Half a million US dollars was spent to make this movie!
The movie seemed to have an intriguing plot, but other than that, it was badly done, with limited scenes, bad filming techniques, bad performing, etc.
Plot: Jacob (Robert Olding) had a pretty wife (name Carmen) and an ordinary life. Suddenly, he had weird dreams: he was in a strange and cheap hotel room; his hands got tied; and he was tortured by a good looking lady who was not his wife or anyone he had ever met. Woke up, he began to compare facts and dreams. Result: he found out that there was one week of his life (which happened recently) when his wife, friends had no idea where he was, for no one could contact him.
The dreams kept coming, showing continuous events that happened during the week that he could not account for in real life.
In this dream, there was a small teddy bear (a strange item in a hotel room which was almost bare of everything else!).
He lost his job not soon after that, and his friends, wife, everyone around him began to think he was not right in the head. He began to think that his wife must have been the one that played tricks on him, tried to confuse him.
Then friends of his family began to be suspicious of both him and his wife (about this couple's sanity), for there was some events that husband and wife seemed to be sure that really happened, which involved their family's friends, but the friends were dead sure that no such thing ever happened.
Fact: Jacob was about to be executed for his sin of smothering a little girl name Carmen, to death, while acting as her babysitter. Turned out that he, a teenager at the time, had often sexually abused her, while promising her that he would marry her once she became an adult. The night it happened, the father of the little girl returned home suddenly, and in fright, Jacob told Carmen to be quiet. Carmen had different idea, she did not like to be molested any more, and decided to call out for her father. Jacob tried to stop her from making any noise, and perhaps accidentally smothered her to death.
In jail, he began to confuse between truth and imagination. Perhaps he tried his best to excuse his own sin (be it intentional or accidental)? In his mind, Carmen was not dead, and that they did grow up, really marry each other.
- The strange lady whom he met in his dream, who always tortured him in the strange and empty hotel room, was in fact, the replacement of his criminal defense lawyer. (His criminal defense lawyer left for her maternity leave). He was contented with his imagination: that he married Carmen, and lived an ordinary life as everyone else)...
- His family friends turned out to be:
+ a fellowed inmate who was jailed next to him, who frequently throwing abuses at him, cridiculed him over his imagining wife and life.
+ his criminal defense lawyer.
Perhaps a better director and cast, could make a better movie than the existed one?
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Thursday, July 12, 2007
The Good Shepherd 2006
A bit confusing, but if you concentrated and followed the dates closely, you should be fine...
Matt Damon again gave a marverlous performance as the head of CIA, Edward Wilson, always placid, stiff, but extremely intelligent.
Angelina Jolie was beautiful as Wilson's wife. (It was strange however, watching this actress played a passive role, after all the 'actioned' roles as Clara Croft in Tomb Raiders, or as Mrs Smith, etc).
The movie was about how Edward Wilson, facing a failure in his attempt to direct his CIA organisation grabbing Cuba back for US during the early 1960s, tried his best in finding the culprit, the leak.
In doing so, he inadvertently had flashbacks to his childhood, the last meeting with his dear father before the old man suicided, his university days at Yale, the romance he had, the wife he ended to marry only because he made her pregnant, the intensed and hard work he carried out for CIA and his country, the difficulties he got in dealing with his wife and only son, the constantly 'on the watch for treacherous activities' from his own circle and workforce.
Eddie Reymayne was good in his role as Edward Wilson junior, a weak character, who resented his father because he felt his father had neglected his mother and him for the CIA.
The contrast was there, Edward Wilson strived to do good for his country, because of what his father did and said before he took his own life.
His son, indifferent, self centred, undid as much as he could, the good work Edward Wilson tried to do for his country.
Found the leak, Edward Wilson was pressured into betraying his own organisation and country for his son's sake. Being an intelligent man, he decided to not following his father's mistakes, and outwitted the enemy in his own way.
It was very interesting, watching Matt Damon tried to play the roles of a young and old Edward Wilson. Angelina Jolie was quite successful playing a sad and ignored wife, who prematured before time (grey hair, wrinkles and all!). Matt Damon was not that good (should we blame the make-up peoples for that?).
It was a bit funny, watching the old Edward Wilson hugging his 20s YO son, for the two of them were practically like brothers (in age). Other than that, the movie was quite good, very poignant, deep, make ones wonders about life, about what ones should really values in life. It also showed that, life is always full of unexpected events, twists, but how one confronts one's mistakes and goes forward with life, is what make people different, make or break.
Matt Damon again gave a marverlous performance as the head of CIA, Edward Wilson, always placid, stiff, but extremely intelligent.
Angelina Jolie was beautiful as Wilson's wife. (It was strange however, watching this actress played a passive role, after all the 'actioned' roles as Clara Croft in Tomb Raiders, or as Mrs Smith, etc).
The movie was about how Edward Wilson, facing a failure in his attempt to direct his CIA organisation grabbing Cuba back for US during the early 1960s, tried his best in finding the culprit, the leak.
In doing so, he inadvertently had flashbacks to his childhood, the last meeting with his dear father before the old man suicided, his university days at Yale, the romance he had, the wife he ended to marry only because he made her pregnant, the intensed and hard work he carried out for CIA and his country, the difficulties he got in dealing with his wife and only son, the constantly 'on the watch for treacherous activities' from his own circle and workforce.
Eddie Reymayne was good in his role as Edward Wilson junior, a weak character, who resented his father because he felt his father had neglected his mother and him for the CIA.
The contrast was there, Edward Wilson strived to do good for his country, because of what his father did and said before he took his own life.
His son, indifferent, self centred, undid as much as he could, the good work Edward Wilson tried to do for his country.
Found the leak, Edward Wilson was pressured into betraying his own organisation and country for his son's sake. Being an intelligent man, he decided to not following his father's mistakes, and outwitted the enemy in his own way.
It was very interesting, watching Matt Damon tried to play the roles of a young and old Edward Wilson. Angelina Jolie was quite successful playing a sad and ignored wife, who prematured before time (grey hair, wrinkles and all!). Matt Damon was not that good (should we blame the make-up peoples for that?).
It was a bit funny, watching the old Edward Wilson hugging his 20s YO son, for the two of them were practically like brothers (in age). Other than that, the movie was quite good, very poignant, deep, make ones wonders about life, about what ones should really values in life. It also showed that, life is always full of unexpected events, twists, but how one confronts one's mistakes and goes forward with life, is what make people different, make or break.
Breach 2007
A good movie to watch!
Though not of the same quality as' James Bond' movies, 'Breach' does have a good plot, cast: Chris Cooper (as the famous 'mole' within the FBI network, Robert Hanssen), Laura Linney (the FBI agent who was head of the hunt for proof of Hanssen's treachery, Kate Burroughs), and the good looking Ryan Phillippe (as the young and new FBI agent who was a computer specialist, Eric O'Neil).
Terrific performance from the cast, the movie retold a story (based on real facts) of how the FBI for many years, tried to catch a mole within their midst, but never managed to do it successfully. In the mean time, their mole kept revealing FBI's important secrets to the enemy, helping them removing off FBI's assets, agents, etc.
Knowing finally who the mole was, but having no definite proof, agent Kate Burroughs cooly pulled young Eric O'Neil in, under the pretense of being Hassen's clerk, to report Hanssen's detailed activities and his contacts over some underhanded sexual misconduct charges.
The task was not an easy one to young O'Neil, for he seemed to never have had to resort to any 'secret' activities before. Few other complications:
- Hassen was an old hand in this spy game. He seemed to constantly cover himself extremely well under the mould of a devoted Church frequent goer, a loyal and caring husband and a faithful and always hard working, environmental consciencious FBI agent. He was a real charismatic person who could charm young O'Neil easily.
- O'Neil could not explain to his young wife of his new tasks, due to the sensitivity of the matter. Hassen in his own way, tried to find out all O'Neil's activities via O'Neil's young wife, but not very successful.
Confronted Burroughs over the real issue related to Hassen, O'Neil was told the truth about Hassen's treachery over the 25 years he worked for FBI. Realised that the matter was above his ability, O'Neil did not want to continue with this dangerous mouse and cat game, which to him, not worth the break-up of his marriage. Of course, he was finally convinced to do this for the sake of his own country.
Chris Cooper acted brilliantly as a scheming, cunning, arrogant, deceiful, selfish and dangerous man, who played the spy game only because he was bored and happened to like outwit FBI, completely forgeting that he was causing tremendous and extensive damages to his own country and comrades.
Laura Linney was charming, persuasive, full of determination, in her role as the head of the hunting organisation for the traitor.
Ryan Phillippe as a fresh breath of wind, unexpectantly put in the treacherous game, and because of his quick wit, direct, honest, he managed to help FBI outwitted the famous mole ever in US history, only because he tried his best: be himself.
For viewers who like psychology, this is a wonderful movie to watch. To those who expect all the actions and martial arts, this movie is not it!
Though not of the same quality as' James Bond' movies, 'Breach' does have a good plot, cast: Chris Cooper (as the famous 'mole' within the FBI network, Robert Hanssen), Laura Linney (the FBI agent who was head of the hunt for proof of Hanssen's treachery, Kate Burroughs), and the good looking Ryan Phillippe (as the young and new FBI agent who was a computer specialist, Eric O'Neil).
Terrific performance from the cast, the movie retold a story (based on real facts) of how the FBI for many years, tried to catch a mole within their midst, but never managed to do it successfully. In the mean time, their mole kept revealing FBI's important secrets to the enemy, helping them removing off FBI's assets, agents, etc.
Knowing finally who the mole was, but having no definite proof, agent Kate Burroughs cooly pulled young Eric O'Neil in, under the pretense of being Hassen's clerk, to report Hanssen's detailed activities and his contacts over some underhanded sexual misconduct charges.
The task was not an easy one to young O'Neil, for he seemed to never have had to resort to any 'secret' activities before. Few other complications:
- Hassen was an old hand in this spy game. He seemed to constantly cover himself extremely well under the mould of a devoted Church frequent goer, a loyal and caring husband and a faithful and always hard working, environmental consciencious FBI agent. He was a real charismatic person who could charm young O'Neil easily.
- O'Neil could not explain to his young wife of his new tasks, due to the sensitivity of the matter. Hassen in his own way, tried to find out all O'Neil's activities via O'Neil's young wife, but not very successful.
Confronted Burroughs over the real issue related to Hassen, O'Neil was told the truth about Hassen's treachery over the 25 years he worked for FBI. Realised that the matter was above his ability, O'Neil did not want to continue with this dangerous mouse and cat game, which to him, not worth the break-up of his marriage. Of course, he was finally convinced to do this for the sake of his own country.
Chris Cooper acted brilliantly as a scheming, cunning, arrogant, deceiful, selfish and dangerous man, who played the spy game only because he was bored and happened to like outwit FBI, completely forgeting that he was causing tremendous and extensive damages to his own country and comrades.
Laura Linney was charming, persuasive, full of determination, in her role as the head of the hunting organisation for the traitor.
Ryan Phillippe as a fresh breath of wind, unexpectantly put in the treacherous game, and because of his quick wit, direct, honest, he managed to help FBI outwitted the famous mole ever in US history, only because he tried his best: be himself.
For viewers who like psychology, this is a wonderful movie to watch. To those who expect all the actions and martial arts, this movie is not it!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
