Tag Archives: 2009

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Zombieland (2009)

Horror movies. It’s one of the few genres I really don’t watch. I just don’t like to voluntarily be uncomfortable for an hour and a half watching gruesome stuff. It’s something I just don’t need and go out of my way to find. So it’s a genre which I just am not interested in.
So Zombieland was a movie I never planned on watching as the title was enough reason to stay clear from it. This change when a colleague told me that this really wasn’t a “scary” movie, but a comedy. Reluctantly I decide to give this film a chance. Continue reading →

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Handsome Harry (2009)

Harry Sweeney (Jamey Sheridan) is an ex-navy officer who has started his own company in a small town when he left the navy. He has been very succesful and is about to sell his company to retire. He receives a phone call from an old friend, Thomas Kelley (Steve Buscemi) asking him to visit and he agrees. Thomas is very ill and knows he will die soon. They start talking about the past and talk about a subject which they have been silent about for years. Together with some other friends they committed a crime. As his dying wish Thomas asks Harry to find the victim of their crime and apologise to him. For Harry it’s and unforgettable and painful journey into his own past. Continue reading →

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Double Take (2009)

How do you make a movie in which a director, who has been dead for 30 years, plays the main part? Double Take tries to give a possible answer to this question. Alfred Hitcock “stars” in this movie where he meets an older version of himself. The makers have managed to find an interesting way to bring their story to life. Continue reading →

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Ondine (2009)

Most of you will know the classic fairy tales. When you were a kids you heard the stories about Hansel and Gretel, little red riding hood and Snow White. These stories have been told for centuries, but despite their age they are still being told as they have some magical qualities and a deeper truth which will teach something to kids. The lessons learned are usually about the fear of something evil, which has to be defeated.
According to Wikipedia an ondine is a mythological water nymph and as it usually goes with people telling stories, they get changed and local elements are added to it. In the Irish version of the story the nymph is called a Selkies which you will see after a seal sheds of its skin to change into a human.

This movie has based its story on this fairy tale. Syracuse (Colin Farrell) is a fisherman who finds a woman in his net, Ondine (Alicja Bachleda). The woman is still alive and tells him that she wants no one to see her. Syracuse takes her to a deserted house where she’s able to stay. She joins him on some fishing trips and every time she sings a song he catches more fish than he ever does.
Syracuse is divorced and has a young daughter, Annie (Alison Barry), who’s in a wheelchair and regularly has to go to the hospital for dialysis. When she finally receives an electric wheelchair she gains a lot more freedom and go out on her own. She discovers the secret her father is keeping from her. Continue reading →

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Merantau (2009)

It is well-known that Indonesia has a strong martial arts tradition. The most famous fighting style is Pencak Silat, which is a collection of various techniques. With Merantau director Gareth Evans shows that Pencak Silat is a good choice to use for this martial arts film. Merantau is the result. When a boy has to become a man there is a tradition in Indonesia that he leaves his parents to search for life experience and become succesful before he returns home again. This is called Merantau. Can this movie compete with other martial arts movies made in China and Thailand? Continue reading →

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Get Low (2009)

Robert Duvall has been acting since the sixties. He has acted in a lot of well-known movies like The Godfather series, Apocalypse Now and Falling Down. When I hear his name I always have to think about his role in Falling Down. He played a likeable cop who is about to retire and has to chase a lunatic who is terrorizing the city. It’s the first time he really stood out for me and I have been enjoying his acting ever since. He was also excellent in We Own the Night for example.

Duvall really makes Get Low the movie that it is. He’s the recluse Felix Bush, who lives alone on his own piece of land. A lot of stories are being told about him, although no one seems to know whether or not they are true. Because of these stories everyone seems to fear him, especially when he suddenly rides into the nearby town. He knows a lot of stories are told about him and he has an idea which allows him to hear all of them. Continue reading →

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Enter the Void (2009)

Gaspar Noé is a director who stands out. With Irreversible (a movie which I have not seen) he has shown he’s not afraid of controversy. The movie had a rape scene which was close to 10 minutes and something that was hard to watch for a lot of viewers. With Enter The Void Noé attacks his viewers again, although less extreme (although there are still some very explicit scenes). It’s more an attack on your eyes and ears, which already begins when the movie starts. You’ll hear loud music and see a lot of flashes. The flashes are something that will return all during the movie, so if you are sensitive to them it’s better to skip the movie as you will get a seizure. Enter The Void is a movie that can’t be compared to anything else I’ve seen. I would almost describe it more as an experience instead of a film. Continue reading →

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Passenger Side (2009)

Passenger Side is a strange movie to review. It’s about two brothers who drive through Los Angeles for a whole day in search of someone. Not too much happens during that day, expect some conversations between the two and the interaction with the people they meet. Is this movie worth watching though? Continue reading →

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Winnebago Man (2009)

Everybody is used to receiving links to funny movies on Youtube, in which someone performs a stunt, falls or does something which would just make you laugh. You usually forget about them pretty quickly, but they did offer a couple of seconds of entertainment.

Sometimes we forget that behind each of these movies there is a story and a person. Putting these movies on the internet for everyone to see might have a big impact on their lives. According to this documentary the Star Wars Kid has psychological problems and went to a mental hospital.

Documentary maker Ben Steinbauer decides to try to find one of the people in these movies to listen to their personal story and find out more about them. He decides on the Winnebago Man, also known as “the angriest man in the world”. I hadn’t seen a movie of this man myself, but the documentary quickly shows why this movie became so popular.
It shows all the outtakes of a salesman who is making a promotional video for Winnebago vans. The man is only shown cursing and yelling. Steinbauer asks himself whether or not this man is the same in real life and start his search for him. Continue reading →