On to a new era of Ritz…

Sure, it didn’t last long at all but I’m done with this blog. It’s a sad day for the blogging world (AKA my mind). But my reviewing is far from done. The reason I stopped is I found a job writing for a website called:

The Critical Critics; thecriticalcritics.com

So head on over them, I’m Frank Ritz, though that’s quite obvious.
Thanks to the few of you that actually read this, and I’d like to give a monster shout out to Cut the Crap Movie Reviews, he helped out a lot, and is a great site. Go over there and check it out at, ctcmr.com

Thanks all, and this is me signing out.

Been Busy…

I’ve been busy. I haven’t had time to just sit down and write. I will eventually get back on track but as of now I am on  a set back. I’ve had school, I’ve been sick, my sister just graduated, and I’m writing a script that needs to be done in the maximum of 2 weeks. But to give faith, here is what’s to come:

Review Time

The Square (2010) – 1.5

Exit Through the Gift Shop (2010) – 5

Blue Velvet (1986) – 5

Mulholland Dr. (2001) – 3

Splice – 3.5

Classic on Trial

M (1931)

The Maltese Falcon (1941)

Raging Bull (1980)

Director Treatment

Coen

Lynch

Scorsese

Fellini

Kurosawa

Lee

Kubrick

Capra

Hitchcock

Movies 101

Originality

Being Weird

Inspiration

Shaky Cam

Why Psycho is amazing

Detective Movies

Avatar or hurt locker

Winning an Oscar

The Sci-Fi Genre

List Mania

Top 25 of the Decade

The new Segments are, Classic on Trial, Director Treatment, and Movies 101. Classic on Trial is where I examine a classic in detail and then in the end I decide whether it’s: Worthy of the Title Classic, Good or Great but not a Classic, or Overrated.

The Director Treatment is where I watch all the movies by a director, one or two a week, and review them, or talk about them in general, depending on my mood. In the end I will look back at the movies and summarize, along with giving an overall director rating.

Movies 101 is basically me writing an essay on the specific topics.

So all are those are to come!

List Mania: Top 15 Most Anticipated Movies of 2010 (Not just Summer)

This is my top 15 most anticipated movies of 2010, not just the summer. So let’s get right on to it!

15. Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World

Yes it’s nerdy, but still. It looks like the teenage, comic book version of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind! How in the world doesn’t that sound great?

14. The Social Network

Though it’s directed by David Fincher one of my favorite, I am cautious about seeing it. A movie about Facebook is definitely not a one to be on the top of my list.

13. Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work

I love Joan Rivers, enough said.

12. Tron: Legacy

The first Tron is awesome, this one will have amazing effects, and Jeff Bridges is back! Gonna be amazing for sure.

11. Machete

Robert Rodriguez finally getting away from the Kiddy stuff for this movie. Saw the fake trailer for this in Grindhouse, though not my favorite of the trailers, this movie is gonna rock! And Cheech playing a priest, enough said!

10. Get Low

Though the trailer isn’t the best (but still really good) it has Robert Duvall in what looks could be one of his last performances that will surly get him an Oscar nomination, maybe a win, and the always fantastic Bill Murray.

9. Winter’s Bone

Never heard of this movie until I saw the trailer in an indpenedent theater, and it looks amazing! It is in the style of a classic Noir (which is probably my favorite genre of movie) and looks extremely intense!

8. Buried

Ryan Renyolds being serious is most defeinitly interesting. This movie though just looks really intense, and the fact it takes place in a coffin only furthers the tention!

7. Hereafter

Though Invictus wasn’t good, maybe even you could call it bad, I am willing to give Clint another shot because he’s the man. Also him doing a supernatural movie? That could be interesting.

6. Toy Story 3

Toy Story 3…. It’s Toy Story 3

5. Biutiful

Javier Bardem doing another serious movie like No Country for Old Men (I smell Oscar). Plus it has a great director, gonna be good for sure.

4. 127 Hours

Danny Boyle returns after Slumdog Millionaire, and this sounds even better. Plus with James Franco in the lead role it has to be good! Also it’s basically a one man show and is said to be brutal, can’t wait!

3. The American

Not sure why but I am really excited for this movie! George Clooney playing another serious role, and probably going to get another Oscar nomination. This is a Spy movie that is said to be more European, meaning more heavy dialouge, less action, which is refreshing. We don’t need another Bourne movie!

2. True Grit

The Coens are back, again. Their last 3 movies have all made it on my Top 10′s of the year, and 2 being 2 of my favorites of all time (Serious Man, and No Country). Sure it’s a remake but who cares? I trust the Coens and with a great cast of Josh Brolin, Jeff Bridges, and Matt Damon, how can you deny it won’t be great?

1. Inception

It’s Christopher Nolan not making a Batman movie. I love Christopher Nolan but that’s not all. The movie already looks amazing! The trailer left me with my jawed drop just because of how amazing it looks. I’m sure I’m getting my hopes up too high, but I don’t even care, this looks fantastic! It will no doubt in my mind be the best movie of 2010! JULY 15TH MIDNIGHT, IMAX, CAN’T WAIT!

Review Time: The Crazies (2010) ****

Now I am what you could call a zombie movie fanatic. Even though this movie is really a zombie movie (but technically it is) I still really wanted to see it. Sure it had a lame title, a questionable cast, and a bad director, I still wanted to see it. Well I finally got my chance and the wait was definitely worth it. The film is a horror remake of the 1973 George A. Romero movie. That was another questionable aspect, a horror remake. 9.9 times out of 10 that will not end up good, but trust me this one did.

The Crazies is about the small town Ogden Marsh in Iowa, which is your typical small town. Everyone knows each other, the pass time is high school baseball, and farming is the industry to be in. But then all of the citizens start acting… well you guessed it, Crazy! So the sheriff (Timothy Olyphant) along with his wife (Radha Mitchell), his deputy (Joe Anderson), and a young local girl (Danielle Panabaker) try to escape from all the madness. But of course there had to be another obstacle, and of course that obstacle would be the government. The government finds out about the craziness and wants to contain the town, AKA fuck everything up.

The film was directed by Breck Eisner, which is a great surprise to me. He directed one of the biggest movie flops of all time, Sahara (2005) starring the dreadful Matthew McConaughey. I never saw it and never plan to but this has to be a step up. Breck does an excellent job in directing this film. His camera work in the movie definitely adds suspense to the movie, and it adds a nice style to it. He also gets some extremely intense shots, whether they be traditional still shots, motion shots, or jumping shots (going from one spot to another quickly). Everything he does seems to be just right and brilliant. He does an excellent job of making this remake modern, but still keeping it campy and enjoyable.

Breck does an excellent job of guiding this film on the right path. It’s definitely scary, with some intense action, good jumps, and an entertainment value that is priceless. Sure this movie has some clichés, but that’s the writers fault, and Breck doesn’t let that get in the way of his directing, another good skill he has; working with a flawed script. He is set to direct the remake of Flash Gordon (1980) a movie that I watched and like as a child myself, though it was on DVD. That’s set to come out in 2012 and after what he’s done with this I’m excited for that remake, probably the first time I’ve ever said that.

The acting in this movie… isn’t actually that bad! It is not what I’d call Oscar worthy, or even good on a standard of a Drama. But as far as Horror movies go, or even remakes, this is a great acted. But in the perspective of all movies, it’s just good. Timothy Olyphant plays his role very well, a typical horror lead with actually a little bit more. He plays the handsome (not my words), tough, hero of the film that must save the day. He does all that very well, which is definitely a turn of roles considering he is usually the bad guy. Recently he has been taking lead good guy roles and I like it. He plays the role with a certain seriousness that really makes me think of a cowboy in an old western. I really liked Timothy, I think he’s a good actor and this is just another movie in the bag for him. He was literally meant for this role, because I can’t picture anyone else doing as good as he did. He could be on the level as spectacular. This is nothing revolutionary, or Oscar worthy, but he does good at what he was going for, a classic role that’s been done but he does it in a good way that’s entertaining.

The supporting cast did good, but nothing spectacular like Olyphant. Radha Mitchell plays Olyphant’s wife who is a doctor. She is just a typical damsel in distress, but she wasn’t an annoying character, which is a great thing for damsel everywhere. Usually a damsel will be very annoying and intolerable but she does good at what she was going for. Joe Anderson plays Olyphant’s Deputy, and he, like the others, does what he was going for. He’s your classic southern boy, born and bred. The only other movie I saw him in was Across the Universe (2007) which I liked him in, but this is a completely different role. He starts off as that lovable sidekick that is always a good fun to have around, for audience and the character’s purposes pleasure. Then as the movie progresses he slowly starts getting a little more… southerner, but in a Deliverance kind of way… so not a good thing. Danielle Panabker is just another DID, and her role is basically the same as Radha’s, only not as good. She was kind of annoying at times because she does nothing, but at least there were times when Radha kicked ass. Nothing really worth talking about. All the crazies, by the way, do an excellent job at being crazy. They didn’t get no extras, they got good actors to do these roles, and you can tell.

The screenplay was written by Scott Kosar & Ray Wright. Both have experience in the horror, and remake, field. The movie is definitely suspenseful and completes what it attempts to be. A fun, at times scary, horror movie. Sure the movie has clichés, and that’s what holds it back from being better. But at times the clichés are needed, like in the beginning, but as the movie progresses they just get old and not needed. The ending also feels, meh. But it tries to stay in the vein of a B movie and it does just that. But sometimes the campy feeling, AKA bad writing feels old and used too many times nowadays. Though I do like the pacing of the movie. It jumps right into the story and developes characters as it goes along, instead of in the beginning. The first scene is very intense that I was on the edge of my seat, it contains a highschool baseball game, a nice sunny day, and a drunk with a shotgun, only he’s not drunk. Yeah, it’s that cool.

This movie accomplishes what it goes for, that’s all, but that’s also a good thing. It didn’t try to be something it wasn’t and it ends up just being a good flick. Also there is a debate whether or not this is a zombie movie or not, I consider it one if most people can consider 28 Days Later one. Because in that nobody was ever dead, they were infected with a virus of rage. In this they were infected with a virus of craziness. Case closed, I win.

Review Time: The Secret In Their Eyes *****

When the 2009 Oscars happened, there were a lot of shockers. Hurt Locker beating out Avatar, Precious winning best adapted screenplay over Up in the Air. But the biggest shocker for me was the fact that The White Ribbon didn’t win Best Foreign Language Film. I thought the movie was stupendous, flawless, and a masterpiece. It had all the buzz to go with it too, my personal pick was A Prophet which I would have been extremely happy if won. But neither won and some Argentinian movie that I had never heard of won, The Secret In Their Eyes. From that point on I was curious to see it, and now my curiosity has been filled, the verdict? You’ll have to read and find out.

The Secret In Their Eyes is a detective, thriller, romance, and even a comedy at parts. It has all the elements for a great film, and it pulls it off miraculously. The Secret In Their Eyes is about Detective Benjamin Esposito (played by Ricardo Darin) who has now retired, and with his retirement he wants to write a book. He plans to base his book off the Morales case; a case he investigated 25 years ago that ended with a lot of questions unanswered. The case was of a girl who was raped and murdered and the things they uncover are of epic proportions. The movie jumps back and forth between when the investigation took place and while Benjamin tries to recall the events which took place. There is also a side plot in which Benjamin falls for his younger, and wealthier, boss Irene Hastings (played by Soledad Villamil).

The plot may sound complex and it is, it’s full of rich creative writing and is definitely the best part of the movie. The movie also contains amazing direction, good acting, great cinematography, art direction, costume design, and many other things. This is a great movie, but how great?

The first aspect of the movie I am going to critique is the direction. The film was masterfully directed by Juan Jose Campanella, and this was his first feature length that he has done in a long while. Juan’s skills behind the camera are undeniably great, everything about it is terrific. From the simple shots to the most complex, all have a powerfulness behind it so strong it only enhances the movies greatness. He furthers the excellent story on it’s journey and helps it unfold, never taking anything away from it. His skills behind the camera remind me a lot of Alfonso Cuaron and the work he did in one of my all time favorites Children of Men (2006). It has a gritty feeling to it, and the camera seems to be in constant motion, but not shaky cam. I HATE SHAKY CAM!

But the most impressive scene in the movie is due to the direction. It’s a single cut shot, definitely my favorite kind of shot in movie history, five minutes or so of perfection. It starts with an overhead view of a soccer stadium with load, roaring fans, and it slowly pans in. We eventually get to Benjamin and his partner Pablo (amazingly played by Guillermo Francella) as they believe the prime suspect will be there. They shift through the crowd and finally they find the man their looking for. From there on goes a high-speed on foot pursuit of the suspect, going into a bathroom, jumping off a balcony. The whole scene is the high point of the movie, and the intensity is cranked up to 11. The camera is all one cut and could get shaky at times, but it doesn’t matter here. Every single moment in it is pure intensity, my jaw little dropped in awe. Brilliantly crafted scene.

The acting is great in this movie. Ricardo Darin is a good lead. He plays both young and old Benjamin, the young is a fiery detective who seeks the truth. The old is a worn out man with a solemn look in his eye he wants to recall the past, and at the same time forget it. The role takes skill to play, and he does well. He doesn’t really give anything memorable per say, but he does his job, and in the end of the day that’s what counts right? He has been called a Pacino like actor, and it makes sense, well a young Pacino. He definitely has the chops to be a great actor, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he is a huge star in Argentina. There are some dramatic moments but it seems like he is always in the same mood, except for when he is in awestruck by his love interest that will never happen. A good performance, but not great.

The supporting cast is pretty good too. Soledad Villamil is good as Benjamin’s boss and his “Juliet”.  She like Ricardo really does nothing memorable, but does the part right. Her character is similar too, a young and old, fiery and worn out. The real highlights though come from the three supporting men. Guillermo Francella, Benjamin’s partner and the hilarious comic relief in the movie, Pablo Rago as Riacardo Morales, the husband of the victim, and Javier Godino as Gomez, the prime suspect. Now Guillermo definitely deserved an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor, he is phenomenal. Everything he does is like magic on the screen, he’s funny and can be completely serious. One scene in which he gets completely dramatic is heartbreaking, because the plays the part so well. He is the character, he made me believe that that was really him, and I fell in love. Pablo is also heartbreaking, but that’s what the character is. He pulls out your heart strings and doesn’t let go. I remember his face still, every single expression, just a brilliantly played part. Now Javier Godino was more of a physcically role, because he didn’t speak much, but he just looked the part, and that was good enough for me.

The movie was written by Juan Jose Campanella and Eduardo Sacheri, who wrote the book in which this is based off of. The story is definitely one of the best of the year, maybe the decade. It has all the elements of a great movie, comedy, thrills, suspense, romance, and it blends it so perfectly in a story that is engaging from start to finish. I was interested the whole movie, even though it did feel a tad bit long. I was completely interested and wanted it to keep going while watching. This is a story for the ages, the makings of a classic, this would be a classic if it came out 60 years ago or so. It’s a story so familiar, that is works in being unconventionally different. It’s a brilliant story and maybe even deserved the award for Best Adapted screenplay.

Overall this is a fantastic movie. It is at number 5 of my top 10 of 2009, and a movie that I would love to watch again and again. It’s a powerful story with amazing direction, and a good cast, and just great technical wise. It has great cinematography and art direction to go with it. A brilliant movie, and a must see.

List Mania: Top 10 of 2009

I love making lists, it’s almost compulsive. 2009 was a pretty interesting year. There were 7 movies that are worthy to be called classics for all times, the rest were just pretty good. So without further adieu, here is my list.

Here are the movies that came very close to being on the list: Avatar, Up in the Air, and The Road

10. Fantastic Mr. Fox

Wes Anderson has done it again with this gem. It’s an animated for kids and adults alike. It has great humor, and a style that is very Anderson like, even though it’s animated. Definitely the best animated movie of the year, yes better than Up in my opinion. This is currently my 4th favorite Anderson movie (behind Life Aquatic, Royal Tenenbaums, and Rushmore).

9. Inglorious Basterds

Tarintino is back in top form with this war epic. It’s definitely without a question an improvement from his 2007 movie Death Proof, which was pretty terrible. This has everything you could want from a war movie, great monologues, fantastic acting, good action, and some delectable humor. Christoph Waltz gives a star making performance, though I don’t think it was worthy of the Oscar, but most definitely a nomination. Brad Pitt takes on a new kind of role and it’s very fun to watch. A great all around movie.

8. Precious

Definitely the most emotionally powerful movie this year. Precious is heartbreaking, and probably the best overall acted movie of the year. It is incredibly sad and is probably the only movie to make me feel physically sick. Mo’Nique gives one of the best supporting roles of the decade, it’s emotionally charged and absolutely brutal, but in a good way. Gabourey Sidibe in my opinion deserved the best actress Oscar over anybody, and it’s a shame she didn’t win. She definitely has potential to become one of the best up and coming actresses. The story is powerful, but the movie does have flaws. Lee Daniel’s flashy direction can be distracting at time that it takes away from the breathtaking story, and maybe it’s even too depressing… but who minds? It’s a powerhouse movie that all should see, even though it’s hard.

7. Watchmen

Definitely the biggest surprise movie of the year, and one of the best movies ever. This is one of the 7 classics for the ages. It is on the level of the fantastic Dark Knight from 2008. It has a great political stand-point and is definitely much more than a comic book movie. The plot is so genius and engaging that the movie doesn’t matter that it runs well over 2 hours. It also has an absolutely amazing performance from Jackie Earle Haley as Rorschach, the masked crusader. This is more than a movie, it’s a visionary tale of excellence, and an interesting look at society, a great movie, bravo Zack Snyder.

6. The White Ribbon

The White Ribbon is a contemporary classic. It is mesmerizing, unconventional, awe-inspiring, technically amazing, and just a brilliant tour-de-force. The White Ribbon is definitely Haneke’s best film, it is prolific, nad genius in every way you can think. The acting is flawless, the direction is so great I want to cry, the story is amazing; though misinterpreted, and the music, cinematography, and all that other good stuff is great too. Though the story is misinterpreted as a whodunit, but it’s not, it’s a look at a society, that is a so-called “utopia” and watching it fall apart, a brilliant movie. Though very long, it’s well worth it.

5. The Secret in Their Eyes

The Secret in Their Eyes was the surprise winner of the Best Foreign Film at the Oscars, it beat out The White Ribbon (which obviously I like this better), though I still think another movie should have won (hint hint). But this mystery, thriller, crime, romance, epic is outstanding. Juan Jose Campanella directs this and does it with excellence, it reminds me of one of my all time favorites, Children of Men (2006). It’s fast, swift, and furthers the outstanding plot. It even has a nice long tracking shot that is very intense and the best part of the movie. The movie also has a great cast from the lead, Ricardo Darin (a Pacino like actor), to the hilarious supporter, who deserved and Oscar Nomination for best supporting actor; Guillermo Francella. The movie has one of the best stories in a long while, it has many different great elements in it that blend together so well, that it truly is a magnum opus. If this movie came out another year it is definitely worthy of Best foreign film, but a better one came out this year.

4. A Serious Man

The Coen Brothers have made yet another masterpiece. This is a hilarious drama, that really turns heads in it’s zanyness. Full of wacky characters, a devastating [yet funny] plot, brilliant direction, amazing cinematography, and great art direction. It reminds me a lot of Scorsese’s masterpiece After Hours (1984). You watch as this man’s life slowly falls apart, and it’s humourous and dark. It’s a great fun and is my 3rd favorite Coen movie (behind No Country for Old Men, and Raising Arizona). Not a whole lot to say other than see it!

3. District 9

This is the best Sci-Fi movie of the year, and this was a damn good year for Sci-Fi with other great movies Avatar, and Moon. District 9 is impressive because of it’s small budget (for a movie of these epic proportions), the no named cast, the first time director, and the brilliant story that hits on issues like Apartheid. I don’t want to give away things in case you haven’t seen District 9 because half the fun is just watching it unfold and having no idea what is going to happen next. This is an amazing movie with probably the best CGI to date. The movement and looks of the creatures is so detailed that they are real, I swear! The movie is as mysterious as the advertisement was (if you remember), this is definitely a milestone for Sci-Fi movies, a revolutionary tale, a magnificent movie.

2. Where the Wild Things Are

This movie means a whole lot to me. It’s an emotionally driven film that is definitely not for kids; falsely advertised. I can connect with this movie on a deeper level than other movie. It is Spike Jonze’s masterpiece, it explores all the dark parts of childhood, the pains of growing up. But it also presents learning to be better through the most powerful thing a child has; their imagination. It’s a film that’s subject is so powerful that it will forever be at the top of my lists, I love this movie.

1. A Prophet

This, is, outstanding. This is apart of my triumphant 13 (the 13 best movies of all time in my opinion), it stands at number 13. This French crime, gangster, prison film is perfect in every single aspect. It’s violent, interesting, suspenseful, dramatic, and as classic as The Godfather. This is the movie that deserved the Oscar for Best Foreign Language film. It’s so powerful from the acting, to the story, to the directing, and all the other technical things. If I chose the winners and nominations this would basically sweep every single category. Tahar Rahim gives a star making performance in the lead, and Niels Arestrup gives the best supporting acting role of the year. This film also touches on racism, and social classes,and how people are divided just by where they come from. This is a classic for all times.

So there you have it, my list agree or don’t. 7 movies deserve the title of classic.

Hello world!

Hello everyone, I am Ritz. I am a teenager (will not disclose age) that is obsessed with movies, watching, making and reviewing. So this is my blog where I will review movies, and talk about them.

- Ritz