Tom Hanks had it easy in Cast Away. He just had to open coconuts with an ice skate and fish with a hand made spear. Pi had to share a life boat with a tiger.
Life of Pi is the story of a man who is shipwrecked in the middle of the Pacific and loses his entire family. He finds himself on a life boat with a tiger.
Funny thing about tigers. They like to eat. A lot.
Pi must learn to survive with the tiger, rationing his food while also feeding the tiger which is the connection he still has with his dead family. Through the struggles of living on a 12 foot boat with a tiger, Pi finds that behind the instinct to kill for food, predators as well as all other animals have souls.
This movie is hard for me to write about. While I did enjoy it, nothing really stood out to me. Suraj Sharma was pretty good in his silver-screen debut, but not incredible. The special effects were good, but not great. The writing was solid, but not outstanding.
The story, however, is compelling and moving enough to keep you watching and keep you from staring at your phone. Which is the main goal of any movie.
Irrfan Khan, however, surprised me in his relatively small role. His role was more emotional from the other characters I have seen him portray. He usually plays a man in a suit. At least in the English films he's been in. I haven't seen any of his Indian films.
I'm not a fan of the Bond series. I don't dislike them, but I don't claim to be a fan. So I don't know if Skyfall is a good Bond movie. But it is a damn good movie by itself.
After a mission goes awry that leave M and the rest of MI6 believing Bond is dead, and the names of several agents in the hands of a cyber terrorist, 007 must come back from his retirement to help MI6 find the man responsible. Bond-esque chaos ensues.
Directed by Sam Mendes, who has directed everything but action movies, Skyfall has one of the best villains of not just any Bond film, but of any film. Javier Bardem steals the spot light, in my opinion, as the flamboyant and eccentric villain out for vengeance against M.
Playing a completely different kind of evil from his evil character in No Country For Old Men for which he won the Oscar, I believe his performance will bring the first Oscar consideration for acting in a Bond Film. And along with that, I believe Daniel Craig might receive some consideration as well, although I think it is less likely.
Skyfall is a fun, action packed movie with great cinematography thanks to the GREAT AND POWERFUL ROGER DEAKINS.
Steven Spielberg, Daniel Day-Lewis, Tommy Lee Jones, Sally Field, John Hawkes, James Spader, Tim Blake Nelson, Jarred Harris, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Music by John Williams.
Do I need to give you any other reason to see this damn movie?
Depicting Lincoln and his cabinet and the House of Representatives in January 1865 as they proposed, discussed and voted on whether or not they should adopt the 13th Amendment. The writing in this film is so eloquent that it makes me hate hippies and whoever invented rap music, television, MTV Cribs and the internet for dumbing down the English Language. Seriously, listen to any speech given by FDR, Churchill or Eisenhower during World War II and then compare it to a speech by Obama, Clinton or either Bush and you'll realize how much art the English language has lost.
I personally blame 16 and Pregnant, but I digress.
Everything in Lincoln is up to par with Spielberg's reputation. I am slightly biased, seeing as how President Lincoln is my historical hero, but I believe this movie is Spielberg's best to date. Better than Jaws. Better than Saving Private Ryan. Better than Jurassic Park. Not only does it tell a great story, but it is also humorous for those who don't care for the historical aspect of it.
As per the usual, Daniel Day-Lewis gives an Oscar worthy performance and is damn near unrecognizable as America's 16th President. When the trailer was released for this movie only but a short 3 months ago, all other Best-Actor hopefuls groan in disbelief.
As of now, I believe this is the best movie of the year. Can any of the releases in the next month change that? Or could I possibly see a better movie released sometime this year that has fallen through my radar?
There are some roles that I can imagine are very difficult to portray for actors. Roles that require the character to be mentally or physically disabled are among them. For mentally impaired characters, you don't want to, pardon the reference to Tropic Thunder, go "full retard". If the actor does not have a mental disability, then doing so could seem comedic to some. Playing a blind character, you have to pretty much turn your eyes off and playing a character with any other physical disability, you have to not use the limbs that are affected.
In The Sessions, John Hawkes transforms himself into a man with a severe case of polio that has deteriorated the muscles throughout his body, taking away expressions through body language.
Based on a true story, John Hawkes plays Mark O'Brien, a writer who is confined to a guerny. Mark us asked to write a column on the sex lives of people with physical disabilities. Never having experienced sex himself, Mark hires a sex therapist to whom he loses his virginity. But, being a poet, Mark finds it difficult to separate romance from the sessions with his therapist and finds himself falling in love with her.
John Hawkes gives the performance of his career thus far in this heart warming and inspiring movie about a man wanting nothing but a sense of normalcy. Although I doubt it will get much publicity this coming award season, I feel it deserves many nods for its superb acting.
This is my favorite time of year for movies. From the months of September to the end of December is THE best time for movies. That's not opinion either. That is a statistical fact. And there are a few reasons for that.
To begin, let me tell you about how studios decide when to release a movie. These are patterns that I noticed after spending the past 7 years working for a movie theatre. And if you look back at recent years and see what was released on any given weekend, you'll notice the pattern as well.
January:
January is an interesting month. The quality of the movie could go either way here. For one, the cut-off date to be a contender for the Oscars is December 31st. But many Studios find a loop hole by only releasing their films in LA or New York to test the waters so they can more accurately predict how well it will do nationwide. And what a bunch of bastards they are for doing it. I can't tell you how many movies I've wanted to see that I put their "release" date on my calendar only to find out I have to drive an hour or more just to go see it, because I'm impatient.... and a tad bit crazy.
But I digress. In January, you will often see the wide-release of several Oscar contenders, just trying to refresh the Academy's memory of how good they are. Take last years Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Musical Score and Best Costume Design winner, The Artist. It was "released" in the New York Film Festival on October 14th, 2011, and then in the Austin Film Festival on October 25th, 2011. It was finally released to a limited audience on November 23rd, 2011 (Which by the way is the same day this year that Hitchcock will be released.... hopefully wide released). In this case, limited "release" means it was released on 4 screens. As a comparison, my theatre played Twilight on four screens at one time with one reel. And also had it playing on 6 other screens. At that was one theatre.
"Released" In January
January is also notorious (Notorious, the movie about Biggie was released on January 16th, 2009), for releasing action movies that weren't expected to do well competing with the summer blockbusters. Movies like The Green Hornet (2011), Contraband (2012), Legion (2010), and The Book of Eli (2010) would not have fared well with their summertime counter parts. Some barely broke even with no competition. And it's not their fault. January is Oscar time. The time where non-movie buffs see what all of the buzz is about.
February:
February is where movies go to die. Unless your a romantic movie released on Valentines day, or a horrible remake of an old 80s horror movie, you will be lost and forgotten. Studios usually book their unimpressive movies for this month. The reason being that people just don't go see movies in February, except on Valentines Dates. It's right smack dab in the middle of Winter and Spring breaks for all students. Everyone is two busy to see movies in February.
The only exceptional movie I have ever seen in February was Shutter Island (2010). That movie should have been released between September and December and should have contended for the Oscars. But for some reason, the studio did not see it fit to be released in another month. Who knows.
March:
The first or second week (depending on the date the Friday lands on) in March usually houses the years first potential blockbuster. For instance, John Carter (2012), Battle Los Angeles (2011), Alice In Wonderland (2010), and Watchmen (2009) were all released within the first two weeks of March. Despite what other people think, John Carter wasn't the bomb that everyone thought it was. Yes it took a long time to make back it's $250,000,000 budget, but it's world gross as of August 2012 was $282,778,100. So at the very least they made their money back and got some pocket change.
April:
In April, the heat kind of dies down again. Theaters aren't as dead as they are in February, but have varying attendance's from week to week. The excitement of going crazy and getting drunk enough during spring break to spend $11 on a movie ticket has since past, and ordinary life has kicked in. Movies released in this month make decent money, but not the crazy money of Summer blockbusters. April is kind of the Wild Card of Movie Theaters.
May:
If you look at the released for may, it usually is the release date for Marvel Superhero movies. Ever since the first Spiderman. Spider-Man, X2: X-Men United, X-Men: The Last Stand, Spider-Man 3, Ironman, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Ironman 2, Thor, Marvel's The Avengers all were released in May. X-Men wasn't because that was before they tested out the month of May. Sam Raimi did some drugs and released Spider-Man 3 in June, only to be disappointed with a measly $783,766,341. And Captain America: The First Avenger was released in July, probably to coincide with patriotism... or not compete with their own Thor, which is more probable. The hot weekend for May are the first and last weekends of the month.
Pixar also released many of its films in May until they decided June was cooler, for some reason. All four of the Shrek movies were released in May as well as the entire Star Wars Saga.
June and July:
I think everybody knows this one. Blockbusters come out in June and July. How could you not know that? It makes perfect sense. The kiddies are out of school and everyone is taking a vacation at some point during these months. You'd be stupid not to release your best action-packed mindless movies during these months. Transformers, The Dark Knight, some of the Harry Potter series. Movies that were designed to put butts in seats.
August:
The blockbusters bastard children are released in August. But, like April, it can be a bit unpredictable. Movies like G.I. Joe, Total Recall(2012), Spy Kids: All the Time in the World, and what have you can also be released alongside such greats as District 9, The Rise of the Planet of the Apes, The Help, and Lawless. It's gotta me something about the letter 'A'... or it's just a coincidence. I'm no doctor.
Now we come to my favorite time of the year. The time where the Oscar contention starts to heat up. From September up through December, great movie after great movie is released. At least the ones I see are great, but I know my taste very well. If you've been reading my blog at all, you might notice that with the exception of one movie, none of them have been given a low grade. The Master, Dredd (Not going to win an Oscar but still very entertaining), Ruby Sparks, Looper, Argo, Seven Psychopaths, The Perks of Being a Wall Flower, Cloud Atlas, Flight and Wreck-it Ralph were all fantastic. Not one of them left me disappointed.
Before the month is over, I want to see Skyfall, Lincoln, Anna Karenina, Hitchcock, Life of Pi, Rise of the Guardians, and Killing Them Softly. And that's just in two weeks! We still have the entire month of December left, and thats when they REALLY start pumping in the good movies.
Oscar season is the best season of them all. Unless you're really silly or don't do much research, it's hard to go see a movie and not enjoy it even a little bit. And then, in February when all the movies make me want to throw up, I can consult the Oscar nominations and see those movies.
Oscars > The Superbowl... and I burn less Queso Dip while watching the Oscars.
Below is the List of movies I want to see for the rest of the year. If you've seen any of these, please tell me what you thought. Everyone is a critic, and that's a good thing. Make your own opinions.
I won't lie to you. Unless it is the old 2D animation, or Pixar is involved, I am skeptical about all animated Disney movies. I don't have any reason to be. the only movie of theirs I though was terrible was Bolt. The rest have been decent. But even with the highly anticipated Wreck-It Ralph, I wasn't anxious to see it. I had little expectations for it.
But there is no greater feeling than when you are proven wrong about a movie you expect to be bad. Arguably, it's even better than a movie you're excited for meeting your expectations.
Essentially telling the fictional untold story of Donkey Kong, Wreck-It Ralph tells the story of Ralph, voiced ever so fittingly by John C. Reilly, an arcade game villain who has been the bad guy for 30 years and ignored by his peers. He is tired of living in the shadows of his "nemesis" Fix-It Felix, voiced Jack McBrayer and wants to be accepted by the other characters in his game. To do so, he "game jumps" in an attempt to win a metal. But this puts his game in jeopardy of being unplugged. So Felix must find Ralph, or Ralph must get his metal before it's to late.
I'm not a huge gamer, but this movie had a bunch of references to games that you don't have to play video games to understand. It is an interesting take on the old adage "the villain is the hero in his own story".
Robert Zemeckis is a great director. He's made such great films as the Back to the Future trilogy, Forrest Gump, and Cast Away. So the fact that his past three movies were mediocre to terrible motion capture animations just baffled me. Why would someone who has made such great movies want to make crap? The technology was great, yes. But it was not necessary to make three entire films that way, in my mind. One was enough.
And Beowulf's sound design was terrible. But, Mr. Zemeckis has emerged from the darkness.
In his first live-action film since 2000s Cast Away starring Tom Hanks, Robert Zemeckis explores the world of addiction to the extreme. Flight tells the story of a Commercial Airline pilot by the name of Whip Whitaker, played by Denzel Washington, who is under National scrutiny for having alcohol in his system during a plane crash in which 6 people died on board.
The trailer makes the pilot look much more innocent than he actually is. In the opening scene, not only is Mr. Washington partaking in adult beverages, but he also snorts a line of cocaine. And if that wasn't bad enough, while piloting the aircraft, he makes a mixed beverage of Orange Juice and Vodka. As I said, this film explores addiction to the extreme.
This film is up to par with the rest of Zemeckis' works. It is a great "comeback" that is filled with suspense and comedic relief as well as some truly touching moments. However, for the majority of the movie, I found it extremely hard to feel sympathy for Whip Whitaker. The majority of the time, he is selfish, obnoxious, stubborn and of course, drunk. But that is the point of the movie. You can love anyone's outer personality, but what you really have to get to to get to know a person is get to their inner, darker personality. And that is what will make you love or hate a person. But some people will surprise you even after you think you know them.
I had a teacher in film school (not that it makes he or I experts on the subject) that said you should never star in your directorial debut. Ben Affleck didn't. Robert Redford didn't. Ben Stiller didn't.The list goes on. And there is a good reason for that. Directing takes so much focus that you shouldn't let anything else distract you until you get into the flow of things. Granted, there are a few film gods that are able to handle it, such as Orson Welles, Charlie Chaplin and Mel Gibson (Say what you want about his racism and sexism and other -isms, but that man can make a great movie). But mere mortal's usually can't handle it. RZA, of Wu-Tang Clan fame, is no exception to the rule.
The Quentin Tarantino backed movie, The Man With The Iron Fists tells the story of a crime riddled village in China, called Jungle Village. Therein resides a a blacksmith. A freed slave who fled to China and became a buddhist. He does not partake in the crimes of the several surrounding gangs. He does, however, create weapons for them, in order to save enough money to get him and his girlfriend out of Jungle Village. Soon, a gang war wages over the Emperors gold, causing a very Battle Royale-esque situation (Or so I'm told. I have yet to see Battle Royale).
While this movie has everything that I expected it to (sex, violence and bad acting), I still thought that perhaps it would be more. Honestly, this is one of the few situations where if they just said "to hell with it!" and tossed any form of story out the window, it would have been better. But because they tried to make it into something it shouldn't have been, it felt... empty, for lack of a better word.
What it should have been was an hour and a half of nothing but violence. And lot's of it, with some laughs in between. But they tried to add meaning where there wasn't any. There were these two characters in it, called the Gemini's. They were a kung-fu fighting couple. And they had some awesome fights. But they kept throwing in the yin-yang symbol, but the characters did not fit yin and yang. Other than their wardrobe, there was no difference. (For those who don't know, yin-yang is the idea that polar opposites interconnected. Without one, the other cannot exist) Their personalities were the same (at least within the short time they were on screen speaking).
Also, the writing was awkward and felt forced. Some scenes didn't seem to fit and back stories felt forced. And for the exception of Russell Crowe, Byron Mann and one scene with RZA, the acting was terrible. Even Lucy Liu, unfortunately.
Had this movie just been a hip-hop kung-fu movie with extreme violence and some humor, I feel this movie could have been a lot better. Or at least a lot more enjoyable. But, once again, a movie trying to be something it's not (or at least seeming like it) has failed at being anything but a sub par movie.
As always, form your own opinions. Everyone has different taste in movies. Neither I, nor Ben Mankiewicz know better than you.
Reincarnation is a concept that I will never quite understand. I may be missing something, but if you die and are reborn into someone or something else, but have no recollection of who or what you were, and having to completely rebuild your mind and create new memories, then how is that possibly considered being the same being? To be the same being would mean there would have to be some connection with memory, personality or genetics. Right? I'm no Buddha, though, I've been told our bellies share some similarities.
Cloud Atlas is a film by the Wachowski Siblings (Once Brothers) of The Matrix fame, and the director of Run, Lola, Run, Tom Tykwer. Now, if I tried to explain the plot, I would end up sounding like even more of an idiot than I already am, and confuse you to the extent that you would be immediately admitted into a Psych Ward. And since I'm sure Evan Woss will be the only person to read this (If I'm wrong let me know who you are so I feel further encouraged to write these), I think you've been to the hospital enough this year. So here is the synopsis as written on imdb.com.
An exploration of how the actions of individual lives impact one another in the past, present and future, as one soul is shaped from a killer into a hero, and an act of kindness ripples across centuries to inspire a revolution.
Wow, that is so much better than anything I could have written.
The film follows several stories set in several different time periods and each one is connected to the next. One of the great things about this film is the use of the principal actors in more than one character. Tom Hanks plays 6 different characters, as does Halle Berry. And Hugh Grant as a futuristic Cannibal was awesomely terrifying! They all play characters of different races, and some even genders. And although the film takes place in several different times with several different settings, the transitions are flawless. Technologically and visually, this film was fantastic. The settings and special effects were sound. But story wise, I can't help but feel there could have been more.
I must admit, I was a little disappointed with the movie, but that is my own fault. I expected hyped myself up far too much. I'm also still trying to fully comprehend everything. This film is definitely one you will be thinking about for a long while after you see it. Who knows. Maybe a month from now, it will dawn on me. Maybe I just need to see it a few more times to understand everything and make the connections.
We'll see.
My Grade: B
On a slightly related note: James D'Arcy is going to be a great Anthony Perkins! Look it up!
