2004 Top 10 - #5
December 26, 2004#5: Sea Inside, The : The most mature and emotionally wrenching film to-date from Spanish director Alejandro Amenabar (Open Your Eyes, The Others), The Sea Inside represents a cathartic and satisfying experience. Based on a true story, this film chronicles the last years in the life of Ramon Sampedro, a Spaniard who has been a quadraplegic for nearly three decades and is seeking court permission to end his "life without dignity." The Sea Inside does not ask you to take Ramon's position, but to understand it, and the circumstances that have brought him to this point. It poses two key questions: (1) Does a person have the right to control his own body where death is concerned? and (2) Does it require greater love to help someone like Ramon take his own life, or to give him unconditional support for as long as he lives? For a movie about euthenasia, The Sea Inside has moments that are surprisingly uplifting. While watching this film, it is possible to laugh one moment and cry the next. Someone I know called The Sea Inside one of the best pictures he has seen in the last five years. That may be hyperbole, but I understand where he's coming from. The Sea Inside is certainly one of the best of 2004.
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Trek Re-Imagined
I had intended to wait to write this until it became relevant - something that happened as a result of Entertainment Weekly's cover story last week.(Side note: Has anyone noticed a marked decrease in the quality of EW articles over the past few years...
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The Colors of 2004: Red, Blue, and Green
From my perspective, 2004 was the most lackluster movie year since I started reviewing. There were plenty of good, entertaining films out there on both the blockbuster end and the indie end of things, but instances of greatness were rare. For the ...
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Video View
Sorry for the late, short post today. I'm pressed for time...It's a slim week for movies on DVD. The big release is Alvin and the Chipmunks, which was a surprise hit when it reached theaters last year. By mixing the nostalgia factor with its ...
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