Reviews
Real Women Have Curves (2002)
Disappointed
The best parts of the movie were 1. the scene that featured the visit by the character Estella with Ana requesting an extension but assuming the businesswoman did not speak Spanish but she did, and 2. the cinematography of the town from Ana's neighborhood to Beverly Hills High - I actually began to think the film was filmed in a Latin country until I saw the metro sign on the bus and signs of Beverly Hills. That was brilliant. But the rest of the movie proved to be a disappointment. One of the main lessons I've learned in scriptwriting (not that I'm any expert) is to make the protagonist, no matter how loathsome, redeeming if but in a sliver of his/her character so that the audience will root for him/her and stay with the film. I kept wanting to root for Ana, and the only reason I did at all was when she was verbally attacked about her weight. But it wasn't enough. Even her moments of epiphany, when she realized how much work went into one dress, or when she saw the scar she left her mother, were played flatly against the intense negativity of her character overall. But since attacks on her weight weren't in every line of the film, I spent more time being irritated and wishing the movie featured more of an in depth picture of her mother or sister - much more likable characters despite their obvious flaws. What I realized by the end of the movie was that the best parts of the film, outside the aforementioned, were shown in the clips and trailers. And even then, when one of those scenes were played out - the one when the women showed their cellulite to each other and finished making the dresses in their underwear -I didn't feel empowered as a plus size woman - I just kept wondering if their sweat would ruin the dresses. This movie did not support its hype.
Rang-e khoda (1999)
LOVE this beautifully crafted piece of cinema
This is one of the most beautiful films I have ever had the privilege to watch. I have re-rented the movie and will buy it first chance I get. It is such a redeeming film with an extraordinary performance by Mohsen Ramezani who played little Mohammad. This film redeemed cinema in my opinion.
Antwone Fisher (2002)
Awesome
Having developed a critical eye for film, and a love for good cinema, I went to see Antwone Fisher with my breath symbolically held. While I am an unabashed fan of Denzel Washington - both of his skill as an actor and of his public persona; I am an honest enough fan to admit the (very few) times when he hasn't quite hit the mark in a film or two. And I could be wrong about those - after all, I am not an actor. But this was different - Denzel would pour his career's experience into, and guide, a film handling one of the most sensitive topics known to man - the abuse of a child. As his directorial debut, no less. And develop the film to point that it would successfully present the triumph of a man. I didn't want to be disappointed.
And I wasn't.
What I did see is a film full of promise that connected diverse audiences, and gave the inexperienced viewer a brief, but truthful eye into the life of a young man whose childhood was a living hell, but who triumphed despite it all. This film did it - and nary a dry eye of any color in the theatre proved it. It takes someone to know the topics in this film to know when truth is presented. It takes a talented filmmaker to tell you the story convincingly when you haven't experienced it. And if he can further draw an audience in, and cause an audience to emotionally respond, without pity, the filmmaker has done his job. In any film. Black, white, purple or polka dotted. That is what makes good cinema. Bravo, Denzel Washington, Derek Luke, Joy Bryant and most of all, Antwone Fisher - you have indeed won.