cerca-sonia

Maybe it's because I'm a die-hard Fassbender fan, but he is always worth watching, even if the film is bad. I am not a great connoisseur of Western - I've watched Sergio Leone's "Once Upon a Time in the West" and "For a Few Dollars More", and Kevin Costner's "Dances with Wolves" only - but until now I loved them. This one is no different.

Slow paced as the title suggests, Slow West is a bizarre, captivating, funny, touching and violent Western road trip that confirms John Maclean as a big talent.

British director and writer John Maclean, through the eyes of naive dreamer Jay, tells a beautiful story, with a memorable ending, about the violence in the New World, cynicism, and money rush that involves everybody, both natives and immigrants. Also, he manages to balance life and death with some great comedic elements.

There is no much character development, but considering the great result achieved, I don't feel like complaining about it.

Filmed in New Zealand, the scenography lacks in Canyons, and provides a sense of loss, yet the spectacular landscapes give you hope. The cinematography by Robbie Ryan is great, and the musical score by Jed Kurzel blends with the film.

The acting is sublime. Michael Fassbender, both leading character and narrator, delivers another wonderful performance - he has improved his American accents quite a lot since "12 Years a Slave" - and his humour perfectly fits the character and this road trip. Kodi Smit-McPhee does a fantastic job in the other leading role. However, the most memorable is Caren Pistorius as the beautiful Rose. She does not have lot of screen time, but she is in the frame she captures your full attention.

Michael Fassbender once said, "The great thing about doing independent films is that they move fast, and I like that. I like the speed, and having to be on your toes...The little films need the big films to do well because they are dependent on getting that money. "Frank" gets made because I do something like "X-Men: First Class" or "Prometheus". I don't think thanking him from the bottom of my heart will be enough.

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When it comes to Paolo Sorrentino I don't know what to expect. On one hand I loved his first English work "This Must Be The Place" starring a wonderful Sean Penn; on the other hand I didn't quite enjoy his Oscar Winner "The Great Beauty". I was actually afraid this one was going to be another attempt at being Fellini. But Michael Caine, Harvey Keitel, Paul Dano and Rachel Weisz gave me the push to watch it. I'm glad I didn't wait, because this is Sorrentino's greatest beauty.

Youth is a brilliant, intense, philosophical, and moving film about life and death, youth and oldness, loneliness and friendship.

As I watched the film I thought the title was deceiving. I thought it was only about being old, and I couldn't find the real meaning of it. But as I'm writing this, has passed almost a week since I saw it, and I've got enough time to think about it. Now, I do realize it is about the importance of youth, because it praises old age as that moment in life when you think about your past.

Masterfully directed and written by Paolo Sorrentino, the film is enhanced by a deep, witty, and provocative dialogue, a wonderful and breathtaking photography by Luca Bigazzi, spectacular scenography, and sublime music.

The acting is first class. Michael Caine shines in the leading role, delivering an intense performance as Fred Ballinger. The supporting cast does a wonderful job as well. Old, but young inside Harvey Keitel, and young, but old inside Paul Dano are perfect in portraying the contrast between youth and oldness. Rachel Weisz delivers another great performance. Jane Fonda's cameo is great too. The one that surprised me the most is Luna Zimic Mijovic, who plays the masseuse.

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I used to think making a better film than the Avengers was quite impossible, but Joss Whedon did it! Avengers: Age of Ultron is a dream come true, the sequel all the fans were waiting for, and inarguably the best Marvel film to date - maybe even better than Guardians of the Galaxy.

The film still has all the elements of the first film, but it makes a huge step forward in the action - the 3D vision is totally worthy - dialogue and character. However, the main difference is the villain: James Spader's Ultron is marvelous.

The talk about artificial intelligence is very fascinating, both conceptually and cinematically.The storyline is far from the cliché superhero story. The script is great and amusing. The direction of Joss Whedon is flawless. There is a great balance within the Avengers, where the superiority of Iron Man, Captain America, Thor and Hulk is perfectly balanced with the more active roles of Black Widow and Hawkeye - I would have loved to see more Falcon though. I loved what they did with The Vision, The Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver.

All the actors gave a fantastic performance. Robert Downey Jr. keeps on playing the genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist in a way nobody else could. Chris Evans always brings a sense of honor to his character. Scarlett Johansson really surprised me. Great performances also from Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Jeremy Renner, Samuel L. Jackson, Cobie Smulders and Paul Bettany. Elizabeth Olsen gives one of the best new character portrayals in recent year - I really want to see more of her Scarlet Witch. However, James Spader totally steals the scene: he is perfect.

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