-

“The Promised Land” a.k.a. Danish “Bastarden” (2023, Hulu), epic historical drama film directed by Nikolaj Arcel and written by Arcel and Anders Thomas Jensen. Based on the 2020 book “The Captain and Ann Barbara” by Ida Jessen. The main character Captain Ludvig Kahlen is a real historical figure although the movie and book largely dramatized the real events at that time. 



       Plot: In 1755, Captain Ludvig Kahlen, an impoverished Danish officer of humble birth, retires after 25 years of service in the German Army with a measly pension. He obtains permission from the Royal Danish Court to build a property on the barren Jutland moorland for land cultivation. He hopes to establish a settlement on this land, and in return for that he requests from the Court the privilege of a noble title with an associated manor. Soon after arriving at the site of his prospective homestead, he comes into conflict with Frederik Schinkel, a local magistrate at the nearby Hald Manor and merciless landowner who has been trying to monopolize ownership of the moorland.

       This movie is superbly done with non-bombastic moralizing or confectionary dramatics. Its allure is its storytelling simplicity, sparse production values, and the exemplary performance of Mads Mikkelsen as Ludvig Kahlen. He won a number of European awards for this movie. 🎥💻📽


WATCHED them again. Tubi. <>“The Magnificent Seven” (1960) Western film directed by John Sturges. The screenplay, credited to William Roberts, is an Old West remake of Akira Kurosawa's “Seven Samurai” (1954). The seven macho dudes: Yul Brynner, Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson, Robert Vaughn, Brad Dexter, James Coburn, and a very young Horst Buchholz. They were hired to protect a small village in Mexico from a group of marauding bandits led by Eli Wallach. 

       The plot is simple. The conflict is cliché. The gunfights are not so thrilling. But I heard Elmer Bernstein's “Marlboro” theme song again. And revisiting this movie that I saw when I was in grade school brings back childhood memories. Fact is, I enjoyed this better than the 2016 version, regardless of Denzel Washington.


<>“Return of the Seven” or “Return of the Magnificent Seven” (1966) directed by Burt Kennedy. Yul Brynner, who reprises his role as Chris Adams, is the sole returning cast member from the original film. With Robert Fuller, Warren Oates, and Claude Akins. Not as exciting as the first one though.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

“Mayor of Kingstown." Season 3.

-
Image
“Mayor of Kingstown” (Paramount+) Season 3, crime thriller . Kingstown, Michigan , is a fictional company town where the business is incarceration. The McLusky family kept the peace (sort of) in Kingstown for decades, acting as the mediators between the street gangs, prisoners, guards, and cops.         Intrigue: Does a “mayor” of this vein actually exist? A power broker and gangland negotiator or “shot caller” who could be more powerful than a non-fiction Mayor? Maybe.         But never mind. This is TVland. Just enjoy but don't be too queasy with the “macho maddafucqa” language. These guys are hardened inmates, battle-weary cops, hellbound gangsters and narcos monsters, exasperated DAs, and the likes.         Jeremy Renner is Mike McLusky, caught between no way out evil and vulnerability in the crossroads. His spunk and grit are an unfailing gladiator armor but his...
Read more

MOVIES That I Just Saw: “Dream Scenario.” / “Arizona.”

-
Image
“Dream Scenario” (2023, Amazon Prime) dark comedy fantasy film written and directed by Norwegian filmmaker Kristoffer Borgli , and starring Nicolas Cage. I didn't know who Mr Borgli was until this fine movie reminded me of Mr Cage in 2002's “Adaptation.”        This movie received positive reviews and was nominated for awards including a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for Nicolas Cage .        Plot take off: Sophie, a teenage girl, has a dream in which a man is raking leaves by a swimming pool. As Sophie starts floating up to the sky, she cries for help from this man whom she calls Dad. Her father, Paul Matthews (Nic) is a professor of evolutionary biology at a local university. The story threads into the same “dream scenario” plot point.         Nic carries on with his usual brand of oblique comedy: Stutters, cluelessness, wrinkled fore...
Read more

“Toxic Town."

-
Image
“Toxic Town” (Netflix) British drama miniseries , follows the story of three mothers involved in the Corby toxic waste case , which was a London court case that was decided in 2009. The Corby Borough Council was found liable in negligence , public nuisance and a breach of statutory duty for its reclamation of a Corby Steelworks in the town of Corby , Northamptonshire , between 1985 and 1997.          The landmark decision was historically significant as the first in the world to establish a link between atmospheric toxic waste and birth defects – all previous cases have involved water pollution – and held implications for other council reclamation programmes and the methods of conducting reclamation in England and Wales.        The case easily reminds us of Erin Brockovich and the 2000 movie that chronicled Erin's legal fight against Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E) in the early 1990s involv...
Read more