Keeping the Faith, 2000

Keeping the faith, 2000
Director: Edward Norton
Cast: Edward Norton, Jenna Elfman, Ben Stiller


Stage: Home TV selection, nice Wednesday evening after an exhausting day


Keeping The Faith in short: Best friends, a priest and a rabbi, fall in love with the same girl. However, neither of the men can pursue the relationship due to their religious beliefs: the priest cannot break his vow of celibacy and the rabbi cannot marry her since she is not Jewish.



Preps: Well, I have seen this piece in the local theatre. And I think I have seen it afterwards. I am in the mood for this also this evening. It has been hell of the day and I need something relaxing and funny.



Reality: As said, I know the point of this piece and the storyline. It is memorable and nice, so you don't need some kind of special state of mind to watch what you know already. I know it won't burn my braincells anyway, but I will have fun. Know this for sure.
So we have a threesome, the funny point deriving from the "old friends come together again, two guys fall for the same woman", kind of plot. The situations that come from two friends fighting for the same woman, can come up either a disaster, funny you could die from, or the average fun stuff. This piece definitely has some highlights and is above average. Most of the situations are closely connected with the fact that one of the guys is a rabi, the other is a priest, the girl is a serious business woman. They know each other from the time they were kids and from a fling two of them turn out to have a more serious affair. When she wants to continue experimenting, he backs off. The point is about getting over burdons (or pre-requisites) you are wearing with you at the time of getting involved with someone. How long lasts a fling, how far can you go before you claim this is a relationship?
I don't usually believe you can do a good cast and be a good director at the same time. In my opinion in this piece Norton did quite a good job. OK, I like Norton by default, however in this piece I cannot complain that some cast was hurt or affected by his directing the piece. While I am watching, I cannot decide, whether she is attractive as hell, or does she have in teeth what Julia Roberts posesses in hers as well, magnitude. The teeth of Anna are enormous. When she laughs or smiles, the smile is through the whole screen. Not that this is something bad. However, it's as unique as it can be and definitely drags attention.
The movie is filled with good script and phrases you need to remember when trying to communicate with your next/existing/previous partner. Plus scenes you need to laugh to. Nice music that keeps you relaxed. Makes you think the movie is supposed to make you enjoy it. The boy practicing and singing at his guy bat mitzvah, for instance (the announcement he's becoming a man, not a boy anymore). Or priest making a scene at that same bat mitzvah. Going to the movies with Anna and half the church members, waiting to catch you doing the wrong thing. The movie is filled with this stuff and I love it.
Up to some extent the story relaxes, on the other hand reveals things are never simple, even if you want to put them or claim them simple. Which job is more important, to the god or to your soul? who do you betray, if you don't follow, him or yourself? And what do you do if you are unlucky and need to leave your faith to be with the one you love? Complicated things, if you want to think about them. However, the movie doesn't reach the depth of this and certainly can leave you just laughing, not thinking deeply about all emotions that are handled in this one.



My personal rating: 6,5 (nice, relaxing, funny. Also deep, if I choose to take it this way. I love the music and I love the energy between main cast).

Keeping the faith on IMDB

Doc Hollywood, 1991

Doc Hollywood, 1991
Director: Michael Caton-Jones
Cast: Michael J. Fox, Julie Warner, Bernard Hughes


Stage: home theatre, just before Christmas and midnight carols




Doc Hollywood in short: Benjamin Stone is a young doctor driving to L.A where he was offered a new job as a plastic surgeon in Beverly Hills. He gets off the highway to avoid a traffic jam, but gets lost and ends up crashing into a fence in the small town of Grady. He is sentenced to 32 hrs of community service at the local hospital. All he wants is to serve the sentence and get moving, but gradually the locals become attached to the new doctor, and he falls for the pretty ambulance driver, Lou. Will he leave?



Preps: wow, haven't seen this piece in ages, I used to adore this movie. Finally, on TV. Let's see if I am dazzling even now.



Reality: Well, obviously the movie industry has made several important steps forward. In this sense, movies that used to sparkle our attention around beginning of nineties (Ghost, Pretty woman, even Doc Hollywood in this sense) are like oldies goldies in terms of music: you need to step a step back in time and swallow the feeling that was then - with doing that you can enjoy these movies like in the old days.

Doc Hollywood is one of the movies that breaks the big promise in small particles that make you wonder about the real worth of the big promise. To the people in Titanic USA was the big promise, the promise of a better life. To Doc Hollywood, living in big cities as a successful surgeon, was the promise of a better life. However, on the path to the heaven he discovers that in fact he gives a damn about small, trivial things in life and begins to doubt his decisions or his overall goals. The conversion from a big city man into the small town guy is expected, still cute. The focus in the movie is on family, small things that matter in life, knowing people that are close to you as opposed to relations in bigger cities where you definitely don't know the neighbours. You could call it some kind of catholic marketing in this movie, despite the fact that religion isn't mentioned anywhere. However the values that are praised and the reason why he changes his mind, are pretty catholic. In this sense, you start thinking if it is what you want something like this. To shoot the pigeons when you could be satisfied to your bones with the sparrows that are near you.

I think that if someone thinks big and really really really wants it, that person will find a path and no other things can cross the road there. I admit that you need to spend some time living like this in order to like it. Northern exposure is an example, drawn from series world, on the same topic. The punishment (being forced to live in a small community with small minded persons as you see them) becomes the biggest reward.

I still like the movie. A good relaxing example for big thinking. Nice music, nice dialogues, witty scenes. And some irony hidden along the way. Still worth watching!





My personal rate:6,0 (more than decen fun, obviously you need to set your mindset back 20 years and you will enjoy it a lot!)

Doc Hollywood on IMDB

Lahko noč, Gospodična (Good Night, Missy), 2011

Lahko noč, gospodična (Good Night, Missy), 2011
Director: Metod Pevec
Cast: Polona Juh, Jernej Šugman, Mila Fürst, Marjana Brecelj, Pia Zemljič, Jan Cvitkovič



Stage: Local theatre; the newly (re)opened Komuna in the centre of Ljubljana


Gospodična (Missy) in short: "Good Night, Missy" depicts a story of a young woman, Hana, who leads a seemingly perfect life with a husband, a daughter and a well-paid job. However, after finding out that her husband is cheating on her, she returns to her mother, where she has to rethink her priorities after meeting a lover from her student days.



Preps: Hmmm. I always have this urge to see a slovenian movie. There aren't so many, + you need to support local production + the movie has received several international awards + the roomer is that it's really cool. So no brainer, I definitely need to see it as soon as possible. Plus, I really adore Jernej Šugman, although I am used to him from real stage and local theatre.



Reality: Yup, a must see. It's a splendid interpretation of a relationship falling apart and trying to set it back together at first, however after downfall, breaking the mirror images of better selves and picking up the leftovers from a once happy life of one couple.

It could be any couple in the world, so universally shown truth can be deployed from the piece. If two once joined souls spend a lot of time apart with separate interests, it is inevitable that they will grow apart and find someone else to share interests, funny and loving moments with. In this perticular case, the male side of the partnership decides to have an affair, and wife when finding out, normally freaks out. The deciding point is shown later in the movie. To make it even more complicated, the "child issue" is brought up, the devastation that a child feels when the parents decide not to live together anymore.

Another view on the matter is given by her mother, because she is used to this sort of relationship from her own experience (hard quotes like - "Men are men, they cannot help themselves, they have needs".. and " I thought we ran out of crying over men and got used to the fact that the world is like this and accept it as it is). The quotes are taken from my memory from the screening, however they are quite similar to actually said words from the mother and hit me hard when thinking about that. What is then the line between the two and what are the indicators one should be careful about not to fall into the same trap as those two did? Or maybe is it realistic to have two souls that can work together as one for a limited period of time and then fall apart and maybe, just maybe meet in another life circle or period of life. The complication that derives from a mutual child can be resolved up to some extent, however it remains complicated with new people arriving to their lives (new husbands, wifes, etc)

The cliché that the father falls for the babysitter is amusing, because I would imagine that a person from business perspective comes along - because he does spend a lot of time away from home. Another cliché of being in a sexual relationship with your ex - predictable and yet, inspiring, as it serves merely as a tool on the road to her independence.

The amazing thing about this movie are also the animations (metaphores for relationship), that are depicted while she's telling stories to her young daughter. Brilliant execution, I really enjoyed them.

As a strong competitive advantage to "usual" slovene movie, this piece is optimistic and strong. Normalwise we cannot extend our reach beyond classic depression and negativism, hopelessness in slovene movies. This piece has a downfall, dealing with the problem and optimistical conclusion. And this is how life really works - in sense that if you have a decision, you will find a way to deliver it.


My personal rate: 9,5 (a good and solid piece. If you have the chance, see it for sure!)

Meet Joe Black, 1998

Meet Joe Black, 1998
Director: Martin Brest
Cast: Brad Pitt, Anthony Hopkins, Claire Forlani



Stage: Home TV selection

Joe Black in short: Bill Parrish, media tycoon, loving father and still a human being, is about to celebrate his 65th birthday. One morning, he is contacted by the Inevitable - by hallucination, as he thinks. Later, Death itself enters his home and his life, personified in a man's body: Joe Black has arrived. His intention was to take Bill with him, but accidentally, Joe's former host and Bills beautiful daughter Susan have already met. Joe begins to develop certain interest in life on earth as well as in Susan, who has no clue who she's flirting with.


Preps: Good cast, good storyline, good time to see this again.

Reality: One of the finest stories in the last decade. How to face the devil or how to accept you are dying - what to do next, what to do in the days that are left. Who to tell and in what way. And what to do if the devil is living with you in your last few days and just happens to flirt with your daughter.

Some of the questions, the movie is trying to answer. In my head, the most important one is how to indulge the days that are left and what to do with the remaining time. Do you actually look behind and try to improve some unjustice you might have done.. or do you act as if nothing happened, like Bill doesn't in this piece. The viewer is left with truly funny scenes of trying to implement the devil in god's body into his family, with some obscene lies that are put together because the identity of the devil must remain unknown, yet a complete stranger is walking through the family bedrooms and bad enough, flirting with the only child (that is unfortunately, up to the third of the movie, already taken by another man).

Now, the development between the beauty and the beast in the disguise is extremely interesting, the dialogues are well put together and also executed - you even get the feeling that Death /or Devil, you might put it as you wish, is a good man, that causes also redemption and forgives the sins you might have done. And cures /or puts people to the eternal rest upon their wish.

How deep is the circle we are living in and what is beyond -something to be terrified about or something to look forward to? This movie implies there is nothing to be afraid of, therefore it also implies the existance of heaven, God, Death also in impersonated figure and also, room for improvement, while you are still on Earth, living and breathing. The love game between Joe and Susan seems real, but may be hard to take. Hopkins cast is brilliant, firm figure of the power that is not yet willing to go. Yet to God, we must all bend - the movie says so. I remain doubtful. A good piece, but doesn't go hand in hand with my atheistic approach. Or philosophical seeking for the proof of concept.


My personal rating: 7,5 ( a strong piece in making you think about life versus death, things you need to go through before you leave this place. And a solid love story).

Meet Joe Black on IMDB

Practical Magic, 1998

Practical Magic, 1998
Director: Griffin Dunne
Cast: NIcole Kidman, Sandra Bullock, Stockard Channing


Practical Magic in Short: Sally and Gillian Owens have always known they were different. Raised by their aunts after their parents' death, the sisters grew up in a household that was anything but typical--their aunts fed them chocolate cake for breakfast and taught them the uses of practical magic. But the invocation of the Owens' sorcery also carries a price--some call it a curse: the men they fall in love with are doomed to an untimely death. Now adult women with very different personalities, the quiet Sally and the fiery Gillian must use all of their powers to fight the family curse and a swarm of supernatural forces that threatens the lives of all the Owens women.


Stage: Home TV selection

Preps: I think I have seen this in the theatres, but didn't like it a lot. Now, as I don't have anything constructive to do and I am a fan of Kidman and Bullock, let's see if I was wrong.


Reality: Well, sometimes you are correct in the first time you decide for something. This is a good example of not really brilliantly thought-through scenario and furthermore, a weak story. Practical magic should offer something more than the series Bewitched, in this sense or in this case it is not so. It is just a filmed version up to some extent, of the named series from 80'ies. Bullock and Kidman are picted as naive, the cast is weak. The fooling around with some magic is somehow cute or romantic in some moments, but nothing more. The curse they are trying to break, is weak and without any real background, therefore I don't buy it.

Apart from this, no really positive feelings. I get bored and despite the fact, that I love watching both ladies, in one hour I get bored to death and switch the channel. Not enough to stimulate my brais at all. So, I don't recommend it.


My personal rating: 2,0 (some cute moments and some practical ideas how to make some things more interesting - or try to pull out some magic).
Practical Magic on IMDB

A walk in the clouds, 1995

A walk in the clouds, 1995
Director: Alfonso Arau
Cast: Keanu Reeves, Altana Sanchez Gijon, Anthony Quinn



Stage: home theatre, Sunday TV selection

A walk in the clouds in short: After returning from the war, Paul and a young woman meet on a bus as she's headed home from college to help with the grape harvest and face her Old World domineering dad. The woman has not married but is pregnant and she thinks her father is going to kill her. Paul proposes to pose as her husband to help her face her father. When their passion for each other is finally ignited and explodes, they realize they must overcome all odds to be together.



Preps: Normalwise (and I don't get it why), Slovene TV selection on a Sunday night poses something extraordinary or at least decent. On the other hand, Saturday and Friday nights are usually reserved for crappy movies. At least haven't seen one good in a while. So my expectations to finish up a lovely weekend with a movie, are now more than decent. And Keanu is one of my favourite actors anyway.. Apart from this fact, I have heard this piece is a strong one.



Reality: Well, the plot is quite good. And strong. However, the cast seems awful at the beginning. I seriously doubt that there are such gentlemen in the world, that would go and support a woman in that way. I think.. naaaah, not a chance. To lie to a family just for the sake of her facing the parents? Well, the relationship with her parents is built on a solid ground and has the factor of probability very well embedded inside. And I go with it, in a sense I buy it. But the relationship between Keanu and Aitana? Very shallow, yet inspiring. How much crap can a man take from the father of a girl he likes (or at the beginning he just feels sorry for)?

I am impressed with powerful scenes within family conversations. Have seen quite a few in reality and some entities are quite realistic. Therefore, a big plus for showing family values in such a way. I wouldn't buy it in any fiction, however the story allows Keanu to repeat and repeat his gentlemenism over and over again. Showing maybe that he has no backbone - or maybe that he has stronger than any average person? I am not sure. The dilussions he's having when drifting away into WW2 dream are a bit too much to eat up in this piece, in my opinion, quite unimportant and could be easily left out.

The romance deriving is very chick-oriented and I am sure most of the romantic souls should get it and embrace it. A bit too much for a guy when seeing this. Maybe in the arms of a girl he likes and regarding the fact she might like him for being so supportive and watch it with her. My strong opinion is that this piece should be seen in the company of a girlfriend (at least two girls). Too much teasers inside for a girl company. Guys, stay away.

For both genders, however, the movie poses some excellent ideas what to do on your next trip, family holiday or something. The place, where most of the movie is taken, seems like paradise and all the people inside act as if they are in heaven. Are they? Don't know for sure, but popped into my mind as one of the next wanna-be-holliday resorts for me and my piece. So, the photography is brilliant, the scenery is more than amazing. Almost no music at all and the dialogue is weak.

A beautiful and picturesque showing of picking up the grapes and turning it into the wine. The girls, barefoot, walking on the grapes - almost a bit of an erotic scene. Seems very real :)


My personal rating: 6,0 (you will fall in love with the scenery and for sure will want to experience this in one of your next vacations. And a scent of decent guy, that knows how to be a gentleman, will also drag your attention).


A walk on IMDB

Tenderness, 2009

Tenderness, 2009
Director: John Polson
Cast: Russel Crowe, Jon Foster, Sophie Traub

Stage: Home theatre


Tenderness in short:Three lives. Buffalo detective Lt. Cristofuoro, whose catatonic wife is in hospital, takes a special interest in Eric Komenko, a juvenile who killed his parents and will be freed on his 18th birthday. So has Lori Cranston, 15 or 16, her body fully developed and the object of lust by her boss and her mother's new boyfriend. She keeps a scrapbook about Eric, and when he's released from custody, she hides in the backseat of his car, insisting he take her with him on a trip toward Albany where he's planning to meet a girl. Cristofuoro is certain Eric will kill again, so he follows. It's clear early on that Cristofuoro's probably right, but what's Lori's motivation?

Preps: Again, one of the leftovers on my disk. The fact that Crowe is in it, diggs my mind. I just adore the man and want to see everything he has to give. Although I don't suppose it will ever stand up to be Gladiator again.


Reality: Wow, a huge dissappointment. The story is not as bad as it is represented. I mean, it could be driven much better, as a half criminal thriller. Instead of that, the movie has too long and static scenes, no real action and lots of questions unanswered. Why the detective pursues the young rebel, is quite clear, yet it could be more of a mystery, if the director walked an extra mile. It doesn't happen, unfortunately. The young lady just dissappears without anyone looking at her. At least when she drives everyone around her crazy, you have a gut feeling why. And all in all, you want to shut down the movie.
The dialogue sucks, the scenes are terribly put together. Crowe might be the only shining point in this piece, but even he doesn't convince me to watch it until the end. All the time I am waiting for the movie to develop into something interesting. Doesn't happen, unfortunately. Did the young man actually rape his dead mother? Now there's a story to follow. Well, I wait without any luck.

Even Crowe has his bad moments. This was one of them.



My personal rating: 2,0 (and this for the sake of Crow. Apart from that, crappy movie and I definitely don't recommend it.


Tenderness on IMDB

The Switch, 2010

The Switch, 2010
Director: Will Speck, Josh Gordon
Cast: Jennifer Anniston, Jason Bateman, Patrick Wilson




Stage: Home Theatre

The Switch in short: Kassie (Jennifer Aniston) and Wally (Jason Bateman) are best friends. Being unlucky in love, Kassie has decided to have a child using artificial insemination. Wally doesn't like this idea, but he isn't capable of admitting to himself, let alone to Kassie, that he's in love with her. At Kassie's artificial insemination party, Wally gets very drunk and spies the sperm donor's sample in the bathroom. Wally was way too drunk to know what he did that night, and Kassie has moved away because she doesn't feel that New York City is a place to raise a child. Now 7 years later, Kassie has moved back with her son Sebastian. While she is looking to get Roland (the sperm donor) more involved in their lives, Wally can't help but notice the many striking similarities that he and Sebastian share.


Preps: hot stuff in the theatres globally, I need to see it. Kind of like Aniston, for her cute act. Normally I need to be in a weird mode to find the comedies she's in, good. But, let's give it a shot.


Reality: What if you are in the best years and want a baby, but don't have a spouse - what will you do? The simplest thing in the world is to get some semen and just have a baby. I come from a single mom with a child process, so I am aware it sounds perfect in theory but can be very hard and depressive along the way. Rewarding, for sure, but very hard in praxis.
Well, this piece demonstrates a strong woman, going for the baby on her own. The usual complication is with her best friend, first trying to help her on the way, but afterwards, thinking about her in romantic sense. Of course, the funny scenes derive from this fact, as well as those before her insemination, trying to replace the lost semen, the "getting inseminated party" scenery and jokes, etc. Do you really throw a party when you get your head into something like this? Or do you really find a decent guy (in this case married), that is ready to give you his sperm - but is also present on this party, along with his wife..

There are several ways you can get pregnant and I am not sure this is the most preminent one. However, it does give a new perspective to the idea of getting a child even if you are not in the relationship period. I believe this is the kind of thing that happens to you, and you shouldn't pursue intentionally. But this is just my opinion, for some women it actually works.

No real surprises here. And no recommendations either. This is just another piece in a long queue of similar ones. Will make you laugh occassionally, though.


Good quotes from the right beginning:
I am ready to do it now. Life is in session. I am in the market for some semen and I need you to help me find some :)



My personal rating: 3,0


The Switch on IMDB

Les Amours Imaginaires - Heartbeats, 2010

Les Amours Imaginaires - Heartbeats, 2010
Director: Xavier Dolan
Cast: Monika Chokri, Niels Schneider, Xavier Dolan



Stage: Movie theatre Cankarjev dom, Life - movie festival

Heartbeats in short: A story about three close friends who are involved in a love-triangle and the obstacles they have to face when trying to get along with each other.


Preps: Seeing the description of the movie makes me believe that this will be one of the more preminent movies of the festival. Plus, the director of my personal favourite from last year - J'ai tue ma mere - makes this belief even stronger.


Reality: The story about love, deception, rejection, jealousy, trading friendship for love or vice versa. A unique way of showing how a person can enter your life and posess your thoughts. A modern approach in terms of philosophy, accepting different views of sexuality in an individual.
The lovely thing about the movie are the distortions from the main story. The main love triangle story is broken down in four parts, each defined by three individuals that are not a part of triangle, saying realistic experience with their spouses, couple or love breaking. Funny sit-com ironical scenes with a lot of reality that can break your heart, because you will feel involved with the story or be part of it instantly.

There are some backdrops in the movie, as it get a bit statical or unbelievable. Is it really the way it would go, goes on and on in my mind. Baring in my head, that it's the director's cut and his point of view, I find myself in many occasions, feeling hard to believe this is real and this might be alternative truth the viewer might find in the movie. Nevertheless, the story is unique and very classy for this present we live in. The topic highly neglected in cinemography, now gets its place in the universe. Dolan, however, dissappoints me a bit, because in my opinion, his last year's work exceeded my expectations on a very high and barely reachable level. Well, this year the expectations were set higher, but overall achievement seems on a lower level. Plus, I wasn't aware that he also did the act of young Adonis - I only see it when reviewing the cast and thinking about the movie a lot. In some sense, this is what a movie should trigger, thinking about it or the topic it represents. In this case, a fine job. But nothing more than that.




My personal rating: 6,0 (worth seeing in philosophical view - if you want to think about possibilities in a relationship and how to involve third person might not be such a great idea for the initial couple. However, the script is somehow poorer than this topic deserves, also the direction)


Les Amours on IMDB

The home page

The Lake House, 2006

The Lake House, 2006
Director:Alejandro Agresti
Cast:Keanu Reeves, Sandra Bullock, Christopher Plummer



Lake House in short: A lonely doctor who once occupied an unusual lakeside home begins exchanging love letters with its former resident, a frustrated architect. They must try to unravel the mystery behind their extraordinary romance before it's too late.


Stage: Home theatre
Preps: I thought I have already seen this one. Seeing Sandra Bullock and Keanu sort of ringed my bell. But I fully remembered after 10 minutes. A beautiful love story, a chick movie, definitely worth seeing for another time.

Reality: I was right. A beautiful story about the longing, waiting and trying to find the one true love we all seek. And then, ironically, finding it two years before your time. The idea of having something like a post box (a real one, not an e-mail one) as a gateway between two worlds, is amusing, romantic and sets all the butterflies in me. Again, Bullock cast is one of her typical, not like in her latest The blind side, still, you will adore her, if you are a fan of the genre. And furthermore, Keanu here is not a hot shot like we saw him in the Matrix, but in my opinion, from time to time he suits damn well into these cissy romantic comedies (see drama Sweet November and his cast there - also worth seeing if you like the genre).

Don't watch it if you don't like romance in a movie and wet eyes. Definitely watch it to dream away in the night, how cool would it be to.. well, you know what I mean. And the main idea I believe is, that it's once in a lifetime you find something really worth waiting and fighting for. Completely agree.

Fav. quote.. She was more real to me than anything I have ever known.. when describing his relationship with her


My personal rating: 8,0 (in this genre, one of the good ones :)

Lake House on IMDB
Official sites

The other man, 2008

The other man, 2008
Director: Richard Eyre
Cast: Liam Neeson, Laura Linney, Romora Garai, Antonio Banderas



The other man in short: The story of a husband who suspects his wife of adultery, and sets out to track down the other man in her life.

Stage: Home theatre, ready with a bowl of pop corn, to be strongly americanized and romantic :)

Preps: Seeing the trailer I know that Liam Neeson, who I adore, acts here and I expect again a set of action items on the list he has to work on when driving through the movie. I loved him in Taken (see it and you will know exactly what roles he's brilliant in in my opinion) and I adore his voice, so father-like. Also Schindler's list, Nell, Rob Roy are one of my favourites for his act.
In this case, the title of the movie projects a fraud or a deception in the movie.
Liam was nominated for an oscar for this role!


Reality: It is amazing, how a post-mortum discovery can influence someone's life. When a family is torn apart by her death (cancer that leads to death due to her not being ready to go through a serie of operations), he discovers she had a lover. She was away many times, on business trips. And on one of them, she found a new romance, she had with an italian guy (brilliantly presented by Antonio Banderas). It happened ten years from this present moment, and the husband is eager to see who this man was (or is).

Pretending to be her, longing for touch with an old romance, he travels to Italy, meets the guy, leads him on and discovers fragments of her past life that both, hurt him and on the other hand, make him understand her more. Or not understand her. The dilemma, whether it's worth discovering something that hurts you in the end as much as it hurt him, makes the viewer wonder whether it wouldn't be better for some things to stay under the cover, since there's nothing you can do in the present moment, as the person, involved with this, is dead. And yet, there are numerous people that are convinced that the truth should and must be revealed no matter the time, no matter the cost.

The way the husband reveals the password for the folder she was hiding in the computer, is a miracle, and so are some scenes in the movie. The rage, with which he looks at the pictures, taken while she was having the romance, the despair and crying, this is however, very real and gives me shivers as I watch it. And she puts it brilliantly, when talking to him.. it's a matter of choice.



My personal rate: 6,0 (decent movie, however it brings out the question - what is worth discovering something after the person is gone.. Is knowing the truth worth living a lie?)

The other man on IMDB
Official site

An Education, 2009

An Education, 2009
Director: Lone Scherfig
Cast: Carey Mulligan, Olivia Williams, Peter Sarsgaard, Alfred Molina



Education in short: Jenny (Carey Mulligan) a very bright girl on the cusp of her 17th birthday, finds herself in a whirlwind romance with the much older David ( Peter Sarsgaard). Prior to meeting him, Jenny was working hard at secondary school to ensure getting to Oxford University. When she sees the lifestyle David can provide, one she never imagined could be hers, she's hooked and thoughts of Oxford are forgotten.

Stage: home theatre
Preps: None in perticular. Came in the row, wasn't recommended or something, just a thing on my disk from last year that I needed to see :)


Reality: Education has some really strong points to vote for it. It's an english movie. I just love english speaking (UK english speaking) cast. A bit naughty and lovely, the sound of it. Usually also the movies have some perspective or some dramatic scenes, some basic idea you should nourish after seeing it. This one is one alike - relatively unknown actors that come upfront with good dialogue and irony that pours out of them.

Jenny, living in a "normal" - to my standards, weird, family, is daily faced with stupidity her father pours into her. For instance, comments like "Knowing a famous author is better than becoming one. It shows you're connected.", with those, her father neglects all wishes Jenny has and fulfills his own dreams of pushing his daughter to the best university there is - Oxford. She, on the other hand, handles this with intelligence and shoots back like a rifle with witty comments and ironic/sarcastic piece of mind she posesses.

The irony breaks when this Mary Clarence (the holy child that is going to be at least world leader in her father's eyes) leaves the whole package for a man. It turns out that even her father thinks the prime goal of a young lady should be getting a husband and within this attempt, getting well situated. It doesn't matter what happens with university, education, as long as you have someone besides to offer you comfortable life without work.

Luckily enough, I got to see that milk and honey don't grow on trees. The men actually steal to get money and after that they can indulge life of beautiful restaurants, pubs, bars.. The way Jenny exposes her feelings about this to her father is simply remarkable. The director really caught some good scenes with this and some inspiring humour.

The movie also offers good music, nice yuppy-like places to visit, inspiring romance scenes and ideas.. and of course.. not to neglect.. how appropriate is an intimate relationship between a 16year-old girl and much older guy? (I never figured how old was he in the movie, but at least around 35 (with a wife and a kid that looked at least 7 years old) - The movie I think never touches this dilemma - or at least puts it aside, with some small scenes the parents have at the beginning. However, for me it was the thing I expected to be adressed at the movie at some point, unfortunately, I was dissappointed.




My personal rating: 6,0 (interesting in some aspects and very powerful in some scenes, however it might imply somehow corrupted message (give up education and you give up life.. and if you bring all back, you should consider yourself lucky if the system accepts you). But see it. It's different :)


IMDB for Education
Education official site

Valentine's day, 2010

Valentine's day, 2010
Director:Gary Marshall
Cast: Jessica Alba, Kathy Bates, Ashton Kutcher, Jessica Biel, Bradley Cooper, Eric Dane, Patrick Dempsey, Julia Roberts, Jennifer Garner, Queen Latifah,..... (amazing cast!)



Short synopsis: Intertwining couples and singles in Los Angeles break-up and make-up based on the pressures and expectations of Valentine's Day.

Stage: Colloseum, multiplex in Ljubljana

Preps: Where was the last time the cast was this amazing? How much budget did this movie have? I wanted to see it as a parade of all superb actors. The topic is a bit off, the surprising fact that it was launched after valentine's day, was a shock to me. What a disastrous marketing, that kind of movie should have been launched a month before, so you can get prepared.
And definitely a kind of movie you need to watch with a girlfriend (I mean two girls together). I don't suppose there is a guy in the world that would bare this.


Reality: It's a good one if you look from cast perspective. I love some of the dialogues, especially the Julia Roberts scenes and some of Ashton Kutcher. This guy's faces make me laugh the whole time. And he plays this naive florist, walking around in an outrageous pink sweater and T-shirt. The couples are so beautiful it takes women's breath away. And yes, you would walk home with that Eric Dane, of course he is gay in the movie. How ironic.

About the other, valentine's perspective - I love the fact that they outline also the ones that have noone to turn to on this glorious marketing day. A friend of mine once told me it's the festive day of florists and toy makers. And marketing. I have to agree on this one :) Within the movie you see a splendid show of the people that hate this day for any kind of reason, a sort of ritual I laughed even the day after about with the hitting stick and a heart, filled with chocolates, an anti-valentine's dinner and people burning pictures or memories of someone that hurt them.

Mushy couples might really enjoy this. And it's really pleasant to see such a cast in action :)


A good quote I remembered:
My closest relationship is with my Blackberry, Thank God it vibrates !

A cute one: When I was a kid, most of the advice that my dad gave me was crap. But there's one thing that he said that was pure genius... he said, if you're ever with a girl that's too good for you, marry her.

My personal rating: 6,5 (the story's not really brilliant, but you will enjoy the cast and laugh at some of the dialogues)

Valentine's on IMDB
Official site