THE DEPARTED (2007)

FILMS FROM THE 21st CENTURY

(Post 10 of 50)

The Departed

Martin Scorsese's ruthless crime film about rats, moles and double crosses is a very tense drama that is full of too many plot twists to name and finally gave Scorsese an overdue Academy Award. But let us not forget that The Departed is a remake of the 2002 Hong Kong film Infernal Affairs.

I watched these films back to back and it is interesting to notice the differences. The Departed is about an hour longer than Infernal Affairs, so it does have more time to flesh out the characters. Infernal Affairs doesn't go into nearly the details of the origin story and practically avoids the romantic sub-plot we see in The Departed all together. But it is interesting to compare the scenes taken from the original and placed in the Scorsese film: two hoods talking about how to spot a cop, a sting that goes wrong because of the mole warning the crime boss ahead of time, confessions to the lady psychiatrist and both the rooftop scenes. There also is no real equivalent of Mark Wahlberg's Dingham character in Infernal Affairs.

I would probably choose The Departed if I had to choose a preference between the two because of the additional character development in the screenplay of Oscar winner William Monahan.

But why choose? Have a party and watch them both!

Infernal Affairs

SIDEWAYS (2003)

FILMS FROM THE 21st CENTURY

(Post 9 of 50)

Some quick takes on the most relatively recent listings from the
1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die list

I don't want to sound too cutesy and say Sideways has aged liked fine wine since the last time I saw it, but there you have it. Basically a buddy picture, with Miles (Paul Giamatti) the wine loving writer who is trying to get himself together after a painful break-up and Jack (Thomas Haden Church) the lady loving actor and a player that wants to have a fling before his upcoming marriage. The bottom line is despite their flaws, I really like these guys. That even goes for Jack, who can be more than a bit of a jerk at times. But they seem real. And the female romantic interests played by Sandra Oh and Virginia Madsen are engaging characters as well.

Think I'll go have some Pinot Noir now.

GOMORRAH (2008, ITALY)

FILMS FROM THE 21st CENTURY

(Post 8 of 50)

Some quick takes on the most relatively recent listings from the
1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die list

Complex and penetrating Italian crime film about feuding criminal clans and those that run or are run over by them. A film whose nuances and story arcs would certainly gain through repeated viewings, it is definitely not for the faint of heart violence wise or linear plot wise.

THE PIANO TEACHER (2001, AUSTRIA)

FILMS FROM THE 21st CENTURY

(Post 7 of 50)

Some quick takes on the most relatively recent listings from the
1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die list

The major conflict of The Piano Teacher is the duality between a woman named Erika who is classically trained in the arts but has secret sexual desires, many involving sexual masochism and humiliation. I don't know if we are supposed to sympathize with her, as we do  feel bad about parts of her upbringing, but we can't excuse some of the things she does either. But I think that's the point, our feelings toward her are not black and white and the film addresses these points. I did find the look into that duality as being very interesting, if often unpleasant.

THE SON'S ROOM (2001, ITALY)

FILMS FROM THE 21st CENTURY

(Post 6 of 50)

Some quick takes on the most relatively recent listings from the
1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die list

Considering I knew this was a film about how a family copes with the death of the son in the family, I felt myself during the first half hour of the movie just waiting for the inevitable demise of the titular son. But once the son dies, the drama unfolds to be a bit more than the standard movie of the week. The father is a psychologist and I liked the way we are slowly shown how he simply can't deal with his patients anymore. The film has a reminds me in subject matter and tone of Ordinary People (but with subtitles).

INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS (2013)

FILMS FROM THE 21st CENTURY

(Post 5 of 50)

Some quick takes on the most relatively recent listings from the
1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die list

Inside Llweyn Davis is the story of a struggling folk singer in a pre-Bob Dylan Greenwich Village. If that brief description sounds appealing (it does to me) and you like Coen Brothers films (like I do) then Inside Llweyn Davis is worth checking out. On the other hand, I don't think it's top of the line Coen Brothers, but it does have a lot of moments to recommend it, many supplied by John Goodman who has developed quite a gallery of characterizations in the Coen's films.

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY (2014)

FILMS FROM THE 21st CENTURY

(Post 4 of 50)

Some quick takes on the most relatively recent listings from the
1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die list

Rare superhero entry from the 1001 list. Not the most well known entities of the Marvel superhero universe, but that's to the film advantage...It's hard to have preconceptions of characters you know nothing about! The story is interesting, the characters (especially Rocket Raccoon above and Michael Rooker as a refreshingly dense supervillain) are fun, but I'd basically like anything that includes a mix-tape of 70's tunes.

CAVE OF FORGOTTEN DREAMS (2010)

FILMS FROM THE 21st CENTURY

(Post 3 of 50)

Some quick takes on the most relatively recent listings from the
1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die list

I see two dramas going on in this Werner Herzog documentary about the 30,000 year old paintings neatly preserved in the Chauvet Cave if France. One drama is the journey through the cave itself as a sightseer to the past and seeing these people from so many years ago through their artistry and skill and thinking about how the human apple really has really not fallen that far away from the tree. The other drama is the limited access that the film crew is given to the caves which makes one feel how fragile and temporary both art and life is.

Recommended viewing, as is Herzog's other outdoorsy documentary, Grizzly Man.

THE THEORY OF EVERYTHING (2014)

FILMS FROM THE 21st CENTURY

(Post 2 of 50)

Some quick takes on the most relatively recent listings from the
1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die list

My perception of Steven Hawking as the celebrity/genius astrophysicist whose body has been crippled my MLS is so strong that I had to do a double take when I saw there was going to be a movie about Stephen that seemed more of A Beautiful Mind type romance than an episode of Cosmos. But we really do learn more about what Hawking's early life than many of us knew before. Eddie Redmayne's depiction of Hawking first as the young budding genius and then as the older famous man ravaged by physical deterioration was truly Oscar worthy.

BIRDMAN (2014)

FILMS FROM THE 21st CENTURY

(Post 1 of 50)

Some quick takes on the most relatively recent listings from the
1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die list

Birdman is the story of an actor who made a name for himself playing a superhero, but has long wanted to shed that image and take on more serious acting roles. Or work he perceives as serious, like directing and starring in a Raymond Carver play. I found the whole thing fascinating and well done, but it's uncommericial nature made it a surprise best picture winner to me.

And it made me want to pick up some Raymond Carver.