After watching the Academy Award nominated Baz Luhrmann movie, The Great Gatsby, I was talking to a friend who asked if I've ever seen this movie. I had not but I liked his version of Gatsby and Moulin Rouge before that so I thought I would give this movie a try.
As a fan of the television show, Dancing with the Stars, I love to watch ballroom dancing. The passion for the music and dancing and for entertaining. This was all also present in Strictly Ballroom. Basically a bunch of unknowns acting in the movie but getting the story originated and co-written by Baz Luhrmann beautifully across to the viewer. It was a romantic love story, heartfelt drama and moving soundtrack/choreography all in one.
I give this a one and a half thumb dancing in pure enjoyment.
Thursday, January 23, 2014
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
Despicable Me 2
Steve Carell is back as Gru. I didn't rave over the first movie but then this movie was nominated for an Oscar for Best Animated feature and Best Song. I am not sorry that I saw this movie. Steve Carell and Kristen Wiig are funny as love interest and if you want to see live action love interest, watch Anchorman 2. Although predictable in parts of the plot, this was enjoyable but let's be honest, the reason to watch this is for the adorable minions.
They speak gibberish but are still cute and for basically this reason alone, I give this a one thumb up pointing to the minion with one centered eye.
They speak gibberish but are still cute and for basically this reason alone, I give this a one thumb up pointing to the minion with one centered eye.
Sunday, January 19, 2014
Blue Jasmine
Out of the many movies that Woody Allen has written and directed, I only liked a handful that I would watch again. Midnight In Paris, Bullets Over Broadway, The Purple Rose of Cairo and even Everything You Wanted To Know About Sex But Were Afraid To Ask are those movies.
Blue Jasmine is not one of those movies.
Cate Blanchett (Jasmine) is a wonderful actress who is totally believable at portraying a mentally ill woman. Sally Hawkins (Ginger, Jasmine's sister) is a good actress but was better in Happy Go Lucky and undeserving of a supporting actress nomination. I wish Woody Allen had made the sisters more connected and Sally more caring about her sisters mental illness. Alec Baldwin was typecast as a swindling womanizer. Peter Sarsgaard is a good actor but the role was sort of a dunce. Andrew Dice Clay was surprisingly good as Ginger's ex-husband Augie.
I hated the ending and felt like there was too many gaps in the character arcs.
I give this a half thumb up for Cate Blanchett carrying the film more than anyone else including Woody Allen.
Blue Jasmine is not one of those movies.
Cate Blanchett (Jasmine) is a wonderful actress who is totally believable at portraying a mentally ill woman. Sally Hawkins (Ginger, Jasmine's sister) is a good actress but was better in Happy Go Lucky and undeserving of a supporting actress nomination. I wish Woody Allen had made the sisters more connected and Sally more caring about her sisters mental illness. Alec Baldwin was typecast as a swindling womanizer. Peter Sarsgaard is a good actor but the role was sort of a dunce. Andrew Dice Clay was surprisingly good as Ginger's ex-husband Augie.
I hated the ending and felt like there was too many gaps in the character arcs.
I give this a half thumb up for Cate Blanchett carrying the film more than anyone else including Woody Allen.
The Wolf of Wall Street
Heading into this movie, I heard negative comments at the sex, profanity and drug use in this movie. Although there was a ton of F-bombs and huge amount of drug use, I didn't feel like it was gratuitous. The sex scenes weren't even that bad to me. The only thing that rubbed me offensive to watch was when they were using the word R-word and depicting cerebral palsy as the stage after drooling in quaalude use.
This movie is based on the book Jordan Belfort wrote about his own life. He aspired to be rich and powerful like Gordon Gekko's character from the 1987 movie Wall Street.
The appeal of being rich, I understand. The appeal of being so powerful that you lose your moral compass, I do not understand.
Leo Dicaprio deserves his Lead Actor Oscar nomination. It felt like the role was Gatsby on drugs and not much of a stretch from what he seems to be like off screen.
Jonah Hill was fantastic as a supporting actor in MoneyBall but I didn't see anything to convince me that he was worthy of another nomination this time.
Marty Scorsese is more respected for his directing ability from this reviewer after seeing this movie but if he wins Best Director, there is a good chance it will Best Picture which I would prefer not to happen (with 6 out of 9 nominees watched, 12 Years A Slave is my favorite).
It was a joy to see Rob Reiner back in front of the camera, playing Jordan's father.
I give this a surprising one and a half thumbs up for directing and Lead acting but hope that it does not give anyone the ambition to follow in Jordan's footsteps.
This movie is based on the book Jordan Belfort wrote about his own life. He aspired to be rich and powerful like Gordon Gekko's character from the 1987 movie Wall Street.
The appeal of being rich, I understand. The appeal of being so powerful that you lose your moral compass, I do not understand.
Leo Dicaprio deserves his Lead Actor Oscar nomination. It felt like the role was Gatsby on drugs and not much of a stretch from what he seems to be like off screen.
Jonah Hill was fantastic as a supporting actor in MoneyBall but I didn't see anything to convince me that he was worthy of another nomination this time.
Marty Scorsese is more respected for his directing ability from this reviewer after seeing this movie but if he wins Best Director, there is a good chance it will Best Picture which I would prefer not to happen (with 6 out of 9 nominees watched, 12 Years A Slave is my favorite).
It was a joy to see Rob Reiner back in front of the camera, playing Jordan's father.
I give this a surprising one and a half thumbs up for directing and Lead acting but hope that it does not give anyone the ambition to follow in Jordan's footsteps.
Lone Survivor
This movie has been touted as the best war movie since Saving Private Ryan. In my opinion, Saving Private Ryan was a war movie for the first fifteen minutes or so but then it is more drama at Tom Hanks character finding and bring back Matt Damon's Private Ryan than actual fighting in a war.
If you like war movies, Lone Survivor is a real war movie. It shows the camaraderie of the soldiers who are not just working their jobs as fighters for our country but men who connect as brothers although unrelated.
This shows the toughness yet heart that it takes to be a soldier and make decisions in extreme situations. This movie is based on the true life story of the Navy Seals mission of June 2005 entitled Operation Red Wings which as the title surmises only led to one survivor. The rest of the valiant crew gave definition to the term "The ultimate sacrifice".
The director met with the families of all the servicemen who lost their life and one of the father's read his sons death notice in tears about how his son was shot eleven times and the father said to the director "that's who my son was, that's how hard he fought, make sure you get that right."
I believe he did get it right and I would encourage all of you to either see this one large thumb up movie (including the ending credits where the real soldiers are memorialized) or at the very least send a thought or prayer of thanks to all the men and women who have fought, are fighting and will fight to defend the rights of our country.
If you like war movies, Lone Survivor is a real war movie. It shows the camaraderie of the soldiers who are not just working their jobs as fighters for our country but men who connect as brothers although unrelated.
This shows the toughness yet heart that it takes to be a soldier and make decisions in extreme situations. This movie is based on the true life story of the Navy Seals mission of June 2005 entitled Operation Red Wings which as the title surmises only led to one survivor. The rest of the valiant crew gave definition to the term "The ultimate sacrifice".
The director met with the families of all the servicemen who lost their life and one of the father's read his sons death notice in tears about how his son was shot eleven times and the father said to the director "that's who my son was, that's how hard he fought, make sure you get that right."
I believe he did get it right and I would encourage all of you to either see this one large thumb up movie (including the ending credits where the real soldiers are memorialized) or at the very least send a thought or prayer of thanks to all the men and women who have fought, are fighting and will fight to defend the rights of our country.
Her
This reminded me of the lesser known movie, Disconnect about our dependence on technology but on a much grander scale.
I try to live my life to connect with other humans in a personable way and refuse to let technology take over my life. Oh sure, I have a smart phone, e-reader and computer (obviously as I'm writing this blog) but cannot survive without person-to-person interaction.
When people walk down the street or in a place of business talking through their ear piece or other blue tooth device, I am saddened. Many school age children and young adults are growing up and going to school without never learning the knowledge of interpersonal communication. The beauty of a loving touch through a pat on the back or hug. The power of looking into someone's eyes and not saying a word but still getting your point across. It seems to me like silence is shunned instead of treated like the golden attribute that it is.
This movie made me sad at all the voice-activated technology telling objects (software) what to do instead of working with a person and discussing, deciding or even collaborating and compromising to accomplish a feat. A relationship can be many things objects, animals, people but people should be the most valued.
The job that Joaquin Phoenix's character has as a letter writer for people intrigues me as a writer. It also hurts me to think people would rather pay people to show applicable feelings than to experience them themselves. The supporting role by Amy Adams provided some stability for Joaquin but this movie was mostly between Joaquin's Theodore and "Her". The supporting roles of Rooney Mara and Chris Pratt were under developed for these talented actors.
I give this a one and a half thumb up to encourage verbal discussion about improving interpersonal communication instead of using those thumbs for texting and other technological uses.
I try to live my life to connect with other humans in a personable way and refuse to let technology take over my life. Oh sure, I have a smart phone, e-reader and computer (obviously as I'm writing this blog) but cannot survive without person-to-person interaction.
When people walk down the street or in a place of business talking through their ear piece or other blue tooth device, I am saddened. Many school age children and young adults are growing up and going to school without never learning the knowledge of interpersonal communication. The beauty of a loving touch through a pat on the back or hug. The power of looking into someone's eyes and not saying a word but still getting your point across. It seems to me like silence is shunned instead of treated like the golden attribute that it is.
This movie made me sad at all the voice-activated technology telling objects (software) what to do instead of working with a person and discussing, deciding or even collaborating and compromising to accomplish a feat. A relationship can be many things objects, animals, people but people should be the most valued.
The job that Joaquin Phoenix's character has as a letter writer for people intrigues me as a writer. It also hurts me to think people would rather pay people to show applicable feelings than to experience them themselves. The supporting role by Amy Adams provided some stability for Joaquin but this movie was mostly between Joaquin's Theodore and "Her". The supporting roles of Rooney Mara and Chris Pratt were under developed for these talented actors.
I give this a one and a half thumb up to encourage verbal discussion about improving interpersonal communication instead of using those thumbs for texting and other technological uses.
Inside Llewyn Davis
Oscar-nominated means a must see for this reviewer. Good music, soulful acting and slow-moving plot make for a typical Oscar movie.
Oscar Isaac is a an actor and singer perfect for the role of fictional Llewyn Davis. This was inspired by the story of musician Dave Ronk and the Greenwich village music scene of the 1960's. I admired Oscar's acting and would be happy to sit in a dive bar listening to him sing folk music.
Carey Mulligan is an under-rated actress who flawlessly takes on any role she portrays (An Education and Never Let Me Go among others).
Justin Timberlake and John Goodman seem to pop in nearly every movie lately and are both charming in their own ways. I didn't like John Goodman's character arc in the movie but he is also an under-rated actor subtlety very diverse in his acting skill.
I give this a half thumb up for the music and acting but was under-whelmed overall.
Oscar Isaac is a an actor and singer perfect for the role of fictional Llewyn Davis. This was inspired by the story of musician Dave Ronk and the Greenwich village music scene of the 1960's. I admired Oscar's acting and would be happy to sit in a dive bar listening to him sing folk music.
Carey Mulligan is an under-rated actress who flawlessly takes on any role she portrays (An Education and Never Let Me Go among others).
Justin Timberlake and John Goodman seem to pop in nearly every movie lately and are both charming in their own ways. I didn't like John Goodman's character arc in the movie but he is also an under-rated actor subtlety very diverse in his acting skill.
I give this a half thumb up for the music and acting but was under-whelmed overall.
Thursday, January 16, 2014
August: Osage County
The tag line for this movie is Misery Loves Family and it is very appropriate.
This movie, based on the Tony award winning play of the same name, were both written by the amazing Tracy Letts. Trivia: he is the son of another amazing writer, Billie Letts of Where The Heart Is fame.
There are so many stars in this movie adaptation, Benedict Cumberbatch (who eerily looks like a young Dennis Quaid), Abigail Breslin, Juliette Lewis, Dermot Mulroney, Sam Shepard, Ewan Mcgregor, Chris Cooper, Oscar-nominee Julia Roberts and perennially nominated Oscar winner, Meryl Streep. Unlike Django Unchained and Lee Daniels, The Butler, these stars do not get in the way of the story. The story is strong, funny, heart-wrenching and thought-provoking all at the same time. You could call it depressing but that would be over-simplifying the impact of the movie. This is the type of movie that resonates with the viewer long after you walk out of the 121 minute movie.
Meryl Streep is her usual phenomenal self as Violet Weston, the matriarch of a family of three women (Julia, Julianne Nicholson and Juliette) coming back together after a family crisis. Every member of the cast has their own faults just like us all. I originally though Chris Cooper was the only redeeming character until after some percolating in my mind, realized that even he is flawed--making fun of Abigail Breslin's character's vegetarianism. Tracy Letts adds a Native American role solely as a caretaker for Violet as stability and also to show the love of Violet's husband, Beverly Weston (Sam Shepard). Tracy also puts in some plot twists to keep ratcheting up the conflict for more dramatic effect.
I give this two thumbs up in appreciation for the writing of Tracy Letts, the acting of Meryl Streep who at 64 1/2 years young still succeeds in every role (hence the 18th Oscar nomination) and the rest of the cast and crew of this movie. This is a snub of the 2014 Oscars, as it deserved a Best Picture nomination.
This movie, based on the Tony award winning play of the same name, were both written by the amazing Tracy Letts. Trivia: he is the son of another amazing writer, Billie Letts of Where The Heart Is fame.
There are so many stars in this movie adaptation, Benedict Cumberbatch (who eerily looks like a young Dennis Quaid), Abigail Breslin, Juliette Lewis, Dermot Mulroney, Sam Shepard, Ewan Mcgregor, Chris Cooper, Oscar-nominee Julia Roberts and perennially nominated Oscar winner, Meryl Streep. Unlike Django Unchained and Lee Daniels, The Butler, these stars do not get in the way of the story. The story is strong, funny, heart-wrenching and thought-provoking all at the same time. You could call it depressing but that would be over-simplifying the impact of the movie. This is the type of movie that resonates with the viewer long after you walk out of the 121 minute movie.
Meryl Streep is her usual phenomenal self as Violet Weston, the matriarch of a family of three women (Julia, Julianne Nicholson and Juliette) coming back together after a family crisis. Every member of the cast has their own faults just like us all. I originally though Chris Cooper was the only redeeming character until after some percolating in my mind, realized that even he is flawed--making fun of Abigail Breslin's character's vegetarianism. Tracy Letts adds a Native American role solely as a caretaker for Violet as stability and also to show the love of Violet's husband, Beverly Weston (Sam Shepard). Tracy also puts in some plot twists to keep ratcheting up the conflict for more dramatic effect.
I give this two thumbs up in appreciation for the writing of Tracy Letts, the acting of Meryl Streep who at 64 1/2 years young still succeeds in every role (hence the 18th Oscar nomination) and the rest of the cast and crew of this movie. This is a snub of the 2014 Oscars, as it deserved a Best Picture nomination.
Saving Mr Banks
The tag line for this movie is Where Her Book Ended, Their Story Begins. It is perfect summary of the movie. This depicts P.L. Travers recollection of her childhood while meeting with Walt Disney to discuss adapting her book, Mary Poppins to the big screen in 1964.
Emma Thompson plays P.L. Travers magnificently in perhaps one of the biggest Oscar snubs of 2014. Tom Hanks seems to enjoy himself as Walt Disney and Colin Farrell showed his acting prowess as Travers Goff, the author's father. Bradley Whitford also seemed to enjoy himself in a 'fluffier' role than he usually plays as one of the screenwriters. Paul Giamatti adds some heart as P.L. Travers driver.
This is a movie that I wouldn't mind watching more than once but I think reading the screenplay would be even better to see the exact quotes/dialogue used by the author very much appreciated by this reviewer/writer.
I even got my eyeful of an adorable plush Donald Duck, but was sad when P.L. Travers snuggles with Mickey Mouse instead of Donald Duck in one scene; Donald is always second fiddle to Mickey. :-( Sorry Donald Duck collector had to contributor her two cents worth.
I give this a strong one and a half thumbs up in praise at showing the realistic story of 'Disneyfying' a classic story and HIGHLY recommend people to wait around at the end credits to listen to a recording of the real P.L. Travers recordings with Disney to prove how amazing Emma was with her acting.
Emma Thompson plays P.L. Travers magnificently in perhaps one of the biggest Oscar snubs of 2014. Tom Hanks seems to enjoy himself as Walt Disney and Colin Farrell showed his acting prowess as Travers Goff, the author's father. Bradley Whitford also seemed to enjoy himself in a 'fluffier' role than he usually plays as one of the screenwriters. Paul Giamatti adds some heart as P.L. Travers driver.
This is a movie that I wouldn't mind watching more than once but I think reading the screenplay would be even better to see the exact quotes/dialogue used by the author very much appreciated by this reviewer/writer.
I even got my eyeful of an adorable plush Donald Duck, but was sad when P.L. Travers snuggles with Mickey Mouse instead of Donald Duck in one scene; Donald is always second fiddle to Mickey. :-( Sorry Donald Duck collector had to contributor her two cents worth.
I give this a strong one and a half thumbs up in praise at showing the realistic story of 'Disneyfying' a classic story and HIGHLY recommend people to wait around at the end credits to listen to a recording of the real P.L. Travers recordings with Disney to prove how amazing Emma was with her acting.
Frozen
Disney has taken Hans Christian Anderson's classic fairy tale, The Snow Queen and turned it into an animated feature. As with most (if not all) Disney movies, it starts off one or both parents die. That bothers me but I understand the idea that in order to make the children watching it believe they can thrive, they must see other kids succeeding without adults help.
This is the story of two sisters, Anna and Elsa. Elsa is the snow queen but gets in trouble when the fear of hurting her sister overpowers herself. As the story progresses, we meet many characters but Olaf as the snowman is the essential comic relief. Kristoff and Sven help Anna try to help Elsa overcome her fear and Hans provides an interesting plot twist.
SPOILER ALERT: Disney could have followed the usual fairy tale where girl and boy fall in love but instead we are focused on the power of sisters which is a refreshing change of tradition for Disney.
This movie also has wonderful music, in particular, Elsa's songs were sung by the amazing Idina Menzel.
I give this one and a half thumbs frozen pointing up because I actually felt cold watching the movie but thawed at the end from the heart-warming tale.
This is the story of two sisters, Anna and Elsa. Elsa is the snow queen but gets in trouble when the fear of hurting her sister overpowers herself. As the story progresses, we meet many characters but Olaf as the snowman is the essential comic relief. Kristoff and Sven help Anna try to help Elsa overcome her fear and Hans provides an interesting plot twist.
SPOILER ALERT: Disney could have followed the usual fairy tale where girl and boy fall in love but instead we are focused on the power of sisters which is a refreshing change of tradition for Disney.
This movie also has wonderful music, in particular, Elsa's songs were sung by the amazing Idina Menzel.
I give this one and a half thumbs frozen pointing up because I actually felt cold watching the movie but thawed at the end from the heart-warming tale.
Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues
If you enjoy Will Ferrell comedy and non-Politically Correct humor, you will like this movie. As is typical, the original is funnier but only because it was an original so it was fresh and new. This sequel is funny too and I like it when the original cast all comes back for the sequel to continue the chemistry.
The fight scene from the first movie is revisited in this sequel and is actually bigger, better and funnier.
Kristen Wiig was a great addition as Brick's love interest. Their scenes together were hilariously unintelligent.
I give this a strong one thumb up pointing to the direction the corners of your lips will be pointing from laughing and enjoying this movie.....at a budget theater or as a rental.
The fight scene from the first movie is revisited in this sequel and is actually bigger, better and funnier.
Kristen Wiig was a great addition as Brick's love interest. Their scenes together were hilariously unintelligent.
I give this a strong one thumb up pointing to the direction the corners of your lips will be pointing from laughing and enjoying this movie.....at a budget theater or as a rental.
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