John Turturro

Transformers : Dark of the Moon

Yesterday, I went to see “Transformers : Dark of the Moon“. I’m not a big fan of 3D, but my wife convinced me that that’s the only right way to watch this movie, so I agreed. And I’m glad I did so.

If you like 3D movies, or transforming robots, or action movies, or any of the previous Transformers’ films, or Michael Bay work in general, you absolutely must see this film. And do so in 3D – even for those who don’t like 3D, it is an excellent experience.

As for the film, Michael Bay broke the measuring ruler once again. He is off the scale. The film is bigger, larger, and more than any other film I can think off. It has everything previous Transformers had, and more. And of the things that previous Transformers had, it has more. More robots, more fights, more shooting and explosions. More space travel. More special effects. More 3D. More, more, more. It has so much of everything that I would walk away happy half time into the film. But when the whole thing was over I really was amazed as to how much went into it.

On top of that, both of the items that somewhat annoyed me in the previous Transformers movies were corrected in this part. First was Megan Fox. I don’t know why everybody is so fond of her. I don’t find her beautiful, or smart, or a particular good actress. She’s out and Rosie Huntington-Whitley is in. She wouldn’t be my first choice for the role, but she is definitely an improvement on Megan Fox. Secondly, in previous Transformers, robot transformations and robot fights were too fast. There are too many details to notice them all and they were often done and off the screen before my curiosity was satisfied. In this part, there are more details, more fights, and more transformations. Also, there are a few excellent slow-downs – important moments are slowed down to a crawl with a few humorous touches added.

Actually, I have to mention humor separately. This part is not as serious as the previous ones. There are plenty of funny scenes, situations, and jokes all over the film. I couple of times I was even laughing out loud, which is a rare occasion.

Overall, I think the film provides all the entertainment you could put into a movie and more. It pushes the boundaries of sci-fi cinematography and visual effects. And for that I will of course give it a 5 out of 5.

The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3

Yesterday I went to see “The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3” in the cinema. I expected it to be good, having seen the trailer and knowing that it was directed by Tony Scott and featuring Denzel Washington and John Travolta. But it happened to be even better than I expected.

There is more to the story than shown in the trailer. There is more suspense, than can be guessed from the trailer. And there is some good acting to be seen, both by Washington and Travolta.

Sometimes the film reminds of another Tony Scott and Denzel Washington venture – “Man on Fire”, however not as a copy of a previous work but rather an expansion of it. This is especially so during the cuts of the New York City.

Overall, a good entertainment that will keep you on the edge of your seat for the whole during of the film. 5 stars.

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

I just came back from the premier of the “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen“. After seeing the trailers for this film, my expectations were so high, that I was actually worried if the movie is going to be any close to what I wanted it to be. I happy to report that all my expectations were bitten down and torn apart. The real thing was so much better.

Now, I don’t want to spoil it too much for those of you who haven’t seen it, but let me give you this. There is non-stop action from start to end. Everything flies, swims, shoots, explodes, collides, and transforms. There were quite a few things on the scale that I haven’t seen before. Epic!

If I had a hat, it would be off, with all respects to Michael Bay and Steven Spielberg. And, of course, everyone else who worked on this film. It was so much worth it!

My rating: 5 stars. Highly recommended, must see.

P.S.: I don’t know why everyone is so turned on about Megan Fox. She’s not bad, but I don’t think she’s worth all the hype. Isabel Lucas (another hot girl in this film) is at least as good. Sometimes even better.

Cradle Will Rock

Noone in the shop could tell me anything about “Cradle Will Rock“. I couldn’t remember any trailers or posters either. The list of names on the DVD cover looked impressive, so I rented it.

Directed by: Tim Robbins
Genres: Drama
Cast: Hank Azaria, Rubén Blades, Joan Cusack, John Cusack, Cary Elwes, Philip Baker Hall, Cherry Jones, Angus Macfadyen, Bill Murray, Vanessa Redgrave, Susan Sarandon, Jamey Sheridan, John Turturro, Emily Watson, Bob Balaban
IMDB raintg: 6.8
My rating: 7.0 [rate 7.0]

I wasn’t wrong. The film turned out to be excellent.

I’ve seen several films that show theatrical play in development. As far as I remember, I liked all of them. I don’t know why. Maybe it is a theatre lover inside of me. Or maybe because theatre demands more acting and directing talent attention.

“Cradle Will Rock” is an original movie. It mixes the theatrical play development with pre-Second World War political tension and adds a lot of personal drama to the mix.

With all of that, it is a little bit difficult to follow in the first half of the film. Things get developed slowly and it is not always easy to make sense what is what and why is it there. Excellent casting helps the situation a lot. Actors deliver that personal touch that makes the film interesting to watch even without making much sense.

Towards the second half of the film situation changes. I could suddenly make sense of everything that was happening. All those many characters became clear to me. All story lines started to merge. The more they merged, the more I was sucked into the film. It was an amazing feeling.

Another good side of the film was that it was ver positive. Surely, it touched upon some ugly issues of life in society, but it never lost its huge positive charge. Happy ending was expected from within the first few minutes of the film.

Overall, I enjoyed it a lot. I can’t recommend this film to everyone out there as it is not a simple and easy going one like most of the Hollywood crap these days. But if you are in the mood for a good film, make sure you watch this one.

The Man Who Cried

Watched “The Man Who Cried” on DVD. It is amazing how little this movie missed to be on my favourite list. It has to stay with the average ones now. Pity.

Good things about this movie are: story, pace, casting, acting, photography, and music. I liked how one small girl from the first part of the movie was used to bring in three more main characters. That was an interesting move. I liked the acting of all four main actors – Christina Ricci, Cate Blanchett, John Turturro, and Johnny Depp. All of them did really good jobs, but they weren’t pushed to the limit or anywhere closed. I’ve seen all four of them doing much better.

What I think this movie needs is more dramatism and depth. It almost touched me. But when it almost happend the closing credits started rolling. First half of the movie with the little girl had a lot more sadness and sympathy to it.

I’ll rate it as 6 out of 10. Good, but could have been so much better!