Up in the Air

I would love to write a one word review of this movie. That review would look a lot like this: meh.

I sat and enjoyed this film while watching it. I left the theatre and immediately forgot why. The three leads did a great job and did indeed make it look easy. This film really didn't do anything wrong per se. I just find it hard to find many things that it did at all. The story is basic enough. George's character is happy in his life and likes his philosophy. Some women come along and make him feel some things. His life is shook around a bit. He reaches his ultimate goal and doesn't react the way he expected. He changes. That is the movie. Quite lovely and predictable. Some of the most beautiful moments were just shuffled around and moved passed too quickly to be enjoyed. I just feel like the film was a little too long and not quite as tight as it could have been. I don't really see how this movie is a contender in this year's 'Best Motion Picture' category. I certainly wouldn't call this a bad movie. There was just too little meat there for me. I did not really expect myself writing such a meh review of this highly reviewed film. I guess of all the other nominees this year, the one's that don't mean something important have at least really beautiful stories that make me love or hate life profoundly (for the most part). This movie didn't mean anything and didn't make me feel anything. If that is what it was going for, I guess it won. Maybe someday George will be a serious film that doesn't automatically get nominations just because he is a part of it.

Shutter Island

This film was simultaneously exactly what I predicted and nothing like what I expected. Somehow I got it in my head that this movie was meant to scare me silly. It didn't. The suspense was good and suspenseful, but not scary one bit. Which is a good thing. It is possible though to predict what this movie is actually about from the trailers. I do want you to go see this movie and enjoy it, so I will not give anything away. The film does a great job of telling this story. It is clear by the way the narrative is told, what might be happening though. That is all I will say. There are still plenty of twists and interesting moments that one wouldn't predict. Those I liked.

Let's talk acting. Leo was superb, as always. He gives a very intense performance. It is very visceral and quite believable that this such man would behave in this such way in these such circumstances. This was certainly my fave role for Mark Ruffalo. He was pretty solid in 'The Brothers Bloom,' but he nailed this character quite well. Sir Ben was Sir Ben. There certainly was not an actor out of place. That is something that one can expect from Mr. Scorsese. The strongest performance, by far, was played by the most persistent bandage every made. I'm serious, this thing could not have been man-made. It held its own alongside Leo with great strength. You will never find a bandage that can withstand what this had to in real life, I can tell you that much. It was never given too much attention, but it was always there. Brilliant.

Martin did some very interesting things with reality and movie magic. I enjoyed the smoke entering the cigarette in one scene, and the magical glass of water in another. If you see this film, please pay attention to this glass of water. I would like to be sure I was not the crazy one when I saw the lady patient drink from an invisible glass and then set it down empty only for it to refill itself immediately. I have no idea how I am supposed to interpret this image. I cannot believe that it was a mistake. It must have meant something. There were other images like this. Maybe I am looking too closely.

I really enjoyed this movie. The suspense was fun and the acting was tops. There were some fantastical bits of unbelievability and hamming, but I suppose if I analyzed them more closely, I could explain them away with what I know now. Also, someday I will learn to always expect Nazis when I don't expect them at all.

A Single Man

It has been ages and ages since my last post. I have certainly seen dozens of films since October and most have been worthy of posts, but none have inspired me to break the writing rut like Tom Ford's 'A Single Man.' Be warned, this post contains SPOILERS. For a beautiful, spoiler-free, piece on this film check out: http://feast4thought.wordpress.com/2010/02/11/movie-a-single-man Please read that, go see the film, and then read on.

I can't decide what to do with this movie. It was beautiful and stunning. It made my heart race and sing. Colin Firth was brilliant and his supporting cast played quite perfectly. Tom Ford made some very interesting decisions with close-ups, color changes, flashbacks, and silence. The construction of the film and the acting that went into it were certainly elements that made it quite a cinematic treat. The uneasy feeling I am left with comes from the story. I find myself extremely unsure how I am supposed to deal with George's death in the last scene of the film. Early we are introduced to the possibility that this man means to kill himself on this day. The film drags us along his day preparing for his own end. We sit back and watch and hope that these glimpses of color and life will bring George back from the ledge and he will truly be able to survive the passing of his lover. We journey through this day and finally reach the moment we have been hoping for in the last scene only to immediately suffer with George a tragic heart attack. I felt robbed.

This film is so full of beauty and depth that there is way more to say than I have words for, but I felt compelled to share my pain. I loved the movie, but I can't help but feel very confused at my own emotions. Maybe someday I will understand exactly what I am supposed to feel...

Where the Wild Things Are

I had very high expectations for this movie and it surely did meet every single one. I was in love with everything about this film from the start. I will first mention the soundtrack, because it was perfectly done. Karen O from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs did a heck of a job scoring this movie. As far as the acting goes, young Max Records makes the perfect Max for this story. I have seen a lot of movies in my time with a lot of young actors not really cutting it, but not here. Max delivered a winning performance in my book. Just the perfect amount of adorable, vulnerable, courageous, crazy, wild, sincere, and witty. Catherine Keener shined in her scenes as always. The voice acting was top notch as well. Claire Fisher from 'Six Feet Under' (aka Lauren Ambrose) was awesome. Pretty much every voice actor was pretty fantastic. Catherine O'Hara got to be funny and that wins. Visually speaking, this movie outshines many I have seen in a very long time. There is not a wasted camera angle or scene. Every shot is full of beauty or emotion or both. Set designers need to win awards for this movie. Everything felt so real and so fantastical all at once. Spike Jonze might be my new current hero for this work of art. I was really blown away by the way this story was told on film. There could not have been a better adaptation. Beyond the movie, this story is phenomenal. I feel weird talking about how this story made me think and feel, because it is a story that is much bigger than this movie and it doesn't seem like the appropriate forum to discuss the book. All I can say is that the story's heart and feelings and fears and courage is told very very well through this film. It is a very evocative telling and it is an instant favorite of mine.

3:10 to Yuma (2007)

Solid western with solid acting. I admit I am not familiar with the previous adaptations of this story or with the original itself. So, maybe that is why I can like this version so much. Russell Crowe and Christian Bale are strong and their characters are even stronger. They had some pretty epic characters to work with and I think they filled them out pretty well. I can just always appreciate when a story is told well. This story is clearly written well and the movie conveys it perfectly. All the right things are left unsaid and anticipated and everything you need to know is made clear. I hate forced suspense and confusion in films that try to be aloof in their revelation of details. This suspenseful western does the story telling quite ideally. As far as acting, Crowe and Bale had some great support from Ben Foster (Russel from 'Six Feet Under') who makes a perfect bad guy, Logan Lerman who plays Bale's son, Peter Fonda, and Alan Tudyk who gets the one potential laugh out loud line in the film (well deservedly). Kevin Durand (LOST) and Luke Wilson also show up to lend their talents quite well. I was not really expecting much from this movie and I was very pleasantly surprised with how wrong I was. I think I really liked it. Maybe someday Alan will live to the end of a movie.

Wristcutters: A Love Story

What an interesting movie. This is a beautiful love story set in one of the most creative settings for a film I have experienced in a long time. The majority of the film takes place in a world not unlike our own where suicides are sent to reside after their 'offing.' This world is very similar to ours, only worse. This indie film was a very refreshing look at brilliant directing and writing. In a movie about suicides, one would not necessarily expect much hope, but one would be wrong. This film gives a vividly dull glimpse at a purgatorial world in a story of love and hope. The journey the main characters find themselves on is funny and insightful. We see friendship and betrayal as well as love and moments of pleasure in a land where one cannot even smile. I was really taken with this movie and I think that there is a lot here to be analyzed and appreciated. This movie brilliantly pulls off a balance between lighthearted love journey and deep substantive solemn voyage. Suicide has always been a very touchy issue in my life and I rarely can handle films dealing with it, but this movie shows a reverence and realism in its depiction of the issue that puts it forefront without fixating on it. Add all these elements in with some pretty stellar acting and this movie is a winner in my book for sure. Please check this out when you are in a solemn mood for a fun film. Someday I hope to watch and study this movie more.

Whip It

What a fun movie with some great actors! I was shaken at first by some really poor choices by first-time director Drew Barrymore, but great performances by Kristen Wiig, Ellen Page, Marcia Gay Harden, and Juliette Lewis helped a great deal to redeem this flick. The men in this film were not as awesome. Drew took some chances on some male actors that were clearly out of their league in this one. Andrew Wilson felt like an awkward Owen Wilson (his younger bro) impersonator for much of them film, and Landon Pigg, Ellen's love interest, was pretty flat. Jimmy Fallon was also used pretty poorly, but he did have a few funny moments. After a rocky start of awkward jumps from scene to scene and random dialogue-less shots and falling down montages (and several big jokes that literally got zero laughs in a crowded theatre...ouch!), this movie finds some footing and delivers some great one-liners and a pretty awesome female empowerment message without shoving it down anyone's throat. I appreciated the subtlety a great deal. I can see a very strong story in the movie and can tell that the novel must be pretty solid. Rounding off some great comedic performances was one delivered by Alia Shawkat of 'Arrested Development' fame. What a great best friend. Alia stole most scenes she was in. So, do not rush out to see this movie, but do catch it eventually for some fun, tenderness and (mostly) bloodless violence. I would probably be pretty confident in calling this the ladies' 'Dodgeball.' I am just putting that out there. I can't wait for the someday that Ellen Page gets to actually play a 22 year-old.

In Bruges

HOLY COW! How did I miss this film for sooo long?! All I can guess is that the marketing for this movie failed so utterly and completely. I saw plenty of trailers and ads for it, but was never compelled to view it. Even after its praise during awards season, I put off watching it. What a fool I was. This is most certainly an instant favorite in my life. I need to purchase it and show it to everyone that will sit and watch it with me. The writing is literally brilliant. That is a phrase I believe I tweeted numerous times while watching it last night, and it fits so well. I have not laughed out loud so much in a movie in a very long time. Brits just know how to make me laugh, end of story. Martin McDonagh is the British born Irish writer/director of this indie masterpiece. Colin Farrell wins the prize for my favorite performance from him to date. Brendan Gleeson was strong and warm and hilarious. Ralph Fiennes was spot on and genius. And the beautiful Clémence Poésy was so believable and majestic all at once. Some things I loved: the inn keeper, the bits about alcoves, the fairy-tale nature of Bruges, the racist dwarf, the fight with the Canadians, the liberal and appropriate usage of the 'f-word,' and the list goes on. Things that were not my favorite: the liberal and inappropriate usage of the 'r-word,' the heart breaking impetus for the entire plot, that may be it. I was certainly blown away by this film and will highly recommend it to you all. Please enjoy it! Someday I would love to visit Bruges.

P.S. I just found out that Martin McDonagh and I share a birthday!

American Teen

While this is not a scripted movie, fitting into the category of every other film I have written about thus far on this blog, this was a pretty freaking fantastic documentary. Maybe I love documentaries too much, maybe I love the lives of teenagers too much, maybe I love Indiana too much, but I still think this was a fascinating little film. These stories were just so complex and interesting. Even if the doc did seem a little scripted and manufactured, that does not make me love it any less. That may just make me love it more. It adds more art to the film, which I thought was very well crafted. If you are unfamiliar, this documentary follows four high school seniors through their final year at Warsaw Community High School in Warsaw, IN. Each of these young people are flawed and compelling characters that give depth to what most adults see as shallow youth. I kinda like everything about this documentary and would highly recommend it. I laughed, I (nearly) cried, I shouted with joy, and hurt with shared grief. It is into lives like these I hope to someday be able to intervene.