"Up In the Air" has it's feet on the ground...

Hello? Hellllooooo? Anyone out there? Sheesh. No posting since October. That's pathetic. It's not that we haven't all seen movies, somewhere...in the theatre, at home or on the telly.

Fine, I'll just have to muster up a review. Here goes.

Up In the Air

Director: Jason Reitman

Written by: Reitman and Sheldon Turner

Starring: George Clooney as Ryan and Vera Farmiga as Alex

Released 2009

REVIEW by CINEMAGIRL:

The film opens with aerial shots, the kind of shots we've all seen from the window seat of a 737. Immediately we are placed in the fast-paced, business travel world of Ryan Bingham, played expertly by the coy George Clooney.

Ryan takes us through the ropes of his life. He is a professional firer - the person companies bring in to lay off workers without getting their own hands dirty. He is an expert in his field, and an expert at business travel - even holding public speaking engagements on the matter. He urges his audience to abandon physical and even emotional attachments, because you can climb faster with a lighter pack.

He himself is home about a month out of the year at his tiny apartment, which is void of all personality and merely a prison for the man who loves to keep running.

After the film sets the stage and introduces the main character, he is thrown two curveballs. One - his travel may be curtailed. And two - he meets a woman on the road.

Ryan starts up a relationship with Alex (Farmiga), another business traveler spending her life in hotel bars and tabulating air miles. The two hit it off, and form a casual attachment while both being emotionally unattached. At the same time he is trying to convince his boss to keep him on the road and not tie him down - notably this idea came from the new girl, fresh out of college and lacking all experience in the field.

This film may feel foreign to contemporary movie-goers because it is done in such a traditional way - snappy lines, round characters who are both great and flawed, complex situations. Clooney could have easily been played by Humphrey Bogart or Gregory Peck. Bette Davis would've made a great Alex.

A nice touch to this film is the use of the recent unemployment in this country that ties this story to modern times. Reitman even cast real people who have been recently laid off to give testimonials. It was a nice, authentic touch considering the seriousness of the matter, and the fact that our leading man, or "hero" is in the job of firing people.

Farmiga is a natural as a globetrotting businesswoman, delivering lines with ease and authority. Clooney is charming as always and well deserving of his Golden Globe nomination. The film is full of funny, chuckleworthy moments, but it is telling that it is nominated for Best Picture Drama by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.

I recommend seeing this film soon, while the issue of lay-offs is at the forefront of national news. It would be timeless anytime, but makes a bigger impact considering reality.

STORY: 9

ACTING: 8

LOOK: 7

OVERALL: 8

Current Golden Globe Nominations for this film:

Best Picture Drama

Best Actor (Clooney)

Best Supporting Actress (both Farmiga and Anna Kendrick)

Best Screenplay

Best Director

It's Halloween Movie Time!

Here are some of my favorite film tricks and treats, perfect for renting and scaring yourself for an evening around Halloween.

Posted by CINEMAGIRL.

This time of year I love renting scary and nostalgic Halloween movies. They get me in the mood for the holiday itself and feed my imagination's craving for the creepy.

Here are some of my favorite macabre flicks, rated on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being the scariest:

The Exorcist: Dir. William Friedkin. (1973)

This is probably the scariest movie I've ever seen and the scariest ever made. Sweet little Regan (Linda Blair) becomes possessed by a demon, priests are summoned to perform an exorcism on the girl, pea soup flies. This kid (demon) is so crude, so disgusting, but so good!

Five howls on the scary scale.

Rosemary's Baby: Dir. Roman Polanski (1968)

More creepy than scary. This movie will not make you scream or jump, but it will mess with your head. Rosemary Woodhouse (Mia Farrow) becomes pregnant after her struggling actor husband (John Cassavetes) makes a deal with the Satanist next-door neighbors. Special note: Actress Ruth Gordon won an Oscar for her portrayal of the dopey, nosey neighbor Minnie Castevet. She is so enjoyable to watch.

Three howls on the scary scale.

Halloween: Dir. John Carpenter (1978)

Michael Myers, clad in a workman's jumpsuit and a white-painted Captain Kirk mask, returns to Haddonfied to terrorize babysitters. Scream Queen Jamie Lee Curtis is at her best in this original version of the film, which is one of the highest-grossing independent films ever made. I love the shots throughout the film. The spooky POV shots of Michael peering in windows and through bushes, and the fact that he looks so darn scary, even in broad daylight. He's my favorite scary movie character of all time.

Four howls on the scary scale.

Feel free to list some of your favorite scary movies in the comments section and have a Happy Halloween!

Inglorious Basterds

As reviewed by skinnyblacktie

Written and Directed by Quentin Tarantino

Starring: Christoph Waltz, Melanie Laurent, Diane Kruger, Brad Pitt, Til Scheiger, Daniel Bruhl, B.J. Novak, Eli Roth and Martin Wuttke

Tonight Chef Tarantino's special is a blood soaked, 'new wave' inspired 'macaroni combat' with a side of 3rd generation retribution. I recommend it. (I would include a hint of 'spaghetti western', but who wants that many starches in one meal?) We first meet 'The Jew Hunter' aka Col. Landis (Christoph Waltz) on a dairy farm in Nazi-occupied France in 1941. Through an exchange of feigned pleasantries with a French dairy farmer believed to be housing Jews, we learn hastily that Landis is very, very good at what he does. Polarized, yet with equal efficiancy and skill at their specific duties, 'The Basterds' come into play. Lt. Aldo Raine (Brad Pitt), Sgt Hugo Stiglitz (Til Schweiger) along with 'The Bear Jew' (Eli Roth) and company comprise an outfit of American-born Jewish men bread to do one specifically brutal job...kill Nazis (especially Nazis such as Landis). At this point a simple 'seek and destroy' plot could be rested upon, but things become a bit more complex when French cinema owner Shosanna Dreyfus (Melanie Laurent) meets Nazi war hero and movie star Fredrick Zoller (Daniel Bruhl) and the German movie star Bridget von Hammersmark (Diane Kruger) becomes involved with the British government. Soon interweaving relationships build and fold, leaving the audience with a climax truly worth applauding.

Tarantino's 'Basterds' pace alternates between the booming escalation of a Phillip Glass piece and the slow humming build of an Old English tale. Each scene contains a peak and valley system which will take you to the edge of your patience, yet reward you with a summit of violence and emotion. The dialogue is sprawling, but filled with gem sentences and a fat diamond at the end of each journey. A true scale is established early on and whether you like it or not, it is a constant. The centerpiece of the screenwriting is the playful and clever anaslysis of dialect, be it German, French, Italian or American. All four dialects and accents (including a hilarious take on British stereotypes) are present and batted back through forth throughout the film. No actor plays with this aspect more than Christoph Waltz who utters all four during the course of the film with arrogance, courtesy and humor on the mind.

Tarantino's direction in the film is something to truly appreciate. His funniest film to date, 'Basterds' is a perfect blend of sophomoric profiling, dark humor and one-liners not previously experienced in Tarantino's films. He was not too afraid to allow the most popular (and most 'tough guy' casted) American actor in the film (Brad Pitt) to provide the most comic relief. Yet, through all of the conventional humor (very much unconventional to the director), Tarantino's stapled situational humor comes forth as casual as two men having a civil conversation while scalping a German S.S. Officer.

Cinematically 'Basterds' is as diverse as the motley array of language used in it. Quick cut scenes, hightlighted around the rims with gun fire, accompany stretched steady-cam shots. The camera takes us into the eyes of a western standoff and then above the studio set to remove the audience from the story for a moment and say,'this is a fictional movie, man...have some fun.' Standard Tarantino stuff applies here.

'Inglorious Basterds' is more than I could have asked for from a new Tarantino film. The plot is interesting without being too smart. The humor is enough to make you laugh at the gore and blood. The direction of pace and character is flawless. Tarantino's most talented film since 'Jackie Brown.'

Story: 8.5

Acting: 9

Look: 10

Overall: 9

R.I.P. King of '80s Cinema

John Hughes died this past week at the age of 59. He's known for writing, directing and producing dozens of popular films, such as Ferris Bueller's Day Off and The Breakfast Club. Love him or leave him, his 1980s films shape the way we still view that decade. He had a way of capturing teenage desperation, boredom and humor like no other director has.

By CINEMAGIRL:

Here's my Top Ten Favorite Hughes' movies (whether produced, written or directed by the man):

10. Sixteen Candles
9. She's Having a Baby
8. The Great Outdoors
7. Home Alone
6. Christmas Vacation
5. Planes, Trains & Automobiles
4. Pretty in Pink
3. Uncle Buck
2. The Breakfast Club
1. Ferris Bueller's Day Off


*photo above of Matthew Broderick as Ferris Bueller

Away We Go

Directed by Sam Mendes (American Beauty)

Co-written by Dave Eggers (author of "A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius)

Starring Maya Rudolph (SNL alum) as Verona and John Krasinski (The Office) as Burt.

Released 2009. Now playing.

SYNOPSIS: A thirty-something couple, expecting their first child, take a cross-country journey to find a suitable home to start their family in.

Review by CINEMAGIRL:

Verona (Rudolph) and Burt (Krasinski) are a youngish, committed - yet unmarried - couple unexpectedly expecting a baby. When the two find out that Burt's parents (Catherine O'Hara and Jeff Daniels) are moving out of the country just before the baby is due, the couple sets off on a cross-country tour to find a new home in a new town near friends or relatives that will provide a healthy support system for the new family.

And so the adventure begins. Burt and Verona first stop in Phoenix to visit her former boss (Allison Janney), who is married (to comedian Jim Gaffigan) with two kids, and thrilled to death that the young couple might decide to live near them. However, the old boss and her hubby are total alcoholics and apathetic parents and their meeting at the local dog track leaves them unsettled, and questioning their own abilities as future parents.

Later, Burt and Verona venture to Madison, Wisconsin, to visit a childhood friend of his - a very outspoken, liberal, hippie-mama portrayed by Maggie Gyllenhaal. Burt and Verona meet her at the college campus where she works as a professor and enter her office to find her openly breastfeeding her two children - an infant and one that's more than a few years old - in the middle of the room. The evening with LN (that's her name) and her husband - who have a "family bed" and aversion to strollers - unfolds into hilarity. The hippie couple becomes more and more outrageous and patronizing until the mild-manner Burt explodes in the most ridiculous way. (I thought this was the funniest part of the film.)

The film looks at the many ways there are to raise kids along the way, including stereotypes, pointing out the ridiculous in nearly each scenario.

A recurring subplot to the story is that Verona's parents are no longer alive. This comes up throughout the film and creates an emotional, dramatic angle for Verona to reconcile and the couple to deal with. It is handled gently without becoming overbearing.

The film is shot in a standard sort-of way. There are no dramatic angles or inventive shots. It's simply a nice story delivered in a direct way. The real stand-out of the film is the dialogue, co-written by Dave Egggers, known for his memoir "A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius" and his recent journalistic novels.

Eggers writes for Gen-X, using a natural tone that speaks directly to the reader, or viewer, rather than pandering to you or trying to make you feel stupid. His words, and that of collaborator Vendela Vida, were delivered well by Rudolph and Krasinski, two comically trained actors who work(ed) on two of the funniest shows on TV.

Overall, Away We Go is funny, entertaining, fresh and very well cast. I recommend seeing it in the theatre now or renting it later.

STORY: 8.5

ACTING: 8.5

LOOK: 7

OVERALL: 8

Orthodox Stance

A 90 min. documentary film about an Orthodox Jewish boxer who balances his sport and his faith.

Released 2008

Shot, written and directed by Jason Hutt

Screened this year at South Side Film Festival, Bethlehem, PA.

This interesting documentary follows Dimitriy Salita, a Russian-born Orthodox Jewish boxer, during the rise of his professional career.

Review by CINEMAGIRL:

Because of the strict observance of his faith, Dimitriy Salita cannot box on the Sabbath, from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday. When he travels he must be careful to only eat kosher foods and to avoid using electricity or driving a car during the Sabbath. That means that even at a hotel where he is scheduled to fight a bout, he will turn off the lights, light candles, pray, and stay in for the night.

This documentary is shot in a verite style. You can tell that one camera operator followed Salita most of the time, shooting him with a small digital camera, capturing audio as the scenery would allow. The look of the film can be jarring at times, but the viewer can accept it because it is consistent throughout the film. Hutt, the director-cameraman, etc., followed Salita during his life's routine, to the Starrett City Boxing Gym in Brooklyn, the Chabad, training camp in the Poconos, to his home with his brother and even on trips to Vegas and Puerto Rico with his friend/religious advisor in tow.

Hutt was able to film the small moments that make characters real because he ingratiated himself into Salita's life. For instance, he was there to film Salita's brother Mischa helping him pick out a suit for a photo shoot, or capture a crushing rebuke fom his trainer when he discovers Salita is still two pounds overweight just two days before his biggest bout.

It is endearing watching Salita balance his personal life with his professional career. He is surrounded by a great cast of "characters" - from his trainer Jimmy that has known him and looked out for him since the age of 13, to Israel, the friend and advisor who travels with him and helps him follow Orthodox rules.

I would recommend renting this film or catching at future festivals.

LOOK: 7

STORY: 8.5

OVERALL: 8

'M' (1931)

As reviewed by Skinnyblacktie




Directed by Fritz Lang




Starring Peter Lorre, Ellen Widmann, Inge Landgut, Otto Wernicke, Theodor Loos and Gustaf Grundgens.

'Wer ist der Moder?" (Who is the murderer?) Screenwriters Fritz Lang and Thea von Harbou ask this question through concerned parents and paranoia struck police men after a ninth child (Inge Landgut) is murdered within the past year. The wake of this social dynamic quickly curls up and slams down hard upon the criminal element of the community and foams over in the form of civilian justice (injustice). And so and so it goes, the criminals of the city devote their time to catching the murderer, not for the greater good, but so the police will stop harassing them as if they were child murderers.

Lang's work is beautifully shot. Numerous chase scenes from brick-walled cobble-stoned city streets to singular light based shots in sewer systems and hide-and-go seek suspense elements in buildings provide a visual suspense witch matches the powerful story.

The acting is a bit overly dramatic at points, but overall the emotion is dealt very well. Peter Lorre does a fantastic job playing quite possibly the first serial killer in a motion picture (sorry for the spoiler... I doubt you can pick Peter Lorre out of I line up...I couldn't).

'M' is a film of cause and effect. For every problem there is a solution...for every solution a motive...and contained within every motive is the benefit of someone somehow. There are no heroes...there are no villains...there are simply the viewers' personal answers to social questions. Buy the end of the film you will ask yourself 'Wer ist der echte Morder?'

Story-----9
Look-----9
Acting-----8
Overall-----9

Star Trek (2009)

Review by Junior

Directed by J.J. Abrams

Starring Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Karl Urban, Simon Pegg, John Cho, Anton Yelchin, Zoe Saldana, Ben Cross, Winona Ryder, Bruce Greenwood and Eric Bana.

The classic movie and tv series has been given new life by director J.J. Abrams. For years, as the original Star Trek cast aged and fattened and their Next Gen replacements did not exactly light up the box office, Paramount has tinkered with the idea played out here: Kirk, Spock and McCoy as Starfleet cadets on their first mission, meeting for the first time and beginning their historic adventures. For years, Trek fans resisted the idea, saying you cannot recast those iconic roles and find that mysterious chemistry the original crew had. Now, after several Trekless years the studio has done it and have proven the fans wrong! This new, mostly unknown, cast is perfectly matched and by far the best thing about the new Star Trek.

The film begins with a bit of Trek history concerning Kirk's parents and his birth, then jumps to a scene of Kirk as a boy misbehaving in Iowa. Within 15 minutes, we are up to young, rebellious Kirk as he is recruited to join Starfleet by Captain Pike (well-played by Bruce Greenwood), then-captain of the newly christened USS Enterprise. Abrams parellels these scenes of Kirk's rebellious youth with Spock's troubles on Vulcan, not fitting in due to his dual human and Vulcan parentage, and his ultimate decision to join Starfleet as well.

Suffice it to say all the main characters are introduced along the way---McCoy, Sulu, Chekov, Uhura, and finally Scotty. They are all given a few moments to shine along the way. Together with Kirk and Spock, these characters have always been at the heart of the appeal of Star Trek, and the producers, if nothing else, have done a masterful job of assembling a group of very appealing, young actors to fill these roles. They also effectively balance adventure, humor and camaraderie to make this a very promising first outing, hopefully the first of many.

There are other pleasures to be had in the film, particularly for Trek fans. The inside references, the ill-fated red shirt, Bones' usual asides about "green blooded hobgoblins," Scotty and Chekov's accents, Pike's (revised) fate...well, the director and producers did something right for the film to be as enjoyable and promising as it is despite its story shortcomings.

That being said, the adventure plot itself is a mess. The villain, Nero, is unappealing and kind of stupid. The story doesn't hold together well and there are plot holes big enough to fly a Constitution class starship through. Although the creators of Trek have never (remotely) been slavishly devoted to science, they often based their ideas on scientific theories, or when they contradicted science they at least made some effort to give the audience some gobbledegook explanation why whatever they were doing was possible. The writers of this Star Trek, however, seem to not care or simply not understand basic science concepts, specifically the difference in a black hole and a wormhole.

OTOH, the creators did throw a bone to the diehard Trekkies who might kvetch at the contradictions in established Trek lore here. Any such inconsistencies can be explaned due to the time travel/changing history nature of this plot. Everything from this point forward is an alternate, "parellel universe" to the one established in the original Trek. Not really an issues for the new fans this movie hopes to attract, but they obviously want to appeal to their base as well.

Overall, a very enjoyable and promising beginning. Unfortunately, according to IMDB, the same writers are working on the sequel. Fortunately, I anticipate the same cast to return.

Story---5
Acting---8
Look---9
Overall---7

Black Sheep (2006/I)

'Black Sheep' is a film that really took me by surprise!

I had written several paragraphs about how unnecessary special affects are ruining cinema but I read it felt that it was really preachy...

Check out Black Sheep. This is the best B-Movie I have seen in quite some time. It was produced in the same vein as early Peter Jackson (Bad Taste, Dead Alive) and was coincidentally done in the same country (New Zealand). The film follows a young man (Henry) suffering from OVINAPHOBIA (an irrational fear of sheep) as he returns to his childhood home to take back ownership of the family sheep farm. There he reuintes with his brother (Angus) who has been conducting strange experiments on the resident sheep.

The flick was suprisingly entertaining and a refreshing change of pace from your average "horror stinker". It was well shot, well casted, and had a nice balance of horror affects and comedic undertones. This is no Shaun of the Dead but certainly worth the 87 minutes. Check out the Trailer below and feel free to contact me if you'd like to watch the full film!

One Missed Call (2008)

American remake of Japanese original Chakushin Ari (2003)
Directed by Eric Valette
Starring Shannyn Sossamon, Edward Burns, Ana Claudia Talancon, Azura Skye and Ray Wise.

Review by Junior.

Well, that's 87 minutes I'll never get back.



Story---1
Acting---1
Look---2
Overall---1

Vintage Foreign Flick: Fear of Fear

AKA "Angst vor der Angst," directed and co-written by Rainer Werner Fassbinder.
Released 1975.
Film is in German with English subtitles.

SYNOPSIS: On the eve of the birth of her second child, hausfrau Margot finds herself the victim of her own anxieties.

Review by CINEMAGIRL:

I'm a fan of retro foreign flicks. Starting with the French and Italian New Wave, these films began to explore human emotions, the impact of a human on his surroundings and the impact of surroundings on the state of human beings. Although made in the 1970s, "Fear of Fear" continues in that vein and explores the emotions and mental instability of Margot.

At the start of the film, Margot begins to feel strange emotions and paralyzing anxiety just before the birth of her second baby. She becomes gradually worse after the birth, feeling hopeless as a housewife. Her family doctor writes her prescription for Valium and tells her she is more sensitive than most people. Great diagnosis, doc.

Margot is alone all day with the baby. She considers pulling her 4 year-old daughter out of kindergarten to have her at home for company out of loneliness. At the same time, she must put up with a kind yet self-absorbed husband who is constantly busy studying for his degree, plus his bitchy sister and heavy-handed mother who live in separate apartments upstairs.

Margot has no one to talk to, except one unusual neighbor, the mentally ill Herr Bauer. This neighbor can see what Margot is going through and reaches out to her on the street, but she rebuffs him as being "a strange man."

Instead, Margot goes uncounseled and untreated, until she finds a connection for more sedatives. She later ends up having a near-suicidal experience which finally wakes up her husband to the fact that she needs real treatment.

The film is shot in a simple, straightforward way. However, there are times that Fassbinder creatively inserts a visual barrier between husband and wife, such as an ordinary table lamp, to illustrate their emotional barrier. The director uses dramatic string music to illustrate when Margot is experiencing an episode of anxiety or panic. He also uses a subtle ripple effect across the screen, most likely achieved by placing a piece of glass in front of the camera lens and turning it to make the room go just slightly wavy.

I liked that Fassbinder was respectful of Margot's character and showed real tenderness toward her mental illness. Even when Margot placed herself in compromising situations or went through difficult times, Fassbinder did not exploit the character or the actress by shooting graphic scenes. Sometimes less IS more.

Story: 8
Acting: 7
Shooting: 7

I recommend this as a rental during a foray into New Wave or other emotional European films. It makes for a nice psychological, character study.

A Rolling Stones Double Feature

"GIMME SHELTER" - filmed and directed by David and Albert Maysles and Charlotte Zwerin. Released 1970.

AND

"SHINE A LIGHT" - directed by Martin Scorsese. Released 2008.

Both films star: The Rolling Stones

REVIEW by CINEMAGIRL:

I actually watched these films two nights in a row, which was a great experience. I enjoyed being able to immediately compare them, and it was fun watching the old dudes rocking it in concert in the Scorsese film after seeing them so young in the Maysles Brothers' film.

My viewing began with "Gimme Shelter." The film, shot in 1969, opens with Mick kicking off a rockin' show in NYC, featuring some excellent candid shots (all on 16mm, of course) of the bandmates and concertgoers. No one "plays to the camera" - the faces and emotions are very real and the crowd is enthralled.

The concert footage cuts to the studio, where Mick and the band (particularly Keith Richards, Ronnie Wood and Charlie Watts) are viewing the actual concert footage that is to be used in the documentary. Throughout the film, the Maysles bring us back to this scene to catch the band's reactions to different events.

The story quickly picks up with the Stones' preparation for a huge, free concert planned in San Francisco. The film builds in anticipation of the event, which is eventually chosen to be held at Altamont Speedway, outside the city. Eventually, 300,000 people make the nomadic trek to the track, in VW buses and station wagons, carrying babies, walking dogs and hauling in loads of illegal drugs. The Hells Angels also roar in on their motorcycles, making for an unusual combination of concert-goers.

The Maysles expertly capture the momentum building up to the show, and the chaos that ensues when the leftovers of the now-defunct Haight-Ashbury hippie center in San Francisco trip out and collide with the angry, alcoholic biker gang. It's no secret - a gun-toting concert attendee gets stabbed to death by a Hells Angel right in front of the stage. And the Maysles, who seem to have their eyes fixed everywhere, capture it on film.

The filmmakers did a wonderful job making this documentary both visually stunning and emotional. Candid emotions of the band are particularly well captured during a scene where the Stones are listening to their recording of "Wild Horses." This scene, with its long, slow shots, no cuts, and the lack of dialogue, allow the filmmakers to peer inside their main characters and make them real.

The Maysles' footage of the sea of people at the concert, and the eerie, post-apocalyptic vibe of the morning after the show - with fans spilling out over the golden hills and hiking back to the road, back to the real world - works wonderfully.

In contrast, "Shine A Light," by Martin Scorsese, is essentially a big, glossy music video. Scorsese did a great job wiring up the Beacon Theatre so as to capture the Stones, live - in their 60s - and in concert, at every possible angle and vantage point.

Scorsese brought in three cranes, mounted a floating camera over the audience and had countless camera people onstage to capture each of Mick's gyrations and Keith's guitar pick tosses to the crowd. The footage is beautiful, shot in crystal-clear 35 mm film, with an attuned eye. However, this film lacks the emotion and storytelling of "Gimme Shelter."

"Shine A Light" uses a minimum of archival Stones footage. There are four or five short moments, in between songs, where we see Mick or Keith giving an old black-and white-interview. I realize, the film is about the concert, but it failed to make the Stones "real" for me.

Scorsese also stars in the beginning and end of the film. At the opening, we see him being the frantic director; pleading with Mick and producers for a set list so he will know which order the songs will be performed in. It seemed slightly dramatized and unnecessary.

My favorite part of "Shine A Light" was the "supplemental featurette" contained on the DVD. This provides the viewer with far more insight than the big concert. There are shots of the band rehearsing backstage, BS-ing with blues legend Buddy Guy and fooling around together like the old pals that they appear to be. I wish more of the film was like this, and less of a 2-hour music video.

OVERALL:
Gimme Shelter - a 10 of a documentary - great shots, great story, very unique
Shine A Light - a 4 of a documentary - not much story going on - but as "live show" it gets a 9

I highly recommend seeing other Maysles Brothers films, such as "Grey Gardens." As for Scorsese, he should stick to his narrative niche.

*pictured above - Mick in the opening concert of "Gimme Shelter"

Funny Games

Written and Directed by Michael Haneke

Starring Naomi Watts, Tim Roth, Michael Pitt, Brady Corbet and Devon Gearhart.

Review by Junior.

Funny Games starts with an artful overhead shot of a happy, affluent family driving to a their vacation home by a lake, over the strains of opera music, setting a cool, clean tone which is maintained throughout this carefully crafty, intense thriller. Things start going badly for our yuppy heroes (played by Tim Roth and Naomi Watts, who also was Executive Producer) and their young son.

Their happy vacation is invaded by Paul (Michael Pitt) and Peter (Brady Corbet), who insinuate themselves into the couple's home in a seemingly innocuous way, soon to reveal themselves to be serial sociopaths. Their home invasion is creepily polite and conversational, even while they are threatening, controlling and hurting the family.

The film masterfully maintains its cool, even tone, making the situation that much more threatening. The camera is often static, with characters wandering in and out of frame. This seems to be a stylistic choice at first, but is later revealed to have a more substantive reason behind it. The camera rarely catches any violence on-screen, in direct contradiction to recent gorefests such as Hostel, except for one or two notable exceptions.

Similar in premise, but miles away in tone from films such as The Last House on the Left, Funny Games overtly acknowledges its thriller tradition and what the audience expects of it. It both acknowledges, fulfills and consciously subverts the audience's expectations of such a film. As the movie goes on, the clues to the deconstructivist tendencies of the director become impossible to ignore, and may interfere with some viewer's enjoyment of what is otherwise a tight, visceral thriller which sticks in the memory long after it is over.

Not recognizing the director's name, and given the postmodern bent to the film, I assumed the film heralded a new talent I would be wanting to watch. After consulting IMDB, I found that I was totally wrong. The director's intelligence and artistry are due to the fact that he has foreign sensibilities, being German. Director Michael Haneke has been directing films in Austria and Germany for over 30 years. In fact, Funny Games is an English-language remake of his own 1997 version.

I highly recommend Funny Games for those of you who can both stomach a disturbing thriller and also enjoy talking about a film afterwards. There's more to chew on here than just what happens to this unfortunate family.

Story---7.5
Acting---7
Look---9
Overall---8

Milk

This newest film from Gus Van Sant tells about the political uprising and assassination of the country's first openly gay elected official, Harvey Milk.

As a rarity for this blog, this is a review of a film IN THEATRES NOW!

Starring Sean Penn as Milk and Josh Brolin as Dan White, released 2008.

Review by CINEMAGIRL:

"Milk" starts out with a bang and hooks the audience immediately. Even though we know the outcome of this historical tale, Van Sant tries his best to build the suspense leading up to the assassination of the lead character.

Harvey Milk was a community leader from a gay neighborhood in San Francisco who tirelessly ran for office until he was finally elected to serve on City Council in 1978. The gay community rallied behind him, as did his union allies and senior citizens.

Milk received death threats and harassing letters from people across the country. However, he did not predict that his open gayness and platform for gay issues - particularly defeating a proposition that would've forced gay teachers out of their jobs - would make him the target of a fellow city councilman.

Van Sant retells the story of Milk starting with the incredibly talented Sean Penn seated at his kitchen table recording a tape only to be listened to in the event of his assassination. We return to this safe location periodically throughout the action of the film.

Lots of historic film footage, from newscasts and beyond, was used to recreate The Castro (Milk's San Fran 'hood), the people, and the times. I find archival footage particularly effective in biopics and historical films. It really made an impact here, especially at the end of the film when we see the crowd of thousands lining the streets for a candlelight vigil in Milk's memory.

Penn pulls off an amazing performance and is really the best part of the film. He adopted Milk's accent and his effeminate gestures. Milk's relationships with two young men - much younger men - could have been displayed as purely sexual or callous in the hands of another actor, but Penn played Milk with constant sensitivity and never made him seem like a creepy older man with a 20-something boyfriend. Penn is nominated for a Golden Globe this year for this role.

Other highlights are the motley cast (mostly unknowns) assembled to portray the gay youth that served as Milk's campaign advisers and most dedicated volunteers.

For all its merits, "Milk" does not seem like a typical Van Sant film (Elephant, Drugstore Cowboy, Good Will Hunting) which some may consider a good thing, while other viewers will be disappointed. This film is more polished and mainstream in feeling and appearance, perhaps as to not distract the viewer from its biographical nature.

I highly recommend seeing it in the theatre while you can. I went on a weeknight and the theatre was packed. The audience actually applauded after the show.

LOOK: 7
ACTING: 9
STORY: 8

OVERALL: 8

Definitely, Maybe

Written and Directed by Adam Brooks

Starring Ryan Reynolds, Abigail Breslin, Elizabeth Banks, Isla Fisher, Rachel Weisz, Kevin Kline.

Synopsis: A separated father recounts for his daughter his romantic history, including how he met her mother, but with the names changed so that she has to guess which love interest is her mother.

Review by Junior.

Definitely, Maybe was a movie I started watching accidentally, with absolutely no expectations, which as you may know is a great way to watch a movie. I've had many a film spoiled by my own too-high expectations (see my Quantum of Solace review) and been pleasantly surprised by movies of which I had no or even low expectations. This was the latter situation and I found it entertaining, funny, sweet, and a moderately good sketch of how relationships start and end, what goes on in between, and how we look back and regret missed opportunities or bad decisions.

Ryan Reynolds plays the father, clean shaven here but with the same sarcastic charm that made him appealing as a smart-ass action guy in Smoking Aces and, particularly, Blade: Trinity. Abigail Breslin plays his daughter, the eager audience for her dad's love story, trying to pick up clues and predict which love interest will turn out to be her mom in the end. Breslin continues to be very sweet and engaging, as she was in Little Miss Sunshine and No Reservations.

Reynolds' love interests are an appealing mix of different types of women, played by no-names (to me), except for his first girlfriend, played by Elizabeth Banks, who seems to show up everywhere. I also found it interesting that Reynolds' character is involved behind the scenes in politics as a career, at least for the first half of the film, but it is mostly incidental to the plot. One rarely sees politically active policy wonks as characters in a film that isn't about politics.

Of course, there's a happy, or at least hopeful ending, as you might expect. If you have a little time to kill I think you'll find it a pleasant, romantic, funny movie. I just hope this review doesn't have your hopes too high.

Story---6
Acting---6
Look---5
Overall---6

Fargo Goes Far

In contrast to my good associates review of "Burn After Reading" I thought I should review "Fargo", a movie that, like "The Shining" has become a winter tradition in this household. I will note that this is the third Coen Brother's movie to be reviewed here, maybe it's coincidence, or we just happen to enjoy their movies.

So "Fargo" begins with a simple slate telling us this is a true story and only the names have been changed. Only a "true" story could be strange enough to be believable. We find Jerry Lundegaard (William H. Macy), a overly in debt car salesman attempting to pull off a scheme that involves the kidnapping of his wife and large amounts of ransom money from is gruff father-in-law Wade Gustafson (Harve Presnell). The idea is that his wife won't get hurt, he'll pay the kidnappers the $40K he promises them (plus a new car) AND he'll keep a hefty sum that Wade will THINK the kidnappers want for his wife. A flawless plan...right?

Jerry is a simple man, who is in way over his head. Enter Carl (Steve Buscemi) and Gaear (Peter Stormare). A pair of underworld thugs who go together like the Odd Couple. After the two pull of the kidnapping of Jerry's wife all hell breaks loose on a North Dakota road as they return with Jerry's wife from Minneapolis. Carl tells Jerry "Blood has been shed," which creates quite the predicament for Jerry.

Well the rest of story slowly becomes uncovered by Chief Marge Gunderson (Frances McDormand Oscar Winning Role), a dead pan, pregnant police chief who really doesn't excite too easily. Her matter-a-fact attitude is a wonderful character to follow as the story unfolds and the bad guys are chased.

This film really has stood the test of time for story telling. It's still fun and the characters are each so distinct. At times they are (on purpose I'm sure) very comical. Fargo, is meant to be a dark comedy, and the reason that works is because the Coen Brothers have created not characters but caricatures of people we've met...especially from the upper mid-west. The story line flows from one scene to another as you watch each person begin to crack on the pressure of the kidnapping, the money and, well, being in North Dakota. Marge is our solid base. She's that "good" motherly person (how can forget...she's pregnant through the entire film) that can make all the "bad guys" feel guilty about how they've behaved.

The shooting on this movie is done by Cinematographer extraordinaire Roger Deakins, whom the Coen Brothers tend to use on most of their films. The Dakota snow-scapes are beautiful. You can feel the cold, the emptiness, the want to be indoors. One of my favorite shots is watching Jerry walk back his car in an otherwise empty parking-lot. The camera is high above and everything is white except for the curbed islands and Jerry's car. If you love good cinematography you should never miss a Deakins film.

Look- 9.5
Story - 8
Acting - 9