Jan 30, 2005

Netflix - Week 4



Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind - I liked this film, but I thought it would be funnier than it turned out to be. Maybe it was because they showed funny scenes in the trailer and maybe it was because it starred Jim Carrey and his most memorable work is broad comedy. The film reminded me of Being John Malkovich because the characters were desperate and dissatisfied and the story involved a surreal premise. The plot centers on a doctor who is able to erase unwanted memories from people who feel the memories are too painful to keep. The movie is a little confusing because the story is not told in a linear fashion and jumping from past to present to future (not necessarily in that order) can make it difficult to understand what is happening.

Ma Vie En Rose - In this French film a seven year old boy feels he should be a girl. The young actor is a gorgeous kid, and he does a really good job in a difficult role. There are a lot of fantasy scenes and the film looks like the sets were designed by the French painter/photographer duo Pierre et Gilles, but in spite of the look of the movie, it deals with a serious subject. I admit it, I got teary in a few places in the film, but overall, it was really enjoyable.

Stiff Upper Lips - This is a parody of the Merchant Ivory variety films is intelligent and funny. If you liked Black Adder or the The Last Remake of Beau Geste, this film will appeal to you. Fun is poked at the class system and racial inequities in Victorian England. It was only released in the Europe, probably because they felt that there wasn't a market for this type of fare in America. I think that the wider distribution of Merchant and Ivory films through PBS's Masterpiece Theater, the A & E network and BBC America should make the subject matter of this film more familiar to American audiences. Marilyn and I laughed throughout Stiff Upper Lips and found it to be much more clever than other spoofs, like Scary Movie or Police Academy.

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