This movie capped the Thanksgiving holiday. You know the feeling, post-family conversations and catching up, you've lazed around all day and now it's post-function. You are tired yet not ready to hit the sack. That's the perfect time to start watching. Be warned. You will begin watching and it's brutal, and not in a good way, not at first.
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.
Walk Hard is epic. It tells a layered story that isn't as flimsy as you'd expect. It traces the life of this made-up icon through his waltzes with different musical genres trying to find himself and wrestle the demons that torment him. Gratuitous fun is a plenty: the intro-to-drugs scenes led by Tim Meadows, the sink-ripping and references to being cut in half. This is no Scary Movie 4 (parts of which I did enjoy). The five of us watched this one and we loved it (except for the one who fell asleep); however, I wonder if I misquoted how much they liked it. Did we like it because we were sleepy and on the drink? I re-watched it yesterday and it passed the test. I enjoyed it more upon second viewing. The humor is good, the scenes are surprisingly fun. The Beatles scene is brilliant. It's fast, funny and original. The behind-the-scenes of this one is super interesting--depicting how they wrote the music and worked with Reilly as a singer. It's like watching a band documentary making-of. If you haven't seen this one yet, see it soon. If you've seen it already, see it again. I'll be adding movie and soundtrack to my collection. It's a brilliant musical comedy art piece. I would compare it to the Rocky Horror Picture Show but that isn't fair to RHPS, which is a masterpiece. Think of Walk Hard as RHPS's "little indie cousin who could."
There are so many cameos that you are sometimes distracted from the action trying to figure out who's who. You have not only Jack White and Jack Black (can't be a coincidence) but add to that Paul Rudd, Craig Robinson, Jason Schwartzman and many of the Freaks and Geeks alums.
Director and co-writer: Jake Kasdan (co-wrote with Judd Apatow)
Country: US
Genre: Comedy/Spoof
Run time: 96 minutes (felt like longer--in a good way)
Scale: 4.5
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.
