Monthly Archives: May 2013
Flash Movie Review: Kon-Tiki
There is a risk venturing into something without having some prior knowledge on what you will do or see. I do not know if I would call myself a risk taker, but I prefer seeing a movie with as little information about it as possible. Call me an adventurer. This is why I keep my reviews short, not divulging too much information. If I am going to ask someone about a movie it would be to ask if there is a good time to run out and use the restroom. Being the way I am, there have been movies I have gone to where I have pleaded with my watch to speed up; the movie was that awful. However, I am willing to take my chances. When I go to a movie such as this one, I enjoy the surprise of experiencing a wonderful film. For example, I did not know this adventure film was an Oscar and Golden Globe nominee for best foreign film. The international version that was done in English was what I saw at the theater. The movie was a dramatization about famous adventurer Thor Heyerdal’s 1947 attempt to cross 4,700 miles of the Pacific Ocean, to prove that Polynesia could have been settled by natives from South America. Having seen the trailer for this film, I had to wonder if the movie would be able to keep my attention. Since I had seen the movie Life of Pi, I was not expecting this film to be as beautiful. Now here came the surprise: this movie was beautiful in its own way. I am sure scenes were added to keep a sense of drama and suspense for the viewer, but it worked. I was never bored, just astounded these men willingly agreed to sail across the Pacific Ocean on a wooden raft. The only thing missing from the story was getting more background information on each member of the crew. I wanted to know what drove them to commit to such a risky endeavor. Pal Sverre Hagen (Troubled Water, Amor) and Agnes Kittelson (Happy Happy, Tag) were admirable playing Thor and Liv Heyerdal. By taking a risk in going to this movie, I was rewarded with seeing an engaging film about an amazing feat. One brief scene with blood.
3 1/4 stars
Flash Movie Review: At Any Price
Having one’s family name as a company moniker must be a heady experience. There must be a sense of pride and dedication to maintain a good reputation for the family name. Future generations, I believe, would be groomed to uphold the standards that were set before them. At least that is what I thought; but found out it was not the case when I was employed at family businesses. I found the offspring of the owners to be spoiled brats, without a sense of decency. They had a sense of entitlement, treating their company as their own personal kingdom; or even worse, as their own individual bank account. As I watched Zac Efron (The Lucky One, The Paperboy) play Dean Whipple in this drama, I was getting a similar impression. The difference was Dean had no interest in following in his father Henry’s, played by Dennis Quaid (Vantage Point, The Words), footsteps. But then again could you blame him? He was his father’s second choice. The story revolved around the choices and results members of the Whipple family made in the name of their family business. I did not find the characters likable with the exception of the mother Irene, played by Kim Dickens (The Blind Spot, Hollow Man). Her strong understated performance felt the most real to me. Zac did not bring anything new to his acting which consisted mostly of blank stares from his unusually bright eyes. I found the way light reflected off of his eyes to be a distraction. There never was a time where I believed in his character. The poor script allowed disjointed scenes of melodrama that did not help to move the story forward. One of the big, momentous scenes used to change the story was a cheap ploy; I disliked it immensely. There was a simple pureness to the way the movie was filmed. If the writers would have added more intensity to their story, it would have made an interesting juxtaposition between the emotional turmoil and the pristine landscapes. Instead we were stuck with a movie that was as exciting as watching grass grow.
1 3/4 stars
Flash Movie Review: Iron Man 3
Anticipation builds as the roller coaster climbs to the top where the tracks suddenly vanish. As the coaster car creeps over the top, I take a deep breath just before the wind pushes me against my seat. The next 60 seconds are filled with laughter and yelling from everyone as the roller coaster swoops and soars along the tracks. I enjoyed those older roller coasters, before they started doing corkscrews and flips. When I started taking ibuprofen after riding a roller coaster, I realized it was time to stop going on them. Happily I was able to revisit those same type of thrills while watching this rip-roaring film. After a couple of months sitting through some dismal movies, this 3rd installment of the action series was absolute fun. If it is important to you that the story follows the comic books, you will be disappointed. Since I am not a purist, I thought the story was terrific. Sure there were parts that made no sense to me; but the entertainment value was at such a high level, I just went along for the ride. When the mysterious, ruthless villain known as the Mandarin, played brilliantly by Ben Kingsley (Hugo, The Dictator), struck out at Tony Stark, played by Robert Downey Jr. (The Avengers, Due Date), the ensuing battle no longer was about good versus evil; it was about revenge. Robert was at his best this time around. Pay close attention to his quick one-liners that were flying out from the wonderful script. With the actors being pushed physically, I thought Gwyneth Paltrow (Country Strong, Proof) as Pepper Potts and Guy Pearce (Lawless, Prometheus) as Aldrich Killian were outstanding. The same was true about Don Cheadle (Traitor, Reign Over Me) as Colonel James Rhodes, but I wished he had been given more screen time. The action scenes were perfectly balanced throughout the movie. I never felt the fight scenes were rushed; I was able to distinctly make out each character. Just like those old roller coasters; this film was exciting entertainment. So take the ride of your life; it will be worth the price of admission. Stay through the ending credits.
3 1/3 stars
Flash Movie Review: Pain & Gain
The pairing of the words pain and gain is something I associate with working out. I have heard gym teachers tell their students, “work through the pain” or “you won’t get stronger if you don’t feel the pain.” To me these are not words of encouragement. The closest I come to saying something like that in my classes is to say, “it is ok to feel a muscle working.” I am afraid members could injure themselves if they think that feeling pain is the only way to know they are doing the exercises correctly. Thanks to this action film I now have a different association for the words pain and gain. I will always remember how painful it was for me to watch this film and how I wanted to gain back the time I lost. Based on a true story, director Michael Bay (Transformers franchise, Armageddon) filled this movie with an abundance of blood and violence. The actual story was so outrageous that I kept thinking that what I was seeing on the screen could not have really happened. And herein was one of the issues I had with Michael’s directing; there was so much time devoted to showing the violence I never got a real sense of the three main characters. Mark Wahlberg (The Fighter, Ted), Dwayne Johnson (Snitch, Get Smart) and Anthony Mackie (The Hurt Locker, Real Steel) played bodybuilders Daniel Lugo, Paul Doyle and Adrian Doorbal. Not wanting to spend the rest of his life as a personal trainer; Daniel Lugo hatched a plan to kidnap his wealthy client Victor Kershaw, played by Tony Shalhoub (Hemmingway & Gellhorn, Monk-TV), for his money. With Paul and Adrian on board; what was to have been a fast, easy job turned into a cluster blunder. The only good acting came from Tony Shalhoub and Ed Harris (The Rock, A History of Violence) as Ed DuBois. If Dwayne Johnson’s goal was to look like a moving mountain, he succeeded. Maybe with the story being so unbelievable, Dwayne wanted to look as non-human as possible. After some time I was bored with this film. Though I did not get pumped up by the story, I did get a sudden urge to go to the health club and work out.
1 3/4 stars
Flash Movie Review: Renoir
Depending on where I stand the light hits her eyes, making them glow brightly. I turn the corner and come upon a beautiful park with people leisurely strolling or relaxing on the ground. It looks so inviting and peaceful; but with my time constraints, I cannot stay and continue on my way. Walking into a dimly lit area I feel as if I have just fallen down the proverbial rabbit hole. Before me I see rooms too small for me to fit into with my sudden giant size; the chairs are only big enough to support something the size of a nickel. These are some of the escapades I experience when I visit the city’s amazing art museum. Since my mother was an artist, she started taking me to the museum when I was a little kid. Whether I was walking through a room filled with armored, battle ready mannequins or sitting and pretending the painted fields were gently moving in the breeze, each trip was an adventure for me. I had those same feelings as I sat and watched this gorgeous film about the artist Pierre-Auguste Renoir. Set in a country estate in the French Riviera, the landscapes were exquisite. The lushness was a counterpoint to the increasing physical pain taking place within Renoir; played by Michel Bouquet (The Bride Wore Black, All the Mornings of the World). It was the early 1900’s and Renoir’s son Jean, played by Vincent Rottiers (Last Winter, I’m Glad my Mother is Alive), came home to recuperate from a war injury. To his surprise he found the free spirited Andree Heuschling, played by Christa Theret (Twiggy, Le Couperet), a new model who seemed to have infused fresh life into his father. It was not long before Jean too became enchanted with the carefree woman. The biggest enjoyment for me in this film was imagining I was actually watching a part of Renoir’s life. I thought the actor was excellent in showing and creating the beauty that was all around him despite his physical agony. There was not much substance to the story; the film felt more like a painting that was coming to life. Sitting in the movie theater, memories of me walking around that art museum came to mind. I was mingling and sitting among gifted artists. French with English subtitles.
3 stars
Flash Movie Review: The Switch
Before viewing this movie one has to ask if they believe a person can sustain a friendship with a member of the opposite gender. If the answer is no, I do not think they will buy into the story in this film. Not only do I think it is possible to maintain friendships with people of the opposite gender, I feel it is part of having a healthy life. My circle of friends surround me like the ever expanding rings caused by a pebble being dropped into a still pond of water. The first ring consists of my closest friends. In my inner circle I have one of my oldest, long term friends; we dated each other in 8th grade. She and I can share some of our most intimate thoughts without the fear of being judged. The following rings contain friends and acquaintances of various closeness. In this comedy best friends Wally Mars, played by Jason Bateman (Up in the Air, Disconnect) and Kassie Larson, played by Jennifer Aniston (Horrible Bosses, Wanderlust), had a similar relationship. However their relationship took on added meaning the night of a special party. After Kassie decided to have a baby by artificial insemination, she searched and found the perfect donor in Roland, played by Patrick Wilson (Watchmen, Insidious). The night of the donor party Wally became so drunk, he had no recollection of his actions. Let me first say I was not comfortable with the story’s premise. I know it was needed to make this film, but on some level what Wally did went against my grain. That being said, Jason and Jennifer worked well together. I thought the child acting brothers Thomas (The Protector-TV) and Bryce Robinson (Marley & Me, Valentine’s Day) as Sebastian did a wonderful job. In addition, it was fun to see Jeff Goldblum (Jurassic Park franchise, Independence Day) in a light comedic role as Wally’s boss Leonard. In reality this would be an unlikely story; but as a movie, it did offer some amusing scenes. I accept my friends with all their flaws and neurosis; it goes the same for this film.
2 1/3 stars — DVD
Flash Movie Review: Mud
There were two extreme examples of love I saw when growing up. One was a married couple who lived in our apartment building. They bickered and argued almost every day; their voices sometimes reaching the decibels of a roaring jet engine. Though they fought constantly they still were affectionate to each other. The other example was Tony and Maria from the movie West Side Story. It was the scene in the gymnasium where all the lights dim except for a spotlight on each of them; as they see the other for the first time, from across a crowded gym floor. I preferred this example, believing it would happen to me when I fall in love. It took a long time before I experienced something close to that scene from the movie and I thought I would live happily ever after. We learn by example and sometimes those examples give mixed messages. This beautifully filmed drama showed different ways people were motivated by love. Part thriller and part coming of age tale; the story revolved around 14 year old friends Ellis, played by Tye Sheridan (The Tree of Life) and Neckbone, played by newcomer Jacob Lofland. Upon discovering a mysterious stranger living in a boat stuck up in a tree, the two boys agreed to help him reunite with the love of his life. Matthew McConaughey (The Paperboy, Magic Mike) played the stranger who called himself Mud and Reese Witherspoon (This Means War, Walk the Line) played his girlfriend Juniper. Matthew and Tye were the big standouts in this richly textured film. I was impressed with Matthew taking this edgy role and making it his own, similar to what he did in Killer Joe. Tye reminded me of a young Ezra Miller (The Perks of Being a Wallflower), having that same type of face that easily expresses emotions. The supporting cast enriched this film. Sam Shepard (Safe House, The Right Stuff) was excellent as sharpshooter Tom Blankenship. I only wished the gifted Michael Shannon (Take Shelter, The Runaways) as Neckbone’s Uncle Galen had a bigger role. This Cannes Film Festival nominee told a multilayered story that was filled with diverse characters. The only commonality shared among the individuals was the effects of a shared or fading love.
3 1/2 stars
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