Elaine Mak

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Stories By Elaine Mak

Sundance Movie Review: Young@Heart

Young@Heart is a documentary about a Massachusetts Senior Citizen's chorus that rocks out to everything from the Clash, Ramones and Sonic Youth, to Coldplay and James Brown. The film follows the chorus members and their director, Bob Cilman as they learn new songs, cope with illnesses and deaths of their close friends, and prepare for…

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Elaine's Movie Review: There Will Be Blood

Paul Thomas Anderson's There Will Be Blood is one of the best movies I've seen in a long time.Â It's a Hitchcockish film set during the early 20th century about Daniel Plainview (Daniel Day-Lewis), a silver miner turned oil tycoon that uproots his son H.W (Dillon Freasier), and sets off for Little Boston, where he…

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DVD Review: Hatchet

Hatchet, directed by Adam Green, is a disturbingly funny horror film about a group of tourists in New Orleans who end up on a haunted swamp tour.Â After their weird tour guide sinks their wimpy boat in gator infested waters, they are forced to wander the woods in search of civilization.Â In the dark and…

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Movie Review: Chalk

Chalk, written and directed by former teacher Mike Akel, and presented by Morgan Spurlock, is a mockumentary film about teachers at the typical public high school, Harrison High. The film is raw, realistic, and funny in a really dark and depressing way. The characters remind me of many of my own teachers growing up, and…

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Movie Review: Naming Number Two

Naming Number Two is a film from New Zealand directed by Toa Fraser.Â It is about about an old woman, Nanna Maria (Ruby Dee), who, following a dream, commands her grandchildren to throw a giant feast for her.Â She tells them that she wants them all there for the feast, where she will name her…

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Movie Review: Crazy Legs Conti: Zen And The Art Of Competitive Eating

Crazy Legs Conti: Zen and the Art of Competitive Eating is a doc about Jason "Crazy Legs" Conti, a weird character who gets into competitive eating while working odd jobs as a sperm donor, window washer, and nude model.Â Throughout the course of the film, Crazy Legs becomes the world oyster eating champion, and then…

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Movie Review: Sunshine

Sunshine takes place 50 years in the future, and follows a crew of astronauts aboard a spaceship named the Icarus II.Â The characters are venturing into space to deliver a payload to reignite the sun which is about to burn out, obliterating all mankind.Â The entire film takes place away from earth as the small…

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DVD Review: Dead Silence

Oh wow, ventriloquists are creepy. I'm afraid of everything, so my review of the Dead Silence unrated DVD may be a little different than those brave souls out there. Let me just start by mentioning that the PR team for this film sent me an e-card last week, which made me laugh out loudâ€¦ and…

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Movie Review: A Mighty Heart

A Mighty Heart is one of those films that I've been hearing non-stop about for months. The media has been all over the flick, from tabloids covering Angelina Jolie's every move, and internet ads plastered on many major sites, to Jolie's appearances on everything from Larry King Live to The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.…

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Movie Review: Once

I love movies about everyday things.Â The films that I enjoy most are not about heroic people and epic events, they are, rather, the ones that tell seemingly unimportant stories about regular people that inspire me, and subtlety change the way that I view the world.Â Director John Carney's "Once" is undoubtedly one of these…

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Movie Review: Brand Upon The Brain!

I'm not normally one for artsy films.Â They usually bore me, and are rarely able to catch my MTV generation attention span.Â I have to say, however, that I was extremely impressed by Guy Maddin's experimental film "Brand Upon the Brain!". The last time I saw a film this bizarre and unexpected was at a…

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Movie Review: Lonely Hearts

Directed by Todd Robinson, grandson of the main character of this true-story film, Lonely Hearts is an interesting story that explores the psychology of two lovers and notorious killers, and the detectives that seek to catch them.Â Lonely Hearts takes place in the 1940s, where detective Elmer C. Robinson (John Travolta) is investigating a string…

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Movie Review: Air Guitar Nation Is Hilarious And Fun

Air Guitar Nation is yet another "Spellbound formula" doc, this time, centering around two determined contestants, following their journey to the World Air Guitar Championships in Finland (who knew that even existed?). I don't know about anyone else, but even after seeing so many of these films, I still haven't gotten tired of the format.…

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Movie Review: Beyond The Gates

Beyond the Gates, directed by Michael Caton-Jones, starring John Hurt and Hugh Dancy is a true story about the 1994 Rwandan genocide. It exposes the UN’s lack of involvement in the crisis, and puts a face on an issue that seemed so far away for many Americans. Starring: Hugh Dancy, John Hurt, Clare-Hope Ashitey, Nicola…

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