MOVIE: Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954)

by benmweilertNo Comments
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers Year: 1954 Rating: Approved Length: 102 minutes / 1.70 hours Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (1954) is one of those musicals during the golden age of musicals that I was aware of but had only seen bits and pieces of. I found a DVD of it a while back and finally got around to watching it. As far as musicals go, it's colorful and has a few good songs that are sung well by the cast. Unfortunately, the content is dated and is almost cringeworthy by today's standards. I will give some leniency that this film represents an era that was not entirely enlightened when it came to women. The Wild West was about survival as much as it was about the loneliness that came with it. While I'm sure there were more men than women out in these regions, it doesn't excuse how these seven brothers went about obtaining their wives. That they'd even consider the plight of the...
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MOVIE: Hero (2002)

by benmweilertNo Comments
Hero Year: 2002 Rating: PG-13 Length: 107 minutes / 1.78 hours After the success of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000) in most of the worldwide markets, it’s no wonder that a film like Hero (2002) would make an appearance. Capitalizing on the choreography and visuals that brought Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon success, Hero takes these acrobatic battles to the next level, even to the point of them becoming ridiculous and semi-cartoonish. Add to this the deliberate color theming for each of the film’s different sections, and Hero almost becomes a piece of art in its own right. It’s almost a shame that there haven’t been more movies like this in the years since. While some of the CGI hasn’t aged well since 2002, and the acting can sometimes be too flat or too over the top, the story is still entertaining. The language barrier did make it slightly confusing at times, but the twists were top-notch. It did help to have the “framing” of the throne room to not only show the...
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