Pixies - Club Date: Live At The Paradise In Boston (DVD)

Paradise is...?

Advantages: Quirky, surprisingly intriguing
Disadvantages: Not exactly a flattering portrayal of the Fins!

quite similar in that it focuses on very ordinary people and their very ordinary lives. There is absolutely nothing outstanding about Nikander. Played by Matti Pellonpaa (who also starred in Tatiana), he is a greasy, lank-haired man who says very little - partly due to shyness, partly because he has nothing of interest to say. Yet, there is something about him that makes his predicament intriguing viewing. Perhaps it is the idea that this man could represent any one of us and, by seeing him finding his paradise, it gives hope to the rest of us. Whatever the reason, I found myself rooting for him all the way through the film. Ilona is played by Kati Outinen, a popular Kaurismaki actress who, like Pellonpaa, also starred in Take Care of Your Scarf, Tatiana. Ilona is a hard-faced woman, who finds herself forced to use people just to get by in ...

sunmeilan 29.08.2009 · Read full review
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Review of Shadows In Paradise (DVD)

Paradise Now on DVD

Advantages: Superb acting; low key realism; Lack of prejudice
Disadvantages: None (unless you hate reading subtitles)

Every now and then a movie will sneak up and catch you by surprise. So it was for me with Paradise Now, a film I knew nothing about, other than a website blurb about two potential suicide bombers. Co-written and directed by Hany Abu-Assad this is a story set within the West bank in Palestine, with two friends, Said and Khaled, being offered their chance of martyrdom (hence 'Paradise Now') by carrying out a suicide mission in Tel Aviv. Both the men react to the invitation with a mixture of relief, confusion and elation, though it is Khaled who seems the happiest to grab the chance. Said is more thoughtful, altogether darker, about the whole affair. But they are both ready, and then readied after a blackly comic filming of their martyr speeches, as they have their hair shaved short, and bears shaved off, to make them look more ...

blackpuddinonnabike 14.04.2008 · Read full review
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Review of Paradise Now (DVD)

Living In Oblivion review

Advantages: Well acted, keeps you engaged throughout
Disadvantages: None

Living In Oblivion is a low budget independent film written and directed by Tom DiCillo and starring Steve Buscemi and Dermot Mulroney. Sure, these aren't A-list stars, but that lends itself to the story. If it was a film about the making of a film and you had George Clooney and Brad Pitt pretending to be small time actors you wouldn't believe it. That's why it was better to use less well known actors, it pulls you more into the story. The film takes place during one day on set of a low budget movie, and documents all the problems that the director, Nick (Buscemi), and everyone else can encounter, from equipment malfunctioning to office politics to actors forgetting their lines. It's almost like a documentary, it is very realistic and gives you the complete story as to what it's like trying to get a film made. There are a few ...

Walter_Kovacs 30.01.2009 · Read full review
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Review of Living in Oblivion DVD