Tag / james stewart

by Jaime Rebanal

Jaime’s Film Diary: March 15, 2020

As expected, I’ve been keeping my Letterboxd up to date – so here’s yet another update for here in regards to what I have been watching as of late.

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by Jaime Rebanal

Harvey – Review

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I wonder what life must be like from the perspective of Elwood P. Dowd, because it sounds like he’s clearly a man who needs help with trying to keep up with the pace of everything around him. But to talk about why Harvey is a thing of beauty should already be easy enough, for it is a film about a man trying to cope with a world that moves so fast around him to a point of being overwhelmed. Quickly enough it only became clearer to me what it was that I absolutely loved about Harvey, aside from the fact that it carried what was easily one of my favourite James Stewart performances. It wasn’t just a fantastic James Stewart role that we were watching here. It was perhaps him at his most down-to-earth and relatable.

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by Jaime Rebanal

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington – Review

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With the current political climate it is only fitting that a film like Frank Capra’s Mr. Smith Goes to Washington exists. Capra’s films have always carried a spirit that only shows the most inspiring that classic Hollywood cinema can ever reach and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington is no exception to the rule for it represents patriotism in such an open embrace and more audiences are invited along. As a matter of fact, the very nature of the film is so on the nose for the time it came out, its relevance has only grown so much stronger as years have come by. Nearly eighty years have passed and not a single day has ever managed to age Mr. Smith Goes to Washington rather than make it feel younger.

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by Jaime Rebanal

It’s a Wonderful Life – Review

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Life is a valuable thing. There are those moments where it’s set to disappoint, yet there’s still hope to be had, It’s a Wonderful Life reminds us why we should keep hope. It’s a cliché Christmas tradition to watch this every year, but it’s easy to see why. There are those moments where we feel insignificant (and they come back to me then and there), but a reminder is sometimes necessary that in fact, we might have a bigger impact than we’d imagine. Frank Capra’s film bombed during its first run, but its popularity just grew so suddenly. The wonders still capture me upon every viewing, and despite my usual pessimism there’s always something good turning back to the joy that is It’s a Wonderful Life. It reminds a person like myself that there is always something good to look out for, even when we are shrouded with bad.

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by Jaime Rebanal

Vertigo – Review

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Everyone’s said it before, and maybe worded it better, but Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo is great. Alfred Hitchcock, otherwise known as the “master of suspense” especially among fans, finds himself at grasp with a story about past demons and their effects upon the human mind with Vertigo and what is presented may very well be the director’s finest achievement yet, combining the many filmmaker’s own obsessions (voyeurism, romance, MacGuffin) into one product – something so overwhelming for the senses coming down to Hitchcock’s placement of his viewers within his protagonist’s point of view. This sort of brilliance exposes classic Hollywood at one of its very highest points for it still remains unchallenged even today. Vertigo embodies all the good qualities of a mystery, but there’s much more behind it that makes it one of the most compelling, and therefore, one of the most beautiful films ever made. Continue reading →