The Official Review Thread of 2009

[Damien]

THE HURT LOCKER
Cast: Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, Brian Geraghty, Christian Camargo, Guy Pearce, Ralph Fiennes, David Morse, Evangeline Lilly, Suhail Aldabbach, Christopher Sayegh, Nabil Koni.
Dir: Kathryn Bigelow.

This is probaby the first great narrative feature on the 2003 Iraq War.

What narrative?

[anonymous1980]

THE HURT LOCKER
Cast: Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, Brian Geraghty, Christian Camargo, Guy Pearce, Ralph Fiennes, David Morse, Evangeline Lilly, Suhail Aldabbach, Christopher Sayegh, Nabil Koni.
Dir: Kathryn Bigelow.

This is probaby the first great narrative feature on the 2003 Iraq War. This intense, superbly directed war film about bomb disposal technicians kept me at the edge of my seat if it wasn't gripping me with its compelling drama. Great performances by the three leads, Renner especially.

Oscar Prospects: Should get in Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor (Renner), Best Supporting Actor (Mackie), Best Original Screenplay, Best Sound, Best Sound Editing, Best Cinematography and Best Editing.

Grade: B+

(500) DAYS OF SUMMER
Cast: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Zooey Deschanel, Geoffrey Arend, Chloe Grace Moretz, Matthew Gray Gubler, Clark Gregg.
Dir: Marc Webb.

Most romantic comedies these days almost make me wanna slash my wrists. Not this one. I agree with the people who say that this is Annie Hall for Generation Y. Joseph Gordon-Levitt carries this film with his charming performance. Its quirky style of filmmaking actually enhances, not distracts from the story.

Oscar Prospects: Original Screenplay and Editing are strong possibilities. Wouldn't begrudge it nods in Best Picture, Best Actor and Best Director either.

Grade: A-

[anonymous1980]

Samson and Delilah (Warwick Thornton) ***1/2 - Samson and Delilah are two young Aborigines who decide to leave their tiny isolated town into the harsh unforgiving "real" world. The version I saw did not have English subtitles (it was in French) and more than half the spoken dialogue is in Aboriginal language but that doesn't matter because there was barely any actual dialogue in the film. What remains is a fascinating story of a journey between two young people. Excellent performances by the two leads. This is Australia's entry to the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar category. I hope it gets a nom.

[Penelope]

Paris (2008; Cédric Klapisch) 7/10

(placed here due to current release in the U.S.)

Life, love and death in the City of Lights. Young dancer Pierre (Romain Duris) learns that his heart is failing, so his sister Elise (Juliette Binoche) moves in with her children; from his balcony, they observe the variety of life in Paris, reflecting on their hopes, desires, needs. An ensemble piece in which all the characters are loosely tied to each other, but tied close to each other through the city in which they live. Story is a bit obvious, but a strong cast (especially Fabrice Luchini as a professor who falls poetically and pathetically in love with a student) and the wonderous city itself make it a pleasure throughout.

[anonymous1980]

INGLORIOUS BASTERDS
Cast: Brad Pitt, Melanie Laurent, Christoph Waltz, Michael Fassbender, Eli Roth, Diane Kruger, Til Schweiger, Gedeon Burkhard, Jacky Ido, Mike Myers, B.J. Novak, Samm Levine, Rod Taylor.
Dir: Quentin Tarantino.

Yes, it's self-indulgent. Yes, it's far from being historically accurate. Yes, it's chockful of film references. But, hey, it's Tarantino. Going to a Tarantino film and complaining about it being "self-indulgent" is like going to heavy metal concert and complaining that it's too loud. I make no apologies for really enjoying Tarantino and I definitely enjoyed the hell out of this movie. Brad Pitt may have gotten top-billing but I think Christoph Waltz and Melanie Laurent are the stars. One of my favorite movies of the year (so far).

Oscar Prospects: I wouldn't mind this getting Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay noms. But it's a lock for Best Supporting Actor (Waltz). Maybe for Best Film Editing, Best Art Direction, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design and Best Sound.

Grade: A

[FilmFan720]

Capitalism: A Love Story (Michael Moore)

Every Moore film reconciles moments of common man outrage with the B.S. of his cheap seats-pandering, ie clips of JESUS OF NAZARETH with dubbing of "I can't heal you. It's a pre-existing condition." Blech!

Caught up with this today (discovered an auto repair shop that shares a parking lot with an AMC near our new house...drop the car off, see a movie, come back and the car is ready!). I see exactly where Sabin is coming from, and agree with him all out on this one. Although, I found the Jesus fairly amusing and thought that the obnoxious Michael Moore stunts were scaled back this time (maybe because he has enough NEW material to teach us about...derivatives, dead peasants, good insight from Congressional members, FDR's bill of rights) that he doesn't need to pander with his Moore escapades (although the police tape makes a nice closing image).

The major problem that the film has, though, is that I don't think Michael Moore has any sort of thesis here. He says that capitalism is all evil, and must be done with...yet the opening of the film gives us an Eden-like, 1960s capitalist culture that Moore seems to love. Is it inherintely evil, like he says, or has it become evil? Can it be fixed? And if not capitalism, than what? He gives not a single answer here, and the answers don't jump out here (like don't go to war, or get rid of drugs, or give people health care).

Also, he goes on one of his Michael Moore adventures here trying to arrest CEOs and trying to get into GM (again). Does he not realize that these escapades turn the wrong person into the villains. He turns these security guards into the bad guy, and belittles their attempts to get rid of him, but they are not the villain here. They are blue collar guys trying to squeeze out a living and trying to do their job. They have no power to let Michael Moore into a building, will probably get fired for it, yet in film and film again he prods them and turns them into bad guys. These are the type of people you are fighting for, Moore...find better villains or skip the escapade.

[kaytodd]

Lorna's Silence, dir. Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne
8/10

I hope there are people who read the posts on this board who vote in the NSFC, NBR, NYFCC and the other precursor awards or are friends with people who do. I would love it if there was a lot of Oscar buzz for Arta Dobroshi's performance as Lorna, if not a Lead Actress nomination. I was mesmerized watching her character develop into a caring human being during the course of the film, though she cannot forget the desperate personal circumstances that led her to be the cold heartless person she was at the beginning.

Desperation caused Lorna to get involved in these unsavory activities with these unsavory men. But she was a willing participant willing to hurt people to get what she wants. Eventually her human side was touched and, while she remained "silent" because she really could not do otherwise (Lorna has very little control over her life), her human side caused her to rebel in surprising and touching ways. And Jeremie Renier is also terrific as the character responsible for bringing out her human side.

I thought this was a very interesting story. I can see why it won the screenplay award at Cannes back in May. I was aware there was money to be made by making people with western European citizenship available for marriage to people who want western European citizenship. But watching this film and the complications that can arise from these arrangements was a revelation to me and I was fascinated.

I had a similar experience with another film that is also among my favorite 2009 releases, Sin Nombre. Besides having a good suspenseful chase story, it did a great job showing the experiences of desperate people emigrating from Central America to the U.S. I enjoyed the story and learned a lot about something important. I had the same experience with Lorna's Silence.

But the most important thing I took home last night after watching Lorna's Silence is that Arta Dobroshi's name should be mentioned a lot this December and January. I do not think she will be able to knock Benning, Mulligan, Sidibe, Swank, et al. out of the top five, but she would be a deserving nominee.

[kaytodd]

The Informant! (Soderbergh) 7/10

Boy, is this film badly served by its advertising campaign. I had little interest in seeing it because the trailer and TV ads made it seem like a silly comedy that we are expected to enjoy because of Matt Damon's broad comic performance. But good reviews from critics and friends and my high opinion of Soderbergh got me to see it. I highly recommend it.

This is a complex and very human tragicomedy. I was genuinely surprised by the twist toward the end. I was also genuinely moved by the interplay among Scott Bakula, Damon and Melanie Lynskey during the scene when Damon discovers his secret is out.

Damon is wonderful as Whitacre. The comic moments the trailers focus on turned me off when I saw the trailers. I thought they were funny while watching the film. But these comic moments are the product of a deeply disturbed, albeit brilliant, person. He has absurd visions of his own grandiosity and, on the face of it, Whitacre's actions and his motivations are very strange. But Damon makes me buy every bit of it and he makes Whitacre a complex but believable character I cared about. I think Damon's performance is worthy of Oscar consideration but I would think there would be five better performances by the end of the year.



Edited By kaytodd on 1255224883

[Damien]

35 Shots Of Rum -- Claire Denis

This is a lovely, if occasionally a mite over-stated, meditation on alone-ness and human connections and needs.

8/10

[jowy_jillia]

Adoration - 7.5/10
Antichrist - 9.5/10
Broken Embraces - 7/10
Brüno - 2.5/10
Chéri - 7/10
Confessions of a Shopaholic - 6/10
Coraline - 7/10
District 9 - 7/10
Dolan's Cadillac - 5/10
Duplicity - 7/10
Easy Virtue - 5.5/10
Everlasting Moments - 9.5/10
The Edge of Love - 7/10
The Hangover - 7/10
The Hurt Locker - 9/10
Inglourious Basterds - 10/10
Julia - 6.5/10
Lemon Tree - 9/10
Ponyo - 9/10
Public Enemies - 8/10
State of Play - 6.5/10
Terminator Salvation - 6/10
Two Lovers - 7/10
Up - 8.5/10
Watchmen - 7/10
Whatever Works - 7/10
The White Ribbon - 10/10
The Young Victoria - 7/10

Since I'm listing my movies with their US release dates (even though I live in Sweden) this is the movie i've seen not released in US:

I Taket Lyser Stjärnorna - 6.5/10
Mammoth - 6.5/10
Vincere - 9.5/10

[Penelope]

Le Silence de Lorna (2008; Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardenne) 5/10

(Here due to its current release in the US)

Disappointing Dardenne Brothers film mines territory they've already explored, but this time less convincingly. Lead character is more stupid than silent and anybody who's ever watched a soap opera knows what will happen mid-way through. Some very strong acting, however, especially from my beloved Jérémie Renier.

[Sabin]

Surrogates (Jonathan Mostow)

Jonathan Mostow is to flair and mood as T. Scott is to establishing shots. If you want something anonymously gratifying, he's your guy. If you want anything evocative to the senses: seek elsewhere. This is a pretty solid concept with a narrative that for most of its running time (at least until the third act) moves along pretty decently, finding satisfying little ways to set-up and pay-off, even though portraits of domestic decay fall flat. Mostow's point-and-shoot aesthetic works fine with films like U-571 and Breakdown but not Surrogates which requires some form of intoxicating mood if not vision for the future.

He's not helped by the fact that the film ends at what should be the all-is-lost moment, a whammy of a visual that demands exploration. I won't spoil it here but it's all up and down the trailer. This is a tragically underachieving genre film. Young Willis Surrogate is creepy.

[Sabin]

Capitalism: A Love Story (Michael Moore)

Every Moore film reconciles moments of common man outrage with the B.S. of his cheap seats-pandering, ie clips of JESUS OF NAZARETH with dubbing of "I can't heal you. It's a pre-existing condition." Blech! And yet it's so strange to see any movie with footage as recent as ten months ago. Next to SICKO, this is the Moore film with the most angering footage I've seen. Anything with the Dead Peasants Clause, anything on the bail-outs, and FDR's movie of the Second Bill of Rights is pretty incendiary, but I prefer Moore's issue-specific "docs" (SICKO, ROGER AND ME) to his broader social climate canvases (BOWLING FOR COLUMBINE, FAHRENHEIT 9/11). This is certainly the latter and it has the feel of a swan song in so much as it encapsulates every conceit of his oeuvre figuratively and literally as he returns to Flint and GM. I have no use for Moore nostalgia. This movie will do everything you expect it to do. It's somewhat worthwhile and more than occasionally makes you want to lift a torch and march. No SICKO though.

[Uri]

Hey Uri....it's only a silly movie. Chill.

(Biting my tongue, not willing to go and have another pissing contest of cultural sensitivities).

I guess I would be willing to be more forgiving had it been an entertaining silly movie. Peace.

[Reza]

Inglorious Basterds - ?/10
I'm still trying to figure out if Basterds is meant to be alterna-history or mere fantasy. If the former, then the film is addressing some very interesting ideological issues. If the latter, it's just Tarantino jerking off.

I'm afraid it's the latter.

When I first heard about this project, I thought it was going to be about the (real) Jewish squads which went after Nazis during the aftermath of WWII. While being apprehensive of the prospect of such an enterprise, I was intrigued by it. Then, as I learned more about it, I just knew I would have problems with its premise. But I tend to be able to like Tarantino's movies. And I was aware of the suggested option, that this piece could be read as an ironic statement about the way history is cinematically depicted an Israeli leading critic stated it does exactly what Steindler's List did, meaning it offers a way for the viewer to "experience" the holocaust, but in a corrective, positive, life enforcing way (the-showers-in-Auschwitz-being-real-showers anybody?) yet this time it's done with the full awareness of the fact that, by definition, Cinema is nothing more than fantasy, a notion Spielberg seemed to be self importantly oblivious of. I was willing to try and put my biased preconditioned on hold, but it didn't really work for me on any level.

First, I'm quite fed up with "self reflective" cinema. Or at least I don't find cinematic references to be an automatic turn-on. And while I'm aware that Tarantino's opus is all about this kind of film making, I guess I am less willing to accept The Kentucky Fried Movie version of these particular historical events. I can be slightly prissy at times. And as far as revenge fantasies go, I objectively felt this one was short in the catharsis department they rushed the demises of the greatest villains in history Hitler! Goebbels! Goring! Jannings! without allowing us to dwell in it. But most of all, I didn't want to have anything to do with the movie protagonists, those Inglourious Basterds (the title was erroneously, if unintentionally indicatively, translated to Hebrew as Dishonorable Bastards).

While I'm not really into violence festivities on screen, I did enjoy Death Proof and Kill Bill (Vol. 1, not so 2). Yes, it had a lot to do with the tongue in cheek aspect of them, but it also had a lot to do with the fact that the protagonists were female. That (pseudo) subversive reversal of positionings made it emotionally acceptable for me. A Black put down Whites is funny, the opposite is not, a racial remark made by a Jew about Germans can be tolerated, not so if it's the other way round. The same way, I have no inclination to follow a bunch of smug, white male Americans re-ventilating their primal violent tendencies with any kind of admiration. Not attractive at all in my book. Maybe if it was indeed about Holocaust survivors (although I'd have a set of totally other apprehensions in such a case). Or even better why not make it about a gang of black slaves killing plantations owners, or if you must set it in a cinematically active era, black activists getting even with KKK members. But no way, this will be too risky, it will strike some cords one must not touch.

But after all is said and done, it comes to the unpleasant feeling I was left with, and it was not unlike what I felt about Life is Beautiful, that this is a case of a rather clueless person who's using the grandest, most universally (universe=west) acknowledged, sexiest historic calamity to promote his personal philosophical, aesthetic and/or artistic agenda, knowing it would ensure a built in interest-controversy-prestige-whatever for his project. I wasn't flat-out impressed back then, nor am I now. (And just like Begnini in '98, Tarantino felt obliged to personally come to Israel, charm the natives and get a seal of approval in return, which he did we just love to be seen open minded).

Hey Uri....it's only a silly movie. Chill.