|
And the Oscar
goes to:
No Country for
Old Men ***
reviewed by the Phantom
By now everybody has probably heard just how awful this movie really is --
so awful that it's a box office dud. So awful that the kids who love gore
aren't even showing up to gasp at it. The only reason I saw this movie is
because it won the Oscar and I have a perfect record that I want to keep
intact.
So it took some
thinking to get past the gruesome nature of this film to figure out just
why it won the award. We have to start with Cormac McCarthy, the Western
writer of note who dreamed up this horror story, which takes place
somewhere near Hard Scrabble, Texas. To say life is hard in Hard Scrabble
is an understatement, and places like that turn out some hard folks.
McCarthy's prose is unique. His characters embody the difficulties faced
by people who live hard lives in hard places.
This story is
simple, sort of, a hunter finds a bunch of kilt people lying around the
desert outback, most of them deader than door nails, it's a drug deal gone
bad, very bad. Then the hunter stumbles on a whole lot of cash, say around
two million dollars worth. It's not his money, of course, but he takes it
and tries to keep it. The really bad guy, a psychopathic killer, is the
one who wants that money back, and the chase is on.
The next thing to
consider: This would have been a slasher-style B movie if not for the Cohen brothers,
who won the Oscar for directing it. They somehow brought McCarthy's words
to life with visual images that startle us beyond words. And I don't think
that was an easy task. They captured the brutality of place and combined
it with the nastiness of the most desperate human beings on earth, people
without a conscience.
This is a film
about those kind of people, it's a film about killing without reason,
without remorse and without redemption, so don't be looking for a happy
ending!
Atonement ***
reviewed by the Phantom
This movie was based on Ian McEwan's novel. Those who read it say it
was faithful to the book. I thought it was a rather pretentious movie, so self-consciously sure of itself, and looking as though it had already
won the Academy Award (sorry, Oscar went the other way). It's one of those
British stories of deceit, this time by a very young and spoiled little
girl. Her actions have a tremendous effect on those that she wronged. She
eventually feels bad about what she did and tries to make things right, that's
the atonement part, but things don't always work out the way we want them
to.
The opening of
the movie drags a bit, I even felt myself growing sleepy but then I
remembered that something important happens so I managed to stay awake for
it. After "the incident", the pace picked up and the story moved right
along. The Dunkirk scenes are some of the most haunting I've ever watched. The acting
is great, very believable, even that bratty girl, who was nominated for an
award, but didn't win (whew).
Bourne
Ultimatum **
reviewed by the Phantom
I heard the rumor that this movie was filmed without a script. It shows. Matt Damon
lopes his way through this one, and I can really buy into the idea that he
was making it up as he went along. There's no real "there" there
even though we are supposed to learn the real reason why Bourne doesn't
know who he really is or what has happened to him. The chase scenes are
unending. The ending is weak and doesn't begin to explain "everything".
But those who love chase scenes and endless, wild nonsense will love this
film, the rest of you can fast forward to the last half hour and cringe
through the last act, hopefully, of the Bourne saga.
Charlie
Wilson's War ***
reviewed by the Phantom
Tom Hanks and Julie Roberts star together in this bio pic. Sounds like an odd
couple, but
it works. Tom plays Charlie, a free-wheeling DC politician who can get
things done. Tom is believable in this role, but somehow I get the idea
that the real Charlie was probably not quite as honorable as Tom plays
him. (Just my opinion, since I don't know a thing about the real Charlie
Wilson.) The movie eventually gets around to its purpose: that first war
in Afghanistan, the one that the Russians lost due to the efforts of the
Afghani people that Charlie was eventually able to help. Conveniently, or
politically, the editors left out the name of the main guy that the CIA
equipped with those stinger missiles. Those of us who watch Sixty Minutes
regularly know that it was Osama bin Laden that Charlie's money went to.
But the movie wouldn't be able to create those lovely patriotic overtones
if they revealed that information. Whatever. It was a good movie.
In Bruges ****
reviewed by the Phantom
Two Irish hit men are holed up in Bruges, possibly awaiting word of their
next job. The young guy hates Bruges and cannot see how quaint, lovely,
and charming the city is. The older hit man is in love with the city, a
perfect tourist-hit man. This romantic European city is the perfect
backdrop for this comedy-drama. The movie is extremely well-paced and
beautifully rendered. Terrific acting by all three bad guys. Don't bring
the kids. A movie about hit men, even one billed as a comedy, will not
have a happy ending. Nothing good ever happens to hit men.
Kite Runner
***
reviewed by the Phantom
Hasn't just about everybody read this book by now? The movie follows the
book's storyline very closely, the scenery is wonderful, it has a truly
authentic look and feel, great acting. Interesting, intense story. The
kite sequences are great. My only problem with this movie is with the kites
themselves. I don't get it --"kite-cutting". Why do kite fliers have to
chase each other out of the skies? What kind of a cruel game is this
anyhow?
Michael
Clayton ***
reviewed by the Phantom
I'm crazy about George Clooney so I was really looking forward to seeing
this movie. Clayton is a lawyer. As he explains it: he's the fixer-janitor
for his law firm. This is not prestigious lawyer work, it's cleaning up
the messes that clients and other lawyers make. It's dirty work and
apparently Clayton is good at it. However, this movie gets sort of muddled
because of the complicated plot twists and the flashbacks. As with other Clooney films, it is
not told in a straight-forward manner. Some of us are a little slow on the
uptake so it's sometimes puzzling to figure things out. Plus, there are a
few plot points that are a bit hard to swallow, but we must swallow hard
to be able to stay with this very complicated film about cover ups,
under-handed lawyering, and class action suits gone bad. They needed John
Grisham's firm hand to fix up the script before they tackled this subject.
It could have been a much better movie.
Ratatouille
***
reviewed by the Phantom
A Disney animated feature film. It's about a Rat who can talk and cook
-- he can cook really well -- chef-level cooking, not just routine rat
cooking. He goes to Paris, but of course, because that's where the great
chef's are, but his favorite chef -- his idol -- is dead. Alors! He
befriends a total loser kitchen worker and through him Rat is able to do
his stuff. The kitchen work is fun, especially when the rats take over.
Wonderful Disney fun, rats everywhere, lots of rat racing. This is a
totally ratty adventure -- a proven Oscar winner. It's really for
grown-ups, the kids won't get the jokes.
|
