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04 Jan

The 11th Hour

Grade: A

The 11th Hour is a documentary produced and hosted by Leonardo DiCaprio – here he’s an eco-activist more than an actor, and his heart is on his sleeve.  The health of our planet is what is at stake, and clearly this movie makes a compelling case for all that we can do to help.  Several scientists weigh in with their takes on the situation.  My friend Thom Hartmann, who wrote “The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight” (www.thomhartmann.com) is just one of the articulate presenters.

Here the official website for the movie for more information.  This is a must-see.

http://wip.warnerbros.com/11thhour/

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04 Jan

The 100 Foot Long Journey

Grade: A-

The 100 Foot Long Journey is the kind of movie I’d like to see more of. Sweet, funny, heart-warming, inspirational, and just enough conflict to keep us on the edge of our seat.

Helen Mirren heads up a beautiful cast.

After a tragedy in Mumbai, an Indian family moves to France to open a new restaurant. They wind up across the street from a famous French restaurant run by Helen Mirren.  There’s a culture clash at first, but the two restaurants, families, and staffs all learn from each other and their experiences.

This will be a classic for foodies, and for anyone who loves the French countryside.

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04 Jan

Thank You For Smoking

Grade: A

An interesting story, almost done like a documentary, Thank You For Smoking is original, and quirky, thoughtful and funny. Aaron Eckhart is the lobbyist for the tobacco industry who can talk his way into, and out of, just about anything. We get a kind of insider’s look into the mechanics of the business – and the personalities and motivations that go into it. The dialogue is sharp, the characters are well drawn and fun to watch. Adam Brody (Seth from The OC) has a nice role as a Hollywood agent’s assistant – he’s so dead-on it’s scary! Maria Bello, Katie Holmes, William H. Macy and others round out an excellent cast. I really liked this one.
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04 Jan

Tell No One

Grade: A-

Tell No One is a French movie with English subtitles.  It’s a thriller, a mystery that will keep you on the edge of your seat.  I like it because it’s not predictable, you really can’t guess what is going to happen.

We start out with a happy couple, childhood sweethearts, enjoying a romantic getaway at the lake. And suddenly, everything changes.  We fast forward to eight years later.  The wife is dead, the husband is accused of her murder.  But what really happened?  As the police investigate, and the husband tries desperately to prove his innocence, we start to put the pieces together.  Just as you want to go down one path, something else happens that throws you off.  Lots of twists.  This movie is intelligent and really well written, you have to pay close attention to take it all in!

Mature theme – for adults and older teens.

 

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04 Jan

Taken

Grade: B-

Liam Neeson gets to play action hero in Taken.  He’s a retired CIA kind of guy, trying to make up for lost time with his teenage daughter.  His ex-wife is married to a billionaire, which makes things awkward for him, it’s hard to compete.  But the guy loves his daughter, and will do anything for her.  Which is why he relents and allows her to take a trip to Paris with her friend even though he thinks it’s a bad idea.  Boy, if he ever has a reason to say “I told you so” this is it!  First day in Paris and the two girls get “Taken.”  Liam jumps into action, and pulls out all the stops to save his little girl.  Maggie Grace plays his daughter.  Famke Jansen is the ex.  Lots of action.  I didn’t know Liam had it in him, but he does a great job!
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04 Jan

Syriana

Grade: A-

Powerful. Thought-provoking. Serious. Deep. That’s how I describe Syriana. It’s heavy, too, and you have to totally pay attention to keep track of everything that goes on. But it’s a really good movie. Not for everyone, but I think you’ll hear this title come up quite a bit come awards time. already it’s gotten a bunch of Golden Globe nominations – including one for George Clooney as supporting actor – and he’s brilliant in the part. Matt Damon and Amanda Peet are great, too. Worth seeing. Not for kids.
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04 Jan

Swing Vote

Grade: B-

Swing Vote is all about Kevin Costner.  He stars in it, and he put up the money to get the movie made.  It’s a civics lesson for all of us, especially with the upcoming election.  Kevin’s character has been described as a lovable loser.  But therein lies the problem with this movie.  I didn’t think Bud was lovable at all.  He’s a single father, who is a terrible parent.  He drinks too much, can’t hold down a job, and his 12 year old daughter is basically raising him.  The daughter, Molly is played by Madeline Carroll, and she’s really wonderful.  Smart, funny, savvy, and a darn good little actress.  When Molly needs to get her dad to vote to complete her class project, Bud is passed out drunk.  So she goes to the polls for him, but the electricity goes off and the vote isn’t counted.  Then, in an extremely unlikely turn of events, the election is deadlocked, and it’s up to Bud to re-cast his vote and elect the president of the United States.

Of course we’re going to see some character arc, as Bud is wooed by the candidates and eventually gets his act together to display some responsible behavior.  But in my book, it’s too little too late, he’s already come off so badly that I felt his character was irredeemable.  Kelsey Grammer and Dennis Hopper play the opposing candidates.  Paula Patton is an upcoming news reporter who befriends Molly.

Certainly a conversation generator for families.

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04 Jan

Sweeney Todd

Grade: A-

Tim Burton, Stephen Sondheim and Johnny Depp – what a combination!  And wow, does it work!  It’s a stroke of genius to have Tim Burton direct the movie version of the popular long-running stage show, Sweeney Todd.  It’s the most macabre musical ever.  The story is of a barber, going by the name of Sweeney Todd, who has gotten out of prison years after being falsely accused.  Upon his release, he returns to London to seek revenge on those who ruined his life.  He does so by killing them with his barber’s blade!  The landlady, Mrs. Lovett, is infatuated with Mr. Todd and becomes his accomplice, making meat pies out of the bodies. Some interesting side stories going on which help to propel the action.  The lighting, costumes, make-up, sets, all spectacular.  The songs are amazing.  Johnny Depp can sing!  Helena Bonham Carter is Mrs. Lovett, a role played by Angela Lansbury on Broadway.  She is awesome, so convincingly smitten and dysfunctional, and gothicly (is that a word?) beautiful.  Tim Burton fans will absolutely love this movie.  Just be prepared, there’s a lot of blood, neon, splattering, all over the place.  The whole thing is so original, bizarre and creative – a must for future filmmakers.  It’s rated R for all the violence, definitely not for young kids, even if they’re Johnny Depp fans.
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04 Jan

Superman

Grade: B

The “new” Superman, Brandon Routh, looks so much like Christopher Reeve it really brought back memories.  He even acts like him!  It’s like no time has gone by at all, except of course, it has been about 20 years since the last movie.  In movie time, Superman was “away” for 5 years, and in that time, his true love, Lois Lane, had a baby boy.  The new Lois is Kate Bosworth with brown hair.  She’s ok in the role, but not as feisty as Margot Kidder was. Kevin Spacey is Lex Luthor, played alternately villainous and egomaniacally humorous. There are a lot of comparisons throughout of Superman and Jesus, as if Superman just might be the savior in more ways than one.  Since I just recently saw Spacey and Bosworth in “Beyond the Sea” I couldn’t help but think of that movie when they were in scenes together.

All in all an interesting movie.  At 2 1/2 hours I’d say it was about 1/2 hour too long.  It would have been better to pick up the pace.

Young kids might get antsy sitting still for so long – but the story is compelling enough for pre-teens to follow.

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04 Jan

Sunshine Cleaning

Grade: A-

Amy Adams and Emily Blunt star as down-on-their-luck sisters who start a hazardous waste cleaning company.  It’s pretty gross work, but someone’s got to do it, and the girls figure they can make it happen for the money.  They each have their personal issues to work out, and despite the challenges they face, they have that kind of moxie to rise above.  Strong characters, wonderful acting, great story, happy ending.  My kind of movie.
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