The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

So I went to go and see The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus last week. I really wanted to like this film. As a wannabe film maker I felt that I should like Terry Gilliam’s off the wall creative mind. This is now the fourth film of his I have seen and I have come to the conclusion that I do not like him. The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus was just odd. I still don’t really understand what the mirror was. There was this mirror that when people went through, they where transported into another world. Or was it his mind, or was it the persons mind. Was Doctor Parnassus just a gate keeper to another world or was he opening up his mind to let others see his. I spent the majority of this film either confused or getting annoyed at the silly animation. The only thing I did like was the way they dealt with Heath Ledger’s death. It was cleaver how they brought in other actors to play his part and the change was subtle. Even though these actors are not in the film for that long the film company can still put their names on the posters which will pull in even more of an audience.

Scenes we'd like to see.

I don't want to write about a whole film, but I would like to talk about scenes from a few films that have stood out and made the film for me.


The first one is from Casablanca. There is a scene in the cafe that gives me goose bumps every time I watch it. Casablanca is a place in Morocco which was owned by the Americans during the second World War. people could escape from occupied Europe to there and the Germans could not touch them. In this scene the Germans are singing their song in the cafe. This is very demoralising for all the French that are stuck in this place because it is not safe to be in France. The owner of the cafe instructs his band to play La Marseillaise the French national anthem. They start to play and the French, English, and everyone who is not German start to sing along. The Germans and the rest of the cafe compete as they sing their lungs out. The Germans start to sit down, the singing of La Marseillaise get louder and louder.

It is such a great feeling watch this part of the film. If you have watched it all the way through you will have built up relationships with the characters and this is point they pick themselves up a bit which is great. A truly wonderful piece of cinema.


Casablanca - French National Anthem





Another scene that stands out from me is the classic torture scene from Reservoir Dogs. A man (Mr Blonde) has a cop tied to a chair in a warehouse. He has just made a robbery and taken this cop captive. As he waits for the rest of his gang to return he decides to torture the cop. If you watch this scene the song Stuck In The Middle With You will never be the same ever again. This scene is good for a few reasons. One of the reasons I like it is because of the way it makes you feel. You feel incredibly tense and horrified by what is happening. I also like it because of the way it is edited. There is a bit were he walks out to his car and the music fades away and when he walks back in the music fades back up. Incredibly simple you might think, but it has a big effect. Also the bit where the cop has his ear cut off is very well done, you don’t actually see it as the camera moves away at that point. I also like the dance Mr Blonde does, it was improvised and is fantastic. This scene is about 6 min long but I do suggest you watch it.


Reservoir Dogs - Stuck In The Middle With You


Please feel free to comment any of your favourite scenes from films or if you disagree with these scenes. I know Andy said he did not like Quentin Tarrantino.

The day of the Triffids

This film is about killer plants! Thats right its a 1962 horror about plants that chase people and try to eat them. These are not your average plants. They have come from out of space and have blinded 99% of the worlds population before landing.

This is a great film to watch if you want a bit of fun but also its funny to think that people would have been scared of these plants back then. I suppose you could say that the special effects back then were good for the time. If you think of the 1959 move Plan 9 From Out of Space, which was one of the worst movies ever made, it had terrible effects. The tomb stones were cardboard and when you see the space ship it looks like it is hanging from a piece of string. Also the main actor died half way though filming so they replaced him with another man. So the audience would not be confused by why the main character had changed they made the new man always hold his cloak over his face.

plan 9 from outer space (trailer)

The Day of the Triffids -

The invention of lying

I went to the cinema yesterday at about 4 30 and bought a ticket for TIOL which started at 6 30. It was not worth the wait. I was really looking forward to this film. I thought the idea of it was interesting. I went in thinking that it was going to be hilarious but there was not one belly laugh. The majority of the jokes were at the beginning of the film then it tried to be a much more serious hard hitting film. The jokes at the start were not that good anyway. They seemed forced and there were only a few giggles in the screen I was in. Then when it tried to be a serious film I could not take Ricky Gervais seriously. I will always see him as David Brent and I think he should go back to what he does best, comedy and stop trying to be the next De Niro.

"Everyone wants to be found"

An apathetic ageing film star felt his life had no meaning until he met a newlywed in Tokyo and formed an unlikely bond that revitalised him.

That is the one line that sums up one of my favorite films " Lost in Translation" starring Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson. I adore this film for a few reasons but first I will tell you what its about.

Basically its about a man called Bob who is filming an advert in Tokyo and is fed up living a mundane life. He is bored and has lost the flame that used to be inside him. Charlotte is just the girl that can relight that flame. She is staying in the same hotel as Bob and is just as bored as he is. Together they form a wonderful bond as they can relate to each other by talking and spending time with each other. And that's about it.

The wonderful thing about this movie is that not much happens but that is what helps it be fantastic. All it is is two people meeting but you still feel so much for both of them and you can really see deep inside of them as characters. A lot of people hate this film because of this. They think that this film is boring and expect them to fall madly in love and want more from it.

However I love that you can just sit back and take in the beautiful cinematography and enjoy the fantastic acting.

Also the soundtrack is brilliant. There is not one song that I did not like in this film. One of my favorite songs " Just Like Honey " features in this film. This is my first time reviewing a film and I don't think I am getting across the true beauty of this film. So I strongly suggest that you watch it and maybe you can tell me how best to describe it. You will either hate this film or be as intrigued as I was by it. I look forward to either talking to you about how good this film was or trying to convince you why you are wrong :P

Here is the trailer

YouTube - Lost in Translation - New Trailer

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VgDgs5anKuk