Don’t miss Source Code, a gripping scifi thriller with intelligence and heart, starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Vera Farmiga and Michelle Monaghan.Poetry is a troubling, uncomfortable and profound film with a great performance by Koran actress Jeong-hie Yun. In a Better World is an ambitious contemplation on violence by Danish director Susanne Bier (Brothers, After the Wedding). Potiche, a delightful French farce of feminist self-discovery is the funniest movie in over a year, and another showcase for Catherine Deneuve (as if she needs one).
The Princess of Montpensier is an exquisitely beautiful romance about a 16th century French noblewoman who is forced by her father to marry – but not the man she loves; her new husband is unhealthily jealous and for good reason – various members of the Court fall in love with her and she is too immature to handle it well. Hanna is a rip roaring girl-power thriller starring Saiorse Ronan as a 16-year-old raised in the Arctic Circle to be a master assassin by her rogue secret agent father, and then released upon the CIA. The Robber is about an emotionless, compulsive bank robber who doesn’t care about the money, and you won’t care about him, either.
I haven’t yet seen Cave of Forgotten Dreams, Incendies or Queen to Play, which open this weekend. You can see trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.
My DVD pick is Somewhere.
Movies on TV this week include the epic Lawrence of Arabiaon TCM, which will look great on your wide screen HDTV – more on that tomorrow.
The Must See film is Source Code, a gripping scifi thriller with intelligence and heart, starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Vera Farmiga and Michelle Monaghan. Carancho is an Argentine love story nestled into a dark and violent noirish thriller, starring Ricardo Darin (The Secrets of Their Eyes, Nine Queens), the Argentine Joe Mantegna. Hanna is a rip roaring girl-power thriller starring Saiorse Ronan as a 16-year-old raised in the Arctic Circle to be a master assassin by her rogue secret agent father, and then released upon the CIA. Poetry is a troubling, uncomfortable and profound film with a great performance by Koran actress Jeong-hie Yun. In a Better World is an ambitious contemplation on violence by Danish director Susanne Bier (Brothers, After the Wedding). Potiche, a delightful French farce of feminist self-discovery is the funniest movie in over a year, and another showcase for Catherine Deneuve (as if she needs one). For trailers and other choices, see Movies to See Right Now.
I haven’t yet seen The Princess of Montpensier, which opens this weekend. You can see trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.
My DVD pick is Somewhere.
Movies on TV this week include the nature adventure Never Cry Wolf , the nastily dark noir Kiss Me Deadly and the brilliant Erroll Morris documentary Gates of Heaven on TCM.
This is Sofia Coppola’s (Lost in Translation) story of an A-list movie star (Steven Dorff) living at the Chateau Marmont with his expensive toys, booze and drugs and an inexhaustible supply of beautiful, sexually available women. Without any purpose or connection to others, his debauchery is completely joyless. To his surprise and discomfort, his eleven-year-old daughter (Elle Fanning) moves in for a few weeks. He slowly finds some connection to her, but then she leaves for summer camp and he is aimless, again.
Somewhere is an artsy portrait of a man so purposeless that he can find no pleasure in pleasure.
Fanning is great as the kid. Surprisingly, Jackass‘ Chris Pontius shines as the movie star’s best bud.
You can still see True Grit, The King’s Speech, Black Swan, The Fighter andAnother Year. They are on my Best Movies of 2010. 127 Hours and Biutiful are also good movies out now.The Illusionist is the wistful and charming animated story of a small time magician who drifts through an ever bleaker array of gigs while helping a waif blossom. Cedar Rapids is a fun and unpretentious comedy.
Jeff Bridges and Hailee Steinfeld, both Oscar-nominated, inTrue Grit
The must see films are still True Grit, The King’s Speech, Black Swan, The Fighter and Another Year. All are on my list of Best Movies of 2010. 127 Hours and Biutiful are also good movies out now. The Illusionist is the wistful and charming animated story of a small time magician who drifts through an ever bleaker array of gigs while helping a waif blossom.
Colin Firth in the King's Speech, about to pick up the Oscar he earned last year in A Single Man
True Grit, The King’s Speech, Black Swan and The Fighter are all crowd pleasers. A bit more challenging, Another Year and Rabbit Hole are also on my list of Best Movies of 2010. 127 Hours, The Way Back, Somewhere and Biutiful are also good movies out now.The Illusionist is the wistful and charming animated story of a small time magician who drifts through an ever bleaker array of gigs while helping a waif blossom.
Season of the Witch is a bad Nicholas Cage/Ron Perlman buddy movie set among the plague, crusades and witch hunts of the 13th century.
I haven’t seen Cedar Rapids (opening tomorrow), but you can its trailer and those of other upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.
My DVD pick is The Social Network. For my recent DVD choices (including trailers), see DVDs of the Week.
It’s a good week for movies on TV, including Quo Vadis, The Graduate, Gone With the Wind, Treasure of the Sierra Madre, Victor/Victoria, Mon Oncle, The Stunt Man, Do the Right Thing and Blow-Up on TCM.
If you want to see the Oscar nominees for Best Picture, I’d suggest catching True Grit, The King’s Speech, Black Swan and The Fighter in a theater.Another Year and Rabbit Hole are also on my list of Best Movies of 2010. 127 Hours, The Way Back, Somewhere and Biutiful are also good movies out now.
Another Year is Mike Leigh’s brilliant observation of the human condition, and asks why some people find contentment and others just cannot; Lesley Manville has the flashiest role – and gives the most remarkable performance – as a woman whose long trail of bad choices hasn’t left her with many options for a happy life. I also strongly recommend Rabbit Hole, an exquisite exploration of the grieving process with great performances by Nicole Kidman, Aaron Eckhardt, Diane Wiest, Sandra Oh and Miles Tenner.
Season of the Witch is a bad Nicholas Cage/Ron Perlman buddy movie set among the plague, crusades and witch hunts of the 13th century.
Ruth Sheen and Jim Broadbent in Mike Leigh's Another Year
There are more excellent movies in the theaters RIGHT NOW than any other time of the year. Right now, you can see Another Year, True Grit, The King’s Speech, Black Swan, The Way Back, Somewhere, Biutiful, The Fighter, Rabbit Hole and Fair Game. It just doesn’t get any better than this for movie fans.
True Grit is the Coen Brothers’ splendid Old West story of Mattie Ross, a girl of unrelenting resolve and moxie played by 14-year-old Hailee Steinfeld in a breakthrough performance, and Jeff Bridges is perfect as the hilarious, oft-besotted and frequently lethal Rooster Cogburn. The King’s Speech is the crowd pleasing story of a good man (Colin Firth) overcoming his stammer to inspire his nation in wartime with the help of a brassy commoner (Geoffrey Rush). Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan is a rip roaring thriller and a showcase for Natalie Portman and Barbara Hershey. Another Year is Mike Leigh’s brilliant observation of the human condition, and asks why some people find contentment and others just cannot; Lesley Manville has the flashiest role – and gives the most remarkable performance – as a woman whose long trail of bad choices hasn’t left her with many options for a happy life.
Biutiful is a grim, grim movie with a great performance by Javier Bardem in a compelling portrait of a desperate man in desperate circumstance, directed by Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu (Amores perros, 21 Grams, Babel).
Somewhere is Sofia Coppola’s (Lost in Translation) artsy portrait of a man so purposeless that he can find no pleasure in pleasure. An A-list movie star (Steven Dorff) is living at the Chateau Marmont with his expensive toys, booze and drugs and an inexhaustible supply of beautiful, sexually available women, but without Without any purpose or connection to others, his debauchery is completely joyless. To his surprise and discomfort, his eleven-year-old daughter (Elle Fanning) moves in for a few weeks.
The Way Back is inspired by the story of a 1940 escape from a Siberian gulag by men who walk over 4,000 miles to freedom in India – a trek of 4000 miles. It’s beautifully shot by director Peter Weir (Picnic at Hanging Rock, The Year of Living Dangerously, Witness, Master and Commander) but, eleven months of trudging through dangerous, unfamiliar territory while suffering from starvation and exposure is really impressive, but not that engaging.
I strongly recommend Rabbit Hole, an exquisite exploration of the grieving process with great performances by Nicole Kidman, Aaron Eckhardt, Diane Wiest, Sandra Oh and Miles Tenner. The Fighter is an excellent drama, starring Mark Wahlberg as a boxer trying to succeed despite his crack addict brother (Christian Bale) and trashy mom (Melissa Leo). Fair Game, the Valerie Plame/Joe Wilson story with Naomi Watts and Sean Penn, is also excellent. All are on my list of Best Movies of 2010.
I Love You, Phillip Morris is an entertaining offbeat combo of the con man, prison and romantic comedy genres. Red Hill is a stylish contemporary Aussie Western. Season of the Witch is a bad Nicholas Cage/Ron Perlman buddy movie set among the plague, crusades and witch hunts of the 13th century.
Somewhere: It's Dad/Daughter Month at the Chateau Marmont
Now is the time to catch future Oscar contenders on the big screen, especially crowd pleasers like True Grit, The King’s Speech and Black Swan.
True Grit is the Coen Brothers’ splendid Old West story of Mattie Ross, a girl of unrelenting resolve and moxie played by 14-year-old Hailee Steinfeld in a breakthrough performance, and Jeff Bridges is perfect as the hilarious, oft-besotted and frequently lethal Rooster Cogburn. The King’s Speech is the crowd pleasing story of a good man (Colin Firth) overcoming his stammer to inspire his nation in wartime with the help of a brassy commoner (Geoffrey Rush). Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan is a rip roaring thriller and a showcase for Natalie Portman and Barbara Hershey.
Biutiful is a grim, grim movie with a great performance by Javier Bardem in a compelling portrait of a desperate man in desperate circumstance, directed by Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu (Amores perros, 21 Grams, Babel).
Somewhere is Sofia Coppola’s (Lost in Translation) artsy portrait of a man so purposeless that he can find no pleasure in pleasure. An A-list movie star (Steven Dorff) is living at the Chateau Marmont with his expensive toys, booze and drugs and an inexhaustible supply of beautiful, sexually available women, but without Without any purpose or connection to others, his debauchery is completely joyless. To his surprise and discomfort, his eleven-year-old daughter (Elle Fanning) moves in for a few weeks.
I strongly recommend Rabbit Hole, an exquisite exploration of the grieving process with great performances by Nicole Kidman, Aaron Eckhardt, Diane Wiest, Sandra Oh and Miles Tenner. The Fighter is an excellent drama, starring Mark Wahlberg as a boxer trying to succeed despite his crack addict brother (Christian Bale) and trashy mom (Melissa Leo). Fair Game, the Valerie Plame/Joe Wilson story with Naomi Watts and Sean Penn, is also excellent. All are on my list of Best Movies of 2010.
I Love You, Phillip Morris is an entertaining offbeat combo of the con man, prison and romantic comedy genres. Red Hill is a stylish contemporary Aussie Western. Season of the Witch is a bad Nicholas Cage/Ron Perlman buddy movie set among the plague, crusades and witch hunts of the 13th century.
Now we’re at the time of year when the award-aspiring movies are released just in time for Oscar eligibility. Trailers and descriptions are on my Movies I’m Looking Forward To page.
We’ll start on December 22 with Sofia Coppola’s (Lost in Translation) semiautographical Somewhere. On Christmas Day, the Coen Brothers open their version of True Grit. The King’s Speech, with Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush and Helena Bonham-Carter, will finally get its wide release.
On the 29th, I’ll be awaiting Another Year, a potential masterpiece by one of my favorite directors, Mike Leigh. We’ll also have a flashy performance by Javier Bardem in a contemporary Job story – Biutiful. Kevin Spacey will star in a real life story of political corruption in Casino Jack. Peter Weir (Master and Commander, Picnic at Hanging Rock) will showcase The Way Back.
The year’s final release will be the offbeat un-romance Blue Valentine, with Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams. Festival critics loved and hated this film. The trailer, which depicts the beginning of a relationship that falls apart during the movie, is quite charming.
