Revolutionary Road

I saw Revolutionary Road this past Saturday and let me tell you – that was one of the best movies I’ve seen.  That’s not to say that it was happy and left me with a warm feeling in my heart.  Quite the opposite, actually.  The story was tragic and heartbreaking.  It was some of the finest acting I’ve seen come out of Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio.  And Sam Mendes is a directing God.  It has the same quiet intensity that American Beauty possessed.  He directs in a style that is slow-moving and it builds without you even realizing it.  The movie had a claustrophobic feel that totally worked for the storyline.

 

The Hubby and I had “the talk” beforehand.  Are you happy with your life?  Do you think Bugaboo and I have held you back in any way?  Are you satisfied with your choices?  Luckily, the movie did not have the effect I thought it would.  I thought I wouldn’t be able to go to sleep because I’d be thinking about how I’m not fulfilling my dreams.  In fact, I realized that I am fulfilling my dreams.  I’m with a very supportive husband who loves me completely, I have a little girl who makes me smile every day, and I live in a great area and have great friends.  I have a full time job, but have the freedom to fulfill my creative side.  I don’t feel stifled at all.  However, these people absolutely broke my heart because there was no doubt that they were good people, but they got caught up in the “supposed to’s” and didn’t pay enough attention to how it was killing the other person.  The warning signs were spread throughout the movie and you knew what it would come to in the end.  No one can play regret like DiCaprio.  And no one can play utter depression like Winslet.  The movie is brilliant, but not one you’ll see a million times.  It’s like saying you “enjoyed” Schindler’s List.  You can’t “enjoy” that movie.  You can respect it and it’s place in cinematic history, but I don’t think you’ll be watching it on repeat.  Same goes for Road.  It makes you realize that being HEARD in a marriage is probably the most important thing.  Go out and see this immediately.

The Reader

Last Friday, Hubby and I had to decide which movie to see.  Were we going to see Benjamin Button or The Reader?  We REALLY wanted to see Revolutionary Road, but it wasn’t playing anywhere near us (is it playing anywhere???).  The deciding factor was time: Button was 3 hours and The Reader was 2.  There you have it.

 

I can understand why Kate Winslet is nominated for this.  It’s amazing to think that this woman, who is so glamorous and beautiful in real life, could make herself so plain and pitiful in this movie.  It’s about a love affair that took place between her at the age of 30-something and a 15-year-old boy.  It happened over a summer and then she disappeared.  She came into his life years later when he was a law student and she was on trial for heinous crimes committed during WWII.  She was a Nazi guard and had let an entire group of Jews burn in a church they were sleeping in.  She loved when her boy toy read to her and you finally figured out that she couldn’t read.  The situation in the church was not entirely her fault, but she took the blame for it instead of admitting her secret.  The acting was brilliant, but this is a rental.  It was pretty depressing.

 

And there you have my 2 cents.

Doubt

This past Friday, Hubby and I dropped off Bugaboo at daycare and decided to have a “date day.”  We went shopping that morning, ate a nice lunch at Los Cucos, and then topped it off with a movie.  We didn’t spend a dime of our own money – gift cards are the greatest gift!!!  We went to see Doubt.  The Hubby wanted to see The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, but since I have some death anxiety, I thought it best not to see a movie who’s theme is death itself.  So, yeah, a movie about a priest MAYBE molesting a little boy seemed like the perfect solution…

 

The movie was good.  I can understand why everyone is nominated.  However, I think it’s MUCH better as a play.  There were scenes that were way too long.  I hated the cinematography (sp?).  The script is amazing and the message is wonderful – doubt is as powerful as faith.  Be careful.  I don’t think Phillip Seymour Hoffman should win.  I won’t be surprised if Meryl Streep does.  I think Amy Adams is underrated.  And Viola Davis is nominated because of one scene alone.  I can say that because she was only in that one scene.

 

This is a renter.  Or it’s worth sneaking into after you’ve paid to see something else.  The scene between Meryl Streep and Viola Davis is the absolute best and it will give you chills.

 

Those are my two cents.

Tropic Thunder

This past weekend, my husband and I were able to have a date night.  O’Dell came over to babysit while we went to dinner and a movie.  We saw Tropic Thunder.  The movie is brilliant, people.  Not only does Robert Downey, Jr. play a white Australian playing a black man, but the rest of the cast is just as stellar.  Many scene-stealing moments by Tom Cruise as a fat, foul-mouthed producer.  Ben Stiller is back in my good graces after such disasterous flicks as The Heartbreak Kid and Meet the Fockers.  It’s all worth it for Downey, Jr., though.  I’m telling you – I want him to be nominated…

The Dark Knight

This is one of those few movies that actually lived up to the hype.  Before Ledger died, I was crazy excited about this movie because I loved Batman Begins so much.  Then he died and this movie became bittersweet.  His performance was iconic.  Absolutely incredible!  However, the rest of the cast holds their own with him.  Maggie Gyllenhaal was definitely a step up from Katie Holmes.  This is Gary Oldman’s best movie since Immortal Beloved.  Aaron Eckhardt was a great addition.  And Christian Bale is one of the best actors of our generation.  The movie was incredible and terrifying.  Do NOT take kids to see this.  It’s long and I did check my watch once, but looking back, I have no idea what they’d take out.  Everything is necessary.  Seriously, best movie of the year.  Right up there with Iron Man.

AFI 10 Top 10 – part 1

My family and I have a competition every year regarding the AFI lists.  We pick what we think will be on the list and there’s a point system and everything.  Anyway, here’s MY list of what I thought would be the 10 top 10.

 

Animation:  10. Shrek  9. The Little Mermaid  8. Sleeping Beauty  7. The Lion King  6. Cinderella  5. Beauty and the Beast  4. Pinocchio  3. Toy Story  2. Fantasia  1. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs

 

Fantasy:  10. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban  9. Spider-Man 2  8. Miracle on 34th Street  7. Mary Poppins  6. Superman  5. The Princess Bride  4. King Kong  3. It’s a Wonderful Life  2. The Lord of the Rings  1. The Wizard of Oz

 

Science Fiction:  10. The Day the Earth Stood Still  9. Jurassic Park  8. The Matrix  7. Alien  6. Blade Runner  5. Close Encounters of the Third Kind  4. A Clockwork Orange  3. E.T.  2. Star Wars  1. 2001: A Space Odyssey

 

Sports:  10. Jerry Maguire  9. Field of Dreams  8. Breaking Away  7. National Velvet  6. The Pride of the Yankees  5. Bull Durham  4. Rudy  3. Hoosiers  2. Raging Bull  1. Rocky

 

Westerns:  10. The Magnificent Seven  9. Unforgiven  8. Giant  7. The Wild Bunch  6. Dances with Wolves  5. Stagecoach  4. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid  3. Shane  2. The Searchers  1. High Noon

 

Gangster:  10. Touch of Evil  9. White Heat  8. The Departed  7. Scarface  6. Goodfellas  5. Pulp Fiction  4. The Godfather Part II  3. On the Waterfront  2. Bonnie and Clyde  1. The Godfather

 

Mystery:  10. The Usual Suspects  9. Rebecca  8. Gaslight  7. In the Heat of the Night  6. Laura  5. Rear Window  4. Chinatown  3. North by Northwest  2. The Maltese Falcon  1. Vertigo

 

Romantic Comedy:  10. Roman Holiday  9. The Apartment  8. Bringing Up Baby  7. The Philadelphia Story  6. When Harry Met Sally…  5. Moonstruck  4. Pretty Woman  3. It Happened One Night  2. Annie Hall  1. City Lights

 

Courtroom Drama:  10. The Accused  9. Witness for the Prosecution  8. Erin Brockovich  7. Inherit the Wind  6. The Verdict  5. A Few Good Men  4. Kramer vs. Kramer  3. Judgment at Nuremberg  2. 12 Angry Men  1. To Kill a Mockingbird

 

Epic:  10. The Ten Commandments  9. Braveheart  8. Schindler’s List  7. Spartacus  6. Titanic  5. Doctor Zhivago  4. The Bridge on the River Kwai  3. Ben-Hur  2. Lawrence of Arabia  1. Gone with the Wind

 

And there you have it.  Not all of these are chosen because they’re MY favorites - this is just how I thought AFI would choose.  Anyway, I’ll post the final results and a play-by-play of our night soon!

 

Thoughts???

The Incredible Hulk

It should be called “The Sucky Hulk” or “The Why-Did-I-Waste-My-Money Hulk” or “The Why-Didn’t-They-Listen-to-Ed-Norton Hulk.”

 

The Disappointing Hulk

The Incredible Hulk

Who wants to see this?  I do only because it’s Edward Norton and Robert Downey, Jr. makes an appearance as Iron Man.  Thoughts?

Waitress

I loved this movie.  It stars Keri Russell and others and I absolutely loved it.  The story was so, so sweet and she did a great job.  I laughed,  I cried – it had everything.  It bothered the hubby that everyone in the movie was cheating on someone.  That’s really the only downside to it.  I cried like a baby afterwards.  Her meeting her baby in the movie was so incredibly touching.  It reminded me of NOT meeting my daughter after I gave birth.  The labor was horrible and they had to knock me completley out afterwards.  Adam told me that I got to hold Emma, but I honestly don’t remember.  I think that’s terrible!  Anyway, run out and rent this movie.

 

UPDATE: BRANDON introduced me to this movie.  Everyone needs to know that. 

The Eye

We saw The Eye this past Saturday.  Brandon and Holland came over and they rented it.  I really liked it!  I saw the Japanese version and I thought this was much better.  Honestly, I don’t understand why people like the Japanese horror films so much.  I remember two very scary moments in the Japanese version.  This new version was FULL of them.  I think people like the Japanese versions just to be artsy and different…  Am I about to get slammed?