Tomorrow I go back to school which is great and nerve wrecking as always, after a little over three months of summer break back to school it is for me. I am definitely ready and a little bit scared since I am trying to graduate this year versus waiting one more year as was my original plan. Hopefully it will be a great school year and hopefully I will get accepted into a masters program. Well without further ado here are the last five films I watched 🙂 What are your last five?
50 First Dates  (2004)
PG-13│1hr 33min│IMDB: 6.7/10 │Rotten Tomatoes: 44%
Directed by: Peter Segal
I had been wanting to watch 50 First Dates since years ago but never got around to it, the premise of this movie always seemed funny to me: A girl with a damaged short term memory and a guy who avoids commitment and goes to great lengths to get her to commit to him. While it isn’t a masterpiece chances are you aren’t looking for a masterpiece if you are in the mood for this movie. I found this movie to be laugh out loud funny and heart warming, with solid performances by both Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore.
The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
PG-13│ 2hrs 45min│IMDB: 8.6/10│Rotten Tomatoes: 88%
Directed by: Christopher Nolan
As a finale for the dark knight series this is a very satisfying one. No loose ends are left, all seems to end well and best of all it is clear that Batman will live as long as the world needs a Batman. It’s true there are way too many things going on at once, there are some events that lack logic and at 2 hours and 45 minutes you would expect to see more Batman action, but as a finale it succeeds leaving you content and setting forth how the legend of the bat continues. On a unrelated note Anne Hathaway as cat woman was a perfect fit.
Le Bonheur (1965)
NR│ 1hr 19min│IMDB: 7.5/10│Rotten Tomatoes: 80%
Directed by: Agnès Varda
I have love cinema and I am trying to learn French so watching French films seems like a major win to me. This film titled “Happiness” in French explores if happiness is divided or multiplied, if the more the merrier is actually true and to what lengths are women capable of forgoing themselves in order to make a man happy. Visually, the whole film is picturesque with a dream like quality and well composed scenes that seem more adequate to a painting.
The Red Balloon (1956)
Approved│34min │ IMDB: 8/10 │Rotten Tomatoes: 95%
Directed by: Albert Lamorisse
At thirty-four minutes this little gem is a great investment of time and despite being nearly silent and having no “action” scenes it does captivate children’s attention. The Red Balloon is magical and entertaining in a way few if any children’s films are, it tells the tale of a friendship that develops between a child and a red balloon. I love the way the color of the red balloon contrasted with the gray surroundings and the nostalgia for childhood this short evokes. The nostalgia for that time when any thing could be our beloved friend.
No (2012)
R½ 1hr 58min ½ IMDB: 7.4/10 ½ Rotten Tomatoes: 93%
Directed by: Pablo LarraĂn
LarraĂn’s film offers insight into the creative process behind advertising campaigns and media’s impact on society, while bringing back into the radar an event that is perhaps forgotten: Pinochet’s dictatorship and descend. Beyond this the film explores themes of money, love, power, and the compromises and power struggles behind democracy. Stylistically the film contains clips from the original “NO” campaign and matches its look to those clips, giving the whole piece a retro look and documentary feel. The film does exaggerate the power of the campaign and glosses over many facts but as the director himself said this is not a documentary it is a piece of “art.”
The Best Year Yet 