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sarah-4321
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Memory Box: Echoes of 911 (2021)
Greatly Unique and much Needed "take on," insight to, and perspective...
This film is very much a needed and a unique perspective and way of revealing the impacts and effects of the airplane attacks in September 2001. .... It was and is an excellent idea to build a soundproof "box" (little room) for people to share their thoughts, stories, and traumas with a camera that they themselves use a remote to control. .... Persons directly affected in all three sites in NY, DC, and PA tell their stories. Some of them were *in* the buildings that were struck in the case of NY and DC plane attacks. ... There are no "interviews." Each person just sits there and talks to the camera. ... It is heart-wrenching, poignant, and exceedingly 'difficult' so to speak. Actually, there aren't adequate verbs for this.... // It is very much worth watching, even if you think you've seen and heard "enough" about September 2001. ... As another reviewer said, the editing is excellent. The documentary captures the heart, soul, and pain of what happened person by person by person. ... Each is a very personal story, and some are just a couple minutes long, as that was the extent to which some humans were able to talk about it, even in the "isolation chamber box" at the time this project was done. Personally, i truly and fully recommend watching it, brothers and sisters of the world. *Thank* you to the entire team that developed this project; there are other aftermaths for which this process would apply, such as a year or so after the January 6, 2021 mob attacks on the u.s. Capitol and its peoples.
A Year in Mooring (2011)
Truth-based and "Haunting"
Several years ago I heard a (ministerial-type) person say to another person that "this is the time he needs to be around us, his friends," referring to a guy who was staying apart after a personal difficulty--a tragedy. ... A the time my immediate thought was that We Do Not Know the Heart of Another and certainly cannot presume or project onto him what it is he "needs." ... This film is a profound truth-based and haunting unfoldment of the empirical reality that humans sometimes truly need to "hide away," so to speak, in order to mend and heal in spirit, soul, emotions, mind, and body. ... It is also a clear and powerful representation of overt and subtle aspects and examples of how fellow-beings can serve persons who are mending--and perhaps taking months and months to do so: not 'interfering' or following the person around (or getting 'in his face') asking constant poking questions. The the cafe' owner and the ancient mariner stand back, stand by, and provide time and space, while sort of watching over him--including in anonymous ways such as invisibly providing needed things, like those quarters to continue running the shower-water. This is a set of forms of a Ministry of Presence, which is not about 'saying' or 'doing' lots of things...it's about being profoundly yet quietly Present and totally taking cues from the person. .....
..... We learn very early in the beginning of the movie why he is drawn to that particular boat, which itself has great meaning and import. .... What others have written about the filmography and setting of the film holds true as well--it is strikingly beautiful, as are the musical scores (cues) throughout the film. ... All of the songs are Perfect, apt, and ideally placed in the film.
....What I don't know is if the subtitles (which just happened to be set to "on" when it ran on Prime Video) are the ones that would be on a DVD version; the 'subtitles' are strange a lot of the time, e.g., saying "noise" instead of "footsteps" or "engine running," and are outright incorrect in other instances. ... so it seems as if whoever did the closed captioning may have only been half paying attention, unskilled, or inebriated. Unknown; however, the captioning is quite odd...
.... By the way, I had no idea how the story was going to progress or how it would end, and my thoughts along the way about certain things that would or would not happen were incorrect. However, one knows, by default and from how the movie starts, the basic reason for the Young Mariner's despair.
Overall "Hide Away" is beautifully done from several standpoints and is worth seeing for a thoughtful, careful unfoldment of a real human living out a period of the beginning of some measure of healing and psychological and emotional recovery.
It Happened One Christmas (1977)
Extraordinarily Beautifully Done Film and Re-make
It Happened One Christmas with Marlo Thomas (beautifully and perfectly done as Mary Baily Hatch), Orson Welles (a splendid Henry F. Potter), Wayne Rogers (an ideal George hatch), Barney Martin (a perfect Uncle Willie), Doris Roberts (the embodiment of Ma Bailey), Christopher Guest ("little brother" Harry Bailey), and Cloris Leachman (as a wonderful Clara Oddbody)...
This "re-make" is exceedingly beautifully done. ... Some of the other reviewers have described, reported on, and captured the essence of it. Several years ago it came on TV ... later, some years ago, i got the DVD. Overall, it truly is a thought-ful, worthy, and splendid re-make of the story without anything 'campy' or fake-ish about it at all. "It Happened One Christmas" is elegant, poignant, and touching-and it possesses a depth of Heart and Soul that some classic re-makes lack. The film is also *tastefully* humorous (again without being 'campy' at all) in places.
On all its aspects (cast/actors, filmography, script, story-line, lighting, production, etc.) I Whole-heartedly recommend and endorse "It Happened One Christmas." It is well worth seeing and to passing along to others, as it seems to be not well known of by persons... This true Gem is also worthy of being a "Classic Movie" by Turner Classic Movies.
If I Leave Here Tomorrow: A Film About Lynyrd Skynyrd (2018)
Astoundiing & Spectacular Story, Music, Video, Audio, and Production Quality
Finally saw "Lynyrd Skynyrd - if I Leave here Tomorrow" through Prime Video - indeed splendidly done; one can tell that a *lot* of careful thought-ful work went into creating it. . . .
Had not known a lot of things, such as history behind how band's name came about (way cool story), details of the plane crash, other Musicians that wafted through L.S., and many other aspects and details. ... Plus, in it i *Love* the turning "Skynyrd" into a VERB by saying "we'd Skynyrd-ize them..." {i.e., the song lyrics of a new band-member)--brothers after my own heart.... From this person here who turns everything into a Verb !
The documentary is iconic, great Music, and well worth seeing.... #TrulyExcellent.
The Apprentice (2004)
Engaging and Provides a few Learning Curves
Ok, well having heard cultural references to "The Apprentice," and having no idea what they mean, I finally decided to watch several episodes--all the way through the end of the first season. While there is a bit of what seems to be as-if "false drama," it is engaging and has a lot of "intrigue." There are some planning, execution, and definitely some communications learning curves. The intros and outros are excellent, and the atmosphere and cinematography (camera shots) are almost hypnotic. In the Board room, the use of light, dark, and shadows is highly effective--almost Hitchcockian in nature.
The whole series is a creative and effectively executed idea (based on other similar programs), and those of us who have been in leadership, management, and organizational/governmental/ministerial coordination are likely to be intrigued and drawn in by the projects and how the teams and individual persons manage them, as well as manage uncertainties and "chaos."
Leave Her to Heaven (1945)
Chilling Story, and "Well Composed"
This is a chilling story and Film Noir. It is realistic, in that this is what type of collateral damage to many persons that can result from one person's possessiveness, obsession, and over-attachment.
This is a stark contrast to the qualities and character of the husband (Richard), sister (Ruth), mother, and several others.
One thing I still do not completely understand is what the intention was when Ellen tells the dream to Thorne the caretaker at "Back of the Moon." ...As it is, I'm missing something there--it is obviously intended to be sinister and to somehow alienate Thorne.
The rating is down-graded to 7.5 stars given that the kid-actor who played "Danny" over-acts (you can "see" the acting/over-acting). He also portrays Danny as a selfish and dense person with shades of kind of "bratty" behavior. (It is an acting issue, not a script issue.) All the other casting and acting was perfect and excellent.
(Given the time-period of film-making, we'll disregard the issue of girls waking up first thing in the morning with face-paint on, hair all in place, and looking totally alert!)
By the time of this movie, the Director, Producer, and Orchestra Direction Team had an understanding of (and gained skill in) musical cues. The Musical Cues are EXCELLENT - especially including the dramatic use of drums, and "Ruth" playing piano on and off throughout the film. The music and sound are splendid and ADD TO the story (tension, suspense, melancholy, etc.) in ideal ways, without being at all superfluous or distracting. And the story is not "over-crowded" with music. All background music is extremely well placed, appropriate, and applicable.
Highly recommend. - Every time you see "Leave Her to Heaven" you will notice something else--both relatively overt and subtle aspects.