Hi all, this tumblr mainly exists as a way of tracking all the movies I've been watching and some of the initial thoughts, and general feelings, I've had about them.
5/5 - Fantastic movies; movies which need to be seen and enjoyed by everyone.
4/5 - Movies which are very good but don’t have that spark which compels you to make others watch them as well.
3/5 - Average movies; watchable and enjoyable, but nothing which elevates them higher. The baseline all movies are given before watching.
2/5 - Can be watched but really bland and forgettable.
1/5 - Minimal to no reason to watch these films. It may have some redeeming factors e.g. it’s so bad it’s good or there’s one character that’s awesome enough to make it not a total waste of time.
0/5- Total waste of time. Nothing redeemable about these films.
As with every review blog/site, this is all my own personal opinion so feel free to take everything with a grain of salt.
Also I'm Scottish so all reviews will be in UK English. Get used to theatre, colour and words ending in -ised.
Catching Elephant is a theme by Andy Taylor
#48 Hachi: A Dog’s Tale or Hachiko:A Dog’s Story
An American re-imagining of the story about the Japanese Akita that waits for it’s master (Richard Gere) at the train station everyday, even long after the owner dies.
I’m almost sorry I decided to watch this one directly after Shadowlands because I’m going to come off as hypocritical for liking this film when it’s just as lifetimey as the previous film. I will defend myself however, by saying that Hachi is exactly what is says on the tin. I came in looking for a story about loyalty from man’s best friend and that’s what I got. Shadowlands on the other hand suggested historical/biopic intrigue into the life of a somewhat well known author and then proceeded to pile on the schmoltz.
Hachi is just a nice film about devotion. The real story is more interesting than the American remake but the film still has a certain charm to it. None of the characters are that great but there’s a nice relationship between all of them and the dog. Also Gere and his wife in the film (Joan Allen) have a nice back and forth, which helps to cuts through the treacle every so often as well.
Additionally, you get to see the bad guy from Mortal Kombat fighting the no good nick from an Officer and a Gentleman in a kendo fight. That’s a little cool :)
The ending’s really predictable but it didn’t stop a little catch in my throat as I watched regardless. I’m blaming the fact that I’ve always been a dog person and my cousin actually owns a Japanese Akita, which I had the pleasure of semi-looking after last Winter, contributing to this.
Was it a great film? No, but it is what it was made to be and it is enjoyable when viewed in the correct mind frame 3/5
