One of the most talked about movies of 2007 was Juno, a low key comedy about teen pregnancy. The movie was funny, but ultimately a little overrated in my opinion. Just a little though - still a good movie.
The Oscar nominated Ellen Page does a great job as Juno, a teen that finds out she is pregnant in the first few minutes of the movie. She goes on to struggle with the choice between abortion and adoption, eventually choosing the latter. The rest of the movie is full of quirky funny moments of her coping with her pregnancy, and dealing with the family that will adopt her child.
This movie will be quite entertaining for those of you who have been pregnant and had a baby. My wife and I enjoyed it thoroughly. Ellen Page was nominated for an Oscar for her role, and I can see why - she is a very talented actress. However, as much as I liked it, the dialog between Juno and her best friend was a little over the top and somewhat annoying for me - but maybe thats because I am no longer a teenager. I still recommend this movie though, you will get a lot of laughs.
April 29, 2008
April 28, 2008
Aocalypto (2006)
Apocalypto is a highly stylized epic set in ancient America that follows the travails of Jaguar Paw, a Mayan hunter. See more on the plot here.
This movie is quite remarkable, and I am surprised I have missed seeing it for so long. The costume design and makup is absolutely amazing - one of the few movies where costume and makup alone tell a huge part of the story. The whole movie is subtitled being spoken in a native American tongue, but it really feels authentic. Perhaps one of the ingenious things about this movie is that it still feels like a personal movie focused on a small set of characters even though there are sweeping epic scenes that show off Mel Gibson's version of the Mayan civilization. Jaguar Paw is so removed from the present, and witnesses things and places that are so different and quite unfathomable from the modern experience. Yet, you really identify with him as a person who wants to be good, to live a life of peace and happiness with his family.
Oh yeah, and there are some freaking awesome fight/chase scenes. Not to mention the horrifying close call with a Mayan priest on top of a pyramid and his attempt to cut out Jaguar Paw's heart in sacrifice to the Gods. Really fantastic movie - one of my favorites from 2006.
This movie is quite remarkable, and I am surprised I have missed seeing it for so long. The costume design and makup is absolutely amazing - one of the few movies where costume and makup alone tell a huge part of the story. The whole movie is subtitled being spoken in a native American tongue, but it really feels authentic. Perhaps one of the ingenious things about this movie is that it still feels like a personal movie focused on a small set of characters even though there are sweeping epic scenes that show off Mel Gibson's version of the Mayan civilization. Jaguar Paw is so removed from the present, and witnesses things and places that are so different and quite unfathomable from the modern experience. Yet, you really identify with him as a person who wants to be good, to live a life of peace and happiness with his family.
Oh yeah, and there are some freaking awesome fight/chase scenes. Not to mention the horrifying close call with a Mayan priest on top of a pyramid and his attempt to cut out Jaguar Paw's heart in sacrifice to the Gods. Really fantastic movie - one of my favorites from 2006.
April 27, 2008
The Apartment (1960)
Its been a few weeks, but I have seen a couple of movies I want to comment on. However, a format change: my plot summaries are going to be a little skimpier, so we can get to the meat of the review.
All right, first up, a quirky film that won best picture in 1960, The Apartment, which stars Jack Lemmon and Shirley MacLain. For us Gen X/Yers it was kind of fun to see these two actors when they were so much younger than we are used to seeing them. Click here for a run down of the plot.
It is an oldie, but wasn't too bad actually. As you know, I am not a huge fan of the really old flicks, but this one is pretty witty though the dialog and acting was a little overdone at times - but that is to be expected with such an old movie. Shirley MacLaine is by far the most attention grabbing character in the movie, and she rightly deserves the Oscar nomination that she got.
So, verdict: good movie if you are in the mood for an oldie. Not amazing though.
All right, first up, a quirky film that won best picture in 1960, The Apartment, which stars Jack Lemmon and Shirley MacLain. For us Gen X/Yers it was kind of fun to see these two actors when they were so much younger than we are used to seeing them. Click here for a run down of the plot.
It is an oldie, but wasn't too bad actually. As you know, I am not a huge fan of the really old flicks, but this one is pretty witty though the dialog and acting was a little overdone at times - but that is to be expected with such an old movie. Shirley MacLaine is by far the most attention grabbing character in the movie, and she rightly deserves the Oscar nomination that she got.
So, verdict: good movie if you are in the mood for an oldie. Not amazing though.
April 7, 2008
Atonement (2007)
Got a hold of another best picture nominee - Atonement. The first half of the movie portrays life on a large estate in England, where a romance blossoms between the caretaker's son (played by James McAvoy), and the daughter of the estate (played by Keira Knightly). Tragedy strikes as the jealous younger sister witnesses the rape of one of her young friends, and bends the truth to falsely indict McAvoy's character of the deed. He is scurried off to prison, and ends up enlisting in the war during the buildup to World War II. He still pledges his undying love for Knightly's character, and longs to return home. As the young sister grows up, she realizes how horrible her fib really was, and how it has ruined the lives of two people she dearly loves. Atonement for her misdeed consumes her, but the trio are already caught up in the madness of the war - the two women working as nurses tending to the maimed and dying, and the young man stuck at the infamous Dunkirk where the British Army is pinned down by the German Panzers.
Quite an epic story. However, I was underwhelmed. The acting was good, and the plot was good too - but after McAvoy's character is sent away about half way through the film, it seemed to try and be too much of an epic, and lost a lot of its authenticity. I give the first half of the film a hearty recommend, and the second half a very mild recommend. Verdict: Good, not great. Definately not Oscar material - I am surprised it was nominated for Best Picture. Once, and Into the Wild were much better in my opinion.
Quite an epic story. However, I was underwhelmed. The acting was good, and the plot was good too - but after McAvoy's character is sent away about half way through the film, it seemed to try and be too much of an epic, and lost a lot of its authenticity. I give the first half of the film a hearty recommend, and the second half a very mild recommend. Verdict: Good, not great. Definately not Oscar material - I am surprised it was nominated for Best Picture. Once, and Into the Wild were much better in my opinion.
April 5, 2008
Into the Wild (2007)
Into the Wild is a deeply introspective film that is based on the life of Christopher McCandless. McCandless is the son of wealthy parents, and appears headed towards Harvard law school, when suddenly he decides to forsake everythin, and search for a deeper meaning and spirituality. He donates his life savings (about $20,000) to charity, burns his Social Security card and what little cash he has left, and wanders the country. Along his journey he meets a variety of people, shares tender moments with them all, but eventually leaves them all behind. Eventually he decides to go to Alaska, far away from anything to do with modern society.
The plot may seem a little bare - but the reality is, the film was very moving for me. McCandless seems to exude authenticity, sadly a rare attribute in today's world, and something I have always striven to have myself. The story of his rejection of society as a fake and invented system is something that is not new for the thousands of drifters in the world, but is a breath of fresh air, and gives a new perspective on life and love and the things that really have meaning to all of us. Well, there I go, blithering about the story - you can tell I loved it. The story is all the more poignant since it is a true story - the film is based on the book about McCandless. For those who haven't heard about McCandless before, I won't ruin the ending.
The acting was great, the music was great, the story was great, and the scenery was incredible -- definitely one of the best movies of 2007, and I highly recommend this to anyone.
Here is the trailer from youtube:
The plot may seem a little bare - but the reality is, the film was very moving for me. McCandless seems to exude authenticity, sadly a rare attribute in today's world, and something I have always striven to have myself. The story of his rejection of society as a fake and invented system is something that is not new for the thousands of drifters in the world, but is a breath of fresh air, and gives a new perspective on life and love and the things that really have meaning to all of us. Well, there I go, blithering about the story - you can tell I loved it. The story is all the more poignant since it is a true story - the film is based on the book about McCandless. For those who haven't heard about McCandless before, I won't ruin the ending.
The acting was great, the music was great, the story was great, and the scenery was incredible -- definitely one of the best movies of 2007, and I highly recommend this to anyone.
Here is the trailer from youtube:
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