Movie Buddies

I have been watching Lost all week with my mom (she has this season so far Tivo'd). I love that damn show. But I've been thinking lately about movie buddies - I have a ton of them. N likes horror and action, but she goes to a lot more than that. For example she also loves fashion, so we saw Coco Before Chanel and September Issue together.

C and J have my taste in movies - 95% of the time. We just saw Ghostwriter together. A loves romance, so we go to all kinds of stuff like Young Victoria together. Plus she comes over and we watch movies all day. Rainy days in Oregon are perfect for that.

My niece has an incredibly wide range of likes, including Chinese film. We talk about movies all the time. She likes to go to movies by herslef, same as me.

Lately, ML has been getting into scary movies - and I think she might be a movie buddy? I won't get my hopes up. P is like me - she watches everything. She turned me on to one of my favs - It's All Gone Pete Tong.

And of course my mom. She doesn't even like movies that much, but for the past several years we go to the movies every day over T-giving and Christmas. She's into it.

Everybody needs movie buddies. Thank goodness I have so many.

Ghost Writer

I saw the most amazing movie tonight!! Roman Polanski, now under house arrest in Switzerland, can really make a movie. I have been trying to avoid him for years, but I feel better since he got busted in Switzerland. So I went to Ghost Writer, and it was amazing - it was suspenseful and well acted and beautifully filmed - really a gorgeous movie.

This is a wonderful thriller - and a good thriller is so much fun to find. I would like to contrast this to Shutter Island for a second. Ghost Writer also had a boatload of stars in it, but they weren't distracting. They had an honest purpose and didn't feel like they were plopped in to have more stars in the picture. The music in Ghostwriter is beautiful and increases the tension of the movie - Shutter Island's music was a melodramatic mess. And the list goes on.

Go see Ghost Writer - it rocks. Pierce Brosnan is getting better with age.

Gangster Films

This is a tough category for me - where does this category start and stop? Can a prison film be a gangster film? I'm thinking of Shawshank, which definitely has gangsters in it. Can a Western be a gangster film? How about the new 310 To Yuma?

But, when we talk gangster films, my niece means Donnie Brasco, Goodfellas and Casino. Let's go with that. My favorites:

1. Goodfellas: to take a cast this great and have it find the incredible energy this movie has is genius. Martin Scorcese made an amazing film here - compare this to Shutter Island.
2. American Ganster: Denzel Washington plays a real character who brought the drug users a superior product at a great price. And he was definitely a gangster.
2. Bonnie and Clyde: This movie, like the others, also shows the downside of being a gangster. And the fashions are great.
3. Devil in a Blue Dress: this one drops you in post WWII LA. Very cool.
4. Kill Bill (both): only Tarantino could make a movie so violent, stylized, with a cool sound track to go with it.
5. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang: this has Robert Downey Junior (N, do you consider this ganster?)
6. Kung Fu Hustle: from Korea (Stephen Chow) and a real blend of genres.
7. LA Confidential: this one also one awards, and introduced Guy Pierce and Russell Crowe to the US.
8. Pulp Fiction: more Tarantino
9. Road Warrier: remember what Mel Gibson was like?? There are gangs here, so I'm putting it in the category.
10. Training Day: I hate Ethan Hawke, but I love the plot of this one. Denzel one the award for this one.
11. True Romance: maybe this should be categorized as a ganster film? It has some romance too.
12. Usual Suspects: one of my favorites, and nothing but gangsters.
13. Out of Sight: also a favorite of mine - Don Cheadle is even in it. This one makes you remember what JLo was like back in the day.
14. Miller's Crossing - How can I not include this?? This movie is perfect.

That's too many in a category, but I really do love all of these.

Around the World in 80 Days

This road movie is absolutely charming. It was produced by Mike Todd (one of Elizabeth Taylor's husbands) and stars David Niven and Cantinflas (this is the 1956 version).

Mike Todd apparently invented the term "cameo performance" as a way to get huge stars to take tiny roles. The movie is full of them (for example Charles Boyer, Peter Lorre, Marlene D and Frank Sinatra).

Two things won this movie over for me: Cantinflas and the gentle mockery of the famous English reserve. Cantinflas is really the star of the film - and I had never heard of him. Every time I think I know about movies, I discover I'm a total novice. At the time he agreed to do this movie, he was the richest actor in the world, with his own production company.

Brother's Keeper

This documentary came out in 1992, and it is very, very sad. The movie tells the story of four brothers, who are apparently limited in some way. They appear to be mentally disabled, but whether this is genetics or environment, I couldn't tell. At a minimum, they are incredible hoarders, they don't bathe or change their clothes, or clean anything around their house or farm. To say they live in squalor doesn't really capture the problem. They are isolated, and one brother (at least) won't leave the farm to interact with others.

When brother Bill dies, the authorities assert that brother Delbert killed him out of mercy. It is then asserted, in a grass roots movement and by the defense attorney, that the confession was coerced. Delbert can barely read, and his verbal skills seem limited as well. The trial scenes really tell the story.

I have wanted to see this documentary for years. It has been number 1 in my BB queue for at least 12 months, and it finally arrived. I was not disappointed.

One big problem: no subtitles, and these brothers are hard to understand.

Funny People versus McCool's

Remember Funny People with Adam Sandler? I watched it because it was on a couple of "should get nominated lists". I hated it. Well, I asked a guy in my office, M, to watch the movie and give a testosterone point of view. I figured it was possible this movie could appeal if you had a penis, though I didn't see how.

I believe I am capable of understanding some male movie views. Take One Night at McCool's. M thinks this movie is perfection, and watches it every few months. I watched McCool's at his request, and was underwhelmed. My point, though, is that I understood why M loved it. Liv Tyler is gorgeous and hot and undoubtedly does wonderful things to the temp in his basement while he's watching her. I think her outfits in the movie are hilarious - really inspired.

Anyway, I asked for his opinion about Funny People. M said it was the worst movie ever made; so bad he was mad that it wasted his time. (FYI - my Avatar!)

So I can't offer an explanation for this movie at all. What did the critics see that I missed?

Martian Child

Well I really hated this movie. It is way too sappy, and it adds an insult to the sappiness by creating a pretty, perfect world where even single men and foster children are good looking, clean and well-dressed. This is one of those movies where everyone and everything is sanitized. Very boring and unbelievable.

Its redeeming quality is John and Joan Cusack, but even they could not lift it for me. To see these two have a lot of fun in a great movie, try Grosse Pointe Blank from 1997. Here is an IMDB link so you can check it out:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0119229/

Drop Dead Gorgeous

My friend S has recommended some great movies. My favorites are a couple of satires that make fun of family or beauty pageants or cross dressing.

Drop Dead Gorgeous stars Kirsten Dunst, Kirstie Allie, Brittany Murphy, Denise Richards, Allison Janney, Ellen Barkin, Amy Adams, and the list goes on. It is about a beauty pageant in Minnesota, so we also get to enjoy flat mid-western accents. Somebody is murdering the pageant contestants, but it's not really a mystery - just very funny. For example, Ellen B's character is hurt in an exploding trailer accident and her beer can fuses to her hand. Who thinks up this stuff? Did it really happen to somebody? Was it in the news and I missed it?

Here is an IMDB link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0157503/

Sordid Lives is a look at a southern family preparing for a funeral. Beau Bridges has a fake leg, which is part of the plot. It's hilarious.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0204640/

Chinese (Mandarin) movies

My niece N and my friend C are always chatting away in Chinese. N says her Chinese is really bad, but she's full of crap. C is fluent in Spanish and adding Chinese to his repertoire. He says he studies like crazy, but who knows. Anyway, C says he has a hard time finding movies in Mandarin, at which point I comment that he must be on drugs.

Yimou Zhang is a phenomenal director who worked for many years with Li Gong. To start with, I love Raise the Red Lantern. (I really want one of those foot massages - what is the big deal?) Li Gong also did The Story of Qiu Ju with Yimou; I like this one a lot. I believe neither of these is a dialog heavy movie, so hopefully C can follow along.

For an epic, try Farewell My Concubine. Li Gong is also in this. BTW - she is one of the most beautiful actresses IN THE WORLD, so that should be appealing.

Here is a link to Li Gong on IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000084/

Also, one of my all time favorite movies is in Mandarin: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

Sandra Bullock

I really like her - I liked her in Speed, for God's sake. I own the Lake House, which is a ridiculous movie. But she was not the BEST actress this year. Everybody else nominated was better than she was. I liked the Blind Side and thought she was great, but she wasn't the best.

So the awards are about popularity and money, I get that. This year I had a huge sneaking suspicion that Sandra B would win, and that was the only inequity in my mind. So it's a better Oscar year than most.

And she looked great.

Zombieland

Well, it's no secret that I really like zombie movies - so I rent a lot of them. Zombie spoofs are fun - like Shaun of the Dead. But the real thing is better. I prefer Zombies that really move. In 28 Days Later they cast track stars and soccer players as the zombies, so they were athletic and could really sprint after their victims. It's pretty cool and ups the scare factor.

Zombieland is a good rental if you like zombie movies. Woody Harrelson is a lot of fun as a hick zombie hunter who revels in finding a Hummer with a load of guns in it. He actually lifts his arms to the heavens and shouts, "Thank God for rednecks!". If that were the extent of the fun in the movie, it would be pretty thin, but the protagonist is a nerd with a list of rules for surviving in a zombie world. I think #1 might be: be careful of bathrooms. The list is one of the better parts of the movie - with the exception of Bill Murray, who has a great role.

Don't expect an award winner, but it is fun. Also, if you feel adventurous, try Night of the Living Dead. I think it made me gag once.

Shutter Island

Well, I went to see this tonight with a friend. He is a huge Dennis Lehane fan (as am I), and he really wanted to see the movie. After the movie, when I asked him what he thought, he said, "I liked it. It was a little long." This from a guy who gets excited about stuff and loves to discuss movies, books, etc. I could be wrong, I'm often wrong, but he didn't sound all whoop-de-do about this movie. I know I wasn't that excited.

There were good parts - like LEO. I like him more and more all the time. I liked him when he was really young, then disliked him, and I like him again. I did not like the music (heavy and ponderous), but J did. I think it was evoking a mood. I think I didn't appreciate the effort. It was also one of those movies that has so many twists I found myself getting a bit tired. I'm pretty sure I figured out the big issue in the beginning, but there were so many twists, I could have forgotten all ready.

If you like this movie, and I'm betting a lot of people will (it's moody with good acting), why don't you try Identity with John Cusack. Also try Gone Baby Gone from another Dennis Lehane novel. This is a GREAT movie.

The Shining

So...do you think is the best horror movie of all time? I have so many favorites in the genre, but this might be the best. It's probably the best. Oh crap - how did they get the actor playing Danny, the son, to act possessed? The kid did one movie after the Shining and that was it, I believe. It is an amazing performance. Jack is wonderful; but then he always is. Every role he takes on turns into such a "Jack" role. I say - this is the role he was made for, and then I watch Five Easy Pieces, and say - this is the role he was made for...and so on.

Shelley Duvall is a sweet character who watches her husband go nuts and decides to take care of her kid instead of sticking around for Jack the redrum nutjob. I would take that role. If I could act. And it's creepy. This movie ratchets up the tension in a good way. I need to check out S Kubrick again.

Memories of Murder & the Host by Joon-ho Bong

I love the Korean director Joon-ho Bong. I've only seen two of his movies, and he is super fun to watch. I saw The Host when it came out, and this director is fantastic with horror; not quite Tokyo horror, but his own brand. The DVD cover says something like "as good as Jaws", and I agree. This movie crosses Alien and Jaws and probably Gojira. I really love it. Plus this director has a way with anti-heroes that is really fun for a change of pace. He doesn't have a Bruce Willis type rushing in to save the day.

This weekend I picked up another of his movies, and discovered he is consistent, and doesn't just do horror. He can do a great serial killer / cop drama. I recommend picking up Memories of Murder. Maybe you should put both in your Netflix list?

Rope burns

I just popped in Rope to pass some time. I haven't watched it in a gazillion years - it is loosely based on the Leopold and Loeb murders. It stars a couple of Hitchcock regulars: Jimmy Stewart and Farley Granger. The two murderers are totally gay, and it is a creepy movie from the get-go. It starts with a scream and the face of a strangled man. FYI - it is Hitchcock's first color film.

Weeping Camels

Well, I just watched a documentary that I found incredibly boring. It got some good reviews, and I know somebody recommended it to me, but if any of you come across The Story of the Weeping Camel, I would suggest you watch Law and Order re-runs instead.