In this task, you must classify if a given review is positive/negative, indicating your answer as P or N.

Q: an unhappy italian housewife , a lonely waiter , a goofy masseuse , lots of love , and gorgeous scenery all come together in bread and tulips , which proves charming despite its covering of predictable , well - worn material .
the story concerns the aforementioned housewife , rosalba barletta ( licia maglietta ) who accidentally becomes separated from her immediate family while on vacation .
instead of waiting for a ride home , rosalba opts not to go home to her italian town , but to instead hitchhike to venice . upon arriving , she tells her self - centered husband , mimmo ( an excellent antonio catania ) that she 'll be home in a few days .
of course , that does n't happen , as rosalba quickly gains a level of independence that has been unattainable in her past life of scrubbing floors and buying groceries .
in what seems like days , she moves in with lonely , suicidal waiter fernando ( bruno ganz ) , gets a job as a florist , learns the accordion , and befriends her neighbor -- a wacky holistic masseuse named grazia ( marina massironi ) .
rosalba , who is first seen wearing a gaudy stretch pants outfit , starts wearing sexy dresses and getting closer to fernando .
i can think of at least five other ( american ) movies ( including fried green tomatoes and an unmarried woman ) that are more than similar to bread and tulips .
but maglietta and ganz , who act with restraint and care , help bread and tulips from becoming a tired retread .
ganz plays the suicidal waiter role with a solemn , sometimes playful dignity that is a joy to watch , while maglietta never overreacts to her growing comfort with the outside world .
throughout the movie , maglietta has an easygoing , confident demeanor , which makes it very easy to root for her and her growing attraction for ganz 's character .
the gorgeous scenery of moonlit town squares and sparkling rivers provides a perfect love story backdrop
-- you just might want to ask the attractive stranger in the seat behind you for coffee after the lights come up .
director and co - writer silvio soldini must get credit for sprinkling the movie with effective goofy humor .
the cheap mimmo , desperate to find his wife ( after all , he needs his shirts ironed and his mistress wo n't do it ) , hires a job applicant ( giuseppe battiston ) at his bathroom supply firm to do the job .
the reason ?
mimmo discovers that the prospective plumber loves detective stories .
the novice detective 's various misfortunes , including him saying goodbye to his weepy mother , are very funny .
unfortunately , there are flaws that somewhat spoil bread and tulips ' cheery tone .
rosalba is bothered by several surreal dreams during her time in venice , which bring the movie to a halt .
it 's like putting a gunfight in a nora ephron movie .
several details in fernando 's life also never get proper closure , including his suicidal tendencies .
early in the movie , he nearly hangs himself before rosalba knocks on his apartment door .
after that , fernando 's step towards death is never made reference to , probably because soldini wanted to include a lukewarm , underdeveloped subplot about fernando 's stormy past .
it seems more like a desperate attempt to pump up the drama in a plot that does n't need any .
but there are n't a lot of overwhelming negatives in bread and tulips .
the movie is fun and romantic , with beautiful scenery and characters whose lives we 'd like to live if we had the nerve . . .
or if our passports were n't missing .

A: P
****
Q: the coen brothers are back again , this time with homer 's " odyssey " as the backdrop in their tale of three fugitives from a mississippi chain gang who trek across the south to find a secret treasure in " o brother , where art thou ?
" right for the beginning of " o brother " the coens grab your attention with a chain gang of prison inmates breaking rocks along the road in unison to a work song .
the camera flows around the hard toiling men , giving a visually exciting symmetry to the scene that ends with our three heroes - ulysses everett mcgill ( george clooney ) , delmar ( tim blake nelson ) and pete ( john turturro ) - escaping across a cotton field .
it is the beginning of a journey that takes on different meanings and urgencies to each member of the trio .
a strong suite , as always with the coen brothers , is the depth of character of the folks they create in their films .
their characters are goofy and comical , like nicolas cage in " raising arizona " ; or , dramatic , as albert finney and john turturro in " miller 's crossing " ; and , even a mix of the two with frances mcdormand in " fargo .
" in all cases , and in " o brother , " too , the characters populating their films are three - dimensional people .
ulysses everett is a handsome , hair - obsessed petty criminal with a silver tongue and not a lot in the brains department .
but , he seems like a genius when compared to the simple , sweet delmar and the maladjusted pete , who follow their self appointed leader to a promised treasure of $ 1 . 2 million .
their odyssey takes on the mystical proportions of homer 's original material as they meet all manner of people along the way , including those dangerous sirens who beckon them onto symbolically rocky shoals and a cyclops who beats them and takes all their money .
there is magic , too , when delmar believes that pete was turned into a horny toad by the sirens .
the story meanders through the different vignettes of the boys ' adventures , giving the flick a choppy , episodic feel that disrupts the overall flow .
some of the interludes are an epiphany , though .
the trio becomes a quartet when they pick up guitar - playing tommy johnson ( chris thomas king ) and visit a radio station in the middle of nowhere , run by its blind owner ( stephen root ) .
they become the soggy bottom boys for the sightless radio station man and , without their knowledge , are recorded as they sing the traditional tune , " i am a man of constant sorrow .
"
it is a wonderful moment of moviemaking and gives us , in my mind , the best movie song of the year
.
contrasting this and other wonderful moments
( the sexy seduction by the sirens comes to mind ) are some pretentious bits that detract from the overall quality of " o brother .
" in particular , near the end , is a scene where ulysses , delmar and pete crash a ku klux klan rally to save tommy from being lynched .
the scene is overblown and flashy and reeks of " the wizard of oz .
"
they do n't say " lions and tigers and bears , oh my !
" and there 's no dorothy , but it is the land of oz we 're seeing here .
the highs and lows of the story flow are tempered by fine acting on several levels .
george clooney is funny , charming , a little dumb and one of the handsomest actors in the business today .
he has the charm of a 30 's movie idol and is able to put himself into silly situations with dignity .
ulysses has an ongoing obsession with his hair , risking life and limb to get a particular brand of pomade and a supply of hairnets .
his vanity will come to plague him as it would any mystical hero - wanderer .
while clooney is the name draw for " o brother , " the show stealer is tim blake nelson as delmar .
the heretofore unknown nelson is terrific as the simple convict who , at one point , hears the word of the lord and joins members of a church congregation in their mass baptism .
delmar is saved and dedicates his life to doing good and provides a richness to his simple character that makes him shine .
the taciturn pete , as played by longtime coen collaborator turturro , is the sullen member of the trio and gives them the necessary angst .
all together , the tuneful triumvirate is a mix of the three stooges and the three musketeers as they prove to be buffoons , albeit brave ones .
the colorful supporting cast is rampant with homerian characters to meet and get to know along the way of the boys ' odyssey .
charles durning appears as incumbent governor pappy o'daniel , who keeps crossing paths with them in his bid for re - election .
john goodman is wicked as the one - eyed bible salesman and con artist , big dan teague .
michael badalucco is manic and outrageous as outlaw and bank robber extraordinary
, george " babyface " nelson .
stephen root is amusing as the blind dj , rep'ing one of the many references to the sightless that abound in the film in mystical ways .
holly hunter is wasted in the small role as ulysses ' estranged wife , penny ( and the real reason for this adventure , not secret treasure ) .
techs are , as expected in a coen brothers venture ,
first class .
cinematographer roger deakins , who has worked on five previous coen films , captures the sultry atmosphere of the south .
the photography complements the lush period production and costume provided by dennis gassner and mary zophres , respectively .
once again , roderick jaynes - the alter ego of ethan and joel coen - is on board as editor .
the high points outweigh the low through most of " o brother , where art thou ?
" with particular praise for the wonderful selection of period and traditional music .
i give it a b .

A: P
****
Q: " . .
it 's certainly more than just a monster story . .
" - kenneth branagh , director / actor / co - writer of mary shelley 's frankenstein .
kenneth branagh 's new motion picture had to compete with all the previous frankenstein - films made throughout the years in almost every part of the world , including the most controversial version of them all - directed by james whale .
the dark and stormy nights , the lightning bolts , the charnel houses of spare body parts , the laboratory where victor frankenstein stirs his steaming cauldron of life are effectful .
but the center of the film , quieter and more thoughtful , contains the real story .
horror - fans will probably be disappointed by the total lack of horror .
branagh has instead concentrated on serious issues : morality , philosophy and human elements of the story , and not on old fashioned horror cliches .
his version is much closer to the book than all the previous adaptions of the classic novel .
the film begins and ends somewhere in the arctic ocean .
the year is 1794 .
a bold captain is steering his ship through the unknown waters .
his gole is to reach the north pole at all costs .
as the ice closes around his ship , a figure appears on the horizon .
it 's a man .
exhausted and on the brink of death he approaches the frightening crew .
his name is victor frankenstein ( kenneth branagh ) and his story is so terrifying that it will scare everyone from venturing into the unknown .
the myserious stranger begins his tale , or more precisely his confession , in geneva , 1773 .
he is remembering his childhood and youth .
laughter , banquets and parties - a happy life , without troubles or concerns .
here victor lived with his father ( ian holm ) , mother ( cherie lunghi ) , his surrogate sister ( helena boham carter ) and his servants in happiness and harmony .
this idyllic lifestyle is suddenly changed .
like thunder from a quite sky , his mother dies , giving birth to his youngest brother .
shocked , baffled and then gradually changed by grief and despair , victor ( already interested in science ) becomes obsessed with death .
standing on his mother 's grave he says :
" oh mother . .
you did not have to die . . .
no one should ever die . . .
i will stop this . .
i promiss . .
" after proposing marridge to his surrogate sister and promising to return as soon as his studies are finished , victor travels to ingolstadt , in presuite of a medical career .
after a while his obsession totally overtakes him as he is working day and night , creating life from death .
composing dead bodies , frankenstein wanted to create the perfect man - both physically and mentally .
with strong electrical impulses , he managed to breeth life into his creation .
the result was ugliness .
realizing what he has done , frankenstein tried to undo his work , but it was to late .
the creature has escaped . because of the epidemic , frankenstein hoped that his creation has died and returned to his home , making plans for the wedding .
for a while everything is as it was before his mother 's death .
but then one by one his loved once are dying mysteriously . . .
whale 's picture , although powerful , never managed to capture the total depth of the novel .
brannagh has more or less done that .
another thing is characters and actors .
branagh has developed every character and assembled a magnificent cast .
the greatest performances comes from de niro - the monster , that has been played by ( among others )
charles ogle , karloff , lon chaney , bela lugosi , glenn strange , christopher lee , fred gwynne ( as herman munster ) , and now , robert de niro .
alone , hated and feared , he is completely aware of his ugliness .
at first he is like a helpless , abandoned child , desperately reaching out for love .
later when he reads frankenstein 's journal , and learns that he is composed of dead bodies , his love turns into rage as he is seeking revenge .
he is capable of killing without regret .
"
i took him by the throughout and lifted him off the ground . . . .
and then i slowly crushed his neck . . .
and as i killed him , i saw your face . .
"
that is how he reveals his savage nature to his creator .
and yet , he is never quite evil in our eyes and
his vaulerbility and his loneliness are palpable : " for the sympathy of one living being i would make peace with all .
"
rarely has a cinematic interpretation of " the daemon " approached the level of three - dimensionality and humanity with which it is portrayed in the novel .
another vital thing is the character of victor frankenstein .
in most of the previous adaptions he was simply a mad scientist that trolls the graveyards for corpses and then creates a monster ( god knows why ! )
with the power of an electrical storm .
almost no time was granted on his charecter , who is the most important and vital charecter in the novel .
here , branagh introduces the character of victor frankenstein , establishes his obsession with the very nature of life and death , sets up the intellectual and ideological conflict between victor and the academic establishment , and somehow manages to build up to a rousing and horrifying creation scene .
branagh plays frankenstein with a remarkable understanding of his character .
on the outside he is strong , ambitious and talented scientist , but deep down he is unsecure , fragile and vaulerble , constantly haunted by the ghosts from his past .
helen boham carter is equally wonderful as frankenstein 's surrogate sister , who at the end becomes his wife for a little while , before death drives them apart .
the rest of the cast , playing secondary characters , is solid and nothing less than convincing .
visually the film is stunning ( especially the makeup ) .
the spinning camera , the constantly building - up musical acore , the art direction , the production design , the costumes are all magnificent : from the arctic ocean to the swiss alps and dark forests , to the plague - riddled streets of ingolstadt , mary shelley 's frankenstein is a wonder to behold .
kenneth branagh directs his film as if the script was written by shakespeare : " . .
all i once loved lies in a shallow grave . . . .
by my hand . .
"
.
and the film ends exacly as hamlet , when the creature sets both his and his creator 's body on fire .
the film ends with frankenstein and his creation burning in the almost hellish fire in the darkness .
and a terrifying last close - up on the creature 's smiling face .
can a man create life , then abandon his creation because its appearance horrifies him ?
to whom are its actions then attributable : the creature or the being who brought about its existence ?
shelley did not answer these questions , but she certainly posed them .
following her example , branagh does the same .
his film is a tragic saga about playing god .
victor frankenstein is not an evil man .
he wanted to change the world to the better .
in this he represents everything science stands for : acting without doubts , never considering the consequences of his actions .
produced by francis ford coppola , frankenstein resembles in some respects coppolas previous film " dracula " .
in comparison , i can say that " dracula " has visuals that even " frankenstein " can not live up to .
but when it comes to story , characters and casting , " frankenstein " is stronger .
but stronger than both of them , on every aspect , is neil jordan 's " interview with the vampire " .
although the film is not perfect ( the camera that simply refuses to stay still and the occasionally pushy score are at times more tiering than effective ) , these minor faults are easily forgivable , as the picture is otherwise captivating and stimulating .
branagh has probably created one of the best ( if not the best ) adaptions of shelly 's classic novel .

A:
P
****