Film Review: The Jungle Book

The Jungle Book, 2016, Directed by Jon Favreau, 106 min, Starring --Neel Sethi, Idris Elba, Ben Kingsley, Bill Murray, etc.
My Rating=4.5
Watched in theatre: 4/16/16

An orphan boy is raised in the Jungle with the help of a pack of wolves, a bear and a black panther.

Don't throw tomatoes at me, I haven't seen the Disney animated version (just clips here and there). Haven't read the book either. Can I just say I've been living under a rock? That said, this review is strictly about this film with no influence from book or previous animated version. Anyway, I enjoyed the ride. Quite an adventure that kept me on my toes. Shere Khan the tiger is a terror! So glad Baloo's comedic antics buffed him out ..Bill Murray is simply incredible. The young boy actor needs a little more acting pizzazz (for lack of a better term) but overall he got me rooting for him so he got the job done considering he was the only non-cgi character. Haha, when King Louie the orangutan started to sing I was taken aback. I didn't see this as a musical so I found that part funny. Now I have a hankering to read the book and see the animated version.

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THE BOOK:

Run with them. Or fear them--

Bagheera the Panther: A silken shadow of boldness and cunning.

Kaa the Python: A thirty foot battering ram driven by a cool, hungry mind.

Baloo the Bear: who keeps the lore and the Law, and teaches the Secret Words.

Rikki the Mongoose: The young protector who sings as he slays.

Akela and Raksha the Wolves: Demon warriors of the Free People.

Shere Khan the Tiger: The dreaded enemy of all.

And Mowgli the Man-cub: The orphan baby raised by the wolves, taught by Baloo, trained by Bagheera and Kaa. The sorcerer who knows the ways of the jungle and speaks the language of the wild...

DVD --1997


Book


Book

Film Review: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, 1958, Directed by Richard Brooks, 108min, Romance, Drama, My Rating=5
Source: gifted to me

Just one pillow on her bed ... and just one desire in her heart!

Brick, an alcoholic ex-football player, drinks his days away and resists the affections of his wife, Maggie. His reunion with his father, Big Daddy, who is dying of cancer, jogs a host of memories and revelations for both father and son.

Wow! What a treat this was to see. Paul Newman and Elizabeth Taylor was freakin' sexy! Raunchy movies of today has nothing on this film. Nothing was revealed here but goodness, my TV screen was smoldering from the onscreen passion that was in between the lines. I just about died at the ending! Fudge, I think I came! ;) --But really I also was enthralled at the family dynamics. I had several giggles (Mae character) and happy with how it was wrapped up in the end. Oh, I'll have to tell my two youngest kids that their favorite Primary song, "Sunbeam" was sung here. --Last but certainly not least, I dub Paul Newman as my McSexy!

THE BOOK:
I haven't read it yet but now I want to!

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof first heated up Broadway in 1955 with its gothic American story of brothers vying for their dying father’s inheritance amid a whirlwind of sexuality, untethered in the person of Maggie the Cat. The play also daringly showcased the burden of sexuality repressed in the agony of her husband, Brick Pollitt. In spite of the public controversy Cat stirred up, it was awarded the Pulitzer Prize and the Drama Critics Circle Award for that year. Williams, as he so often did with his plays, rewrote Cat on a Hot Tin Roof for many years—the present version was originally produced at the American Shakespeare Festival in 1974 with all the changes that made Williams finally declare the text to be definitive, and was most recently produced on Broadway in the 2003–2004 season. This definitive edition also includes Williams&rsquoi; essay “Person-to-Person,” Williams’ notes on the various endings, and a short chronology of the author’s life. One of America’s greatest living playwrights, as well as a friend and colleague of Williams, Edward Albee has written a concise introduction to the play from a playwright’s perspective, examining the candor, sensuality, power, and impact of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof then and now.

Film Review: East of Eden

A good friend of mine is a film enthusiast and got me to join Letterboxd (like Goodreads for motion pictures). If you like movies and want to log and review them then check it out.  If you join (or already a member) then find me here and let's follow each other because I only have one follower :(


East of Eden, 1955, Directed by Elia Kazan, DVD, 115mins, Stars: James Dean, Julie Harris, Raymond Massey, My Rating=5
Source: gifted to me

Of what a girl did . . . what a boy did ... of ecstasy and revenge!

Two brothers compete for their father's approval and a woman's love.

I absolutely love this film! James Dean and Julie Harris took my breath away. The story line pierced my soul. I'm speechless. This motion picture now ranks as my favorite movie these lovely eyes have seen. James Dean is now also my new McDreamy :)


THE BOOK:

Set in the rich farmland of California’s Salinas Valley, this sprawling and often brutal novel follows the intertwined destinies of two families—the Trasks and the Hamiltons—whose generations helplessly reenact the fall of Adam and Eve and the poisonous rivalry of Cain and Abel. Here Steinbeck created some of his most memorable characters and explored his most enduring themes: the mystery of identity; the inexplicability of love; and the murderous consequences of love’s absence.

Wow! $2, what a deal!!!