Tag: 2008 movies

FilmLeave a comment

In Hollywood where all the lights are low and truth’s as rare as the winter snow

Dan Seeger

The Bucket List (Rob Reiner, 2007). When I write these “catch-up reviews” posts, I present the films strictly in the order I watched them. That’s not the case with Rob Reiner’s latest, however. As I perused my list, I realized that I had neglected to write about this at the point I watched it. I offer this piece of information not because the inside details of my methodology are especially scintillating, but because it ably illustrates that this film is completely forgettable. Jack Nicholson plays his stock character: the careening, carousing, glinting little devil. Morgan Freeman plays his stock character: … Continue reading In Hollywood where all the lights are low and truth’s as rare as the winter snow

Film2 Comments

I’ll have to follow the way what I was wont to say

Dan Seeger

Years ago, when I started dispensing my smart aleck movie opinions across the central Wisconsin airwaves, I decided on an evaluative approach that entailed treating each film entirely as its own entity. I made no assumption that viewers would go into the average new release with a full working knowledge of the filmmakers involved, so it made sense to me to do the best to set aside my own preconceptions. Though done with the best intentions, that methodology proved to be extremely difficult, unduly limiting and, frankly, not all that much fun. It was more interesting to consider, say, Martin … Continue reading I’ll have to follow the way what I was wont to say

Film1 Comment

I wanna see movies of my dreams

Dan Seeger

Man on Wire (James Marsh, 2008). In 1974, tightrope walker Phillippe Petit recruited some accomplices and strung a cable between the two towers of the World Trade Center. He then walked out on it, performing a feat of jaw-dropping daring some 110 stories above the crowded pavement. Marsh’s riveting documentary combines old footage, new interviews with key participants and spare reenactments to fully convey the colossal tension of the act and the freewheeling fearlessness that drove Petit to do it. Petit, naturally, is the film’s greatest asset, spinning stories about his bygone triumphs with an enthralling enthusiasm. If he doesn’t … Continue reading I wanna see movies of my dreams

FilmLeave a comment

Everybody says they want a million bucks but I’d rather have a million days with you

Dan Seeger

Ever since director Danny Boyle trained his camera on Ewan McGregor and his blokes racing through the streets, it’s been clear that he’s a relentless visual stylist. Boyle is feverishly interested in finding new, dynamic ways to tell stories through … Continue reading Everybody says they want a million bucks but I’d rather have a million days with you