Frost/Nixon

Oh the delight!  I have seen Frost/Nixon today and you know it was good because I nearly ran someone over backing out in the parking lot.  I was so distracted with the many merits of the film, I must be excused for this near snafu, or granted a full pardon, if you will.  So, yes I very much liked the film.  As a youngster, it gave me some much needed historical context into the national reaction to the Watergate scandal.  Knowing really only the bare bones of the story, I was entirely unaware of this particular interview.  And the film really juxtaposes the idea of journalistic integrity with that of political conscience as it looks at the responsibility of both fields to reveal some bit of truth. Though the film in many ways vilifies Nixon, it also humanizes him, which was the great success of the interview.  Watching the epic battle in which David Frost attempts to catch Nixon in some state of remorse is like watching a skeptic attempt to reveal the tricks of a magician.  There is a form of truth in duplicity but there is also an absence of honesty.   Top notch acting and documentary style direction made for a wonderful viewing experience.  I particularly liked Sam Rockwell and Kevin Beacon in their supporting roles.  This was a perfect role for Micheal Sheen and I imagine it was quite lovely on the stage.  Frank Langella’s Nixon was, accurately so, annoying and unlikeable.  A-

Curious Indeed…

…is the case of Benjamin Button.  The film is full of moving images and outstanding makeup and visual effects.  But not much more.  The visual of Benjamin is mesmerizing as an old man child and then absolutely enchanting as the perfection that is Brad Pitt.  But who is his character?  Is he merely a man who must engage in shallow relationships due to the brevity of his circumstances.  I am also unclear as to Benjamin’s emotional state.  Is it also becoming progressively less mature?  The film actually would imply so, or maybe not.  And then there is Daisy encapsulated by Cate Blanchett. Hmm?  Well, she is selfish and inconsiderate for the better part of the film to accentuate the age difference but it just comes off as a character flaw.   I really felt no connection to her character.  Ultimately the scenes of her with the aging baby Pitt are very touching and lend to the sentimentality of the fragility and luck of life.  But then again, the image of a healthy baby dying in the arms of an old woman would evoke emotion regardless of the past two hours and fifty minutes of film that have preceded it.  I was especially irked by the annoying framing of the story.  A woman reading a man’s journal to her dying mother as a the hurricane threatens both their lives.  Too much. And weren’t they really just showing off at that point with the aging of Cate Blanchett?  So I liked aspects of the film.  I think it is brilliant conceptually but the plot doesn’t so much delve into the human experience as it provides a lame overview.  I’m gonna give it a B- for Brad and beauty. 

(just wanna say that of course i was tempted to put a picture of the old looking young benjamin but how can i resist an opportunity to reveal brad’s naked flexing arm! so that’s what i did.)

The Shadow of A…

Doubt.  It cannot exist without faith.  Doubt is disbelief without proof or absolute certainty, while faith is belief without proof or absolute certainty.  The film beautifully explores the sliding scale between the territory of doubt and it’s reciprocal within the private speculative scandal of one Catholic church.  It is nicely segmented by three separate sermons which serve as defensive as well as offensive weaponry for Father Flynn, played with slimy charisma by Philip Seymour Hoffman.  His character’s progressive, inclusive interpretation of Catholicism is countered by that of  Meryl Streep’s heavy handed Sister Aloysius. 

Each actor is superb at building slow steady tension which is breathtaking at it’s climax. The red strand in this black and white quilt is the performance of Viola Davis playing Mrs. Miller, mother of the suspected victim.  Her stirring performance brings a third dimension to the film and provides resonance and a grounding reality of the injustices of life.  There is no excessive movie magic here.  The power is in the story and I suspect John Patrick Shanley was very true to his play, which is a credit to its lasting relevance and also in some ways a socially indicting shame.  Good art presents the observer with questions, not answers, and Doubt is fully composed of the former. I give it an A.

The Reader

 

The Readeris heavy, weighty material.  A story which uses a pedophiliac relationship to examine  the nature of guilt, communication and humanity within the context of post-WWII Holocaust trials in Germany doesn’t necessarily make for a warm fuzzy holiday film.  But it does pose some lingering questions.  When a fifteen year old boy and a former Auschwitz guard engage in a brief yet substantial affair, the paths of their lives are permanently altered by the secrets they keep.  Parallels between the two characters explore the consequences of shame and the role of storytelling as catharsis as well as escape. 

Kate Winslet’s performance is seamless as usual and it cannot be easy to infuse sympathy into the character, Hanna Schmitz, who has stood idly by a cruel massacre.  David Kross more than holds his own as the young Michael Berg who looks earily similar to Ralph Fiennes.  But I find that it is Mr. Fiennes who does not quite fit, which is never more evident than in one of the final scenes he shares with a Holocaust survivor who was victimized by Hanna.  Silence can be just as powerful as words but not in this case.  It is a contrived moment between parties with telling glances exchanged, swallowed tears, and a foregone conclusion through which the viewer must painfully suffer. Minus this one inauthentic scene I was quite taken with the haunting themes of the film.  I give it an A-.

Happy Christmas To All

As someone who was grossly over valued this Christmas, by the look of my gifts, I humbly pass my Christmas joy to you.  And I do profess to be the luckiest newly married lady out there.  I wish to all the merriest of fortunes, that we would all learn the true meaning of the season is in our hearts and not our material possessions, and that our country and our world can move forward in a steady and responsible fashion.  I wish that the leaders of the globe would look upon each human life not as pawn or necessary casualty, but as an opportunity, a small battery worthy of being nurtured and educated that can recharge the world in which we live.  And above all Iwish love to you and I send mine out in a whisper from my warm heart to yours.

CEO-Town

Have you heard about this crazy new show?  So these former CEOs, the ones with the inflated salaries and questionable ethics, some of them are getting together to see if they can cut it on a reality show to form a boy band.  Hopefully the shows execs use this opportunity to belittle and degrade the despicable creatures.  Anyway it isn’t really called CEO-Town, but I think the name is yet to be determined.  Peace and holiday cheer to all.

I’m a Little Tea Pot…

So allow me to vent.  Two things. 

1.  It really gets to me when all of these end of the year top 10 lists begin with their number one!!!  Haven’t they ever heard of suspense?  And do I really have any incentive to finish the list if I already know the best one.  Like, sure, I already know your favorite movie so allow me to keep looking as they get progresively worse.  Because as a viewer/reader/listener/etc. it makes no sense to process the merrits of a particular item within a set of items in regards to order in reverse. I’m just saying, you will never get a top ten list from me starting with the number one.    

2.  Is it really offensive to say “Happy Holidays.”  I mean, really holidays is so much more inclussive, and I don’t mean just of religious holidays.  I mean Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years.  It is just easier to say Holidays than Happy this and Happy that.  Though I do actually prefer ”Happy Christmas” to “Merry.”  It sounds jollier.

Valkillme

So have you noticed Tom’s accent in this one?  It is a little rediculous.  This random American sounding guy in a somewhat serious Nazi period piece doesn’t quite sound Oscar worthy to me.  Maybe they should have marketed this as a Christmas comedy or a Hitler killin’ spoof. Which, by the way, this really needs to be spoofed like right now and I haven’t even seen it.  So I don’t think you should see it, and I’m not gonna, but if you do, let me know whatcha think.

It Does a Body Good

 

So I finally saw Milk today.  It was so great and it astonishes me that in thirty years we have not made more progress.  People are still narrow minded and bigoted.  I just want to raise my own voice and join in the chorus of people, gay, straight, or whatever, and say “Get over it.”  You know, if people feel morally opposed then they should not themselves engage in sexual activities with the same sex.  I don’t know why there is this idea out there that it is alright to make judgements about other people’s personal lives. It is just down right impolite.  Is it not the responsibility of the government to protect the rights of the few from the dangerous mob mentality of the many?  The idea that because a majority of people feel one way they can then rob the minority of their rights is despicable.  Separation of church and state mandates that religious views should not even be a consideration in this matter.  The arguement that marriage is an institution of God and cannot be altered in this way, but I’m sorry, not as long as it is used as a tool of the government to determine the distribution of tax rights and the like!  I do however believe that churches, because church and state are separate, should be able to discriminate at will. But the audacity of the general population and the federal and state governments on this subject is repulsive.  Have we learned nothing from our mistakes?  Are equal rights only for those we deem deserving?  And if you ask me, that which most threatens the “sanctity of marriage” is divorce.  But there is no discussion which would do away with divorce, because it is all m-er f-ing ridiculous! Anyway, Harvey inspired me to get on my soap box, which I regularly do anyhow, but I do highly recommend this film and must say Sean Penn is a genius.  His two films have been so appropriate and socially relevant. Can’t wait to see what more will come from him.  I give Milk an A+ because despite any political messaging the enjoyment of watching this film far supercedes anything preachy.  I loved the characters and I will watch this movie many times more.

Cowbabies/Cryboys Blow It

Like an owl without a graduation cap, heartbreaking.  A Dallas team has done it again. Taken a perfectly hopeful season, team full of promise and flexed more ego than muscle.  The injuries hurt but not as much as the bickering, questioning and general bad behavior.  Whose fault is it?  Jerry brings in all the dirty rotten scoundrels, but we expect that.  He gives them a chance and they give him free publicity. And I have to admit I enjoy the spectacle.  Wade clearly can’t control the animals and really it seems like he doesn’t even get it.  But this is a group of grown men.  Does a head coach really need to be the head babysitter?  I don’t think it should be that way.  TO?  We all know he likes to run his mouth, which is especially annoying when his stats are not up to par, which, by the way, TO, they weren’t.  Tony Romo?  Yeah, his season was not nearly as good as last year.  But with such high expectations combined with nagging injuries.  I also gotta hand it to our defense.  With everything they were dealt this year, they were relatively good.  Well, I wish these guys would all remember that the team comes first.  Every member is a small piece of a larger puzzle. But they didn’t remember that.  I wish that we hadn’t had so many injuries, Felix and Marion. But we did.  I wish we didn’t have so many lowlifes.  But we do.  Another post season in Dallas with disapointed fans.  We should be used to it by now, with the Cowboys, Mavs, (need I even mention?) the Rangers.