Currently I’m working on an exhaustive review of Casino Royale. I’ve also got a few other projects going at the same time so things are progressing rather slowly.

So here are two quick film reviews, one positive the other negative.

The Invasion

2007, Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig

This film is a failed effort at a re-make and update of Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Neither is needed. This film is not a success in any way. I can find no good things to say about it. Kidman and Craig don’t so much act as walk about talking and the plot is too diffuse to give us any reason to care, indeed by the end I didn’t care if the alien virus took over the world, I just wanted it to end already.

Plot/Story*	1/10
Philosophy	0/5
Acting/Characterization	0/10
Music/Sound	0/5
Direction/Photography	2/10
Special Effects	0/5
Technical/Other	0/5
TOTAL	3/50 points 0.5/10 stars

Explaination of the rating: * Hey, at least it had one!

Updated 16-Feb-08 with a star rating.

The Rape of Europa

2007, Documentary

A magnificent documentary film about a little known fact of history: the astounding pan-european art-theft campaign of the Nazis. Hitler wanted to create the “culture capital” of the world in his home town, and to install in it the greatest art collection on earth. Thus a systematic and highly organized pillaging of Europe’s museums and private collections was conducted, many works that were incompatible with Nazi ideology were destroyed and while most of the stolen works were recovered, some others have simply vanished or are now in museums with no rights to them. Of course there was also an organized campaign to save and hide the artwork and the film delves into that also. Highly Recommended.

This is a non-dramatic film and is thus ineligable for a star-rating at this time.