Adam Frisch Reviews

Trance (I) (2013)

Absolutely awful.

[1/10 · 19 April 2013]

What happened Danny? The terrible lighting, the cheesy dutch angles, the too wide lenses, the awful production design and worst of all that incessant trance music from your acid raves in the 90's. Too loud, too much, always on - like a bad EPK. Add to this a terrible script and the mind numbing boringness of hypnosis and "messing with your brain"-narrative. Granted, this is my personal hangup - and the trailer clearly showed as much, so I can't blame that - but it's just so boring to hinge a story on, precisely because there are no boundaries. Constraints add suspense. It's like listening to people go on and on about their dreams. Who cares? If it had been a straight whodunnit art heist movie, it would have been ten times better. At least then it would have had purpose.

I also read in reviews how everyone thinks this is Rosario Dawson's best role. Did we watch the same movie, I wonder? I love the girl, but here she was at best phoning it in from another galaxy. Everyone else is just about passable at best, perhaps disillusioned by the terrible premise of it all. Shame with such actors like Cassel etc. I wish I could give this more than 1 star, but I can't. I like you Danny Boyle, but this was the first movie in over 10 years where I asked my mate if we could leave after 30 minutes. He didn't, so I had to sit through the whole mess until the end.

War Horse (2011)

Casting wrong and collaborations getting stale.

[3/10 · 26 December 2011]

First off, I find Spielberg to be one of the greatest directors of our time, so his considerable talents and skills are not in question. However, I do feel he was out of tune on this one. The main problem is the film's casting.

Jeremy Irvine lacks the skills to bring his character to life and we fail to see what motivates him. It could be a script problem as well, but nevertheless he doesn't work and we don't care for him. He's unfortunately cast for his sweet looks, when a boy we could actually relate to would have been much better. The German boy that later appears does a much better job in a shorter period - why couldn't they have found someone like that to play Albert? It goes on from there - many characters turn up but are miscast. There's a French farmer and his granddaughter where the granddaughter has one of the worst faux-French accents in cinema history and does a really bad job. Niels Arestrup, the veteran French character actor, also does the best he can but his character is written very two dimensionally. Film is littered with badly written, badly cast characters.

DP Janusz Kaminski also has over the years turned into a great over-lighter and there are harsh rims and an artificial light feel all over this film when naturalism would have been much better. Top this off with a terrible John Williams score completely lacking in any theme or melody and only being page one standard saccharine Hollywood fare designed to hit the cues, well, like on cue. It's utterly boring.

Spielberg needs to change the people he works with and mix it up, or else he gets sucked into these cheese-traps. He should get Michael Mann's casting agent, Hans Zimmer (who's not afraid to take chances) to score and get a new DP in and we'd get a much better movie out if it.

The Debt (I) (2010)

Great suspense and some genuine surprises.

[5 September 2011]

The Debt is a Nazi hunt/spy thriller all rolled into one and it's nice to see a classic thriller that takes the subject matter seriously and relies on suspense to keep us in its grip. I was at the edge of my seat for most of the time and there's plenty of surprising turns in the story to keep even the most jaded enthralled.

Most of todays inept filmmakers rely on blowing stuff up hoping that this will count as suspense. It also is such a breath of fresh air in an appalling year of C -grade superhero movies and obscure comic book adaptations. Hopefully this does well so Hollywood can go back to making well written thrillers and dramas like they used to.

Best suspense thriller of 2011 so far.

The History Boys (2006)

Theatre should remain Theatre.

[4/10 · 10 October 2006]

I consider myself to be normally intelligent, but I wouldn't call myself an intellectual. So imagine how pleased I was when I spotted the Brief Encounter reference the minute it came up (the fact that it's one of my favourite movies obviously had something to do with it). The rest, however, sadly went a bit over my, well not head, but eyebrow? Or maybe I was just bored. I understood all of it, but I'm not sure it was worth understanding - exactly what was the point of this film?

There were no lessons learned here for our characters and the one dramatic opportunity that presented itself - the interviews of the pupils for the Cambridge and Oxford admissions boards - were completely ignored and just bypassed. Although the performances are commendable from all involved (Griffiths and De la Tour in particular), this is filmed theatre - there is absolutely no visual storytelling going on here. Which would have been fine had the story, and the dialogue, actually had something to say. Sadly, it didn't. This should have stayed a successful play.

Conan the Barbarian (1982)

Classic!

[10/10 · 14 October 2005]

Conan the Barbarian is one of those films that just shouldn't work on paper, but somehow ends up not only working, but becoming a classic. Everything is right here thanks to Milius unashamed bigger-than-life-direction. He takes him serious and dares to go far enough with the grandness, something few directors would dare do today for fear of being labeled pretentious.

Combine this with probably the best film score EVER written, and you have movie magic. Basil Poledouris score is such a classic that every other composer has ripped it off a thousand times, and rightly so. It's the granddaddy of Wagnerian tour-de-force scoring.

The Night of the Generals (1967)

Not bad at all...

[7/10 · 22 July 2005]

I agree with the above general sentiment that the story strays a bit too much at times, especially with the rather useless bombing of Hitler as a detour. I do however understand why it's there - it's because by attaching the "good" German generals to the plot of killing Hitler, they let the audience not feel bad for rooting for them. Simple trick, but all in all detrimental to the momentum of the story.

The film is brimming with exceptional acting - O'Toole turns in a particularly vicious and strong performance as General Tanz, but everyone holds their own. It's rare to find a villain so distasteful and yet so intriguing - most filmmakers just content themselves with giving the villain an evil shtick without much character development - not so here.

I saw a newly mastered DVD in full 2.35:1 widescreen presentation and the the cinematography by the late Henri Decae is wonderful in all its glory.

Very interesting movie, please see it.

At Close Range (1986)

Really a masterpiece.

[10/10 · 7 June 2005]

For some reason, this film is a favorite of mine. Don't know why, but there something that resonates. The acting is tremendous and there's a real menace to Walkens dad. I think one of the main reasons is that I feel Sean Penn's characters rage and lust for revenge towards his father - and that's rare in films you get that feeling. They always try to make you feel that way with 3-stage-Syd-Field-script-tricks, but actually very few manage. And as a cinematographer myself, I can only marvel at the images - It's beautifully shot by Juan Ruiz Anchia, ASC. One of the best shot films of the eighties. James Foley will always be respected as a director by me for this film.

K-19: The Widowmaker (2002)

Unjustly maligned - this a great film!

[8/10 · 29 May 2005]

I've always been a big fan of Kathryn Bigelow. I've loved every single one of her movies, no exceptions. Yet I stayed away from this one since I'd heard so much bad about it. The trailer wasn't very good either. But I am a confessed submarine-movie nut, so eventually I'd have to give in - I recently got it on DVD and gave it a chance.

And I was royally impressed! It's a great, honest and human story told. Can not understand why it was so maligned and ridiculed - is it because it tells a story from a Russian POW, or is it because Harrison Ford's character is flawed? I don't know, all I know is it's a very good film and you should give it a try just like I did. You won't be disappointed.

Or to paraphrase a line from the film (in regards to its critics): "Who needs honors from men like that?"

Richard Pryor: Live in Concert (1979)

Best ever

[30 July 2004]

Yes, that's right. The funniest stand up ever recorded. Pryor is absolutely brilliant, and his impersonations and acting abilities are second to none. It's easy to see he transformed the art of stand up from the boring Las Vegas-crooner-telling-jokes-style that was everywhere then. He's in effect the father of modern anecdotal stand up, including tidbits from his life and describing his nutty family. I used to think Eddie Murphy's Delirious was the funniest, but now I know where he got it all from (it's still brilliant - and why isn't it released on DVD?). I'm a complete Pryor fan now - what a brilliant man.

The Matrix Reloaded (2003)

I can't believe I'm wasting time telling you how bad this is.

[26 May 2003]

SPOILERS AHEAD, BEWARE.

I will now list all the tepid, fungal, worthless, clueless, boring, predictable anomalities of this rancid brew in no particular order:

Why didn't Neo just fly the hell away from the million agent Smiths that kept coming at him? Why did he stay for 10 minutes to fight all the clones and THEN fly away?

If Neo isn't the chosen one as they conclude, then why can he stop bullets? ...And if he can stop bullets, then why can't he stop other things? Like agents?

How many more times do I have to sit though an endless crawling of text in the credits accompanied with yet another yelling and screaming song by Rob Zombie, only to see a boring sales pitch for the last installment?

After the Merovingan acts real bad ass and threatens Neo, he just....walks off?

Could Morpheus please make sense anytime soon? Little tip to the screenwriters: saying things like "I had a dream and now it's gone" isn't deep. Promise.

Wire Fu. The fights were just endless and futile passes of block, kick, block, block, kick. Utterly boring. Hire Jackie Chan as choreographer next time. At least he's inventive.

The 10-minute Zion rave. Enough said.

Jada Pinkett Smith. Enough said.

Trinity. A sultry, inexpressive broad in rubber. What the hell does he see in her that makes him love her so? She's just hollow - I dare anyone to tell me what her character is. Yet another striking showing of this was how the gorgeous Monica Belucci steels all Trinity's thunder - in the space of 2 minutes she manages to bring more character to the screen than Trinity will do over three installments.

As the fall of Zion is reported at the very end - hey, the most important storyline in the whole damn picture, ther very reason for all their efforts, is dealt with in two lines of dialogue.

What's even worse; Link, who's wife was in Zion and who had some considerable screen time pleading Link not to go on this dangerous mission, well, he doesn't even react to the bad news that Zion has fallen (and therefore presumably his wife and his nieces and sisters).

All the 3D in the effects make the whole film look like a Nintendo-game.

And a little tip to effects guys; just because you've done Neo as a 3D guy, doesn't mean you have to do 360 traveling shots around him in EVERY scene. Just because you can, doesn't mean you should.

Slip the Wachowski's another mickey and stay away from the "conclusion" come december. That's my tip.

The Remains of the Day (1993)

Bitter pill.

[4 January 2003]

This is such a great motion picture. Normally I try to stay clear from english period pieces, but this one has remained with me for so many years, and I've often revisited it. It breaks my heart every time. I don't think I've ever seen such a repressed and un-nourished heartwrenching love story ever before. Or life story for that matter. Undoubtedly, this is Anthony Hopkins finest hour.

Thief (1981)

Great, great, great!

[3 June 2002]

As a hint of things to come, this is a good starting point for those who later became hooked on Micheal Mann's films. I Actually saw this one early on, but only later did I find out it's from the same director as Heat and The Insider. Heat really got me hooked on Mann's lyrical storytelling skills. I consider him the best in the business when it comes to integrating music into his movies - both Heat, Manhunter and The Insider have shockingly good scores. Although Thief suffers a bit from the fact that it was shot in an era when Tangerine Dream was the biggest act in town (as does Mann's lesser The Keep), it still is a very, very compelling movie. It's the best acting James Caan has ever done. And the film is a hard hitting masterthief-doing-his-last-score-film, but with such a poetic style and so violent and emotional, that it can't be ignored. You must rent this movie if you haven't seen it, it's a masterpiece.

Alien 3 (1992)

Gains on you.

[15 February 2002]

I'm a devoted fan to the Alien saga. I do think the first one in the series is by far the better one and it really holds up well today. Aliens hasn't stod the test of time that well, much of the dialogue and characters feel very 80's to me. But it has a tremendous drive and action and can not be ignored. Alien 3 was hated upon its arrival, and David Fincher had endless fights with 20th Century Fox over the storyline (the script wasn't finished and new pages arrived daily to the set). Considering this turbulence, and that he had to change DP midway through it due to Fox's impatience with the slow shooting style from original cinematographer Jordan Cronenweth, Fincher delivered a masterpiece. It really holds up very well, and is perhaps the most character driven entry of the whole series. There's even a hinted love story in there. This film needs to be re-discovered by Alien fans. Few films deserve it more.

U-571 (2000)

Leni Riefenstahl?

[21 January 2002]

Spoilers! Is it any wonder America makes enemies worldwide when they shove this kind of revisionist history down our throats? It's an insult to everyone, even Americans. And what really, really makes me break down and cry, is that this dreck was seen by millions of Americans and yet hardly anyone over there has seen the submarine movie that all others should be measured against: Das Boot.

From the false notion that an American crew captured the Enigma machine, to the countless scenes where german U-boat men are depicted as cold blooded killers, this film is the a Triumph Of The Will for Americans. A propaganda film if I ever saw one!

Shame on them.

Across 110th Street (1972)

Another great 70's cop movie.

[28 October 2001]

This is a hard hitting cop movie. It's very violent and realistic, like many other movies from this great decade. It touches upon a lot of issues that feel as contemporary today - the racism within the force and so on. It tackles these questions without ever becoming preachy. The late Anthony Quinn's character Lt. Matelli is a downright racist, and this is kept no secret, yet he's still the lead alongside Yaphet Kotto. What filmmaker would dare do the same today? Great film with a lot of really hardcore action, not for the squeamish.

Revenge (I) (1990)

Great, powerful and violent. Can't be ignored.

[10/10 · 29 September 2001]

This is one of director Tony Scott's earliest efforts that probably not many have seen. It definitely deserves to be seen, because it's a powerful piece of cinema. Granted, somethings feel a bit 80's in it, especially Kevin Costners character, but that's made up in spades by a tour de force performance by the late Anthony Quinn. Rarely have I seen him this good; he comes across as a ruthless mobster but nevertheless human. It's a violent film with everything but an upbeat ending.

Tony Scott's love of long lenses, smoky interiors and close-ups is readily recognizable here. Brilliant cinematography by Jeffrey L. Kimball.

Do check it out - it might just end up as one of your favorites like it did for me.

The Elephant Man (1980)

Breaks my heart every time.

[22 September 2001]

I recently revisited this film when it aired on television again. It's still one of the most heartwrenching and powerful tributes to humankind. This should be required viewing for those who seek an exemplification of tolerance and humanity. And I also much prefer David Lynch's directing style when he's in this mode, this film and The Straight Story is his best work, no doubt. This sad story of the deformed John Merrick is nothing short of a masterpiece.

Aliens (1986)

Take a good look at it again.

[12 August 2001]

Just the other day I rewatched The Untouchables, a film I remember as fantastic. Phew, what 10 years can do to a film! The same thing is the case with Aliens. It used to be one of my favourites, but now, it just feels so clichéed, dated, unfunny and soo Cameron. I beg you, rewatch it today, and I'm sure you'll agree with me: this film has not stood the test of time.

So, quickly emerging as the next best in the series is actually Alien3, a movie that has unfairly been looked upon as a the weakest in the series. Once again, watch it again, and I'm sure you'll find what I did, a really good movie for adults.

Death Wish (1974)

Shameful enjoyment.

[21 July 2001]

Death Wish is one of those movies that your ashamed of liking. It's a misogyn, semi-fascist film that was a huge trendsetter when it came out. But that's part of its appeal: it doesn't take prisoners and it isn't politically correct. It speaks to the lowest within man, and for that, it will always be remembered as the ultimate vigilante movie.

The Day of the Jackal (1973)

The buck stops here.

[10/10 · 26 May 2001]

As far as suspense movies go, I doubt there'll ever be its like. Needless to say, it's definitely one of my personal favorites and perhaps even one of the best films ever made. Much thanks to its almost documentary style that makes everything so believable and gripping. This is a long movie, but it never lets go of you, and we end up rooting not only for detective Claude Lebel who's put on the almost impossible task of stopping The Jackal before he can kill the president of France, but also rooting for the slick, suave and deadly hitman. This is, and will forever be, a masterpiece by any standard.

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)

It's been downhill ever since the 70's.

[10/10 · 31 March 2001]

As a longtime film buff I'm now prepared to deliver my verdict: film never was better than in the 70's. And especially cop and suspense movies. Today the screw it all up by adding love stories that go nowhere to try to cater to the dating crowd. Ends up pleasing nobody. Like a chocolate covered cheese burger. Just watch when they do remakes of great 70's classics: Get Carter, Gone in 60 Seconds and so on. They just don't have a clue these days. Back then they trusted that a simple single goal script could suffice in keeping audiences glued to their seats for 2 hours, which it did. The Taking of Pelham 1, 2, 3 is a perfect example of near-perfect 70's filmmaking, do not miss it.

Man on the Roof (1976)

Superb.

[10/10 · 13 February 2001]

This is probably the best film ever made in Sweden. It is unsurpassed in its effectiveness, from the performances, the 70's style semidocumentary storytelling and the editing. It owes a lot to the american masterpieces of that era like French Connection and The Seven-Ups. These types of gritty real police thrillers are a lost art, I wish someone would

reinvent them soon.

Avrättningen (1999)

Very good.

[14 August 2000]

A brilliant, dark and unrelenting short film about a grunt ordered to execute a prisoner by a superior ranking officer. No dialogue, which makes it even more powerful. Very stylish cinematography, art direction and direction.

The Straight Story (1999)

Best film of 1999.

[10/10 · 22 July 2000]

Despite being a full grown man and devoted David Lynch hater, I ventured into the cinema to see this film. And boy was I surprised! It made my eyes well up more than any film I can remember, and that's hard to do. Richards Farnsworth's performance as the old geezer Alvin Straight is nothing short of Oscar-worthy. So nice to see that someone in this world still dares to tell a story where cheap dramatic thrills are not present. Any other scriptwriter or director would have thrown in the robbing of Alvin, or how young would have trashes his trailer or beat him up to create "drama, conflict" (like they learned in filmschool). None of that here, and I'm so happy that was the case. Truly a straight story. Alvin encounters friendly people, just like in reality. It also reminded me about my trips to America: this film truly shows the greatness of America and its people, not everyone is a gun carrying NRA maniac. And the slow pacing is also completely deliberate and justified in this film, since Alvin is an old man and life to him move at a slower pace. His 7 week lawnmover ride to see his ailing brother, is just not only a trip on a machine out of nescessity, the time it takes is also a way

for Alvin to "swallow his pride" as he says, to be able to make peace with his brother before he dies. Great, great stuff. Without a shadow of a doubt, the best film of '99.

Rendezvous (1976)

Heart stopping.

[10/10 · 15 May 2000]

According to rumor, it's the famous racecar driver Jaques Lafitte who drives this car as it speeds insanely through the near empty streets of Paris at 200km/h one early morning. Veering for cars and buses, almost hitting pedestrians and pigeons on every corner, this is as close to a real snuff movie you'll ever get. Very little is known about the car and it's driver. But I can assure you this: It was in no way sanctioned or produced with the cooperation of the police. It's far too risky for that. But what a ride! An absolute must see for any film or racing fan. Brilliant!