Trying to catch up on a big stack of movies from the library, so I watched two today.
Ornamental Hairpin (1941) Directed by Hiroshi Shimizu, part of the Criterion Collection's excellent Eclipse series. A very pleasant Summer Holiday story, nothing earthshaking, just a really nice story well presented. Perhaps a little extra poignance (if that is a word) is added by the knowledge that the lovely quiet world depicted here was just about to be literally blown to hell forever. 8/10
Ratatouille (2007) I went into this as a Cultural Duty, as I often do with Disney/Pixar's perpetual "masterpieces," expecting it to be a bit of a chore, or at least to feel at some point that I wasn't sure I could keep going, but I would force myself and sit through it to the end. After 20 minutes I stopped it, went downstairs to where Donna was working and said, "You have to come watch this movie. Just trust me on this." I started it over and we watched it, and really had a pleasant time. This is the finest thing they have ever done. The settings, characters, dialog, expressions and story are outstanding, and if you are a detail freak like me, every moment is a dream, every tile and cobblestone luscious. This Paris is more French than even Paris itself. Witty, charming and, yes, delightful. I swear, when the rat first started cooking, I wanted to cry, it was so brilliant. 10/10
