As I watched The Reader I wasn’t oblivious of its faults, they just didn’t bother me in the slightest. Of all the films in 2008 this is the one that has stuck with me the most in terms of challenging my thinking. I keep coming back to it in my head as I enjoyed the performances by David Kross and Kate Winslet, the beautiful cinematography from two of the industry’s best (Roger Deakins and Chris Menges), the moving score by Nico Muhly, the direction of Stephen Daldry and the story that challenges and seems to contradict all of the beauty you see on screen. There have been times when I wanted to head out and see this film again, but work or weather got in the way. However, I can’t wait to see it again on Blu-ray as this is a film – I believe – will continue to keep my mind occupied for years to come.
I had heard plenty about I’ve Loved You So Long before I finally saw it, but most of what I heard pertained to the performance of Kristin Scott Thomas. While Thomas is fantastic in this film Elsa Zylberstein proves to be the true surprise thanks to her not being a household name for most people to sell. She’s the secret ingredient. It’s a shame so many critics tend to stick with what they know, unwilling to try and sell the lesser known, but Zylberstein’s performance speaks for itself and without it this film would truly suffer. The other reason to love this flick is the way director Philippe Claudel gives the audience just enough of the story to move you from scene to scene, slowly revealing Juliette’s (Scott Thomas) life as we head toward the emotional climax which hits you like a ton of bricks.
I am quite happy to have a comedy on my top ten as I traditionally don’t enjoy comedies outside of seeing them once. However, the Blu-ray edition of Tropic Thunder proved this is one comedy I will not soon grow tired of. However, I have also noticed an interesting phenomenon with this film. It seems those that follow the film industry closer tend to enjoy this film a lot more than those that don’t. I am not sure exactly where the disconnect comes from, but I can only assume it comes as a result of this film being a spoof on the movie industry on a whole, much more than it is a spoof on war films as the trailers would lead you to believe.
