Numa sala perto de mim #467

A Pale View of the Hills (2026) is hte adaptation of the beautifully mesmerising 1982 book by Kazuo Ishiguro, which I just could not put down a few months back, but that at the end left me with more questions than answers... too many hanging lines left the reader a lot of room for interpretation. The movie gave me the closure I needed even though there were notable points of departure. 

A beautiful sad story set in 1982 England's countryside, with flashbacks to 1952 Nagasaki. In the earlier period the war is just in the recent past, life is difficult, trauma is ongoing, but hope emerges. In the present, although the war is long gone it left visible scars. The true account of events is too difficult to bare or tell younger generations who have never been through war so the narrative about the past is only loosely based on what actually happened... a pale view of the past.

Numa sala perto e mim #466

Downton Abbey: the grand finale (2025) with all the splash and glamour, of an estate that remains while time and lives pass amid resilience and scandal.

Numa sala perto de mim #465

Sentimental Value (2025) is a story about a house, the past generations that inhabited it, its present fate, two sisters, their absent father that shows up to claim it, and the unsolved matters between them. Very moving.

Coisas bonitas #210

Claudia Cardinale (1938-2025)

Numa sala perto de mim #464

The Room Next Door (2024) tells the story of a terminal patient planning the end of her life and a long time friend who happens to cross her path after many years of detachment. The many questions, the moral dilemma, and especially the cornered position of both characters are striking. But boy how has Pedro Almodóvar evolved!

Numa sala perto de mim #463

All the Long Nights (2024) is set in Japan and focuses two society misfits that help each other so that they are at least able to function and be useful. A beautiful story on the difficult process of learning to live with a severely debilitating condition that is not a disease and for which not all occupations are suitable... finding a way in which to adjust is key, but it's definitely not easy.

Numa sala perto de mim #462

Secret: Untold Story (2024) is a sweet little Korean time-travel story that makes you smile. Cute!

Numa sala perto de mim #461

Flow (2024) shows the journey of a little black cat and a few unlikely friends through a series of events that test their bonds in many ways. A story of courage, unity, and acceptance of the problems they cannot solve. Beautiful imagery.

Numa sala perto de mim #460

Gunjan Saxena: the Kargil girl (2020) is based on the true story of the first woman to participate in war as an air force pilot in India. Women firsts in male-dominated environments, faced pretty difficult workplace battles.

Numa sala perto de mim #459

Hoosiers (1986) is based on a true story from a small town Indiana high school basketball team that against all odds wins the state championship. The recently sad news on the conditions of Gene Hackman's passing, should be what we remember of him. Whichever way we'll die ofdo not represent us... so true.

Numa sala perto de mim #458

Ainda Estou Aqui (2024) retrata a vida no tempo da ditadura militar, época sombria da história brasileira, onde o universal respeito pela propriedade privada ou direitos individuais não existia, e onde os esforços do Estado para anular a oposição oculta resultavam em atrocidades que passavam incólumes interrompendo vidas e projectos sem explicação dada. 

Embora algumas partes sejam difíceis de ver, é importante que hajam filmes como este pelo menos por duas razões (1) lembrar a quem tem a sorte de nunca ter vivido em ditadura aquilo que ela verdadeiramente é, sem dourar a pílula e (2) pela memória dos que pereceram à tortura e cujas vidas não foram esquecidas, bem como daqueles que, não tendo participado em actividades subversivas, sobreviveram às egrégias injustiças do regime, de cabeça erguida.

Numa sala perto de mim #457

Too Big to Fail (2011) tells the story of the late 2008 summer when all hell broke loose in the world financial system shedding light on the interaction between the Secretary of the Treasury (Hank Paulson), the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (Timothy Geithner), the Fed's chairman (Ben Bernanke), financial institutions in danger (Bear Sterns, Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch, AIG), and the various banks forced to contain the damage (Bank of America, JP Morgan, Wells Fargo, etc.). There's no more succinct and clear explanation of the whole thing out there.

Numa sala perto de mim #456

The Count of Monte-Cristo (2024), is the latest adaptation of Alexandre Dumas to the movies (which started with silent films in 1912) and like a good old literature classic it has everything: love, ambition, loss, grief, injustice, hate, adventure, fear, gratitude, revenge, and the possibility of redemption.

Numa sala perto de mim #455

Conclave (2024) is exactly what it says it is: the story of the choice of the new head of the church, in a scenario where modesty, pride, ambition, control, power, and influence do not take the back seat. Though the premise is appealing and the movie well acted and quite gripping of attention, there are too many story lines too fantastic to be believed an unknown cardinal joining the conclave, a terrorist attack, an outside world that is closed to all but not really. Still, very entertaining.

Numa sala perto de mim #454

Waking Ned Devine (1999) tells the story of a tiny village in Ireland, where old Ned Divine is blessed with substantial lottery winnings but dies upon learning the news on tv as he watches the live broadcast of the national lottery extraction. With the lottery official coming to town to confirm Ned's prize, the entire village needs to unite if they want to keep the prize home. A non-trivial cooperation games ensues.

Numa sala perto de mim #453

One Life (2023) is based on the story of Nicholas Winton, a British man who, instead of staying by, took action to make a terrible wrong right. In 1939 he developed strenuous efforts to save refugee Jewish children stranded in occupied Prague... he was able to bring to safety 689 children but all his life he thought of those he could not save.

Numa sala perto de mim #452

The Founder (2016) tells the story of the building of the McDonald's empire, from the operational side with the birth of fast food concept, invented by Richard and Maurice McDonald, and the managerial innovation, invented by Ray Croc which boosted the company from local to national to international heights. The classic example that cut-throat business skills that achieve success are not for everyone.

Numa sala perto de mim #451

Unfrosted (2024) tells the 1960s story of the fierce competition between Kellogg's and Post in the breakfast cereal market. Good to see Jerry Seinfeld in the movies!

Numa sala perto de mim #450

Wicked little letters (2024) the typical scapegoat story where the one who sys it is the one who is it...

Numa sala perto de mim #449

Anatomy of a Fall (2023) starts with the death of a member of a couple of academics who tragically falls from a high window. In the ensuing investigation and court case, it's apparent each of them likes their profession more than the life they built together, to the point that every emerging problem seems an imposition of the other on one's own work. The explanations for the death are plausible from the experts' perspective but uncorroborated by a third party, leaving the court's decision to the balance of probabilities. Which story is more likely is anyone's guess. There are no winners. Excellent acting and directing keeping the tension high for the entire duration of the film (2h32m).