Movie Review: A Single Man

A Single Man is so-far, my favorite movie from this Oscar Season. Not just because it's written & directed by Tom Ford, yes, he of Gucci fame, or because it's beautifully acted by Colin Firth & Matthew Goode & Julianne Moore.

This movie is really, really good. It's well shot, the music score is haunting, the slow-cut scenes are well-thought, and as-expected, there is great attention to detail. For a first-time Writer, Producer & Director, this is an awesome accomplishment from Tom Ford.

Movie Review: Nine

Nine is an ok movie, but not great...and not really that good.

Daniel Day Lewis, how i HATE to say this, but you were not the right pick for this role. Even Antonio Banderas would have been better. Marion Cotillard got very little screen time except to look pathetic and sorry, even though she's stunningly beautiful. Penelope Cruz was fantastic as the mistress, but quickly got dissolved into dribble.

The two bright spots - Fergie, who's number "Be Italian" is THE highlight of the movie and what any number of sorry moviegoers will remember. Second only to Kate Hudson, surprisingly really really good as an extremely flirty reporter for Vogue, and her rendition of "Cinema Italiano" has people moving and dancing in their seats.

But that's it, the two highlights. Judi Dench, Sophia Loren, others...sadly misused. There was a good, maybe great, movie in here somewhere, but it didn't make it to the cutting floor. Ugh, here's hoping Rob Marshall does better next time.

Movie Review: The Hurt Locker

The Hurt Locker: Easily Kathryn Bigelow's best work to-date. Although be warned, if you are not a fan of the hand-held camera movie, this is prob not for you.

The tension is high with this bomb-defusing crew in post-Iraqi-invasion occupied Baghdad, but the undercut drama is actually quite good. The "adrenaline-junky" syndrome, the razor-like focus required by the bomb squad, the un-release of dramatic tensions, it's all here.

This is a great example of and "inside the war" film, which are usually done very badly - meaning they make the soldiers look bad and do nothing to explain how they arrived at a point. Bigelow is great in this aspect making it a much more thought-provoking, if still-disturbing film.

Great lead in Jeremy Renner as the leader of the Bomb Unit. He's been a standout in most of his action films, this is no exception. The cameo appearances in the movie from Guy Pierce and Ralph Fiennes are unexpected but a nice treat for movie goers.

Enjoy this one, it might be a few more years again before we get more Bigelow on the big screen.

Movie Review: Up In The Air

Up In The Air: It's everything we've come to expect from a Jason Reitman film - witty, funny, insightful, sometimes hitting right below the gut in the way that relationships can do...

It helps that George Clooney turns in one of the best performances of his career, and is supported by a great cast including Vera Farmiga, his female equivalent in the movie, and Anna Kendrick, mostly known for her smaller Twilight/New Moon roles, gets a huge step forward here.

In the end, Clooney learns that it's not about the end of the 10 million miles flown to get the big card, but the sucking that happens when you get to the end and have no one to share it with.

Movie Review: Brothers

Brothers is an adaptation of a Dutch film by the same name. Tobey Maguire, Jake Gyllenhaal & Natalie Portman all deliver fantastic performances, supported by Sam Shepard & Mare Winningham. Tobey's ordeal in Afghanistan including some gruesome torture scenes, followed by his return home, and trouble in returning to a home where he was presumed dead, is torture on the souls watching.

Tommy, played by Jake, is the bad boy everyone loves, and watching he and Natalie Portman together is actually very enjoyable and believable. The trouble starts when the presumed-dead Sam (Maguire) returns home 4 months later.

The untold sleeper hit in this movie is not any of the principal actors, but Bailee Madison who played Isabelle Cahill. For a child actor of her age (9 at film time) to display such a range of emotion and depth, it's un-nverving. She more than any of the dramatic performances in the move, steals every scene for me. Here's hoping we get to see more of her in future dramas!

Loved the movie, and this after I was genuinely afraid it might just be a Lifetime-movie put on the big screen. But the powerful performances by every actor in the movie, good script, and able direction by Jim Sheridan proved me wrong and left me wanting more.

Movie Review: The Road

Warning to the faint-hearted, beware when you see The Road, it's not for sissies.

Viggo Mortensen is his usual, commanding self as a loving father willing to do anything for his son. John Hillcoat & crew do a fan-freaking-tastic job of painting the most realistic, post-apocalypse landscape I've ever seen in any recent movie. This is no bubble gum, post-war movie. The Road makes you sit-up and pay attention, because you have a scary, deep-gut feeling that you are getting a glimpse of one very-possible future of our planet...and it's terrifying and awe-inspiring at the same time.

What I love most about the Road's intense scenes has nothing to do with what it actually shown to you, but what you think, what you know, is just above the horizon, out the window, lurking in a shadow, or waiting around the corner...fascinating and deeply terrifying.

The breakthrough here is Kodi Smit-McPhee, who is a scene-stealer with his big eyes and all-to-human touch in a bleak world.

This movie may be the reverse of most, it makes me want to go buy the book and read it!

2009 Awards Predictions

For me the Golden Globes are usually Round 1 leading up to the Oscars. Here's my early predictions for what I think are likely and not so likely nominations:

Best Supporting Actor:

Jake Gyllenhaal - Brothers

Matt Damon - Invictus

Woody Harralson - The Messenger

Steve Martin - It's Complicated

Rupert Friend - Young Victoria

Best Supporting Actress:

Amy Adams - Julie & Julia

Penelope Cruz - Nine

Natalie Portman - Brothers

Mo'Nique - Precious

Julianne Moore - A Single Man

Best Cinematography:

The Road

Red Cliff

Best Special Effects:

District 9

Avatar

Best Animated:

Up

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

The Princess & The Frog

Planet 51

A Christmas Carol

Fantastic Mr. Fox

Best Documentary (Long):

Michael Jackson's This Is It

Capitalism: A Love Story

Best Original Screenplay:

Quentin Tarantino - Inglorious Bastards

Jon Lucas & Scott Moore - The Hangover

Judd Apatow - Funny People

Joel Coen & Ethan Coen - A Serious Man

Alessandro Camon & Oren Moverman - The Messenger

Best Adapted Screenplay:

Julie & Julia

The Lovely Bones

The Road

The Blind Side

Precious

Best Costume:

Nine

Coco Before Chanel

Best Foreign Language Film:

Red Cliff

The White Ribbon

Best Actor:

Colin Firth - A Single Man

George Clooney - Up In The Air

Johnny Depp - Public Enemies

Morgan Freeman - Invictus

Vigo Mortensen - The Road

Brad Pitt - Inglorious Bastards

Best Actress:

Meryl Streep - Julie & Julia

Sandra Bullock - The Blind Side

Gabourey Sidibe - Precious

Emily Blunt - Young Victoria

Very Famiga - Up In the Air

Best Director:

Clint Eastwood - Invictus

Tom Ford - A Simple Man

Best Picture: *note that the Oscars are upping the number of nominees to 10 for Best Picture, the way they used to do it back in the day*

Invictus

Star Trek

Nine

The Twilight Saga: New Moon

Avatar

The Messenger

The Blind Side

The Hangover

Movie Review: The Station Agent

The Station Agent is a nice portrait kind of picture. A moment in time - Peter Dinklage is forced into a change of scenery by a sudden death and inherits a unique piece of property - a train station. Patricia Clarkson has lost her son to a tragic accident and can't pull herself out of depressions, Bobby Cannavale is dealing with a dying father and desperately wants new friends in this small town he's been drug back into, Michelle Williams is the local librarian who seems a bit doomed to only meet backwoods rednecks and love them...

Good performances all around, all four main characters definitely put their best foot forward on this one. Simple story, good acting, nice settings make for a good movie.

4 of 5 peaches

Movie Review: New Moon

aka The Twilight Saga: New Moon

New Moon builds on the previous strengths I mentioned from Twilight and adds a couple of things.

1. Taylor Lautner's buffness. The audible gasps from the girls (and guys!) in the audience i was in was amusing and telling.

2. Dakota Fanning & Michael Sheen - as the "elder" vampires these two make you sit up and take notice - the movie just got serious. I'm definitely hoping the franchise keeps these two characters involved and in the important scenes.

Although I'm way too distracted by Taylor's hawtness, I'm happy with the better direction by Chris Weitz, and again the cinematography and the music selections, like the first twilight movie, are great.

4 of 5 peaches.

Movie Review: Twilight

So in advance of New Moon, and I refuse to miss out on Taylor Lautner in the near buff, I needed to watch Twilight and get up to speed on the story lines.

I will say it's a well done movie, the cinematography is quite beautiful even if it is set in the very rainy Northwest. Edward and Bella provide plenty of Teen angst and romantic awkwardness. The lines are smart enough and quick enough to be believable. The special effects are well done if not long-paced out.

Two things I think Twilight has going for it: Teen angst pretty accurately portrayed by hot stars, and the strength of it's auxiliary characters.

There can be no doubt that the young stars of Twilight have plenty in the looks and hotness department. The stars definitely have the knack for the longing stares, the inexperienced kiss turning pro, etc., and it is entertaining to watch.

The supporting characters in Billy Burke, Gil Birmingham and Peter Facinelli pull in the movie significantly with wit and maturity.

To me Twilight isn't one major thing like that ONE actor that pulls the movie forward, it's not solely a beautiful movie, it's not solely the expert direction. To me, it a level push of a lot of things that put this movie forward and why the cult following has legs for a franchise.

3 of 5 peaches

Movie - Little Women: Still stands the test

Little Women - I happened upon this movie again during a bout of insomnia. Except for the somewhat overwraught performance from Wynona Ryder, the actors in this film to me are still top rate.

No matter how many times i see it, the ending seen of Beth's life is still very touching, and Susan Sarandon is her normal steady self throughout.

Some early glimpses here of Kirsten Dunst and Christian Bale who are about to come into their own.

4 of 5 peaches for me

Movie Review: Frida - me likey

Frida

From my Netflix queue, I pulled this little jem. It's like a female, Joan Crawford biopic film pulled into the 21st Century.

Salma does a picture perfect job of this revolutionary artist. Embodied with all the spirit, love, and talent, we knew she had in her (you could tell there was a big hollywood actress behind those smoldering eyes).

Good job to Salma, Alfred, Antonio Banderas, and even Ashley Judd (makes a nice supporting actress actually), and of course good job to Julie Tamor the Director.

4 of 5 peaches

Movie Review: Were The World Mine

Were The World Mine

Fun movie all around. A whimsical play on A Midsummer's Night's Dream with a cute, adorable cast, fun supporting characters, and some interested relationship twists.

Although the beginning is kind of skimpy on the love triangle between the main character Timothy, and his best friends, not to mention his cold to smoltering hot romance with Jock boyfriend Nathaniel David Becker (cute!), the musical overlay and the just downright hysterics brought on by Timothy's desire to fit-in in this town that appears to not want him, is very good.

It's rare in gay indies that I find myself laughing out loud anymore, or saying "awwww" to myself in my own living room while watching, but this movie does it.

4 of 5 peaches.

TV Review: Top Chef Las Vegas

The new season looks really good. Some of the interesting highlights:

1. They have THREE chefs from Atlanta yay!!

2. The bitchy Jennifer Carroll - this girl has sas in a good good way for your palate.

3. The Voltaggio brothers - sounds like a Vegas act already, and they're smokin hot. Michael
& Bryan

4. Did I mention that there are THREE people from Atlanta? Eli, Hector, and Kevin

5. Gail is back! Gail is back!!

Sigh, I want to eat, drink and watch.

Movie Review: Sunshine - more like mostly cloudy

Danny Boyle is great with art, we get that. Slumdog, 28 Days, etc etc.
However, Sunshine was a bit TOO much of everything he's good at.

The overwraught drama of the weight of the many outweighing the needs of the few, the distraught looks between crew members of the ill-fated spaceship in this drama/sci-fi...oy.

I feel like maybe in his head somewhere, Boyle may have had about 20-30 minutes at the beginning of this movie, maybe where the crew members actually interact without dramatics so we get to understand their relationship, their role, but instead we go right into the drama.

The twist at the end (and no i won't spoil it) is overdone with dramatic camera work to the point I had to keep rewinding the movie because I couldn't tell what just happened.

I know Boyle has done better, and he obviously didn't phone this one in, but I definitely expected better.

2 of 5 peaches.

Review: X-Files2 - I Want To Believe...that this was a 2-part tv episode

Let me be clear, I loved the first X-Files movie. The underlying sexual attraction, the genuine, odd mystery, the familiar characters and some new ones for fun: It was good!

In this second installment, however, X-Files missed the mark.
X-Files: I Want To Believe spends waaaay too much time in the beginning with Mulder pleading with Scully, Scully pleading with Mulder, and back and forth...I was as bored as I would be watching a Junior-High-ish teen boyfriend/girlfriend flick. I wanted to pass them both a note in study hall that said - shut up and get on with the mystery!

The most interesting character, the priest with visions of death and bleeding eyes, doesn't really get much character development I'm afraid. He's relegated more to a TV character where you've got 1 minute to introduce him, 1 minute for him to speak brilliantly, and then 1 minute to die.

The initial mystery of kidnapping of FBI agents in West Virginia (what were they doing there anyway) is interesting enough, but I got so confused by introduction of creepy snowplow drivers, lots of barking dogs, and Russian doctors playing with severed heads...it was a bit too much of too little.

In the end, X-Files still keeps its brooding darkness feel, but without the fun and excitement of the first film. I hope it's a glitch and expect better from future installments.

Review: Julie & Julia - Makes You Want To Go Home And...Eat Dinner?

Julie & Julia - released August 7, 2009

I went expecting a movie about, well, mostly food. Instead what I got was a movie featuring food but really about the intense, sometimes rocky, but well-done relationships. Meryl Streep is of course flawless as Julia Child as we have come to expect from this multi-oscar actress. Amy Adams seems to have no limits to her ability to make us giggle along with her, her presence on screen is as infectious now as years ago in Junebug.

The supporting cast, led by Stanley Tucci, is more than par for the job and in the tradition of great leading-lady movies, Chris Messina along with Tucci help propel these women into oscar-worthy roles.

Amy Adams, playing Julie, embarks on a journey to not just cook her way through a cookbook, but into a purposeful life. Encapturing the feelings of listless dreardom that many of us experience at age 30, we feel the ups and downs of career longings, relationship neglect, and a love of great food. Adams handles all this in stride, and even when she's covered in food crying on the kitchen floor in a narcissistic womp, we feel right alongside her.

Streep is endearing as Julia Child. She makes us WANT this woman to succeed so much. Child led a brilliant life abroad, infecting many with her charm and competitiveness, and refusing to give up on her dream of bringing French cuisine to the "servantless" American household.

Through the great recipes and food that will make you want to buy the cookbook and get into your kitchen asap, we learn that like any good meal with a recipe, life and its relationships require thought, planning, a little luck, and, of course, a great French cookbook.

Review - 5 of 5 Peaches