elie-fares16's Reviews

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)

7/10

The Hobbit: An Enjoyable Yet Disappointing Journey

12 December 2012

Warning: Spoilers

Q: What do you, as Hollywood, do to a movie series that has garnered tremendous commercial success and massive critical acclaim? A: You revisit it. Of course.

The Hobbit will surely be a massive commercial success. But it won't garner any significant awards like its Middle Earth predecessors, which are its successors story-wise. The Return of the King has won a record 11 academy awards.

Set prior to the events of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Hobbit, their prequel, follows the story of Bilbo Baggins, Frodo's uncle, as he travels with a group of dwarfs who, with the help of Gandalf the wizard, will try to recuperate their kingdom Erebor from a dragon named Smaug that has overtaken it many years prior.

Peter Jackson, who also directed the Lord of the Rings trilogy, uses state of the art technology in shooting the movie.The first cinematic feature to be shot in 46 frames per second, The Hobbit is visually stunning to look at. The art direction is impeccable. The colors feel richer and the scenes crisper to look at. The movie's dwarfs, orcs, goblins and hobbits are, of course, superbly executed. The battle scenes are gripping set-pieces. The locations in New Zealand, similarly to its predecessors in the series, chosen to shoot the movie are absolutely breathtaking, making for a Middle Earth that still feels enchanting although it's not as absorbing as the one we had in the previous three movies.

At a running time of almost three hours, The Hobbit sports many side-plots that don't serve the main story at all – and all these side-plots are dragged out in extensive scenes that only serve to increase the movie's length without offering anything in value to it. The overall results becomes an overly stuffed movie that could have had so many absolutely useless moments removed, making the overall product tighter and more polished. Alas, that is not the case. Instead, you get prolonged long shots of our heroes as they travel through mountains, hills and lakes with many seconds and minutes added to scenes that have already ended for an extra artistic effect such as taking the camera slowly upwards to capture the head of a statue while the movie's protagonists stand under it. It could be this overly slow pace at times that takes away from the movie's grandeur and from the story's spine.

What you are left with is an enjoyable movie – but nothing that reaches the levels of epic that oozed from every single moment of The Lord of the Rings. What you get is a movie that, while it manages stands on its own, can't escape the comparisons from much worthier predecessors. The overall tone of the series has also changed into something less dramatic at times and more comical. That's not necessarily a good thing.

The movie's best scene, which, unlike many other moments, stays true to its equivalent in the book, is the first encounter ever between Gollum and Bilbo Baggins which grips at you and doesn't let go. It doesn't disappoint. And even though that scene's outcome is already known, the emotional aspect that's portrayed by a brilliant Andy Serkis as the emaciated hobbit Smeagol (Gollum) who's even better than in Lord of the Rings and a great Martin Freeman (Baggins) still manages to resonate and pack a punch. That riddles game is just too good on paper not to be good cinema. And how could anyone resist my precious?

As the movie ends, Bilbo Baggins says "I do believe the worst is behind us." I certainly hope that the upcoming two movies are better – but I'm not holding my breath. The problem is that the story on which this movie is based is not substantial enough for it to be turned into three movies. The add-ons which were brought from other Tolkien-related books aren't giving the story depth but making it feel bloated. Some single sentences in the book were turned into full- blown scenes. The end result can be explained in the following way: The Hobbit is like an overly stuffed and overly cooked meal that you love. You can't help but compare it to previous times when the meal wasn't as stuffed and overcooked. And once it's done, it leaves a bitter aftertaste that you can't shake off. But there are still some bites there that make you go: man, this is good. It's a damn shame.

6.5/10

You can find my review at stateofmind13.com as well.

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My Last Valentine in Beirut in 3D (2012)

1/10

A horrendous cinematic massacre

29 November 2012

"This movie is for serious and smart people only" said the marketing tag-line. Then by all accounts, I'm a stupid person who knows nothing of seriousness. My Last Valentine in Beirut is not a movie. I have no idea what to make of it actually. It's a horrid mess. It's a nauseating spectacle. It's a disgustingly bad atrocity. It's a jumble of scenes with no apparent link between them except a quest to build up into a running time of approximately 80 minutes. Meet Juliette, a whore in Beirut. Meet a movie director and his assistant wanting to make a movie about Juliette. That's basically the entirety of My Last Valentine in Beirut for you. There's no depth in the movie. Not one bit. The characters are as flat as a board. The storyline – or lack thereof – is so void that you shouldn't even attempt searching for anything in it. The jabs at Lebanese society are delivered by the characters turning to face the camera – there's not even one hint of subtlety anywhere. The movie takes cheap shots at other Lebanese movies such as Caramel, Bosta and W Halla2 la Wein which by all accounts are much, much better than this mess. Juliette's attitude, obviously hyperbolic, becomes more than grating at points. The point of this being a critique of Lebanon today becomes entirely detached from what's happening on screen that any message the movie tries to pass feels forced especially as the last scene rolls around and you start wondering how the movie got to the conclusion it tries to bring forth with its obvious lack of build up towards anything mentally stimulating.

The absolutely useless 3D is only here for the extra revenue and it's so distracting at times that it visually hurts. Some camera angles, which are supposedly "artistic," don't make sense – even to someone like yours truly whose expertise when it comes to movies is restricted to being an enthusiastic viewer. Even the only sex scene in the movie is of such catastrophic execution that it becomes one of the movie's funniest moments. Those are not many.

You'd think that struggling Lebanese cinema would actually bother to come up with good enough movies especially with production being so scarce. But no, you get movies like My Last Valentine in Beirut which keep throwing one crappy scene after another at you in order to break the worst movie in history record, which is a shame really because the premise of a movie discussing prostitution in Lebanon is so dense that this movie, if actually done like a proper movie with a decent script, could have turned out well. Maybe. Who am I kidding. At some point during My Last Valentine in Beirut's rather short running time, I wished I was watching Breaking Dawn again. This was one of the worst movie experiences of my life. And that's not an easy feat at all. My Last Valentine in Beirut has shattered my faith in Lebanese cinema into so many little pieces that next time a non-Nadine Labaki Lebanese movie is released, I'll rely on other people going on a martyrdom viewing mission before I venture out.

Do not watch this. Even if your life depended on it. Even if your mother's life depended on it. You could use the $10 admission price in so many better ways, not to mention the time of your life you wouldn't have wasted trying to watch this cinematic massacre.

You can also find my review at: http://stateofmind13.com/

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The Hunger Games (2012)

8/10

May the Odds be Ever in the Favor of The Hunger Games

21 March 2012

Warning: Spoilers

For legions of people, The Hunger Games is the most anticipated movie release of the year. And for a movie released so early in 2012, that's saying something. Based on the book of the same title, The Hunger Games stars Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen, a sixteen year old girl living in a post-apocalyptic America where hunger and oppression ruled, where hunting for rodents was the way to keep your family alive and where every day represents a fight for your life.

This post-apocalyptic America is the country of Panem, governed by the Capitol which oversees twelve districts, making sure they are stripped down to the bare necessities. Those twelve districts had been thirteen that rebelled against the Capitol's oppression. They lost the war and are still paying the price, the heaviest of which is the annual Hunger Games which require each district to send a young man and woman, for a total of 24, to battle each other to the death. There can only be one victor. "May the odds be ever in your favor" is the sentence the tributes keep hearing as if odds will help them on the brink of death.

When her sister is chosen, Katniss volunteers in her place and is taken along with the male tribute of District 12, Peeta Mallark (Josh Hutcherson), to the Capitol where they are groomed like lambs for slaughter in an attempt to make an impression which can make it or break it for them once the games fall upon them. And fall they do, with devastating consequences.

To see the Katniss Everdeen of your imagination after reading The Hunger Games books be incarnated so perfectly on screen by Jennifer Lawrence is a joy to the eye. Lawrence struts through every scene as if she was Katniss and Katniss was her. She exuberates confidence, sentimentality, fragility, innocence, worry, love and pain. Widely known for her Oscar- nominated role in Winter's Bone, Lawrence is still in the same vein in The Hunger Games. This time, however, she manages to polish the sides of her performance, nitpicking until she truly becomes flawless. In Katniss, Lawrence gives you a heroine you want to root for with all your heart. It doesn't even feel forced, it's simply natural to feel invested in the primal force that Lawrence conveys to Katniss. And it is then that you realize the brilliance of Lawrence's Katniss. She has managed to make her character one that is driven by principle.

Director Gary Ross manages to not let the movie's extended run at 140 minutes affect it negatively. The Hunger Games doesn't let down. It keeps picking up, bring in gut-wrenching revelations and action sequences one after the other. Ross uses the action of the movie to serve the characters, not drown them. He keeps the suspense going throughout. His camera-work is also highly interesting, with lots of focus on his characters' faces, giving them a more humane appearance and seeing the struggles in them easily. Co-writing the movie's script with the book's author, Suzanne Collins, he stays true to the book's essence. Even though some sequences have been shortened and some have been omitted, the feeling of the book remains there, present for you throughout to sink your eyes into.

At the center of the deathly games is a growing love triangle between Katniss, Peeta and Gale (Liam Hemsworth), a friend of Katniss from District 12 who's lucky enough not to have been chosen as tribute. Liam Hemsworth quickly establishes himself as a forceful character, with the limited screen time he gets. Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) is highly relatable as the man secretly crushing over Katniss whose only memory of him is him helping her in a time of need. But the greatest triumph in this regard for The Hunger Games is focusing less on the love triangle than other movies targeting the same audience, making you really not care about either Team Peeta or Team Gale. At the end of the day, the only team you want to be on is the movie.

The Hunger Games is an unflinching adaptation of Suzanne Collins' book. In many ways, the book was more suited for a screen adaptation because it is that fertile for the imagination. The movie does not falter. It's a more serious movie than many might think it could possibly be. It is gut-wrenching at times and heavily sincere at others. It takes you on a roller coaster ride that you never want to let go of. In fact, not wanting to let go is most evident when, after 140 minutes, the movie suddenly ends and you remain in your seat wanting more. Fans of the book, rejoice. The Hunger Games does not disappoint at all. It's a haunting tale that, coupled with a chilling score by James Newton Howard that serves as a brilliant auditory backdrop the darkest of scenes, will leave you mesmerized by how real it feels and how good it turned out to be. May the odds be ever in favor of The Hunger Games.

For my full review, you can go to this link: http://stateofmind13.com/2012/03/22/the- hunger-games-movie-review/

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Mirror Mirror (I) (2012)

8/10

A refreshing take on the infamous story of Snow White

17 March 2012

Warning: Spoilers

2012 can definitely be considered as the year of Snow White. The story has two movies coming out this year, one of which is Mirror Mirror, and a TV series, Once Upon a Time, by the creators of Lost no less.

This adaptation of the infamous fairytale strives to balance comedy with drama - it seeks out light-hearted moments and intersperses them among the storyline's darker elements, giving a rather refreshing approach to the story we all know.

The movie starts with the Evil Queen (Julia Roberts) telling what she calls her story of which the little girl, whose skin is white as snow and hair dark as night and so called that pompous obnoxious name, Snow White, is of little importance. As Snow White grew and her father, the king, realized he was unable to teach her everything she needed to know, he decided to remarry. The king was bewitched by the dazzling beauty and charm of a woman - the Evil Queen compliments herself plenty - and marries her. But a dark magic sweeps the land and the king is forced to go save his kingdom, never to be seen or heard from again.

As Snow White grows, the Evil Queen tries to keep her at bay, safely tucked away at the castle. But the Evil Queen knows that there will come a time when Snow must do what snow does best and Snow must fall.

Julia Roberts is riveting as the Evil Queen. Even though the movie is not really her story, she manages to make it all about her and she pulls it off remarkably. Whenever she's on screen, she dominates - be it with her charm or uncanny ability to fool you with an innocent looking smile. Julia is a major contributor to Mirror Mirror's two faces. She can be hilarious at times and downright chilling at others. In fact, the moment the credits started rolling, the people I was watching the movie with were positively surprised that Julia Roberts had it in her to portray an evil role. Even the comic relief moments she introduces here and there are of evil nature. For the doubters about Roberts' ability to portray the Evil Queen, you will be impressed.

The rest of the cast, even Snow White (Lilly Collins), do very well with the characters they're given. Those that are asked for seriousness are serious and those from whom comedy is required are often hilarious. Acting-wise, Mirror Mirror is simply charming and fun to watch, especially with the interactions of Snow White with the Dwarfs or the Evil Queen with her minion.

The interesting thing about Mirror Mirror is that it doesn't go along the typical Snow White storyline we've all known. The whole poisoned apple storyline is downplayed, the Evil Queen doesn't want to kill Snow White because of her ethereal beauty but because she got active in the affairs of the kingdom. The band of dwarfs, usually thought as kind, happy or grumpy or sleepy or whatever their names are, are not like that at all in Mirror Mirror - they are a band of thieves who pry on unsuspecting strangers passing along their path. These little detours from the fairytale we've all memorized are what keep Mirror Mirror an interesting movie to watch.

Mirror Mirror is a fun and entertaining movie, be it with its plentiful humor, Julia Roberts' sarcasm, Lilly Collins' innocence or Prince Alcott's (Armie Hammer) facial expressions. As the title implies, the movie has two sides: one is comedy, the other is a fairytale and both work really well together. The happy ending doesn't feel forced on it, the movie builds to it - what it doesn't build to, however, is that Indian dance scene it concludes with. But even that ridiculously out of place ending sequence cannot derail what is a strong movie from being bogged down. Even Game of Thrones fans will be surprised by a brief appearance of the series' most prominent characters and that's always a good thing.

7.5/10

My review can be found at this link: http://stateofmind13.com/2012/03/17/mirror-mirror- movie-review/

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Where Do We Go Now? (2011)

10/10

Beyond brilliant

21 September 2011

Lebanese cinematic talent has not been given much room to grow. In a country where art is the least concern, cinema has found it especially hard to take off. However, a stream of Lebanese movies has been finding its way to our theaters. Some like Nadine Labaki's previous movie, Caramel, were a huge hit with viewers. Others were not as lucky. But the fact remains that the Lebanese audience is hungry for movies that describe its society, its problems, its worries and woes.

And then comes Nadine Labaki's new movie: Where Do We Go Now, with its Lebanese title: W Halla2 La wein (also in French: Et Maintenant, On Va Ou?) The premise of the movie is quite simple – and for many Lebanese, worry-inducing for fear of overuse of clichés. The overall basis of the plot is the coexistence of Lebanese Muslims and Christians in one community, sometimes peacefully and other times not. Many, like yours truly, felt the issue was overdone. Maybe not in cinema but in everyday life. Most of us are sick of being bombarded with commentary about the struggles that face our very diverse community. But this is not the case in Where Do We Go Now.

An unnamed village during the later part of the 20th century has its only connection with the outside world in the form of a very rudimentary bridge, around which land-mines had been planted and never removed. Even TV reception is very poor to the village and the movie begins with a few youngsters searching for a broadcast signal to set up a TV night for the town-folks. This village is also a religiously divided community where the Church and the Mosque are only a house apart. And more often than not, the people live together happily. But as it is, and despite barely having any access to news from the outside world, the men of this village start to confront each other in violent ways. Little things that would pass unnoticed cause them to explode, signaling the anger they've been bottling in. And it is then that the few women of the village start to devise plots to keep the men busy, entertained and get their minds off being violent. These plans will vary from fake miracles to putting hashish in cakes. But these women will go to every measure possible and break every limit imposed on them by society to keep their town together. And it is for these women, representing a vast majority of our Lebanese mothers, that this movie is so aptly dedicated.

Nadine Labaki, director of the movie and starring as Amal, is astonishing as always. You, really, cannot see her eyes on screen and not be mesmerized. She's simply entrancing, even when she doesn't speak. Then how about when she delivers a tour de force performance as one of those women, who happens to be in love with a man from the town's other religion. But to be perfectly honest, the accolades one ought to give Labaki are not for her acting but for her directing. Never have I imagined a Lebanese movie can turn out this good and she makes it seem effortless. Her camera shots, her focus on details, her keen eye all of this combine to give you a cinematic experience that will entrance you. This movie, like Caramel, features mostly unknown faces and all of them deliver as well. It is hard to believe – and yet in retrospect so evident – that such acting can come out of common people that we all meet on the street.

Where Do We Go Now is a movie of such epic proportions that these "unknown" actors and actresses (mostly actresses) deliver performances that are so subtly nuanced, so exquisitely flavored and so astonishingly well-done that they would put the best actresses and actors of Hollywood to shame. Yes, I have said it. The score of the movie is chilling and haunting and wonderfully executed by Nadine's husband Khaled Mouzanar. The movie also features a few highly intelligent songs, written by Tania Saleh. And let's talk about the script. What an ingenious way to tackle the subject at hand. Not only did Nadine Labaki not fall to any cliché known to us as a Lebanese community, but she managed to introduce them in a subtle comical way that would make us laugh at ourselves for uttering or doing them in the first place.

The script is so strong it will turn you bipolar. Yes, lithium is advised to be taken at the door while going in. Why? Never have I laughed so hysterically one moment and just wanted to cry the other. And then after being utterly devastated, it brings you back to laughter. The movie plays with you like a ping pong ball. And you cannot but love every moment of it.

I was talking to my friend the day before we went to watch Where Do We Go Now, which happened to be the day it won the People's Choice Award at the Toronto Film Festival, and she said: "I'm very cautiously optimistic about this. I'm not letting my expectations overreach because I don't want to be disappointed." Well, I'm pretty sure she agrees with me on this: Where Do We Go Now brings out things in you that you didn't even know you had. It brings out the best in you, as a Lebanese, sitting in that cinema chair for ninety minutes. And you need the best of the best to do that. Nadine Labaki, you deserve more than the few minutes of applause the people in the movie theater gave you. You deserve a full blown standing ovation. You have done the impossible. Again. Lebanese cinema has no excuse but to overreach for excellence now. And this movie deserves an Oscar win. Cheers to our mothers.

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Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011)

10/10

The Movie Of The Year

14 July 2011

Warning: Spoilers

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, part 2 also known as the movie that tore my heart and soul into oblivion. If you thought goosebumps was the criteria for a good scene, then mix those goosebumps with emotional upheaval, coupled with your hands almost shaking and this is Deathly Hallows part 2 in its entirety.

Harry, Ron and Hermione are still on the pursuit to collect and destroy Voldemort's horcruxes. They believe the next one is hidden away in Bellatrix Lestrange's vault in Gringotts, the wizarding bank. But going into the bank is near impossible – unless you know a goblin who worked there, which they do. And so a deal is stricken. At Gringotts, they are discovered to be impostors. Hearts will race as they try to escape with the horcrux and as Harry soon finds out the next one is hidden inside Hogwarts and it's something that belongs to another founder of the school. And it is to Hogwarts that he goes. But Hogwarts has changed. Snape is the new headmaster.But there are many things that Harry doesn't know, the ultimate secret being one that revolves around his every being. Things are never as it seems. People will show their true colors and they will come out as triumphant even after years of hatred.

Dan Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson have done the impossible here. They are possibly the only set of actors that you have seen grow up on the big screen and as the actors grew up on a personal level, they added their maturity to their characters. It's very fascinating to watch them interact. Their acting is relentless, captivating and charming as it should be now that they have mastered the characters they're playing. You cannot imagine other actors portraying Harry and Ron or another actress to portray Hermione.

Alan Rickman and Maggie Smith as Snape and Professor McGonagall respectively gave their all in this movie. You cannot help but be on the edge of your seat whenever any of these two actors are doing their thing. Rickman has a part of the movie entirely dedicated to his character's personal story. It is also one of my favorite parts of the book. The Prince's Tale is transferred so magnificently on screen that it WILL bring you to tears.

Professor McGonagall takes a stand – several, actually – in Deathly Hallows as well. She stands up for a Harry and when she does, the whole theater will explode in applause. Maggie Smith fortifying Hogwarts and then cracking a joke to lighten up the mood Just the way I like it. You cannot but share the pain in Smith's eyes as she sees her beloved school crumbling around her, as she sees all the work that they've done go to waste

And what better actor to portray this generation's most bad-ass villain than Ralph Fiennes. He gives his character an extra dimension in this movie now that he has the room to spread his wings so to speak, seeing as he's one of the movie's main pillars. Lord Voldemort is all evil. But in this movie, another side of him shows up: anguish and misery. And yet, there's this subtlety to the nuances of the portrayal that make up the overall result to be very epic, indeed.

Steve Kloves is the movie's screenwriter. He captured the movie's essence perfectly. He presented J.K. Rowling's work in such a brilliant way that even the slight deviations from the book (and they are very few) do not even matter anymore. He portrays the gravity of the situation to the letter: the deaths, the destruction, the revelations, the build-up. His version of the story is so well done that it would be incredible not to see an Oscar nod (and a win!) for him in the Screenplay category. He added his touch while keeping Rowling's magic. Some of the lines from the book are transferred to the movie as they are and for someone who has read the book over and over again, I was ecstatic to hear them on screen. "Look atme." Enough said.

Director David Yates has helmed the last four Potter movies and while I had my doubts about him at first (Order of the Phoenix was not exactly great), he more than surpassed my wildest expectations in this. The pace he sets for the movie never dies down. It keeps on building up and up like a beautiful orchestral crescendo. He guides his actors and actresses with confidence. He's working with a marvelous script based on a terrific book. And he has the green light to give it all out. What do you expect from a very talented director with those options? Something not less than magical.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 provides you with a sense of catharsis as it ends. It lets your senses go. It lowers your inhibitions more than alcohol. You cannot help but see your hands automatically clap at some points in the movie. You shout in desperation without even controlling your voice and you root for your characters like they're really in front of you. Tears flow down your face without any power of you to stop them. There isn't any better way to end the epic series that was Harry Potter. If only it weren't ending

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Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (2010)

10/10

Brilliant. Best Harry Potter movie of the Franchise, yet.

17 November 2010

I went to this movie with high expectations. I had read reviews saying that the movie can be divided into 3 parts where the middle one is kinda boring. So I went in hoping that wasn't true and I was not disappointed. The whole movie just works - and it follows the book so closely, I couldn't help but be happy throughout. If you're an avid Harry Potter book lover who has been terribly disappointed by the way the movies only use the crux of the books, then this movie is for you. It literally starts almost the same way book 7 starts: "The two men appeared out of nowhere.." And it progresses in a way that's almost the exact same way it goes in the book except for a few things they removed to help in the progression of the story and some things they added to make the viewer understand what's going on. A friend of mine went in with me having not watched any Harry Potter movie. And after the question or two of "what is a horecrux" and "who's this" she got into the movie and now can't wait for part 2. This is the best one in the Harry Potter franchise so far. I give it a 10 because I love Harry and because this is one of my favorite movies this year. You should definitely go watch it!

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