America’s Sweethearts

Starring: Catherine Zeta-Jones, Julia Roberts, and John Cusack
Directed by Joe Roth
Year: 2001
IMDB / Wikipedia

In America, we like to think that our life experiences are as unique as the fact that we are human (spoiler alert: they’re/we’re not). However, this has not stopped Hollywood from making the distinction in the titles of many of our movies. This is one of those movies. 

We start off with a bang: a romantic-comedy that makes fun of romantic-comedies, the people who star in them, and the people who make them. Though not the first movie to take on the industry that made it, it does have some teeth and some sense of honesty despite the fact it is, without a doubt, just another Hollywood RomCom.

Catherine Zeta-Jones and John Cusack star as an estranged husband and wife who were the darlings of the movie world but, as their marriage dissolved so did their box office appeal. In an attempt to boost the hype for the last film project they are ever to do together, they are whisked away to a press junket by the studio’s movie publicist played by Billy Crystal. Hilarity ensues.

Though I mock this film I do keep coming back to it because, in a way, it’s different to see stars lampoon themselves so brashly since both CZJ and Cusack are both very entrenched in the romantic-comedy genre. Even the supporting cast, which includes the insanely bankable Julia Roberts, is also one of the face of the romantic-comedy genre and takes her shots at it as well. I think that many people forget how fickle the film industry can be and that stories like these are not just plausible, but are probably biographical.

But, more than that, it’s a funny movie. On the surface it’s a RomCom (a term I hate because it’s trendy but I love because it keeps me from writing “romantic-comedy” over and over again), on the next layer down it’s a biting satire on the film industry, but on a deeper level it’s a story about the interpersonal relationships that happen when you either need to work with someone or have to work with someone. Think about it: is there someone at your office or at school you despise but have to work with to get something done or move ahead? Of course there is, and this film shows how people use one another to their own ends in the hopes they will get ahead and look good whilst doing it.

So, what does this have to do with America? Besides the fact that we  throw so much attention at actors that their egos become larger and more fragile each and every day? Aside from the fact that we, as citizens, idolize these people to the point where their opinions matter more to us than our legislative leaders? This movie is a sad reminder that we derive too much esteem from the accomplishments and downfalls of others and it’s horribly frustrating and humbling to admit that it is 100% true. So, look upon this film and weep, for it is as much truth we can attach to a comedy before it becomes a tragedy.

Most Valuable Actor: Billy Crystal as Lee Phillips, the movie publicist who tries to keep everything on the rails. You know, it took me over 10 years to notice this but it’s fitting he is in this movie because he is one-half the starring cast in the most revered romantic-comedy of all time. To see him lampoon this would be like seeing Orson Welle’s shilling for Rosebud Frozen Peas. (HA!)

Trailer:

Amadeus

Starring F. Murray Abraham, Tom Hulce, and Elizabeth Berridge
Directed by Milos Forman
Year: 1984
IMDB / Wikipedia

I categorized this movie as a Biopic because, let’s face it, it’s the closest thing we will ever have to a biographical film study on the life of Mozart. I have no qualms calling it just though many of the facts in the movie are largely unsubstantiated and are, at best, inferences taken from oral histories of the people who knew them. But the film makes up for that shortfall by illustrating, with a lot of detail, that no one ever knew Mozart.

I remember watching this movie for the first time in high school during my German class. There is really nothing connecting this film to the course curriculum, but we watched it anyway and it took almost an entire week to do so. However, while my classmates were bored out of their minds, doing homework for other classes, or finding ways to distract themselves from the film, I watched it and tried to appreciate it for what it was: the story of two men–one crippled by envy and the other crippled by genius–and how their stories paralleled one another.

Because, as much as film critics would like to say this story is about everything but, it is truly about that theme that Mozart truly cared about: love. Salieri (Abraham) hated Mozart but loved him as well. Even as he said he hated God for giving such gifts to a boorish, selfish person, he saw in Mozart the man he wanted to be and, because of that reflection, ended up loving him. Oddly enough, it was the realization of that love that made Salieri hate Mozart that much more to the point where he constructed the elaborate plan to kill him.

On the other side, Mozart loved his music, his wife, and his good times but it always came back to the first. It was insinuated early in the film (and by countless music historians) that Mozart was a product of his father who pushed him into music at an early age. However, when you take into account that when Mozart parted from his father, putting hundreds of miles between them, he created most of the seminal works that he is still known for today, it shows that Mozart’s genius might have been held back by his father who only wanted him to take on students and play for royalty. Even in the film, his father said that composition doesn’t pay where taking on students does. Mozart did not care, however, and sought out as many ways as he could to be creative, even turning to the vaudeville for ‘The Magic Flute.’ It wasn’t money he was concerned with: it was creation. However, his love of creation (especially of the Requiem Mass in D minor) led him to a pauper’s grave outside Vienna, leaving his family essentially penniless.

But, even in the closing of the film, there is love. Salieri, even after admitting that God was punishing him for his wicked life of envy and love was smiling as he accepted his fate and was wheeled smiling through the halls of the asylum where he went to absolve the world’s “mediocrities” or, in other words, show them love and forgiveness.

It was love of the public and critics for this film that garnered it eight Oscar wins, including Best Picture. It was a risk to have a movie like this come out at the dawn of the MTV era, but Foreman knew how to tell a sublime story about someone this world is not likely to forget. It is for of the love of music and the adoration of those who create it this movie was established to show the cost of such devotion and such genius.

Most Valuable Actor: F. Murray Abraham won a Best Actor in a Leading Role Oscar for his portrayal of Antonio Salieri and for good reason. His performance was, to say the very least, haunting and showed how unquenchable envy, lust, ambition, and love can either raise a person to greatness or drive them mad. Abraham illustrated the beauty of Salieri’s descent into the depths of madness as he toiled to bring down his greatest rival.

Trailer:

All the President’s Men

Starring Robert Redford, Dustin Hoffman, and Jason Robards
Directed by Alan J. Pakula
Year: 1976
IMDB / Wikipedia

It’s hard to get into a movie like this unless you are either a political scientist or a journalist. I watched this film for no less than three of my J-school classes and I’m here to tell you that, even for an aspiring journalist, the film is a bit tedious.

But such is the life of a journalist. A Denver Post writer (I cannot recall a name right now) came and spoke to a class and said he gets excited going through boxes of files and notes looking for clues and sources. He went on to emphasize that, as a reporter, that’s mostly what journalism is: digging through pounds of garbage to find an ounce of truth. I should have walked from the class to the registrar’s office and changed my major. Instead, it’s a learning experience and something firmly in my past.

No matter how glamorous or how dangerous All the President’s Men made the lives of Woodward and Bernstein (and even the occupation of investigative journalist) it’s pretty much a farce. It’s true the two of them received death threats as a result of the pieces they wrote, and their tactics of obtaining sources and confirming facts could be considered quite dubious, but the fact remains that drama was added to their story to make a great movie (see also: The Insider).

Even more than that, this is a piece of American history. The Watergate Scandal ruined countless lives, revealed the election process as nothing more than a mummer’s farce, and deposed a seated president all thanks to the work of two reporters who saw that things weren’t adding up. On paper, the film should be a dramatic masterpiece (and is considered such by many film aficionados) but I cannot get past the over-dramatization of the occupation.

Redford and Hoffman deliver good (and quite accurate) portrayals as the two sleuthy scribes in their hunt for the truth behind the break-in at the Democratic party offices at the Watergate Hotel. Their search forces them to get facts and quotes and confirmations from a myriad of sources that had little idea of what was truly going on. In this day-and-age, this never would have worked. Because of the real-life efforts of Woodward and Bernstein scandals such as these are mostly buried before they ever have a chance to see the daylight, which makes this film more dated than it should be.

In the end, it’s a good story but it’s boring to those without the background and knowledge that is pretty essential to establishing the drama in the film.

Most Valuable Actor: Jason Robards as Washington Post editor Ben Bradlee, the authoritative voice that champions the story that the two reporters are chasing when he could have easily swept it under the rug. The role called for someone who had the look of a person who had spent his life wrist-deep in the political shit that Washington doles out on a daily basis. I can imagine the editors that have come since have a similar look to them.

Trailer:

The Dark Knight Rises

Starring Christian Bale, Gary Oldman, and Michael Caine
Directed by Christopher Nolan
Year: 2012
IMDB / Wikpedia

I rarely see movies in the theater. When I do, it’s usually for a landmark cinematic event or the wife wants to see something especially cute. This post is a document of the former.

First off, I want to make it clear that this first graf will be the only place I will mention the horrific shooting that occurred in Aurora, Colorado last Friday. It’s not that I have not been affected by the shootings, I’m from Aurora and have seen a couple of movies at that movie complex, but I feel that it has been covered sufficiently by outlets both local and national. If you want more of it please go here, here, here, here, or here to get your fill. This blog is about movies, not the actions of those people surrounding movies. For that kind of tabloid fodder, go here.

I want to step back in time to 2007, when the hype for The Dark Knight was ramping up. I was working at a company where I had pretty free-reign over my workday so, once my duties were fulfilled, I sat online and tried to absorb everything I could about the film, the stars, its production, and the insane viral marketing campaign that was starting almost a year in advance of this film. The tension was palpable and I had friends and co-workers who were as excited as I was to see the film. Opening weekend came and my wife (well, soon-to-be-wife) and I went to a Sunday matinee with a few hundred others and saw the film. I’m not going to go into detail about that film until I review it later but, in short, TDK failed to live up to the unbelievable hype.

Coming forward from there to last summer, when more and more details were coming out about The Dark Knight Rises I approached with more caution. I was still interested in everything about this movie, but I wasn’t going to be suckered into devoting a lot of time and energy into every step in this movie’s gestation. Perhaps it was because I didn’t want to be disappointed again, perhaps I knew I set my sights a bit too high for the last movie, but with this one I tread lightly. I swore in 2008 I would be at a midnight showing for the final movie in Christopher Nolan’s Batman opus, but four years later, I found myself seriously thinking about waiting a few weeks to see it. That would prove to be just a delusion as I saw it last night. In IMAX.

As plainly as I can put it, as I don’t want to give a detailed information about the movie for those who have not seen it, this movie lived up to, not only its own hype, but all the hype that was built up for its predecessor as well. the sheer scale of the story, the plot, the intricate and delicate character interactions, and the amount of pure emotion that was put into the film by each and every character. I’m not talking about over-acting, I’m speaking to the wealth of emotion that this story evoked from every character. Without this emotion, without the brilliant screenplay to wrap up the entire trilogy, and leave the audience on the edge of their seats from the first moment until the closing frame, this movie would have been another Spider-Man 3.

For the last week I have avoided any and all reviews of the film because most, if not all of them, have spoilers (especially the spoiler-free ones). However, I was able to discern that there were more than a few negative (or apathetic) reviews of the film. It was surprising to see this considering everything that was done to meticulously craft and polish the script and, based on the negative feedback from TDK, some of the faults of the previous movie were sure to have been remedied. These people did not seem to think so and I have no wish to taint my memory or the reaction to this movie with their negativity. The worst was my friend Nick who said TDKR was the “weakest of the trilogy.” Since he and I do not always seem to see eye-to-eye on movies, I took it with a grain of salt, but the doubt slowly crept in.

My biggest worry with the film was Bane. Not the character (because it didn’t look to be the same kind of Bane that was in Batman & Robin) or the actor playing him (Tom Hardy is quickly becoming a very noteworthy actor in his own right), but the voice. There were reports (one, two, three) after the prologue was released in theaters (a.k.a. the airplane scene) that Bane’s voice was an incomprehensible, garbled mess. As there were sound problems in TDK, I was hoping this was because the prologue wasn’t properly mastered or because it was shown in theaters with inadequate sound, but I had my worries. There were entire exchanges in TDK that were muffled and half-heard when I saw it the first time and I didn’t want to have that happen again. Thankfully, Bane’s voice was crystal clear to my nearly-deaf ears, despite the mask, voice effects, and Hardy’s gypsy-brawler-inspired accent and was almost horrifying to hear.

But the thing that really drew me in, again, was the cast. From top to bottom, the entire cast was exquisitely chosen and delivered on all levels from beginning to end. Every role had a purpose and there was no wasted dialogue. The journey in this massive film (2 hours, 45 minutes) was expansive but also very close to the chest. Nolan’s world drew you in and made you part of the story. You felt every twist, turn, hope, and heartbreak in this film as it made its way to a conclusion that was both inevitable yet satisfying. A truly masterful way to bring this brilliant and powerful story to a close.

There’s so much more I want to say about this film but it would be hard for me to expound without giving away major plot points. I will say that this film should win the Oscar for Best Picture to give homage to the entire trilogy much like when The Return of the King won it back in 2004. It is only fitting that Nolan and the entire cast be rewarded for these cinematic masterpieces. Also, if you want to engage in some chat in the Comments section please feel free but, be aware that I cannot be held accountable for any spoilers released in there. In fact, I’m hoping someone will want to start a comment dialogue about it instead of the usual comments about improving my SEO. This is a wonderful film that lived up to the hype and delivered on all levels. If only all trilogies were so lucky.

Most Valuable Actor: Joseph Gordon-Levitt as John Blake, the hot-headed, ambitious officer who becomes Gordon’s right-hand as they help Batman fight Bane. Though the entire cast was brilliant, JGL’s story and arc in the film was something rather exceptional. Despite the eye-roll-worthy quip near the end of the movie, his story and his character really was the glue that held all of the other exceptional characters and arcs together. For the male audience, his character was relatable and recognizable and gave even more realistic depth to the movie. Those who are unable to suspend disbelief in any film could find Blake the anchor of reality in this film and base everything from there.

Trailer:

Alien / Aliens

Alien
Starring Tom Skeritt, Sigourney Weaver, and Ian Holm
Directed by Ridley Scott
Year: 1979
IMDB / Wikipedia

Aliens
Starring Sigourney Weaver, Michael Biehn, and Bill Paxton
Directed by James Cameron
Year: 1986
IMDB / Wikipedia

Here we have a tale of two directors helming two very different, but connected, films.

On the one hand, we have Ridley Scott, master of cinema and subtlety that brings us a truly frightening science-fiction masterpiece. On the other, we have James Cameron, a brilliant director in his own right that brings a different kind of sci-fi to the audience to tell a similar story will a different focus. Both are brilliant artisans but the differences between the two are worth a study.

Alien is the story of a commercial starship that is called to answer a distress beacon on a random planet on their way home from a mission. What they find is a species that is poised to decimate the entire crew just to serve its own propagation agenda. It’s a very cut-and-dry story with a few very interesting wrinkles along the way to ground it, not only in reality, but also fulfill one of the staples of science-fiction: social commentary. How far would we go to acquire something unusual, potentially profitable, despite its lethal nature?

Aliens takes place 57 years after the first movie with a group of Space Marines return to the planet to find out what has happened to a colony of inhabitants. On the surface, Cameron’s sequel (which he penned) takes many of the same plot devices and structure from the original and places it in his sequel.  This, however, makes little difference because the end results are two very different movies.

Scott’s style in Alien is reminiscent of the style of Alfred Hitchcock and Stanley Kubrick (whose own sci-fi film 2001: A Space Odyssey came out 11 years prior) in that the tension was built from the unknown and the darkness. There is very little dialogue in the film to reflect that, in real life, people do not normally try and fill every breath with some comment. Every aspect of the film, from the dialogue, to the blocking, to the use of visual effects is meticulously calculated and controlled by Scott to bring the audience one of the best all-around science-fiction stories every captured on celluloid.

Cameron, however, takes a different approach to the film in that, like his other movies, he leaves little to nothing to the imagination. Everything is out in front for review and dissection for the audience. Tension isn’t built by anticipation and the unknown in this film, but by plot twists and unfortunate circumstances. The fear and horror in this film is not done with subtlety, but with Stan Winston‘s amazing visual effects creatures. Also, Cameron is also a master of scale, meaning the title Aliens is not just signifying a sequel, but plurality as well. The more the merrier.

However, people my age, those brought up with big-budget blockbuster movies, believe that Cameron’s sequel is one of the few sequels that outshines the original. But when you watch the films side-by-side, see the similarities in plot, devices, twists, and even resolution, it is easy to see that the sequel is nothing more than a re-imagining of the original in the guise of a sequel. When both films are seen for what they are, and what they could have been, a clear winner stands out.

Most Valuable Actors: The Synthetics, played by Ian Holm and Lance Hendriksen. Each role is essential for the plots in both films but for very different reasons. Holm’s roles was one of indifferent recovery and following orders, even if it meant the lives of every person on board the ship. Hendriksen, however, played his character differently, as if his goal was to make up for the sins of an older model or, at the very least, prove to Ripley that she could trust Synthetics. In both cases, each actor brought their own cold personas to the role making them perfect to play unfeeling machines.

Trailer (Alien)

Trailer (Aliens)

21 Jump Street

Starring Channing Tatum, Jonah Hill, and Ice Cube
Directed by Peter Lord and Chris Miller
Year: 2012
IMDB / Wikipedia

Every now and then, I will find it necessary to break protocol to tend to my extremely large Netflix queue. This is one of those times. 

There are certain expectations made in the mind of a movie-goer when they watch a trailer or TV spot for a movie. Those trailers and commercials that are well done will not only convey the generalized plot of the film but also the tone of the film. Sometimes this is done well while other times very very poorly.

Coming into this film I expected a comedy-action cop film on the same level as the Billy Crystal/Gregory Hines buddy cop movie Running Scared. What I got was an attempt to make a buddy cop movie in the style of Starsky & Hutch (read: unfunny) but insanely more vulgar. The laughs were there but the story failed to satisfy.

My major complaint about the film was the relationship between the two characters. Schmidt (Hill) was a smart but insecure and awkward high school loser while Jenko (Tatum) was a dim but popular jock meet several years later when they join the police academy. Schmidt knows the procedural and law facts while Jenko is an ace on the firing range and the obstacle course. They decide to team up to make it through the academy together and become friends along the way. Though a believable series of events, the amount of screen time dedicated to establishing this story was as long as it took to read this paragraph, which made it seem contrived and very loose.

From there, the story treads on some familiar ground with the television series but the similarities are only skin deep. This movie is a farcical take on the dramatic show and, while there are some laughs and some goofy parts, to link them together is a real stretch.

The plot of a new synthetic drug going through a local high school and infiltrating the popular cliques to find the suppliers and dealers is well woven, but it seemed like the comedy and the plot were taking turns realizing themselves on screen and never really harmonizing. Even the motifs of friendship, trust, and finding yourself is muddled and not enough screen time is dedicated to fleshing out any one of them. It seemed like the studio gave them a hard minute-count to stick to and they tried their best to cram all they could into that time which ended up being a big waste.

In the end, this movie will be remembered for a few great one-liners (“Fuck you, Science!“) but weak as far as everything else is concerned. Even the ending and the eventual supplier was contrived and mostly spoiled by many of the trailers. However, if you have a couple of hours and want to take a chance give it a shot. You may end up liking it more than I did.

Most Valuable Actor: Channing Tatum did a great job playing … himself? His persona in real life is much like his character (and that’s probably why he was selected for the role) but the character was essential for the perpetuation of the movie. Jonah hill did a good job trying to play the lead and the guy who finally fits in at high school 10 years later but it was Tatum’s vulnerability as the guy who was truly still clutching to the past that made the dynamic between Jenko and Schmidt plausible. Not an Oscar-worthy performance but enough to make me respect him.

Trailer (Red Band – NSFW):

The Descendants

Starring George Clooney, Shailene Woodley, and Beau Bridges
Directed by Alexander Payne
Year: 2011
IMDB / Wikipedia

Every now and then, I will find it necessary to break protocol to tend to my extremely large Netflix queue. This is one of those times. 

My wife and Iw ere drawn to this movie for two different reasons. I was drawn to it because it is directed by Alexander Payne, Omaha native and the director of such great films as Election and About Schmidt, and I am a big fan of pretty much anything he puts on screen. My wife was drawn, like many women are, to George Clooney. I have nothing against Clooney, but I find him to be a better actor than his current heart-throb status would allow.

In this film, Payne and Clooney (along with a tremendous supporting cast) tell the story of a well-to-do man in Hawai’i with two daughters and a wife who has recently passed into a coma. The story is of Matt (Clooney) coming to grips with the potential loss of his wife, dealing with two daughters (Woodley and Amara Miller), and a looming major real estate deal that can make or break him and his entire extended family. Then, on top of all of that, Matt comes to discover that his wife was having an affair and was going to leave him.

In the hands of another director this movie could have come off like any other Hollywood novel-turned-film and laid every emotion on the canvas on way too thick in the hopes of drawing a supreme visceral reaction from the audience. Payne, however, was the right choice for this project because he has a delightfully lighter touch. Instead of embellishment, Payne allows what I assume the book does in spades: let the events unfold matter-of-factly and have the dialogue create the subtle painting of the rich emotions and motifs that bind the story and its characters together.

Though the film came to receive a great deal of critical and financial acclaim (Payne and co-screenwriters Nat Faxon and Jim Rash won the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay) I can see where detractors may find fault with the film. I have noticed many who find the use of voice-overs to be distracting, limiting, and allowing the director to take shortcuts by breaking down the fourth wall, but this is not Payne’s first foray into the delicate use of VO. In Election, Payne uses the VO of several characters to include subtle idiosyncrasies into the plot to better paint each character. In this film, since the only character that needs to be fully realized is Matt, the VO is only his voice and he doesn’t tell anything that the audience doesn’t already know. Only Payne could use this device in several movies without it seeming like a crutch or a trademark.

In all, the movie runs well thanks to the script and the cast. Despite the dark tone of the story, there is enough levity to balance it and any potential lulls were removed to create a pace that runs on its own time. Definitely a must-see for anyone interested in fine, no-nonsense cinema at its finest.

Most Valuable Actor: Shailene Woodley as Alex King. The supurb supporting cast was anchored by 20 year-old Woodley, who plays Matt’s rebellious and vulgar 17 year-old daughter and the one who reveals the secret of the affair. Though the film, Woodley helps the character develop into a mature support system for Matt who helps him keep his focus and his sanity to keep the family together.

Trailer

Movie Road Trip

The wife and I are taking a trip to a wedding. We’ll spend a few days amongst family and have a great time. However, being the guy I am, I live in fear of having a ton of downtime where my wife and/or I are stuck in the hotel for whatever reason with nothing to do. That’s why, in addition to a toothbrush, deoderant, and a flask, I carry movies with me as well.

For the last decade I have been blessed with laptop computers that are capable of playing DVDs (my wife has a Blu-Ray in hers … don’t get me started) so I’ve never been at a loss for something to play movies during trips, between classes, during classes, during downtime at work, etc. The problem is that, for a long time, I never carried movies with me so I had been screwed on several occasions. Though never a Boy Scout, I vowed to always be prepared and thus was born the travel DVD wallet.

In this wallet, I have afforded myself to carry 24 of my favorite movies of all time. These are not just movies that I dearly love; they are movies that I can watch over and over again without getting tired of them. But, more than that, they’re not movies I’m ashamed to watch around other people. So while I might be comfortable watching Friday over and over again, it’s not something that’s suitable for watching in a crowded airport during a weather delay. Over the years, I have refined my wallet and have gone well over the 24 titles I initially carried with me, opting to switch out movies I’ve seen recently or may not be suitable for my traveling companions. Since I’m traveling with my wife I have tailored the list to things she may like as well.

So, here’s my list of movies. For the sake of their lifespan, I make copies of the discs and carry the copies with me. I would hate to have my original copies of any of these films damaged because they are an absolute bitch to replace.

Office Space
Rounders
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Kahn
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country
Star Trek: First Contact
Star Trek (2009)
Tommy Boy
Fletch
Old School
Good Will Hunting
The Simpson’s Movie
Wonder Boys
Rushmore
Slap Shot
Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy
Little Miss Sunshine
Eddie Izzard: Dress to Kill
Knocked Up
Snatch
Mr. Baseball
SNL: The Best of Chris Farley
M*A*S*H
The Shawshank Redemption

I’m also fortunate in that I have a laptop computer that also has an enormous hard drive. Combine that with some awesome DVD ripping software, I’m slowly converting some of my travel movies digitally to, one day, eliminate the need for discs altogether. So far, I’ve got:

Batman Begins
The Dark Knight
Captain America: The First Avenger
Gladiator
Inception
Iron Man
Iron Man 2
Limitless
The Big Lebowski 
Thor
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
X-Men: First Class

Do you take movies on long trips? If so, what movies do you bring? Why those movies?