Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows Pt. 1

Release Year: 2010
Director: David Yates

Review: The Potter films are always hard to review. As a fan of the books I always miss certain details but concede that these are necessary cuts to make the film transition. The trend of the past six films has been encouraging, with each one building upon the last. None of them have reached a point where they succeed solely on their own as a great piece of cinema, but as the material gets meatier, and the actors get more experienced, the films have become solid entertainment independent of the books.

The latest film, based on the final book, is even more challenging to review since it’s really only half a film. This was a challenge going into the theater since you know right when things start to get good the credits will roll and the disappointment will inevitably settle in. This is exactly what happens, but it’s to the films credit that, even at it’s lengthy running time, I wanted the film to go on, and continue developing.

Overall I am happy they choose to split this film up into two parts, and wish they had done this from the start. By giving themselves more time, they can include more of the details from the book and flesh out the characters and stories more completely. The fullness is what I enjoyed most about this installation even if it did drag a bit a result. The minor details make the whole so much stronger. There always were huge holes in the development of the story when so much had to be left on the cutting room floor in the prior installments. Given the proper time a more fully fleshed out story yielded a more satisfying experience.

It’s hard to rank it among the other Potter films since it’s really only part of a movie. It is certainly as technically taught as any of its predecessors. The acting has continued to get better and the cinematography is as beautiful as ever. This is the darkest chapter in the saga which adds depth, but it’s also the least accessible of the batch. Going in without reading the books, or at least watching the preceding films will leave the viewer completely confused. I don’t think this is a bad thing, however. It’s foolish to strive to make a film for a mass audience when the films target audience is so massive anyway. It plays to its audience and I commend it for that.

Rating: 3.5/5

Alice in Wonderland

Release Year: 2010
Director: Tim Burton

Review: From the moment I heard that Tim Burton was doing Alice in Wonderland I knew the exact product that was going to be produced. A dark, quirky take on the tale with vivid characters but soulless execution. It’s disappointing since Burton is one the most imaginative and talented directors working, yet he seems to have fallen into a groove which he is unable or unwilling to pull himself out of. Rather than casting the same set of characters and dressing them differently, I’d like to see him channel his creative energy into a new property and really stretch his natural artistic talent.

As it stands, the latest trip into Wonderland isn’t quite a reboot, nor a sequel, but a weird middle ground where an older Alice returns to Wonderland but has no memory of it. The biggest downside is that the richly imagined Wonderland is sapped of any actual wonder. It’s a bleak, barren wasteland. If this approach were going to be taken then I’d hope it should at least be consistent. But Burton seems to be content throwing in spurts of jovial energy that comes out odd, and out of place. It turned into an uncomfortable mix of dark imagery and fanciful silliness that does not work at all. All this culminates in an awkward jig by Depp that was hyped the entire movie and was painful to actually see performed.

To make matters worse, the acting outside of Depp and Bonham Carter is universally terrible. Watching Mia Wasikowska as Alice is extraordinarily uncomfortable. Her acting seems to be part of an entirely different film, clashing with anyone else in every scene. The worst offender, however, was Anne Hathaway as the White Queen. I’m not sure what she was going for with her performance, but she comes across as having some sort of physical disability. It’s a distracting performance which adds nothing except to set the entire film off kilter. Add to the troubling acting the even more distracting CG work and there isn’t much going for ‘Alice’.

I can’t say my expectations were high going in, and even still the film was disappointing. Any magic or charm the original film had was sapped away and replaced with a clumsy hero’s quest storyline. This quest driven story been done to death and in far more interesting ways. There was potential to have a hugely creative re-imagination of the classic story, but it was squandered away with familiarity and mediocrity.

Rating: 2/5

Exit Through the Gift Shop

Release Year: 2010

Director: Banksy

Review: Banksy is the most notorious artist in the street art world.  Part of his mystique is that almost nothing is known about him. One of the most intriguing aspects to him and his work is his underground art mentality. When he puts out his artwork it is usually controversial and almost always illegal. It gives him an edge, makes him unique, and it doesn’t hurt that he is a fantastically original and creative artist. Recently street art has been coming into the mainstream, with artist’s work being sold for millions at auction, and their graffiti being preserved rather than scrubbed off. Shepard Fairey became a household name when he designed the campaign poster for Obama. If he could make the leap, could Banksy? So, it was with some excitement when Banksy threw his hat into the public eye, and created this documentary. It is a testament to his talent that he can go from spray painting a wall in the middle of the night to having an Oscar nominated film within the span of a few years.

‘Exit Through the Gift Shop’ makes itself out to be a documentary. Whether it is or not is one of the many fascinating aspects to the film. The documentary starts off being about street art and in particular about the allusive Banksy, captured by the armature filmmaker Thierry Guetta. However, Banksy realizes that Guetta is the more interesting subject the film shifts focus and we see Guetta’s transformation into Mr. Brainwash, a street artist who models himself after other artists he admires.

While the film is a fantastic look into the world of street art, what is more interesting is the questions it raises on what constitutes as art, what makes an artist and is a scathing look at the people who consume it. Whether or not this truly is a documentary, which I doubt, or manufactured by Banksy, doesn’t really matter. It is entertaining and thought provoking, managing to both praise the street art movement as well as probe it. Both funny and scathing, the documentary is everything you’d expect from the brilliant mind of Banksy.

Rating: 4/5

The Kids Are All Right

Release Year: 2010
Director: Lisa Cholodenko

Review: It s refreshing to see a well-made family drama about a lesbian couple and their adopted kids. Annette Bening and Julianne Moore star as a happily married lesbian couple with two children. Unbeknownst to them, the children reach out to their biological father, played by Mark Ruffalo, and want to start a relationship. The introduction of this man into their lives sparks turmoil within the family as they cope with a new paternal figure.

The Kids are All Right has had a great critical response, grabbing several Oscar nominations including best picture and best supporting acting for Ruffalo and Bening. I enjoyed the film, and thought it was a solid family drama, but think the critical response is over hyped. It was fine, creating an original, and often humorous look into an atypical, but not all that unordinary family. It is solid, but nothing made it stand out as exceptional. The critical response seems disproportional to what was on screen. I m particularly mystified by the accolades heaped upon Mark Ruffalo. His performance was actually one of the biggest problems I had with the film. He seemed content to mumble and stammer through his lines, in what I can only assume was his attempt to emphasize the laid-back nature of his character, but really only served to rip apart atmosphere of most of the scenes he was in. Bening, on the other hand, did do a fine job, but again the Academy falls short by not recognizing the best performance in the film, which is by Juilianne Moore. She plays the perfect balance between the easygoing Ruffalo and the uptight Bening, and was the glue that held this film together.

I respect the film for showing a lesbian relationship as any other. The fact that couple was lesbian had little to do with the familiar family problems that they were having. I can t say I was blown away by it, but it was very well done. I may not be showering it with praise as other are, but I can whole-heartedly recommend it.

Rating: 3.5/5

Black Swan

Release Year: 2010

Director: Darren Aronofsky

Review:  Daren Aronofsky shifts from body slams and headlocks to pirouettes and Passés, creating a perfect companion piece to ‘The Wrestler’ with ‘Black Swan’. In ‘The Wrestler’ we presented with a portrait of man in the twilight of his career, having given up his body and his life to the sport he loved.Here an uptight perfectionist dancer, Nina Sayers (Natalie Portman), is on the brink of breaking out when she is cast as the lead in ‘Swan Lake’. The ballet requires her to portray both the role of the pure White Swan, as well as the sensual Black Swan. Nina is a flawless White Swan, but struggles letting go of her self and has trouble embodying the Black Swan. As she struggles for perfection the stress has a traumatic effect on her mind, causing her to literally envision herself turning into a swan.

The film has a dark overtone, intertwining horror and suspense as Nina slowly loses her mind. It is disorienting to watch her mind slip away from her. It is a struggle to determine what is real and what is a figment of her failing psychosis. This was actually one of my few problems with the movie, which I enjoyed very much. I appreciated the overall tone, but the horror aspects went bit over the top at times when I would have liked a subtler approach to convey Nina’s deteriorating state of mind. There were times where I thought Aronofsky was trying too hard to hard to amplify the creepiness of Nina losing her mind, when it was not needed.

Before I even sat down to watch the movie, I have to admit I was unfairly judging the film. I could not help but compare this movie with the 1948 classic, ‘The Red Shoes’ which I watched a couple months before ‘Black Swan’. To be fair, the two movies are trying to do completely different things. That said, there are some notable similarities that parallel one another. Both focus on a dancer seeking perfection, a ballet that blurs the lines of the plot ballet and the reality the dancer, both feature an overbearing and pompous director—the list goes on. Comparing these elements individually minimizes the impact of ‘Black Swan’ because the ‘Red Shoes’ simply does it better. Specifically, Vincent Cassel portrayal of the ballet director mirrors very closely to the director role in the ‘Red Shoes’ played by Anton Walbrook. While Cassel does a fine job, Walbrook’s performance is one of the best of all time, making Cassel’s role seem like cheap knockoff. Again, these two films are very different so they really shouldn’t be compared, however certain elements stick out like a sore thumb when viewed in light of ‘Red Shoes’ and challenged me not to judge it even more critically.

While Cassel’s may be no Walbrook, his performance was still strong, playing a role that requires him to be both hated and admired, feared and respected. Pulling off this dichotomy of characteristics required Cassel to walk a tightrope between being over the top evil and too soft. He manages to pull off this complex role, as did the rest of the cast, all playing taxing roles. Natalie Portman has gotten a lot of praise for her role, and for the most part I agree with it. It takes a lot of physical training to transform into a dancer, and she did a remarkable job. My one problem was that a look of utter bewilderment, pain and confusion never left her face the entire movie. Granted, her character was going through all of these emotions, but somehow even when others seemed to be impressed by her dancing, she always had an uncomfortable look about her. It was difficult for me to buy her even getting the lead part, never mind someone not raising concern for her mental health when it was so apparent she was not well. I’m not saying it was necessarily Portman’s performance, but it was a detail that took me out of the otherwise immersive world.

Aronofsky crafted an intense mind-bending thriller out of a movie about dancing. It was more than that though. It’s about the need for perfection, about the limits that someone obsessed with a goal will go to for their passion. No physical or mental price was too high a price for Nina to reach her perceived purpose. She lived not for love, money or power, but simply to dance. Much like ‘The Wrestler’ we get a peek inside the life of someone consumed by their passion, doing the only thing they know how to do. ‘Black Swan’ is a beautiful film that shows the struggle to achieve perfection without covering up all the gritty, unpleasant details.

Rating: 4.5/5

Rabbit Hole

Release Year: 2010

Director: John Cameron Mitchell

Review:  Sometimes you switch on a film to escape. To forget about life troubles and live vicariously in a world that’s more pleasant than your own. ‘Rabbit Hole’ is not one of these movies. A couple has lost their only child, and grief is straining their family. It’s a sobering premise, and certainly one that has been done before. So why put yourself through watching others pain?

I’m not a fan of a movie that wallows in misery. I don’t like to be depressed by a movie for no other reason than for it to make me feel bad. ‘Rabbit Hole’ is not that movie. Yes, its tough to watch, but it never comes across as gloomy.  It’ takes a hard look at the bereavement process and the emotional stress it causes, but does so without coming across as hopeless. No one is the ‘bad guy’, both spouses have their problems but it is clear they love each other. So many times in a movie with marital strife as the focal point one of the two partners are demonized. It’s not done here, and that’s a key point. This isn’t a movie about a marriage falling apart, even if it’s the consequence It’s about how normal loving people can overcome an overwhelming loss.

Director John Cameron Mitchell knew what he wanted to convey in this film, and stayed on track. It’s not a big movie and its not trying to be.Mitchell crafted a well made, tightly packaged film with few flaws. The acting by Aaron Eckhart and Nicole Kidman was perfect. Without being over the top, they imbue their characters with subtle, yet powerful emotional turbulence.It would be all to easy for the intense, emotionally charged conflicts to come off as over the top, but are instead executed with restraint. This is what impressed me most. Every time I thought the film was going to push too far and lose me in a wave of drama, it reels itself in and roots itself down into a territory that is believable.

What Eckhart and Kidman’s characters go through are reflections of pain in which many of us have been through or witnessed someone go through. It is a profound look at loss and how it affects everything in life. It may not be feel-good movie of the year, but it’s rewarding in its honesty.

Rating: 4/5

The Back-Up Plan

Release Year: 2010

Director: Alan Poul

Review: This is a Jennifer Lopez led romantic comedy.  That's pretty much all you need to know.  It's fine.  It's generic.  It's forgettable.  Lopez has decided she is never going to find the right man, and instead of watch her dreams of having a child pass her by, she opts to get artificially inseminated.  Just as luck has it, right after she has this done she finally meets a great guy.  From here on out it follows the standard romantic comedy rule book, without really ever deviating.  In the end, its an alright movie to zone out in front of, but you will have forgotten you ever saw it in about two weeks.
Rating: 2/5

Get Him to the Greek

Release Year: 2010

Director: Nicholas Stoller

Review: I loved Russell Brand's character Aldus Snow in 'Forgetting Sarah Marshall', and so I was looking forward how an entire movie starring the stereotypical rock star would work out.  Aldus has fallen off the wagon, and in a big way.  After his career tanks and he loses the love of his life, he resorts to drugs and parties.  Aaron(Jonah Hill), a low level talent scout at a record label, is tasked with bringing the rocker back to the States for a comeback show.  Aldus has no intention of making this journey an easy one, and so the adventure begins.

This is a funny movie.  The laughs-per-minute are high.  There is something missing which keeps this in the Apatow-light category.  It's missing heart.  So while the movie is frenetic, outrageous, and makes you laugh, its not something that really fulfills, or lingers in any way.  It feels very much like 'The Hangover' in that way.  In fact, it goes in the opposite direction, where I was actually wincing at some of the messages that are implied and groaning at the decisions made by Aaron.  By the end, Aaron was doing things that were in complete contrast to everything that his character was set up to be.  It breaks any emotional investment built with the character and makes it hard to have anything but superficial fun with this movie.

What does work is Russell Brand as Aldus, who is just plain fun to watch wreaking havoc.  Honestly, even if everything else was terrible, I would probably still have a good time watching Brand just wander around interacting with people.  It may not have the same hook as other Apatow produced comedies, but its still funny.
Rating: 3/5

Inception

Release Year: 2010

Director: Christopher Nolan

Review: Christopher Nolan is becoming one of the most respected working filmmakers, and for good reason. He has yet to make a film that wasn't good.  He has a knack for making high quality, thought provoking, films which are easily accessible and entertaining.  So when his latest film was announced to be about people who enter other people's dreams to steal information, I was interested.  Nolan is great at making complex plots manageable, and 'Inception' certainly has a complex plot.

The concept is fantastic and the possibilities of what one could do with this concept are endless.  Nolan takes great care to set up the rules of this world where people can enter other peoples dreams.  As such, there is quite a bit of exposition, particularly in the first half of the film.  This is necessary, however, in order to have any idea of what is going on, and to really get to the main plot of the film.  The explanations aren't tedious.  It almost felt like the training level in a video game.  It's necessary setup, but Nolan is still doing interesting things while constructing the base on which the rest of the film will rely on.

olan could have went a lot of different ways with the subject matter, but treats it completely straight forward.  He could have went a Lynch-eque direction of creating a surreal dream state environment, but instead stays literal, rooted in reality.  This serves the film well, as a lot of what the film is about is discerning between dreams and reality.  If the dream world was too fantastic, this element would be lost.  Instead he creates an alternate world, where impossible things can happen, but its still a mirror of reality.  I believe that this is the central theme.  What is reality and what is not.  So much has been said on what is a dream and what is not in the film, and I think this was Nolan's goal.  This is the commentary he wanted to instigate.  I don't think Nolan wanted to say either way.  In the film a similar question is brought up, and its answered by asking back, "who is to say what is reality".  This is the question to ask yourself while watching this, and is what is so enthralling about experiencing this film.

Nolan succeeds once again at making a genuinely great, richly imagined, and utterly entertaining action thriller.  It's not often that a film in this genre is so complete.  There are many levels to 'Inception', and while its a fun ride, it also makes you think.  Complete with a fantastic cast, and amazing visuals, it is the full package.  Nolan proves once again he is one of the very best, and continues to push the expectations of modern cinema.

Rating: 4.5/5



Toy Story 3

Release Year: 2010

Director: Lee Unkrich

Review:  Leave it to Pixar to prove that a sequel's sequel doesn't have to be trite or pandering.  By taking beloved characters and infusing them into a new environment but retaining the core elements of what made the first two films great, they successfully were able to produce a fresh feeling movie that has all the same heart as it's predecessors.   The final chapter concludes with a logical end.  Andy has grown up, and the toys are relegated to the toy chest and soon the attic.  Feeling shunned by Andy the hurt tools hop into a box to be donated to Sunnyside Daycare only to find out that it is run by a deranged huggable bear who runs it like a prison.

 

There is a bit of everything thrown in here.  It's part adventure, part love story, part prison escape and there is plenty of homages to the previous films to satisfy our love for them.  The plot moves swiftly.  It doesn't get bogged down with tedious subplots or get derailed by flat pop culture jokes, its a fluid adventure, and a thrill from beginning to end.  Layered on top of this great story is the heart and emotional force that has become expected for Pixar. Dealing with the nostalgia of forgotten toys it's nearly impossible not to get caught up and become sentimental about your own childhood.  There is an emotional depth which Pixar goes to which few other animated features dare go, and with each new film they continue to produce fun, entertaining films, which are also full of heart.
Rating: 4/5