Film Forum

Episode Recap

Episode 10

12/13/05

Films Reviewed: Memoirs of a Geisha and Rent

Commentary: Best and Worst of the second half of 2005

Featurette: Behind the scenes of the new King Kong

Regarding Memoirs of a Geisha:

Matt: A beautiful film to look at, and a film to treasure for its dialogue and characters. Zhang Ziyi is fantastic as the title character, and Michelle Yeoh has never been lovelier as her mentor. Hard to believe the film was made mostly in San Francisco! Four stars!!

Aron: This film reminds (or, in some cases, educates) us of what a geisha was before World War II. Rob Marshall did a fantastic job in his second directorial effort and look for quite a few Oscar nods next month. Four stars from me as well!!

Average rating: **** (out of ****)

Regarding Rent:

Aron: Maybe it’s because I never saw the musical or listened to the Cast Recording, but this film was very weak and hardly memorable. Two songs stood out, but that was it. Chris Columbus was the wrong choice for this feature. One and a half stars

Matt: I have seen the show on stage and owned the Cast Recording. The film does work when the characters are signing. However, some of the songs were shifted into very awkward moments of dialogue that stopped the movie cold. “Rent-heads” will probably be more forgiving than me. Two and a half stars

Average rating: ** (out of ****)

Commentary: The Best and Worst of the second half of 2005

Aron's Worst Picks	Matt's Worst Picks
5. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory	5. Prime
4. Stealth	4. Dark Water
3. Serenity	3. Red Eye
2. Syriana	2. Brokeback Mountain
1. Rent	1. The Weather Man
Aron's Best Picks	Matt's Best Picks
5. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang	5. Walk the Line
4. Saw II	4. March of the Penguins
3. March of the Penguins	3. The Curse of the Were-Rabbit
2. Fantastic Four	2. Good Night, And Good Luck
1. Walk the Line	1. Capote

Featurette: Behind the scenes of the new King Kong