Pride & Prejudice (2005) - Wright's marriage drama makes the mind wander off

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Star Keira Knightley and co-star Matthew Macfadyen in beautiful sunset light on a field makes up most of this pretty poster for Joe Wright's Pride & Prejudice

Late 18th century England: The Bennet family have more than one daughter who are ready to get married off. A young soldier, a priest and the mysterious Mr. Darcy are among the suitors.

 

Pride & Prejudice is written by Deborah Moggach (Final Demand (2003, TV movie)), with Emma Thompson (Effie Gray (2014)) contributing uncredited work, adapting the same-titled 1813 novel by Jane Austen (Mansfield Park (2014)), and directed by debuting Joe Wright (The Soloist (2009)).

Overwrought over-acting characterizes more than one of the performances in this plush adaptation that is essentially a coming-of-age romance. The young women are extraordinarily giggly and excited, and I for one could not attach myself to them to the required degree, despite lead Keira Knightley's (Domino (2005)) at times charming nature. There are none other to seriously cling onto, and the archaic family story, which solely concerns getting the 'girls' married in a suitable fashion, thus becomes terribly distant and unappealing.

Darcy is played with almost humorous sulk and lack of positivity by Matthew Macfadyen (Ripper Street (2012-16)), and it sure is a mystery here why Knightley's Lizzy falls for him. Donald Sutherland's (Ad Astra (2019)) soft patriarch performance nevertheless stands out as moving. Wright's possible qualities as a director remain hidden here.

 

Watch a trailer for the movie here

 

Cost: 28 mil. $

Box office: 121.6 mil. $

= Big hit (returned 4.34 times its cost)

[Pride & Prejudice premiered 25 July (Hamburg, Germany) and runs 127 minutes. Shooting took place from July - October 2004 in England. The film opened #10 to a 2.8 mil. $ first weekend in 215 theaters in North America, where it peaked at #6 and in 1,335 theaters (different weeks), grossing 38.4 mil. $ (31.6 % of the total gross). The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were the UK with 26.5 mil. $ (21.8 %) and Germany with 7.1 mil. $ (5.8 %). The film was nominated for 4 Oscars, winning none: Best Actress (Knightley), lost to Reese Witherspoon in Walk the Line, Art Direction, lost to Memoirs of a Geisha, Costume Design, also lost to Memoirs of a Geisha, and Score (Dario Marianelli), lost to Gustavo Santaolalla for Brokeback Mountain. It also won 1/6 BAFTA nominations, was nominated for 3 European Film awards and 2 Golden Globes, among other honors. Roger Ebert gave the film a 4/4 star review, translating to 4 notches over this one. Wright returned with Atonement (2007). Knightley returned in Domino (2005). Pride & Prejudice is certified fresh at 87 % with a 7.70/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Pride & Prejudice?

The Holiday (2006) - Obvious ploys and overlength weigh down Meyers' Christmas escapade

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Four beloved stars look lovingly at one another on this simple poster for Nancy Meyers' The Holiday

Two women, one in England, the other in Los Angeles, both could use some distance to their lives for a while, and so they decide online to swap homes during Christmas for a couple of weeks.

 

The Holiday is written and directed by great Pennsylvanian filmmaker Nancy Meyers (The Parent Trap (1998)).

It often feels as if it must be the most ridiculous film ever, and at its thickest it even made me nauseous. Luckily it does grow more appetizing after a while.

Kate Winslet (Enigma (2001)), - who on the surface incites regret in a part that seems a good deal under her abilities, - and Cameron Diaz (The Invisible Circus (2001)), - who one must also pity some in a role that's so formulaic, 'it' arrives with a sleep mask, tripping around on high heels, and literally runs through the snowy landscape of Great Britain two weeks later, (so we really get her development it seems ...), - both of them play women with self-confidence problems, who also both refuse to stop yapping. Scene after scene is far longer than necessary, so that The Holiday almost feels like two romcoms slapped together to make one giant romcom whopper.

This is likely Meyers' most negligible film, which utilizes ploys and ideas that have worked before but which seems gimmicky here, but it is redeemed to some degree by its stars: Diaz and Jude Law (The Nest (2020)) are saucy and good-looking together; Jack Black (The D Train (2015)) is good and luckily even gets a chance to sing a bit; and Eli Wallach (The Pirate (1978, TV movie)) is charming and splendid as a retired screenwriter.

 

Related posts:

Nancy Meyers: It's Complicated (2009) - Meyers' delightful romcom star vehicle 

2003 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]

Something's Gotta Give (2003) - Meyers, Jack & Diane are a killer combo 

 

 

Watch a trailer for the film here

 

Cost: 85 mil. $

Box office: 205.8 mil. $

= Minor flop (returned 2.42 times its cost)

[The Holiday premiered 29 November (New York) and runs 136 minutes. Meyers reportedly wrote the screenplay with the four stars in mind for the parts. Shooting took place from January - June 2006 in England, including in London, and in California, including in Los Angeles. The film opened #3, behind fellow new release Apocalypto and holdover hit Happy Feet, to a 12.7 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it spent one more weekend in the top 5 (#5), grossing 63.2 mil. $ (30.7 % of the total gross). The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were the UK with 23.9 mil. $ (11.6 %) and Germany with 16.1 mil. $ (7.8 %). The-numbers.com estimate that the film additionally made in excess of 82.8 mil. $ on DVD sales in North America alone. Meyers returned with It's Complicated (2009). Winslet returned with a voice performance in Le Renard et l'Enfant (2007) and physically in The Reader (2008); Diaz with voice performances in Shrek the Third (2007) and Shrek the Halls (2007, TV short) and physically in What Happens in Vegas (2008); Law in My Blueberry Nights (2007); and Black in The Naked Trucker and T-Bones Show (2007, TV-series), Exposure (2007, TV-series) and theatrically in Margot at the Wedding (2007). The Holiday is rotten at 51 % with a 5.70/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

 

What do you think of The Holiday? 

Colour Me Kubrick: A Tru...ish Story/Color Me Kubrick (2005) - Involved Malkovich as conman makes true-crime drama worthwhile

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Star John Malkovich looks flamboyant and ridiculous on this simple poster for Brian W. Cook's Colour Me Kubrick

The story of the deceitful Alan Conway, who in the gay circles of 1990's London consequently presumed to be master filmmaker Stanley Kubrick.

Colour Me Kubrick is written by Anthony Frewin (Anthropoid (2016)) and directed by Brian W. Cook (Barry Lyndon (1975, assistant director), whose only feature it is. Frewin was Kubrick's assistant in real life, accruing knowledge of the shameless swindler Conway over the years, and Cook was a productive assistant director for decades for, among others, Kubrick.
There is nearly no actual plot or development in Colour Me Kubrick; instead it has an endless mass of scenes of Conway conning, stealing and drinking on the expense of various gullible nincompoops. It is actually wildly depressing, dull and frustrating to witness.
John Malkovich's (Ripley's Game (2002)) performance as Conway, however, is totally whole-hearted and uncompromising, and the costumes (by Victoria Russell (The Broken (2008))) are right on-spot and often hilarious. Colour Me Kubrick is a film that never steers off its misanthropic path.

Watch a 1 minute scene from the film here

Cost: Unknown
Box office: 497k $
= Uncertain - but most likely a box office disaster
[Colour Me Kubrick premiered 6 October (Dinard Festival of British Cinema, France) and runs 86 minutes. Frewin got the idea for the film and started work on the script during the making of Kubrick's great Eyes Wide Shut (1999), at which time Kubrick and Frewin were made aware of the prodigal conman Taylor's existence. Shooting took place in England, including London, from January - March 2004. The film opened #53 to a 37k $ first weekend in 19 theaters in North America, where it only declined from there, grossing a measly 71k $ (14.3 % of the total gross). The biggest markets were Australia with 208k $ (41.9 %), France with 190k $ (38.2 %) and North America. The film's budget is unknown, but if we set it at a very conservative 2 mil. $, the film should count as a box office disaster. Cook did not return to helm another film, - but did return as assistant director. Malkovich returned in Art School Confidential (2006). Colour Me Kubrick is rotten at 50 % with a 5.55/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Colour Me Kubrick?

The Favourite (2018) - Colman stands out in Lanthimos' dark, female-centric royal biopic

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An oppressive, greyish beige color background instills a sense of gloom on this heavily costumed poster for Yorgos Lanthimos' The Favourite

Early in the 18th century, Queen Anne of England begins to change favorites in her court, as the assertive, manipulative Sarah Churchill loses her grip on the queen's decisions - involving war with France and other matters of state - to an equally manipulative maid by the name of Abigail.

The Favourite is written by Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara (Love My Way (2004-07)), based on the actual Queen Anne (1665-1714) and her strange and difficult life, and directed by Greek master filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos (Dogtooth/Kynodontas (2009)).
The film is not a comedic scream such as Lanthimos' best film in my opinion, the fiercely original and grotesque masterpiece The Lobster (2015), - but there is fun to be had for sure, and The Favourite effectively relocates us to a very different time, age and milieu, which is fascinating and highly ponderous. The costumes, hair and makeup are superb.
Rachel Weisz (Death Machine (1994)) and Emma Stone (La La Land (2016)) are both good as the scheming women; one inevitably outshines the other in unsympathetic imperialism. But Olivia Colman (Tyrannosaur (2011)) is outstanding as the poor center of the film; powerful as few but mired in painful ailments and grief. Her husband is non-existing in the film, and so she appears very much alone, SPOILER caught between a dominating acquaintance and a subservient one, - both insincere. The film has a couple of closeups of Colman's face, which become iconic for this wretch of a woman character, and which are among the film's best and most piercing moments.
The film is unusual because it is a plot triangle between three decisive women, a film without any male characters of note; the men in The Favourite strike one as impotent, inconsequential and ridiculous. SPOILER They are occupied by duck-racing, orange-throwing, makeup and whigs, while the women have overtaken hunting, policy-dictating - and lovemaking, although the film holds an alienated, physically-oriented view of sex. The familiar alienation that Lanthimos establishes makes the oppressive story somewhat thought-provoking; SPOILER its implications of human relationships' unbecoming similarities as roles of instructing and serving the other to the simple lives of rabbits are what it leaves us with.

Related posts:

Yorgos Lanthimos: The Killing of a Sacred Deer (2017) - Lanthimos' psycho-thriller turns out a twisted Greek tragedy
2015 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED III]
The Lobster (2015) - Lantimos' absurd, hilarious, out of this world relationship fantasy 
Dogtooth/Κυνόδοντας (Kynodontas) (2009) - Lanthimos establishes himself internationally with an unsettling family portrait

Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 15 mil. $
Box office: 76.7 mil. $ and counting
= Big hit (returned in 5.11 times its cost)
[The Favourite premiered 30 August (Venice Film Festival, Italy) and runs 120 minutes. The script was first written in 1998 by Davis, whose only produced screenplay it is. Facts on the life of Queen Anne can be read here. SPOILER: Concerning its accuracy: Queen Anne did lose 17 children; she did not replace them with rabbits; she was married to a Danish prince; and the sexual relationships depicted in the film between her and the two women is speculation. Shooting took place in England from March - May 2017. The wigs in the film reportedly had a trailer of their own. The film opened #19 to a 422k $ first weekend in 4 theaters in North America, - the year's highest per-theater average, - and peaked at #11 and in 1,540 theaters (different weeks) having grossed 31.3 mil. $ there to date. The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets have been the UK with 19.4 mil. $ (25.3 %) and Australia with 3.5 mil. $ (4.6 %). The film has yet to open in India, where it premieres 1 March. It is nominated for 10 Oscars: Best Screenplay, Production Design, Costume Design, Picture, Directing, Lead Actress, Supporting Actress (both Weisz and Stone), Cinematography (Robbie Ryan (Catch Me Daddy (2014))) and Editing. It won 1/5 Golden Globe nominations, 7/12 BAFTAs, an AFI award, 10/13 British Independent Film awards, is nominated for an Independent Spirit award, won 2 awards at the Venice Film Festival, and many other honors. Lanthimos has not announced his next film yet. Colman returned with 5 TV and short credits prior to theatrically in Them That Follow (2019), Weisz has not announced her next role yet, and Stone returned in Maniac (2018, TV-series), Paul McCartney: Who Cares (2018, music video) and theatrically likely first in Zombieland: Double Tap (2019). The Favourite is certified fresh at 94 % with an 8.5/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of The Favourite?

Love & Friendship (2016) - Stillman, Beckinsale and Co. win bigtime with cynically witty Austen adaptation

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+ Best Comeback Actress of the Year: Kate Beckinsale + Best Huge Hit Movie of the Year + Best Period Movie of the Year

Kate Beckinsale stands out as a sensual beauty with a sly intelligence about her on this appealing poster for Whit Stillman's Love & Friendship

1790s England: The recently widowed Lady Susan is in a tricky situation with a daughter who is ready to be wed off. She decides to pay her in-laws a visit.

Love & Friendship is written and directed by Washingtonian master filmmaker Whit Stillman (Metropolitan (1990)), whose 5th theatrical feature it is, adapting Jane Austen's (Emma (1815)) Lady Susan, written circa 1794 and published posthumously in 1871. The new title is taken from a story by that name, which Austen wrote for her and her family's amusement as a young girl.
Our heroine here is a scheming, shrewd and cunning person, a 'busy woman' of the kind that men the world over are fascinated by but also terrified of. Kate Beckinsale (The Face of an Angel (2014)) has her career's best role to date here, and Chloë Sevigny (Barry Munday (2010)) is also outstanding as he maneuvering friend. The role of über dunce Sir James, SPOILER whom Susan marries in the end, is played with terrific, thrilled ignorance by Tom Bennett (PhoneShop (2009-13)), and Love & Friendship also has other priceless performances.
The dialog is tight and loaded with cynical wit, not unlike some of the films of Joseph L. Mankiewicz like All About Eve (1950) and The Barefoot Contessa (1954), and it makes this period dramedy beg for more than one viewing.
The essence of Love & Friendship is cynical to the degree that it shows us that its title presentations of its main characters are overrated and often not understood to the characters themselves, people operating to serve self-interest or opportunistic openings they encounter. This wisdom is expanded in one of the year's most bubbly and funny films, a refreshingly vigorous, true bull's eye.

Related post:

Whit Stillman: 2016 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED III]

2016 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II]

Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 3 mil. $
Box office: 21.4 mil. $
= Huge hit (returned 7.13 times the cost)
[Love & Friendship premiered 23 January (Sundance Film Festival, Utah) and runs 93 minutes. Stillman discovered Austen's novel in the late 1990s, but has also cited Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1988) as an influence on the film. Sienna Miller was first cast in the lead but dropped out in favor of Clint Eastwood's masterpiece American Sniper. Shooting took place in Ireland, including Dublin, in 27 days from February - March 2015. The film opened #31 to a 133k $ first weekend in 4 theaters in North America, where it peaked at #9 and in 826 theaters (different weeks) and grossed 14 mil. $ (65.4 % of the total gross). The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were the UK with 2.3 mil. $ (10.7 %) and Australia with 1.6 mil. $ (7.5 %). The film won a string of honors but no major awards. Stillman has not announced his next project yet. Beckinsale returned in The Disappointments Room (2016), Sevigny in Antibirth (2016). Love & Friendship is certified fresh at 97 % with an 8.2/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Love & Friendship?

Fragile/Frágiles (2005) - Balagueró's flawed children's hospital horror

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A person is sitting in a moldy, dark room in what appears a painful predicament in a wheelchair in this sinister-indicating poster for Jaume Balagueró's Fragile

A traumatized American nurse is hired by a children's hospital on a small, English island. Here a late former nurse by the name of Charlotte haunts the place with a nasty habit of breaking the children's bones, - to prevent them from leaving her, naturally.

Fragile is written by Jordi Galceran (The Method (2005, play)) and co-writer-director Jaume Balagueró ([Rec] (2007)). It stars Calista Flockhart (Drunks (1995)), whom anyone who used to watch and appreciate Ally McBeal (1997-02)) will feel nostalgic to see again, (she has acted post-Ally but almost solely in TV), but unfortunately this Spain/UK horror co-production also reveals that she isn't a top-tier actress. That is a major downside for the film, as her role has to carry so much of it. The writing is also at times a bit banal and predictable.
On the other hand, Fragile has a first-rate score by Roque Baños (Evil Dead (2013)) and a very affecting sound design. It also has those bone-cracking scenes, which are intriguingly frightening.

Listen to Roque Baños' score for the film here

Cost:Reportedly 7 mil. €, equaling approximately 8.62 mil. $
Box office: 6.6 mil. $
= Huge flop
[Fragile premiered 2 September (Venice Film Festival, Italy) and runs 93 minutes. Shooting took place in England and Spain from August - December 2004. The biggest markets were Spain with 3.2 mil. $ (48.5 % of the total gross) and Italy with 1.3 mil. $ (19-7 %). The film lacked theatrical releases in North America, the UK, France (only a film festival release) and Germany. It won 1/2 Goya awards nominations, Spain's Oscar. Balagueró returned with To Let (2006, TV movie) and theatrically with zombie horror hit [Rec] (2007). Flockhart returned in Brothers & Sisters (2006-11). 14,081 IMDb users have given Fragile a 6.1/10 critical average.]

What do you think of Fragile?

Phantom Thread (2017) - Anderson's exquisite drama of an English dressmaker and his Alma

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+ 3rd Best Movie of the Year
+ Most Undeserved Flop of the Year + Best Drama of the Year + Best Period Movie of the Year

Daniel Day-Lewis and Vicky Krieps are superimposed onto each other on this elegant poster for Paul Thomas Anderson's Phantom Thread

Reynolds Woodcock is a leading couture dressmaker in England of 1954. A confirmed bachelor, he lives a disciplined, routine-bound existence with his sister Cyril in London, when on a countryside visit he meets and falls for a German-born waitress named Alma.

Phantom Thread is the 8th feature from Californian master filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson (Hard Eight (1996)), who has written, shot and directed it. It is his second masterpiece in my estimation, following his other collaboration with Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln (2012)), the period oil drama There Will Be Blood (2007).
Phantom Thread bears likeness to established classics Citizen Kane (1941) and The Leopard (1963), my favorite film of all time, but Anderson is such an expert filmmaker in his own right that the film stands securely on its own: The resemblance is the focus on a male master of his own realm, whose control is nevertheless about to be upset. The film probes some of life's major themes, namely creative enterprise, love and marriage, and it does so with insight and depth of grasp. 

Day-Lewis, one of the greatest actors of our time, is tremendous as the uncompromising master of timeless fashion, who has evolved into something of an ever-suave albeit equally egotistical, super-esthetic tyrant in his life. Vicky Krieps (The Colony (2015)) is moving as his doting Alma, who finds difficulties in conforming to Woodcock's life, SPOILER and who finds herself forced to draw drastic consequences in the latter part of the film, which deals poignantly and surprisingly with a darker aspect of marriage, namely that marrieds literally put their lives into their partner's hands. In the film's third crucial part, Lesley Manville (Spike Island (2012)) radiates feminine toughness as well as considerate affection in the part as Cyril.
The film is exquisite in every way: The sets and production design and especially the costumes by Mark Bridges (Deep Blue Sea (1999)), which rightly stand out in this film of a prime aesthete in the sartorial trade, are a gift to behold. The makeup and hairstyling and glasses worn in Phantom Thread also deserve praise, as does the seductive, nuanced, rich score by Jonny Greenwood (Norwegian Wood (2010)), as well as the cinematography by Anderson himself.
Phantom Thread's virtues may not make enough 'noise', - that is, it isn't controversial or timely enough, - to make ecstatic audiences flock to it in droves, but it is a generous and lasting masterpiece nonetheless.


Related posts:

Paul Thomas Anderson: 2017 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]
Boogie Nights (1997) - Anderson's irresistable porn 'Casino'
Mentioned movies: The Leopard/Il Gattopardo/Le Guépard (1963) - The greatest film ever made?
Citizen Kane (1941) - The cold elephant on the shelf

Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 35 mil. $
Box office: 43.5 mil. $ and counting
= Not certain yet, but looks like a big flop
[Phantom Thread premiered 24 November (Beverly Hills, California) and runs 130 minutes. Anderson became interested in the fashion industry after reading about Spanish fashion master Cristóbal Balanciaga. He modeled the story loosely over the life of American designer Charles James. Day-Lewis has announced that he will be retiring after this his performance in Phantom Thread. Shooting took place in England, including London, and in Switzerland from January 2017 - ?. It is Anderson's first time shooting outside of the US. The film opened #26 to a strong 216k $ first weekend in 4 theaters in North America, where it widened to 1,186 theaters after having peaked at #12 and has so far grossed 20.9 mil. $. The film has yet to open in Norway, Turkey (13 April) and Japan (26 May). It was nominated for 6 Oscars, winning one, for Best Costumes. It lost Best Picture to The Shape of Water, Actor to Gary Oldman (Darkest Hour), Supporting Actress (Manville) to Allison Janney (I, Tonya), Score to Alexandre Desplat (Shape of Water) and Director to Guillermo del Toro (Shape of Water). It was also nominated for 2 Golden Globes, won 1/4 BAFTA noms, won 2 National Board of Review awards and many other honors. Phantom Thread is certified fresh at 92 % with an 8.5 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Phantom Thread?

Frenzy (1972) - Hitchcock's great, morbid tie killer thriller

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The tubular central image of this poster for Alfred Hitchcock's Frenzy seems to call our attention to his earlier masterpiece Vertigo's (1958) iconic poster

London women fall victim at an alarming rate to a mysterious, perverted serial killer, who strangles them with his ties. Overwhelming evidence which the police obtain points to a man who, nevertheless, is innocent.

Frenzy is the penultimate film from English master filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock (North by Northwest (1959)). It is written by Anthony Shaffer (Death on the Nile (1978)), based on the 1966 novel Goodbye Piccadilly, Farewell Leicester Square by Arthur La Bern. It can be taken as a kind of Jack the Ripper effort about an urban serial killer of women of Hitchcock's, transported to a modern setting.
The film is ripe with little holes and jumps markedly between rather brutal scenes of rape and strangulation and scenes that showcase Hitch's keenly morbid sense of humor, and which are often funny and very precious. But also besides this pleasant feature to the film, its story is very unpredictable, and the ending is really great.
I love Frenzy. It is transgressive, fun, frightening and so London. The performances are great, SPOILER but the two that especially stand out are naturally Jon Finch (The Standard (1977)) as 'wrong man' Blaney and Barry Foster (Ryan's Daughter (1970)), chillingly realistic as the chummy sex killer Rusk.

Related posts:

Alfred Hitchcock: The Birds (1963) - Hitchcock spearheads horror sub-genre and innovative special effects in great, odd film
Dial M for Murder (1954) - Hitchcock's 3D thriller is hindered by theatrics
The 39 Steps (1935) or, Murder and High Jinx! 

Watch a making-of featurette from the film's DVD here

Cost: Reportedly between 2-3.5 mil. $
Box office: Reportedly 12.6 mil. $
= At least a big hit, possibly a huge hit
[Frenzy premiered 19 May (Cannes Film Festival) and runs 116 minutes. Frenzy is the third and last film Hitchcock made in his native England after his relocation to the US in 1939. The previous two were Under Capricorn (1949) and Stage Fright (1950). He asked Barry Foster (Three Kinds of Heat (1987)) to read about real-life sadist psycho killer Neville Heath in preparation for his performance. Heath was hanged for killing two women in 1946. Filming took place in London and at the Pinewood Studios in England from August - October 1971. Hitchcock was the son of a Covent Garden merchant and wanted to capture the market as he remembered it from his childhood in Frenzy. His wife Alma Hitchcock suffered a stroke during filming, which forced him away from shooting in some instances. Frenzy is the first Hitchcock film to feature nudity. Henry Mancini was hired to score the film, but Hitchcock was unhappy with Mancini's work, accusing him of ripping off Bernard Herrmann, (who famously scored Hitchcock's Psycho (1960) and 6 other Hitchcock movies), refusing to pay him a nickle for his trouble, and hired Ron Goodwin (Spanish Fly (1976)) instead, - a hard blow for Mancini. Frenzy made 4.8 mil. $ (38.1 % of the total gross) in North America. If the 12.6 mil. $ world gross is accurate, it did extraordinarily good business internationally, - likely especially in the UK and mainland Europe. The film was nominated for 4 Golden Globes and won National Board of Review's Top Ten Films award. Roger Ebert gave the film a 4/4 star review, translating to a notch better than this review. Hitchcock returned with Family Plot (1976). Frenzy is fresh at 87 % with a 7.5/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Frenzy?

Earth (2007, documentary) - Fothergill/Linfield's incredible nature spectacle is one to watch

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+ Best Nature Movie of the Year

 

Highlighting our planet and the three central animal families that Alastair Fothergill and Mark Linfield's Earth follows, this poster goes for the heart and takes it

 

From the polar bear's incredibly tedious walk for survival near the North Pole to the African Kalahari Desert, our planet's highest mountain peaks, greatest waterfalls and into the wonders of its rainforests, Earth takes us there.

This nature documentary, based on the popular BBC/Discovery documentary TV-series Planet Earth (2006), is technically impressive, made with state-of-the-art digital equipment. It uses only few overt editorial manipulations of its footage (like the changing of the seasons), which makes these stand out as somewhat ostentatious, and they could have been left out in my opinion.

The scene of the leopard's hunt on the savanna reaches mythical heights, whereas the later slow motion elongation of the whale footage only serves a wow-effect.

Still, there are only these minor quibbles to attach to this overall staggeringly beautiful, hypnotizing, simple and utterly human-less film, which leaves it up to its audiences to acquit or accuse humanity for the dire climate changes, it also portrays, (except for a few notes it gives towards the end.) In this subdued way, Earth chooses to stress the mysteries and beauties of nature over indignation at our sins against it.

The film's narration is written by Leslie Megahey (The Advocate (1993)), and the film is directed by Alastair Fothergill (Bears (2014)) and Mark Linfield (Monkey Kingdom (2015)).

 

Related post:

 

2007 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II]

2007 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I] 

 

 

Watch a trailer for the film here

 

Cost: 47 mil. $

Box office: 108.9 mil. $

= Minor flop

[Earth premiered 14 July (Liechtenstein's Vaduz Film Festival) and runs 99 minutes (UK version) and 90 minutes (US version). The budget made Earth the most expensive documentary production ever, until Oceans (2009). Filming lasted from 2004-06. The two versions have different narrators: Patrick Stewart did the 9 minute longer UK version, while James Earl Jones narrated the shorter US version, which also uses a more dramatic score. The film has been called a 'companion' to the TV-series, which it relies heavily on for its footage. Reportedly around 30 % of Earth's footage is previously unseen. The film opened #5, behind fellow new release Obsessed, holdover hit 17 Again and new releases Fighting and The Soloist, to an 8.8 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it left the top 5 in its second week and grossed 32 mil. $ (29.4 % of the total gross). While the film had no Russian or Chinese release and flopped incredibly in its native UK and in Australia, it made hefty business in other markets: The 2nd and 3rd biggest were Germany with 29.2 mil. $ (26.8 %) and Japan (where it was the most successful documentary in 10 years) with 23.2 mil. $ (21.3 %). It became the 2nd highest-grossing nature documentary of all time, behind March of the Penguins (2005) with 127.4 mil. $. It was nominated for a BAFTA. A celebrated Planet Earth II TV-series was made and released in 2016. A sequel, Earth: One Amazing Day (2017) has been released to a much smaller reception. Fothergill returned with African Cats (2011) and Linfield with Chimpanzee (2012). Earth is certified fresh at 86 % with a 7.2/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Earth?