1. Contagion - New Steven Soderbergh film 
about a virus threatening the world looks like an artier, grittier update of Outbreak (1995)starring Marion Cotillard, Matt Damon, Laurence Fishburne, Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow and Kate Winslet. The music and performances look amazing.
2. Hugo - New Martin Scorsese 3D children's film about a boy in Paris. Um.....is Marty in his 'I got my Oscar, so now I'll just mess around phase"?
3. Rise of the Planet of the Apes - Totally outside my usual interests, but this trailer is electric - love the apes. Great score.
Sunday, July 17, 2011
New Trailers
Song of the Day - Lights (Remix), Ellie Goulding
Dentist sends this remix of an already good song with intensity and an angelic voice.
Continue reading this postWeekend Box Office: 7/15-7/17/11
Finally, a couple of box office stories worth noting. Harry Potter 8 took the opening weekend record from The Dark Knight. Woody Allen has his biggest hit of all time. R-rated comedies continue to make money while 90s movie stars can't. Cars 2 has passed A Bug's Life so it won't be the lowest Pixar grosser. But it ain't great. At least there's always the merch.
Title/Gross/%Change/Total
1. Harry Potter 8: 168.6 mil / NEW
2. Transformers 3: 21.2 mil / -55% / 303 mil
3. Horrible Bosses: 17.6 mil / -38% / 60 mil
4. Zookeeper: 12.3 mil / -39% / 42 mil
5. Cars 2: 8.3 mil / -45% / 165 mil
6. Winnie the Pooh: 8 mil / NEW
7. Bad Teacher: 5.2 mil / -42% / 89 mil
8. Larry Crowne: 2.6 mil / -57% / 32 mil
9. Super 8: 1.9 mil / -60% / 122 mil
10. Midnight in Paris: 1.9 mil / -28% / 42 mil
11. Bridesmaids: 1.7 mil / -36% / 161 mil
12. Mr. Popper's Penguins: 1.4 mil / -57% / 61 mil
13. Monte Carlo: 1.3 mil / -66% / 20 mil
14. Green Lantern: 1.3 mil -60% / 113 mil
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Quick Hits - A Few Recent Viewings
The Adjustment Bureau - B. On DVD (2011). 
Matt Damon stars in what even he has to recognize has become 'his' character: a prodigious and handsome star with a hard scrabble past that threatens to derail his success. This time he is a congressman running for Senate that meets the love of his life (Emily Blunt) on an important night. Trouble is, there is an Adjustment Bureau that controls the world, and he isn't 'supposed' to be with her. Blunt and Damon are both very entertaining, with decent support from Anthony Mackie as a sympathetic agent. I enjoyed the direction of the film, but the concept and predictable story just weren't that great. Not bad.
Click below for Conan O'Brien Can't Stop, Lincoln Lawyer, Winnie The Pooh, and the Bottle Rocket Rolling Roadshow:
Conan O'Brien Can't Stop - B. On DVD (2011). 
This documentary follows Conan as he tours the country in the aftermath of his ouster at NBC. It gets a B for being interesting, not necessarily funny. I found it mostly interesting to watch Conan's behind the scenes life and his compulsion to be the center of attention. He is a prisoner of his own graciousness as he burns himself out talking after the shows and taking on extra gigs.
Lincoln Lawyer - C-. On DVD (2011). 
I feel like I heard good things about this one during its theatrical run...must've been from an insane asylum. Matthew McConaughey stars as a semi-morally bankrupt criminal defense lawyer in Los Angeles. A million cliches get thrown around with a supremely weird and uninteresting relationship with Marisa Tomei. I like McConaughey a lot, and there were some decent moments, but this is a dumber, longer Law and Order..Skip It.
Winnie the Pooh - C+. In theaters. Okay, so its pooh, I know. But, its only 63 minutes long and the story was uninteresting and boring. Worth it only if your kids are under 8 and sheltered (which applies to me, but it was rough).
Bottle Rocket Rolling Roadshow. Europpraiser and I (plus our wives) attended last Saturday night's Alamo Drafthouse Rolling Roadshow presentation of Bottle Rocket at the hotel where it was filmed in Hillsboro, Texas. Robert Musgrave (Bob Mapplethorpe) was in attendance, and it was really cool to watch the film outdoors, on a big screen at the hotel. A cool experience and greatly enjoyed watching the whole film without stopping on a big screen - gets better and better. "Bob, you're the zero". Click here for a writeup and pictures of the event.
John C. Reilly's Best Movies
In recent years, John C. Reilly has turned to comedy, including his lawyer-loving turn in this year's Cedar Rapids. He's paired himself with Will Ferrell twice to often hilarious results. He received a leading role in Dewey Cox, an OK but unfocused and overly profane parody. Reilly's penchant for comedy was obvious in Boogie Nights where he (among others) served as comic relief. Not surprisingly, his best films are the ones from the best directors he's worked with:
5. Gangs of New York
4. Hard Eight
3. Magnolia
2. Boogie Nights
1. The Thin Red Line
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
The Tree of Life A
In theaters. 138 Minutes. Rated PG-13.
This film was previously reviewed by Lawyer here.
Terrence Malick in The Tree of Life sculpts an intensely personal, intensely beautiful retelling of life that is immediately accessible while maintaining a distance from the viewer that I suspicion will melt away upon subsequent interactions. In so doing, Malick attacks the very nature of the medium he’s chosen. More than any other art form, even the novel, film controls how and what we experience. It controls the questions we ask, what we see, when we see it, and how we process it. It traditionally gives us no space to consider what we’re watching and, more importantly, to bring our own experiences to bear. This stands in stark contrast to pieces of art, which beg us to step back and get lost in our own experiences as our eyes wonder. Even the novel, which may share the most in common with film, allows us to imagine places, people, and things and gives us permission to stop, consider, even put the book down and come back later. Tree of Life is best approached like poetry. Living in a time in which the appreciation of poetry is limited to collegiate sophomores or dirty limericks, it is perhaps to be expected that the walk out rate for this film is so high. That’s a shame. Great poems launch us on someone else’s voyage only to end with us realizing it’s our own terrain we’ve been exploring. So it is that in Life we start off wondering what’s going on in Jack O’Brien’s life and end up exploring our families, our past, and our future.
Ahh, but I’m just talking around the subject. Stylistically, Life is non-linear, abstract, and heavily spiritual; moving in and out of reality, history, memories, and imagination. It is marked by multiple narrators, many of them whispering prayers. The story is of Jack O’Brien, played as an adult by Sean Penn, but the real heavy lifting goes to Hunter McCracken who plays Jack as a child. He is the oldest of three boys born to a disciplinarian father (Brad Pitt) and a loving, angelic mother (Jessica Chastain). Pitt’s character, a frustrated musician, tries to instill in his son the hard-knock nature of existence. Although a committed religious man, his ethic is survival-of-the-fittest in which he teaches his sons to fight and instills in them a selfish view of humanity. While the father is hated at points by his sons, he is a sympathetic character, a man who practices a certain realpolitik in life that may be ultimately wanting, but is a valuable counter-balance to his wife. Jessica Chastain’s mother instructs her boys to love everyone, always forgive, and never use violence. While her sons love her, they also take advantage of her and do not submit to her authority unless it is backed by her husband. While it is easy to dismiss her mantra of love and grace as idealistic and out-of-touch with the real world, her handling of the death of one of her sons proves it is anything but as she moves from anger to grief to acceptance, movements her husband seems incapable of.
This tension between two approaches to life inhabited by the mother and father, described in Life as the way of nature and the way of grace, propels the film. It is here that we get in to the deep spirituality of the film. It begins with a beautiful scripture from the Biblical book of Job. “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation while the morning stars sang together and all the angels[a] shouted for joy?” Job, along with Proverbs and Ecclesiastes, falls within the category of wisdom literature in the Bible. Job is a counter to Proverbs. Proverbs basically teaches that if you do good things, good things will happen to you. Job says, “except when it doesn’t.” This scripture is an important one to the film in that it not only addresses a major issue in the plot, the death of a child (the death of all Job’s children is one of his afflictions), it also holds in tension the inscrutability of God by humans and the great joy and beauty of God’s creation. Indeed, the beauty of creation seems to be the point of a 20-minute re-telling of the evolution of the universe that serves as the foundation of the story. It is a breathtaking exploration of film and photography marked by rapturous music. But even here, as Malick both embraces a creator and shows a scientific explanation of species, the twin themes of the beauty of grace and the harsh reality of nature play out.
Malick even goes so far as placing scripture in the very mouths of his characters. Among other examples, Paul is paraphrased twice, once from the 1 Corinthians 13 (the love chapter), and once from Romans 7. What are we to do with all this scripture, prayer, and religion? Is Malick proselytizing? Is he symbolically retelling the story of Job? Is this an allegorical tale? I don’t think so. Malick is doing something infinitely more interesting and complex. He’s taking scripture and other forms of knowledge seriously and trying to understand life via them. He’s not retelling Bible stories. He’s telling his story in light of them. It is the lens he’s using to understand a life lived, while simultaneously using that life to make sense of scripture. The audience is caught in the middle, watching this dialectic play out. Is what we’re seeing memory? Reality? A dream? My guess is, if we could ask Malick, he’d say all those things all the time. For a believer, which Malick’s characters are (and one assumes Malick to be as well), memory, reality, and possibility are all filtered through faith. Indeed, there is no independent knowledge unbuttressed by beliefs, experiences, and texts. Malick isn’t trying to get outside of his particular vantage point, nor is he trying to convert others to them. He’s just showing life from his particular set and inviting the audience, through multiple pauses, silences, stories, and visuals, to explore their own.
Through all this Malick wrestles with the great spiritual and scientific dilemma of our time. How can a loving God create through such a brutally painful mechanism as survival of the fittest? How can a brutally painful mechanism such as survival of the fittest alone lead to such exquisite beauty and love? While theology and evolutionary biology both posit answers, neither are satisfying and rarely does either side take the other's objections seriously.
That Malick chooses to take up these issues (and countless others I won’t write of here) is commendable. That he treats both with respect and finds, ultimately, a reality that acknowledges then supersedes these questions, is close to miraculous. The best movie of the year thus far. The best movie about about faith I’ve ever seen.
A
Curb Your Enthusiasm - The Divorce
Season 8, Episode 1
Larry is finalizing his divorce with Cheryl but he's not sure he'll get the best deal since the Hebrew ethnicity of his lawyer is in question. He buys dozens of girl scout cookie boxes but isn't sure he wants them. And he inadvertently causes the divorce of Marty Funkhouser . . .
The season opener was awkward in many ways. The LA Dodgers went bankrupt earlier this summer which made the Gary Cole subplot anachronistic. Larry and Cheryl making each other laugh was out of place for a divorcing couple. And the bit with the tampon was revolting (twice), but you do have to respect LD really going for the visual joke. There were several good moments (including Susie's monologue about a potential divorce and the look on Funk's face when his wife decides to go on his London trip). LD's jabs at liberal hypocrisy and liberal racism are still refreshing. B
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Cedar Rapids - B
On DVD (2011). Rated R, 86 minutes. Trailer.
Ed Helms stars as Tim Lippe in this decent indie-comedy set in the upper-midwest. We are introduced to his sheltered, rural character living and working as a middling insurance salesman in Wisconsin. Through some misfortune, he ends up headed to mid-size city Cedar Rapids, Iowa to a regional conference for insurance salesmen. He ends up rooming with two veterans of the conference - John C. Reilly (Dean Zeigler) and Isaiah Whitlock Jr. (Ronald Wilkes). Click below for more on CR:
Most of this film feels like a mash-up of Up In The Air, the Office and any fish out of water comedy. Helms obviously can pull off the lovable nerd, and he is playing a less interesting version of his Andy Bernard character in this film. His character is extremely naive and his naivete is peeled away like an onion as the film progresses. He hangs with Dean and Ronald, as well as a woman played by Anne heche, and learns that the big award given by the conference is all a sham and that his weird back-home lover (Sigourney Weaver) is not in love with him. Because of this he goes a little crazy and the film follows a very predictable arc.
So far this review is unorganized and pretty negative, so why the B? Well, there are several laughs, and the 4 main actors are all fun to watch. But, the real star of the show is John C. Reilly, who turns a potentially one-dimensional character into my favorite performance of the year. He needs to get a Best Supporting Actor nomination. His Dean is a crude, caring, unsentimental buddy and anchors the credibility and comedy of the film. The scene where he busts in on Helms in the bathroom is an instant-classic.
Worth your time.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
X Men: First Class - B
In theaters. Rated R, 131 minutes. Trailer.
Given the films I review every summer, its obvious that the superhero film is not my favorite genre. But, the positive reviews and directorial pedigree (Matthew Vaughn) put me in the theater. The film traces the origins of each of the X-Men and the current alignment of the mutants. We begin with Magneto's (Michael Fassbender) experiences in the concentration camps during World War 2 and then get on with the others with mixed success. Click below for more on XMFC:
We see Professor X (James McAvoy) and Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence) meet as children and then get recruited by the CIA (agents played by Rose Byrne and Oliver Platt). They use Professor X's telepathic powers to recruit the other mutants to battle the bad mutants led by a horribly miscast Kevin Bacon and his wooden sidekicks (they are like something out of the Batman and Robin TV show; except for Emma Frost (ably played by January Jones...). The assembly of the mutants is VERY pedestrian and uninteresting, stylish as it may be put together.
I was very bored by pretty much everything except the relationship between Magneto and Professor X as they semi-wrestle with a few difficult issues. They present the only adult storyline in an otherwise kid-friendly film. The film was a pretty solid B- until the final scene on the beach, which nearly lifted it to B+ because of its existential and Magneto-heavy sequences.
Fassbender is the best thing about the film and, combined with his elegant performance in Inglorious Basterds, has pretty much solidified himself as one of my favorite actors. He conveys intelligence and intensity along with a little panache in both films - he should immediately be handed the 007 franchise, post-haste.
Song of the Day - Waiting for the End
By Linkin Park
The chorus of this one resembles pretty good U2 with it's soaring lyrics and inspired vocal line. In the absence of that Irish quartet, it'll have to do.
Monday, July 4, 2011
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Song of the Day - Tonight Tonight
By Hot Chelle Rae
It's silly and inconsequential, but it's deceptively simple, and most of all, fun. A perfect summer song.
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Song of the Day - Better Man, Pearl Jam.
Enough with BEP and the Script. A classic from PJ. Their Cameron Crowe directed documentary comes out this fall (teaser trailer).
Continue reading this postCars 2 - B-
In theaters. Rated G, 113 minutes. Trailer.
The first Cars film was one of Pixar's best because of a great story, quality lessons learned and a strong collection of interesting characters. Cars 2 brings the same characters and even adds with a spy voiced by Michael Caine and a few other minor cars, but doesn't come close to capturing the magic of the original. This one focuses on Tow Mater (voiced by Larry the Cable Guy) and his "fish out of water" issues as he accompanies Lightning McQueen (Owen Wilson) on a series of international races. Click below for more on C2:
The story was extremely convoluted and confusing, not to mention sort of backward....the theme was on "always being who you are", which I agree with, but I was having to explain to my kids that actually when you are in other countries you need to be respectful of their culture and try and learn. The visuals are stunning as you would expect, and I found the racing scenes extremely entertaining. This is decent for kids, but they won't get the story. A disappointment. (I won't even get into the liberal anti-oil plot points)
Friday, July 1, 2011
Cave of Forgotten Dreams - B-
In theaters. Rated PG, 90 minutes. Trailer.
Director Werner Herzog is fascinated with human existence and how our species fits into the world. Cave explores the Chauvet cave in France, which was only recently discovered and which contains the oldest known cave drawings. Herzog's signature commentary and lingering, contemplative cinematography frame this meditative documentary about the fascinating cave drawings. The drawings are amazingly preserved and contain much artistry, and Herzog does a good job of making them compelling. Wow, though, this film is about 30 minutes too long with lingering shots of the drawings that are so long its almost comical - with that trim, this would be a B+ or an A-.
Song of the Day - Just Can't Get Enough
By the Black Eyed Peas
It's shocking that I don't change the station given this one's ubiquitousness. The last segment is the worst part and thankfully the shortest.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Best and worst of 2011 (Halfway Point)
It's been a rough 6 months with uninteresting superhero crap served to us at the theater weekly. Is there really anywhere to go after the Scott Pilgrim deconstruction? I imagine Christopher Nolan has one more miracle up his sleeve before the genre is put on ice. The Oscars were a beating for me, but lots of people seem to love The King's Speech. 2 sporting events ended spectacularly and as usual, music seems to get stronger when there's a recession on and people get some perspective and understanding. TV continues to outpace film on average. So, let's give out some mid-year awards.
Best Song: Rolling in the Deep, Adele - an instant classic. An astonishing voice for such a young Brit.
Best New Band: Mumford and Sons
Best TV moment: A corn-rowed Ron Swanson in a kimono.
Best Sports Moment: The Dallas Mavericks beating the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals.
2nd Best Sports Moment: The Green Bay Packers beating the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XLV.
Best TV movie: Too Big to Fail (HBO)
A behind the scenes look at the financial meltdown in the fall of 2008, directed by Curtis Hanson and featuring great performances by William Hurt, Paul Giamatti, Billy Crudup, and Topher Grace. People talk and talk in scene after scene, but it remains a fascinating, stimulating exercise throughout. Somehow, Hanson makes sense of it all. B+
Best Movie Movie: I will defer to Lawyer, who's more up to date. He's got Hall Pass at the top with a B+ and Bridesmaids, Midnight in Paris, and Buck receiving B's. Tree of Life is presumably in the mix.
Worst Oscar Nominated Film: Rabbit Hole - an unwatchable couple (Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart) deal with the tragic loss of their 4 year old son differently. The lack of new insights or observations make this melodrama tedious very early on. C-
Worst DVD/Blu-ray Release: I Love You Philip Morris - Jim Carrey has lots of gay sex, calls all Texans stupid, and overacts worse than both Ace Venturas combined. The film itself is repetitive and unnecessarily confrontational with its audience. An unmitigated disaster. D
Best DVD/Blu-ray Release (new film): The Social Network - all the special features you could hope for, including a director's commentary filled with humility and knowledge.
Best Blu-ray Release (classic film): Taxi Driver - like taking a time machine to mid 70s New York. The film looks perfect and the extras (some old, some new) are plenty for even the most rabid fan (like myself). Never knew Albert Brooks's birth name was Albert Einstein!
Best Movie Poster: The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (see below)
Best Movie Trailer: The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (see here) - Fincher + Zeppelin = Intellectual and spiritual ecstasy for Doctor.
Monday, June 27, 2011
Buck - B
In theaters. Rated PG, 88 minutes. Trailer.
Buck is a documentary about Buck Brannaman, a horse trainer commonly known as "The Horse Whisperer". His technique is novel in its gentleness and surprising because of his past as an abused child. The film explores his world and does a decent job of paralleling treatment of the horses and humans treatment of each other. Brannaman's backstory and world weary Daniel Craig gaze make him a compelling character. This one starts strong but then peters out save for a couple of moving stories told by Buck's friends. This is a good film, and might be a higher grade for someone that loves animals.
Song of the Day - Break Even, The Script
Again with the goofy pop songs. I've liked this one for a while.
Continue reading this post
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