The Up Series

In 1964, British filmmaker Michael Apted chose an assorted group of English 7-year-olds to film and chronicles their lives every 7 years. Now, those "kids" are 49 years old. I had seen some of these “episodes” many years ago but had never saw the 1964 version and certainly hadn’t seen 49 and UP. So over the last month or so I watched all the whole 7 and Up series. And, believe me, it is fascinating. You can’t wait to put in the next DVD and find out they are doing at 21 or 42. It’s reality TV at its finest. I think Apted had some preconceived ideas what he would reveal about England and the class system when he started the series, and while many of his hypothesis held true (like the upper crust will follow a plan laid out for them with private schools etc. and the East enders will never make it out of dead end jobs), the most fascinating revelations were those “kids” who broke out their mold.
The most successful lives were the ones who possessed a mixture of practicality and drive. And I am defining successful as those who had good marriages or raised happy children or were satisfied with their lives. One of my favorites was this scrappy little ruffian, Tony, who at 21 one said that all that mattered, “was mom and dad and love.” And I don’t want to give away what happens to all of them because that’s where the suspense comes in but Tony was an example of someone who has amazing resources and ambitions and a lot of love. Tony isn’t the only captivating character of the bunch. There’s feisty fellow East Ender Jackie, sad-eyed Paul, compassionate Bruce, and the future physicist Nick who ends up in Madison Wisconsin of all places. And the most, I don’t know the word, maybe heartbreaking or thoughtful, or unpredictable of all the kids is Neil, who at 7 skips across the street with glee.
One thing that is kind of annoying is the repeat of the earlier footage at each stage. I did some skipping of that when I watched it on DVD. I watched the last bit on Netflix instant play, so I was not able to skip ahead. Also, sure, Apted is a manipulative film maker, he presents the “kids” as he sees them, but I like how he occasionally gets called to task by one of his subjects. Jackie really gives him an earful in 49 and Up.
So if you’ve got some time on your hands and want to watch one of the most fascinating documentaries that I’ve ever watched, give The Up series a shot.

The Social Network

After reading great reviews about the Facebook movie, The Social Network, I was eager to see it. Even though I had also read a New Yorker profile of Mark Zuckerberg that claims that the movie distorted some of the facts about Facebook’s inception, I was still persuaded to see the movie. And It was really good.

I liked seeing the world of Harvard and the amazing gifted and privileged students at Harvard and how these youngsters, future leaders of the world, create amazing start up companies in their dorm rooms. It makes you feel old and not so smart, but it is definitely something to see.

I also enjoyed the Winklevoss brothers (two of Zuckerberg’s “victims”)– the young wealthy twins who row crew and act as if there right out of Brideshead Revisited. Plus, Zuckerberg’s friend, Eduardo, who is Facebook’s co-founder, is another reason to see the movie – played by Andrew Garfield – he’s sweet and earnest and a good friend and the perfect contrast to Zuckerberg’s icy wit.

And of course, Zuckerberg, played by Jesse Eisenberg, is great. He is downright mean but very funny throughout the movie, and it is especially pointed when he sheds some of that meanness at the end of the movie. I wondered if the real Zuckerberg is really that funny. The movie starts out as a profile of the brilliant world of Harvard with all its amazing possibilities and ends in the brighter but meaner world of California and throughout it is a great movie.

If interested, like I was, in a fact check of the movie, check out this site.

Temple Grandin and Get Low

I don’t know if others have had the experience of weeping through Temple Grandin, but this movie really got to me. Besides loving Claire Danes and thinking she is amazing in this movie, I cheered on her subject, Temple Grandin, a brilliant autistic woman who overcame her fears and achieved her goals. Because of her intuitive understanding of animals, she able to make cattle lots more compassionate for the cattle. She also has been able to explain what it is like to be autistic. This movie is definitely one that tugs at your heartstrings (which normally I hate in a movie) but the combination of Claire Danes’ great acting and Temple Grandin’s remarkable life, makes this movie well worth watching and a genuinely inspirational story.

I also saw Get Low about a grizzled hermit who emerges from the woods and declares he would like to plan his funeral and attend it. Robert Duvall is the crusty old guy; Bill Murray is the potentially shady funeral director; and Sissy Spacek is the old girlfriend. Holding the movie together and giving it some perspective is the young guy named Buddy played by Lucas Black who works for Murray’s character. For me, his reactions to the events of the movie was the most interesting part. The movie had a few genuine original moments but was mostly pretty forgettable.

Winter's Bone and Georgia O'Keefe

Winter’s Bone is a little movie about a group of impoverished people living in the Ozarks whose life is corrupted by a community of scary kin who cook meth. In the center of this mess is a girl whose father is missing and his failure to show up for court will lead to the family losing their land. Ree (played by previously unknown to me, Jennifer Lawrence) is responsible for her younger brother and sister and her mute and sketchy mother. This amazing girl, Ree, stomps through the treeless winter hills with a stubborn purpose while encountering some seriously freaky people, one of whom is her own uncle, her father’s brother. At first it is hard to tell whose side her uncle(played by John Hawkes from Deadwood), strangely named teardrop, is on. But Ree unflinchingly carries on – trying to figure out what has become of her father. I liked this movie for a couple of reasons: Ree is interesting to watch and it not obvious where this movie is heading– happily no Hollywood blueprint to follow.

I also recently saw the Lifetime TV movie, Georgia O’Keefe. You’d think a movie starring two heavy hitters like Jeremy Irons and Joan Allen would be impressive, but it was actually kind of bland. Still, I enjoyed learning about the artist and her older lover, the photographer, Aurthur Stieglitz, who according to this movie was kind of a jerk. Despite interesting fodder for a movie, Georgia O’Keefe fell flat.

The Kids Are All Right

I was surprised by how much I liked this movie. I had read that The Kids Are All Right was trying to be too hip for its own good, and, yes, there is some of that. But, it is also funny, thought-provoking, and at times sweet about how hard it is to be married and raise a family. The family stability begins to unravel when the lesbian couple's (Annette Bening and Julianne Moore) two teenage children go searching for their mothers’ sperm donor, and, Voila, they find none other than the super sexy Mark Ruffalo. Paul, Ruffalo’s character, causes all kinds of disruption, some good and some bad, but most interesting is that his impact on the family is complicated and the director leaves room for ambiguity. The kids, Joni and Laser, (Mia Wosikowska and Josh Hutcherson) seem like real kids with real teen age insecurities and interests unlike so many TV shows and movies these days where the kids are over sexualized and behave like adults. With great actors like Bening and Moore, you know you are going to get some great performances, and they do not disappoint. The Kids Are All Right is more than just allright.

Motorcycle Diaries vs. Eat, Pray, Love

I just rewatched Motorcycle Diaries and then went to Eat, Pray, Love the next day. One can’t help but make comparisons between these two movies, both about a member of the privileged class who goes on a “spiritual” (I’m using that word even though I think it is kinda meaningless) and an actual journey. Motorcycle Diaries is about journey of the young Che Guevara and his good friend from one end of South America to the other, through amazing scenery where the young Che learns to see this landscape through the eyes of the poor and helpless. You actually see his character changing as he becomes impassioned about his quest to unite the underclass of South America. Now, Eat, Pray, Love, on the other hand, is about a woman who left her husband without any real reason that the audience can tell (I didn’t read the book, by the way) and she is so distraught and apparently has enough money to say my only way to make myself whole again is to go to Italy, India, and Bali. Liz, played by the gorgeous how-can-life-be-tough-for-someone-that-beautiful Julia Roberts, mopes throughout the movie and then *poof* is happy again, in part when she crashes into the sexy Javier Bardem. Che was on a they, they, they trip while Liz is on a me, me, me trip. Of course, Eat, Pray, Love may be worth seeing for some beautiful scenery and some good bits by Javier Bardem and Richard Jenkins. And Motorcycle Diaries is definitely worth seeing.

Ghostwriter

Roman Polanski resurfaces with this Hitchcockian drama about a Tony Blair-like politician who’s writing his memoirs with a ghostwriter while on Martha’s Vineyard. Pierce Brosan plays the former prime minister and Euan McGregor plays the ghost writer. Now, I always like a movie with Euan McGregor, and in this film he is again witty and debonair while he tries to find his way in a world where he is in way over his head. Right as the ghostwriter begins working with Brosnan’s character he is accused of war crimes and the ghostwriter while happens upon some unsavory details about his subject. Overall, I found Ghostwriter to be an intriguing little mystery with good acting.