Tag Archives: Movies

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The Last Legion (2007)

I didn’t expect much from The Last Legion but I like movies set during the Roman Empire and this was said to tell the pre-history of King Arthur which sounded interesting and so I watched it. I wasn’t aware that Colin Firth is in this movie. If I had realized it I wouldn’t have watched it. That could only go wrong. He is not plausible as a Roman general and the fact that he seemed to make fun of the role didn’t really help much. Pairing him with the gorgeous Aishwarya Rai made matters worse. Chemistry wise it didn’t work. And how did Ben Kingsley end up in this? That it was historically inaccurate didn’t bother me so much or let’s just say, it didn’t matter anymore.

The movie is set in 460 A.D. The last Roman emperor, a boy of 12 years, Romulus Augustus (Thomas Brodie-Sangster), has just been crowned when the Goths invade the city. He is sent to Capri with his mentor Ambrosinus (Kingsley), part druid, part warrior. They are rescued from Capri by the loyal general Aurelius (Firth) who is helped by three male and one female warrior. After realizing they have been betrayed by senator Nestor, they flee to Britannia to look for the Ninth Legion which is located so far away from Rome that it might hopefully still be loyal to the emperor.

While there is hardly anything supernatural happening with the exception of the emperor finding Excalibur, there are a lot of fighting scenes, some romance and most of all the well liked topic of a very few highly dexterous warriors against a lot of far weaker opponents.

While I’m still not sure the movie was intentionally funny, I didn’t mind watching it because it made me laugh quite often. It may very well be that with another main actor it wouldn’t have been funny but at possibly much more decent. I think this is easily Colin Firth’s worst role.

While it was based on the novel The Last Legion by Valerio Massimo Manfredi it felt as if it had been adapted from a comic.

Watch it if you like action-adventures and if you are extremely keen on movies on the Roman Empire and don’t mind historical inaccuracy. I wouldn’t rate it higher than 2/5.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogpOgmP6MgI

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Help Wanted – We are Looking for Some War Movies

As I wrote in a recent post I get quite a few requests, either via comments or e-mail, from people looking for a movie. Sometimes I know what they are looking for right away but often it is too difficult as all they remember is just a tiny moment and the rest is forgotten. I know how frustrating it is when you are looking for a movie that made an impression but you cannot remember the title that’s why I decided that I will from now on post the requests  for the movies I couldn’t find. It is quite possible that one of you knows them and can help.

Below you find scenes and mini summaries from movies. If you know any of them, please leave a comment. It would be really great if we would mange to find these movies.  

Movie I

Recently I watched a foreign language WW2 film on netflix, takes place on an island, there’s an orphanage, soldiers are Russian… young boy conflicted about who to protect….can’t remember the name of it….anyone

Movie II

I’m looking for the title of a short movie. A boy is watching through a fence, a german soldier throwing gas cylinders into the gas chambers. The soldier watches the boy every day and he ends up killing him,but the day after a new boy is watching. It is an American movie, one of the boys is a well known actor, and there is no dialog in the movie.

Movie III

Can’t find the best movie yet, and its called the honestnes. A good world war movie with kids that are running, and taking care of themself. I hope someone has it, and I would love to c it one more time.

Movie IV

Does anyone know a movie about an East German Orphanage with some German (Wyrwolf – Hitler Youth) living in the forest? Two Russian soldiers come to see how the orphanage is managed and they try to get the last German resistance youths into the orphanage. There is a bit of a battle. It’s a very good movie. It WAS on YouTube but I can’t find it for the life of me. Thanks in advance

Movie V

I am 53 years old and when I was about 7 I remember watching a movie
set during world war 2. British movie, 2 scenes I remember, a british
boy sitting in his bedroom making paper airplanes and one flies out
the window, his mother tells him he cannot go outside to get it. The
boy does go outside to collect his airplane, bombers fly over and drop
bombs, one of which lands on his house killing his mother, leaving
this kid on his own. I don’t think this movie is set in England, I
think it is set in either Egypt or Africa. This movie has plagued me
for years as I never saw the end of it and don’t know what happens to
the kid. Can you help? Do you know of this movie or have you seen it?

Movie VI

A soldier was killed in action during a firefight. While all the other solders of the platoon/unit were taking cover, one soldier ran out into the line of fire and, for a solid minute, searched the dead soldier. His comrades were yelling for him to come back and he wouldn’t. Finally, he found what he was looking for and took cover. Come to find out, he was trying to find the wedding ring of the fallen soldier to take back to his widow.  The movie I am looking for is an actual action/war movie. The movie is not centered around this premise. The scene described is a small part of the movie and not mentioned much (if at all) after the scene happens.

Movie VII

I have a request. My father, as a child, has seen a movie. And he can only remember a part of a plot. There was a wounded paratrooper (my father claims he was black) and a small boy. They become friends and the soldier makes a figurine or a doll made of chair leg.
My father was watching that movie in 60s in Poland.

I sure hope that we manage to find the one or the other of these movies.

Does any of these descriptions and snippets sound familiar?

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Is There Too Much Emphasis on Film Music in War Movies?

Comments on two of my recent reviews (The Front Line and Special Forces) made me question the use of music in war movies. I remember that I was once not so keen on music in films and that I had liked some, like The Army of Shadows, especially because they hardly use any music at all. When it comes to more action-driven movies, I think that the music is to a large extent the reason why I like them so much. I couldn’t imagine Black Hawk Down, Gladiator, King Arthur, The Last of the Mohicans and many more without music.

On the other hand I’ve seen a few movies who would have been good with other or no music. In those cases the choice was so bad, it really damaged the film. One of those examples is The Killing Fields.

I think one of the problems is whether the score has been composed especially for the film or whether they just added known songs and pieces of music. This can work as well, as we can see in some of the Vietnam movies, but often it doesn’t.

Should a movie not be excellent without music? How important is it? Is there a overuse of music, particularly in US productions?

What do you think?

Let’s find out but share your opinion as well and name some examples in which the music was used especially well or others in which it damaged the movie.

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Laurel & Hardy at War – Pack Up Your Troubles (1932)

Pack up your Troubles is only one of many Laurel & Hardy movies showing them at war. There are better examples but it still has a few iconic and quite hilarious scenes. I grew up with Laurel & Hardy, during my childhood they were always on Sunday TV and so, no matter how silly, I’m fond of them.

The US are entering WWI. In his typical boasting way Hardy pretends he would join up if only he was given a chance. The chance is given soon enough in form of a conscription officer but the moment Hardy sees him, he tries to escape and weasel out. To no avail. They are drafted and end up in the trenches of France where they go about their own business pretty oblivious of the mess around them. Food, warmth and a few other things are more important for them. While this was certainly essential for all the soldiers, in Laurel and Hardy’s case it’s center stage. They behave in the trench like an old couple at home. The shelling and bombing is perceived as a major nuisance but not as the real danger it is. Sent to make a few prisoners, they turn a dangerous mission into a hilarious adventure that ends with a surprising success.

Edie Smith, a fellow soldier, tells them about his little daughter. He had to leave her behind with a couple of really abusive folk. When he goes missing, our two heroes decide that after the war they will bring the girl to her rightful grandparents.

The second part of the movie takes place after the Armistice and shows their adventures with the little girl and all their troubles and mishaps until they finally find the grand parents.

Pack Up Your Troubles is one hour long. It’s amusing, not one of my favourites, but still entertaining. They pack all the elements of WWI movies into a film –  the trenches, the barbed wire, the mud, the bombings – and add a humorous twist. Laurel & Hardy’s humour is slapstick, it’s not satirical, nor very profound. If you like it, you will enjoy this as well.

Do you have a favourite Laurel & Hardy at war? Or another favourite Laurel & Hardy?

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The Most Terrible Weather Conditions in Infantry Combat Movies – 4 Examples

Combat is hell. We all know that. But some combat situations are made even worse because of the weather. I have seen four movies and episodes of series in which the depicted weather conditions made me think: “How utterly awful this must have been”. The terrible weather conditions are a great means for film directors to enhance how horrible combat is and how utterly futile some battles when facing not only a strong(er) opponent but the force of nature.

The first movie is Stalingrad. To watch those troops in the icy cold snow of the Eastern Front is harrowing. Countless men who survived the battle died from hunger and cold.

Horror weather example number two is also due to snow and cold. It is shown in the episode “Bastogne” from Band of Brothers.

As brutal as the winter in Europe and the Eastern Front was, the constant rain the troops had to face in The Pacific was no less demoralizing. Example number three is the episode number 4 “Cape Gloucester” from The Pacific which takes place just after the battle of Guadalcanal. Humidity and the constant noise of the torrential rain lead to stress and illness.

Another really harrowing example was shown in the Australian movie Kokoda. The mud, rain and dirt of the Kokoda trail has to be mentioned among the worst experiences any troops have undergone.

I just realized that all these are examples from WWII. Makes it look as if there hadn’t been any terrible weather conditions during other wars but that is of course not the case. I remember a few WWI movies in which the mud and rain played an important role but I’m not able to pick a perfect example. Additionally I would like to add an example in which scorching heat proved to be fatal.

Which is the worst weather you have ever seen in any war movie?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E6_DKFPZxdQ