tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-64115869359391181032024-03-13T20:11:18.527-07:00I Want to See All the MoviesReviews, commentary and assorted tidbits from a Vancouver film fanCarman J. Pricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01771348139861189861noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6411586935939118103.post-79067347372726766842017-01-12T11:23:00.001-08:002017-01-12T11:23:38.926-08:00LA LA LAND and WHIPLASH: #NotMyJazz<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0cm;">
I am not one
of those know-it-alls who goes to the movies and constantly says, “That would
never happen!” I’m sure scientists roll their eyes a lot when watching movies
set in space and police officers groan at inaccuracies when watching cop shows.
If you have a good deal of knowledge about a movie’s subject, it’s more
difficult to keep your suspension of disbelief hovering in the air when what
you really want to do is just enjoy the movie that was made, not the movie you
would have made if you were there to fix the things they got wrong. That said,
I feel I did my best to have an enthused, open heart when I recently saw <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3783958/combined">La La Land</a></i>. After all, the film’s main
inspirations are Hollywood musicals, specifically one of my favourite movies
ever, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0218840/">Jacques Demy</a>’s magnificent <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0058450/combined">The Umbrellas of Cherbourg</a></i>. I was ready to step into this movie’s fantasy
world.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The elements
are there for this film to work for me. <i>La
La Land</i> opens on a gridlocked Los Angeles freeway and kicks things off with
a one-take 360-degree musical number. The jazzy big band sound and MGM-style
choreography is fun and cheerful and sets the stage perfectly. We meet Mia
(<a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1297015/">Emma Stone</a>), a barista on the Warner Bros. movie lot, who is also, natch, an
aspiring actress. After a bad audition experience, Mia’s roommates take her out
to a party and they leave their wonderfully designed apartment singing and
moving in sync with great eye-popping colourful dresses. Loving it so far.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0331516/">Ryan Gosling</a>
plays Sebastian, a jazz pianist, who is playing a restaurant gig he hates. He’d
rather be playing “pure jazz” than the set list of Christmas tunes the owner
(<a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0799777/">J.K. Simmons</a>) is demanding, although why Sebastian must play boom-chick polka
style versions of “Jingle Bells” instead of lightly swinging in a tasteful
manner is a mystery. He rebels by playing a song of his own composition (not jazz,
more of a waltzy French chanson, but it’s lovely) and builds up to a bombastic
Liberace-like climax before getting fired. Meanwhile Mia has walked in,
enchanted by the music, but the frustrated Sebastian passes her by. Months
later, Mia encounters Sebastian playing at a party in an 80’s cover band. Her
request for “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iIpfWORQWhU">I Ran (So Far Away)</a>” by A Flock of Seagulls and subsequent
lip-sync performance is one of the best things in the movie.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Here’s where
the movie started to lose me. Mia confesses that she doesn’t like jazz, which
prompts Sebastian to take Mia to a jazz club in order to sell her on his
passion. I suppose the only dude who could get away with explaining the
importance of jazz to his date and not wind up going home alone is Ryan
Gosling. I partly credit the success of my marriage to the fact that I have
never tried to do this to my wife. Mia’s experience with jazz music is like
that of most non-fans; it’s background music. Sebastian attempts to enlighten
her by bringing her to a club to hear the real thing. A small combo starts to
play and the horn player isn’t three notes into his solo when Sebastian turns
to Mia to tell her what’s happening, loudly pontificating at the front table,
treating the band as background music to his lecture.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Sebastian’s
big dream is to own a jazz club. This seems unlikely to ever happen, judging by
his sister’s too-brief reminder that he’s again behind in paying his bills.
Sebastian’s iron-clad jazz values are tested when an old friend Keith (<a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1775466/">John Legend</a>) approaches him with an offer to join his soul/pop band. Clearly it’s
not Sebastian’s fantasy gig, but the band is good! John Legend sings like a
dream, of course, and the band sounds like a mix of some of today’s more
musical pop artists in the vein of the Dap-Kings, Jason Mraz, or even John
Legend himself. Sebastian’s skills are not being tested but the money is the
good and the work is steady. Mia is understandably sad that Sebastian is
constantly away on tour, but her main concern is that Sebastian is artistically
selling out by not sticking to his dream. But who says he can’t be fulfilling
his dream by taking this prime opportunity for a few years and saving money for
his club? My wife, who is an authority on musical theatre, tells me that some
of the plot lines she loved when she was young have lost their allure with the
wisdom of years. She now sympathizes with <i>Rent</i>’s
Benny and wonders why Mark and Roger can’t grow up and pay their damn rent.
Here, I’m wondering why Sebastian has to now do the opposite of what Mia seemed
to suggest earlier and be a pragmatic musician. I’m thinking, “Man, you’re a
musician in an expensive city. Don’t turn up your nose at a well-paying gig!” This
plot point feels like it’s wedged in for conflict’s sake.<o:p></o:p></div>
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There is not
much character for Emma Stone to wrestle with. She talks about her aunt who
introduced her to classic movies but beyond that, she doesn’t seem to want to
be an actress for any real reason. Stone’s considerable charm elevates the thin
screenplay and we empathize with Mia’s audition nightmares. The scene where Mia
auditions for a starring role in a movie and is asked by the casting directors
to forgo a monologue and simply tell a story (“The Fools Who Dream”) is the
movie’s emotional highlight. It’s the first time, far too late, that I felt
taken somewhere else.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I don’t need
Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling to dance as well as Astaire and Rodgers or sing
with the best of Broadway’s belters. Woody Allen’s 1996 film <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0116242/combined">Everyone Says I Love You</a></i> shows how
non-musical theatre performers can be used to charming effect in a modern
musical. I am not a dancer and I can’t tell you good pirouette technique from
bad. I do know that Gene Kelly dancing in the rain is nothing less than magic
and one of the most joyful things in the history of the cinema. Here, I just
wanted to feel… something. The fantasy musical bits are mostly fine, some are
excellent. But the dead weight of the story keeps things from truly lifting
off. It feels like director <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3227090/">Damien Chazelle</a> has brought together elements of
movies he really likes and just jammed them into his film. He’s assembled the
dots but hasn’t connected them. Mostly, I was just bored.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The tech
credits are uniformly excellent. <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3225654/">Justin Hurwitz</a>’s melodies are quite lovely
and recall <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0006166/">Michel Legrand</a>’s ability to effectively repeat motifs and themes to
good effect. The cinematography, editing, set design, costumes all work
together in a spirit of whimsy and delight. I would love to see other
filmmakers take this torch and keep running with it. There is hope for that
since the soundtrack is currently the number 1 selling album on iTunes. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Despite my
underwhelmed response, I am encouraged by the fact that a film like <i>La La Land</i> was even proposed. I was therefore
very curious to finally see Chazelle’s previous movie <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2582802/combined">Whiplash</a></i> from two years ago. It was a best picture Oscar nominee
and won J.K. Simmons an Oscar for his performance. Where <i>La La Land</i> has charm and colour in service of a
not-very-interesting story, <i>Whiplash</i>,
as it turns out, is a horrible insult to what music is supposed to be.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1886602/">Miles Teller</a>
plays Andrew, a jazz drummer enrolled at the fictitious Shaffer Conservatory,
the most prestigious jazz school in the country. Andrew’s goal is to play in
the top big band led by the tyrannical Terence Fletcher. Now I have no doubt
that Damien Chazelle wrote this character based on a real teacher that filled
the young Damien with dread and I have known a few conductors myself,
thankfully not many, to use intimidation as a tool. But Fletcher is a grotesque
ogre who would clearly be sued for the abuse and violence he hurls at his
students in the name of pushing them beyond their current abilities.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Beyond the
ridiculous way in which this movie presents music in rehearsal and performance,
the entire tone of the movie completely lost me. Obviously our sympathies are
supposed to lie with Andrew and we are supposed to fear the monster Fletcher.
But Andrew’s self-flagellating desire to show Fletcher that he’s earned a place
in the band is so extreme as to be ludicrous. Even the emotional journey we’re
supposed to be on is implausible and aggravating.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The primary
problem with both Ryan Gosling’s Sebastian and Miles Teller’s Andrew is that
they are supposedly jazz musicians but they don’t play jazz <i>with</i> anybody else. They are shown only
working alone, pursuing their art in some pseudo-soulful mockery of the actual
desire to make music. Jazz is nothing if not communication with others. In
fact, most music, at its heart, is communication. If you are a singer in a
choir or a cellist in an orchestra, the entire purpose of what you do is to
play well with others. This is even more important in jazz where improvisation
is a key element. Andrew is never shown jamming with other musicians or even
talking with fellow students about records, famous solos, or favourite players.
No, his practice routine is by himself, with the single goal to play faster and
harder, not more musically, not learning anything. Not once is Andrew shown
enjoying playing music. What is the point of playing music if joy is not there <i>somewhere</i>? Even the climactic scene
where Andrew plays at Carnegie Hall (after suffering yet another laughably
implausible humiliation doled out by Fletcher), his “triumph” is achieved by
closing out everyone else around him and playing real fast and loud, with
Fletcher conducting his entire improvisation for some reason.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I studied
jazz at Capilano University in North Vancouver as a vocal student and I know a
little bit about the world a jazz student can lose themselves in. It can be
discouraging. From time to time you absolutely question your abilities and your
place in the world of music. The world of <i>Whiplash</i>
is unrecognizable, a complete and utter mystery. It is ugly and this movie’s
idea of what music is supposed to be is a repugnant joke.<o:p></o:p></div>
Carman J. Pricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01771348139861189861noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6411586935939118103.post-74877277090178769432013-04-07T17:42:00.000-07:002013-04-07T21:19:30.840-07:00Roger Ebert, 1942-2013<br />
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Roger Ebert died this past week and even though I never met him, he made my life better. I remember being sad about the passing of certain musicians who meant a lot to me like Miles Davis or Ella Fitzgerald. Or performers like Gene Kelly who brought a lot of joy into my life through his dance and his screen persona and the way he wore a hat. I become sad at the fact that no new work from them is coming and I will have to be content with their remaining legacy. When an artist shares their work with the world, and therefore me, the relationship consists of them creating and me appreciating. The work can be extraordinarily important to me, inspiring great happiness or tears, which can sometimes be the same thing. But with Roger Ebert, I not only will miss having new work of his to enjoy, I feel like a real relationship has ended.</div>
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I loved watching <i>Siskel & Ebert</i> every week and kept a log of what movies they reviewed, what they recommended, and what I'd seen. When the internet came into our home, I read Roger's columns for the Chicago Sun-Times. In 1996, Roger started a biweekly series of <a href="http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?category=greatmovies_intro">Great Movies</a>. This wasn't a top-100 list but a selection of movies that met this definition: a movie you can't bear the thought of not being able to see again. This invaluable series led me to filmmakers like Buster Keaton, Werner Herzog, Errol Morris, and Yasujiro Ozu. It introduced me to some of my now favourite films like <i><a href="http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19971123/REVIEWS08/401010317/1023">The Lady Eve</a></i>, <i><a href="http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040704/REVIEWS08/407040301/1023">The Last Picture Show</a></i>, <i><a href="http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19961124/REVIEWS08/401010344/1023">The Night of the Hunter</a></i>, and <i><a href="http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20020623/REVIEWS08/206230301/1023">The Hustler</a></i>. Roger illuminated elements I hadn't noticed in <i><a href="http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19980524/REVIEWS08/401010334/1023">Citizen Kane</a></i> and the films of Hitchcock, not with the dry explanation of a film theory textbook, but with the enthusiasm of a guy who truly loved movies.<br />
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Reading him over the years, I could piece together elements of his life as they were revealed. His youth and education, his love of England walks, his socially liberal views, his marriage to his amazing wife Chaz. Then in 2006 when cancer and various complications caused him to lose his voice, he wound up writing even more. He kept up his reviewing schedule and added a blog, <a href="http://blogs.suntimes.com/ebert/">Roger Ebert's Journal</a>. In this blog, he wrote about anything that came to mind. He wrote about the state of movies a little bit, but he wrote about his life, his memories, cooking, politics, <a href="http://blogs.suntimes.com/ebert/2009/02/blackie_come_home.html">dogs</a>, and anything else. This led to his superb autobiography <i>Life Itself</i>, which reads like a series of vignettes. I think this is probably the best way to write a memoir, since memories jump around a lot, and it's only after you collect a lot of them that you begin to see the whole.</div>
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Roger wrote so well and so passionately about the movies that he revealed himself and I felt like I knew him. He often brought up this quote from Robert Warshow: "A man goes to the movies. The critic must admit that he is this man." This means that there is no such thing as a subjective review of a movie that will empirically list its qualities and faults and give you a definitive answer as to how good it is. Roger wrote about what happened to him when he saw a movie. He wrote from his heart and his heart wound up in his reviews.</div>
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Roger and I didn't necessarily like the same movies, but I wanted to know what Roger thought about everything I saw. He wasn't just knowledgeable about movies, he was knowledgeable about life. He had well-formulated opinions about moral questions and about what restaurant to go to in Cannes. He described film festivals and the experience of going and meeting people, both movie makers and random people in line. He made it seem pretty wonderful and I wanted to go with him. My wife and I ended up going to the Telluride Film Festival for our honeymoon.</div>
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When I was 18 or 19, I became interested in movies on a more serious level. Roger opened the doors to the level of appreciation and understanding that I was seeking. In trying to figure out why a movie worked for me or didn't, I was trying to figure out myself, my feelings, my moral compass. I never knew Roger Ebert, but I felt like I did. I'm going to miss him greatly.</div>
Carman J. Pricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01771348139861189861noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6411586935939118103.post-86649627044654895392011-09-06T21:27:00.000-07:002011-09-06T21:27:09.165-07:00Telluride 2011: Day 4 – Monday<!--StartFragment--> <br />
<div class="MsoNormal">The final day of Telluride prompted my wife and I to get in line 2 hours ahead of time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sunday’s constantly sold-out crowds at the Chuck Jones caused us to think that the screening of <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1033575/">The Descendants</a></i>—and especially the Q&A with <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000123/">George Clooney</a>—would bring an avalanche of moviegoers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Telluride normally isn’t that impressed with celebrities but George Clooney seems to make even the most blasé film buff lose their cool.</div><a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">As it turns out, Mr. Clooney had left the night before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Too bad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That was certainly the only disappointment about the screening.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The film is director <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0668247/">Alexander Payne</a>’s first since winning the Adapted Screenplay Oscar for <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0375063/">Sideways</a></i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i>The Descendants</i> is another success for Payne and is sure to be one of the big Oscar films being discussed once it’s officially released in December.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s about a rich Hawaiian land owner, played by Clooney, whose wife has an accident which puts her into an irreversible coma.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He struggles to reconnect with his two daughters on top of finding out his wife had been having an affair.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Clooney gives a career-best performance here and <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0940362/">Shailene Woodley</a>, playing his 17-year-old daughter is superb as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The story is smart, sensitive, and fascinating.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sure to be on many moviegoers lists of their favourite films of 2011.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">After the Q&A with Alexander Payne and Shailene Woodley, conducted by <i><a href="http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/">The Hollywood Reporter</a></i>’s <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Todd_McCarthy">Todd McCarthy</a>, we caught the French romance <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1618447/">Goodbye First Love</a></i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Writer-director <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0361135/">Mia Hansen-Løve</a> introduced the film and while it was slow-moving, it was still moving.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The story concerns two teenagers, Camille and Sullivan, blissfully in love, dealing with Sullivan’s impending year-long trip to South America.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They talk, they make love, they take a holiday in the country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sullivan leaves and Camille gets on with her life without being able to fully shake off her first love.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She goes to school, studies architecture, falls in love with her mentor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Years later, she encounters Sullivan and everything they thought was in the past comes flooding back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a sweet story, very languidly paced.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Worth seeing.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">And then, for our final Telluride experience, we decided to take in something we couldn’t enjoy in theatres or on DVD later: the <a href="http://www.alloyorchestra.com/">Alloy Orchestra</a> accompanying a silent film at the Abel Gance Open Air Cinema.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And what a treat it was!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The film was <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0552609/">Karlheinz Martin</a>'s <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0011833/">From Morning to Midnight (Von morgens bis Mitternacht)</a></i>, a 1922 German film whose impressionistic strokes challenge the famous <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0010323/">The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari</a></i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m not even sure what it was about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I guess a bank teller steals money from his bank and goes on a crazy journey… and some stuff happens.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A big race, women in his life keep turning into skeletons, you know how it goes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The score written and performed by the three-man Alloy Orchestra was fantastic—completely appropriate with its <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurt_Weill">Kurt Weill</a>-like twisted melodies and exciting as hell, especially with them playing right behind us, and a clear moonlit sky above us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We couldn’t have planned a better closing night.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">All told, we saw 14 features and 5 shorts, as well as 30 minutes of clips from the films of <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0959916/">Pierre Étaix</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1832382/">A Separation</a></i>, <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1972663/">Into the Abyss</a></i>, <i>The Descendants</i>, and <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1655442/">The Artist</a></i> were my favourites and will certainly be remembered long after this weekend.</div><!--EndFragment-->Carman J. Pricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01771348139861189861noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6411586935939118103.post-22060016302361521672011-09-05T08:40:00.000-07:002011-09-05T08:40:48.210-07:00Telluride 2011: Day 3 – Sunday<!--StartFragment--> <br />
<div class="MsoNormal">Well, it turns out even I can be overwhelmed by too many movies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Starting to feel a little spent but that’s probably because of having to scoot back in line for the next film the second the lights come up and finding a lot of people already in line who skipped the end credits.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And then I get hungry.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Anyway, the movies I saw today ranged from the best I’ve seen to the worst.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Iranian writer-director Asghar Farhadi took the stage to introduce his Golden Bear-winning fifth feature <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1832382/">A Separation</a></i> and I tell you this: I will be shocked if I see a better film this year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i>A Separation</i> is a tremendous success on every level.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>An Iranian couple are getting a divorce.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The woman wants to take their 11-year-old daughter to educate her abroad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The man doesn’t want the divorce and without his wife, needs to hire outside help to care for his Alzheimer’s-stricken father.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The story is universal and achingly human, acted by a pitch-perfect cast.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Simply outstanding.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This deserves to be seen by a large audience.</div><a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">Rushed back in line to see David Cronenberg’s new film, <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1571222/">A Dangerous Method</a></i>, which was introduced by its Oscar-winning screenwriter (for <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0094947/">Dangerous Liasons</a></i>), Christopher Hampton.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Carl Jung (Michael Fassbender) treats a hysterical patient (Keira Knightley) who eventually becomes his colleague and then lover.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jung struggles to sort things out with help from his mentor Sigmund Freud (Viggo Mortensen).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Performances are very strong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fassbender is a very interesting actor to watch and Knightley, who I’m hot and cold on, it quite effective in a showy role.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a talky film, likely due to its roots on the stage, but worth seeing and discussing.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">And the last film of the day was undoubtedly the worst.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Writer-director Steve McQueen made a big splash at Telluride in 2008 with <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0986233/">Hunger</a></i> which starred Michael Fassbender as IRA member Bobby Sands who led a hunger strike in 1981.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>McQueen appeared on screen to introduce his new film <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1723811/">Shame</a></i>—he’s currently in Venice for the world premiere—and it is utter nonsense.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fassbender again stars, this time as a sex-addicted ad man in New York who is visited by his equally wackadoo sister played by Carey Mulligan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is certainly a peculiar relationship there, possibly an incestuous past, but McQueen’s cinematic language reveals nothing about the characters and everything about McQueen’s arty, pretentious, stylized vision of empty lives in an empty city.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As human as the characters are in <i>A Separation</i>, the characters in <i>Shame</i> seem like aliens from another planet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was an empty and aggravating experience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So far, of course, it’s already a critic’s darling.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">One more thing about <i>Shame</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Carey Mulligan plays a nightclub singer (for the purposes of one scene only) and delivers a ridiculous, slow version of Kander & Ebb’s “New York, New York” that is supposed to be sad and poignant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s not a bad idea but the performance is insanely boring and stupid.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And once again, critics are eating it up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Utter nonsense.</div><!--EndFragment-->Carman J. Pricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01771348139861189861noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6411586935939118103.post-70823849136994431372011-09-04T09:30:00.000-07:002011-09-04T09:30:08.111-07:00Telluride 2011: Day 2 – Saturday<!--StartFragment--> <br />
<div class="MsoNormal">Morning came way too early for Day 2.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Chuck Jones Cinema hosted a packed screening of <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000335/">Glenn Close</a>’s passion project <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1602098/">Albert Nobbs</a></i>, directed by <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0006554/">Rodrigo García</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Close plays the title character, a woman disguising herself as a man in order to work as a butler at a small hotel in Ireland at the turn of the century.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Close first played Albert Nobbs off-Broadway in 1982 and has been trying to get the film made ever since.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s an impressive effort.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The movie suffers a bit from Albert being so repressed and keeping the audience, as well as the world, at a distance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The cast is superb and Glenn Close is sure to be talked about a lot during awards season (which basically starts now).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005216/">Janet McTeer</a>, a 1999 Oscar nominee for Tumbleweeds, gives, I think, the best performance of the film as a sympathetic house painter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Both Glenn Close and Rodrigo García were in attendance and Leonard Maltin was on hand to direct a little Q&A after the film.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Very cool.</div><a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Next we got to see one of this year’s Silver Medallion honourees, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0959916/">Pierre Étaix</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Having never heard of this French comic master before Thursday, I was enchanted by the half-hour of clips shown before the man himself took the stage to a standing ovation. Étaix is 82 and, partly due to the efforts of Telluride director Gary Meyer, is finally seeing his films rescued from legal limbo and released to the general public for the first time in something like 40 years!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He talked about his early years a bit and especially his admiration for Jerry Lewis, who considers Étaix one of the geniuses of world cinema.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then we were treated to <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0056514/">The Suitor</a></i> (1962), Étaix’s first full-length feature.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It definitely shows his debts to Buster Keaton and Jacques Tati.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is chock full of ingenious sight gags and gently comic situations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Apparently Étaix’s films have been released on DVD in Europe with North America to follow.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Looking forward to that.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">After a much-needed nap, we saw the Chilean film <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1913002/"><i>Bonsái</i></a>, introduced by director Cristián Jiménez and star Diego Noguera.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They said that since there was no official Q&A scheduled, they’d be up for an informal tequila Q&A at any nearby restaurant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The movie was quite charming with main character Julio (Noguera) romancing his moody classmate Emilia by lying about reading Proust.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The film then jumps ahead 8 years where Julio is struggling to write his first novel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Flipping back and forth, Bonsái proves to be a bittersweet love song to romance and literature.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">And finally, we caught a surprise screening of <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1349451/">Butter</a></i>, a sure-to-be R-rated comedy about a seriously competitive butter sculpture contest in Iowa.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Director Jim Field Smith was on hand to introduce it along with stars Ty Burrell and Jennifer Garner (who’s also a producer).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a raucous crowd-pleaser but seems a little out of place at Telluride, although I’m glad to have a comic sorbet to cleanse my palate and help me through the many seriously sad features we’re seeing.<o:p></o:p></div><!--EndFragment--> Carman J. Pricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01771348139861189861noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6411586935939118103.post-8722891258560010112011-09-03T05:53:00.000-07:002011-09-03T05:53:43.778-07:00Telluride 2011: Day 1 – Friday<!--StartFragment--> <br />
<div class="MsoNormal">There was delight and tragedy to be found in the films I saw on my first day ever at the Telluride Film Festival.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Kicked things off with a free doc screening at the Back Lot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_the_Tracks_of">In the Tracks of George Delerue</a></i> from director Pascale Cuenot is the third in a series of films about major film composers, the first two being Gabriel Yared and Maurice Jarre.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It made me want to make an effort to see François Truffaut’s early films that Delerue scored but this film is pretty disjointed chronologically without much point to it.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The first film showing at the Chuck Jones Cinema was the Cannes sensation <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1655442/">The Artist</a></i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is a completely charming and very creative (it would have to be) silent movie in black & white set during the transition from silent pictures to talkies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The wonderful <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0241121/">Jean Dujardin</a> stars as a Don Lockwood-like (<a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000037/">Gene Kelly</a> in <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0045152/">Singin’ in the Rain</a></i>) movie star and the beautiful <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0067367/">Bérénice Bejo</a> is a young ingénue ready to storm into sound pictures.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>John Goodman is well-cast as the cigar-chomping studio chief. Writer-director <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0371890/">Michel Hazanavicius</a> was present to introduce it and the audience embraced it wholeheartedly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I look forward to seeing it again and I’m curious as to how it will play to a non-festival crowd.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m sure that if people get the opportunity to see it, they will love it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Weinstein Company is distributing so they’re sure to be smart about it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They’re also sure to launch a fierce Oscar campaign.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Next was the Great Expectations program which featured two films dealing with wrongly accused immigrants.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The first was <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1784484/">Journey of No Return</a></i>, a 25 minute recreation of a true story of a Sudanese man set to be deported from Germany only to have tragedy strike.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Very impressive and upsetting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The other was <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1996223/"><i>Crulic: The Path Beyond</i></a>, a 73-minute animated film about a Romanian man falsely arrested for a petty crime in Poland who goes on a hunger strike.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Also based on a true story, the hand-drawn collages and various other animation techniques were really interesting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, the movie felt really long and was a little unfocused.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Finally, the great <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001348/">Werner Herzog</a> was here to introduce his new film <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1972663/">Into the Abyss</a></i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A harrowing documentary about two murderers, one on death row, the other serving a life sentence, Herzog interviews the perpetrators, the victims, family members, and prison workers and winds up with a sprawling and completely engrossing portrait of tragedy upon tragedy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Herzog brilliantly allows each person to talk at length about their past, their actions, and their feelings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m sure that for some, it’s the first time they’ve had the chance to speak aloud about what has happened.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is the film that will haunt me for months to come, as is often the case with Herzog’s movies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Strongly recommended.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i>Into the Abyss</i> ended just after midnight and now I’ve got to get some coffee on for the 8:30am showing of <i>Albert Nobbs</i>, set to be introduced by director Rodrigo García and star Glenn Close.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I love this festival!</div><!--EndFragment--> Carman J. Pricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01771348139861189861noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6411586935939118103.post-15579055000699978242011-09-01T20:59:00.000-07:002011-09-01T20:59:42.694-07:00Telluride 2011: Preview<!--StartFragment--> <br />
<div class="MsoNormal">This year I get to attend the Telluride Film Festival in Telluride, Colorado, a movie-lovers event that I’ve dreamed about for years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Roger Ebert has said that of the major festivals, Cannes is the most important, Toronto is the most useful, but Telluride is the most fun.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The special thing about Telluride is that the lineup isn’t revealed until you get to this insanely picturesque mountain village.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This seems to invite serious film fans instead of celeb watchers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On top of the new movies, there are revivals, outdoor films, Q&As with filmmakers, and a picnic on Labour Day!</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Today, my wife and I picked up our passes—we got the ACME pass which gets us into all movies showing at the Chuck Jones Cinema—and walked around town, getting used to the high altitude.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The official program is released tomorrow at noon, but we were given a guide that reveals most of the films and special programs we can expect to see.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The festival also awards a Silver Medallion to three artists who have made significant contributions to cinema.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This year those recipients are George Clooney, Tilda Swinton, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierre_%C3%89taix">Pierre Étaix</a>, a French filmmaker unfamiliar to me who learned his craft from Jacques Tati.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s part of the beauty of this festival: not just seeing movies from filmmakers I am familiar with, but new discoveries.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">According to our guide, the movies showing at the Chuck Jones tomorrow night include <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Artist_(film)">The Artist</a></i> from France.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A silent film in black & white, it made a huge impression at the Cannes Film Festival this past May, winning the Best Actor award for Jean Dujardin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Following that is Great Expectations, a collection of short films from emerging directors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And the late show is Werner Herzog’s new documentary about death row inmates <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Into_the_Abyss_(film)">Into the Abyss</a></i>, sure to be a sobering experience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Herzog is a filmmaker who has really moved me with both his fiction films (<i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aguirre,_the_Wrath_of_God">Aguirre, the Wrath of God</a></i> and <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fitzcarraldo">Fitzcarraldo</a></i>) and his docs (<i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Encounters_at_the_End_of_the_World">Encounters at the End of the World</a></i>).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Friday is sure to be an exhilarating day at the movies.</div><!--EndFragment--> Carman J. Pricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01771348139861189861noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6411586935939118103.post-67760417602988865512011-08-23T00:32:00.000-07:002011-08-23T00:36:47.016-07:002011 First-Half Recap<div class="MsoNormal">Well, it’s high time I wrote in my blog again. I’ve been catching up on movies from the first half of 2011 and figured I should do a little recap before the serious movie season begins. Plus, I have an exciting trip to the <a href="http://www.telluridefilmfestival.org/">Telluride Film Festival</a> coming up, so a little writing preparation is in order.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The early part of 2011 brought us 3 movies with interesting sci-fi premises and good-looking romantic couplings. <b><i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1385826/combined">The Adjustment Bureau</a></i></b> (****), directed by <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1079776/">George Nolfi</a> (who co-write <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0440963/combined">The Bourne Ultimatum</a></i>, among other films), is a preposterous, totally fun story about an American Senate hopeful (<a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000354/">Matt Damon</a>) who encounters a beautiful woman (<a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1289434/">Emily Blunt</a>) but isn’t supposed to, according to the titular group of mysterious men in cool fedoras. Sort of <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0133093/combined">The Matrix</a></i> as a romantic adventure. <b><i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1219289/combined">Limitless</a></i></b> (*** ½) stars <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0177896/">Bradley Cooper</a> as a sad-sack novelist who is given a pill that gives him access to the 90% of his brain power that we supposedly never use. Director <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1139726/">Neil Burger</a> uses a lot of tasty visual effects to show the magic drug at work and to show Cooper’s transformation from droopy loser to handsome man of dangerous success. And probably the best of these three, <b><i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0945513/combined">Source Code</a></i></b> (****) directed by <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1512910/">Duncan Jones</a>, stars <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0350453/">Jake Gyllenhaal</a> and <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1157358/">Michelle Monaghan</a> in an inexplicable race against time to stop a bomb from blowing up Chicago. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
<a name='more'></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000190/">Matthew McConaughey</a>, somehow reminded of the fact that he’s actually a pretty good actor, stars as <b><i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1189340/combined">The Lincoln Lawyer</a></i></b> (****), a very entertaining airplane movie of the airplane novel by Michael Connelly. McConaughey’s Mickey Haller defends a Beverly Hills playboy (<a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000202/">Ryan Phillippe</a>) accused of murder and gets help from his investigative partner (<a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000513/">William H. Macy</a>) and his ex-wife (<a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000673/">Marisa Tomei</a>).</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1606392/combined">Win Win</a></i></b> (****) is <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0565336/">Tom McCarthy</a>’s third film, after the wonderful <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0340377/combined">The Station Agent</a></i> (2003) and <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0857191/combined">The Visitor</a></i> (2008). <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0316079/">Paul Giamatti</a> plays a struggling New Jersey lawyer who also coaches his local high school’s wrestling team. He encounters a troubled teen (<a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3868664/">Alex Shaffer</a>), who just happens to be a superb wrestler, and decides that he and his wife (<a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0752407/">Amy Ryan</a>) will take him into their home. This is a simple and wonderful story that, like McCarthy’s other movies, uses heartfelt performances to elevate it to greatness.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0942504/">Joe Wright</a>’s <b><i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0993842/combined">Hanna</a></i></b> (** ½) stars <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1519680/">Saoirse Ronan</a> as a trained killing machine, educated in hiding by her father (<a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0051509/">Eric Bana</a>) near the Arctic Circle. She soon departs to take out the CIA operative (a scenery-chewing <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000949/">Cate Blanchett</a>) who is the reason Hanna and her father have been on the run. The movie might have been more memorable had Hanna been given more time to explore the relationship between her and a family of wandering vagabonds led by the luminous <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0931404/">Olivia Williams</a>. As it is, the action scenes, which are superb, overwhelm any human interest in the story.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1349376/">Francis Lawrence</a>’s <b><i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1067583/combined">Water for Elephants</a></i></b> (*** ½) is the adaptation of Sara Gruen’s best-selling novel about a young Depression-era veterinary student (<a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1500155/">Robert Pattinson</a>) who runs away with the circus after his parents are killed in a car crash. The Benzini Circus is owned by the ringmaster August (<a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0910607/">Christoph Waltz</a>) who is married to the beautiful horse trick artist, Marlena (<a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000702/">Reese Witherspoon</a>). It’s an old-fashioned yarn that feels like it was made during Hollywood’s Golden Era and I mean that as a compliment. Pattinson is a bit of a snooze but Witherspoon sparkles and Waltz gives a great character-actor performance that would have got him work backing up Humphrey Bogart for countless Warner Bros. pictures.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Of superhero movies, there were many. <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0132709/">Martin Campbell</a>’s <b><i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1133985/combined">Green Lantern</a></i></b> (***) brought us wise-cracking <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005351/">Ryan Reynolds</a> as an ace fighter pilot recruited by the Green Lantern Corps to take up the famous ring and lantern and do battle for the fate of the universe. Or something. It’s kinda fun and I especially liked <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0765597/">Peter Sarsgaard</a>’s wimpy scientist character. <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1165110/">Chris Hemsworth</a>, who made a pretty good impression as James T. Kirk’s father in his short scene in <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0796366/combined">Star Trek</a></i> (2009), makes a bigger impression with his impressive physique in <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000110/">Kenneth Branaugh</a>’s <b><i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0800369/combined">Thor</a></i></b> (** ½). The scenes set in Asgard inspired my interest, but the earth-bound parts of the story with pretty <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000204/">Natalie Portman</a> as an awestruck astrophysicist are decidedly dull. <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0002653/">Joe Johnston</a>’s <b><i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0458339/combined">Captain America: The First Avenger</a></i></b> (***) completes the prequels for next summer’s <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0848228/combined">The Avengers</a></i>, which will feature the Captain, Iron Man, Thor, and the Hulk. <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0262635/">Chris Evans</a> (or as <a href="http://extrahotgreat.com/ehg-041/">Tara Ariano</a> calls him, Oatmeal Q. Blanderson) plays the title character, a scrawny but determined would-be soldier during WWII trying to enlist. Scientists pump him full of something or other and he becomes a costumed war bond booster (with a fun <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0579678/">Alan Menken</a>/<a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0957138/">David Zippel</a> penned theme song) before getting tired of that and going off to actually fight the Nazis. <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000169/">Tommy Lee Jones</a> is excellent as Cap’s commanding officer and <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0915989/">Hugo Weaving</a> makes everything better playing Red Skull, but the movie as a whole feels like it’s just getting ramped up before the credits roll and we’re left waiting for next summer.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">And since I was forced to view both <i>Thor</i> and <i>Captain America</i> in 3D, let me once again say... I <b><i>hate </i></b>3D! I find it especially bad when it’s converted after filming but even at its best, it’s a needless distraction. I saw <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0499549/combined">Avatar</a></i> both in 3D and the regular way and found no difference in how involved I was in the experience. Unless it’s for an amusement park ride, 3D has no place in my filmgoing life.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">More to come…</div>Carman J. Pricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01771348139861189861noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6411586935939118103.post-62006017071068774002010-12-30T10:21:00.000-08:002010-12-30T10:21:00.446-08:00How Do You Know<div class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1341188/combined">HOW DO YOU KNOW</a> * ½ </div><div class="MsoNormal">Written and directed by <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000985/">James L. Brooks</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Starring <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000702/">Reese Witherspoon</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0748620/">Paul Rudd</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005562/">Owen Wilson</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000197/">Jack Nicholson</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>120 min.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The name James L. Brooks screams “quality” to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He has a TV resumé that boasts multiple Emmy wins for <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0065314/combined">The Mary Tyler Moore Show</a></i>, <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0077089/combined">Taxi</a></i>, and <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0096697/combined">The Simpsons</a></i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pair that with an infrequent directing career that includes such great movies as <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086425/combined">Terms of Endearment</a></i> (1983), <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0092699/combined">Broadcast News</a></i> (1987), and <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119822/combined">As Good as It Gets</a></i> (1997), and I don’t need to see the preview to want to check out his next film.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The colossal misfire <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">How Do You Know</i> will unfortunately change all that.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Reese Witherspoon stars as a 31-year-old champion softball player on the cusp of getting cut from the Olympic team.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She’s experiencing an existential crisis when she realizes she doesn’t know what to do with her life after softball.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Owen Wilson plays a handsome dim-bulb pro baseball player who is sort of interested in changing his lady-killer ways but has no idea how.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Paul Rudd is a nice-guy businessman who is under investigation for some bad financial dealings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And Jack Nicholson plays Rudd’s boss who also happens to be his father.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Somehow, Paul Rudd’s character (I have no idea what his name is or what business he’s in) meets Reese Witherspoon through a mutual friend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This allows Rudd to change from being unbearably worried about his impending legal troubles, to being ridiculously sunny and hopeful around Witherspoon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She is supposed to end up with the nice guy at the end of the movie and since the movie is 2 hours long, it’s gonna happen then and no sooner.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">So we’re saddled with a lot of time watching Reese furrow her pretty brow and wonder if Owen Wilson is potentially the right guy for her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is so obviously not a one-woman man and he presents himself plainly as such.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So it’s hard to get as upset as Witherspoon when he does his clearly well-practised morning-after routine, giving her a pink Washington Nationals warm-up outfit in her choice of sizes and her own toothbrush from a wide selection.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sounds pretty thoughtful, actually.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The title refers to the question “How do you know when you’re really in love?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I found myself playing “How do you know when you’ve stopped caring about the movie?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I tell you, it was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">very</i> early on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was stunned at how uninvolved I was in the story.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The movie stars one of the most likeable casts (on paper) assembled in recent memory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And except for Owen Wilson, no one seems to be having any fun.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everybody else, especially Jack Nicholson, seems to be sweating like Albert Brooks in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Broadcast News</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And now I want to do 2 things that will likely be quite easy: (1) Rent the infinitely superior <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Broadcast News</i>, and (2) Forget I ever saw <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">How Do You Know</i>.</div>Carman J. Pricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01771348139861189861noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6411586935939118103.post-19066773815329063542010-11-10T11:07:00.000-08:002010-11-10T11:11:34.123-08:00Trailer for Every Oscar-Winning Movie EverThis is a little old but it's getting to be Oscar season again and this is always funny...<br />
<br />
<object height="340" width="560"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/rbhrz1-4hN4?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/rbhrz1-4hN4?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object>Carman J. Pricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01771348139861189861noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6411586935939118103.post-54162276456329492082010-10-17T12:18:00.000-07:002010-10-17T12:18:44.129-07:00Easy A<div class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1282140/combined">EASY A</a> *** ½ </div><div class="MsoNormal">Directed by <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0323239/">Will Gluck</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Written by <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1421629/">Bert V. Royal</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Starring <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1297015/">Emma Stone</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0165101/">Patricia Clarkson</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001804/">Stanley Tucci</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0046112/">Penn Badgley</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1425528/">Aly Michalka</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004789/">Amanda Bynes</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0126004/">Dan Byrd</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0002006/">Thomas Haden Church</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001435/">Lisa Kudrow</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1544217/">Cam Gigandet</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>92 min.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">There isn’t much that’s believable about <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Easy A</i> but there <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">is</i> a lot to enjoy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s partly due to the whip-smart writing by Bert V. Royal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The movie plays like <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0815070/">Aaron Sorkin</a> got saddled with adapting a lame teen comedy and couldn’t help but infuse it with hyper-witty dialogue, almost successfully distracting the audience from the nonsensical story.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The other hugely enjoyable element is Emma Stone, who rattles off lines that would trip up most young actors with a sass and intelligence that are an unqualified delight.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Stone plays Olive Penderghast, a high school student who, naturally, no one really notices despite being such a babe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To avoid going on a camping trip with her best friend Rhiannon (Aly Michalka) and her weird parents, Olive lies and says she has a date.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pressed for details the following Monday, Olive tells Rhiannon that she lost her virginity to an anonymous college guy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unfortunately, they are overheard by the hyper-religious Marianne Bryant (I guess “<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anita_Bryant">Anita Bryant</a>” would’ve been too obvious) who is played to histrionic sufficiency by Amanda Bynes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Marianne proceeds to spread the news which for some reason shocks the student body, which is made up mostly of ridiculously good-looking young people in their mid-20s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">One of these students, Brandon (<i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1441109/combined">Cougar Town</a></i>’s Dan Byrd), is gay and teased mercilessly for it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He and Olive fake (behind closed doors) a raucous romp in the sack at a party, “straight”ening out Brandon’s rep and saucing up Olive’s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Soon Olive is doing similar favours for unpopular boys, agreeing to say she slept with them in exchange for gift cards to Target and Home Depot.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">It’s hard to believe that Olive’s supposed promiscuity would be looked upon with such horror by her classmates, let alone launch a picket line by the “Christian” students demanding her expulsion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And am I wrong in thinking that today’s high school students, born in the mid-90s, are unlikely to be big fans of 80s movies like <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0088128/combined">Sixteen Candles</a></i> and <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0098258/combined">Say Anything</a></i>?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(I’m not saying that’s not a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">good</i> thing.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Equally unlikely is the wonderfulness of Olive’s parents (Patricia Clarkson and Stanley Tucci) who banter with their daughter like, well, like Aaron Sorkin wrote their dialogue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I say it as a huge compliment to Bert V. Royal and especially to Clarkson, Tucci and Stone whose flawless delivery made me wish that 10% of what comes out of my mouth could be as smart and funny.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rosemary and Dill Penderghast clearly belong in the Movie Parents Hall of Fame.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Let’s see… what else?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There’s a boy (<i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0397442/combined">Gossip Girl</a></i>’s Penn Badgley) who looks even older than his real life 23 years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He doesn’t believe the rumours and thinks Olive is really cool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They can’t get together until the end of the movie, of course, so he appears infrequently but just enough that we don’t forget who he is.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There’s an improbably cool and funny English teacher (Thomas Haden Church) to introduce the novel <i><a href="http://www.amazon.ca/Penguin-Classics-Scarlet-Nathaniel-Hawthorne/dp/0142437263/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1287343017&sr=1-5">The Scarlet Letter</a></i> to the movie.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s married to the school guidance counsellor (Lisa Kudrow) who’s pretty sour, both as a character and the awkward plot device to bring our story to a close.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I’m making it sound like I didn’t enjoy it but that couldn’t be further from the truth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can’t say enough about how charming and clever Emma Stone is.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The story is ridiculous but the dialogue is so witty and strong, especially from Olive and her parents, that as a whole, the movie is a delight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are a lot of great lines and bits that I’ll be repeating for a while, especially the one where Olive is looking for the Bible in a bookstore and she’s told it’s with the bestsellers, right next to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Twilight</i>.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div>Carman J. Pricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01771348139861189861noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6411586935939118103.post-62702059140476669312010-09-22T13:29:00.000-07:002010-09-22T13:29:50.582-07:00The American<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1440728/">THE AMERICAN</a> *** ½<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">Directed by <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0179221/">Anton Corbijn</a>. Screenplay by <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0423626/">Rowan Joffe</a>. Based on the novel <i><a href="http://www.amazon.ca/Very-Private-Gentleman-Novel/dp/0312309090/">A Very Private Gentleman</a></i> by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Booth">Martin Booth</a>. Starring <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000123/">George Clooney</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0686376/">Violante Placido</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0720671/">Thekla Reuten</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0093678/">Paolo Bonacelli</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0508085/">Johan Leysen</a>. 102 min.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Much of the internet chatter about <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The American</i> has complained that the ads were deceptive, promising a slam-bang action thriller. The actual movie is entertaining enough, and thrilling in a different way. It’s a bit of a James Bond film, just really quiet and without any witty quips. While George Clooney’s rakish charm may be on cool European mode here, he still inspires the envy of men who want to be him and women who want to be with him. Like a good spy should.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The movie even opens with a Bond-ish cold open. Clooney’s character Jack is in a remote cabin in Sweden with, of course, a gorgeous woman in bed. The next morning they are walking through the snow when Jack, in the nick of time, suspects they’re being watched. In fact, they’re being hunted and Jack quickly disposes of the enemy. Evidently, Jack’s lone wolf persona is honed from years of people wanting to kill him.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Jack flees to Rome and calls Pavel (Johan Leysen), presumably his boss, who gives him a cellphone, a hideout, and “one last job.” Jack’s main expertise lies in crafting weaponry and a sexy assassin (Thekla Reuten) needs a custom rifle. Their meeting in a café is appropriately cool and precise, their dialogue only discussing the job and the specs. Too suspicious of being followed, Jack soon ditches the cellphone and finds his own hideout in the medieval hill town of Castel del Monte.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">When not exercising his lean physique (ladies, this is for you) and moodily drinking coffee, he frequents the local bordello and the devastatingly beautiful Clara (Violante Placido—gentlemen, this is for you). Soon they’re meeting for dinner and Jack starts to see a future with her. Or maybe I presumed that this crosses his mind. It’s hard to tell what Jack’s thinking at any given time and I suppose that’s sort of the point. Jack asks Clara to come away with him very late in the story and although her charms are considerable, I found it hard to buy that he wouldn’t escape without her.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The movie is as cool as Jack is stoic and its serene mood actually makes the few jolts that do come along stand out. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The American</i> is certainly not a barrel of laughs but is compelling enough. Violante Placido (a great, oxymoronic name) is breathtaking. And <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castel_del_Monte,_Abruzzo">Castel del Monte</a>, which Wikipedia tells me has a population of 463, should enjoy a jump in tourism after its beauty and charm have been so appealingly portrayed here.<o:p></o:p></div>Carman J. Pricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01771348139861189861noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6411586935939118103.post-57204716546350238822010-09-09T01:14:00.000-07:002010-09-09T01:14:15.356-07:00Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work<div class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1568150/">JOAN RIVERS: A PIECE OF WORK</a> ****</div><div class="MsoNormal">Directed by <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0827830/">Ricki Stern</a> and <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0839064/">Annie Sundberg</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>85 min.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">It’s amazing what a “warts and all” documentary will do to your opinion of somebody.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can’t say that I’ve ever been a big fan of the comedy stylings of <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001672/">Joan Rivers</a> but after seeing this movie which explores a year in the life of the aging comedic icon, I have a great deal of empathy for her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We see a tough broad on the outside masking (literally and figuratively, given her extensive cosmetic surgery) an almost pathologically insecure and vulnerable woman railing against age and insignificance.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The movie documents a year in the life of Joan Rivers and, although she jokes at the beginning that her datebook is so empty she needs sunglasses to read it, her schedule fills up quickly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She’s starting rehearsals for an autobiographical play set to open in Edinburgh followed by London’s West End.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She’s still hawking jewellery on QVC.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She’s written another book and is on a promotional tour.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And whenever she’s back in New York, she constantly plays this one small comedy club, trying out new material.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There’s one sequence where immediately after a show in Los Angeles, she flies overnight to Minneapolis to endure a day of interviews, meet-and-greets, a show, and then gets back on the plane to do it all over again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a brutal schedule for anybody, let alone a 75-year-old, but it never seems to be enough.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">We see a lot of what goes on behind the scenes and start to piece together Joan’s complicated persona.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fuelling her fear of not having enough work is her ridiculously ornate apartment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She says, “This is how Marie Antoinette would have lived if she’d had money.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She clearly has a taste for expensive and beautiful things, but she also has a lot of people counting on her financially.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She has relatives who aren’t able to care for themselves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And she’s paying for the kids of her housekeeper to go to private school.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The career has to keep all of this going.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Joan’s daughter Melissa comments that growing up it often felt like The Career was another sibling that required the attention of an entirely separate person.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Obsessions abound.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We see one room that has index card filing cabinets filling one wall from floor to ceiling.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On these thousands of index cards are her jokes from the last 30 years organized alphabetically by subject—every subject imaginable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One drawer is intriguingly labelled “COOKING – TONY DANZA”.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Directors Ricki Stern and Annie Sundberg’s previous work includes documentaries about Darfur (<i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0912580/">The Devil Came on Horseback</a></i> [2007]) and a wrongly convicted African-American (<i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0446055/">The Trials of Darryl Hunt</a></i> [2006]).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The duo may seem like an odd choice to helm a celebrity bio-pic but they successfully show a fascinating and often wince-inducing portrait of a survivor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rivers’ bitterness and resentment are on full display but with context that shows us we don’t really know somebody until you get an idea of their pain.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Joan Rivers is a complicated mix of neuroses: a constant hunger for attention, a longing for respect that rarely comes, a need for non-stop work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are moments, and we see some of them, when she is grateful and happy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But often, disappointment consumes her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is what has made her comedy so angry and mean-spirited.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And often funny, but not always.</div>Carman J. Pricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01771348139861189861noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6411586935939118103.post-33976315711831482212010-09-05T11:40:00.000-07:002010-09-05T11:40:36.014-07:00Get Low musicI just wanted to add some clips of the excellent music from <i>Get Low</i>.<br />
<br />
This is the closing credits song, "Lay My Burden Down," written by Aoife O'Donovan and sung by Alison Krauss...<br />
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<br />
And here's a clip that isn't from the movie but features Aoife O'Donovan and her band Crooked Still. From their most recent album <i>Some Strange Country</i>, here's "Half of What We Know."<br />
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<object height="340" width="560"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/BcYhmOhf96g?fs=1&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/BcYhmOhf96g?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object>Carman J. Pricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01771348139861189861noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6411586935939118103.post-32155925469488589832010-09-04T13:49:00.000-07:002010-09-04T13:49:31.040-07:00Get Low<div class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1194263/">GET LOW</a> *** ½ </div><div class="MsoNormal">Directed by <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0773689/">Aaron Schneider</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Screenplay by <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0699046/">Chris Provenzano</a> and <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2057149/">C. Gaby Mitchell</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Story by Chris Provenzano and <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3015337/">Scott Seeke</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Starring <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000380/">Robert Duvall</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000195/">Bill Murray</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000651/">Sissy Spacek</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0085407/">Lucas Black</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0574468/">Gerald McRaney</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0167850/">Bill Cobbs</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>103 min.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I caught <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Get Low</i> at Tinseltown yesterday after reading this <a href="http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20396748,00.html">article</a> in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Entertainment Weekly</i> about Bill Murray and his disposition for being notoriously difficult to pin down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Producer <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0953124/">Dean Zanuck</a> (<i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0257044/">Road to Perdition</a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"> [2002]</span></i>) played a risky game assuring the various “executive” and “associate” producers (i.e. financial backers) of Murray’s participation with only an oral agreement.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thankfully it worked out and this peculiar little film was made.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The story concerns an aging hermit in 1930s Tennessee named Felix Bush (Robert Duvall) who has shut himself off from the world for the better part of 40 years, allowing stories and tall tales about his ornery, violent nature to grow in his absence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He has a mule, a shotgun to ward off trespassers, and a picture of a mysterious young woman for company.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After the local preacher (Gerald McRaney) comes to inform him of a friend’s death, Bush decides he has some affairs to settle before his own passing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The preacher tells him that forgiveness is free, but you have to ask for it.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">While the audience wonders what past sins haunt him, Old Man Bush decides he wants a funeral for himself before he dies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He hires the local undertaker Frank Quinn (Bill Murray) and his assistant Buddy (Lucas Black) to make the arrangements for his “funeral party,” inviting anybody who has a story to tell, which, according to Buddy, should include about 4 counties’ worth of people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the meantime, Felix runs into Mattie (a radiant Sissy Spacek) who is clearly an old flame not seen for many years with a story of her own.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Felix also goes out to visit an old friend, the Rev. Charlie Jackson (Bill Cobbs), but is unable to convince him to speak at the funeral, further intriguing us as to what Bush is too ashamed to tell himself.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">When the confession comes, it’s almost a letdown, but Duvall imbues his performance with such authenticity that we buy it all the way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, Duvall is pretty much the whole movie here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was disappointed that Bill Murray wasn’t given more to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s enjoyable, of course, but the character isn’t meaty enough to require Murray’s inimitable presence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Spacek manages to suggest years of unresolved feelings in just a few scenes, especially one where she and Duvall go toe to toe, Mattie waiting for Felix to say what’s on his mind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There we see two superb actors at the top of their craft.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">This is director Aaron Schneider’s first feature.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s been a cinematographer for years and won the 2003 Best Live Action Short Oscar for <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0304858/">Two Soldiers</a></i>, an adaptation of a William Faulkner short story.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Get Low</i> looks great and suggests a convincing mood of hidden memory and melancholy, but the story, at the end, isn’t particularly resonant or moving.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s an acting showcase and Schneider has a cast of ringers showing what they can do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And that’s just fine.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Of particular note is the soundtrack which should appeal to fans of <i><a href="http://www.amazon.ca/O-Brother-Where-Art-Thou/dp/B00004XQ83">O Brother, Where Art Thou?</a></i> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><a href="http://alisonkrauss.com/">Alison Krauss</a> sings the closing credits song “Lay My Burden Down” which was written by Aoife O’Donovan, lead singer of the excellent bluegrass band <a href="http://www.somestrangecountry.com/">Crooked Still</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is an Oscar nomination in the cards there?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The score by <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0434222/">Jan A.P. Kaczmarek</a> (Oscar winner for <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0308644/">Finding Neverland</a></i> [2004]) features <a href="http://www.jerrydouglas.com/">Jerry Douglas</a> on dobro and a few songs by another neo-bluegrass band, <a href="http://www.steeldrivers.net/">the SteelDrivers</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Good stuff, and some new (to me) artists to explore.</div>Carman J. Pricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01771348139861189861noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6411586935939118103.post-68143069782609045672010-09-03T00:53:00.000-07:002010-09-03T00:53:48.363-07:00The Kids Are All Right<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0842926/">THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT</a> *** ½<div class="MsoNormal">Directed by <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0158966/">Lisa Cholodenko</a>. Written by Lisa Cholodenko and <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0089742/">Stuart Blumberg</a>.</div><div class="MsoNormal">Starring <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000906/">Annette Bening</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000194/">Julianne Moore</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0749263/">Mark Ruffalo</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1985859/">Mia Wasikowska</a>, <a href="http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1242688/">Josh Hutcherson</a>. 104 min.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">For my first reviews, I want to catch up with some movies I saw this summer. I got a chance to see <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Kids Are All Right</i> at a Sunday morning sneak preview at the Park Theatre. I always love catching a sneak preview and since complimentary bagels and coffee are provided, how can you lose?</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The movie stars Annette Bening and Julianne Moore as Nic and Jules who are parents to two teenagers. Nic is an OB-GYN, uptight and goal-oriented, the reliable bread-winner, while Jules is more than a little directionless, drifting from one career path to another, currently alighting on landscape design. Nic and Jules each gave birth to one of their two kids, and since they used the same anonymous sperm-donor, that makes 18-year-old Joni (Mia Wasikowska) and 15-year-old Laser (Josh Hutcherson) half-siblings. Unbeknownst to “the Momses,” Joni and Laser search out their birth father who turns out to be fun and free-wheeling Paul (Mark Ruffalo). Laser, who was originally the most interested in meeting their father, is a little disappointed in Paul’s too casual vibe while Joni’s initial doubts melt in the face of Paul’s considerable charms. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Inevitably, they tell Nic and Jules about Paul and an awkward dinner ensues. What follows is a series of events that bring Paul into all of their lives and forces each of the family members to examine their relationships with each other. There are a good deal of laughs, maybe too many, and some of them are a little broad and sitcom-y, but the movie’s tone is mostly set by the serious moments.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">The cast is superb, in particular Annette Bening as Nic, whose ordered world starts to crumble when it seems like her whole family starts liking Paul and leaving her behind. She sees the danger in his devil-may-care attitude but she gamely tries to win his favour in a hilarious scene involving an impromptu Joni Mitchell singalong. Bening shifts from joy and goofiness to devastation without missing a beat. It’s a terrific performance. Julianne Moore is great as always and Mark Ruffalo gives a natural, effortless turn that is very reminiscent of his breakout performance in <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0203230/">You Can Count on Me</a></i> (2000). And Mia Wasikowska is an actress to watch. She starred in <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1014759/">Alice in Wonderland</a></i> earlier this year and was fantastic in season 1 of HBO’s <i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0835434/">In Treatment</a></i>. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">My enthusiasm for the movie is maybe a little muted due to some of the comedic elements. However, I think one of the movie’s great strengths is that it’s almost incidental the parents are lesbians. We see a couple who have clearly spent a lot of years together, supporting each other, loving each other, putting up with each other… Being married is hard! And then you throw kids into the mix and the challenges just multiply. The movie is very smart in clearly showing the relationships between the family members and getting the audience to buy it. Well done.</div>Carman J. Pricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01771348139861189861noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6411586935939118103.post-7597521952420198452010-09-01T00:46:00.000-07:002010-09-01T00:47:07.651-07:00Introduction<div class="MsoNormal">I love movies.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I’m starting a blog for the first time, the subject for which is movies and my unending desire to see as many as possible. I am primarily a musician. I sing jazz, I have sung in choirs and while I have not yet sung backup for James Taylor, I am certain I will.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">But I also love movies. I’ve been seriously watching movies (and keeping notes) for almost 20 years. I clearly remember my first experience going to the movies when I was 9 years old. At that time, I had some knowledge that I wanted to do this magic thing called Going to the Movies. I figured out that movies opened on Fridays and you could find out in the Thursday paper what was closing that night and opening tomorrow. I would keep a lookout for acceptable movies (ones Dad was likely to take my brother and me to, i.e. Disney) and when I informed my parents that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Cinderella</i> was in town and the asking would never cease, we went. I remember the fascination I had in finally seeing the whole movie. Certain scenes were familiar from the Sunday night Disney TV show, but now I saw the story from beginning to end and I was hooked.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Somewhere in the early 1990s I started keeping track of the movies I saw, using a star rating system and coming up with my own top 10 list each year. I became an avid Oscar-watcher. I’ve kept the telecasts on VHS from 1993 to date (yes, I still use VHS) and I can name all the Best Picture winners in chronological order. I have various checklists I’m working on at any given time which often leads me to exclaim, “I want to see ALL the movies!” I realize that no single person can do this but the journey’s the thing, not the destination. Besides, I don’t think completing anyone’s list of the 10,000 movies all self-respecting movie-lovers must see before they die would cause me to immediately keel over.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">My intention is to write reviews and the occasional commentary. I’m going to be learning a lot at first, about the mechanics of blogging and especially about writing. I’ve been reading Roger Ebert for years but his easy-reading, erudite style is not something I’ve been able to assimilate. In the meantime I hope you enjoy…</div>Carman J. Pricehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01771348139861189861noreply@blogger.com2