MOVIE REVIEW - Family Stone, The (2005)

Why is it that women (e.g., Diane's character) can be horribly manipulative, but a chuckle and wink makes them supposedly loveable? There were definite funny moments - more like chuckle moments as opposed to laugh out loud moments. And it just wasn't heartwarming enough to make up for its medium humor. The audience liked the movie much more than I did. The best scene was with Dylan and Diane, when she told him the bad news. She picked a manipulative time to reveal, which annoyed me; but the emotions were heartfelt and very touching. Sarah was supposed to be uptight, but she was way TOO uptight - like she (the actress) was trying too hard to be as uptight as possible. Seems that most any actress could've done better, and yet she gets the GG nod. The first glance between Dylan and Claire was too obvious. There was one shot of Sarah and Luke side by side - my, what a nose their kid would have. SO MANY movies this year have been subtly (or not so subtly) chock full of Agenda - it gets old.

MOVIE REVIEW - Walk The Line (2005)

In format, it was too similar to Ray - while at a concert, superstar has a flashback to his childhood, which tells his story up to that concert; then continues through his drug abuse, marriages, success, and he finally gets clean. Then, one sentence written on the screen at the end that says "And they lived happily ever after." I'm not sure why they copied the format so meticulously, but it worked better here than in Ray. Joaquin's singing voice was terrible in the beginning (mimicking Johnny's pretty well), and it got much stronger as Johnny's success grew. He did an admirable (Oscar worthy? possible, but not a lock) job throughout, showing despair, the draw toward June, and ultimately, contentment. There were several moments when the creepy Joaquin (of To Die For and Gladiator) came out - but this is probably accurate for Johnny, too. Reese did fine, but she was a little too "Reese" - I don't think her performance was Oscar worthy. The drug use was depicted well - not as pervading as in Ray, and not as gross (maybe because it was pills instead of needles?). Overall, better than I expected, but I expected Bad.

MOVIE REVIEW - Syriana (2005)

I felt like I was reading the Wall Street Journal - I needed more background information on the oil industry, terrorism, and the even on the fictional characters in this movie to be able to follow the story and sort through the clear bias. There is so much going on, so many messages being shoved down my throat, it's hard to keep it all straight. I never fully understood what Clooney's character was doing. Or Damon's. Or any other character, I guess. The story was too convoluted to follow - I needed it spelled out further. Clooney to Plummer: "In this town, you're innocent until you're investigated." - I think that was supposed to be profound, but again, I didn't get it. I mean, I get it, but I don't get why it matters.

What messages are being presented? Amid the fog, I caught a few definite ones. Chris Cooper, on his success: "Luck and hard work. Nobody handed me Shit." Meaning, my arrogance is acceptable, my stepping on the little people is acceptable; and implying, this is common behavior of The Suits. Jeffrey Wright, making deals with the justice department: "We're looking for the illusion of diligence" - apparently making some damning commentary on the current administration. Damon on oil: "It's running out!" Amanda Peet on parenting: "Let him work it out on his own. It's important for his autonomy." The corruption speech by Tim Blake Nelson was overly preachy. When the Suits were applauding the new empire, I got a vision of how Hollywood sees corporations - and the vision is ridiculous. Are there evil men in the world, even in the corporate world? Of course - evil men are everywhere. Is this a typical behavior of Corporate America? Absolutely not.

Other random comments: I'm not sure why it was necessary for Clooney to gain 40 pounds for this role - the extra weight only seemed to distract from his character. The torture scene was excellent and intense. It was very weird to see the dead kid splashing in the fountain - what did that serve?

MOVIE REVIEW - Mr. And Mrs. Smith (2005)

All reviews I read were bad. Friends said it was bad. The friends I watched it with said it was bad. I thought it was great fun. It's about a couple whose marriage was based completely on lies - and when the lies are revealed, they have to either kill each other (and boy, do they try), or learn to communicate. It was fun watching their aggressive attempts at both. There were incredibly unrealistic scenes - like when these two assassins were pinned in by 50 professional killers chasing them, and the bullets consistently missed them (multiple such scenes). And the therapy sessions felt out of place with the rest of the action and tension in the relationship. But Brad and Angelina played it a bit like Ocean's Eleven - a "we're so cool, you're just gonna like us, no matter how annoying we are" style. And for me, I must've agreed, because I liked them and rooted for them.

MOVIE REVIEW - City Hall (1996)

I've heard that this movie is a mediocre political thriller; but I thought it was a step above. Great acting from Pacino, John Cusack, and Danny Aiello (especially the latter). You know where the story is headed, straight to the center of political corruption, and yet the ride getting there is profound. The score was slowly intense - not ever scary, but kept pulling me in and had me rooting for the good guys. A bit of a cheasy epilogue by Cusack's character. Overall, much better than I expected.

MOVIE REVIEW - Happy Endings (2005)

Not as wildly unpleasant as the hideous "Happiness", but I would not exactly say these vignettes have Happy Endings… or Happy Beginnings or Middles, either. These are mediocre stories of mediocre people in the middle of doing rather mundane things. Maggie plays her typical slutty, liberal-agenda self; Lisa Kudrow plays her typical-in-Indies uptight self. The movie (in narrator-like words written on the screen) says that "it's a comedy - sort of". I think we must have different definitions for the word comedy.

MOVIE REVIEW - Skeleton Key, The (2005)

I watched this thriller last night, and my mind is still doing somersaults this morning. The movie floats along rather typically, leading through the secrets of the house, the understated appeal of Kate Hudson's hospice worker, and building a tension between Kate and Gena Rowlands' caretaker wife. All rather standard for a thriller. But once the plot resolves, this is no longer a standard mind game. From the previews, I expected a horror movie. While it deals with the occult, it is not horror at all - just a good puzzle with very cool turns. As usual, great supporting roles for John Hurt and Peter Sarsgaard, and Gena was fabulous and appropriately scary as Kate's nemesis.

MOVIE REVIEW - Last Time I Committed Suicide, The (1997)

Story of Neal Cassady, the man who was a folk hero of The Beat movement in the '60s and was an inspiration for The Grateful Dead. This movie covers only the early years, before his road trips. And nothing much happens. Decent acting and filmmaking, but just not much of a story. If they were trying to show something in his character that would inspire a movement, either I didn't see it, or I don't value the movement - not sure which.

MOVIE REVIEW - King Kong (2005)

I wanted to love it. And I liked it. But there were Many moments where I found myself looking at my watch, impatiently wondering why this scene wasn't cut from this overly-indulgent 3 hour movie. Kong himself was terrific - not in the least computer-y (no Hulk debacle here). He looked like a super-huge ape, as he should. And he had a wide range of emotions - from rage to humor to sadness to affection. Naomi was flawless - an excellent choice for the love interest - frail and daring and funny and sad. Although, why did the director make her keep on the 4" high heels while traversing the Empire ladder? Adrian was, well, ugly as usual. Jack Black was the wrong choice. I like Jack - he's wacky-funny. And even though he toned down his eccentricities, his Jack-ness still came through too strong for this role. Definitely entertaining, and very well done on the Kong front - but needed some improvement.

MOVIE REVIEW - Jacket, The (2005)

I just can't get past how ugly Adrian Brody is - that nose, it just draws my eyes and I can't look away, can't watch the portrayal he's trying to give. And why does Keira think her only option to separate herself from the teeny-bopper crowd is to play unpleasant, drugged out, renegade, attitude-chicks? She's a great actress, incredibly beautiful, and I just don't like her character choices these days. This mental health thriller has a decent premise until it introduces time travel into the story. It's not a terrible film, but I couldn't leap as far as they required of me.

MOVIE REVIEW - Chronicles Of Narnia, The: The Lion, The Witch, And The Wardrobe (2005)

There were moments I was captivated by the beauty and the magic. There were moments when my heartstrings were tugged nicely. But the movie's fatal flaw is similar to Harry Potter and many movies today - the heroes are kids. And no offense to these competent child actors, but they just don't have the range of those who have trained for the profession. Endearing? Yes. And while I did root for them to win the battle, it was too easy to step back, out of the emotional drama, and realize that this is just a movie carried by young teens. My favorite parts were the nicely developed friendship between Lucy and Mr. Tumnus. And I loved the line: "He's not a tame lion. But he is good."

MOVIE REVIEW - Mindhunters (2004)

Almost B-movie quality thriller. Christian Slater and Val Kilmer have very small roles as FBI agents - Christian and a group of others are in training as Profilers. They are taken to an island, and Ten Little Indians (And Then There Were None) begins. Nothing original, only mildly entertaining.

MOVIE REVIEW - March Of The Penguins (2005)

Wow. Wow, I was blown away by this lovely, compelling, wonderfully told story of the migrations, mating habits, and survival techniques of Emperor Penguins in Antartica. Beautifully narrated by the pensive Morgan Freeman, we learn of the severe weather conditions they endure, the brilliance of their journey, the cuteness and beauty of their bodies and movements, the dedication to their offspring's survival. This documentary draws you in from the initial scene, first through the gorgeous landscape and glaciers, quickly moving to the fascinating story of these penguins. This is not the kind of movie that I typically enjoy, but this is So Well Done and such a wonderful story, that I recommend it to all as a Must See.

MOVIE REVIEW - Stealth (2005)

Decent action, good sound effects flying the plane, but a fairly weak storyline.

MOVIE REVIEW - Rent (2005)

The opening sequence is amazing. I love the "Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes" Seasons Of Love song. There is some mega-vocal talent here - especially the women, but also a surprising Taye Diggs. Jessie L. Martin, uh, not so much - please find a key. Rosario sings surprisingly well and is hot. But she's supposed to be 19? She's 26 and looks 32. Idina Menzel and Traci Thoms were my favorite singers, playing Joanna and Maureen. I also like Jessie's Santa Fe song and choreography on the subway.

Other than that, I hated it. The lyrics were ridiculously contrived. The Rent song, the Candle Burned Out song, the I Should Tell You song (ugh - just tell me), and especially during Mimi and Roger's first kiss… "Here goes… here goes… here goes…" GO ALREADY! Maureen's protest dramatization was embarrassingly awful. "Moo with me" is right. The scenery felt like a stage, not a movie set; and yet it drew me in less than a typical high school production. The snow was even fake - it clearly was plastic laying on their shoulders in the bar.

Emotionally, the movie consistently missed the mark. I am supposed to be happy about an impromptu commitment ceremony on the street between Maureen and Joanna? When their entire relationship has been wholly unstable? And in the very next scene, they Do break up. So no, I don't feel guilty for rolling my eyes at that quicky engagement. The disappearing AIDS group buddies was emotionally manipulative, but without the desired effect.
Intellectually, it was severely lacking. "The opposite of war is not peace; it is creation". Huh? This is supposed to be deep? Get a job, people, pay your rent.

I was most infuriated by the Bohemia song in the bar. "Here's to marijuana, here's to Pee Wee Herman, here's to dildos, here's to anything Taboo" - all the while, with the suits looking on from the next table in judgment. Maddening. That's the point, you say? Fine, I'm a suit. Here are people - drug users, promiscuous, artists who refuse to pay rent for years – who somehow pervert their world view so that they see themselves as morally superior. Sickening.
The best result of the movie, even better than the opening sequence, is that it gives me greater appreciation for the Broadway scene (Lease) in Team America: World Police.

MOVIE REVIEW - History Of Violence, A (2005)

Standard violent thriller fare. Viggo is a small-town good guy dad who gets caught in a nasty battle in the diner he owns; then a mob boss mistakes him for a former mobster; and all hell breaks loose. A movie this violent should be more interesting.

MOVIE REVIEW - World According To Garp, The (1982)

I think I've become too politically polarized. I just can't put up with preachy, self-righteous propaganda movies. Garp starts out a little endearing, but quickly becomes a sermon. Predictable and depressing, I wanted the movie to end a full hour earlier.

MOVIE REVIEW - Gothika (2003)

Nothing new or entertaining here. This is a followup to an Oscar win? Halle looked completely lost in this lame mental thriller.

MOVIE REVIEW - Capote (2005)

A softly compelling story about the writing of Truman Capote's last book. Phillip Seymour Hoffman gives one of his typical standout performances in an extremely quirky role. Hoffman's Capote is confident in his nonconformity, has a fragile line of sanity, drinks like a fish to escape the pain of being misunderstood. The friendship developed between Capote and Perry (the criminal) is touching and manipulative at the same time. As Perry's fate kept getting delayed, so the movie dragged on. What started as interesting ultimately became tedious.

My main problem with this film is that it continues a current trend in Hollywood: a movie about the making of the creative process. This film is about Capote's writing of his famous book. Same with Neverland. Half of Good Night and Good Luck was a reenactment of newscasts. Bewitched was the worst, a movie about the making of a movie which is a remake of a TV show. Has Hollywood run out of actual ideas, and now has to analyze the ideas of others and call that creativity?