looney tunes

  • Subscribe to our RSS feed.
  • Twitter
  • StumbleUpon
  • Reddit
  • Facebook
  • Digg

lunes, 24 de septiembre de 2012

747. A Room with a View (1986)

Posted on 14:09 by Unknown

Running Time: 117 minutes
Directed By: James Ivory
Written By: Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, from novel by E.M. Forster
Main Cast: Helena Bonham-Carter, Julian Sands, Maggie Smith, Daniel Day-Lewis, Simon Callow
Click here to view the trailer

A LITTLE TOO PRIM AND PROPER FOR MY TASTES

I hate to say it, I really do, but this 100 is shaping up to be the worst 100 of them all. Oh sure, there have been some excellent movies this season, movies that could easily stand up against some of the best films I've watched thus far, however, there have definitely been more bad than good, which leads me to "A Room with a View".


Miss Lucy Honeychurch (Bonham-Carter) and her chaperone (and cousin) Charlotte Bartlett (Smith) arrive at their hotel room in Florence, Italy (by way of England) to a ghastly surprise. It seems that their room, which they were promised provided a glorious view of the city, doesn't provide that at all. They squabble over it quite intensely at dinner and can't help but be overheard by Mr. Emerson and his son George (Sands). The two Mr. Emersons offer to switch rooms with the ladies, citing that their room provides a great view, an offer that they later accept. Later, when Lucy faints after witnessing two Italian men get into a bloody brawl, George Emerson tends to her, carrying her to a safer place and seeing her back to her room. Days later, while enjoying some outdoor time, Lucy and George happen upon one another in a meadow and share a kiss. When Lucy returns to England, she vows to keep the kiss a secret from her overbearing mother and plans go forward for engagement to Cecil Vyse (Day-Lewis). However, coincidence rears it's ugly head and the two Mr. Emersons end up moving in near Lucy. Will Lucy make the appropriate and proper choice and go ahead with her plans to wed Cecil or will her heart and passion take over and choose George?


There's one thing I do love about these prim period dramas and it's that they seem to really improve my vocabulary, if only for a few days following the viewing. On a more serious positive note, I can also give all the credit in the world to the fine cast that was assembled for "A Room with a View", my favorite members being Daniel Day-Lewis as the ultra prim Cecil Vyse, a delicious character and Simon Callow as Reverend Beebe. Seriously, someone find me a tape or CD of Simon Callow reading Moby Dick and I'll put it on every single night and fall asleep to it. No one's voice should be that charming and soothing. There's also no denying the talents of Denholm Elliot, Judi Dench (who isn't in the film enough) and Maggie Smith. And hey, who knew Helena Bonham-Carter would be able to carry her weight, sharing the stage with such graceful actors. I always thought she was nothing more than Tim Burton's muse. This period piece is done well, as everything from the music to the costumes and the sets look authentic and actually, technically there's nothing wrong here. James Ivory obviously cast his bait well when it came time for the 59th Annual Academy Awards.

SPOILER ALERT!


My biggest problem here was with the story, which seemed so counterfeit and done to death. Girl meets boy (or vice versa), shares a moment (a kiss, a one night stand, etc.), returns to the man she originally intended to wed (thereupon realizing all of his faults and yearning for the man she shared the moment with) and finally, returning to the man she shared the moment with and living happily ever after. Maybe it wasn't so in 1986, but hasn't this story been done repeatedly? Or is it just me? Also, these period pieces are really touch and go with me. I'm can very easily get bored with them and want, like nothing else, to shut them off and never see another one and that's the effect that "A Room with a View" had on yours truly. I can admire the acting and all of the technical flawlessness, but in the end their just incredibly dull. It's like a box of bran flakes with a rainbow colored box - it may look yummy on the outside, but trust me, once you delve inside it's quite bland, I assure you.

RATING: 4.5/10  I've crunched the proverbial numbers and I can't even get it to the halfway mark. Oh well, chalk down another one in the loss column for this 100 and please, oh please, send me something soon that will blow me away!! I beg to you movie Gods!

MOVIES WATCHED: 536
MOVIES LEFT TO WATCH: 465

COMING SOON
The Night of the Shooting Stars (1982 - Taviani, Taviani)
Bull Durham (1988 - Ron Shelton)
Cinema Paradiso (1988 - Giuseppe Tornatore)
The Decline of the American Empire (1986 - Denys Arcand)

September 24, 2012  5:07pm

Enviar por correo electrónicoEscribe un blogCompartir en XCompartir con Facebook
Posted in James Ivory | No comments
Entrada más reciente Entrada antigua Inicio

0 comentarios:

Publicar un comentario

Suscribirse a: Enviar comentarios (Atom)

Popular Posts

  • 648. Die Blechtrommel/The Tin Drum (1979)
    Running Time: 142 minutes Directed By: Volker Schlondorff Written By: Jean-Claude Carriere, Gunter Grass, Franz Seitz, Volker Schlondorff, f...
  • SINS OF OMISSION - Entry #6: Kill Bill Vol. 2 (2004)
    Running Time: 137 minutes Directed By: Quentin Tarantino Written By: Quentin Tarantino Main Cast: Uma Thurman, David Carradine, Michael ...
  • 637. Days of Heaven (1978)
    Running Time: 95 minutes Directed By: Terrence Malick Written By: Terrence Malick Main Cast: Richard Gere, Brooke Adams, Sam Shepard, Lin...
  • 737. Manhunter (1986)
    Running Time: 121 minutes Directed By: Michael Mann Written By: Michael Mann, from the novel Red Dragon by Thomas Harris Main Cast: Willi...
  • 17 Hours
    COMING SOON
  • 636. GREASE (1978)
    Running Time: 110 minutes Directed By: Randal Kleiser Written By: Bronte Woodard, Allan Carr, from musical by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey ...
  • 793. Rain Man (1988)
    Running Time: 133 minutes Directed By: Barry Levinson Written By: Ronald Bass, Barry Morrow Main Cast: Dustin Hoffman, Tom Cruise, Valeri...
  • 514. Little Big Man (1970)
    Running Time: 139 minutes Directed By: Arthur Penn Written By: Calder Willingham, from novel by Thomas Berger Main Cast: Dustin Hoffman, F...
  • 880. Satantango (1994)
    Running Time: 432 minutes Directed By: Bela Tarr Written By: Bela Tarr, from novel by Laszlo Krasznahorkai Main Cast: Mihaly Vig, Putyi H...
  • FULLER HAT TRICK - Coming Soon

Categories

  • Abbas Kiarostami
  • Abel Ferrara
  • Abel Gance
  • Abraham Polonsky
  • Adrian Lyne
  • Agnes Varda
  • Agnieszka Holland
  • Aki Kaurismaki
  • Akira Kurosawa
  • Alain Resnais
  • Albert Lewin
  • Alejandro Amenabar
  • Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu
  • Alexander Hammid
  • Allan Dwan
  • Amos Gitai
  • Amy Heckerling
  • Andre Bonzel
  • Andre Techine
  • Andy Warhol
  • Anh-Hung Tran
  • Anthony Mann
  • Anthony Minghella
  • Arthur Penn
  • Atom Egoyan
  • Barbara Loden
  • Barry Levinson
  • Baz Luhrmann
  • Bela Tarr
  • Benoit Poelvoorde
  • Bernardo Bertolucci
  • Bill Forsyth
  • Billy Wilder
  • Bobby Farrelly
  • Brian De Palma
  • Bruce Conner
  • Bruce Robinson
  • Bryan Singer
  • Budd Boetticher
  • Cameron Crowe
  • Carol Reed
  • Cecil B. DeMille
  • Charles Crichton
  • Charles Laughton
  • Chris Marker
  • Chris Noonan
  • Claire Denis
  • Claude Chabrol
  • Claude Lanzmann
  • Daniele Huillet
  • Danny Boyle
  • Darren Aronofsky
  • David Fincher
  • David Lean
  • David Lynch
  • David O. Russell
  • David Zucker
  • Delbert Mann
  • Dennis Hopper
  • Denys Arcand
  • Don Siegel
  • Edgar Morin
  • Edgar Wright
  • Edward Yang
  • Edward Zwick
  • Elem Klimov
  • Elia Kazan
  • Emir Kusturica
  • Eric Rohmer
  • Fatih Akin
  • Fernando Meirelles
  • Francesco Rosi
  • Francis Ford Coppola
  • Frank Borzage
  • Frank Capra
  • Frank Miller
  • Frank Tashlin
  • Gavin Hood
  • Geoff Murphy
  • Geoffrey Wright
  • George A. Romero
  • George Cukor
  • George Kuchar
  • George Lucas
  • George Miller
  • George Sluizer
  • Germaine Dulac
  • Gillian Armstrong
  • Giuseppe Tornatore
  • Glauber Rocha
  • Godfrey Reggio
  • Gordon Parks
  • Guillermo del Toro
  • Gus Van Sant
  • Guy Maddin
  • Hal Ashby
  • Hal Hartley
  • Hany Abu-Assad
  • Hark Tsui
  • Harry Smith
  • Hayao Miyazaki
  • Henri-Georges Clouzot
  • Herbert J. Biberman
  • Howard Hawks
  • Hsiao-hsien Hou
  • Hugh Hudson
  • Ida Lupino
  • Irvin Kershner
  • Irving Rapper
  • Isao Takahata
  • Jack Arnold
  • Jack Smith
  • Jackie Chan
  • Jacques Becker
  • Jacques Demy
  • Jacques Rivette
  • Jacques Tourneur
  • Jafar Panahi
  • James Benning
  • James Cameron
  • James Ivory
  • James L. Brooks
  • Jean Cocteau
  • Jean Eustache
  • Jean Renoir
  • Jean Rouch
  • Jean Vigo
  • Jean-Daniel Pollet
  • Jean-Marie Straub
  • Jean-Pierre Jeunet
  • Jerry Zucker
  • Jerzy Skolimowski
  • Jim Abrahams
  • Jim Jarmusch
  • Joel Coen
  • John Dahl
  • John Ford
  • John Frankenheimer
  • John Halas
  • John Hughes
  • John Huston
  • John McNaughton
  • John Sayles
  • John Singleton
  • John Sturges
  • John Woo
  • Jonathan Demme
  • Joris Ivens
  • Joseph H. Lewis
  • Joseph L. Mankiewicz
  • Joy Batchelor
  • Julian Schnabel
  • Kaige Chen
  • Katia Lund
  • Katsuhiro Otomo
  • Ken Jacobs
  • Kim Ki-young
  • Kira Muratova
  • Krzysztof Kieslowski
  • Larisa Shepitko
  • Lars von Trier
  • Laurence Olivier
  • Lee Kresel
  • Leslie Arliss
  • Louis Malle
  • Luc Besson
  • Luchino Visconti
  • Luis Bunuel
  • Luis Puenzo
  • M. Night Shyamalan
  • Marc Caro
  • Marcel Camus
  • Marcel Carne
  • Marcel Ophuls
  • Marcel Pagnol
  • Marco Tullio Giordana
  • Marguerite Duras
  • Mario Bava
  • Mark Robson
  • Marleen Gorris
  • Marlon Riggs
  • Martin Brest
  • Martin Scorsese
  • Maurice Pialat
  • Max Ophuls
  • Maya Deren
  • Mel Gibson
  • Melvin Van Peebles
  • Michael Curtiz
  • Michael Mann
  • Michael Tolkin
  • Michael Wadleigh
  • Mike Leigh
  • Mike Newell
  • Mike Nichols
  • Mikheil Kalatozishvili
  • Miklos Jancso
  • Milos Forman
  • Mohsen Makhmalbaf
  • Monte Hellman
  • Nanni Moretti
  • Neil Jordan
  • Nicholas Ray
  • Nicholas Roeg
  • Nick Broomfield
  • Norman Z. McLeod
  • Nuri Bilge Ceylan
  • Oliver Hirschbiegel
  • Oliver Stone
  • Orson Welles
  • Otto Preminger
  • Ousmane Sembene
  • P.J. Hogan
  • Paolo Taviani
  • Paul Auster
  • Paul Schrader
  • Paul Thomas Anderson
  • Paul Verhoeven
  • Pedro Almodovar
  • Peter Farrelly
  • Peter Greenaway
  • Peter Weir
  • Peter Yates
  • Quentin Tarantino
  • Radu Mihaileanu
  • Randal Kleiser
  • Raoul Walsh
  • Raul Ruiz
  • Remy Belvaux
  • Rene Clement
  • Richard Donner
  • Richard Marquand
  • Ridley Scott
  • Rob Minkoff
  • Robert Altman
  • Robert Hamer
  • Robert Rodriguez
  • Robert Siodmak
  • Robert Zemeckis
  • Roberto Rossellini
  • Roger Allers
  • Roland Emmerich
  • Roland Joffe
  • Ron Shelton
  • Ross McElwee
  • Russ Meyer
  • Sam Peckinpah
  • Samuel Fuller
  • Scott Hicks
  • Sean Penn
  • Sergei M. Eisenstein
  • Shirley Clarke
  • Shohei Imamura
  • Siu-Tung Ching
  • Souleymane Cisse
  • Spike Jonze
  • Spike Lee
  • Stan Winston
  • Stanley Kramer
  • Stanley Kubrick
  • Stanley Kwan
  • Stephan Elliott
  • Sydney Pollack
  • Terrence Malick
  • Terry Gilliam
  • Terry Zwigoff
  • Theo Angelopoulos
  • Thorold Dickinson
  • Tian Zhuangzhuang
  • Tobe Hooper
  • Todd Haynes
  • Todd Solondz
  • Tom Tykwer
  • Tony Scott
  • Victor Sjostrom
  • Vincent Gallo
  • Vincente Minnelli
  • Vittorio De Sica
  • Vittorio Taviani
  • Volker Schlondorff
  • Warren Beatty
  • Wayne Wang
  • Wes Anderson
  • Wes Craven
  • William A. Wellman
  • William Friedkin
  • William Wyler
  • Wim Wenders
  • Wolf Rilla
  • Wolfgang Becker
  • Wolfgang Petersen
  • Wong Kar-Wai
  • Woody Allen
  • Yash Chopra
  • Yasujiro Ozu
  • Yimou Zhang
  • Youssef Chahine
  • Zack Snyder

Blog Archive

  • ►  2014 (78)
    • ►  julio (13)
    • ►  junio (2)
    • ►  mayo (2)
    • ►  abril (6)
    • ►  marzo (16)
    • ►  febrero (22)
    • ►  enero (17)
  • ►  2013 (219)
    • ►  diciembre (7)
    • ►  noviembre (23)
    • ►  octubre (23)
    • ►  septiembre (22)
    • ►  agosto (18)
    • ►  julio (7)
    • ►  junio (10)
    • ►  mayo (23)
    • ►  abril (26)
    • ►  marzo (35)
    • ►  febrero (20)
    • ►  enero (5)
  • ▼  2012 (203)
    • ►  diciembre (10)
    • ►  noviembre (36)
    • ►  octubre (32)
    • ▼  septiembre (28)
      • COMING SOON
      • 674. REDS (1981)
      • 742. Le Declin de l'empire americain/The Decline o...
      • 777. Bull Durham (1988)
      • 908. Secrets & Lies (1996)
      • 747. A Room with a View (1986)
      • 36. NAPOLEON (1927)
      • 676. Tre fratelli/Three Brothers (1981)
      • 783. A Fish Called Wanda (1988)
      • 672. Chariots of Fire (1981)
      • 849. Aileen Wuornos: The Selling of a Serial Kille...
      • 715. Beverly Hills Cop (1984)
      • 746. Down by Law (1986)
      • 902. DEAD MAN (1995)
      • 718. Stranger Than Paradise (1984)
      • 709. Narayama bushi-ko/The Ballad of Narayama (1983)
      • 920. Boogie Nights (1997)
      • 757. Yeelen/Brightness (1987)
      • Three Years Later...
      • 889. SAFE (1995)
      • JARMUSCH HAT TRICK - Coming Soon
      • 809. Say Anything (1989)
      • 702. Terms of Endearment (1983)
      • 585. Celine et Julie vont en bateau/Celine and Jul...
      • 734. Sans toit ni loi/Vagabond (1985)
      • August 2012 Recap
      • 763. Withnail and I (1987)
      • 804. Do the Right Thing (1989)
    • ►  agosto (17)
    • ►  julio (17)
    • ►  junio (33)
    • ►  mayo (30)
Con la tecnología de Blogger.

Datos personales

Unknown
Ver todo mi perfil