The Great Debaters
Atonement
The Pixar Story
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.
I know that I did the same thing with There Will Be Blood. But I promise I won’t post it after a week. Tomorrow the reviews will be up.
In the meantime, check out my father’s new deviantART account. If you were following him on his previous account and you still want to keep up with what he’s doing: Click Here
Okay here we go. It’s been almost a week since I said I post the review for There Will Be Blood. For that I apologize. If you have no idea what this movie is, be sure to check out the trailer.
“A story about family, greed, religion, and oil, centered around a turn-of-the-century Texas prospector (Daniel Day-Lewis) in the early days of the business.” -imdb.com
So you might think. A movie about people digging for oil? Can’t be too promising, right? Well this is where you’re wrong. There are so many themes surrounding this movie that I will have to watch it again to catch the ones that I missed. The biggest theme encircling this film is greed. The desire to always want more. And as the movie displays, nobody is saved from this desire. Bellow this is the theme of betrayal. We see that everyone lies to each other and there is no love for other humans. There is only love for the material objects they posses (or do not posses).
The story is very easy to follow, but you must be paying attention to the little details because they come back to haunt you later on in the film. I felt that the direction in which Paul Thomas Anderson took this was a clever one. Every moment was suspenseful. The music, at first, is very abrupt and frightening. But as the film progressed I realized that this was the way it had to be done. There is a sense of fear that flows subtly beneath the subtext. The work that these men did was very dangerous and I felt that it was truly portrayed properly.
Daniel Day-Lewis was superb. An award winning performance. He was mad, but in his eyes you could see the ambition, the need to succeed and have more. DDL captured his character so well, that it’s difficult to see him be any other person but this man. Paul Dano is extremely promising and we should all expect great things from him in the future. Playing his own twin, he manages to show a frightening side of the evangelist movement.
This movie is not for everybody. It’s geared toward a more mature audience, so I suggest you put your kids to sleep before watching this film. But you won’t regret it. This is worth it.
“Two terminally ill men escape from a cancer ward and head off on a road trip with a wish list of to-dos before they die.” – imdb.com
I was lucky enough to get into a screening for The Bucket List last night followed by a Q&A with Jack Nicholson and Rob Reiner. I had only read a synopsis before viewing the film. I had the impression that it would be a comedy. It was a great surprise to find that it was more than just that.
The Bucket List is so wonderfully written with constant dialogue. At first I thought it would just be another Hallmark film about two old guys trying to be adventurous. It turned out to be much more than that as we go on a journey with Edward and Carter. Edward is a millionaire and Carter is a car mechanic, they both meet in this hospital room. Being who they are, they probably wouldn’t have met in another other occasion. An interesting relationship blossoms between the two men as they realize they are close to “kicking the bucket.”
Morgan Freeman does such a powerful performance alongside with Jack Nicholson. They both have their characters spot on. It’s really magical to watch a film where you don’t have to struggle to relate or to imagine it’s reality. Watching these two complete strangers bond over the things they missed out in their lives fills the audience with emotions. As I glanced over to the people around me there were moments that I noticed tears of laughter on their faces and next they turned into tears of sadness.
It was pleasurable to join Edward and Carter. The audience was a part of the movie. This is one of those few movies where you can walk away and say that you truly got to know the characters. I would recommend this movie to anyone.
Be sure to check out John Mayer’s song “Say” for The Bucket List at iTunes: Here.
You can also download the video for free at iTunes: Here.
“Margot and her son Claude decide to visit her sister Pauline after she announces that she is getting married to less-than-impressive Malcolm. In short order, the storm the sisters create leaves behind a mess of thrashed relationships and exposed family secrets.” -imdb.com
Margot at the Wedding. I was at a screening for this film last night. I knew absolutely nothing about it, except for the cast that worked on the film and Noah Baumbach. I had the choice of seeing the trailer before I went, but I decided to watch it with a clean slate.
I have not seen any of Noah Baumbach’s previous work as a director so I cannot compare this to his other work. I have read a few reviews for this movie and they all seem very long and very intricate to me. I prefer to write something simpler for the people that are not interested in the extra punctuation marks.
Now about the film. This is a very complex movie, not only because of the characters, but the story as a whole. The screening I attended was followed by a Q & A with Noah Baumbach, Jennifer Jason Leigh, and Jack Black. Noah mentioned that when he was writing for this film he cut out all unnecessary parts. This process is evident in the movie; the movie is a compilation of various conversations and little events held during the days that Margot is visiting. The unimportant things that are so often mentioned in movies are not in this film. I found that to be something interesting because as an audience member I felt that I was a part of the family. Most of the conversations were cut right when reaching the climax. When it first occurred I was taken aback because I am so used to seeing the fight or the struggle in the conversation. Not being a part of it made me more involved. Noah uses very little lighting here and leaves the sun and the shadows to determine the look of the scene. For me this was very real and surprisingly I enjoyed it.
With a film like this the casting is very important. I think that an excellent job was done. Every person that was cast had a unique look to them. They all looked interesting because of their physical attributes. I was really impressed with Nicole Kidman’s portrayal of Margot. She has her moments in film and I believe that this was one of them. I feel that Nicole has a strong potential and sometimes is not given the proper roles to help her fulfill it. Jennifer Jason Leigh was so natural and had some really great moments while on screen.
This is getting long and intricate isn’t it? Well, point is the movie is good, but not a movie for everyone.
On another note I was able to meet Jack Black. He’s very funny and very nice. :)
“Molly Mahoney (Portman) is the awkward and insecure manager of Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium, the strangest, most fantastic, most wonderful toy store in the world. But when Mr. Magorium, the 243 year-old eccentric who owns the store (Hoffman), bequeaths the store to her, a dark and ominous change begins to take over the once remarkable Emporium.” -imdb.com
Where to begin… When I first saw the trailer for Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium I was not too fond of seeing it. Strangely enough, my father was. I am a great admirer of Natalie Portman’s work and Dustin Hoffman’s so I thought it would only be fair to give it a chance. I went to a screening for this last week followed by a Q & A with Zach Helm and only now have I gotten the chance to write about it.
If you don’t already know, this is Zach Helm’s first time directing. He has no prior experience in the field. Regardless, he has proven himself as a writer with Stranger Than Fiction. Although I personally enjoyed Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium (MMWE), it’s difficult for me to determine whether others will feel the same. So I decided that I am going to merely explain how I felt about it and my thoughts toward the film and you can continue reading if you so desire.
Basically I thought it was good. I would give it probably 3.5 stars out of 5. I can tell that the screenplay was well written in the sense that it was very easy for the characters to come alive on screen. Not only is that because of the actors, but the characters where characters from the very beginning. Each person had his or her own trait that played a role in the greater scheme of things. Dustin Hoffman really did an excellent job here. He had such a clear sense of who his character was that at some points I forgot that I was watching Hoffman, not Mr. Magorium. Jason Bateman is also subtly placed in the film. I watched this film before I saw Juno and it was great to be able to compare him in both movies. He’s a very natural actor and I expect great things from him.
MMWE focuses primarily on the image and portrayal of death. As you read this, you must be wondering… But I thought this was a kids movie. It is, but there are deeper meanings within the story. It is not only about a crazy toy shop owner that leaves and his toys go berserk. It’s a study of death and how others view it including those that are dying. The scene where Mr. Magorium finally leaves is very philosophical and might be a little difficult for small children to understand because he doesn’t just leave. It’s done metaphorically.
As an audience member it’s important to be reminded that this is Zach Helm’s real first work as a writer/director. It is not an easy task and I really believe that for this movie he deserves the chance. So even if you think you will not like it you should still watch it because there might be something about it that will ignite a spark in you.
