-The funniest movie: Borat (Larry Charles)
It's extremely hilarious yet it also pushes the criticism and sarcasm to an extreme extent. It made me laugh so hard that I fell out of chair and rolled on the floors. Like Sacha Cohen said when he was awarded with a Golden Globe, the movie showed the pretension, hypocrisy as well as genuineness and honesty in people that he came across in States. Despite the stupid nudity and cheesy episodes in the hotel, I almost fell for the character as he appeared to be innocent and helpless. Whether it be farce comedy or biting derision over civilization, Borat skewers and unravels the issues of social values, mannerism, the invisible hierarchy and many other scrutinization and insinuations.
-The darkest movie: Blood Diamond (Edward Zwick)
-The most depressing movie: Last King of Scotland (Kevin MacDonald)
-The cutest movie: Little Miss Sunshine (Johnathan Dayton et Valerie Faris)
I have always detested beauty pageants or related contests. Seeing those beautiful and intelligent women competing for the title (vanity), money (something to buy more vanity) or certain substantial or insubstantial interests really make my eyes twitch especially when I stare at their barely covered breast, full thigh and hardcore mascarade, let alone all the contestants juniors/preteens. Children are simply cute and adorable with their true color worn on their sleeves and skin because they represent simplicity, purity and naturalness. Why would some zealots push those angelic faces onto the stage where nothing but adult deceptive pretense are on parade? Of course little Olive's hilarious moves coached by her Grandfather is another mockery of how society and media may have exploited and manipulated the images of the female body and somehow tainted the pure, but I've got to give the family the credit of saving the little girl's esteem and belief. Olive may not get any prize and she may have experienced the first major defeat when it comes to the idea of American dream (in which you are brainwashed with the words: "it's here that you can be anyone you wanna be..."), but at least she fell on the safety net woven by her family's hands and full support.
-The most realistic movie: The Queen (Stephen Frears)
When the head is not the head, and the heart cannot follow the will, the body and the soul are in separation, leaving the head feather-light floating in the castle in the air and the eyes staring into thin air. Elizabeth's mother reminded her of the vow she took after the sudden lost her beloved father, "I declare that my whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service." Thus, the young girl that worked as a mechanics in war time and has been carried all invisible unbearably heavy burden of a nation and expectations took the crown. No one knows exactly what she has on her mind. She is the head, raised with all the manner and measures and pressures that she shall carry on her sholders all through her reign, her life. For better or for worse, in good times and bad, under the guidence and deciplines of what she has been taught and raised, she, the lady with dignity, composure and sovereignity, led the nation through the war, yet was baffled by the death of an ex-royal family member and was condemned and scrutinized when most eyes laid on those obvious facts and evaded the pressure and principles underneath her concerns and belated reactions.
What choice does she have, she asked, at the end of the movie. Not much, that's what I am sure of.
-The saddest movie: The Wayward Cloud (Tsai Ming-liang)
After numerous erections and ejeculations at the set, the porn star gradually (or shall I admently say "finally" instead?) lost his ability to consummate with the one he really loves. Despite the Bollywood style singing and dancing with loads of but amusingly rediculous sexual implications and connotations, again, I am overwhelmed by the stifling sentiments of saddness generated through the last scene and numerous imageries.
-The most nolstagic movie: Three Times (Hou Hsiao-Hsien)
This is possibly the most entertaining and the least asphyxiated film of Director Hou's works that I've seen. The billiard rooms/shops in the 60s/70s, sounds of the lute(?) and WuFenPoo have all aroused my memories, of the hometown I grew up in, of the relative's house that I used to play around, and places I hanged out with my students. Mon dieu, ma patrie je manque!
-The bloodest movie: The Deep Red (つきのき たかし)
Would you befriended with the one whose father brutally murdered (to be exact, hammered and chainsawed) all of your families except you? Would you curse, condemn or jinx the person that shows no regrets or shames when she talks about her father that murdered your family? The Deep Red deals with the hatred, feelings and misfortunes of two girls whose fates entangled and crossed over each other's when they were left behind by their beloved ones and eventually survived the real world and their traumas.
-The most amicable movie: Stranger Than Fiction (Marc Forster)
How I was surprised by Will Ferrell's serious acting! He's totally cute when he is not showing his nude flappy body or his behinds or the thongs he wears on SNL. Emma Thompson is always a complimentary to the eye; her acting, her accent and simply her expressions make me highly recommend this film, let alone the additional cast of Dustin Hoffman and the set of Chicago and UIC! (Gotta give the credit to the crew for their effort of making UIC campus look less like an eyesoreXD.)
-The most upsetting movie: The Prestige (Christopher Nolan)
"Upsetting"? How come? In what ways? Well, you must be a genius if you ask me that, for you probably have the faintest idea of we mediocre commoner's pains at the shortage of creativity, brainpower and brillance. This is a film about the antagonism between the intelligent and the diligent, the genius and the everyman, the talented and the wish-to-be-talented. The rivalry begins at a simple mistake that costs the life of a loved one and is further built on consecutive revenges, aggressive challenges and competitions that leads to more vicious cycle (or, shall I say, bad karma). Anyway, you know I tend to identify with mediocracy, so stop asking me for the reflection on this one, 'cause it definitely hurts....very much!
-The most disturbing movie: Shortbus (John Cameron Mitchell)
If you love porn and you want it to be an "arousing" stimulus, physically and spiritually, and if you do not abhor the scene of a bendy man "blowing himself", or you want to see threesome or whatever new in sexual intercourse, go ahead. I guess I was patient enough to stay all the way except for short skips and coy evasion a few times. This one is just too obscene for me to stare at and I guess my mind was blurred when I was bombarded with sexual organs of all size from different angles. Alas, this very picture proves that my friend Michael was so right about me: I am so boring a vanilla when it comes to anything sexual that I could not even stand just the talk of it.
-The most imaginative movie: El Laberinto Del Fauno (Guillermo del Toro)
(pic origin: http://nordenfarm.org/?tmpl=event&e_id=2810)
It's just fantastic to see the collision of imagination and historical setting, protrayed with marvelous movie special affects and fancy costume and makeup arts! The movie is a feast for eyes, ears and mind. Young bella Ivana Baquero reminds me of Sofia Coppola so much that I was facinated at the very beginning. Among all these movies, I give this one the highest recommendation. I completely identify with the little girl; the loneliness, the imagination, the longing for justice and righteousness and maternal love, I too spent my childhood swimming in the pool of fairy tales, as a training to my tongues, my language ability. I distinctly remembered those years locked up in the study; it all started when I was forced to read out loud for further improvement of language development because I did not speak the language of what most people use; and once getting used to the environment, fairy tales and mythology became a retreat where I hided away from all domestic disputes and academic challenges. For those who are familiar with Greek (or Roman) mythology, this is a piece to recollect some old readings; you may begin with a little bit of imagination on princess Moanna or the conjecture of Moanna's family tree. For those who are psychoanalysis addicts, the character of Ofelia might be a good start, whether it be the Jungian, the Freudian, Lacanian or Kristeva-sque, I believe there's a lot to analyze for this one (in my humble opinion). For those who are acqainted with Hamlet the prince of Denmark, the comparison of Toro's Ofelia to Hamlet's (Shakespeare's) Ophelia could be very interesting.
-The most entertaining movie: Paris Je T'aime (Olivier Assayas et al)
I just love these fragmentory collage of movies which totally welcome imaginations from all directions. Happy ending or sad, you decide; what's with the characters? It's your call because you've merely got a couple of minutes to decide what the protagonists' actions/moves/deeds stand for, what the directors or playwrights are up to, and what the settings or plots have to do with you or your own reflection of life. Your imagination and interpretation are part of the story, that to say. My favorite sections? I'll go for the one with Natalie Portman and the blind guy, the one with the American middle-aged woman tourist with peculiarly cute but eccentric accent of French, the one with William Defoe and Juliet Binoche and the one with mime artists/mummers! I see passion in Portman's acting, hesitation in the blind guy's response; I hear the accidental tourist's murmuring and heartbeat when she's roaming alone up and down Paris alleys; I smell dampness in the dark alleys where Defoe showed up and Binoche tightly squeezed her lost son; I sense the child's speechless when it comes to being pushed and bullied at school but I am pretty sure he's just as creative and amusing/amused a young fellow as his parents who perceive the world from a quiet, humorous and particular angle.
-The worst movie: Biwitching Attraction (Lee Ha)
Nudity? Unnecessary. Portraits of the protagonists? Not very successful. To be honest, I'd rather categorize this one as a soft-core adult film. Other than that, if you ask me to watch it with you or do further analysis over it? Over my dead body.