I Heart Huckabees (2004)

An unusual comedy, directed by David O. Russell, about an environmental activist, Albert, who tries to understand a number of coincidences in his life, especially in the wake of his organization's partnership with a giant chainstore, Huckabees. After presenting his case to a couple of existential investigators, sleuths who specialize in alternative solutions to psychological problems, Albert quickly finds that he is even more confused.

Cinematographically, there are some nice scenes which utilize special effects in an interesting way and add more of an edge to the movie's philosophical side. Unfortunately, they are limited and fail to run through the entire film, which left me wondering about technique rather than story. A movie which tries to philosophize about the meaning of life without a nice metaphor to hide behind, most of the dialogue and ideas are relatively simple and portrayed in an overly simplistic manner. As a comedy, it's only mildly humorous and, as a philosophic jaunt, it's relatively plain. Still, if you like movies with more of a philosophical bend, or if you are particularly fond of the actors (Jude Law, Dustin Hoffman, Lily Tomlin, Mark Wahlberg), then you might give this one a shot.

Wandering – Lu Xun | Translated by Yang Xianyi and Gladys Yang

Again, as I had purchased all of Lu Xun's books printed by Foreign Languages Press, this volume exhibits the same problems: poor editing (lots of misspellings and missing words) and, although I cannot read Chinese, I got the feeling that it was a poor translation. Often, British expressions and language were used, rather than, I'm guessing, more literal translations. Does that make it colonized literature?

Despite the poor edition, this collection of eleven wonderful stories shows the real genius behind Lu Xun's writing. The stories mainly document the lives of particular individuals as they observe their loved ones or misunderstood acquaintances. A theme of return or returning to places and people once familiar but who have since changed reoccurs throughout. Often, the changes are absurd or seemingly unusual.

These stories are much longer than those from Wild Grass, a collection of Xun's stories I had previously read and, between two stories which take place on New Year's Eve, they carry the reader from scene to scene, from young to old, as naturally as any leisurely traveler might wander. The story I enjoyed the most was A Happy Family, which documents a man who, continually interrupted by his family, tries to think of a new story to write. One of the more comedic stories in the book, it contradicts the writer's enthusiasm to find an idea with the mundane reality of his family life.

Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005)

I had to go to the theater to catch this one. A movie with so much special effects mythology behind it must be viewed under optimum conditions. It was also my first trip to a Chinese movie theater, which was far from disappointing and rivaled many theaters I've been to in the states. The seats were comfortable, relatively spacious and reclined, and the sound was fantastic. Despite it being only the second day after the movie's release, I got a great reserved seat near the center and not too close to the screen.

Directed by George Lucas, the movie was everything I'd expected: lots of dazzling special effects, climactic light-saber action, fantastic/exotic sets and creatures and, of course, Darth Vader. In a movie of this kind, I don't expect perfection on all fronts, and there are some things to complain about like rugged acting and much less than award-winning dialogue, but the positives outweighed the negatives. The leader of the droids, General Grievous, was particularly memorable with his hunched gait and smoker's cough. As this movie primarily follows Anakin Skywalker's transformation into Darth Vader, I left the theater joking with my friends about the message of the movie being: love will turn you into a monster. So try not to take it too seriously, strap in with a bucket of popcorn and enjoy the ride.

Goodfellas (1990)

A violent Mafia movie, based on a true story, directed by Martin Scorsese with little to offer in terms of technique, Goodfellas felt dated and silly, at times, although I wasn't completely disappointed. I had seen the movie once before, when it had first been released, but had completely forgotten the plot. The movie tells the life story of a mobster (played by Ray Liotta), his rise to power and his inevitable downfall and expulsion. As a young boy, he becomes part of a Mafia family, although they are not his biological relations, and eventually earns more authority as the years go by.

One of the final scenes, the scene leading up to his capture by the police, is excellent. Narrated by the actor in a kind of breakneck pace while images depicting his coked-out, drug-dealing, paranoid romp through the day stream past, we hurl along on our way to another drug deal. An additional bright spot in the film is actor Joe Pesci who plays a great, violent, uncontrollable, fast-talking mobster who gets what's coming to him in the end.

Criminal (2004)

The story of a couple of con-artists who meet in a casino and agree to work together on a temporary basis. They start off by pulling a number of relatively light-weight scams, but eventually come across a golden opportunity, which brings the movie the movie to its surprising climax.

Criminal contrasts one man who has swindled everyone around him and simply looks out for himself, with another man who has turned to crime to help his father pay a debt but really doesn't like taking advantage of people. Directed by Gregory Jacobs and produced by George Clooney and Steven Soderbergh, Criminal is a sort of poor man's, low-tech, Ocean's Eleven without the big star thunder.

Aside from Diego Luna, who has a great role as a naïve, young hustler learning the ropes from an older, more experienced, but unlikeable, con-man, there really wasn't much to this film. The dialogue was relatively plain, the acting flat and the cinematography typical. By the end of the movie, I was tired of the predictable misfortunes which happened a little too often to the characters to be believable.

Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind (1984)

Japanese animation from the master, Hayao Miyazaki, still pleasing to watch and still, perhaps, even more relevant today. More than 20 years old now, this movie keeps you interested from the start with its fantastic world, exciting story and surprisingly poignant message about mankind's rapid destruction of the environment. A fantastic story, supported by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), about a princess from a small tribe and her attempts to respond to the encroaching dangers of her environment caused by the abuse of people who are simply unaware of the effects of their actions.

Princess Nausicaa is a girl endowed with natural instinct, genius and fierceness. She is also a protectorate of nature and has learned not only how to live within it but also how to communicate with its inhabitants in a peaceful manner. Set in a futuristic world in which The Sea of Decay, brought about by the wrath of a legion of guardian insects, is rapidly destroying the world, Princess Nausicaa must protect her tribe and the world as the ensuing power struggles between nations ultimately makes its tragic presence felt in her homeland. The message contrasts our world, one in which humans destroy the planet willy-nilly and species disappear from the planet every day, with the world of Princess Nausicaa, where men live in fear of the repercussions of harming even one insect and humans are the endangered species.

What makes Miyazaki animation so good, aside from the beautiful animation and imaginative stories, is his attention to the characters. His feature-length cartoons aren't only showcases for his artwork. He has learned how to make the animations of people seem real, even though we know they are simply cartoons. For example, Princess Nausicaa apologizing when she accidentally steps on an insect, a dream sequence in which she remembers her past or the way her pet reacts to her. These details and, in some cases, imperfections, give Princess Nausicaa dimension. So go out and look for a copy and expect to be delighted.