What did I learn from Disturbia? Shia LaBeouf is a pleasant surprise. He's a wee bairn barely out of his 20s but his face is expressive, he's likeable and he can act. Until this movie, all I knew about LaBeouf is that I enjoyed saying his name and that he might be a bit of a bad boy (shouts out to the Entertainment News tidbits at msn.com).
I wasn't expecting much from Disturbia. I thought it'd be a spoof about moving to the 'burbs from the "big city" with hijinks leading to neighbor bonding. Now that I have cable and hundreds of channels to pore over, it's easy to make choices because they are easily revoked. I said, what the hell and selected Disturbia--the name intrigued but it happened to be starting the same minute I had found it on the Guide channel.
Before the first 10 minutes had played, there was intense action that sets up the movie. An event leading from this incident causes Kale (LaBeouf) to end up in home incarceration for three months. Kale quickly falls into a slump of inactivity and boredom--being at home 24/7 slowly brings on insanity. His mother Julie (Carrie-Ann Moss) is gone a lot but when she's there, she's unable to connect with her increasingly slacker teenager. The boredom leads Kale to start monitoring his neighbors through his binoculars: he's got the new neighbors with the hot teenage daughter, the grade-school brats who torture him with pranks and the neighbor he starts to suspect is a serial killer. Shenanigans ensue, suspense builds and rising action follows. Disturbia is a simple film. There are times you are pushed to suspend reality too much, but you want to because, it's extremely entertaining. It reminds me of a modern episode of the Hardy Boys meets Scooby Doo...think "If it hadn't been for you meddling kids..." So, yeah, see it and look up Mr. LeBeouf. He's had a quite a few roles already. Am I the only newbie?
Director: DJ Caruso
Country: US
Genre: Thriller
Run time: 105 minutes
Scale: 3.75
Teenager Or (Dana Ivgy) wants her mother Ruthie (Ronit Elkabetz)to stop prostituting herself on the streets of Israel, get a different kind of job and just be her mother. Or collects plastic bottles for recycling, she works washing dishes at a restaurant--anything to bring money into the home in hopes her mother won't leave the house that night to walk the streets. Or takes care of Ruthie--validating her, getting her up in the morning, getting her a job, dying her hair. Her mother is the rebellious teen in the equation, who really does not want to stop doing what she's doing. From the beginning you see the smarts on Or. Her mother is a girl in a woman's body. It's lovely and painful to watch how much they depend on each other because even though Or is clearly the adult, she needs her mother, if not to have someone to take care of.
This parody, loosely based on Walk the Line, pulls liberally from many musical genres and pop culture. With so many turns, where to start? At the beginning...once John C. Reilly enter the picture, the film shines. His acting is so genuine, he should have been nominated for an Academy Award (I was happy to learn that he was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy). Reilly not only embodies but exudes Dewey Cox. The songs are fantastic--most of them catchy with clever and witty lyrics. Reilly performs almost all the songs himself and even Jenna Fischer sings one. Reilly, Judd Apatow and others involved with the film penned the songs themselves.
remains as Jack's lifeline, guiding 24-year-old Jack through his new life identity and supporting him while Jack learns how to socialize in his new world, while keeping his former identity and violent past a secret. Jack finds a job, meets some mates and falls in love. A sub-plot involves Terry's son finding him and wanting to get to know him after years of estrangement. Seems that Terry didn't see his son or make an effort and now he's getting to know him as his son tries to figure out his dad's motivations for having been an absent father.
hurdles that it's no wonder he's tempted to use at every turn. The tension building and plot complications are gripping. You're there with him at every stressful step. He's an empathetic and likeable character. You see him tiring of his life as each turn gets more difficult. I don't want to spoil the plot happenings but he does reach his breaking point and things get messy. The ending drags on; the violence is savage and hard to watch (think hammers and industrial garbage disposal), but this is a great movie. Gives the dark side of Copenhagen a peep. Even though Pusher was lame (IMHO) and Pusher II isn't as great as Pusher III, it works well as a trilogy...gotta have the potatoes with the meat.
I watched Pusher well over a year ago. I don't remember many of the details, but I remember that most of the characters were unlikable. This makes it difficult to connect with the movie and you end up with an uncomfortable distance. The main character was a dealer. He was emotionally dead, except about his dog (if I recall correctly), but even that wasn't enough.
That said, the BBC adaptation of Dickens' ninth novel, Bleak House, made me regret my decision. Despite its length, 15 installments over three DVDs, I couldn't stop watching. So much going on in this tale. At its center, there is a court case Jarndyce v. Jarndyce. The case has been going for years and years caused by two contrasting wills. There are two minors at its center. Then, there is the orphan, Esther Summerson (Anna Maxwell Martin). Her character reminded much of Jane Eyre...she is a young girl of little means. She is identified as "not fair" in her beauty, yet she is a hard-working, strong and kind woman, who ends up winning the hearts of several men. Miss Summerson carries around pain from the cruel aunt who raised her and made sure to let her know that she had be her mother's disgrace. But, will Miss Summerson discover her past? Learning her past could destroy lives.
until they can find lodgings. During this time, Walter and Tarek forge a friendship revolving around music and the African drum. Tarek teaches Walter to drum and Walter comes back to life. Zainab remains indifferent to Walter, until Tarek gets thrown into a detention center and Walter is the only one who can help.
Last night, Danzig played, led by Glenn Danzig, the former lead singer for The Misfits. Danzig isn't punk; it's metal. There are a few metal bands I enjoy, but there is something about Glenn Danzig I love. It could be called an obsession. At 53, he's still rocking. I've spent more than one night watching Danzig vids with C&A ("who bought this??"), so when I saw the ad for Danzig's show, we three were on board.
This one stayed with me well after viewing. It revolves around two brothers who haven't seen each other in five years. After a chance run-in (or was it?), they stand as strangers. Disappeared older brother, Carlos (Tristán Ulloa), is a has-been gambler borrowing against his poker debt, still looking for the big win that will set him free of his many debts. He's a pariah pitied in the gambling crowd. Baby brother Ignacio (Unax Ugalde) is a successful and esteemed architecture student with a promising future. He's days away from leaving Spain for Los Angeles to start an internship. He buys a ticket for his girlfriend to join him, but she's resentful because she'd doing well in her architecture studies. This leads to distance. During this increasing distance, little bro gets closer to his delinquent brother. It's hard to watch the snake lure the lamb. Carlos, aided by his girlfriend, creates the lair and Ignacio willingly enters.Ignacio possesses vulnerable blue eyes. Looking at them, you feel a pang of sadness and his thirst for Carlos' approval. You get the sense that even though Ignacio gets into trouble after finding Carlos, he feels alive--perhaps something he hasn't felt since Carlos left. The parents are cold and empty. They don't pay much attention to the kid as long as he's following his good son path. Sibling relationships are some of the most interesting. You share the parents, yet each child can have a varying experience.
CONS: It has it's flaws...could have been edited WAY down and tossed the needless characters of Lukacris and Jeremy Piven (Ari Gold has ruined Piven forever for me--he'll never be anyone else.) The flimsy plot device (involving a painting <yawn>) didn't excite, but it was a vehicle for a very fun threesome of: One Two (Gerard Butler), Mumbles (Idris Elba--"Stringer Bell" of The Wire fame) and Handsome Bob (Tom Hardy). From the start, their chemistry smolders and guides you though the silly and convoluted plot. You are on board with them because their friendship is solid. This is a movie about loyalty and family. The good friends try to make good but are foiled by a crime lord on a real estate scam. But, really, that's the dull storyline allowing Ritchie to write the story he really wanted to write--the one about the friendships. That's the story that shines.
We are introduced to a couple living in a large, secluded house in the country. Lucas (Michaël Cohen) and Clementine (Olivia Bonamy) have had a nice relaxing evening afternoon after the workweek. When Clementine decides to get some work done while Lucas sleeps, odd things start occurring. She gets a call with strange noises on the other end. She eventually re-joins Lucas but awakes to different noises coming from downstairs and outside. As they start investigating, the learn they aren't alone. The story moves along as Clementine and Lucas battle the mysterious hooded figures to survive. That's really it for plot. The simple, yet frightening sounds add to the unease. The house is reminiscent of a European version of the hotel from The Shining. The house itself becomes a character, playing a role and adding to the tension, but what is most eerie is the ending when you learn that this movie is based on true events. I won't give it away but it's unsettling.
This movie was fun to watch, especially as you see them experiencing the process of getting arranged. The relationships with their families during the process are strained. It's not a simple process. You see Rochel's bad meetings with prospective husbands and Nasira's disappointment at her first suitor. Family pressures and disapproval propel the women into a stronger friendship. Nasira is particularly funny and creative. Arranged is interesting on many levels. It might be geared toward women, but the cultural aspects make it fascinating for all.
Bruges is lovely but the movie is flat. The usually enjoyable and compelling Colin Farrell is annoying. The movie thrives on its violence. The scene where the hit goes wrong happens in a church without a silencer. Come on! There are some quirky bits and there's a twist that gives the movie a final shot of adrenalin but by then, you could be dozing. The plot starts moving in the last two scenes. There's English humor and it has its moments, but it just wasn't enough to sustain it. Bleh.
L'homme de Sa Vie is subdued--it's chatty and artsy, mostly a character development piece. There's something special about it, but I can't pinpoint it. I wasn't quite engaged but I also was never 100% bored. The ending is left to interpretation but may occur seems evident. The director is a woman and perhaps that adds to the singular story and ending.
blinks. To express no, he is to blink twice. This is how he re-learns to communicate.
mpted suicide, Glenn's born-again preaching. He wants to see more of their daughter, but Annie is afraid he is still emotionally unstable. Their relationship is tense and volatile and, at times, familiar and close. Set in the '70s, the cinematography captures the visuals and the feeling of the era. Shot as if you were in the room with the characters, you feel the discomfort churning in many of the scenes.
In Paris, he gets a room in a boarding house, meets his co-workers and gets to know his supervisor, Caroline (Nathalie Baye), a recovering alcoholic, as he awaits his first assignment. When a dead man is fished out of the Seine, Antoine gets the excitement he's anxiously been awaiting. As he and his partners are on the trail of two mysterious Russians that may hold the key to the dead man, you learn more about Antoine and Caroline. He's likeable and his character development is compelling. His relationship with Caroline is interesting because he is the age that her son would have been had he not died. This is subtle but it does affect the storyline; however, the director/writers missed a good opportunity to use this detail. The acting was pretty good but the story is missing an arc.
wrestles with sibling rivalry. Marie and Lucie are twins who couldn't be different--Lucie is a friendly, sexual free-spirit to whom people are drawn. Marie is morose, quiet and austere. (Cotillard plays both roles.) When Lucie gets a shot at a possible recording contract, she faces the reality that she cannot sing. She calls in a favor with her twin, although they rarely speak. Talented singer, Marie, stands in for Lucie as Lucie and if they can pull this off, who knows what's next in this love-hate relationship.
This has been on my list since the SIFF from years back. After watching this, I am in need of some comedic relief. These last three have been weighty and levity is the answer.
Atonement received a 2008 Golden Globe for Best Picture.
The thing is, I couldn't remember the movie. I remember my best friend Liz, for Halloween one year, dressing as Corinne "Third Degree" Burns (Diane Lane), an orphaned 14-year-old who goes on the road with her band--her cousin (Laura Dern) and sister (Marin Kanter). Corinne's mother has just died and her dead-end teenage life is heading nowhere fast. This is the way movies used to be--a girl barely in her teens hits the road with her punk band, The Stains, to play in bars and clubs. No CPS, no meddling family member trying to help capture her and bring her back home.
