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Reviews
Potiche (2010)
One of the funniest movies I've ever seen
I saw this at a Catherine Deneuve film retrospective, this being the only new film that was shown. There were about 1200 people in this huge theatre and we were all laughing out loud almost all the way through. Perhaps, because I am the same age as Deneuve, I could identify with her character more and I don't have any nitpicking to do with the movie's pace or plot. It did get off slowly in the beginning but that was essential to set the characters so that their various twists and turns could then seem out of character. The story line is really unimportant here - it is the small interactions among the characters as well as the large ones, the surprises that lay in store for us as the situation unfolds, and the comic timing that accompanies the story's contortions that make it so darn funny. Some characters are overdrawn to the point of being ridiculous - that is it would be ridiculous in a serious drama. But this is a comedy with not a few semi-slapstick elements. Depardieu is a kick and Deneuve is at the top of her game. See this!
Synecdoche, New York (2008)
I guess we see what we choose in this movie
No point in rehashing the putative plot here - it has been summarized many times above. However, I see this all as a dream that Caden is having, that he is partly living until his wife tells him she is going to Berlin without him and that he is totally immersed in after she tells him this. So many of the scenes can be viewed only as dreamlike (the burning house - cleaning his ex-wife's apartment - ignoring the existence of his second daughter) and make such sense when you see him inventing endings (all unhappy of course) to where his life will go after Adele leaves. Did Death of a Salesman really get rave reviews for his unusual staging? Do you really think that this "unusual staging" of an old classic will earn him a MacArthur grant? Or that the approximately one million bucks will allow him to keep running his play in the making about his life and everyman's life for forty years? Or that all these gorgeous women are really throwing themselves at him? I see this as all part of his neurotic processing, in a dreamlike state, of Adele taking a month off? Will she come back or .... let's invent a glamorous life in the art world of Germany for her and make her a superstar artist while we are at it. Let's imagine all of the worst things that could happen to little Olive and play them out in our minds - death by tattoo. Let's pretend that I got a MacArthur grant - she'll be sorry now that all these glamorous women are throwing themselves at me. And look at me - love em and leave em. Let's make this play about the way everyone is a star in his or her own drama - and stage it on a huge, life like scale. And keep replaying scenes over and over in our minds. And don't forget that us neurotic souls always are standing outside ourselves, analyzing and observing ourselves - enter Sammy. Let's get really sick and almost die - that will make her feel guilty. Well, that didn't work - let's move on and just need a cane. And since this is a dream about me and I am fantasizing mostly about Hazel, the two of us can age but everyone else will stay young.
OK - maybe you other reviewers didn't see it that way, but it seems we can all agree that it was a movie worth seeing, the acting was terrific, as was the cinematography but that the script should have been edited way down. Even one's own dreams get annoying when they go on way too long and one is obsessively repeating all the things one has already gone through. I am not sure editing the movie would do it - the whole script would have needed it before shooting. Perhaps then it wouldn't just be a elite (elitist?) few who thing they "get it" and other very thoughtful folks could find something to hang onto in the movie as well. Especially, let's hope that Mr. Kaufman can learn from what he did right and not so very well in his directorial debut and bring us something tighter with a fuller character next time out. He's not Fellini yet but neither was Fellini when he did his first movie...
The Fly (1986)
Frankly, good special effects but so slow moving that it's boring
The idea is intriguing. Humanity's relationship with technology. Humanity's relationship with dying flesh - ugly flesh - transformed flesh. How much good can survive in this dying, transformed flesh. Fantastic special effects as Goldblum is transformed into Brundle-Fly. However, the dialogue and pace is so slow moving that I found myself yawning and checking my watch. Of course, sci-fi and horror movies require suspension of disbelief, so I can buy that Brundle merges with a fly but does not merge with all the intestinal bacteria in his body. But sending a baboon through the transporter instead of a far less expensive mouse? And having the second baboon jump into his arms with love and affection? Geena Davis having no friend but the ex-boyfriend? Ex-boyfriend entering Brundle's place with rifle and then starting to assemble the rifle instead of having it at the ready? Please.....
The Bucket List (2007)
Schmaltzy and predictable but moving anyhow
The title and numerous other reviews tell it all. If you want to watch another Jack Nicholson film to see Jack play Jack Nicholson, by all means you will love this. A billionaire who has traveled the world and dined with royalty picks up with a dying auto mechanic because he literally has no friends. Of course, they both learn the meaning of life and appreciation for the important things from each other. If you want to admire the way Morgan Freeman can endow characters with dignity, you will love this. If you like watching Jack doing his act of belittling those around him and making sure that everyone knows he could buy and sell them, you can know he will do it well. But don't expect any great acting, plot, or even a good road trip movie. Just Jack and Morgan doing their thing.
There Will Be Blood (2007)
Way way overrated.
I saw this expecting something extraordinary. After the first ten minutes, I was looking at my watch. After the first half hour, I was tempted to turn it off and look at something else. I stuck with it since I have great respect for Daniel Day Lewis and I assumed things were going to get better. Not. There eventually were a few interesting scenes, but the music set the tone of "scary things about to happen" - and they never did. Along with the inappropriate music, there was a lot of background rhythmic banging, some totally out of place violin concerto music, and a disjointed and disconcertingly unfocused plot, if you can call the alleged storyline a plot. It makes me want to read the Upton Sinclair novel to see if he ever wrote something this boring and unconvincing. I enjoyed Paul Dano's performance - I wasn't sure if he was a fraud or a nutcase until the end. The cinematography was excellent but almost every scene went on way too long. I do think that DDL is a great actor, but I also think that he must take some responsibility for his character being such a boring sort of sociopath and for (reading other concurring reviews) not clarifying any of his character's motivations or true feelings. The movie is mostly a set of disconnected, excessively lengthy, cameos. Looking through the reviews on IMDb, I simply cannot figure out how IMDb's calculator averages these reviews out to 8.4. I am seeing massive numbers of 2's and 1's - which I believe is an overreaction to the hype. Sadly, when all is said and done, I think this will go down as a just mediocre and forgettable movie.