Balada triste de trompeta (The Last Circus) (2010)

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...ast_circus.jpg

Ho-lee cow.
This is one of the craziest film experiences I've had in some time. A fairly tongue-in-cheek allegory of extremes in Franco's Spain, it's told through the story of a twisted love triangle between a sad clown, a happy clown, and a beautiful trapeze artist that is at once completely absorbing, engrossing. The film just flies by.
It reminds me a bit of The Cook, The Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover, too, in that it represents these extremes with its production. In the real sense of the word, this film completely absurd. Every frame is loaded with color and movement, the darkest humor, and (sometimes goofy) extravagant violence. It is that rare, spot-on blend of eye-rolling pulp and art-house spectacle. And it's held all together with a clear sincerity. The ideas and inspirations behind the film are strong. Performances are great, the cinematography is a marvel. Even without its commentary, The Last Circus is an unbelievable work.
However, it does suffer at times from some conspicuous CGI, but for me at least, it was easy to forgive.
Certainly recommended for Chrono, Elvis, Ferox, V, Roshiq (although you've probably already seen it), and anyone with an adventuresome cinematic spirit.

^^ Awesome! We saw the trailer On Demand and were instantly fascinated by it - Can't way to check it out!

Sounds like a bit of Comedia del Arte...

Well, sad to hear that you didn't like it. The beginning was supposed to be a normal, every day occurrence in the lives of British thugs. One can't expect central characters to always be heroes, or do-gooders. Belonging to this country where I live in, I can accept these bad character leads and see why/how they do what they do. Maybe you looked too much into it, and that spoiled the rest of the film for you.


Anyways...

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/...500_AA300_.jpg

Ah, the found footage films. Low-key, down to earth, common and modest stuff make them more believable. But when you take them to the big-budget arena, you need to be on your toes to make it click.

I liked the premise of Apollo 18. It could have been more believable if there was something on the lines of Paranormal Activity in this (which I was sorta looking for, from the beginning). But as the story progressed and I started to see the reasons of this film being a sci-fi horror, I had the distinct feeling that this should have been the fodder for a commercial venture, instead of a found footage film. The latter half was novel (at least the makers were thinking of something different), and it made you feel that there were too many things happening at once. Still, the director manages to keep things taut, and you will find yourself biting your nails at least once, if not more.

The atmosphere created by the lighting and the bleak, silent surface of the moon was quite excellent, and the 3 principal actors contributed a lot to it as well. The script was good, although the pace was a bit slow in the first 20-25 minutes. The effects were okay, and coupled together with the multiple camera angles, added a lot of show to the proceedings. All in all, a pretty decent entertainer if you want to enjoy the film for what it is. If you are one of those geeky brainiacs who will look for reasons behind the reveal, you better stay away from this.

* * * ½

Let me know when you see it; I'm very interested to hear your thoughts.

I think you might dig it too, NE.

Darn! I totally overlooked Last Circus! Didn't even notice it properly. But thanks a lot for the rec, Fortu. Definitely going to check it out asap.:)

About ATB: I didn't hate it or like it that much. Just thought an okay time waster. The thing that I dislike most about it was the creature outlook or its CGI design, quite unimpressive.

Agree with V on Apollo 18, a pretty decent found footage-horror entertainer. Liked it too.

It's on Netflix instant

bride of the monster..awsome
puppet master..average

Haha, crap. I forgot to mention that. Thanks, newb.

http://i1199.photobucket.com/albums/...wful_Entry.jpg

not a bad movie this, i forgot about it and found it at the bottom of my dvd collection.