I'm Still Here Dvd Review

I'm Still Here is a powerful documentary directed by Lauren Lazin. It features numerous well known stars such as Elijah Wood, Zach Braff, Amber Tamblin, Kate Hudson, and many more as they read the real diaries of young adolescents who suffered the horrors of Nazi Occupation in WWII. While being read, we are shown numerous video clips and pictures all meant to bring the viewers into the lives of those who wrote and experienced one of the greatest atrocities of the last 100 years.


We've all heard of Anne Frank, but this documentary focuses on those whose voices haven't been heard, those tormented, brave souls who faced the worst and wrote about their struggle.
It is only 48 minutes in length, but it will not easily be forgotten. If you are really sensitive, this may not be for you...however...if you do see this...you will understand how lucky you are to be alive now, and to not fear the things they feared.
My only complaint is the music which was done by Moby. There are several scenes where the music doesn't fit and takes away from the impact. I'm a huge fan of Moby, so it's not personal. In fact there are moments where the music is amazing and does fit....it's just that most of the time it doesn't work at all.
This is an important film to see if you can stomach it. I give it 9 out of 10.

Rent it on Netflix today!

Sky High

Sky High is a supernatural action film by director Ryuhei Kitamara(Versus, Azumi). When Detective Kanzakit Kohei's(Shosuke Tanihara) fiance, Mina, is murdered moments before there wedding, he becomes obsessed with finding the killer and unleashing vengeance upon him. Meanwhile, Mina is at the Gate of Rage, given the choice of being reborn, becoming a ghost, or cursing someone and condemning herself to hell. She is given 12 days to decide.
While watching this film, I was very taken with the concept, the idea of Mina having to face these difficult choices while following her boyfriend as he descends deeper into rage. The main problem with this film is that it eventually becomes too self-righteous and destroys the impact of the plot. Great concern is taken for souls of the main characters, but not for the supporting characters. Also, the non-violence theme ends up being ridiculous, especially when the entire world ends up being threatened. As I was growing up, I always loved heroes that faced difficult situations and had to do what no one else had the courage to do. None of the main characters in this film felt like a hero...and in the end the whole thing just ended up feeling contrived and undeveloped. I would have appreciated a deeper exploration of the themes used in this film, but instead I'm given a bubble gum wrap-up.

Most fantasy films have unrealistic elements to them, however, they somehow succeed in making us believe them, or at least suspending belief. This film fails at achieving this. When a character does something impossible it is so blatant and ludicrous that it destroys all of our willingness to suspend belief. The director of this film did a much better job on Azumi, which I strongly suggest over this broken-yet-fluffy idealistic film. I give it 3 out of 10.
Rent this OR AZUMI on Netflix!

Sarah Brightman's Diva: The Video Collection

"Sarah Brightman's Diva: The Video Collection" is a collection of music videos created throughout her entire career. In case you're not familiar with who Sarah Brightman is, the famous "Phantom of the Opera," was written for her, and she played the original Christine in both the London opening and the New York opening.
In this Video, Sarah sits before the camera, talks about each song and video, before it plays. This reveals quite a few surprising facts about how some albums/songs/videos came about.
The problem with this collection is that it's more interesting at the beginning. Towards the end, most of the videos are from the "harem" collection, and are in my opinion far too similar. Even though they are slightly different, the difference feels tiny and you start get a little bored, despite Sarah's often elaborate and revealing costumes. Some are actually a little painful to watch, such as "I fell in love with a Starship Trooper" which has scenes from the movie, "Starship Troopers." Also I found the duet she did for the Olympics to have been horribly produced, failing to invoke any inspiration.
There are a few highlights such as "Time To Say Goodbye" and "Deliver Me" which make viewing this dvd very worthwhile. Some even gave me chills. If you're a fan, it's a must see, simply for the revelations she brings to light about the songs and videos.
I give it about a 6 out of 10.
Rent this collection and get it mailed to your house today!

"Shrooms"

Tonight I watched "Shrooms".
(No Spoilers)

The movie had potential, and with the right imagination could have been horrifically entertaining. Unfortunately, it falls into a bad "Deliverance" movie with an ending I saw coming from early on. It succeeded only in annoying me. It threw dozens of cliches in a blender, mixed it all into a bad, non-engaging script, and slashed our expectations into a bloody mess of disappointment.

I'd rather watch "The Ruins" again. That was a much better film with a more realistic, less contrived plot. It haunted me for days.

Tomorrow I will think of "Shrooms" and try to remember what it was about, then come to realize I just let it steal another precious moment from my life.
Not all veggies are good for ya, including this one!
I give this movie 2 out of five stars.

Please go to www.thesecondwomb.com or www.johnvardell.com for more info on John Vardell, his writing, and his music.

Into the Wild

I recently watched "Into the Wild," and was deeply moved by it, it's been spinning around my head ever since.
What is powerful enough to hurt us most, is also what can save us.
Sometimes escape takes the appearance of a great hideaway, a place we can move from all the things which have hurt us, all the "lies" we've been told. The only escape is acceptance, and learning to let go, and realizing the most dangerous lies are the ones we tell ourselves. If we are willing to live, to know love, we must be willing to hurt, be willing to experience loss. You cannot know what it means to feel comfortable at a comfortable temperature, until you've experienced excessive cold or heat. As we grow we have to do our best to learn which individuals to let in, which ones to disregard, and we must let ourselves off the hook when we are placed in situations(or put ourselves in situations) which result in us being betrayed.
Bleed. Learn. Love. But never run, or we will spend our lives running, and always running to the wrong thing, this leaves us even more empty, and sometimes, dead.
Please visit http://www.thesecondwomb.com/ and http://www.johnvardell.com/ to learn more about his writing and music. Thanks for visiting!