Dear Dictator (3 Stars)

Tatiana Mills is a 15-year-old girl who lives with her unmarried mother in a sleepy little American town called Derbyville. Her mother used to be a rebel. She became pregnant when she was in high school. Now Tatiana is also a rebel, in her own way. She's a fan of 1980's punk rock. Okay, I think 1970's punk was better, but I'll let it pass.

Tatiana's life is messed up. She's dating a Jesus freak, who's always telling her that it's evil to have sex before marriage. Her mother is dating a married dentist. She's an outsider in school.

Tatiana's class is given an assignment. To show them that there's more to life than texting on their phones all day, they're encouraged to write letters to someone they consider a role model. Some of the kids get answers, others don't. One of the boys in her class writes to Mark Zuckerberg. Tatiana writes to General Anton Vincent, the Communist dictator of a small Caribbean island. Anton is touched by the letter and replies. The two become pen pals.

"Dear Anton. Thanks for the armband. I'm wearing it right now, even though my Mom hates it, but I hate my Mom, so that makes us even. Okay, to be honest, I'm not wearing it right now, because it fell off when I was running away from someone. Long story. I hope everything is going good with your country. From Tatiana".

"Dear Tatiana, I'm sorry you and your mother are feuding. I have a daughter who is a little older than you, and at times she does not like me either. Things in my country are difficult right now. There is a rebel faction that wants to overthrow the government and behead me and my family. It is stressful. It feels like there is no one I can trust".

"Oh, I can really relate about the trust thing. I just got dicked over by a teacher who's got a stick up his butt because I wrote to you. To give you an idea of the loserdom at my school, there's a group of girls who call themselves slushies. It stands for sluts and lushes. Sarvia is the one they all worship, which is a joke, if you ever saw her. She thinks whale tails look good, and somehow everyone agrees with her. Borderline retarded, right? Anyway, I'm sorry that people want to kill you and your family. That's messed up. By the way, what's your favourite colour?"

"Your letters have been a welcome respite from my struggles. In addition to making threats of invasion, the United States supports the rebel army and has placed an embargo around our borders. It is impossible for goods to come in or out. My people cannot get medical supplies, and many people are dying. My favourite colour is purple".

"I like purple too. Does the embargo mean that you can't download cool music? That blows. Maybe I can rip a CD for your daughter. Does she like classic 80's hardcore? Bands like the Meatmen, the Dead Kennedys, Gangrene, Dead Milkmen, the Butthole Surfers, Agent Orange? Oh, definitely the Circle Jerks".

"Thank you for your lively music. My daughter enjoyed it. The rebels have surrounded the capital".

"I know it sounds psycho, because we've never even met, but sometimes I feel like you're the only one who gets me".

"My correspondence will be less frequent".

"Big bummer! P.S. I drew you a picture".

The worst happens. With US help, the rebels overthrow the government, and General Anton Vincent has to flee. His only friend outside of his country is Tatiana, so he arrives at her house, and he hides in her basement. After a few days her mother discovers him. Her initial shock fades away when he starts to do repairs around the house. He's also an excellent cook. She starts to have romantic feelings for him.

While hiding in Tatiana's house, Anton pursues two goals. He tries to get enough weapons to win back his country by bidding for them on Ebay. He gives Tatiana advice about how to overthrow the Slushies and become the school's new Mean Girl.

What would you do if a Communist dictator arrived in your house?

First, tell him to disguise himself.

Losing the beard is a good idea.

Who do I prefer? Mother or daughter?

I've always liked Katie Holmes. She has a natural sexuality.

But I prefer Odeya Rush's attitude, in the film at least. I like a girl who stands out from the crowd. She's the sort of girl I would have dated at school. And the first thing I would have done is play her all my 1970's punk records to persuade her that they're better. 

Would I like to have a Communist dictator in my basement? Someone like Vladimir Putin? No way! I draw the line when it comes to mass-murdering war criminals.

I wouldn't turn away Kim Yo-Jong, the sister of North Korea's president Kim Jong-Un. She's welcome to stay with me as long as she wishes, as long as she doesn't bring her big brother.

The film's premise is so good that I had to buy it, even though it's received negative reviews. The acting by Michael Caine and Odeya Rush is outstanding, even if Michael Caine's accent is erratic. In his political speeches he imitates an Australian accent, but when he arrives in America he talks with his normal British accent. The biggest problem with the films is the annoying subplots, i.e. the boyfriends. The unfaithful dentist played by Seth Green is so annoying that I wanted to fast forward every time he appeared on the screen. The teenage Jesus freak also annoyed me. The film would have been better without both of them. It should just have been about the schoolgirl and the dictator.

Wonder Boys (3 Stars)

Michael Douglas plays Grady Tripp, a literature professor who's struggling to finish his latest novel. It's not writer's block, it's the exact opposite. He can't stop writing. He's written over 2600 pages, and he can't find a way to end the story.

The film follows Professor Tripp's interactions with four people in his life. He's having an affair with Sara, the head of the English department's wife. He's renting a room to his student Hannah, who has a crush on him. He's close friends with James, a student who has a natural talent for writing and has just finished his first book. His publisher Terry Crabtree is visiting him from New York to encourage him to finish his book.

The narrative is non-linear, with random events happening in quick succession. I don't like this sort of film, but evidently the critics do. It was nominated for three Academy Awards, but it was a box office failure. As usual, I take the side of the fans, not the critics.

Success Rate:  - 1.6

	Order from Amazon.com
	Order from Amazon.co.uk
	Order from Amazon.de

Phone Booth (5 Stars)

Dancer's Top Films #45

I forget exactly when I first saw this film or even why I bought it. It was released in 2003, but I probably didn't see it until a few years later. I'm sure that my review in November 2010 wasn't the first time I saw it. Amazon keeps a perfect record of the date when I bought films online since 2003, but in my early years of collecting DVDs I bought a lot of films over the counter at Virgin Records and HMV. I didn't keep my receipts, so I can only vaguely remember the dates. I really should have started my blog in 2003 when I bought my first DVD player. It was a mistake to wait seven years.

In my past reviews of this film I haven't written much about it because not much happens. I'll try to write more today. The plot and the location are minimalist, but the emotions are intense. Stu Shephard, a wheeling, dealing public relations man goes into a public phone box at the same time every day to ring his girlfriend. He has a cell phone, but he doesn't want his wife to see his girlfriend's phone number listed on his bill.

Someone rings the phone box, and Stu answers. It's a man who knows everything about him. The man is somewhere in a building looking down on the phone box, and he threatens to shoot Stu if he hangs up. The man says that he's already executed a paedophile and a crooked banker in the street, but it isn't obvious why he's picked Stu for his next victim. Stu has never done anything wrong except for cheating on his wife.

The frantic conversations continue. The man proves how serious he is by shooting a pimp who tries to make Stu leave the phone booth. The police arrive, suspecting Stu of murder, even though he isn't carrying a gun. Forest Whitaker plays one of the best roles of his life as the police captain talking Stu into leaving the booth.

I've always liked Forest Whitaker as an actor, but in this film he excels. He's fully credible as he portrays a man who is trying to make an arrest while plagued by emotional problems in his past. It's the subtleties in the portrayal of emotions that make the difference between good actors and great actors.

I only found out today that Jim Carrey was originally cast as Stu Shephard. He dropped out shortly before filming began. The more I think about it, the more I can see Jim Carrey being perfect for the role, but Colin Farrell can't be faulted.

The film was a box office success. I don't know how well it's known today. That depends on television broadcasts more than anything else. I'm not aware that it's available on any streaming services, which is a disadvantage. It's a film that's too good to be forgotten.

Success Rate:  + 5.5

	Order from Amazon.com
	Order from Amazon.co.uk
	Order from Amazon.de

The Gift (2000) (5 Stars)

Dancer's Top Films #63

I saw this film in the cinema when it was released in 2001. If I remember correctly, it was a random choice. I lived close to a cinema, and I had some time on my hands, so I decided to see a film. It was a multiplex, I forget how many screens, but there were only a couple of films that were about to start, and this looked like the best. I didn't even know it was directed by Sam Raimi until it started. Wow! It knocked me off my feet. I wonder if I would ever have discovered it if I hadn't walked into the cinema that day.

Most American films take place in New York, or to be more specific, they take place in Manhattan. In second place is Washington DC. Between them, those two locations must make up more than half of Hollywood's films. If aliens invade, they land in Manhattan. If a monster crawls out of the sea, it arrives in Manhattan. If a giant meteorite is heading for Earth, it'll fall directly on Manhattan. That's actually understandable. Hollywood wants to make films that audiences can relate to, and New York City is the place that everyone knows. The landmarks are immediately recognisable.

I'm thankful that Sam Raimi doesn't follow this pattern, unless he absolutely has to. The Spider-Man films are set in New York, but his other films are in more imaginative locations. "The Gift" takes place in a fictional small town in Georgia called Brixton. There are no landmarks to tell the viewer where he is, but he's immediately at home. It's small town America. There's a courthouse, and there's a church where every good person goes on Sunday.

Annie Wilson doesn't go to church. Does that make her a bad person? In the eyes of the townspeople, yes. She has a gift. She's psychic. It runs in her family. She can see both the future and the past. She's called a witch and a Satanist, but neither label applies to her. She's just a single mother struggling to earn enough money to feed her three children after the death of her husband. If she can make money from telling the future, so be it. However, it seems like most of her clients come to her for advice that any counsellor could give, even without psychic abilities. Valerie Barksdale is a woman whose husband hits her, so she comes to Annie to ask her what to do. I could answer that question myself.

The film is about a murder investigation. Jessica King, played by Katie Holmes, is engaged to the local school's headmaster. One evening she disappears and is feared dead. She's known to be promiscuous, so anyone could be a suspect. Jessica's father asks Annie to find her body, much to the distress of the town sheriff, who doesn't believe in hocus pocus.

I've written detailed reviews about this film and its cast in the past, but I forgot to mention Rosemary Harris as Annie's grandmother. She only appears for a few minutes, but her performance is so outstanding that she lifts the quality of the whole film. She must have impressed Sam Raimi, because he called on her to play Peter Parker's Aunt May in the Spider-Man films.

Success Rate:  + 2.5

	Order from Amazon.com
	Order from Amazon.co.uk
	Order from Amazon.de

Phone Booth (5 Stars)

"This is my booth, and I'm not coming out, all right? I like it in the booth. It's my world".

This film was made in 2003. Phone booths were already in decline, because of the convenience of mobile phones. The film states that the phone booth on 53rd and 8th is the last booth of its type in western Manhattan. How many are there now, in America and elsewhere?

This is a phone booth in Coventry Road, Small Heath, Birmingham, just outside Asda. It provides an essential service. It's used by drug addicts on Friday morning, just after midnight. That's when they receive their weekly welfare benefits. They don't want phone numbers to be stored on their mobile phones, so they ring drug dealers from this phone booth. The business itself is done in front of Asda. The dealers pull up in front of the cash machines, and the money changes hands through the car window. It's all very efficient. As a habitual midnight shopper I observed it many times. It's all made possible by the phone booth.

I watched this film today in remembrance of the director Joel Schumacher, who died yesterday at the age of 80. Most newspaper reports refer to him as "the Batman director", because he made two films about Batman in the 1990's. That's a shame, because they're not his best films (though they're not as bad as some critics say). He attempted to imitate the camp films of Tim Burton, but as I'm sure he later realised, there's only one Tim Burton. The films would have been better if he'd made them in his own action style. I'm not saying that the films should have been darker, I'm just saying they should have been more serious, though remaining the over-the-top action. The Batman films should have been more like "Falling Down", which he made two years before "Batman Forever".

"Phone Booth" has a lot in common with "Falling Down", as far as the style goes. It's a man pushed to the limit by forces working against him. The difference is that in "Falling Down" Bill Foster rises from the chaos to become an anti-hero, whereas Stu Shephard collapses under the pressure and becomes a nervous wreck.

The premise of "Phone Booth" might seem infeasible, a man being held hostage in a phone booth by an unseen sniper, but the action is so intense that the viewer soon stops asking questions.

It's a brilliant film. I only intended to watch one of Joel Schumacher's films this week, but after watching "Phone Booth" today I need more of his action; I'll watch "Falling Down" in the next few days. The Blu-ray disc is already lying on the desk next to my computer.

Success Rate:  + 5.5

	Order from Amazon.com
	Order from Amazon.co.uk
	Order from Amazon.de

Strangely, the film has only been released on DVD in England. If you're a high definition film fan, don't worry. The German Blu-ray is 100% English.

Ocean's 8 (4 Stars)

Debbie Ocean, the younger sister of Danny Ocean from the Ocean's Trilogy, is released after spending five years in prison for art fraud. She's spent this time meticulously planning an extravagant jewel robbery in her head. All she needs to do is find a team to help her. She assembles a team of six women with different skills around herself. It's only women, because she doesn't trust men. It was a man who snitched on her and got her thrown into prison. The eighth woman is added late in the film.

The target is a diamong necklace worth $150 million that's been locked in a vault at Cartier in New York for 50 years. They manipulate the host of the yearly Met Gala event into borrowing the necklace to wear at the event. She's accompanied at all times by two armed security guards, but Debbie has everything planned.

This is a very good film about suave and manipulative women who manage to keep their cool while fighting against overwhelming odds. The film takes time to introduce all the characters, and by the middle of the film we're rooting for them and hoping they'll be successful. Sandra Bullock is excellent as the criminal mastermind who doesn't actually take part in the robbery; she just stands back and watches as her team do their jobs.

Phone Booth (5 Stars)

I'm sure it's happened to everyone at some time in his life. You see a film that you think is great, so you tell a friend about it, but when you try to describe it he says "That sounds boring". This is one of those films. Let me tell you what it's about:

A man goes into a phone booth to call his girlfriend. The phone rings, and the caller tells him he will kill him if he doesn't do what he wants. The whole film takes place inside the phone booth.

If that doesn't sound boring, what does?

The film's strength is in the way a very simple scene can escalate into mayhem. It has similarities with "Falling Down", another film directed by Joel Schumacher. At times I feel like laughing, but a minute later I'm reminded that it's a very serious situation.

The film is original in the way it's filmed. With the exception of the introduction and the last five minutes the whole film takes place in real time. It's not a single take like "Victoria", but the time in the film runs at the same speed as in the real world while you sit watching it. I'm sure that this has been done in other films, but it's rare enough to make a big impression.

The cinematography is amazing. Split screens are used more effectively than in any other film I've seen. They're needed to maintain the real time, showing us what's happening in different places at the same time. Brilliant!

You might still think the film sounds boring. It isn't. Take my word for it.

	Order from Amazon.com
	Order from Amazon.co.uk
	Order from Amazon.de

The Gift (2000) (5 Stars)

This film is a masterpiece. It was a box office success, even though the critics slammed it, once again proving that film critics have lost touch with what the public wants to see.

It's a slow-moving gothic horror story, relying on a steady build up of suspense rather than artificial jumps. Today I noticed for the first time that the film's main character, Annie Wilson, is reading "Wuthering Heights" when she goes to bed. Knowing that, I can see the inspiration. Like "Wuthering Heights", "The Gift" is an old-fashioned tale that takes place in an old-fashioned world. Small-town Georgia is a place that has been ignored by modern developments. It's not just the technological developments, the town has also missed out on social developments. They live in the past. The local newspaper, the "Brixton Daily Record", proclaims that it's "Hatcher County's only newspaper since 1908", as if that were something to be proud of. I pity the people who have to live in towns like that.

The film's strength is in the characters. Everyone we see is an archetype of the inhabitants of small town societies. I've never had the misfortune to live in a town like Brixton, Georgia, but I can easily recognise the characters.

Keanu Reeves is the town's racist Christian wife-beater. I don't usually like him as an actor, but he's compelling as the despicable bad guy. He should play the bad guy more often.

J. K. Simmons is the small town sheriff. He's a good man, but not too bright. This was the first film I ever saw him in, and I've been his fan ever since.

Here is Giovanni Ribisi, the town's car mechanic, sitting happily in Sam Raimi's car. It's appeared in so many films that it should have its own IMDB page.

Something else that I noticed today for the first time is how often the film shows close ups of Cate Blanchett's face. It could be argued that the cameraman, the cinematographer, the director or all three of them are in love with her face. On my previous viewings I've always concentrated on Katie Holmes, someone I've long found attractive, but today I followed the camera's lead and gazed at Cate Blanchett. I don't think I've ever realised before today how beautiful she is. Take a look at the following screenshots from the film and tell me what you think..

There are so many other close ups of her face during the film, far more than I've shown here. It's as if the camera is caressing her face. It's not just her looks that I find appealing. There's such a depth of emotion in every facial expression. In future I'll pay more attention to her.

	Order from Amazon.com
	Order from Amazon.co.uk
	Order from Amazon.de

The Gift (2000) (5 Stars)

Once a month I have a film evening at my house. Usually it's the second Saturday on the month, but this month I had to do it a week later. This month I showed two films directed by Sam Raimi, "A Simple Plan" and "The Gift". "A Simple Plan" was highly praised by critics, but it was a box office flop. "The Gift" received poor reviews from film critics, but it was a financial success. I enjoy both films, but I prefer "The Gift". It's a film that I was fortunate enough to see in the cinema when it was released in 2001. I say fortunate because I rarely visited the cinema before I joined the Birmingham Film Club in 2013. In 2001 I lived next to a cinema for a few months and went often as a result. I walked past the cinema almost every day and looked at the film posters, which was enough to tempt me inside. I've always enjoyed films, but I didn't become a big film fan until 2003 when I bought my first DVD player. I had films on videotape before then, but it was a relatively small collection. Videotapes were so large and unwieldy, and the quality was less than perfect.

Next month my film evening will feature two lesser known Marvel films. I've already picked the films, and it's not a secret, but I'll only tell you what they are if you ask. Do any of my friends in Birmingham want to come to this event? I've set it up as a Facebook group, so that's the best way to contact me.

I shan't write much about the film now because it's only a few months since I last watched it. Click here for my review.

I've given the film a full five star rating. Do you agree with me? If not, please leave a comment and tell me why not. I love to hear from my readers, especially those who disagree with me. Sometimes, though not often, criticism can even make me change my mind. For instance, when I first reviewed "The Warrior" (the Korean film) I gave it 3 Stars and said that I didn't understand it. A friend of mine sat with me for an hour explaining it -- it's loosely based on a true story -- after which I watched it again and gave it 5 stars. I'm so thankful that she took the time for me. Not all my readers know me in person, but you can help me by posting your thoughts on a film in the comments section. I read and reply to all comments.

Feedback is essential to me. It might surprise you to hear that not everyone thinks the same way. A friend of mine has a film blog in which she rejects criticism. She allowed me to leave comments as long as I agreed with her, but deleted any comments in which I disagreed. I mentioned this in my post on "Bikini Time Machine" last month, but since then she's taken it a step further. Obviously I'm not the only one who sometimes has different opinions, because she's now blocked comments from everyone. I shall never do this. Please read my blog regularly and reply to my reviews in the comments section. I take every comment seriously, whatever you have to say. The world would be boring if we all thought the same.

The Gift (2000) (5 Stars)

In my eyes this is a forgotten masterpiece. It was made in 2000 when Sam Raimi was still best known for "Evil Dead", before he hit the big time by directing "Spider-Man" (which I really ought to watch again soon, it's been too long). "The Gift" doesn't have the gore of "Evil Dead" or the action of "Spider-Man". It's a perfectly crafted super-natural drama. If anything, it's a perfect example of character development. We know and understand all the main characters and some of the minor characters. The film has an intricacy with various sub-plots bubbling beneath the surface, but it never becomes too difficult to follow.

Cate Blanchett is Annie Wilson, a single mother of three children, a year after the death of her husband in an accident at work. She makes money by laying cards to read the future.

Keanu Reeves is Donnie Barksdale, a good Christian man who hates Satanic fortune tellers and beats his wife.

Hilary Swank is Valerie Barksdale, Donnie's wife and Annie's main customer.

Giovanni Ribisi is Buddy Cole, a mentally disturbed young car mechanic whose only friend is Annie.

J. K. Simmons is absolutely amazing as Pearl Johnson, the town's sheriff. Despite his limited screen time his words and his mannerisms help us to know him inside out.

Greg Kinnear is Wayne Collins, a school teacher who's engaged to marry the mayor's daughter.

Katie Holmes is Jessica King, the mayor's daughter.

At the time "The Gift" was made Katie Holmes was still one of the main cast in the TV series "Dawson's Creek", in which she played the teenager Joey Potter. Katie was no longer a teenager, she was just blessed with looking young. "The Gift" gave her an opportunity to play an adult role, which shocked many of her fans at the time. When I lived in America I watched the first two seasons of "Dawson's Creek" on television and considered her to be the series' most talented actress. "The Gift" showed another side to her acting skills, and she has gone on to bigger success in recent years.

In "The Gift" Katie is brutally murdered. There are no eye witnesses. The only person who can help the investigations is Annie Wilson. Unfortunately, her gift doesn't mean that she can look at the cards on the table and see everything. She only has flashes of events, not enough to give the police all the answers, even if they were willing to believe her. She can't lay cards for herself, only for others, and if the person sitting opposite her is a sceptic she sees nothing.

The setting of the story in Brixton, Georgia makes the film even more appealing. The audience is caught up in the claustrophobic small town atmosphere. The church is everything, and if you're not a member you're an outcast. The church holds together. If one of its members is accused of a crime, however heinous, the rest of the congregation pulls together to protect him.

The film is perfect in so many ways. The slow plodding development of the plot is never boring. Even Keanu Reeves, who rarely impresses me as an actor, puts on an outstanding performance. If you haven't seen this film, look for it now. It's a masterpiece.

Miss Meadows (3 Stars)

"There are bad people in the world, and they shouldn't be around the good people, especially the little ones".

Miss Meadows is a very well mannered young lady. She works as a substitute teacher for the first grade, although her job becomes permanent when the teacher that she's standing in for dies of cancer. She sings in the church choir, and she's a Sunday school teacher. Nobody uses her first name, they all call her Miss Meadows. Bizarrely, even her fiancé, the local sheriff, calls her Miss Meadows, and she calls him Sheriff. There's no unnecessary familiarity before marriage.

Behind her frail appearance there's an agenda. She feels it necessary to do what the law is too weak to do. She's a vigilante who kills men who prey on the innocent, especially those who harm children. We need more Miss Meadows in the world. Our soft bellied legal system believes in giving everyone a second chance, but paedophiles don't deserve a second chance. Having sexual desires towards small children is unnatural. It's not simply a crime that a person commits, it's part of his nature. The only way to prevent a paedophile re-offending is to kill him or lock him up permanently.

I love Katie Holmes as an actress, but something is missing from the film. It seems too bland, probably due to the lack of charisma of the supporting characters. To see Miss Meadows have extramarital sex seemed out of character for her, even though she kept her clothes on. The film has a lot of ideas, but somehow it misses the mark.

TV Series: Dawson's Creek

I recently began to watch "Dawson's Creek" again. It's a series I can keep returning to, even though I have to admit that after the first two seasons it wasn't as good. Somewhere in the third season the stories began to turn in circles and never stopped. But maybe the reason is that I could relate best to the early years when the cast was youngest. Or at least, when the characters were youngest. When the series began the four school friends were supposed to be 15, although the actors playing them were between 18 and 21.

It's the series' teen angst that fascinates me most, especially the character of Dawson Leery himself. I can relate to him. He thought about everything, he analysed everything, and he understood nothing. I miss those days. Sure, I knew a lot less than I do now, but I do miss those days of naive innocence. I just watched the episode in the second season in which it's Dawson's 16th birthday. He went to a blues club, got drunk, then went home to his birthday party and insulted everyone, including his parents. I don't remember what happened on my 16th birthday. It can't have been as memorable. I wish I could turn back the clock and be back on that day now.

My teen years were a difficult time, especially between the ages of 16 and 20. When I was 16 I had my first girlfriend. And my second. And my third. I was a late starter, but I quickly became so successful with girls that my friends envied me. Maybe it was my long blond hair? Nobody knew about the suffering I had inside. When I was 18 my mother developed a drinking problem. I tried to kill myself because I couldn't deal with what she had become. When I was 20 she left home to be with another man, and she seriously expected me to go and live with her. The poor deluded woman. I believed in eternal love. I believed in happy families. I was naive then. I wish I could be like that again.

It's ironic. Despite all the pain, I wish I could be back in those years. I wish I could be trapped in a time loop from the ages of 16 to 20. I feel like I'm 16 inside, whatever age I might look. I want to win back the carefree attitude of that age. I want the angst back. Angst? I invented it.