaa's role as the Sengalese sister, Khadi, of his roommate Ibou (who I know of because I glanced at Michael Kenneth Williams on "The Wire"), they pulled it off far better than I expected. I was especially impressed with Williams because from the look of him, it's hard to imagine not seeing him with a "harder" edgy image. He was Prince Positive all through this film, and it was a pleasant surprise. And while I wouldn't think pairing Sanaa with Matthew would work, when she made that comment about "get to know it better," my mouth dropped. All I could do was yell "Go 'head, Sanaa" at that point.

Although the film didn't end how I expected it, it was a good film. It was also nice to see "Eclipse" actress Jodelle Ferland as the daughter, Sandra. She's such a cute girl and I like watching her growth as an actress.

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We've all experienced periods in life that get so terrible you just have to laugh; Ben Singer (Matthew Broderick) is beyond that point. Divorced from a woman who has married a blatant jerk, earning a meager living working as a TV script proofreader, and disconnected from his daughter, Ben is cynical, neurotic and pessimistic. He feels that society is superficial, disconnected and run by a money hungry individual, known as `the man.'

In this clever Indie drama, Ben is challenged to keep a positive perspective despite the negative events that befall him. When his daughter rejects his company because of his negativity, and his Senegalese roommate falls into a Diabetic coma, Ben realizes there are more important things in life than feeling sorry for yourself and bitter with the world. He realizes that pessimism and cynicism is a form of selfishness and that he has an obligation to care and love those who care and love him. When his roommate's sister visits and stays at their apartment he begins to take a more optimistic look at life and to appreciate the positive value relationships bring to life.

A smart and uplifting film, that reminds us of Jean-Paul Sartre's quote that "freedom is what you do with what's been done to you." The film is well paced, and displays a deft balance of humor and drama. The acting is spot on with strong performances by Matthew Broderick, Michael K. Williams, and Sanaa Lathan. Overall, a great film that will leave you with memorable quotes and food for thought after you've finished watching.

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Matthew Broderick is great in this! I have been a huge fan for awhile and this only adds to it! Great film.

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Peep World (2010)

Nathan(Ben Schwartz) has written a novel based on his dysfunctional family to the dismay of his family. The main characters are whimsically introduced by Lewis Black doing narration. The problem with the introduction is that when things become dramatic, you don't feel connected to the characters, you just wish the scene would be over so the film could move on to something funny.

Nathan, this generation's John Irving, has his own premature issue. Sarah Silverman stars as his sister Cheri who is so upset by her portrayal as a B_ in the book, she is suing her brother. To add insult to injury, they are filming the movie about the book outside her apartment and her 70 year old dad is dating the actress playing her character. Of yes, Cheri is an actress too. This is the kind of irony the movie needed more of, and less of the serious stuff.

Nathan gives us some truisms, such as when his assistant says, "So that's why guys write...to get laid." Nathan responds, "That's why guys do everything."

The movie had some funny scenes and not so funny scenes. I liked it when Silverman was on the screen. Lesley Ann Warren, who looks great, plays the mom in an under utilized role. Recent Academy Award winner Octavia Spencer had a minor role. Nathan's two brothers are Joel (Rainn Wilson) an attorney who is considered a loser and face it, the guy doesn't have his life together and Jack (Michael C. Hall) who frequents peep shows.

Don't spend more than $2.00.

F-bombs, brief sex, no nudity

I only bought this because I am a huge fan of Michael C Hall. The story was very disjointed and weird. When it ended, I found myself thinking, "Huh?"

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If you enjoy awkward, sometimes cringe-worthy humor, you'll enjoy Peep World. It also has the right amount of mushy, heart-warming junk, which is nice :)

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I really love the brutal honesty in this film. The cast is amazing, it's one of my favorite dark comedies.

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"Pardon me if I don't toast the man who ruined my life." After a book exposing all his families secrets is published and becomes a hit Nathan must deal with the fallout. The fact that his brothers and sister now hate him, his dad he is completely self obsessed is the only one who is proud of him. The movie takes place the day of the annual birthday dinner for thier dad's birthday and we watch how each person deals with the stress of that as well as the book release. Judging by the preview I was expecting this to be funnier then it was. I'm not saying this was not a good movie, but I was expecting funnier. I did enjoy it, and the movie was perfectly cast I thought, but I just thought it was missing something to make it better. Watching each person deal with thier own personal problems set against the way they feel about the book is enjoyable to watch, but again something was missing. I'm just not sure what. Overall, I really did enjoy this, but it could have used something else, I just can't figure out what it is. I give it a B.

Would I watch again? I don't think I will.

*Also try Everybody's Fine

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Paris (2010)

What is it about French films that makes the best of them so deeply reflective in a way that few American and British films achieve? Maybe it's that France itself is such a beautiful and evocative country, maybe it's that the French have a lifestyle that, for us non-French, appears so stylish and romantic... whatever... but when they get it right they really are in a different class, and "Paris" most definitely gets it right.

Beautifully filmed, brilliantly acted, and underpinned by a superb soundtrack, the film explores "real" peoples' lives slowly and above all subtly. Not a great deal happens, and there are no conclusions to the stories involved a guy gets diagnosed with a life threatening heart condition, another chap falls in love with one of his students, a lonely single mother and a market stall trader are hesitantly drawn together, and an African dreams of getting to Paris to start a new life. That's about it really. But it's the way that this is all put together & explored that makes the film, and which achieves its objective of trying to capture what Paris is to people who live there or dream of living there which of course means that its infused with their, often vague, hopes & fears and it has no clear & tidy "Hollywood style" endings... life's not like that.

At times funny, at times charming, and ultimately quite moving, Klapisch directs the film without reverting to heavy-handed sentimentality or high drama to make his points.... in fact, exactly the opposite: witness the fleeting, beautifully poignant shot at the end of the film as the African compares the view on the postcard of Paris that has driven him to make his journey there, and which underpins his hopes for the future, with the reality of it... nothing more needs to be said or filmed to capture what he must be feeling.

Perhaps the greatest credit to "Paris" is that, even though it's two hours long, subtitled (which is never the easiest way to watch a film), and devoid of any clever plot twists or unexpected surprises to hold your attention, by the end of it all... you really don't want it to end. It's that good.

This is a French movie made for a French audience. As a result, for Americans, it provides a window into another culture which is familiar in some ways, but quite different in others. Personally, I love movies which transport me in this way.

Not surprisingly, the movie is visually beautiful, and thus does justice to the beauty of Paris. But more importantly, the movie uses its distinctively French style and sensibility in order to probe many facets of the human condition in a sensitive, penetrating, and balanced manner, thus taking us on quite a journey of diverse vicarious experiences, thoughts on questions big and small, and a wide spectrum of simple and complex emotions. In short, the movie gave me a lot to ponder, and I may need to eventually watch it again.

At the end of the journey, it's clear that this is by no means a feel-good movie, and my net feeling was closer to poignance than happiness or even ambivalence. But the movie does also illustrate the possibility and value of savoring, while we can, the positive elements of life (a very French attitude), some of which can be a source of hope, so the movie has an uplifting side as well just like real life.

Highly recommended to anyone interested in a beautiful, entrancing, and relatively deep movie.

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PARIS is a kaleidoscopic view of that great City of Light inhabited with a variety of individuals each of whom is consumed with life and love and living and dying. Cédric Klapisch has written and directed this richly populated canvas as a background of a tender story of a Moulin Rouge male dancer Pierre (Romain Duris) who is diagnosed with a terminal heart disease requiring transplantation if he is to survive. But in the end the many characters introduced in 'incidental stories' have become so interesting that, instead of providing simply a background for Pierre's portrait, they become an integral part of the drama as well as indelibly stamped on the viewer's mind.

Pierre has kept his illness secret, yet when faced with the dire concept of a transplant he confides in his sister Élise (Juliette Binoche), a single mother of three, who takes him in to fill his boring days of self confinement. There is a palpable magic between the two as Élise attempts to bring Pierre out into the world of hope and of living. Incidental to her life are trips to the market where she observes the lives of the grocers and discovers their private lifestyles, information shared freely with the viewer. A Parisian North African communicates with his brother at home with a postcard of Paris, seducing the brother to brave all odds to come to the city. We also meet a jaded art historian Roland Verneuil (Fabrice Luchini) whose father has just died, an event that devastates his emotional brother Philippe (François Cluzet): Roland proceeds to have an affair with a student but his physical awakening is abruptly altered by the realities of Parisian life while Philippe progresses through his seemingly mundane existence toward a surprise ending. The grocers seek adventures with a group of girls among whom is the ex-wife of one of the men and in the process we observe the varying reactions of interpersonal relationships tested away from the eyes of group participation. All of these stories are white noise to Pierre's situation, and though Élise is able to make Pierre 'dance again' at a party of his fellow dancers she organizes, in the end Pierre is left to care for Élise's children while Élise finally opens her frozen heart to a new romance. At this point Pierre receives the inevitable telephone call that a transplant is ready, and as he proceeds to the hospital he opens his mind to the beauties of Paris. Some of the vignettes we have observed are completed while most simply continue just like life in the glorious city so often considered the city of love.

All of the many roles are enacted by gifted actors, the cinematography offers us a different view of Paris than that of postcards and travel brochures, and the musical score ranges from popular music to the haunting 'Gnossiemme No. 1' of Erik Satie which is Pierre's theme music. At times the viewer feels lost in the complex overlay of the many stories being told, but settling back in a chair and just absorbing the film results in an evening of Parisian intoxication. Grady Harp, October 09

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Cedric Klapisch's 2008 film "Paris" leaves the mind brimming for days. The film's symphonic drama and stunning cinematography invite the viewer to contemplate how we all not only take life for granted, but also reduce the complex lives of others into simple stories.

"Paris" showcases an ensemble cast, which includes the beautiful Juliette Binoche (Elise) from Chocolat (Miramax Collector's Series).

Much like in Richard Curtis's 2003 British romantic comedy, Love Actually (Widescreen Edition), "Paris" charts the loosely-connected lives of several characters living within a big city (Paris as opposed to London). The characters' connections to one another are mostly happenstance, and often known only to the audience.

The focal point of the film is the story of Pierre (Romain Duris), a retired cabaret dancer with a degenerative heart disease. Pierre needs heart bypass surgery. The doctor has told Pierre that he has a "50-50" shot of making it through the surgery.

With an ailing heart, and no longer able to continue his dance career, Pierre spends his days in the company of his sister Elise, and her three children, wandering around his apartment, standing on his apartment's balcony, and looking at the Paris cityscape. Elise has taken time off work to be with her brother.

Klipisch's film evokes Alfred Hitchcock's masterpiece, Rear Window (Universal Legacy Series). Like with the protagonist of Hitchcock's Rear Window (Universal Legacy Series) James Stewart (Jeff Jefferies), Pierre is confined to his apartment. But Pierre is sidelined with an ailing heart, not a broken leg.

Because Pierre's illness, unlike that of Jeff's, is life-threatening, his ruminations carry an existential weight that is utterly absent from that of Jeff's. Jeff in Rear Window (Universal Legacy Series) is more bored voyeur than brooding philosopher.

Pierre's thoughts are concerned with loftier matters: the seeming obliviousness with which the inhabitants of Paris, a city teeming with life and business, take for granted their health.

In the film, on a number of occasions, Klapisch fills the screen with the solitary image of a confined Pierre gazing out his apartment window, like an explorer standing on a cliff's edge above the ocean. Below Pierre, the cityscape of Paris unfolds with the ebullient color palette of a Sisley painting. In Rear Window (Universal Legacy Series), Jeff's gaze is trapped within the borders of a dark, confined Greenwich Village courtyard.

Only on a few occasions does Pierre's gaze ever stray into a neighbor's window through the apartment window of the beautiful Mélanie Laurent (Laetitia). Pierre's brief, voyeuristic foray is only a function of his existential angst time is potentially running out for him to make love one last time. He is thinking Laetitia may be for him a possible lover; the audience knows the futility with which his hopes rest (Laetitia is already entangled in two coinciding love affairs and Pierre is an awkward lover).

The tight borders that confine the world, which Jeff spends his days observing in Rear Window (Universal Legacy Series), lead only to him getting entangled in a murder investigation. But Paris for Pierre conjures up meaning and clairvoyance. Paris helps Pierre make sense of his situation. The expansiveness of the world he contemplates provides him with a perspective he has never had before.

The film ends with Pierre riding in a cab to his heart surgery, staring longingly out at the city that he fears he will never see again. On the ride, Pierre points to the spiritually-lost Fabrice Luchini (Roland Verneuil) strolling down the sidewalk, and proclaims that he wishes he could be like Roland (to Pierre, a stranger), carefree and healthy.

But Roland is far from carefree. He is a self-absorbed, middle-aged man, who had just had his hopeless affair with one of his students (Laetitia) end nastily. Roland's isolation is compounded by his father's recent death, and the contempt with which he treats his brother, and what he views as his brother's conventional life. Roland, by indulging in his own fear of loneliness, over the course of the film, only becomes lonelier.

As a healthy stranger walking the streets of Paris, Roland is to Pierre someone of whom to be jealous. Through Pierre's reduction of Roland's life, and his reduction of the lives of all the other strangers walking the city-streets of Paris, Klapisch illuminates an important irony.

The perspective that Pierre finds in his personal wrangling with death is also blinding; Pierre is a poor empathizer (he covets the life of a man who is clinically depressed and utterly lost). Even the vilest of men to Pierre become romanticized and with great reason they have life! At least on the surface, they have life. Locked in the shackles of his self-absorption, what kind of life does Roland really have?

Towards the end of the film, a minor character, Caroline, played by Julie Ferrier, catapults to her death in a motorcycle accident, highlighting a second irony in Pierre's situation.

Pierre's awareness of his own situation imprisons him. The unfairness of his situation seems far less unfair when compared to Caroline's. Pierre has a 50-50 shot of living. Caroline is dead. But Pierre, if he saw Caroline zooming on her motorcycle the very day she died, would have probably thought if only I could be like that woman! Carefree and healthy! Zooming around like there is no tomorrow!

How can we gain the perspective that the imminence of our own mortality provides us, when our mortality is not imminent? For Roland and Caroline, and everyone else for whom death is seemingly far-off, mortality is more a source of anxiety than clairvoyance.

Perhaps the average citizen's obliviousness to mortality is what frustrates Pierre the most. Pierre cannot help but to lament that his experience is lost on millions of people, as they buzz around Paris like a bee colony, answering to the needs of their everyday lives, while Pierre consciously and quietly marches to his own end.

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I do believe that it takes a bit of patience on the part of an American viewer to comprehend the deeper areas explored in French film. Often I see that we rarely can look past our ignorance and cheeky criticism of "French anything", and it is a shame because their film is so much more powerful and thought felt than any American or British product. They may not be up to par on our cliche action flicks or our type of film but they instead offer a great, refreshing look at film that boasts strong emotions. That after all is what French life is about. They live life not as we do, they respect it's greatness and they live for the day. After spending some time myself in Paris I can tell you that unlike American film which rarely correctly reflects upon our culture, this movie does. If your looking for a bit of Paris for yourself and a real feeling that can little be achieved elsewhere, find it in this film. I loved it, and you will too if you are looking to learn something. It also couldn't hurt to love the langauge, but honestly subtitles are hardly something to hold against any film.

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