Recent Viewing Part IV

Loved that film, as I do most Emmerich spectacles (despite however ludicrous the concept is).

Too long and too rediculous for my taste. Characterization on the level of DuckTales. Emmerich overstepped the mark here imo.

The film is every kind of stupid but I did enjoy it. Where else can you see a plane in flight narrowly missing being hit by a subway train or a submarine crashing into Mount Everest.

I liked 2012, stupid fun but then again all Emmerich movies are as such.

For that latter remark, Sir, you deserve plaudits.

RV: Lincoln

Pretty hagiographical, but that's not very surprising for a president whose approval rating is steadfastily in the top 3 in history, even abroad. I very much enjoyed the film's focus on the political arena getting amendment 13 through (at points even remiding me of finer Westwing episodes), even if Lincoln's homelies do get a little tiring after a while (yeah, he has an analogy or anecdote for everything. He's just a simple guy doing the right thing. We get it.). Lincoln was -by all accounts- a superb politician, with the right word for the right people in the right place, and this versatility might have been a little bit more emphasised rather than this seemingly one-trick pony act.

Spielberg deftly sidesteps any melodrama in dealing with his mentally unhinged wife and his children (two of which had died by the timeframe of this film), and makes the film and portrayal stronger for it. In fact, the film steers very much clear from the -at times- overwrought melodrama that Spielberg tends to employ. I seldomly dislike it, but I appreciate him refraining from it.

The performances are simply stellar. Day-Lewis is superb in the title role, supported by a mesmerising Lee Jones.
But while this worked magnificently in bringing real tension and drama in the Republican camp, It might have worked even better if the Democrat side had similar powerhouse actors in key roles (although, to be fair, that would have been nigh-cameo bit roles.)

Williams' music is fine in context, but nothing I'd want to hear again away from the film...mainly because it seems to have been composed on auto-pilot, reaching the right major heights, blowing the right lone trumpet, putting the right crescendo all at the right place.
Nothing wrong with it. But nothing surprising either.

All in all, a very worthwhile few hours (it IS a LONG film) that actually had me grab for some books afterwards to read up on the politics and morals of that era.

@Martijn concerning the film
@Steven concerning the score.

V.

Thankyou thank you. I've been here all week... for the last 10 years or something.

I love BBC 4's music documentary's

MR BLUE SKY: THE STORY OF JEFF LYNNE

Great doc about a seriously excellent musician.

Well, how does the rancor in JEDI look, how do the fighting skeletons in JASON look? These films are all children of their time. For me it contributes to their charm.

Volker

The(y) ought to have feathers anyway.

Now I had to re-do my typo course only now I got your reply.

For anyone interested, here's DEBBIE WISEMAN choosing her top 8 pieces of music to take to a Desert Island.


DESERT ISLAND DISCS


For those who don't know, this is a long ( very long ) running BBC Radio show where celebrities, film stars, directors, musicians etc get invited on to choose music to take away to a desert island.

The original radio and television program was a classic example of how classical music was the soundtrack.
Tom

I just zapped into an episode of Midsomer Murders which is a very popular show here in Germany where it is called Inspector Barnaby. I was suprised to discover that the British PM David Cameron has taken over the leading part of the inspector.
I checked and found that Neil Dudgeon has succeeded John Nettles as the nephew of the original inspector. However, Neil Dudgeon does look like David Cameron. Apparently I'm not the only one who thinks so.

Volker