Seven Years In Tibet: In the autumn of 1939, Heinrich Harrer, the famous Austrian mountaineer, and his countryman Peter Aufschnaiter, set out to climb Nanga Parbat, one of the highest peaks in the Himalayas. The self-centered Harrer, whose sole preoccupation was the achievement of fame and glory, would experience an emotional awakening on his fantastic journey that would take him form the heights of conquest to the depths of internment in a British prisoner-of-war camp, then from escape and a harrowing two-year trek through the Himalayas to the mysterious Tibetan city of Lhasa.
As a stranger in a strange land which few westerners have ever visited, Harrer was befriended by the young Dalai Lama, and was asked to tutor the religious leader in English, geography and the ways of the Western world. He would eventually spend seven years in Tibet, during a period of tremendous political upheaval in that country, graced with the friendship and the spiritual enlightenment of the young Dalai Lama. As the deep and abiding bond between these two isolated, lonely people evolved, the selfish and egotistical Harrer experienced selflessness for the first time, allowing him to complete the emotional transformation which began on his way to Lhasa.
Legends of the Fall: Epic tale of three brothers and their father living in the remote wilderness of 1900s USA and how their lives are affected by nature, history, war, and love.
Gladiator: When a Roman general is betrayed and his family murdered by a corrupt prince, he comes to Rome as a gladiator to seek revenge.
Lord Of The Rings(Trilogy): No info needed eh!!!
Fight Club: A man disillusioned by what his life has become encounters an exciting stranger who introduces him to a new way of life.
City Of God: See Review below
Rabbit Proof Fences: Based on a true story, Rabbit-Proof Fence moves with dignified grace from its joyful opening scenes to a conclusion that's moving beyond words. The title refers to a 1,500-mile fence separating outback desert from the farmlands of Western Australia. It is here, in 1931, that three aboriginal girls are separated from their mothers and transported to a distant training school, where they are prepared for assimilation into white society by a racist government policy. Gracie, Daisy, and Molly belong to Australia's "stolen generations," and this riveting film (based on the book by Molly's daughter, Doris Pilkington Garimara) follows their escape and tenacious journey homeward, while a stubborn policy enforcer (Kenneth Branagh) demands their recapture. Director Phillip Noyce chronicles their ordeal with gentle compassion, guiding his untrained, aboriginal child actors with a keen eye for meaningful expressions. Their performances evoke powerful emotions (subtly enhanced by Peter Gabriel's excellent score), illuminating a shameful chapter of Australian history while conveying our universal need for a true and proper home.
Last Temptation of Christ: It isn't difficult to imagine why this 1988 retelling of the Crucifixion story was picketed vociferously upon release--this Jesus bears little resemblance to the classical Christ, who was not, upon careful review of the Gospels, ever reported to have had sex with Barbara Hershey. Heavily informed by Gnostic reinterpretations of the Passion, The Last Temptation of Christ (based rather strictly on Nikos Kazantzakis's novel of the same name) is surely worth seeing for the controversy and blasphemous content alone, but it's difficult to find in skittish chain video stores. But the "last temptation" of the title is nothing overtly naughty--rather, it's the seduction of the commonplace; the desire to forgo following a "calling" in exchange for domestic security. Willem Dafoe interprets Jesus as spacy, indecisive, and none too charismatic (though maybe that's just Dafoe himself), but his Sermon on the Mount is radiant with visionary fire; a bit less successful is method actor Harvey Keitel, who gives the internally conflicted Judas a noticeable Brooklyn accent, and doesn't bring much imagination to a role that demands a revisionist's approach. Despite director Martin Scorsese's penchant for stupid camera tricks, much of the desert footage is simply breathtaking, even on small screen.
Wyatt Earp: This massive, in-depth study of the dark Western icon comes off with mixed results. Trying to capture the whole life, (warts and all) of the lawman-criminal-brother-fortune hunter, director Lawrence Kasdan gains points for sheer scale, giving us a rich epic painted in dark colors with gritty settings. But the visual poetry and extensive foreshadowing ruin the dramatic drive. Some scenes have as much impact as stalker movies; you're just waiting for someone to get knocked off. As Earp, Kevin Costner is not afraid to look rumpled and play colorlessly (as in The Bodyguard), but it saps the energy of this 3-hour-plus film. The only relief is Dennis Quaid as a droll Doc Holiday, a much more engaging character. New faces Linden Ashby and Joanna Going (as an Earp brother and a lover, respectively) are solid finds, though the remainder of the female cast is barely given anything to do. Best is the first half, with Costner, as hip as he was in his Silverado days, going through a series of ups and downs until he accidentally finds his profession. Great set design (Ida Random) utilizes dozens of similar settings that always look distinctive. Recommended to fans of the star and the genre, but the story never justifies its length.
Light Year: An evil force from a 1000 years in the future begins to destroy an idyllic paradise, where the citizens are in perfect harmony with nature. Based on a vision by the great Sci-Fi author Isaac Asimov, Light Years takes the viewer on a journey to the world of Gandahar. Gandahar is a world totally at peace with itself until the day an experiment from the past threatens the very existence of life and freedom. All that guides the hero is a mysterious double prophecy. Light Years, while not as flashy as the animated movies of today is a marvelous story that bridges the gap between fantasy and sci-fi. As a child the story and its amazing visuals captivated me. The movie is full of symbolism. For example the incredible irony that the villian of the film is a creation of the peaceful kingdom that genetically engineered him and that said villian (a giant brain) employs an army of mechanical men to wage his wars in the pursuit of more power. Then, seeing that his waring ways are leading to an ugly apocalypse of sorts, the villian is his own downfall as he sets in motion the events that will ultimately be his undoing. It speaks to the ever present conflict between nature and industrialization and perhaps how humankind may be its own worst enemy. My only gripe is that I wish they would re-release it on dvd. Oh well. A fantastic movie experience if you can get your hands on it.
Info and synopses for the movies were taken from imdb.com and amazon.com
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