00s Movie Review - Sin City

Director: Robert Rodriguez, Frank Miller, Quentin Tarantino
Genre: Crime/ Thriller
Runtime: 124 minutes
Year: 2005
Starring: Bruce Willis, Benicio Del Toro, Clive Owen, Mickey Rourke, Jessica Alba, Rosario Dawson, Elijah Wood, Nick Stahl, Jaime King, Josh Hartnett, Carla Cugino, Michael Madsen, Rutger Hauer, Powers Booth, Brittany Murphy, Alexis Bledel

Description: An exploration of the dark and miserable Basin City and three of its residents, all of whom are caught up in violent corruption.

Review: “Sin City” is a film noir-like movie which is very faithful to the graphic novel it’s based on. A perfect job for director Robert Rodriguez, who is accompanied by “Sin City” novel writer Frank Miller and director Quentin Tarantino. 

All these creative minds are a guarantee for an explosive and inventive film. “Sin City” looks breathtaking and is groundbreaking. The graphic novel isn’t just made into film, it looks like the novel actually came to life. De original pictures are used for the story

board and stayed intact. The actors had to film in front of a so-called ‘green screen’.
The presented world and its citizens is shown in black and white. Sometimes things as a red dress, golden blonde hair and blood are highlighted with color. The contrasts look great. 

There are lots of extravagant characters in “Sin City”. Like ‘Yellow Bastard’, a violent pedophile with rubbery skin and unhuman physical forms. And Jackie Boy, a corrupt cop. But most memorable is cannibalistic Kevin, a slick man with a sardonic grin on his face. The anti-hero is Marv, played by Mickey Rourke who you barely recognize. As a storm he rages through the city. For the women, it’s Jessica Alba that catches your eye. As a kid she was rescued by John Hartigan, played by Bruce Willis. Now she is a gorgeous, young woman turned stripper. 

Like I said before, “Sin City” is a groundbreaking film and it amazes me every single time.

Rating: 3,5/ 5

10s Movie Review - Trust

Director: David Schwimmer
Genre: Drama/ Thriller
Runtime: 106 minutes
Year: 2010
Starring: Clive Owen, Catherine Keener, Liana Liberator, Jason Clarke, Viola Davis, Chris Henry Coffey, Noah Emmerich, Brandon Molale, Nicole Forester, Noah Crawford, Jordan Trovillion, Chameria Law, Gordon Michaels, Sarah Kamoo, Garrett Ryan, Zanny Laird

Description: A teenage girl is targeted by an online sexual predator.

Review: The internet and social media have changed the way people communicate with each other. It offers us numerous new opportunities. Unfortunately, the same is true for sexual predators. They use chat sites to contact minors under a false name. Director David Schwimmer’s “Trust” shows how an internet pedophile uses the internet to gain the trust of fourteen-year-old Annie and turn her into a victim. And how her trust and that of her parents subsequently appear to be irreparably damaged.
The Cameron family is an example of a happy American family. Until Annie falls in love with Charlie whom she met through teenchat.com. After several months of innocent communication through chat sites and text messages, Annie decides to answer Charlie’s request to meet up on a weekend her parents are not home. Annie is initially shocked when Charlie turns out to have lied about his age and who he is, but unfortunately she I no match for his dirty games. Annie allows herself to get carried away much further than she really wants to. Everyone then deals with the tragic incident in their own way. Mother Lynn does not know what to do while Annie continues to believe in Charlie’s comments and promises and her father Will resolutely begins a search of his own.
The cast is really strong, especially Clive Owen. The film overall, looks a bit flat. But David Schwimmer as a director really did a good job with “Trust”.

Rating: 3/ 5

00s Movie Review - Inside Man

Director: Spike Lee
Genre: Thriller/ Crime/ Drama
Runtime: 129 minutes
Year: 2006
Starring: Denzel Washington, Jodie Foster, Clive Owen, Willem Dafoe, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Christopher Plummer

Description: A police detective (Denzel Washington), a bank robber (Clive Owen), and a high-power broker (Jodie Foster) enter high-stakes negotiations after the criminal’s brilliant heist spirals into a hostage situation.  

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2021 MOVIE CHALLENGE.
WEEK 12: A CRIME THRILLER

Review: A poetic talk by the bank robber, followed by simple yet atmospheric images of New York and a wonderful opening song, make for a good first impression. And director Spike Lee managed to maintain that, leaving the audience with a satisfied feeling at the end. and the plot is not entirely unoriginal, although it deals with a much used subject in Hollywood: a bank robbery.
These bank robbers dress all the hostages in the same clothes they have on: a painter’s overall with hood and a white cloth over the mouth. As a result, detective Keith Frazier has difficulty distinguishing friend from foe. But this is not the only thig. He also has to deal with Madeleine White, who has been hired by the owner of the bank to retrieve something sensitive out of the building. But the reason why the robbers are doing this are not as obvious as they think.
With a great and strong cast like this, it’s easier to make a good movie. Especially Denzel Washington and Clive Owen are really good. Willem Dafoe sadly only has a small role, but makes the best of it.
“Inside Man” is a well-executed film and there is really nothing to complain about.

Rating: 3,5/ 5

10s Movie Review - Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets

Director: Luc Besson
Genre: Science Fiction/ Action/ Adventure/ Fantasy
Runtime: 135 minutes
Year: 2017
Starring: Dane DeHaan, Cara Delevigne, Clive Own, Rihanna, Ethan Hawke, Sam Spruell, Kris Wu, Herbie Hancock, Rutger Hauer

Description: A dark force threathens, Aplha, a vast metropolis and home to species from a thousand planets. Special operative Valerian (Dane DeHaan) and Laureline (Cara Delevigne)  must race to identify the marauding menace and safeguard not just Alpha, but the future of the universe.

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2020 MOVIE CHALLENGE
WEEK 48: A MOVIE SET IN SPACE

Review: “Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets”: a spectacular yet chaotic film, with ugly computer-generated aliens and a wooden love plot.
The stories about the intergalactic secret agent Valerian find their origin in a series of French comic strips released in the mid-1960s. Director Luc Besson must have been a big fan of the books, he tried to bring the phenomenon to the screen. Hoping for the new “Star Wars”. Well, that didn’t happen…
When it comes to visuals of the world of Valerian, it’s really good. It’s just such a shame that it has to have a screenplay attached to it. Because almost everything that can go wrong, goes wrong.
There is hardly a story. An artifact of an extinct civilization pops up and several parties want their share of it. The survivors of the race want to rebuilt their cultire, one group of people wants to investigate it and yet another group has nefarious plans to do so. Main characters Valerian and Laureline are of course the second group, that wants to make sure that the best possible solution is chosen.
So simple, but that’s not a problem when then background is a bit interesting and you are invested in the characters. But none of that is present. The two actors, Dane DeHaan and Cara Delevigne, miss every spark of charisma. DeHaan doesn’t come across as the rough space adventurer he has to portray. Instead, he feels more like a Keanu Reeves impersonator that completely misses the point. Delevigne is not much better. The love story is wooden and the dialogues are sometimes cringeworthy.
The list of error the film has is endless. Because despite the visual beauty, the context is missing. It’s messy, chaotic and it lacks interesting characters. “Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets” doesn’t even come close to being the new “Star Wars”.

Rating: 1, 5/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2015 - # 98: Gosford Park

Director: Robert Altman

Genre: Drama/ Romance/ Crime

Runtime: 137 minutes

Year: 2001

Starring: Kelly MacDonald, Clive Owen, Michael Gambon, Alan Bates, Ryan Phillippe, Maggie Smith, Helen Mirren, Kristen Scott Thomas, Jeremy Northam, Richard E. Grant, Stephen Fry, Bob Balaban, Eileen Atkins, Charles Dance, Emily Watson, Camilla Rutherford

Description: The lives of upstairs guest and downstairs servants at a party in 1932 in a country house in England as they investigate a murder involving one of them.

Review: The start of the film sets the tone. This is not an ordinary detective, but an analysis of the English society of the 1930s.

On a rainy day, made Mary and her lady Constance Trentham leave for a hunting weekend. The head of housekeeping, at the mansion they are visiting, is Mrs. Wilson. It’s soon clear that nobody is called by their name, but by the name of the people they are serving. The tone is set.

Meanwhile many different characters are introduced. Upstairs we meet actor and singer Ivor Novello and his movie producing American friend Morris Weissman; the casual Isobel and her sister Sylvia; crafty Freddie Nesbit and his plain wife Mabel. We see lots of married couples, bt everything is a lot more complicated. Downstairs we have servant Henry, an arrogant young man; Butlers George, Arthur and Probert; alcoholic head butler Jennings; Head of the kitchen Mrs. Croft. Upstairs people don’t talk that much about each other, but downstairs is where the gossip starts.

It’s a pretty complicated setting, lots of characters you meet and have to get to know. You have to pay attention to keep up and to discover all the intrigue. But during all this puzzling, you enjoy all the humor that is in this film. Good dialogues, great acting and fantastic actors.

Halfway through the film, someone is murdered, which also gives this movie a detective story touch. You could criticize this, but the context is much more important than the story. Because the context is brought to the surface, the characters come to life. And also the acting makes this happen, actually by all the actors. Both the bigger and the smaller roles are performed very well. It shows that “Gosford Park” has been made with a lot of love and enthusiasm.

“Gosford Park” is a classy, yet funny and surprising costume drama. I highly enjoyed it.

Rating: 4,5/ 5

Movie Battle: V for Vendetta Vs. Children of Men

The Movies I choose this time are both sci-fi films set in the future, where most countries in the world are near destroyed by natural disasters, riots and war. England has established a totalitarian regime that shields the country from outsiders. In both movies the society is portrayed as extremely racist and xenophobic and the main characters are part of an underground movement. To battle it out, here is “V for Vendetta” Vs. “Children of Men”.

 

CAST

V for Vendetta: Hugo Weaving plays lead character V, a freedom fighter wearing a Guy Fawkes mask. His performance, even without ever seeing his real face, is breath-taking and phenomenal. Natalie Portman also does a great job, especially the rooftop scene.

Children of Men: Clive Owen, who a lot of people say can’t act, does a fantastic job. He plays main character Theo Faron. Julianne Moore and Michael Caine also have solid roles, but they don’t have very big roles.

STORY

V for Vendetta: Great Britain is now a fascist state. A man named V uses terrorist tactics to oppress society. He rescues the young Eve from the secret police, and she becomes his ally. It’s based on a graphic novel, that I have read. It’s very close to its source. The story is great, the character of V even more.

Children of Men: Dystopian London, surrounded by violence and warring nationalistic sects. People are no longer aloud to have children. The youngest citizen, just 18 years of age, has just died. Then a young pregnant woman is discovered and the desperate journey to deliver her to safety starts. Great idea for a story.

EFFECTS

V for Vendetta: There are some amazing fight scenes in it. Especially the one in the dark tunnel (I believe it’s a tunnel). The while movie has a dark, greyish tone.

Children of Men: This also has a certain tone, more the grey, bluish tones. They makers made London look like a worn down plays, filled with violence and war.

WINNER

Although both movies are amazing, with great acting and fantastic stories, I will have to go with “V for Vendetta”. That’s a movie I’m more willingly to re-watch.

Best of... Clive Owen

He's one of my fifteen favorite actors of all-time and he's charming as hell. Clive Owen made some really great films and I'm here to share them with you. Here are my favorite Clive Owen movies.

"Gosford Park"
A movie with multiple storylines and an outstanding cast. Maggie Smith was my favorite, she did a wonderfull job and carried the film.

"The Bourne Identity"
I'm a big fan of the series, but Owen was only in the first installment. He plays a character named 'The Professor' and doesn't say a word untill his last scene. Movies like the "Bourne" trilogy always make me nervous, because the characters go to places they are not allowed to go.

"I'll Sleep When I'm Dead"
Not a very well known film, but my brother got the DVD for review and I wacthed it with him. Owen is a retired hitman who now lives in a trailer in the woods. When his brother dies, he starts an investigation. I think it's a very good movie.

"Beyond Borders"
Clive Owen was the best in this movie, better than his co-star Angelina Jolie. The film was an eye opener for many and very realistic.

"King Arthur"
I know almost everyone says this was a very bad movie. I saw it in the cinema when it came out and I remember loving it. It's just good entertainment. OK, maybe it isn't all that accurate and the acting is a bit over-the-top, but still...

"Closer"
Julia Roberts and Jude Law are supposed to be the leads, but Natalie Portman and our man Clive Owen are the ones who steal every scene they're in. Especially the scenes they have together. It's a real 'acting' movie, more about the characters than the story.

"Sin City"
Definitely my favorite on this list. How awesome is "Sin City"? I can't describe it. Just the way it looks, just like in the comicbook. Great. And so many interesting characters.

"Derailed"
This one actually surprised me. I didn't really know what to think about Clive Owen teaming up with our favorite girl-next-door Jennifer Aniston. Maybe they didn't have the chemistry we wished for, but the story sure has some unexpected twists.

"Inside Man"
Just a very solid movie, with good acting by Clive Owen, Denzel Washington and Jodie Foster. Actors you can always rely on.

"Children of Men"
I think this is my second favorite Clive Owen movie. I escpecially love that scene where the camera follows Owen while he's trying to get to Kee. That's just perfect filmmaking.

"Shoot 'em Up"
A movie you shouldn't really take seriously, but good popcorn entertainment. I love that Clive's character eats carrots instead of smoking cigarets all the time like other action heroes. That was a real funny touch.

"Elizabeth: The Golden Age"
Costume dramas are my weakness, in books and movies. It's not that I like watching men in tights, I always love the complete picture: the story, the costumes, the characters. I saw in the cinema and I remember really liking it. I've only seen it that one time, but it's very good.

"The International"
Almost anything with Naomi Watts in it is good and in combination with Clive Owen it only makes it better. Good action,very solid thriller.

I haven't seen "Trust", which also stars Catherine Keener and was directed by David Schwimmer. It's trailer looked really good. I'm also pretty excited for "Intruders" which looked very scary. "Killer Elite" also sounds awesome, but I'm always a bit sceptic when Jason Statham is in a film.

In the Picture: The Characters from "Sin City"

"Sin City" is one of the best movies of its decade. I was blown away by it when I saw it for the first time and there are so many interesting characters in the film. So that's why I decided to take a closer look at them. Here are the characters from "Sin City".

Marv
Played by: Mickey Rourke
Marv is a 7 foot tall, scarfaced man with an incredible level of strenght. He suffers from an unnamed mental condition which causes him to get confused. Marv doesn’t think he has a particular high intellect, but he shows some suprising amount of intellegence when needed.

Dwight McCarthy
Played by: Clive Owen
Dwight has a history of violence, bad tempers, drinking and wild romances. He is known for his chivalry and treats all the woman with the utmost respect and he offers the prostitutes of Old Town his protection. Dwight is a man who simply wants to do the right thing and find his place in this world.

John Hartigan
Played by: Bruce Willis
John is a veteran police detective in Basin City. He is brutal, stoic, cynical and completely selfless. It doesn’t care about his own well-being in order to take care of his fellow citizens. John is willing to risk his own life to save someone elses.

Nancy Callahan
Played by: Jessica Alba
At age 11 Nancy was kidnapped by Roark Jr. and then saved by John Hartigan. He’s Nancy’s hero. She keeps writing him letters when John’s in jail. Now, Nancy is a stripper and in love with John. Because of the age difference, John doesn’t want to give in to his feelings for her, but she is in fact the only person who ever cared for him.

Gail
Played by: Rosario Dawson
Rosario is a prostitute and one of the autorithy figures of Old Town. She has a love-hate relationship with Dwight McCarthy. You don’t want to mess with Gail, because she can handle a machine gun very well.

Jack Rafferty aka Jackie Boy
Played by: Benicio del Toro
Jack is a cop, but ended up being corrupted and worn down from the job. While cops are forbidden to enter Old Town when on duty, Jack is often found there but he’s not loved by the girls. He’s a threat to Dwight McCarthy.

Goldie/ Wendy
Played by: Jaime King
They are the twin prostitutes who are currently in charge of Old Town. Little is revealed about Goldie, but she physically is an exact copy of her sister Wendy. Goldie was murdered after spending the night with Marv, who fell in love with her and is destined to find her killer. Even he is fooled when he mistakens Wendy for the late Goldie.

Kevin
Played by: Elijah Wood
Kevin is a sadist. He sneaks up to people and kills them in all sorts of cruel ways. He likes to torture people, sometimes eats them and he keeps their heads as a souvenir. He was the one who killed Goldie.

Roark Junior aka Yellow Bastard
Played by: Nick Stahl
Roark has the physical appearance of a handsome young playboy but he is in fact a sadistic pedophile and a rapist of young girls. After kidnapping young Nancy Callahan, John Hartigan shoots of his hand, ear and genitals. Due to the surgeries, Roark is left horribly disfigured with yellow skin and a penetrating stench.

The Man
Played by: Josh Hartnett
The Man seems very charming and plain, but he’s a ruthless hitman. He does his job without feeling any remorse.


Favorite Character: John Hartigan