Quentin Tarantino Strikes Again! -September 5

Daniel Bruhl as Nazi war hero, Frederick Zoller

One word to describe Inglourious Basterds: ENIGMATIC

Inglourious Basterds truly captures the enigmatic thanks to both the script and the extremely impressive acting. Here I insert the name CHRISTOPH WALTZ (not the guy in the picture above) x infinity. Christoph (who plays the cruelly polite Hans Landa) is a beauty to watch upon the screen. He charms and generates genuine giggles, but under every word he utters, pure violence and fear is waiting. Creating Hans Landa to be such a supremely intelligent (almost supernaturally so) villain, playing against Brad Pitt's pure-brute-no-brains Lt. Aldo Raine, ties into Tarantino's other use of the enigmatic in regards to the actual message of the film...

You can watch Inglourious Basterds two different ways: you can take everything for surface thrills and replay "America Rocks, Go Jews" in your head throughout the movie. With this strategy, you leave the film entertained and satisfied. Or you can take the more emotionally tumultuous route and read into everything, drowning in Tarantino's ambiguity and frightening sarcasm. It is difficult to watch the film because Tarantino never makes up his mind between the Jews and the Germans. Yes, he mocks Hitler and glorifies Lt. Aldo, but the innocent foot soldiers are whom I am referring to. Many of the German Nazi soldiers are portrayed as compassionate and thoughtful, while many of the Jewish "Basterds" are portrayed as dumb, violence-obsessed robots. It is this strange mix-up that made Inglourious Basterds, to me, an extremely strong film with an extremely radical message. However, you can only see it if you want to.

All ambiguous social critiques aside, Inglourious Basterds is a great film. For all of the nervous Quentin Tarantino disciples out there, this film, if anything, is another gem in his crown of well-made epics. It is nice to be able to find comfort in Tarantino's classic habits, like chapter-by-chapter story separation and the good ol' female protagonist out for revenge...

Signing off, just wanted to say, don't be at all surprised to see Christoph Waltz at the this seasons Academy Awards...

Zooey and Joseph, Summer and Tom-August 11

Hello!!

I am jumping back on the saddle of blogging, without fear of being ignored or unsuccessful. If people read, they read, if they don't, they don't. I hope to blog about movies, music, and the ever-important process of applying and getting into American universities.

Anywhoo, I am here to talk about (500) Days of Summer!

Let me start by saying that I have been waiting to see this movie forever. It isn't everyday that a film trailer grabs my attention to the point of heart-pounding excitement. As soon as two of my all-time FAVORITE actors (Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel) lit up the screen, I was hooked. After the insanely cute- "I love the Smiths! 'To die by your side is such a wonderful way to die'"- my breath had left my body. I was re-watching those few moments endlessly.

However, as unlikely as it is that a film trailer grabs my attention, it is even less likely for a film to live up to its promises.

That was the unfortunate case here.

The two things to adore about the film are the clothes and the music. I would give my soul to the devil and sell my body to the black market for Summer Finn (Zooey)'s wardrobe. The soundtrack is a total must-have.

The movie itself? Annie Hall. I'm not saying that lightly, this movie WAS Annie Hall! The men's pants, the club singing, the depressing last days, right down to the actual plot line! I didn't realize it at the time, but after my Woody Allen-fanatic brother pointed it out, it was all I could see! The only difference is that Tom (Joseph) isn't the witty crackpot. I really adore Joseph Gordon-Levitt, but his character doesn't really grab you.

Overall, it IS worth seeing. It's enjoyable and sweet, and has an unexpected message about romance. It is definitely different from any "romantic comedies" out there. My only mistake was expecting it to be the "Jesus" to my "blind man". It wasn't THAT good. :D

April 25- We're All in the Gutter, But Some of Us Are Looking at the Stars

Tonight I went to see The Soloist with me lovely father, hoping for something intriguing and hopeful...

This film was so much more. I will just start by saying that this is what a film should be.

Joe Wright, the director of The Soloist, has long been an inspiration of mine, and he always seems to capture emotion stunningly. I have watched his flawless adaptation of Pride and Prejudice over 30 time (seriously), and I never get bored with it. I still gasp and giggle in the heated moments between Elizabeth and Darcy, and I cry EVERY TIME when Mr. Bennett, played by Don Sutherland, gets emotional in the next to last scene. Atonement also took my breath away, especially the beautiful, lengthy pan of shores of France during war time. After seeing those two films and appreciating them so hugely, I should have known that The Soloist could only be better.

For a very quick synopsis: The Soloist is the true story of the LA Times reporter,  Steve Lopez (Robert Downey Jr.), and a homeless musical genius, Nathaniel Anthony Ayers Jr. (Jamie Foxx). Lopez, gritty and irritable, is always hunting for a story, and bumping into Ayers gives him a new scent. After discovering that Ayers is a Juilliard drop-out, the tale is too intriguing to let go. However predictable and simple this story line seems, it is layered with intense complication. In true Wright style, we see that no tale of human interaction can be the least bit simple. 

From then on, the path of the film takes twists and turns and never stops surprising. Many scenes are genuinely frightening. Wright, and his character of Lopez, have no fear of entering the world of the mentally ill, homeless, and addicted. Or, if they do, they battle it fiercely. But for as many moments that terrify, inhabiting the mind of Ayers, there are just as many moments that are filled with immense beauty. More than once I had to stop eating my popcorn mid-bite and stare, my breath stopped. I even cried more than once, and I NEVER cry in movies. One incredibly beautiful scene takes place in the Disney Music Hall where Ayers listens to an orchestra perform the music of his favorite composer, Ludwig Van Beethoven. For a good three minutes, all that is displayed on screen in accompaniment with the music is a beautiful light show, reminiscent of Fantasia, or 2001: A Space Odyssey. It is so emotional and spot-on, it retreats inside the human sub conscience. Afterwards, Ayers says, "I can feel him. He's in the room.", to which Lopez replies, "Who?". Ayers replies, "Beethoven." Usually I would roll my eyes at a moment like this, but for some reason it all feels so surprisingly real.

To me, what marks a great actor is the ability to retreat so willingly and deeply  into a character that the audience forgets who you are in "real life" for two hours. Marion Cotillard accomplished this in La Vie En Rose, and Jamie Foxx accomplished this in The Soloist. Foxx lets go of all inhibitions, all glamour and celebrity pretense, and launches himself into the body and mind of Ayers. It is truly a performance to commend. 

The Soloist feels full and round in a way that few movies do today. Lopez doesn't solve all the problems he would like to, but in other ways, he solves all the ones he can. The film feels realistic, but Wright does not forget his duty to transport and carry the audience, giving refuge sometimes, and sometimes holding it back. I am very VERY critical of films, and I rarely walk away feeling particularly enriched, but once in awhile, a film comes along like The Soloist. And on a last note: keep a look-out for Joe Wright. He is may just be the best director of a generation.

April 5- Wait! I Thought It Was A Comedy...

You may have heard this very phrase, and other similar ones, come from the mouths of many theatergoers stepping out of the movie "Adventureland", from the makers of the cult classic, "Superbad".  Probably the biggest mistake made by advertisers promoting this film, besides the misleading commercials, was to tag it with "Superbad".  I must admit that personally, when I saw "Superbad" (starring Michael Cera and Jonah Hill), I thought it was vulgar and pretty "unfunny". However, I must also say that to this day, after watching the movie over 20 times, it is one of my favorites. I cannot give the same hope of future redeem-ability to "Adventureland". This new film is far too dark and layered with the sexual frustration, weed and alcohol abuse, and the tunes of Lou Reed to come anywhere near the type of comedy "Superbad" was. 

Seeing as the day before viewing "Adventureland" was my 17th birthday, I wanted to buy my first R movie ticket as a legal 17 year old for a movie I looked forward to seeing. I wouldn't say that I didn't enjoy the movie, that I didn't laugh, or that I wasted 10 bucks, but it definitely wasn't the movie I bargained for. 

The film is set in 1987 and centers on James Brennan (Jesse Eisenberg), "James" to some, "Brennan" to others. We'll call him James. James has just graduated from college and is about to got backpacking across Europe with his rich best friend, planning to spend the next year of his life attending graduate school at Columbia. Sounds awesome, right? But not for long. James' mom drops the bomb that his father has been transferred to a lower-paying job and instead of Europe and Columbia, James can find a crap job and attempt to pay for grad school himself. Crap. James lands on a job at Adventureland, a summer-long run theme park that locates itself somewhere in the dreary wasteland of Upstate New York (or is it Jersey?) James falls in love with Em (Kristen Stewart), and from then on any vivaciousness in the environment is sucked out by Stewart's darkness... 

Aventureland is populated with some great characters, like Joel (Martin Starr) who not only plays the sweet Jewish nerd, but also brings nostalgia for Starr's character of Bill on the prematurely cancelled "Freaks and Geeks". There's also the park managers, played by Bill Hader and Kristin Wiig , who share hilarious chemistry. But these characters are not developed very well. The main plot line becomes so over-focussed that it's just...boring. 

James is pining over Em, who is sleeping with Adventureland's badass (Ryan Reynolds), who, incidentally, is a married man. Also, Em's mother has recently died of cancer and her stepmother is evil. Basically, she is really messed up. Even thought Kirsten Stewart does not spur one single laugh throughout the course of the film, and even though Jesse Eisenberg holds no charm, but only pity from the audience, somehow we are supposed to be rooting for their relationship. Not here. The chemistry was dead, the situation over-strained, the conclusion depressing, and the entire project unfruitful.

But, if you're into depressing movies about virginal failures attempting to get laid while in love with pits of despair, complete with retro costumes and a Lou Reed soundtrack, then be my guest! "Adventureland" is just for you.