Just thought I'd share a word about some of the movies I've been watching as of late. I'll leave the heavy-lifting of movie reviews to others (one can always read the Amazon.com reviews). I'll just say that while each of the following movies is unique in its storyline, each is graced with uncommonly wonderful cinematography and outstanding scores/soundtracks (I'm a sucker for a great score/soundtrack).
1. Bon Voyage - (2004) French movie w/ English subtitles - Very funny French movie set in WWII France as it is about to fall to the Germans. The movie stars Gérard Depardieu and the absolutely lovely Isabelle Adjani.
2. Goodbye, Lenin - (2004) German movie w/ English subtitles - The movie is worth watching if for nothing more than its score. I actually bought the score immediately after watching the movie. The Amazon.com review explains the movie better than I: "The movie starts in East Germany before the fall of communism; our hero, Alex, describes how his mother, a true believer in the communist cause, has a heart attack when she sees him being clubbed by police at a protest. She falls into a coma for eight months--during which the Berlin Wall comes down. When she awakens, her fragile health must avoid any shocks, so Alex creates an illusive reality around his bedridden mother to convince her that communism is still alive."
3. Gosford Park - (2004) British movie - "The Academy Award winner for Best Original Screenplay, Gosford Park is a whodunit as only director Robert Altman could do it. As a hunting party gathers at the country estate, no one is aware that before the weekend is over, someone will be murdered - twice! The police are baffled but the all-seeing, all-hearing servants know that almost everyone had a motive."
4. Love Actually - (2003) British movie - So many plot lines, so little time. Great soundtrack, huge cast - Hugh Grant, Liam Neeson, Colin Firth, Keira Knightley, Emma Thompson, Laura Linney, Rowan Atkinson, Martine McCutcheon, Alan Rickman, etc. Basically, love takes many forms, we never know where we'll find it or what we'll do with it when we do find it.
5. Monsieur Ibrahim - (2004) French movie w/ English subtitles - Omar Sharif plays a wise Muslim grocery store owner in 1950s Paris who befriends a unhappy teenage Jewish boy, eventually adopting him. The director, François Dupeyron, does an exceptional job of capturing the "real" Paris.
Oh yeah, and Garden State is awesome...
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