Drama > A Drama

Anna and the King personal view

Advantages: Great storyline, fantastic acting and good action shots
Disadvantages: Will not please die hard King and I fans

...Killers) - Jodie Foster as Anna Leonowens (Panic Room, Contact, Nell, Silence of the Lambs) The Film is based on the diaries of Anna Leonowens, who died in Canada, Quebec from a stroke in 1915. I think this is better than the original (King and I) despite my fondness of musicals. The acting is superb and there is a huge cast of extras. I can't imagine how difficult this was to make a film with the costumes (that are superb) and locations involved. ...
...Fiesty teacher, recently widowed who travels to Siam to teach the children of King Mongkut. There she learns that Siam is very different from all that she knows back in England. The film is set in the 1860s and the relationship between the Teacher and the King develops from a cold respect for each others values, into a love interest/ sparring contest. Chow Yun-Fat is magnificent in the title role of the King and plays a philosophical Ruler with ...

clairec73 09.12.2004 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: somewhat helpful
Review of Anna And The King (DVD)

Worth Watching for the Gorillas and Scenery!

Advantages: Wonderful acting and amazing scenery
Disadvantages: Sad

...spends weeks looking for the gorillas but having no luck. On another tracking walk she falls into a pile of fresh poo and is shocked when she learns it is from a gorilla and she stumbles upon a large family of them living near by. Dian then spends hours each day sitting watching the gorillas and studying their behaviour and tries to edge closer so she can become part of the group. After ages sitting with them the baby gorilla finally comes over and ...
...no dodgy backdrops used. The gorillas were amazing in the film and by them being with humans we were able to get a better idea of the sheer size of the silverbacks. I enjoyed the animals more as they were all real and only in a few places were special effects used for closer work which was not noticeable by me but hubby did point this out to me. I enjoyed the way it was based true events and the life work of Dian Fossey, she really did lead an extraordinary ...

sewbizzie 05.03.2009 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Gorillas In The Mist (DVD)

Bad Education

Advantages: Amazing storyline
Disadvantages: in Spanish with subtitles (although that is an upside to some)

This is an amazing film, maybe one of the best by the great director Pedro Almodovar. Gael Garcia Bernal's performance is outstanding. The film is funny yet dark and takes you on a great cinematic journey. The story is amazing and you will not be satisfied until you see the end. Although the film deals with many serious issues such as drugs and child abuse, Almodovar is able to being comedy to the whole recipe. The film is in the original Spanish ...

Cristina.M 06.05.2008 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful
Review of Bad Education (DVD)

Almodovar's Most Complete Collection

Advantages: Witty and Insightful Drama
Disadvantages: Certainly not for subtitle-o-phobes!

...includes recent work such as Bad Education. Pedro Almodovar's work is mainly in Spanish, and although well subtitled, is very fast-moving and would not be suitable for non-Spanish speakers who dislike or are unaccustomed to subtitles. His subject matter is often very challenging, and would not be suitable for those who are uncomfortable with themes exploring gender, sexual relations, the psychology of violence, suppression or sex, or questioning ...
...comfortable with exploring these difficult themes, Almodovar offers a casket of wonders, with his witty and insightful blend of drama: juxtaposing the fantastical with the vulgar. He keenly picks apart the complicated psyche of those who become social outcasts, and unabashedly offers backgrounds which demonstrate the almost linear qualities of his character development. This collection of films is a brilliant, inventive and moving exploration of ...

loobylane 14.02.2006 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful
Review of Bad Education / Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down / Live Flesh / All About My Mother / Talk To Her (Almodovar Box Set) (DVD)

Almodovarian madness

Advantages: Totally bonkers, but in a good way
Disadvantages: Not for those who like a film to make obvious sense

...thinking, 'what?!?' That is exactly what I thought when I first started watching the film. However, having already seen another film directed by Pedro Almodovar, Volver, I knew enough to keep watching. And although the film continues along the same mad vein, it is strangely watchable and very very entertaining. And even though it was made back in 1985 and is full of very dodgy clothes and wallpaper, it doesn't seem at all dated. Gloria is played ...
...we are - this is what the film is about, but again, it isn't really addressed. The whole film is like a mad soap opera, such as Eastenders, where everyone is in and out of everyone else's house, there is no privacy, and everyone's lives are intertwined with everyone else's. I have read that the point Almodovar was trying to make is that this is the state of the working class, always trying to make ends meet and never getting any privacy. I personally ...

sunmeilan 28.03.2008 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of What Have I Done To Deserve This? (DVD)