Category: Movie Reviews

Historically, good films choose not to place their openings during Super Bowl weekend in order to not be humbly defeated by the number one watched TV event of the year.  So when a film written and produced by Luc Besson (Leon the Professional) is introduced with a spectacular trailer, I really thought that this trend would be broken.  Then I saw the movie.  Taken is not a bad film, but it is far from good.

What works in the film is the second act, where Neeson goes after the kidnappers by himself.  Neeson seems a bit miscast (I think Denzel Washington would have been a much better choice), but he is a capable actor and pulls the role off fine.  The revenge aspect of the film, which takes up most of the picture, is creative and well executed (no pun intended).  I do think an R rating would have been more appropriate and believable, but if you can watch a film where people don’t bleed when they get shot or stabbed, then you won’t have a problem here. 

I would reckon a guess that this might have been the most challenging film to make in recent memory.  It’s not challenging in regard to special effects, controversy, etc…, but rather due to the question of “how can you possibly make a two hour movie about an interview interesting?”  The answer is a terrific screenplay by Peter Morgan (The Queen) and Ron Howard running the show.  This outstanding production team made a potentially horifyingly boring story into a fast paced thriller-of-a-drama that proves to be more exciting than Howard’s previous critical flop The Davinci Code. 

It also helps to have the two actors from the Broadway show (Langella and Sheen) who came to the set with a pre-loaded chemistry that shines on film.  Along with a solid supporting cast including Oliver Platt, Sam Rockwell, and Keving Bacon, great acting is everywhere you look on screen. 

    There is a day for most kids where Saturday morning cartoons and Sesame Street have grown old and you are looking for something to fill the gap.  For me that gap was filled with professional wrestling.  Even though we only had 7 channels on TV, wrestling was on enough for me to get my fix.  Between Hulk Hogan, Roddy Piper, Junk Yard Dog, Randy Savage, and others, I couldn’t wait to see the soap opera of athletes.  Now, many years later, wrestling has changed completely, and those previously mentioned stars (with the exception of the smart businessman Hogan), are gone from the public eye.  I’d like to think that they didn’t follow the path of our fictional hero “The Ram,” but upon discussing these wrestlers with Director Darren Aronofsky recently over pizza before an advance screening of the wrestler, my fears were confirmed.  One by one we discussed all of the names we remembered, and his research showed very similar stories, in tone, for them all.  It’s a tough sport, which requires heavy damage upon the body, both in physicality and the drugs they all have to take to keep the muscles looking abnormally large. 

    So watching this film with all of my childhood memories and current concerns thrown in the blender, I couldn’t help but get pulled into what could have been the life of my one-time heroes.  The bittersweet drama of a story here is as close to perfect as you can get.  Whether you are watching him try to get something started with a local stripper (Tomei) or trying to mend a relationship with his neglected daughter (Wood), you can’t help but get a sense of authenticity from this tale.

As for the acting – it really is as good as they are saying.  Rourke has been doing nothing but horrible films and throwaway roles for years (with the exception of Sin City) and this movie proves that the talent is still there.  In my conversation with Darren, he scared me quite a bit when he told me that the studio didn’t want Rourke, but rather Nicholas Cage for the film.  He was so confident of Rourke that he decided to skip the studio system and make the film independently, ensuring that the cast would stay the same as he originally conceived.  Maybe it was dedication to the director that Mickey felt, or maybe it’s because he saw too much of himself in the character, but whatever it is, Rourke’s performance here is the best performance of 2008 and should give him a strong chance of taking home an Oscar. 

    I will start by admitting that this is a very interesting story.  As a true tale of heroism, I find the actual events to be rather inspirational.  That being said, the main fault of this film lies within the script.  Throughout the film, much of the dialogue rings false and the many of the characters seem like stereotypes rather than real life-folks put into a horrible situation.  Perhaps this is true due to a desire by the filmmakers to be too true to the story, or maybe it’s because the words and characters look great on paper, but lose their authenticity on screen.  Whatever it may be, these two faults get in the way of a really great story.

    What the film does have going for it are two great leading men in Craig and Schreiber, a fantastic production team, and one of the most beautiful musical scores of the year by composer James Newton Howard and virtuosos violinist Joshua Bell.  I think that had I watched this film as a foreign language movie without subtitles, my opinion of it might be very high.  As it is, I think that some audiences will connect, but many will walk away disapointed.    C+

For those expecting Kate and Leo’s return to be a romantic drama, forget about it.  I don’t want to give anything important away, but this is not a feel-good movie.  This is a film about a couple that married too soon and probably shouldn’t have gotten together in the first place.  In that regard, it’s a story that much of America will find very familiar.  So while Titanic 2 it isn’t, this is still a very good film that should find a very loyal audience.

What makes it a good film is more than just the story.  The acting by everyone is award-worthy and there is an exceptional chemistry, as you might expect, from Kate and Leo in both the way they love and hate each other. 

The production is also worth mentioning.  Cinematographer Roger Deakins (who also shot this year’s Doubt and The Reader) presents the tale with a crisp, stunning look that adds another dimension to the film.  And with the haunting score by Thomas Newman and the theatrical directing of Sam Mendes, this is a movie that I would not be surprised to see getting a nod for best picture at the Oscars this year. 

    Taken from the Tony Award-winning Broadway play by the same writer/director, Doubt is just as powerful on the big screen as it was on stage.  And just like on the stage, it’s the performances more than anything else that impress.  Here, Streep and Hoffman are terrific as they try to figure out how to take the other one down without damaging themselves.  Even the supporting cast turn in remarkable performances.  We could very well see three or maybe even four Oscar nominations for acting come from this film.

    While I’m not sure how much of this film is fictional and how much is “based on a true story,” I do know that this event took place and watching this movie constantly makes you wonder what would have happened if it were successful.  Sorry for the spoiler – but the plan didn’t exactly work.  This “what if” scenario kept playing in my head throughout and even after the film and for that reason, I have to admit the film was successful.  It truly does make you think.

    As for the performances, I think they were all fine – even Cruise’s.  Many are put off by the American accents by some, British by others, and German by a few.  Singer here uses an effect taken from Hunt for Red October by having the film start in the native tongue and then switch to English.  Distracting accents or not, I didn’t think it was that big of a deal.

      I was also impressed by the production values of the film.  This is a good-looking film that is well-paced thanks to the talent of its director and production team.

    One thing that director Baz Luhrmann is good at is creating a beautiful and unique looking film.  Australia, the movie, is full of color and life with great sets and terrific aesthetics.  There are many hauntingly beautiful scenes here including an amazing set piece involving a sabotaged cattle drive.  And speaking of beautiful, you can’t ask for a better looking couple than Jackman and Kidman.  If it were as simple as just putting these two together with a few big scenes, then this could be an A+ film.

    Unfortunately, there are many things wrong with this film.  First and foremost, this is a confusing movie to watch.  I finally got it towards the end, but the first act merely introduces the main characters when it should be setting up the story so that we as an audience can clearly understand what’s going on.  For about 45 minutes, I was completely lost.  To make matters worse, the film was much longer than it needed to be, leaving us to stare at slow-moving scenes that brought the pacing to a droll.  

    I was also disappointed with the overall story.  Not only was it confounding at times, but the dialogue was over-the-top as were the characters.  I’ll choose now to say that I really hate that Jackman’s character, the drover, was simply named Drover.  There is such little intimacy between the romantic couple that she never calls him by his real name, like she doesn’t even know it, and rather just refers to him as Drover for the entire movie.  There are many other little annoyances throughout that just made me roll my eyes rather than enjoy the film.