Our Idiot Brother

Another great and funny film, if you ask me, and I know you are not, but this was so funny. Paul Rudd is such a little squishy gem of a cutie. I love him! He has that certain something that falls in the same category as Mark Ruffalo, but he takes it a step further with his sincere smile and kind eyes. I know that is SO CORNY, but you all know it is true! No one could have played this part better than Rudd. The scene that sets up the whole premise is hilarious. Paul's character ( the idiot brother, to 3 sisters), sells pot to a policeman in UNIFORM! ha ah ah aha.
It all hits upward from there, and there is a moral to the story-- we can all learn from someone we find to be an "idiot" in terms of the back end of the character. I hope that makes sense, because I have to jet and get some work done. I felt it totally necessary to share this comedy with you. I think you will all love it!

All star cast includes: Elizabeth Banks (love her), Adam Scott (recent Parks and Rec fame), Rashida Jones (awesome), Zooey Deschanel (who doesn't love a little dork), and Emily Mortimer.
Watch it, you'll be glad you did...

I give it a 10!
I am generous today!

Wanderlust

If you want to laugh out loud, definitely go to see this. There are two scenes in particular that rendered my friend and I laughing uncontrollably- which NEVER happens from a film. I will laugh out loud occasionally, but not continuously through out a particular scene. The first great comedic scene entails the two main characters played by the adorable Paul Rudd and Jennifer Aniston. They are driving down a long dirt road to an Inn to get sleep on a road trip and happen across a nudist waving them in. The second scene is when Paul Rudd is giving himself a pep talk to go into the room and fool around with someone other than his wife. HILARIOUS.. It is difficult to sustain a comedy because there is always a story threading through, and at times it can be ridiculous, but it is entirely necessary and this film did a great job! The notable cast was great and included: Paul Rudd, Jennifer Anison, Justin Theroux, Alan Alda, and Malin Akerman. Loved it.

I give it a 10.

Confidence

I loved this film! It was rife with a stellar and cool cast, including: Edward Burns (yum, who doesn't love them a raspy voiced, tough irishman?), Rachel Weisz, Dustin Hoffman, Paul Giamatti,Luiz Guzman (plays an a$$hole so well, all the time), Morris Chestnut (hot black dude), and Brian Van Holt (from recent Cougar Town fame). Good music, attitude, and demands your focus because you have no idea who is conning who the whole time until the end. How did I miss this gem back in 2003? For real!
If you are looking to escape, want to fall into the world of hotness, and cool- this one is for you. Although Dustin's character was rather gross- he played it well. I know I wrote nothing about the premise- but all you need to know is it's great, fun, and easy to watch.

I give it a 10- ALL THE WAY!

Young Adult

I can't believe how uneventful this film is; it began slow and never gained momentum, although Charlize Theron was unbelievably attractive all the way through in terms of physical beauty but her character was mostly annoying, and funny only about 4 times, in a dark way. This should have been marketed as an independent but even then, it wouldn't be great. The ending was annoying as well, it just sort of happened- all of a sudden there were credits rolling and I was left empty. Perhaps that was the intent of the film. Maybe I just didn't get "it". There was no character connection for me.  No character was fully developed in order to feel anything for anyone. Was all of "it" in the "unsaid"? I expected so much more. Charlize Theron's character was on the noteworthy scale of cringe-worthy, like Laura Dern's in Enlightenment, but it doesn't feel great to watch that for an entire film. At times, I sort of knew what the director was attempting to accomplish, but the subtlety with the punch wasn't doing it for me, I needed more balance. But perhaps the character was so unbalanced, that was what they were trying to convey.

I give it a 2 for originality in terms of artistic merit, which may have blew over my head entirely.

The Station Agent

I always forget just how wonderful The Station Agent is and each time I stumble upon it I am delightfully surprised at how much I enjoy it. As I watch it, I smile and think, "what a feel good film," and then something happens to make me think otherwise. Not that I don't believe it is a positive film, because I do, but to get to the ultimate message, the viewer must see a considerable amount of pain.
Peter Dinklage is one of the greatest actors of our generation, and I wish I could see him in more films. Although, I did catch him win an Emmy this year!
This film illustrates how complete strangers, coming from entirely different worlds can connect through their personal pain. The characters who connect here would be highly unlikely in a contrived world, which we live in, to connect as each one pushes themselves into each other's lives at different times. I really love this film and believe it is one to own. Michelle Williams and Patricia Clark are super in this film as well.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8MrVBMsBYQ

It's Kind of a Funny Story

I love Keir Gilchrist. He is on United States of Tara and to me, is a great actor. Keir plays an apathetic teenager named Craig who just can't seem to get happy. He is obsessed with suicide and before he takes the plunge, he checks himself into a hospital psychiatric ward where he learns a lot more about himself and the acceptance of others, than he bargained for. I liked this film. While it wasn't riveting, it was rife with human interaction and internal dialogue which allowed me to get the gist of the characters.
Ultimately, Craig gets released from the ward and realizes that much of what he believed prior to entering has been dispelled, in a great way!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7NmaMgIy0U
I give it a 5 !

The Tourist

I always thought that the coupling of Angelina and Johnny Depp would be explosive visually but Johnny just didn't look that "fresh" in this film. I didn't detect any real chemistry between the two of them either. Perhaps their respective mates were "on set" to ensure that an off screen romance didn't ensue! This was a rather cheesy representation of a mystery taking place in Europe. The glamour that the director tried to portray was completely lost on me.

I thought Angelina looked gorgeous due to great makeup and stylists! Her eyes were pronounced more than her lips for once. Her hair was done well, and her clothing was first class. Whereby, "Frank", played by Depp was boring. I get the cleverness, the fact that trickery was used through out the film from the get go, and it was rather clever to fool Elise, played by Angelina, but it just didn't resonate. I was not surprised at all by the wild goose chase and the "obvious". I figured it out 3/4's of the way in to the film.

I see how this could be a compelling and cunning script and how someone would want to produce this but it fell short of the quality mark. This is a case of good cast, bad direction perhaps. I know the subtleties were there, and they tried to portray them effectively, but I just didn't ever feel sucked in.

I give it 3.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrqpKEOF8uw

Love and Other Drugs

I had no idea what this was about except for the fact that Anne Hathaway gets nude in it because she mentioned that fact while hosting the Academy Awards. I also knew Jake Gyllenhaal was in it and he is pretty attractive to me in a Mark Ruffalo sort of way. The story surrounds a Casanova played by Jake, Jamie Randall, who is exceptionally bright but squanders his intelligence in low end sales jobs due to not wanting to fulfill his father's expectations of greatness from him. He has ADD and has never felt truly connected to anyone or thing but has a string of passionate liaisons that end just as quickly as they begin.

He decides to pursue a path of pharmaceutical sales rep, trains and begins to work for Pfizer. As a rep learning how to schmooze doctors and their workers he convinces one of the top physicians to sit in on an exam and there he meets the terminally ill Maggie Murdoch who is just as head strong as she is sick.

They date, and it is emotionally complicated because of both of their "issues" in life. Maggie reminds me of myself, creative and perpetually dressed in "overalls", headstrong and independent. I connected with her character, and of course I have known enough Casanovas in my life and didn't gain any further insight into why most men run from love, particularly the ones who womanize. The script didn't develop Jamie so much as in that he was uncomfortable with love and her illness, they focused more on the development of his career, however, I enjoyed the story.  Just a sidebar: Jamie's brother, the kid who sold his company for $35 million- why in the world would he let his brother and brother's girlfriend suffer financially when he was rolling in the dough and living with Jamie? Not a great story element, as it was unrealistic and didn't make sense. The brother could be in the story, just not a multi millionaire.

I give it a 6.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKtrLiQTSM8

Limitless

Sometimes it is hard for me to review a film that doesn't have psychological nuances or complex relationships in it. This was one film that didn't have much of either, but was rife with action. I enjoyed this film as it allowed me to completely escape. The direction, cinematography and editing was phenomenal. Some others might disagree with me, but you see, I am not a big action, thriller type of film goer. I am more of an independent, quirky film lover. I imagine that the cinematography, and action in this type of film is probably standard fare for the action junkie. Bradley Cooper did a great job as the main character who happens across this "super drug" to expand the use of his brain to 100% instead of the mere 20% or so we all may or may not use. The premise was clever especially in light of all the new pharmaceutical drugs in existence. This film was aptly titled as the drug or "pill" created, in whomever took it, a super human genius existence with all the bells and whistles. Enhanced ability to recall visually things you saw only once in your life to assist you with your current situation, heightened awareness, and the ability to call things out before they happen. While it was far fetched it was fun to watch and compelling and suspenseful enough for me to enjoy it from beginning to end.

I give it an 8.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3U9RsXeJ3w

Catfish

This was probably one of the most unexpectedly disturbing documentaries I have seen in awhile. It is subtle in that it seems harmless, as you watch Yaniv Shulman develop an internet relationship with a seemingly creative and inspirational young woman. Yaniv gets sucked in to this fictitious relationship day by day fantasizing about how days in NYC could be numbered as he envisions himself building a life on a farm with this Michigan native. Eventually, he uncovers a misstep of Megan, the mysterious woman, when he figures out that a song link she sent him is infact someone else singing when he does a more indepth search. He doesn't get deterred by this obvious lie as he desperately wants to believe that this woman is real. He ignores this red flag.
The film follows Yaniv in his relationship, and eventually takes us to Michigan where now Yaniv is rightfully suspicious of the reality of the situation. The film goes from light to dark and we enter the world of Angela, the woman behind all the characters that Yaniv has grown to "know and love". This is an unexpected turn, and Yaniv gets Angela to admit to the fraudulent relationship and Yaniv and Angela have this strange bond due to the communication they shared, although Angela was not "herself."
Complicated, bizarre and totally engrossing, this is a film that is relevant to today's focus on the development of human relationships over the internet! It is a much different world now than it ever was due to technology and it is easy to formulate your "image" on facebook to show the world the edited "you". This is a psychological thriller of sorts! Scary, enticing, and totally crazy!
I highly recommend it.

I give it an 8.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xp4M0IjzcQ

Barney's Version

This was one long film and being that we didn't plan for it, we felt it, but it was all worth it. The length wasn't totally apparent to me until about 1hour 45 min in. I found that because of the length the story, the story was told completely, and each integral character was developed accordingly. I never felt cheated, or wondered about anything once it was over. This is indeed a love story with many twists and turns and great one liners! Dustin Hoffman played Barney's father, a ex Jewish detective who was inappropriate and hilarious. Barney, played by Giamatti was a believable screw up who at the surface seemed much more together and tough than he really was. He was quite vulnerable and kind. He made some bad decisions and as the viewer you just wanted to reach through the screen and smack him because he was rather fortunate to have everything he had, except for maybe the lying but mentally ill first wife. This was brilliantly acted, with near perfect direction, and a talented and interesting cast with great chemistry. Minnie Driver shined in her role as well. Go see this if you just want to escape for a little over 2 hours. Bring tissue because the ending is ridiculously sad, but ironic at the same time because Barney didn't know any better. 

I give it a 10.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nsfjXNMQt8I

Due Date

 From a writing standpoint, this was an achievement! I cannot imagine how hard it was to write to consistently portray Zach Galafanakis' character, Ethan Tremblay! Coming up with situation after situation to convey just how annoying he is was completely genius! An odd coupling of Robert Downey Junior's character, Peter, and Ethan was the perfect recipe for disaster and it was very funny all the way through. Of course there were corny moments, as every comedic film must include an emotional scene to connect the characters at some point, but to me this was a hit! I loved the chemistry between these two actors and it was pure sublime ridiculousness all the way. I can't believe that it got panned! It was clever, unruly, irreverent, funny without all the skank of sex and women which is hard to accomplish, and Hollywood loves to produce movies with plenty of that due to lack of originality and real time humor! This was funny without the raunchy- SO HARD to accomplish these days with American trailer park mentality. I loved it.

I give it a 7.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hd_aN0LAgMo

I Am

I think I met my future boyfriend! Tom Shadyac has it all, looks, creativity, brains, body, great frame of mind, a helper of man kind and funny! Who could ask for more? I loved this documentary because it has all the needed elements to state the case. Here is someone talking the talk and walking the walk. Shadyac was the mind behind some of the biggest Hollywood blockbuster comedy hits like Ace Ventura, Bruce Almighty, The Nutty Professor, Patch Adams, I now pronounce you Chuck and Larry etc. One day while out bike riding, Tom had an accident which rendered a terrible head injury. He thought he was going to die and this precipitated some intense life questions like, "What is wrong with the world?" Tom set out to understand this very question by sequestering the some of the great scientific minds of consciousness. He got more than what he bargained for, and has changed his life considerably as a result of what he found. He talked with people like Desmond Tutu, Lynne McTaggart, Rollin McCraty, among others. Shadyac builds a strong case for what he has learned and at the conclusion of the film he shows his loyalty to the new life he is building by showing the audience the changes he has made and they are significant.
This is a must see because it will provoke you to think in different ways, and to interact with people in more meaningful ways, and ultimately to provide your self much more peace and fulfillment as a human being. This is a great accomplishment and hopefully many, many people will watch it and may it resonate with all of us. Tom Shadyac, I have a question for you: Will you be my boyfriend? ha ha ha..
Web Site for film: http://iamthedoc.com/

I give it a 10.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PeqB8JwpdE4&feature=player_embedded

I Hate Valentine's Day

Why is Nia Vardalos not making more films and why isn't she a huge star? What happened to this film in the theaters? I loved it! Nia is adorable, lovable, and has an infectious energy and warmth! She wrote and directed this film! Her style was STELLAR and I loved all her dresses! Her hair, the whole package- ADORABLE! She plays a florist who loves Valentine's Day and gets excited for it every year and has a dating strategy that has kept her pain free forever. She only has 5 dates and then ends it every time before the "relationship" begins, until she meets a local restaurant owner, played by John Corbett. Of course it is predictable in every way, but the characters are fun, the dialogue is cute and the premise so totally clever! The message, let go of your fear and try to have the relationship if there is merit. I know that sounds so trite and simple, but this film told the story in a meaningful and inspiring way! Go NIA! I love this woman, what a talent and what a SMILE!

I give it an 8.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vYrlYGe_YT4

Good Time Max

Seriously, I am a major James Franco FANATIC! I think he would be the perfect man for me in many ways! ha ha ha.. He is smart, handsome, off the beaten path, and totally productive! He co wrote, starred in and directed this film! Saturday night live featured a skit whereby one of the comedians impersonated James Franco, and it was funny because he was talking about making documentaries about documentaries and going to school etc, etc. This is an independent so you have to realize that the production is simpler, more dialogue driven and often times thought provoking. James plays Max, one of two genius brothers who takes the lower road of consciousness and lives in a drug infested, fun world with little thought of what it does to others. His brother goes to medical school and they remain close through out most of the story. The story revolves around Max doing whatever he wishes and not ever considering the ramifications of his decisions. The ending has a sweet twist. I really love to watch James Franco, so any film where he is on the screen 90 percent of the time, is a film for me! I liked this film, for its simplicity, message and twist.

I give it 5.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oaaqJJxj3sU

The Life Before Her Eyes

Wow, this film stayed with me as I shoveled a lot of snow today and thought about it.  Diana is the bad girl in high school, not terribly bad, but bad enough to regret the way she lived. Her friend, played by Susan Sarandon's daughter, Eva Amurri, (Maureen) was the church going virgin who stood by Diana and reserved judgement, for the most part. One day, Diana's life changed dramatically for the worst as she and Maureen were faced with an angry machine gun toting fellow student, Michael Patrick. He sprayed the halls with his machine gun killing several students and then busted into the girls bathroom to face Diana and Maureen. One dies, and one survives, barely. Diana's life is a living hell as a result of the murder. It is the case of, I did everything wrong and lived and Maureen did nothing wrong and died. Diana grows up, and Uma Thurman plays her as an adult. She is addled by fear and haunted every single day by the murder of Maureen and basically dies metaphorically. I loved this film. The direction was superb, the subject matter provocative and realistic. The camera work was artful and interesting.

I give it an 8.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uLltcjELGP4

Please Give

This film had a lot of crazy characters which were realistic! Every one  was unusually blunt! Everyone had their own issues to deal with, Amanda Peet's character, mean like her grandma of 91, her sister's character, odd, and quiet, the grandma, honest, Catherine Keener's character sad, guilty, the teenage daughter of Keener, low self esteem, and Oliver Platt's character, blundered through life sort of guiltless. This film was simple and poignant at the same time. Great direction, not a huge amount of character development needed to get "it".  The interconnection of the two families was drawn by one family purchasing the apt in NYC of the other one so that when the grandmother died they could expand their space. This film was odd, quirky, realistic and funny at times (more of a dark comedy). I didn't mind it all.

I give it a 4.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZQEu7bTwIc

Just Wright

Another film where you know what it is, is what it is. I liked this! I always love it when the underdog gets the man, the job, the whatever! This was a totally predictable story and I didn't mind the journey because I identified with Dana Owens character like crazy! She is the girl who doesn't need to dress it up, fake it up, and is her SELF! She is the one who gets passed over for the sparkle and glitz, but after some time passes, the dude always realizes that she is pretty cool! That was me in life and I sort of still remain that way in life, however, it plays out. I thought Common did a great job for his first time acting, forgive me if I am incorrect about that and his acting, but I am too lazy to do the research now to find out! I thought he shined the most at the end when he flashed a huge smile at Leslie, Dana Owens character, as it was genuine and lit up the whole place! Isn't it true, a smiling person is much more attractive? I liked the sports aspect of this story as well. The motivation, the work, and the reward. It was fun!

I give it a 5.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mE5sTeF6F4o

Sex and The City 2

I know some people who didn't care for this film. This is a classic case of it is what it is. You cannot expect too much because after all, they have covered every scenario in the dating life and in a woman's life! I loved Liza Minnelli in this doing it at however old she is, singing and dancing! I thought it was hilarious and exciting! Maybe I am a gay man waiting to be born. I also liked the way the story line addressed marriage. I thought that was realistic. They did a good job with what they had to work with, if you ask me. It wasn't super wonderful, it wasn't terrible. I enjoyed it for what it is, light entertainment. This isn't brain food, it's escape food. Kim Cattrell's character was a little annoying, but then again, the character has been developed and they had no where else to go. I thought this film made some great points about marriage. I thought the balance of stories for all the women was appropriate. Carrie being the main character was the main story line, and so on. I totally didn't mind it! Were there moments of sheer corniness, YES, sometimes ANNOYING, yes but overall, I finished watching it.

I give it a 4.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjWl-82Yau4

Black Swan

 Wow, this film was a power punch of melancholy, intensity, passion, and darkness! Natalie Portman will win the Academy Award, hands down! Darren A. has a knack for bringing out actor's best performances and also bringing the viewer to an underworld of darkness. This film is important because it addresses the two sides of life, philosophically, mentally, emotionally. We all have two sides, and in order for Nina, played by Portman, to reach her other side, she delved into a world unfamiliar to her formerly. I liked to watch the dancing because it portrayed a metaphor for life and romance. It made me think about how lucky artists are that they can express this side of their soul through performance and creativity. I felt bad for people who don't explore themselves fully in life and just plug on suppressing and depressing feeling. In another way, the expression of this dark side was particularly damaging to the lead character as she falls prey to an over imaginative mind and creates scenarios whereby accessing this deep buried part of her, which concluded in a near perfect performance, and her last. It wasn't that this was the greatest story around, but it certainly was compelling and the acting was incredible! It definitely uncovered the intense, crazy, dark, passionate world of professional dancing. 

I give it a 10.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5jaI1XOB-bs

She's Out of My League

This movie was surprisingly funny at times! My friend, Frank, told me to see it a long time ago and I finally got around to it last night. I laughed out loud a couple times, and that doesn't happen often. I laughed at the "shaving scene" because it was completely ludicrous. This was one of those believable comedies that somehow made some sense along the ride. The characters were funny, and the skinny kid who gets the girl's family is hilarious! A mess! They were all so mean, and had bad mouths- they made me laugh a lot. I recommend this if you are in the mood for something light and funny! There are definitely times for that.

I give it a 7 out of 10.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWG1I7lwac0

Flipped

I don't even know why I picked this from Netflix as it was a fast choice while I was filling my queue for my Roku, this had to be delivered to my house. Sometimes one is surprised by their choice, and happy, this was one of those times! This was a great PG movie and it hit on some ironic and funny points with respect to love and how feelings can be flipped so easily. This is a coming of age story where a boy is repulsed by a little girl his age and they remain neighbors throughout the years and he grows to love her. She remained steadfast in her attraction for him, however, it would wane once in awhile due to his abhorrent behavior. She learned to study a person and figure out if they were equal or better to the sum of all their parts. She learned that wisdom from another person. She was a unique girl who had an usually poetic way of looking at things which initially was perceived as weird, but became her ultimate characteristic. Nothing changes in adulthood. There was only one scene which created a fountain of tears, and that was near the end, and it grabs you when you least expect it! Great job Rob Reiner!  

I give it an 8 out of 10.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92SgWpDYjlo

Great Expectations

I watched this because someone recently told me I have a lot of Estella in me. I watched with great enthusiasm because I thought I could gain some insight about this person's perception of me, however, I didn't totally agree. In some ways, yes, I guess it is sort of true. Gwen plays Estella, a woman who loves a man who isn't ready to acknowledge such a love and therefore uses Ethan's character as a pawn to get what she wants. Turns out it wasn't what she wanted at all, it was Ethan's character all along, but she was too self involved to realize it. End of story. Based upon a classic Charles Dickens story, it had some romance but I believe the film was too short to do it its proper justice. It was sort of a cat and mouse game but ended up the way we all knew it would eventually. Robert Deniro's character was totally odd and a subplot which was entirely unbelievable. I did like this to a certain degree. I used to love Ethan Hawke, until he became weird and smelly. 


I give it a 4 out of 10.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bq8BsIZejE

Bickford Shmeckler's Cool Ideas

I love Olivia Wilde. I think she is gorgeous and a relatively skilled actress. I also like Patrick Fugit, as in Almost Famous. This was funny to me because in the beginning they played a Grateful Dead song and then talked about quantum mechanics. I thought to myself, "what an interesting movie." However, it was a bad movie with a good premise, like most films. It was amusing at times, but I found myself doing and thinking about other things when it was on. In other words, it didn't command my attention. It was supposed to be a comedy, but it wasn't particularly funny. I did see some cameos from actors from other movies I enjoyed much more like Harold and Kumar go to White Castle. 

I give it a 2 out of 10.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-M9UsP8zaRA

The Opposite of Sex

This movie was hilarious on so many levels and disturbing at times. I guess because Cristina Ricci's character, DiDi Truitt was so honest about everything. She knew she was bad to the bone and was unapologetically her damaged 16 year old self! She did whatever she could to extort money from her half brother who was gay. She stole his boyfriend, was pregnant by another guy and lied about who the father was to others. I loved her narration of the film. She was perfectly cast! I loved the man who played her brother's boyfriend, Matt. He is super cute, Dillonesque. His name is Ivan Sergei, I never see him in films! I wish I would! He has those biggish ears, small nose and square jaw, full lips look. Lisa Kudrow was great in this film as well. How did this slip through the cracks with me?

I give it an 8 out of 10.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7anCr0K71h0

Couples Retreat

This was a silly movie and not super, but it did make me think a lot about being "coupled" with someone and what it means in terms of enjoyment in life. This story followed a few couples to an island retreat where they got to know about each other a bit more than what they had bargained for. At times, I felt that it was propaganda against being a couple, but then at the end, they all came to stay together. So I was a little confused by the message at times. I was thinking, MY GOD, to be married must SUCK, then at the end they all were happy, but I was not convinced that the marriages were the most fun or the optimal way to live. HA HA HA. I cannot believe that this is my review, but take it or leave it, it is! I felt that the message was, be married, don't have sex, don't have fun, and try to get out of it! I loved some of the cast. I always get where the story wants to go, how the director is trying so hard, but often times they just miss the mark. Making movies is HARD !

I give it a 3.
http://www.spike.com/video/couples-retreat/3196452