Post by pmrsim on Apr 4, 2005 12:45:57 GMT -8
Saw two movies last night: VALIANT and DOWNFALL (Der Untergang). One couldn't see two more different movies on one night, I guess, though both deal with the second world war in their own way.
VALIANT is a British animated feature about a bunch of brave pigeons who carry messages from the UK to France and back again, during WWII. The story unfolded "by the numbers", failing to create any real tension, surprise or even comedy. It was cute at best. The animation was pretty mediocre, or better said: the design of the pigeons was pretty ugly. The doves looked cuted though. And, uhm, I'm not sure I EVER want to see bird regurgitate food again... The trailer for Madagascar made me laugh harder than the whole of Valiant, so.. there ya go. George Fenton's score was alright. Not quite the stirring heroic work we were hoping for, but it was fun enough. He wrote a typically British "pomp and circumstance" kind off march, which gets many performances in many guises. Fenton even got the official band of the Royal Navy to play on the soundtrack, and they only play by special permission. He sure makes the best use of them, as they pretty much dominate the score. There's more big band than orchestra in this soundtrack. Fenton has crafted quite a catchy main theme, and perhaps a single rousing action cue. The rest of the score just the main theme repeated in various forms. I guess, if you like Elgar and Williams' 1941, you'll probably like Fenton's Valiant too. (Movie: **1/2, Score: ***1/2)
After that entertaining, but lightweight fluff it was time for DOWNFALL (Der Untergang). It's hard to find the right words to describe this movie. It's interesting, impressive, depressing, heartbreaking, and much more. It's good to see Hitler portrayed this way: as a human being. As much as we like to think he was an evil monster from outerspace that had to be wiped out... he wasn't. He was one of our kind. And that makes him all the scarier. It's heartbreaking to see the chaos that went on during the last days of the war, and how an idealism can lead to the desperate, horrific events we see the in the movie (I won't spoil them for you, but if you have seen it you'll know what I mean when I say "Frau Goebbels...."). Anyways, you've read all the rave reviews, so you won't need me to blab on it for much longer. I'd love for schools to pick up on this movie and make it part of their curriculum, like they did with Schindler's List (it was part of our History class to see that movie). The only minor gripe I have with DOWNFALL is that it felt very long, and (especially in the first half) had a lot people saying how "things are over, leave now...". Sure, that's how everybody felt, but as a thinking member of the audience I don't need to be told that a dozen times over. And they had a lot of shots of everybody, and especially Hitler, preparing for the inevitable. It may be historically accurate (or at least: plausible) but it doesn't really make for engaging cinema. Anyways, those are just minor things. Generally, the acting is superb, the story is harrowing, the film is a whole is a must see. The score by Stephan Zacharias, little though there was, worked perfectly well, though it did in parts sounds like The Thin Red Line. (Movie: ****1/2, Score: ***).
Pete.
VALIANT is a British animated feature about a bunch of brave pigeons who carry messages from the UK to France and back again, during WWII. The story unfolded "by the numbers", failing to create any real tension, surprise or even comedy. It was cute at best. The animation was pretty mediocre, or better said: the design of the pigeons was pretty ugly. The doves looked cuted though. And, uhm, I'm not sure I EVER want to see bird regurgitate food again... The trailer for Madagascar made me laugh harder than the whole of Valiant, so.. there ya go. George Fenton's score was alright. Not quite the stirring heroic work we were hoping for, but it was fun enough. He wrote a typically British "pomp and circumstance" kind off march, which gets many performances in many guises. Fenton even got the official band of the Royal Navy to play on the soundtrack, and they only play by special permission. He sure makes the best use of them, as they pretty much dominate the score. There's more big band than orchestra in this soundtrack. Fenton has crafted quite a catchy main theme, and perhaps a single rousing action cue. The rest of the score just the main theme repeated in various forms. I guess, if you like Elgar and Williams' 1941, you'll probably like Fenton's Valiant too. (Movie: **1/2, Score: ***1/2)
After that entertaining, but lightweight fluff it was time for DOWNFALL (Der Untergang). It's hard to find the right words to describe this movie. It's interesting, impressive, depressing, heartbreaking, and much more. It's good to see Hitler portrayed this way: as a human being. As much as we like to think he was an evil monster from outerspace that had to be wiped out... he wasn't. He was one of our kind. And that makes him all the scarier. It's heartbreaking to see the chaos that went on during the last days of the war, and how an idealism can lead to the desperate, horrific events we see the in the movie (I won't spoil them for you, but if you have seen it you'll know what I mean when I say "Frau Goebbels...."). Anyways, you've read all the rave reviews, so you won't need me to blab on it for much longer. I'd love for schools to pick up on this movie and make it part of their curriculum, like they did with Schindler's List (it was part of our History class to see that movie). The only minor gripe I have with DOWNFALL is that it felt very long, and (especially in the first half) had a lot people saying how "things are over, leave now...". Sure, that's how everybody felt, but as a thinking member of the audience I don't need to be told that a dozen times over. And they had a lot of shots of everybody, and especially Hitler, preparing for the inevitable. It may be historically accurate (or at least: plausible) but it doesn't really make for engaging cinema. Anyways, those are just minor things. Generally, the acting is superb, the story is harrowing, the film is a whole is a must see. The score by Stephan Zacharias, little though there was, worked perfectly well, though it did in parts sounds like The Thin Red Line. (Movie: ****1/2, Score: ***).
Pete.