THE THREE STOOGES

I had a little time to kill on a Thursday afternoon, so I decided to take in a movie.  I was looking for something lighthearted, something fun.  And, boy, I sure found it.  

The Three Stooges starts out at a Catholic orphanage run by nuns.  A package arrives on the door step, and guess what's in it.  Yep!! Three baby stooges, complete with the signature hair-dos of Moe, Larry, and Curly.  As you might imagine, they terrorize the nuns with their never-ending childish shenanigans.  The movie quickly moves the Stooges into adulthood, where the three adult actors take over and continue their funny business and high jinks.  Much to the chagrin of the nuns, they have never left the orphanage.  No one ever wanted to adopt them.  (Well, there WAS that one time, but. . . nah. . .  I won't spoil it for you).  The naughty-but-lovable trio became the caretakers of the institution, engaging in all sorts of tomfoolery all the while.

Then . . .  CRISIS!  The orphanage is going to be shuttered unless the diocese can come up with a very large amount of money to keep it going.  So the Stooges strike out on their own - for the first time in their lives - to raise the cash and be the heroes of the nuns and orphans.

The actors (Sean Hayes as Larry, Will Sasso as Curly, and Chris Diamantopoulos as Moe) were so true to the original characters that it was uncanny.  And they never wavered.  Their voices even sounded just like the originals.  It's chock full of eye-pokes, nose tweaks, hair pulls, etc., and the zany sound effects that accompany said antics.  The stooges always inadvertently find themselves in extraordinary situations that they always seem to weasel out of, all at the expense of the innocent folks who happen to be anywhere close to the guys.  It does take a semi-serious turn, where stooges question their relationship and wonder whether they would be better off if they split.  But you know how that ends.  Still, the jokes keep coming and so do the laughs.

I was pleasantly surprised.  I had no idea whether I would like this film, but I loved this it, and laughed a lot at the constant slapstick comedy.  There is a lengthy segment involving reality TV and the cast of Jersey Shore that was genius.  Although, I must say that if you are not a fan or at least familiar with the original Three Stooges TV show, you might not find it as funny as I did. 

If it's a no-brainer comedy you're looking for, look no further.  It doesn't get much better than this.  

THE CABIN IN THE WOODS

THE CABIN IN THE WOODS -- I had heard two things about this movie:  1) That it was good, and (2 That it was "different."  And that's all I wanted to know about it.  In fact, when reviews for this movie came on the radio or TV, I changed the station so I wouldn't know anything about it before I saw it.

It starts out like countless other horror/slasher movies before it.  A group of college "kids" are packing their things, getting ready to go on a weekend trip to one of the group's uncle's remote cabin way back in the boondocks.  There will, of course, be no phone, internet, or neighbors. Totally off the grid.

Among the group heading our for the Weekend of all Weekends are Jules (the unusually pretty party girl), Curt (the unusually handsome jock), who are bf and gf, btw;  Holden (the braniac), who has the hots for Dana (the prim and proper girl); and rounding out the unsuspecting weekend warriors is Marty (the stoner) who has the hots for all chicks, but can't get one .  They all pile into a rickety old Winnebago, and head out for a weekend they'll never forget (if they can survive it).  So, as you can see, everything is right on par with just about every other slasher film in existence.

Not so fast -- As they are pulling away, we see a camera mounted on their house, documenting their departure.  Ah ha!  Something is amiss here!  Someone (or a lot of someones) is watching their every move. They are being spied on from a massive control center, which is shown as though it were any generic office.  There are the horny dudes, goofy interns, the hot chicks, the not-so-hot chicks, etc.   They kid around with each other, have office betting pools, etc.  It's like something out of the movie "OFFICE SPACE."  But they are dead serious when it comes to tracking the young weekenders.  So you know something is going on.  You know the kids are being watched, but you don't know what or why.

The first stop on the way into the woods is at your typical deserted middle-of-nowhere, run down gas station.  Here is their first inclination that everything is not right.  Finally, out of the shadows, come a creepy backwoods hick speaking in riddles with lines like, "Getting there's easy.  It's gettin back that'll be a problem."  You know, that sort of thing.

Well, they decide to soldier on, and soon come to the cabin, and when they do, the creepy gas station attendants whips out his cell phone and calls Mission Control.  Hmmmm. . . .    When they get to the cabin, it's just what you would expect - remote, run-down, no light but from candles, no TV, etc.    Their first night there, they establish who is with who, who will sleep with who, etc.  Then late at night, while playing Truth of Dare, one of the girls ventures into the basement (surprise! there's a basement), where they unlock the evil curses that will torment them till the end of time..  All the while having their every move watched.

I started out thinking that this would be kind of like "The Hunger Games," and that the campers were a part of some kind of reality show.  But the big difference between "The Cabin In The Woods" and "The Hunger Games" is that 1) The subjects don't know they're part of any show, and 2) It's not being broadcast to the public.  Just to the people in the control room.  The kids are free to make their own decisions, but can be "influenced" by mission control.  For example, when mission control wanted Dana and Curt to hook up, they pumped pheromones into the area.

At this point in the movie, where bad things started happening to the campers, it gets way too complicated to  get into in this little review.  Plus I don't want this review to be a spoiler.

Suffice to say that horrible things happen one after another after another.  But what is the control center all about.  We learn that there are similar control centers around the world, each hoping for the same results -that most of the subjects be killed.  There is a reason why there is one jock, one slut, one stoner, etc.  There is a reason al these horrible things are happening, but what is it??

I will agree with the other reviews that I heard.  It is very different, not at all what you would expect, but is a horror/slasher film nevertheless.  In fact, if you're squeamish over the sight of blood and gore, then this is not for you.

I combines both customary, spooky, eerie scary movie elements with a very high-tech story line.  With awesome over-the-top visual effects not normally not expected from a movie in this genre.  It definitely had some "Scott Pilgrim" elements in it for sure.  Unveiling the reason why everything was going on took too long.  In fact, the film never gives the audience the chance to figure it out on their own.  All hell is breaking loose (literally) at the end, and that's when mission control's CEO appears (a surprise actor) and explains it all.

Although it didn't give us the chance to figure it out, the ride from start to finish was a good one.  Full of beautiful people in horrible, scary situations, laced with tongue-in -cheek humor throughout.  It came to us from the creators of "Buffy The Vampire Slayer,"  so if you were into any of that, you'll love this fo sho.  And even if you weren't into "BTVS," it's definitely worth your time.

SHAME

I MUST ADMIT - THE MAIN REASON I WANTED TO SEE THIS MOVIE WAS BECAUSE IT IS RATED NC-17. THE SUBJECT MATTER DIDN'T REALLY APPEAL TO ME.  THE APPEAL WAS TWOFOLD:  (1)TO SEE WHAT AN NC-17-RATED MOVIE LOOKS LIKE THESE DAYS; AND (2) TO FINALLY SIT IN A THEATER WITH NO CHILDREN.  I THINK THE LAST NC-17 FILM I SAW WAS "THE COOK, THE THIEF, HIS WIFE, AND HER LOVER" IN 1989.
I WOULD SAY THAT THIS FILM IS FILLED WITH GRATUITOUS SEX, BUT THAT WOULD BE WRONG.  THE FILM DOES HAVE A LOT OF SEX IN IT, BUT THAT'S WHAT THE FILM IS ABOUT, SO THAT MAKES IT NON-GRATUITOUS (I GUESS).  ACTUALLY, THERE WEREN'T REALLY THAT MANY SEX SCENES, BUT THE ONES THAT WERE THERE WERE PRETTY GRAPHIC.  AND THERE'S LOTS OF FULL NUDITY, BOTH MALE AND FEMALE.
OTHER THAN THE NUDITY, THERE'S PRETTY MUCH NOTHING MUCH MORE TO AN NC-17 MOVIE THAN YOU CAN SEE EVERY NIGHT ON CABLE TV (ANYONE SEEN "AMERICAN HORROR STORY?").
THAT BEING SAID, "SHAME" IS ABOUT A YOUNG, PROFESSIONAL GUY (BRANDON) WHO SEEMS TO HAVE A LOT GOING FOR HIM.  HE HAS A GOOD JOB IN NEW YORK, LIVES IN A SMALL, BUT ADEQUATE APARTMENT, DRINKS THE BEST TEQUILA, EATS IN THE BEST RESTAURANTS. . . . 
HE SPENDS HIS DAYS AT WORK, AND HIS NIGHTS AT BARS WITH HIS BUDDIES, INCLUDING HIS BOSS, LOOKING FOR THE NEXT ANONYMOUS HOOK UP, SOMETIMES MULTIPLE HOOK-UPS IN THE SAME NIGHT.  HE BRINGS THEM HOME TO HIS APARTMENT (SOMETIMES HOOKERS, SOMETIMES NOT), THEN BOOTS THEM OUT WHEN HE'S DONE.  IT'S A ROUTINE HE'S GOTTEN INTO, WHICH SUITS HIM JUST FINE.  
EVERY RELATIONSHIP IN THIS MOVIE IS DYSFUNCTIONAL.  FROM THE MANY WOMEN BRANDON IS WITH, TO HIS RELATIONSHIPS WITH HIS CO-WORKER, AND EVEN HIS BOSS.  BRANDON'S BOSS THINKS BRANDON IS THE GREATEST.  (WHY?  BRANDON ISN'T A VERY LIKEABLE GUY). 
THEN, BRANDON'S SISTER (SISSY) ENTERS THE PICTURE.  YOU GET THE IMPRESSION FROM THE START THAT SISSY IS A LOSER OF A CHICK.  SHE HAS BEEN CALLING AND CALLING BRENDON, BUT HE NEVER TAKES HER CALLS.  WELL, SHE JUST SHOWS UP ONE DAY AT HIS PLACE AND WANTS TO MOVE IN. THEIR FIRST MEETING, WHEN HE SURPRISES HER IN THE SHOWER, IS ON OF THE MORE UNCOMFORTABLE SCENES IN THE FILM.  YOU JUST DON'T STAND THERE TALKING TO YOUR SISTER, HAVE A FULL ON CONVERSATION WHILE SHE'S STANDING THERE COMPLETELY NUDE.  THERE IS A KIND OF PSEUDO-INCESTUOUS THING ON THE VERGE OF HAPPENING, AND IF THERE'S ANYTHING IN THE MOVIE THAT MADE ME UNCOMFORTABLE, THIS IS IT.  
WELL,SISSY THROWS BRANDON'S WORLD OUT OF KILTER  AND CRAMPS HIS STYLE.  SHE'S A SLOB, HE'S IMPECCABLY NEAT, AND SHE'S ALWAYS AROUND, SO HE CAN'T BRING CHICKS BACK TO HIS COMFORT ZONE.  NOT TO SHE MENTION, SLEPT WITH BRANDON'S BOSS AFTER A NIGHT OUT, AND IS OBSESSING ON HIM (A MARRIED MAN).
HIS FRAGILE PSYCHE CAN'T HANDLE ALL THIS BREAK FROM FAMILIARITY, AND BRANDON'S WORLD STARTS UNRAVELLING.  UNABLE TO SUSTAIN A REAL RELATIONSHIP WITH ANYONE, OBSESSED WITH ANONYMOUS SEX, HE BEGINS SPIRILING DOWN INTO A PSYCHOLOGICAL HELL, DIVING EVEN DEEPER INTO HIS SEX-OBSESSED UNIVERSE.  
OBVIOUSLY HE AND SISSY ARE FROM A SEVERELY DYSFUNCTIONAL FAMILY.  SOMETHING HAPPENED IN THEIR PAST TO SCREW THEM UP SO BADLY THAT NEITHER ONE IS CAPABLE SHARING ANYTHING ABOUT THEMSELVES.  BUT WE NEVER FIND OUT WHAT THAT WAS.  THERE IS NO BACK STORY TO THEIR SORDID LIVES.
ONE THING I FOUND INTERESTING WAS THE EXTREMELY LONG TAKES IN THE MOVIE.  THE DIRECTOR, STEVE MCQUEEN, DID TAKE AFTER TAKE WITH ONLY ONE CAMERA, OFTEN LASTING THE ENTIRE SCENE.  WITH THE RAPID FIRE STYLE OF A.D.H.D.-INDUCING DIRECTION AND EDITING IN USE TODAY, THIS WAS A STARK CONTRAST.  IT WAS DIFFERENT, BUT I LIKED IT.  
I CAN'T REALLY RECOMMEND THIS FILM, THOUGH.   OTHER THAN SEEING WHAT AN NC-17 MOVIE LOOKS LIKE TODAY, THERE'S NOTHING THAT GOOD ABOUT  "SHAME."  I WAS CURIOUS.  NOW I KNOW. 

J EDGAR

 This Clint Eastwood-directed movie is a pretty simple biopic that explores the personal and professional life of the man who started and led the US Federal Bureau of Investigation from the Hoover administration (no relation), all the way into the Nixon years. 
Hoover built the Bureau based on a hard line approach to communists and radicals he felt were bent on overthrowing the government, as well his my-way-or-the-highway regulations he set for his "G Men." they all had to be physically fit, no facial hair, immaculately dressed, etc. 
He ruled the Bureau with an iron fist, was a pioneer in developing the use of forensic science, and accumulated files on just about every political figure in America, making sure they all stayed under his thumb. 
Then there's Hoover's personal side. Everyone has heard the rumors of him being gay. In an interview, Leonardo DiCaprio (who plays Hoover) said the movie doesn't get into that aspect of his life, but it does. It also paints Hoover as a liar who takes credit for banner accomplishments that his agents should have gotten. And even goes into his mommas boy relationship with his domineering homophobic mother. 
A good, well done movie with nice production value. A pleasant period piece that is engaging to watch. 
If I had a problem with it, it is this: The old man make-up was inconsistent. Sometimes it looked great, but other times, it made the actors look like mummies. Also, DiCaprio's weird accent was distracting. I couldn't tell what it was supposed to be. Sometimes it was there, and sometimes not. 
Eastwood spent a lot of time on one particular incident, while just glazing over others, such as the assassinations of both Kennedys, and the Martin Luther King era. 
I realize, though, that there is an awful lot of subject matter that took place in Hoover's life to give it all equal time, and at at two hours and fifteen minutes, Eastwood crammed in as much as he could without making it a 10 hour mini series, which it could have easily been. 
Overall: Good flick.

THE TREE OF LIFE

I guess I'm one of the ones who doesn't get it.  Well, at least I managed to stay awake for the whole thing.

LIMITLESS

Finally!  A movie that didn't have me checking my watch every fifteen minutes!  I loved this movie.  

Eddie Morra is a "writer" always on the verge of a book deal.  He lives in a dumpy little apartment in NYC, and has no real job.  He never has any money, which is why his girlfriend is breaking up with him.  He was married for a minute or two about ten years ago.  Nothing is going right for Eddie.  

Then he happens to run into his ex-wife's brother on the streets, and he offers Eddie the chance of a lifetime:  Take a pill which will unlock the full capacity of his brain.  OK. . .   Why not?  He's got nothing to lose. . .right?

The problem here is that this "drug" wears off and must be re-taken to maintain its effect, therefore making it as addictive a heroin.  So he takes the drug, and his life takes an immediate u-turn.  Suddenly, he can do things like speak any language fluently after just hearing it spoken. . .  He can play the piano as if he has been studying it for years.  . . .  He know everything about everything.   And he is in demand for his expertise in the corporate world.  He's reconnecting with his girlfriend.  Now everything is going great for Eddie.  Nobody knows his secret.  Or do they?  People around him know something is up, and Eddie has to keep up his facade, keep popping the pills, and make sure his supply never runs out.

I can't really say anything more about the film without giving it away, so I won't.    This movie has everything -- Action, suspense, intrigue, and the perfect balance of humor to keep it moving at a rapid pace.  Never boring and lots of surprises and "ah ha" moments.  Not to mention the eye candy.

So refreshing to see a movie like this after all the duds that have been out lately.

BATTLE: LOS ANGELES

Well this one could have been called BATTLE: FRESNO. There is absolutely nothing about Los Angeles in it except an obvious matte shot of the LA skyline ablaze far away in the distance. No Capitol Records building being demolished. . . . No Tar Pits bubbling with poisonous gas. . . . No crumbling US Bank tower. . . . Nothing. And I will admit, that's probably the only reason I went to see this film. This is the kind of movie I usually avoid.

Every decade or so, Angelenos flock to theaters to delight in seeing the on-screen demise of our beloved city. We had EARTHQUAKE in the 70's, THE TERMINATOR and MIRACLE MILE in the 80's, VOLCANO in the 90's, and now this.

That being said, as the saying goes, "it is what it is." If you're expecting profound drama -- forget it. If you're looking for non-stop blasts -- this is the one for you.

BATTLE: LOS ANGELES is about a sudden alien invasion all over the world, mainly in big cities along the coast. In fact, BATTLE: SANTA MONICA would be a more apt title, since the whole movie takes place there. Well, the aliens (and, yes, you do get to see what they look like) are taking over the cities so quickly that the only defense against them is to evacuate the cities of civilians, and bomb the S out of the area, taking out all the aliens.

Here's where that oh-so-familiar band of rag-tag marines come into play (including the ever-present bad-ass latina). Isn't her name Santos in every one of these?

So their mission is to evacuate everyone from the area in two hours - bomb drop time. And I'm sure you can figure out the rest on your own. Not my cup of tea, but I'm sure if I had a thirteen-year-old kid, he's love it.

It is what it is.

ANIMAL KINGDOM

(Australian)  Talk about your dysfunctional family!  This story opens with the death of 17-year-old Josh's mother.  But he really doesn't seem to care.  He is sitting on their sofa next to his mother's lifeless body, non-chalantly watching Australia's version of Deal Or No Deal, waiting for the paramedics to show up.  When they do, Josh casually mentions that his mother OD'd on heroin.
So off goes Josh to live with his grandmother.  Also living with granny (Smurf) are Josh's four unusually handsome uncles.  None seem to particularly care that their daughter/sister has left the planet.
Well, this is no ordinary family.  This is a family of professional criminals.  They do bank jobs, and granny (Smurf, remember) is the leader of the pack -- the "moll," if you will, conjuring up memories of old James Cagney gangster movies.
THE GODFATHER comes to mind here, too.  The loyalty of the family, the head of the family (like Vito Corleone in THE GODFATHER) the crazy uncle (like Sonny), the wimpy brother who is doing it only because "that's what they do" (like Fredo), and even the young buck drawn into the fold whether he likes it or not (like Michael).
Things quickly go awry when the local cops kill two of the uncles.  Smurf and the gang set out for revenge, a cop gets killed, and Josh becomes a player.  All Josh wants is to be a normal kid.  He even gets a girlfriend..  But now he's in the family business, and has to conduct himself as so.  He has to keep secrets.  He has to participate in the shenanigans.
Meanwhile, the cops know what went down, but have to gather evidence before they can make any arrests..  One of the cops zeros in on Josh to try to get him to crack and spill the beans.
It's a story of who will remain loyal, who can or can't be trusted, and who can outsmart whom -- even within the family.  It even gets to the point where Smurf is willing to "whack" one of her own flesh and blood if need be.
This movie is quirky to be fun, yet serious enough to be disturbing.  It moves along at a brisk pace and keeps you guessing and surprised at what will happen next.  Good movie.  In limited release, it is definitely worth seeing if it is playing anywhere in your area.

BLUE VALENTINE

Someone answer me this question:  Why, when a porn "actor" or "actress" tries to go mainstream, they are scoffed at, ridiculed, and not taken seriously, but when it is the reverse, it is considered art?
In a nutshell, BLUE VALENTINE is about a couple whose relationship has deteriorated into, well, less than zero.  Their story is told through a series of flashbacks, along with the present-day.  They start out in a loving relationship, with, seemingly, a lot of common interests.  But as the years pass by, and with the birth of their daughter, everything goes to hell.  The husband, mover/housepainter Dean,  is unrefined, verbally abusive, and passively aggressive, but he at least sees their problem and tries to put romance back into their lives, but the wife, nurse Cindy, wants nothing to do with him or it.
I didn't find myself rooting for either character, so I didn't really care about what they were going through.
If you like sex in movies -- there's plenty of it here.  In fact, the film was originally rated "NC-17", but the Weinstein Company appealed (and probably greased a few palms), and the rating was changed to the much more money-making "R".
I wasn't shocked by the sex scenes (is anyone really shocked by anything anymore?  Just one click of the mouse, and you can see whatever you want.).  I just don't really like seeing it taken to this extreme in mainstream movies.  Apparently director Derek Cianfrance does.
Director Ridley Scott, when asked why he never has sex scenes in his films, replied "Because sex is boring unless you're the one having it."
So BV is another one of those films that I hate - about miserable people and their miserable lives.  Depressing as hell.  Oh well -- at least no one puked on camera in this one.  But you DO see (and hear) Cindy sitting on the toilet, peeing on a pregnancy test thingy.  Michelle Williams as Best Actress??  Puh-leez!
I'm starting to think all of Ryan Gosling's movies suck.

RABBIT HOLE

This movie (based on a play) is about a young couple who is dealing with the loss of their 4-year-old son.  Eight months have passed since he was killed when hit by a car driven by a neighborhood teenager.  The couple, Howie and Becca each have their distinctively different ways of coping.  Howie goes to support group meetings, while Becca thinks it's all just a bunch of crap.  In one meeting, another couple speaking of their own loss said, "God needed another angel," to which Becca replied, "Then why didn't he just make one?  He is God, after all."  Becca, whose sister is pregnant, is trying to be supportive of the pregnancy, all the while having to listen to her mother compare Becca's loss to her own (she lost her own son, Becca's brother, to drugs).  But he was an adult  crack head who made fateful decisions, not a helpless little boy.  Part of Becca's way of handling her grief is to get rid of their son's stuff -- to give it to her sister for her new baby, or to take some things to Goodwill, or simply throw it away.
Howie, on the other hand, wants to cling to everything that reminds him of their son.  He doesn't want to erase him from their lives.
So they take their own separate paths of grief, but somehow never stop loving and supporting each other.  They find different people to confide in and lean on.  Howie meets a woman from his support group who seems to understand exactly what he's going through, and Becca reaches out to the very teenager who was driving the car that killed her son.
I very cautiously went to see this movie.  As I have said many times before, I don't like movies about miserable people and their miserable lives.  But the previews I had seen for RABBIT HOLE led me to believe that this wouldn't be the case here.  And it wasn't.
While these two people are going through the hardest thing anyone could have to endure, putting unbelievable strains on their relationships and careers, there is a glimmer of hope here.  It never gets over-emotional, even though you sometimes wonder why not.  You leave the movie thinking that they're somehow going to get through this.

127 HOURS (Screener)

We all know what this movie is about -- a guy goes hiking by himself (smart) in an extremely desolate canyon (brilliant) without telling ANYONE where he is going (genius).  He slips, a rock slips with him, and his arm becomes wedged between the rock and the canyon wall.  He ends up, after 127 hours, cutting off his own arm with a dull pocked knife to free himself.  End of story.  Heck, the movie poster tell the whole story!

Oops -- Did I ruin it for you?  Well maybe you've been living under said rock!

Let's face it.  The only reason anyone wants to see this film is for that "scene."  It was neither interesting, nor spiritual,  nor uplifting.   In fairness, it could have been a lot more boring, but, mercifully, it was limited to just one hour and thirty-three minutes.

THE KING'S SPEECH

This is a an important history lesson, as well as an uplifting story of a shy, reluctant king who struggled to over come a physical hindrance to become a symbol of national and international pride and unity.

Albert Frederick Arthur George, was fourth in line for the British throne when he was born in 1895, behind his grandfather, father, and older brother Edward.  Albert, or Bertie to family, was always in the shadow of his brother, who barring death, was destined to eventually be King of the British Empire.  Bertie was a shy kid, raised by sadistic nannies who favored Edward.  He was prone to crying, had knock knees which required him to wear painful metal leg braces,  and he had a bitch of a stammer.  Never outgoing, Bertie accepted his fate and was content, even preferred, to stay in the background and let his more dynamic family members perform the royal duties.

As Duke of York, though, Bertie was required on rare occasions to speak in public, a task that he dreaded.  He and his wife, Duchess Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon exhaustively sought out therapists to help the Duke shed his impediment.  To no avail.  That is. . . until they found "Dr." Lionel Logue, a quirky, unconventional occasional actor who promise the Duke and Duchess that he would absolutely be able to cure Bertie if and only if they put their complete trust in him and his sometimes outlandish methods.


Here began a wonderful journey and a friendship unlike Bertie had ever known.  There were the expected ups and downs of the relationship, but the understanding and rapport they had with one another was too great, and eventually became immune to collapse.


Along the way, Bertie's father, King George V died, and his brother, Edward ascended to the throne.  But ahh. . . .   there's a big problem here. . . .   Edward had fallen in love with a "commoner" and, if he was to marry her, as was his plan, he would have to abdicate the throne, making Bertie king.   That is the LAST thing Bertie ever expected or wanted.  But that was his fate, and like it or not, that's how it was going to be.  Oh well, at least the Coronation Rite required him to speak only three lines.  Easy Peasy Japanesey.  Right?  Wrong!  


World War II was moving into full swing, Britain and Germany had declared war on each other, and the British countrymen were looking toward their new king for comfort and guidance.  At this point, Albert (Bertie) took the name George VI because Albert was too "German."


Oh no!  George had to address his loyal subjects LIVE on that new-fangled thing called radio.  A full scale nine-minute address.  This, his first time addressing his public, would set the stage for how he would be permanently perceived.  His first impression.  He HAD to get it all out and get it out with the confidence his country needed at this troubled time.


This is one of those movies that is almost flawless.  Beautiful to look at, a period piece that kept moving at a brisk and always interesting pace.  Great direction and editing.  The cast were all perfect and totally believable.


I definitely recommend this film.  Destined for many Oscar noms.

THE FIGHTER

Oh brother, here we go again!  Another rags-to-riches boxing story.  It was produced by the director of BLACK SWAN and THE WRESTLER, so I was expecting it to be really dark.  It wasn't.  I was expecting another ROCKY.  It wasn't.  In short, I had low expectations for THE FIGHTER, and that just may be why I liked it so much.
You already know how it ends. . . right?   Everyone who goes into the theater knows how this movie is going to end.  But that's not what the movie is about.  It's about what it takes to get to the final outcome, and the unusual obstacles that are all along the way.
Most of all, this movie is about family, and the love and loyalty that comes with it.
Two brothers, Mickey and Dicky Ward grew up as the only two brothers in a family of nine children.  They had an army of seven whacky sisters, a domineering mother, Alice and a sort of in-the-background father, George.
Dicky, the older brother had an extremely brief moment in the spotlight when, several years earlier, he "knocked down" Sugar Ray Leonard and won a fight against the welterweight champion.  Dicky bragged about this accomplishment ad nauseum, convincing himself that it was a legitimate win, while the general consensus was that Sugar Ray slipped and lost the fight himself, not because Dicky was the the superior fighter.  In the years that followed, Dicky plunged into a life of a crackhead and lived in a ramshackle delapidated dump with several other crackheads.
Nevertheless, Mickey, a single guy with young daughter,  idolized Dicky and was himself training to make a name for himself in the world of boxing.  Despite Dicky's shortcomings, Mickey kept him, as well as his father, George, and the local gym owner as his trainers. His mother, Alice was his manager.  All in the family.
Even though Dicky never made it as a boxer, and although he was crack-addicted, Dicky was extremely knowledgeable about boxing and seemed to know exactly how to bring out the best in Mickey.
Another problem was that Alice wasn't the best manager and scheduled fights for Mickey based on the prize money without regard to how each fight would move him closer to a title fight.
So the family, with the army of obnoxious sisters, the crackhead brother, the milquetoast father (who, to his credit, finally stood up to Alice, to the tune of cast iron frying pans flying toward his head), was nothing short of a comedy show.  They definitely brought a nice degree of humor to an otherwise deadly serious film.  Mickey, the one everyone was so concerned about was the least dynamic of the bunch.
Oh yeah. . . .On top of all this is the bartender/girlfriend who is pushing Mickey to shed his lead-weight family, get different, more experienced supporters and have a real chance to get a belt.
Will Mickey follow the advice of his new girlfriend, and renounce his family who have worked so relentlessly and believed in him?  They were just a little misguided, but they truly wanted the best for Mickey. (Which translates to the best for themselves, too)  What's wrong with that?  Can he make it to the top with them running the show?  He finds that he must choose between them and the gym-owner, whose stipulation to train Mickey is NO DICKY and NO ALICE.  George made the cut.
All the characters in this movie really kept it going at a rapid pace.  Never boring,  I found myself rooting for  Mickey, even though I knew what was coming at the end.
But. . . .  It didn't end exactly how I thought it would.  I really liked THE FIGHTER.

TRUE GRIT

At its most basic, this movie is about a little girl seeking vengeance. I saw the 1969 version of TRUE GRIT starring John Wayne in 1969 and remember it as being a great movie.  I never saw it again after its initial release, and I really didn't remember what it was all about except that there was a little girl named Mattie Ross traveling the old west with the crusty, crotchety, old, one-eyed Rooster Cogburn, looking for something.
Well, what they were looking for, it turns out, is the killer of the little girl's father.  He had taken in a drifter, Tom Chaney, to do some work around his ranch and Tom Chaney turned on him and killed him.  Now Mattie is out to avenge her father's death and nab the man who killed her father.
She enlists the help of Rooster Cogburn, who has a reputation for no-nonsense bounty hunting.  He's the guy who has no ties or obligations to anything whatsoever.  He seems to like nobody and and nobody really likes him.  Doesn't care about anything -- we all know the type. But somewhere along the way, Rooster has developed a sense of morality and has chosen to use his skills to bring in bad guys for a living.
Since the killer is legitimately wanted by the law, a Texas Ranger by the name of LaBoeuf, goes along with Mattie and Rooster to administer some good ol' wild west justice.
Mattie's father was such a fresh kill that Mattie had been able to see his body in the undertaker's shop before they put him in the ground.  But what struck me as odd was that Mattie didn't really seem upset at all that she had just lost her father. She just seem pissed off.
So the three of them set off on their adventure.  Nobody really got along with each other and I guess that was supposed to be the humor in the film.  I suppose it was to an extent.  What I do remember from the first TRUE GRIT was that Mattie and Rooster eventually developed some sort of a bond, or friendship which never happened in this version.
I am a great fan of the Coen Brothers' movies, and I did like this movie, but it wasn't quiet up to par with most of their other stuff.  A few of their signature quirky characters were there (the bad guy who only makes animal sounds), but didn't really fit into the mood of the picture.  I won't tell you to rent the 1969 version instead of seeing this one because that version is probably terribly dated by now.
Maybe not..

ALL GOOD THINGS

This is the story of yet another severely dysfunctional filthy rich family with skeletons in their closet.  It's the story (based on true events) of the Marks family (Durst in real life), who owns the more properties in Manhattan than almost anyone else.  They built their fortune from buying up and renting  out skanky tenement apartment buildings in the worst parts of the city. There is Sanford Marks, the father and patriarch, and two sons, David, the elder, and Daniel, the younger.  The story begins in 1971 when David was around 21, and Daniel was around 19.
David, more of a free spirit, never cared for the family business and had no interest in having the torch passed from his father to him.  Instead, he dreamt of moving to the Vermont countryside and opening a health food store, which he did with his charismatic new wife, Katie.  The name of the store they operated was All Good Things.  Hmmmm. . . .
All seems blissfully well at first, but David's family did not approve of the lower-class Katie and wanted David to move back to NYC to join the family business.  Sanford convinced  David that Katie would eventually grow tired of Vermont.  Sanford told him that Katie married him only for his money, and once she sees that the health food store doesn't keep her in the lifestyle she sought, then the marriage would be over.
So back to NYC they go.  And here is where their lives start to come unraveled.  David can't handle the day to day affairs of the business, so he is relegated to a "nothing" position in an out-of-the-way office, collecting a paycheck for just showing up.  The younger Daniel takes the position meant for David.
David, always a little "off," is starting to become more detached and exhibit more and more bizarre behavior, like mumbling to himself and staring off into space.  We find out that there is a horrible memory that he is holding on to involving his mother and what happened to her when David was a child.  This, on top of the unwelcome announcement that Katie is pregnant, sends David over the edge and accelerates the demise of his and Katie's relationship.  David forces Katie to get an abortion, which sends her into a downward spiral from which she never recovers.  The two miserable souls start living separate lives, reconciling every now and then, but never reconnecting.  Katie is showing her independence more and more by going to medical school and becoming a doctor, leaving David to wallow in his miserableness.
Then, in 1982, after eight years of marriage, Katie disappears.
Vanishes without a trace.
Everyone thinks it was David's doing, but he (and no one else for that matter) was ever convicted. The case today remains unsolved.
There is no resolution in this movie, and I never really had any sympathy for any of the characters.  There were no moments of great dialog or OMG scenes.  Kinda dull through and through, which is too bad.  I had high hopes for this movie.  I get more satisfaction from "Forensic Files" on TV.  At least there, I find out who did it.

BLACK SWAN

I must admit that I had some reservations about seeing this movie.  After all, it was directed by Darren Aronofsky, who also directed THE WRESTLER, REQUIEM FOR A DREAM, and that completely bizarre PI,  three very depressing films.  I don't like movies about miserable people and their miserable lives, but I heard a lot of good things about BLACK SWAN, so I checked it out.  I've never been to a ballet, nor have I ever stopped on ballet while channel surfing, but the few movies I've seen about ballet I really liked (WHITE KNIGHTS, THE TURNING POINT).  And BLACK SWAN was no exception.  A common thread present in the three of these ballet-themed movies is intense competition and enormous pressure on the dancers.  Here, both are in full force.    An aging prima ballerina in a prestigious ballet company is being forced into retirement and the company's ego-centric director, Thomas, is looking for a suitable replacement to star in their season-opening performance of "Swan Lake."  Rabidly pushed by her former dancer mother ("I gave it up to have you"), Nina is one of the most promising up-and-coming young ballerinas.  She's the logical choice for the lead role, but Thomas plays with her mind, pushing her to her physical and psychological limit before she can be formally named the ballet's star.  On the brink mental collapse from the pressure put on her by Thomas, Nina's domineering mother, as well as the intense competition from Lily (Nina's nemesis and the only girl that could take the part of the Swan Princess away) Nina is sucked into a vortex of paranoia, psycho-sexual fantasies, and self mutilation.  It can only be a matter of time before she self-destructs, but can she stay outside the edge of insanity long enough to give the performance of her life?  My only problem with this movie is that it took a long time to get going. More than an hour into it, I was thinking, "C'mon. Lets get going here." But when it did get going -- WHOA! Quite a few "holy s***" moments as well as a couple of times you might want to look away or cover your eyes.  Definitely not for the squeamish.  And all this from a BALLET movie??  This is an example of a psychological thriller in its finest form.

BURLESQUE

Just because we're gay doesn't mean we have to love Cher all the time. . . right? Don't get me wrong -- I DO love Cher, but to say she was at her best in BURLESQUE is a load of doo doo. Absolutely no comparison to her performances in movies like SILKWOOD, MOONSTRUCK, MASK, COME BACK TO THE FIVE AND DIME JIMMY DEAN JIMMY DEAN. I saw this movie on Thanksgiving Day in Palm Springs with a pretty large group of guys, and the theater was packed with our kind. . . a very forgiving audience, if you will. I can't tell you how my times I heard, as I was walking out of the auditorium, thins like, "OMG! That was fabulous!" What ev. Bottom line -- It wasn't. I'm not even gonna go into how bad the script/story was. Other than Cher's cheezeball "anthem," "You Haven't Seen The Last Of Me," (which really means we HAVE as far as movies go), the film was pretty much a two-hour Christina Aguilera video. So if that's your thing, then you will no doubt like this movie. I couldn't wait for it to end.

THE TOWN

The town is Boston, and the director and star is Ben Affleck, who is doing for Boston what Woody Allen did for New York. Actually, "the town" more specifically is Charlestown, a particular neighborhood in Boston where more bank heists take place than anywhere else in the USA.
This is the story of a group of old neighborhood buddies who get together and pull off daring capers instead of getting real jobs. They all have deep-rooted issues which led each of them to a life of crime. You know -- environment, parents, peer pressure, the mob -- the usual.
The FBI is there too, relentlessly pursuing the young thugs. Dagnabbit, he's gonna catch those punks come hell or high water.
And then there are the women. Three figure prominently, and they are the ex-girlfriend, the hostage, and the mother of one of the heisters (heisters???).
All the components of your typical bank heist movie are here. It all worked, though. It was put together well, kept a brisk pace, and the entire cast (save on old Scottish dude) are very easy on the eyes. You find yourself rooting for the bad guys, even though they're lacking any semblance of morality or conscience. There's plenty of bang bang and a pretty awesome car chase through the streets of Boston.
It's not gonna win the Palm D'or at Cannes, but it was fun.

THE SOCIAL NETWORK

We all know what this movie is about, so there's really no ruining the plot. A Harvard freshman, Mark Zuckerberg, creates what becomes the world's most prominent social networking website with over 500,000,000 users. Actually, this movie could have been about any start-up business venture -- who came up with the original concept, the idea, who wrote the code, who fronted the initial capital, who gets creative control, etc. But it's not about just any company -- it's about Facebook. And since anyone reading this is a user of Facebook, there is an immediate interest in the subject. It's completely understandable that we all want to know how this obsession for some, pastime for others, came into existence.
After demonstrating an unbelievable ability to understand the internet, write code, and hack into a system as secure as Harvard's, Zuckerberg is approached by a pair of twins who are on the Harvard crew team (and bear an uncanny resemblance to Judge Reinholdt) and their friend, to help them start an exclusive networking site just for Harvard students - those whose email addresses end with the prestigious @harvard.edu.
Instead of helping the twins and their friend, Zuckerberg starts developing his own site with the same concept, and called it "The" Facebook with his best and only friend, Eduardo (the money) and his roommate, Dustin (the codist).
Naturally, when the twins found this out, they were furious and tried to take back control. It's was an epic battle that, of course ended up in federal court.
And if that's not enough, there are others who Zuckerberg walked over to get FB going in the direction he had mapped out in that genious mind of his - those who trusted, helped, and believed in him in the beginning.
This movie was directed by David Fincher, so I knew it would be good. Fincher was behind some of my faves like FIGHT CLUB and SE7EN. (And props to Fincher for making Cally look so cool and hip, while making New England look boring and stiff). It was just about two hours long, and I found myself a little disappointed that it wasn't longer.
The story kept bouncing back and forth between the developing story of the growth and evolution of Facebook, and the hearings between Zuckerberg and his accusers.
A surprise to me was how influential the creator of Napster, Shawn Parker was to Zuckerberg. He gained the trust and admiration of Zuckerberg, and Zuckerberg hung on his every word to help guide him through. After all, Shawn's creation had revolutionized the music industry and helped to kill the corner record shop. He was the cavalier rebel that Zuckerberg wanted to be.
Instead, Zuckerberg comes across as an emotionless robot, so focused on his "baby" that he has no time for anything else. Ever. He was, ironically, constructing the world's foremost social site, while having zero social skills himself. The only emotion he seems to be able to display is anger, which is what got him started on the whole notion of Facebook, anyway.
It absolutely kept my interest, even though I knew (basically) what the outcome was going to be. And even though, this review and most other media that I have seen regarding THE SOCIAL NETWORK leads one to believe that Zuckerberg is a complete AH, Fincher leaves it up to the viewer to make his or her own assesments and conclusions. I, personally, came away wanting to sit down and have a beer and a conversation with the mastermind behind the worldwide phenomenon.

EASY A

Shades of John Hughes! Olive is one of thise kids who just doesn't quite fit in. She's just quirky enough to be cool without being weird, a fine line to walk in high school.
An untrue rumor starts circulating that Olive slept with an older "college" guy, and after trying for a brief time to dispel the rumor, she decides to run with it. She is hoping that if her classmates believe it, somehow her "coolness factor" will be given a boost.
Well, as you might imagine, everything goes wrong. Judgements are made, friendships are lost, then made, then lost again, and Olive is in way deeper than she could have ever imagined. She even goes as far as attaching a scarlett A to all of her clothes, just as Hester Prynne had in THE SCARLETT LETTER, which her English class was reading.
I think EASY A is great. the writing is sharp and witty, and the comedy is smart, without succumbing to "ass" and "tit" jokes like teen movies so often do now. It definitely doesn't insult the viewer.
All the usual characters are there -- the mega-bitchen bff, the under-the-radar studly dude who Olive has a secret crush on, the athletic crew, the gay boy, and the morally righteous ultra Christian chick and her bitchy prayer group pals.
Then there are the way cool teacher and the hippie-ish parents to round out the superb cast of characters.
EASY A is an obvious homage to the John Hughes movies we loved in the 80s, with direct references to PRETTY IN PINK, SIXTEEN CANDLES, and THE BREAKFAST CLUB.
I completely dug it!