Episode 2 5
This Week in Movies #25: Reviews of Oscar Favorites
Sundays at 8pm PDT
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Introduction
Farrell caught Lon up on her big New York trip, which included a variety of cultural destinations like Neil LaBute’s play “The Break of Noon” at the MCC Theater. (She found the play disappointing but was even more let down by Peet’s eagerness to avoid meeting fans after the show.)
In Theaters
Directed by John Cameron Mitchell
Written by David Lindsay-Abaire (based on his play)
Starring Nicole Kidman, Aaron Eckhart, Dianne Wiest
This theatrical adaptation follows the suffering of a couple, Becca (Kidman) and Howie (Eckhart), in the aftermath of their 4-year-old son’s tragic death.
Farrell: Kidman was good – and looked appropriately de-collagened and botoxed to fit the role – but she expected something more. Farrell needed to know more about these characters before the tragedy to really connect with their grief.
Lon: A powerful look at grief and coping mechanisms, how everyone’s hurt is different and needs to find its own way, featuring great performances from Kidman, Eckhart, Dianne Wiest and notably Miles Teller as a neighborhood boy, Jason.
Directed by David O. Russel
Written by Scott Silver, Paul Tamasy and Eric Johnson
Starring Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Melissa Leo
This family drama tells the true story of Micky Ward (Wahlberg), who struggled to pursue a professional boxing career while remaining to his dominating mother Alice (Leo) and crack-addicted brother Dick (Bale).
Lon: The movie’s an awkward combination of family drama, addiction narrative and boxing movie that’s not particularly good at any of them. Ward is too passive a protagonist to really invest in, and his family, as depicted, is so cartoonishly over-the-top as to be entirely unbelievable.
Farrell: Strongly disagreed with Lon, and found it a compelling story about loyalty and ambition. She thought the tough-as-nails pragmatist Alice Ward represented the best work of Leo’s career, and loved the dark humor that Bale brought to the sad story of Dick’s slow decline.
Written and directed by Shana Feste
Starring Garrett Hedlund, Gwyneth Paltrow, Tim McGraw, Leighton Meester
Two couples are at the center of this romance set in the world of country music. Pop country superstar Kelly Canter (Paltrow) is fresh out of rehab and striking out on a career reviving tour of Texas with her manager-husband (McGraw). They’re joined by up-and-coming singer-songwriter Beau (Hedlund) and beauty queen turned singer Chiles (Meester).
Farrell: The film did not meet her high expectations. In particular, Farrell was disappointed that Gwyneth Paltrow’s character was not at the center of the film – as had been advertised – and that there was so little of the actress singing.
Lon: Lon unfavorably compared this film to “Crazy Heart,” a much more subtle and thoughtful treatment of a similar character and storyline, without all this film’s overblown melodrama and showy histrionics. He did praise the songs, which were very authentic to the film’s pop-country milieu, and the performances, particularly Tim McGraw.
Hollywood Headlines
Bardem or Mortensen to climb “The Dark Tower”?
Javier Bardem is the rumored frontrunner to take the lead role in Ron Howard’s upcoming film and TV adaptations of Stephen King’s epic “Dark Tower” fantasy series. The fan favorite Mortensen is said to also be in the running.
New Year’s Gossip Roundup
Farrell caught everyone up on some of the big celebrity gossip stories from over the holiday break, including Natalie Portman’s twin announcements that she is engaged and pregnant, and the end of Ryan Reynolds and Scarlett Johnasson’s marriage.
First Look at Wong Kar Wai’s “The Grandmasters”
Legendary Chinese director Wong Kar Wai, whose last film was 2007′s “My Blueberry Nights,” will have a new film debut in 2011 (hopefully) titled “The Grandmasters.” It is the director’s first true martial arts film, starring Tony Leung as legendary Wing Chun master Yip Man.
Lon highlighted this awesome montage from YouTube user kinomozg showing the “In 3D” tags from 37 different movie trailers in 2 minutes. Lon and Farrell then discussed where they see the 3D movie trend going in 2011 and beyond.
Commentary on Commentary
Farrell watched the Nick Cassavetes commentary on the 2004 Ryan Gosling-Rachel McAdams romance “The Notebook.”
Among the tidbits she gleaned:
- Gosling wanted to play his character with an accent but James Garner, who plays the same character as an old man, can’t do accents.
- Ducks for the pivotal rowing scene had to be raised from hatchlings as it was too costly to purchase or rent adult ducks.
- Cassavetes always tries to find a role for his mother, Gena Rowlands, in all of his films.
This Week in Streaming
Each week, Lon is going to find a new movie that is available for streaming on Netflix and recommend it. This week, his selection is the 1980 British crime thriller “The Long Good Friday.”
Directed by John Mackenzie
Written by Barrie Keeffe
Starring Bob Hoskins, Helen Mirren, Paul Freeman
“The Long Good Friday” concerns the worst weekend in crime boss Harold Shand’s (Hoskins) life. Along with his girlfriend Victoria (Mirren), Shand must entertain high-profile investors in town from America while dealing with a sudden attack on his men and illegitimate businesses throughout London.
Lon praised the film’s pulsating energy and the ferocious, but still layered, performances from Hoskins and Mirren. The film is now available on Netflix Streaming.
- mnm
