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chrisnope
Reviews
Country Strong (2010)
Cotton Mouth and Peanuts
I happened to catch this on cable this weekend. I have to say I was both impressed and depressed. The story is shoddy at best and it seems to contradict itself throughout the film's entirety. In fact the whole crux of the story which centers around aN ethos of- "If you ain't being honest with yourself in the realm of country music....then you might as well just go home" oh and also something like " honest human expression cannot be transferred in the big time bizness of country music." My question is: Well then why doesn't the main character of the film do just that and go home? It makes no friggin sense.
That being said however, this script could've been quite good and the film is intriguing at times. Gwyneth Paltrow's performance (like the script) is both really convincing at times and other times...just cheesy. But worst of all is Garrett Hedlund. Now I had never seen this guy before today and later wished I could've had just one more film without him in it...and I wish that film was called 'Country Strong!'
The guy mumbles soooooo bad thru the dialogue that I literally couldn't understand what the hell he was even talking about.I turned up my TV to something like 31 volume wise and still couldn't catch what he was trying to convey as the deep, passionate hero like cowboy who has a duality in personality that seems borderline schizo. He sounded like he had both peanuts in his cheeks and cotton on his tongue as he refuses to wipe an obligatory goof ball grin on his face.
This grin, full of Mr. Peanut and Haynes whitey briefs is of course juxtaposed w/ a helping heap of serious while attempting to play savior to every damsel (two of em') in distress. The point I'm making is that a crap attempt to portray Joaquin Phonenix portraying Johnny Cash just don't cut it dude!If you're gonna play a country star, i.e. outlaw ,then why not watch some footage of:Kristoferson, Shaver, Waylon...or Gram Parsons! If he had, he surely would've noticed that WHAT these guys said was more important than the 'way' they said it.
Oh and not one of 'em chewed cotton-n-peanuts on any stage. Heck, had he just imitated Roy Clark or Junior from Hee Haw it would've meant real improvement...seriously. Interestingly enough, Tim Mcgraw was the best actor in the film. He turns in a simple yet steady performance and seems...well kinda believable. Kudos to both he and his hairpiece.
I've given the film a 4 outta 5 and just wish this story could have been rounded out to match the obvious talent of the once talented Paltrow, steady and sure Mcgraw and also the other chick in the film (she plays chiles) who does a decent enough job of acting normal compared to the chaotic Paltrow character.
I thought I could turn the Mumbler's (Garett Hedlund)cotton and peanuts delivery into a drinking game where once you hear him mumble you gotta take a shot. But I then realized that by suggesting this I might be linked to millions of alcohol related deaths, cuz if you try this you're truly risking your life! Seriously- DO NOT ATTEMPT TO THIS COTTON N PEANUTS DRINKING GAME!! It's far too dangerous! In closing, I hope you watch this almost great little film. Enjoy the good and pray (like I do) that the mumbler doesn't watch more of Marlon Brando's cotton n rocks godfather performance for future roles!
The Prodigal (1983)
Watch it
This is one of the strangest films I've ever seen. As a child I went to see it with a church group and certainly didn't understand it's depth. The sentiment of the film always stayed with me and I bought it to watch once more. 1st off this is not what I'd call a typical "Christian" film in ANY way. It's message is not about a down and out prodigal son who returns, instead it is about the dynamic of the American family and a true spiritual quest. I say it is 'strange' because it merely hints at the specifics and never completely resolves key points that are slowly revealed during the film. It focuses on a fairly well to do family who have grown apart by years of going thru the motions and communication break down. Although it is indeed a story about the eldest son (John Hammond,) it also focuses on the entire family's search for both truth, closure and peace amongst the chaos of their everyday lives. I'd highly recommend this film to anyone who values film because it has all the makings of a great artistic piece...even if it falls a tad short. The viewer finds the end curious because hardly anything is put to bed in the typical Hollywood style. But that's also why it's very thought provoking. The film is really a lesson in hypocrisy regarding the individuals (the world over) who simply live life without ever breaking down barriers to find real faith and truth. It's absolutely amazing that this film was commissioned by the Billy Graham ministries because there's nothing preachy about it. Yes Graham is a Christian and the film deals with a family of supposed christians, but the crux of the film really deals with the individual's soul and search to make sense of life.I love this film because it is incredibly real. It reminds me of "ordinary people" starring Tim Hutton and Mary Tyler Moore, but in some ways it's more effective at revealing just how families exist and devolve under the pressure of American life.It's a shame that more film lovers have yet to see this small and wonderful gem of a film.
Miss Melody Jones (1973)
The only good thing is it's hilarity!
I had to see this film based on other comments I'd heard about it. I happen to be a huge "blaxploitation" nut, but this was too much. Probably one of the most useless films ever made. Does this mean you shouldn't see it? No!! Absolutely see this movie. It's so bad it's genius! There is no way that there is another African American film of the 1970's that can compare to this one...that is for sure! Also the girl who plays the lead role.....she should totally be brought back into film. I hope Quentin Tarrantino brings her back into one of his films, that would be so awesome. She is one of a kind and quite frankly GREAT in this role about a nice girl dealing with a "cry tough" town!
Cotton Candy (1978)
c'mon its so bad it's brilliant!
I love this film! Yes it's cheesy but it is also an accurate description if you were ever in bands while in jr. high etc. I also happen to know the brothers who were in Rapid Fire. Rapid fire was not the name of their band and the lead singer was an actor but the rest of the band was a real high school band at Dallas' lake highlands high school. The bass player is a friend of mine and he now owns/operates a famous studio in Dallas tx. A nice tid bit is that they(the band) thought their music would actually be in the film...but it didn't happen. If you haven't seen it, watch it cuz it's pretty good for us naive chees eaters.
Foolin' Around (1980)
This is great!!!!!
Back in like 1982, before we had real cable, my dad had a single cable channel! Remember those days they played the same movies for a month and after midnight soft core x rated films. Nonetheless, I saw this film one sat. afternoon. It is absolutely hilarious and I cannot believe more folks have not seen it. If you like the south park guys, this is a good show to see where they learned some of the off color comedy. I have to say that if you like comedy and surprises you should ck. it out. I have been trying to find it recently. I am sure ebay will be a good bet. I have nothing but good things to say regarding this film. Gary Busy's best! Anette O' tooles awesome. I have nothing but great things to say about the Tony Randall character. Also the end lines from his character are classic.