Halle Berry seems to have emerged as an action star during recent years (just like Liam Neeson for example, who has since indicated that he does not want to make actionfilms anymore because he’ss already 65). In The Call she was a 911
telephone operator who tried to rescue a kidnapped teenager. In Kidnap she plays a mother who wants to get her kidnapped 6-year-old son back. Continue reading
Barefoot in the Park (1967) – Review
One of the apps I use on almost a day to day basis is Just Watch. It shows which movies have been added to Netflix (and other services) each day. It keeps me up to date and makes me aware of titles I wouldn’t normally notice. Recently this movie was in the list and I had never heard of it, even though it has an Oscar nomination for best female supporting role. With Jane Fonda and Robert Redford in the leading roles, I was interested in seeing it. Continue reading
West Side Story (1961) – Review
West Side Story is a title that was not part of my Blindspot films this year, but I still was very curious about it. A musical from the sixties that won no less than ten Oscars and that I never came around to watching. When I saw this film was available on the inflight entertainment system this past summer I thought it was a good choice to kill some time. Continue reading
Whitney: Can I Be Me (2017) – Review
Although most celebrities die of natural causes, it remains shocking to see how many big artists and actors meet their and in part to drinking, drugs and medication. Michael Jackson, Prince, Amy Winehouse, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Heath Ledger all had problems with them and Whitney Houston unfortunately also belongs to that list. She drowned in the bathtub of her hotel room in 2012 and cocaine was found in her body. The documentary Can I Be Me, which has been availble through Netflix, looks at the career and private life of Houston and tries to form a picture of the problems that ultimately resulted in her death. Continue reading
Atomic Blonde (2017) – Review
When you hear information about a new movie from someone, it’s a good idea to listen carefully. When someone mentioned Atomic Blonde and told that it was directed by David Leitch I thought he said David Lynch. Now you have to understand that I am not someone who loves the work of Lynch, so I didn’t want to see the film anymore. Fortunately, I later heard that there was a connection with one of my favorite action films of the last couple of years, John Wick, and when I read more about the film, my mistake became clear. I’m glad that I saw the movie in the cinema, because for fans of action it is an unmissable title. Continue reading
Lucid Dream (2017) – Review
The number of Korean films released annually in the cinema over here is minimal. Of course it is a matter of supply and demand, but it is unfortunate to see because so many good titles are made that can not be viewed here and are often not even released on DVD. Fortunately, Netflix is offering more and more Korean films, including this Netflix original. Continue reading
The Monday Question: When do you start watching Christmas movies?
Although it’s not even December yet, Christmas decorations already have started to show up in shopping malls and department stores. You can already order your ugly Christmas sweaters and people are already sharing their recommendations for gifts and most people will be getting a Christmas tree soon. Of course when it comes to movies there is a lot of choice when it comes to this time of year. A quick view at IMDb shows there are 1149 movies in which Santa appears, which means there isn’t even time to watch them all. So the question this week is:
When do you start watching Christmas movies?
Alive and Kicking (2017) – Review
How good are your dance skills? Whatever the answer, after seeing this documentary you might start to doubt them. This documentary is about the world of swing dancing. A way of dancing that is extremely energetic, fun to watch and sometimes acrobatic. A dance that seemed to have died a silent death and wasn’t performed for many decades, but which suddenly became enormously popular again in the late 80s and early 90s. The reason? The fact that a large film studio decided to release old films with the dance on video. People who saw the Lindy Hop being performed in old films wanted to know more about it and the popular dancers of that time were suddenly asked to teach again, even though they were already elderly. Swing dancing made a huge comeback and never disappeared. Alive and Kicking tries to make it clear why. Continue reading
Atlanta – Season 1 – Review
Most will know Donald Glover as an actor, but he is also an artist (Childish Gambino), director, writer, comedian and producer. He appeared in Community, The Martian, Spider-Man: Homecoming and for the Han Solo film he will play Lando Calrissian. So it is someone who has a busy life and also finds the time to make his own series in the form of Atlanta. A series that wanted to see for a while, but did not get around to. Luckily I had a long flight a while ago where the show was on the entertainment system and I could finally watch it. Continue reading
Bad Rap (2016) – Review
Although I have been listening to hip hop for more than 25 years now, if you asked me to name some American rappers with an Asian background, I would not get very far. The only one I could name is Jin, who became known years ago by his performance on Freestyle Friday at 106 and Park, where he beat other rappers for several weeks. The others tried to use the stereotypical images of kung fu, chinese food, and so on, but Jin went so hard that they didn’t stand a chance. Of course there are many more and this documentary looks at four other rappers, who all try to make a name for themselves. Continue reading