Brief Encounter

Starring:Celia Johnson, Trevor Howard, Stanley Holloway, Joyce Carey, Cyril Raymond, Everley Gregg, Marjorie Mars, Margaret Barton, Wallace Bosco, Nuna Davey, Avis Scott, Sydney Bromley, Irene Handl, Alfie Bass, George V. Sheldon, Richard Thomas (IX), Edward Hodge, Dennis Harkin, Henrietta Vincent, Wilfred Babbage
Director: David Lean
Studio: MGM (Video & DVD)
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Amazon.com essential video
To many, Brief Encounter may seem like a relic of more proper times--or, specifically, more properly British times--when the pressures of marital decorum and fidelity were perhaps more keenly felt. In truth, David Lean's fourth film remains a timeless study of true love (or, rather, the promise of it), and the aching desire for intimate connection that is often subdued by the obligations of marriage. And so it is that ordinary Londoners Alec (Trevor Howard), a married doctor, and contented housewife Laura (Celia Johnson) meet by chance one day in a train station, when he volunteers to remove a fleck of ash from her eye (a romantic gesture that, perhaps, inspired Robert Towne's "flaw in the iris" scene in Chinatown).

Amazon.com

Waking Life is a film that never settles down. Or maybe it never wakes up. Regardless, Richard Linklater's animated meditation seems to strike a perfect balance between the plotless meanderings of Slacker and the unquenchable knowledge-seeking of Hermann Hesse's Siddhartha. Any way you look at it, this is a weird, original movie.

As he attempts to figure out what separates dreams from reality, the protagonist (Dazed and Confused's Wiley Wiggins) hears an earful from everyone he stumbles upon. Ramblings range from the scholarly (Linklater's former college professor Robert C. Solomon gives a monologue) to the banal (of which there are plenty). Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy, Steven Soderbergh, and Adam Goldberg all get animated cameos, basically playing themselves. The dream-centered dialogues eventually grow mind-numbing, but that's OK; the animation steals the show. Each frame of the movie, which was first shot with live actors, was painted over, and the process renders a distorted and trippy collage of sights and sounds. Linklater's film is ultimately quite poignant, but, as with any good journey, you'll need to sit through some fairly tedious moments before reaching the destination. --Jason Verlinde

Description

From the director of Slacker and Dazed and Confused comes one of the most imaginative animated features ever made. This funny, ingenious film, which Rolling Stone Magazine calls "nothing short of amazing," explores the fascinating question: "Are we sleep-walking through our waking state or wake- walking through our dreams"? Join Wiley Wiggins as he searches for answers to lifes most important questions in a world that may or may not be reality in the "most visually alive movie of the year." (Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun Times)

Customer Reviews:

Typical of Linklater....talky, uneven, occasionally insightful, occasionally banal and tiresome..........2007-06-16

I like Richard Linklater more as a person than a filmmaker. Here is a good example of his work. The ideas put forth are interesting and necessary, but the film overall is very ponderous, talky (almost all of Linklater's films are talky), pseudo-intellectual (like his generation, Gen X), and kind of boring in spots. The conversations veer from passable to banal, and the rotoscoping, while interesting, isn't really groundbreaking. Rotoscoping has been done for quite some time, but it looks better than it used to, because of digital technology. The film is average. I like Linklater's intelligence and ambition, and he's very personable in interviews, but his work is usually disappointing. It's not terrible, but it's not as good as it can be.

Was a good effort.......2007-06-12

This movie takes the risk and gets silly at times. It is a series of monologues (Or an alternative description would be 'ramblings'). There is not, however, anything deep or eye-opening about it. Rather just observations from an 'altered' state of mind. As a whole, it comes off as pretentious. The rotoscoping technique used is different but not terribly inventive or original. I wasn't impressed but it was a good effort.

A Great Piece Of Work........2007-06-02

This movie can be a barrage for the senses and can make you doubt what you might think is reality. I was moved greatly by this movie and I have loved ith from the first time that I saw it. Some of the theories in it may seem so far out there because you have never really thought about them that way before, but once they are presented to you they kinda make sense. If you like to think outside of the box then give this movie a shot and you won't be disappointed.

Sort of awake.......2007-05-12

Unique unearthing of subjects which sort have lived in the ether of American thought for the last ten years or so. Subjects and presentations range from the 'would you please just shut up' to 'that's odd and interesting' variety.

Good to know that films like this can still be made. Every once in awhile nice to see something for people who enjoy thinking and aren't embarrassed to say so.

Real.......2007-04-03

What is REAL??? This film shows something to discuss... is this reality?? Yes!! But... are we or am I in a dream?? Does that matter???

If u like this film, read from Peter Berger n Thomas Luckmann "The Social Construction of REALITY"

Average customer rating:

Lovely movie in charming Vienna!
Been there, done that
Last Box Step In Vienna
The movie was okay
A great art.

Before Sunrise
Starring: Ethan Hawke , Julie Delpy , Andrea Eckert , Hanno Pöschl , and Karl Bruckschwaiger
Director: Richard Linklater
Manufacturer: Turner Home Ent
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00002E224
Release Date: 1999-11-30

Amazon.com

This romantic, witty, and ultimately poignant glimpse at two strangers (Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy) who share thoughts, affections, and past experiences during one 14-hour tryst in Vienna somehow remains writer/director Richard Linklater's (Dazed and Confused, Slacker) most overlooked gem. Delpy, a stunning, low-key Parisian, meets the stammering American Hawke, as the two share a Eurorail seat--she's starting school in Paris, he's finishing a vacation. Their mutual attraction leads to an awkward meeting (beautifully played by each performer), and Hawke suggests that Delpy spend his remaining 14 hours in Vienna with him.

Typically, this skeleton is as much plot as Linklater provides; as usual, he's more interested in concentrating his talents on observing the casual, playful conversations between his leads. His tight time frame allows the characters to say anything to one another, and topics ranging from politics to past romances to fears of the future flow with subtle finesse. The short time frame is also cruel, however, because beneath this love affair lies the painful reality that the two most likely will never see each other again and will be left only with memories--an idea Linklater drives home with an effective snapshot conclusion.

Hardly the trite Gen-X bitch session that many '90s films using this approach become, the film feels more like a Bresson or Rohmer piece, containing sharp perceptions--and flawed humans rather than stereotypes. The protagonists' frank revelations and heated exchanges flow in a stream-of-consciousness style, and its no accident that Linklater set the film in Vienna, where Freud invented and practiced psychotherapy. --Dave McCoy

Customer Reviews:

Lovely movie in charming Vienna! .......2007-03-10

This a lovely real-world love story where the characters meet on a train in Europe and decide to get to know each other better in a day and night stay in Vienna. They talk about interesting things, they stroll through beautiful places in Vienna and they fall in love!! It's so sweet how their relationship develops during the movie that you may think that the love of your life is waiting for you somewhere on an European train!!
I simply love this movie!

Been there, done that.......2007-01-10

I couldn't believe this movie when it first came out. I had a nearly identical experience in Austria (same as the movie) in 1971. The only difference was the gal was an American. It made me wonder who had been following us around. Sadly, i let her get away from me when we got back to the states. Mea Culpa.

I found it well done, and convincingly acted. The street scenes and infrastructure was as i remembered it.. Overall a top notch production - sadly ignored by the media and movie reviewers. Interaction between the two major characters was as i remember doing it.

Even Hawke's line about: "In a few years you'll be married... you'll wonder how things would have worked out with someone else you'd met.. look at this as time travel..". I actually used that line myself. Incredible parallelism. Basically i loved it..

Cheers

Last Box Step In Vienna.......2006-11-05

Richard (Artsy) Linklater, poet laureate of Gen-Nexters, is the kind of director who could be great - if he wasn't so lousy. He has a refreshing desire to take risks, defy convention, and flat out ignore devices that have served storytellers for millennia. In Tape he locked three people in a room and held them hostage, along with the audience. In Waking Life he merged morphing animation with stream of conscious dialogue to create a dream within a dream within a college freshman's philosophy term paper. In Before Sunrise he shows us a brief encounter, (characterized by the inappropriate illusion of intimacy frequently experienced when traveling), during which absolutely nothing happens.

Failure is commonplace, failing magnificently requires courage.

There are good things to say about Before Sunrise. Vienna looks lovely. Celine, Julie Delpy, looks equally lovely, and acts her part, what there is of it, beautifully. The film is replete with attractive train and trolley shots and even re-uses the marvelous Ferris wheel made famous in The Third Man, (a movie that actually had a plot). The Austrians on the bridge are funny, and the "milkshake" poem was wonderful.

Things crash quickly after that. Even the colorful street scenes, palm reader, belly dancing, etc. look blatantly staged, you can almost see the grips and gaffers stringing cables one foot out of the shots. Ethan Hawke needs to be told that his scruff does not give him that cool, dangerous Trotsky affect; it just makes him look like he sleeps in a culvert. Though his acting is workmanlike, he was the wrong choice for a film that depends entirely on the glossy superficiality and shared insanity of romance.

When two people speak and listen to each other, that's called a conversation. When interesting, well-developed characters talk to each other and do things to each other, thereby revealing themselves and being changed in the process, (and there's a cameraman on hand), that's called a movie.

When two-dimensional characters talk endlessly about whatever in a way that accomplishes nothing and only serves to explore the full extent of their two-dimensionality, that's called a Richard Linklater movie.

The movie was okay.......2006-11-03

I was amazed at how much dialog the main two actors had to learn for thie movie. It entirely consists of them talking. Got old after awhile. If they had shortened it, it would have been great. I fast-forwarded through some of it.

Beautiful scenery.

A great art........2006-10-30

To me great film/art is that which helps us understand what it is like to be a human being. This GREAT film shows us what it is like to be 24 or so and fall in love while walking around Vienna.

This is a SEAMLESS, FLAWLESS movie. Before Sunset is perhaps just as good. WOW.

Average customer rating:

A decent horror flick.
Jeepers Creepers A Poor Horror film
Fun Stuff
Scary as hell
Greatest movie monster in decades

Jeepers Creepers
Starring: Avis-Marie Barnes , Patricia Belcher , Jon Beshara , Jonathan Breck , and Eileen Brennan
Manufacturer: MGM (Video & DVD)
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B00005RHGK
Release Date: 2002-01-08

Amazon.com

With confident style and low-budget ingenuity, Jeepers Creepers gets under your skin, provoking spine-tingling horror when college siblings Trish (Gina Philips) and Darry (Justin Long) encounter a flesh-eating demon along a barren rural highway. After a harrowing car chase that sets the movie's nerve-wracking tone, they investigate suspicious activity near an abandoned church, where a corrugated pipe leads to unimaginable horrors. What follows is a cat-and-mouse game against the regenerating demon, which feeds on fear--and selected body parts--according to a psychic (Patricia Belcher) who adds chilling portent to the routine climax in a besieged police station. Writer-director Victor Salva (Powder) emphasizes primal fear over logic, but plot holes are easily forgiven when you're scared out of your socks. A surprise box-office hit in late summer 2001, Jeepers Creepers will please even jaded horror fans with its back-to-basics frights. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews:

A decent horror flick........2007-06-25

If monsters that can fly and enjoy killing people are your idea of scary, you may like Jeepers Creepers. If, however, you need more than this to get your heart pumping, it would be safe to skip this movie.

So what's this movie about? Siblings Derry and Trish are on a roadtrip when something goes terribly wrong. A truck attempts to ram the car off the road and soon after, the two witness a "man" tossing what appears to be bodies down a hole by a church. When the duo examine the hole more closely, their fears are confirmed and even worse, the "man" is not indeed a man but a monster who is chasing them.

What's to like? Up until the siblings discover what is going on in the hole, the movie is pretty good. From there, it's not so good. There are a few scenes during the latter part of the movie that were scary however. Also, whoever did the monster's makeup did a great job as he certainly does look creepy.

And what's not to like? First, the acting could be better. The actress that plays Trish is ok but Derry (played by Justin Long) is almost irritating during the majority of the movie. Second, as I said above, the latter part of the movie just isn't that good. I was disappointed that the movie went downhill after the first half an hour or so. The rest of the movie has the kids attempting to find help and running away. Also, they meet a woman who says that she can see things and explains that whenever they hear the song "Jeepers Creepers", the monster is near. This part of the movie was boring and laughable. Furthermore, the monster loses what was so creepy about him during the first half hour of the movie. I was bored to tears during the last hour or so.

The bottom line is this movie isn't scary enough nor has a good enough storyline to make it entertaining. If you like all things scary, you may want to watch this one anyway but be warned that it's a big waste of time.

Jeepers Creepers A Poor Horror film .......2007-06-03

To be fair this film was good for about the first 20 minutes that was until you see the thing that is chasing its two victims it is some sort of beast/vampire/human type creature thing with big wings that has a drivers licences and enjoys the comfort factor of wearing farmer's boots. You would kind of thought that when this beast with wings was going for its driving test someone at the driving test centre would have been alarmed in thinking this creature with wings might not be so human and seems a little bit odd but no it managed to pass its test and soon takes to the road with its truck to try run some guy & girl of the road and even when the creature itself is then ran over and then also reversed over 9 times it still manages to survive and just fly's of somewhere which makes you wonder why the hell it needed its driving licence in the first place. Surprisingly this film was not at all scary and was rather rank rotten at attempting to be any sort of horror film at all it would of made more sense to be a comedy film.

Fun Stuff.......2007-04-24

This is a fun time at the movies. Great to watch around Halloween.
If you haven't seen this yet and you enjoy horror movies, try it. There is a lot to like here.

I noticed that Amazon reviewers either love it or loathe it. The ones who loathe it say it's the worst horror movie ever made. That might be because subconsciously they're used to the usual pabulum that Hollywood spoon-feeds us, and expect everything to be like House of Wax, Saw, The Hills Have Eyes, and Hostel.
The reviewers who love it praise it to the skies (which makes it hyped unrealistically, and bound to disappointment the viewer).

In other hands Jeepers Creepers could have been a bad film, but the director and the two credible lead actors save it, as does the story and suspense.
It's no slasher flick, so pass if that's you're style. This is a nod to those simple but suspenseful horror films of the 70's (Duel comes to mind but that was so tedious after a while). And this movie includes a big amount of Alfred Hitchcock suspense, with a dash of tongue-in-cheek humor thrown in.

There are plot holes, yes... but there's no perfect scary film, really. And there are a couple of those cheap "jump" moments (you know, when there's a loud sting of music as a character pops into view out of nowhere; it's been done to absolute death in so many horror films, it's the biggest dead horse in Hollywood, and I wish directors and writers would stop that once and for all).

And yet I've got to give this movie credit for a few terrific things, including but not limited to: the realistic presentation of the siblings on a road trip in Florida, the discovery of something very creepy, and what the brother finds in the well. These things alone were really done nicely. I wish I had seen this in the movie theater instead of on dvd.

And the thing about the laundry in the car is a big shudder factor. (When they're at the diner.) Creepy.

The cinematography/direction is good; I love it when they show the AUDIENCE something sinister BEFORE the character sees it. Very Alfred Hitchcock, who believed that real suspense for a movie audience is not just seeing a bomb explode in a restaurant, it is showing the audience that there's a bomb which will soon explode.

(I haven't seen the sequel, and will eventually, out of curiosity. But I don't expect it to live up to the fun of this. If it does I'll be pleasantly surprised.)

Scary as hell.......2007-03-06

This movie is scary! I love horror movies and I havent seen horror movies for a while now until I watched this and Jeepers Creepers 2. My boyfriend and I had no lights in our house except the TV of course!! If you havent see this movie give yourself a chance and turn off all the lights and sit back and watch the movie! It will scare you but still it's great movie tho!! 5 stars for this movie and Jeepers Creepers 2

Greatest movie monster in decades.......2007-03-05

This review will be used interchangeably for a few titles. Event horizon, The darkness (Anna Paquin), And Jeepers Creepers. These are all excellent in one way or another, have good production values and acting. Jeepers has the best movie monster creation of the last 20 years. And the darkness has a great story and a solid non happy ending. Event horizon has excellent acting by Sam neill and Laurence fishburn and a truly creepy story. The bottom line is you see reviews for movies like these and Wes Cravens They for example where many people give them 2 star ratings while going on and on about The grudge or the ring 2 or house of wax, Blair witch 2 and Ring around the rosie (one of the worst and most pointless movies Ive ever watched.) This just goes to prove once again that the average person refuses to think and doesnt want a movie that might require any thought to follow. Originality is punished by the masses because clever things make them feel dumb.

Average customer rating:

The Sigh of Midnight Trains in Empty Stations
Wonderful
An obscure treasure
An adult movie without the embarrassment
Hilarious!

Brief Encounter - Criterion Collection
Starring: Celia Johnson , Trevor Howard , Stanley Holloway , Joyce Carey , and Cyril Raymond
Director: David Lean
Manufacturer: Criterion
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ASIN: 0780023420
Release Date: 2000-06-27

Amazon.com essential video

To many, Brief Encounter may seem like a relic of more proper times--or, specifically, more properly British times--when the pressures of marital decorum and fidelity were perhaps more keenly felt. In truth, David Lean's fourth film remains a timeless study of true love (or, rather, the promise of it), and the aching desire for intimate connection that is often subdued by the obligations of marriage. And so it is that ordinary Londoners Alec (Trevor Howard), a married doctor, and contented housewife Laura (Celia Johnson) meet by chance one day in a train station, when he volunteers to remove a fleck of ash from her eye (a romantic gesture that, perhaps, inspired Robert Towne's "flaw in the iris" scene in Chinatown).

Description

From Noël Coward's play Still Life, legendary filmmaker David Lean deftly explores the thrill, pain, and tenderness of an illicit romance in the dour, gray Britain of 1945. From a chance meeting on a train platform, a middle-aged married doctor (Trevor Howard) and a suburban housewife (Celia Johnson) enter into a quietly passionate, ultimately doomed love affair, set to a swirling Rachmaninoff score. Criterion is proud to present Lean's award-winning masterpiece a beautifully restored digital transfer.

Customer Reviews:

The Sigh of Midnight Trains in Empty Stations.......2007-05-06

This is my favorite British film of all time. Brilliant writing, fine acting, ecconomicaly concise production and inspired direction all combine to make a landmark movie and a defining moment in social history.

Celia Johnson is terrific! She is talented and beautiful. More than girlishly pretty, she has the deep resonant beauty of a full grown woman. Her eyes are huge and so expressive, as she copes with the guilt and sordidness of an extra-marital love. She narrates to move the story along in places. Her performance draws you in and holds you. A lesser actress could not have pulled it off so well.

Trevor Howard plays her illicit love. Their screen chemistry is subtly electric. Stanley Holloway and Joyce Carey provide a light sub-plot, which compliments the main story.

The film was released in the Spring of 1945, just as World War 2 was ending in Europe. Whether on purpose or not, the film announced a return to peacetime morality. The characters fall in love, but their love remains unrequited. Love is allowed, but the heart is not allowed to rule the head. The film is set in an unspecified time of peace with no blackout, no bombsites, and with cakes and chocolate freely available. There is a 'forward to the past' kind of message.

Speak to an old Brit who was there, and you will find out that all sorts went on during the war when couples were separated, and there was horrific stress. A lot more than dancing went on up on Plymouth Hoe, when people did not know if their homes would be standing from one day to the next, and they barely had enough food to keep a cat alive.

In truth, food was rationed into the '50s in Britain, and I wonder if we have ever got over the effects of that war. The film portrays a British middle-class idyl that would never return. Even the British laugh at those accents now. Nobody talks like that anymore.

If you've never seen it, you are in for a rare treat. If you haven't seen it for a while, then it is well worth revisiting. My review title is a line from a Noel Coward song. I thought it fitted since he wrote the screenplay, and the main setting is a railway station.

Wonderful.......2007-04-27

What can you say about this movie? The story is an endless tail of love found and love lost. The movie is wonderful acting from the leads to all the secondary actors. No matter how many times I've seen this movie the kicker is ALWAYS the final sceen when you find the dolt of a husband is no dolt after all and the kleenex comes out every time. You just can't lose with this movie. It's the best.

An obscure treasure.......2007-04-19

A beautiful movie in all respects. Filmed in Great Britain in the 1940s, and therefore black and white. A thoughtful, reflective presentation, from the woman's perspective, of a relationship that developed over a period of a few weeks. Deeply tender.

An adult movie without the embarrassment.......2007-01-11

The subject is temptation. The affair begins innocently enough, but escalates to something that threatens to destroy two families. The suburban housewife played perfectly by Celia Johnson does the right thing when she realizes what she was about to lose. There is passion without profanity or nudity, and in the end, everybody does the right thing. I think we could all learn from this movie.

Hilarious!.......2006-11-17

Every time this movie comes on my husband (who is English) and I watch it and laugh our heads off.If you have ever been in an English train station,drinking weak,watery cups of tea out of dirty,cracked cups.Smelling mildew and stale cigarettes while you freeze to death you would see the humor in anyone being romantically moved while sitting there.And not to be crule,but these are not exactly a couple of sex-pots.The thought of two stodgy old English people being driven wild by their passion for each other is,well------------------ hilarious! I give it 5 stars for being so darn funny.Oh--- and the music---- PLEASE!!!!!!!!!! But it is worth watching for a good laugh!

Average customer rating:

A movie for everyone
Kinda inspirational
For the nerd in all of us...
a nerd finds love
Train Man and Hermes - A Love Story

Train Man : Densha Otoko
Starring: Takayuki Yamada , and Miki Nakatani
Director: Shosuke Murakami
Manufacturer: VIZ Pictures
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Linda Linda Linda
Kamikaze Girls
Shinobi - Heart Under Blade
Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles
The Hidden Blade

ASIN: B000KN9FAS
Release Date: 2007-02-06

Amazon.com

A supposedly true combination of a romance and a Pygmalion story, Densha Otoko began as an on-line tale that captivated audiences in Japan: there's a novel, a TV show, and a manga series, in addition to this feature. The title character is a textbook otaku, an anime and video game nerd who divides his time between the electronics stores in Tokyo's Akihabara district and the computer in his cluttered room. One day on a commuter train, he prevents an obnoxious drunk from bothering a pretty girl. She sends him a set of Hermès teacups as a thank-you and a tentative romance begins. Train Man has no idea how to behave with a girl, so an on-line posse tells him how to dress and what to say. Ultimately, his example inspires them to go out into the world. Director Masanori Murakami effectively uses a split screen to create the on-line community. Takayuki Yamada makes a wonderfully maladroit Train Man: when he calls Hermès for the first time, he holds the phone as if he were about to commit seppuku. Miki Nakatami infuses Hermès with a winning mixture of gentleness and independence. This touching romance will delight Gen-Y and -Z members, whose lives are bound to the Internet. (Unrated, suitable for ages 13 and older: minor violence, alcohol and tobacco use)--Charles Solomon

Description

Computer engineer Otaku (the Japanese term for "geek") is an average young man, dressed in unstylish clothes and dorky glasses. But as luck would have it, he encounters a pretty young woman on a commuter train and saves her from a lecherous molester, falling in love with her at first sight. A few days later he receives a thank-you message from the woman along with a set of Hermes teacups. Having never had a girlfriend or received a gift from a girl in his life, Otaku seeks out his pals on his BBS website for advice using his codename Train_Man (Densha Otoko): "How should I ask her out?" Deeply interested in Train Man's first love, his BBS pals eagerly supply him with advice. Encouraged by their support, Train_Man undergoes a total makeover for his first-ever date with "Hermess". Little does he know that he is about to ignite an Internet phenomenon...

Customer Reviews:

A movie for everyone.......2007-05-12

A wonderful, sweet movie, with superb performances by Takayuki Yamada and Miki Nakatani. Unlike American romantic comedies which culminate with the two main characters getting together in bed, this film focuses not only on the awkwardness and difficulties of first love, but the impact one person has on the live of others. As Train Man's fellow chat-room members (who are invisible to him) help him and cheer him on, we the viewers see their own lives change as well, as they gain courage to move on and become better human beings.
As a Japanese film, this story works well. If Hollywood gets hold of it and Americanizes it, like they did with 'Shall We Dance?' it will be ruined!

Kinda inspirational.......2007-05-07

This is a very entertaining little film. I loved it. It's honest and clean. No sexual overtones which really just kinda gave it a pure sweet feel.

For the nerd in all of us..........2007-04-23

For those of us whose hobbies make us social outcasts and misfits, Train Man comes has a light at the end of the tunnel. This movie has the hearwarming message that yes, it's ok to be otaku! ^___^ Honestly, after reading the books from tokyopop I thought the movie would bomb but it is refreshingly nice! At the end I was a little teary eyed myself. Nerds can find love too.

a nerd finds love.......2007-04-01

The Train Man spends his days either working in the back of an office building aiding his fellow employees with his computer skills or wandering the shops in Akihabara purchasing anime and manga paraphernalia, video games, and other things that otaku enjoy. Living in his parent's home, the Train Man is ensconced within the safe confines of his fandom, but he is far from content. At 22 years old the Train Man has yet to have a girlfriend and in fact feels that he is undeserving of a woman's love. However, one day upon the train his humdrum life changes completely.

After purchasing a few random anime knickknacks, the Train Man boards a train and is soon humiliated by a couple when they notice the items that he has purchased. Yet, it is on this same train that the love of the Train Man's life boards. Of course, being painfully shy, the Train Man does not approach the woman, but when she is later accosted by a drunken salaryman, played by the abrasive Osugi Ren, the Train Man comes to the woman's aid. Although terrified of the larger man, the Train Man stands his ground and defends the woman who has already grasped his heart.

In order to thank the Train Man, the woman asks for his address and soon sends him a couple of Hermes tea cups. Having no real life friends to turn to, the Train Man does what a number of other otaku do: turn to the Internet for help. On a message board, seven people come to the Train Man's aid, including three otaku who hang out everyday at a manga café, a lonely nurse who cannot get over her boyfriend, a shut-in, or Hikikomori in Japanese, a person who has basically cut themselves off from the world and generally pursue their hobbies in their home while being supported by their parents, and a husband and wife whose relationship is on the rocks. With the aid of these individuals the Train Man pursues his romance. However, can the Train Man truly rely on others for the pursuit of his own happiness?

I was honestly reluctant to watch this film at first mainly because I thought the story was quite hackneyed: nerdy guy meets beautiful girl and lives happily ever after. However, Train Man escapes this cliché because of the sympathetic if pathetic figure cut by the actor Yamada Takayuki. Certain scenes in which the Train Man, Yamada's character's name of the message board, talks to Hermes, the name the Train Man gives the woman of his dreams on the message board, on the phone or in person are almost painful to watch because his nervousness is almost palpable. I found myself both encouraging and cursing the Train Man in my mind when he was trying to take the relationship to the next level. Also, I think that the interaction amongst the message board members was quite humorous and well done. Also major kudos to the caster for casting Nakatani Miki in the role of Hermes. Nakatani, although very attractive, is not as stunning as Ito Misaki who played the role of Hermes in the televised version of Train Man. However, Nakatani's character is incredibly sweet and one can easily feel why the Train Man becomes so enraptured with her. A fun film that pulls at the heartstrings, Train Man does a wonderful job reviving a threadbare genre. Since the film is based on a true story, one wonders if a number of nerdy Japanese guys have come to the aid of woman being harassed on trains since its release?

Train Man and Hermes - A Love Story.......2007-03-29

Based on a true story, "Densha Otoku (literally translated as "Train Man")" is the kind of romance that could only happen in Japan. Partly due to the ubiquitous nature of 2-channel, a country-encompassing internet chat board that puts things like MySpace and YouTube to shame. Partly due to the otaku, a style of unsocial misfit that could only be cultured in the group-based society of Japan.

I should say ostensibly based on a true story. Although the real Train Man and Hermes have never been identified, the origin of the phenomenon is a fact. What is known for sure is that, a poster known as Densha Otoku started a thread on 2-channel telling about how he helped a woman on a train who was being harassed by some drunk salaryman. In gratitude, she sent him a set of teacups from Hermes department store, which would be the equivalent of Saks Fifth Avenue or Harrods in London. Thinking that the value of the gift is far greater than the service he performed, Densha Otoku sought advice from his fellow otakus on 2-channel on what to do. And the legend was born.

There have been many adaptations of the popular story, starting with a book that reproduced the 2-channel posts, then a comic book and a TV series. This movie, starring Takayuki Yamada and Miki Nakatani, presents the whole story and does an excellent job showing the fairy tale nature of the romance. Densha Otoku is not a bad guy, just socially awkward and someone who never really learned how to relate to women. His moment of bravery is nothing daring, and he is no hero, but the small gesture of protection is just what is needed at just the right moment. Miki Nakatani, a mid-level pop star in Japan, is perfect as Hermes,. She is not a great beauty, just a sweet woman who seems to have had her share of bad luck with men, and is willing to give a nice guy a chance.

Aside from the two leads, much of real charm of "Densha Otoku" are the 2-channelers themselves. Swept up completely in the story, they swarm the fashionable districts of Tokyo, studying up on English tea and fashionable places to buy suits and go to dinner, all so they can give the best advice to our wayward hero. Showing the isolated nature of modern Japan, a husband and wife are both equally involved in the internet events, all though neither one realizes that their partner is also online. Hiding under the masks of screen names, so many modern Japanese people lead secret lives on 2-channel, and it took the story of Train Man and Hermes to break them out of their shells and get them back into the living world.

I'm glad to see "Densha Otoku" get an English-language DVD release. This is a film that I had admired for some time, and it was always a shame that I couldn't share it with my non-Japanese speaking friends and family.

Average customer rating:

When you feel like British, no other film will do as well.

Brief Encounter
Starring: Trevor Howard
Director: David Lean
Manufacturer: CIC
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont
That Hamilton Woman (1941)
Notorious (DVD) - 1946 - Ingrid Bergman, Cary Grant (Import)
Dodsworth
Stella Dallas

ASIN: B000BCF5I4

Product Description

On a cafe at a railway station, housewife Laura Jesson meets doctor Alec Harvey. Although they are already married, they gradually fall in love with each other. They continue to meet every Thursday on the small cafe, although they know that their love is impossible. Summary written by Mattias Thuresson

Customer Reviews:

When you feel like British, no other film will do as well........2005-12-14

The basic story is of a brief encounter between two people (Trevor Howard and Celia Johnson) at a train station. Both are married to other people and are committed to different lives. They fall in love; but it is a hopeless situation.
How will they resolve this?
Will they resolve this?
What would you do in the situation?

This film reminds me of a line I heard in another movie, he, "We will never have happiness." She, "Then we must be happy without it."

David Lean did an exceptional job of directing this film whom later directed Hopscotch.
The use of Rachmaninoff's Concerto no. 2 in C minor, helps set the mood and added continuity to the film. Hear it again in the film [The Seven Year Itch (1955)].

Average customer rating:

Almost Better Than Sex
How Many Have You Had?
A charmer from Down Under
reminding us that something really is better than sex
Like 'When Harry Met Sally' - only about sex...

Better Than Sex
Starring: David Wenham , Susie Porter , Catherine McClements , Kris McQuade , and Simon Bossell
Director: Jonathan Teplitzky
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B00009QUH7
Release Date: 2003-07-29

Amazon.com

Sometimes the right actors can make all the difference. Without David Wenham (Boys, The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers) and Susie Porter (The Monkey's Mask), Better Than Sex would still be a sexy romp, but it would also feel very familiar. Let's face it: there is no shortage of movies about one-night stands--just because this one lasts three days does not make it original. Fortunately, Wenham (Josh) and Porter (Cin) have chemistry and charm to burn. How they meet is irrelevant; it's what they do--and say--in Cin's loft that counts. There is (tasteful) sex to be sure, but also frank talk; sometimes to each other, sometimes to the camera. Their friends even chime in on occasion, in response to phone calls and gossip about their relationship. In the end, you don't learn anything new about sex, but you do get to know two likable people, for whom you can't help wishing the best. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Description

A steamy and smart romantic comedy that explores the differences between men and women. After a party in Sydney, an attractive young man and woman share a taxi. What starts out as a one-night stand turns into 3 days of the two exploring what they really want from life and each other. Starring: David Wenham (Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers), Susie Porter (Paradise Road, Bootmen).

Customer Reviews:

Almost Better Than Sex.......2007-01-10

I had high expectations of this movie as I've heard it praised from several friends. Yes, the main draw for me was Mr. Wenham - and I was NOT disappointed. This movie is funny, sexy and just pretty wonderful.

Is it better than sex? Maybe... but if it's not, it's pretty darned close!

How Many Have You Had?.......2006-02-20

This movie captures two people at a time in their life where they thought they might never be.

Meeting at another party, the same faces, the same old, same old..They would expect their liason to end in a similar fashion. The same old thing, a one night stand.

This meeting was different, a promise of nothing more than one night... Suddenly..a spark? A meeting of the minds? A comfort? The way these characters eventually relate, is through a mutual respect for each other, and a lust for each other. A wanting so inherent that words are not needed to express it.

They let their bodies do the talking.

What you get here, is a movie that hits the spot and talks to a generation of males and females in their late 20's early 30's.

The subtle hints of love and affection are there, and the acting flawless.

A beautiful love story set in a realistic situation.

A charmer from Down Under.......2004-10-30

The only bad thing I can say about this film is the fact that it took nearly four years for it to reach the US. The tag line pretty much sums it up -- what was intended as a one night stand turns into more than the participants expect. Sexy -- definitely (I may never look at wildlife documentaries quite the same way again); funny -- in many places hilarious, especially when examining the Mars/Venus aspect of burgeoning relationships (toilet seats, dressing time); and surprisingly sweet. The stars are charming, attractive and very real, both emotionally and physically (after years of plastic Hollywood types, you have NO idea how pleasant it is to see a good looking guy who is NOT Mr. Universe, and a good looking woman without augmentation), and are ably supported by the rest of the cast, particularly the actress (whose name I now can't remember, my apologies!) who plays the cabbie and doubles as a relationship counselor.

There's a saying that life is what happens when you're busy making plans -- perhaps love is what can happen when you're busy having sex, if you let it. Well worth your time, and share it with a friend.

reminding us that something really is better than sex.......2004-09-22

After thoroughly enjoying this film, its stars, and its plot devices (including the omniscient taxi driver) I was a little surprised to find that many professional reviewers were rather unenthusiastic about it. This is curious given that most viewer reviews were very positive. I suspect is because the viewers are somwhat younger than the pros and have a more recent or less jaded view of love. This film, first acknowledges that one night stand sexual pleasure can be fun and enjoyable, and that lusty screwing with someone you like and find attractive is terrific. But its celebration is greatest for the glorious intimacy of making love when mutually in love, hence the title. If you haven't been there, you won't get this film. If you have, then this is pure joy. The 'dance' the characters have to go through to acknowledge that sex has lead to love and that love has lead to the most incredibly fulfilling sex is funny and entertaining.

The film is also beautifully shot with many creative and artistic images of both the stars and the surrounding city. When Josh sees Cyn playing the piano, the camera takes his eye's loving appreciation of her beauty.

This is a must for lovers and lovers of love.

Non-believers will just be confused and annoyed.

Like 'When Harry Met Sally' - only about sex..........2004-07-25

Since the dawn of mankind, men and women wondered what their partners were thinking. Movies like 'When Harry Met Sally' and 'Better Than Sex' try to answer that ageless question.

The movie itself is nice, and both stars seem to have an easygoing chemistry going on. This really gives a nice boost to a movie which is pretty predictable, story & information wise.

Average customer rating:

The Sigh of Midnight Trains in Empty Stations
Wonderful
An obscure treasure
An adult movie without the embarrassment
Hilarious!

Brief Encounter [Region 2]
Starring: Celia Johnson , Trevor Howard , Stanley Holloway , Joyce Carey , and Cyril Raymond
Director: David Lean
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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The Fallen Idol - Criterion Collection

ASIN: B000056MKW

Amazon.com essential video

Customer Reviews:

The Sigh of Midnight Trains in Empty Stations.......2007-05-06

Wonderful.......2007-04-27

An obscure treasure.......2007-04-19

An adult movie without the embarrassment.......2007-01-11

Hilarious!.......2006-11-17

Brief Encounter (Breve incontro) [ NON-USA FORMAT, PAL, Reg.2 Import - Great Britain ]

Average customer rating:

Brief Encounter (Breve incontro) [ NON-USA FORMAT, PAL, Reg.2 Import - Great Britain ]
Director: Alan Bridges
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Art House & International | Genres | DVD | Video

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ASIN: B000KKRIAK

Product Description

Great Britain released, PAL/Region 2 DVD: it WILL NOT play on standard US DVD player. You need multi-region PAL/NTSC DVD player to view it in USA/Canada. LANGUAGES: English (Mono), SYNOPSIS: The combined star-power of two of cinema's 'greats' - RICHARD BURTON and SOPHIA LOREN - illuminates this update of one of the most poignant cinematic love stories of all time.BRIEF ENCOUNTER is Noel Coward's classic tale of a doomed romance. When unhappily married doctor Alec Harvey removes a piece of grit from the eye of fellow train-traveller Anna Jesson, little do they suspect that this chance encounter will turn into a passionate relationship. Alec relentlessly pursues Anna, but she is tormented by guilt as the fantasy dream becomes a nightmare of deceit and she realises she is betraying both her husband and her children. SPECIAL FEATURES: Photo Gallery, Interactive Menu, Featurette, Biographies,

Average customer rating: