Film Pemenang Oscar

The Sound of Music (1965)

2007-07-31T05:46:00.000-07:00

In Salzburg, Austria, Maria, played by Andrews, is studying to become a nun but is not sure if convent life is right for her. She is sent from her abbey to be the governess to seven children of a widower naval commander, Captain Georg Ritter von Trapp. Maria and the Captain immediately disagree on the way the children are raised; the Captain raises them as in a military camp, while Maria wants them to be free and able to enjoy life as children while they can.

The children, initially hostile and mischievous, eventually come to love her when she introduces them to the joys of singing. Once the Captain finds out about this, he feels very remorseful for them and decides to let them be free and enjoy life. He apologizes to Maria for being strict with the children, asks her to stay for a while, and goes back to the joys of living. One of the Captain's friends, Max Dettweiler, tries to convince the Captain to let the children perform in his concert. Maria finds herself falling in love with the captain, who is engaged to a wealthy baroness. The Baroness becomes jealous of Maria and convinces her to leave during a grand party at the house.

Although the Captain announces his intention to marry the baroness, the baroness does not have good rapport with the children. After a talk with the Mother Abbess, Maria decides to return to the Trapp family. Upon return, the baroness realizes the Captain is in love with Maria and decides to leave for Vienna after the Captain reveals his liking. After that, the Captain and Maria reveal their feelings for each other and finally wed.

The Nazis take power in Austria as part of the Anschluss, and try to force Captain von Trapp back into service. The Captain, unwilling to serve the Reich, delays Zeller (the gauleiter, or party leader for the district) by insisting he is part of the Von Trapp Family Singers and must remain with them during a performance at the Salzburg Music Festival, in a guarded theater. After a curtain call, the whole family flees and hikes over the mountains to Switzerland, escaping with the help of Maria's former convent.

Famous Quotations :

Maria: I don't understand.
Captain von Trapp: Well, we called off our engagement, you see, and...
Maria: Oh, I'm sorry.
Captain von Trapp: Yes. You are?
Maria: Mm-hmm. You did?
Captain von Trapp: Yes. Well, you can't marry someone when you're in love with someone else... can you?

source : wikipedia | imdb

Oliver! (1968)

2007-07-26T20:24:00.000-07:00

The musical opens in the workhouse, as the half-starved orphan boys are entering the enormous lunchroom for dinner. Nine year old Oliver Twist gathers up the courage to ask for more. He is immediately apprehended and is promptly sold and apprenticed to an undertaker, Mr. Sowerberry.

The next morning bully Noah Claypole, who oversees Oliver's work, badmouths Oliver's dead mother, whereupon Oliver begins pummeling him. Mr. Bumble is sent for, and he and the Sowerberrys lock Oliver in a coffin, but during all the commotion Oliver escapes and runs away to London. On his first day there, he meets the Artful Dodger, a boy wearing an oversize coat and a top hat. Dodger is, unknown to Oliver, a boy pickpocket, and he invites Oliver to come and live in Fagin's lair. Fagin is a criminal, and he is in the business of teaching young boys to pick pockets. Oliver, however, is completely unaware of any criminality, and believes that the boys make handkerchiefs rather than steal them.

The next day, Oliver meets Nancy, the live-in girlfriend of the evil, terrifying Bill Sikes, a burglar whose abuse she endures because she loves him. Nancy and Oliver take an instant liking to each other, and Nancy shows motherly affection toward him. Bet, Nancy's best friend, is also with her. Nancy and Bet leave and Oliver is sent out with the other boys on his first pickpocketing job, though he still believes that they are going to teach him how to make handkerchiefs. When Dodger and Charley rob Mr. Brownlow, a wealthy old man, they run off, leaving the shocked Oliver, who now realizes that his new friends are pickpockets, to be blamed for looking guilty. Brownlow thinks that Oliver is the thief, but Oliver is cleared in court. To make up for his error, the wealthy Brownlow takes Oliver to live with him, noticing something vaguely familiar about him.

In the evening the bar is full of people, Bill Sikes enters and gets the crowd to leave. Dodger runs in and tells Fagin about Oliver being captured. Fagin and Bill decide that they have to kidnap Oliver to keep him from revealing their whereabouts and secrets.

Meanwhile the next morning, at Mr. Brownlow's house, Mr. Brownlow and Dr. Grimwig discuss Oliver's condition. They come to the conclusion that he is fine and that he can return some books to the bookseller for Mr. Brownlow. Nancy and Bill show up and grab Oliver. They bring him back to Fagin's, where Nancy saves Oliver from a beating from Sikes after the boy tries to flee but is stopped.

Back at the workhouse, Mr. Bumble and the Widow Corney, now unhappily married, meet up with the dying pauper Old Sally and another old lady, who tell them of how Oliver's mother came to the workhouse to have her baby and gave her a gold locket after the birth, inferring she came from a rich family. The mother then died. Mr Bumble and Widow Corney, realizing that Oliver may have wealthy relatives, visit Mr. Brownlow in order to profit from any reward given out for information of him. He throws them out, knowing that they have suppressed evidence until they could get a reward for it. Brownlow looks at the picture inside the locket, a picture of his friend's daughter, and realizes that Oliver, is actually his friend's grandson.

Nancy, terrified for Oliver and feeling guilty, visits Brownlow and promises to deliver Oliver to him safely that night at midnight on London Bridge. Bill suspects that Nancy is up to something. That night, he follows her as she sneaks Oliver out. At London Bridge, he confronts them, knocks Oliver temporarily unconscious, and brutally clubs Nancy to death. He then grabs Oliver, back to the hideout to ask Fagin for getaway money. Mr. Brownlow, who had been late keeping the appointment, arrives and discovers Nancy's body. A large crowd soon forms, among them the distraught Bet. Fagin and his boys, terrified at the idea of being apprehended, leave their hideout in panic. Not finding Bill at the hideout, the anxious crowd, now whipped up into a thirst for justice, returns to the Thames Embankment, when suddenly Bill appears at the top of the bridge, holding Oliver as hostage and threatening to kill him if the crowd tries to take him. Unseen by Bill, two policemen sneak up on him. One of them shoots Bill to death and the other grabs Oliver as Bill releases him. Oliver is then reunited with Mr. Brownlow.

Famous Quotations :

[about Oliver]
Mr. Bumble: Mother came to us destitute. Brings a child into the world, takes one look at him and promptly dies - -without leaving so much as a forwarding name and address!

Oliver Twist: [singing] Where is love?

source : wikipedia | imdb

The Departed (2006)

2007-07-26T20:18:00.000-07:00

The film begins in 1976 in South Boston during the Boston busing riots featuring a montage of documentary footage with voice-over narration by Irish mob boss Francis "Frank" Costello (Jack Nicholson). The next scenes take place sometime in the late 1980s with Frank Costello taking young Colin Sullivan under his wing, preparing him to be a mole for his crew. Years later, Sullivan (Matt Damon) is training for the Massachusetts State Police with classmates, including Agent Barrigan (James Badge Dale). In another class are Trooper Brown (Anthony Anderson) and William Costigan (Leonardo Dicaprio). Meanwhile, the cool and collected Captain Oliver Queenan (Martin Sheen) and the aggressive and foul mouthed Staff Sergeant Sean Dignam (Mark Wahlberg) of the Undercover Division assign Costigan, whose family has long had ties with the Boston underworld, to infiltrate Costello's crew.

In the present day, Sullivan is soon promoted to the Special Investigation Unit (S.I.U.) headed by the humorous Captain George Ellerby (Alec Baldwin). Costigan, having recently instigated a fight in a bar owned by Costello as well as beaten up two Italian mobsters from Providence in a separate incident, eventually gains the notice of Costello and becomes a member of his crew, pairing up with his second-in-command Mr. French (Ray Winstone) on a number of ordeals. Meanwhile, Sullivan begins a romantic relationship with criminal psychiatrist Madolyn Madden (Vera Farmiga), who is also having sessions with Costigan as a part of his probation for assault. Unknown to Sullivan, Costigan begins a relationship with Madolyn.

During one of his heists, Costello, through Sullivan's information, discovers that there is a police informer in his organization. To catch the insider, he requires each member to fill in his particulars in a form, including social security numbers. Costigan knows that this envelope will end up in the hands of Costello's man at the police. He follows Costello (who has the envelope) into a pornography theater, where he witnesses Costello handing over the envelope to Sullivan, whose face is hidden in the darkened auditorium. Attempting to disclose the mole's identity, Costigan shadows Sullivan into the streets, only to eventually lose him in Boston's Chinatown neighborhood.

Meanwhile, Sullivan is assigned to uncover the mole in S.I.U., that being himself. This makes for some tension between Sullivan and Dignam, whose suspicion of Sullivan rises. Above suspicion, Sullivan focuses instead on finding the police snitch in Costello's crew. Sullivan orders the S.I.U. to trail Queenan and eventually follows him to a meeting with Costigan on the rooftop of a run-down building on the harbor. Sullivan tells Costello's men that the snitch is most likely at the building. As the men approach, Costigan flees, but Queenan stays behind and is confronted by them and is defenestrated. A gun battle quickly ensues between Costello's men and the police officers who followed Queenan. In the ensuing gunfire, the police officer who tailed Queenan is wounded and Delahunt, one of Costello's men is critically wounded. Later on when the men return to their hideout, Delahunt just before dying reveals to Costigan that he knows he's the mole, given that he was the one who called Costigan on the cell phone and gave him the wrong address to where Queenan was killed, yet he was still at the right address.

At the police precinct, a fist fight breaks out between Dignam and Sullivan over the circumstances of Queenan's death. Sullivan orders Dignam to hand over the information regarding his undercover, which Dignam refuses. Ellerby, who has taken over the department for Queenan, orders Dignam off duty with pay for two weeks. Still trying to locate the police mole in Costello's crew, Sullivan finds Queenan's cell phone in his homicide file and calls Costigan, pretending to be the new agent assigned to replace Queenan. After Costigan hangs up, Sullivan finds information in Queenan's file indicating that Costello is an informant for the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

A few nights later, Costello and his crew are being tailed to an old warehouse where they are to pick up a shipment of drugs. Sullivan disengages the tail at Costello's demand, and, fearing that he may be given away to the F.B.I. as well, sets up a police ambush at the scene instead. Costigan, wary that the police potentially know of the situation, manages to slip away unnoticed. Costello's entire crew is killed in the ensuing shoot-out, all of whom a wounded Costello abandons and escapes to another part of the warehouse, only to be confronted by Sullivan. Costello confirms that he is an informant and fires his gun at Sullivan, to which Sullivan returns multiple shots, killing him.

Later at the station, Sullivan arrives to praises from his coworkers, and meets Costigan, who asks to simply receive his payment and be allowed to leave. While Sullivan retrieves Costigan's information in another office, Costigan notices Costello's envelope on Sullivan's desk and quickly flees. The next morning, Madolyn is at Sullivan's apartment, and finds an envelope from Costigan in his mail. It contains recordings of Sullivan and Costello's conversations, along with a phone number. Madolyn reveals the recordings to Sullivan and immediately ends her relationship with him. Sullivan calls the phone number and speaks to Costigan, who reveals to Sullivan that Costello kept the recordings as insurance to use as a possible legal immunity if he was arrested. They arrange to meet.

On the rooftop where Queenan was killed, a hysterical Costigan confronts and handcuffs Sullivan. Trooper Brown appears and tries to talk down Costigan, who, claiming that he has substantial proof that Sullivan is the rat, quickly flees into an elevator, holding his gun to Sullivan's head. The elevator reaches the bottom floor, and just as Costigan begins to exit, he is shot in the head by Barrigan, dropping dead to the floor. Trooper Brown arrives and is killed by Barrigan as well. Barrigan reveals to Sullivan that he is the second mole in the police force and, being that they are the only ones remaining, need to look out for one another. As the two begin to manipulate the crime scene, Sullivan shoots Barrigan in the head. Sullivan later blames everything on Barrigan and recommends Costigan for a posthumous Medal of Merit.

Sullivan, along with many generations of the Massachusetts State Police force, attends Costigan's funeral, where a tearful Madolyn shuns him. Some time later, Sullivan returns home to find Dignam waiting in his apartment. Dignam shoots Sullivan in the head and quickly leaves. As Sullivan's body lies in the apartment doorway, the camera pans out and a lone rat crawls conspicuously across the balcony railing, silhouetted against the gold dome of the Massachusetts State House.

Famous Quotations :

Frank Costello: When you decide to be something, you can be it. That's what they don't tell you in the church. When I was your age they would say we can become cops, or criminals. Today, what I'm saying to you is this: when you're facing a loaded gun, what's the difference?

source : wikipedia | imdb

The French Connection (1971)

2007-07-26T20:14:00.000-07:00

The film opens in Marseilles with a policeman staking out Alain Charnier, a French criminal who ostensibly works as a former stevedore-turned-shipping executive but is in fact involved in smuggling heroin from France to the United States. The French policeman is eventually assassinated by Charnier's henchman, Pierre Nicoli.

In New York City, detectives "Popeye" Doyle and "Cloudy" Russo are also performing an undercover stakeout, with Doyle dressed as Santa Claus and Russo pretending to be a hot dog stand operator. Eventually the suspect they are waiting for makes a break for it, and the detectives pursue him on foot. After catching up with their suspect, the detectives aggressively interrogate the man and eventually force him to reveal where his "connection" is based.

At the nightclub they go to, Doyle becomes interested in two people: Sal Boca and his beautiful young wife, Angie. Doyle persuades his partner to come along as they tail the couple; several scenes are shown establishing the fact that although the Bocas run a modest newsstand/diner, their extravagant lifestyle indicates they may be involved in some sort of criminal activity. Eventually there is a link established between the Bocas and a well-to-do person named Joel Weinstock, who is rumored to have extensive connections in the narcotics underworld. Doyle and Russo then roust an African American bar in Bedford Stuyvesant where the majority of the patrons are in possession of low quality marijuana and other minor drugs. The rousting is a stunt for Doyle to find an informant whom he then questions about an apparent shortage of hard drugs on the street; Doyle is told that there is word a major shipment of heroin is on its way. The detectives convince their supervisor, Simonson, to pursue wiretapping the Bocas' phones and use several ruses to try to obtain more information on their subjects.

Charnier soon "makes" Doyle and decides he has to be eliminated. Charnier's henchman Nicoli offers to do the job and tries to kill Doyle from a rooftop with a rifle. However, he botches the job and a cat-and-mouse pursuit begins, which eventually leads up to the car chase. The chase ends when the elevated train Nicoli has hijacked crashes into another train; when Doyle catches up with Nicoli, he shoots Nicoli in the back .

The car containing the drugs that Devereaux imported into the U.S. is eventually staked out by the police and impounded when some young thieves try to strip the car of its' valuables. Doyle and Russo then rip the car apart in an hours-long search, before eventually finding the narcotics after the mechanic states that he has stripped everything on the car except the rocker panels.

The drug deal has been a major success; Boca and Weinstock's resident heroin expert tests the substance and declares it to be of top quality. In return, using an old car that Sal Boca's brother Lou picked out, the criminals stash the money in almost the same hiding place that was used on the car Devereaux brought in. Charnier and Sal Boca drive off and only moments later run into a roadblock consisting of a large force of police officers, led by Doyle. The police chase Charnier and Sal Boca back to the factory grounds, where Sal is killed during a shootout with the police and almost all of the others surrender after tear gas is used by the police.

Charnier escapes into the warehouse and a tense sequence ensues as Doyle hunts Charnier down. Russo joins him in the search, which takes a sudden shocking turn as Doyle, trigger-happy and high on adrenaline, sees a shadowy figure in the distance and empties his pistol at it only a split-second after shouting a warning. To Russo's horror, the man Doyle kills is not Charnier, but Mulderig. Doyle seems unfazed by this and vows to capture Charnier, reloading his pistol and running off into another room in the distance. The last sound heard in the film is a single gunshot.

Title cards before the closing credits note that of the people arrested and tried, only Joel Weinstock and Angie Boca got away without any prison time. Alain Charnier was never found or tried in the U.S. It also states that both Doyle and Russo were transferred out of the narcotics division.

Famous Quotations :

Jimmy 'Popeye' Doyle: You dumb guinea.
Buddy "Cloudy" Russo: How the hell was I supposed to know he had a knife.
Jimmy 'Popeye' Doyle: Never trust a nigger.
Buddy "Cloudy" Russo: He could have been white.
Jimmy 'Popeye' Doyle: Never trust anyone!

source : wikipedia | imdb

Rocky (1976)

2007-07-26T00:35:00.001-07:00

Rocky Balboa is introduced as a small-time boxer and enforcer for a loan shark. The World Heavyweight Championship bout is scheduled for New Year's Day, 1976, the year of the United States Bicentennial. When the opponent of undefeated heavyweight champion Apollo Creed is injured, Creed comes up with the idea of fighting a local Philadelphia underdog and, because he is known as "The Italian Stallion," Creed selects Rocky.

To prepare for the fight, Rocky trains with 1920s-era ex-bantamweight fighter Mickey Goldmill, while Rocky's best friend Paulie, a meat-packing plant worker, lets him practice his punches on the carcasses hanging in the freezers. During training, Rocky dates Paulie's quiet sister, Adrian. The night before the fight, Rocky confides in Adrian that he does not expect to beat Creed, and that all he wants is to go the distance with Creed, meaning last 15 rounds against him (the typical scheduled length of championship fights at the time).

Creed does not initially take the fight seriously, but Rocky unexpectedly knocks him down in the first round and the match turns intense. The fight indeed lasts 15 rounds with each fighter suffering many injuries. After the fight, Rocky calls out for Adrian, who runs down to the ring. As Creed is announced the winner by split decision, Adrian and Rocky embrace where they profess their love to one another.

Famous quotations :

Rocky: Took you long enough to get here. Took you ten years to get to my house. Huh, what's the matter? You don't like my house? Does my house stink? That's right-it stinks! I didn't have no favors from you! Don't slum around me. Talkin' about your prime. What about my prime, Mick? At least you had a prime! I didn't have no prime. I didn't have nithin'! Leg's are goin', everything is goin'. Nobody's getting' no nothin'. Guy comes up, offers me a fight. Big deal. Wanna fight the fight? Yeah, I'll fight the big fight. I wouldn't wanna fight. Know what's gonna happen to me? I'm gonna get that! I'm gonna get that! And you wanna be ringside to see it? Do ya? You wanna help me out? Huh? Do you wana see me get my face kicked in? Leg's ain't workin', nothing's workin', but they go, "Go on, fight the champ." Yeah, I'll fight him. Get my face kicked in. And you come around here. You wanna move in here with me? Come on in! It's a nice house! Real nice. Come on in and move. It stinks! This whole place stinks. You wanna help me out? Well, help me out! Come on, help me out. I'm standin' here!

source : wikipedia | imdb

In the Heat of The Night (1967)

2007-07-26T00:14:00.000-07:00

When a wealthy man planning to build a factory in Sparta, Mississippi, is murdered, Police Chief Bill Gillespie (Rod Steiger) is pressured to find his killer quickly. Northerner Virgil Tibbs (Sidney Poitier), passing through, is picked up at the train station with a substantial amount of money in his wallet. Gillespie jumps to the conclusion he has his (African-American) man, but is embarrassed to learn that Tibbs is a respected Philadelphia homicide detective who had been visiting his mother. After this racist treatment, Tibbs wants nothing more than to leave as quickly as possible, but the victim's widow (Lee Grant) is impressed by the detective's expertise and threatens to stop construction on the much-needed factory unless he leads the investigation. Gillespie then talks Tibbs' captain into lending his services.

Despite the rocky start to their relationship, they come to respect each other as they are forced to work together to solve the crime.

Famous Quotations :

Chief Gillespie: I got the motive which is money and the body which is dead.

Gillespie: [on telephone to Tibbs' chief] I do want to thank you for offering such a powerful piece of manpower as Virgil Tibbs.

Virgil Tibbs: They call me MISTER Tibbs!

source : wikipedia | imdb

West Side Story (1961)

2007-07-25T23:21:00.000-07:00

Westside story is the award winning adaptation of the classic romantic tragedy, Romeo and Juliet. The feuding families become two warring New York City gangs- the white Jets led by Riff and the Puerto Rican Sharks, led by Brenardo. Their hatred escalates to a point where neither can coexist with any form of understanding.

But when Riff's best friend (and former Jet) Tony and Bernardo's younger sister Maria meet at a dance, no one can do anything to stop their love. Maria and Tony begin meeting in secret, planning to run away. Then the Skarks and Jets plan a rumble under the highway - whoever wins gains control of the streets. Maria sends Tony to stop it, hoping it can end the violence. It goes terribly wrong, and before the lovers know what's happened, tragedy strikes and doesn't stop until the climatic and heartbreaking ending.

Yeah, you guess it. Tony dies.

Famous quotations :

Tony: I- I didn't believe hard enough.
Maria: Loving is enough.
Tony: Not here. They won't let us be.
Maria: Then we'll run away.
Tony: Yeah, we can.
Maria: Yes.
Tony: We will...
Maria: [singing] Hold my hand and we are halfway there, hold my hand and I'll take you there. Somehow! Someday! Some...

Maria: [singing] I feel pretty, oh so pretty! I feel pretty, and witty, and gay!

source : imdb

Gladiator (2000)

2007-07-25T22:32:00.000-07:00

General Maximus Decimus Meridius leads the Roman army to victory against Germanic barbarians in the year 180, ending a prolonged war and earning the esteem of the elderly Emperor Marcus Aurelius. Aurelius is dying and though he has a son, Commodus, the emperor wishes to appoint temporary leadership to Maximus, with a desire to eventually return power to the Senate. Aurelius informs Maximus of his decision and offers him time to consider. Aurelius then informs Commodus, who is heartbroken at the decision and subsequently murders his father in cold blood. Maximus realizes the truth about Commodus's patricide and refuses a promotion to the head of the Praetorian Guards offered by Emperor Commodus. Commodus orders him to be arrested and executed, and soldiers are sent to murder Maximus' wife and son.

Slave traders find and take him to Zucchabar, a rugged province in North Africa. He is purchased by Proximo, the head of a local gladiator school. He rises through the ranks and becomes a popular gladiator. During this time, he meets the Numidian gladiator Juba and Hagen, a barbarian from Germania. The recently crowned Commodus reopens the gladiatorial games in Rome to commemorate the death of his father, and Proximo's company of gladiators makes the trip to Rome. Against all odds Maximus leads his motley crew to decisive victory, much to the amazement and approval of the crowd. When Commodus descends into the arena to meet the newcomers, Maximus reveals his true identity to the stunned emperor, who almost has Maximus executed on the spot. The crowd's roaring disapproval however prompts Commodus's begrudging change of heart, and he retreats away from the Colosseum.

Commodus continues trying to kill Maximus by unbalancing the odds against him, pitting him against Tigris of Gaul, in an arena surrounded by chained tigers whose handlers are told to target Maximus. After an intense battle, Maximus narrowly defeats Tigris and sanctions Commodus's decision on whether he should have Tigris killed or spared. When Commodus votes for Tigris's death, Maximus spares him and glares back at the emperor, much to the approval of the surrounding audience.

Following the fight, Maximus meets with his former servant Cicero, who reveals that the army he led during the Germanic campaign remains loyal to him. Soon after, Maximus forms a plot with Lucilla, Commodus' sister, and the senator Gracchus,to reunite with his army and return to Rome to topple Commodus by force. Commodus, however, suspects his sister of betrayal and threatens her young son, forcing her to reveal the plot. Praetorian guards immediately storm Proximo's gladiator barracks, battling the gladiators while Maximus attempts to escape. Hagen and Proximo are killed in the resulting fight, whilst Juba and the survivors are imprisoned. Maximus makes it to the city walls, but Cicero (who was waiting for him with horses) is murdered by overhead archers in an ambush and Maximus is arrested by the guards.

Concluding that legends born in the Colosseum must die in the Colosseum, Commodus challenges Maximus to a duel in front of a roaring audience. Commodus, knowing he is inferior in fencing ability, pierces Maximus's lung with a stiletto just before they enter the arena and has Quintus conceal the wound with Maximus's armor. The two bitter enemies fight, each taking wounds before Maximus rips the sword from Commodus's hands. Commodus, unable to solicit a sword from the ring of Praetorian guards surrounding the two, pulls a hidden stiletto from his forearm guard. Maximus quickly and efficiently beats back Commodus with a series of hard punches before grabbing and slowly driving the stiletto into Commodus's neck. Commodus collapses to the ground, and the coliseum is silent.

As he dies, Maximus sees his wife and son walking amidst endless fields of wheat. He reaches for them, but is pulled back to reality by the utterings of Quintus, asking Maximus what is to be done. Maximus orders the release of Commodus's prisoners including the Proximo's gladiators and Senator Gracchus, whom he reinstates and instructs to return Rome to a Senate-based government. Moments later, he collapses, and Lucilla rushes to his aid. Maximus reassures her that her son is safe now that Commodus is dead. Senator Gracchus and Proximo's gladiators carry Maximus' dead body out of the Colosseum. Juba, now free, buries Maximus' two small statues of his wife and son in the ground where Maximus died.

Famous Quotations :

Marcus Aurelius: [to his daughter Lucilla] If only you had been born a man, what a Caesar you would have made.

Maximus: [removes helmet and turns around to face Commodus] My name is Maximus Decimus Meridius, commander of the Armies of the North, General of the Felix Legions, loyal servant to the true emperor, Marcus Aurelius. Father to a murdered son, husband to a murdered wife. And I will have my vengeance, in this life or the next.

Maximus: My name is Gladiator.

source : wikipedia | imdb

The Lost Weekend (1945)

2007-07-25T04:24:00.000-07:00

The unsuccessful writer Don Birnham is an alcoholic. Only his brother Wick and girlfriend Helen managed to keep him sober for 10 days and plan a little vacation on the countryside for the weekend. But Don manages to send them both away the evening before. Alone at home, without any money, he's desperate for something to drink.

Famous quotations :

Don Birnam: Most men lead lives of quiet desperation. I can't take quiet desperation!

Don Birnam: It shrinks my liver, doesn't it, Nat? It pickles my kidneys, yeah. But what it does to the mind? It tosses the sandbags overboard so the balloon can soar. Suddenly I'm above the ordinary. I'm competent. I'm walking a tightrope over Niagara Falls. I'm one of the great ones. I'm Michaelangelo, molding the beard of Moses. I'm Van Gogh painting pure sunlight. I'm Horowitz, playing the Emperor Concerto. I'm John Barrymore before movies got him by the throat. I'm Jesse James and his two brothers, all three of them. I'm W. Shakespeare. And out there it's not Third Avenue any longer, it's the Nile. Nat, it's the Nile and down it moves the barge of Cleopatra.

Don Birnam: What kind of party did you say that was?
Helen St. James: A cocktail party.
Don Birnam: In that case, I'll join you.

Source : imdb

Casablanca (1942)

2007-07-25T04:09:00.000-07:00

Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart), owner of an upscale club called "Rick's Café Américain" in Casablanca, which attracts a mixed clientele of Vichy French and Nazi officials, refugees and thieves. Rick is a bitter and cynical man who professes to be neutral in all matters.

Ugarte (Peter Lorre), arrives in Rick's club with "letters of transit" he obtained by killing two German couriers. The papers allow the bearer to travel freely around German-controlled Europe. They are almost priceless to any of the continual stream of refugees who end up stranded in Casablanca. Ugarte plans to make his fortune by selling them to the highest bidder, who is due to arrive at the club later that night. However, before the exchange can take place, Ugarte is arrested by the local police under the command of Captain Louis Renault (Claude Rains). A corrupt Vichy official, Renault accommodates the Nazis. Unbeknownst to Renault and the Nazis, Ugarte had left the letters with Rick for safekeeping.

At this point, the reason for Rick's bitterness re-enters his life. His ex-lover, Ilsa Lund (Ingrid Bergman), arrives with her husband Victor Laszlo (Paul Henreid) to purchase the letters. Laszlo is a renowned Czech Resistance leader who has escaped from a Nazi concentration camp. They must have the letters to escape to America to continue his work. At the time Ilsa first met and fell in love with Rick in Paris, she believed her husband had been killed while in captivity. When she discovered that he was in fact still alive, she left Rick abruptly without explanation and returned to Laszlo, leaving Rick feeling betrayed. After the club closes, Ilsa returns to try to explain, but Rick is drunk and bitterly refuses to listen.

The next night, Laszlo, suspecting Rick of having the letters, speaks with him privately about obtaining them, but they are interrupted when a group of Nazi officers, led by Major Strasser (Conrad Veidt), begins to sing "Die Wacht am Rhein", a German patriotic song. Infuriated, Laszlo orders the house band to play "La Marseillaise". When the band leader looks to Rick for guidance, he nods his head. Laszlo starts singing, alone at first, then long-suppressed patriotic fervor grips the crowd and everyone joins in, drowning out the Germans. In retaliation, Strasser orders Renault to close the club.

That night, Ilsa confronts Rick in the deserted cafe. When he refuses to give her the documents, she threatens him with a gun, but is unable to shoot, confessing that she still loves him. Rick decides to help Laszlo, leading her to believe that she will stay behind when Laszlo leaves.

Considering Laszlo too dangerous to leave free, Strasser arranges to have him jailed on a minor charge. Rick convinces Renault to release him, promising to set him up for a much more serious crime: possession of the letters. However, Rick doublecrosses Renault, forcing him at gunpoint to assist in the escape. At the last moment, Rick makes Ilsa get on the plane to Lisbon with her husband, telling her that she would regret it if she stayed.

Major Strasser drives up, tipped off by Renault, but Rick shoots him when he tries to intervene. When the police arrive, Renault saves Rick's life. He then recommends that he and Rick leave Casablanca.

Famous Quotations :

Rick: Well, I guess neither one of our stories is very funny. Tell me, who was it you left me for? Was it Lazlo, or were there others in between or... aren't you the kind that tells?

Rick: I stick my neck out for nobody.

Rick: And you never will. But I've got a job to do, too. Where I'm going, you can't follow. What I've got to do, you can't be any part of. Ilsa, I'm no good at being noble, but it doesn't take much to see that the problems of three little people don't amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world. Someday you'll understand that. Now, now... Here's looking at you kid.

Rick: Of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world, she walks into mine.

source : wikipedia | imdb

Gone with The Wind (1939)

2007-07-25T03:59:00.000-07:00

The story opens on a large cotton plantation named Tara in rural Georgia in 1861, on the eve of the American Civil War. Scarlett O'Hara is the eldest of three daughters of Irish immigrant Gerald O’Hara and his wife Ellen. She is seemingly sought after by every young man in the county, except the refined Ashley Wilkes, for whom Scarlett longs. At Twelve Oaks, she notices she is being admired by a handsome but roguish visitor, Rhett Butler, who had been disowned by his Charleston family.

When Scarlett is alone with Ashley, she confesses her love for him. He admits he finds Scarlett attractive, but says that he and the gentle Melanie are more compatible. Scarlett and Melanie attend a charity ball in Atlanta, where Rhett makes a surprise appearance. While they dance, Rhett tells her of his intention to win her, which she says will never happen.

With the war's end, Ashley returns from being a prisoner of war. When Scarlett begs him to run away with her, he confesses his desire for her and kisses her passionately, but says he cannot leave Melanie.

Rhett visits Scarlett and proposes marriage. They have a daughter named Bonnie. Young Bonnie, as impulsive as her grandfather, dies in a fall from her pony when she attempts to jump a fence. Scarlett and Rhett are devastated and exchange recriminations over her death. Melanie visits to comfort them, but then collapses in labor from a pregnancy she was warned could kill her. On her death bed, she asks Scarlett to look after Ashley for her, as Scarlett had looked after her for Ashley. With her dying breath, Melanie also tells Scarlett to be kind to Rhett, that he loves her. Outside, Ashley collapses in tears, helpless without his wife. Only then does Scarlett realize that she never could have meant anything to him, and that she had loved something that never really existed.

She runs home to find Rhett packing to leave her, saying it is too late to salvage their marriage. She begs him not to leave, telling him she realizes now that she had loved him all along, that she never really loved Ashley. Rhett tells her that as long as there was Bonnie, whom he could spoil and love unconditionally, as he wished he could with Scarlett, there was a chance that they could have been happy, but now that chance was gone.

As Rhett walks out the door, she begs him, but Rhett turns away. She sits on her stairs and weeps in despair. She then recalls the voice of her father Gerald that land's the only thing that matters and the only thing that lasts. Hope lights Scarlett's face and in the final scene, Scarlett stands once more, resolute, before Tara.

Famous Quotations :

[last lines]
Scarlett: Tara! Home. I'll go home. And I'll think of some way to get him back. After all... tomorrow is another day.

Scarlett: Sir, you are no gentleman.
Rhett Butler: And you, Miss, are no lady.

Scarlett: Rhett, Rhett... Rhett, if you go, where shall I go? What shall I do?
Rhett Butler: Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn.

Source : wikipedia | imdb

The Apartment (1960)

2007-07-24T23:05:00.000-07:00

C. C. Baxter (Jack Lemmon), a lonely office drone for an insurance company in New York City. Four different company managers take turns commandeering his apartment, which is situated West 67th Street on the Upper West Side, for their various extramarital liaisons. Unhappy with the situation, but unwilling to challenge them directly, he juggles their conflicting demands while hoping to catch the eye of fetching elevator operator Miss Kubelik. Meanwhile the neighbors, a medical doctor and his wife, assume Baxter is a "good time Charlie" who gets a different woman drunk every night. Baxter accepts their criticism rather than reveal the truth.

The four managers write glowing reports about Baxter. The reports are a little too glowing. Personnel director Mr. Sheldrake, played by MacMurray, suspects something illicit behind the praise. Mr. Sheldrake lets Baxter's promotion go unchallenged on condition that Baxter's apartment accept a fifth regular customer. Still delighted about the promotion, Baxter asks Miss Kubelik to a Broadway show. She agrees, then stands him up. On Christmas Eve, Baxter is astounded to come home and find her in his bed, fully clothed, and overdosed on sleeping pills. Mr. Sheldrake had borrowed the apartment for the evening.

Baxter and his neighbor the doctor keep her alive and safe without notifying the authorities. She explains that she had an affair with Mr. Sheldrake the previous summer, ended it when his wife returned from vacation, and caved in to his appeals and promises later in the fall. When Sheldrake offered her money instead of a Christmas present she realized the ugliness of the situation and tried to commit suicide. The act shows a startling side of her usually sunny personality. Baxter tries to comfort her with assurances of Sheldrake's concern even though Sheldrake refuses to speak to her on the telephone.

Kubelik recuperates in Baxter's apartment for two days, long enough for her taxi driver brother-in-law to assume the worst of Baxter and come to blows. Sheldrake's catty secretary, one of his former mistresses, "educates" Mrs. Sheldrake. Faced with divorce, Sheldrake moves into a room at his athletic club and continues to string Fran along while he enjoys his newfound bachelorhood. Baxter finally takes a stand when Sheldrake demands the apartment for New Year's Eve, which results in Baxter quitting the firm. Kubelik realizes that Baxter is the man who truly loves her and leaves Sheldrake on New Year's Eve to be with him that evening and runs to him. They end as two misfits, both out of a job, playing a game of gin rummy.

Famous Quotations :

Fran Kubelik: Would you mind opening the window?
C.C. Baxter: Now don't go getting any ideas, Miss Kubelik.
Fran Kubelik: I just want some fresh air.
C.C. Baxter: It's only one story down. The best you can do is break a leg.
Fran Kubelik: So they'll shoot me - like a horse.
C.C. Baxter: Please, Miss Kubelik, you got to promise me you won't do anything foolish.
Fran Kubelik: Who'd care?
C.C. Baxter: I would.
Fran Kubelik: Why can't I ever fall in love with someone nice like you?

C.C. Baxter: Ya know, I used to live like Robinson Crusoe. I mean shipwrecked among 8 million people. And then one day I saw a footprint in the sand and there you were.

C.C. Baxter: You hear what I said, Miss Kubelik? I absolutely adore you.
Fran Kubelik: Shut up and deal.

source : wikipedia | imdb

Patton (1970)

2007-07-24T22:40:00.000-07:00

The film documents the story of General George S. Patton (George C. Scott) during World War II, beginning with his taking charge of demoralized American forces in North Africa after the disastrous Battle of the Kasserine Pass. He participates in the invasion of Sicily and races against the equally egotistical British General Montgomery to capture the Sicilian port of Messina. After he beats Montgomery into the city, he is relieved of command for slapping a shell-shocked soldier in an Army hospital. This incident, along with his tendency to speak his mind to the press, get the general in trouble with Washington and he is sidelined from the Invasion of Normandy. Later, he begs his former subordinate, General Omar Bradley (Karl Malden), for a command before the war ends. He is given the U.S. Third Army, and distinguishes himself by sweeping across France and later relieving the vital town of Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge. Later, Patton smashes through the German "West Wall" and drives into Germany itself.

Some of Patton's more controversial actions, e.g., his remarks following the fall of Germany, casually comparing many average Nazis to American Republicans and Democrats, and remarking that America and Great Britain would dominate the post-war world to a crowd of British people, which the press found insulting to the Russians. He also believed in reincarnation, while remaining a devout Christian. Although he is shown to be a military genius, there's still the darker, more elitist and brutal side of Patton.

Famous Quotations :

Patton: Men, all this stuff you've heard about America not wanting to fight, wanting to stay out of the war, is a lot of horse dung. Americans traditionally love to fight. All real Americans love the sting of battle. When you were kids, you all admired the champion marble shooter, the fastest runner, big league ball players, the toughest boxers. Americans love a winner and will not tolerate a loser. Americans play to win all the time. I wouldn't give a hoot in hell for a man who lost and laughed. That's why Americans have never lost, and will never lose a war... because the very thought of losing is hateful to Americans.

Patton: Now there's another thing I want you to remember. I don't want to get any messages saying that "we are holding our position." We're not holding anything. Let the Hun do that. We are advancing constantly and we're not interested in holding onto anything except the enemy. We're going to hold onto him by the nose and we're going to kick him in the ass. We're going to kick the hell out of him all the time and we're going to go through him like crap through a goose!

Patton: Now I want you to remember that no bastard ever won a war by dying for his country. He won it by making the other poor dumb bastard die for his country.

source: wikipedia | imdb

The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)

2007-07-24T22:27:00.000-07:00

Two prisoners of war are burying a corpse in the graveyard of a Japanese World War II prison camp in southern Burma. One of them, American Navy Commander Shears (William Holden), routinely bribes the guards to ensure he gets sick duty, which allows him to avoid hard labour. A large contingent of British prisoners arrives, marching in defiantly whistling the Colonel Bogey March, under the leadership of Colonel Nicholson (Alec Guinness).

The camp commander, Colonel Saito (Sessue Hayakawa), addresses them, informing them of his rules. He insists that all prisoners, regardless of rank, will work on the construction of a bridge over the Kwai River as part of a railroad that will link all of Burma.

The next morning, when Saito orders everyone to work, Nicholson commands his officers to stand fast. Saito is infuriated and backhands Nicholson in the face, but the latter refuses to back down, even after Saito has a machine gun set up. Saito then orders the officers into a punishment cage and Nicholson into his own box for solitary confinement.

Saito has a deadline; if he should fail to meet it, it would bring him great shame and oblige him to commit seppuku. So Saito reluctantly releases Nicholson. Upon their release, Nicholson and his officers proudly walk through a jubilant reception. Saito for his part breaks down in tears in private.

Having recovered from his ordeal, Nicholson sets off on an inspection and is shocked to find disorganization, shirking and outright sabotage on the construction site. He decides to build a better bridge than the Japanese. He wants to show up his captors and keep his men busy.

Meanwhile, three men, one of them Shears, attempt to escape. After many days in the jungle, Shears stumbles into a Siamese village, whose residents help him get back to his side. Shears is shipped to a British hospital in Colombo, Sri Lanka. While recuperating, he dallies with a lovely nurse.

Major Warden (Jack Hawkins), a member of the British Special Forces, asks to speak with him. He informs Shears that he is leading a small group of commandos on a mission to destroy the bridge. Shears reluctantly "volunteers".

As the camp celebrates the completion of the bridge on time, Shears and Lieutenant Joyce (Geoffrey Horne) wire explosives to it under cover of darkness. The next day, a Japanese train full of soldiers and important officials is scheduled to be the first to use the bridge; Warden wants to blow them both up.

As dawn approaches, Nicholson proudly walks up and down his bridge. As he makes a final inspection, the receding water exposes the wire connected to the explosives, as the train can be heard approaching. He and Saito hurry downstream, pulling up and following the wire towards Joyce. When they get too close, Joyce breaks cover and stabs Saito to death. A firefight erupts.

Recognizing Shears, Nicholson suddenly comes to his senses. Mortally wounded, he stumbles over to the plunger and falls on it, just in time to blow up the bridge and send the train hurtling into the river. His mission accomplished, Warden hobbles back into the jungle, aided by his porters.

Famous quotations :

Major Shears: You make me sick with your heroics! There's a stench of death about you. You carry it in your pack like the plague. Explosives and L-pills - they go well together, don't they? And with you it's just one thing or the other: destroy a bridge or destroy yourself. This is just a game, this war! You and Colonel Nicholson, you're two of a kind, crazy with courage. For what? How to die like a gentleman... how to die by the rules - when the only important thing is how to live like a human being.

Maj. Warden: I belong to a rather rum group called Force 316. Our headquarters is up in the botanical gardens.
Commander Shears: Protecting rare plants from the enemy?

Major Clipton: Madness! Madness!

source : wikipedia | imdb

Midnight Cowboy (1969)

2007-07-24T18:45:00.000-07:00

The film follows the story of a young Texan named Joe Buck (Jon Voight) who dresses like a rodeo cowboy. He heads to New York City in the hope of leading the life of a kept man, or a male hustler. His foolishness and naivete become evident as quickly as his cash disappears. He is soon forced to hustle for a meager living as a "midnight cowboy" with a clientele that is the opposite of the wealthy women he had originally set out to attract.

He meets the lame, scraggly Enrico "Ratso" Rizzo (Dustin Hoffman), who first cons him out of 20 dollars; after they cross paths a second time, however, they begin a partnership, with Ratso working as Buck's "manager". Over the course of the rest of the film, the two live in an abandoned building, dealing with the realities of all-but-homeless street life. Though this existence is suspended briefly by a foray into a Warhol-esque party scene (with some of the Warhol superstars in cameo appearances), even here, when Joe leaves with a woman from the party, he suffers from temporary impotence.

Joe and Ratso form a friendship, none too soon for Ratso, who becomes increasingly dependent on Joe as mounting health problems (probably including tuberculosis) begin to take their toll on him. Joe wants to take Ratso to a doctor, but he spurns the offer, not wanting to end up in Bellevue Hospital or someplace worse; instead, Ratso dreams of leaving New York for Florida before winter comes.

The events of Joe Buck's life are told in mostly chronological order, interspersed by flashbacks or daydream sequences which hint at his back-story. We learn that one of the two people Joe cared about was his grandmother Sally, who raised him in a troubling atmosphere: it is implied that Joe was abandoned by his mother; that Sally had some sort of inappropriate relationship with Joe; and that Sally died without leaving word for him while he was away serving in the Army. The other person Joe cared about was his onetime girlfriend, apparently his one true love - a promiscuous girl called Crazy Annie. One night (or perhaps in a dream), Joe and Annie seem to be having sex in a car, and a group of men burst in, grab Joe and Annie, and take Annie away. It is implied that both she and Joe are raped by the gang, but when police arrive Annie repeats, "He's the only one," seemingly telling them that Joe was her sole rapist - perhaps another betrayal. Annie seems to have psychological problems, but it is not clear whether they are a cause or effect of her relationship with Joe. Joe is forever haunted by memories of her. Losing Sally and Annie has left Joe completely alone in the world.

Rizzo's story comes mostly through things he tells Joe; his father was an illiterate shoe shiner who worked at a subway station. Ratso learned shining from his father, but he refused to follow in the old man's footsteps.

Ultimately, as winter sets in, Ratso collapses, unable to walk at all. Joe beats and robs a customer to raise the money to take them to Florida, where Ratso can hopefully recover in the warm weather and Joe can find honest work. They leave on a southbound bus, with Joe discarding his cowboy clothes en route. Ratso dies as they approach Miami, and Joe is left alone once more, wary of the future.

Famous Quotations :

Ratso Rizzo: Excuse my vulgarity.

Joe Buck: It just ain't right cheatin' from a pregnant lady.

Joe Buck: John Wayne! Are you tryin' to tell me he's a fag?

Joe Buck: Uh, well, sir, I ain't a f'real cowboy. But I am one helluva stud!

Source : wikipedia | imdb

Mutiny on The Bounty (1935)

2007-07-24T18:34:00.000-07:00

The movie chronicles the real-life mutiny aboard the HMAV Bounty led by Fletcher Christian against the ship's captain, William Bligh. Like the novel, it portrays Captain Bligh as an abusive villain whose cruelty towards the crew and most of the officers lead Christian to mutiny. It contains scenes of the trials of those who had been put off the ship on the launch. It also deals with the aftermath.

The Bounty sails from Britain for Tahiti to obtain a cargo of breadfruit plants. Captain Bligh is in charge and he over-zealously enforces discipline by various methods, his favorite being flogging. Bligh cuts rations and works his men so hard that even first mate Fletcher Christian finds him hard to comprehend.

In Tahiti, Christian and good friend midshipman Byam become involved with native women Maimiti and Tehanni. Tahiti is paradise compared to life on the Bounty under Bligh. When the Bounty is loaded and sets sail to return, the harsh treatment by their Captain is too much for the crew and Christian leads a mutiny.

They set Bligh and his supporters adrift on a boat and return the Bounty to Tahiti. What they did not count on is the Captain's return.

Famous Quotations :

Captain William Bligh: Can you understand this, Mr. Byam? Discipline is the thing. A seaman's a seaman. A captain's a captain. And a midshipman, Sir Joseph or no Sir Joseph, is the lowest form of animal life in the British Navy.

Captain William Bligh: I'll live to see you - all of you - hung from the highest yardarm in the British fleet.

Lt. Fletcher Christian: He doesn't punish men for discipline. He likes to see men crawl.

Lt. Fletcher Christian: When you're back in England with the fleet again, you'll hear the hue and cry against me. From now on they'll spell mutiny with my name.

Source : wikipedia | imdb1 | imdb2

Annie Hall (1977)

2007-07-24T17:13:00.000-07:00

Allen plays Alvy Singer, a comedian obsessed with death, attempting to maintain a relationship with the ditzy but exuberant title character (played by Diane Keaton). The film chronicles their relationship over several years, intercut with various fantasy trips into each other's history (Annie is able to "see" Alvy's family when Alvy was only a child, and likewise Alvy observes Annie's past sexual relationships). In the flashbacks showing Alvy as a child, we learn that Alvy Singer grew up in Brooklyn. His father operated a bumper cars concession. He claims the family home was located below a rollercoaster on Coney Island.

After several years, many arguments and many reconciliations, the two realize they are fundamentally different and split up. Annie moves in with a Hollywood record company executive (played by Paul Simon of Simon and Garfunkel). Alvy eventually realizes he still loves her and tries to convince her to return with him to New York. He fails and, resignedly, returns home to write a drama about their relationship. Later, after they are able to meet on good terms as friends, Alvy ends the film by musing about how love and relationships are something we all require despite their often painful and complex nature.

[Alvy Singer does a stand-up comic act for a college audience]
Alvy Singer: I was thrown out of N.Y.U. my freshman year for cheating on my metaphysics final, you know. I looked within the soul of the boy sitting next to me. When I was thrown out, my mother, who was an emotionally high-strung woman, locked herself in the bathroom and took an overdose of Mah-Jongg tiles. I was depressed at that time. I was in analysis. I was suicidal as a matter of fact and would have killed myself, but I was in analysis with a strict Freudian, and, if you kill yourself, they make you pay for the sessions you miss.

[Alvy confronts Annie about having an affair]
Alvy Singer: Well, I didn't start out spying. I thought I'd surprise you. Pick you up after school.
Annie Hall: Yeah, but you wanted to keep the relationship flexible. Remember, it's your phrase.
Alvy Singer: Oh stop it, you're having an affair with your college professor, that jerk that teaches that incredible crap course, Contemporary Crisis in Western Man...
Annie Hall: Existential Motifs in Russian Literature. You're really close.
Alvy Singer: What's the difference? It's all mental masturbation.
Annie Hall: Oh, well, now we're finally getting to a subject you know something about.
Alvy Singer: Hey, don't knock masturbation. It's sex with someone I love.
Annie Hall: We're not having an affair. He's married. He just happens to think I'm neat.
Alvy Singer: "Neat." What are you, 12 years old? That's one of your Chippewa Falls expressions.
Annie Hall: Who cares? Who cares?
Alvy Singer: Next thing you know, he'll find you keen and peachy, you know. Next thing you know, he's got his hand on your ass.
Annie Hall: You've always had hostility towards David, ever since I mentioned him.
Alvy Singer: Dav - you call your teacher David?
Annie Hall: It's his name.
Alvy Singer: It's a Biblical name, right? What does he call you, Bathsheba?

Alvy Singer: I feel that life is divided into the horrible and the miserable. That's the two categories. The horrible are like, I don't know, terminal cases, you know, and blind people, crippled. I don't know how they get through life. It's amazing to me. And the miserable is everyone else. So you should be thankful that you're miserable, because that's very lucky, to be miserable.

Alvy Singer: A relationship, I think, is like a shark. You know? It has to constantly move forward or it dies. And I think what we got on our hands is a dead shark.

Alvy Singer: Love is too weak a word for what I feel - I luuurve you, you know, I loave you, I luff you, two F's, yes I have to invent, of course I - I do, don't you think I do?

[last lines]
Alvy Singer: [narrating] After that it got pretty late, and we both had to go, but it was great seeing Annie again. I... I realized what a terrific person she was, and... and how much fun it was just knowing her; and I... I, I thought of that old joke, y'know, the, this... this guy goes to a psychiatrist and says, "Doc, uh, my brother's crazy; he thinks he's a chicken." And, uh, the doctor says, "Well, why don't you turn him in?" The guy says, "I would, but I need the eggs." Well, I guess that's pretty much now how I feel about relationships; y'know, they're totally irrational, and crazy, and absurd, and... but, uh, I guess we keep goin' through it because, uh, most of us... need the eggs.

Source : wikipedia | imdb

Lawrence of Arabia (1962)

2007-07-24T02:56:00.000-07:00

Lawrence (O'Toole) riding his motorcycle down a narrow English country road, only to be killed when he tries to avoid a collision with a couple of bicyclists. His funeral is staged at St. Paul's Cathedral. Reporters try to gain insights into this remarkable, but enigmatic man, from people who knew him but with little success.

The movie then flashes back to Cairo during World War I, where Lawrence is a misfit British lieutenant, notable only for his insolence and knowledge of the Bedouin. Over the objections of a sceptical General Murray (Donald Wolfit), he is sent by Mr. Dryden (Claude Rains) of the Arab Bureau to assess the prospects of Prince Feisal (Alec Guinness) in his revolt against the Turks, allies of the Germans.

On his journey, his Bedouin guide is killed by Sherif Ali (Omar Sharif) for drinking from his well without permission. Just outside Faisal's camp, he encounters his superior officer, Colonel Brighton (Anthony Quayle), who orders him to keep quiet, make his assessment and then leave. He promptly ignores these commands when he meets Feisal. His fine intellect and outspokeness piques the prince's interest.

Brighton advises the Arab leader to retreat after a major defeat, but Lawrence proposes an alternative, an attack on Aqaba. If taken, the town would provide a port from which the British could offload much-needed supplies for the rebellion, but it is too strongly guarded against a naval assault. However, Lawrence proposes an assault on the lightly-defended landward side. He convinces Faisal to provide fifty men on camels, led by Sherif Ali. As they prepare to leave, two teenage orphan boys, Daud (John Dimech) and Farraj (Michel Ray), attach themselves to Lawrence as his servants. They cross the Nefud Desert, considered impassable even by the Bedouins, travelling day and night on the last stage to reach water. Gasim (I. S. Johar) succumbs to fatigue and falls off his camel unnoticed during the night. The rest make it to an oasis, but Lawrence turns back for the lost man, risking his own life. When he successfully rescues Gasim, the Bedouins are convinced he enjoys the favor of Allah.

Having crossed the desert, Lawrence meets with Auda abu Tayi (Anthony Quinn), the leader of the powerful local Howeitat tribe, and convinces him to turn against the Turks. Lawrence's plans are almost derailed when one of Ali's men kills one of Auda's because of a blood feud. Since no Howeitat can retaliate without angering Ali's followers, Lawrence declares that he will execute the murderer himself. He is stunned to discover that the culprit is Gasim, the man whose life he had saved, but he shoots him regardless. The intact alliance then sweeps into Aqaba and captures it in a surprise attack. Auda is less than pleased though, as the Turkish money captured there is all in paper form, not gold as Lawrence had claimed.

Lawrence heads to Cairo, to inform Dryden and the new commanding general, General Allenby (Jack Hawkins), of his victory. Crossing the Sinai Desert, his servant Daud dies when he stumbles into quicksand. Upon his return, Lawrence is promoted two ranks to major and given arms and money to support the Arabs. He asks Allenby whether the Arabs' suspicions have any basis, that the British have designs on Arabia after the Turks are driven out; the general says at first that he's not a politician, then, when pressed, that they don't.

Lawrence launches a guerrilla war, blowing up trains and harassing the Turks at every turn. American war correspondent Jackson Bentley (Arthur Kennedy) makes him world famous by publicizing his exploits. With winter approaching, many of the tribesmen go home for the year, leaving fewer and fewer die-hard supporters to continue fighting. On one raid, Farraj is badly injured when the detonator he is carrying blows up prematurely. Unwilling to leave him for the Turks to torture, Lawrence is forced to shoot him before fleeing.

Down to twenty men, he scouts the enemy-held city of Daraa with Ali, but is taken, along with several Arabs, to the decadent Turkish Bey (Jose Ferrer). After striking the Bey after he is covetously eyed and prodded, he is severely beaten and then thrown out into the street. Though the matter is controversial, historians and biographers (including Lawrence's authorized biographer, Jeremy Wilson) say that the rape implied by Seven Pillars of Wisdom and other sources is also implied in the film.[1] Traumatized by the experience, he abandons the fight and makes a futile attempt to return to ordinary life.

In Jerusalem, Allenby convinces him to go back to the fighting, to support his "big push" on Damascus, but Lawrence is a changed, tormented man. Now reveling in the killing, he orders "No prisoners!", resulting in the slaughter of the retreating Turkish soldiers at Tafas. Many in the army he gathers together are motivated by money, rather than the Arab cause. Even so, they take Damascus before Allenby.

The Arabs set up a council to administer the city, but they are tribesmen, not a nation. Unable to maintain the electricity, telephones and waterworks, and clashing constantly with each other, they soon abandon most of Damascus to the British. Lawrence is promoted to colonel, then sent home, his usefulness at an end. The negotiations are left to Faisal and the British and French diplomats.

Famous Quotations :

Sherif Ali: There is the railway. And that is the desert. From here until we reach the other side, no water but what we carry with us. For the camels, no water at all. If the camels die, we die. And in twenty days they will start to die.
T.E. Lawrence: There's no time to waste, then, is there?

Club Secretary: I say, Lawrence. You are a clown!
T.E. Lawrence: We can't all be lion tamers.

T.E. Lawrence: I killed two people. One was... yesterday? He was just a boy and I led him into quicksand. The other was... well, before Aqaba. I had to execute him with my pistol, and there was something about it that I didn't like.
General Allenby: That's to be expected.
T.E. Lawrence: No, something else.
General Allenby: Well, then let it be a lesson.
T.E. Lawrence: No... something else.
General Allenby: What then?
T.E. Lawrence: I enjoyed it.

General Murray: I can't make out whether you're a bloody madman or just half-witted.
T.E. Lawrence: I have the same problem, sir.

T.E. Lawrence: I pray that I may never see the desert again. Hear me, God.

source : wikipedia | imdb

Kramer vs Kramer (1970)

2007-07-24T02:47:00.000-07:00

Joanna Kramer (Meryl Streep), a Smith College graduate, is a stay-at-home mother for her son Billy (Justin Henry). Feeling confined in this role, and neglected by her husband Ted (Dustin Hoffman), Joanna leaves the marriage in order "to find herself."

Ted, who has been focusing on his career in advertising, and was just given his agency's biggest new account, is shocked by Joanna's decision and is left to raise Billy by himself. With the help of his neighbor and Joanna's friend, Margaret (Jane Alexander), Ted comes to understand why Joanna left. In the process, he also becomes more invested in raising Billy than in his job (which he eventually loses).

About a year and a half after leaving, Joanna returns to New York in order to claim Billy, and a custody battle ensues. The courts side with the mother, but on the morning that Billy is to move in with Joanna, she comes to the apartment and tells Ted that, while she loves Billy and wants him with her, she knows that his true home is with Ted, and she chooses to let Billy stay with his father. The movie ends with the elevator doors closing on Joanna, as she heads upstairs to tell Billy that he'll be staying with Daddy.

Famous Quotations :

Billy Kramer: Who's gonna read me my bedtime stories?
Ted Kramer: Mommy will.
Billy Kramer: You're not gonna kiss me good night anymore, are you, Dad?
Ted Kramer: No, I won't be able to do that. But, you know, I get to visit. It's gonna be ok, really.
Billy Kramer: [crying] If I don't like it, can I come home?
Ted Kramer: What do you mean if you don't like it? You're gonna have a great time with Mommy. Really. She loves you so much.
Billy Kramer: Dad? Don't forget, once, if you can just call me up, okay?
Ted Kramer: We're gonna be okay. Come on, let's go get some ice cream.

[Joanna is crying]
Ted Kramer: Hi, what's up? Tell me. What? What's the matter?
Joanna Kramer: I woke up this morning, kept thinking about Billy and I was thinking about him waking up in his room with his little clouds all around that I painted and I thought I should have painted clouds downtown because then he would think that he was waking up at home. I came here to take my son home. And I realized he already is home.

[Joanna is leaving Ted]
Ted Kramer: Come on now, what about Billy?
Joanna Kramer: I'm not taking him with me. I'm no good for him. I'm terrible with him. I have no patience. He's better off without me.
Ted Kramer: Joanna, please.
Joanna Kramer: And I don't love you anymore.
Ted Kramer: Where are you going?
Joanna Kramer: I don't know.

Source : wikipedia | imdb

From Here to Eternity (1953)

2007-07-24T02:20:00.000-07:00

From Here to Eternity is based on the novel by James Jones in which characters work through ordinary bouts of intimidation and infidelity on a military base in the days preceding the attack on Pearl Harbor. The rather explicit novel had to be considerably toned down to appease the censors of the time.

It's 1941. Robert E. Lee Prewitt has requested Army transfer and has ended up at Schofield in Hawaii. His new captain, Dana Holmes, has heard of his boxing prowess and is keen to get him to represent the company. However, 'Prew' is adamant that he doesn't box anymore, so Captain Holmes gets his subordinates to make his life a living hell. Meanwhile Sergeant Warden starts seeing the captain's wife, who has a history of seeking external relief from a troubled marriage.

Prew's friend Maggio has a few altercations with the sadistic stockade Sergeant 'Fatso' Judson, and Prew begins falling in love with social club employee Lorene. Unbeknownst to anyone, the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor looms in the distance.

Famous quotations :

[Warden brings papers to Holmes' house for his signature, knowing that only his wife would be there.]
Karen Holmes: Are these really important?
Sergeant Milton Warden: Yes, but not important they get signed today. Tomorrow's okay.
[She rips them up.]
Sergeant Milton Warden: I have copies at the office, so it won't be much work to fix 'em up.
Karen Holmes: That's what I like about you, Sergeant: you have confidence. It's also what I dislike about you.
Sergeant Milton Warden: It's not confidence, ma'am; it's honesty. I just hate to see a beautiful woman going all to waste.
Karen Holmes: Waste, did you say? There's a subject I might tell you something about. I know several kinds of waste, Sergeant. You're probably not even remotely aware of some of them. Would you like to hear? For instance, what about the house without a child? There's one sort for you. Then there's another... You're doing fine, Sergeant. My husband's off somewhere, and it's raining outside, and we're both drinking now. You've probably only got one thing wrong. The lady herself. The lady's not what she seems. She's a... washout, if you know what I mean... and I'm sure you know what I mean!
Sergeant Milton Warden: You going to cry?
Karen Holmes: Not if I can help it. What are you doing?
Sergeant Milton Warden: I'm leaving. Isn't that what you want?
Karen Holmes: I don't know, Sergeant. I don't know.
[He kisses her.]

Source : wikipedia | imdb1 | imdb2

Gigi (1958)

2007-07-24T02:11:00.000-07:00

In turn-of-the-century Paris, Gaston Lachaille (Louis Jourdan) is a rich bon vivant, much like his uncle, Honoré (Maurice Chevalier). But Gaston is becoming bored with the high life, and his series of mistresses. He only truly enjoys the time that he spends with one of his uncle's old friends, Madame Alvarez (Hermione Gingold), and especially her granddaughter, the precocious, carefree Gilberte, or "Gigi" (Leslie Caron).

Madame Alvarez sends Gigi to her Aunt Alicia's (Isabel Jeans) to be groomed as a famous courtesan, and there she learns etiquette and charm. During these preparations, it occurs to Gaston that he could become Gigi's first patron, providing her with luxury as his mistress. However, the situation makes him uneasy until he discovers that he's in love with Gigi, whom he eventually marries.

I enjoy this movie because some great songs.

Famous Quotation :

Aunt Alicia: Bad table manners, my dear Gigi, have broken up more housholds than infidelity.

Gaston: The only people who make love all the time are liars.

Aunt Alicia: Liane d'Exelmans has commited suicide... again!

Gaston: Madame, will you do me the honor... the favor... give me the infinite joy of bestowing on me... Gigi's hand in marriage?
Madame Alvarez: Thank heaven.

Source : Wikipedia | imdb

Ben Hur (1959)

2007-07-24T01:52:00.000-07:00

Juda Ben-Hur is a rich merchant in Jerusalem at the beginning of the 1st century. Preceding the arrival of a new governor, Ben-Hur's childhood friend Messala arrives as military commanding officer of the Roman legions. At first Ben-Hur and Messala are happy to meet after years apart, but their different political views separate them; During the welcome parade for the governor, a roofing tile falls down from Ben-Hur's house and startles the governor's horse, nearly killing him. Although Messala knows that it was an accident, he sends Ben-Hur to the galleys and throws his mother and sister into prison in order to intimidate the restive Jewish populace by punishing a powerful local family and good friend. He swears to come back and take revenge. En route to the sea, Ben-Hur is denied water when his slave gang arrives at Nazareth. He collapses, having lost the will to live, when an as-yet unknown Jesus Christ gives him water and a motivation to survive.

After three years as a galley slave, the ship to which Ben-Hur is assigned becomes the flagship of Quintus Arrius, sent by the Emperor to destroy a fleet of Macedonian pirates. Ben-Hur's new commander notices his resolve and will to survive, although he declines the offer to transfer to Arrius' gladiatorial team, declaring that God will aid him.

The Roman armada attacks the pirates and Arrius' galley is sunk, but Ben-Hur manages to save the life of Arrius. They are soon rescued and Arrius adopts Ben-Hur as his son. Thus regaining his freedom and wealth, and having learned Roman ways (including becoming an expert charioteer), he eventually returns to Judea. Soon the Arab sheik Ilderin hires Ben-Hur to drive his chariot and Ben-Hur defeats Messala in a chariot race before the governor of Judea, Pontius Pilate. Messala, who attempts to cheat his way to victory, is mortally wounded in the race, but tells Ben-Hur where he can find his mother and sister. Although he has accomplished his goal of revenge on Messala, Ben-Hur's soul remains tormented.

After Ben-Hur sees his mother and sister in the leper colony, Ben-Hur's love interest Esther witnesses the Sermon on the Mount. She tells Ben-Hur about it; they take his mother and sister to see Jesus, but they cannot get near him, as his trial has begun. Ben-Hur attempts to give Jesus water during his march to Calvary, echoing Jesus' kindness to him, but is shoved away by the guards. Ben-Hur witnesses the crucifixion. His mother and sister are healed by a miracle, as are his own heart and soul. He tells his family that as he heard Jesus talk of forgiveness while on the cross.

Famous Quotation :

Balthasar: Pardon me - you are a stranger here. Would you be from Nazareth?
Judah Ben-Hur: Why do you ask?
Balthasar: I thought... you might be the one... the one I have come back from my country to find. He would be about your age.
Judah Ben-Hur: Who?
Balthasar: When I find him, I shall know him.

Judah Ben-Hur: Almost at the moment He died, I heard Him say, "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do."
Esther: Even then.
Judah Ben-Hur: Even then. And I felt His voice take the sword out of my hand.

Source : Wikipedia | imdb

Around The World in Eighty Days (1956)

2007-07-24T01:35:00.000-07:00

Around 1872, an English gentleman Phileas Fogg (David Niven) claims he can circumnavigate the world in eighty days. He makes a £20,000 wager with several skeptical fellow members of his London gentlemen's club.

Together with his resourceful valet, Passepartout (Cantinflas), Fogg sets out on his journey from Paris via balloon. Meanwhile, suspicion grows that Fogg has stolen his £20,000 from the Bank of England. Police Inspector Fix (Robert Newton) is sent out by the bank president (Robert Morley) to arrest Fogg. Hopscotching around the globe, Fogg pauses in Spain, where Passepartout engages in a comic bullfight. In India, Fogg and Passepartout rescue young widow Princess Aouda (Shirley MacLaine) from being forced into committing suicide so that she may join her late husband. The threesome visit Hong Kong, Japan, San Francisco, and the Wild West. Only hours short of winning his wager, Fogg is arrested upon returning to London by the diligent, if misguided Inspector Fix.

Though eventually exonerated of the charges, he has lost everything — except the love of the winsome Aouda. But salvation is at hand when Passepartout realizes that, by crossing the International Date Line they have gained a day. There is still time to reach the Reform Club and win the bet, which he does.

Famous Quotation :

Railway Official: There's still fifty miles of track to be laid between here and Allabahad.
Phileas Fogg: But the London newspapers announced the opening of this railway throughout.
Railway Official: That must have been The Daily Telegraph. Never would have read that in The Times.

Phileas Fogg: An Englishman never jokes about a wager, sir.

Source : wikipedia | imdb

Ordinary People (1980)

2007-07-16T17:10:00.001-07:00

Sebuah keluarga berusaha untuk kembali ke kehidupan mereka yang normal setelah percobaan pembunuhan anak lelaki remaja mereka, Conrad. Conrad baru saja pulang ke rumah setelah tinggal lama di rumah sakit jiwa. Dikucilkan teman dan keluarganya, Conrad mencari bantuan psikater, Dr Berger, yang mengetahui bahwa anak tersebut terlibat dalam kecelakaan saat berlayar yang membunuh kakak laki-lakinya, Buck.

Calvin Jarret, sang ayah, berusaha dengan gagap untuk menjalin hubungan dengan anaknya yang selamat, yang disiksa depresi, rasa bersalah karena selamat dan sakit jiwa akibat stress pasca traumatis. Istri Calvin, Beth tidak membantu sama sekali. Malahan Beth bersikap dingin, egois dan berobsesi untuk menampilkan kesempurnaan dan kenormalan.

Saat Conrad perlahan-lahan sembuh oleh Dr. Berger, tiba-tiba temannya bunuh diri dan membuat dirinya terancam untuk terlempar ke dalam depresi lagi. Semua ada di pundak Calvin untuk menantang Beth tentang penolakannya pada Conrad, dan Dr. Berger harus membantu Conrad untuk mengatasi rasa bersalah dan marah.

Film ini menceritakan tentang bagaimana sebuah keluarga yang berusaha untuk menjadi balik.

Kutipan yang patut diingat:

Beth Jarrett: Calvin? Why are you crying? Can I, uh... can I get you something?
Calvin "Cal" Jarrett: I don't...
Beth Jarrett: What did you say? Calvin, what did you say? Tell me!
Calvin "Cal" Jarrett: You are beautiful. And you are unpredictable. But you're so cautious. You're determined, Beth; but you know something? You're not strong. And I don't know if you're really giving. Tell me something. Do you love me? You really love me?
Beth Jarrett: I feel the way I've always felt about you.
Calvin "Cal" Jarrett: We would have been all right if there hadn't been any mess. But you can't handle mess. You need everything neat and easy. I don't know. Maybe you can't love anybody. It was so much Buck. When Buck died, it was like you buried all your love with him, and I don't understand that, I just don't know, I don't... maybe it wasn't even Buck; maybe it was just you. Maybe, finally, it was the best of you that you buried. But whatever it was... I don't know who you are. I don't know what we've been playing at. So I was crying. Because I don't know if I love you any more. And I don't know what I'm going to do without that.

Calvin "Cal" Jarrett: He just wants to know that you don't hate him.
Beth Jarrett: Hate him! How could I hate him? Mothers don't hate their sons! Is that what he told you? You see how you believe everything he tells you? And you can't do the same for me, you can't! GOD I DON'T KNOW WHAT ANYONE WANTS FROM ME ANYMORE!
Ward: Beth, we don't want anything from you; Audrey, Cal, Connie and Me, we just want you to be happy.
Beth Jarrett: Happy! Ward, you tell me the meaning of happy. But first you better make sure your kids are good and safe, that they haven't fallen of a horse, been hit by a car, or drown in that swimming pool you're so proud of!
Audrey: Oh Beth!
Beth Jarrett: Then, you come and tell me how to be happy!

Karen: Conrad. Let's have a great Christmas. Let's have... a great year. Let's have the best year of our whole lives. We can, you know... this could be the best one ever.

My Fair Lady (1964)

2007-07-16T17:04:00.000-07:00

Henry Higgins (Rex Harrison), seorang professor fonetik yang sombong, membual kepada teman barunya Kolonel Pickering, bahwa dia bisa mengajar wanita manapun untuk bicara dengan baik dan benar sehingga wanita itu bisa disangka sebagai bangsawan. Pickering mengajak Higgins taruhan bahwa dia tidak bisa membuktikan bualannya itu dengan mengajari Eliza Doolittle, seorang wanita muda dengan aksen Cockney yang kental.

Eliza digojlok oleh Henry seperti berbicara dengan kelereng di mulutnya dan mencoba mengucapkan kalimat, "In Hertford, Hereford, Hampshire, hurricanes hardly ever happen."

Higgins pada akhirnya hampir menyerah, namun sebelumnya memutuskan untuk mengubah sikapnya dan memberikan pidato yang indah tentang kecantikan dan sejarah di belakang bahasa Inggris. Eliza akhirnya mengerti dan seketika itu bisa berbicara dengan aksen kelas atas.

Taruhan ini dimenangkan saat Eliza dengan sukses berperan sebagai seorang Lady misterius dengan gelar terhormat di salah satu pesta. Perlakuan Higgins terhadap Eliza sesudah pesta menyebabkan Eliza pergi dari Higgins. Namun, saat Eliza pergi, Higgins baru menyadari bahwa dia sudah terbiasa dengan wajahnya, dan menelan harga dirinya untuk meminta Eliza kembali. Saat pertengkaran, ego Higgins kembali menang dan bekas muridnya menolak dia.

Higgins pulang ke rumah, dan memainkan fonograf tua yang merekam pelajaran Eliza. Pada akhirnya, Higgins merasa gembira, karena Eliza memilih saat itu untuk kembali ke dia.

Gue suka film ini karena Audrey Hepburn begitu cantik dan menawan. Titik.

Kutipan yang patut diingat :

Professor Henry Higgins: You might marry, you know. You see, Eliza, all men are not confirmed old bachelors like myself and the Colonel. Most men are the marrying sort, poor devils. And you're not bad-looking; you're really quite a pleasure to look at sometimes. Not now, of course, when you've been crying, you look like the very devil; but when you're all right, and quite yourself, you're what I would call... attractive.

Professor Henry Higgins: All right, Eliza, say it again.
Eliza Doolittle: The rine in spine sties minely in the pline.
Professor Henry Higgins: [sighs] The *rain* in *Spain* stays *mainly* in the *plain*.
Eliza Doolittle: Didn't ah sy that?
Professor Henry Higgins: No, Eliza, you didn't "sy" that, you didn't even "say" that. Now every night before you get into bed, where you used to say your prayers, I want you to say "The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain" fifty times. You'll get much further with the Lord if you learn not to offend His ears.

Professor Henry Higgins: Shall we ask this baggage to sit down or shall we just throw her out of the window?

Professor Henry Higgins: The question is not whether I've treated you rudely but whether you've ever heard me treat anyone else better.

Eliza Doolittle: *Take* your slippers, and may you NEVER have a day's luck with them!

Eliza Doolittle: There can't be any feeling between the likes of me and the likes of you.

Professor Henry Higgins: The French don't care what they do actually, as long as they pronounce it properly.

Professor Henry Higgins: I've learned something from your idiotic notions, I confess that; humbly and gratefully.

Professor Henry Higgins: By George, Eliza, the streets will be strewn with the bodies of men shooting themselves for your sake before I'm done with you.

It Happened One Night (1934)

2007-07-16T16:58:00.000-07:00

Spoiled heiress Ellie Andrews (Colbert) marries fortune-hunter 'King' Westley (Jameson Thomas) against the wishes of her extremely wealthy father (Walter Connolly). He retrieves his daughter before the marriage can be consummated, but then she runs away, leaping off the side of the family yacht.

She boards a bus, where she meets Peter Warne (Gable), an out-of-work newspaper reporter. He recognizes her and gives her a choice: if she will give him an exclusive on her story, he will help her reunite with King, otherwise he will tell her father where she is and collect the reward. She agrees.

Various adventures follow. One of the most famous happens when they have to hitchhike. Peter claims to be an expert on the subject, but nothing works and eventually, out of frustration, he ends up thumbing his nose at passing cars. The sheltered Ellie then shows him how it's done. She stops the next car dead in its tracks by lifting up her skirt and showing off a shapely leg.

One night, when they are nearing the end of their journey, Peter leaves to make some arrangements. The owners of the auto court in which they are staying see that his car is gone and assume he has left without paying. They roust Ellie out of bed and kick her out. Believing Peter has deserted her, Ellie calls her father, who is so relieved to get her back that he agrees to let her have her way. Ellie has fallen in love with Peter, but she thinks he betrayed her for the reward money, so she agrees to have a second, formal wedding with King. Meanwhile, Peter believes he's the one who's been double-crossed.

Peter gets in touch with Ellie's father to settle up. Mr Andrews offers him the large reward promised, but Peter will have none of it. He just wants to be paid $39.60 for the expenses incurred on the trip. Intrigued, the father badgers the reporter until he gets the truth: Peter loves Ellie (though he thinks he's out of his mind to do so). Peter leaves with the check he asked for.

While walking his daughter down the aisle, Andrews tells her what he has found out and encourages her to run off again; at the last moment, she does. Her father pays off Westley, who agrees to have the marriage annulled, enabling Ellie to marry Peter.

Ellie Andrews menikahi pemburu-harta Westley dan membangkang perintah ayahnya yang kaya. Ayahnya menjemput Ellie sebelum pernikahan, tetapi Ellie kabur dari sisi ayahnya.

Ellie masuk ke bis dan bertemu dengan Peter Warne, seorang jurnalis tanpa kerjaan. Peter mengenali dia, dan memberi dia pilihan, jika dia memberikan dia cerita eksklusif, dia akan menyatukan dia dengan Westley, kalau tidak dia akan memberitahu ayahnya dan mengambil hadiahnya. Ellie setuju.

Berbagai petualangan mereka alami. Suatu malam, merasa telah ditinggalkan Peter, Ellie menelepon ayahnya. Saat itu, Ellie sudah jatuh cinta dengan Peter, tetapi dia merasa dikhianati karena uang hadiah. Sementara itu, Peter percaya bahwa dialah yang telah dikhianati.

Peter menghubungi Tuan Andrews untuk uang hadiah. Tuan Andrews memberi dia hadiah besar seperti yang telah dijanjikan, tetapi Peter tidak mau mengambilnya. Dia hanya ingin dibayar $39.60 untuk biaya perjalanan. Penasaran, Tuan Andrews mendesak reporter tersebut sampai dia tahu kebenarannya. Peter mencintai Ellie, meskipun Peter berpikir bahwa dia sudah gila merasa seperti itu.

Saat mendampingi putrinya ke altar, Tuan Andrews bilang apa yang dia ketahui dan mendorong Ellie untuk kabur lagi. Pada saat terakhir, Ellie kabur.

Sebuah film komedi romantis dengan humor gaya Hollywood tempo dulu.

Kutipan yang patut diingat :

Ellie: Have you ever been in love, Peter?
Peter Warne: Me?
Ellie: Yes. Haven't you ever thought about it at all? It seems to me you, you could make some girl wonderfully happy.
Peter Warne: Sure I've thought about it. Who hasn't? If I could ever meet the right sort of girl. Aw, where you gonna find her? Somebody that's real. Somebody that's alive. They don't come that way anymore. Have I ever thought about it? I've even been sucker enough to make plans. You know, I saw an island in the Pacific once. I've never been able to forget it. That's where I'd like to take her. She'd have to be the sort of a girl who'd... well, who'd jump in the surf with me and love it as much as I did. You know, nights when you and the moon and the water all become one. You feel you're part of something big and marvelous. That's the only place to live... where the stars are so close over your head you feel you could reach up and stir them around. Certainly, I've been thinking about it. Boy, if I could ever find a girl who was hungry for those things...
[she comes around the blanket "Walls of Jericho" and kneels by his bed]
Ellie: Take me with you, Peter. Take me to your island. I want to do all those things you talked about.
Peter Warne: You'd better go back to your bed.
Ellie: I love you. Nothing else matters. We can run away. Everything will take care of itself. Please, Peter, I can't let you out of my life now. I couldn't live without you.
[she cries in his arms]
Peter Warne: [firmly] You'd better go back to your bed.
Ellie: I'm sorry.
[she returns to her bed still crying]

[as he walks Ellie down the aisle, Mr. Andrews talks to her]
Alexander Andrews: You're a sucker to go through with this. That guy Warne is OK. He didn't want the reward. All he asked for was $39.60, what he spent on you. Said it was a matter of principle. You took him for a ride. He loves you, Ellie. He told me so. You don't want to be married to a mug like Westley; I can buy him off for a pot of gold. And you can make an old man happy and you won't do so bad for yourself. If you change your mind, your car's waiting back at the gate.

Alexander Andrews: Oh, er, do you mind if I ask you a question, frankly? Do you love my daughter?
Peter Warne: Any guy that'd fall in love with your daughter ought to have his head examined.
Alexander Andrews: Now that's an evasion!
Peter Warne: She picked herself a perfect running mate - King Westley - the pill of the century! What she needs is a guy that'd take a sock at her once a day, whether it's coming to her or not. If you had half the brains you're supposed to have, you'd done it yourself, long ago.
Alexander Andrews: Do you love her?
Peter Warne: A normal human being couldn't live under the same roof with her without going nutty! She's my idea of nothing!
Alexander Andrews: I asked you a simple question! Do you love her?
Peter Warne: YES! But don't hold that against me, I'm a little screwy myself!

Amadeus (1984)

2007-07-16T16:54:00.000-07:00

Film ini menceritakan tentang Salieri yang sukses dan populer, yang sangat puas dengan kehidupannya dan berdamai dengan penciptanya. Kemudian, Salieri bertemu dengan Mozart. Dia melihat Mozart sedang bermain-main dengan vulgar bersama pacarnya. Sebagai pengagum Mozart, dia merasa dikhianati oleh hidup. Bagaimana musik yang begitu indah ditulis oleh orang barbar seperti ini?

Perlahan-lahan, melalui perlakuan yang memalukan, Salieri menyadari bahwa kemampuannya terbatas dan tanpa inspirasi, apalagi jika dibandingkan dengan Mozart. Salieri tidak mengerti kenapa Tuhan mengkhianati dia. Kenapa Tuhan memberi kemampuan luar biasa kepada Mozart yang penghujat, tapi tidak kepada dirinya yang saleh? Salieri mulai percaya bahwa Tuhan menulis musik indah melalui Mozart untuk menunjukkan kepada Salieri dia itu orang biasa dan menertawainya. Pada akhirnya, Salieri menolak Tuhan.

Salieri berpura-pura berteman dengan Mozart, namun menghancurkan karir Mozart pada saat bersamaan. Mozart pada akhirnya bangkrut meskipun musiknya masih indah. Salieri menyadari bahwa kelemahan Mozart adalah uang dan emosi yang rapuh. Salieri meyakinkan Mozart untuk menulis lagu penguburan (requiem). Salieri akan mencuri lagu ini, membunuh Mozart, dan memainkan lagu ini di kuburan Mozart sambil mengakui lagu ini sebagai karyanya. Salieri berpikir, inilah pembalasan yang setimpal kepada Tuhan.

Kebanyakan bekerja membuat Mozart sakit-sakitan. Salieri berada di samping ranjang Mozart, berusaha mengerti dan mencuri kejeniusan Mozart. Akan tetapi, sia-sia. Mozart malah harus mengajari Salieri agar dia mengerti keseluruhan komposisi musik ciptaan Mozart. Requiem itu tidak pernah selesai karena Mozart tidak lama kemudian meninggal. Rencana Salieri gagal.

Salieri dikirim ke rumah sakit jiwa, di mana di sana dia dihantui tawa Mozart yang seakan menertawai dirinya. Dia mengutuk Tuhan yang lebih suka membunuh Mozart daripada membiarkan Salieri mencuri musiknya. Pada akhirnya, Salieri menganggap bahwa dirinya Santo hal-hal yang medioker, yang tidak pernah mencicipi kesuksesan.

Kadang-kadang kita harus bisa mengakui bahwa di atas langit masih ada langit. Kadang, kita merasa Tuhan tidak adil. Akan tetapi, semua itu adalah bagian dari rencananya yang besar.

Kutipan yang patut diingat :

Salieri: On the page it looked nothing. The beginning simple, almost comic. Just a pulse - bassoons and basset horns - like a rusty squeezebox. Then suddenly - high above it - an oboe, a single note, hanging there unwavering, till a clarinet took over and sweetened it into a phrase of such delight! This was no composition by a performing monkey! This was a music I'd never heard. Filled with such longing, such unfulfillable longing, it had me trembling. It seemed to me that I was hearing a voice of God.

Salieri: While my father prayed earnestly to God to protect commerce, I would offer up secretly the proudest prayer a boy could think of: Lord, make me a great composer. Let me celebrate Your glory through music and be celebrated myself. Make me famous through the world, dear God. Make me immortal. After I die, let people speak my name forever with love for what I wrote. In return, I will give You my chastity, my industry, my deepest humility, every hour of my life, Amen.

Salieri: All I ever wanted was to sing to God. He gave me that desire, like a lust in my body, but then made me mute. Why? Why plant the desire but not the ability. WHY?

Mozart: "Confutatis maledictis" - when the wicked are confounded. "Flammis Acribus Adictis." How would you translate that?
Salieri: Consigned to flames of woe.
Mozart: Do you believe in it?
Salieri: What?
Mozart: A fire which never dies, burning you forever?
Salieri: Oh yes.

Dances With Wolves (1990)

2007-07-11T20:07:00.001-07:00

Seorang Letnan pasukan Union, John J. Dunbar mengendarai kudanya melintasi lapangan pertempuran antara pasukan Union dan Konfederasi untuk bunuh diri. Aksinya ini membuat pasukannya bersemangat dan mereka menyerbu pasukan Konfederasi. Dunbar pun diangkat sebagai pahlawan.

Dunbar meminta transfer ke perbatasan barat. Kemudian dia ditugaskan di Fort Sedgwick yang sudah ditinggalkan, kecuali seekor serigala yang dinamainya Two Socks. Dunbar kemudian bertemu dengan suku Indian Sioux-Lakota dan memutuskan untuk tinggal di desa Sioux. Dia bertemu seorang wanita Amerika bernama Stand With A Fist yang dirawat oleh suku Sioux sejak kecil

Semakin lama, Dunbar semakin tertarik dengan budaya dan adat istiadat Suku Sioux. Dia bahkan dianggap pahlawan setelah dia menemukan kawanan besar kerbau yang menjadi sumber makanan, dan pakaian bagi suku Sioux. Dunbar juga membantu mempertahankan pemukiman saat diserang oleh suku Pawnee. Dunbar menjadi anggota penuh suku Sioux dan mendapat nama Shu-mani-tu-tonka O' Wa-chi atau Dances with Wolves. Dunbar kemudian menikahi Stand with A Fist.

Dunbar akhirnya harus memberitahu bahwa orang kulit putih akan menginvasi tanah mereka, sehingga suku Sioux harus pindah mencari tempat baru. Dunbar juga sadar bahwa dia harus meninggalkan suku Sioux karena kalau tidak mereka akan terus dikejar-kejar oleh pasukan Amerika. Istrinya yang baru pun menemani Dunbar atau Dances With Wolves.

Meskipun Kevin Costner sering kali tidak pintar memilih peran, namun dia layak mendapatkan Oscar untuk segala dedikasinya kepada film ini. Dances with Wolves adalah film yang sarat makna dan sangat menyentuh.

Kutipan yang patut diingat :

John Dunbar: [writing in his diary] If it wasn't for my companion, I believe I'd be having the time of my life.

Wind In His Hair: Dances With Wolves. I am Wind In His Hair. Do you see that I am your friend? Can you see that you will always be my friend?

[Ten Bears shows Dunbar an old Spanish Conquistador's helmet]
Ten Bears: [in Lakota] The white men who wore this came around the time of my grandfather's grandfather. Eventually we drove them out. Then the Mexicans came. But they do not come here any more. In my own time, the Texans. They have been like all the others. They take without asking. But I think you are right. I think they will keep coming. When I think of that, I look at this helmet. I don't know if we are ready for these people. Our country is all that we have, and we will fight to keep it.

Ten Bears: You are the only white man I have ever known. I have thought about you a lot. More than you think. And I understand your concern. But I think you are wrong. The white man the soldiers are looking for no longer exists. Now there is only a Sioux named Dances With Wolves.

Chariots of Fire (1981)

2007-07-11T20:03:00.000-07:00

Orang mungkin sudah lebih sering mendengar soundtrack film ini dibandingkan filmnya sendiri. Gue pribadi juga sama. Baru ngeh, saat meminjam film ini dan pada awal langsung mendengar lagu yang menjadi soundtrack banyak adegan slow motion =D

Film ini berdasarkan pada kisah nyata dua orang atlit Inggris yang berkompetisi di Olimpiade Paris tahun 1924. Harold Abrahams (Ben Cross), seorang Yahudi, yang mengalahkan anti-Semit dan prasangka untuk bertanding melawan "Flying Scotsman", Eric Liddell (Ian Charleson), di lomba 100 meter.

Pada tahun 1919, Abraham memasuki Cambridge University. Dia berhasil memenangkan perlombaan mengelilingi lapangan sebelum jarum jam menunjuk angka 12. Sementara itu, Liddell melihat lari sebagai cara untuk memuliakan Tuhan sebelum menjadi misionaris di Cina.

Liddell mengalahkan Abrahams pada pertemuan pertama mereka. Abrahams tidak bisa menerima kekalahan itu begitu saja, tetapi Sam Mussabini, seorang pelatih profesional menawarinya untuk memperbaiki teknik berlarinya. Meskipun demikian, universitas mengkritik keputusan ini.

Meskipun ditekan Prince of Wales dan komite Olimpiade Inggris, Liddell menolak untuk berlari 100 meter di Olimpiade karena imannya melarangnya berlari di hari Minggu. Liddell diijinkan untuk berkompetisi di lari 400 meter.

Adegan yang paling menyentuh saat Sam Mussabini menunggu di luar stadion dan tidak melihat Abrahams berlari, melainkan hanya menunggu bendera apa yang akan dinaikkan nantinya. Keseluruhan film menceritakan bagaimana kedua orang atlet tersebut mengatasi setiap tantangan untuk menjadi nomer satu.

Kutipan yang perlu diingat :

Eric Liddell: I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast. And when I run I feel His pleasure.

Sybil Gordon: [about running] Do you love it?
Harold M. Abrahams: I'm more of an addict. It's a compulsion with me, a weapon I can use.
Sybil Gordon: Against what?
Harold M. Abrahams: Being Jewish I suppose.
Sybil Gordon: [laughs incredulously] You're not serious! People aren't like that, people don't care. Can it be as bad as all that?
Harold M. Abrahams: You're not Jewish, or you wouldn't have had to ask.

Harold M. Abrahams: That was the miscalculation of my life.

A Beautiful Mind (2001)

2007-07-11T19:18:00.000-07:00

Cerita ini menjadi luar biasa karena menceritakan kisah seorang schizophrenic yang menjadi pemenang nobel. Meskipun banyak sekali yang menyimpang dari cerita aslinya (gue tahu cerita aslinya dari buku dengan judul yang sama), tapi ceritanya sangat menyentuh dan penuh kutipan yang bagus.

John Nash menjadi mahasiswa di Princeton. Dia sekamar dengan Charles, seorang mahasiswa sastra, yang menjadi temannya. Dia juga bertemu group matematikawan dan fisikawan dan menjalin hubungan pertemanan yang aneh dengan mereka.

Setelah menemukan sebuah teori baru di matematika ekonomi, Nash menerima tawaran pekerjaan di MIT. Di tempat inilah, Nash bertemu Alicia dan jatuh cinta kepadanya. Mereka berdua menikah. Saat mereka di Princeton, Nash bertemu dengan Charles dan keponakannya Marcee. Nash juga didatangi William Parcher yang mengaku bekerja di Pentagon. Parcher ingin Nash bekerja untuk memecahkan sandi sebagai bagian dari upaya mengungkapkan misi rahasia Soviet. Akibatnya Nash menjadi paranoid dan bersikap tidak rasional.

Sikap inilah yang menyebabkan temannya suatu hari mengikuti Nash saat meletakkan "kode rahasia" di gedung kosong. Temannya itu akhirnya melaporkan kepada atasan Nash dan Nash dimasukkan ke fasilitas psikiatri. Semua tentang William Parcher adalah ilusi, dan bahkan Charles dan Marcee adalah juga hasil khayalan Nash.

Setelah pengobatan dengan terapi kejutan insulin, Nash dibebaskan dengan tetap diberikan obat-obatan. Saat obat ini mempengaruhi hubungan seks dan otaknya, Nash berhenti meminum obat itu dan akibatnya halusinasinya kembali. Pada suatu ketika, Nash mengabaikan bayinya yang sedang dimandikan sehingga nyaris tenggelam.

Ada di antara pilihan antara paralisis akibat obat atau ditinggalkan istrinya, Nash memutuskan untuk mengabaikan halusinasinya. Pilihan inilah yang dibawanya sampai tua dan sampai saat merebut Nobel di ekonomi untuk karyanya di game theory. Pada adegan terakhir, John melihat Charles, Marcee dan Parcher berdiri dan tersenyum simpul di auditorium. Kemudian dia keluar dari auditorium.

Bagaimana jika yang bermasalah adalah otak kita? Apakah kita bisa memikirkan jalan keluar dan memecahkan masalah itu sendiri? Ataukah kita meminta orang lain berpikir untuk diri kita?

Kutipan yang patut diingat :

Hansen: You scared?
Nash: [sarcastically] Terrified. Mortified. Petrified. Stupefied... by you.

Alicia: How big is the universe?
Nash: Infinite.
Alicia: How do you know?
Nash: I know because all the data indicates it's infinite.
Alicia: But it hasn't been proven yet.
Nash: No.
Alicia: You haven't seen it.
Nash: No.
Alicia: How do you know for sure?
Nash: I don't, I just believe it.
Alicia: It's the same with love I guess.

Nash: Find a truly original idea. It is the only way I will ever distinguish myself. It is the only way I will ever matter.

Nash: I've made the most important discovery of my life. It's only in the mysterious equation of love that any logical reasons can be found. I'm only here tonight because of you. You are the only reason I am... you are all my reasons.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975)

2007-07-10T18:04:00.000-07:00

Jika anda menganggap kegilaan sebagai lambang pemberontakan terhadap otoritas, maka One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest adalah film yang sangat sesuai. Randle Patrick McMurphy (Jack Nicholson) adalah penjahat yang ingin mendapat perlakuan yang lebih baik daripada penjara. Jadi dia berpura-pura gila dan dimasukkan ke Rumah Sakit Jiwa dengan harapan pendapat perlakuan yang lebih baik dan nyaman.

Rumah Sakit Jiwa itu dikelola oleh suster Ratched (Louise Fletcher) yang otoriter. McMurphy berusaha menentang Suster Rached selama waktunya di Rumah Sakit Jiwa lagi. Di RSJ itu McMurphy berteman dengan Billy Bibbit yang gagap gara-gara ditindas suster Ratched dan "Chief" Bromden yang tinggi besar dan penderita schizophrenia.

Pada suatu malam, McMurphy mengadakan pesta bersama pacarnya sebagai kamuflase untuk kabur bersama Chief dari rumah sakit jiwa. Tapi pada saatnya tiba, semua pasien minum-minum dan berpesta, termasuk Billy yang tidur dengan pacar McMurphy setelah mendapat ijin dari McMurphy. Billy setelah itu tiba-tiba tidak gagap lagi.

Keesokan harinya, suster Ratched memerintahkan untuk membersihkan RSJ dan menghitung jumlah pasien. Billy yang sedang telanjang bulat bersama pacar McMurphy diancam oleh suster Ratched untuk dilaporkan ke ibunya. Billy memohon supaya tidak dilaporkan, tetapi suster Ratched bersikeras. Billy akhirnya memilih untuk bunuh diri.

McMurphy marah melihat kejadian itu dan dengan membabi buta mencekik suster Ratched sampai hampir mati. Suster Ratched selamat namun McMurphy harus menerima hukuman - lobotomy.

Chief yang tidak mau meninggalkan McMurphy, membekap temannya yang koma dengan bantal. Dia lalu mengangkat air mancur dari granit yang berat dan melemparkannya ke jendela berteralis dan kabur ke Kanada.

Kutipan yang patut diingat :

McMurphy: I can't take it no more. I gotta get outta here.
Chief Bromden: I can't. I just can't.
McMurphy: It's easier than you think, Chief.
Chief Bromden: For you, maybe. You're a lot bigger than me.

McMurphy: But I tried, didn't I? Goddamnit, at least I did that.

Chicago (2002)

2007-07-09T18:20:00.001-07:00

Chicago adalah film musikal yang berlatar kota, tentu saja, Chicago pada masa jazz sedang populer di kota itu. Ceritanya tentang skandal dan ketenaran, terutama bagaimana cara mempertahankan ketenaran itu.

Velma Kelly (Catherine Zeta-Jones) meningkat ketenarannya saat dia membunuh suami dan adik perempuannya karena perselingkuhan. Roxie Hart (Renee Zellweger) adalah orang biasa yang memimpikan ketenaran dengan menjadi penyanyi. Saat dia membunuh pacarnya, dia dikirim ke penjara dan bertemu dengan Velma Kelly.

Roxie menyewa Billy Flynn (Richard Gere), pengacara terkenal di Chicago, yang berjanji akan mengubah kasusnya menjadi kasus pembunuhan selebritis dan membebaskan Roxie. Velma dan Roxie saling bersaing untuk saling mengalahkan dalam ketenaran. Hal ini menjadi berbalik 180 derajat saat ada pembunuh baru, seorang wanita kaya yang membunuh suami dan kedua simpanannya, bernama Kitty.

Roxie berpura-pura hamil dan menggunakan ide "kriminal yang bertobat" untuk dapat keputusan bebas. Semua berjalan lancar sampai Velma membaca buku harian Roxie di depan pengadilan, buku harian yang tidak pernah ditulis oleh Roxie. Billy dengan omongannya berhasil membebaskan Roxie.

Saat bebas, Roxie menemukan bahwa ketenarannya hilang. Lalu dia mengetahui bahwa Billy menulis buku harian itu dan mengirimkannya ke Velma untuk membebaskan Velma dari hukuman mati. Pada saat demikian, Roxie ditawari Velma untuk tampil di panggung bersamanya. Film ini berakhir dengan keduanya mementaskan tarian dan nyanyian yang membuat mereka menjadi terkenal kembali.

Ketenaran memang bisa datang dan pergi. Jadi untuk apa terlalu serius dipertahankan?

Kutipan yang patut diingat:

Billy Flynn: I don't mean to toot my own horn, but if Jesus Christ lived in Chicago today, and he had come to me and he had five thousand dollars, let's just say things would have turned out differently.

Roxie: They LOVE me.
Billy Flynn: They'd love you a lot more if you were hanged. You know why? Because it would sell more papers... That's Chicago.

Billy Flynn: This trial... the whole world... it's all... show business.

Roxie : Believe us, we could not have done this without you!

All About Eve (1950)

2007-07-09T18:13:00.001-07:00

All About Eve merupakan cerita mengenai bagaimana seseorang dalam masa tua kehidupannya, perlahan-lahan tergeser oleh orang lain yang lebih muda. Margo Channing adalah bintang Broadway yang paling populer. Suatu hari, dia kedatangan Eve yang menyebut dirinya fans terbesar Margo. Perlahan-lahan tapi pasti, Eve berhasil merebut ketenaran Margo dengan rencana yang sudah disusun rapi oleh Eve. Eve berhasil mencuri karir Margo dan bahkan dia berhasil merebut penghargaan Aktris Terbaik.

Pada akhir film, seorang yang mengaku fans terbesar Eve datang kepadanya, dan mengisyaratkan bahwa siklus fans menyingkirkan idolanya, dan mengambil ketenarannya akan berlanjut.

Film ini seperti mengingatkan bahwa ketenaran merupakan hal yang fana. Seseorang bisa menggantikan kamu besok, dan kamu disingkirkan menjadi berita basi. Jangan lupa juga untuk berhati-hati pada fans yang terlalu menggilai kamu.

Kutipan yang patut diingat :

[Margo sedang mabuk di sebuah pesta]
Bill Sampson: Many of your guests have been wondering when they may be permitted to view the body. Where has it been laid out?
Margo Channing: It hasn't been laid out, we haven't finished with the embalming. As a matter of fact, you're looking at it - the remains of Margo Channing, sitting up. It is my last wish to be buried sitting up.

Margo Channing: Funny business, a woman's career, the things you drop on the way up the ladder so you can move faster. You forget you'll need them again when you get back to being a woman. It's one career all females have in common - being a woman. Sooner or later we've got to work at it no matter how many other careers we've had or wanted. And in the last analysis nothing is any good unless you can look up just before dinner or turn around in bed and there he is. Without that you're not a woman. You're something with a French provincial office or a book full of clippings but you're not a woman. Slow curtain, the end.

American Beauty (1999)

2007-05-22T22:54:00.000-07:00

Kalau misalnya melihat film ini, pasti bakalan bergumam dalam hati, "Hum, inilah yang terjadi pada hidup gue sekarang." Hidup yang penuh kecemasan, kurang keakraban, dan seperti meminum pil tidur namun masih terus terbangun.
Tokoh utamanya Lester Burnham (Kevin Spacey) kena krisis paruh baya. Dia merasa telah dianggap sebagai pecundang oleh istri dan anaknya. Carolyn Burnham (Annette Bening) menganggap penting kedudukan dan status, dan mengorbankan kedekatan dengan suami dan anaknya. Lester dan Carolyn terus berpura-pura menikah demi kebaikan anaknya, Jane Burnham (di manakah Thora Birch sekarang?)
Lester tiba-tiba dibangunkan dari keadaan tidak sadarnya oleh dua peristiwa. Yang pertama adalah kemungkinan dipecat dari kerjanya, tanpa uang tapi terbebas dari tanggung jawab. Dan kedua, Angela (Mena Suvari), teman Jane yang cantik, yang membangkitkan gairah yang sudah padam.
Carolyn yang frustasi dengan hubungannya dengan sang suami, berselingkuh dengan orang lain yang tidak memuaskan dirinya.
Jane sendiri menjalin hubungan dengan Ricky (Wes Bentley), tetangganya. Suatu saat, Jane perlahan-lahan menanggalkan bajunya saat Ricky berusaha memfilmkannya dari balik jendela rumahnya. Ricky sendiri juga memiliki masalah dengan ibunya yang menarik diri dari kehidupan dan ayahnya yang eks marinir neo-Nazi pembenci homo. Angela sendiri selalu menceritakan pengalamannya dengan banyak lelaki kepada Jane, termasuk keinginannya bercinta dengan Lester.
Pada saat akhir film kita mengetahui bahwa ayah ricky yang membenci homo itu juga homo (dia berusaha mencium Lester pada sebuah adegan), Angela ternyata masih perawan, dan saat Carolyn hendak membunuh Lester, dirinya terlambat karena Lester sudah keburu dibunuh oleh ayah Ricky.
Temanya sederhana. Mengingatkan kita bahwa begitu banyak keindahan di dunia, saat kita terbangun dari tidur kita.

Kutipan yang patut diingat :

Ricky Fitts : (sambil menonton video tentang tas plastik yang menari ditiup angin) "Sometimes there's so much beauty in the world I feel like I can't take it, like my heart's going to cave in."

Lester Burnham : (monolog terakhir pada film) "I had always heard your entire life flashes in front of your eyes the second before you die. First of all, that one second isn't a second at all, it stretches on forever, like an ocean of time... For me, it was lying on my back at Boy Scout camp, watching falling stars... And yellow leaves, from the maple trees, that lined my street... Or my grandmother's hands, and the way her skin seemed like paper... And the first time I saw my cousin Tony's brand new Firebird... And Janie... And Janie... And... Carolyn. I guess I could be pretty pissed off about what happened to me... but it's hard to stay mad, when there's so much beauty in the world. Sometimes I feel like I'm seeing it all at once, and it's too much, my heart fills up like a balloon that's about to burst... And then I remember to relax, and stop trying to hold on to it, and then it flows through me like rain and I can't feel anything but gratitude for every single moment of my stupid little life... You have no idea what I'm talking about, I'm sure. But don't worry... you will someday. "