Little Women

Little women (2019)

Cast: Saoirse Ronan (Jo March), Emma Watson (Meg March), Florence Pugh (Amy March), Timothée Chalamet (Laurie)

IMDB: 8.2

    This movie is the 2019 adaptation of the book 'Little Women' by Louisa May Alcott. In the opening scene, we see a quote by the writer herself that indicates she has had a gloomy life and 'Little Women' in a way is her way of escaping that reality. It is evident in the movie that happiness is the desired element in everyone's lives and that is exactly what's delivered to us. The main character Jo March is a writer and she lives in a colourful household with the rest of her siblings and her mother. They are all striking girls at a time where girls are only meant to marry well and otherwise they're considered foolish. The movie revolves around the girls' lives, ambitions, struggles and how they're perceived by men and other women while emphasising their uniqueness. It is about how women are strong, interesting, striking beings and they can accomplish things, be strong and love, not when they have to, but when they really do.

    Personal Thoughts: This movie was something special, hence my decision to come back to actually putting a bit of effort into this blog. It inspired me to wake up and write something about it which is a hard thing to do for me these days. I do love feminism as a theme and came across many different ways of approaching the topic. Little Women does this in a very cosy and lovely way that shows how sisters have a special bond and how each of them has ambitions that are considered unrealistic by others but supported by each other. I personally loved the fact that the girls had a world of their own and it attracted others without even trying which is shown in the scenes where Laurie, his tutor and his grandfather often look at the girls admiringly when they're being all lively and care-free. Another thing I would like to touch upon is how love is approached in the movie which was very real in a way. I was one of the people who expected (and really wanted) Laurie and Jo to end up together because their friendship was something special and it was evident how he cared about her and even though it wasn't too clear if she cared about him in the same way, I guess I hoped she would. I think this is how most people feel about these two characters perhaps because it is portrayed so well how Laurie is in love / heartbroken but all these aside, it is also admirable how he gets over it as well. However, if we look into the scenes, it's all about friendship and it is still something admirable to have, maybe even more admirable than romantic love which does fit the theme of the movie. On a side note, even though I liked the movie a lot, I did feel like it was a bit out of the blue when Jo was suddenly into Friedrich and Laurie was into Amy which only feels like an attempt to make a happy ending for all. It is realistic in a way though so I'm not too against it either. It's just that sometimes the book might explain it all whereas since the movie is a compressed version of the book some events have to be shown rather shortly so as a viewer we don't prefer how some things end up being and these two relationships were one of those things in the movie for me. Overall, it's realistic, heartwarming, funny and Timothée Chalamet looks super good so it gets a 9/10 from me.

Update: I read the book and it barely mentions any romance so the movie took a few liberties in that sense

P.S: I feel like Timothée Chalamet is made to be the soft boy in love in every movie with slight alterations in the character but he just does it so well that I don't even care. Also not to be a complete fangirl here but the scene where they were in a meadow was just so good I get how it's nominated for best picture (I'm putting it below)

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Die Mitte der Welt (Centre of My World)

Die Mitte der Welt (Centre of My World): 2016

Cast: Louis Hofmann (Phil), Jannik Schümann (Nicholas), Sabine Timoteo (Glass), Svenja Jung (Kat)

IMDB: 7.2

The movie takes place in the countryside of Germany. It starts by introducing the characters through Phil's point of view. Phil has a routine in his life which includes his mom, sister and best friend Kat. His routine is broken when he returns from the language camp. He finds his mom and sister not speaking to each other for a reason and he falls for a new guy. It's about the complications of relationships and the non-ideal bonds that people form.

Personal Thoughts: The movie was great even if it was about a clishé subject like relationships. The characterisations were really interesting and detailed especially of Glass and Kat. I just really like that his mother's name was Glass which somehow suited her fragile character. It was sort of mysterious what had caused for the relationship of his mother and sister to fall apart and even though his sister had done something horrible, the storytelling of the scene was authentic. I thought the parts where Phil was telling about his childhood were one of the most fascinating parts of the movie. Also, most of the movies are about how people fall in love and everything in their lives become perfect but the fact that all the relationships in this movie were imperfect was what made it undeniably realistic. I think the atmosphere and how people and events were so integrated with nature were also pretty interesting. For example, when Phil first arrived, he found out that a storm had wrecked the whole town just before he realised nothing is perfect anymore in his household which does bring a metaphorical meaning to the storm itself. I also enjoyed the fact that his sister was able to connect to animals which made everything even more supernatural yet not even a bit unrealistic. Similarly, the problem between his mother and his sister was connected to nature. I later on realised that nature symbolised problematic events in their lives. One more thing to add is that Germany was a pretty setting for the scenes since everything was so green and almost disconnected from the rest of the world. Overall, I really liked the symbolism and characterisations in the movie which definitely makes it worth watching.

Oroi (Jitters)

Oroi (Jitters): 2010

Cast: Atli Oskar Fjalarsson (as Gabriel), Hreindis Ylva Garöarsdottir Holm (as Stella), Haraldur Ari Stefansson (as Markus)

IMDB: -

The movie takes place in Iceland, even though it starts from the summer camp experience Markus and Gabriel had together in England. It's mostly about the problems that teens have such as neglection, restriction, falling in love with the wrong person, sexuality confusion etc. It revolves around how Markus and Gabriel fall for each other while also touching upon other characters' lives and problems. The cover, name and trailer make it seem like it's all about Markus and Gabriel but I'd say it's equally about every other character and theme.

Personal Thoughts: First of all, it was a truly flawed movie so watch it at your own risk. It was also kind of hard to find a version with English subtitles so good luck with that. It starts off with Gabriel and Markus's meeting in a summer camp in England. It's understandable for Gabriel to go to a summer camp but Markus's character is nothing like the type that'd study for summer, and he doesn't anyway. The first thing that came to my mind was "Why the hell is he there? It doesn't look like his parents would force him into it either knowing that they're not even once mentioned and he can quit studying just like that without anyone stopping him" Second thing that came to my mind was how random their kiss was. There have been scenes that they were hanging out together, okay, but that doesn't mean they have chemistry or anything. I think they tried to create a love-hate relationship for them but it backfired since even their hate wasn't that passionate. The movie was sort of all over the place in terms of the plot and the characters. The story isn't entirely about Gabriel and Markus's relationship so why the hell did they make it seem that way? It was equally about Stella's family problems, attraction to her gay best friend and suicidal tendencies (which was far more realistic to be honest.) and Greta's search for his father. I felt like they tried to squish a lot of themes together while abandoning each one at a weird point. It was realistic though, I have to agree on that. Also, there was something so dark about the way it was filmed.  If I haven't watched thousands of movies like this, I'd say it was even impressive at some points (definitely not the Markus-Gabriel relationship though) Like Markus went out of his way to go to an expensive summer camp to do nothing and then ended up leaving school and being a hairdresser? I'm still confused about that. Anyway, I think it has a few good points mostly related to Stella's life (and death). Also how her grandmother was so protective on her while crossing the line so much might be something relatable. Her death was dark and it was out of the blue which is how death is sort of like I guess but I would've expected a better performance from Gabriel since he was supposed to be her best friend. I swear the boy doesn't have emotions which is not something you expect from a supposedly lead character who has to be in multiple complicated relationships. The good part of the movie was that it had a different way of portraying things than accustomed which perhaps is because I personally haven't seen many (if any at all) Icelandic movies. It's an okay movie to watch if you're into slightly dark teenage dramas not to mention the two main characters are kinda cute. However, you've been warned...

To the Bone: 2017

Cast: Lily Collins (as Ellen), Keanu Reeves (as Dr. Beckham), Alex Sharp (as Luke)

IMDB: 6.9

To the Bone is about teens who have anorexia nervosa, bulimia and similar eating disorders. Ellen, who is anorexic, is an aspiring artist with a depressive attitude caused by her eating disorder and self image. Her family is separated and has different opinions on her behaviour while no one seems to really listen to what she has to say. We often see Ellen as sarcastic and aggressive. The movie shows the smallest of sparks she has when she meets Luke and how her behaviour changes according to the events in her life. It focuses on the disorder itself  with the slightest hint of dark humour.

Personal Thoughts: It's sort of educative and enlightening and it grabs the attention of teens since it is essentially a teen drama. There were contradictions between people saying that it romanticises the disorder. The thing is, it doesn't really romanticise the disorder itself, at least I didn't feel that way but I can definitely see where those comments are coming from. Lily Collins looked really pretty in the movie and her outfits and character was really impressive. Her character and the way she dresses seem to be all connected with her inner suffering which is caused by anorexia. We often see that she reflects her thoughts to her art. Of course teen girls will find themselves admiring her. But luckily, the movie includes some graphic, realistic images of anorexia. Overall, I liked the movie because it talks about taboo topics that most parents are scared to talk to their kids about. It sort of reminds me of 'the Road Within' which focuses on Tourettes. As a person who has Tourettes, I thought the movie was pretty realistic and reflective. The thing with these kinds of movies is that they focus on children's relationships with parents which is a good point to start off to understand the disorders themselves. I recommend you to watch it, although it's not really something to watch on a girls night or when you're looking for something entertaining.

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X-Men: Days of Future Past

X-Men: 2014

Cast: Hugh Jackman (as Wolverine), Jennifer Lawrence (as Mystique), Michael Fassbender (as Magneto), James McAvoy (as Professor X), Patrick Stewart (as Professor X), Evan Peters (as Quicksilver), Halle Barry (as Storm), Nicholas Hoult (as Beast), Lucas Till (as Havok)

IMDB: 8

Like all the X Men movies, it consists the same team. This time, X Men is trying to prevent a war going on between mutants and humans. Humans have invented gigantic robots that were made by mutant genes so they're unstoppable. X Men send Wolverine back in time to erase their mistakes which was Mystique fighting against humanity.

Personal Thoughts: First of all, it was awesome. I liked how the time shifts were so professional. Everything about the plot was logical. It was also funny at times but mostly, it made me wonder if the war was gonna be prevented or not since Mystique held her guard against all the X Men members. Of course, my favourite character was Quicksilver. Although I quite like Magneto as well. I first watched X Men Apocalypse but this one was as good as the other one, maybe even better in terms of the plot. In comparison, Apocalypse had some nonsense scenes but it didn't make any difference. The movie was quite entertaining no matter what. I recommend everyone to watch this one if they're looking for something entertaining.

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Spiderman Homecoming

Spiderman Homecoming: 2017

Cast: Tom Holland (as Peter Parker), Zendaya (as Michelle), Robert Downey Jr. (as Iron Man)

IMDB: 7.5

Most of us are probably familiar with the original story of Peter Parker. However, the story is a bit altered in this one. Peter Parker is portrayed as a youtuber, high schooler. He wants to be one of the Avengers but isn't taken seriously by Iron Man so he decides to prove himself by helping out with the crimes on the street. It is when he decides to get involved with the big crimes that he gets noticed by the Avengers. Iron Man tries to stop Peter from getting involved and with Peter's insistent personality, it turns into a dare for him to catch the bad guys and become an Avenger.

Personal Thoughts: Like the majority, I had bigger expectations so I  wasn't quite satisfied with the movie. Peter was portrayed as a complete teenager rather than the bigger-looking version of himself that we became used to in the other Spider Man movies. To be honest, I liked Andrew Garfield a lot more than Tom Holland. He kinda looks like he's keeping something in his mouth. (I saw a meme about it) the plot wasn't so complicated so I expected at least a good amount of humour like in other Marvel movies. It can be watched to spend time but I compared to other Spider Man movies, this wasn't the best.

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Palo Alto

Palo Alto: 2013

Cast: James Franco (as Mr. B.), Emma Roberts (as April), Nat Wolff (as Fred), Jack Klimer (as Teddy)

IMDB: 6.3

Palo Alto is a movie about teenage life and choices and where they lead people. It's different than most of the teen movies I watched because it's dark and sad and there's no comedy in it. It just puts out the solid truth of how actions and consequences are tied together. The actions of the characters in Palo Alto represent the confusion of the age and none of them end with happiness unlike what they expected.

Personal Thoughts: First of all, this movie is like Cherrybomb's American version but there aren't that much of partying scenes unlike Cherrybomb. It just reveals the whole truth of teenage years without any judgement. I must say, I didn't quite like the movie but the scenes were visually pleasing just like in Cherrybomb. The outfits of the characters -especially Emma Roberts' famous yellow sweater- were well chosen. I personally value the outfits in the movies. I also think that the atmosphere of the movie, the in-between state, is what we feel most of the time (at least I) so it's perfectly realistic. Maybe that's why I can't say I like it completely because movies are thought to be exceptional life stories which we watch to get out of our boring personal lives. Palo Alto, with its slow story development, wrong choices, hidden emotions, is our lives (mostly teenagers of course). I think if you think enough, you can find bits and pieces of yourself in every character. That's why I'm glad I watched it.

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