Smoke (R) 6.0

Smoke (1995): A Brooklyn smoke shop is the center of neighborhood activity, and the stories of its customers. (7.4)

Director: Wayne Wang and Paul Auster
Writer: Paul Auster
Stars: Harvey Keitel, William Hurt and Giancarlo Esposito

Uh, if this was supposed to be funny, it wasn't even all that humorous. If it is supposed to depict the inner good of people ... this is just politically correctness gone too far and trying to show everything is honky dory and everybody is just getting along. Really? In Brooklyn, NY? Yeah, right. Tell me another one. I've been in various places in NYC enough times to know that people are not at all like that and this movie is just wishful thinking high on a shot of stupid. Even the actors are sometimes smirking at the absurdity of the dialog. I guess, most people see this as a new kind of a Christmas tale or something, but for me it is just lousy storytelling. My Rating: 6.0

Chunhyang (R) 7.0

Chunhyang (2000) 춘향뎐: Mongryong marries the beautiful Chunhyang without telling his father, the Governor of Namwon. When his father is transferred to Seoul, Mongryong has to leave Chunhyang and finish his exams. (7.1) 

Director: Kwon-taek Im
Stars: Hyo-jeong Lee, Seung-woo Cho and Sung-nyu Kim
Language: Korean (w/ English subtitles)

The movie is presented as an 18th century period story plus the narration given by a modern-day stage actor/storyteller. The 18th century tale, seen through today's eyes, examines the disparity between those who are born into the power and wealth and the peasant-folks. The abuse of power and the traditional hierarchical value systems are examined along with the powerful love story. The period costumes, sets, locations and the cinematography are quite stunning. The parallel, documentary-style, story is the depiction of one man on a stage with a lone drummer bringing the old legend to life in front of an audience. (I think, a lot of eastern cultures have that tradition.) My Rating: 7.0

Adjustment Bureau (PG-13) 7.5

The Adjustment Bureau (2011): The love-affair between a politician and a ballerina is affected by mysterious forces keeping the lovers apart. (7.1)

Director: George Nolfi
Writers: George Nolfi (screenplay), Philip K. Dick (short story "Adjustment Team")
Stars: Matt Damon, Emily Blunt and Michael Kelly

Do you believe in fate, that your path in life is set no matter what you do? In particle-physics-sense I do believe that the "free will" is over-rated. [Aside: We are--and everything else is--made of blobs of matter that's made of simple particles. There are rules for interactions between any two particles and therefore between any two or more blobs. So, in a larger sense, given a set of particles and a set of initial conditions, what happens next is ... given!] But the atheist in me says that there is no "controlling legal authority" (or a controlling super-being) that's winding the clockwork for the universe. So either way, the premise of this story is very intriguing to me. The movie is a sci-fi without all that movie special effects getting in the way of a good storytelling. I loved it. And, in today's political climate, that opening sequence is brilliant. The casting is super. My Rating: 7.5

The Butterfly (PG) 7.0

The Butterfly (2002) Le papillon (original title): All Julien (Michel Serrault) wants to do in his old age is collect and preserve butterflies. But when a woman (Nade Dieu) and her 8-year-old daughter Elsa (Claire Bouanich) take residence in his building, his world opens up for good. (7.1)

Director: Philippe Muyl
Writer: Philippe Muyl
Stars: Michel Serrault, Claire Bouanich and Nade Dieu
Language: French (w/ English subtitles)

A feel-good movie about an inter-generational connection between an old man a young child. The story is quite simple, but the way it is presented holds the drama. There is a hint of a back-story to the characters, but not much is explained. The cinematography and the selection of locations is quite nice. As the young child Bouanich gives a very good performance without being overly sweet. My Rating: 7.0

The Thin Red Line (R) 7.0

The Thin Red Line (1998): In World War II, the outcome of the battle of Guadalcanal will strongly influence the Japanese advance into the Pacific theater. A group of young soldiers is brought in as a relief for the battle-weary Marines. (7.5)

Director: Terrence Malick
Writers: James Jones (novel), Terrence Malick (screenplay)
Stars: Jim Caviezel, Sean Penn and Nick Nolte

To me, this story is about the horrors of war presented as a free-flow stream of fragments about various characters in the group. I was mostly fascinated by the deaths all around and various people's reactions to facing death. The lack of a strong coherent storyline kept me fading in and out my own ideas of tactics of war and why I would embrace the death in each and every scenario. Having seen Malick's other free-form movie "A Tree of Life" I can say that I'm not a big fan of that style. If he really wanted to present the "war is hell" idea in that perspective, he could have, should have, used both sides of the conflict for the purpose. In this movie, however, the Japanese soldiers are still the enemy. Are they not soldiers like the friendlies, with the same hopes and dreams and fears? Yeah, I can see why this is a different kind of a war movie, but I'm not overly impressed by the storytelling (or lack-thereof). My Rating: 7.0

The Penitent Man (PG-13) 7.0

The Penitent Man (2010): The Penitent Man tells the story of psychologist Dr. Jason Pyatt, a man devoted to his work - a man torn from his family. With his struggling marriage and mounting bills, Jason is at a crossroads with the life he has chosen and the life he could have. (4.3)

Director: Nicholas Gyeney
Writers: Nicholas Gyeney (screenplay/story), Trevor Tillman
Stars: Lance Henriksen, Lathrop Walker and Andrew Keegan

This is a thinking-man's Sci-Fi movie. It doesn't have great special effects or sci-fi-esque good vs evil battle sequences. What it does have is a well-thought-out story without gaping holes. It makes you think about the consequences of time travel at two different end-points. The low score on IMDB means that most reviewers there are too dumb to understand the complexities of a movie like this, or they are just too lazy to think for themselves. I liked the fact that the movie is a sci-fi and it makes sense (ie: doesn't insult the audience's intelligence). Yes, some jokes are a bit corny, but hey, you can't have everything. My Rating: 7.0

The Meaning of Life (R) 7.5

Monty Python's The Meaning of Life (1983): The comedy team takes a look at life in all its stages in their own uniquely silly way. (7.5)

Director: Terry Jones
Stars: John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Graham Chapman, Terry Jones, Michael Palin

Well, you have to like this type of wacky humor to appreciate this movie. And, you have to watch it several times, and maybe with the subtitles on, so you understand all the lines, find new angles, etc. It is great satire. For a silly comedy with no redeeming value (or so you'd think) the final scene and the Galaxy song truly and honestly tell you the Meaning of Life. Yes, if you check your faith-based belief systems at the door, those two actually do make a lot of sense. My Rating: 7.5

Frida (R) 7.5

Frida (2002): A biography of artist Frida Kahlo, who channeled the pain of a crippling injury and her tempestuous marriage into her work. (7.3)

Director: Julie Taymor
Writers: Hayden Herrera (book)
Stars: Salma Hayek, Alfred Molina and Geoffrey Rush
Wikipedia: Frida

The surrealist painter Frida Kahlo's life is beautifully (and painfully) portrayed in this moving and artistic movie. Salma Hayek is absolutely brilliant in bringing to life the controversial character of the artist. Kudos to the director and the cinematographer for using some of the paintings and bringing them to life in the movie. The storyline is quite true to the colorful real lives of artists Kahlo and Diego Rivera (yes, I had to look them up; isn't it good to learn a thing or two from a movie about real life figures!) If the movie didn't use some of the art, it would have been a tragedy. The way they used the paintings is superb; I loved it. This is a movie I will watch again. (The next time, I will watch it with Spanish dialog and English subtitles on.) My Rating: 7.5

The Ledge (R) 8.0

The Ledge (2011): A police officer looks to talk down a young man at the ledge of a high rise, where he has one hour to contemplate a fateful decision. (6.4)

Director: Matthew Chapman
Writer: Matthew Chapman
Stars: Charlie Hunnam, Terrence Howard, Patrick Wilson, Liv Tyler

The story here is not what it seems on the surface. (My initial interest in this movie was because that "being on the ledge" is one of my 14 selected {ahem} "methods," but this movie isn't a suicidal rant.) It brings out quite a few very intelligent conversations about what it means to be evangelical, atheist, gay, straight, addict, faithful, loyal, family, etc. Each character brings out very complex situations and evokes varying emotions. The acting is a bit weak at some places, but I can get past that because the themes are very strong. Yes, I know, lots of "god-fearing Americans" (whatever that may mean to you) may not like the story. But, this movie will question what your faith really is. This is a thinking-man's movie. I highly recommend it, but be sure to bring your open mind. My Rating: 8.0

Photographing Fairies (R) 6.5

Photographing Fairies (1997): Photographer Charles Castle is numbed with grief following the death of his beautiful bride. He goes off to war, working in the trenches as a photographer. Following the war and still in grief Charles is given some photographs purporting to be of fairies. (6.8)

Director: Nick Willing
Writers: Chris Harrald, Nick Willing and Steve Szilagyi (book)
Stars: Toby Stephens, Emily Woof and Ben Kingsley

I am fascinated by the main character's fascination of the fairies as the afterlife. The story shows that one man's grief with the death of his beloved wife has no boundaries. I liked the period costumes and the uniqueness of the storyline. What I like the most are the end scenes. Yet throughout the movie, I failed to put myself in the main character's frame of mind until that "end." It is that detachment and the typical British mumble-speak (at times) that makes me lower my score. My Rating: 6.5