Translated material
Fuel crisis
Watch from February 21 on Moscow screens
"Oil" (USA, 2007, Paul Thomas Anderson) . Apparently - one of the main films of this season, an Oscar and a Golden Globe for Best Actor, two prizes just at the Berlin Film Festival (including the Silver Bear for directing) and countless regalia from all sorts of film critical associations. However, even without any awards, the film would clearly go down in the history of world cinema. An epic adaptation of Upton Sinclair's novel about the formation of big American business and the subsequent transformations of human souls. Daniel Plainview (Daniel Day-Lewis), the living embodiment of the American dream, who has transformed himself from a poor poor man into an oil magnate, is sent to discover a new field in the vicinity of New Boston. There really is oil there, but along with the “blood of the earth” all possible vices begin to emerge. A grandiose picture in every way. Also starring Paul Daino, Kevin Jay O'Conner, Ciren Hinds, Mary Elizabeth Barrett, Colleen Foy and Coco Lee.“Shelter” (Mexico-Spain, 2007, Juan Antonio Bayona). A mystical horror film, one of the producers of which was Guillermo Del Toro (“Hellboy”, “Pan’s Labyrinth”). The main character (Belen Rueda), who returned three decades later to the orphanage that had once become her home, discovers that the old walls carry danger and a curse, and also have a very bad influence on her little son. Also starring Fernando Cayo, Roger Prinsep, Mabel Rivera, Montserrat Carulla, Edgar Vivar and Oscar Casas.
“Point of Fire” (USA, 2008, Pete Travis) . A political thriller based on the immortal principle of telling the same story from different points of view, as in Kurosawa's Rashomon, but only using a global socio-political example. During the US President's speech at an anti-terrorist forum, he is killed, and very soon hundreds of ordinary people die from a powerful explosion. What follows is shown, it seems, from all possible points of view - both security officers, the fanatical bomber himself, and random passers-by. Everything together adds up to a not-so-optimistic, but very real picture of the modern world, which has obviously “dislocated a joint.” Instructive and exciting. Starring Dennis Quaid, Forrest Whitaker, Matthew Fox, Sigourney Weaver, Edgar Ramirez, Zoe Saldana and Eduardo Noriega.
“My Pet Dinosaur” (USA-UK, 2007, Jay Russell). Family adventure comedy: during the Second World War, on the shore of a Scottish lake, a boy finds an egg from which a small miracle Yudo hatches, but it does not remain small for long. Quite predictable plot and pretty good special effects. Starring Brian Cox, Emily Watson, Ben Chaplin, David Morrissey, Geraldine Brophy and Craig Hall.
“One Missed Call” (USA, 2007, Eric Valette). This is no longer funny: another remake of a Japanese horror film (the original director was Takashi Miike): one hundred and one, or even two hundred and second variations on the theme of damned mobile phones and deadly messages. Starring Edward Burns, Shannyn Sossamon, Azura Skye, Ana Claudia Talancon and Ray Wise.
“Laputa Castle in the Sky” (Japan, 1986, Hayao Miyazaki). Another classic film by the leading animator on the planet (well, Japan for sure), hitting our wide screens. The adventures of an apprentice boy working in a mine, and a girl, the owner of a magic stone, who fell on him straight from the sky, unfold around an amazing flying castle, which is being hunted by everyone and everything. You can’t say anything - beautiful, meticulous, sublime in every sense.
"Step Up 2: The Streets" (USA, 2008, Jon Chu) . Continuation of the film about street dancers at different levels of the social ladder. Starring Robert Hoffman, Will Kemp, Briana Evigen, Telisha Shaw, Tony Devon and Luis Salgado.
"Michael Clayton" (USA, 2007, Tony Gilroy). A legal thriller from the scriptwriter of all three parts of Jason Bourne's film adventures. New York lawyer Michael Clayton (George Clooney) did not get his nickname Scavenger for nothing: for a decade and a half he has been masterfully dealing with the most hopeless and foul-smelling cases... A strong movie for fans of film adaptations by John Grisham (one of its producers and a small actor made by the screenwriter of Grisham's "The Firm" Sydney Pollack), highly appreciated by professionals overseas: as many as seven nominations in the main categories, including "best film" and "best male actor" at the Oscars, and only one cashed out - for the female role of the second plan. Also starring Tom Wilkinson, Tilda Swinton, Sydney Pollack, Michael O'Keefe, Ken Howard, Robert Prescott and Austin Williams.
“Juno” (USA, 2007, Jason Reitman). A comedy about a 16-year-old girl, Juno (Ellen Page), who became pregnant, but chose not to have an abortion, but to find adoptive parents for her unborn child through a newspaper advertisement. The film was nominated for an Oscar in four categories, including best film of the year, but received a prize only for its script, which was truly witty. Also starring Michael Cera, Jennifer Garner, Jason Bateman, Eileen Pedde and Daniel Clarke.