E is for sideshow, kiwi, prisoner

I have been horrible at posting and for this, I apologize. I could use the excuse that it was difficult to find enough 'e' movies to post, but that would be a lie. I'm just lazy. That being said, it was somewhat hard to find movies to review; however, these three are among my all-time favorites:

 

 

I can tell you where I was the first time I saw this movie. It was at the State theater in downtown Kalamazoo, MI. I remember this because certain movies have a resonance that makes the first time linger in my memory. This poignant story based upon the brief life of John Merrick is full of rich performances by John Hurt, Anthony Hopkins, and Anne Bancroft. David Lynch is one of those directors whose films are so odd that people either love them or hate them. This is not one of those films and I think it's because, in this case, reality is stranger than fiction. Filming it in black and white helps transport the audience to a time where sideshow freaks were commonplace. But instead of exploiting Mr. Merrick's life, Lynch successfully brings out the tenderness of a person who never was able to have a normal life. The makeup is stunning, bringing to life a vision which we might only see in a nightmare. And the music in one scene (I don't want to spoil it by saying too much) always brings me to tears, no matter where I hear it.

 

This truly odd story stars one of the most hilarious, new actors out there-Jemaine Clement. Fans of the brilliant but short-lived series, Flight Of The Conchords, know what I'm talking about. The best word to describe this film is quirky. Quirky storyline, quirky performances, quirky animated sequences, quirky everything. That's what makes it so funny. The audience is left to wonder, 'is all of New Zealand like this?' If you're talented enough to scratch your head in wonder at the oddness of it and hold your stomach from laughing so hard, this is the movie for you.

 

Long before Terminator and Batman, or Little Women and Newsies, there was this film. The first of many brilliant performances by Christian Bale and by far the best. With every scene, he proves that not all talent is created. Some people are just born with it. This is a different kind of war film. A tale of loss, imprisonment, starvation, and struggle. Based upon the autobiographical novel by James Ballard, it brings to life a lesser known story of the Japanese invasion of Shanghai and what happened to the British citizens living there. Bale was only 12 when this film was shot, but he holds his own acting with John Malkovich and Miranda Richardson. One of Stephen Spielberg's lesser known films, this is one of my favorites.

As I said before, there weren't a lot of 'e' movies to search through; however, it's interesting to note that most of them were really good movies. A few others to note would be Enemy At The Gates, another great war story about two snipers fighting during the battle of Stalingrad starring another favorite actor, Jude Law; Equilibrium, yet one more movie I love that stars Christian Bale, it's the future and emotions are outlawed in the movie that introduced me to gunkata; and of course, Escape From New York, the classic film that introduced the world to the best anti-hero of them all, Snake Plissken. My dad loves to quote him so I'll end this entry with one: "call me Snake."