Walle3a

Captain Abu Raed: A Review

2009-08-22T08:13:00.007+03:00

Captain Abu Raed is a 2007 Jordanian drama movie, it won numerous awards at several film festivals.

The movie follows Abu Raed, a poor guy from a poor neighborhood. He is a very simple and kindhearted man, and you learn that from the very start. He becomes the neighborhood's storyteller when he is mistaken for a pilot by one of the kids. I deliberately will not talk more about this movie, I have it, watch it. Satisfaction guaranteed or your 100 minutes back (yes, I can restore time!)

I really recommend this movie. Some of the acting is a bit off, and it has a few slow point that's why I give this movie 8.5/10 awesomes.

Middle of Nowhere: A Review

2009-08-17T07:00:00.000+03:00

I've previously mentioned that here at walle3a, we are devout fans of Robert Downey jr. Another face we are finding ourselves following is Anton Yelchin; we loved him in "Alpha Dog" and "Charley Bartlett" and loved how different the characters were.

The movie follows Dorian (Yelchin), who is shipped by his parents to a small town to live with his uncle to build character and learn to be responsible. Dorian meets Grace, an aspiring med student with a destructive mother who spent all her money preventing Grace from going to college. Dorian lets Grace in on a little money making through dealing weed.

The movie flows very nicely and you warm up to the main characters rather quickly. Everyone's acting is spot on, and although this is an indie flick, you will find the destructive mother is played by Susan Sarandon.

The movie is not your typical summer-pre-college-finding-yourself-fling. Strong performances and a good story make this a movie very much worth watching.

7/10 awesomes

Fifty People, One Question

2009-08-10T08:28:00.004+03:00

Fifty people, one question is a very nice idea; go to a place, ask 50 people the same question and film their response.

From their website: 'The project started in New Orleans, LA and received such a warm response that we decided to do it again in New York City. Now we're traveling to more cities (sister cities to be exact) and asking new questions. Always just trying to capture a little slice of humanity. Whatever happens … happens.'

This is the first video in New Orleans:

Go to their Youtube channel for the rest of the videos.

Ink

2009-08-05T17:50:00.005+03:00

Ink follows the life of Emma and her father, John, in an alternative world where dreams and nightmares come as one. There isn't much about Ink online (which is probably a good thing) but I feel its going to awesome!

One review, which may contain some spoilers, said that it's a mix of The Matrix, Dark City, Donnie Darko and Brazil, which all rocked.

Trailer #2

Release date: August 20

The Cove

2009-08-02T08:35:00.000+03:00

mass slaughter of dolphins that are sold for food encouraged some filmmakers to create this thriller documentary to expose this practice in japan...

official site

release date: upcoming screenings

Music Within

2009-07-29T08:55:00.004+03:00

The movie follows the true story of Richard Pimentel, a Vietnam veteran who was left severely impaired after the war, who upon learning to live with his disability embarks on a journey to speak up on behalf of all the Americans with disabilities.

The movie is from back in 2007 and somehow slipped under our collective radars (shneaky shneaky movie)

Bart Got a Room: A Review

2009-07-29T08:20:00.005+03:00

Having heard nothing about this movie and only recognizing William H. Macy from the cast list, I still found myself curious to watch "Bart Got a Room". I watched the trailer the one thing that drew me more to watch the movie was William H. Macy's awesome-awkward-mini-afro.

The movie follows Danny Stein as he prepares himself mentally for the senior year prom which takes place in a few weeks. The whole movie revolves around him trying to get a date to the prom. Literally, that is the whole premise of the movie. So it felt pretty lazy on the writer's side.

The dark comedy stems from how inappropriate Danny's dad (William H. Macy) is. Specially with the advice he passes on to his son in ways as awkward as his afro.

The movie is a not-so-bad Thursday morning movie. When you roll out of bed and barely brush your teeth and turn on the TV with a bowl of cereal the size of Egypt in your lap.

I give the movie 5.5/10 awesomes

Halo Legends

2009-07-29T07:51:00.000+03:00

remember the animatrix? a collection of nine short films set in the world of the matrix?

how about batman gotham night? six standalone chapters telling a larger story that follows the batman through his transition from beginner to the dark night?

well hold on to your thongs boys and girls cause here we go again!

microsoft is teaming up with the below companies to produce seven animated shorts for Halo Lengends:
Bones fullmetal alchemist
Casio Entertainment
Production I.G. ghost in the shell
Studio4°C tekkon kinkreet
and
Toei Animation one piece

the creative director overseeing the production is Shinji Aramaki, director of appleseed and appleseed ex machina

if that doesn't mean anything to you then all you need to know is that this is going to be THE SHIT

release date: xbox live download sometime this fall... blu-ray/dvd sometime next year

Fatenah

2009-07-26T08:29:00.005+03:00

"Inspired from a true story. “Fatenah”, a Palestinian woman who lives in Gaza Strip. Her simple wishes were her consolation in the absurd living situation around her. But when she discovers a lump near her breast, she will start a journey to save her dreams."

now i know what you are thinking but don't worry, it gets better...seeing as the trailer doesn't explain much, visit the links below for a clearer understanding of the plot and the significance of this short film... but BE CAREFUL! the first link has a video which contains spoilers towards the end... stop the video at 2.14 if you don't want it to spoil all over you...

euronews.net
youtube
official site

ok so it didn't get that much better but it's still an awesome step for arabic animation... you have to start somewhere...

My Suicide

2009-07-13T07:40:00.005+03:00

My Suicide is a 2009 teen dramedy. It was the Official Selection in the Berlin International Film Festival and the SXSW Film Festival. The beginning of the trailer reminded me of Jim Carrey's 'The Truman Show', but later on you see that the two movies are really different.

The movie is about a young geek who is planning his suicide for the school film project. wait, what? a comedy about a guy planning his suicide on camera? Well, I haven't seen the movie* but what I understood is that it's balanced; too funny would be offensive and too dry would be boring.

What I like about My Suicide is the use of different footage, youtube videos, doodles and Rotoscoping quite often.

*This movie is relatively new, so it will be a while till we can get a copy of it.

World's Greatest Dad

2009-07-04T10:08:00.007+03:00

World's Greatest Dad was a hit in this year's Sundance Film Festival, which is the main reason I find this movie interesting. That and Robin Williams.

World's Greatest Dad is an R-rated, dark comedy. And it's going to be awesome:

Release date: August 21st (limited release)

Papiroflexia

2009-07-04T08:41:00.008+03:00

A very short, filler-till-the-next-post film by Joaquin Baldwin.

Water Brain

2009-06-29T08:03:00.004+03:00

a short 15 minute animation by students at the Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts... i'm posting this not for the story but for the amazing style and quality of animation... i can't wait to see what future projects the students create once they graduate whether they work on feature films or maybe even video games!

the plot according to Vimeo:

This is a story about mental pressure. In this story,the kids are constantly forced to bury themselves into their endless homework by those giant monsters behind them. The children’s brains are filled with water that can be heated by tension.If a kid is overstressed,the water in their brain would boil and produce steam,which becomes the food of the greedy monsters and the energy of the whole city. Thus,those poor children repeat their lives day after day, serving as the power plant of their world,spending their childhood in tragic misery……

i tried to look for a deeper meaning into the story and decided that it's about how school fills your head with useless crap and only fun and games will relieve the weight of the big monster or "society's expectations" on your back and free you to learn about aerodynamics which is your true calling in life...
that and we should appreciate tissues more...

Arab Labor

2009-06-23T07:36:00.005+03:00

Arab Labor is a sitcom written by a palestinian and produced by an israeli... already in its second season, it airs on israeli tv and uses humor to portray the challenges arabs in israel face every day...

you can buy the first season doovde online at AliveMindMedia or at CinemaPurgatorio

article link
i suggest you copy/paste the article into word since the feng shui of the font and spacing in the site will try to kill your eyes and anything connected to it...

Vote or Die!

2009-05-16T07:48:00.008+03:00

you have a chance till may 20 to vote online for your favorite short among the 10 finalists of the 5th nfb short film competition... just use the 5-star system over at www.youtube.com/nfb

The National Film Board of Canada, in association with the Cannes Short Film Corner and partner YouTube, welcomes you to this NFB competition, now in its fifth year. It's your turn to choose. Internet votes will decide the best film, and the winner will be announced at Cannes on May 21. The prize: an HD MINI-DV camera and a mobile studio including laptop and editing suite.

NFB site

The Prize Winner of Defiance Ohio: A Review

2009-05-06T10:22:00.011+03:00

Warning: This review contains spoilers

I saw this movie a few months ago and I just HAD to share my feelings about it with you guys.I simply LOVED IT!!!

Those of you who know me are probably thinking that this movie must be depressing and utterly sad for me to like it this much (keeping in mind my passion for dramas and movies that make me cry).I actually found this movie to be quiet funny and amusing yet very very emotional.

The Prize Winner of Defiance Ohio is a movie that tells the true tale of one” Evelyn Ryan", a struggling wife and mother who is married to an alcoholic and who supports her 10 children by entering and winning contests! Now remember…this IS a true story which is why it’s soooooo awesome!!.

Let me tell you why I liked this movie so very much:

A-It stars Julian Moor who, despite her weird role choices lately, never ceases to amaze me with her talent
B-Woody Harrelson plays the drunken husband.His performance is like nothing you've ever seen!
C-It’s set in the 1950s, which is my favorite decade (they wore such pretty dresses back then)
D-The movie, at some point, features Evelyn Ryan's real children, or at least those who were alive at the time the movie was made
E-It has just the right amount of depression and happiness mixed together to make the perfect movie

This movie was obviously overlooked by the public and never got the recognition it deserves! But then again, great movies rarely do. That’s why you all have to go out and get it NOW. Btw, if you're more of a book worm, there is a book out there with the same name:)

The Cost of a Coke:2nd Edition-A Review

2009-05-03T20:08:00.012+03:00

The Cost of a Coke:2nd Edition is an updated version of Matt Beard's "The Cost of a Coke": a short documentary film that sheds some light on the controversial practices involved in the production of the world's top selling beverage.

While I write this, I can't help but think about that diet coke I had with yesterday’s lunch (I must say... it was a delicious lunch).The film was specifically made to convince universities world wide to boycott the company and to stop selling Coca Cola at their establishments (my university was a Pepsi university). The film maker relies heavily on interviews conducted with plant workers who worked at the company's bottling plant in Colombia.

The film uses the employee's testimonies and interviews with Coca Cola officials to expose some of the company's criminal and anti-human rights practices which, according to the film maker, include union busting, cooperation with illegally formed paramilitaries, murder, arson and a wide range of other disturbing acts!

I would've loved to see the film maker provide the viewers with more official documents. Although the film provides some viable arguments, some of the allegations stated were more like assumptions and i felt that they needed more backing up!

Although the film was too short, low budget and a bit on the Cheez Whiz side, I must say that it's still worth watching. NOW DON"T MISUNDERSTAND ME ...I am not saying that the allegation mentioned in the film against the corporation are necessarily true, but it definitely got me thinking! I mean if any of them are in fact true...then God have mercy on our soles! Let me tell you this though...I'll definitely be thinking twice before opening that can of Coke sitting in my fridge!! You can view the entire film (30 minutes long) here http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/the-cost-of-a-coke/

The Hunt For Gollum

2009-05-02T09:48:00.004+03:00

a non-profit 40 minute independent film inspired by the lord of the rings and the writing of J.R.R. Tolkien...
the story follows the heir of isildur who sets out to find the creature gollum in order to explain to him the truth about the ring and importance of protecting the future ring bearer... i'm very confused about the plot but hopefully it will all make sense after watching the movie...

release date: will be released online for free on may 3 2009
official site

if this isn't enough to tide you over while you wait for The Hobbit to come out, you can always keep up to date on facts and rumors here...

Bahrain Human Rights International Film Festival

2009-04-30T12:47:00.005+03:00

Bahrain Human Rights International Film Festival (BHRIFF) is a nonprofit cultural event dedicated to the introduction and promotion of films related to human rights... the festival shows a wide range of features, documentaries and short films selected from around the world to facilitate a constructive global discourse on the most important human rights issues...
BHRIFF is organized every year from 1st to 4th May in celebration of Labour Day and the International Day for Press Freedom...

schedule can be found here...

disappointingly the BHRIFF site does not provide any information on the films... below is all i could find on the internets... some films i didn't find any information on at all or i couldn't tell which movie it was from the available options...

UPDATE: (saturday may 2, 2009)
i was able to get more information on the films from the booklet that was handed out at the event... i've included the new info below...

0.25 (Afghanistan)
afghanistancinema

Aaish Ya Helo (Palestine)

Angles in the Dust (South Africa)
main
imdb

Another Planet (Hungary)

Awaiting Tomorrow (USA-Congo)
witness
youtube

Baghdad Days (Iraq)
iftvc
youtube

Borderland (Jordan)

Campaign The Kawaski Candidate (Japan)
whydemocracy?

Delta Oil's Dirty Business (Greece-Nigeria)
smallplanet
blogspot

Dinner with the President (Pakistan)
whydemocracy?
imdb
youtube

El Sistema (Venezuela-Germany)
main
youtube
wikipedia

End of the Land (Afghanistan)
cacakabul

Fighting the Silence (Netherland-Congo)
youtube

Flowers of Rwanda (Spain-Rawanda)
floresderuanda

Foreigners at Home (Bahrain)

For God, Tsar and Fatherland (Russia)
whydemocracy?
youtube

Forbidden Childhood (Palestine-Italy)
main
isfit

India Untouched (India)
dearcinema
youtube

In Search of Gandhi (India)
whydemocracy?
youtube

Iron Ladies of Liberia (Liberia)
whydemocracy?
imdb
youtube

La Route Du Nord (Lebanon-France)

Looking for the Revolution (Bolivia)
imdb

Meet Me Out of the Siege (Palestine)
beyondblueandgray
quidnovis

Models of Success (Bahrain-USA)
main

Pamir Territory (Afghanistan)
cacakabul

Please Vote for Me (China)
main
imdb
wikipedia
youtube

Poison Fire (Tanzania-Nigeria)
main
youtube

Rough Aunties (UK-South Africa)
main
imdb
youtube

Stories on Human Rights (Switzerland)
ohchr
youtube
artfortheworld

The Low Show (Bahrain)

The Promised Land (Bangladesh)
main

The Reckoning (USA)
main

Total Denial (Italy-Bulgaria-Burma)
imdb
main
youtube

Victoria (Argentina)
main

When Women Unite (India)
pedestrianpictures

Peace Through Music

2009-04-29T09:41:00.012+03:00

The following video was running around the intertubes today and I was really touched (where did the angel touch you?!)

This is from the documentary 'Playing For Change: Peace Through Music' which won awards and stuff. I don't know much about this movie, but it is certainly on my must-see list and we will review it soon.

It reminded me of the good not-so-old days of Matt:

Tyson

2009-04-28T07:35:00.000+03:00

this documentary tells Mike Tyson’s story from Mike Tyson’s perspective... apparently what you will get out of this film is not necessarily the truth about Tyson’s history, but you will get a close look at how he thinks and how he interprets the events in his life and his own behavior... you also get to see a side of Tyson previously reserved only for his close friends and associates...

I’m mostly interested in this documentary cause I get to listen to Tyson's hallarious voice for over an hour... plus I want to reminisce about the good old days...

release date: 27 march 2009 (UK)

Tsotsi: a Review

2009-04-26T10:45:00.008+03:00

Shewner flaunted the movie in front of me as if he had a treasure in his hands. I don’t know why, but for some reason we were pretty excited about watching Tsotsi.Maybe we were influence by the Oscar it won, or the 13 other wins and nominations it received. Please note, this review does not contain any spoilers.

Tsotsi is a small town South African criminal, a teenager without feelings, hardened by his tough life. One night he hijacks a car only to discover, after driving away, that there was a baby in the back seat.

The movie starts off very powerful and very strong with an unfamiliar setting that still feels very believable. The first 20 minutes pass leaving you anxious and wondering how the mess that has started will unfold and maybe resolve itself.

After the first 20 minutes, it seems the writers decided to start writing from home and not share the notes between them. The events were random, boring, didn’t add anything to the story and were quite a disappointment when compared to the strong beginning.

The movie finishes leaving you wondering if they even put any thought into the ending. It felt like my 16 year old sister wrote, what was supposed to be, a surprising ending that will leave you in awe.

The movie won an Oscar and has 13 other awards. I personally wouldn’t recommend it at all. This only proves that the Oscars, as great an event that it is, shouldn’t be the only basis on which you judge a film.

The Science of Sleep: a Review

2009-04-20T14:38:00.015+03:00

Science, good. Sleep, VERY good. Review: AWESOME.

I knew about 'The Science of Sleep' back in 2006 when it was out but didn't have the chance to watch it till last night. In short, this movie is a WTF movie; everything about it is just WTF (in an awesome way).

First of all, this movie was written and directed by Michel Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.) 'The Science of Sleep' is a French movie that tells the love story of Stephane and Stephanie. The former is a man-child, sensitive, and just creative in his own bizzaro way. His dreams (literally) control his real life and his dreams are an exaggeration of his thought and sub-conscience.

The movie is a much scaled-down version of this Simpsons Episode:

The Science of Sleep is a feel good movie, with some subtle humor and a whole lot of preversion (which is normal in France.. ZING). I recommend this movie on a lazy weekday after a long day at work, university, school, fishing trip, or a fun day playing the Luge with Shewner and Froggy in speedos..

Hiatus Over: An Apology

2009-04-20T12:39:00.010+03:00

On the behalf of Shewner and frog 'the Frogman' froggy we, at Walle3a, would like to formally apologize to our fans for not posting for a little over a month. A mix of what I'll call 'Post OOK Syndrome', lack of content, and a hint of Shwener's God complex were the reasons behind this unwanted hiatus.

We will be back and awesomer than ever!

As for now here is a short heart-warming movie recommended by Kermit himself. Created by Publicis Mojo and @RadicalMedia and Directed by Patrick Hughes.

Mancora

2009-03-18T07:31:00.003+03:00

After his father's death, Santiago decides to escape his hometown in hope of starting fresh or just simply forgetting his past. He finds himself in Mancora, a beautiful city on the beach. Accompanied by his beautiful step-sister and her husband they embark on a journey escaping reality and in search of themselves. The trip takes a drastic turn when lines are crossed and each of the three is faced by there daemons. Will Santiago find redemption, or just new sorrows?

Arritmia

2009-03-10T09:38:00.013+03:00

First of all, Arritmia was recommended by our loyal, most awesomest fan Brain Loss; so if the movie sucked monkey hair, talk to her. In all honesty though, the movie looks interesting, it tells a story of Ali and Manuela. Manuela found Ali, after a violent storm, in a Cuban island. Her first instinct tells her that Ali was a prisoner in Guantanamo Bay.

Haunted by flashbacks of torture in Guantanamo Bay during his mysterious past, Ali struggles to separate reality from fantasy. Is Manuela real? Or just a fragment of his imagination? Was he really tortured in Guantanamo Bay or just a nightmare?

Here is a link to the trailer for Arritmia.

Why We Fight

2009-03-01T08:08:00.013+03:00

I watched this movie back in 2006 (would love to watch again though) and it started my whole 'everything is a conspiracy' mode. Why We Fight is a 2005 documentary about the USA's relationship with war as a business. The movie mainly discusses former president Dwight Eisenhower's farewell address to the nation in 1961, and what he called the 'military-industrial complex,' where the USA as a government goes to war to boost the military-industrial economy.

Shockingly, the movie stars John McCain, and a whole lot of contributors that span from politicians, civilians and military participants.

Our City Dreams

2009-02-28T12:49:00.004+03:00

Recently I've been more open to the idea of documentaries, as long as they don't have that History Channel Narrator in the background talking in that voice that makes me want to kill myself, over and over again.

Filmed over the course of two years, OUR CITY DREAMS is an invitation to visit the creative spaces of five women artists, each of whom possesses her own energy, drive and passion. These women, who span different decades and represent diverse cultures, have one thing in common beyond making art: the city to which they have journeyed and now call home - New York.

Sugar

2009-02-28T08:23:00.005+03:00

for many dominicans, baseball is the pathway from poverty to wealth and glory... this movie is an example of a gifted player who gets called up to the american minor leagues and the challenges he faces in a foreign country...

what i understood from the reviews is that this is not a sports movie... baseball is just the backdrop to a bigger story that explores themes like alienation, exploitation, struggleation and determination... as one reviewer put it, this movie is about baseball the same way that 'Million Dollar Baby' is about boxing...
i'm looking forward to watching this film as it seems to provide documentary caliber insight on what latino recruits face in the usa while presenting it in an entertaining movie format...

release date: 3 april 2009 (limited)

Guns, Violence, and Explosions

2009-02-25T13:10:00.002+03:00

the following two movies are epic tales of bravery, integrity, and vengeance... and awesome... and vengeance.

The Good, the Bad, the Weird
a remake of the Sergio Leone classic, The Good The Bad, And The Ugly.
release date: 17 july 2008 (South Korea)

Give 'em Hell, Malone
a private detective gives a lot of hell to a lot of people.
release date: 1 april 2009 (USA)

i'll never doubt that action movies are the highest form of cinema and entertainment ever again.

Zozo: a Review

2009-02-22T08:23:00.009+03:00

Zozo (2005) is a swedish-lebanese film based on the swedish-lebanese director's experience immigrating to sweden during the lebanese civil war.

considering the setting of the movie, this is obviously a sad film... so watch it alone if you have ever promised yourself you'd never let them see you cry... or you can desensitize yourself beforehand by shooting a bunny rabbit in the face... with a rocket launcher...

thankfully the director does inject some humor into the film... the grandfather is hallaarious every time he opens his mouth and the scenes with Zozo and the baby chick would always leave me wanting more...

SPOILER ALERT. to read text, highlight the space below:

immediately after watching the film, i was not satisfied with the ending... i felt it was very abrupt and that it left a lot of issues unresolved... after a few minutes though i began to think that the point of the film was not the specific struggles that Zozo faced in the movie or to answer the question "what will happen to Zozo?"
instead, the point of the movie for me was to show how Zozo's experience of losing his family and witnessing the horrors of the conflict in his homeland has affected him... specifically how he deals with the conflicts he faces in the present and will face in the future...

two more things i want to say about this movie... one: the events in the movie are seen from the perspective of Zozo who is still only about 10 years old... therefore, you won't learn much about the history of the war... and two: i was really impressed with the production value... a lot of effort has been put into this film and it shows...

so bottom line, i recommend this movie for people who enjoy sad movies and care more for interesting characters and character development than they do for plot...

thanks to danabananana for the recommendation... danabananana also recommends taking prozac and watching a movie like Yes Man immediately afterwards...

Franklyn

2009-02-18T13:00:00.008+03:00

I literally 'Stumbled Upon' the trailer of Franklyn couple of months ago and right away it grabbed my attention. I did not blog about it for several reasons; first this blog was not born yet, and secondly I was preoccupied with real life, as some of you might know.

Aaaanyways, Franklyn follows the tales of four characters that somehow intertwine. Ryan Phillippe, who is awesome, plays a masked vigilante (mask looks awesome -check trailer). Also starring Eva Green (Casino Royale), Sam Riley and Bernard Hill (LoTR trilogy).

Oh yeah, its a British movie, which I've always liked.

Medicine for Melancholy

2009-02-17T13:23:00.001+03:00

not quite sure what it is that makes me want to watch this movie... maybe it's that one of the stars is Wyatt Cenac, a correspondent on the daily show... and subconsciously i believe that anything remotely related to that show is automatically brilliant...
or maybe cause the movie is set in San Francisco, a city i've recently become infatuated with since there is a possibility that i'm going to work there for a year...
or maybe cause it seems like the movie has an meaningful message that makes you think...
or maybe i'll just stop here and let you decide what you think...

"Medicine for Melancholy is a love story of bikes and one-night stands told through two African-American twenty-somethings dealing with issues of class, identity, and the evolving conundrum of being a minority in rapidly gentrifying San Francisco—a city with the smallest proportional black population of any other major American city."

release date: january 30th, 2009 (limited release)

"The Fall" Review

2009-02-16T13:46:00.005+03:00

What “The Fall” promised the viewers with its amazing trailer (shown below) was a one of a kind experience taking you to a fantasy land that you cannot even dream of. What director Tarsem did was just that, he redefined the word cinematography in this movie with the most vibrant colors and the most alive pictures you have ever seen in film. After watching the movie you realize that taking him 4 years to finish it was justified. The movie was shot in 24 locations in 18 different countries (or was it 16?? I’m not sure, but you get the point).

The acting was superb and went hand-in-hand with the out of this world story. I really hope Tarsem gets the recognition he deserves that will give him a chance to create more masterpieces.
Not your everyday flick but still a must see. However, don’t be surrounded by other movie goers who didn’t appreciate art when they see it, they will ruin the movie for you.

Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus

2009-02-10T14:21:00.003+03:00

I have been wanting to watch this movie for two years; I actually bought it on DVD and never got around to watching it. At first it looks like your everyday love story, set in 1958, in New York City, between an unhappily married woman, Nicole Kidman and her neighbor from upstairs Robert Downy Jr. , one of Walle3a’s favorite actors.

Add to the story the fact that Robert Downey’s character has the very rare disease hypertrichosis (a.k.a. werewolf syndrome, a disease that causes excessive body hair) without giving anymore, I give you the trailer. We will hopefully write a review about it once we get around to seeing it.

Jackie Chan

2009-02-10T09:47:00.010+03:00

i miss the old Jackie Chan movies. drunken master II, rumble in the bronx, first strike, etc. i miss the comedy, the crazy stunts, the nonstop action, and the bloopers real at the end. a Jackie Chan movie was a feel good package (TWSS) that was guaranteed every year.

but now Jackie is 54 years old and he can't abuse his body as much as he used to so the style of his movies has changed considerably. all good things come to an end i guess but hopefully newer better things take its place.

i hope his latest film, Shinjuku Incident, does just that. the movie is a crime drama that steers clear from the typical Jackie Chan comedy/action genre. Jackie plays an illegal Chinese immigrant in 1990s-era japan. he gets involved with the local yakuza and is forced to commit crimes against his conscience in order to survive.

official website: shinjukuincident
release date April 2009 (Hong Kong)

what else has Jackie been up to? why looking for a disciple of course. apparently he's found one too.

Coraline

2009-02-05T22:07:00.002+03:00

even though it'll be a while before i get to see it, i'm still very excited about the release of Coraline in theaters tomorrow. the stop-motion animation is based on the children's book by Neil Gaiman and is directed by Henry Selick (The Nightmare Before Christmas).

Fighting Spirit

2009-02-04T18:59:00.003+03:00

Fighting Spirit (aka Hajime no Ippo) the boxing manga returned to television this month in a new anime series.

the original 76 episode boxing anime (released in 2000 through 2002) tells the story of Ippo Makunouchi. a shy high school student who helps his mom with the family fishing business and gets frequently picked on by a group of bullies. Ippo joins a boxing gym and becomes awesome. i know i got lazy with that last sentence but does it really matter? the new series will pick up where the previous one left off.

two Fighting Spirit movies were released as well. the following clip is a recap of the last round of the fight between Sendo Takeshi and Makunouchi Ippo from the movie 'Hajime no Ippo: Champion Road'
WARNING: the level of awesome found in this video may be too much for sensitive viewers. do not view if you have heart disease, high blood pressure, malaria, typhoid fever, or difficult urinations due to an enlarged prostate gland.

House of Saddam

2009-02-02T14:01:00.006+03:00

House of Saddam is a four part HBO/BBC miniseries depicting the rise and fall of Saddam Hussein.
released in 2008.
official site: houseofsaddam

American East

2009-01-31T16:40:00.003+03:00

“AmericanEast” is a timely, poignant drama about Arab-Americans living in post-9/11 Los Angeles. The story examines long-held misunderstandings about Arabic and Islamic culture, and puts a human face on a segment of the U.S. population whom most Americans know nothing about, but who today are of particular interest to them, either from curiosity or suspicion. The story highlights the pressures under which many Arab-Americans now live.

Sylvain Chomet

2009-01-25T09:50:00.013+03:00

The Illusionist
the main character in this film will be an animated version of the french mime, director and actor Jacques Tati. the plot revolves around a struggling illusionist who visits an isolated community and meets a young lady who is convinced that he is a real magician. the film will be set in scotland in the late 1950s.
the film will be based on an unproduced script that the Tati wrote in collaboration with famed screenwriter Jean-Claude Carrière. the script was passed to writer/director Sylvain Chomet by Tati's daughter, Sophie Tatischeff. Tatischeff suggested an animated film as she did not want an actor to play her father.
release date 2009 (france).

The Illusionist will be the second animated feature film by Sylvain Chomet. the first being The Triplets of Belleville (released in 2003).
the plot for The Triplets of Belleville revolves around Madame Souza and her pooch Bruno who team up with the belleville sisters (an aged song-and-dance team) to rescue Madame Souza's grandson who was kidnapped during the tour de france.
but the last thing that matters in this film is the plot. for me, it was all about the unique blend of style, characters, and method of storytelling with barely any dialogue.

The Triplets of Belleville | Movie Trailers

frogman, based on what i've seen in the movie above, you should NEVER step foot in france.

Legend

2009-01-25T09:06:00.012+03:00

The Legend of Bruce Lee is a tv show shot in china, hong kong, macau, the us, italy, and thailand over nine months and starring a mixed cast from different backgrounds. the series encompasses Bruce Lee's teen years in hong kong, his move to the us where he taught kung fu and entered hollywood, and his return back to hong kong where he became a film star prior to his early death in 1973.
the full series (50 episodes) aired in china in 2008.

UPDATE:
the actor portraying Bruce Lee in the series is Danny Chan Kwok Kuen who also depicted Bruce Lee as the goalie in the 2001 movie Shaolin Soccer. the best way to describe Shaolin Soccer while ignoring the plot is that it is a real life Captain Tsubasa (aka Captain Majid).

True Life Interpretation

2009-01-19T20:48:00.013+03:00

Lemon Tree
a drama based on the true story of a palestinian widow, played by Hiam Abbass (the syrian bride, paradise now, the visitor), who must defend her lemon tree field when a new israeli defense minister moves next to her and threatens to have her lemon grove torn down.
release date 27 march 2008

Waltz with Bashir
an animated documentary depicting the personal view of director Ari Folman on his experience in the first lebanon war as a young israeli soldier.
release date 12 June 2008

The Fall

2009-01-18T21:22:00.005+03:00

Director Tarsem Singh (The Cell) brings us a fantasy drama telling a story in a hospital on the outskirts of 1920s Los Angeles, an injured stuntman begins to tell a fellow patient, a little girl with a broken arm, a fantastical story about 5 mythical heroes. Thanks to his fractured state of mind and her vivid imagination, the line between fiction and reality starts to blur as the tale advances.

Documentaries

2009-01-18T17:54:00.011+03:00

Dear Zachary
dr. Andrew Bagby was murdered in a parking lot in western pennsylvania. filmmaker Kurt Kuenne, Andrew's oldest friend, began making a film for Andrew's little son Zachary who was born after the death of his father as a way for him to get to know the father he'd never meet.
aired january 4, 2009 on msnbc

Good Hair
"When Chris Rock’s daughter, Lola, came up to him crying and asked, “Daddy, how come I don’t have good hair?” the bewildered comic committed himself to search the ends of the earth and the depths of black culture to find out who had put that question into his little girl's head! Director Jeff Stilson’s camera followed the funnyman, and the result is Good Hair, a wonderfully insightful and entertaining, yet remarkably serious, documentary about African American hair culture.An exposé of comic proportions that only Chris Rock could pull off, Good Hair visits hair salons and styling battles, scientific laboratories, and Indian temples to explore the way black hairstyles impact the activities, pocketbooks, sexual relationships, and self-esteem of black people. Celebrities such as Ice-T, Kerry Washington, Nia Long, Paul Mooney, Raven Symoné, Maya Angelou, and Reverend Al Sharpton all candidly offer their stories and observations to Rock while he struggles with the task of figuring out how to respond to his daughter’s question. What he discovers is that black hair is a big business that doesn’t always benefit the black community and little Lola’s question might well be bigger than his ability to convince her that the stuff on top of her head is nowhere near as important as what is inside."
release date january 18, 2009

9

2009-01-14T16:14:00.012+03:00

9 is a movie coming out on 9/9/2009 and is 9 based on a 9 short film by Sha9ne Acker about a rag 9 doll.

trailer 9 for the movie

full 9 short film released in 2905

My Wish List

2009-01-13T17:30:00.031+03:00

Chocolate
a thai movie about an autistic woman with kick-ass martial art skills who looks to settle her ailing mother's debts by beating the crap out of gangs that owe her family money and eating chocolate.
release date 6 february 2008 (thailand)

Big Man Japan
an eccentric man aged about 40 lives alone in a decrepit house in tokyo. he periodically transforms into a giant, about 30 meters tall, and defends japan by battling similarly sized monsters that turn up and destroy buildings.
so basically it's a reimagining of the powerpuff girls.
release date 2 june 2007 (japan)

Our Watch List

2009-01-13T13:14:00.008+03:00

There are currently a number of movies that have the reason behind our continuous drooling.

1. Slumdog Millionaire
The story of the life of an impoverished Indian teen Jamal Malik, who becomes a contestant on the Hindi version of "Who Wants to be A Millionaire?", wins, and is then suspected of cheating.

2. Salt of this Sea
Palestine's Official 2008 Oscar's entry.
A romantic drama about a working-class woman and her experiences traveling back home to Palestine for the first time.

walle3a.. wait what??

2009-01-01T12:56:00.004+03:00

With nothing but a silly catch phrase, a large number of songs, obscure tastes in movies and a rather extensive collection of games we bring to you Walle3a...

What we are trying to do on this page is create a hub that suggests what we (in our collectively humble opinions) think is cool in the world of entertainment.

We will try as hard as we can to veer away from the movies that everyone knows about, like Twilight for example.. Actually SPECIALLY Twilight..

So please bare with us and stay tuned as we try our best to fine tune this website into something that you might actually enjoy :)

Best regards,
Frogman

p.s. we are still working hard on the layout, and the general concept and would appreciate all the feedback and comments you could give us.. :)