Hanna (2011)

We loved this thriller in which everyone and everything is tightly wound, as a girl raised by her widowed father to be a super warrior leaves their shack somewhere near the the Arctic Circle and goes out in the world for the first time. It's neatly edited; not a shot is wasted. For example, a close-up of a foot on a car hood is included in a chase scene. The immensely talented Saoirise (pronounced SEER-sha) Ronan (nominated for the tightly wound 13 year old Briony in Atonement, and I loved her theme music with the clacking typewriter--more on that in a moment), who just turned 17 in April, was 15 when this was shot, but can easily portray a woman-child, too burdened to be carefree. In Atonement, words were her weapons, in this, they are bows and arrows and hand to hand combat. Oh, and she runs a lot. Ronan (whom Jack has dubbed Ronan the Barbarian) was the first person "attached" to this script, written by Seth Lochhead (with David Farr--the first feature for both) and listed on the  Black List, the best unproduced screenplays, of the years 2006 and 2009. She suggested her Atonement director Joe Wright (Pride & Prejudice (2005), The Soloist), after Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire, 127 Hours, much more) and possibly Alfonso Cuarón (Y Tu Mamá Tambien (2001), Children of Men (2006), more) left the project. Wright had not yet directed any action movies and brings a fresh perspective to the genre. The same can be said for cinematographer Alwin Kuchler (some that I've seen are The Mother (2003), Proof (2005), A Solitary Man, and Morning Glory), who gives us one gorgeous scene after another.

Eric Bana (best known for Hulk (2003), he was also great in Troy (2004), Munich (2005), and as Henry VIII in The Other Boleyn Girl (2008)) plays Hanna's intense (ya think?) father Erik and Cate Blanchett (favorites: Oscar and Lucinda (1997), Elizabeth (1998), Pushing Tin (1999), as Katherine Hepburn in The Aviator (2004), Babel (2006), The Good German (2006), Notes on a Scandal (2006), as a male Bob-Dylan-like rock star in I'm Not There (2007), which won her her Oscar, and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button) is the driven adversary of both Erik and Hanna. A note about accents: Ronan is Irish, Bana and Blanchett are Australian, but Ronan and Bana use German accents and Blanchett goes deep south (as in "y'all"). I must mention Tom Hollander (I wrote about him in In the Loop) as a particularly slimy villain that Wright said in this spoiler-filled interview is an amalgamation of bullies who tormented him in school.

And then there's the music. I had heard of the Chemical Brothers but didn't really know them from anyone else. Go ahead and open this link in a new window to stream the soundtrack album while you read the rest. There are a couple of tracks, especially "The Devil is in the Details" and "Hanna's Theme." that remind me of Briony's typewriter song in Atonement. In the movie, the camera is circling (as I recall--it's been at least 10 days since we saw it) and the soundtrack is clacking and it's all good. This movie may not be relaxing nor free of violence, but you will escape your troubles because it's nothing like real life and is a highly satisfying cinematic experience. I hope it's not too late for you to see it on the big screen.

This is my busiest time of year with my own music, so I haven't been able to get caught up with the blog. Three more are unwritten (and we're seeing something tomorrow--we haven't yet decided what). In a few weeks I should have them all in. Bear with me, please!

Win Win (2011)

Jack and I were looking forward to this story of a stressed out small-town lawyer with a family of four who brings a high school boy into his life and the wrestling team he coaches, and we loved it! The combination of director/writer Thomas AKA Tom McCarthy and star Paul Giamatti is an indie film lover's dream, fulfilled with humor and heart. Giamatti (I first wrote about him in Cold Souls, then he was in The Last Station and Barney's Version) is, yes, the schlubby character he often plays, but his Mike is a smart guy with a loving family and some devoted friends. McCarthy has done some acting (Boston Public, part of the ensemble of Good Night, and Good Luck (2005), 2012, more) and has a story writing credit (with an Oscar nomination) for Up, but the three movies he wrote and directed (The Station Agent (2003), The Visitor, and this) are spectacular in their quiet ways. All three have characters who don't like or aren't good at dealing with society's expectations and outsiders who join their lives. Speaking of story credits, McCarthy's long-time friend, Joe Tiboni (who has a cameo as the high school principal), is an elder-care lawyer in the town of New Providence NJ, where the movie is set, and is not only credited as story co-creator, much of the plot is taken from Tiboni's own experiences. He has a blog (I suggest waiting until after you see the movie to read it) and in the March 10, 2011 post, which as of today is the most recent, he discusses the origins and dissimilarities between his life and the movie. I looked for McCarthy's cameo and thought I spotted him in a scene outside the pricipal's office, but he's not listed as such on imdb, and they usually catch those, plus he didn't take a cameo in the other two.

Supporting cast is terrific. The young wrestler Kyle is played by Alex Shaffer, winner at age 17 of the 2010 New Jersey State Wrestling Championship, in his acting debut (unfortunately his personal wrestling career ended when be broke his L-5 vertebrae) and he carries it off well. Talented Amy Ryan (the drugged-out mom in Gone Baby Gone (2007), Changeling, Jack Goes Boating, and, of course Michael Scott's girlfriend Holly on The Office) gives plenty of personality to Mike's fiercely loyal wife, which isn't that big a part. Bobby Cannavale is always good at playing the persistent guy who really, really wants to help you, whether you like it or not, as he did in The Station Agent and the short-lived (for good reason) series Cupid, and here he's very cute. Dependably quirky Jeffrey Tambor (so great as George Bluth Sr. on Arrested Development, as "Hey Now" Hank Kingsley on The Larry Sanders show, and I liked him in the movie Pollack (2000), among many) is the other wrestling coach, Burt Young (128 acting credits, best known for the Rocky series (1976, 1979, 1982, 1985, 2006), and for playing various goons of Italian heritage) is Kyle's grandfather, Melanie Lynskey (Heavenly Creatures (1994), Shattered Glass (2003), Away We Go, Up in the Air, more) gives her all as Kyle's mom, and the ubiquitous Margo Martindale (I've seen but a fraction of her work, but I particularly liked the serieses The Riches and Dexter, in each of which she was a neighbor, and her segment of Paris Je T'aime (2006), in which she speaks French with a very American accent) makes an appearance as another lawyer.

There's a new song by the National (this video has outtakes, production video--that's McCarthy in the navy T-shirt in the gym--and no spoilers. Ignore the snarky "we don't have to" in the page's first paragraph) on the soundtrack, but I also really liked the original music (go to this Amazon page and click Play all samples) by guitarist Lyle Workman, who, in addition to scoring Made (2001), The 40 Year Old Virgin (2005), Superbad (2007), Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008), Yes Man, and Get Him to the Greek, has worked with Todd Rundgren, Beck, and Sting.

This movie really is a must-see. Like Juno and Little Miss Sunshine, it's a slice of life with ordinary people living normal lives, making mistakes, appreciating irony, loving each other, and doing what they can in realistic situations.

Source Code (2011)

This sci-fi thriller is exciting, entertaining, with some romance, plenty of twists, and, to us, an unexpected ending. I felt I had learned too much before seeing it, so suffice it to say Colter (Jake Gyllenhaal) wakes up on a Chicago-bound commuter train with no idea why he's there. His last memory is being in a battle zone in Afghanistan, yet Christina, a lovely stranger sitting across from him on the train, seems to know him and he's baffled. All is revealed, bit by bit, in a first rate feature debut by young screenwriter Ben Ripley. Director Duncan Jones (Moon) is David Bowie's son and talented enough that he doesn't need to trade on his famous dad, whose birth name is also Jones.

Gyllenhaal (after I wrote about him in Brothers he was in Love and Other Drugs), easy on the eyes, keeps us involved as he carries out his mission while his truth is dawning on him. Michelle Monaghan (first came to my attention in North Country (2005), was great in Gone Baby Gone (2007), and had a cameo in Somewhere, among others) plays Christina as sweet, vulnerable, and lovable. Vera Farmiga (The Departed (2006), The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (2008), Up in the Air, which earned her an Oscar nomination) is cast against type as Colter's no-nonsense commanding officer, Jeffrey Wright (I wrote about him in Cadillac Records) plays the computer mastermind who has written the source code of the title, and Michael Arden (just watched one of his Off the Map episodes today--he plays Pher, the doofus who lost his toes) shows some depth as Derek Frost (I'm not telling you who Frost is because it would be a major spoiler).

The original music by Chris Bacon (here's one track, then follow the youtube paths for more) is terrific, even though Bacon was apparently Jones' second choice (read this). Veteran cinematographer Don Burgess (Oscar nominated for Forrest Gump (1994), some of my other faves of his work are Forget Paris (1995), Contact (1997), Cast Away (2000), and the first Spider-Man (2002)) gives us beautiful visuals to go with the special effects created by at least seven sub-contractors by my count.

Jack and I loved this and it has been on my mind so much I wanted to get it written now, ahead of a few others in the blog queue, so that you can see it on the big screen. Seventh of the top ten in last weekend's box office, it has the highest rottentomatoes rating of the ten, with 90% from critics and 87% from audiences. When you see it, if you haven't read reviews beforehand, you'll appreciate the restraint I've shown in omitting comparisons to other movies.

Certified Copy (Copie conforme - 2010)

This beautifully photographed movie earned Juliette Binoche Best Actress at Cannes for her performance as a prickly French single mother who meets an English author at his book reading near her home in Italy and then spends the day in Tuscany with him. With dialogue in French, Italian, and English, it presents a mystery: have they just met or have they been together a long time?

In a weekend when we also saw All Good Things and Casino Jack (I'll write the latter eventually, I promise), we felt like psychology majors, studying mad protagonists, including Binoche's (I wrote about her in Paris and Summer Hours) Elle, who one minute is introducing herself to the author James Miller, the next flirting, and the next bickering about "old" resentments. Opera baritone William Shimmell (his feature film debut) plays Miller, the only character who has a name (elle is French for "she"), and his mixed reactions cause us to wonder whether Elle is, in fact, crazy. Young Adrian Moore is quite delightful in his few scenes as Elle's teenage smart aleck son.

Iranian writer/director Abbas Kiarostami has made a long list of award-winning movies, but I don't think I've seen any of them. Oh well, next time I will know him. This is his first feature made outside of his native country. Luca Bigazzi is the cinematographer responsible for the lovely images of people, places (shot in Lucignano and Arezzo, southeast of Florence), and things. I wish I could remember the music, but no composer is credited on imdb, nor can I find a list of songs. Anyway, this is an enigma wrapped in a riddle, best seen on a big screen. Rottentomatoes' audiences were lukewarm on this one, with 67%, but their critics loved it, giving it 87%. I had a very subjective reaction to it, becoming irritated by the bickering, and Jack didn't love it either, so we were in the same camp with the audiences this time. So I can't advise you one way or the other.

In 2016, five years after posting this, I heard from someone who works for a site called artsy.net. He asked me to post a link to this director's page on that site. Apparently Kiarostami is an accomplished still photographer as well. So here is the site: https://www.artsy.net/artist/abbas-kiarostami. Enjoy!

Made in Dagenham (2010)

Jack and I really liked the fictionalized tale of the true Dagenham, England, Ford assembly plant sewing machinists' strike in 1968, due to which that country passed its 1970 Equal Pay Act. Though some of the accents are a wee bit hard to make out, we followed this early feminist story just fine. Sally Hawkins (after I wrote about her in Happy-Go-Lucky, she was in An Education, Never Let Me Go and more) puts in a fine performance as Rita O'Grady, who organizes (the Brits would spell it organises and they pronounce the town DAG-innim) her all-female co-workers in the shop, egged on by her boss, played with impish glee by Bob Hoskins (Oscar nominated for Mona Lisa (1986), he was also terrific in The Cotton Club (1984), Brazil (1985), Sweet Liberty (1986), as J. Edgar Hoover in Nixon (1995), in Hollywoodland (2006), much more, and was nominated by the British Independent Film Awards for Mrs Henderson Presents (2005) as well as this role, one of many BAFTA nominations earned here--no wins unfortunately). You'll see fine supporting work by Daniel Mays (Vera Drake (2004), Tommy in Atonement, and more) as Rita's mostly supportive husband Eddie, Rosamund Pike (I wrote about her in Barney's Version) as Lisa, Miranda Richardson (read what I wrote about her in The Young Victoria) as British Labour politician Barbara Castle, normally bearded Richard Schiff (best known as Toby Ziegler in 145 episodes of The West Wing, he's been in plenty of movies, including I Am Sam (2001), Ray (2004), Last Chance Harvey, and Solitary Man, to name a few) as the clean shaven American sent by Ford to work it out, and some of the machinists, including Jaime Winstone (daughter of respected actor Ray Winstone (Sexy Beast (2000), The Departed (2006), others) as the peroxided wanna-be model Sandra and Andrea Riseborough (also in Happy-Go-Lucky and Never Let Me Go) with her hair teased high as Brenda. The 60s hair, makeup, and wardrobe is good fun. One name we couldn't make out so I had to look it up later: "Is it a Biba?" Rita asks Lisa about her red dress. Biba was a trendy designer of the day.

I just learned something: I was already a fan of director Nigel Cole for his funny and heartwarming Saving Grace (2000), Calendar Girls (2003), and A Lot Like Love (2005). Screenwriter William Ivory (no relation to the filmmaker in the Merchant-Ivory tem) makes his feature debut here. Jack and I also enjoyed the vintage picture cars and the vintage-looking cinematography by John de Borman (The Full Monty (1997), Saving Grace, A Lot Like Love, Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, Last Chance Harvey, An Education, and more).

There are plenty of 60s songs to liven your moviegoing experience, including pop singer Sandie Shaw, who actually worked at that plant, singing the title track. Apropos of the Biba, Hawkins is 5'5" Pike is 5'9". You'll understand when you see it, as you should. Rottentomatoes' contributors agree, with the critics giving it 80% and the audience 74%.

All Good Things (2010)

Ryan Gosling turns in another nuanced performance as an unbalanced guy, based on a true story about a rich man and his devoted wife (Kirsten Dunst), who, for part of the story, run a 1970's Vermont health food store for which the movie is named. It's very good, not recommended for first dates, as the honeymoon, like all good things, must come to an end. The characters' names are changed in the movie to David and Katie Marks but everything I've read about this refers to Robert and Kathleen Durst. The Durst family, from Scarsdale, owned and managed a lot of Manhattan real estate, and Frank Langella (I wrote about him in Unknown) is also wonderful playing David Marks' father Sanford.

This is the first non-documentary feature for director Andrew Jarecki and first movie ever for co-writers Marcus Hinchey and Marc Smerling and it is assured in all ways. Dunst (best known as Mary Jane in the Spider-Man series (2002, 04, 07), she has been acting since she was 7, starting in New York Stories (1989), and my favorites include The Virgin Suicides (1999), Dick (1999), Crazy/Beautiful (2001), The Cat's Meow (2001), and especially Wimbledon (2004) and the title character of Marie Antoinette (2006)) apparently was in rehab for depression before reading this script and eagerly became the first actor to sign on. Though in the theatre I would have guessed Gosling's (I wrote about him in Blue Valentine, where he played another messed up guy in a relationship that starts great and goes downhill) David has borderline personality disorder, according to Wikipedia (don't read this if you don't want spoilers) Robert Durst was diagnosed later with Asperger's Syndrome. The couple's friend, sultry brunette Deborah Lehrman, is played by Lily Rabe, a natural blonde who is the daughter of playwright David Rabe and the late actress Jill Clayburgh; curmudgeonly Philip Baker Hall (some of my faves are three by Paul Thomas Anderson: Hard Eight (1996), Boogie Nights (1997), and Magnolia (1999); as well as The Contender (2000) and In Good Company (2004), among others) comes in late as David's upstairs neighbor Malvern Bump; Kristen Wiig (I wrote about her in Whip It) plays it straight for a change as Lauren; and, in a cameo as Richard Panetierre, John Cullum (Broadway star and Holling Vincoeur, the bar owner with the young wife, on 110 episodes of Northern Exposure (1990-95)) makes an appearance.

Shot in Manhattan and various locations in Connecticut, the movie also has plenty of songs from the 70s and beyond plus original music by Rob Simonsen ((500) Days of Summer, another movie with lots of songs not written by the composer). Here are a few tracks. Lambasted on rottentomatoes by critics who gave it 31%, this has fallen a point in audience's averages to 41% from the 42% ranking it had when we saw it two weeks ago (sorry! I've been too busy with many other commitments to write). But we liked it quite a bit. It came out on DVD March 29, but if it's still playing on a big screen near you, check it out.