monte pictures newletter august

8/14/2019 Monte Pictures Newletter August

1/24

MONTE

www.mpictures.tumblr.com

The Need for

Special Effects

1990s:

From

Kathy Batesto Hannibal

Lector: Best

HorrorPerformances

of the Decade

Inside

In TheatersNow

Own it on

DVD

Movie

Reviews

FREE Newsletter


2/24

Table of Contents

Monte Pictures was originally founded by Javier Serrano in San Diego, California on February 4, 2007. Monte

Pictures is the subject to the founders passion: to establish a film company. At this time, Monte Pictures

runs independently through monthly newsletters composed by the founder Javier Serrano and his editor-in-

chief Julia Wieczorek.

2009 Monte Pictures Newsletter. We acknowledge all photographs are subject to their original owners.

Monte Pictures was created to express, entertain and educate members of Monte Pictures the variety of

film selections available. We do not sell our newsletters nor accept donations of any kind; we are neither a

corporation nor non-profit organization. Questions or comments, please email your inquiries to:

[email protected].

The Need

for

Special

Effects p. 5

Horror Performances of the 90s p. 7

Which is better for

foreign language

films, dubbing orsubtitles? p. 18

Entertainer of the Month:

Kristen Stewart p. 21

Movie Reviews p. 22

Coming Soon to Theaters p.2

On DVD p. 24

1997, Titanic 1996, Independence Day


3/24

ounders Message JAVIER SERRANOFOUNDERPlan for your life

Dont just let it happen

There is an element of truth that some people let life

happen to them. This statement is backed by the fact

that many people spend more time planning their

vacation than planning their life. The quest to

investigate this topic had great value but I feel its

terminology is incorrect. How do we plan a life?

Planning is a linear activity and life is full of twists, turnsand detours. We don't plan our lives as much as we

plan our day. Our day's plan is a result of a methodical

prioritizing of what is of value to us, with the

completion of the task as the end result.

My suggestion: We begin the process by identifying our journey. This journey is a process of

identifying who we are. For right brained thinkers, this is discovering our meaning and

purpose known as our personal mission. This is creative stuff requiring a search within the

heart and soul. Some ways to discover your mission is to ask someone to deliver your eulogy

at your funeral. What do you want the people at your funeral to hear about the way you spent

your life?

Nothing is ever accomplished without a solid plan. The things we have accomplished in life

whether it be the things we acquire or the things we desire all came to us because we had a

plan. Everything we have ever been or done was the result of a plan and putting that plan in

action. Think back for a moment on all of the significant and not so significant events of your

life. There may be a few events that were luck, but the majority of it comes from having a plan

and then going out there to accomplish it. If you want better things in your life, make a plan

on how to achieve it. You can be, do and have anything you want if you have a plan of how toobtain it. Think it through, and put serious thought into what you want for your life and then

set your plan in motion. Soon you will have all the things you desire.

You can be, do and have

anything you want if you have a

plan of how to obtain it.


4/24

Editors Messagejulia wieczorekeditor-in-chief

*Remember things. Showing you care enough to remember something important to someone

else, and for your career or education, really shows you are dedicated to learning. It also

shows you actually do care.

*Spend time on the important things. Dont forget there are other things outside of your own

little world, your own job and life. There are other people, activities and adventures that need

attention too. It is also important to spend time with yourself, time to relax.

*Dont take anything too seriously. It is important to stay focused on accomplishing goals butwith any ambition, there are setbacks, and if you let these actually set you back then you are

just hurting yourself. Remember to see the more positive side of things before giving-up.

*Dont give up. If you try your best, it shows, no matter what the outcome. Trying your best

leads to being the best.

If you want to be the best, you

must lose your mind

Have you ever wondered how to be the best? How to

be best at whatever it is you want to do, whatever you

want to accomplish? Well there are some steps that if

followed, can help anyone on their way to being the

best at what they do.

*Help others. This can be family, friends, neighbors,

strangers. Helping gives one a sense of worth and pride,

a selfless act can actually do wonders for the self. It also

creates a sense of responsibility in ones actions.

*Listen. Listen to yourself, what are you really trying toaccomplish? Listen to others, other people are walking

and living encyclopedias of knowledge unique to the

individual. They can offer advice. You can offer advice

back, expanding cooperation between people.

*Give and take. Dont always take from others, give in

return. Part of life is making lasting connections and

these must be maintained through being there for

others as they are for you.

~ julia wieczorek


5/24

The Need for Special Effects

New technological feats have rapidly

increased and enhanced the computer

technology in this modern digital age.

What I love about this modern day of

movie-making is films offer incredible visual

and realistic experience through the use of

special effects. For instance, Michael Bays

Transformers: The Revenge of the Fallen

(2009) is an example of a recent film which

totally relies on heavy destruction and a

space-age visual experience by special

effects in order to reenact realization. Such

demands and requirements for the use of

special effects are incredibly expensive and

often are too much to experience in the

theater, but it sure beats teens adrenaline

in their crave for more action and less

drama. Although, I am not a special effects

kind of movie-goer; however, I do have to

admit there have been many films I

enjoyed the use of special effects.

But it is remorseful that most modern

films rely heavy upon the use of such

effects to be successful. The focus is less

on the skill of the actors, which majority o

films was originally about: performances,and more on the impression the film is

going to make on its viewers. Megan Fox

and Shia Lebeouf, stars of both

blockbuster films Transformers (2007) an

Transformers: The Revenge of the Fallen

(2009), have lacked in their performances

in the films, but unlike others, which I can

care less for series, these stars are youngand attractive, so, of course, the film will

generate more viewers from thirteen yea

olds. Another film example: Poseidon

(2006) relied on a lot of special effects an

carefully times stunts to make it a rather

exciting movie but in the end, this was no

the work of the actors, and the ship was

simply unbelievable.

By Javier Serrano


6/24

Not to spoil the ending, but I felt no grief when the

character died and could not relate or feel sympathybecause of the dilemmas they faced in the end. I

feel as though the actors are being made redundant

by this increase of technology; what they lack in skill

can simply be made up for in use of special effects

and most of the time, it is successful. Though, the

increased use of computer technology has

subsequently given rise to popularity of animated

films; a more advanced form of cartoon whichusually falls in the childrens or comedy genre.

While these films are usually the same high

standard of normal films, they put less demand on

the actors. Brilliant voice acting is obviously shown

off in films like these bit I believe acting is much

more authentic than voice acting; it is the

communication and expression of feelings and

emotions through the body language is what strikes

great performances. Therefore, I believe special

effects should be merely an addition and not the

focus. The consequence of the contrary is the

decrease on acting skill itself. I believe Titanic

(1997) is a prime example of flawless special effects.

Hence, films such as War of the Worlds rely heavily

on special effects and consequently, the storyline

can become hazy at times and often hard to follow

and characters are left undeveloped; we are not

completely convinced by what is happened.

James Camerons Titanic


7/24

Best Horror Performances

of a Lifetime

1990s


8/24

Kathy Bates bring this psychotic fan

Annie to reality in a performance that ishaunting to Paul but also to all of us

who watch her. She goes from the

helpful good Samaritan, someone

anyone can trust, and turns it on the

person she respects most. The

performance shows us that we can be

manipulated at our weakest times by

those we put complete trust in. Kathynever fails to astonish viewers with her

performances, getting truly deep into

her characters and with this one, she

becomes very terrifying even with that

sweet accent. She went on to win an

Academy Award for her deranged

character.

Kathy Bates in MiseryBy julia wieczorekKathy Bates plays Annie Wilkes in the film

based on the Stephen King novel, Misery.

The film centers around Paul Sheldon

(played by James Caan), a best-selling

novelist who crashes his car during a

blizzard, and his number one fan: Annie

Wilkes. Annie rescues Paul and takes him to

her remote house in the woods where she

treats his injuries. He soon discovers the

once nurse is a little out of her mind, as herreaction to his latest novels ending sets her

off in torturing the man physically and

mentally. She renders him incapable of

walking and chains him to a bed and

typewriter, where she forces him to re-

write his latest novel, completely

destroying his previous manuscript. Poor

Paul soon discovers he is not her firstvictim.

90


9/24

The Soloist

Anthony Hopkins in

The Silence of the LambsBy julia wieczorek

91

nthony Hopkinss Hannibal Lecter has

come iconic, as well as the psychological

riller he is introduced in, The Silence of

e Lambs. A student named Clarice (Jodiester) is sent to interview the once

ychiatrist, now mental-patient

nnibalistic serial killer, Hannibal. Hannibal

ows impatient with Clarice, but

entually helps her in her quest to find

other serial killer Buffalo Bill. They

gin making deals with each other, all

hile being video-taped. Hannibal soonscovers Clarices traumatic childhood and

es it in exchange for giving her the

formation she needs. Hannibal eventually

capes jail and murders more in the

ocess. In the end he contacts Clarice once

ore, asking her not to try to find him,

hen she disagrees he simply tells her he is

ving a friend for dinner, and stalks his oldoctor through town.

Anthony Hopkins won an Oscar for his

performance and there is no doubt as to

why. He was terrifying. Anyone portraying

someone with a mental disorder, and

someone with this severe of a case, has to

really focus on the character, if not it will

become un-realistic. Hannibal is just creepy,

and the way he is able to manipulate

Clarice shows how cunning he must have

been with his victims, who became his

food. Hopkins gave us a stunning

performance that left the audience sick and

enthralled. Without getting too gory, the

film was able to capture disgusting horror

and also one cold serial killer. Hopkins will

be remembered his role as this strange

cannibal.


10/24

Gary Oldman in DraculaBy julia wieczorekGary Oldman brings a truly amazing

performance as he depicts a man whogrows young again, and transforms from

a human to a vampire. He shows all of

Draculas different disguises and does it

in a very charming way to top it off! He

has been known to be very diverse and

has most recently been seen playing

parts in several Harry Potterfilms as well

as Batman Begins and The Dark Knight.Becoming Dracula, Oldman was able to

bring heart to the heartless in a subtle

intensity that is chilling to watch. Dracula

is the main character, not quite the

villain, but not really the hero, in a tale

that is meant to haunt and dazzle those

that are swept into it.

92

sed on the novel by Bram Stoker, Dracula

picts the escapades of the famous

ansylvanian vampire. In the film version,

ount Dracula, played by Gary Oldman, is

otivated by romance more so than he is by

ood. He uses the reason for biting others as

means of avenging the death of his wife in

e 15th century. She committed suicide after

aring he had died, a false report, and he

nounces God in anger of her eternal

mnation. Dracula eventually comes to

ndon to meet Mina Harker, played by

inona Ryder, who is the living image of his

e wife. Anthony Hopkins plays the obsessed

mpire hunter Van Helsing, out to finish-off

acula with all the other vampires. Other

st include: Keanu Reeves-Jonathan Harker,

d Tom Waits-bug-eating Renfield. Bram

oker's Dracula won three Academy Awards.


11/24

Macaulay Culkin in The Good SonBy julia wieczorek93

In The Good Son, a woman dies of

cancer and her husband must leave ona trip, so their young son Mark (Elijah

Wood) is left in the care of his aunt and

uncle. He is excited to be always

around his cousin Henry, played by

Macaulay Culkin, because he has

someone his age (8 years old) he can

play with. He soon discovers that Henry

enjoys more sinister activities, such ascausing car accidents, toppling

treehouses, killing animals and even

drowning his 3 year old brother (he

admits this to Mark). When Henry gets

jealous of Mark, whom no one believes

when he claims Henry is evil, Henry

attempts to murder his own younger

sister and then Mark himself.

Macaulay Culkin has proven himself as a

reputable child-actor time and time again,in strings of family films he has starred in.

In The Good Son, we are simply scared of

him. He portrays this innocent young boy

with a loving family, but shows his darker

side in a way that is almost hard to

imagine such a young child can have. He

plays the part brilliantly and we really start

to believe he is evil, as well as a goodactor in the movie because his character

convinces his parents of his innocence.

Poor Mark is in a similar situation many of

us have seen ourselves in, warring

between doing the right thing and fitting-

in with our peers. Henry is down-right

cruel, and a movie-depiction of real-life

children who end up with serious mentaldisorders and become sociopaths. Culkin

was able to pull it off horrifyingly.


12/24

Although the film can be somewhat hard

to follow, unless you know the characters

and understand the long chain of

previous films, it turns the traditional

slasher-movie we love into reality, at

least for one of the first stars and the

filmmakers. Robert Englund once again

plays the twisted undead child-murdererwho haunts children and teens in their

dreams. His voice and facial expressions,

under the burned flesh of his face, and

not to mention the way he taps his claws,

add to Freddys character in a way that

creeps his viewers out so much they have

their own nightmares. Wes Craven has

mentioned his inspiration for Freddycame from a string of unsolved-deaths

while sleeping, in which the people

complained of suffering nightmares. He

used inspiration from his own fear of a

local homeless man and bullies at school,

as well as his cat (for the clawed-glove) to

come-up with a unique character that

truly haunts our dreams.

Robert Englund inNew NightmareBy julia wieczorek

Robert Englund is one of my favorite

actors because of his portrayal of one of

my all-time favorite movie characters:

Freddy Krueger. In New Nightmare, the7th film in the Nightmare on Elm Street

franchise, Freddy Krueger has been

possessed by a demonic force seeking

entry into the real world. The film takes

place in the real world in which Freddy

Krueger is simply a character in the

Nightmare on Elm Streetmovies. Heather

Langenkamp, who plays Nancy inprevious Nightmare on Elm Streets, is

being followed by strange occurrences

and discovers she must play the part of

Nancy, once again, for Wes Cravens

latest film within a film, in order to defeat

the new real-life Freddy. She also must

seek help from Robert Englund, playing

himself as well as the new demonicFreddy Krueger, in her conquest.

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13/24

Nicole Kidman in To Die ForBy julia wieczorek

95Die Foris based on a novel, based on

story, about a woman named

zanne, played by Nicole Kidman, who

determined to become a TV

wscaster no matter the costs to

tain it. She is limited intellectually

d talent-wise, but that doesnt stop

r ruthlessness. She convinces some

ens she is doing a story on, to kill hersband, in which they are arrested

r. One of the teens is able to record

zanne's plot but she is acquitted due

the way the police handled the

vestigation. When her husbands

afia father finds out what Suzanne

d done, he has someone murder her

d bury her under her favorite lake,ly to be skated over by her dead-

sbands sister when it freezes over.

Nicole Kidmans Suzanne knows exactlywhat she wants and is willing to do just

about anything to get it! She makes up

for whatever she lacks, in cold

determination and diabolical wiles. As

she pursues her goal with relentless

focus, she believes she is forced to

destroy anything and anyone that may

stand in her way, regardless of theultimate cost or means necessary. In a

twist, the teen who recorded her

murder plan was the one who ends up

becoming the star on TV. Kidman plays

diabolical well, and mixed with her

beauty, her character becomes that

much more of an interesting

antagonist.
http://rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A9G_bI9TMIVKn78A4aOjzbkF/SIG=12bff4dht/EXP=1250329043/**http%3A//www.drunkhollywood.com/images/nicolecrash022.jpghttp://rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A9G_bI9TMIVKn78A4aOjzbkF/SIG=12bff4dht/EXP=1250329043/**http%3A//www.drunkhollywood.com/images/nicolecrash022.jpg


14/24

Fairuza Balk in The CraftBy julia wieczorekTeen drama meets witchcraft in thefilm, The Craft. When the 16 year old

troubled teen Sarah, played by Robin

Tunney, moves to a new town to start

fresh, she befriends an interesting

group of girls. Faruiza Balk plays Nancy,

the head of the group. What Sarah

doesnt realize, until its too late, is the

girls are witches that practice blackmagic. She is the link that completes

their coven and when she decides she

wants out, it is too late. The power

Nancy wields over people and nature

causes her to spin out of control and

torture, attempting to murder Sarah.

Her defeat is by Sarah herself, because

Sarah is a natural and more powerfulwitch.

Faruiza Balk plays the evil and all-powerful teen witch to a point we

really believe in her character and fear

it. Her character comes from a troubled

past and uses that anger and jealousy

to fuse with her power and skill at

casting spells. Balk literally transforms

her character on screen in front of our

eyes, from that of a slightly rebellious-Catholic school girl to a full on crazed-

dark witch, dressing and acting

different as the film goes on. At the

end she is screaming, her own voice

cracking in rage and power and the last

Nancy is seen on screen is muttering to

herself in a mental hospital. Seeing a

young teen transform the way Balk wasable to, can be very disturbing.

96


15/24

Al Pacino in The Devils Advocate

By julia wieczorek

97

e Devils Advocate centers on onentastic lawyer named Kevin (Keanu

eves) who has yet to lose a case. He

ows a certain client is guilty of his

me, but causes him to get-off not

ilty anyway. Later he is approached

recruits to a prestigious New York

w firm, headed by John Milton (Al

cino). After he wins his first case hearts to spend more time at work and

ss with his wife. When those that are

gry with Kevin suddenly start dying,

ter he complains about them to John,

begins to suspect something isnt

ght. Through events that leave him

ddened and angry, Kevin runs to his

oss, only to learn John is not only awerful lawyer, he is Satan himself,

d Kevin is his son.

Al Pacino delights his audience with

memorable performances and this is

just one of them. He plays the part of

an all-powerful lawyer, and devil, very

well. His character is sly, evil and

greedy, manipulating others to get

what he wants. What would you think

if your boss told you he was the Devil?Let alone you were the son of the

Devil? Pacino almost becomes comical

in his fits of rage, screaming while the

theatrics blaze behind him, but he is

still scary in that way that makes one

want to shudder at his overall

hatefulness.


16/24

Inou Rie in RinguBy julia wieczorekRingu is about Asakawa (the aunt of ateen victim) who is a reporter that

begins researching a weird video, said

to be cursed, she falls into the world of

one strange child: Sadako, played by

Inou Rie. She watches the video, but

when eventually her son watches it,

she only has 7 days to discover the key

to save him (and herself) from thecurse. Following clues from the tape

itself, Asawaka discovers the girls past

and frees her body from a well she was

thrown into years before. Her

unfortunate ex-husband discovers too

late that it wasnt freeing the body

that saved Asawaka and her son, it was

copying the video and showing tosomeone else that did. Thus the curse

never ends.

Ringu may have spawned nightmaresfor many people, possibly because the

faces of terror the dead victims in the

movie take-on are quite simply,

disgusting. Inou Rie portrays the ghost

of Sadako, but really encompasses a

popular Japanese ghost, with white

clothing and long dark hair that covers

the face. Although she has no majorrole in the film, her vengeful ghost

characters stiff movements as she

crawls out of the TV and shuffles her

way towards her next victim, make the

viewers own skin crawl. Her stunning

silent horror spawned numerous copies

of this type of ghost in films and of

course, numerous American versions ofthese films as well.

98
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17/24

Eihi Shiina inAuditionBy julia wieczorek

99

Audtion is one of those movies thatstarts out ordinary enough, and pulls

the viewer into a twisted tale that

becomes more and more twisted until

it finishes with a gory ending. A lonely

executive of a company, Aoyama, sits-

in on auditions for actresses of a non-

existent film his producer friend sets-

up. He is intrigued by one youngwoman, Yamazaki (Eihi Shiina), and

asks her on a date. What he doesnt

see on the other end of the line is her

tied-up victim in her dark room. The

movie climaxes with the sweet young

woman using rubber gloves and

doctors instruments to torture

Aoyama in a painfully long homesurgery.

Eihi Shiina portrays the innocent and

nave young woman beautifully, and

the evil sadist eerily. Her character

takes her odd but nice exterior

personality and creates a faade that

others are captivated by. What makes it

more unnerving is the smile she

plasters on her face while using a

needle to torture her victim, and the

odd way she hovers over him. The film

creates an atmosphere of horror by

using little music in critical points. Once

again an actor, in this case Shiina, plays

a part that is contradictory in front of

our eyes, and that just makes things all

the more terrifying.


18/24

Which is better for foreign language films, dubbing or subtitles?

As a lover of languages and cultures, I am

appalled by people who refuse to watch foreign

anguage movies just because they are subtitled.

The actors voice is the most vital importance

and the emotions that he or she conveys cannot

be conveyed by a person reading a voice-over.

Actors invest a lot of time and energy into

preparing for a performing their roles and every

emotion comes from inside them. Theses

emotions cant be duplicated and added after

the fact. Every actor is unique, and their unique

voices help them to shape the characters they

play and bring that role to life. When it all

comes together, the audience can become lost

n the action and the characters become real tothem. I have never liked dubbed movies.

Watching subtitled movies from all over the

world has made me more culturally enriched. I

mmediately recognize people speaking

anguages like Korean, Mandarin, and Cantonese

when I walk down the street. However, as I am

dubbing, majority of people would rather watch

a film that is dubbed than subtitles. The main

mportance of watching a movie in my opinion isto be entertained and be educated. The idea to

sit back and watch a movie should be mindless

effort to some people. Though, it is supposed to

allow the viewers the opportunity to unwind

and relieve stress, and enlighten the individual,

right? In my opinion, subtitles are not at enough

contrast to the background of what is going on

the screen. To most people, sometimes the

entire works and letters blend in with screen

shot so much that they are difficult to read.

Most times while audiences are in the

middle of trying to decipher a certain work,

the new subtitle is put on the screen, which

you will often see people concentrating too

hard for a movie or squinting at every

recognizable word. Again, movie dubbing

however has many drawbacks. Often, the

emotion in the voices of the actors is not

portrayed quite the same as the original

version. Most times the intonation of

emotion is not the same either in the

performances. Many actors are recognized

by their distinct voice you are hearing does

not match up with the mouth movement.

Another point to bring up is that often many

words or important phrases are lost in thetranslation. This means that you are getting

a brief broader statement many times

instead of the poignant one in the original

version. Hence, movies with subtitles are

not much of a step about the original talkies

when the motion picture industry first

started nearly a century ago. During those

silent films the words were projected on to

the screen while instrumental music playedappropriately coordinated with what

emotion the actors were portraying. Often

the music was loud and annoying too.

By Javier Serrano


19/24

Movie Sequels and Remakes: Is Hollywood out of ideas?

Martin Scorseses The Departedis a well-

crafted crime-thriller that sees Scorsese return

to the cinematic heights he once scaled with

GoodFellas. Set in the murky underworld of

the Boston-Irish Mafia, the film is a remake of

recent Hong Kong crime-thriller Infernal Affairs.As such, its the latest entry in a long line of

Asian to American remakes, which, for all their

individual merits, represents perhaps the most

cynical side of Hollywood film production.

Over recent years, Japanese horror films

illuminated across the globe with such films as

Ringu (The Ring), Dark WaterandJu-on: The

Grudge, have provided fresh material for

Hollywood to plunder greatly. Despite beingfreely available, in their original forms, on both

sides of the world, these movie collectives, also

known as, Foreign Film has hindered their

circulation in all but the most enthusiastic film

clubs and academic-film circles. The major

American studios, however, are not about to

miss out on the opportunity, and as a result all

three of the titles Ive mentioned have been

remade in the United States, with The Ring and

The Grudge spawning the originality from the

Japanese origins.

Hollywood has an uneasy relationship with

originality. The major studios in the United

States tend to operate best when a problem can

be solved by throwing money at it, which is

great when creating a summer blockbuster

where adrenaline will keep the popcorn-

audience entertained. Over the past few years,

the well of originality in Hollywood has becomeparticularly dry, with studios falling back on big-

screen versions of class TV shows, hoping to

cash-in on the fan-bases, whilst never

underestimating the help of big-name stars.

Think of Drew Barrymore, Lucy Lu and Cameron

Diaz in Charlies Angels, Nicole Kidman and Will

Ferrell in Bewitched, Sean William Scott and

Johnny Knoxville in the Dukes of Hazard, are you

getting my drift? Remakes are as effective anexercise in risk-reduction, although studios have

for some time now been raiding their archives.

For examples, The Poseidon Adventure, The

Omen, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and The

Amityville Horror, to name but four, have all hit

theaters across the nation in the past five years.

Like Steven Spielbergs remake ofWar of the

Worlds stemmed from his lifelong enthusiasm

for the story.

By Javier Serrano

Naomi Watts in The Rin


20/24

His version turned into an effective modern invasion-thriller, and has interpreted as the

directors response, to the events of 9/11. Another example, Peter Jackson, director of the

Lord of the Rings trilogies, wanted to remake his childhood ambition King Kong, the film that

inspired to become a filmmaker. The biggest problem deals with some of the remakes,

adaptations and sequels that come out each year. While it is true that there are many differentremakes of films that become popular the big problem is that a remake of a classic film will

generally not be as memorable or as good as the original. The new version ofThe Day the

Earth Stood Stillis completely different from the original class and is rather forgettable. Of

course there are some good ideas out there in Hollywood.

What I found to be humorous, people assumed Diablo Codys,Juno was her original idea, on

the contrary, her idea was original in the American sense, but the films plot is loosely based

on South Korean filmJenny and Juno. However, I will provide one film that I believe was one

of Hollywoods best original films, 2008, WALL-Ebecause the concept was so unique, witty

and charming. Many other films that have unique ideals like The Wrestlerand Burn After

Reading showed up on many of those same lists too because they were very different from

Hollywoods same old movies. Look how big comic books-turned-movies have done for

Hollywood?

Then, Halloween 1978; Now, Halloween 2008

Then,Jenny & Juno 2005 (South Korean); Now,Juno 2007 (Canadian)


21/24

Entertainer of the MonthKristen Stewart

In 2002, at the age of 12, Kristen

Stewart starred in her first major

Hollywood film in Panic Room

alongside Academy Award winners

Jodie Foster and Forrest Whitaker.

Born to a script supervisorAustralian mother and a stage-

manager and television producer

American father, Kristen Stewart

starred in several leading roles like

2004, Speakand 2007, In the Land

of Women, and her most critically

acclaimed performance as Bella

Swan in Stephanie MeyersTwilight.


22/24

reviewsmovie

Pans Labyrinth (El

aberinto del Fauno)

Dir. Guillermo del Toro2006

this Spanish-language twisted

ntasy film, a young girl, Ofelia

ana Baquero) and her pregnant

other go to live with her

others new husband, a captain

ho lives in the woods during

st-Civil Way Spain in 1944. Ofelia

ves books, mainly fairy tales and

er seeing an insect she believes

m to be a fairy. The fairy takes

r down a maze into a labyrinth,

ere Pan the faun dwells. Pan

ls her she is a fallen princess and

ust complete tasks to come back

her fathers kingdom. Ofelia gets

o trouble trying to complete her

ks and meets extraordinary

eatures, some of which arerifying. Ofelias fails at saving

r mothers life and upon her last

k to spill the blood of her

nocent newborn brother, she

uses Pan and is left to suffer the

nsequences of not completing

r tasks. This film is visually

unning and the story captivating.

s also so very heart wrenchingnging viewers to tears, it

serves the title of dark fairy tale.

Edward

Scissorhands

Dir. Tim Burton1990

Johnny Depp and Tim Burton are a

great pair and in this earlier

fantasy film by Burton, Depp plays

Edward, a young man who was

created by a scientist who lived on

a dark castle atop the highest

mountain of a small suburb. The

scientist dies before he can

complete Edward, leaving his

hands for last Edward is now stuck

with the scissors he was originally

in place with. A local Avon

saleslady discovers Edward and

takes him in with her family. He

quickly falls in love with her

daughter Kim (Winona Ryder) and

becomes a hit with the neighbors

designing hedges and cutting theirhair in outlandish styles. Everyone

falls in love with him, until a local

teen blames him for a crime, and

Edward has to deal with something

he has never felt before, rejection.

He spirals out of control and is

soon feared by all the neighbors.

This dark fairy tale is all about self-

discovery and isolation. TimBurtons take on suburbia is weird

and funny, and the film reflects

that nicely.

Lady in the WaterDir. M. Night Shyamalan

2006An apartment buildings caretake

named Cleveland (Paul Giamatti),

who lives in a cottage next to the

pool of the complex, starts to

suspect there is someone

swimming in the pool after hours

He questions the residents of the

building, all of whom had differen

backgrounds and comical quirks.

When he injures himself, he wake

up to find he has been saved by a

young woman (Bryce Dallas

Howard) named Story. He soon

falls into her tale of her people

that live in water, Narfs. When he

tries to send her back home, she

explains its not as easy as it look

and there are beasts all around

them that can only be seen bylooking certain ways. It is up to

Cleveland to gather the tenants in

a mission to protect Story during

the one night she is to be rescued

and brought back home. But thei

grave mistakes leave her so injure

that it may be too late. This dark

fantasy/thriller is innovative and

touching in that it brings all typesof people together with one

common goal, and forces the ma

character to open up to others.

By julia wieczorek
http://rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A9G_bHOAYItKZrcAD_CjzbkF/SIG=12fbkschi/EXP=1250734592/**http%3A//i22.photobucket.com/albums/b301/cometorta/EDWARD.jpg


23/24

Coming Soon

nglorious Basterds. Quentin Tarantino

ens August 21, 2009

the first year of the German

cupation of France, Shosanna,

yed by Melanie Laurent,

tnesses the execution of her

mily at the hand of Nazi Colonel

ns Landa, played by Christopher

altz, which he won a Best Actor

ward at this years Cannes Film

stival. Shosanna narrowlycapes and flees to Paris where

e forges a new identity as the

wner and operator of a film

eater. Elsewhere in Europe,

utenant Aldo Raine (Brad Pitt)

ganizes a group of Jewish

merican soldiers to perform

ift, shocking acts of retribution.

ter known in the film to theiremy as the basterds, Raines

uad joins German actress and

dercover agent Bridget (Diane

uger) on a mission to take down

e leaders of the Third Reich.

rantinos re-imagining,

herwise, remake of the 1978

lian film, takes many risks which

ys off. It is definitely not for

eryone, but there are plenty

ho will enjoy the cinematic

perience. Grade: A -

Halloween IIDir. Rob Zombie

Opens August 28, 2009

I really have nothing positive to say

about this film. However, I will

provide a short synopsis for you.

The film picks up right where the

first film left off, Laurie is taken to

the hospital after supposedly killing

the man who was responsible for

the deaths of several people in the

town of Haddonfield, Illinois.However, her stay at Haddonfield

General becomes very brief when a

very much alive Michael Myers

appears once more. Michael

disappears, and Laurie survives the

infamous Halloween massacres, but

is still haunted by it years later.

Laurie struggles to come to terms

with her dark past. But thesupposedly dead Michael has other

plans, and as the anniversary of his

massacre approaches, he returns to

Haddonfield once more, with a

family reunion planned that Laurie

will never forget. Have you noticed

Michael Myers is too tall. Well,

casting a former wrestler to play

Michael Myers is just so not

convincing. Grade: D +

Worlds Greatest

DadDir. Bobcat Goldthwait

Opens August 21, 2009

Oscar winner and comedian

Robin Williams plays a high

school English teacher Lance

Clayton, a well-meaning but

incompetent parent to 15-

year-old Kyle, played by Dary

Sabara, starred in the film Sp

Kids as Juni, whos a rude,fouled-mouth moron. When

Kyle dies accidently during

auto-erotic asphyxiation,

Lance rearranges the body t

make it look like a suicide an

pens an eloquent note, all to

give his son a little dignity at

the end of his life. Goldthwa

spends nearly half of the filmestablishing Kyle as the

worlds worst son, so its a

relief to actually see him

parish. After that, Williams

admirably understated as

Lance, and does a good job

conveying the mix pride and

self-loathing that drives his

actions. Overall, the film ha

its annoyance and funny

moments. Robin Williams at

his best, of course. Grade: B

By Javier Serrano


24/24

n DVD

wo Loversaquin Phoenix, Gwyneth Paltrow,

nessa Shaw, 2008

this tale of love and yearning,

aquin Phoenix stars as Leonard

aditor, a man who has returned

his parents home in Brooklyn.

apparent from the start that

onard is struggling with

motional and psychiatric issuesd his mother, played by Isabella

sselini, is worried about him;

s recovering from a recent

ed relationship . Eventually, he

eets Sandra, through his parents

y-cleaning business. In a

oment fraught with potential

miliation, Leonard sits with

ndra in his childhood bedroomd shows her his photographs;

r quiet enthusiasm somehow

akes everything more

mfortable. Leonard shows his

ection to Sandra, but then he

eets Michelle, played by

wyneth Paltrow, his neighbor

ho lives in the same building.

perb performances from all

The Last House on the Left

Tony Goldwyn, Monica Potter, SaraPaxton, 2009

The difference between this

version from director Daniel

Illiades and Wes Craven 1972 The

Last House on the Leftis the

budget. We dont need much

reminding when it comes to the

remake, an affair which turns intoa brutally straightforward rape-

revenge suspense film. Wes

Cravens original masterpiece had

a very low budget which the score

played majority of the suspense.

Nearly three decades later, the

craft of this film is more fluent in

terms of filmmaking. But the set-

up remains the same: a gang of

criminals abduct two teenage girls

and drag them into the woods,

where one, played by Sara Paxton,

is raped. The major innovation is

that she survives, crawling back to

the home of her parents, played by

Tony Goldwyn and Monica Potter,

who have unwittingly offered their

daughters attacker a bed for the

Revolutionary RoadLeonardo DiCaprio, Kate

Winslet, 2008

Without doubt Kate Winslet

Oscar winning performance

The Readerwas a deserving

one. However, I preferred h

to win the Oscar in this

performance in Revolutiona

Road, which she was directeby her Academy Award

winning husband Sam

Mendes. In 1955, a young

couple the Wheelers, Frank,

(Leonardo DiCaprio) and his

wife, April (Kate Winslet)

settle into suburbia but

dream of reclaiming lives as

free spirits. The adaptation

Richard Yates novel is

understandably trumpeted a

a high-class affair. Most

appealingly it reunites Titani

romantics Leo DiCaprio and

Kate Winslet, But people

keen to reaffirm the

transforming power of love

may experience the desire to

By Javier Serrano

monte pictures newletter august

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