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daviddiamond
Reviews
Tron: Legacy (2010)
Three movies in one; but unbalanced.
Tron: Legacy (2010) was really three movies in one:
(1) For the box office, draw, it was a good-vs.-evil action movie.
(2) For those who grew up with the 80's style arcade games, it was a good tribute to that type of arcade. It also has appeal to the more recent cyberspace, matrix and computer geek crowd.
(3) At its deepest level, Tron 2010 was an exploration of applied Zen. If this theme had been woven equally with the other two themes, it could have been a ten-star film. Unfortunately, the glitz and action so dominated, that most of the viewers barely took notice of what, IMHO, the movie was really about. There were a couple of strong allusions to living outside of the matrix, to meditation, "listening to the sky" and "listening to the sound", and to taking oneself out of the equation. Near the climax, what was intended to be the understanding of total responsibility for one's reality, non-judgmentally accepting the projection of one's thoughts and consequences, and (much like the theme of Dark Crystal), becoming one's greater self by merging with one's alter ego, was overshadowed by the escape drama. The dissolution of a reality of one's own creation (which is nothing real anyway; just a matrix) and of one's self, which is inconsequential from an enlightened perspective, seemed in the movie to be more of a noble, self-sacrificial act.
All in all, Tron Legacy had the great potential to contrast and integrate every day drama and action with transcendental consciousness. It fell flat, though, giving only lip service to its deeper level, failing to balance the intended themes.
Premonition (2007)
Brilliant! Logically developed! Some viewer background helpful.
Great movies are few and far between. "Premonition" is one of the greats.
But not for everyone.
The acting was exquisite. The screenplay excellent. The plot unfolded logically and understandably. The ending was appropriate.
The plot was easy to understand for someone with the right background and metaphysical understandings. It would be difficult to follow for someone who is embroiled in everyday, common, causal perceptions such as Monday's following Sunday, single time-stream reality, and abdication of one's personal co-creation of reality.
On the other hand, for one who has thought about branching and cyclical time-streams, non-contiguous or non-sequential time (or at least the illusion of time), or perhaps has read Richard Bach's books "One" and "Bridge Across Forever", and who has pondered the variations and integrations of free-will and determinism, and how much or little one could change the future if one could see the future, then this movie will be one of the best movies that he or she could imagine.
This story is also about how attitude, love and relationships are the true essence of life, regardless of the surrounding external events.
Some of the write-ups billed this movie as a "psychological thriller". Although my wife and I normally avoid thrillers, we were intrigued by this film's possibilities, so we saw it anyway. It exceeded our expectations! Most movies are simple, predicable plots variations on any of a number of human clichés. This movie was a refreshing change, well worth the price of seeing it in the theater. Although quite intense, "Premonitions" dealt with spirituality, relationship development, and complex metaphysical concepts.
Lady in the Water (2006)
How to watch "Lady in the Water"
How to watch "Lady in the Water" This was one of M. Night Shyamalan's best movies. My wife and I absolutely loved it.
We were both wondering why the movie received so many poor reviews. We didn't expect much from the professional critics anyway, but M. Night's direct panning of the critics cinched that. It is understandable that he feels the way that he does about the critics, and that he expresses that in the movie. We have also found that viewers, in general, vary widely in their ability to appreciate and/or understand movies that do not fit a standard mold, or movies that present concepts, assumptions or states of consciousness, outside of typical, everyday experiences.
The movie is perfectly what it is. It is not a horror film designed to be as scary or gory as a chain-saw massacre, although there is enough suspense and danger to create a riveting tension. It is not a chase movie designed to hold your attention with non-stop action. It is not a real-world drama that has rigid requirements for believability. It is not designed to be a comedy, although it certainly has enough humor to keep a lightness about it. It is a story. It is a story about a story, which is the story. It is a bed-time tale, carefully balanced using feedback from the children for whom it was written.
Nor is the movie an ego-trip, as some reviewers suggested, designed to portray M. Night as savior of humanity. He is simply casting himself into the role to which he relates and aspires most closely. Many of us day-dream of being able to do more for mankind, and to invest the time and energy to effect positive changes. M. Night shares that dream, but also realizes that the true activist for change faces grave dangers, and must be willing to accept them and proceed anyway.
This movie is a work of art, and must be viewed as such a dynamic play of composition, motion, relationships, and unfolding "reality" and understanding a little bit at a time. It is a bedtime story, and must be viewed as such; it is to be experienced though the innocence and openness of a child. It is a mystery, with enough complexity and twists to actively engage and deceive the audience until its conclusion. It is a celebration of rich diversity of ethnocentricity and personality, which M. Night highlights through his delightful caricatures. It is a celebration of community, where each person has a special role to play in the synergy of the whole. It is a study of fear, hope, error, danger, courage, strength, faith and resolution, and hope for the future.
M. Night Shyamalan tells us how to understand the movie throughout, with his metaphors of film critics, of repressed talents, of cookies & milk, of story, of Story, of community, of misinterpretations of relationships & roles, of prophecy, and of gradual piecing together of a larger understanding.
"Lady in the Water" is a totally enveloping experience, containing all of the support needed to bring the viewer into its alternate reality. But in order for that magic to happen, the viewer must suspend existing beliefs, concepts and expectations, and experience the movie with total openness.
Peaceful Warrior (2006)
Don't just watch it. Take it with you into your everyday life.
This movie is a must-see! We all know about the miraculous transformations and connections created by our being totally focused in the present moment and releasing all attachments and thoughts.
Or at least our mind *thinks* it knows.
The movie "Peaceful Warrior" takes us on that difficult journey, and makes it real. The fact that it is a true story makes it even more inspirational.
This movie is not just about the journey of one gymnast, but, rather, about every moment and activity, special or mundane, of each of our lives.
Bin-jip (2004)
3-Iron Analysis
3-Iron Analysis (spoiler) This is not another review. There are sufficient reviews already. This movie was a deep, sensitive, imaginative masterpiece, and I glad that I saw it. Fortunately, the trailers did not warp it into a thriller or emphasize violence, or I would have skipped the movie and missed a special experience.
Tae-suk lives life vicariously, scooping up and assimilating the experiences and relationships of families and individuals with varied lifestyles, talents, and living situations. It is a precarious game, but it is Tae-suk's reality, and he accepts it without fear and without being dissuaded by close calls and dangerous encounters.
Tae-suk is basically a good person, intent on doing what he can to repay for the bit of life, memories and lodging that he borrows from others. However, he cannot escape the karma of his actions, and he accepts those results completely, often cheerfully.
Tae-suk is a deeply internal person, and always true to himself. Thus he would not think of fabricating a story to turn around the situation with the man who died of lung cancer to his advantage. He simply flows with the unfolding of the Tao. (That is part of my own interpretation of the movie).
Tae-suk is a free, uncontainable spirit. Incarceration is but an opportunity for him to develop and refine that aspect of consciousness, perception and ability that is uniquely him. He is totally true to his personal reality, which is a sort of game that he plays in his manner of interacting with the realities of others. That development takes him in the direction of Shao-lin type skills, which are the perfect extension of his own mode of being and perceiving.
It is not untypical for martial artists to choose non-sharp, everyday objects as their respective weapons of choice. In ancient days, that might be a walking staff. In contemporary society, perhaps a 3-iron. (I just hope that no one gets the idea from this movie to try it). I am not a golfer, but I gather that the 3-iron is a seldom-used club for driving the ball hard, level, and with precision, for short-range distances. Even when used with a tethered ball, its power cannot always be controlled. There is always the possibility that it will get out of control, as when Tae-suk hits a car and kills a woman. This is a metaphor for Tae-suk's well-meaning style of life. Of course, he would not have driven the ball toward the car, had his reality not been complicated by extending to a real relationship, which kept standing in the way of ball's intended direction.
One, also, cannot use a weapon, or interact with another life-stream, without occurring karma. Karma is not a bad thing; it is a teaching agent. Out of emotional involvement, Tae-suk maims Sun-hwa's husband, and thus Tae-suk must also experience the opposite end of the action by himself being the object of a golf-ball attack. Tae-suk accepts that karma, and still retains the 3-iron as his martial arts weapon, staying true to his life-style and personal reality.
Tae-suk's lack of tolerance for abusive people is an admirable conviction. The way it affects him, though, is one of his few character flaws. In two instances, that of Sun-hwa's abusive husband, and his own abusive prison guard, Tae-suk is violently vengeful.
For Sun-hwa, Tae-suk's reality is a positive alternative to her empty, abusive marriage relationship. Tae-suk is kind, genuine, integris, protective, and loving. His adventures are far richer than the confines of a suburban definition of paradise.
In the end, Tae-suk develops a deep, more permanent, love relationship with Sun-hwa, but in keeping with whom he is, a perpetually precarious and dangerous one. The game and the allure have risen to a higher level.
- David D.
The Stepford Wives (2004)
Delightful satire. The entire audience laughed out loud.
The 2004 Stepford Wives is a delight! This is one of the few movies we have seen where the audience laughed aloud throughout the movie. That is even more exceptional because we saw it at the Ritz, which is an upscale, yuppie, adult, artsy movie theater.
We are fortunate that we did not read too many of the critics' reviews, which could have diverted us from a wonderful movie.
We normally do not like comedies; we find them too silly and slapstickish. But this one hit its mark in so many places. It was a spoof, first of all, on the original Stepford Wives, with some contemporary issues thrown in. It busted on reality shows, on career women, on male egos with inferiority complexes, on surface religious tolerance, on acceptance of gays, on gay relationships, on politicians, on marketing, on sci fi, and on community leadership.
The electrifying ending let the whole thing unravel, and delivered its serious message that imperfection is more interesting and more fulfilling than perfection and that pursuit of perfection is a form of madness.
And, of course, we loved the wrap-up cameo at the end.
- David & Irene