Explore
 Lists  Reviews  Images  Update feed
Categories
MoviesTV ShowsMusicBooksGamesDVDs/Blu-RayPeopleArt & DesignPlacesWeb TV & PodcastsToys & CollectiblesComic Book SeriesBeautyAnimals   View more categories »
Listal logo
Avatar

sunset96

Add sunset96 as a friend


sunset96 will be notified and will have to accept this friendship request, to view updates from sunset96 and their ratings you must follow them.


Remove sunset96 as a friend


Follow sunset96

Follow content (Lists, pictures, videos, reviews & votes)

Track ratings in these areas:
Movies Music
TV shows Books
DVDs Games

Lists

2 votes
Top 10 Films of 2009 (12 items)
Movie list by sunset96
Last updated 10 years, 8 months ago
2 votes
Top 10 Films of 2007 (10 items)
Movie list by sunset96
Last updated 10 years, 8 months ago
1 votes
Favorite TV shows (5 items)
Tv list by sunset96
Last updated 10 years, 10 months ago
2 votes
Hours Spent Playing Video Games (11 items)
Game list by sunset96
Published 12 years, 4 months ago 1 comment
1 votes
PlayStation 3 Collection (36 items)
Game list by sunset96
Last updated 10 years, 11 months ago



Recent reviews

All reviews - Movies (1) - Books (2) - Games (1)

Traumnovelle review

Posted : 10 years, 8 months ago on 23 February 2014 08:19 (A review of Traumnovelle)

This isn't so much a review as a comparison to Stanley Kubrick's film adaptation 'Eyes Wide Shut'.

With the exception of Vladimir Narbakov's Lolita, Stanley Kubrick was said to adapt the novels he thought weren't masterpieces in order to improve on them. This is arguably the case here, since Kubrick took many liberties with the source material to improve it from both a cinematic and storytelling perspective. Kubrick's changes turned an intriguing, but distant, short story into a nightmarish and haunting gothic mystery film.

Firstly, the pacing of Traumnovelle is one of its weaknesses. Kubrick's film Eyes Wide Shut is deliberately paced for the purpose of immersing the viewer into the protagonist's dreamlike state of mind. The film, although slow, creates a mood that is integral to appreciating it. In the novella, however, many of the film's most interesting details are skimmed and summarised which doesn't give the reader time to familiarise themselves with Fridolin or his surroundings. For example, two integral scenes in Kubrick's film, the confession of Albertina/Alice and Fridolin/Bill's discovery of the fate of Nachtigall/Nightingale after the masked ball, are both summarised less than several pages. This brevity doesn't allow the details to sink in.

Kubrick's addition of the party at the very beginning of the film added dimensions to the film absent from the novella. Mandy, the prostitute who Fridolin/Bill saves wakes up after she has passed out, had no incentive to warn Fridolin/Bill to leave the ritual in the novella. Kubrick's addition adds another dimension to the character. Ziegler also adds another dimension to the film that the novella lacks. Ziegler is the perfect representation of a seemingly polite yet powerful man who belongs to society's elite. The ambiguous denouement of Kubrick's film allows the mystery to linger so that the viewer is appropriately unnerved and contemplative. Finally, Alice/Albertina's flirtatious behaviour in the party scene prepares the viewer for the argument between Alice/Albertina and Fridolin/Bill in the following scene.

Ultimately, Dream Story is an intriguing novella, but pales in comparison to Kubrick's vivid, surreal and emotionally affecting cinematic wonder.


0 comments, Reply to this entry

Ambitious and immersive, yet flawed.

Posted : 12 years, 4 months ago on 16 June 2012 09:07 (A review of Assassin's Creed)

Assassin's Creed is an enriching, immersive and satisfying game in regards to its atmosphere and gameplay, save a few glitches and flaws. Yet, its conventional and simplistic ending virtually strips the game of the philosophical credibility that it had attempted to establish beforehand. In addition, the many goals in this game grow incredibly repetitious as the player progresses through the game's narrative.

Regardless of this, Assassin's Creed perfects its open-world atmosphere through its detailed and complex depiction of the crusades. In addition, it poses many fascinating philosophical and moral questions that resist easy answers, even if Altair's strong, and arguably simplistic, adherence to the creed does undermine the player's ability to challenge themselves on an intellectual level. It's the moral absolutism of Altair that the game attempts to eschew.

Occasionally, some of the dialogue is stilted and the delivery isn't quite credible as one would hope, yet its ambition and scope seem to transcend its flaws. Assassin's Creed isn't an infallible game by any means, but it certainly isn't a mediocre cash cow.


0 comments, Reply to this entry

Eyes Wide Open

Posted : 12 years, 9 months ago on 2 February 2012 11:48 (A review of Eyes Wide Shut)

Stanley Kubrickā€™s final film is perhaps the first of its kind: it is the only film I have watched that exists within the state of death itself. Itā€™s no surprise; Stanley Kubrick died 4 days after submitting the final print into Warner Bros., Sydney Pollock died in 2008 and my grandparents, who saw this film during its theatrical release at an ill-fated screening, are dead. However, these arenā€™t merely the reasons this film evokes a death-like state, this film evokes a death-like state throughout Bill Harfordā€™s sexual odyssey. At the masked ball, which is arguably the filmā€™s centrepiece, women are used and discarded as corpses who are only valued for their material gain. This film is shroud in ultra-violet blue, especially at the end of the film where it accentuates the charactersā€™ trembling flesh and vulnerable humanity, and the powerful red which contrasts against this blue reflects one of Kubrickā€™s favourite themes: dominance. Perhaps itā€™s inexplicable that Eyes Wide Shut evokes a manā€™s dying thoughts. Ironically, this film feels more fresh and timeless than many of its contemporaries, only reaffirming the inestimable value of Kubrickā€™s contributions to cinema and a decade of a cinematic drought aptly followed his death.

It was fashionable to deride Stanley Kubrickā€™s final film during its theatrical run, regardless of the fact that he considered it his personal favourite. It seems that the audience expected Kubrick to inundate them with gratuitous eroticism as opposed to ideas. Yet, Eyes Wide Shut has outsmarted time and the film industry itself. It was almost incongruously released a week before American Pie and the abysmal Will Smith star vehicle Wild Wild West. It continues to hold a mere 7.2/10 on IMDb in contrast to escapist science-fiction film The Matrix which holds an 8.7/10 rating and is listed in the top 30 films of all time, above Kubrickā€™s more cerebral science-fiction classic 2001: A Space Odyssey. All of this may be due to the fact that Kubrick argued that ā€˜Observancy is a dying artā€™ and Eyes Wide Shut requires an attention to detail and an attention span that transcends the average summer blockbuster; itā€™s easy to get lost in the terrifying labyrinth of Kubrickā€™s musings. Though, unlike other films, Kubrickā€™s Eyes Wide Shut refutes the transcendent imagery and magic that is featured in the majority of Kubrickā€™s films, even in Eyes Wide Shut itself, and strips humanity down to its fragile human core, figuratively speaking; Kubrick comes to the conclusion that when man is confronted with the cold and harsh reality, he favours comforting self-delusion and blissful ignorance.
Sydney Pollockā€™s Ziegler argues, during his amazing final monologue, that the Masonic orgies are practiced by societyā€™s elite which excludes Bill. Bill spends the duration of the filmā€™s first half attempting to engage in infidelity after his wife reveals that she was willing to choose one night with a naval officer over their future. Naturally, this enrages Bill and he spends the night attempting to fulfil his personal need to subjugate his feelings of impotence, sexual and otherwise. Even in the very beginning, when Bill walks with two models, his short stature implicitly denotes his lack of power. Bill is convinced that he has been subjected to a life of domesticity and his wife is responsible; he vows to reaffirm his masculinity. Kubrick paints long shots of New York at midnight which is designed to inspire the viewer with dread. Almost every single beautiful shot capturing the very essence of soft, warm colours in the beginning soon descends into the dark and strong colours that reflect the very dream-state many describe when they watch this film. Yet, to me, it evokes a foreboding death-like state which suggests impending doom.
Billā€™s quest for reaffirmation of his masculinity only renders him emasculated when he enters a Masonic orgy and is rendered socially powerless by a group of the masked elite. Billā€™s journey neither leads him towards enlightenment nor satisfaction but humiliation and understanding that he has been domesticated by the higher classes. Ironically, his quest for sexual empowerment only led him to the understanding of social domesticity; Bill is not as influential or elite as he had initially anticipated. Not unlike the eliteā€™s perception of women; they use the high-class prostitutes as objects valued for their material value which reflects their perception of the masses that are responsible for their success. As in the beginning, when Ziegler needs Bill to revive a dying woman who almost overdoses on a combination of cocaine and heroin, Ziegler values Bill for his medical expertise which prevented trouble with the law rather than his personality.

Kubrickā€™s film argues that we live in ignorance of others perceptions of us and this is the ultimate existential fear of Harford; the elite have seen Harford unmasked, vulnerable and exposed. Pollock says ā€˜If you knew who was there, you wouldnā€™t sleep so well.ā€™ Kubrick has finally exposed man for who he really is; vulnerable and ignorant of the mysterious forces which govern him. The final and most playfully complex of cinemaā€™s closing lines concludes that Bill and Alice Harford have learned to stop worrying and love the bomb. They refuse to acknowledge their social impotence and would prefer for their eyes to remain wide shut, ignorant to the mysterious forces that govern them. On a more optimistic note, however, perhaps Billā€™s odyssey only made him aware of his vulnerability, and Kubrick evokes this through the dark imagery that recreates the sense of subjective paranoia that Bill is experiencing. Bill realises what ultimately matters: love and family, as opposed to the power which he initially craved but only realised he was at the mercy of othersā€™ application of such social power. Iā€™m open to many interpretations of this film, because Kubrick wanted the audienceā€™s eyes to remain wide open soon after they finished experiencing this masterpiece.


0 comments, Reply to this entry

2001: A Space Odyssey review

Posted : 13 years, 6 months ago on 7 May 2011 11:01 (A review of 2001: A Space Odyssey)

Certainly well written but it seems to lack the majesty and mystery that made the film a masterpiece.


0 comments, Reply to this entry




Movies

Favorite - View all
My movies page

Rated 1209 movies

TV

Favorite - View all
My tv page

Rated 182 tv

Games

Favorite - View all
My games page

Rated 212 games

Music

Top rated
My music page

Rated 10 music

Books

Favorite - View all
My books page

Rated 115 books
Favorite Authors

My feed

sunset96 commented on a list
Listal's 100 Greatest Movies Of The 00's (220 movies items)

"1. No Country for Old Men 2. There Will Be Blood 3. Let the Right One In 4. A.I. Artificial Intelligence 5. A Serious Man 6. The Prestige 7. The Man Who Wasn't There 8. Hot Fuzz 9. The Dark Knigh"


10 years, 8 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Most Anticipated Movies of Summer 2014 (34 movies items)

"1. The Rover 2. How to Catch a Monster 3. Magic in the Moonlight 4. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes 5. Transcendence (Being released in Japan on June 28) 6. Lucy 7. Deliver Us From Evil 8. Godzilla 9. "


10 years, 8 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
2013's Best Movies (95 movies items)

"1. Inside Llewyn Davis 2. Her 3. Nebraska 4. The Wolf of Wall Street 5. Frozen 6. Prisoners 7. Blue Jasmine 8. This is the End 9. The Lone Ranger 10. Gravity"


10 years, 8 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Classical Music in Games (18 games items)

"I'm led to believe that Mozart's Turkish March is played throughout 'Escape Plan' for the PS Vita."


12 years, 1 month ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Zero Punctuation (34 games items)

"Yahtzee said '...it's kind of endearing for it.', not 'enduring'."


12 years, 2 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
RPG World: PLAYSTATION 3 Edition (20 games items)

"There's a game called 'Folklore' that I think you should add to this list."


12 years, 2 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
The evolution of Nicolas Cage (83 movies items)

"Damn it, Mr. Lays, I wanted to make a joke about Nicholas Cage's stagnation as an actor!"


12 years, 2 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Games Made Into Movies (44 movies items)

"You should add the forthcoming Assassin's Creed adaptation in which Michael Fassbender is cast."


12 years, 2 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Video Game Films - Ranked (45 movies items)

"Are you looking forward to Wreck-it-Ralph?"


12 years, 3 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
What is your Favorite Game Cover? (53 games items)

"1. Ico http://www.listal.com/viewimage/324981 2. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim http://www.listal.com/viewimage/2758231 3. The Neverhood http://www.listal.com/viewimage/38883 4. Max Payne 2: The Fall of"


12 years, 3 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Kids in Movies They Can't See Without Supervision (14 movies items)

"Great concept for a list."


12 years, 4 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Hollywood Marriages that last (9 person items)

"http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Lloyd - Norman Lloyd was married to Peggy Craven from June 29, 1936 to her death in August 30, 2011."


12 years, 4 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Movies you may not know that were allegories (15 movies items)

"What about Eyes Wide Shut? Wouldn't you argue that Eyes Wide Shut is an Masonic allegory? Or would Eyes Wide Shut fall under the category of an overt depiction of individual powerlessness?"


12 years, 4 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Most hated (11 person items)

"This list is articulate and scathing in its criticism. Kudos, you've amused me and earned my respect."


12 years, 7 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Roger Ebert's favorite movies (1971) (10 movies items)

"Sunday, Bloody Sunday is a forgotten gem. I wish it were recognized more."


12 years, 7 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Listal's Top 50 Movies of 2011 (59 movies items)

"1. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy 2. Moneyball 3. Drive 4. The Tree of Life 5. We Need to Talk About Kevin"


12 years, 7 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Typical Movie Arguments That Irk Me... (11 movies items)

"This is an excellent list, I would feel confident to say that it is one of my personal favourite lists on this website. In an ideal world, people would be more open-minded."


12 years, 7 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Listal's 50 Female Crushes/Hottest Women (64 person items)

"1. Kate Winslet 2. Christina Hendricks 3. Scarlett Johanson 4. Carey Mulligan 5. Carrie Anne Moss 5. Nicole Kidman 6. Emily Browning 7. Audrey Tatou 8. Kelly Brook 9. Helena Bonham Carter 10. Mia Wasi"


12 years, 7 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Listal's 100 Best Video Games: The Results (100 games items)

"I don't play video games often so I may not be as informed as other users. 1. Grand Theft Auto IV (PS3) 2. Super Mario Bros. (NES) 3. Grand Theft Auto III (PS2) 4. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (PS2) 5"


12 years, 7 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Listal's Top Horror Movies (93 movies items)

"Horror is my least favourite genre, however, there are some very good horror films. 1. The Wicker Man (1973) 2. The Shining (1980) 3. Alien (1979) 4. Nosferatu the Vampyre (1979) 5. Psycho (1960) 6. "


12 years, 7 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Listal's Favorite Books (The Results) (340 books items)

"1. Nineteen Eighty-Four - George Orwell 2. The Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger 3. The Metamorphosis - Franz Kafka 4. The Trial - Franz Kafka 5. Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck 6. Easy Riders, Ragi"


12 years, 7 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
The Films Brando Refused (4 movies items)

"I've read something similar, JayTrotter."


12 years, 7 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Listal's 100 Most Underrated Films (402 movies items)

"I'm including films that are not represented and/or appreciated to the extent that they should regardless of their Listal rating. 1. Being There (1979) Listal Rating: 7.5 2. Eyes Wide Shut (1999) Lis"


12 years, 8 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Celebs I Liked BEFORE Their Big Break (6 person items)

"I thought Justin Gordon-Levitt's big break was 3rd Rock from the Sun; I merely assumed the sudden surge of popularity was a revival of his career, not a 'big break'."


12 years, 8 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Some of the Best American Screenplays Ever (20 movies items)

"I couldn't comment on your profile so I decided to comment here instead. Thank you for your many list votes, image votes and kind comments."


12 years, 8 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Chain Reaction!! (40 movies items)

"[img id=2972623 width=500full] ...from pain he chooses to end his life... [img id=2155485 width=500 full] ...he chooses to end his life to escape the horror... [img id=2170014 width=500 full] ...t"


12 years, 8 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Top Ten Worst Films of 2011 - Xanadon't (10 movies items)

"I avoided The Future like a plague primarily because Me and You and Everyone We Know epitomises the manipulative, insulting and pseudo-philosophical 'indie' film."


12 years, 8 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
When comedian play surprising roles (15 person items)

"You could also add 'What Dreams May Come' in the Robin Williams' field."


12 years, 8 months ago
sunset96 commented on a list
Quote Me On That: A List of Great Film Quotations (100 movies items)

"I agree; 'I'm afraid I can't you let you do that, Dave' is far more memorable than Dave's more popular quote."


12 years, 9 months ago

« Prev12 3 Next »

Comments

Posted: 10 months, 2 weeks ago at Dec 26 11:42
To all my friends, have a very Furry Christmas and a Happy Mew Year ;-)p (see whut I did there?)

Posted: 2 years ago at Nov 1 11:08
Posted: 2 years, 10 months ago at Dec 26 9:01
Best wishes to all my friends, hope yur holidays are great, and let's try and make it thru to the next year ;-D

Posted: 4 years, 10 months ago at Dec 26 22:51
Hey, sorry I'm late to the party, have a good one ;-D

Posted: 6 years, 10 months ago at Dec 25 20:06
Just wishing my Listal amigos a very...

Posted: 7 years ago at Oct 31 20:34
Wishing all my friends a very 'spook-tacular'--

Posted: 7 years, 10 months ago at Jan 6 17:13
Hey, my friends!

Sorry I'm late getting to all my holidays best wishes, but I've been sick the past couple weeks and in a lot of pain. Hope this makes up for it ;D...

Posted: 8 years ago at Oct 31 23:40
Posted: 8 years, 10 months ago at Dec 26 4:56
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all my friends! Have a good one;D...

Posted: 9 years, 10 months ago at Dec 26 4:10
Just saying "Merry Christmas" to all my friends! Thanks for all the support and well wishes over 2014!:D:D:D...

Posted: 10 years, 8 months ago at Feb 25 1:26
Thank you for voting for and commenting on my "2013's Best Movies" and "Most Anticipated Movies of Summer 2014" lists. Your picks have been added.
Posted: 11 years, 7 months ago at Apr 11 4:40
Posted: 11 years, 10 months ago at Jan 13 15:31
thanks for the vote :)
Posted: 11 years, 10 months ago at Dec 24 23:27
Merry Christmas! Have a great day.
Posted: 11 years, 10 months ago at Dec 21 9:44
Merry Christmas :)
Posted: 11 years, 11 months ago at Nov 24 13:59
Thanks for the vote =)
Posted: 12 years, 1 month ago at Oct 9 16:14
Thank you very much for the votes on my lists ;}
Posted: 12 years, 1 month ago at Oct 5 20:17
Hello! Thanks so much for the list vote :)
www.listal.com/list/caricatures-of-film-actors
Posted: 12 years, 1 month ago at Sep 23 15:40
thx for voting
Posted: 12 years, 1 month ago at Sep 17 19:53
Thanks for the vote