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THE ASSASSINATION OF JESSE JAMES
BY THE COWARD ROBERT FORD
(Warner Bros.)
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Impression: “Aside from the
movie’s mouthful title, this is a contemplative and carousing exposition.
The prairie-induced pathos is plenty to digest with absolute reverence.”
Comment: Filmmaker Andrew Dominick spins a lyrical frontier fable
worthy of the menacing mystique that accompanies the legendary outlaw
Jesse James and his notorious cohorts. Specifically, Casey Affleck’s
treacherous turncoat Robert Ford—James’s appointed westernized Judist—is a
textured role entrenched in perpetual malaise, antagonistic fiber and
indescribable redemption. The scope of Dominick’s narrative is defined in
its sophisticated landscape of the Old West and the cynicism that
permeates the terrorizing terrain. This is a meditative character study
that spotlights corrosive characterizations within a shoot ‘em up
exposition that radiates with wondrous forethought. |
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CONTROL
(Weinstein Company)
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Impression: “An intimate look
at a tragic footnote in entertainment. A moody yet strangely melodic
concoction about creativity and confusion in an overwhelming abyss of
artistic isolation.”
Comment: Photographer-turned-director Anton Corbijin bio-pop music
observation about the late British punk rocker Ian Curtis from the band
Joy Division is uniquely realized courtesy of a conglomeration of music
videos, photos and crisp black-and-white photography that brings to life
the reminiscences of a tortured artist gone before his time. Newcomer Sam
Riley is triumphantly convincing as the troubled Joy Division frontman.
From battling his public and private demons against the pressurized cooker
known as showbiz, Riley’s Ian Curtis is deliciously complex and confused.
Provocative, touching, intimate and profoundly inquisitive, “Control” is a
quiet gem that definitely deserves a cult following. |
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HAIRSPRAY
(New Line Cinema)
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Impression: “A refreshingly
jubilant spin on filmmaker Waters’s classic tongue-in-cheek tune-maker
Hairspray...spirited pizzazz and a peppy ode to retro-artistic
sentimentality.”
Comment: This updated variation of the John Waters cheeky classic
where giddy nostalgic music tunes mesh with the civil rights movement
sentiment come together in a pithy package of fun and frolic. Adam
Shankman’s all-star cast (with an impressive contribution from the film’s
lead fresh-faced sensation Nikki Blonsky) radiates as this fast-paced,
finger-snapping popcorn pleaser captures the high-minded spirit of
insanity through music and mayhem. Clearly, this is one rousing musical
that highlights wackiness in its heralded precision. |
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THE HOST
(Magnolia Pictures)
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Impression: “Wickedly
sardonic and fiercely fiendish in its perky presentation...a smart and
simmering creature feature that crackles with percolating weirdness and
wonderment.”
Comment: Bong Joon-ho’s off-kilter homage to the inspired cheesy
Japanese monster movies of yesteryear certainly gets its due in “The
Host”. This Korean creepfest is a colorful and crafty nail-biter that
surprisingly carries a wry message about issues from the neglected
ecosystem to anti-American global considerations. Shrewdly flippant and
exuberant in its skepticism, Joon-ho’s monster mash is one of the smartest
and eccentric slimy entries to incorporate shades of campy danger and
disillusionment within the framework of a skillful horror flick. This is a
frightening canvas with a penchant for welcomed consciousness. |
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INTO THE WILD
(Paramount Vantage) |
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Impression: “Filmmaker Sean
Penn’s ambitious opus to nature, independence and self-discovery is
encapsulated in a meditative movie spilling over with thought-provoking
verve. Handsomely executed, “Into the Wind” is exhilarating in its
substantive skin thanks to the understated, thoughtful performances and
Penn’s visionary embellishment.”
Comment: Based upon the Jon Krakauer book, Penn’s sweeping
narrative about a recent college grad wanting to escape into his own
solitude involving the scenic Alaskan wilderness is a breathtaking
experience in itself. Emile Hirsch’s “Wild” protagonist Chris McCandless
is a soul-searching guide that didn’t want to be compromised by any
possessions or prestige. The peace contained within this unconventional
young man was eloquent as he pursued the poetic solitude en route to his
stationary “Magic Bus” in the wooded Alaskan landscape. The isolation,
idealism and introspection detected in Hirsch’s exceptional performance
merits a major revelation. Veteran Hal Holbrook, among the many
personalities that encounter the roaming free-spirit Chris, is rewarded
with an Academy Award nomination thanks to a poignant supporting turn as a
quietly grieving widower. |
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JUNO
(Fox Searchlight Pictures)
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Impression: “Cunningly
perceptive and hip in its irresistible skepticism about the comforts and
uncertainties of love, “Juno” is enchantingly bright and breezy in its
effecting resonance.”
Comment: There’s something winningly distinctive about a spunky
pregnant teen (Ellen Ford) trying to make sense out of her topsy-turvy
livelihood while searching for that ideal couple that can provide the
necessary stability for her unborn bundle of joy through adoption. Juno is
an exceptional teen pregnancy comedy that spins a cautionary tale about
unplanned parenthood while winking a skeptical eye about the rigors of
everyday growing pains. With Jason Reitman’s sharp-witted direction and
Diablo Cody’s cleverly off-kilter yet observational script, Juno delivers
a pithy punch of pathos thanks in large to the Oscar-nominated turn by
Ford’s sympathetic contribution. Blunt yet vulnerable and emotionally
exposed, Ford’s Juno MacGuff is an honest portrayal of ambivalent
adolescence searching for something obviously empty from her
malaise-driven existence. From the quirky, offbeat soundtrack to the
seriousness of the film’s pertinent message, Juno is a welcomed piece of
entertainment comfortable in its disciplined breeziness. |
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NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN
(Miramax Films) |
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Impression: “The Coen
Brothers have devised another haunting classic about the desperate
limitations of one’s darkness in mind and spirit. Clearly, “Country” is
vibrantly complex and calculating and the performances are indescribably
taut and terrifying. A well-crafted, resiliently skillful piece of cinema
to be reckoned with in the capable arsenal of the Coens’ considerable
cinematic scale”
Comment: Astonishingly mended together in mayhem and meditation,
Joel and Ethan’s explosive on-screen adaptation from Pulitzer-Prize
winning author Cormac McCarthy’s brilliant tome resonates with pure gusto.
The landscape concerning a small Texas town and the vulnerable and ominous
principles embroiled in the intriguing saga about money and crime is
deliciously devious and mind-bending. The noted casting of
participants—Tommy Lee Jones, Josh Brolin, Kelly MacDonald in
particular—are absolutely on the mark in terms of their proficient
participation. Oscar-nominated Javier Bardem, practically an Academy
Award-winning shoo-in for his memorable and menacing turn as psychopath
Anton Chigurh, provides what is the most chilling and intense prototypes
of a heartless movie monster to ever grace the screen in recent memory.
The Coens definitely capture the tremendous turmoil in a narrative that
sparkles with the freakish splendor of chaotic character studies that defy
a sense of moral ground and stability. |
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STARTING OUT IN THE EVENING
(Roadside Attractions)
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Impression: “Wagner’s
penetrating narrative is poetically stimulating in its smart approach to
its dialogue-driven excellence and standout performances.”
Comment: Writer-director Andrew Wagner devises an altruistic,
intelligent-oriented melodrama about artistry and a familial foundation
floundering in perpetual surfacing angst. The creative process is examined
in the transitional academic existence of aging author Leonard Schiller
(Frank Langella) who starts to come alive out of his professional
stagnation when pretty grad student Heather (Lauren Ambrose) taps his
knowledgeable brain for her thesis based on the mature writer’s prolific
literary reputation. While widower Schiller tries to find the flexibility
in opening up his scholarly insights (and heart) to this pretty admirer
whom he inspired through his previous books, the scriber worries about his
soon-to-be 40ish daughter Ariel (Lili Taylor) going through the motions of
romantic stability and womanly independence. The dynamics between
father-daughter Leonard and Ariel and teacher-student Leonard and Heather
is a revealing and exploratory concept in revolving relationships of love
and uncertainty. Langella demonstrates what an in-depth artist he is in an
Oscar-worthy turn as a gifted writer trapped in his cage of artistic merit
and saddened memories. Supporting work by actresses Taylor and Ambrose
round out Evening’s blueprint as one of the best if not unsung films of
the year. |
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THERE WILL BE BLOOD
(Paramount Vantage) |
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Impression: “Absorbingly
bleak and bombastic...Daniel Day-Lewis is spellbinding as an oil man
gushing with ruthlessness, rage and a rigid sense of entitlement. An
intense and resilient screen actor, Day-Lewis reminds us why he’s the
consummate performer that demonstrates many ranges of thought and thrills
in his distinctive betrayals.”
Comment: Day-Lewis is understandably the front-runner for another
Oscar-winning campaign in There Will Be Blood. His compelling if not
demonic portrayal of Texas oil man Daniel Plainview at the turn of the
20th century is something that amazes continuously because he’s
simultaneously charismatic and creepy by the same token. Writer-director
Paul Thomas Anderson (“Boogie Nights”, “Magnolia”) oversees this warped
utopia of privilege and prosperity in the ruse of money-making
manipulation. Blood is dark and delusional courtesy of Day-Lewis’s
hypnotic, horrifying performance. For this endeavor, Day-Lewis may very
well earn his second statuette to accompany his My Left Foot Oscar from
yesteryear. Truly, Blood is a surreal cinematic achievement to behold. |
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ZODIAC
(Paramount Pictures)
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Impression: “An absorbingly
sadistic psychological whodunnit. Fixating in its gripping hold, Zodiac is
convincingly haunting in its head-scratching mode.”
Comment: As the first line in my Zodiac’s film review stated: “It’s
not a very good indication if your Zodiac sign reads: murder.” However,
it’s a great indication that David Fincher’s psychological thriller
challenges the eerie imagination of suspense, bewilderment and moodiness
involving the still unresolved infamous Zodiac-style killings in the Bay
Area during the transitional late 60’s/early 70’s. Fincher’s road map of
recklessness is engrossing in its methodical, macabre-induced skin. |
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