Nek Nosnaws

With personal health issues mounting; daily news reports about a terrible, merciless illegal Russian attack on a small country; and a great deal of work to accomplish daily at an advanced age, I turn to movies to take me away from my personal problems and stress. Some films are better than others, and tonight, after watching it for the second time, 'Hector' peeled away my fears and worries, through tears and laughter, and left me feeling full in the heart, and joyful in the mind, and with the positive outlook I need to continue on. I must have missed a good portion of the movie the first time I saw it, as I never saw the scenes with the brain scanner and the wonderful Sir Christopher Plummer. What I felt was an epiphany compared to the rest of my life, and I really have the film to thank, including everyone who had a part in making it and Simon Pegg and all the rest of the cast! I would rate it an "11" if possible! This film suits my definition of a "movie", which is any film that can "move" me away from the mundane, and to a clearer consciousness about being open to life and it's joys!

A line in the movie says it all says it all: "Some of us don't go on to do great things, and if we're lucky, we do small things with great love." This film was created with great love for it's characters, and the human foibles they exhibit are kindled with kindness from the writer's pen making a poignant and enjoyable experience for the viewer. Better yet, no humans were harmed during the making of the film (to the best of my knowledge)!

If the facts of the original flight, made by James Glaisher and Henry Coxwell are important, it would be better to read the story in a bona fida history text. Although it was pretty well acted, the original story was considerably exaggerated, which is a common fate of many stories based on historical fact in today's movie market. The original story would have been exciting enough for me, but to make sure it appealed to the widest audience, one of the original men was replaced with a woman, and the plot was sensationalized to make sure that no one was sleeping in their seat. Corporate production companies will do anything to get a good review, and the truth is often the first casualty.It wasn't boring, though, and it was hard to believe that the balloonists actually survived the cold, and the hypoxia. Only 25 out of 105 attempts to stow away in the landing gear of modern jets, at a similar altitude as the balloonists reached, have not met with death, which makes the attempt to fly so high in a hot air balloon a very risky business! I'd give it 7 out of 10, for making the balloon rides quite realistic, and the props appearing to suit the time in the historical period, and for Felicity Jones' hard work in pulling off the unhistorical and difficult role..

I enjoyed this film immensely; esp. the way it showed how little that social conventions mean when the issue of impending death is at hand. All the little things that we take so seriously lose their importance when death is near; this explains the erratic behavior portrayed by Richard after learning about, and beginning to feel the onset of his dying. I thought Depp did a fine job of portraying these feelings, and loved the cinematography at the end of the movie, which was well suited to the plot. I find it odd that the reviews were so poor across the board (except for IMDB); I thought the film was very well written,with welcome relief coming from scenes of humor interspersed among the intense scenes of Richard's angst. I also enjoyed the group scenes featuring the rest of the cast, and found them to be well acted and believable. All in all, a very worthwhile film!

This is a sensitive, beautiful, and honest film, capturing the humanity of a busy city, and the joy of a man and woman who meet by accident, and find laughter and warmth in each other's company. The eye of the camera looks into others that the couple meet, without overstating anything that it sees, and adds the contrast of these other lives and feelings to the mix. Adding to the experience is a wonderful piano score, with just the right amount of presence and intensity to echo the emotion of the characters and complete the masterpiece. All of the acting is so natural, and unassuming, that I felt that I knew these characters from my own life, and could have walked up and said hello, and been recognized, as another part of the experience. One of the best films that I have seen in my almost 70 years! Thanks to all who participated in it, you filled my heart with your gentle touch!

Measure of a Man is one of the best 'coming of age' movies that I have seen. The story deals with the real issues of growing up for a young man; not the usual zany crazy types of situations that pervade teen movies. The performances are well thought out, and very realistic.Having had my share of bullying in my own growing up made some of the scenes hit home with strong emotion. Mr Sutherland's very believable role as a demanding, yet kind, taskmaster wove a strong thread through the film, as the type of individual that many a young man has met through his teens. The soundtrack formed a comfortable base to accent the emotional ups and downs of the characters portrayed by the fine cast, in a film that really kept my attention and brought back many thoughts and feelings of my own coming of age. I would recommend this movie to young and old alike, as it brings a rare honesty to it's story that is hard to find these days.