Rebecca Redshaw
Sofa Cinema, Nov. 4, 2009
Published on Wed, Nov 4, 2009 by Rebecca RedshawRead More Sofa Cinema
Rebecca Redshaw's "SOFA CINEMA: An Easy Guide to DVDs Volume 1" is available at local bookstores, at the Sequim Gazette and online at www.rebeccaredshaw.com.
The movies selected for review are the choice of the reviewer. Suggestions for DVD titles are welcome. Enjoy the movies.
NEW RELEASE
"Throw Down Your Heart"
The banjo originated in Africa. Really? Bela Fleck, a virtuoso of the instrument, decided to explore those origins and with a musical engineer and cinematographer headed to
Africa to meet with musicians in various cities. The outcome of their travels is entertainingly documented in "Throw Down Your Heart."
Fleck is an affable white man in his 50s who integrates into each village with ease. Music, as oft is cited, is a universal language and when sounds emanate from his banjo and the local musicians gather around, the movie comes to life.
Playing indigenous instruments that appear rustic in nature (compared to Fleck's banjo), the Africans have little trouble joining in and often leading the way musically. Children hover nearby and sing along with the familiar tunes.
"Throw Down Your Heart" is about the joy of music and sharing that joy with others who are not so different from you after all.
HIDDEN GEM
"The Stunt Man"
Blue screen, green screen, CGI (computer-generated imagery) and digital manipulation are modern inventions that add mystery and mystic to film magic. If you long for the adventure of the old days when actual human beings dared to dive off tall buildings and raced across high roof tops, "The Stunt Man" is for you.
Peter O'Toole is Eli, the egomaniacal director who enjoys manipulating his cast and crew and anyone else that strays into his path of creativity. Stumbling onto his realistic battle scene is Cameron (Stephen Railsbeck) who quickly is nicknamed "Lucky" for his ability to stay alive.
Lucky becomes the stunt double for the leading man and falls in love with his leading lady - a precarious "stunt" on any movie location.
The Hotel del Coronado in San Diego is the setting for an impressive action sequence, a musical score by Dominique Frontiere and a tight script by Lawrence B. Marcus and Richard Rush (who also directed) make "The Stunt Man" a fun film to watch. Oh, yes, and Peter O'Toole is at his best.
DOCUMENTARY
"Where's Amelia Earhart?"
More than 70 years since her disappearance somewhere in the Pacific Ocean, people still wonder how Amelia Earhart died. Interest once again will be renewed with the recent theatrical release of "Amelia," starring Hilary Swank.
By renting the National Geographic documentary "Where's Amelia Earhart?" you get a sense of why this aviatrix has fascinated so many people for so many years.
Earhart was an adventurer and the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic. Her natural charisma added to her reputation as an excellent pilot. The movie has a few clips of her speaking but relies mostly on re-enactments of the primary theories regarding her disappearance.
In this day of instant telecommunication and scientific advancements, we've come to expect concrete solutions even with dozens of variables and yet there seem to be several plausible explanations for her disappearance.
Whether you believe she ditched her plane for lack of fuel and died (along with her navigator) on a deserted island or she was captured by the Japanese and imprisoned or she assumed a new identity after World War II and resided in New Jersey, this 50-minute documentary will ably serve to add to the ongoing mystery - "Where's Amelia Earhart?"
Rebecca Redshaw can be reached at r2redshaw@
hotmail.com.
The movies selected for review are the choice of the reviewer. Suggestions for DVD titles are welcome. Enjoy the movies.
NEW RELEASE
"Throw Down Your Heart"
The banjo originated in Africa. Really? Bela Fleck, a virtuoso of the instrument, decided to explore those origins and with a musical engineer and cinematographer headed to
Africa to meet with musicians in various cities. The outcome of their travels is entertainingly documented in "Throw Down Your Heart."
Fleck is an affable white man in his 50s who integrates into each village with ease. Music, as oft is cited, is a universal language and when sounds emanate from his banjo and the local musicians gather around, the movie comes to life.
Playing indigenous instruments that appear rustic in nature (compared to Fleck's banjo), the Africans have little trouble joining in and often leading the way musically. Children hover nearby and sing along with the familiar tunes.
"Throw Down Your Heart" is about the joy of music and sharing that joy with others who are not so different from you after all.
HIDDEN GEM
"The Stunt Man"
Blue screen, green screen, CGI (computer-generated imagery) and digital manipulation are modern inventions that add mystery and mystic to film magic. If you long for the adventure of the old days when actual human beings dared to dive off tall buildings and raced across high roof tops, "The Stunt Man" is for you.
Peter O'Toole is Eli, the egomaniacal director who enjoys manipulating his cast and crew and anyone else that strays into his path of creativity. Stumbling onto his realistic battle scene is Cameron (Stephen Railsbeck) who quickly is nicknamed "Lucky" for his ability to stay alive.
Lucky becomes the stunt double for the leading man and falls in love with his leading lady - a precarious "stunt" on any movie location.
The Hotel del Coronado in San Diego is the setting for an impressive action sequence, a musical score by Dominique Frontiere and a tight script by Lawrence B. Marcus and Richard Rush (who also directed) make "The Stunt Man" a fun film to watch. Oh, yes, and Peter O'Toole is at his best.
DOCUMENTARY
"Where's Amelia Earhart?"
More than 70 years since her disappearance somewhere in the Pacific Ocean, people still wonder how Amelia Earhart died. Interest once again will be renewed with the recent theatrical release of "Amelia," starring Hilary Swank.
By renting the National Geographic documentary "Where's Amelia Earhart?" you get a sense of why this aviatrix has fascinated so many people for so many years.
Earhart was an adventurer and the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic. Her natural charisma added to her reputation as an excellent pilot. The movie has a few clips of her speaking but relies mostly on re-enactments of the primary theories regarding her disappearance.
In this day of instant telecommunication and scientific advancements, we've come to expect concrete solutions even with dozens of variables and yet there seem to be several plausible explanations for her disappearance.
Whether you believe she ditched her plane for lack of fuel and died (along with her navigator) on a deserted island or she was captured by the Japanese and imprisoned or she assumed a new identity after World War II and resided in New Jersey, this 50-minute documentary will ably serve to add to the ongoing mystery - "Where's Amelia Earhart?"
Rebecca Redshaw can be reached at r2redshaw@
hotmail.com.
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