Movies to See Right Now

Matthew McConaughey in KILLER JOE

Killer Joe is NC-17 for a reason and will either thrill or disgust you; that notwithstanding, it pops and crackles with excellent performances by Mathew McConaughey and Juno Temple.  Ruby Sparks is an hilariously inventive romance that probes whether realizing a fantasy can bring happiness.  The Intouchables is a crowd pleasing odd couple comedy – an attendance record breaker in France.

It’s worth seeking out the compelling documentary Searching for Sugar Man, about the hunt to uncover the secret fate of an artist that didn’t know that he was a rock star.  The same holds for Bill W., the story of the reluctant leader of a movement, the founder of Alcoholics Anonymous.

The brilliantly made Louisiana swamp fable Beasts of the Southern Wild enters the life and imagination of a child and celebrates her indomitability. It’s on my list of Best Movies of 2012 – So Far.

Farewell, My Queen is a lavishly staged and absorbing French drama of Marie Antoinette’s Versailles at the onset of the French Revolution; it features excellent performances and was shot at Versailles itself.

The wistfully sweet and visually singular Moonrise Kingdom is another must see, and it’s hanging around some theaters.  Adults will enjoy Brave, Pixar’s much anticipated fable of a Scottish princess, and it’s a must see for kids.

The Dark Night Rises is too corny and too long, but Anne Hathaway sparkles. Magic Mike has male stripping, but no magic.  The relationship drama 360, which opens this week, is a snoozer.

I haven’t yet seen the franchise thriller The Bourne Legacy with Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker).  You can read descriptions and view trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.

My DVD pick this week is the American spy documentary, The Man Nobody Knew: In Search of My Father, CIA Spymaster William Colby.

Movies to See Right Now

Emile Hirsch, Gina Gershon, Thomas Haden Church and Juno Temple in KILLER JOE

Killer Joe, which opens this week, is NC-17 for a reason and will either thrill or disgust you; that notwithstanding, it pops and crackles with excellent performances by Mathew McConaughey and Juno Temple. 

The Intouchables is a crowd pleasing odd couple comedy – an attendance record breaker in France.

The brilliantly made Louisiana swamp fable Beasts of the Southern Wild enters the life and imagination of a child and celebrates her indomitability. It’s on my list of Best Movies of 2012 – So Far.

Farewell, My Queen is a lavishly staged and absorbing French drama of Marie Antoinette’s Versailles at the onset of the French Revolution; it features excellent performances and was shot at Versailles itself.

Dark Horse is an engaging dramedy from writer-director Todd Solondz (Welcome to the Dollhouse, Happiness); it has his trademark quirkiness, but without the trademark perversion.

The wistfully sweet and visually singular Moonrise Kingdom is another must see. Adults will enjoy Brave, Pixar’s much anticipated fable of a Scottish princess, and it’s a must see for kids. To Rome with Love is an amusing Woody Allen comedy, but not one of Woody’s masterpieces. If you really like Neil Young, then see Neil Young Journeys. The exceptionally popular The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel is continuing its long run in second-run houses.

The Dark Night Rises is too corny and too long, but Anne Hathaway sparkles. Magic Mike has male stripping, but no magic.

You can read descriptions and view trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.

My DVD pick this week is from Turkey, the long, enthralling and profound Once Upon a Time in Anatolia.  I must add that The Movie Gourmet is the only place where you can read about Killer Joe and Once Upon a Time in Anatolia in the same week!

Movies to See Right Now

THE INTOUCHABLES

The Intouchables is a crowd pleasing odd couple comedy from France, which is finally opening more widely.

The brilliantly made Louisiana swamp fable Beasts of the Southern Wild enters the life and imagination of a child and celebrates her indomitability. It’s on my list of Best Movies of 2012 – So Far.

Farewell, My Queen is a lavishly staged and absorbing French drama of Marie Antoinette’s Versailles at the onset of the French Revolution; it features excellent performances and was shot at Versailles itself.

Dark Horse is an engaging dramedy from writer-director Todd Solondz (Welcome to the Dollhouse, Happiness); it has his trademark quirkiness, but without the trademark perversion.

The wistfully sweet and visually singular Moonrise Kingdom is another must see. Adults will enjoy Brave, Pixar’s much anticipated fable of a Scottish princess, and it’s a must see for kids.  To Rome with Love is an amusing Woody Allen comedy, but not one of Woody’s masterpieces.  If you really like Neil Young, then see Neil Young Journeys. The exceptionally popular The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel is continuing its long run in second-run houses.

The Dark Night Rises is too corny and too long, but Anne Hathaway sparkles.  Magic Mike has male stripping, but no magic.

You can read descriptions and view trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.

My DVD pick this week is Woody Allen: A Documentary.

Farewell, My Queen: a palace teeters on the brink

This lavishly staged  and absorbing costume drama depicts Marie Antoinette’s Versailles at the onset of the French Revolution.  The story is set during the three pivotal days following the storming of the Bastille.  We view the Upstairs Downstairs of the palace through the eyes of the Queen’s personal reader, played compellingly by Lea Seydoux.  Seydoux’s performance is key to the movies’ success.  When Upstairs, we see her flattering the Queen and observing the Queen’s intimate moments – without becoming an intimate. When Downstairs, we see her unfiltered personality and opinions.

The performance by Diane Kruger as the Queen is equally good.   Her days are designed for her entertainment, and a battalion of servants scurry about to gratify every caprice.  In the days before remote controls, the ADD monarch uses her servant to skip from whim to whim.  She is supreme, but also vulnerable because she craves another person and because she comes to realize that the monarchy itself is threatened.

Virginie Ledoyen plays the Queen’s intimate friend the charismatic social climbing Duchess of Polignac.  In a secondary but essential role, Ledoyen exudes the sexual magnetism that has captivated a queen.

The fourth star of the film is Versailles itself – the movie was shot in the actual palace.   Farewell, My Queen is directed by Benoit Jacquot, and he makes Versailles come alive as a palace, not the museum it is today.  An army of servants bustle about to serve the royals and the nobles.  Even the ostentatiously clad resident aristocrats scuttle like cockroaches for a peek at the king or queen.  It’s a real treat – even those of us who have visited the Queen’s bedroom in Versailles haven’t seen it at night, lit only by the fireplace and candles.

Unfortunately, the ending wraps up the stories of the historical figures Marie Antoinette and The Duchess of Polignac but fails to address the fate of the palace servants who we’ve been following and relating to throughout the film.  I understand that Seydoux’s character is fictional, but we want to know what happened to those vivid characters that are themselves worrying about their own lots.

You might also want to read this superb Mick LaSalle review.

Movies to See Right Now

BEASTS OF THE SOUTHERN WILD

The brilliantly made Louisiana swamp fable Beasts of the Southern Wild enters the life and imagination of a child and celebrates her indomitability.  It’s on my list of Best Movies of 2012 – So Far.

The wistfully sweet and visually singular Moonrise Kingdom is another must see. Adults will enjoy Brave, Pixar’s much anticipated fable of a Scottish princess, and it’s a must see for kids.   If you can still find it, I recommend the romantic character study Take This Waltz, starring the great Michele Williams in an exploration of attraction and fulfillment from a woman’s perspective.

Continuing a very long run, the story of aged Brits seeking a low-budget retirement in India, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, is a proven crowd pleaser. Men In Black 3 is delightfully entertaining, as Will Smith time travels back to 1969 and meets the young Tommy Lee Jones (nailed by Josh Brolin).

To Rome with Love is an amusing Woody Allen comedy, but not one of Woody’s masterpieces. Prometheus is a striking and well-acted sci fi adventure with a horror film tinge; I recommend it for sci fi fans.  If you really like Neil Young, then see Neil Young Journeys.

Magic Mike has male stripping, but no magic. Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter has blood-sucking, irony and not enough of either to justify watching it.   Your Sister’s Sister wastes a promising premise and a superb performance.

I haven’t yet seen Dark Horse, The Dark Knight Rises or Farewell, My Queen, which open this weekend.  You can read descriptions and view trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.

My DVD pick this week is the documentary This Is Not a Robbery, the true story of a nonagenarian serial bank robber.

More July Movies

Other than the superb Beasts of the Southern Wild and Take This Waltz, it hasn’t shaped up to be a very rich July at the movies.  But I’m interested in three upcoming releases.

Dark Horse is an indie comedy by Todd Solondz (Welcome to the Dollhouse) in which an epic underachiever falls in love with a heavily medicated depressive.  Reportedly, Solondz’ take on these characters is clear-eyed, but not mean.

Christian Bale growls on in Christopher Nolan’s newest chapter of the Bat Man saga, The Dark Knight Rises.  The cast includes Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Anne Hathaway, Marion Cotillard, Michael Caine, Tom Hardy, Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman, Juno Temple and Liam Neeson.

Farewell, My Queen is a lavishly staged French costume drama tracing the end of Marie Antoinette’s reign.  Early reviews focus on the performances by Diane Kruger as the Queen, Virginie Ledoyen as the Queen’s intimate friend and Lea Seydoux as the servant with ambiguous motives.

You can read descriptions and view trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To. Here’s the trailer for Farewell, My Queen: