Adventureland

I must be getting old when the 80s is a distant memory, and I had so much enjoyment in the nostalgia trip that Adventureland took me on. The movie takes you to the summer of 1987 with mixed tapes, 80’s hair dos, and Gremlins and no cell phones to be found. Jesse Eisenberg plays James, a recent college grad whose plans of going to Europe for the summer are dashed when his family falls on hard times, and he has to save money for graduate school. He ends up in the only job a literature major can find apparently, manning the sleazy midway games at a second rate theme park, Adventureland. There, he falls for the cute Em played by Kristen Stewart who is also have some tough times, and he befriends the gawky cynic Joel (Martin Starr) who as some of the funniest lines in the movie.
I remember seeing the trailer and thinking that this movie was going to be another Superbad, only in a theme park, meaning another rambling vulgar teenage boy journey with the ubiquitous alums from Freaks and Geeks (not that Superbad didn’t have its hilarious moments). Instead with Adventureland we get a real story and main characters who have some depth. Sure there’s some extraneous vulgarity and teen age boy humor (one character likes to punch James in the nuts, don’t get it) but Adventureland is the evolved Superbad – well-worth seeing, especially if your formative years were planted in the 80s like me.
Oh and the sound track is a part of the fun with Husker Du, The Replacements, “Unsatisfied” and Lou Reed, “Satellite of Love”. Of course, the other less cool songs that are burned in my memory too.

Elegy

Ben Kingsley, who I have loved in roles such as Gandhi, House of Sand and Fog, and most recently The Wackness, failed to impress me in Elegy. I found the character he plays, David Kepesh, a college professor, heartless and kind of pathetic. (Richard Jenkins in The Visitor who also plays a cynical professor, is so much more interesting to watch and easier to care about) The central relationship of the movie for the professor is with the much younger sexy temptress Consuela, played by guess who? The woman who plays a sexy temptress better than any one else, Penelope Cruz. The movie centers around this May-December romance, but I never really felt the connection between these two. I tried to think of other movies where this type of relationship seemed right so I googled May-December relationships and wouldn't you know, there is actually a Wikipedia site called List of films featuring May-December romances. From the list, both older men with younger women and older women with younger men, none of them strike me as couples with incredible chemistry. So maybe I have trouble seeing this type or romance as fodder for a good movie. Despite all this, there is something missing in Elegy; it lacks heart, I didn't really care about too much about any of the characters even though they all try to cope with tragic situations. Great actors such as Peter Sarsgaard, Dennis Hopper, and Patricia Clarkson, experience heart ache and even a heart attack, but failed to move me.

Duplicity

I see the rare blockbuster in the theater but a friend wanted to see Duplicity and I thought a movie with Clive Owen couldn't be all that bad. And indeed his suave British self exudes sex appeal throughout the movie. And Julia Roberts, who plays the same role in every movie, a sassy in control vamp, is good in the same old role she always plays. Duplicity is an entertaining spy thriller full of twists and turns, and it is enjoyable if not somewhat formulaic.

I Have Loved You So Long/ Sycheadaofjwoe

Guest blogger: N. Huelster
First attempt: Schenechdote(?); I was warned by a professor that this film was trying too hard to be "meta," was pretentious and not worth seeing. Giving it a try, however, proved this to be true. The name is similar to the name of the town in Upstate New York where the film takes place, but is a word meaning "a trope where a part is used to refer to its whole," which is supposed to explain the connection between the play within the film, I think, but frankly, the whole film is so messed up that I couldn't understand what the director was going for. The psyche of the main character is painful to witness from the start of the movie, and after his wife leaves him, and his health begins to deteriorate, it only becomes more and more painful to watch. Not only this, the effects of Kaufman's mixing of the fantastic with the real is lost in this flop, whereas in "Eternal Sunshine" it served the characters and the story to make a superb (and meta) film. Fastforwarded the last hour, it was my favorite part.
Second attempt: Il y'a Longtemps Que Je T'aime; French film starring English actress Kristen Scott Thomas. This was a good film, exploring the reunion of two sisters after one is released from fifteen years in prison for murdering her son. Throughout the film we learn her reason for doing it, and it turns out not to be the horrific act of violence that sustains much of the tension throughout the unfolding story- her introduction into her sister's new family, a new job, and new acquaintances on the other side of the prison wall to face (and to face her guilt). Thomas' character is bleak, and mysterious, and her relationship with her sister and her family reveals in the end what her true guilt really was. I at first liked the story for its sympathetic look at mental illness/ prison, but in the end the twist surrounding Thomas' crime gives the story a new depth. Bien!

Music Within

While Music Within is a made-for-TV-like melodramatic bio pic, it tells about a very important moment in history when the Americans with Disabilities Act was passed and how Richard Pimentel was instrumental in educating the public about people with disabilities. Richard Pimentel is played Ron Livingston who is a very likable actor. Pimentel's good friend Art, Michael Sheen (recently in Frost Nixon), is a man with Cerebral Palsy who teaches his friend about living with CP. I found myself drawn in by this movie and I think anyone who is interested in this topic would like this movie.

I also saw Feast of Love this weekend. Dumb ensemble piece with good actors like Greg Kinnear and Morgan Freeman (who plays the same role he always does -- wise mentor). I chose both these movies from seeing previews on a DVD. That usually does not work out so well and Feast of Love proves that.

Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist

I would describe Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist as sweet and occasionally gross. A couple of cute teenagers drive around New York City looking for their favorite band while falling in love. This movie made me nostalgic for my college days when I would drive down to Dinky Town with my pals to hear bands while listening to mix tapes. Of course, in the movie they make mixed CDs and download them onto their iPods, and they are all in high school! So it's a likable movie; however it leaves me with a few posers: In what world are teenagers allowed to go to bars, drink, and stay up all night? Why are there so many movies of late featuring Michael Cera, who plays the same lovable boy in every movie? Why does anyone want to watch someone throwing up in a movie? Or listen to it. Gross! Do some movie goers enjoy this? That's all I got, out.

Brideheads Revisited, the movie

Since I loved the 1981 mini-series Brideheads Revisited based on Evelyn Waugh's novel, I was reluctant to see the 2008 version. And, as to be expected, I was disappointed by the movie which runs at 2 hours and 14 minutes, compared to the 8ish hour mini-series. The barely scratches of the surface of the complex and wonderful characters rife in Waugh's book. What happened to the lovable Sebastian? The movie offers a very superficial version of his character-- Maybe I am disappointed because I miss the wonderful Anthony Andrews Sebastian. (On a side note -- there is only a passing glance of Aloysius, Sebastian's stuffed bear) I liked Matthew Goode who plays as Charles Ryder, and I liked the Julia, Hayley Atwell. But because the movie was trying to do so much so quickly, none of the actors had a chance to delve into their characters. The filmmakers decided to amp up the gay and the catholic in the movie. Make Sebastian more flamboyant and overt in his love for Charles --not too mention the actor is so fey, thin and wispy that he seems like he is going to float away. They also oversimplified the Catholic conflicts throughout the movie, so the movie-goer never really gets why the Flytes are so tortured. Finally, the great Emma Thompson seemed wasted in this movie. She hit one note, dour Catholic mama.

So instead of watching this movie and if you happen to have 8 hours of time on your hands for great TV watching -- watch the 1981 mini-series which I re-watched last summer -- I was entranced all over again. But pass on the the latest movie version.

Check out my list of great min-series too!