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HUMAN INTEREST
I have placed "sizzler
ratings" next to movies to give you an idea of
how good they are
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FINDING
FORRESTER (2001) |
Starring:
Sean Connery, Rob Smith, F. Abraham Murray, Anna Paquin
The plot:
A football-loving black high schooler tries to blend
in with his mates in the Bronx, New York. However, a standard
test reveals he is bright and a highly-esteemed school on
Manhattan Island wishes to offer Jamal a place at their school.
Jamal is reluctant to take the offer, but a chance meeting
with a with a reclusive elderly man near his place agrees
to couch him, but for a small price. Thus begins a strange
friendship, based on trust.
Comment:
It seems like a quiet film, but actually, it ticks
along at a nice pace. Sean Connery comfortably takes on the
role of the reclusive book writer, William Forrestor. Rob
Smith plays the part of bright school kid trying to play down
his natural talents with effortless ease - particularly given
he apparently never acted before! In all, this film was a
pleasant film with plenty of human interest in it.
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PAY
IT FORWARD (2001) |
Starring: Hayley
Joel Osment, Kevin Spacey, Helen Hunt
The plot: Trevor
is just an ordinary child at a school in Las Vegas.
At the start of a new semester in Social Studies, his
new teacher, Mr Simonet asks them to all to think of
an idea that might change the world. Trevor thinks that
if he does three good deeds and then those three people
do three good deeds, the world could benefit from this
wave of good deeds. A journalist who is at the receving
end of one of thse good deeds backtracks trying to find
the truth.
Comment: Bit of
a tear jerker, this film is a bit slow but nonetheless,
fascinating. Kevin Spacey is marelous as the scarred
teacher who has to overcome the secure wall he has built
up around himself to protect him from a cruel world.
Helen Hunt is equally charasmatic as the 'white trash'
single mother trying to raise her child as best as she
can. Hayley Joel Osment, as one can expect, pulls off
yet another highly intelligent and mature performance,
which can at times, make it difficult to believe he
is supposed to be playing a middle-school 'white trash
kid...'
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THE
GIFT (2001) |
Starring: Cate
Blanchett, Keanu Reeves, Giovanni Ribisi, Katie Holmes,
Greg Kinnear
The plot: Annie
Wilson is still trying to come to grips with the premature
death of her husband in the small southern town of Brixton.
However, her psychic powers get her dragged reluctantly
into a terrible situation involving first the plot conceal
the murder of a local socialite, and then the identity
of the murderer. As the details begin to unfold, Annie
is forced to deal with the ugly sides of human nature
as well as mix with people who have diverse beliefs
about her powers.
Comment: A nice
little film but oh so dreadfully slow and in the end,
offers few surprises, which may in part be due to the
considerable time taken to go from one fragment of story
to the next. However, the slow pace of the film is not
for the lack of the actors trying. Cate Blanchett is
utterly beguiling as the southern mother still coming
to terms with her grief and yet move on with her life.
Greg Kinnear is absolutely charming as the distraught
fiancé of the murder victim, continuing to go
from strength to strength. His performance in The Gift
is such a far cry from the E! channel host of 'Talk
Soup' that you can't really compare anymore - he is
a great actor in his own right now. Strong performances
are also delivered by Keanu Reeves as the psychic-hating
redneck, Giovanni Ribisi as the tormented town mechanic
and Hillary Swank as the abused wife of Reeves. If only
the plot had moved a bit faster and taken a couple more
surprising turns... This film has all the elements of
a true dramatic thriller - its just going to take a
better script...
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An
absolute sizzler of a movie - A must see! |
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A
scorcher of a good movie; still capable of riveting you
to your seat |
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Low
flame burner; a pleasant piece of mindless brain candy |
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A
fizzler of a movie which will have you counting zzzzzz's... |
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