Something about this movie made me feel violated...

The most recent foreign movie that I watched has crossed many, many lines in my book.

irst let me say that I am a huge fan of gory slasher films filled with blood, guts, and disgusting kill/torture scenes. That may make me sound demented on many levels in your book but I love pondering over how the film makers were able to so convincingly pull those scenes off. I also wonder how much of the terror in the actors is real despite the fact that there was no real danger.

This movie, however, has stuck with me in a way that very few movies stick. While there is a lot of dark humor in this film, there are just many things that left me feeling very unsettled. I literally sat through the majority of the credits in a complete stupor with the strange feeling that something important (probably my last shred of innocence) was taken from me. The name of this movie is Taxidermia.

*http://www.impawards.com/2009/posters/taxidermia.jpg*

From that picture alone one should be a little nervous about what kind of adventure this movie will take you on. However, because of my affinity for horror movies I was intrigued and proceeded without the teeniest bit caution. 

The point of this film is still a little fuzzy for me. However, you are in Germany sometime around WWII and you will follow three generations of men who all lead very different lives. The first man, Morosgoványi, is a soldier who serves as a worker for Lieutenant Balatony and his family. This family includes a very stout wife and two beautiful teenage daughters. Morosgoványi fantasizes about being with all three of the women and often pleasures himself when they are near and the Lieutenant isn't watching. And, let me tell ya, he does some ODD things. At one point there is fire coming from a certain, um, appendage...

*http://images.allmoviephoto.com/2009_Taxidermia/2009_taxidermia_002.jpg*

Anywho, one evening Morosgoványi is approached by the Lieutenant's wife and they begin to have sex on top of a dead pig carcass. In the morning, he wakes up to find that it was all his imagination and he was laying naked on the pig. The Lieutenant suddenly walks in on him and, disgusted at what he sees, shoots Morosgoványi in the back of the head. Soon after, a baby with a curly (and wiggling) pig tail is born, his name is Kálmán.  Kálmán, coincidentally grows up to be a champion speed eater.    

While at a speed eating contest Kálmán meets the woman who he would eventually marry - Gizi, the woman speed eating champion. At the wedding reception Kálmán's best friend and rival speed eater pulls Gizi outside and they have sex up against the building. Soon after, Gizi finds out she is pregnant. We, the audience, don't know if the baby is Kálmán's or not but the couple are extremely excited. Until their son is born premature and ends up growing up to be a very skinny and quiet man named Lajoska.

*http://www.horrorphile.net/images/taxidermia-taxidermist1.jpg*

Lajoska owns a taxidermy buisness and takes care of his now morbidly obese blob of a father, Kálmán, since Gizi ran off long ago to coach American speed-eaters. All day, Kálmán eats nothing but chocolate bars, watch television, and sits in his chair at home waiting for his son to bring him more chocolate and take care of his beloved giant house cats. Yes, I said giant house cats... Lajoska's father says horrible things about his skinny size and his occupation. Which eventually leads to the fight that makes Lajoska not take care of his father for some amount of time. In this new spare time, Lajoska goes to the gym and desperately works out his small frame to build some definition.

*http://witneyman.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/taxidermia-fatman.jpg*

Eventually Lajoska goes to check on his father only to find that the cats had killed him and eaten some of his entrails. Though devastated, you can't help but see the relief in Lajoska's eyes. However, now Lajoska has lost all purpose in his life. The only thing left is job which was merely (and literally) a means to an end. So, Lajoska stuffs his father and kills himself in a way that you will not easily (if ever) forget... 

So, yeah. This movie is definitely deserving of a big bold WEIRD stamp from me. But, I will say that it is very creative. There is something about it that feels more like a dream sequence after having a tasty meal the night before that shocked your taste buds, twisted your innards, and left you drunk with uncomfortable fulfillment. The filming incorporates all the elements - earth, fire, wind, and water - in some way or another, which made it very colorful and fun to look at. 

As always, regardless of the fact that certain images from the movie will forever haunt the slimiest corners of my brain, I recommend that you watch this movie. Strangely enough, you may find yourself kind of wanting to watch it again or share it with someone like I am sharing it with you. Just be careful who you show it to or share it with. You are bound to get some odd looks if you divulge too much information on certain people...

Happy watching!

Taxidermia – Germany – Foreign Horror (black comedy) - 2006 

Domo Arigato Mr. Takita

Departures - Japan - Drama - 2008 - Directed by: Yojiro Takita
W's - WONDERFUL to the third power.

*courtesy of onegaijeanchan.wordpress.com*

I love Japan... Well, at least I think I do since I've never actually been there... But, from my exposure to Japanese art, the beautiful scenery, their amazing culture that I've read about and watched through videos and this movie - and of course at Epcot in Disney World - I feel like I would love it there...

*courtesy of iconicionic.wordpress.com*

(I would have said food too but we all know that the "Kyoto Express" is nothing like what they actually make and serve in Japan. Well, except for sushi, but I don't eat it. I have an issue with textures and shell fish.)

*courtesy of emmas.blogg.se/2009/february/*

This movie reaffirmed and strengthened my love for Japan. 

*goodmorninggloucester.wordpress.com*

The custom that is showcased may be a little morbid to some viewers but I can't help but see the beauty in it.

In this film, when a person dies it is someones job to come and do a ceremony that prepares the dead for their trip to the afterlife. Of course, all of the characters have different life stories that led them to this type of profession but those little details are meant to be learned through watching it yourself. :-) But, what you should know is that most people who know about this tradition is quite disgusted by it. One only learns to appreciate it by witnessing the care and respect that is shown to the dead.

All in all, this story is absolutely lovely. There is love, laughter, sadness, and forgiveness. The cinematography is amazing and reading the English translation isn't hard at all. I think the only thing I had a little bit of difficulty with is one of the main characters name - Daigo. Every time someone would say his name and I would read it my brain would screech to a halt until I just finally allowed it to read Diego... I know, it's weird but for some reason that name really made me mentally stumble.

Go here:
http://www.departures-themovie.com/index.html

Watch and Enjoy!

Hello. My name is Brooke and I have a problem...

For many years I have had an unhealthy secret obsession with Jeff Goldblum. I remember laying my eyes on him for the first time when I was probably 8 or 9. It was when my mom, sister, and I watched the movie "Earth Girls Are Easy". I remember looking at mom and curiously asking her who "that guy" was and then feeling the same way that most girls probably felt when they saw Devon Sawa for the first time in the movie "Casper" with Christina Ricci... Total and utter awe. More specifically, it was the moment he walked out of the pod - or what ever you want to call it - in the salon with his human make-over. 

*courtesy of fast-rewind.com*

Did it just get hot in here?

Any way, it should be needless to say that I have followed most of Jeff's work and love to embark on new cinematic adventures where he is involoved. So, you can only imagine my excitement (not unlike the feeling of finding a $5 dollar bill in your jacket pocket after not wearing it for a year and really needing the money) when I found the movie that I am going to talk to you about today. It's called "Adam Resurrected", and it's a Drama made in 2008 and stars another star that I am oddly facinated with - Willem Dafoe. 

Of course, I only got to know him Willem a couple years ago when I saw "Boondock Saints" for the first time... There's just something about his face/body/posture that makes you want to continue to stare at him for inappropriate amounts of time. Then, you begin to feel uncomfortable for some reason... Like you caught your grandmother looking at porn. Not that that's ever happened to me but can you just imagine how awkward that would be? ... I especially felt this way when I saw him totally naked in a movie that I will be blogging about at a later date...

ANYWHO, back to "Adam Resurrected"...

*courtesy of image-entertainment.com* 

Jeff Goldblum's character, Adam Stein, is a Jewish man who makes a living as a clown/magician/musician. He travels around with his family performing for people and surprising them with his ability to juggle, play violin, throw knives, and read people; sharing some of their deepest darkest secrets.

Of course, all of this is happening in Germany pre-WWII and soon the inevitable happens - Adam and his family are shipped to a concentration camp. When they get off the train, Adam's wife and daughter are separated from him and Willem Dafoe's character, Commandant Klein, recognizes Adam, having been the person who's darkest secrets were revealed at the most recent show. The Commandant's fascination with Adam enables him to spare Adam a life of hard labor until death in the gas chambers. However, Adam is treated like a dog. He's made to walk on his hands and knees, he seldom speaks unless given permission, and he must eat out of a dog bowl, perform on cue, and sleep on the floor with the Commandant's German Shepherd - whom Adam befriends and communicates with. 

As WWII comes to an end, Adam is granted his freedom. However, the treatment he had received and the trauma of losing his family - not to mention his predisposition to odd behaviors - leaves Adam in a state of being that leads him to life in an asylum for Holocaust survivors and people with debilitating mental disabilities that are quite interesting.

Inside the asylum, Adam becomes a subject of interest and bewilderment for the doctors. He drinks like a fish and has moments of madness but he is able to connect with the other patients in ways that the doctors can not. He even has a (very odd) sexual relationship with one of the nurses. However, when a new and very young patient gets admitted with a similar background, Adam regresses back to some of his darkest times causing some very weird medical problems that he seems to control with his mind...

I really don't want to tell you all everything because I want you to go watch it on your own. That's how it will be for every movie I talk about... But, by the end of the movie, I was very satisfied with the way things ended up. It was yet another movie that Jeff Goldblum and Willem Dafoe were in that I can not help but love! Maybe I am biased because of their presence in the movie but I truly feel like it could have been a bigger movie had it been given more publicity. However, then it may have lost the charm that often exists in the movies you find on your own. 

Adam Resurrected – Drama – 2008 – Jeff Goldblum & William Dafoe

My rating: weird, wild, AND wonderful.

   

Weird, Wild, and Wonderful - Cinema & Life

For a little over a year now I have been unemployed. I was laid off from a part-time job that I had for a little over two years. I tried to get another job; I applied for many graduate assistantships and anything that allowed me to work on campus. However, I only had about six months of graduate school left so I was turned down for every position I applied for.

For the time being I took it as a blessing in disguise because I was extremely busy with classes. And life... However, in my spare time I began a new past-time - MOVIES. At the time, I was an avid crafter. Scrapbooking, jewerly making, decoupaging, painting, sewing... The list goes on. So, adding movies to that list of "things-to-do" was an easy task. Too easy...

Soon, watching movies took over my life. Especially after finishing classes and moving to a new town where the only person I know is my fiance', whom I moved here with. I got to where I was watching two to three movies a day via the Netflix watch instantly option. When it got to the point that I was no longer seeing movies that I knew (and wanted to watch again) I began looking through the other genres that were available.

It didn't take long for me to fall in love with Indie and Foreign films. They are always describable in at least one - if not all - of the following adjectives: Weird, Wild, and Wonderful.

After watching about five of them (each) I decided to make a list of all the ones I watch so I can keep track of them and recommend them to family and friends. Now, I have decided to share those movies with all of you, blog readers. Now... What should I begin with?


PS. Just so you know, and you don't think of me as totally lazy, I have continued to desperately look for a job. So far, all of my applications and interviews have led to dead ends. God only knows why.  In the mean time, I keep watching films.