Goal not met

Well, I didn't meet my goal. I was supposed to be done today and I didn't get to it. I should have known it would be difficult to do with school and all. The times I had watching these movies and writing about them sure were fun and I got to only a few of his fantastic movies. I didn't even hit Harry Potter and I think I was most excited about that one. And The Reader. So my question to you guys, my readers, is this: Should I continue the blog, even though I didn't meet my goal? A part of me just wants to watch all his movies without writing about all of them. Then I can just brag to you when I see you about his great movies. I'm not sure. I need my readers' opinions. Send texts, emails or just tell me in person what I should do. I'd really appreciate it. Thanks for reading even though I didn't meet my goal.

Red Dragon (2002) The Nineth One

When I watched this movie for the first time I was still in Durango. I saw an all star cast of Ralph Fiennes, Anthony Hopkins and Edward Norton and, even though it was a scary movie, I had to watch it. Watching it during the day helped a lot though. Everyone has a way they watch scary movies, mine is my hands covering my face with my fingers letting in a little bit of the movie. I just remember screaming in terror, my mouth quivering but I couldn't take my eyes off the screen. What's one thing to say about this movie? It's pretty insane.

So, Red Dragon is a prequel to The Silence of the Lambs, which I haven't seen before. Red Dragon is about a detective Will Graham, played by Edward Norton, trying to capture a sadistic murderer called The Tooth Fairy. The Tooth Fairy doesn't sound very threatening but they call him that because he sometimes bites his victims and his mark is very distinguished. He murders whole families and rapes the mothers then puts glass in all their eyes. Graham has trouble figuring out who this guy might be, so he asks a once trusted friend, Hannibal Lecter who is imprisoned for his murders and cannibalism. Lecter gives him many leads and is eventually lead to a sad, physically and emotionally scarred Francis Dolarhyde (played by Ralph Fiennes). Dolarhyde is the murderer and does the murders because he is led by a painting called "The Red Dragon." Graham is put in danger many times as well as his family. He puts other lives in danger and even a journalist is killed. But the risk is worth it because the psychotic killer is found.

I'm not giving too much away because it is such a good movie. I think we can all say this at the same time, "Ralph Fiennes plays a great maniac!" This movie is extremely true. A man who murders whole families, rapes the mothers and then kills them seems like a hard role to play but Fiennes plays it amazingly. It's frightening to watch him, very frightening, especially when he starts eating the face of one of his victims. I couldn't stop screaming that when I was in Durango, "He just ate his face!" I am just stunned, how does an actor bring out that frightening side? What inner part of them do they have to go to, to bring out that terrifying being? After seeing some similar roles of Fiennes so far, I am just still stunned at how great of an actor he is. He is so versatile in how he can play the serial killer one movie and the charming leading man in another. So weird if you ask me.
I thought I was going to speak more about this movie, but I really don't want to give so much away because scary movies are less fun when you know the ending.
See you next post!
No quote on this one. I think I'll just give quotes on my favorites. 

The End of the Affair (1999) The Eighth One

Ok, there are a few things one needs to make sure of before they invite a person to watch a movie with them. The #1 thing is to be prepared for any awkward sex scenes watching with someone else. I invited a friend to watch "Strange Days," and there was a female on female sex scene and I felt such discomfort, and I thought she was thinking of me as a weirdo for watching a movie like this. "Can you imagine if someone came in and saw what we were watching?" I asked to break the tension. The tension was broken and it was fine for the rest of the movie. What is the long point I'm trying to make here? Be prepared for sex scenes in movies, especially when watching this with other people, that's all.

And for a movie called The End of the Affair, I should have prepared myself for sex scenes, but I didn't (and boy was there a lot of sex and nudity from Ralph Fiennes himself). I was watching this with my friend and my mother and that was more than I could handle. That was a whole new side of acting I hadn't seen from Fiennes (haha!). So what is this movie about? It's about a man named Maurice Bendrix (Fiennes) who begins an affair with a friend's wife, Sarah Miles (played by Julianne Moore) in 1940s London. They have sex in her place, his place, everywhere and they don't seem to mind the numerous bombs going off around them. And that's where I fell asleep.

I'm not doing a great job with these blogs you guys, especially if I keep getting bored or falling asleep. But this allows me to bring up a point regarding The End of the Affair. Sex scenes can be very important with a movie. Sex scenes build the story, you sense the characters' vulnerabilities and true personalities and maybe even get a sense of why they wanted this intimacy in the first place. Were these characters unable to get intimacy from others in their life, and that's why they start affairs? Do they have other problems that they can only relieve through sex? See, sex scenes build the story and build the characters. But with The End of the Affair, I thought this was just a standard affair, no love with the husband so she goes after the husband's friend. I was just bored and I felt like the sex scenes didn't build the characters and it didn't build the story as much as I wanted it to. Do I recommend this movie? Not really but you be the judge and prove me wrong! I will definitely come back to this movie when I do The Reader (Talk about sex scenes!).

And guess what people? I have Spring Break next week which means I will get through most of the movies before his movie release on the 30th of March. Thanks everyone for following my blog, but hold on to your seats because it's not over yet!
No quote today, but I will start with the quotes next time, promise!

Onegin (1999) The Seventh One

I have been extremely neglecting my blog so I'm trying to get through a few posts this weekend. Right now I am watching Onegin in my room. The last movie extremely disappointed me, so I'm crossing my fingers that this one will be better, and maybe not so boring.

And alas, it turned out to be a good movie.

Ralph Fiennes plays bored as hell playboy Eugene Onegin living in St. Petersburg, Russia in the Empire Period (I don't know what that means either). Onegin inherited money, a mansion, a ton of land and a heck of a lot more from his uncle who passed away. Like any other rich bachelor playboy, he uses the house as a place to "crash" and is snobby to most of his country side neighbors. One of his neighbors is a beautiful Tatyana (played by a very stunning Liv Tyler) who, feeling such strong emotions for Onegin, writes a passionate letter to him. Onegin originally doesn't care, and throws the letter in the fire, but then takes it out of the fire before it burns completely to actually read it. Onegin reads it over and over and at Tatyana's birthday, he tells her that she's too young to feel that way about him, also that he is the absolute wrong person to get involved with. After many years and controversy stemming from Onegin and Tatyana's family (no spoiler here), Onegin realizes his mistake but it is too late because Tatyana got married and didn't love him the way she used to (I spoiled it, sorry).

I enjoyed this movie SO much more than Oscar and Lucinda, because there was an actual plot with this one. I really enjoyed it despite knowing what was going to happen with the two individuals. But what do I love most about this movie besides it being extremely predictable? The fact that it is one of Ralph Fiennes' many roles as being the tormented lover. He does an amazing job at playing the insane, sadistic psycho but even better at the passionate, anguished gentleman. I won't lie, so far in this journey my favorite tortured dearest role of his has to be Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights. But there are so many more distressed admirer roles of his I have yet to get to. I am very happy to be back in this blog!

No quote today, sorry the movie was a week overdue at the library and I had to turn it in right after I finished!
See you next post!
And thanks for keeping up with it.

Oscar and Lucinda (1997) The Sixth One

So I apologize for not keeping up with the blog. I've been pretty busy with school but I'm sure you guys as readers can understand. And I will admit, coming off of English Patient I had some high expectations for his movie right after called Oscar and Lucinda. Want a piece of advice? Never Ever have high expectations on anything because there is a high chance you will be disappointed.

In Oscar and Lucinda, Ralph Fiennes plays a young man named Oscar Hopkins who is an Angelican Priest in the mid 1800s. He meets a girl Lucinda who is a glass maker, and what do the two have in common? They're both big gamblers. They become fast friends and eventually lovers. And that's about as far as I got...

Can I say this? I thought I was going to love every Ralph Fiennes movie, but I didn't like this one. Really didn't like it. Another piece of advice? Don't expect you're going to like every movie from your favorite actor. While Fiennes does a great job at playing a shy, and passionate person, he didn't impress me in this movie as much as his other ones have. The story line seemed scattered and it honestly didn't capture my attention right at the beginning. I was bored halfway through.

What I found unfortunate was that his acting didn't stand out very greatly. With English Patient I found a loving, charming man, in life and even on his death bed. In Strange Days I found a sleezeball drug addict and dealer who left me wide-eyed and blushing. In Quiz Show I found a ravishing, struggling individual bent on wanting to do the right thing. In Schindler's List, I found the most horrifying monster I have ever seen. In Wuthering Heights, I found the most struggling beautiful character that jumped from the pages of a classic love story. And what did I find in Oscar and Lucinda? No one as special, no one as beautiful, no one as frightening. Do I recommend this movie? It is my shame to admit, No I don't recommend this.

But that is just my opinion. Please, PLEASE prove me wrong readers! Tell my why Oscar and Lucinda should be considered as great as the other movies I have blogged on. Tell me why he should be as beautiful, frightening and lovely as his other characters. Please tell me!
Thank you readers who are still holding on and keeping up with my posts!

No quote today.

It's getting tough...

I knew that once school started, my movie watching would be limited. That's why I'm going to try to get two movies done this weekend. I think it's going to get easier once I have a legit schedule to follow. Thanks to those who are keeping up with the blog. Feel free to comment because I love LOVE seeing all the comments. I really hope I get to where I want to be by the time his new movie comes out. Thanks for reading and be prepared to check out some new posts this weekend.

The English Patient (The Fifth One)

When I first told my parents about doing this blog, my dad asked if I was going to do the English Patient and I said yes. He then gave a snoring sound indicating that it was boring. I was somewhat surprised but my dad didn't like the English Patient. At all! My views on it? It was a long movie, but wow was it good!

It takes place in Africa during WWII with Ralph Fiennes playing an injured man named Count Laszlo de Almasy, who was shot down while flying a plane, with severe burns surrounding most of his body. He cannot move on his own, and he can't breathe well either and will likely die soon. He was rescued by an army who tries to nurse him back to health. After a dangerous run in with a bomb on the road, a nurse named Hana (played by Juliette Binoche) takes him away to a different location because of the danger on the roads with bombs. While being taken care of by the nurse, Almasy goes back between when he is on bed rest with the burns on his body and when he was well. Before his accident, he was a map maker following archiologists. During his work, he fell madly in love with a fellow worker's wife named Katharine (Played by a very beautiful Kristen Scott Thomas). The love affair becomes very strong and passionate. And as the love affair unfolds, the reasons why he is on his deathbed surfaces.

If there is one thing I realized during this movie, it was how surprised I was with his transitions. According to a source, it took 8 hours for the makeup artists to put on the burn makeup for Fiennes. As well as acting with terrible burns and dying is pretty intense acting. He was also nominated for the Best Actor in a Leading Role Oscar for his work in The English Patient. Another reason why he did a very good job is that he was incredibly charming while commiting an affair. He was so passionate about this woman, so kind to her and he did everything to help her when she most desperately needed it most. I'm not saying AT ALL that cheating on your husband, or boyfriend is okay, but if there is anyone you should begin an affair with, it's Ralph Fiennes characher, Almasy in The English Patient.

So far we have seen him as the sympathetic jerk, extreme bastard, internally conflicted individual, sleeze ball drug dealer, and passionate and dying man. So far it's a good journey. Can't wait for more but be prepared. With school here now, it will take a while for me to get posts out. Thanks for understanding.

Favorite Quote: "I claim this shoulder blade, no wait, turn over, I want this place. I love this place, what's it called? This is mine. I'm going to ask the king permisison to call it the 'Almasy Bosporus.'"

Ralph Fiennes as Count Laszlo de Almasy in The English Patient (talking about the hollow base of a woman's neck called the suprasternal notch on Katharine)

Strange Days (1995) The Fourth One

I apologize for the delay in getting this post out but I saw it coming. School has started! And being at a new school, in my hometown, I feel at ease. What I'm very happy about is that if the stresses of school become overwhelming, I am glad I have Ralph to lean on. So now to the fourth post. There's only one word to describe Strange Days and that's... Well, strange.

The word to describe Fiennes in this movie is sleeze ball in a couple ways. He plays an ex cop named Lenny Nero in Los Angeles, on New Year's Eve before the new millenium in 2000. He sells a new drug which is somewhat like a small DVD that holds memories. These memories vary, either they're sexual encounters to pump up the sexual pleasure and robberies to pump the adrenaline. Fiennes plays this futuristic drug pusher and the citizens of Los Angeles are becoming addicted to this new drug. Fiennes is addicted to the drug as well, but it's his own memories of his past girlfriend, Faith (Juliette Lewis) who became an addict to the memory drug. With the help of his friend Lornette "Mace" Mason (Angela Bassett) Fiennes uncovers a mystery surrounding the drug, Faith and other corrupt people before the clock strikes midnight for the year 2000.

When I had heard about this movie, I didn't quite know what to think. I was very taken at back by the somewhat uneasy ex-cop exterior presented in the movie... Very taken at back. Where I was used to him acting as handsome, scary people I didn't expect him to be so different. Wow! Such different roles he has. Very different. What I also found interesting, is how he can hide his accent. Born in London, Fiennes has a very obvious British accent and in Strange Days he hides his accent well.

I apologize again for getting this post out pretty late. But like I said, I've been busy

No quote for this one (the movie's already overdue at the library)
See you next post

Quiz Show (1994) The Third One

It was a race to get Quiz Show from a library on the other side of town for me. I got it and I was so happy even though there were a couple bumps getting there. So, Quiz Show, what is it about? First off, it's a really good movie where Fiennes plays the good guy (for the most part). I'm as shocked as you are!

So, to start off, Quiz Show is about a game show called 21 set in the late 1950s. The show was rigged where producers would give the contestants the correct answers to questions about assorted topics. It stars John Turturro (who is more well known as the butler from Mr. Deeds or Agent Simmons in Transformers) playing Herbie Stempel, a contestant on 21 whose reign is ending after producers want him to take a dive for a new contestant; a handsome professor who comes from a prominent family, Charles Van Doren (Fiennes). Stempel takes the dive and the movie continues to describe the ongoing battle between Van Doren and his conscience, Stempel and trying to prove the show was rigged, and Congress and NBC. What is so amazing about Fiennes in this movie? He actually has a conscience compared to when he had no heart in Schindler's List. As I watched this, I felt bad for the pressure that was on him but then again, I wished he would just say the wrong answer. As a professor, he didn't want to set the example that cheating is okay. And what professor wants to send that message even on a game show where thousands of dollars can be won?

I feel astounded that in the last post I was saying Fiennes was playing a ruthless villian, and in this one I'm saying he plays a sympathetic man struggling with what's right and wrong. I'm just surprised that a man can play those extremely different characters. There aren't many great young actors who can do that nowadays is there? I'd like to see what comments I get off of that... If anyone is reading this.

If there is anything that I have learned in these three movies I have seen, it's that Fiennes can play the heartbroken sympathetic man, the cruel Nazi and the professor struggling with whether to tell the truth. He can play some pretty damn diverse characters and I haven't even seen all of his great movies. Isn't it amazing to see an incredible actor strech his wings and do something different? That's what I like about Fiennes. His range as an actor. But I'll get to that more later.

Favorite Quote: "Dad, I can't simply just tell them the truth... I can't... The problem is Dad, is it seems I was one of those frauds. They gave me the answers."

- Ralph Fiennes as Charles Van Doren in Quiz Show

See you next post!

 

Schindler's List (1993) The Second One

Luckily I didn't have to go far to get Schindler's List, because I have it. And when I watch that movie, I can't help but think, that Fiennes' role in Schindler's List could be one of the great reasons he was asked to play Lord Voldemort in Harry Potter.
To say Fiennes plays a real jerk in Schindler's List would be a grave understatement. He plays a very evil, corrupt villian.
The movie centers around a man named Oskar Schindler (played by the never disappointing Liam Neeson) during World War II in Poland. Wanting to build a successful enamal ware factory, he hires Jewish people who are being held in ghettos by the Germans. He hires Jewish people because they are cheaper than paying Polish people. After the clearing of the ghetto ends in a violent massacre by the Nazis, Schindler becomes sympathetic towards his Jewish workers and their families. The surviving Jews are sent to a labor camp run by Amon Goeth (Fiennes) and he finds pleasure in the sickest of ways. He shoots the Jewish people randomly from his balcony and beats his servants, particularly, his Jewish maid Helen Hirsch. With the help of Schindler's accountant Itzhak Stern (A very Amazing Ben Kingsley) Schindler helps save 1,100 Jews from persecution.
Fiennes plays such an incredibly horrifying character, it's no wonder he was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the Oscars in 1994. Fiennes plays a man who seems to have no compassion and no sense that the Jewish people are human beings. That is most noted in the scene where he goes down to Helen's quarters and talks to her as she stands there shivering in fear. I have never been more afraid for someone in a movie before. He caresses her body and runs his fingers through her hair, wondering out loud whether she is human like he is human. When I watched this when I was sixteen, it disgusted me to hear that, because anyone with a right sense will know that he is far from human. He reviews in his head what he think she would say, he feels a very slight amount of compassion towards her and then it is changed entirely. He understands that she is tricking him, rather he is tricking himself and beats her viciously although she stays silent the entire time. It was so strange to see him practically talking to himself and translating it into her talking back.
Comparing this to the way he treats others in Wuthering Heights it is evident that Fiennes plays an amazing bad guy. In Schindler's List though, you feel don't feel bad for him at all because the woman he loves, he is beating her terribly. In another scene, Stern states that a man tried to escape from the camp and Goeth shot 25 men surrounding him to show him a lesson. He shot them right in the head, with no remorse after, covered in their blood. The violent scenes shows that Fiennes can play a heartless, cruel person with no regard for human life. Unfortunately, that was how Hitler wanted his followers to feel towards Jewish people. And Fiennes does a terrifying, convincing job.
Do I recommend this movie? You BET I do!!! But be prepared if this is your first Holocaust movie, it's pretty intense.
Favorite Quote: "Is this the face of a rat? Are these the eyes of a rat? Hath not a Jew eyes? I feel for you, Helen." *Leans in to kiss her* "No I don't think so... You nearly talked me into it, didn't you?"

- Ralph Fiennes as Amon Goeth in Schindler's List 

Wuthering Heights (1992) First One!!!

Welcome, welcome to my first blog post! After much tribulation in trying to find where I could get the movie, I stopped arguing with myself and bought it on Amazon to watch instantly. And gosh was I not disappointed!

Ralph Fiennes plays one of the main characters Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights based off of the book of the same name by Emily Bronte. If anyone read the book, they will know how it all goes, but for those who haven't read the book (guilty!) here's the rough summary (Note: This is a TERRIBLE Rough summary and I suggest you watch the movie yourself or read the book then watch the movie!).

Heathcliff is adopted by a man who has a daughter named, Catherine (Juliette Binoche) and a son. When the man dies, the son makes him a stable boy,or a slave at that time. Catherine and Heathcliff develop a relationship and fall madly in love. Then after some complications, she marries off and he is left heartbroken. To the point where he treats everyone like dirt. As you will find out through these blogs, Fiennes plays a great asshole (pardon the language). You want to hate him when he treats everyone like dirt, but you feel such sympathy for him because he truly loved Catherine and she blamed him for her death (SPOILER!!!!)

I have never read the book but now I actually might with the vision of Heathcliff being Fiennes. I don't think I've read any of Bronte's work, nor have I read any of her sisters work so that should be fun.
Since this is the first one, I don't have much to say, but I will probably reference this one more as the blog goes on. It is a great movie, and I suggest it entirely. There are so many other Wuthering Heights movies but I really really like this one, then again, this is the only one I've seen.

Favorite Quote: "I pray one prayer. I repeat it till my tongue stiffins. Catherine Earnshaw, may you not rest as long as I am living. You said I killed you... I know that ghosts have wondered the Earth. Be with me always."

- Ralph Fiennes as Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights

See you next post!

Trouble Already

I don't know what's harder!
Trying to sort through the zillion remakes of Wuthering Heights, trying to find the Ralph Fiennes one, or actually trying to find a place to go buy it. It's times like these I wish Blockbusters were still around.
I had debated with myself like crazy, thinking whether to buy the movie on Amazon or search for another place to get it but I am pretty picky about movies. First, I gotta see the movie and like it to buy it. Plus, I don't want my computer to have a bunch of extra unnecessary stuff on it, it's acting a little funny already. So tomorrow I'm gonna try and find it. I know Pawn shops have a lot of movies I can get for like $1. Okay, I can break my movie rule for a buck a movie. Wouldn't you?
So tomorrow evening will be my first Fiennes movie post. Unless I can't get the movie, that that will really be unfair!
Wish me luck (yet again!)
 

The Beginning!

My name is Gabriella "Gabby" Flores. I've never done a blog before so I think this should be fun.
I have heard so much about how great blogging is but I have never been a blog follower, nor have I ever written one before. I say I am a writer, I have many great ideas but I don't write them down. I hope a blog will change that. I want to do something that I think will keep me interested, I'm giving myself a deadline. I am going to try and watch every big Ralph Fiennes movie before his next movie release in March.

Anyone who knows me, knows that I love LOVE movies. I have a few favorite actors, like the handsome leading men in action films and even some great Oscar winning actors. I like to consider myself as one of those Oscar buffs who know the Oscar movies, I dissect movies based on how great they would be at the Oscars and I love the great older actors who can hold their own in big movies. I also like the young men who take their shirts off a lot in action movies or chick flicks that have bad acting and a lack of script. I'm a 20 year-old woman. What can I say???

So, what is this blog about? It is a breakdown of some great movies, from a great actor, Ralph Fiennes. I've seen only a few of his movies. Throughout this blog I will say which ones I have seen, which were my favorites, and even the experiences I have had with these movies. Why Ralph Fiennes you may ask? I think he's a great Great actor. The movies I have seen him in I have never been disappointed with, and it doesn't hurt that he is a pretty handsome older man. Is that weird for a 20 year-old to say? It might be but let's move on.

I've seen his most popular movies like "Harry Potter" with all my girlfriends at mid-night when I was a young teenager (They've read all of the books and it took me a long time to read them, I'll get to that later). I was horrified at the evil he portrayed in Schindler's List and Red Dragon, I felt such sympathy for him in The Reader and The Constant Gardener and I fell in love with him in Maid in Manhattan. So what I'm going to do is this: I will try to watch his most popular movies, starting with Wuthering Heights.

The goals I hope to accomplish with this blog is to become a better writer (#1), get a better understanding of what is considered a good movie, see some of Ralph Fiennes' best movies and even determine some favorite actresses, since I don't really have any. I have 36 of his movies to view and criticize, and 13 weeks to watch them all. My posts will most likely happen on Thursdays and Saturdays, and during my Spring Break, I will try to do a movie marathon. I have until March 30th to complete my movie experience.

Wish me luck and I hope to find more Fiennes fans.