^^ yeah, it's slim pickings out there this weekend. I have stuff to catch up with, but not sure I'll have the time.
Letters From Iwo Jima - 4/10: I heard this was the good one of the two companion Eastwood films, but man, I thought it was pretty boring and just chocked full of war movie cliches (the maverick general, the civilian thrust into war forced to show his mettle, dissent in the ranks/power struggle) which is fine if they are shown in an interesting way, but here they were not at all. I liked a few of the preparation scenes and the General himself was a decent enough character, but the rest of the film was pretty damn boring and predictable. It did not even look all that great. I'd much rather re-watch The Thin Red Line or even Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence.
Election (Hak se wui) - 8.5/10: Awesome movie from Johnnie To about a Hong Kong triad electing a new leader, then all of the ramifications surrounding it when two individuals vie for leadership. There are so many great characters here and the story takes them all and interweaves them perfectly. It starts as an almost political thriller, turns into a chase movie, then goes back to the political side of things. There is good action and lots of quality intrigue. My only real complaint is the multiple endings; the end seemed to happen a few times, so it dragged a bit for the last 10 minutes, but aside from that, great movie!
KT