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The Last of the Mohicans starring Daniel Day-Lewis & Madeleine Stowe

Posted on March 31, 2010 Written by ripitup

Last of the Mohicans with Daniel Day Lewis — Daniel Day Lewis had never looked more awesome. We know that he oozes charm and talent, but seriously, he has outdone himself this time. Photo from: http://nighthawknews.files.wordpress.com/2008/12/last_of_the_mohicans_ver2.jpg

1757- colonies- war against French. 3 Mohicans- one a hybrid. They are loyal to their friends and love their land. They refuse to take part in a war where all England seems to want is to make everywhere Britain. One of them is played by a very handsome Day- Lewis. Speaks English fluently and he knows exactly who he is.

Then there is the beautiful Miss Munro (Madeleine Stowe). Her biggest fan is Duncan- probably friends from childhood, this soldier wants Munro’s hand. She is not so sure. She sees him only as a friend but since she has not seen a marriage based on romantic love in the beginning, she promises to consider the offer.

During a tour along the forest, they are betrayed by the Indian whom they believed to be an ally. Duncan struggles to protect Munro and her sister while all his men are killed. However the Mohicans happen to be tracking the other Indians and save them from the attack. Munro is both grateful and intrigued. She is also practical, picking a gun from the battlefield, just in case. Lewis’s character Hawkeye/Nathaniel could not have been more opposite than Duncan: he is not a soldier blindly obeying orders. He is his own man, makes his own rules and he is definitely not war-crazy. During the trip they try to get Munro to his father, Munro and Hawkeye grow more and more attracted to each other, getting to know one another…When they succeed, Munro sees even more clearly that Duncan is definitely not the one. He doesn’t back her words-and prevents Hawkeye’s white friends from going back to protect their families. So Hawkeye helps them escape but he stays behind- so that he could be around her. And then they get together…And then things get even more dangerous and complicated…

It has all the elements of the perfect epic movie: beautiful scenery, rebellious and honorable characters, the perfectly opposite bad guys and a true romance. You don’t want the movie to end. Kudos to Michael Mann.

7.8 on IMDB. 8.0, at least.

The Fall starring Lee Pace and Catinca Untaru

Posted on March 10, 2010 Written by ripitup

The Fall starring Lee Pace — Tarsem Singh's The Fall is just magical, fun and very emotional. Lovely job from everyone involved. And as always, great performance from Lee Pace.

1920s, Los Angeles. A hospital.

Roy (Lee Pace) is a bed-bound patient, injured from a movie stunt. Alexandria (Catinca Untaru) is a little girl with a broken arm. When they meet, Roy starts telling her a story of epic proportions. Roy is a fine story-teller, Alexandria has a wonderful imagination and director Tarsem takes us through a wonderfully bizarre journey with amazing visuals. Bandits, Indians, Charles Darwin, a wicked governor and other colorful characters are all parts of this tale. Reality and fantasy are impressively inter-wined and they are both very good.

I dare not say more about the plot because each detail is so important, I just don’t want to take away from the movie.

This film is just magical. It does get a bit slow at some parts but the climax more than makes up for it. I found out it is based on a 1981 Bulgarian film called Yo ho ho. I was a little disappointed because I had thought the story was so original. But it doesn’t matter. It may not be original but it is damn good. The acting is lovely and it really grabs you.

The Fall movie poster — Amazing photography.

You have to see it. 7.9 on imdb. 8.0 and up from me.

Other Posts on Lee Pace

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Possession starring Sarah Michelle Gellar, Lee Pace and Michael Landes

Soldier’s Girl: A Haunting True Story starring Lee Pace and Troy Garity

Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day starring Amy Adams, Frances McDormand and Lee Pace

When in Rome starring Kristen Bell and Josh Duhamel. feat. Lee Pace

The Good Shepherd starring Matt Damon, Robert De Niro, Angelina Jolie & Lee Pace

Kingdom of Heaven starring Orlando Bloom and Eva Green

Posted on March 5, 2010 Written by ripitup

Kingdom of Heaven- Orlando Bloom. Photo via lightscamerahistory.files.wordpress.com

1184. Blacksmith Balian (Orlando Bloom) is not a happy man. He has recently lost his kid, and his wife has committed suicide, not being able to bear the death of their child. Moreover he has to listen to the town’s priest (Michael Sheen), who goes on and on about how his wife is in hell. But his life completely changes when he meets his father for the first time. The absent father is Lord of Ibelin (Liam Neeson), and he is there to take Balian with him. At first Balian is unwilling but circumstances force him to go. From then on, he learns a lot from his father. He will also need to prepare himself to take his father’s place. He now doesn’t even have the time to grieve- he has to be a knight, a worthy lord, deal with Prince Guy (Marton Csokas) who absolutely despises him, travel to Jerusalem…

Kingdom of Heaven. As glorious as an epic should be. Written by William Monahan. Directed by Ridley Scott. Photo: images.allmoviephoto.com

Balian’s journey is exciting and never dull for a second. In Jerusalem, he easily makes friends with the Marshall Tiberias (Jeremy Irons) and earns the trust of King Baldwin (Edward Norton). He also intrigues and attracts, Sibylla (Eva Green)- The King’s sister- who also happens to be Guy’s wife. Not to mention, Guy is thirsty for blood and is dying to fight the Muslims- much against the will of the King.

Kingdom of Heaven- a battle scene — I love a good old battle scene. Well, what did you expect? My favorite movie ever is an epic war flick, Braveheart. Photo: film.com.tr

This movie is a really good example on how an epic should be. It has all the complications and the amazing battle scenes. It has the peace-loving villager-turned lord-who doesn’t let go of his virtues, even though it might cost him dearly. Orlando Bloom fits Balian perfectly and the rest of the cast is simply brilliant.

Fun Stuff:

Liam Neeson only appears in the first 25 minutes or so.

Orlando Bloom and Liam Neeson in Kingdom of Heaven. Father and son bonding moment. Cool for Bloom. Those sword-fighting lessons from Pirates of The Caribbean must have come in handy. Photo: hecinemasource.co

King Baldwin has leprosy. So you never see Edward Norton’s face. But it is fun to have him nevertheless.

Edward Norton in Kingdom of Heaven. Yep, this is how Edward Norton looks throughout all his scenes. For all we know, he could have recorded his voice. Just kidding. It is always nice to have him in a movie. Even when you don’t see him.Photo: cinecultist.com

The (only) leading female is Sibylla, played by the gorgeous Eva Green.

Eva Green in Kingdom of Heaven — Trust me, this picture doesn’t do her justice at all. She is simply radiantly beautiful in this cool epic from 2005. Photo: http://www.atoww.com

There is also Dr. Owen Hunt (Kevin McKidd) from Grey’s Anatomy, plays one of Liam Neeson’s soldiers.

Brendan Gleeson plays exactly looks like his character in Braveheart– where he played Hamish, Wallace’s best mate. Although here, he is pretty much the bad guy.

Brendan Gleeson, Braveheart — This is Brendan in Braveheart. One of the good guys.

Brendan Gleeson in Kingdom of Heaven. Apart from 10 year gap between the films, he is instantly recognizable and reminded me of Hamish. Here, he does a great job as a mean bastard. Photo: filmdope.com

Reasons to see Kingdom of Heaven:

– You mean apart from Liam Neeson, Jeremy Irons, Edward Norton, Orlando Bloom and Eva Green?

– Director is Ridley Scott- who also directed Gladiator, Body of Lies, American Gangster, White Squall and Thelma and Luis.

– Good script, good acting, wonderful direction and pretty cool battle scenes.

– If you are not convinced yet, I am giving up.

Cons:

– I didn’t see any, but you might be bothered by the stuff that is not historically accurate.

– Why have Edward Norton play a character with leprosy in the first place? But being the cool and interesting guy that he is, it was Edward who specifically requested that role. Let’s keep fingers crossed that he does star in an epic one day, with his face showing…

– If you do hate Orlando Bloom and think he can’t act, obviously you will get annoyed watching him for 144 minutes. Or for 190 minutes in Director’s Cut.

Orlando Bloom in Kingdom of Heaven — Yep, a lot of Orlando Bloom. He is pretty good, though. He carries his role with grace and innonce. Photo: wallpaperbase.com

My biases: Love the whole cast and I am a big fan of Ridley Scott. White Squall (starring Jeff Bridges) is one of my favorite movies ever and I am yet to dislike anything Ridley worked on.

IMDB verdict: 7.1

My verdict: 7.8- 8.0

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20 Reasons to Love Stardust- feat. Michelle Pfeiffer, Claire Danes, Robert De Niro & Charlie Cox

Posted on January 22, 2010 Written by ripitup

Stardust starring Charlie Cox, Claire Danes, Michelle Pfeiffer and Robert De Niro. Image via amazon.

Stardust is- hats off- one of the most entertaining, beautiful, fun and impressive movies I have ever seen. The story is based on a novel by Neil Gaiman. It is an advanced fairy-tale for adults which children can enjoy as well. It is complicated, original, life-like and lovely. Complete with witches, kings, throne-thirsty princes, stars, pirates…The whole works. Yes, I am extremely positively biased because I love absolutely everything about the movie. Hang around and see if you agree.

1. The Novel: Neil Gaiman

The story is based on Neil Gaiman’s novel.

2. The Story: Jane Goldman – Matthew Vaughn

Little English village Wall is bordering next to a magical kingdom called Stormhold. While Wall is a typical English town with typical humans, Stormhold has witches and weird stuff going on. Right now, the main question for the King and the remaining sons (3 sons have been murdered by their brothers) is who will own the crown. The king-to-be is supposed to acquire the jewel, which flies out the window and into the sky. The sons start chasing the star while trying to get rid of each other.

The jewel causes a massive reaction in the sky, causing a star (Yvaine) to fall down- in the form of Claire Danes, wearing the jewel.

Tristan Thorn is young man has to get the star to show to his beloved Victoria. Victoria is a spoiled young woman who is merely using him. Tristan and Yvaine have to start an unwilling alliance, since she needs Tristan’s magical candle to go back home. How Tristan came to possess the candle has a beautiful story of its own.

But of course things are more complicated: 3 sister witches need to get the star. One of them goes out to get it- they need to cut out the star’s heart and eat it, to restore beauty and youth. The journey is full of adventure, surprises, interesting characters, dangers, romance and fun.

3. Direction: Matthew Vaughn

Vaughn is a British director who previously directed Layer Cake with Daniel Craig. Haven’t seen it yet, but I fully intend to. Of course has nothing in common with Stardust, apart from Vaughn himself. But I don’t care if he doesn’t direct anything I like ever again. Stardust is perfect and Vaughn deserves a lot of credit for that.

4. The whole movie crew: Especially production, cinematography, effects and make-up.

Amazing. If you saw the movie, you know what I mean. If you haven’t, wait till I go over the cast members.

5. The Score:

Just right. Adds to the magic, action and romance.

THE CAST

6. Michelle Pfeiffer

Michelle Pfeiffer in Stardust. No worries, we see both versions in the movie. Image credit: People.com

She is the witch out after our star. She is just breath-takingly beautiful and cunning. Michelle Pfeiffer is brilliant as the main villain. She has always been my favorite actresses and one of the women I find truly gorgeous. She is a woman to be envied and admired.

7. Robert De Niro

Robert De Niro in Stardust. If you thought Jack Sparrow was interesting…

You have never seen him De Niro this. I watched tens of movies of him and I thought I had seen all his faces. I was wrong. His performance as the captain of a lightning- catching pirate ship (now, that sounds like a great job) is just hilarious. Without him, the movie would just not be half as good.

8. Charlie Cox

Charlie Cox in Stardust — Charlie plays Tristan. And I thought all the good looking men were born in the 60s…Shame on me.

Cox Plays our male lead Tristan. He makes a perfect transition from the naive boy to the smart guy- getting only more handsome with the captain’ touches to his image. He grows wiser but remains nice and romantic. The result? Eye candy and lovable character all in one. Cox is growing up nicely. I previously watched him in Casanova. Period pieces and swords just become him…

9. Claire Danes

Stardust- Claire Danes with Charlie Cox — Claire Danes is lovely as Yvaine.

She is just adorable as the star Yvaine. She shines (both literally & metaphorically) throughout the movie. She has the truest observations about mankind. She is pretty and I totally forgave her for boring me to bits in Romeo + Juliet (I dislike the movies as a whole, not just her as Juliet)

10. Ben Barnes

Ben Barnes has a small part as Tristan’s father’s youth. He conveys innocence, curiosity and fascination perfectly. I wish he had a bigger part but hey, the film-makers worldwide seemed to agree with me that Ben is a great actor so he went on to get leading parts in The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Kasbian, as Prince Kasbian and Easy Virtue. They also seem to agree that Ben is just as beautiful as a man can get since they cast him as Dorian Gray in Dorian Gray.

11. Mark Strong

Mark Strong in Stardust — Mark strong rocks as the ambitious prince after the jewel.

I had first seen Mark Strong in Body of Lies starring Russell Crowe and Leonardo di Caprio. He played his accent so perfectly; I could swear he wasn’t a native English speaker. He is English however and he is a marvelous actor. He can make you forget you saw him in any other role. He truly becomes his character. He is perfect as the King’s smartest, most cunning and charismatic son. He also makes one badass villain in Sherlock Holmes.

12. Henry Cavill

When I found out that the guy playing Victoria (Sienna Miller)’s arrogant jerk of a boyfriend- who also seemed really awfully blond and stupid- was the same gorgeous Henry Cavill who stars in The Tudors next to Jonathan Rhys Meyers. Wow! Kudos to making department for making Henry repelling. That takes talent.

Henry Cavill in the Tudors — Henry in The Tudors. Now, that’s the Henry Cavill we are used to.

13. Sienna Miller

Sienna Miller in Stardust — Sienna Miller as Victoria. Tristan’s journey starts because of her.

I don’t know why people think she can’t act. I think she gives whatever the role requires. She plays the beautiful and superficial Victoria just right. I also loved her as Casanova’s true love in Casanova.

14. Kate Magowan

Well, Tristan owes his existence to her. Literally. She is one of the key characters. I can’t imagine anyone else for the part. She is pretty, strong and determined.

WITH

15. Peter O’ Toole

He has only about 5 minutes as the king but who cares? He is Peter O’Toole and we love to see him on the screen.

16. Rupert Everett

Same 5 minutes goes for Rupert, but he really is good for an idiotic prince.

17. Nathaniel Parker

He play’s Tristan’ s father. Aside from the best father figure one can have, I think he is a good choice for Ben Barnes’ grown-up version. However I can’t see Ben turning into him in 18 years. Maybe 36? But hey- I guess it was tough being a single dad during those times…

18. Ricky Gervais

Always funny to see him. I especially enjoyed his part this time I saw Stardust- having recently watched The Invention of Lying and Ghost Town.

19. Ian McKellen

How is that for a narrator?

20. Seriously? You need more reasons? You have got to be kidding me!!!

7.9 from IMDB, voted by over 87.000 people. Not bad, but I voted it a 9, just for the record. What are you waiting for? Let the magic begin. I think I saw it 4 times already. And no, I am not done with the movie yet.

The trailer is below.

[pro-player width=’530′ height=’253′ type=’video’]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6_gBg4XjWk[/pro-player]

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