War, Inc. - Somewhat uneven satire of military privatization but still contains a few solid laughs. Somewhat of a Grosse Point Blank reunion; not only does it feature John Cusack in a somewhat similar role to the one he essayed in the earlier film (Cusack also sits in one of the producers' chairs as he did with the other film) but it also features older sis Joan, once again playing his secretary. Dan Aykroyd also has a role here as the vice-president (he played Cusack's arch nemesis in the 1997 feature). The film probably doesn't offer any new insights into the issue of military privatization but it throws out the occasional zinger here and there. Some of the humor is unnecessarily broad; for example, there are two characters with the names Ooq Mi Fay and Ooq Yu Fay (any guesses as to what those names mean in Pig-Latin?) and most of the scenes featuring Hilary Duff as a Middle Eastern version of her pop star persona fall flat - and there is a twist related to her character that is kind ridiculous - but this material is nicely counterbalanced by the inclusion of Marisa Tomei as an ultra-liberal journalist (who unsurprisingly becomes Cusack's love interest) and Ben Kingsley as Cusack's mentor who betrays him. Also, there is plenty of action and Cusack gets another opportunity, as he did in Grosse Point Blank, to show off his martial arts skills in several fight sequences. Overall, this is a fitfully entertaining flick that might be worth the price of a rental to those interested in seeing what Martin Blank might have ended up becoming around the time of his 20-year high school reunion but I wouldn't exert too much effort trying to track it down. (**1/2 out of ****)

21 Grams - Can't believe it took me this long to finally check this film out but I'm glad I finally did because it's easily one of the best films I have experienced in a while. It demands not only an emotional investment but an intellectual one as well. The manner in which the filmmakers have assembled the storyline was a sore point for many when this was released back in 2003 and admittedly, it can be frustrating to those who aren't willing to pay rapt attention. Basically, the film moves fluidly amongst the three principal characters and jumps back and forth in time in a seemingly random fashion but for those willing to stay with the film, a clear pattern begins to develop from the chaos. Sitting in the director's chair is Mexican director Alejandro González Iñárritu for whom this was the second film in his stylistic and thematic trilogy involving individuals and the tragedies that unite them (his main collaborator for all three films was writer Guillermo Arriaga). The director made his debut in his home country with 2000's ultra-gritty Amorres Perros and concluded the trilogy in 2006 with the international, star-studded Babel. 21 Grams, the director's first American-financed effort, is arguably the best of the bunch (although the other two films are strong, powerful pieces of cinema). The film's title derives from the idea that everyone loses 21 grams at the exact moment that they die and if there's one thing that unites all of the main characters in this film, it's the presence of the grim reaper. I don't wanna get into too many details for those who haven't seen the film yet but suffice it to say, this is one group of people who are intimately familiar with hardship and tragedy long before the pivotal event that unites them. As one can expect from a film with such heavy subject matter, the tone is dark and somber but not to such an extent that there isn't any room for redemption or hope. And the filmmakers don't take the easy way out by turning this into some overly sentimental melodrama heavy on manipulation. There is no denying that this film culls a strong emotional response but it doesn't earn that with cheap theatrics. Along the way, moments of humor are occasionally unearthed, such as when one character chooses to donate his sperm and the doctor puts him in a room complete with various "inspirational" materials (read: pornography). Such asides are necessary to occasionally loosen the grip of doom that seems to have such a strong hold on the main characters in the story but, despite the multiple calamities that befall everyone, the filmmakers still manage to conclude the story on a hopeful note without undoing everything that came before. Before I conclude, I feel that a few words about the acting, which never fails to be of the highest caliber possible, are in order. Both Benicio Del Toro and Naomi Watts received Oscar nominations for their raw, searing performances and rightfully so. Del Toro allows us to forgive his participation in the generic action flick The Hunted from earlier in 2003 to remind us of the actor who mesmerized us in films like Traffic (for which he'd previously won the Oscar) and Snatch. His character, Jack Jordan, is an ex-con who has recently found faith in Christ and struggles daily to live his life according to Biblical principles but finds his faith tested once fate deals him a particularly tough hand. Del Toro allows us to accept this man as a sincere individual who desires to do the right thing but often struggles with the demons of his past (on a side note, it's refreshing to encounter a Hollywood-produced effort that doesn't paint Evangelical Christians as caricatures but rather as three-dimensional individuals who truly wrestle with their faith and don't pretend to have all the answers). Like Del Toro, Watts also has to play a character who undergoes several personality transformations throughout the film - from strung-out drug addict to loving wife and mother of two and then back again once circumstances throw her a curve - and the actress is never less than convincing from minute 1. It takes guts for any actress - especially one as attractive as Watts - to take the kinds of risk that she displays here and no amount of awards could be enough commendation for that. The third lead in the drama, Sean Penn, was enjoying quite the banner year when this came out; he would of course go on to win the Oscar for his performance in the searing Mystic River but his acting here hits the mark equally as well. His character in each film is a very different individual but many of the conflicts and conundrums that they face are strikingly similar. What matters is that in both films, Penn totally brings his A-game and buries himself under the skin of the characters he's portraying - his work in both Mystic River and 21 Grams deserves mention alongside Dead Man Walking at the top of his resume as an actor. The leads all get strong support from the rest of the cast including the likes of Charlotte Gainsbourg, Melissa Leo (who finally won her Oscar in more recent years), Clea DuVall and Eddie Marsan amongst others. I can't say enough good things about this film. Anything that would require and reward such a complete investment from its audience instead of just insulting them with cheap escapism deserves nothing less than the highest possible recommendation. (**** out of ****)

Like Crazy

I want you. I love you. I need you like crazy. If those words have ever hit home for you in any sense, then this is a film that you should see. A smart, believable tale of two people(Felicity Jones and Anton Yelchin) who fall in love only to be repeatedly driven apart for reasons that cannot control at the moment. It is a well done film and the end is great. I highly recommend. 7.5/10

What pissed me off so much about this movie is that she clearly loves him more than he loves her, and I don't think that's supposed to be the point. He could have moved his ass to London if he loved her enough

Friends with Benefits (2011)

I'd heard good things about this film so added it to my LoveFilm list for last week only to be significantly disappointed when we watched it on Saturday night. Okay, Mila Kunis is stunning and I'm going to roll the dice and say many girls think the same about Timberlake - but this film is shit.

Firstly it's talky, but not in a good way like Social Network (where I thought Timberlake was very cleverly cast) but in an annoying "I've got nothing of interest to say but will say it in 100,000 words" kind of way.

The plot is non-existent. If you're not invested in the relationship there is literally nothing else to cling on to apart from a kind of nod to Timberlake's Dad's growing senility, played by Richard Jenkins who was superb in 6 feet under but seems to be scratching a living in the movies.

Something else pissed me off ......wait a minute....or yeah, Patricia Clarkson plays almost exactly the same character she does in that loathsomely smug borefest Easy A . A tragically hip, slutty middle-aged Mum. Urrrgghhhh!

4/10

Warrior

A kind of unashmed re-visit of the Rocky Formula that broadly works because better than average actors give good service to a basically average and cliched script.

Can't really fault it for what it is though. And the fight sequences are well-done. You feel like you're watching fighters who can act rather than actors who've spent a few weeks in the gym.

8/10

This was one of those films I loved as a child but also one I am afraid to revisit because of the reasons you give.

Basically that is likely to be shit and cast doubt over my whole childhood.

Jumpin Jack Flash was an alright film, not terrible but not great either. Also I could apply you're critcism of Friends With Benefits to Warrior. I found that film too talky without really saying much of anything, I wasn't invested in either Tommy or Brandon, which pretty much doomed the film from the start, neither one of them were likeable enough for me to care about them(particularly Tommy, who was far too much of a jerk) and the father/son relationship hit all the wrong notes for me, some of the dialogue was painfully soap-operish, like when the father says "Tommy we're lost" while listening to Moby Dick, that just made groan out loud and roll my eyes. I'll admit the fight scenes were handled competently, but it was all for naught since the story didn't grab me, and also the film was WAAAAYYY too long for it's own good, if it had been just 20-25 minutes shorter, that would've made a world of difference towards making it more watchable.

Drive Angry (2011)

Ah Nic Cage...don't ever win the lottery or otherwise become financially stable, else you wouldn't be reduced to giving us escapist crap like this. Copious amounts of ultraviolence and random nudity ooze forth in this story of an escaped inmate from hell who is on a 3 day mission to save his infant granddaughter from satanic cultists. Damn satanists!

A good movie to have around if you're committed to downing a six-pack with nothing else to do, but for all the spectacle, it is still a piece of junk. Fun, but disappointing at the same time. 1.0 / 4.0

I actually agree with most of the points you make about Warrior there. But......... I like watching men beat up other men. It's a weakness I know.

However, Friends with Benefits was loathsome.

ADMIT IT, VEX!!!!!!

Diary of a Country Priest

I believe I can see where Scorsese drew some of his inspiration for Taxi Driver. In this Robert Bresson film, a young priest takes on his first parish, only to find rejection and belittlement at every turn, despite the most noble of intentions. This is a pretty somber film; not something to watch if you're really depressed.

I like watching men beat other men too, but that's really all Warrior has going for it, which would be fine if it was an action film, but since it's a drama, it really sinks the film.

I strongly disagree on Friends With Benefits, I really enjoyed that film and didn't find it too "talky" I would honestly watch it over Social Network any day of the week, I wasn't really a fan of Timberlake's performance in that film. You don't know what "loathesome" film is until you've seen one of Kirk Cameron's crapfests like Fireproof.

I actually agree with you on this but I didn't let it distract from my pleasure in the film. The way I look at it is that in many relationships, one person often loves the other more. It also could be seen as a lack of his "patience" despite his asking her to have some.

Another viewing round-up, kids...

The Hound of the Baskervilles (1978) - 4/10
Senna - 8/10
Slacker - 5/10
Carnage - 7/10
John Carter - 6/10
Free and Easy - 5/10
Never Take Candy from a Stranger - 5/10
The Vow - 3/10
Lenny - 7/10
The Outlaw Josey Wales - 8/10
These Are the Damned - 4/10
The War Room - 9/10
Dirty Girl - 5/10

The Virgin Spring (1960)
Ingmar Bergman’s controversial winner of the 1961 academy award for best foreign language movie is based on a medieval Swedish ballad about the virgin daughter of a prosperous and devoutly Christian father (played by Max von Sydow). On her way to light ceremonial candles in a church, she is raped by three poor goat herders, who, later that day, seek shelter at their victim’s parents home.
This classic of world cinema has been remade by Wes Craven as the notorious rape-revenge exploitation movie ‘The Last House on the Left’. Adapting Bergman’s film into a straight horror movie isn’t such a big step as it may sound at first, because ‘The Virgin Spring’ is a brutal and horrifying movie with graphic scenes of violence already. It is also an exceptionally well -directed movie with fantastic black and white cinematography (by regular Bergman collaborator Sven Nykvist). Most importantly, though, ‘The Virgin Spring’ isn’t just meant to shock the viewer but asks interesting questions about the justification of revenge, morals and religion and Christianity and Paganism. A great movie, but tough to watch - 9/10

G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra (2009)
Just like ‘The Virgin Spring’, ‘G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra’, is a bit tough to watch, although for different reasons. Depth isn’t required here and economic director Stephen Sommers keeps it as shallow as possible, also cutting down on story, plot, acting and common sense. Well, what could you expect from a movie, which is based on a toyline of militaristic action figures? Not much, that’s for sure, and because of this, I was positively surprised when I caught ‘G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra’ on TV. The action scenes are competently done and kinetic and the movie is involuntarily funny whenever the villain orders his henchmen to “Kill all the Joes” or when leaders and technicians celebrate with all-round fist pumps and shouts of “Yo, Joe”. Not a good movie or even a mediocre one, but it could have been worse; it could have been like Transformers 2 or 3 - 4/10

Last Action Hero (1993)
Young Danny obtains a magic cinema ticket and finds himself magically teleported into a Jack Slater action movie; Jack Slater (Arnold Schwarzenegger) being a generic 80ies action movie character played by Arnold Schwarzenegger (as himself).
John McTiernan’s action comedy is one of the worst-received Schwarzenegger movies, but I actually found it pretty funny. There are numerous clever jokes and asides concerning action movie clichés and Schwarzenegger proves to be a good sport and thoroughly sends up his on screen as well as his off screen image. Admittedly, more could have been done with the premise and there are a number of other faults as well, but there are enough laughs in it to recommend it as a good movie - with the reservation that I have only seen the German dubbed version, which seems to have souped up some of the dialogue. (E.g. when Jack Slater enters the real world and tries to pass himself off as Arnold Schwarzenegger, he misremembers the name as ‘Arnold Beckenbauer’ in the German language version, which is very funny because Beckenbauer is a famous German football player and coach.) - 7/10

Thief (1981)
Frank (James Caan) is a hard-nosed ex-convict and brilliant safecracker who only works for himself and only with his partner Barry (James Belushi). In order to win over his fiancé Jessie (Tuesday Weld) he promises to retire from stealing and, owning a car dealership and a bar already, is all set for retirement, when his old friend and mentor Okla (Willie Nelson) asks him to get him out of prison and when Frank’s and Jessie’s application to adopt a child is turned down because of Frank’s criminal record. Crime boss Leo promises to help, if Frank will do one last job for him.
Although the summary of the plot makes ‘Thief’ look like a generic heist movie, Michael Mann’s directing debut is a splendid neo noir, which is distinguished by plausible and three dimensional characters, convincing acting and the rare successful combination of gritty realism and an extravagant noirish style. Mann is the go to guy for neon-lit cityscapes at night, and the ambient electronic score by Tangerine Dream adds to the atmosphere, although this is a matter of personal taste and some may find the soundtrack ill-fitting and intrusive. The only problem with ‘Thief’ is that it is slightly too long, otherwise it’s very good - 8/10

Saw 21 Jump Street on Saturday. Save my thoughts on that one for the thread.

Found JFK on sale at Barnes And Noble so I bought it and watched it for the first time in a few years.

JFK-In some ways this was Oliver Stone's Passion Of The Christ yet it's a much better film than Gibson's. Look past the history and it's an immensely well-made, well-directed and acted film. It has a lot of characters in it yet it's easy to keep them straight. The only real drawback for some people is the length. For me, it's not a problem. But for others three hours may be too much.

As far as the controversy over Stone's re-writing history, I would argue that he did not intend for his film to be the definitive take on the assasination. In fact, I remember reading an interview with him where he stated his view (a view I agree with) that the Warren report is a myth. Sometimes in order to battle a myth you have to create a counter-myth he goes on. This confirms what I suspect his intent with this film was, which was to encourage people to question widely accepted "conventional wisdom" and not believe everything the government may tell you. In essence, he wanted to make the audience think. To quote Roger Ebert:



10/10

Eve's Bayou-Kasi Lemmons debut film is a dramatic film with elements of horror. But above all it's a film about memory. Specifically about how memory develops and changes over time. How did the events recalled by the girl in the story really happen?

Samuel L Jackson is fantastic in a role that doesn't require him to be a badass. It requires more range from him than that and it shows.

All the acting here is good. Eve's Bayou is easily 1997's most overlooked movie.

10/10

This was one of our movie club picks, back when I ran the movie club. If you're interested in our discussion, you can find it here: http://www.reelviews.net/reelviewsforum ... =27&t=2684



Ebert is a big fan. I believe it was his #1 film of 1997

Great write, oaf. Had to tell you. I’ve had 21 Grams on that Netflix instant for so damn long. Once this house situation of mine gets figured out, it’s getting bumped higher in the list.

Thanks, appreciate it. By all means, get on that as quick as you can.

Carnage
A film that while filled with interesting performances, wasn't in fact all that good of a movie. It is obvious very early on that this was adapted from the stage and the quality of the performers allowed the rich dialogue to come to life. However, as a film, it becomes rather stagnant after too long. I still appreciated it for what it was but it wasn't highly entertaining. The standout here to me in the group of Winslet, Foster, Reilly and Waltz was clearly Waltz. He was fantastic in a group of highly accomplished actors. 6/10

Tower Heist
Meh. Not enough planning and fun stuff goes on to really call it a true heist film. Not enough laughs to really be a standout comedy. It was nice to see Murphy in this role as it wasn't total crap but it just made me miss his actual films more. Not recommended. 5/10

Meloncholia
Kirsten Dunst stars as a woman dealing with depression on the brink of her wedding. To throw a further complication in, the world is literally coming to an end. A beautifully shot film with a solid lead performance. 6.5/10

Thanks, I wasn't aware of that and the posts proved an interesting read. I was tempted to post something in the thread as well, but I'm just too late for the movie club. If you should still be interested: There may be little substance in the film, because it follows the genrfe template for heist movies, but the characters in 'Thief' are better developed and more plausible than comparable characters in other heist movies. And 'Thief' is much better than 'Heat', in my opinion, but I'm in the minority of people who think that 'Heat' is a pretty generic and excessively long genre flick.