ben_robertson

It seems to me that there must be more to the life of Joan of Arc, a figure about which I have heard all my life, than is portrayed in this film. Perhaps it is a difficult subject to dramatize, although the summary sounds dramatic enough to me. What comes through here is rather a critique of religion and spirituality and mysticism. The result is Joan of Arc as misguided child, Joan of Arc as psychotic young woman. These criticisms for what they are worth do not help make the film entertaining. While I was initially taken by the historical detail, I ended up spending most of my time wondering how France could have fallen for this child. Hunger Games, for a modern example, presents a much more credible heroine who is used by the powers that be for their own ends. That to me is an interesting story that has emotional content. Joan of Arc the film raises interesting questions but it is not entertaining or moving and I suppose in the end when a girl gets burned at the stake I want to be moved. I think the film could have been improved by a more faithful treatment of the history which I must believe was more interesting than this film for the name Joan of Arc to come down to us so prominently through the ages.

All I have to say is, Anthony Hopkins conducting the shower scene in Psycho. That and Helen Mirren as Alma. This film is a great inspiration for anyone who wants to make a film. It shows that no matter who you are it ain't easy and we know that is true. Recently Brad Pitt struggled to get Money Ball made. Historically Walt Disney struggled to get Snow White made. In the case of Snow White and Psycho, Walt Disney and Alfred Hitchcock ended up putting up their own money to make the films and not just a little money but house money. Like they would lose their homes if they did not make the money back on the film. That is the kind of passion and belief it takes to make great films and Hitchcock does a good job of showing one of the the greatest directors of all time struggling like a kid out of school to get his film made. Not only the money but the creative process itself if shown here and again, it ain't easy. Did you know Psycho almost ended up on TV? See the movie and watch Anthony Hopkins conduct the shower scene. Brilliant!

This important documentary about milk screened at the 2012 New Hampshire Film Festival in Portsmouth, NH. The first thing I want to say is that I loved Sebastian Howard and Mark Westberg's editing. In at least two places they spliced their subjects into sound bites and had them all contradicting each other in staccato segments, sometimes as short as one word, "Yes!" or "No!" and let the audience see in summary just how controversial the simple subject of milk really is. With so much lackluster editing in film, I was delighted to see someone getting creative in their story telling and it reminded me of similar devices used in the novels of Ernest Hemingway and Raymond Chandler where the key images are summarized in a montage of memory at the end of the book. The subject of the film was how healthy is milk and Howard interviewed some of the leading industry, medical, scientific, and nutrition authorities in North America, yes including Canada, on this topic. As a person who does not drink plain milk, raw or pasteurized, I was happy to see someone investigating this health issue in a balanced way that tells both sides of the story. I also wished I could hear more on the topic of how cultures and bacteria change the properties of milk when it comes in the form of various cheeses and yogurt and how experts view the health impact of these foods as opposed to plain milk. What I did not expect in the film was the moving portrait of a Canadian farmer producing raw milk who was persecuted and later exonerated by the Canadian government and his inspiring cry for freedom to make, drink and sell raw milk. In his words, "Politically, food is a weapon". Wow! And that was just the beginning. This film is well worth seeing for anyone who is interested in the political and health issues related to the production of food and milk.