The Critical Filmmaker

Bride Flight (Dutch with English subtitles) is a fictional account of three women, who leave their native Netherlands in the 1950s, heading to New Zealand to reunite with their fiances, marry and start a new life.  The women meet on the plane, and their lives soon intertwine in a story of love, loss and independence. The film spans several decades flashing forward and backward from present day to the past as it chronicles what each woman goes through alone and together, and the link that binds them to each other. The film was shot in Holland and New Zealand, the latter location allows for some English to be spoken in the film with most of the dialog in Dutch A friend of mine in The Netherlands tells me its a bit hit over there, and I can see why.  I highly recommend this film.

Tied to a Chair is one of those films that makes me sit back and wonder whether it might have been better served if the writer/director had given one of his roles to someone else.  A low budget film that reveals its inadequacies in its editing and mish mash of a storyline. The film has essentially three plots revolving around one character who is essentially the amalgam of three.  The Naomi we meet from the outset is a ditzy British wife who can't cook nor do anything right.  When her husband asks her what she wants to do with her life, she reveals that she threw her dreams out the window when she married him.  She wanted to be an actress. So she ups and leaves her staid life in Britain and heads off to Cannes, and this is where plot two begins.  She no longer has the British accent and instead she's an American, desperately seeking the role of a lifetime. Her quest eventually leads her to New York, her hometown, where she gets embroiled in some criminal activity.  And th

This is an engaging film, harkening back to classic suspense films of the 1940's and 50's.  Some might find it cliche'd, but I truly enjoyed it. The plot revolves around a young woman who works as a hotel housekeeper and an ex-cop who meets her at a speed dating event.  They date for a while, but things soon turn ugly, and she must find out what really happened that day they spent together on the grounds of his boss's mansion. The scenes are woven together nicely and it will definitely keep you guessing.

Everybody Loves Raymond... Well, almost.  I was never an avid watcher of the TV show myself, although I did land on it on occasion and have a good laugh.  So I could see the appeal and often watch an episode when I come across it in reruns. Exporting Raymond is a comedic documentary featuring the producer of the TV series and the hurdles and challenges he goes through helping a Russian crew create their own version of the show in Russia. Phil Rosenthal, producer and stand-up comic, gives us a somewhat amusing look at what it was like for him to ensure the show retained its theme and humor as it was translated for a new audience.  He reveals the culture clash and marvels at the differences in cultures, despite his ardent belief that the quirks of married life is universal. I found this film a bit self-serving and naive at times, but if you liked the TV show and enjoy this humor, I think you'll find it an entertaining ride.