No Regret, Braveheart, Guns of the Magnificent Seven

Three movies now, one of which is a firm favourite of mine, and two new watches. Something that worries me is that I remember starting this post before, and now I can't find it.

#1 - NO REGRET (Huhwihaji anha)

Stars - Nam-gil Kim, Young-Hoon Lee
Director - Hee-il Leesong
Memorable Quote - 'Is it because I am poor? I'll work hard.'
Review - This is one of the best movies I have ever seen in my life, hence my finally managing to get in on DVD (this, as you may have guessed, is a re-watch). The script is superb, the acting so touching that anyone can see this without feeling something is colder than the polar ice caps. Yes, at times it's a little hard - you can only feel sorry for Su-min as he performs for the older, rich men, and wince through the whole snowy woods scene, but in the end the final scene is, at least, a marginally happy one. Yes, they may be risking everything - but isn't that what true love is all about? An outstanding film, particularly as it comes from South Korea, and moreover a modern tale of the struggles still faced by homosexuals within modern cultures. 5/5

#2 - BRAVEHEART

Stars - Mel Gibson, Sophie Marceau, a ton of other people
Director - Mel Gibson
Memorable Quote - 'Aye, fight and you may die. Run, and you'll live... at least a while. And dying in your beds, many years from now, would you be willin' to trade ALL the days, from this day to that, for one chance, just one chance, to come back here and tell our enemies that they may take our lives, but they'll never take... OUR FREEDOM!'
Review - Things that are wrong with this movie: why is Mel Gibson so old and everyone else so young? Why is there hardly any development of the wife character, thus making it obvious that she will die? Why does he go through all of that for his wife, and then end up sleeping with some French tart? And what the hell planet was Robert the Bruce on? Things that are good with this movie: the emotional heart-strings-tugging cinematography, that mad Irish guy, and Gibson's suprisingly convincing Scottish. Things that are ironic about this movie: the end of the film actually just signals the beginning of several hundred more years of conflict. Yaaay. 3/5

#3 - GUNS OF THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN

Stars - George Kennedy, James Whitmore, Fernando Rey
Director - Paul Wendkos
Memorable Quote - "A coward dies many deaths... the brave only one."
Review - First of all, it's some indication of the film's general reception that the above and below images were the best I could find short of making a screenshot myself. Second of all, this is where the Magnificent Seven movies begin to go downhill. There's not much wrong with it, but George Kennedy is no Yul Brynner, and the ending was unsatisfactory for me. If I'd been Paul Wendkos, I would have finally killed off Chris, because he should die by the gun - and then Cassie and Slater would have been spared. What's the point of redeeming someone, giving them a reason to live, only to kill them off a few days later? I also wonder why P.J. had to die right after he found love. Anyway, it's still a good Western, even if at times a little frustrating. 3/5

Top Gun, Ghandi, The Bucket List

After the week of Easter, I had quite the opportunity to watch a lot of films - including several rewatches of those old 5*s, and then these new ones. There's another post to come sometime this week.

#1 - THE BUCKET LIST

Stars - Morgan Freeman, Jack Nicholson,
Director - Rob Reiner
Memorable Quote - 'We live, we die, and the wheels on the bus go round and round.'
Review - Quite a touching little storyline really, which in fact causes you to think about the mortality of the actors themselves - Morgan Freeman's getting on a bit now, isn't he? Can't really say much about this one - worth a watch if you're a fan of either of them, and a heart-warming ending, but not so very amazing that I want to watch it again. Still, as I say, the storyline is nice, and there's a message to be found there. 3/5

#2 - GHANDI


Stars - Ben Kingsley, Martin Sheen, John Gielgud
Director - Richard Attenborough
Memorable Quote - 'I know a way out of Hell. Find a child, a child whose mother and father have been killed and raise him as your own. Only be sure that he is a Muslim and that you raise him as one.'
Review - Wow, this film is long, first of all. Very long. A lot of the time I found myself thinking, 'do we need to see the same fight scene over and again so many times?' And if anything that is the main fault with the film - its repetition. Only so many times can you see a street brawl or watch Ghandi gaze with compassion before you start to lose your concentration. Good film though with good cause to create a film, and certainly one that could be inspirational to us all. Also, I now know what to do if faced with a charge of horses. 3/5

#3 - TOP GUN

Stars - Tom Cruise, Kelly McGillis, Val Kilmer, Meg Ryan
Director - Tony Scott
Memorable Quote - 'You can be my wingman any time.'
Review - Ahahah. What a remarkably corny movie. Also, about halfway through I recall commenting that 'this is the most homoerotic straight film I've ever seen.' And I've seen a good few straight films. There was 100% a secret Maverick/Iceman relationship going on there, you could cut the tension with a knife. Seriously though, too many flight scenes and not really enough storyline. And what kind of training programme spends years getting the best pilots, sends them on ONE mission, and then lets them retire? Also 3/5, a bit of a week for it this time.