3DD!3

After seeing Death Proof, I said to myself that Quentin should have a crack at the Basterds, but I really didn’t expect him to react to my words. But it was a good decision and I can just say: “I’m happy. Good old Quentin is back." The dialogs deserve a chapter to themselves. Tarantino really enjoys himself and the Germans turn into a band of blabbering catchphrase mongers. The same applies to Pitt’s Apache Aldo and to all of them, in fact (yes, Diane Kruger too). Til Schweiger plays the role of his life (I bet his character was originally written for Schwarzenegger). But it’s mainly Christoph Waltz who gives an acting recital, and he literally shines throughout the movie and I think an Oscar nomination is essential. Melanie Laurent absolutely buries Uma Thurman and Kill Bill. Her revenge is far more punch and emotions can be wrung out by the gallon. The climax of the movie is the first chapter which is a western set in World War Two. The atmosphere can be cut with a knife and the unknown actors are completely at one with their characters. And the music by Ennio Morricone sends chills down the spine and the story takes you off into movieland. Beautiful. P.S.: The trailer gives a false impression. It’s more or less only about chapter two. But the main story takes place in the other chapters. Unexpected. P.P.S.: And who didn’t notice that S. L. J. talks about how flammable celluloid is.

Romero transposed some pulp horror stories, by master of the genre Stephen King, to the silver screen. Five tales from the world of dread and horror is peppered with King’s wacky ideas and black humor. At some points I felt disappointed that King hadn’t published them in book form. It would have been a delicious read. Maybe the publishers will get their act together some day and publish the original comics in this country (Czech Rep.). The first tale Father’s Day is special for Ed Harris (with hair!), excellent makeup and rather unusual reason why the deceased father leaves his place of eternal rest for a last bite to eat. 90% The Lonesome Death of Jordy Verrill brings us Stephen King in the role of a farmer/retard Jordy who, after a meteorite is discovered, starts turning into a... 85% In Something to Tide You Over we meet a wicked Leslie Nielsen who makes two lovers drink sea water. 85% The Crate offers a teacher a way out of a difficult situation. 75% They're Creeping Up on You, for me the most terrifying story, is about a rich man obsessed with cleanliness under attack by vengeful cockroaches. 85% All of the stories are linked by a really nice story about daddies, pulp horror comic books and a voodoo doll.

I’m being really kind with those three stars. Boring, boring, nothing, beautiful countryside and a nicely croaky Vin Diesel. Oh yeah, and Michelle Rodriguez makes a two-minute appearance in a swimsuit. OK, so it’s just a pre-movie, but is it too much to ask to have at least one car chase in this short? They had the cars for it.

Who was the good guy and who was the bad guy? Who made a mistake and who didn’t? Politics is a dirty game and journalism is too, mostly, and when good people get involved with either of them, it changes them, usually in the worst possible way. That’s more or less what this outstandingly acted detective drama is all about. Crowe gives a standard performance and Ben Affleck is getting better and better. The only thing I don’t understand is the Czech title of the movie. This movie certainly isn’t destined for slaughter.

Pretty good. Back to the Future inside out, with a hole instead of a DeLorean. It also seems to me that Efron must be somehow related to M. J. Fox, the resemblance is uncanny, or was it just the similar plot? Perry also is nice to see. Otherwise, the good scenes balance out the bad ones, but I had more fun than not, so thumbs up. I was expecting it to be a bigger heap of nonsense.

Another excellent episode of Columbo that adds an interesting TV studio setting to its usually high standard.

A very successful adaptation of Clarke’s book. At the same time, it’s very hard to compare both movies (2001 and 2010) because they are both filmed in a completely different way (some people would certainly like to stone me to death for giving them the same amount of stars). While in the first one, the secretive Kubrick was more interested in presenting mysticism, the down-to-earth Hyams put his money on action, and that was a good choice (you simply can’t compete with a giant such as Kubrick, so you have to take a different path). Such a lot happens in the movie and it is pretty impressive visually. But the screenplay, where the story is set in the Cold War, in today’s world just isn’t so powerful. Clarke was much more forward-thinking. Oh, and one more thing, Roy Scheider is certainly a better Floyd that William Sylvester. Kuritsa.

Maybe not as hypnotizing as Apocalypse Now, but still very good. Stone decided to have a crack at the much filmed Vietnam war and built this story about a new recruit (the excellent Charlie Sheen) who arrives in that hellhole, full of idealism. What Platoon stands on are breathtaking shots, first-rate action and acting performances of all those involved. Not just Sheen, but also the excellent Willem Dafoe deserves a special mention and also the slightly twisted Tom Berenger. We even get a brief glimpse of Johnny Depp in one of his first parts, so keep your eyes peeled.

The chase begins. A white 1970 Dodge Challenger hurtles down a scorching highway and, on the way to California, the story of the driver of this white tiger in the scorching desert is revealed to us. The time when this movie was made was a time of great music, wonderful girls and a world that was only just beginning to be bound by rules and regulations. Vanishing Point is a very weirdly, but also a very originally told story. Sarafian has an amazing eye for choosing camera angles and almost every shot of the highway with the white tiger hurtling down it is breathtaking. While watching the movie, I started toying with the idea that I would get my hands on a 1970 Challenger and (what with today’s gas prices) convert it to run on hydrogen. Then I’ll be able to make road trips to anywhere I like.

Action Man dolls fighting. It’s stupid, unbelievable, illogical and also really entertaining. Sommers may not be as good at action sequences as Bay, but still your eyes will be out on stalks: during the Star Wars battle under the sea, during the chase through Dejvice [a district of Prague] (excuse me, through Paris), during the duel with samurai swords, during the totally dumb lines that the Czech dubbing improved in translation. Quaid is cool, Tatum a chump and Arnold Vosloo a nice guy. It’s no surprise, having watched the trailers, that Rachel Nicols and Sienna Miller cause much drooling. And even Fantomas makes an appearance. Don’t take G.I. Joe at all seriously, it’s just an expensive commercial for toys. What the?!