25th Hour with Edward Norton

Posted on February 14, 2010 Written by ripitup

25th Hour with Edward Norton — Edward Norton is great. The premise is just thought-provoking.

One of those movies where the cops piss you off and you root for the drug dealer. This is the third time for me;the first two being Tequila Sunrise with Mel Gibson and Blow with Johnny Depp. But Tequila Sunrise is an entertaining romantic thriller so the emotional impact of Blow and 25th Hour are really strong. However empathy only came with 25th Hour. Not put yourselves in the shoes of a drug-dealer, but because you get the pain of a man who has 24 hours before he goes to prison for 7 years.

Monty is a nice,smart guy. He is nice to his girlfriend (Rosario Dawson), his dad, his dog…He even used to be a promising student. But some early events have ended him up in dealing drugs and he was too late to try getting out. Cops bust him and he faces a 7-year-sentence. So the movie takes us on a journey as Monty tries to live his last free day to the fullest.

It is hard to dislike Monty. There are scenes he earns your understanding, sympathy and sometimes even respect. I like the internal conflicts, his relationships and the struggles of his friends.

Freedom is the most precious thing ever and Spike Lee did a great job in engaging us with Monty’s (Edward Norton) story. You like the guy and you feel sorry for him. The movie has some unnecessary scenes involving Monty’s friends’ lives that are not related to Monty and this slows the movie considerably at times but those friends are played by Barry Pepper and Philip Seymour Hoffman and their acting makes up for it. I still can’t understand why there is even a storyline featuring Anna Paquin’s character. Totally irrelevant.

But overall it is emotional and thought-provoking with fine acting. 7.9 rating on imdb sounds just about right. See it.

Other Edward Norton:

Keeping The Faith

The Illusionist with Edward Norton and Jessica Biel

3 Romantic Roles of Edward Norton

THE PAINTED VEIL with Naomi Watts and Edward Norton

8 Wondeful Johnny Depp Movies

Posted on February 7, 2010 Written by ripitup

Johnny Depp is one of the best actors in Hollywood. He is diverse, radical and can go mainstream when/if he wants.

I made a review list of his 8 versatile roles that I really love:

http://cinemaroll.com/cinemarolling/johnny-depp-top-eight-movies/

Public Enemies Review:

https://pinartarhan.com/blog/public-enemies/

Lestat, Dracula and Other Vampires featuring Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, Gerard Butler, Stuart Townsend and More

Posted on November 4, 2009 Written by ripitup

Vampires are mesmerizing beings. They’re labeled the undead, since technically they are neither dead nor alive. They mostly have a great sense of style and just are hot. Of course there is the whole ick factor of blood-sucking and all, but overall, they bring charisma, charm, lust and seduction to the screen. Many actors have taken on roles as vampires either in TV shows or movies, but right now this is a movies blog so we are going to go strictly film on this one. Now of course it is impossible to cover them all, so I am going to mention some of the most remarkable ones and if you disagree or think I’ve left some important ones out, well- please share 🙂

1) Interview with the Vampire (Based on the novel by Anne Rice)

Tom Cruise as Lestat in Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire

The first Vampire I met on screen was Anne Rice’s Lestat, portrayed by the skilled Tom Cruise:

[pro-player width=’530′ height=’253′ type=’video’]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGkBMe3j-Sk [/pro-player]

Now, the trouble with Tom Cruise’s portrayal of Lestat- probably it has to do with the script, I haven’t read the novel, so I wouldn’t know how Anne Rice meant him to be- he brings humor to the story. Lestat isn’t scary. Oh sure, Brad Pitt’s Louis was rightfully scared when Lestat was sucking the life out of him, but Tom Cruise with blond hair and terribly white skin does not equal something of a cold, Scandinavian or in our case a vampiric beauty. Tom is good with jet black, short or a little longish hair like he has in Mission Impossible 2 or Jerry Maguire. Well, I hadn’t initially found Tom’s look funny, I just thought he wasn’t exactly scary or desirable. But here’s what happens: He picks Brad Pitt as his life partner. I have no objections as in picking a guy like Brad to spend eternity with, let’s face Lestat could do a lot worse. But, need I remind you Lestat is a male undead? Sure, a vampire is a sexual being and he could be as gay or as bi as he damn pleases. But a male vampire (Tom Cruise) siring another guy (Brad Pitt) is not exactly a girl’s fantasy. Well, it is not mine anyway. You haven’t picked up on the vibe? Watch closely. Lestat adds a little girl played by Kirsten Dunst to the group and she keeps acting like a total brat. So Lestat gets pissed and threatens her with bringing home a sister. Dad Tom, Mommy Brad – and kid Dunst. One small, weird vampire family. Well, it didn’t hurt that the movie also features Antonio Banderas as a Vampire with beautiful long hair. But mind you, Banderas’ Armand is not nearly as destructively gorgeous as his El Mariachi in Desperado. There’s something wrong with the vampires in this movie. They are pretty. But they are not sexy.

Brad Pitt in Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire — Brad Pitt as Louis in Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire

Antonio Banderas as Armand in Interview with the Vampire

Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt and Kirsten Dunst in Interview with the Vampire

2) BRAM STOKER’S DRACULA

Gary Oldman as Dracula in Bram Stoker's Dracula

Now Dracula is the ultimate myth, legend, fantasy. Dracula is the most famous Vampire of all times. Many versions have been written since Bram Stoker’s and many actors have played him. And this one with Gary Oldman is sort of fun. The cast is great. It has Winona Ryder as Dracula’s love/lust interest, Keanu Reeves as her fiancee and Anthony Hopkins as Van Helsing. The problem is Dracula seems much too much like a cartoon character. The movie was directed by Francis Ford Coppola ,however it more feels like a Tim Burton movie. And I think I would have liked it more if it had been a Tim Burton movie and with Johnny Depp as the Dracula. Gary Oldman is a fantastic actor but this movie is listed as a horror romance whereas the way it has been shot and acted out as a parody. Or maybe it just feels that way because it was short in 1992 and the effects aren’t that good. There is also a very superficial on my part that Dracula is very ugly for the most of the time. You saw the picture above, right?

3) DRACULA 2000

Gerard Butler as Dracula in Dracula 2000

trailer:

[pro-player width=’530′ height=’253′ type=’video’]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5oprkYnHObk [/pro-player]

Now, this Dracula is fun. It is not scary or that much exciting, but it is fun. After all, we have young women being trapped,seduced, fed on by Dracula. And Dracula is Gerard Butler. Now, we shouldn’t have any lack of masculinity or charisma issues, right? But there’s something off about this particular vampire. He is supposed to be the perfect seducer. And fine, sure he looks a lot better than most of the people you would meet in a bar- but I am not sure I would have recognized Gerard Butler, had I not known he was in it. This clean- shaven face makes him look too young- and he is kinda young himself- and too innocent. However I was checking out stuff with Dracula 2000 and I came upon his audition, where he looks utterly different. He has long hair, a beard and he looks like he could be the perfect Pirate of the Caribbean- minus Jack Sparrow’s a little eccentric behavior. I am posting the link, but I will put an image just to give you the picture. Butler appears in this video very similar to his image in Attila. And below is how he was in Attila.

Gerard Butler as Attila in Attila. But of course he is not playing a historical hero in the audition- he is darker,much darker- And I think this look could serve him better as a vampire.

Enjoy Gerard’s Dracula audition:

[pro-player width=’530′ height=’253′ type=’video’]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wk3syqGaPN8&feature=PlayList&p=8981B582471B3361&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=31[/pro-player]

4) QUEEN OF THE DAMNED

Stuart Townsend as Lestat in Queen of the Damned

video from the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kz1HcYmlBq4&feature=related

I think Stuart Townsend makes the perfect Lestat. Of course I’m biased, not because I’m a great fan of Stuart – I became fan after this movie, but because this movie captures the goth and rock spirit that comes with the vampire territory. Here when Lestat wakes up, he also sort of takes a hard rock band under his wing and becomes their singer. The whole world falls in love with this vampire and his music. Rockstars have tons of groupies and many front men are considered as sex symbols. They have added the dark side and the allure of the vampiric quality and bingo! You have a vampire movie with a really cool soundtrack and a vampire that can really seduce. It is not highly rated but I believe this movie to be very underrated. If you like Vampires and hard rock, you will enjoy this movie.

P.S: I’m not including Twilight because I have already done a number of posts on Twilight and Edward Cullen.

If you want stuff on the Twilight movies and cast:

Twilight Saga and The Rest of The Cullen Family

New Moon Dissected

Pattinson vs.. Lautner

Robert Pattinson isn’t vain. He is British!

Pattinson vs. Edward Cullen: The Cute Robert Pattinson, The Beautiful Edward Cullen

Twilight Movie Review: Twilight Mania

Public Enemies starring Johnny Depp, Christian Bale and Marion Cotillard

Posted on July 23, 2009 Written by ripitup

[pro-player width=’530′ height=’253′ type=’video’]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8xOgO7_eT8[/pro-player]

Public Enemies (2009)

Directed by: Michael Mann

3694551785_529848bf92 — Johnny Depp in Public Enemies. It is a fun and fast ride. And it takes a really good movie to be just that at 140 minutes!

Johnny Depp is John Dillinger. He is smart, fast, loyal to his friends and romantic & sweet to his girl. He robs banks because he just loves the thrill of it. He can escape prison, saves his friends from prison and tries not to harm any innocents in the mean time.

The movie involved less robbery scenes than we expected-as one friend put it. It includes more violence than you hope for and it occurs where you don’t really want it. But is it a bad movie? Absolutely not. I love period pieces. I love the glory and the romance of it. Set in the 1930s, Public Enemies offers well-crafted costume design. Johnny Depp is sexy, mischievous and addicted to action as Dillinger. Bale is well…some complain that his acting is flat. But then so is his character. He joins forces with the bureau who is run by Hoover (Billy Crudup) – a man more interested in looking good for the press and getting publicity than justice. Otherwise they would have spent half the effort on other criminals.

Our respect and admiration for Dillinger weakens as he makes mistakes and starts to act more like a pawn than the expert chess player. His weakness and love for his girlfriend (Marion Cotillard) don’t really help him either.

Funnily enough, I have gone to see the movie with two friends and ran across three other friends who happened to be watching it in the theater next to ours. The group of three were disappointed. I turned out to be the only one who thoroughly enjoyed the movie; until the last 15 minutes or so – at least.

The whole John Dillinger myth the movie built was completely destroyed towards the end.

As desperate he was, he made mistakes that he would have seen coming and could have solved.) Still, John is a very interesting character and immensely enjoyable to watch. Recommended.