Wild (2014)

Amy and I liked a lot this movie adapted from Cheryl Strayed's memoir about hiking 1100 miles alone in the Western U.S. mountains in 1995. Reese Witherspoon's angry, determined portrayal of Strayed has earned her, among others, a Screen Actors Guild nomination, with more to come. Witherspoon (last blogged in Mud) optioned Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail just before its 2012 publication and is also a producer here, making me wonder why the imdb trivia says she "beat out" other actresses for the leading role. With many flashbacks and interactions with other hikers along the way, this is far from a one-woman show, and features Laura Dern (besides her Oscar-nominated performance in Rambling Rose (1992), I also liked her in Mask (1985), Blue Velvet (1986), Wild at Heart (1990), Jurassic Park (1993), Citizen Ruth (1993), Dr. T and the Women (2000), Novocaine (2001), We Don't Live Here Anymore (2004), Happy Endings (2005), Year of the Dog (2007), Recount (2008), small parts in Everything Must Go and The Master, and her star turn as the whack job in the HBO series Enlightened) as Strayed's beloved mother, Thomas Sadoski (known to me just as Don Keefer on The Newsroom), and many more.

Director Jean-Marc Vallée has already brought Oscars to two actors for Dallas Buyers Club, so let's see what happens here in February. Nick Hornby, who adapted a memoir into the screenplay for An Education, does the same honors here for Strayed's best-selling book. Strayed, who chose her last name  (one syllable) and legally changed it at age 27 right before the journey, has a cameo, dropping off Witherspoon in the beginning (we missed it), and Strayed's own daughter plays Strayed as a child throughout the movie.

I couldn't help but think of Tracks, another young woman's odyssey released earlier this year. There, as here, photos during the credits prove that the wardrobe department took care to match outfits with the real hikers. In this one, you won't miss the strong endorsement of equipment vendor REI. The book (and the gear) can be purchased on their website.

The glorious cinematography is by Yves Bélanger (Dallas Buyers Club). No composer is listed and the extensive list of songs can be found here.

Jack had another commitment so couldn't join us the other night, but I'm sure he will like it just as much as we did. Rotten Tomatoes' critics are averaging 93% to audiences' 81, and last weekend, before the holiday, it was sixth at the box office. Be sure to see it on a big screen if you possibly can.

Foxcatcher (2014)

Disturbing yet mesmerizing. Jack, Mary Ellen, and I thought this story of John du Pont training Olympic Gold wrestler Mark Schultz in the 1980s was fabulous. Steve Carell is scary as the chemical company heir who thinks he can buy everything and Channing Tatum awesome as the vulnerable Mark. I mentioned Carell in Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues and linked to his earlier work in The Way Way Back; Tatum was mentioned in Don Jon and Magic Mike and I listed previous credits in Haywire.  Both are much more than their previous reputations of funny man and beefcake, respectively. Mark Ruffalo (last blogged in Begin Again) brings his dependable talent to the role of Mark's devoted brother, coach, and fellow gold medalist Dave.

Director Bennett Miller began this project several years ago, but put it aside when he took over for Steven Soderbergh in Moneyball. That's but one of the fascinating trivia facts on imdb. The script was co-written by E. Max Frye (Something Wild (1986), more) and Dan Futterman (you might know him as an actor--the son in the Birdcage (1996), Danny Pearl in A Mighty Heart (2007), or his 76 episodes as Amy's brother in Judging Amy--but he was Oscar-nominated for adapting the book on which Capote (2005) was based, his first feature writing gig, and this is his second). Here's a discussion of the real story vs. the movie, but beware, it's full of spoilers.

The music by Rob Simonsen (The Spectacular Now) is pretty great, too, and can be previewed on iTunes. And the eerie cinematography is by Greig Fraser (Zero Dark Thirty). The mansion exteriors were shot in Leesburg, Virginia, since the du Pont homestead (called Foxcatcher) has since been demolished, and interiors were mostly shot in the Pittsburgh area, where the family lived.

This has begun racking up awards and nominations. See it locally before the Oscars!

Horrible Bosses 2 (2014)

This stupid sequel made us laugh a lot in between the occasional lulls. Raunchy and violent, it's probably only for fans of the first Horrible Bosses. In this one, the three dumb guys are trying to make it on their own. Reprising their roles are Jason Bateman, Jason Sudeikis, Charlie Day, Jennifer Aniston, Kevin Spacey, and Jamie Foxx (last blogged in This Is Where I Leave You, We're the Millers, the first Horrible Bosses, also We're the Millers, Margin Call, and The Amazing Spider-Man 2, respectively). New characters are played by Chris Pine and Christoph Waltz (most recently in Star Trek: Into Darkness and Django Unchained).

As writers, Sean Anders and John Morris were last in these pages for We're the Millers. This is the first of Anders' four directing gigs I've seen.

Christopher Lennertz also returns as composer and his music is exciting again, but you're probably going to remember only the hit songs, listed here.

Rotten Tomatoes' critics are notably unimpressed, averaging 34%, with audiences coming in at 57%. If you happen upon this on TV, do stay for the outtakes and bloopers at the end (don't bother if it's on network or basic cable--they'll probably cut out the credits, which are quite funny). If anyone asks us, Jack and I think there should not be a part three.

Top Five (2014)

Jack and I loved this story of a comedian trying to be taken seriously as an actor after getting sober. Sounds serious, doesn't it? But with Chris Rock starring, writing, and directing, we laughed plenty, and not only at the dirty jokes. This is Rock's third time in the three-job position, after Head of State (2003) and I Think I Love My Wife (2007), unless you count the documentary Good Hair, and he had no co-writers this time. In addition to the above, his stand-up, and his stint on SNL, I also liked Rock's acting in Nurse Betty (2000), Down to Earth (2001), and The Longest Yard (2005). Rosario Dawson (last blogged in Trance) is great as the reporter with the edgy hairdo. We have supporting star power from J.B. Smoove (most recently in Clear History), Gabrielle Union (last in these pages in Cadillac Records), Tracy Morgan (best known for 139 episodes of 30 Rock, he had a cameo in The Other Guys), Romany Malco (The 40-Year-Old Virgin (2005), Blades of Glory (2007), Baby Mama (2008), No Ordinary Family (2010-11), and 38 episodes of Weeds (2005-12)), and Cedric the Entertainer (Larry Crowne). And then the cameos: Jerry Seinfeld, Whoopi Goldberg, Adam Sandler, DMX (don't worry if you won't recognize the rapper--he is introduced), Charlie Rose, and many more. Seinfeld is particularly funny. Oh, and don't miss Ben Vereen asking for money in a short appearance.

The title refers to Rock's Andre Allen and other characters listing their top five hip-hop music acts (most go past five), and they talk of many artists, musical and otherwise, e.g. Kanye West, Jay Z, Tyler Perry. As it happens, Kanye and Jay Z are among the producers.

Ludwig Göransson (We're the Millers) is credited with the soundtrack but you're more likely to remember the hip-hop, discussed in detail on this link, with videos.

Don't just take our word for it, Rotten Tomatoes' critics are averaging 90% and audiences 75. It was fourth at the box office, so should play for a while, in between the Oscar hopefuls.

The Homesman (2014)

This story of an 1850s spinster transporting three insane women across the harsh prairie pulled us in with its powerful story, good acting, magnificent images of bleak landscapes, and beautiful music. Hilary Swank and Tommy Lee Jones are wonderful as the woman and the drifter she hires to help on the journey across the plain states. Swank was last blogged in Amelia and Jones, most recently in The Family, not only stars, he directs to a script he co-wrote with Kieran Fitzgerald (in his fiction feature debut) and Wesley A. Oliver (in his writing debut after working as Jones' assistant on four movies), based on the 1988 novel by Glendon Swarthout, which had previously been optioned by Paul Newman. Interestingly, this author's works also include The Shootist (1975 novel and 1976 movie) and Where the Boys Are (1960 novel and movie). All is not dust and gloom in this picture--we laughed more than we expected for something that is certainly not a comedy.

The mad housewives of Nebraska are portrayed by the talents of Grace Gummer (last in Frances Ha), Miranda Otto (played the ex-wife in War of the Worlds (2005), but best known to me for TV: mini-series The Starter Wife (2007), guilty pleasure The Cashmere Mafia (2008), and another ex-wife in the highly entertaining Rake earlier this year), and Danish actress Sonja Richter.

Big star power is in the supporting cast with large credits for few scenes each, including John Lithgow (most recently in Love Is Strange), Meryl Streep (Gummer's mom, she was last blogged in August: Osage County), James Spader (best known for his TV work on 22 episodes of The Practice (2003-04), 101 of Boston Legal (2004-08), and 25 of The Office from 2011-12--I haven't seen The Blacklist--but who can forget his sexy movie work in Pretty in Pink (1986), Less Than Zero (1987), Sex, Lies, and Videotape (1989), White Palace (1990), Bad Influence (1990), Crash (1996), Two Days in the Valley (1996), and Secretary (2002), before his decidedly unsexy role in Lincoln alongside Mr. Jones), Hailee Steinfeld (most recently in Begin Again), Tim Blake Nelson (a guy with a lot of teeth who was in, among others, O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000), The Big Year, and Lincoln, among many), and Barry Corbin (Jack whispered, "He was the astronaut in Northern Exposure!" 110 episodes from 1990-95. I also remember from among Corbin's 192 credits, beginning with Urban Cowboy (1980), War Games (1983), Nothing in Common (1986), The Hot Spot (1990), two with Jones in 2007: No Country for Old Men and In the Valley of Elah, and three episodes of Modern Family as Cameron's father). Really, all but Lithgow's are just cameos.

Here's my James Spader anecdote: In the mid-1990s I was walking on Mulholland Drive (as I did thrice weekly for fifteen years), near my Laurel Canyon house, and passed Spader going the other way, also on foot, with Christian Clemonson, who played his brother in Bad Influence (1990). I think they had a baby with them. In my usual starstruck awkwardness, I exclaimed, "So you really are brothers!" They ignored me and later Clemenson was in half of the episodes of Boston Legal.

Jones was nominated for the Palme d'Or at Cannes for this and The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada (2005), the only two features he has directed. Do be forewarned, there are a handful of scenes out of sequence, and one left me puzzled for several minutes. Two more warnings: this is not for kids and there's the possibility of learning a pretty big spoiler if you're not careful.

I expect recognition for many of the filmmakers, including cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto (last shot Argo) and composer Marco Beltrami (scored Snowpiercer). You can stream four cuts of this soundtrack on Beltrami's website.

The Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer is at a solid 80% for critics but only 53% for the philistines in the audience (for a discussion of philistines, watch this clip from The Squid and the Whale (2005), especially beginning at 1:10). Don't be a philistine. See this one on the big screen before the Oscars and before somebody gives away the twist.

Nightcrawler (2014)

Jack and I picked this story of a man driven to be the best news videographer in LA because of its Gotham Award nomination and thought it well worth our time. Jake Gyllenhaal is sublime as the tightly-wound, almost Aspergers-spectrum Lou and the cinematography by Robert Elswit (won his Oscar for There Will Be Blood (2007), nominated for Good Night, and Good Luck (2005), and did great work on Desert Hearts (1985), Hard Eight (1996), Boogie Nights (1997), Magnolia (1999), Heist (2001), Punch-Drunk Love (2002), Syriana (2005), Michael Clayton (2007), Duplicity, The Men Who Stare at Goats, Salt, The Town, and Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, among his dozens of credits) is beautiful and dark with fabulous helicopter shots of Los Angeles.

Gyllenhaal (last blogged in Prisoners) was described by one reviewer as "unblinking," and apparently blinks very little during this performance. I was too caught up in the story to notice, but Jack did. Gyllenhaal is gaunt, having lost 20 pounds for this role and should be nominated for something. The one who was, besides the director, however, is Riz Ahmed (new to me) as Lou's assistant Rick. Rene Russo (mentioned in Thor: The Dark World and linked to other blog posts in Thor) is good as the news director.

Director/writer Dan Gilroy, Russo's husband, makes his directorial debut; he co-wrote The Fall (2006) (a wonderful fantasy about a hospitalized stuntman telling supernatural stories to his fellow patient, a little girl) for director Tarsem Singh, and more; he's the brother of Tony Gilroy, who co-wrote all the Bourne movies then directed the last to a script he wrote with Dan). This script is tight and the pacing good.

James Newton Howard (most recently in these pages for scoring Larry Crowne) provides a tense soundtrack that can be accessed one track at a time beginning here.

Those afflicted with Motion-Picture-Motion-Sickness (MPMS list here) should take whatever measures possible because the cameras swing wildly throughout. In fact, those of you with that infirmity may want to wait until the DVD release in February 2015. It is still playing locally, however.

Rotten Tomatoes' critics and audiences agree with us this time, averaging 95% and 87%, respectively.

The Theory of Everything (2014)

Beautiful, romantic, sad, and inspiring, this story of genius Stephen Hawking (from age 21, when he could walk and talk, to his machine-voiced, wheelchair-bound 40s) through the eyes of his wife Jane is Oscar bait for the incredible performance of Eddie Redmayne--and Felicity Jones is no slouch, either. Redmayne sang in Les Misérables, but I didn't mention him because I'm in the 1% who didn't like that one. I covered him, however, in the excellent My Week with Marilyn (those of you who have seen the latter should read this hilarious synopsis, filled with spoilers). But I digress. Redmayne's scenes were not shot in chronological order, so he took extra care to note how much degeneration Hawking had suffered for each scene, and the contortions of his body are remarkable. I hope he didn't damage his spine! Jones (last blogged in The Invisible Woman) brings the fierce devotion of Jane Wilde Hawking, whose memoir Travelling to Infinity -- My Life with Stephen is the basis of this movie, to life. David Thewlis (most recently in War Horse) is fine as the warm professor and Charlie Cox (Irish soldier Owen in a series arc on Boardwalk Empire, though his broad smile was not much in evidence there) absolutely yummy as the choir master Jonathan. Emily Watson (last in Belle) is on screen too briefly as Jane's mother but the scene's punchline made everyone in the theatre laugh.

James Marsh (won his Oscar and more for the Philippe Petit documentary Man on Wire) directs from the screenplay adaptation by Anthony McCarten (a novelist in his own, er, write, he's new to me). The gorgeous cinematography, making full use of interesting lighting effects (oh, the fireworks!) is by Benoît Delhomme (A Most Wanted Man).

Scientist Kip Thorne is mentioned in this movie, and I knew the name because it came up in the trivia list for Interstellar the other night. He must be glad. Hawking himself loves this movie, and lent his actual "voice" to the project. And just yesterday, I saw this news item, that Hawking has been using the same talking device all these years, and Intel has designed him a new system that they plan to donate to and customize for other users as well.

The movie, beginning in 1963, has some great pop songs from the era and then moves into the glorious music of Jóhann Jóhannsson (the only one of his work I've seen is Prisoners), plus a little symphonic Wagner. Again, tonight, I've had trouble streaming music, but this playlist works pretty well, and is in sections, so you can reload the page when it stalls.

Rotten Tomatoes' critics at 83% and its audiences at 84 may be a wee bit less enthusiastic than Jack and I, but you should see this before the Oscars.

Laggies (2014)

Jack and I quite liked this story of a slacker in her 20s who hides out at the home of a teenager and her dad. Keira Knightley, Chloë Grace Moretz, and Sam Rockwell are wonderful in the top three roles (last blogged in Begin Again, Dark Shadows, and Better Living Through Chemistry, respectively). Also featuring good performances by Kaitlyn Dever (most recently in Men, Women & Children) as another teenager, Ellie Kemper (Bridesmaids) as an adult friend, and Jeff Garlin (I Want Someone to Eat Cheese With) as Knightley's father.

The title is a throwaway line of Dever's, "Come on, laggies!" when she wants the other kids to hurry up.

The beautiful establishing shots of Seattle are thanks to Ben Kasulke, who also shot Your Sister's Sister for director Lynn Shelton, and I looked up the spectacular location of the wedding early in the movie. It's called Chihuly Garden and Glass. Screenwriter Andrea Siegel makes her debut with this script.

Here's a taste of the sweet soundtrack by Benjamin Gibbard (known for Death Cab for Cutie and is Zooey Deschanel's ex-husband).

Critics are tepid at 69% on Rotten Tomatoes, and audiences worse at 58%. But I'll see and like anything with Rockwell, and you can find this streaming on amazon until the DVD comes out in February.

The Outrageous Sophie Tucker (2014)

Making the rounds at American Jewish film festivals, this documentary about the last of the red hot mamas is pretty entertaining, though Jack and I would have liked more performances and less footage of the biographers. We had no problem with the celebrities, however, such as Bette Midler, Michael Feinstein, Barbara Walters, Tony Bennett, Carol Channing, and more. Afterwards we looked at the website, where the biographers seem to have copyrighted Ms. Tucker's (1887-1966) name, and watched some videos linked therein. The soundtrack is available on amazon, but the movie is still playing one-nighters and isn't available to watch online, nor on DVD. When it is, it will be fun for any who remember or want to know more about the good old days.

The Wonders (2013)

This upbeat mystery about a slacker artist and a prophet held hostage across the street in Jerusalem is quite fun and is based on a true story. Screened as part of the local Jewish Film Festival, the audience was enthralled, both by the movie and the director/co-writer, Avi Nesher, who spoke afterwards. He said it had much to do with the contrast between the secular and the religious, and also that it was inspired by Alice in Wonderland and Chinatown (1974). For the former, our hero is known as Arnav, which is Hebrew for the word rabbit; there's a mad hatter; the equivalent of a smoking caterpillar; and creative animation. For the latter, Jerusalem is integral to the story, just as Los Angeles was to Chinatown.

Starring Ori Hizkiah as Arnav, Adir Miller as Gittes (always with a hat), Yehuda Levi as the prophet Knafo, and Yuval Scharf as the gorgeous redhead Ella, this is well worth your while and is available as a DVD on netflix and to stream on amazon (to be sure you get the right one, as the title isn't unique, pick the one with the redhead, the frizzy-haired guy, and the animated bunny).

Interstellar (2014)

Jack and I liked this sci-fi thriller about a future astronaut trying to save humanity from a dystopian Earth, despite its excessive (2:49) length, and we couldn't immediately think what to trim. I told the waitress at dinner that night that it had at least five stories and Jack added, "Each of them two hours long." McConaughey (last blogged in The Wolf of Wall Street) is well-suited to the role of the devoted father and maverick astronaut chosen to save the species as is Michael Caine (most recently in Now You See Me) as the éminence grise. Powerful performances are are given by Jessica Chastain (last in The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby) and young Mackenzie Foy. Anne Hathaway (most recently mentioned in Don Jon and linked to previous work in Les Misérables) plays the Sandra Bullock part, er, the co-astronaut, and it's always nice to see Ellen Burstyn (most recently in Draft Day), even in a cameo. That's the voice of Bill Irwin (I always think of him as a mime, which he played in Scenes from a Mall (1991), but maybe clown is more accurate; and then he's done a lot of good work in a lot of good projects, including Rachel Getting Married, which starred Hathaway, and Higher Ground) as the robot TARS.

Director Christopher Nolan and his brother Jonathan co-wrote the complex script; the same jobs they had on The Dark Knight Rises.

The magnificent images are shot by Hoyte van Hoytema (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy), though there are obviously a lot of computer generated effects. A filmmaker told me before we saw it that there is an awesome long tracking shot involving the pickup truck, but I missed it. The 92 items of trivia are fascinating and tell a lot about the science behind the movie.

Composer Hans Zimmer (The Amazing Spider-Man 2) is at the top of his game here with a majestic score. There are several places to stream the soundtrack. This is one (the ad on it for the new HBO series is great) but be forewarned that every site I tried stopped dead after a while--even after I rebooted my computer just now.

Those afflicted by Motion Picture Motion Sickness (MPMS) should sit in the back and look away occasionally.

Some are calling this the best movie of the decade. That's a prediction I find highly improbable. With critics on Rotten Tomatoes averaging 73% and audiences at 87, this is a must-see for science fiction buffs and McConaughey fans and not bad for anyone else, either.