Culture

Smells like a bit of ultra violence. I have warned people not to see this movie. Funny Games is one of the
most disturbing films ever made, destined to stay with you for days if
not weeks. My pleas of "avoid at all costs" have inadvertently sparked
curiosity and interest in the film, which is good because people should
see this movie. And that's director Michael Haneke’s intention with
this shot-by-shot remake of his provocative and frightening German film
of the same name. His original intention was to expose the mind-numbing
violence that permeates our mainstream films, in doing so he makes us
completely aware of what we're watching and feeling. Rather than
desensitizing-it’s OVER-sensitizing. The result is a relentless mental
overload that will stick with you. Just try to shake off the creepiness…

They rip on the gaza strip. Bend's own Nathan Gray created a unique way of promoting peace in the
Middle East. He and co-producers Sean Scerritt and Sudip Peterson,
drawing on what they describe as "dynamic acts of peace and unity,"
have created SOUR 4 Peace in the Middle East, a film that crosses
borders with nine top Israeli and Jordanian skate boarders. In a recent
conversation with Scerritt, he said the theme that sparked the idea
behind the film is "doing what you love with people you're not supposed
to like."

Where is siegfried when you need him. From the director responsible for Independence Day and The Day After Tomorrow comes a movie without "day" in the title.
I didn't care for Independence Day and Day After Tomorrow is one of the worst movies ever made. As if that's not enough, Emmerich's list of credits also includes Stargate - the first movie I ever walked out of. Perhaps not surprisingly, 10,000 BC is a worthy successor to all those half-efforts.
I'm no historian, but I'm pretty sure that tribal cave-like men hunting mastodons didn't co-mingle with the Egyptians building the pyramids, as this movie wants us to believe.
They speak in English, but their phony "accents" are anywhere from Bulgarian to German to British to Pathetic. Unbelievably, it's narrated by Omar Sharif, who I thought might have even been faking an accent.

No Life Til Leather The title of the new heist thriller, The Bank Job, doesn't begin to describe the twists and turns this film takes, as it delves into 1970s British society. What initially appears to be another buddy-burglary story, much like the Ocean franchise, Snatch, or The Italian Job, instead unravels into a Serpico-style exposé. Only because we know from the outset that the film is based on true events is the audience able to believe an otherwise nearly implausible story.
The 1971 Baker Street bank robbery was under a government gag order for 30 years; no arrests were made, nor was any money ever recovered. After thieves tunneled into a bank vault in London's Baker Street, they looted safe deposit boxes of cash, jewelry, and incriminating evidence. Though the robbery made headlines, the story disappeared almost immediately, because of a "D" notice, which gagged the press.

Is that the new i-Phone?I really wanted to like this movie. It just wouldn't let me. I spent almost the entire second half aching for it to be over.
The
opening montage was nice. The old-school credits in the beginning,
reminiscent of '40s-style movies, were refreshing. The colors and
photography were close to captivating. There's nothing wrong with the
acting.
Then there's the story. Somewhere hidden in this mess is
a cool concept. Steeped in ambiguity, I just can't figure out where the
legendary director stashed it.