Film Review - Dorian Gray

By Laura Di Giorgio (Level 4)

Dorian Gray was directed by Oliver Parker. It stars Ben Barnes as Dorian Gray and Colin Firth, who plays the part of Lord Henry Wotton. It is based on the book “The Portrait of Dorian Gray” one of the best books of Oscar Wilde, a famous English writer.

Throughout the history of cinema there are many films inspired by this Oscar Wilde’s book. The film was produced in 2009. The film is set in London in the 1890s, during the Victorian age.

The film is about Dorian Gray, a beautiful boy. In the beginning of the film, he arrives in London because his grandfather is dead. He is an orphan. In London he becomes friends with Lord Wotton who asks the young boy if he can give his soul to the devil, when he sees Dorian’s portrait. Dorian answers that he would be always young and after that he becomes a dissolute man.

At the end, when he found his true love, he can become again a good man.

I recommend this film because it is a good transposition of Oscar Wilde’s book. It’s a gripping film and I love the book too.

                                                

Film Review - Pretty Woman

by Enrica Ferrara (Level 4)

"Pretty Woman" was directed by Garry Marshall in 1990. It stars Julia Roberts as Vivian Ward, and Richard Gere as Edward Lewis. The film won an Oscar, a Golden Globe and a César in 1991. The film is set in Los Angeles and one of its soundtrack has become one of the most important songs in the history of cinema.

The film is about a businessman called Edward who is seduced by a prostitute, played by Julia Roberts. He brings her in his five-star hotel and He decides to teach her how to live in high society.
She will be his companion in all social events; after many encounters sometimes really funny, She will awaken his feelings and They will fall in love.

I strongly recommend Pretty Woman, because It makes me smile and cry so many times and I think that the final scene is the emblem of romance!!!

Film Review - Up

By Maria Teresa Nicotri (Level 4)

Up is an animation film and it was written and directed by Pete Docter and Bob Peterson. The film had five Oscar nominations (also for best movie) and it won two Oscars in 2010 for best animation and best soundtrack.

The film is set between USA and South America (Venezuela) and it is developed in a time frame of about seventy years. The story is narrated from Carl Fredricksen’s point of view.

The film narrates Carl Fredricksen life, starting from the main encounter of his life, in other words from the day when he meets Elly for the first time. A few years later, Elly become his wife. He shares with his wife the spirit of adventure and they daydream about a trip to Paradise Falls for several years, but they will never visit this amazing place together, in fact Elly becomes ill and dies the day in which Carl buys  flight tickets for Venezuela. After Elly’s death Carl is very sad and unsociable and he has a problem with justice and he is condemned to go to a retirement home, so he decided  to escape using thousands of helium balloons to lift off his home. He is going to live a fantastic adventure and thanks to a young Wilderness Explorer, that becomes his friend, he understands that there isn’t the adventure of a lifetime but life is an adventure itself.

I strongly recommend Up, because it is a family movie and it has different reading levels. It inoculates the spirit of adventure in children and it makes adults think about life chances. It is touching and amusing at the same time.

Film Review - Into the Wild

By Giovanni Augello (Level 4)

INTO THE WILD  (2007)

“Into the wild” was directed by Sean Penn and it is an adaptation of a popular book written by John Krakauer, a non-fiction account of the travels made by a young Virginia man called Christopher McCandless who disowns his family and possessions.

The star who plays the part of Christopher is Emile Hirsch but in the cast there are also so many famous actors like Kristen Stewart and Vince Vaughn.The film is set in North America and in particular Alaska in the early 1990s.

Into the wild is about the youth of Christopher McCandless that, upon his graduation from Emory University in Atlanta, goes away from his dysfunctional family in search of inspiring knowledge and a complete harmony with nature. The protagonist renames himself “Alexander Supertramp” and starts a very long journey with no material goods to arrive at his promise land, Alaska. During his trip, Chris meets different kinds of people that help him with his spiritual growth and, at the end, thanks to them he realizes that  “Happiness only real when shared”.

I highly recommend this film for the sense of freedom and beauty that it instils in the heart. Finally the movie has an amazing soundtrack entirely composed by Eddie Vedder, leader of Pearl Jam, with songs made on purpose to every scene.

Film Review - No Country for Old Men

By Gabriele Maida (Level 4)

No Country for Old Men was directed by the Coen brothers (Joel and Ethan Coen). It stars Tommy Lee Jones as Bertran De Born, Javier Bardem as Anton Chigurh and Josh Brolin as Llewelyn Moss. The film won four Oscars in 2008, Best Film, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor (Javier Bardem).

The film is set in the desert landscape of Texas in the 1980s. It was shot on location in Texas. It is based on the eponymous book written by Cormac McCarthy in 2005.

The film is about the awareness of life and its randomness. In the beginning of the film Llewelyn Moss accidentally finds several dead man, a lot of drugs, and 2 million dollars in cash in the desert near his home; probably a drug deal that went wrong. He takes the money and goes to his home, unfortunately some Mexicans see him. Then he sends his wife to her mother’s and he goes to a motel to hide the mone

y.

Anton Chigurh is a hitman who make a lot of strange killings. He is hired to find the man and the money by the Mexicans. After a lot of killings, Chigurh finds Moss and Chigurh threatens to kill Moss’s wife if he does not tell him where the money is, Moss refuses and is then killed. 

At the end Chigurh keeps his promise to kill Moss’s wife, but when he leaves from the house he is hit by a speeding car. Meanwhile the old sheriff thinks about these strange deaths and he feels totally inadequate to the current times.

I strongly recommend No Country for Old Men, it puts you on the edge of your seat for the whole duration of the film and it is a beautiful film as demonstrated by the number of prizes it has won. 

In the markets... by Francesca (Level 3 with Jonny)

In the markets…

Markets are the mirror of the society, of the different social groups, even if they all have common characteristics and the same purposes. Each market reflects the economy and the needs of the people, as well as the life of the quarter where it is situated.

The markets of my town, Palermo, are characterized by the shouts of the sellers and by the liveliness of the crowd.

Generally, the liveliness of the people is present in all the markets; but, in particular in the cities of the South of Italy, the sellers shout the name of their own typical products to attract the hurried buyers. In other cities of Italy there are markets more silent than those in Palermo. There, the sellers turn to other techniques, if it is necessary, to enchant the customers.

I am that kind of person who lets herself be easily enchanted, in spite of the advice of my husband not to buy things.

I will write about some fascinating markets, overflowing with people, vitality, energy.  The elegant Verona, the refined Mantua or Sanremo, the tidy Turin, the beautiful, sad Venice, the commercial Milan, the wonderful, inviting, friendly, chaotic Rome, the contradictory Palermo are cities that give hospitality to many fantastic flower markets. Those markets receive an exceptional number of visitors enchanted by exotic flowers, by scents, by colours. 

 

Tuscany, one of the regions where I have been to often since my daughter started University in Florence, shows its typical goods with pride: agricultural products, handmade articles, foodstuffs, old furniture, old books. Visiting those markets is an interesting way to know places and people.

Just last Friday, my husband and I took our grandchild to a show of period toys for collection in Florence.

The Christmas markets have a charming atmosphere filled with shining lights, festoons, trees, floodlit windows. Fantastic Christmas markets are in Bolzano, Munich, Vienna, Berlin. I think other great Christmas markets are in North Europe!

I visited the market of Portobello Road about 25 years ago. We bought some old, refined ivory and silver objects (at that time ivory was saleable - today I shouldn’t buy it!), some small fine pictures. There, my children and I lost my husband in the crowd… He… guilty… went in a shop without advising… (It happened other times… in Athens, in Moscow…; always for the same reason: his collection of old cameras…) I… angry!!!  I think I can compare Portobello market with the flea markets of Paris. All very expensive! Interesting and fantastic!

The markets of the Mediterranean countries are untidier, sometimes dirtier than the markets of the countries in the North of Europe. It is right; all the people, all the sellers of the North smile, invite the buyers with great kindness, but they seem very detached, very distant! Maybe it is an attitude! It is perhaps my opinion! Maybe not correct!

The bazaar Khan el-Khalili, in Cairo, smells of life, the right life!  It is a strong, stirring sensation to get in and to go round the narrow streets, where the scents, the noises, the colours of thousands of shops take in the tourist and lead him into a labyrinth from which it is impossible go away, if the visitor doesn’t have any references.  When we went to Khan el-Khalili, our reference was a very high minaret and with it the prayers of the muezzin, recited aloud.

Bowls filled up, sacks inflated, wicker baskets overflowing with spices invite us to buy.  Cinnamon, black pepper, ginger, cardamom, chilli, curry, saffron, coriander and cumin compose a mosaic of aromatic herbs and colours. Then, the different fragrances of tea, the famous “karkade”, the thirst-quenching infusion of hibiscus flowers…

I remember the winning looks, the fascinating smiles of the Egyptian sellers, ready to attract the attention of the people. It was very difficult to stand up to!

I found the same atmosphere, the identical warmth in Lisbon, Madrid, Seville, Cordoba, Athens, Sarayevo, Mostar….

Markets, their life, the lively discussions, the obstinate bargaining, the waiting, the renunciations, the second thoughts make men equal. There aren’t differences among social classes, ethnic groups or races.

I learnt that!