The Kids Are All Right – 9
You’ll like this movie if you like:
a. Annette Bening
b. Family comedy
c. Family drama
I’m not quite sure of the significance of the last part of the title – “All Right” instead of “alright,” but I’m sure of this – Annette Bening will rack up another Oscar nomination for playing Nic, the dominating mother in a long-time lesbian marriage.
I don’t know if Annette is our greatest actress, but watching this movie confirms what I first saw in “The American President.” She can convey more in a facial close-up than any other actor working. She is simply riveting and she can occupy the whole screen. It’s not so much that the camera loves her – it’s that she has an incredible gift for conveying every single emotion and thought and putting it right in front of you. It’s an amazing talent and it’s fully on display here as one of the great performances. See this movie for no other reason than that. I hope she gets her long overdue Oscar. What’s Meryl doing this year?
Julianne Moore holds her own as the other half of the couple struggling to raise two curious teenagers who are on that teen roller coaster we’ve all seen and experienced before. They’re experimenting, they’re curious, and they don’t find all the answers.
The parents, as it turns out, are fumbling along as well.
When the kids go hunting for their dad – sperm donor, family chaos ensues particularly when Julianne’s character “Jules” strikes up a sexual relationship with him (Mark Ruffalo as Paul.) It’s all well-played and groan-worthy in its familiarity.
Two quibbles with this film. It wants to be groundbreaking but as a bonafide R rated film shows very graphic heterosexual sex, but bales out when given the chance to show lesbian sex (although the lesbians in the theater sitting behind me found the under-cover, appliance-assisted scene hysterical.) When was the last time you saw slow, passionate, loving sex in a movie? Now, that would have been shocking.
And quibble number two is when they stoop to using the crutch of showing a woman smoking. Jules hasn’t smoked in 20 years, but as soon as she gets stressed, she’s got to re-start. It’s an acting shortcut that she’s unworthy of.
But, other than that, the real story here, and I’m not the first to say this, is that it’s a shame that this movie so accurately portrays the family dynamic – the ups and downs, the compromises and lulls, and when was the last “straight” movie to do that? Kramer vs. Kramer?
See it. It’s enlightening and engaging.
Dinner For Schmucks – 8
You’ll like this movie if you like:
a. to be surprised
b. Steve Carell
c. Screwball comedy.
The surprising part is that this movie is actually as good as it is. When Paul Rudd has to recruit a nitwit to be made fun of, and bring him to dinner, well let’s face it – that sounds pretty thin. So, I walked in not expecting much. I didn’t expect liftoff.
In the hands of Rudd and Steve Carell what emerges here is near genius. Pure comedy acting almost never gets award-recognition, but here Steve Carell does the impossible – screwball with heart. Just go with the flow. It’s outrageous and over the top, so don’t expect Shakespeare. I heard mixed reactions as I exited the theatre. Maybe you won’t get it, maybe you won’t like it. Comedy is always personal and a matter of taste, but I laughed way more than I thought I would. Good stuff.
The Other Guys – 6
You’ll like this movie if you like
a. Cop buddy movies
b. Will Ferrell
c. Mark Wahlberg
I went to this one with higher expectations, and you guessed it – found it a little flat. It makes great fun of cop buddy movies – you know the kind, where someone has to be suspended before they can solve the crime. Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg do credible work and most of the movie is amusing, but it just never quite caught me.
However, I will say this. There is one absolutely hysterical scene which I will add to my “favorite scenes” reel, you know, the “You can’t handle the truth” tape.
The hero cops at the beginning played by The Rock and Samuel L Jackson are so over the top they are incredible. Their scene chasing some robbers off of a roof top is an instant classic. Duck in for the first 20 minutes – the set up. Call me and tell me how they filmed it.
The Expendables – 6
You’ll like this movie if you like:
a. digital blood
b. mindless violence
c. over the top action heroes.
And who doesn’t? Sylvester Stallone, who directed this blastathon, is launching another franchise. Shot like a video game, heads get blown off, knives fly through necks, and guns go boom boom boom. What’s not to love? Most action movies are ridiculous, but you know you’re in rarefied air when 5 guys kill hundreds while suffering nary a scratch. Why? Well, you’ll want them back for the sequel. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bruce Willis make only token appearances, but with Arnold out of job soon, expect him to assume the position in the next one. All in all, not a terrible way to exorcise any testosterone demons. Bring your video game controller and you’ll feel right at home.
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