Movie Review: In The Heart of the Sea

 

Review Written By Michael J. Ruhland


















Michael's Movie Grade:B+

Review: Excellent film that is not afraid to take it's time, and by doing such makes itself a much better movie.

This film has excellent atmosphere, and fantastic characters. Unlike too many modern films this one does not rush into the action, but rather lets you get absorbed into the world of the film, before the story really gets underway. This makes the film more intense and engaging when the story really does get under way. The characters are complex yet we understand and relate to them quite well.

The whale hunting scenes are quite exciting. They look fantastic, and are full of suspense. This film is in fact full of visual amazement.

On the downside, the dialog often feels forced and the film sometimes feels like it is trying to hard to be deep and meaningful (though often times it is). These faults may hinder some people's enjoyment of the film, but as for me they were surrounded by so much greatness, that I couldn't help but love this movie.

For those who also like slower moving films, this is an excellent experience that can be both entertaining and thought provoking.

-Michael J. Ruhland

Movie Review: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens

 

Review Written By Michael J. Ruhland




















Michael's Movie Grade: B

Review: New Stars Wars film plays it safe, maybe too safe, but is fun and atmospheric, which is exactly what a Star Wars film should be.

When I say the movie plays it safe, I don't mean a lack of good and surprising plot twists, but rather that the film at times is very close to A New Hope. A few scenes seem lifted from there. However these scenes are still done well, and there is enough different that this film is by no means pointless.

The film is fun, and offers us a great visit back to the world we enjoyed in the previous films. The characters both old and new are quite likable, the world is awe-inspiring, and the film is engaging. The film is just really fun. Though it may go on a bit long, it never loses the viewers interest, and you never become really bored by it. At times it's predictable, and there is little we haven't seen before, but again the film is too well done to harp too much on these faults.

-Michael J. Ruhland

Michael's Christmas Movie Guide: Christmas in Connecticut (1945)

 

Excellent, warm, silly Christmas romantic comedy. This film doesn't aspire to be anything more than a fun silly comedy that takes place at Christmas time, but it exceeds extremely well at being just that.

This film was directed by Peter Godfrey, who was a prominent B movie director at Warner Brothers during this period, he would later be a fairly prolific TV director. Peter Godfrey would later direct this movie's leading actress, Barbra Stanwyck, in Cry Wolf, and The Two Mrs. Carolls, but this was the first time they worked together.

Barbra Stanwyck was best known as a serious actress, and today is best remembered for a role she played one year earlier in Billy Wilder's classic film-noir Double Indemnity. However she loved being in comedic films like Christmas in Connecticut. She often felt that doing films like this was a great way to wind down after doing a serious film.

Peter Godfrey became good friends with two of the movie's stars, Barbra Stanwyck and Sidney Greenstreet. Godfrey and Greenstreet were said to keep the rest of the cast in crew and hysterics, between shooting the film.

The film was rightfully beloved at the time it was released, and remains a classic with classic movie fans. This is a great watch that I really recommend.

-Michael J. Ruhland

Resources Used
http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/611/Christmas-in-Connecticut/articles.html

Michael's Christmas Movie Guide: It Happened on Fifth Avenue (1947)

 

Very charming and quite funny Christmas themed comedy.

It Happened on 5th Avenue started life as an idea for a film for Frank Capra's production company, Liberty Films. It was going to be directed by Capra himself, but Capra found a Christmas themed movie he liked a bit better, called It's a Wonderful Life, a film he wanted to make much more. So the film was given to producer/director Roy Del Ruth. It also became the first film made for the Allied Artist company.

This film is a very charming Christmas classic that deserves to be better known. It is very funny, the characters are quite likable, the story is good and most of all it just has a great charm to it. It is a very happy feel good movie that just feels so naturally happy and never forced. On top of that is is just perfectly cast.  Victor Moore, Don DeFore, Ann Harding, Charles Ruggles and Gale Storm were all just perfect, and really don't feel like actors, but rather the characters they are playing. Also very charming in a brief role is Edward Brophy, who my fellow Disney fans may recognize as the voice of Timothy Mouse in Dumbo. This is just a Christmas classic that deserves to be much better known.

-Michael J. Ruhland

Resources Used
http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/274279%7C0/It-Happened-On-th-Avenue.html