‘The Matrix Reloaded’ Download and Reviews

November 24, 2009 by Paul Wall  
Filed under Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

“The Matrix Reloaded” Movie Details

The Matrix Reloaded tagline: Free your mind.
The Matrix 2 - DVD Cover

The Matrix Reloaded DVD Cover

Actors:
  • Kelly Butler
  • Keanu Reeves
    Laurence Fishburne
    Carrie-Anne Moss
    Ray Anthony Power Station Guard
    Christine Anu Kali
    Alima Ashton-Sheibu Link’s Niece
    Helmut Bakaitis The Architect
    Steve Bastoni Soren
    Don Battee Vector
    Monica Bellucci Persephone
    Daniel Bernhardt Agent Johnson
    Valerie Berry Priestess
    Ian Bliss Bane
    Liliana Bogatko Old Woman at Zion
    Michael Budd Zion Controller
    Stoney Burke Bike Carrier Driver
    Ice
    Directors: Andy Wachowski and Lana Wachowski IMDB Rating: 7.1/10 out of 140,571 votes

    “The Matrix Reloaded” Movie Review

    “The Matrix 2″ Plot Summary

    Neo and the rebel leaders estimate that they have 72 hours until 250,000 probes discover Zion and destroy it and its inhabitants. During this, Neo must decide how he can save Trinity from a dark fate in his dreams.

    The best film of the season!

    Almost all of my friends and other people claimed that this film isn’t worth to see and it’s very, very bad movie. But I think ‘Matrix. Reloaded’ is excellent and I like it more than 1st part. Great music, great philosophy, great special effects! After watching I felt that the world had changed around me and I could never be the same. I’m waiting for next part with impatience

    The only I don’t like in this film – when Zion’s people are dancing into their temple. This is very ugly and disgustful. And I can’t understand why the creators of 2nd part put this scene into the movie.

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    ‘The Passion of the Christ’ Download and Reviews

    November 11, 2009 by Paul Wall  
    Filed under Drama

    “The Passion of the Christ” Movie Details

    The Passion of the Christ tagline: By his wounds, we were healed.
    The Passion - DVD Cover

    The Passion of the Christ DVD Cover

    Actors:
  • Lucio Allocca
  • Rosalinda Celentano
    Sergio Rubini
    James Caviezel Jesus
    Maia Morgenstern Mary
    Hristo Jivkov John
    Francesco De Vito Peter
    Monica Bellucci Magdalen
    Mattia Sbragia Caiphas
    Toni Bertorelli Annas
    Luca Lionello Judas
    Hristo Shopov Pontius Pilate
    Claudia Gerini Claudia Procles
    Fabio Sartor Abenader
    Giacinto Ferro Joseph of Arimathea
    Olek Mincer Nicodemus
    Sheila Mokhtari Woman in Audience
    Old Temple Guard
    Directors: Mel Gibson IMDB Rating: 7.1/10 out of 83,044 votes

    “The Passion of the Christ” Movie Review

    “The Passion” Plot Summary

    A film detailing the final hours and crucifixion of Jesus Christ. add synopsis

    Amazing film on multiple levels.

    Mel Gibson has done the impossible. He has created a tale of the Christ that works on three separate levels

    As a spiritual message, the film is overwhelming, bringing tears of renewal to the believers in the audience. Even if you are not a believer, though, I still think there is something in this for you

    As an historical observation, the film is brilliant, depicting the social and political dynamics of the Romans and Sanhedrin with clarity and accessibility. This is the most believable interpretation of what happened to Christ, and although I knew the story going in, I found myself getting caught in the narrative, hoping someone would realize that this was an innocent man and that the persecution would stop

    Finally, as a work of art, this film is unparalleled. Mel borrows from the works of Caravaggio, Puntarmo, Michelangelo and Leonardo et. al., as well as the Medieval Passion Plays. As one who was made to study this in college, it all came back to me in a graphic context, with production design so amazing that it felt like I was going back in time, that I was seeing Jesus and Pilate and Peter and Mary

    This film will rock your world, and that’s an understatement. One of the most beautiful films I have seen.

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    ‘Tears of the Sun’ Download and Reviews

    October 8, 2009 by Paul Wall  
    Filed under Action, Drama, Thriller

    “Tears of the Sun” Movie Details

    Tears of the Sun tagline: He was trained to follow orders. He became a hero by defying them.
    Tears of the Sun - DVD Cover

    Tears of the Sun DVD Cover

    Actors:
    Bruce Willis Lieutenant A.K. Waters
    Monica Bellucci Dr. Lena Fiore Kendricks
    Cole Hauser James “Red” Atkins
    Eamonn Walker Ellis “Zee” Pettigrew
    Johnny Messner Kelly Lake
    Nick Chinlund Michael “Slo” Slowenski
    Charles Ingram Demetrius “Silk” Owens
    Paul Francis Danny “Doc” Kelley
    Chad Smith Jason “Flea” Mabry
    Tom Skerritt Captain Bill Rhodes
    Malick Bowens Colonel Idris Sadick
    Awaovieyi Agie Musa
    Akosua Busia Patience
    Hadar Busia-Singleton Amaka
    Ida Onyango Lasana
    Directors: Antoine Fuqua
    IMDB Rating: 6.4/10 out of 30,931 votes

    “Tears of the Sun” Movie Review

    “Tears of the Sun” Plot Summary

    Bruce Willis plays a Special-Ops commander who leads his team into the jungle of Nigeria to rescue a doctor played by Monica Belluci who will only go with them if they agree to rescue 70 refugees too.

    One of the best

    This is by far one of the best movies I have ever seen in my life. This movie draws you in; you get scarred for the characters and hope for the defeat of the villains. This is one of those rare moments where you forget that your watching a movie.

    I really think that this was the best movie of 2005. Bruce Willis does a great job but the breakout artist is Monica Belluci. The fact that she is possibly the most beautiful woman alive doesn’t hurt in attracting you to this film.

    The first part of the movie is the character of Bruce Willis’ dilemma of committing to duty or doing the right thing. We get to see him and Monica Belluci’s struggle to trust and understand what it is they should do. The second part of the movie is a good 30 minute fighting scene that keeps you wondering which of the good guys will day. This is the best movie.

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    ‘The Matrix Revolutions’ Download and Reviews

    September 2, 2009 by Paul Wall  
    Filed under Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi

    “The Matrix Revolutions” Movie Details

    The Matrix Revolutions tagline: Everything that has a beginning has an end.
    The Matrix 3 - DVD Cover

    The Matrix Revolutions DVD Cover

    Actors:
  • Nona Gaye
  • Carrie-Anne Moss Trinity
    Hugo Weaving Agent Smith
    Keanu Reeves Neo
    Mary Alice The Oracle
    Tanveer K. Atwal Sati
    Helmut Bakaitis The Architect
    Kate Beahan Coat Check Girl
    Francine Bell Councillor Grace
    Monica Bellucci Persephone
    Rachel Blackman Charra
    Henry Blasingame Deus Ex Machina
    Ian Bliss Bane
    David Bowers Q-Ball Gang Member #1
    Zeke Castelli Operations Officer Mattis
    Collin Chou Seraph
    Essie Davis Maggie
    Laurence Fishburne Morpheus
    Zee
    Directors: Andy Wachowski and Lana Wachowski IMDB Rating: 6.5/10 out of 115,873 votes

    “The Matrix Revolutions” Movie Review

    “The Matrix 3″ Plot Summary

    The human city of Zion defends itself against the massive invasion of the machines as Neo fights to end the war at another front while also opposing the rogue Agent Smith.

    Amazing movie in my opinion – hated and not understood by many

    Matrix Revolutions is deliberately constructed as a puzzle in which you have to work out the complete picture for yourself. It contains some fundamental questions of philosophy, a war story of a hopeless struggle against the machines who besiege Zion and it comes to a conclusion which is not understood by many viewers. The philosophical questions are answered (e.g. some choices lead to a string of consequences which may often appear as predestination), the war scenes in Zion are overwhelming and the final scenes depict the reestablishment of harmony between body, mind and soul. The absence of this harmony being one of the major reasons for conflict and war

    The Wachowski brothers did also make some mistakes when designing Matrix Revolutions:- Scenes like the train station take a bit too long although they contain important hints for the story that is about to unfold. This way the movie loses pace at times. Some viewers also felt that the war in Zion occupies too much space – but come on, this is mankind’s last stand so this fight is bound to have epic proportions.- The Wachovskis do NOT explain their story design and its implications. Viewers are expected to figure it all out for themselves. This is simply rejected by many people who -not without any justification- expect to be told a little more what the plot is all about instead of following hints in dialogues and imagery.- The philosophy is often criticised as basic. But the questions raised are fundamental by nature: choice vs. predestination, harmony of body, mind and soul, do humans define themselves through suffering etc.. Furthermore, how should machines completely understand deep mythology and philosophy of humans and depict that convincingly in their artificial construct known as the Matrix? The stereotypes in the Matrix (e.g. the Merovingian) are to me a natural consequence of machines trying to reproduce human myths and ideas

    But the negative points of Matrix Revolutions are by far outweighed by the positive aspects of the movie:- There is a colour code in all Matrix movies. Blue is the physical world, green represents mind/rationality and bright yellow or white stands for the soul of a being. All scenes in the real world have a blue hue, the Matrix is always somewhat green and e.g. the machine city, many images of the sentinels and the power lines from the fields where humans are grown – they are all coloured in bright white or yellow. This represents the separation of body, mind and soul which is overcome only in the final scenes of Matrix Revolutions where all colours are mixed in the sky’s clouds – this is by the way the contribution of Sati to the revolution/recreation of the (new) Matrix.- The connection of the real world and the Matrix is the spirit or soul the machines acquire from the humans. Programs and machines now have emotions and feelings (remember the parents in the train station?). Even Agent Smith has some twisted soul. Neo can feel and manipulate the spirits of simple machines but he has significant difficulties to handle more complex machines like sentinels. Similarly, Agent Smith has to struggle hard to control the human called Bane who becomes schizophrenic in that process.- The energy which the machines drain from the humans is not so much physical or electrical power but mental energy (soul). Like the Architect said in Matrix Reloaded when Neo claims that machines need humans to survive: ‘There are levels of survival we are willing to accept!’. So the machines tap into the souls of humans in order to get something their human creators could not grace them with: a real soul and real feelings. The machines are, however, willing to sacrifice these gifts in order to ensure their mere physical survival. It is quite an amazing outcome of the Matrix storyline: humans exist only because they are useful – they provide real feelings and emotions for the machines and they can even be used to control rogue programs in the Matrix which challenge the existence of the Matrix itself (Neo is used as a carrier for life-force in order to overcome Smith who represents death).- Neo has to finally realise that only his own sacrifice can end the conflict between machines and humans. He has to accept his evil twin brother Smith and reunite with him in order to become complete. This resonates with Asian Yin-Yang philosophy.- The Oracle has an interesting role. Neo has become too powerful even for Agent Smith and his duplicates. So the Oracle merges with one of the copies of Agent Smith in order to create the one copy of Agent Smith with enough power to really challenge Neo. It is the Oracle’s deliberate sacrifice which finally leads to the death of Neo while he reunites himself with his evil opposite Smith – Neo has to realise that he cannot win against Smith and instead of continuing the final fight with Smith he chooses to sacrifice himself in order to end the war and the domination of the Matrix by Smith

    Sadly it’s impossible to provide guidance for understanding the Matrix Trilogy without spoilers. The Wachovskis made some mistakes by not involving their audiences in the plot developments. They kept their ideas to themselves and only provided hints for the viewers to make their own discoveries. I was quite pleased by the challenges provided in getting a (rather) complete understanding of the Matrix Trilogy. But I can also imagine that many viewers were lost in the process and did not find the whole exercise worthwhile. As you might guess by now, I recommend that those who dislike Matrix Revolutions give this amazing movie another chance. I sincerely hope that my comments open up some new perspectives on a film trilogy that blended Sci-Fi, action and philosophy in such a brilliant and innovative way.

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    ‘The Private Lives of Pippa Lee’ Download and Reviews

    August 24, 2009 by Paul Wall  
    Filed under Drama, Romance

    “The Private Lives of Pippa Lee” Movie Details

    The Private Lives of Pippa Lee tagline: The life you love may be your own.
    The Private Lives of Pippa Lee - DVD Cover

    The Private Lives of Pippa Lee DVD Cover

    Actors:
    Robin Wright Penn Pippa Lee
    Mike Binder Sam Shapiro
    Alan Arkin Herb Lee
    Winona Ryder Sandra Dulles
    Ryan McDonald Ben Lee
    Cornelius West Don Sexton
    Maria Bello Suky Sarkissian
    Arnie Burton Doctor
    Tim Guinee Des Sarkissian
    Drew Beasley Chester Sarkissian – Age 6
    Madeline McNulty Young Pippa – Age 7
    Beckett Melville Chester Sarkissian – Age 13
    Zoe Kazan Grace Lee
    Billy Wheelan Waiter
    Shirley Knight Dot Nadeau
    Directors: Rebecca Miller
    IMDB Rating: 6.7/10 out of 1,979 votes

    “The Private Lives of Pippa Lee” Movie Review

    “The Private Lives of Pippa Lee” Plot Summary

    After her much older husband forces a move to a suburban retirement community, Pippa Lee engages in a period of reflection and finds herself heading toward a quiet nervous breakdown. add synopsis

    Many roles, one good performance

    Robin Wright Penn first became famous for a starring role in a soap opera, ‘Santa Barbara.’ And here she is 25 years later in another one, made for the silver screen this time. Though this movie is from a novel by the director Rebecca Miller (who’s playwright Arthur Miller’s daughter) and adapted by her, it’s very much material for a soap of the old ‘Valley of the Dolls’ variety with desperate housewives, impossibly rich adulterous husbands, mysterious sexy losers, drugs, changed names, a shifting cast, people running off to begin a new life, and so on

    The cast is intriguing. ‘Race Matters’ author Cornel West and Monica Belluci appear in minor roles; doubtless other celebs are hidden here or there, and the venerable Shirley Knight plays a senior citizen neighbor. Maria Bello (replacing Maggie Gyllenhaal, who dropped out) plays a drug-addled mother in turbulent flashbacks; Winona Ryder (whose personal history is interesting, if not her acting) is a disloyal friend in the present when Pippa has been married for 25 years to a prominent publisher (Alan Arkin). In Seventies clothes, Julianne Moore (in flashbacks) is a lesbian who shoots bondage and discipline photos. Keanu Reeves is the mysterious sexy loser. Reeves, which may surprise some, gives the movie’s only interesting performance, one that’s subtle, understated and complex, that implies more than it says. All the others parts are written and acted to scream more than signify. Every so often Reeves does something like this. Why not more often?The flashbacks are in three segments: dysfunctional childhood; runaway dissolute youth; run-up to marriage. The young Pippa is played by two younger actors. When Penn’s costumed and made up in flashbacks to look young, she’s almost unrecognizable as the person in the present. Pippa’s father, with the strange and unexplained name of Des Sarkissian (Tim Guinee), is a minister. Over time, Pippa discovers that her devouring mom is a suburban speed freak; the daughter is the slave to her mother’s mood shifts and must run away. When she does she never goes back, but becomes a drug user herself, though the only scenes dwelt on are of a transitional time with an aunt((Robin Weigert), who turns out to be Julianne Moore’s lover — who, incredibly, is surprised to discover Pippa’s being posed in the B&D photos at the apartment. Finally the flashbacks reach the point where Pippa, now a pseudo-bohemian with weird hair and artistic clothing, is taken up by Herb (Arkin), discovered living in a modernistic white mansion by the sea and wearing a hair piece; he’s about 55, Pippa 25. He wants to get rid of his wife (Bellucci) but he doesn’t have to: she offs herself in front of them (and guests, and the cook, watching from the kitchen) at the lunch table. Some of the party scenes at the seaside pad, more languid than this moment, almost evoke Fellini. Belluci has replaced Ekberg, and we’re outside Stanford, not Rome

    Robin Wright Penn, poor thing, has said in an interview, breaking into tears, that this is the most meaningful role of her career. This is because she feels her character is depicted in so much detail. But this is naive. With good writing and acting, a character can be richly shown in scenes set over a few hours or days, while a turbulent back story can provide distraction without enlightenment. None of the lurid blasts from the past shed any particular light on Pippa’s present except to say that sometimes women with messy beginnings wind up in conventional and relatively serene marriages. All those melodramatic and colorful scenes mean nothing: they add no insight into the characters. With all the flashbacks, nobody seems real. How Pippa got to be in her present state of sedated uxoriousness with a feisty 80- year-old, what her 25 years of marriage to him were like, raising two grown children, Brian (Ryan McDonald), a young lawyer, and Grace (Zoe Kazan, Elia’s granddaughter), a photojournalist working on the front lines: or all this little is said, and less shown

    If this movie had a heart, it would be the present-time dying marriage with Herb (Arkin), whose heart is in shaky shape, though his ego is as robust as ever. At the outset the couple has just moved to a posh Connecticut retirement compound because Herb has recently had three heart attacks. Arkin has his now familiar feisty manner, but his character, still apparently active in publishing even nearing 80, is less simplistic and caricatural than the grandpa in Little Miss Sushine. There are signs that Herb may be losing his marbles, but it turns out to be Pippa who’s sleepwalking — and, new thing, sleep-driving her car to a convenience store where she’s rescued by Chris (Keanu Reeves), 35- year-old son of Shirley Knight and staying with her after a meltdown in his life out West. A gentle relationship with Chris develops. He’s a somewhat crudely limned Jesus figure, with Jesus actually emblazoned all over his (surprisingly flabby) chest, and a failed attempt to become a Jesuit in his background. But despite these outlines, his understated performance makes him the only person capable of surprising us

    This movie reminded me of the late Walt Stack, longtime president of San Francisco’s Dolphin South End Runners Club. ‘You’ve got to hand it to us turtles,’ he used to say at the start of a race. ‘We’re the ones who make you hotshots look good.’ You’ve got to hand it to lousy movies like ‘Pippa Lee’: watching them makes you appreciate the good ones.

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    ‘The Brothers Grimm’ Download and Reviews

    August 8, 2009 by Paul Wall  
    Filed under Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy

    “The Brothers Grimm” Movie Details

    The Brothers Grimm tagline: Eliminating Evil Since 1812
    The Brothers Grimm - DVD Cover

    The Brothers Grimm DVD Cover

    Actors:
  • Richard Ridings
  • Monica Bellucci Mirror Queen
    Petr Ratimec Young Will
    Barbora LukesovГЎ Mother Grimm
    Anna Rust Sister Grimm
    Jeremy Robson Young Jacob
    Matt Damon Wilhelm Grimm
    Heath Ledger Jacob Grimm
    Radim Kalvoda Gendarme
    Martin Hofmann Gendarme
    Josef Pepa Nos German War Veteran
    Harry Gilliam Stable Boy
    Miroslav TГЎborskГЅ Old Miller
    Roger Ashton-Griffiths Mayor
    Marika Sarah ProchГЎzkovГЎ Miller’s Daughter
    Mackenzie Crook Hidlick
    Bunst
    Directors: Terry Gilliam IMDB Rating: 5.9/10 out of 40,482 votes

    “The Brothers Grimm” Movie Review

    “The Brothers Grimm” Plot Summary

    Will and Jake Grimm are travelling con-artists who encounter a genuine fairy-tale curse which requires genuine courage instead of their usual bogus exorcisms.

    Brothers Grimm awake your worst childhood nightmares.

    I am surprised to find that this movie is so utterly underrated here. I have grown up on those tales, and I must say, Terry Gilliam really portrayed the worst of all the stories ever scripted by the Grimm Brothers. The plot itself is quite uncomplicated: the two Grimm Brothers travel around the land, pretending to fight evil spirits and witches they make up. The people are relieved and pay well. However, after their trick is found out, the only way they can regain their freedom is by encountering and fighting a true witch in a haunted forest that makes me shudder even as I think of it right now (no kidding). And believe it or not, Monica Bellucci is simply horrifying as the evil queen nurturing herself on the dead bodies of little girls of the village

    The toad showing the directions is plainly hilarious

    The gingerbread man is a blood-thirsty alternative for Shrek’s pal

    I think that everyone complaining about Grimm Brothers should stop and think that this is a generally not very twisted version of what kids get to read or what is read to them at a very-very young age (at least here in Europe). I think Brothers Grimm is, apart from being a really intriguing and spectacular horror movie, a very well-made and intelligent satire on the Grimms’ ‘children bedtime’ stories. Brothers Grimm is one of its kind.

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