MR. BEAN - "First Aid" scene

I always loved watching this weird TV series about a man, who acts like a child, is great at creating troubles and manages to find the most simple and hilarious solution to any problem. Yes, I'm talking (actually, I'm writing) about "Mr. Bean".

There are so many favourite moments, so it is like choosing the best from the best for me. But this particular scene from episode "Mr. Bean Rides Again" is incredible! How creatively the main character saves the other man's life! Rowan Atkinson definitely is one of the most talented British comic actors of all time.

"The Avengers" (2012) - Memorable Quotes

There were a few strange dialogs, but honestly I really liked many quotes from "The Avengers", and I want to share them with you, my readers.

I'll update this post soon, when I'll find more great quotes from this superhero film. Enjoy!


And don't forget to vote POLL: Which Avenger would you like to be?
More about "The Avengers" (2012)!

Agent Phil Coulson: Agent Fury, I think it's time.

Nick Fury: You think you're the only superhero in the world? Mr. Stark, you've become part of a bigger universe. You just don't know it yet.

Tony Stark: But let's do a head count here. Your brother, the demigod. A super soldier, living legend who kinda lives up to the legend. A man with breathtaking anger management issues. A couple of master assassins and you've managed to piss off every single one of them.

Tony Stark: And I'm a huge fan of the way you lose control and turn into an enormous green rage monster.
Bruce Banner: Thanks.

Tony Stark: No offense, but I don't play well with others.
Steve Rogers: Big man, in a suit of armour… take that away, what are you?
Tony Stark: Genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist.

Bruce Banner: We're not a team. We're a time bomb.

Pepper Potts: Hey, Phil!
Tony Stark: Phil? I thought his first name was Agent.

Loki: I have an army.
Tony Stark: We have a Hulk.

Tony Stark: I thought I didn't qualify. I was considered, what was it… "volatile, self-centered, and I don't play well with others."

Thor: He's my brother.
Natasha Romanoff: He killed 80 people in 2 days.
Thor: He's adopted.

Captain America: There is only one God, and I don't think he dresses like that.

Agent Phil Coulson (to Steve Rogers): I watched you while you slept.

Tony Stark: If we can’t protect the Earth, you can be damn sure we'll avenge it!

"Dark Shadows" (2012) - Personal quiz

It is left a few days till the premiere of Tim Burton's comic-and-tragic vampire love story, "Dark Shadows". Tired of waiting and re-watching trailers, I took a little character quiz, which showed that I'm more like the main character, Barnabas Collins:

"You're a creature of the night. Like Barnabas Collins, you prefer the coziness of shadows to the harsh glare of the sun, though you are a bit claustrophobic. You value family above all else. You're charming; a classic throwback in a modern world. But be careful who you flirt with – jealous witches are your Achilles heel."

Obviously, it doesn't describe me exactly, but maybe there is something true about it. Anyway, this quiz is a lot of fun.

Visit the official film site to discover which character you are. And don't forget to tell me your results in comments below.

Read my 10 Reasons to Be Exited about "DARK SHADOWS".
More about "Dark Shadows" (2012)!

POLL: Which Avenger would you like to be?

I finally saw "The Avengers" today and told you everything about its pros and cons on my Twitter profile (@ElenaStrBlogger). I know that this story is partly science-fiction, but let's be honest, it is very unlikely that someone will make a real Iron Man suit, survive a gamma bomb explosion, become a super soldier or come from Asgard with a power of a god.

But imagine that everything is possible and you could become one of the Avengers assemble. So who would you like to be, at least for a day?

Make your choice based not only on their physical appearance (yes, Hulk isn't the most attractive, but he has a very brave heart), but also count their character features.





Poster - Kinopoisk

Top-5 films of Cannes Film Festival 2012

The line-up for the 65th annual Cannes Film Festival was announced a few weeks ago, but I hadn't much time to check it and pick just 5 films, which I'd definitely like to watch, until now.

The whole list you can read here.

"Moonrise Kingdom" by Wes Anderson

"I will meet you in the meadow."

It is the opening film of the festival, and if you remember the one, which started it the previous year, Woody Allen's "Midnight in Paris", you know it has to be something special. The cast is very strong, it includes Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, Bill Murray, Frances McDormand and Tilda Swinton. "Moonrise Kingdom" set in the 1960s and tells a love story of two young people, who decide to run away. So their parents with help of a local sheriff start searching for them. Its trailer is surreal and weird, that is why I like it.

"Lawless" by John Hillcoat

"I'm the one who's going to make your life real difficult from now on if you don't toe the line country boy."

A gangster drama, based on a true story. Aren't you already interested in it? Shia LaBeouf, Tom Hardy and Jason Clarke play three brothers, who are running a very risky business, bootlegging. But new political era makes it even harder and definitely more dangerous. Also there are Gary Oldman, Jessica Chastain, Mia Wasikowska and Guy Pearce, who won't let this film to be boring. The trailer atmosphere is very tense, especially I like the music, which gives me goose bumps. And don't confuse it with Terrence Malick's "Lawless" with Ryan Gosling, Rooney Mara and Christian Bale, which will be out in 2013.

"Hemingway and Gellhorn" by Philip Kaufman

"Someone has to go, someone has to write about this."

If you are a bit familiar with Ernest Hemingway's works and life, you know that it could be a great biopic. Martha Gellhorn was his wife and a talented journalist, who became famous thanks to her war reports. The main parts are played by Clive Owen and Nicole Kidman, who look very persuasive in the only trailer, which was released so far. War, passion, love, talent - this film must be very impressive.

"The Paperboy" by Lee Daniels

Another film with Nicole Kidman. But this time she is playing a seductive woman, due to the first stills. Zac Efron and Matthew McConaughey are portraying the brothers; the younger of them helps the elder and his companion to discover who murdered the local sheriff a few years ago. While the brothers have other problems to manage, the third one fabricates some evidence to write the story without them. And now the justice must triumph or the wrong man will be executed.

Trailer isn't available yet.

"Killing Them Softly" by Andrew Dominik

Brad Pitt portrays Jackie Cogan, an enforcer, who has to investigate the heist of a poker game with the high stakes. This film is based on a novel by George V. Higgins, and is directed by a man, whose favourite and very successful film genre is crime. We'll see if this story could be this year's "Drive".

Trailer isn't available yet.

Pictures - COLLIDER, IMPAwards, Vicious!

The Women of "Bel Ami" (2012)

I'm very into period dramas, so I just couldn't miss "Bel Ami", a new adaptation of Guy de Maupassant's novel of the same name. Yes, it stars Robert Pattinson, but I have no prejudice towards him. This story is about a young man, who is tired of being poor and uses his charm to seduce rich women. I enjoyed the film, though I haven't read the book, so I can't tell if it is a good or bad adaptation. The most of all I liked its atmosphere, which was created thanks to beautiful music, gorgeous costumes and picturesque locations.

The main character, Georges Duroy, doesn't like to waste his precious time, so during 1 hour 30 min he manages to sleep with 4 women, almost sleep with a young innocent girl, and who knows how many of his affairs were left outside this story. All female characters impressed me, and every actress did a great job.

Rachel (Natalia Tena)

She is a prostitute, the first and the poorest woman, with whom Duroy has slept in this film. Also it was the most sinful sex and the most naked scene in the whole film.

Clotilde de Marelle (Christina Ricci)

She is my favourite female character here, because there is something honest and pure about her, though she cheated on her husband with the main character. And I think Clotilde is the only woman he cared about, and if he married her, he'd stop playing his games.

Madeleine Forestier (Uma Thurman)

Beautiful and smart woman isn't the one, who is easy to fool. But she also lets him in, after her husband died. It is a big question why she did it, because she didn't really need him as a friend nor lover. She was a complete person without his greedy ambitions.

Virginie Walters (Kristin Scott Thomas)

A lady, who was married for many years and has never cheated on her husband, falls in love with Duroy, because he was the only man, who said nice words to her. But then her love turned into dangerous obsession, she became crazy, and I think she didn't survive his new marriage.

Suzanne Rousset (Holliday Grainger)

The last victim of Duroy was naive Suzanne. She was very young, inexperienced and rich, so he just couldn't stop using her. I wonder how fast she figured out that he doesn't care about her at all.

Pictures - BEL AMI Film

"Django Unchained" (2012) - First pictures!

Finally, the creators of "Django Unchained", Quentin Tarantino's spaghetti western, began to release some promo stuff. Now we got the first look at Leonardo DiCaprio, Christoph Waltz and Jamie Foxx, who look very great in those costumes. May I be the one to start Oscar rumours right now? Because there is a big chance that the work of its costume department will be appreciated.

Earlier the synopsis of the film was released, you can read it here.

More about "Django Unchained" (2012)!

P.S. And I remind you that no matter how bad-ass Waltz is looking on this picture, his Dr. King Schultz is going to be a good guy. However you must beware of DiCaprio's Calvin Candie, he must be a ruthless sadist.

Pictures - COLLIDER

Let's start #FilmAdvice!

I'm sure that many of you, film addicts, have a Twitter account, because it really helps to share and find any information about films, actors, premieres, new releases, trivia etc. And I'm sure that every one of you has at least once in a while some doubts about a film you are going to watch. Of course, you can check its IMDB and Rotten Tomatoes ratings, but it doesn't necessarily help. An opinion of a real human is always better.

So I figured out we should have a tag, which can help to choose the right film and also find more people, who share your passion for films.

How will it work?
It is incredibly simple. You write your film-related question and add this hashtag - #FilmAdvice.
What kind of questions?

For example,
"There are two film-disaster in my local cinema, Titanic and Battleship, which one has a better 3D?" or
"Is there anyone, who likes horrors and didn't like 'The Cabin in the Woods'?" or
"Which Quentin Tarantino/Woody Allen/Alfred Hitchcock etc film is better to start with?" or
"Is there any film with a villain, who is similar to Christopher Walken's Horseman from "Sleepy Hollow?" or
"There are "The Tourist" and "Salt" on TV at the same time. Which should I watch?"
"Which of the new Blu-ray comedy/horror/saga/drama/TV show releases is worth it?"

You can ask me, isn't it more simple just ask someone of your friends for this advice? Of course, it might be, but there are a very few people, who are constantly online, so you might have wait for a long time to get a response.

Read the rules to understand #FilmAdvice movement better.

#FilmAdvice has a few simple rules:

• If someone helped you to choose the right film, you should help someone else too. 'Pay It Forward'. If you will ignore to help someone, don't be surprised, when your question will be ignored too.

• There are no hosts or mentors. It depends just on your wish to give an advice and get an advice. If someone can answer your questions, he or she will. If nobody did it, don't be upset, try the next time, but don't post your question every 10 minutes.

• This isn't a Fight Club, so you shouldn't keep silent about it. You better help spreading it by talking, posting, tweeting about #FilmAdvice.

• Answer a question, only if it doesn't have a reply. Let's don't give hundreds of replies to the one person and leave behind the other.

• It isn't about judging people's taste. If you see that someone asks about the film you dislike very much (you particularly hate it), you just continue passing by or try to be polite about it (sarcasm doesn't mean civility).

• If you saw a film, which someone advised you to pick, and you didn't like it, please, don't blame that person. Next time ask more specific questions to make sure.

• Don't ask questions, which Google can answer. "What is called the sport comedy directed by George Clooney?" Check it first; maybe, you can get a quick answer by yourself.

• If you are supporting #FilmAdvice, check this hashtag, when you are on Twitter. Anytime. Anywhere.

• REMEMBER: you get, you give.

I don't know, will it work or not, but let's give my idea a chance!

Who has any proposals for #FilmAdvice and wants to help me with this tiny project, leave a comment below this post or contact @ElenaStrBlogger!

"La Teta Asustada" (2009) - Twitter review

It has been a while since I wrote a Twitter review, but "La Teta Asustada" inspired me to continue. It is my thoughts in 140+ characters , while I was watching it.

More my strange Twitter reviews!

• In the mood for some serious drama. I picked Best Foreign Language Film nominee "La Teta Asustada" by Claudia Llosa.

• Old lady's song shocked me so much. How people can do such horrible things?! They create the hell on Earth.

• Such films scare me more than any horror, because they are about something that really happens.

• The scene where they are preparing old lady's body for a funeral is very detailed. I didn't see it before in any other film. They usually show just a cemetery full of people, who gathered before a closed coffin, in American films.

• The main character is a young girl Fausta. She suffers from a physiological disease 'The Milk of Sorrow', which is also called 'The Frightened Tit', because her pregnant mother was raped.

• Actress Magaly Solier played her part great, she made her character very vulnerable, reserved and fearful. Sometimes her Fausta reminds me a wild animal, which was captured and doesn't know how to get away from its cage.

• And when Fausta is miserable, she starts to sing about her feelings. This is how her mother taught her. It brings at least a few minutes of freedom for her.

• Every time Fausta is in a crowd, there is so much tension, like she will break any minute. But she remains strong and fights her disease.

• All minor parts are played by unknown actors or just local people, but they looks very natural, which makes this film even more realistic and down-to-earth.

• While I'm watching this feature film, I start to think that it is a documentary about hard life of people from Peru.

• By the way, Solier has a beautiful voice, and she is the author of the songs, which her character sings in this drama.

• The most wicked scene was the marriage of over 50 people. A private ceremony just for two is very expensive, so they wait till there are more fiancées and make a big holiday for all of them.

• I'm sure that Fausta's employer has an interesting life story to share, but it was left in shadows.

• Even if all people in the world will tell you to overcome your fear, only you can do it by believing in yourself. But you still need at least one good friend, whom you can trust, who will help you and push you in the right direction.  

• "La Teta Asustada" in an inspiring and challenging story, which shows the hard way to freedom. And without freedom we can't be happy. It deserves 7/10.

"Hitchcock" (2013) - First look at Anthony Hopkins

The very first promo image for the new biopic was released. Before I saw this picture, I've never thought that there is some resemblance between Anthony Hopkins and Alfred Hitchcock. But is it that he really gained some weight or this film has a talented make-up artist, Hopkins became unrecognisable - I see only Hitchcock there.

This film is called simply "Hitchcock" and will be in cinemas in 2013. It is going to be a love story about Alfred Hitchcock and Alma Reville, his wife, who is played by Helen Mirren, while he was filming his famous "Psycho". And the rumour says that we will see Scarlett Johansson, Jessica Biel and Toni Collette among them. The director is Sacha Gervas, who is one of the screenwriters of Spielberg's "The Terminal". Also the biopic is based on a book by Stephen Rebello.

Both leading actors are the Academy Award winners, so "Hitchcock" has a good chance to become one of the critics favourite. I doubt that such cast can ruin this interesting story.

Picture - Fox Searchlight