Two Father and Son Movies

Real Steel

Set in the near future, where robot boxing is a top sport, a struggling promoter feels he's found a champion in a discarded robot. During his hopeful rise to the top, he discovers he has an 11-year-old son who wants to know his father.

Starred by Hugh Jackman as the father and Dakota Goyo as his son. Honestly I was really touched by their chemistry, eventhough at first I thought that it's just an action robot movie.

Being Flynn

Working in a Boston homeless shelter, Nick Flynn re-encounters his father, a con man and self-proclaimed poet. Sensing trouble in his own life, Nick wrestles with the notion of reaching out yet again to his dad.

I got interested first by the name of the two main casts: Robert de Niro and Paul Dino, which the first need not tobe questioned, while the latter I had known from "Little Miss Sunshine." It's based on a book which is also true story. Frankly, quite difficult to follow and comprehend, yet worth.

The Scarlet Letter

The Scarlet Letter

by Nathaniel Hawthorne

Book and Movie Comparison

Actually this is part of my assignment for "Extensive Reading" course, but I think it's interesting to share my opinion about the book and the movie version:

1.      How are the stories in the book and movie the same? Support your answer with examples.

      The title is the same although it had been said that the movie was freely adapted from the book.

      The setting also the same, namely the early years of Boston, Massachusetts, when many England-born people came to built the town and brought the customs and religion of old England with them.

For example:

s         The new port, town and settlement.

s         Also in one scene when the Governor asked Hester not to wear too much laces, which it was one example about the loud voices and strong opinion of Englishwomen of those times.   

      The book and the movie tell about a woman named Hester Prynne who should wear a scarlet A letter on her bosom as a sign of “adultery” – a sign of sin.

2.      How are the stories in the book and the movie different? Support your answer with examples.

There are a lot of differences I found between the book and the movie. And I think the movie is totally different from the book, even the ending is different.

The following are some examples of those differences:

      In the book, it is opened with the story about Hester Prynne who was being released from the prison and brought her new-born baby.

In the movie, it is opened with the scene of the death and cremation of an Indian Chief named Massasoit.

      The book was told by a former port official who found an old wooden box consisted of a piece of red material in form of capital letter A and some old papers who told about a woman named Hester Prynne.

In the movie, it is Pearl who acts as the narrator of the story.

      In the book, it does not tell about how did Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale meet or how was their relationship before Hester Prynne being sent into prison.

In the movie, there are several moments of their meetings. For example when Arthur helped Hester to lift her horse-cart that stuck in the mud or when they had arguments in the church library.

      In the book, it was told that Hester sew herself the letter A and she did it in fine way, even the town women thought that “she is clever with her needle”.

But in the movie, there was someone who had made it to be worn by Hester.

      In the book, there are not any murders done by Roger Chillingworth a.k.a Roger Prynne. But in the movie there are two murders done by him to Mituba and Brewster. And even Roger Prynne hung himself; it is not mentioned in the book (Roger Chillingworth died several years after Arthur Dimmesdale’s death and he left his fortune to Pearl).

      In the book, there was no lines about Roger Chillingworth looked for the devil’s mark on Pearl’s body.

But in the movie Roger Chillingworth showed Pearl’s birthmark in a court and lifted the child, even called her the “devil’s child” or “the Satan’s child”.

      There was no war with the Indian people, but in the movie there was one.

      In the book, Pearl reached her age of 7 when Arthur Dimmesdale finally decided to confess. At this age Pearl was able to talk.

In the movie, Pearl was younger and even she could not talk yet.

      In the book, it is said that Arthur were sick of psychological problems, due to his guilt, and finally he was died after confessing that he was Pearl’s father and declaring his affection for Hester.

In the movie, Arthur did not look so ill. Even, it is a happy ending one. Arthur Dimmesdale and Hester Prynne are going to have a new happy life in another town, of course with Pearl.

3.      Are some characters described differently in the book compared to the movie? Do any characters act differently? Support your answer with examples.

      For the main characters, I think there is only slight different. Hester Prynne is described almost similar to the book. But Arthur is described a little bit different in the movie, where in the book he should be sick because of his guilt.

Hester Prynne acted differently in several scenes.

For example: In the book, Roger Chillingworth asked Hester Prynne not to tell about himself (about he was Hester’s husband) to her lover (Arthur Dimmesdale). But in the movie, Hester directly told Arthur that her husband was still alive and he was in danger.

      I found some characters that are not mentioned in the book. For example, Brewster, Johnny Sassamon – the Indian, Matuba – the mute slave, Metacomet – the son of Massasoit, Indian tribes, some women of Mistress Hibbins’s friends, and the boy with the drum who followed Hester everywhere.

      Roger Chillingworth or Roger Prynne acted differently in the movie, namely he killed people. However, in the book, it is only told that he acted as a doctor who tried to find the father of Hester’s baby. He did it in psychological way.

      In the movie also showed that Hester makes friend with Mistress Hibbins, however in the book Hester rejected the friendship offer. Even, Mistress Hibbins is not an important character in the book, but she has important role in the movie (she acted as friend, helped Hester when she was giving birth, and even Hester wanted to be hung together with her).

      Meanwhile Arthur Dimmesdale is portrayed extremely different in the movie. He does not look so guilty as in the book where he was really sick due to his guilt.

   

4.      Which version do you like better? Discuss what makes one version better than the other one.

Since the movie is so different from the book so I like the book better than the movie version. In fact, the movie has the drama side (and I do love drama!) and a story about love and a happy ending. However, the book tells more about the psychological and religious side. It tells about Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale in their guilt of sin, in their struggle of love and God. The book tells more about the “scarlet A letter” itself and its meaning that time, hence it is suitable with the title. And it is not really described in the movie.

The book says more about many questions of sin, crime, suffering, and guilt. And I think it is the focus of the author, about the dark side of life. And according to my opinion, the movie cannot show that author’s aim.    

Further reading:

http://www.online-literature.com/hawthorne/scarletletter/

all about eve

when I watched this drama in 2000 one thing that really impressed me was the competition between two girl as announcers in one of TV station - the nice girl and the ambitious one.  now,  after the second time I watched  the impression is getting clearer. how such a human can be so ambitious and envious thus she can do anything to achieve what she wants, even leaving her love behind. reflect on myself, well sometimes it happens too, such an envious feeling toward other's better condition. but, fortunately, sometimes I remember myself to look down too, and that's relieving.

Main Cast:

Chae Rim as Jin Sun-mi

Kim So Yeon as Huh Young-mi

Jang Dong Gun as Yoon Hyong-chul

Han Jae Suk as Kim Woo-jin

Aired in 2000 on MBC

Writer: Park Ji Hyun

Director: Lee Jin Suk, Han Chul Soo

Sun Mi (Chae Rim) is a lovely college student who lives with her middle class widowed father. She has a happy childhood with her sort-of-boyfriend Woo Jin (Han Jae Suk). Life changes radically for Sun Mi when her father decides to support Young Mi (Kim So Yeon), a beautiful girl the same age as Sun Mi.

Young Mi suddenly becomes an orphan when her father, an alcoholic who frequently abused her, dies in an accident while working for Mr. Jin/Sun Mi's father's construction company. Young Mi has grown up in poverty, but she is not a humble person. She's arrogant, greedy and full of resentment. She envies Sun Mi for all she is and has, even Woo Jin's love.

Young Mi becomes Sun Mi's rival in every aspect of her life. First, Young Mi steals Woo Jin from Sun Mi, then tries to take over her job at a very important TV Network and finally puts her eyes on Sun Mi's new boyfriend, Hyong Chul (Jang Dong Gun) one of the network's top executives, whom Sun Mi met during a trip to London. But Hyong Chul's love for Sun Mi is stronger than Young Mi's estimation. Meanwhile Woo Jin suffers of a broken heart as Young Mi makes his life miserable and finally dumps him so she can chase Hyong Chul.

The climax of the plot comes when a former lover of Young Mi appears and threatens to reveal her deepest secret should she not return to him: a dark past as a prostitute. Since the mischievous gangster did not succeed in his attempts, he decides to kill Young Mi. Woo Jin dies while saving her life. However, all of Young Mi's treachery is exposed and she attempts to commit suicide, but her efforts are frustrated when she is found unconscious by a group of nuns on the shore of the Han River. When Young Mi wakes up she suffers amnesia and has lost almost all memory of her past.

The drama ends with a happy reconciliation between Young Mi and Sun Mi, who cries beside Young Mi asking forgiveness for the misunderstanding between them since they met. Finally Hyong Chul swears eternal love and proposes to Sun Mi right in the middle of a street, asking her not to move to London.

the lake house

it's about a love story in different times.

it's about waiting.

and it's started from a house, the lake house.

Kate left a letter for the next tenant of a house she had to move out, the lake house she occupied for several years recently. The strange happens when Alex received the letter though the time has been back two years back. They kept on writing letters, getting to know each others more, and realized that actually they had met before. Some memories, coincidences, and fate had reveal and even changed by their exchange letters. Yet, their love should wait.

Main cast: 

Keanu Reeves as Alex Wyler

Sandra Bullock as Kate Forster

Directed by: 

Alejandro Agresti

Written by:

David Auburn 

Date Release:

2006

Distributed by:

Warner Bros 

Comment:

I do love the story, lovely and meaningful, even though I got little bit confused, at first, with the gap of time between Kate and Alex. But it's getting clear and clearer when the story flows. The plot is intertwined, for example, about the fact that Alex's father was the person who built the lake house. Also, about many other coincidences and meetings that actually had been had by Kate and Alex. Moreover, I like the chemistry between Sandra Bullock and Keanu Reeves, since their "Speed" together. What more is, I do like the letters stuff and Jane Austen's Persuasion. 

Autumn in My Heart a.k.a Endless Love

I got plenty of free times recently for myself. My new class will be begun on September.  Due to holiday season for college student here thus I haven't lots of work to do, not so much deadlines to be met. So, it gives me chance to do my favorite things, such as traveling, watching movies, read unfinished books, even read e-books!

Also, I have a chance to watch a Korean drama that originally aired in 2000. I haven't watched it yet, though my sister has already watched it for 4 times! I always curious because every people who ever watch it always say that it's good one. And sad one. Well, after watching it, I can say that life can be so tragic and ironic. A girl got accidentally exchanged, being left behind in poor condition, longed for her first love who is her former brother, met again, and finally separated again and died due to leukemia.

Main Cast
Song Seung Hun
Song Hye Kyo
Won Bin

Year Aired: 2000
Genre : Drama, Romance
Episodes: 16

Synopsis:
Yoon Joon-suh (Song Seung Heon) and Yoon Eun-suh (Song Hye Gyo) are siblings. Eun-suh is in fact from a different family as she was accidentally exchanged with another baby, but no one knows about this fact until one day, when Eun-suh has an accident, her blood is tested only to discover that her blood type is completely different from her brother's. After this discovery, their parents move to the US, and leave Eun-suh behind with her biological mother. Ten years later, Joon-suh returns to Korea and he begins to search for Eun-suh. Their reunion after being apart for ten years raise their childhood memories and soon they fall in love. However, their pure love will not be so easy because Joon-suh already has a fiancee who loves him very much. And Eun-suh has a partner, Han Tae-suk (Won Bin) who has loved her for his whole life.

winter sonata

Is first love really cannot be forgotten? Is first love really eternal?

It's really a sad drama. I even wept like ocean while watching it (though, in fact, I'm  a what-so-called "sobbed sister", where I'm easily to get weep or touched by stories, movies, or even comics) .Maybe it sounds absurd, I do hate soap operas yet I do love Korean dramas. I don't know why their stories have always catch me. Still, I consider almost the stories are too "drama" and rarely found in real world. But, sometimes they have similarities with my own stories of life. Perhaps, that's why I like them.

I've seen many Korean dramas that impress me. One of it is this one called Winter Sonata.   

This TV drama was originally run in 2002 by KBS 2 in Korea. It has other titles of "Winter Ballad / Winter Love Story". It's difficult to find this series nowadays, but fortunately and thankfully I could watched it recently. 

It is a story of first love that last forever. It is a story of a girl who falls in love twice to the same person, though ten years had separated them. And after the second meeting they should face the old truth that requires them to be apart, again.

The girl named Jung Yu-jin (played by Choi Ji Woo). She was fall in love with Kang Joon Sang (played by Bae Yong Joon), who came to her town in order to find his real father.

The story begins when Joon-sang, who is the son of an eminent musician who moves to Chuncheon; a rural city in South Korea. As an extraordinarily talented student, Joon-sang is welcomed by his fellow students as well as teachers, but remains a quiet, introverted young man. As a result of his belief that his father is dead and serious conflicts with his mother, Joon-sang believes that no one truly loves him.

On one fortuitous day on the ride to school, Joon-sang's classmate Yu-jin interrupts him on the bus. Joon-sang soon falls in love with Yu-jin, who opens herself to him with an innocent heart. Their love, however, is cut short after Joon-sang is involved in a serious auto-accident and, due to brain damage, is unable to recall his past life.

Joon-sang's mother, desiring Joon-sang's love and respect, has Joon-sang brainwashed by a psychologist, so that Joon-sang will not remember his painful memories of growing up as an illegitimate child. As a result, Joon-sang's memories prior to the accident are erased. Joon-sang's mother decides to move to the United States with Joon-sang, where he can start a new life under the identity of Lee Min-hyung. As such, both his friends and teachers are told that Joon-sang is dead.

Ten years later, Joon-sang is an award-winning architect in the United States. He does not remember anything about his life in Korea. He is completely different, an open-minded person who cares about other people, including his mother. He returns to Korea and Yu-jin sees him on the street, prompting her to put off her engagement to childhood friend Sang-hyuk. Little does she know that Joon-sang is dating her friend and sometime rival Che-lin. The story's plot intensifies when Yu-jin begins work at the firm where Joon-sang is employed, and tries to find out if he is her lost lover Joon-sang.

Malena

Directed by: Giuseppe Tornatore

Written by: Luciano Vincenzoni

Starring: Monica Belucci, Guiseppe Sulfaro

Release date: October 27, 2000

The film is set in  Sicily in 1940 during World War II just as Italy enters the war. Malena's husband, Nino Scordia, leaves to serve in the military. The silent, distractingly beautiful outsider learns one day that her husband has been killed. Malena feels sad and tries to cope with her loss, as the town she has just moved to tries to deal with this beautiful woman who gets the attention and lustful stares of all the local men, including the 12-year-old Renato. However, in spite of the villagers' gossip, she continues to be faithful to her husband. Renato becomes obsessed with Malena and starts fantasizing about her while masturbating.

Renato continues to watch as she suffers from loneliness and grief. Malena is shunned by the townspeople and the unattractive, jealous women of the Italian village, who begin to believe the worst about her, simply because of her beauty.

She visits her father, an almost deaf professor of Latin, regularly and helps him with his household chores. When a slanderous letter about her sexual morals reaches his hands, their relationship suffers a catastrophic blow. In the meanwhile, the war worsens. The village is bombed and Malena's father is killed.

She falls on hard times and eventually has no money. The wife of the local dentist takes her to court, but Malena is acquitted. The only man Malena does have an innocent romance with, an army officer, is sent away because of the trial.

Malena's poverty finally forces her to succumb to the greed and malice of the town and she becomes a prostitute, making the wives' fantasies about her a reality. When the German army comes to town, Malena gives herself to Germans as well. Renato sees her in the company of two German officers and faints.

His mother and the older ladies of the town think that he has been possessed by the devil and take him to church to exorcise the "demons." His father however understands that he is suffering from sexual hunger and takes him to a brothel; Renato has sex with one of the prostitutes while fantasizing that she is Malena.

When the war ends, the women of the village gather and, out of jealousy and hatred, publicly beat and humiliate Malena, who shortly after leaves for Messina. A few days later, Nino Scordia returns to town, to the shock of all the residents. He finds his house occupied by people displaced by the war. Renato tells him through an anonymous letter about Malena's whereabouts.

Nino goes to Messina to find her. A year later, they return. The villagers, especially the women, astonished at her courage, begin to talk to "Signora Scordia" with respect. Though still beautiful, they think of her as no threat claiming that she had wrinkles near her eyes and put on some weight.

In the last scene near the beach, Renato helps her pick up some oranges that had dropped from her shopping bag. Afterwards he wishes her "Buona fortuna, Signora Malena" (good luck, Mrs. Malena) and rides off on his bicycle, looking back at her for a final time, as she walks away. As this final scene fades out, an adult Renato's voice-over reflects that he has not forgotten Malena, even after the passage of so many years. He says, "Of all the girls who asked me to remember them, the only one I remembered is the one who did not ask." The audience is left not knowing if Malena ever realizes Renato's feelings for her.

Amélie

One of my friend - who owns a video rental place - recommended me this movie, because he knows that I'm a drama-comedy movies lover. He told me that I'm gonna like it. It's a French movie and very funny, he said.

Indeed, it's splendid!

In Indonesian original VCD the title shown "Amelie" but l it's original title is  Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amélie Poulain which has meaning "The Fabulous Destiny of Amélie Poulain". Although it is in French but I do enjoy to watch it over and over again. The story, the plot, the players, the setting, etc are fabulous. And, it's very funny although there are some ironical things lie within.

Amélie tells about the story of a girl named Amélie Poulain (played by Audrey Tautou). It starts with the day she was born (September 3, 1973 in Enghien in the northern suburbs of Paris) . Her father was a former army physician and her mother was a school headmaster.  Things the like and dislike. However, Amélie's childhood was different. She had no other siblings and could not go to the school just like other children (foolishly, it was caused by her father's mistaken concerns of a heart defect, while in fact her daughter was just nervous by her father touch which was very rare). So, being lived with a cold-hearted father and a neurotic-easily depressed mother, had led  Amélie to resort to her own fantastical world and dreams of love and beauty.  

 Also at this age Amélie's mother died due to weird cause (a Québécoise woman who commits suicide by jumping off the top of Notre Dame Cathedral and lands on Amélie's mother) and her father spent most of his time by making garden's memorial dedicated to his wife. 

Amélie moves to Paris when she becomes a young woman and works as a waitress in café Deux Moulins in Montmartre. She is still a different girl with her own isolation life. There she meets some few people who are going to be entwined in this story (people in Deux Moulins and the few people who live in the same apartment with her, absolutely with all their different stories, this also including her own father). And, decided to to change the lives of those around her for the better. It was begun from the breaking news of Lady Diana's death by accident (August 31, 1997) and a 40-years old box hidden in her bathroom wall which she found it coincidently!

From the purpose of finding the owner of the old box,  this lovely girl has her own adventure of helping other people and meet  a  man (Nino Quincampoix, played by Mathieu Kassovitz) who loves collecting other people torn  photographs at many fotobox in some Paris's railway stations. 

Amélie falls in love with him and struggle for her own isolation and affection in her own different way.

Five stars for this!

Facts about this movie: 

It was produced in 2001 by the Director of Jean-Pierre Jeunet. It was written by Jeunet and 

Guillaume Laurant. 

 Amélie won best film at the European Film Awards; it won four César Awards (including Best Film and Best Director), two BAFTA Awards (including Best Original Screenplay), and was nominated for five Academy Awards. (See below for other awards and recognition.)

link:

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Am%C3%A9lie

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0211915/ 

  

You've Got Mail!

Basically I do love movies in genres of drama-romance-comedy-classic. And it's can't be counted how many times I've seen this great movie ever. Yes, Tom Hank and Meg Ryan!

Here some summaries I found:

"An updating of 1940's The Shop Around the Corner to the Internet Age, You've Got Mail follows the squabbling and romance of two competing book retailers on Manhattan's Upper West Side.

Kathleen Kelly (Meg Ryan) awakens to the latest comments by her newspaper columnist boyfriend Frank Navasky (Greg Kinnear) on how computers are ushering in the fall of civilization. Once she has made quite sure Frank has left for the day, Kathleen starts her computer and goes on-line. She doesn't want Frank to know that she's exchanging e-mails with a man she's never met, Joe Fox (Tom Hanks). He is also keeping this a secret from his own girlfriend, publishing executive Patricia Eden (Parker Posey). Kathleen and Joe avoid discussing anything that might reveal their identities to each other, keeping to such subjects as pets, the changing seasons, and the charm of New York. They know each other only by their Internet handles "Shopgirl" and "NY152".

Joe is an important executive in his family's business, Fox & Sons, a bookstore chain. Currently, he is readying a new "Superstore" (like a large Borders or Barnes & Noble). He has a bit of trouble attending to work rather than musing on Shopgirl's latest e-mail, but friend and subordinate Kevin (Dave Chappelle) finally gets him to focus. Joe says that although the locals won't think they want a big chain store, he knows he can seduce them with discount prices and cappuccino. Joe decides it's time to put up signs announcing that the Superstore is coming.


The owner of a large bookstore chain starts putting the owner of a small local bookstore out of business. Meanwhile they have been corresponding over the internet without knowing who either of them are. They can't stand each other in person but over the internet they are very attracted. He finds out who she is but she doesn't know. He starts to like her more but she still hates him. He has to fix it."

Besides the marvelous story and chemistry of both stars, we can enjoy the setting itself in this movie, New York in autumn, Christmas and spring. Maybe because it was directed by Nora Ephron and is set in the Upper West Side of New York City. Ephron insists that You've Got Mail was as much about the Upper West Side itself as the characters, highlighting the 'small town community' feel that pervades the Upper West Side. See also, influences from Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice can also be seen in the relationship between Joe Fox and Kathleen Kelly - a reference pointed out by these characters actually discussing Mr. Darcy and Miss Bennet in the movie.


Five stars for this ^^

Here are some of my favorite quotes from this movie:

"I pretend that we're the oldest and dearest friends, as opposed to what we actually are people who don't know each other's names"

"I hear nothing, not even a sound on the streets of New York, just the beat of my own heart. I have mail. From you."

""I do love New York in Fall, wanna make me to buy school supplies ... I wanna send you a bouquet of sharpened pencils"

"... so people who don't know who the hell they're doing, or who on earth they are can, only with $2.95 get not just a cup of coffee but an absolutely defining sense of self"

"Sometimes I wonder about my life ... I lead a small life ...well valuable, but small. Sometimes I wonder do I do it because I like it or because I haven't been brave?"

"... all this nothing has meant more to me than so many somethings ..."