Grandma

Oh, I really enjoyed this one! My favorite role for Lily Tomlin, right up there with Nine to Five. She kicks so much ass (literally) in this stereotype-busting role as the lesbian grandmother to a teenage girl in need of some immediate cash for a “medical procedure.” After reading the synopsis, I expected a few predictable, quirky encounters similar to other movies with plots that include running around scraping together money from a variety of past acquaintances. However, the entire movie felt original and unformulaic, and kept me paying attention until the final credits.

I know that two doesn’t make a trend, but I’m so pleased to see another film (Obvious Child being the other) dealing with abortion in a measured, thoughtful manner, treating it as a major life decision which many women have to make instead of the didactic oops-I-got-pregnant-guess-I-better-have-the-baby storyline.
Box Office Bottom Line: Highly recommended for all, especially Lily Tomlin fans!

Sembene!

A biopic of Ousmane Sembene, a Senegalese author and filmmaker known as “The Father of African Cinema.” This documentary presents a brief profile of each of his films, inter spliced with footage of television interviews and behind-the-scenes footage from his daily life. His politically charged films covered such topics as national African self-government after colonialism, black servitude to white masters, Muslim control of local communities, Senegalese soldiers discarded after serving for the French army in WWII, and female genital mutilation. I enjoyed learning about Sembene’s œvre, and I look forward to watching his films!

Box Office Bottom Line: I recommend this documentary for anyone interested in filmmaking, particularly political films.

Lucy

Disappointing. I’ve been on a bit of a Scarlett Johansson kick lately, and I quite enjoyed Under the Skin. I had such high hopes for this kick-ass strong female character, but I should have known better. Weird fake-science plot holds no water whatsoever, and there’s even a scene when Morgan Freeman (who plays the future-predicting scientist character) refers to “mankind” and the race of “man.” What year is this? Who is the main character he’s speaking to in the scene? Oh, that’s right, it’s the first human to fully utilize the complete capacity of her brain. And she’s not a man.

Speaking of brain capacity, the entire premise of the film is complete bullshit, since the we-only-use-10-percent-of-our-brain myth is utter nonsense. I also saw Bradley Cooper play the same role in Limitless, and I have to say that movie didn’t annoy me as much.

Johansson plays post-drugged Lucy about the same as she plays the alien in Under the Skin–monotone, no emotion, and a bit puzzled by the behavior exhibited by the humans surrounding her. Of course there are a few gratifying scenes for action fans like myself, but Lucy throwing rival gang members up to the ceiling with a wave of her hand can only take a movie so far.

Oh, and at the end, she turns into a computer and vanishes into a realm of pure data. On a flash drive. Almost as good as the vanishing act of the operating systems in Her, or the uploading of Johnny Depp in Transcendence, but really not remotely close. I don’t even feel bad for mentioning the end because there’s not much to spoil about this movie. It was spoiled from the start.

Box Office Bottom Line: Don’t bother. Watch Under the Skin or Her instead, if you’re looking for a Scarlet Johansson fix. Or try Limitless for a drug enhancement plot. Or give Hanna a gander if you’re hankering for a kick-ass female.

Inherent Vice

Ehrm. All noise, no substance. I haven’t read the original Pynchon novel, but I can only assume it’s better than the film adaptation. Briefly: a PI is the center of a search for his missing ex-girlfriend and her married real estate mogul boyfriend. And of course there’s a biker gang of neo nazis. And how could the story be complete without a “vertically integrated” drug syndicate run by dentists? Oh yeah, and don’t forget the constant dope smoking.

Too many characters, too many plot lines that lead nowhere. And a horrible scene of dialogue with the eye of the storm female character, Shasta Fay Hepworth, discussing how she enjoyed being treated as an object by her rich, powerful lover.

Joaquin Phoenix and Josh Brolin turn out fabulous performances as zany characters, and the audience gets a special treat visit from Martin Short. The narration by Joanna Newsom is pleasing at first, but eventually becomes as tiresome as the rest of the churning scenes.

Box Office Bottom Line: I’d rather watch Get Shorty! Definitely missable.

Blue Ruin

Vicious vengeance, ill-performed. When Dwight is rustled out of his car (doubling as his living quarters) by the police and notified that his parents’ murderer is due to be released from prison, he doesn’t take it with a forgiving heart. With almost no dialogue, Macon Blair plays Dwight with a silent intensity that was a pleasure to watch. There are no slick action sequences with an average-Joe-turned-hero-by-circumstance. Just a very damaged man living at the edge of society, trying to make things right in his mind, with realistic repercussions.

Box Office Bottom Line: This is a brutal one. I recommend it, but only for those who don’t mind particularly personal violence.

Enemy

Ugh. I’m a fan of several of the actors in this movie, but it didn’t hold my interest at all. Even two Jake Gyllenhaals didn’t make it worthwhile. The intentional vagueness was off-putting instead of compelling, the strange lighting was distracting, and the soundtrack felt deliberately misleading. Crescendoes lead nowhere, and hushed music that aspires to urgency falls flat.

This production is based on a rough adaption of The Double by Jose Saramago. Perhaps I would enjoy reading the book more, but I doubt it.

Box Office Bottom Line: If you’re looking for a surreal, slightly alien film with a very vague plotline, then see Under the Skin, not Enemy.

 

Space Station 76

Dreams of future past. Or past future? Either way, this spirit of 76 takes our dreams of independence into space. The future-space colonization idealism of the 70s is realized in a low-budget, minimalist production that echoes the alienation of our modern world. The petty slights, one-upmanship, dreams deferred and illicit love of any small town are magnified…when you’re in SPACE. And don’t forget to admire Liv Tyler’s awesome leadership skills and amazing boots!

Box Office Bottom Line: Recommended if you’re looking for a lighthearted dramedy in a wacky setting. I also enjoyed seeing how the production team ingeniously created a multi-purpose set in the special features (support your local video rental store).

Under The Skin

Alien? Mermaid? Siren? You decide. (Perhaps Black Widow?)

Scarlett Johansson leads us on a long, slow meander around the Scottish countryside. She moves through the world, but she’s not part of it. She selects men, removes them from the world, and delivers them to some mysterious “other.” They entrap themselves willingly in the viscous blackness, suspended out of time.

Eventually Johansson’s bubble, which maintains a boundary between herself and human interaction, begins to dissolve. And the mystery intensifies from there.

Box Office Bottom Line: If you don’t mind slow and mysterious, with no plot or answers, then this one is for you!

The Lego Movie

 I Love This Movie! I watched it once on the plane, but of course that’s not really quality viewing. So I watched it again once I got home. I have to say, my viewing companions did not share my enthusiasm for the movie, so apparently it’s not for everyone. I can’t comprehend that, of course, but I have to acknowledge it.

It works on so many levels of goofy zaniness! There’s your run-of-the-mill messiah story on the most basic surface level for the kiddies, then there’s the other themes for the rest of us. Mass conformity. Fascism. Stifled creativity. Will Arnett as an asshole Batman.

And don’t forget the insanely addictive soundtrack!!! Of course, it’s only one song, with only one lyric. Over and over and over.

Box Office Bottom Line: Everything is Awesome!

Fruitvale Station

I put off watching this movie, which is based on the last day of Oscar Grant’s life, for a long time because I thought it would fill me with impotent rage and infinite sadness. Happily, I was completely mistaken and I can’t recommend it to enough people. After I returned it to the video store I bought a copy so I can spread it around–let me know if you want to borrow it! Ryan Coogler, the local-boy-makes-good writer and director, handled the story with great respect. If you aren’t from the Bay Area, or you haven’t been paying attention to the news for several years, Oscar Grant was murdered by BART police officer in the Fruitvale Station on New Year’s Eve 2008.

The film follows Oscar Grant around Oakland on that last day, as move of a day-in-the-life of a regular American guy story than a political film. But Coogler’s decision to turn Grant’s film representation into a regular guy, not a thug nor a saint, is a strong political statement in and of itself.

Box Office Bottom Line: It’s a powerful and moving movie, and I also recommend watching the special features interviews!