Slumdog Millionaire

Slumdog Millionaire is a coming of age story about two brothers who grow up in the slums of Mubai, India. The movie starts with the 18-year-old Jamal competing on Who Wants to be a Millionaire, India version. Cut to Jamal being tortured by the governement who are trying to get him to fess up to cheating on the show. The sadistic torturer finally listen to Jamal tell the story of his life. The movie is then structured around how Jamal learned the answers to the questions through mostly harrowing life or death experiences. The movie has a Oliver Twist-like feel to it as the two young brothers run through the slums from the police or when, they are brought to a Dickens like hovel where young thieves are bred. It is tense and a tad melodramatic. But even with all its Bollywoodesque cheesiness and unsubtle villians, it is very enjoyable movie, and it is definately not boring. Dev Patel who plays the 18-year-old Jamal is sweet and charming and his life long love, Latika played by Frieda Pinto is lovely.

Marley and Me

My mom loves the book Marely and Me. She relayed the funny stories about the terribly behaved dog to all who came within earshot. She's not really even a dog person but got a big kick out of that book. My niece, then, thought it would be fun to go to the smash hit movie of the same name with my mom. So my mom, sister, niece, and I went last Saturday to the movie. I was so-so on going but liked the company. And, in fact, I found the movie pretty enjoyable. Owen Wilson's dry commentary was my favorite part. (my mom says that the narrator in the book isn't quite the jokester) And that dog Marley was actually pretty humorous. I too am not a dog person, as anyone who knows me will tell you, but I was charmed by this movie and got someone genuine hardy guffaw's from it. One warning, it does go a little long .

Hodge Podge 2

Death at a Funeral is a very silly British comedy with a host of well-known British actors. If you are a fan of the Masterpiece Theater-type movies, you've seen all of these actors at one time or another. The lead characters Matthew MacFadyen (Darcy in the most recent Pride and Prejudice) and Rupert Graves (The Forsyte Saga) are brothers whose father just died, and they argue about who is going to pay for it and try to manage the kooky guests that come to the funeral. It's not a great movie, but it's pretty funny at times, and it gets better as the movie goes on.

Last night I was going to go to bed at a reasonable hour when I ran across the 1958 Cat on a Hot Tin Roof with Elizabeth Taylor and Paul Newman. Somehow, I had never seen this movie before last night, and never really wanted to, but last night it hooked me in. At first I thought cheesy and overly dramatic -- I am not really a fan of Tennessee Williams plays --they seem so overwrought--but after 10 minutes or so I became so mesmerized by both Newman and Taylor that I had to watch it until the end and stayed up until 1:30 AM. If you've never seen it, it's worth a try.



Bend it Like Beckham stars Parmainder Nagra from ER who plays the adorable Jess, a girl whose Pakistani culture conflicts with her dream of playing competitive soccer. This is another good movie for girls like Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. It's just nice to see a wholesome movie such as this one where girls are all about kickin' butt on the soccer field. The movie also stars Keira Knightly as Jess' very young boyish-looking team mate. The soccer coach and love interest is played by Jonathan Rhys-Myers, who I last saw in The Tudors, and he does his usual smoldering thing, but in this early version of him, he seemed kinda sissified (is that a word?)

Hodge Podge

I have actually seen four movies in the last week, but haven't been keeping up very well with ye olde blog. So here's a quick synopsis starting with last Friday night when I was watching a DVD with my niece Holly . . .
Charlie Wilson's War: Holly could barely pay attention to this political movie, what with all the texting and facebooking. I tried my best but also was a little distracted by the world of the Internet. And quite frankly it was a tad boring. I thought the concept, a war started in Afghanistan by huge American egos, was fascinating and learned a something, but I had trouble sustaining my attention. Tom Hanks and Phillip Seymour Hoffman were good in it, though.
Rachel Getting Married: I dragged Holly and three friends to this movie and regretted it. One friend said, "I never would have seen that movie if I knew what it was about." All four found it to be a real downer. Yet, I wanted to see it -- you know my penchant for anything Indie. Sure it was depressing and odd all at the same time. Oh, and irritating, note the bizarre dishwasher filling competition, and you will wonder what the deal is with these psuedo-intellectual weirdos. Yet, I thought Anne Hathaway was really good in it, and there were some genuine moments in the film and some really good music. Oh, and some annoying music too. The genuine moment came in the cold way Hathaway's mother played by Debra Winger politely dismissed her daughter as she left the reception -- that was painful to watch. So sorry friends for putting you through that, but you know.
In Bruges: is a violent black comedy with Colin Ferrel, Brendan Gleeson, and Ralph Fiennes, and it really was violent, but also funny. I couldn't imagine how a story of three paid assassins who have a strange holiday in Bruges, could possibly be funny, but it is. Worth seeing. and Bruges is incredibly beautiful.
Jodhaa Akbar: Finally, today I saw a 16th century, three hour Hindustani epic with subtitles. How does that grab you? Well, if you want to learn a little about Indian history in a toned down Bollywood style, you might like this, but I doubt it.

Alas, I finished The Wire

I know it's not a movie but The Wire is so good it could be a movie. Each episode is a mini-movie -- and yet watching it makes you want to watch the next and the next and when you get to the end and there are no more, it's so sad. :(
The Wire's five seasons center around the gritty under belly of Baltimore, Maryland, but each season has its own focus.
Season 1: The Drug Trade
Season 2: The Port
Season 3: The City's Bureaucracy
Season 4: The School System
Season 5: The Newspaper
All of the seasons are great, but I especially enjoyed the last two. The school chapter is one of the most realistic looks of a school on the screen that I have ever seen -- and believe me, it is not always pretty.
The newspaper chapter marks the demise of the great American newspaper and makes you sad about its slow death.
As a matter of fact the show is always of the verge of disaster for one of its many great characters, and in the end I hoped that at least some of them would be saved from a terrible fate. There was in fact salvation for some of the characters but many along the way meet sad endings. While some of the characters are saved the institutions are not given the same good ending. The police department, school, city hall, and the newspaper continue to be mired in bureaucracy and greed.
My favorite characters are the following:
Bubbles (his last speech to his NA group was incredibly moving)
Omar, modern-day Robinhood, "Omar's coming"
Mr. Pryzbylewski, befuddled teacher
Lester, a detective who likes data
Bunk, hilarious homicide detective
Of course, Jimmy McNulty, seriously messed up but charming
Daquan, pull at your heartstrings middle-school waif
This is just naming a few of the many great characters in the show.
One caveat is that The Wire is an investment in time and energy. It is often violent and filled with foul language. And it isn't a show you can follow very easily if you don't make a concerted effort to pay attention to what's going on. I often found myself rewinding because I missed things. But it is so worth it. Without sounding hoity-toity, ok I will sound this way anyway, I really felt edified by The Wire and think it is one of the greatest TV watching experiences I have ever had. How's that for hyperbole?!

Sisterhood II

The thing I like about the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants stories is that they are not just a teenie-bopper movies where vapid girls vie for a boy while sniping at eachother. Instead the movies and books are about girls' friendships and girls discovering their talents. Of course, they are also about girls finding the cute boys too. So they are nice stories about likeable girls who, in the end, make smart decisions, and I'm glad the stories are out there for girls today. Now, should the stories be out there for old girls such as myself -- well, despite myself, I really enjoyed the first movie in the series. I like all four of the young actresses who play the lead roles: Amber Tamblyn, Joan of Arcadia, Alexis Bledel,Gilmore Girls, America Ferrera, Ugly Betty, and Blake Lively, Gossip Girl and they seem like genuine friends. The second movie, however, isn't that great of a movie -- it's meandering and shlocky, but it is still pleasant enough.

Forgetting Sarah Marshall

Forgetting Sarah Marshall offers some a few good chuckles but in the end is a pretty forgettable movie. It's another Judd Apatow romantic comedy which means that it as slacker-striver romance with a dollop of teenage boy humour. This one has a lot less the teen-age boy humor than say SuperBad, but also doesn't have as many big laughs as that ridiculous movie. I liked all the actors in FSM, led by the likable Jason Segal and the equally likable Mila Kunis, from That 70's Show. Also, one of my favorites from Veronica Mars, Kristen Bell, is great. The strange Jack McBrayer, who plays Kenneth on 30 Rock, is also strange in this movie and plays a similar character to his 30 Rock role. But the previously unknown to me, British actor Russel Brand, steals the movie as Sarah Marshall's new boyfriend. He is very funny in a creepy way.

What Happens When You Watch Dumb Movies

I hate to admit when I watch some of the dumb movies I watch, such as my latest viewing, What Happens in Vegas which is another movie in the slacker-striver vein (see earlier blog entry on this topic) where we have Ashton Kutcher, fun-loving man child and Cameron Diaz, the uptight ambitious beauty. Blah, blah, blah, they hate each other -- Blah, blah, blah, they're forced to be together even though they hate eachother and tah-dah! They love eachother. This one has its fair share of over-the-top scenes and very few genuine moments -- there are a few-- and even a few funny scenes. But there you have it, another movie I watched, so you don't have to.

When Did You Last See Your Father?

When Did You Last See Your Father? tells about a man who is struggling to deal with his dying father, a father who he has been angry with most of his life. The movie is autobiographical and based on writer Blake Morrison’s real life resentment toward his own father. The adult Blake is played by Colin Firth and his father is played by Jim Broadbent. Both are great actors and do not disappoint in this film, but the younger Blake played by Matthew Beard attracted my attention the most. I think he will be a young actor to watch. Overall the movie is interesting and gets you thinking about things one doesn’t necessarily want to think about like our parents mortality, but it is also slow and not as interesting, say, as The Savages, which is also about dealing with a dying father.

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner

I must be some kinda sap. Guess Who's Coming to Dinner gets me every time. Sure it's a movie with some cheesy elements where the sentimentality is overt, yet my eyes start welling up about when Spencer Tracy's character, Matt, the liberal newspaper owner, disappoints his beautiful wife played by Katherine Hepburn with the news that he will not accept the pending marriage of his daughter to a black man. And Sidney Poitier is so moving throughout the movie, particularly when he explodes while talking to his father, explaining his place as a black man in modern society. He tells his father that he sees himself as a colored man while John, Poitier's character, sees himself as a man. With one short speech he gives a glimpse of what it might be like to be black in America and makes me think of how everyone's way of looking at being black in America has changed again, with Barack Obama's amazing and unlikely catapult to election win. Poitier plays an amazingly accomplished doctor who just came from Hawaii. Sound familiar? Adding to the emotion of the film, is knowing that this movie was Spencer Tracy's last (he died just 17 days after the completing the film). He expresses his love to his wife in the movie so movingly while we know that she, Katherine Hepburn, is his real-life love -- that really gets the tears going.

I wasn't going to watch a movie after a long weekend away from home and homework to do --- but Guess Who's Coming to Dinner sucked me again. And I've seen at least 4 times before. It's like a red-light food for me (A red-light food is a weight-watcher's term meaning a food that you know you won’t stop when you eat just one). Just five minutes into this movie I was binging.

Political Movies

I haven't seen any movies lately -- a conference, a night class, my job, and too much politics has kept me from them. Tonight, of course, I am glued to the TV watching the returns. Stick with me, though, I'll get back to it and keep up my goal of posting at least once a week. For tonight, though, I leave you with a list of political movies that I liked.


Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939) Oh, you just gotta like this idealistic look at Washington


The Candidate (1972) a sexy Robert Redford combined with a smart suspenseful story


Wag the Dog (1997) A very cynical look at American politics

Bulworth (1998) weirdly goofy Warren Beatty movie

Primary Colors (1998) John Travolta does a surprisinly good Bill Clintonmerican politics, but gets ya thinkin'

Dick (1999) silly teens in the Nixon whitehouse -- silly but fun!

Election (1999) Matthew Broderick and Reese Witherspoon high school election satire. HIGH- larious! One of my favorites.

Thank You for Smoking (2006) Sexy Aaron Eckhart as smarmy tobacco lobbyist -- a strangely good combination

Recount (2008) (see earlier review) great recap of what happened in Florida during the 2000 presidentical election -- and a great movie

The Visitor and Baby Mama

Ooh! What an odd combo of movies I watched this weekend. I am going to start with The Visitor because I just finished it and it left me feeling sad and wanting to talk to someone about it. The movie potrays a middle-aged economics professor stuck in his joyless life and recovering from the death of his wife. His life changes when he encounters an exuberant Syrian drummer who is crashing in his New York apartment. The movie moves from being a story about drumming to a story about trying to save Tareq, the drummer, from being deported. This movie does not have a sunshiny view of how the good professor saves the immigrants from their doom -- sadly that is not even possible. The reality of life for immigrants in America after 911 is bleak and The Visitor examines this reality. But the movie didn't just bum me out about how are justice system can work, it also left me feeling like playing the drums or at least getting in touch with my inner drum beat!

Baby Mama, with Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, is a lightweight, sit-comesque comedy. It's kinda funny in parts and makes some interesting commentary about our me-centered American culture, but it is pretty forgettable which I say regrettably since I love Tina Fey and think 30 Rock is awesome, but BabyMama isn't as clever as that show or Mean Girls, another Tina Fey movie.

Bernard and Doris

Bernard and Doris tells about the real life heiress Doris Duke and her devoted butler. Susan Sarandon and Ralph Fiennes play the lead roles and attack these roles pretty admirably. I wanted to watch this HBO movie when I heard it nominated at the Emmys. Again, here's another movie with great acting and an interesting plot potential that falls flat. You don't even really care what happens between these two flawed people at the end.

The Duchess

The Duchess has everything I like in a movie: a period piece with great acting and gorgeous landscapes. And yet, I thought it was only so so. I thought Ralph Fiennes' dry cold humor is amusing, Kiera Knightly is lovely and the story of the Duchess Georgiana is fascinating, and yet, the movie didn't wow me. Georgiana, the main character, was known for being an 18th century Hollywood-like star -- everywhere she went people were awed by her wittiness and her magnificent outfits--but Knightly didn't seem to have the fire needed to play this big character. Knightly is definitely fantastically adorned and has many clever lines but she is too understated as this attention-seeking diva. I don't know. I liked it, I guess, but I just wasn't wowed.

Wired

I haven't posted in a while because I haven't seen any movies and my only DVD entertainment has been the fourth season of the Wire. It's so good I am savoring it by watching just one or two episodes at a time. This season's focus is on a really messed up Baltimore middle school. More later.

Recount

If you like political movies, and I sure do, you will be riveted by Recount. Recount breaks down the Florida fallout of the 2000 election between Al Gore and George Bush. The movie manages to flush out the details of the voting irregularities while building suspense like a thriller. Maybe it’s just me be, but I found these details fascinating and also appalling. One wonders, what would have happened if Al Gore won Florida? It was so close. Two actors playing real people in this political drama are Kevin Spacey and Laura Dern. Laura Dern is especially good as her wackiness, Katherine Harris, Florida’s Secretary of State.

Vicky Christina Barcelona

This Woody Allen movie is set in Spain and involves Jaun Antonio, a painter played by Javier Bardem, who pursues two beautiful American tourists, Vicky and Christina played by Scarlett Johansson and Rebecca Hall (who is great in this, by the way). It's a love triangle of sorts, well actually a love quadrangle because later, Jaun's wife joins the mix. She is played by the ravishing and fiery Penelope Cruz --Oh yeah, also in the mix is Vicky's American staid boyfriend. The movie is full of romantic and funny moments amid beautiful Spanish scenery while contrasting the free-spirited artist type with the practical get ahead American sesibility. One conversation exemplifies the this latter type when they talk about the wonders of Internet access and wiring your home with the latest technology. (I've had that conversation and the movie highlights the banality of it) Vicky Cristina Barcelona made me want to go to Spain and sit in coffee shops and discuss the meaning of life leaving the mundane details of getting Internet access behind.

Fall Movies -- Yipee!

I get so excited about Fall Movies. So when I heard a list of movies on the CBS Morning Show, I thought I would write them down, for me, but then I realized that others may like this list. I will check off the movies as I see them. Of course, they won't all come to my small city, so some I won't get to watch until the DVD release. And some are just too plain stupid to watch (High School Musical, for example.) BOLDED films below are ones I especially want to see.

Dramas
Body of Lies, Leonardo DiCaprio and Russel Crowe
Burn after Reading, Coen Brothers Brad Pitt John Malkevish
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Brad Pitt gets younger
Changeling, Angelino Jolie
Revolutionary Road, Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet
Righteous Kill, Al Pacino and Robert De Nero
Doubt, Meryl Streep and Phillip Seymour Hoffman, based on the Tony winning play about clergy sexual abuse
The Duchess, Kiera Knightley and Ralph Fiennes

Comedies
Happy Go Luck, a Mike Leigh film with Sally Hawkins
Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist,Michael Cera and Kat Dennings
Ghost Town, Ricky Gervais and Greg Kinnear

Political Movies
W. Oliver Stone about George W. Bush with Josh Brolin
Frost/Nixon, about the Frost interview of Nixon
Milk, Sean Penn, stars as gay politician Harvey Milk who was murdered

Cheese Potential
High School Musical 3, Senior Year
Twighlight
Nights in Rodanthi, Nicholas Sparks movie with Richard Gere and Diane Lane

WWII Movies
Definance, Daniel Craig
Miracle at St. Anna, Spike Lee
Australia, Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman

Film Festival Movies
The Wrestler, Mickey Rourke, Evan Rachel Wood, Marissa Tomei
Rachel Getting Married, Anne Hathaway
The Secret Life of Bees, based on the enjoyable book by Sue Monk Kidd

Other
The Soloist, Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey Jr.
Quantum of Solace, James Bond movie
Vicky Christinia Barcelona, I added this Woody Allen film to list because I want to see it!

Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day and Then She Found Me

I recently watched these two female transformation movies. Frances McDormand plays Miss Pettigrew an out of work nanny/personal secretary who is hired by Amy Adam's Delycia and straightens out her crazy life while fixing her own -- all in one day! It's kinda sweet and I find Amy Adam buoyant sweetness irresistible. Since I love period pieces I enjoyed this s1940s slice of life and one of the three beaus of Delycia is especially fetching, the cute Lee Pace of Pushing Daisies. This movie is a farce, I hear. But what is a farce, I ask myself. So I looked it up. A farce is "a light, humorous play in which the plot depends upon a skillfully exploited situation rather than upon the development of character." That fits.

Then She Found Me is not quite so light and airy. It has great actors, Bette Midler, Helen Hunt, Colin Firth, and Matthew Broderick. The plot is interesting, but something just goes amiss, maybe it is Hunt's dour presence on screen, or maybe it's her desperation to have a baby, or maybe it's just a screenplay that doesn't hang together. I don't know, but great actors does not a good movie make.

Teacher Movies

As I previously posted, I hate feel good teacher movies -- they are so far removed the daily grind of being a teacher -- they just bug me. I have also listed my favorite edgy teacher movies, Half Nelson (great Ryan Gosling movie), Election, and Notes on a Scandal. So I was really interested when I heard on NPR's On the Media an interview with Mary Dalton who wrote The Hollywood Curriculm about teacher movies. She discussed how most teacher movies are either about totally evil teachers or the wonderful inspirational teachers. Evil teacher movies mentioned were Teaching Mrs. Tingle, and Porky's (esp. the gym teacher in Porky's of all things). In good teacher movies, the pattern is that those teachers are always outsiders in a conflict with the powers that be. She mentioned that the "good" female teachers like in Dangerous Minds and Freedom Writers (Yuck!) are not allowed to be seen as sexual beings. And, I was glad to hear, she said that Half Nelson is one of the few movies where a teacher is actually seen presenting curriculum and has a nuanced or not all bad or not all good teacher. She even mentioned TV teacher break throughs like the first gay teacher on TV in My So Called Life and the first sexual female teacher in Boston Public (kinda dumb show in my opinion.) The Wire, season 4 was lauded as one of the first TV shows that dealt with the complicated world of education today. All in all, it was a very interesting interview and right up my alley.

Felicity and My So Called Life

When I wrote my TV series blog entry, I forgot about Felicity, the great show with Kerri Russel as Felicity who stars as a freshman at an NYU-like-college all the way from California. This show includes super cuties like Scot Speedman who plays Ben and Scot Foley who plays Noel and other great regular characters. The show lasted for four seasons from 1998 - 2002. I loved this show and remember when I lost the Fox channel due to bad reception I was really bummed. I later caught up on the show by renting it. I can't believe I forgot about it when I posted about great TV series. My memory is not what it used to be which is not saying much. Thanks Alison for reminding me about it! I hope you can update your collection.

AND -- My So Called Life (1994-1995). I forgot about that show. I even rewatched that season TWICE on DVD. Man that show was so great and woefully only lasted one season. Claire Danes acting skills shone even as a teenager playing the lovely Angela. And bad boy Jordan Catalano played by Jared Leto is irresistibly sexy!

Notable Miniseries

I just watched The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, a BBC adaptation of Anne Bronte’s novel. The miniseries was so-so and probably would be more enjoyable if you read the novel. It got me thinking about the many mini-series, mainly from Masterpiece Theater, that I have seen, so I thought I would share some good ones and pretty good ones. Some I haven’t seen in quite a while so I may be not remembering them as well I’d like. I will list them in two categories: Really good (according to my imperfect memory) and pretty good. Note: I am not including any Jane Austen movies because, well, I believe I have exhausted that subject.

REALLY GOOD
Middlemarch, 1994, the best! with a steamy performance by Rufus Sewell
Lonesome Dove, 1989, book is great too if you haven’t read it
Forsyte Saga, 2002, I read the big long two part book in preparation for airing and was really impressed with the TV adaptation.
The Jewel in the Crown, 1984, long ago, I remember loving it.
Prime Suspect, probably should be classified as a TV series but on Masterpiece Theater, but so great if you haven’t seen it. Helen Mirren rocks as beleaguered police captain in London.
Brideshead Revisted, 1981, I just re-saw and was re-entranced!

PRETTY GOOD
North and South, 2004, about a mill town in the north of England
Cranford, 2007 Judi Dench, starts slow but gets better
Bleak House, 2005 with Gillian Anderson, at times bleak, but good
Into the West, 2005 A&E Western Saga
Our Mutual Friend, 1998, one of the better Dickens adaptations
Horatio Hornblower, 1998, ooh that cute Ioan Gruffud
The Buccaneers, 1995 based the Edith Wharton novel
The Woman in White, 1997, a cheesy but good adaptation of Wilkie Collins’ novel
Daniel Deronda, 2002, George Eliot saga, with a very cute Deronda played by Hugh Dancy
The Mill in the Floss, 1997 Emily Watson as Maggie in this George Eliot novel made movie

In the Land of Women

One critic describes this movie as a "softer, fuzzier, Garden State." and that seems about right. Adam Brody (OC funny man) leaves his Hollywood life behind to take care of his kookie grandmother played by Olympia Dukakis. He encounters and counsels a mother-daughter team (Meg Ryan and Kristen Stewart, Speak) who are messed up in a few different ways. I don't think this movie deserved the crummy reviews it got even though the movie does not hang together very well despite some good acting.

TV SERIES -- DRAMAS

I haven't seen many movies lately or TV for that matter -- I have been in the woods etc. So I thought I would diverge from my movie list to create a list of TV series that I know about. I am not inlcuding mini-series or comedies, but may later.

SEEN & GREAT!
Six Feet Under – despite some self-indulgent characters fascinating from beginning to end
The Wire – some say it’s hard to get into but once you do you become entranced
The Sopranos – Violent in parts but so smart with fascinating characters
Deadwood – I wish it would have lasted and lasted
The Gilmore Girls – I guess it could be diminished by calling it a chick show but I loved it until the end though some thought it got lame at the end

SEEN & LIKED
Weeds –some stuff bugs me but pretty darn entertaing
Huff – only two seasons and cancelled but had great potential
WonderFalls- cute, only one season and cancelled
Big Love – regular-old plural marriage family ---wha?
The West Wing—probably all have seen it but if you haven’t
Veronica Mars – some silly storylines but VM is great!
Lost – a blit silly at times but hard to stop watching
Dexter – the first season was appallingly good
Battlestar Galactica – hard to believe I liked this sci-fi series as much as I did but love the tough women in it esp.


SEEN & CAPTIVATING but kinda cheesy
Entourage – First season is good but starts to get too outrageous
Rome—some thought stupid but I got into it
Heroes- pretty good with some great characters from around the world
Californication—I saw one season and don’t really want to see another (not really that captivating)

DIDN'T SEE but heard was good
MI5 – my friends LOVE this series
Mad Men -- 50s ad men
The Riches –Gypsies go normal
Burn Notice – Spy who tries to act normal
In Treatment --Gabriel Byrne as sexy psychiatrist

Watching Fools Gold makes me a fool

Because it is el stupido with lamo dialogue, boring chase scenes, tired old plot turns. It is highly fastfowardable. There is nothing worse that a lamo movie where the lameness isn't even funny. Why Matthew McConaughy and Kate Hudson chose to be in such dumb movie is beyond me. Perhaps the better question why I watched it. I even watched the special features. Bad movie extras are always funny because they praise the greatness of the film and in this case talk about the great chemistry between the two leads. I mean really.

Brideshead Revisited, Update

So I finished it. All 11 hours of the original miniseries, Brideshead Revisited, late last night, and it kept getting sadder and sadder. I don’t remember it being so sad. At the end we are left with people with pretty desolate lives, Julia, Charles, and Cordelia. And what happens to Sebastian and his “dipsomania” as his alcoholism is referred to, is just horrible. I think this profile of the English aristocracy before WWII, makes them all seem so incapable of dealing with their problems and so eager to suppress their emotions. The view of Catholicism, I can’t quite wrap my brain around it, but it comes off as another character in the movie – an authoritarian mother with no mercy for the wavering. Again, as I have said in earlier blog entries, watching “old” movies made even in 1979, seem like from a different time all together. Scenes are drawn out, people are shown walking from one location to another, and conversations last more than 30 seconds. This is a miniseries that really does justice to Waugh’s book of the same name, and I can’t imagine how the new movie, also of the same name, can possibly portray this expansive novel in 2 hours. I am going to see it surely. Maybe it will even come to a location near me, doubtful, but there are always DVDs.

Brideshead Revisited

I have been watching a few series lately. I just finished a BBC series called Lilies about three working class sisters from Liverpool. It tells about their exploits right after WWI. It's pretty good and I especially enjoyed the accents and their passionate-unrestrained ways. Taking place at about the same time, but about a completely different English class, Brideshead Revisted tells about Charles Ryder who becomes infatuated by the upper crust family who inhabit Brideshead Estate. I loved this series many years ago over 25 years ago (yikes, I must be getting old) and thought, with the new movie of the same name coming out, I had better see it again. I just started it -- it's a long one, 11 hours! So I will be working on this one for a while.
I will report after finishing it!

Becoming Jane, Again

It was at the library, that is why I got it again. I didn't really like it that much the first time, so why did I watch it again?I still found it weirdly inappropriate for the world of Jane Austen, boxing? Prostitutes? Naked buts? Come ON. I watched the extras and all of the actors dutifully shared their knowledge of the time, costumes, manners or the world of Jane Austen, yet the movie seems to stray from this, in so many ways. Anne Hathaway who plays Jane too.

Other thoughts
Super sexy brother Henry -- I could see him in something else
Not as good as PBS’ attempt at a Jane Bio, Miss Austen's Regrets

Mama Mia

I had the pleasure of seeing Mama Mia with my mother, aunt, and uncle which really added to the enjoyment of this rather silly movie. Besides the good company, the movie is worth watching to see Meryl Streep belt out Abba tunes and to marvel at the incredible Greek island where the movie is filmed. As a side note, the young groom in the film was the Willoughby in the recent PBS Sense and Sensibility. Gosh, there does always seem to be a Jane Austen connection.

Emma

The 1996 Emma with Gwyneth Paltrow is such a delight. Wow, it came out over ten years ago and back when the movie first came out I do recall, I found the movie too slick and snappy and missing key elements of the weighty novel. Right now I am listening to Emma on librivox.org, so I can more accurately compare the novel with this movie. I see now that it made sense to take out a lot of the stray plot elements and also was surprised how much of the movie’s dialogue comes right out of the novel. Gwyneth Paltrow is a charming Emma and the sexy Jeremy Northram is probably way too cute to play the staid Mr. Knightly but he is fun to watch in the part. Oh, and I forgot that Ewan McGregor plays Frank Churchill (making me think he often plays goofy fops (see entry on Stay). Oh and don’t forget Sophie Thompson, Emma Thompson’s sister, as the chatterbox Miss Bates; she is a hoot in this movie, and her mother in the movie is her real life mother, Phylida Law. It was a lot fun watching Emma again.

After the Wedding

My cousin Clare recommended After the Wedding so of course I had to see it. It is a Danish film that begins and ends in India but takes place mostly in Denmark. The plot is so compelling, that you really can't do anything while watching the movie except read the subtitles and watch the great acting. (No crosswords can be completed) I can't reveal anything here without spoiling the film for you but suffice it to say it is surprising. The lead actor Mads Mikkelsen is quite something to look at, I don't usually think of such a stern looking man as so handsome. The movie does get a tad too melodramatic at times, perhaps too soap opera-ish, but it's a page turner movie-style. Thanks Clare for the recommendation.

Two More Ryan Gosling Films: Stay and The Believer

In an effort to watch as many Ryan Gosling films as I can, I rented Stay and The Believer. Stay is pretty much an unwatchable arty, way-over-stylized supposedly psychological thriller. It’s not even explainable. It stars Ewan McGregor, Naomi Watts, and of course Ryan Gosling. And even though he is very freaky in Stay, he is still hard not to watch. Ewan McGregor makes a splash because of his el strango wardrobe that includes too-too short pants. Was it supposed to be funny?

Elizabeth Reiser, perhaps best known for being in Sweetland and Grey’s Anatomy, is also in both of these films. In The Believer, she plays a Jewish attorney with Ryan Gosling as the even freakier NeoNazi who is also Jewish. This movie, which was originally banned from be distributed because of it’s exceptionally disturbing anti-Jewish content, was finally shown first on Showtime. It’s no joy ride watching this cringe producing movie, but Ryan Gosling’s performance is remarkable. All of the movies that Ryan Gosling has been in so far are listed below. (Half Nelson is still the best of the bunch, I think)

1. Lars and the Real Girl (2007)
2. Fracture (2007)
3. Half Nelson (2006)
4. Stay (2005)
5. The Notebook (2004)
6. The United States of Leland (2003)
7. Murder by Numbers (2002) *
8. The Slaughter Rule (2002) *
9. The Believer (2001)
10. Remember the Titans (2000)

*Haven't seen these ones yet, maybe never

The Verdict #4 on AFI's Top Ten Courtroom Dramas

I decided to watch The Verdict after seeing it on American Film Institute's top 10 list of courtroom dramas. The beautiful Paul Newman looked a little haggard but was impressive as the alcoholic lawyer who takes one last stab at winning a case. My friends and I who watched the movie were struck by the datedness of the movie -- the slow pace-- the long camera shots -- the dial phone (printed out phone bill), the absence of computers, and the politically incorrect comments. I thought it was it going to be great, but I was only so so impressed with it. There was some falling asleep while we watched it (not me). Is it that we are so used to modern movies that we cannot sustain attention to the pace? After I learned that the movie was written by David Mamet, I thought, hmm, I should have paid better attention to the dialogue and should have been more impressed. Other AFI top ten in the courtroom dramas are . . .
1. To Kill a Mockingbird
2. Twelve Angry Men
3. Kramer Vs. Kramer
4. The Verdict
5. A Few Good Men
6. Witness for the Prosecution
7. Anatomy of a Murder
8. In Cold Blood
9. A Cry in the Dark
10. Judgment at Nuremburg

Joe Strummer, The Future is Unwritten

Joe Strummer, The Future is Unwritten captures the punkin', politican’, rockin' RAD Clash member through testimonies around the camp fire from former early band members, women who loved him, and celebs like John Cusak and Bono. I knew a lot about the music of the Clash but very little about Joe Strummer. This documentary, while all a mish mash of video clips, remembrances, and even scenes from the animated Animal Farm, gave me a good idea of who he was and what he was like. And Strummer seemed like the kind of guy who would be very fun to hang out with but not so easy to live with. I really enjoyed learning about this sad and crazy musician.

The Kite Runner

I finally saw The Kite Runner after meaning to see it for a while, but I was reluctant. After reading the book, I knew what gruesome and sad events that awaited me in the movie and never really felt like putting myself through that. (this was another movie that I kept moving down on my queue) I liked but didn’t love the book but found the movie to be a worthy recount of the book. The movie is definitely a tear jerker, esp. when the adopted and damaged boy Sohrab (sp.?) tries to assimilate into life in America. The young actor who plays this boy had such a sad look on his face that it is heartbreaking. The movie does a good job of putting you in another world; the view of Kabul and a city in Pakistan is fascinating and is one reason to see the movie.

Lawrence of Arabia

The American Film Institute extols Lawrence of Arabia as one of the greatest films, EVER. Since I had never seen it, I figured I'd better. Especially after I read somewhere that it was compared to Reds, which is one of my favorite films, EVER. It took me three nights to get through Lawrence, it is after all nearly 4 hours long. And while I liked all the cool desert visuals, and thought Peter O'Toole was super cute in it. I didn't really get its greatness. Actually, I didn't 100% get it, at all. There were a lot of battles that had to do with Arab tribes, Turks, stuffy British dudes, grunting camels etc. And it is one of the AFI's number one of ten top epic movies.
AFI Top 10 Epic Films
1. Lawrence of Arabia
2. Ben-Hur
3. Schindler's List
4. Gone with the Wind
5. Spartacus
6. Titanic
7. All Quiet on the Western Front
8. Saving Private Ryan
9. Reds
10. The Ten Commandments

John Adams

John Adams, the HBO miniseries, is based on David McCullough's exhaustive biography of this signer of the declaration of independence and 2nd president. The miniseries tries to do justice to McCullough's tome by paying attention to all the details of America's conception, all the documents written involving Adams, all the conversations Adam's had with all the great men of the time, and all the settings where he negotiated, primarily Philadelphia and France. In addition, the miniseries chronicles the story of his marriage with the great Abigail with whom he relied on for counsel and reassurance. So it's interesting and thorough, but at times dull. I liked learning about all of these events but an instructive, beautifully detailed movie does necessarily make for a breathtaking thrill ride. It's no Reds, in other words. And, besides that, Paul Giamatti's Adams is such a dour grumpy-frumpy man, one tires of him. Laura Linney, even appears lifeless after a while, and I love her. So if you want to learn a lot and see some fantastic historically accurate sets, John Adams is right for you. Otherwise, I would pass.

AFI 10 Top 10

The American Film Institute recently came out with top 10 movie lists by genre. The genres include Animation, Romantic Comedy, Western, Sports, Mystery, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Gangster, Courtroom Drama, Epic. You know I like a good list and was most interested in their Romantic Comedy List:
1. City Lights
2. Annie Hall
3. It Happened One Night
4. Roman Holiday
5. The Philadelphia Story
6. When Harry Met Sally
7. Adam’s Rib
8. Moonstruck
9. Harold and Maude
10. Sleepless in Seattle

Roman Holiday, Philadelphia Story, and Adam’s Rib are also on my list of Classic Romantic Comedies (see side bar). I know little about the Charlie Chaplin silent film, City Lights, and question the addition of Sleepless in Seattle, but overall I think it seems like a respectable list. Except Moonstruck, while I thought it was good movie, I never really liked Cher and Nicolas Cage as romantic leads.

Definitely, Maybe

Romantic Comedies have so much potential to be good and so often go astray, that I have kinda given up on them (In an earlier blog I wrote about the modern preponderance of slacker-striver types of romantic comedies that have added to my disappointment in this genre). So when my friend Ruth insisted that Definitely, Maybe, the recent attempt at romance with Ryan Reynolds, was better than most, I thought I would give it a try. And yeah, it was alright. It had a suspenseful plot and the final happy couple did seem right for each other. The romantic comedy conventions (find each other in a cute way, face an obstacle, overcome said obstacle) made sense and did not seemed forced. There was even a nice bit having to do with the novel Jane Eyre that was fresh. It wasn't another movie-potential-gone-terribly-wrong like in 27 dresses; however, it still succumbed to over the top attempts at humour that are just painful to watch, such as when school children were raving at their parents after they received a sex-ed lesson at school. One reason to watch is Rachel Weisz who is so interesting to watch that you wish she were in the movie more.

Reds

Reds (1981) is a one of those movies that I have such nostalgically fond memories of that I feared it would not stand up to my seasoned adult standards. Happily, I find that it does stand up and is even better than I remembered. I didn’t remember it providing so much food for thought about communism, the Bolshevik Revolution, the individual’s power to make a difference, the United States political system, journalism and so on… I didn’t really quite get the movie back when I first saw in the theater, I guess. And besides it being really about something important, it is also very entertaining. I could barely do a crossword and watch this movie (that means I REALLY liked it). This early 20th Century love story of John Reed, journalist and American Communist, and writer Louise Bryant, is so fun to watch develop. The lovers are played by Warren Beatty and Diane Keaton. Beatty is much cuter and more charming than I remembered and Keaton, after reflecting on her recent light-weight roles, is a much better actress than I remembered. The two challenge each other intellectually with witty and smart banter. It is indeed a feat to make a movie that is a sweeping 3 hour saga that doesn’t get bogged down by stray storylines or indulgent scenes by the actor/director/producer Beatty. The structure of the film is anchored by Reed and Bryant leaving each other and finding one another in unexpected and suspenseful ways: at a party, in a New York apartment, on a train heading toward Russia, and finally and most memorably when they reunite, again in Russia, in a train station. It’s one of the great scenes of filmdom! So, if you’ve never seen Reds, you must, and if you have vague fond memories, seeing it again is very enjoyable.

By the way, it is also fun to watch the DVD extras where Warren Beatty reflects in 2006, 15 years later about the making of the film. The extras on this DVD are actually interesting.

One Year Anniversary of Mary's List

I am pleased to say that Mary's List has been around for a year, and I achieved my goal of posting at least once a week, sometimes more. After reviewing my blog, (while I was adding labels so you, the reader, could search my blog) I noticed a few trends. First off, apparently this was the year of Ryan Gosling--I have seen more than a handful of movies featuring him. Second, I watch my fair share of movies in French. Finally, I watch a lot of "independent" movies, whatever that means. Actually, I think it means "arty" FILMS and believe me it does not always mean they are good. Probably, I read a review or saw a preview of spme little known film and thought I MUST see it. I guess, I keep trying to find that perfect movie. And I will keep reporting my findings. Thanks for reading, Mary

The United States of Leland

In my effort to see more and more Ryan Gosling movies, I watched The United States of Leland that came out in 2004. The movie has several other great actors such as Kevin Spacey, Don Cheadle, and the young talented Jenna Malone, but despite such talent, the movie is a muddle of story lines just started and not ending anywhere. From the beginning of the movie we find that the young Leland, Gosling, has inexplicably killed a special needs child. Leland seems lost and detached but also gentle. Gosling gives him a sort of airy-like quality which helped me become invested in the question of why he would kill. Don Cheadle's character is also interesting in the movie but his character seems a little mixed up. Worth seeing for all, probably not. For Ryan Gosling fans? Probably!

My Dinner with Andre

Remember this oldie but a weirdie? Back in 1982 two playwrights, Wallace Shawn and Andre Gregory, starred in this strange movie where they just sit at a table in a restaurant and discuss weird stuff like improvisational theater in a Polish forest, being naked and lowered into an 8 foot grave, or a Japanese shaman walking on Andre's wife named Chiquita. It's weird and was somewhat popular back in the 1980s. I remember seeing it back then on PBS, and I am sure I was seeing it because I thought it was THE movie to see. (I still do that, you see) I wanted to see it again because 1.) it was at the library 2.) I love Wallace Shawn and had recently seen The Princess Bride, and 3.) I wanted to remember what all the fuss was about. Well, the fuss is about a couple of intellectuals struggling with some pretty esoteric issues and deciding, in the end, that it is all bunk. Or is it? I kinda enjoyed watching it again. My friend Mary was too engrossed in Scrabble to have an educated opinion on this movie.

3:10 to Yuma

As earlier stated, I am not much for the action adventure film, Western or not-- those movies filled with chase scenes and shoot'em up scenes usually bore me. Suprisingly then, I kinda liked 3:10 to Yuma. It took me about 20 minutes of the movie before my attention got locked in. I began by asking, who's shooting who and why and whose the bad guy and it that Christian Bale? I like him. I eventually got involved in the story and found it compelling.

Why is Anthony Lane so annoyed by Sex in the City?

Anthony Lane, one of the movie reviewers for The New Yorker, wrote an extremely snarky review of Sex in the City in the June 9 & 16 issue entitled "Carrie". He basically characterizes the four female leads as vapid men hunters and sneers at any woman who would deign to enjoy this film. The review is filled with cheap shots such as Carrie, Samantha, Miranda, and Charlotte are "banded together like hormonal hobbits, and all obsessed with a ring." He also compares Kristin Davis' acting to a ninth grader auditioning for the Crucible. I mean he just seems plain offended and annoyed by the movie to a degree that I find surprising. I agree that there are parts of Sex and the City that have always bugged me, like the over the top emphasis on clothes and shoes and, well, just about everything about the oversexed Samantha (except for her sweet relationship with Smith and bout with breast cancer--she bugs me). I am far from a fashionista, yet have always been a fan of the show, especially the aspect of the show that holds it together, the female friendships through all its up and downs. The emphasis on their friendship is central to the movie as well. It seemed right how the friends cared for Carrie after her almost marriage (yes I thought the reaction to Big's cold feet was over the top) by arranging her life via cell phone and getting her to laugh at Charlotte's intestinal issues. Really Sex and the City, the movie is simply a female fantasy movie. Just as male fantasy movies have incredible chase scenes and hot babes, Sex in the City the movie has incredible clothes, men, and friends. It's no Anna Karenina, as Lane mentions in the article, but it carried me away, made me laugh, and made me root for their happy ending, man or no.

There Will Be Blood

Yikes! There will be a painful, grim movie-watching experience, if you watch There Will Be Blood. Sure, you can't look away; visually the movie compels you to watch. Daniel Day Lewis plays this horrible greedy vindictive oilman who manipulates all of the people around him to meet his own ends. OK, I guess I liked learning about this stark turn-of-the-century world, but watching an irredeemable monster -- not fun! He even treats his "child" who he actually may love with the same meaness. There is also a young preacher who is equally as freaky as the Day-Lewis character. Anyway, if you really want to put yourself through something, watch There Will Be Blood.

La Vie En Rose

I finally got a chance to see La Vie En Rose, the biopic about Edith Piaf. I have Piaf's music on my iPod and play it for my students from time to time, much to their wonderment. And, I guess, I was a little leery about watching the movie, maybe for the same reason I never saw Angela's Ashes; I loved this book so much and had read that the movie was a dour remake of the original; I didn't want the movie to ruin my vision of the book. When I heard that La Vie En Rose focused on Piaf's train wreck of a life, I was leery. Despite these reservations, the movie was fascinating and the lead actress, Marion Cotillard, is captivating and impossible not to watch.

Paris, Je T'aime

You may have noticed that I am attracted to movies with certain characteristics. I watch a lot of independent films, movies with certain actors I like (Ryan Gosling or Mark Ruffalo, Juliette Binoche to name a few), and of course, movies about France or movies in French; I'm a bit of a Francophile. I like other than French foreign films usually (when I am up for subtitles), but gravitate the the French ones in particular. So Paris, Je T'aime was right up my alley; it combines France, French, independent film with Juliette Binoche, what else could you ask for? It's a collection of short films shot in Paris and about love. An amazing array of well known directors and actors take part in the project. Directors such as Gus Van Sant, Wes Craven, the Coen brothers and many more and actors such as Steve Buscemi, Rufus Sewell, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Elijah Wood, Gena Rowlands and Natalie Portman. About half of it is in French. Some of the films are truly memorable, some truly strange, and some truly forgettable. As I watched these short films I was amazed at how easily the directors can present a story in sometimes just 5 minutes. So if you want to slog through a unique movie and find some gems, you might enjoy Paris, Je T'aime.

Sex in the City, the movie

If you like the TV series, you will not be disappointed by the movie. The movie makers give the audience everything she wants from the four stylish girlfriends without laying it on too thick. I enjoyed every minute in the theater and even had a few hardy laughs. I won't tell what happens for those of you who haven't seen it yet.

I'm not there for 27 Dresses

I'm not there -- the Bob Dylan movie is perplexing. Especially if you know a bit about Bob Dylan and keep trying to figure out what bits are really from his life and what bits are distorted additions to his life. After reading the notes included with the DVD extras, I learned that the movie is meant to be like an extended dream. Well, it's not that fun watching a dream where each event seems unconnected. I enjoyed the music; I love Bob's music. I enjoyed watching the well-known actors create versions of the Dylan persona (Cate Blanchett, Heath Ledger, Richard Gere, Christian Bale to name a few). But I lost interest in the movie as it progressed and was ready for it to be done at the end.

On a completely different note I watched 27 Dresses about a beautiful woman (Kathrine Heigle) who is always a bridesmaid. I couldn't get past the beautiful woman who couldn't snag the guy. Good movie potential gone very bad.

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly is about a 42 year old French man who has a stroke and becomes paralyzed, unable to talk. He communicates through blinking his eye as a nurse goes through the letters of the alphabet. He writes a whole book like this (the book is what the movie is based on). It's pretty amazing. I would definitely not call this movie action-packed, but pretty interesting.

Speak

This past school year I read out loud Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson to my 8th graders home room. I don't really like young adult novels, I know I teach middle school, but this book awed me with its wonderfulness. Speak is told from the perspective of a witty, bright ninth grade girl filled with angst and anger. She has reason for the anger; she was assaulted by a creepy predatory senior guy. What follows is her year of coping with this incident and her perspective on mean girls and clueless teachers. So that’s the book. Now for the movie. At the end of this school year we watched the independent film of the movie with the kids. It’s PG-13, but ok for 8th graders, I thought. When you love a book, you really want the movie to not ruin your view of the book. My favorite movie interpretation of a book is Of Mice and Men, 1992, John Malkovich version. Speak may be coming in second. This movie exceeded my expectations. The lead, Melinda played by Kristen Stewart, is great. The cool, hippy art teacher played by Steve Zahn is hilarious and the whole movie is moving and authentic. I actually wanted to watch it again after I saw it with the kids. Well, it is hard to concentrate when you are watching a movie with 50 8th graders but still.
So I suggest you (meaning female readers of this blog) read the book and then watch the movie. You will probably not be able to find it at a video store and will need Netflix or some such online DVD .

Hannah Takes the Stairs

Hannah Takes the Stairs is an arty independent film -- a few 20 somethings make a movie in their apartment -- that did well at Sundance. Critics' opinions range from, "Unfocused and indulgent" to praising the director for having "an uncanny talent for making the randomness of downtime feel as alive as it seems generationally true." I just thought it seemed like a whole lot of down time and not much up time. The lead actress playing Hannah is cute and has presence on screen but plays an annoying unfocused serial dater. In my opinion the movie is not worth seeing. But that's why I am there for you, oh loyal reader, to watch these movies so you don't have to.

Starting out in the Evening

Frank Langella plays a washed up novelist who's earlier success seems forgotten by all but an ambitious grad student who insinuates herself into his staid life. The writer's daughter is played by Lily Taylor and she becomes increasingly concerned about the grad student's influence over her father. I thought maybe this would be a movie my parents might enjoy. Within 10 minutes of the movie my mother said, "I don't like that girl!" about the Lauren Ambrose grad student character. I had to leave to finish the movie later and both parents decided they would be happy not finishing it and leaving me to tell them what happened. I did finish it and liked it more at the end but still found it lacking, lacking in some heart or something. Lily Taylor's character was the most interesting. I love Lauren Ambrose from Six Feet Under, but, I guess I agree with my mother, she was annoying in this movie. Oh well, I don't know why I feel I have see every movie that's either about a writer or has actor's I like when it really isn't very good, but then I can tell YOU about it.

Favorite Movies

I wanted this blog to be lists and then I try to make these definitive lists of my favorite movies, and I become stymied. Some movies I love some movies so much for about two months or so and then two years later I can’t remember why I liked it. I think a favorite movie needs to last in your mind and stay meaningful to you. So they are not only meaningful to you at the time, they hang on and insist you see them again and again. Some movies that I feel that way to me are listed below. More will come to me later, by the way.
Gigi 1958 (I don’t know why)
Broadcast News 1987
Ordinary People 1980
Reds 1981
The Princess Bride, 1987
Pride and Prejudice (A&E version) 1996
You Can Count on Me 2000

What is one of your favorite movies?

Lars and the Real Girl

I love Ryan Gosling and had planned on watching this movie for a while, but the thought of watching a movie about a guy who thinks his girlfriend is a blowup doll seems kinda creepy. The surprising thing about this movie is that it isn't creepy; Lars' creation of this "girlfriend" from out of town who is in a wheelchair is a manifestation of his own screwed up mind and is mainly just sad and uncomfortably funny at the same time. Even though I don't think this situation could happen in real life, it seems very believable (with the exception of some of the townspeople's reaction to him) This movie left me wondering. One thing that is for sure though, Ryan Gosling is a great actor!

Smart People watch Reversation Road

Or Mary and Mary watch two movies, one in the the theater called Smart People with Sarah Jessica Parker, Dennis Quaid, Ellen Page, and Thomas Hayden Church. Mary liked that the characters seemed like real people with typical weird idiosyncrasies but the movie itself felt a like a patchwork quilt -- it just didn't feel like it was put together right like a quilt that was worked on by too many people. SJP's character seemed undeveloped as if they were trying to make her out to be odd while Dennis Quaid's character seemed overdeveloped by being too neurotic. I, Mary, agree that the movie did not hang together well and left me with "hmmph" at the end. Actually a double "hmmph" What to think? It was overall lame with tons of potential. The ever-cute Ellen Page was ever-cute but seemed so like her Juno character, snappy and witty, and the only real salvation to the movie was Thomas Hayden Church, who curiously also so seemed so like his Sidewise character. So that's what us smart people thought.

If you had reservations about watching Reservation Road, I would suggest you follow that feeling. It's a downer, man. Mary was glad that she was playing Scrabble during this movie so two hours of her life weren't completely wasted. Why did I get it? Awesome cast, I mean who doesn't like Mark Ruffalo and Joaquin Phoenix but movies about a little boy getting killed is just not my cup of tea. However, Rachel Weisz did an outstanding job as the grieving mother, Mary thought.

Speaking of reservations, I also saw No Reservations with Aaron Eckhart, Catherine Zeta Jones, and Abigail Breslin about an uptight chef who winds up with her sister's daughter after the sister's death. Cute and fun new chef, the sexy Eckhart, is Zubas and brightly colored Crocs, livens up the dour Jones character and of course they fall in love. It's an ok movie but kinda bland, especially at the end. The movie was based on a 2001 German film called Mostly Martha and reviews say that movie is much superior. So I am going to check that out and get back to you.

Enchanted and Love in the Time of Cholera

I just saw these two movies -- very different in tone but alike in their lack of weightiness. I kept hearing people compare Enchanted to The Princess Bride, so I felt I needed to see it. It was cute, it was no Princess Bride, it had no goofy Wallace Shawn or repetitive Enigo Montoya (sp) but still cute. Amy Adams was the best part of the movie. She is sunny in a bizarre way. She is worth seeing in Junebug, it you haven't seen that.

Love in the Time of Cholera is also pleasant -- I never read the book so I can't compare them but I imagine the book is better-- it was just a little too one note about one man's weird obsession with one woman who has a lot of sex with other women while he pines for her until they are in their 70s. Javier Bardem is the long-lasting lover.

Into the Wild

After reading portions of Krakauer's book, Into the Wild, I have wanted to see the movie. I wondered what the quirky and abrasive Sean Penn would do with the movie. Would he edge it up and make it caustic, like him? Instead I think he sweetened it. The main character based on the real Chris McCandliss is a joyous lover of life. He reminds me of a poet friend of mine who is not the most practical fellow you'd want to meet but one who sees beauty is the smallest things and makes delightful observations. I knew the end of the movie was going to be wrenching. Actually the movie starts with the end of Chris' story and the end continues to be sprinkled throughout the movie. But when the final moments arrive it's hard to watch. Chicken Mary did a little fast forwarding -- it's true. Despite this sadness, the movie gave me the same feeling as watching Motorcycle Diaries; it made want to go on an adventure, sloughing off my worldly ways and take a bite out of the apple of life. (By the way, Chris a.k.a. Alexander Supertramp, takes an exultant bite out of an apple in the movie)

Moliere

Moliere is about the great French playwright who wrote in the mid 1600s and entertained the royal court with his farces. The movie is comedic and tries to be like the farces that Moliere wrote, lots of silly coincidences and broad characters. The actor who plays Moliere is Romain Duris who is funny and expressive does hilarious impressions (check out one particularly funny one of horses); there is also something kinda sexy about Duris in a waifish guy kinda way. ((My mother thought the man who played the absurd Mr. Jourdain was a better actor.) My seven-year old nephew, who can't even really read the subtitles, thought the movie was funny, "I liked the part where that guy fell off the horse." My mother really enjoyed it a lot and said that when we heard Moliere's farcical comments we all laughed. Also she enjoyed the cinematography, the movie is set in beautiful and grand rooms and includes incredible scenery.

Dan in Real Life

Set in Cheese Ball, USA, an idyllic cabin on a lake where loving families play games, put on a talent show, do family aerobics on the lawn, and of course, play a family game of touch football, Dan in Real Life shows the father of 3 girls, two of whom are ultra-snotty teens, who is visiting his parents and happens upon his brother's girlfriend (he doesn't know it at the time) and falls for her. Well, of course, the woman is Juliette Binoche, I mean come on who wouldn't fall for Juliette Binoche. I guess I'm just disappointed that a movie with the charming Steve Carell and one of my favorite actresses, the lovely Binoche, is just so mediocre. There's nothing worse than a movie that has tons of potential but falls flat.

Holly visits and we watch 3 movies

Margot at the Wedding by the same dude who did the Squid and the Whale was not as tight and funny as the Squid and the Whale but included a bitchy lead character to match the father Squid. Nicole Kidman's Margot was deliciously mean and Jack Black was goofy and kinda funny. Holly thought, "This is the weirdest movie I have ever seen."

We also went to the theater to see The Other Boleyn Girl. Holly thought,"The Scarlett role was played too nice and it didn't go coincide with the book and took away from the sisterly tension that was in the book." But overall, Holly liked it. Mary, who had just finished season I of the Showtime Tudors, found it not as compelling as that series about King Henry VIII, but enjoyed the ever cute Natalie Portman in the role as Anne and found her a better Anne than in the series. Both stories are a bit too soap operish, however.

Two Days in Paris was our last movie viewing of the weekend. Two Days in Paris was written, acted, and produced by Julie Delpy and examines the detioration and possible renewal of a two year relationship while visiting Paris. The actor Adam Goldberg played a Woody Allenish neurotic and paranoid lover to the beautiful and oversexed Julie Delpy. The parents, Julie Delpy's real parents by the way, were pretty funny but super odd. Worth seeing? Holly says, "It's mediocre but worth seeing." Mary watches all independent movies especially if they involve Paris so she says Yes, worth seeing.

Side note: all films involved a dead slaughtered and bloody pig. This, however, was merely a coincidence, but odd since Holly just gave up pork a few weeks ago for being grossed out by the thought of eating pigs. These scenes affirmed her decision.

Elizabeth, The Golden Age

It's hard to understand why Elizabeth, the Golden Age falls flat. It has all the elements of a great movie: stunning visuals, costumes and scenes, a fantastic actress in Cate Blanchett, a great story, a studly dude Clive Owen as Sir Walter Raleigh. Still, it's just kind of boring. I loved the first Elizabeth with Cate Blanchett -- she's such a great Elizabeth. So where did it go wrong?

Gone Baby Gone

This is the first movie I have scene with Casey Affleck (with the exception of a small role in Good Will Hunting) and who knew he was such a good actor. He's very watchable and real. I guess I am surprised since I find his brother Ben such a mediocre actor. Gone Baby Gone is based on a Dennis Lehane novel, who also wrote Mystic River, and bad actor Ben directs. Who knew? He can direct. The most interesting aspect of the movie, I think, is the crisis of conscience that the Casey Affleck's character struggles with. He feels guilty and talks about shame and remorse and tries to do the right thing when the right thing is difficult to ascertain.

In the Valley of Ellah

. . . with Tommy Lee Jones and Charilize Theron, is a sad little take on what happens when boys go to war and get really screwed up. Charilize's character investigates a killing that happens near a military base, the brutal murder of Jones' son. They try to make Charlize look like a tough no-nonsense cop with sensible shoes and pulled back brown hair, but let's face it, how can she not look beautiful. The movie definitely makes a statement about how screwed up the Iraq War is and has some really good performances. One warning, it did cause three people I was watching it with to fall asleep -- they were really tired though.

The Jane Austen Book Club

I know, I know, it seems my blog has been taken over by Jane Austen. Oh well, I think the season will be over soon. The Jane Austen Book Club, based on the book of the same name, is actually better than the book. It's so light and peppy and fun -- I was thrilled. All the female characters are charming and enjoyable to watch and the main lead male, Hugh Dancy is, well, yummy. I thought it would hardly have anything to do with Jane, but I was pleasantly surprised by all the Jane Austen references, and the way the characters showed why Jane is so great. The bit about Ursula Le Guin was funny. I have always been resistant to science fiction and fantasy novels, so people are always telling me that I should read Ursula LeGuin, and so far I have resisted -- I liked how the romantic pair showed how they loved the other by reading each other's favorite books. This is a movie about and for book lovers. How can that be bad?

Two movies with Sienna Miller

I didn't plan it by I just saw two movies with Sienna Miller, Interview and Factory Girl. Both movies explore how a messed up, druggy famous beauty deals with her fame. Factory Girl is about Edie Sedwick, an Andy Warhol groupie in the 60s who dies too young. Interview is a strange little film with Steve Buscemi who stars and directs with Sienna Miller. The whole movie is basically those two talking; he is a political reporter slummin' it by interviewing a B-movie actress. It's based on a Danish movie and really just kind of strange. One thing for sure is that Sienna Miller is lovely and magnetic, but both movies are just kinda so-so.

Oh and I also saw Eastern Promises with the studly Viggo Mortenson as a tatooed Russian mafia thug. Pretty violent and not as good as The History of Violence by the same director, but you do get see Vigo all nude and stuff in a steam room hopping around killing people. So if you're into that.

Jane Just Plain Rules

Now I feel sad -- Miss Austen Regrets' portrayal of my dear Jane made me lament her short life once again. This Jane seemed more like the Jane of my imaginings than, well certainly more than Becoming Jane. I liked her snippy and funny comments -- many of the lines came straight out of her letters to Cassandra ("shocking acts of dancing") -- and her hunger to write and find solitude. This Jane wanted to have fun and dance and have too much to drink; she even had a hangover. When Cassandra burned Jane's letters after her death, I wanted to grab the letters out of the fire and save all the rich wonderfulness of her words. Ah me -- and then her problems with money and the position that she is put in to try to help her sister and her mother. "I'm to be my own husband, it seems" she complains about her situation. I think I will reread Persuasion now and try to hear the voice of Jane reflecting on her life.

As You Like It
I also saw the HBO movie version of this Shakespeare play -- one of my favorites. I'm pretty sure it is only a movie that English teachers and their students will watch.

Jane Lite Rules Mansfield Park

After viewing my third of the new PBS Jane movies, I've decided this ensemble should be called Lite -- as in fat free -- just the bare bones romance. This Mansfield Park in particular really stripped away of all of the funny characters and side stories. Mrs. Norris isn't so awful, Mary Crawford not so bitchy, and Fanny's brother and seaside family are barely a blip on the screen. That's ok I guess, but one of the main things I love about Jane Austen is all of the odd-ball self-involved characters that riddle her novels. Oh well. Jane Austen Lite is better than no Jane Austen at all.

Atonement in the theater

It's always nice to see a movie in the theater; it seems like I do that less and less and watch DVDs more. Probably due to my Netflix compulsion. Anyway, I just saw Atonement after hearing mixed reviews from friends and critics. I had read the book (although I did some paging through the boring parts like the war scenes) and knew pretty much what to expect. While I could see why some people thought the movie was boring, I was not bored because it was so nice to look at -- it is so lush and beautiful -- beautiful mansion and gardens and actors. Keira Knightly and James McAvoy are both stunning and the young actress who played Briony is entrancing as well. The war scene on the beach is bizarre and marvelous, like a dream sequence. Each little scene is glorious in some way -- but maybe it's that the movie just doesn't hang together very well and seems a little flabby in parts, but it is definitely something to look at.

I also saw on DVD Hoax about the writer who pretended to know Howard Hughes and write his biography. It's a pretty outrageous story.

And I recently saw Jeff Tweedy, Sunken Treasure Live, a concert film. I liked watching and love Tweedy of Wilco's music and his fantastic voice. You got a glimpse of what kind of person Tweedy is and well he comes off kinda jerky at times but not so jerky that you don't still admire his music.

Jane Rules Northanger Abbey

Northanger Abbey has always been my least favorite Jane Austen. In it's favor last night's PBS version had a cute Katherine Moreland, a charming George Tilney, and an imposing castle. Both Persuasion and Northanger Abbey move at a quick pace and are likable, but I didn't feel like I got to know the great quirky side characters that make Jane Austen so great.

This weekend I also saw Savages with Laura Linney and Phillip Seymour Hoffman. It's about a brother and sister who have to care for their ailing father. The previews made this move seem whimsical and charming, so I was not expecting it to be as grim as it was. I think it's going to be one of those films that needs mulling over.

Last I saw the A&E miniseries about Charles II called The Last King with Rufus Sewell as Charles. It's a bit of a boddice ripper, but those who like movies about the English monarchy will like it, I think.

Jane Rules -- starting with Persausion

Well, at least she rules the air waves for the next couple of Sundays. Yes, all of Jane Austen films are being made anew (except Pride and Prejudice -- they are reshowing the A&E version). Tonight was Persuasion and while, in my humble opinion, it didn't come close to the Amanda Root version that was longer and payed more attention to some of the kooky characters like Anne's ridiculous sisters, I liked this breezy version; I liked the actress who played Anne and thought the Frederick was a less dour and much cuter than the other Captain Wentworth. Hey, what about that weird street open mouth kiss at the end? That seemed to come out of nowhere.

A Couple of Talky Movies about Sad Women

Sound fun? Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont starring Joan Plowright is a sentimental British slice of life movie where a cute young fellow poses as her grandchild after a series of misunderstandings and temporarily helps her escape her lonely life at this bizarre British hotel for the elderly, The Claremont. One disturbing outcome of watching this movie is that I found myself identifying with the elderly Mrs. Palfrey rather than the young feller hoping to be a writer.

The Secret Life of Words stars the wonderful Sarah Polley as a damaged girl who finds herself acting as a nurse on an oil rig. She tends to a burned and blind worker who happens to be played by Tim Robbins. It starts menacingly slow but grows on you sort of -- it may be worth it to see Sarah Polley's great portrayal of a girl coming out of her shell.

No Country for Old Men -- Guest entry

My sister saw No Country for Old Men -- a movie I was reluctant to see -- too scary. Here are her thoughts:

If you like violent and depressing moives with no hope for a “good” ending this is the movie for you. The redeeming part is the acting and camera work is superb. Also, it kept me on the edge of my seat.

Hmmm, I think I can still miss this one.