2016 The Year of Films [July]

 July... More films!
 Link to the film INDEX

01. 6:45 a.m. SUN 31 August 2014 [Short] (06.07.16)
Very well realised. What ever it is. Very strange but compelling short film with some haunting music and very detailed art. Something deeper behind it but I don't see what.

02. Rain Town [Short] (06.07.16)
Powerful in a small package. Loved it to bits, the style and tone makes for a film with a tone of heart. Lovely little story of a robot and underlying themes of loneliness and even depression. No vocals needed here, the story shone through just pay attention.

03. Way back to the Sea [Short] (07.07.16)
Sad little story, child helping out a creature and in the end letting it go. Very cool art work, a very deliberate sketched style. Nice music and a very nicely done p.o.v sequence.

04. Silent Hill (08.07.16)
Just a few little grumbles here and there but overall a solid film. Some of the dialogues is bad, as are the cg critters. Odd plot and even odder ending but the film did make sense. Loved the flashback exposition part and the little girl was good.

05. Mission Impossible 2 (09.07.16)
That hair!!! Very stylish but in strange ways, but that is what happens when the director is Ang Lee. Not the  most compelling plot or anything but it works a a frame to gets some sneaking followed by far too much action. Nice film just forgettable.

06. Garuda [Short] (10.07.16)
Fighting and dancing, in film they are almost the same. Some films have too much choreography in the fights and it is a waltz. Here we have to friends set at each other in what we see to be a fight to the death and it could be one sided. Loved this short film the animation and music is superb and the story telling is very effective.

07. Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (11.07.16)
Still great, only the third time I've seen it and the first in Japanese. Love how it takes time and makes it feel strange and compelling. As you would expect behind the simple plot is deeper thoughts on the nature of life and the sole post singularity. More CG than I remembered and it is used to great effect.

08.There Will Come Soft Rains [Short] (12.07.16)
Based on a short story by Ray Bradbury this is a Soviet animated production. Dark and depressing as suits the setting of post nuclear apocalypse.  Very stark and at times creepy, it tells a simple take of a world that ended but the robot wasn't aware.

09. Batman - Mask of the Phantasm (15.07.16)
I have very vague memories of seeing this once before on TV and I may have mixed it with 'Batman of the future'. A good look at Bruce Wayne rather than just Batman, the plot though simple was nicely laid out. I love the 90s style Batman aesthetic and the music was great. Top film.

10. Leon (16.07.16)
A little bit creepy but a bloody good film. Funny at times and touching at others. Very well acted by the three mains, they bring everyone to life. Solid action and direction. New York looks old.

11. Rambo 2 (17.07.16)
Suffers from trying to top the first, the is a very good basic plot hidden under the dumb action and over the top patriotism. The end lays the US rhetoric on a bit to thick and it looses the message it should have. A good watch though.

12. Lights Out [Short] (18.07.16)
A very short live action horror film, and damn is it scary. Nice and simple in its set up and execution but very effective in building up a sense of terror.

13. Metropolis (25.07.16)
The animated one from 2001. Very strange in many ways but so good. The music stands out by far and not just in the climax it is great all the way through. The design is odd, the people are a western design but the rest of the art seems very anime.  As you would expect the are many stand out shots and small set pieces and the plot is strange.

14. Monty Python and the Holy Grail (27.07.16)
Better narrative through line than I remembered. It ties together well and the ending was very well set up. Very funny and the are some very good shots and direction. Still one of the greats.

15. Blade (29.07.16)
Some good, some bad and some dumb. Very of its time with a mix of good and bad story telling as well as dodgy cg. I felt like they could have gone furtherer at times with the plot, some things just happened because they needed to.

16. THX 1138 (30.07.16)
A very compelling film. Very well shot and the feeling that runs throughout it well maintained by both the acting and the sound design. I'm not sure I can recount the plot or story to anyone but its was a  very cool look at the future of society.

Five shorts and each as compelling as a feature film. Its been a good month with some interesting films. Six of the films were re-watches and only 4 new ones. Best of the Month? Leon.