The trailer to this feel-good, British comedy boasts that the film asks the question: what makes us happy? On a superficial level, sure. This might be true. But the movie is much more complex than that and deserves a good looking in to.
Happy-Go-Lucky is written and directed by Mike Leigh. Leigh has been directing since the seventies, and his bigger hits include Vera Drake (2004) and Secrets and Lies (1996). His writing in this film rivals Britain’s The Office (without the incredible awkwardness). The quick wit and sarcasm is remarkable. The lead is named Poppy and is played incredibly well by Sally Hawkins (you may have seen her in a small roll in last year’s Woody Allen flick, Cassandra’s Dream). She’s a thirty-year-old elementary school teacher with great students, great friends, and a fantastic outlook on life. The problem is, she’s entering adulthood and fighting it all the way.
The opening sequence shows Poppy riding a child-like bike (with a basket and a bell) through downtown London(I think), waving at people she doesn’t know, a goofy smile glued to her face. She enters a bookstore and tries to make friends with the stand-offish clerk, even though he strongly resists. She goes straight to the children’s section and peruses the books. It’s clear from this moment on, that she’s a child, refusing to grow up, despite a clear necessity, and the prodding of those around her. Her unshakable sense of optimism is never shaken. When she finds her bike has been stolen, she can’t help but laugh that she didn’t get to say goodbye. Serious back pain (due to the trampoline lessons she takes after school) simply makes her laugh and start taking flamenco dance lessons instead. These lessons, by the way, provide the setup for one of the funniest scenes in the movie where intensely passionate, and intensely unstable flamenco teacher (Karina Fernandez) loses control of herself. Poppy is able to stay positive even during her weekly driving lessons with Scott (Eddie Marsan) who holds such pessimism and contempt for life, it seems it’s his aim in life to break Poppy’s spirit.
Poppy’s friends have the same, or a slightly higher level of emotional maturity. They’re able to keep good jobs, and take care of themselves (for the most part), but still, they’re definitely not grown-ups. Happy-Go-Lucky is a compelling character study. Poppy never comes across as anything but polite, smart and charming. But between the lines, we can see her brimming with something else. Is it She can’t handle herself in adult situations or conversations, she isn’t able to add anything to these situations except clever jokes, and witty, but empty banter. The film is really asking: are we happy? Despite how much we try and prove to others that we are, it’s what’s inside that counts. A perky exterior doesn’t mean that someone is satisfied with who they are, and where they are in the walk of life.
Leigh’s direction is terrific. Sally Hawkin’s gives аn amazing performance. You’ll laugh to no end. And you’ll leave this film feeling great, while still taking away some important pearls of wisdom.
I need help. I’m completely out of ideas when I go to Blockbuster, or to the library. It’s so bad, I’ve thought about renting Jumper. For the love of God, don’t let that happen. Please leave me some suggestions so I don’t end up renting stuff because I like the sound of the title, or because the DVD has a nice cover. Any and all suggestions are appreciated. I’m desperate.
Crassness offends me. Unless it’s hilarious. Which allows me to excuse David Wain’s Role Models, because this movie is hilarious. You’d think Judd Apatow was the driving force behind this irreverently funny movie, but he’s not. I’d like to give most of the credit to Wain who directed, and co-wrote the script with Paul Rudd, Ken Marino and Timothy Downing.
The spoiler-ific trailer gives most of the plot away. Two BFFs (a respectably bromance), Wheeler (Sean William Scott) and Danny (Paul Rudd), are stuck in a dead end job pimping energy drink ‘Minotaur’ to high school-ers. Wheeler is the happy-go-lucky funny guy that gets more tail than James Bond, and Danny is the cynical, anti-social, quasi-loner who really needs human affection. They get into a little bit of trouble with the law and with a little assistance from Danny’s newly ex-ed lawyer girlfriend (the ubiquitous Elizabeth Banks), are only sentenced to 150 hours of community service with a Big Brother-like program called Sturdy Wings. Sturdy Wings was founded by Gayle Sweeney (played by Jane Lynch who hits all the right notes), a former drug-addicted, alcoholic whore. Danny and Wheeler are stuck with two of hardest, most maladjusted kids, Auggie and Ronnie (played by Christopher Mintz-Plasse and Bobb’e J. Thompson-no that’s not a typo).
David Wain is a triple threat, having large amounts of experience in acting, writing and directing in shows like Reno 911 and Mad TV. His direction clearly made this movie the success that it is, but equally important are the pitch perfect performances by the two leads. Rudd couldn’t have done any better in his role. His comedic timing is almost perfect. And despite Scott’s character being mostly a continuation of his Stiffler role in the American Pie movies, he’ll make you laugh. A lot. The movie only took a few unfortunate missteps. For one, little kids swearing is funny, but not that funny, they certainly beat that dead horse to death (hearing 8 year-olds discuss oral sex is a stretch even for the most tastefully handled scenes). And two, the perfect happy ending was a little forced. Well, a lot forced. Not that the climax didn’t make me laugh out loud, it just could have been more than it was. Despite these complaints, I loved the movie. It’s great if you can get past the potty and sex humor. And I’d encourage you to try to.
Why is it the French are so good with terrifying suspense? It’s seems they have the corner on that market right now. Remember Cache? The Vanishing (ok, that was half French)? What about Girl Cut in Two? Tell No One? It’s fantastic, and I love it. Claude Lelouch’s Roman de gare follows in the same suit and will keep you wondering ‘whodunnit’ ’til the last thirty seconds of the film. Don’t take that to mean this is an ordinary mystery/thriller, this is a thoughtful, suspenseful piece that is riveting.
While a plot synopsis is difficult because of the possibility of so many spoilers, I’ll be vague and say it’s about a man Louis, who’s played smartly by Dominique Pinon (Delicatessen, Amelie). He’s traveling across France, from Paris to Cannes. While we follow this man’s travels, there are also a few back stories going on, and we’re not quite sure who Louis really is. He could be a pedophile serial killer who charms his victims with magic tricks. He could be a high school teacher who decided to run away from his entire life: his job, wife, and three kids. Or he could be the secretary to one of France’s greatest literary giants. Of course, there’s much, much more to the plot, but this is the gist.
Academy Award-winning director Claude Lelouche has nearly fifty feature length films under his belt, and the experience he’s gained shines through brilliantly. His ability to take the unsensational, and pump it full of goosebump-inciting suspense is uncanny. He’s created a world in Roman de gare that’s not so different from our very own. The difference is, his world teeters on the edge of something very dark and ominous. At any minute, the fragile lives in the film could be plunged into disarray. It happens for some of the characters, others get off a little easier. Lelouche came up with the plot ideas, and veteran French writer Pierre Uytterhoeven who’s been writing for French TV and film since the sixties made a taut, interesting script that will feed your intellectual hunger, as well as your bloodlust. The actors were on par with the production team. Pinon keeps you guessing the whole time. Fanny Ardent is spectacular as the French literary celebrity. And Audrey Dana is brilliant as a possible love interest/victim/fan of Louis. Go into this movie with your expectations as high as you’d like. They’ll be satisfied.
Quantum of Solace had a lot working against it: one of the worst theme songs ever written (that Garbage song has finally been topped as the worst of the series!), a lackluster, boring Bond girl, a weird name, and a director (Marc Forster) who has immense talent (Finding Neverland, Monster’s Ball), but has never directed an action flick before. The result gets your adrenaline pumping, but leaves much to be desired.
The movie begins right where Casino Royale left off. Bond is still terribly wounded after the betrayal of his Vesper, and despite a promise to M (Judi Dench, who is near perfect as always), can’t help but make everything intensely personal. He’s paired up with Ukrainian cry-baby Camille (a lame Olga Kurylenko, who should stick with movies like Max Payne which suit her talents better) who has little, to no character development, or real reason to be in the film. The two are completely on their own against a huge, international conglomerate posing as an environmentally concerned NGO that the superpowers of the world are helpless against, mostly because of their ignorance. Revealing any more to the plot would require spoilers.
It seems that since Forster has spent most his time working on tender, character-based pieces, he went balls out, throwing in as many explosions, fight scenes, and rooftop jumps as he could, to compensate for his lack of experience in the genre. It’s entertaining to watch and will get your attention, but seems a little too familiar, as this Bond has taken pretty much all his cues from the Bourne series. This is true, even though the same three guys: Neal Purvis, Robert Wade, and Paul Haggis co-wrote the script to both Quantum and Royale (a script which shares nothing except a title in common with Ian Fleming’s short story). Lowbrow characterizations replaced the intriguing character developments that Royale provided. And call me prideful, but the ignorant American government official is not a character I’m entertained by, or interested in watching (Ridley Scott wore me out with Body of Lies). Every time Vesper’s named is mentioned, I found myself longing for Bond’s last adventure, where I actually cared about the characters. On the other hand, Daniel Craig once again excels as the ripped, emotionally deep, bad ass guy we met last time. I think the Broccoli family could have done no better choosing a Bond to reinvigorate the series. I’d follow Craig to the ends of the earth. All complaints aside, Quantum of Solace is a thrilling ride that won’t leave you unsatisfied on the action end. And who could really expect a better Bond movie than Royale?
25th Hour reads as a very angry love letter from Spike Lee to New York City. It’s certainly one of Lee’s better joints, the piece of a competent, mature filmmaker, not some of the blathering drivel we’ve seen in some of his movies. 25th Hour is well worth checking out.
The story follows Irish, New York drug dealer Monty (the impeccable Edward Norton). He’s not big time, but not necessarily small time either. The police got him on enough stuff to put him away for seven years, and it’s only his first offense. He’s already been sentenced and has one day to say goodbye to his recovering alkie father (the tremendous Brian Cox), see his sleazy best friend and Wall Street financier (Barry Pepper in, perhaps, the only performance I’ve ever seen him where I wasn’t annoyed), and to see his not so sleazy other best friend, a Jewish teacher at a fancy prep school (Philip Seymour Hoffman) who has some controlled, but inappropriate tendencies towards one of his more flashy students (a completely terrific Anna Paquin). Also along for the right is his freakishly attractive girlfriend Naturelle (Rosario Dawson), whom he suspects may have turned him into the police. The prospect of this tortures him.
Every single actor is as aggressive and fantastic as Lee is in his direction. Norton is an acting tour de force. His five minute monologue insulting every race, organization and institution that make up the five boroughs is some of the best acting I’ve seen, and the material is no less moving. The story is adapted by David Benioff, and it’s based on the novel he wrote. It’s a story of human triumph, the ability to manage, even in the face of tremendous odds against you. The film was released in 2002, and Lee tastefully used the newly shattered New York skyline, the devastation of Ground Zero to compare and contrast Monty’s newly shattered life, and to insinuate the hope for Monty if he doesn’t give up on himself. It’s truly haunting, The score is intense, dramatic, and keeps a dark sense of doom in the back of your mind. At first viewing, I thought the score was a little much, but later I realized nothing could be more fitting as you’re heading to a tough, maximum security in prison… for seven years. Lee used some really fascinating camera work to build up this piece as more than just a brilliant narrative, but something that’s enchanting to look at. This is one of those rare cinematic pieces that, despite it’s few flaws, will remain with you for a long, long time to come.
Below is an article describing the technicality on which the brilliant score to Chris Nolan’s The Dark Knight was disqualified from eligibility of Academy Award nominations/wins. This brings up some very important questions. Why, if the score is actually the best of the year, can’t five people win? This seems like an injustice for some of the most talented people in the business. It’s not just this music issue either, people are being looked over on stupid technicalities, some people are overlooked because of politics. While The Departed was a fantastic movie, everyone knows that Martin Scorsese didn’t win best director for it, he won for his previous work to which people refused to award notice. When will the time come when the Academy recognizes talent when it’s actually deserved? What are your qualms with the Academy? What are some of the most important over looked performances (due to technicalities or otherwise) in your opinion? Some that come to mind: Forrest Gump winning best picture over Pulp Fiction (I mean really), Ron Howard winning for A Beautiful Mind of all his films? Angelina Jolie wasn’t even nominated for her stirring performance as Mariane Pearl in A Mighty Heart when it was clearly one of the best of the year. There’s tons, help me out.
Academy disqualifies ‘Dark’ score
Music cue sheet lists five names as composers By JON BURLINGAME
Posted: Wed., Nov. 12, 2008, 8:53pm PT
The score for “The Dark Knight” has been disqualified by the executive committee of the Academy music branch.Formal letters to that effect are expected to go out this week to composers Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard, who collaborated on the music.
Their previous collaboration, on “Batman Begins,” was similarly disqualified in 2005.
Sources inside the committee said that the big issue was the fact that five names were listed as composers on the music cue sheet, the official studio document that specifies every piece of music (along with its duration and copyright owner) in the film.
Zimmer said, in an interview with Variety prior to this week’s Acad action, that listing multiple names on the cue sheet was a way of financially rewarding parts of the music team who helped make the overall work successful. (Performing-rights societies like ASCAP and BMI use the cue sheet to distribute royalties to composers.)
Zimmer, Howard and the other three individuals — music editor Alex Gibson, ambient music designer Mel Wesson and composer Lorne Balfe — reportedly signed an affidavit stating that the score was primarily the work of Zimmer and Howard.
That apparently wasn’t enough for the majority of the committee, which was also supplied with documentation indicating that more than 60%, but less than 70%, of the score was credited to Zimmer and Howard.
The “Dark Knight” score — and the whole issue of multiple-composer collaboration, which is on the rise in Hollywood these days — has occupied about four hours of discussion over the past two executive committee meetings.
Some members sided with Zimmer and Howard; citing the originality and cutting-edge nature of the music, they urged others to keep the “Dark Knight” score eligible despite the cue-sheet issue.
Both Zimmer and Howard declined comment on the ruling. Both are seven-time nominees; Zimmer won for “The Lion King.”
I’ve recently found myself a little movied out. I don’t know how this is possible since I have interest in little else these days. Sure, I occasionally go to class, and work, but this is pretty much what I do with my free time. I had seven movies checked out this week and couldn’t bring myself to watch any of them. In order to remedy this, I went back to my most reliable standby, Quentin Tarantino.
Reservoir Dogs is one of the main reasons that I keep going to Sundance every year. This movie along with Sex, Lies, and Videotape, Requiem for a Dream, they’re the standout gems that I hope to find every time I watch something by a director I’ve never heard of. Of course, I was eight in 1992 when Tarantino’s first film debuted there, but I’m certain there are more out there to be discovered.
The majority of the dialogue was written by Quentin Tarantino himself, with the exception being the occasional voice over we hear from a 70s radio host which was penned by Roger Avary (who went on to write Beowulf). The words are a credit to QT’s genius. He manages to capture every day coversations, make them interesting, and involve them in his not-so-every-day story.
Before I summarize the plot, I’d like to give you the plot synopsis found on the back of the DVD which I bought in St. Petersburg, Russia so you’ll have a better understanding:
After a unsuccessful robbery of jeweller shop in the appointed place survived participants of a robbery gather. One policeman from them but who do not know. in film we learn(find out), how operation prepared, all characters will be described. We learn(find out) who were a police an. Quentin Tarantino, the script writer and the director, has created powerful a picture. It has presented us a slice of the present life, and has shown human mutual relation of people.
If that wasn’t detailed enough for you, I’ll explain. A group of robbers, named only after colors, Mr. Pink, Mr. Brown, Mr. White, etc., etc., unsuccessfully rob a jewelry store. Some are killed, some are horrifically wounded. They meet back at a warehouse trying to figure out the best course of action. It’s clear they’ve been set up and the majority of the movie is based on the dialogue in this warehouse, with occasional short flashbacks to other places. I’m not sure what significance this film holds, how it helps me understand society, or if I’m better for watching it, but it doesn’t matter. Whether you enjoy the film or not, you’ll be completely sucked in to this gritty, hilarious, and graphic world.
A stellar cast certainly helped this low-budget flick, starring among others: Steve Buscemi, Harvey Keitel, Michael Madsen, Tim Roth, Chris Penn, and an unfortunate little roll for Tarantino Himself. But it really is due to Tarantino’s remarkable scriptwriting and directing ability, Being his debut, QT certainly made his mark on the world and hasn’t let us down since (except for, in my opinion, that weird Four Rooms movie).
A few weeks ago, Fletch at Blog Cabins created a top 50 films list. It became pretty viral and tons of the blogs I read frequently, made their own list. I’ve finally decided to attempt my own. So, here it goes. The list in no particular order, and is subject to frequent change since my tastes are pretty damn fickle (for ins
The trailer to this feel-good, British comedy boasts that the film asks the question: what makes us happy? On a superficial level, sure. This might be true. But the movie is much more complex than that and deserves a good looking in to.
