Film Review -- The Ides of March

This 2011 film was directed, co-produced, co-written, and stars George Clooney, and also stars Ryan Gosling, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, Evan Rachel Wood, and Marisa Tomei. It is a look inside the final days before a highly-contested Ohio primary between two Democratic candidates, Governor Mark Morris (Clooney) and Senator Pullman (Michael Mantell). Morris's up-and-coming campaign press manager Stephen Meyers (Gosling) soon finds himself at odds with his campaign manager (Hoffman) when he secretly meets with Pullman's campaign manager (Giamatti). Meanwhile, Stephen's budding relationship with intern Molly Steams (Wood) leads to the exposure of a potentially campaign-ending secret -- in danger of being exposed by a relentless journalist (Tomei). It is wonderfully written and acted, and the story gripped me; the pacing was excellent. Although the plot isn't something revolutionary, it is nevertheless intelligent and very entertaining. Clooney and his co-writers are up for a Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar at Sunday's ceremony.


Should you see it: Yes
Grade: A-

Film Review -- Cowboys & Aliens

Directed by Jon Favreau and executive-produced by Steven Spielberg, this sic-fi blockbuster stars Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford, and Olivia Wilde. The year is 1873. Amnestic cowboy Jake Lonergan (Craig) finds himself in the Old-West town of Absolution, run by the feared Colonel Woodrow Dolarhyde (Ford). Lonergan is equipped with a strange bracelet, whose powers he discovers when an alien attack suddenly befalls on Absolution. With the aid of the mysterious and knowledgeable Ella (Wilde), the cowboys team up with a group of natives, who've also been wronged by the intruders, to destroy the alien spaceship and retrieve the loved ones who were kidnapped. The film never had any chance because the premise is ridiculous to start. Combined with a lackluster story, the film left me bored to tears. This is yet another example of a huge-budgeted, famously directed, produced, and starred film that made no worthy impression at all.


Should you see it: No
Grade: D+

Film Review -- Love Actually

Written and directed by Richard Curtis, this 2003 romantic comedy stars Emma Thompson, Colin Firth, Liam Neeson, Alan Rickman, Hugh Grant, Laura Linney, and many others. Set in London, the film follows the love lives of an intertwined group of people in the weeks leading up to Christmas Day. For instance, the newly-elected prime-minister (Grant) finds himself attracted to one of his attendants (Martine McCutcheon), his sister Karen (Thompson) suspects that her husband Harry (Rickman) is cheating with one of his subordinates, Annie (Nina Sosanya), another of Harry's subordinates, Sarah (Linney), is in love with her co-worker, Karl (Rodrigo Santoro), Karen's friend Daniel (Neeson), a recent widower, helps his grieving stepson (Thomas Sangster) manifest a crush of his own.......the list goes on. The problem with this type of film is that there are too many stories and plot-lines, leaving little room for character development. The end result, therefore, seems shallow and un-dynamic. The humor is mild, but consistent throughout. It is a harmless film, more than adequate entertainment for those looking for a guilt-free film to pass their time. The running time of 2 hours, 15 minutes is a bit long, though. 


Should you see it: Sure
Grade: B-

BAFTA 2012 Winners

The winners of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts were announced on February 12. The last major awards show before the Oscars on Feb. 26, check out the winners below.


Best Film: THE ARTIST
Best Actor: Jean Dujardin in THE ARTIST
Best Actress: Meryl Streep in THE IRON LADY
Best Director: Michel Hazanavicius for THE ARTIST


Animated Film: RANGO
Adapted Screenplay: TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY
Documentary: SENNA
Rising Star (voted on by the public): ADAM DEACON
Original Screenplay: Michel Hazanavicius for THE ARTIST
Outstanding Contribution to British Cinema (tribute/noncompetitive): JOHN HURT
Outstanding British Film: TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY
Supporting Actress: Octavia Spencer in THE HELP
Supporting Actor: Christopher Plummer in BEGINNERS


Production Design: HUGO
Outstanding Debut: Paddy Considine for TYRANNOSAUR
Foreign Language Film: THE SKIN I LIVE IN
Makeup and Hair: THE IRON LADY
Costume Design: THE ARTIST
Cinematography: THE ARTIST
Editing: SENNA
Score: THE ARTIST
Live Action Short: PITCH BLACK HEIST
Animated Short: A MORNING STROLL
Visual Effects: HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 2
Sound: HUGO

Film Review -- A Better Life

This Chris Weitz-directed film stars Demian Bichir and Jose Julian. Carlos Galindo (Bichir) is an undocumented gardener living in East L.A. who tries to hunt down his stolen truck -- his last hope at moving his teenage son (Julian) into a better neighborhood, and thus to opportunities he never had. I saw this film yesterday, and its still incredibly fresh in my mind. Never have I cried so much at the conclusion of a film, and I am tearing up right now just from writing this. The fact that this man has such dignity when he is never shown any himself is almost too good to be true, and makes the unfortunate events that unravel all the more heartbreaking. I am, for some reason, very affected by family sagas, so watching a father sacrifice so much for his son, and suffer dire consequences for it, was equally heart-wrenching for me. Living in L.A., I see this struggle firsthand. So, looking back, I am so incredibly happy that Bichir was nominated for an Academy Award. His nomination represents the millions of undocumented workers that face this very real ordeal every day. This is the most moved I've been by a performance all year -- in a long time, actually. A very tough film to watch, but absolutely worth it.


Should you see it: Yes
Grade: A

Film Review -- Star Wars: Episode I: - The Phantom Menace

Written and directed by George Lucas, the 1999 film stars Ewan McGregor, Liam Neeson, Natalie Portman, and Jake Lloyd. The first film in the legendary six-part sci-fi saga, it was shot thirty years after the original. The monumental story begins when the evil Trade Federation blockades all trade routes to the planet Naboo. Two Jedi knights, Qui-Gon Ginn (Neeson), and his apprentice, Obi-Wan Kenobi (McGregor), are sent to negotiate with the Federation leaders. When they arrive in Naboo, they are taken to its leader, Queen Amidala, to transport her to the meeting of Republic leaders on the planet of Coruscant. But when their ship becomes damaged when they pass through the blockade, the Jedis are forced to land on the obscure planet of Tatooine for repairs. There, Qui-Gon meets a slave named Anakin Skywalker (Lloyd), and senses that the Force is extremely strong in the young boy. I am SUCH a huge fan of Star Wars, so I obviously enjoy every film in the franchise. I am also aware, however, that Episode I is an inferior film to the original trilogy (and perhaps even the other two in this trilogy) in terms of character development and emotional involvement in the story. I am also perhaps one of the few people in the world who isn't annoyed by Jar Jar Binks. I went to see it in the theatre on Friday night in 3D, and was super excited to see it on the big screen (I was very young when it was released originally and don't remember the experience). The 3D, however, was little needed and not very impressive -- but that's most likely because it wasn't shot in 3D to begin with. Nevertheless, The Phantom Menace is still a wonderful film, and worth paying the price for a ticket just to see it on a theatre screen.


Should you see it: Yes
Grade: B+

Film Review -- Albert Nobbs

Directed by Rodrigo Garcia and co-written by Glenn Close, the film stars Close, Janet McTeer, and Mia Wasikowska. Nobbs is a woman posing as a man in 19th century Ireland, so that she can work as a waiter in a luxury Dublin hotel. For thirty years, she has been struggling in the lie that she is living, saving any money she can and hiding it under the floor of her room so that someday she can reinvent her life on her own terms. When a handsome housepainter (the wonderful McTeer), a woman also posing as a man, enters her life, Nobbs begins to gain the confidence she needs to change her life -- one that ideally involves a young maid from the hotel (Wasikowska). The film is a criticism of the harsh conditions that women had to live under in the 19th century, and is very effective in that way. The acting is wonderful as well, and although Close gives a subtly impressive performance, the scene-stealer is the excellent McTeer. The rest of the film was stiff and dry; I wasn't moved by it. Nevertheless, it was, if nothing else, a historically interesting little film.


Should you see it: Sure, why not?
Grade: C+