KEN LOACH-It’s A Free World.
The second part of our Best Movies of the year, after the jump.
FILM REVIEW
2007 Repaso De Cine: Top 60 Películas (60-41)
LA GUERRA CONTRA LA DEMOCRACIA
Tras mucha deliberación y sin mas demora el momento de revelar nuestras favoritas de entre la oferta cinematografica del 2007 ha llegado. Hemos elegido los 60 largometrajes que, en nuestra opinion, representan lo mejor de un año de cine. Aquí están; éstas son.
La primera parte (De los puestos 60 al 41), tras el salto:
2007 Film Review: Top 60 Movies (60-41)
THE WAR ON DEMOCRACY
After much scrutiny the moment has come to reveal our favorite cinematographic offerings of 2007. We have chosen 60 movies that, in our opinion, represent the best of a year in movies.
The first part (Top 60-41) after the jump:
2007 Film Review: The Rest
SIETE MESAS (DE BILLAR FRANCES)
The ones that didn’t make our selection, after the jump.
La lista de peliculas que se quedaron a las puertas de nuestra selección, a continuación.
2007 Film Review: Deceptions & Guilty Pleasures
The lower ranks in our movies of the year list are populated by those ones we were eagerly awaiting for but didn’t match our high expectations: big-budget productions aiming at the Oscar; the newest spoiled kids of the international festival circuit whose works were acclaimed, rather senselessly, as masterpieces and some other feature films elevated by critics or advertisers that, without being terrible, didn’t fulfil their promise.
On the flip side of the cinematic coin, the year wasn’t short of blockbusters, sequels, b-movies and minor comedies that against all initial prejudice and their “déjà vu” scent surprised us for not being bad at all.
After the jump, the ying and the yang of a year in movies.
2007 Repaso De Cine: Decepciones y Pecadillos
Por debajo en nuestra lista de películas del año, se encuentran aquellas que esperabamos con ansiedad, pero no estuvieron a la altura de las espectativas: alguna superproducción de cara al Oscar; nuevos niños mimados del circuito de festivales cuyos filmes fueron cacareados, un tanto a la ligera, como obras maestras y otros largometrajes que la critica o la publicidad ensalzaron y que, sin ser malos, no cumplieron con lo que de ellos se prometía.
En la otra cara de la moneda, no faltaron aquellos blockbusters, secuelas, series B y comedietas menores que contra nuestros prejuicios iniciales y su tufillo a viejuno “ya visto” nos sorprendieron por no estar tan mal.
A continuación, el ying y el yang de un año de cine:
2007 Film Review: The Worst (Lo Peor)
“300” Spoof
El 2007 no pasará a la historia por su cine. En Europa al menos, quizás porque las películas que aspiraban a premios el año pasado se estrenaron en buena parte antes de finalizar el 2006 y las que lo hacen ahora no se han estrenado aún.
Comenzamos el repaso de cine con los descalabros artisticos que mas nos han disgustado, incluyendo ambiciones desmedidas en viajes a espacio-temporales y búsquedas existencialistas; Narrativas Imposibles; Secuelas que ya hieden; Argumentos Sin Pies Ni Cabeza; Julianne Moore en un fiasco de ciencia-ficcion; Tomas de amaneceres de seis minutos y casi ningún dialogo; Fascistoides adaptaciones de comic y ese inolvidablemente camp rey Xerxes. En el 2008 Hubo películas mucho peores que estos 10 selectos horrores, pero nuestra generalmente intachable intuición nos impidió ir a verlas. ¿Cuáles fueron aquellas que vimos cuando el sexto sentido nos falló?
2008 won’t be remembered for film quality. Maybe because, at least in Europe, most of the award-hopeful movies were released before 2006 ended, whereas this years’ haven’t been launched yet.
We begin this cinematic review with those creative crashes that disgusted us the most, including unfulfilled ambitions in space/time travel and existential searches; Impossible Narratives; Stinky Sequels; Senseless Plots; Julianne Moore in a sci-fi fiasco; Six-minute sunrise shots plus barely any dialogues; Fascistoid comic adaptations and that unforgettably camp King Xerxes. In 2008 there were much worse movies than these 10 selected turkeys, but our normally impeccable intuition prevented us from watching them. However ¿Which were the ones we saw when our sixth sense failed?
J.A. Bayona a por el Oscar
Fresh from the news of his debut feature film being chosen to represent Spain for the Oscar to Best Foreign Film, here’s the trailer for the Guillermo del Toro (who last year received many awards for his classic “Pan’s Labyrinth”) produced “El Orfanato (The Orphanage)”. Juan Antonio Bayona’s Opera Prima is a gothic horror tale that’s collected rave reviews wherever it has been showed (Cannes, Sitges, San Sebastian…). Even Hollywood has bought the rights for a future US remake.
Starring Rober award nominee Belen Rueda (“Mar Adentro (The Sea Inside)”) and Geraldine Chaplin, this unusually big budget (for a Spanish production) thriller seems likely to be one of the movies of the season.
“El Orfanato” follows the Catalonian director career in the world of music video for Spanish pop artists of questionable merit, but enormous public appeal. However, the pinnacle of his career as a clip director was his collaboration with OBK and the magnificent superproductions he made for Camela, which helped to change the image of the kings of techno-rumba from “bar de carretera” tape social phenomenon to National superstars, thanks to exploring the Seventh art’s different genres, from western to science fiction, in each of the visual productions made for the perky trio.
Some highlights from Juan Antonio Bayona’s pop video story with commentary IN SPANISH after the jump.
First trailer of Dylan’s biopic
Had to happen. Finally, the biography of popular culture icon Bob Dylan is going to be given the Hollywood treatment. The film titled “I’m not there” counts with a touch of indie pedigree courtesy of former herald of new queer cinema Todd Haynes, whose career has moved progressively into the mainstream, without losing his creative arty spirit in the process.
When pop artists make movies…
…they are normally victims of their own ego mania or some ill advice and their project ends up being a stinker. For every “Purple rain” (and arguably that was only successful, not that good) there are many “Spiceworlds”. Latest painful example was Outkast’s western musical “Idlewild”.
That’s why we are a bit shocked to find out … Read more
Hal Hartley’s comeback.
A large number of Rober Academy members seem to be ecstatic with the news of a new Hal Hartley movie. It’s been a decade since Hartley, one of the Academy’s favourite directors, known by his peculiar laconic style and coldly executed moral reflections, released his latest acclaimed movie “Henry Fool”. Since then, his career went … Read more