We were engaged for 100 minutes by this nearly laugh-free drama about a teenage girl, sole caretaker of her young siblings and mentally ill mother, who has to find her father because he put up their home for his bail and then disappeared. Winner of the Sundance Grand Jury Prize, it boasts gorgeous gray shots of Ozark Missouri (by cinematographer Michael McDonough) and terrific performances by actors of whom we've seen little in the past. Starring as Ree Dolly, 20-year-old Jennifer Lawrence is in nearly every scene, which she can totally carry off. In supporting roles we have, among others, John Hawkes (Me and You and Everyone We Know (2005), American Gangster (2007)) as Ree's uncle Teardrop, Garret Dillahunt (plays the young grandfather in the very funny new comedy Raising Hope, created by Greg Garcia) as the sheriff, and Dale Dickey (who played Patty the Daytime Hooker on My Name is Earl, a now-canceled comedy by Greg Garcia) as the scary neighbor Merab.
It also won the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award at Sundance for director/co-writer Debra Granik and co-writer Anne Rosellini (they adapted from a novel by Daniel Woodrell). There will be inevitable comparisons to Frozen River, due to its chilly, rural setting, its female-led cast, its mid-fall release, and its Oscar buzz. We saw it in its last days at the dollar theatre, having avoided it due to the downbeat nature of the subject, and were glad we finally saw it. It's available now on netflix. Don't turn it off at the beginning of the credits because, rare for a drama, there's a tiny little bonus at the end (I think. We saw this over 10 days and four movies ago). Check it out and watch Raising Hope afterwards to raise your spirits. And also watch Greg Garcia's acceptance speech at the 2008 Emmy Awards.
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Sunday, November 14, 2010
A Secret (Un secret - 2007)
This gripping and beautiful drama, about a huge secret in a dysfunctional family, was on my radar screen because of its 11 César (French Academy) nominations (won only supporting actress for Julie Depardieu (Gérard's daughter) who plays Louise), as well as the starring role of Cécile de France (I wrote about her in Hereafter) as Tania. Based on a semi-autobiographical novel by Philippe Grimbert, adapted and directed by Claude Miller, it jumps around in time from 1955 to the present to before and during World War II. It also stars Patrick Bruel as Maxime, Mathieu Amalric (The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007), Quantum of Solace, Wild Grass) as the adult François, two talented boys, Valentin Vigourt (who looks a lot like Lukas Haas did in Witness (1985)) and Quentin Dubuis, as younger versions of François, and the radiant Ludivine Sagnier (Swimming Pool (2003), Moliére (2007), 8 Women (8 femmes - 2002), Paris Je T'aime (2006)) as Hannah.
The luscious cinematography is by Gérard de Battista and the moving score is composed by Zbigniew Preisner. This played at many Jewish Film Festivals around the country, but, if you missed it, you can get the DVD from netflix or watch it right now, streaming on your computer, from the netflix site. I suggest you do!
The luscious cinematography is by Gérard de Battista and the moving score is composed by Zbigniew Preisner. This played at many Jewish Film Festivals around the country, but, if you missed it, you can get the DVD from netflix or watch it right now, streaming on your computer, from the netflix site. I suggest you do!
A Matter of Size (2009)
This delightful comedy from Israel is about an overweight man who, in an effort to make peace with his size, takes up Sumo wrestling with some friends from his weight-loss meeting (definitely NOT 12-step inspired). Having garnered 13 nominations (everything) and 3 wins (actress, supporting actress, costumes) at the Israeli Academy Awards, it's been optioned by Harvey Weinstein for an American remake. The award winners, Levana Finkelstein and Irit Kaplan, play his mother and girlfriend respectively. Co-director co-writer Sharon Maymon (a slim man) describes coming up with the idea in this spoiler-free interview, and how he met co-director Erez Tadmor, who is also not, as former NPR commentator Daniel Pinkwater described himself to Tom and Ray Magliozzi, circumferentially challenged. All the acting is great, by Israelis previously unknown to me and one Japanese man, Togo Igawa (Memoirs of a Geisha (2005), The Last Samurai (2003), more), but the writing really sparkles, affording plenty of, you should forgive the expression, belly laughs.
The DVD release date hasn't yet been announced (I was lucky enough to see this at one of the many Jewish Film Festivals that have screened it). So just remember what babetteflix told you, and put it on your "Save" list on netflix. Then we can all compare the remake to the original.
The DVD release date hasn't yet been announced (I was lucky enough to see this at one of the many Jewish Film Festivals that have screened it). So just remember what babetteflix told you, and put it on your "Save" list on netflix. Then we can all compare the remake to the original.
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Red (2010)
We enjoyed this silly geezer action romp that was #4 at the box office last weekend, three weeks after release. With cartoonish violence, spectacular locations, and great wardrobe, especially Dame Helen Mirren's, the movie, based on a graphic novel, will entertain anyone who doesn't cringe at a shoot-'em-up for shooting's sake. Jack and I sometimes call ourselves geezers, though we're not quite old enough to qualify for senior prices at the mutliplex. The stars Bruce Willis, John Malkovich, Mirren, Morgan Freeman, and Mary-Louise Parker are, at this time, 55, 56, 65, 73, and 46, respectively. Parker isn't supposed to be a geezer, but Willis's character, like the other three, is RED (retired, extremely dangerous). And for geezers of our age and above, Ernest Borgnine (he is 93 years old! Doesn't look a day over 90. He won his Oscar for Marty in 1955, and Jack and I both remember him in McHale's Navy on TV in the mid 1960s and more. See what you remember from his resumé) has a cameo.
Willis (my faves: Die Hard (1988, 1990, 1995), Bonfire of the Vanities (1990), Twelve Monkeys (1995), Alpha Dog (2006), What Just Happened) is so clearly able to laugh at himself (watch this!) that we can easily do so when he's onscreen. I wrote about Malkovich (who can also laugh at himself) in The Great Buck Howard, Mirren in The Last Station, Freeman in Invictus, Parker in A Solitary Man, and they all add to the comedy, as does Brian Cox (I loved Running with Scissors (2006), and he was in Fantastic Mr. Fox and much more, including another movie called Red in 2008--I didn't see it), who is 64, as the Russian. Playing it straight are Karl Urban and Rebecca Pidgeon (Mrs. David Mamet--she annoys me every time with her wooden demeanor, including in the excellent The Spanish Prisoner (1997) and the hilarious State and Main (2000), and this is no exception). I'm not familiar with director Robert Schwentke, nor brothers Jon and Erich Hoeber, who adapted the graphic novel by Warren Ellis and Cully Hamner, but obviously they've got some chops.
Prolific composer Christophe Beck (here, you may read it yourself) provides James Bond-like music, and the songs are listed on imdb. We didn't see The Expendables earlier this year, and I haven't seen a review that doesn't mention it in comparison to this one, so I am unqualified to compare. Still, we had fun.
Willis (my faves: Die Hard (1988, 1990, 1995), Bonfire of the Vanities (1990), Twelve Monkeys (1995), Alpha Dog (2006), What Just Happened) is so clearly able to laugh at himself (watch this!) that we can easily do so when he's onscreen. I wrote about Malkovich (who can also laugh at himself) in The Great Buck Howard, Mirren in The Last Station, Freeman in Invictus, Parker in A Solitary Man, and they all add to the comedy, as does Brian Cox (I loved Running with Scissors (2006), and he was in Fantastic Mr. Fox and much more, including another movie called Red in 2008--I didn't see it), who is 64, as the Russian. Playing it straight are Karl Urban and Rebecca Pidgeon (Mrs. David Mamet--she annoys me every time with her wooden demeanor, including in the excellent The Spanish Prisoner (1997) and the hilarious State and Main (2000), and this is no exception). I'm not familiar with director Robert Schwentke, nor brothers Jon and Erich Hoeber, who adapted the graphic novel by Warren Ellis and Cully Hamner, but obviously they've got some chops.
Prolific composer Christophe Beck (here, you may read it yourself) provides James Bond-like music, and the songs are listed on imdb. We didn't see The Expendables earlier this year, and I haven't seen a review that doesn't mention it in comparison to this one, so I am unqualified to compare. Still, we had fun.
Monday, November 8, 2010
Never Let Me Go (2010)
This was beautiful and sad and would have been surprising had I not accidentally read the second sentence of the netflix description, so beware (unless you've already read the Kazuo Ishiguro novel). With an Oscar-worthy soundtrack (here's a taste) by Rachel Portman, it could easily get Carey Mulligan another nomination (as she did in An Education; her breakthrough role was as Keira Knightley's sister Kitty Bennet in Pride and Prejudice (2005)). Mulligan's face speaks volumes without her opening her mouth, and when she does, we feel the great burdens her character Kathy endures here. Knightley's (I'm finally beginning to warm to her a little; I did love Bend it Like Beckham (2002) and liked The Duchess; anyone could have filled her roles in the Pirates of the Caribbean series, in my opinion) work is fine here as Ruth, but it's Mulligan's movie, though Andrew Garfield (also great in The Social Network and The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus) does a great job as Tommy, and the supporting cast is also outstanding: Izzy Meikle-Small, making her feature debut as young Kathy, Ella Purnell (also a debut, with two upcoming) as young Ruth, and Charlotte Rampling (after I wrote my faves in The Duchess, she had a cameo in Life During Wartime, which I forgot to mention), Sally Hawkins (Happy-Go-Lucky and a small but pivotal role in Mulligan's An Education), and Nathalie Richard (many credits, my favorite of which was Irma Vep (1996), in which she played the cute wardrobe mistress with a crush on Maggie Cheung) as some of the teachers/adults in their lives.
Most of the PR for this movie says, "From the director of One Hour Photo," which was a good and creepy 2002 movie with Robin Williams, and the only other feature directed by Mark Romanek (he's done some documentary work). Alex Garland, who adapted Ishiguro's novel for the screen, is a novelist himself; his first, The Beach, was adapted into the 2000 Danny Boyle-directed, Leo DiCaprio-starring movie of the same name. He's written two other novels and two more Boyle-directed screenplays (28 Days Later (2002) and Sunshine (2007)). Ishiguro's novel, a finalist for the Booker Prize and also titled Never Let Me Go, is his sixth and most recent, published in 2005. His third, the Booker Prize-winning The Remains of the Day from 1989, was made into a 1993 movie of the same name nominated for eight Oscars, including for Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson in the leading roles and James Ivory for directing, but it didn't win any. I was interested to learn that producer Andrew Macdonald has produced, among others, six of Boyle's nine movies (three above, plus Shallow Grave (1994), Trainspotting (1996), and A Life Less Ordinary (1997)--not Millions, Slumdog Millionaire, nor 127 Hours, which is to be released next week), and was the producer to whom Garland brought his spec script when the novel was not yet published.
Portman, who was Oscar-nominated for the scores for The Cider House Rules (1999) and Chocolat (2000), won for Emma (1996), and also scored The Duchess, has given us mesmerizing music to which I'm listening as I type. Some of the other songs in this movie are listed at imdb, which does not disclose the spoiler that's on netflix (to be fair, the fact is revealed about 30 minutes in). Since I'm a bit behind in writing, I haven't had a chance to read all the interesting-looking stuff on the movie's official website, so have at it.
Sorry, but we waited so long to see this, and then I took longer to write, that it's left the big screens in our area. The projected DVD release is February 2011. You probably shouldn't watch it in bed because I advise watching something that will make you laugh before going to sleep if you, like I, watch TV in bed). Do something fun or funny afterwards. But do see it.
Most of the PR for this movie says, "From the director of One Hour Photo," which was a good and creepy 2002 movie with Robin Williams, and the only other feature directed by Mark Romanek (he's done some documentary work). Alex Garland, who adapted Ishiguro's novel for the screen, is a novelist himself; his first, The Beach, was adapted into the 2000 Danny Boyle-directed, Leo DiCaprio-starring movie of the same name. He's written two other novels and two more Boyle-directed screenplays (28 Days Later (2002) and Sunshine (2007)). Ishiguro's novel, a finalist for the Booker Prize and also titled Never Let Me Go, is his sixth and most recent, published in 2005. His third, the Booker Prize-winning The Remains of the Day from 1989, was made into a 1993 movie of the same name nominated for eight Oscars, including for Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson in the leading roles and James Ivory for directing, but it didn't win any. I was interested to learn that producer Andrew Macdonald has produced, among others, six of Boyle's nine movies (three above, plus Shallow Grave (1994), Trainspotting (1996), and A Life Less Ordinary (1997)--not Millions, Slumdog Millionaire, nor 127 Hours, which is to be released next week), and was the producer to whom Garland brought his spec script when the novel was not yet published.
Portman, who was Oscar-nominated for the scores for The Cider House Rules (1999) and Chocolat (2000), won for Emma (1996), and also scored The Duchess, has given us mesmerizing music to which I'm listening as I type. Some of the other songs in this movie are listed at imdb, which does not disclose the spoiler that's on netflix (to be fair, the fact is revealed about 30 minutes in). Since I'm a bit behind in writing, I haven't had a chance to read all the interesting-looking stuff on the movie's official website, so have at it.
Sorry, but we waited so long to see this, and then I took longer to write, that it's left the big screens in our area. The projected DVD release is February 2011. You probably shouldn't watch it in bed because I advise watching something that will make you laugh before going to sleep if you, like I, watch TV in bed). Do something fun or funny afterwards. But do see it.
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Nowhere Boy (2009)
Kristin Scott-Thomas is wonderful as the chilly aunt Mimi who raised John Lennon, and Anne-Marie Duff adorable as her free-spirited sister Julia, but Aaron Johnson is a bit too earnest as the teenage John Lennon in a turbulent time of his life. Think Eric Stoltz who was cut from Back to the Future. Acting chops, sure, and cute as a button, but so SERIOUS, even when John is being playful. Although maybe it's the turbulence of the story or the directing and I'm blaming the wrong person. Then, there's another issue I have that's kind of a spoiler, in my opinion, so ask me off the page and I'll tell you. I liked Johnson's work in Kick-Ass and Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging, and he helps us feel young John's pain. We just don't see his funny side after the first 15 minutes, and we know Lennon had one. Some of my faves of Thomas' work: Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994), The English Patient (1996) which got her an Oscar nomination, The Horse Whisperer (1998), Gosford Park (2001), Life as a House (2001), and I've Loved You So Long. Duff, who played the severe Sasha Tolstoy in The Last Station and was in the great Is Anybody There?, finally gets a meaty role here and skips away with it (that's a good thing). 20 year old (same age as Johnson) Thomas Brodie Sangster, who plays Paul McCartney, looks nothing like Paul but seemed so familiar when I saw him onscreen. That's because I saw him in the trailers for Nanny McPhee (2005), and he played Liam Neeson's son in Love Actually (2003) and Fanny Brawne's little brother in Bright Star. Sangster knew how to play the guitar when he got the part, but had to learn to do it left-handed to match Paul.
This is director Sam Taylor-Wood's feature debut. The other noteworthy thing about this 43 year old is that she is engaged to her star Johnson and their baby girl was born less than a month after his 20th birthday. Perhaps they're waiting until he's of legal age to tie the knot? Oh, wait. Wikipedia says that in the United Kingdom the age of consent is 16. Taylor-Wood has two daughters by her first marriage, the elder of whom, Angelica Jopling, born in 1997, plays Lennon's young half sister, also named Julia (her married name is now Julia Baird).
Apparently screenwriter Matt Greenhalgh is a bit free-spirited with the facts, and, although imdb gives Baird's memoir Imagine This - Growing up with my brother John Lennon a writing credit, she is a nowhere girl in the movie's credits. Johnson gets credit for vocals and guitar (as part of the band called The Nowhere Boys), as does Sam Bell, who plays George Harrison, but Sangster does not. The 33 song soundtrack (the first 18 songs are in the movie and the last 15 are "inspired" by it) should do well with its 50's era rock 'n' roll, a few songs by The Nowhere Boys, and Mother by John Lennon. The only Lennon music you will hear are the opening chord from A Hard Day's Night at the opening of the movie, and Mother over the credits. Here's a track from the movie and the real thing for your enjoyment.
I am in the minority for not loving this unabashedly. Rottentomatoes gives it 81% from critics, though only 70% from audiences. Roger Ebert gives it 3½ stars, and there are plenty of things to recommend it in addition to the acting and music above: sets, costumes, great greaser hair, and Liverpool and Blackpool locations. For the record, Jack liked it better than I did, and I think it's worth seeing. Plus I want to know what you think!
This is director Sam Taylor-Wood's feature debut. The other noteworthy thing about this 43 year old is that she is engaged to her star Johnson and their baby girl was born less than a month after his 20th birthday. Perhaps they're waiting until he's of legal age to tie the knot? Oh, wait. Wikipedia says that in the United Kingdom the age of consent is 16. Taylor-Wood has two daughters by her first marriage, the elder of whom, Angelica Jopling, born in 1997, plays Lennon's young half sister, also named Julia (her married name is now Julia Baird).
Apparently screenwriter Matt Greenhalgh is a bit free-spirited with the facts, and, although imdb gives Baird's memoir Imagine This - Growing up with my brother John Lennon a writing credit, she is a nowhere girl in the movie's credits. Johnson gets credit for vocals and guitar (as part of the band called The Nowhere Boys), as does Sam Bell, who plays George Harrison, but Sangster does not. The 33 song soundtrack (the first 18 songs are in the movie and the last 15 are "inspired" by it) should do well with its 50's era rock 'n' roll, a few songs by The Nowhere Boys, and Mother by John Lennon. The only Lennon music you will hear are the opening chord from A Hard Day's Night at the opening of the movie, and Mother over the credits. Here's a track from the movie and the real thing for your enjoyment.
I am in the minority for not loving this unabashedly. Rottentomatoes gives it 81% from critics, though only 70% from audiences. Roger Ebert gives it 3½ stars, and there are plenty of things to recommend it in addition to the acting and music above: sets, costumes, great greaser hair, and Liverpool and Blackpool locations. For the record, Jack liked it better than I did, and I think it's worth seeing. Plus I want to know what you think!
Monday, November 1, 2010
Freakonomics (2010)
We thought this documentary based on the best-selling book (that Jack loved and I have not read) was fun. Economist Steven Levitt and journalist Stephen Dubner's book examines "the hidden side of everything" (well, six things) and the movie covers four of them with humor, live action, animation, six directors, ten writers, and twenty producers (not the most--the current record-holder is 23). Director Seth Gordon (The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters (2007) which is one of Matt Groening's favorite documentaries, some episodes of some of my favorite TV comedies, and Four Christmases) creates the introductory and transitional segments. Morgan Spurlock (Super Size Me (2004), 30 Days) narrates, as he usually does, the chapter called A Roshanda By Any Other Name, a fast-moving treatise on baby names in America, written by him and documentary producer Jeremy Chilnick (they made Where in the World is Osama bin Laden? (2008) together). The Alex Gibney (won Oscar for doc Taxi to the Dark Side (2007), also directed Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room (2005) and Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson (2008), none of which I've seen) chapter, Pure Corruption, written by him and Peter Bull, is mostly about Sumo wrestling, with a little AIG and Lehman Brothers thrown in. In my opinion, it was the slowest. Then, the most controversial, It's Not Always a Wonderful Life, written and directed by Eugene Jarecki. I won't reveal the controversy just in case you haven't read the book. When the chapter concluded I realized the concept was familiar to me. And lastly, Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady (Oscar nominated for Jesus camp (2006)--I meant to see it but didn't) write and direct the chapter Can a Ninth Grader Be Bribed to Succeed? The two ninth graders are appealing and their moms are good sports.
The transition segments with Dubner and Levitt holding court are entertaining, too, reminding me of something I read long ago: there are few things more fun than having someone ask you to talk about your passion. These guys are really smart, created their work, love their work, and do not take themselves seriously. They run an ongoing blog on the New York Times site. If you want to know more about the book, here's a wiki summary (it gives away the controversy above). Another interesting thing about this movie is that it was released online BEFORE theatrically, though we saw it in a traditional theatre. The DVD release date is unknown by netflix. We recommend this movie for smart people.
The transition segments with Dubner and Levitt holding court are entertaining, too, reminding me of something I read long ago: there are few things more fun than having someone ask you to talk about your passion. These guys are really smart, created their work, love their work, and do not take themselves seriously. They run an ongoing blog on the New York Times site. If you want to know more about the book, here's a wiki summary (it gives away the controversy above). Another interesting thing about this movie is that it was released online BEFORE theatrically, though we saw it in a traditional theatre. The DVD release date is unknown by netflix. We recommend this movie for smart people.
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