MY TREASURE

 When my children were growing up, I used to read Chopra's books. They always relaxed me and I found time to read them for at least 20 or 30 minutes a day. I felt like I was given a lot of existential answers that I was wondering about. I always told my children; “my books are sacred, no one breaks them, no one scratches them.”At the moment, my son and daughters play with me saying the phrases that I repeated about those books. My father loved to read magazines, books… and my brothers, sisters and I learned the habit of reading from him. When I am reading, I feel like I´m emulating my father. Chopra´s books have been with me for nearly 30 years, they are part of my life. For me, Chopra's books will never "go out of style".

Carmen Calderón.

Unicorns painting

There is a painting at my mom's house which I consider a treasured family possession, this is because it has been with us for many years, is not like over antique but, my mom told that she bought it when my old sister Sandra was a child and nowadays my sister is forty-seven years old.

We have been living in Veracruz, where the painted was acquired, and when we moved to Yucatan, we bring it with us as a valuable painting, the real thing is that it is no expensive object but it has a sentimental value for me. The painting is about an attractive woman sitting by a lake and behind her, there are three stunning gray unicorns in three different stages of growing up. It is a relaxing experience for me to see that paint.

I remember my mom saying that the girl was my old sister Sandra, and the last three unicorns were my brother Angel, mi middle sister Victoria and the last one, I mean me. I consider an incredible idea to be a unicorn, which is a magical creature. Currently, the colors of the painting are disappearing, I should make it repaired because I will always treasure it and I hope to inherit it to the next generations of my family.

"Your Name"

(The set-up is relatively simple: Mitsuha (Mone Kamishiraishi) is a high school-age girl who lives in the fictional Itomori, a gorgeous, quaint village in the Hida region of Japan; Taki (Ryunosuke Kamiki) is a slightly older boy living in Tokyo. They are both average kids with their own social circles, but they have no actual connection, and lead very different lives, at least partially defined by their equally gorgeous settings of city vs. country.)

Mitsuha is the daughter of the mayor of a small town located in Japan, Kyoto, She is a simple girl who studies high school and has a little sister, lives with her grandmother, in this town a rite is very common which they do every year, but she is not interested in that since she dreams of studying in tokyo and leaving her small town aside. On the other hand, Taki is a high school boy who lives in Tokyo, he works part time at a restaurant where he meets a girl he finds attractive, but he is a bit shy and has no intention of telling her.

One day Mitsuha and Taki have a very strange "dream" in which they become the opposite gender, specifically each other. The interesting thing about this film is that Mitsuha and Taki are strangers living separate lives until one day suddenly they started switching places. Mitsuha wakes up in her Taki's body, and he in hers.  This phenomenon happens randomly, and they must adjust their lives around each other. In some way or another, it works. They build a connection by notes leaving for one another until they wish to finally meet. But something stronger than distance may keep them apart.

This type of film is a Romance/touching and a bit of suspense since it makes you excited and wants a relationship like that, Taki's personality is a bit disinterested at first he really doesn't care much about relationships as he is a bit shy and not open minded but through the movie the character develops he has a good overall development; But honestly, the personality that I liked the most and my favorite character was without hesitation mitsuha since she is a girl who at first thought that living in a town was a bad thing and that she did not like that kind of life very much and that makes her a person who wants to improve who does not want to stay in one place like many people usually do and that is what I liked the most about her, in terms of her development she was a work of art

Skilfully directed by Makoto Shinkai, the film comes with a beautiful masterpiece about time, the thread of fate, and the hearts of two young souls. The script is sensitively gripping, touching, and hilarious and the production is amazingly stunning. as Taki, Ryunosuke Kamiki is appealing in his performance and love of Mitsuha. 

However, for me, it's the character of Mitsuha, convincingly acted by Mone Kamishiraishi, who is the most touching of all. In conclusion, for me, Your name was a very interesting and highly recommended film which I'd thoroughly recommend

THE COLLINI CASE

 

THE COLLINI CASE…

 

The film is set in Berlin in 2001. The stars are Elyas M´Barek (Gaspar Leinen), Alexandra María Lara (Johanna Meyer), Franco Nero (Fabrizio Collini), Heiner Lauterbach (Profr. Richard Mattinger) and Manfred Zapatka (Hanns Meyer). It is based on the novel of the same name, written by Ferdinand Von Schirach and it is directed by Marco Kreuzpaintner.

 

All the evidence points toward Fabrizio Collini as the murderer who presents a literally hermetic attitude that doesn´t allow Gaspar to initiate the process of defense in his favour.

Gaspar is intimidated by the Prosecutor,  Professor Mattinger, who taught Gaspar criminal law and offers him a great successful career during the trial in exchange for his client pleading guilty. Collini's defender feels absolutely lost. However, his ethics and professionalism prevail in him. In an interview with his lawyer, finally, Collini asks him a question and gives his recommendations, which move Gaspar and give him a clue for his investigation, leading him to carry out a thorough investigation that provides him with  material to work in the case. The main character, Gaspar, handles the information skilfully and conveniently. At that moment, the trial takes a totally unexpected turn and the clever lawyer starts to balance the process.

 

The film is directed with sensitivity and acuity by Marco Kreuzpaintner, born in 1977 in West Germany. He is a director and writer, and he started directing short films with which he won some awards. The main character reflects an unusual personality, security and confidence in the conviction to do the right thing, which is worthy of admiration in this case.

 

The Collini Case is a very interesting and exceptional as well as unpredictable  film where one gets caught up in the plot. Likewise, the unexpected and moving ending gives a different touch to the film.  For all the above, I widely recommend it.

 

 

The Perfect Game.

The Perfect Game is set in Monterrey, Mexico in 1957, during the beginning of industrialization. It stars Jake T. Austin as Angel Macias, a young guy who is a baseball player, and Clifton Collins Jr. as Cesar Faza his coach.

As the film opens, Angel is at a funeral, his family had a terrible accident that marks them forever, and the cause is that his father is very strict. One day Angel finds a ball near the church which is connected with an ex professional baseball player, with comings and goings they start a baseball team to participate in the Little League World Series.

César Faz, moves to Monterrey , Mexico, after leaving his work with St. Louis Cardinals as a clubhouse attendant . There he meets a group of young boys led by Priest Esteban and they love baseball, Cesar has a special connection with Angel  Macias, a young pitcher that he takes as a pupil and teaches all his own pitching skills . Angel  convince Cesar to coach the team with his skills and priest Esteban support, the boys hone themselves into a competitive team,  involving them in situations of segregation and racism, as well as obstacles to prevent them from being the champions of the minor leagues.

Poignantly directed by  William Dear, the film manages to capture the essence of Mexico in the 50s, where the first signs of industrialization were given, with a wonderful handling of scenery and photography mixed with the great performances of the stars, making the viewer be moved by the different situations that they are facing. 

Although the story seems like a fable, it reflected true events. You sort of know how these underdog sports movies turn out. Doesn't matter. The Perfect Game so expertly uses the charisma and personalities of the actors, especially the young ones, that it's thrilling anyway.

Secret Life of Pets (review)

 The Secret Life of Pets is a clever, engaging adventure. It's a film by Universal Pictures which was written by Chris Renaud and Yarrow Cheney. This film takes place in New York City in 2015 which is about what your domesticated animals do while you're not around. Main characters Max (voiced by Louis C.K.) and Duke (Eric Stonestreet) 

The film involves some dangerous adventures in which the main characters are Max and his friends. Max, who is Katie´s adorable dog, loves spending time with Katie and she loves him because he is a well-educated dog. The drama starts when Katie adopts Duke, who is a larger mutt. Obviously, Max doesn´t like Duke and he is jealous. One day, Max and Duke go out with their dog walker but he is distracted by his cell phone so an animal control officer catches them. The adventure begins when Snowball, who is a lovely rabbit that was disappointed by humans, helps them to escape with the condition to join his revenge plans against humans pointing out that he hates domesticated animals, Max and Duke accept, even when they are domesticated animals, but they only want to go back home with Katie. So the impossible mission starts but Snowball mustn't discover their real identity

Chris Renaud and Yarrow Cheney, directors, have made this film something memorable, in which with some help from Universal Studios has done extraordinary animation work. You can see a lot of details in every moment (shapes, light, etc.). My favorite character is Snowball who has an uncontrollable temperament. He is so cute and funny. There´s no doubt that Chris and Yarrow are talented directors. 

This film has a lot of hilarious scenes, which you won't stop laughing at. There are also romantic scenes and more. However, for me, the most fascinating contrast is the Duke and Max friendship, in which you can see the evolution of how they became brothers. The Secret Life of Pets is a light, delightful film which I´d thoroughly recommend. 

DON'T LOOK UP

Dont’t Look Up is set in America in the 21st century digital world. It stars Jennifer Lawrence as Kate Dibiasky, an astronomy grad student, and Leonardo DiCaprio as her professor Dr. Randall Mindy. 

As the film opens, Kate makes an astounding discovery of a comet orbiting within the solar system. What is supposed to be a ground-breaking discovery for her career, soon becomes the worst nightmare for the pair of scientists, who realize that the comet is headed towards the Earth, triggering what they estimate to be an extinction-level event. In an attempt to warn mankind of the approaching comet that will destroy planet Earth, the two low-level astronomers must go on a giant media tour that will face them with the sad reality of society today: No one really seems to care. Starting from the office of an indifferent President Orlean (Meryl Streep) and her sycophantic son and Chief of Staff, Jason (Jonah Hill), to the airwaves of The Daily Rip, an upbeat morning show hosted by Brie (Cate Blanchett) and Jack (Tyler Perry), we see them meeting the famous pop star Ariana Grande. With only a six-month interval before the comet impacts the Earth, taking control over the 24-hour news cycle and gaining the attention of the social media obsessed public before it's too late, shockingly comically proves what it takes to get the people all over the world just to look up.

Skilfully directed by Adam McKay, the film captures the essence of the culture of banality in a humorous and entertaining way, focusing on the shallowness and tackiness of today’s humanity. The script is gripping, with a pretty dark theme and timely hilarious moments. The performances of DiCaprio, Meryl Streep and Cate Blanchett are flawless, all of them do a brilliant job. However, in my opinion, the character of Kate, convincingly acted by Jennifer Lawrence, is the most amusing of all and made me realise how much I missed watching her in films. 

With such a big cast of absolute talent, the skill of the director and editors, and the story, mixing scientific facts and verbal garbage from political blowhards and tech giant psychos who have no idea what they're doing, Don’t Look Up is a family-friendly film which I thoroughly recommend. Satire at its best!