Category Archives: Movies

#14- My Brilliant Career

Quick recap: The story takes place in the Australian outback, at the turn of the century. Sybylla is a free-spirited young woman who dreams of one day becoming a writer. Her family tries their best to convince her that the only way to be happy is to snag a guy and get married. Sybylla is having none of that and continues on her merry way, thankyouverymuch. She eventually falls in love with Harry, a rich young man.  She must now choose between a life of marriage and kids or her BRILLIANT CAREER. (spoiler alert: she chooses the career. Otherwise this would be ‘My Brilliant Hobby that I Eventually Gave Up Because Dr.Grant From Jurassic Park Fell In Love With Me.)

that kiss left a lot to be desired...

that kiss left a lot to be desired…

Fun (?) Fact: My brain thought it would be fun to have me read everything in an Australian accent, hours after watching this movie. I did feel a tad more sophisticated, so I’m not complaining.

My thoughts: ‘Keep an open mind’, I told myself, after reading the description of the movie. And then in the first 5 minutes of the movie Sybylla announces to herself, ‘My brilliant career!’, and I rolled my eyes so far back into my head that it gave me a headache.

the queen of eye rolls

the queen of eye rolls

But onward I pressed to complete this movie and add it to my list. It did eventually get better and I found myself rooting for Sybylla and her wild ways. Throughout the film Sybylla regards herself as plain and ugly and she pulls it off. Not like a certain teen movie where a girl is considered plain and ugly until she takes off her glasses, wears her hair down and trades her overalls for a dress. I learned after watching the movie that the story is based off a novel with the same name, written in the early 20th century. Knowing that tidbit made me appreciate the ‘feminist’ viewpoint a little more. Sybylla has many great lines about her beliefs on marriage but my favorite is when she announces that she doesn’t want to be a ‘part of anyone’. She wants to be her own person. Awesome. 21st century Me finds it hard to believe that she really would have to give up everything once she got married, but in context I suppose it’s true. One thing that especially stuck out for me is the main fact that Sybylla has no brilliant career. There are several shots of her writing and once can assume it is a passion of hers, but there are also scenes of her announcing that she wants to become a world class pianist. It isn’t until the final scene that you finally see her finishing the manuscript and sending it off.  More power to her to chase her dreams but I wouldn’t call it a brilliant career just yet. The novel looks rather boring anyway.

It's possible for you to be a brilliant writer and also not have crazy hair. Just saying.

It’s possible for you to be a brilliant writer and also not have crazy hair. Just saying.

Final review: 2/5. It’s a nice little film with a good message for girls. It might not hurt if I showed my son this one day so that he understands that he too can be a complete person all by himself. As for me, I was mostly bored. Except for the accents. And Dr.Grant.

Where I watched it: Netflix instant

Up next: The Red Shoes

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#13-Moulin Rouge

Quick Recap: This is the story of Christian, a penniless writer, who falls in love with Satine, a whore. She dies and it’s really sad. The greatest thing you’ll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return. Love is like oxygen. Love is a many splendored thing. Love lifts us up where we belong. All you need is love.

Sorry, got a little carried away with quoting the movie. *

*- I’m not sorry.

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This post will be quite Ewan Mcgregor heavy as well. Deal with it.

Fun (!!!) Fact: It took Baz Luhrmann almost two years to secure all of the rights to the songs used in the film.

My thoughts: I won’t try to hide the fact that this is My. Favorite. Movie. Ever. I have watched ‘Moulin Rouge’ no less than at least 100 times by now. When the number came up on my random generator that tells me what to watch next, I had initially decided to skip watching this movie again because I can practically quote the entire thing. However, after a hellish week I went ahead and watched it in its entirety. It’s impossible for me to analyze the film at the point because I am so biased.

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One of my many reasons for bias

Instead, I’m going to approach this film on two points: 1) Does the movie still hold up for me 12 years later and 2) why I love it so much.

So first of all, yes this film completely holds up. I still love the musical numbers and I still love Ewan. I love all of the visual effects and the costumes.I love the manic pace at first, much like the energy you feel at the beginning of a relationship. I am still struck by all of the emotional scenes, although I no longer Ugly Cry at the end. I swooned when Ewan began to sing ‘Your Song’, much like I did when I first saw him belt out that first note many years ago. I fell head over heels all over again during the scene when Christian and Satine are making out around the corridor, a few feet away from The Duke. The entire exchange seems so authentic and believable. I was hooked after that.

gratuitous Ewan

gratuitous Ewan

Which leads me to my second reflection: why I love this movie so much. And as expected, I don’t have an answer. Maybe it was because I was 16 years old at the time and completely naive about all things love. Up until then, love was a faraway concept; it was something nice that I could have when I was ready. But then ‘Moulin Rouge’ presented it in a completely different way. Love is ugly. Love consumes you. Love and jealousy go hand in hand. I feel like by watching this movie, I crossed the threshold of being a silly teenager to having real thoughts and real dreams. And now that I have been in relationships and had my share of heartache, I can understand this movie on a different level. It still impacts me and I still identify with it.

jealous Ewan

jealous Ewan

Final review: 5/5 and 1/5. This movie has always been my litmus test for future relationships. I’ve found that you either get it and love ‘Moulin Rouge’, or you don’t and loathe it. Baz Luhrmann’s style can seem overwhelming at times and if that bothers you, just know that the pace will slow down at some point and you are left with a tragic love story.

Where I watched it: And here’s where my fangirl personality comes back- I own two copies of the DVD as well as a downloaded version on my computer.

Up Next: My Brilliant Career

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#12-North by Northwest

Quick Recap: This may be my shortest recap yet! Roger Thornhill, an ad exec, is mistaken as a spy and must go on the run to save himself as well as a girl he falls in love with.

Fun (?) Fact: GQ Magazine named the suit Cary Grant wears throughout the movie as ‘the best suit in history’. They state it has had the biggest effect on men’s fashion than any other suit ever has.

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I find myself wanting a good suit….

My Thoughts: So, first of all, a confession- this is my first ever Hitchcock film. I KNOW. I always meant to watch Psycho, but it is one of those movies that has been referenced so many times that I feel like I have already watched it. I KNOW. Thus the reason I’m doing this project in the first place. Anyway. Back to the movie at hand.

I was immediately caught up in the film from the beginning. And from the beginning, I mean the credits, because look:

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Sexy.

If I’m going to watch a movie from 1959, it needs to scream 1959! And boy, did it ever. I also loved how quickly the action began. The film was fast paced and I loved all the twists and turns as Thornhill tried to figure out what the hell was going on. One of the most enjoyable parts of the movie was watching the transformation of Thornhill. He starts out so completely anti-spy and then as more events unfold,  he begins to fit into the role perfectly. By the last scene at Mount Rushmore, he has become George Kaplan. I don’t know much about Cary Grant’s work because, as you can see above, I haven’t even watched Psycho so why would I know about other classic films? I doubted Grant’s casting at the beginning because he seemed so much older than what I was expecting from a spy. However, he sold me rather quickly. One of the reasons I enjoy movies like this is because it helps me expand my pop culture knowledge. I can now say I have seen the crop dusting scene and I also know what a MacGuffin is.

Final review: 5/5. It’s an iconic film and still holds up as an excellent thriller. Plus, it doesn’t take itself too seriously.

Where I watched it: Netflix DVD

Next Up: Moulin Rouge. I KNOW.

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#11-The Thin Man

Quick Recap: Clyde Wynant, eccentric inventor, has disappeared. His friend Nick Charles, world famous detective,and wife Nora take on the case to help solve the mystery. While searching for Wynant, his lover/secretary is murdered. Wynant becomes suspect number 1 and it is up to Charles to clear his name and find the real killer. There’s also a cute dog. A ridiculously cute dog.

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I don’t like dogs, but this one won me over

Fun(?)Fact: This movie was so popular that it inspired a series of movies centered around Nick and Nora Charles, as well as a radio broadcast and tv show.

My thoughts: In writing about this movie, I think it’s important for me to separate my thoughts into two parts. The first part is the actual mystery of Clyde Wynant. I was mildly interested in who the real murderer was, and I did enjoy the few twists and turns. I especially liked the end of the movie when Charles hosts a dinner party for all of the suspects so that he can reveal the true killer. It was a little over the top, but then again, this is 1930’s cinema.

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Every classic movie needs a spinning newspaper montage

So, mystery aside, the real fun in this movie came from the banter between detective husband and wife, Nick and Nora Charles. I genuinely laughed at their exchanges and I was surprised by how strong their chemistry was together. Nick treated Nora as an equal and as a true friend. It was easy to see how much they loved each other, but also how much they respected and enjoyed each other. The character of Nick Charles is especially interesting. The creation of a brilliant, smart ass detective has been run into the ground. Yet, in this context, it’s refreshing and sincere. In most of the scenes, Charles is drinking heavily, to the point one wonders about his alcoholism. He sobers up immediately once he realizes something about the case and it’s amazing to see such a quick transition.

Final review: 2/5. I wouldn’t watch this again. Nick and Nora were charming and the dog was damn cute, but the mystery was meh. It was interesting the watch the beginning of the detective genre take off, but I wouldn’t want to sit through it again.

Where I watched it: Netflix DVD

Up Next: North by Northwest

 

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