WaxIdiotical's Video Review: The Orphanage

Final Ratings:
Mark- Outstanding
Kyp- Outstanding

WaxIdiotical's Video Review: The Orphanage from Mark Marshall on Vimeo.

Kyp and Mark's Video Review: Juno

So, we clearly, we had filmed this pretty soon after our review of Sweeney Todd.... like right after... but hey at least we both talk in this one :P

Mark's Top 5

Ok, So here's the deal; I don't see as many movies as Kyp. If I had seen all the movies Kyp has seen, my list would probably look very similar to his, just maybe with a few re-arranged. And keep in mind, these are movies that we have SEEN. We have yet to see There Will Be Blood, which we're both pretty confident would have made our lists, had we seen it.

5 - Lars and the Real Girl

Ryan Gossling continues to amaze me. Between this film and Half Nelson he definately has come a long way in his acting.

4 - No Country for Old Men

Coen brothers deliver another film where you find yourself laughing, and aren't entirely sure why. Action, humor, and a gripping story line. Expect to hear the title again around Oscar time.

3 - Once

A new addition to the list of neo-musicals. Fantastic....FANTASTIC music. Read the full review below.

2 - Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Burton delivers his take on Sondheim's musical; the film carries the feel of old fashioned musicals while combining it with enough spurting blood to make Tarantino blush.

1 - Juno

When I say I would marry Ellen Page... I'm not exaggerating. This film had many levels, and all of them were amazing.

Mark and Kyp's Video Review: Sweeney Todd

Mark Reviews: Once

First and foremost let me say this. I liked Once. It had a great story that didn't beat you with a stick. There was a love story, but the focus wasn't really on the love between the two musicians. Glen Hansard plays a hoover repairman who's real passion is playing music. While not repairing vacuum cleaners he performs on the street. At night he plays the songs he is writing and working on, it's then that he meets Markéta Irglová's character; an immigrant who loves playing the piano in a music store downtown. She becomes an instant fan of Glen's music and they form a friendship and maybe a little more as they write, rehearse and record Glen's music.

One of the most intriguing things about the film for me is the lack of names. Neither of the lead characters have names (at least not that I can remember, and not according to imdb). The music in this film is outstanding. Kind of like Kyp's review of August Rush, the music helped move the story along. However, in this film it was more because neither of the leads were actors, they truly were two songwriters. That for me adds a ton to the film, because when you see them performing, it's really them performing. Kyp and I had a brief discussion as to whether or not this should be considered a musical. At first (before I had seen it) I had agreed that it wasn't a musical in the true sense of the word. No big dance numbers etc... BUT, now that I've seen it I would have to disagree. The story is moved mostly by music, and you learn most of the back story through the lyrics of the songs.

So... that being said, I had one complaint... and it's not even a REAL complaint, more of an observation. While I did enjoy the film a lot, it felt like I was watching a bunch of music video's put together; I don't know if it's because a lot of it was shot with DV or what, but the it was a lot of slow pans as the character walked through the town singing... don't get me wrong, I loved it... just kind of not positive why I loved it this much.

must be the music

mm