Stupid is as Stupid Does

I went to see Prometheus a few days ago and, unlike many it seems, I enjoyed it. Coming home and thinking about it, it is easy rip the film apart for how ridiculous it is, but while I was watching it I was in it, I was hooked, I was tense, and that’s more than I can say for a lot of films I see these days. But I do have one big gripe with the film, and that is how stupid the crew members were. And so here’s my list of the top ten stupid things they did. It should go without saying, but I’ll add the required warning anyway: SPOILERS.

1. Letting two archeologists run a space mission. Seriously, who put these guys in charge? I know Vickers is the actual leader but everyone is listening to Shaw and Holloway, even though they clearly have no health and safety training. And why were none of the others told what the mission was before they signed up? Is no one curious in the future, you just sign up for a 2+ year mission and not ask questions?

2. Not waiting to scan the area before going in to alien territory. I know you’re giddy and this is your life’s work, but you’ve been travelling for two years, another day won’t kill you, in fact it will probably save your lives if you do a bit of research about the environment first.

3. Taking off their helmets. Because the air is breathable they happily remove their helmets after two seconds of deliberation, not worrying about, you know, germs etc. There could be anything in that air that could react badly with humans. How about you took your helmet off and your face just melted or you inhaled bacteria, hmm? Call yourselves scientists.

4. Two missing crewmen. Two men leave to go back to ship, since everything got a bit weird. You’d think this would make them the smartest of the bunch, but nooo. They get lost but don’t bother to radio anyone for help, even though they’ve let off probes that map the structure and also track them, so someone could direct them to an exit/back to rest of the team. And no one checks up on them, even when there’s a terrible sand storm coming and the captain orders them all back to the ship. Is there radio silence? Are they on mute? Who knows, but no one else gives a shit and just leaves them, not realising they’re even lost til they get back to the ship.

5. Everyone leaving the Bridge when two men are left behind. They’re in an alien structure, alone, the probe keeps saying there’s a life form…oh well, they’ll be fine, let’s go have sex.

6. Man pokes unknown life form. A so-called scientist sees an alien life form for the first time, swimming about in weird black oozy stuff. How does he react? Not, as you might think, by getting the fuck away from it and trying to study it from afar at first and see if it’s safe. No, he sticks his face up to it and coos ‘ooh aren’t you lovely’ and pokes at it. And even when it lets its…face wings? open and hisses he still doesn’t back off. Has he not seen Jurassic Park? I’m assuming they still have films in the future and that this is a classic. But Dennis Nedry also thought that dinosaur was cute until it did the face wing thing and hissed. Learn from his mistakes people.

7. Dropping the head. Shaw had one job during the storm and that was to hold an alien head while sitting on the back of a speeding vehicle. You’d hold it tight, right? Nah, one bump and off it goes so you have to go after it and get caught in the storm and be rescued by an android.

8. Going outside. Gosh, there’s a crew member outside the ship that everyone else said was dead, how did he get there? I dunno man, but let’s open those cargo bay doors and go out and have a look. Surely that’s the sensible thing to do.

9. No quarantine facilities/rules. You are on an alien planet. I don’t know how many times you have to be reminded of this. Not only that, but at one point you know that one of you is infected with something but you don’t know where it’s come from or if anyone else has it. For Christ’s sake quarantine yourselves, for the sake of the rest of the crew, the ship, and the mission. Don’t just keep going back out to the structure and taking your helmets off willy nilly.

10. Running in a straight line. There’s a massive structure falling towards you that is longer than it is wide. Maybe if you ran to your right instead of forwards in a straight line you’d have a greater chance of not being crushed to death.

Everyone on this mission was so stupid it’s almost like they wanted to die. I’m starting to wonder if this isn’t some futuristic form of Dignitas. Thinking of assisted suicide? We can make it interesting for you. Join our mission now!

I am Alive and Doing Things

I’m doing a terrible job of keeping this place updated at the moment. Even my endlessly fascinating roller derby posts have dried up. That’s because I’ve missed a few practices, and there’s only so many times I can post pics of my bruises. But here, have some Carrie news:

Derby: I have come down with The Fear recently. I think this is since I graduated from Fresh Meat to Rec League and realised the others weren’t going to take it easy on us any more. This realisation probably occurred as I was hurtling through the air towards a wall after being properly hit by Sin for the first time. Oh. My. God. Wind knocked out of me, head hit floor, wanted to die…got back up again lest anyone think I am a big girl. Note to all: I am a big girl. Please stop hitting me! Alas, I am in the wrong sport for that. Although it is helping my agility as I then did anything to avoid being hit by Sin, which included some fancy footwork which saw her glide past me instead of being slammed.

I need to buy new skates, and not in a ‘need’ way that means I actually just want new skates (like I need new kneepads and wheels). My current ones are damaging my toes and as much as I like them and wish I could just get on with them, I think it’s time. I’m trying to work out sizing at the moment. My Anarchy skates are a size 6 (UK) which is the size I wear in shoes, but I know a lot of skaters go a size up for their skates. So maybe all that’s wrong here is the wrong size, which should be easy to fix, right? Well, maybe, but then I have to decide which kind of skate I want, how much to pay, do I want to worry about plates right now? (Short answer: not really.) There’s a lot of information out there and it’d be great if someone could just jump out of nowhere and say ‘Here! These are your perfect skates. Enjoy!’ Anyway, I’ve had some advice and narrowed downs ones to try, and will head off to the skate shop next week, hopefully leaving with shiny new ones!

Feet: I had another podiatrist appointment last week. It was a lady podiatrist this time because apparently my usual dude doesn’t work on Fridays, which it would have been nice to know when I made my appointment. Because I then had to explain again that I do roller derby and sorry sorry sorry for the state of my toes. And also forgot about my bruised shin until she asked me to roll my trouser legs up and I saw her wince. She has added yet more weird things to my insoles in an effort to fix my goddamn feet. They have been a lot better, the arch pain is gone, the heel pain has reduced. If I actually did the stretches I am supposed to do more than once a week they would probably be better. We’re now trying to fix the cramping I get on my outer foot, which is mostly caused by that part of my foot going ‘WTF? I’m having to take all this new pressure all of a sudden?’ That is my expert diagnosis. So I have these new circular additions to my insoles in the middle of my feet, which is weird.

I can maybe possibly maybe start running again in a couple of weeks. Maybe.

Work: Is work is work. Last week I was at a conference in Cambridge for the day and had to write about it for our blog. This is my first attempt and it’s been far more stressful than I expected. I don’t know what tone to use, or what voice, or how much of me should be in it. I think I’ve finished it now but we’ll see if they like it. The rest of work is not exactly thrilling me, but maybe it’s just a hump I need to get over.

Books: I am still making my way through the Song of Ice and Fire books, after being hooked on the Game of Thrones tv series. I loved the first three, they were quick reads because so much was happening and I had to know what was going on. A Feast For Crows isn’t holding my attention as much, but I’m getting there.

Films: I finally saw Harry Potter this weekend. I enjoyed it, for the most part, but I thought that damn epilogue was just as bad as it was in the books. Badly done and mostly unnecessary. No matter how hard they tried with the makeup, they still looked like kids playing dress up. In very dweeby clothes might I add. They’re supposed to be what, not even 40? You can be 40 and not dress in power suits and bad blouses. And you don’t have to have a gut, Ron. I think the first part of Deathly Hallows is my favourite of the films, it had the best mix of book/plot and down time where we got to sit with the characters a bit. The dancing scene is wonderful. The second part is more action-packed and mostly moves from battle to battle. I think the Harry/Ginny relationship suffered a lot in the films. I found it hard to care about them at all, which also added to the scene at the end’s misfire. Hermione and Ron get a lot of screen time as Harry’s friends, but Ginny only turns up every now and then, looking at him longingly or stealing a kiss, and then she’d gone again. Anyway, give it five years and they’ll reboot the whole thing, and we can start again.

Spot the Difference

Pajiba had a post the other day about movie posters being different in other countries. I find it interesting to see the subtle (and maybe not so subtle) differences that can be made, and whether it actually does mean anything at all or if it’s just several companies interpreting a brief. But I have noticed my own movie poster difference in the last few days, and it’s been bugging me to death. Mostly because the change is unnecessary, but also because it is butchering the language.

Exhibit A:

The poster for Horrible Bosses you get if you Google ‘Horrible Bosses Poster’. I can only assume this is the US version, or main version. It’s fine, it fits with the other posters for the film. Can’t see why it’d need to be altered.

Exhibit B:

Sorry for the quality, it was taken hastily as I waited for the tube this morning, and I haven’t been able to find a version online. So, why the change? And why did anyone think it was necessary to write ‘sex-crazed nympho’? Is writing nympho not enough? Does it not imply sex-crazed already; isn’t that kind of the definition? If someone felt a change was needed could they not have changed the sex-crazed bit and added something else that wasn’t redundant?

I really do not get this. Maneater is hardly a weird word. We’ve come across it here. Nelly Furtado assaulted us with a song about one for months. We wouldn’t look at the original and go ‘I’m not sure what they’re trying to get across here.’

And now I’ve spent far too much time considering it, (and promoting a film I have no real interest in seeing) and I’ll get no answers.

Blue Valentine

I put off watching this film for a while, figuring it would be fairly depressing and I wasn’t in the mood for depressing. But I finally gave in and stuck it in the DVD player, and I’m so glad I did. Yes, it is rather somber in parts, dealing as it does with the breakdown of a relationship, but it’s also sweet, and funny, and true, as well as just about the definition of heartbreaking.

The film opens with a six year old girl (Faith Wladyka) calling for her missing dog, before crawling through a dog flap to jump on her sleeping father (Ryan Gosling), alone in a chair. Together they wake her mother (Michelle Williams), who fights them off, desperate for sleep. What you learn if you listen to the DVD extras or read anything about the making of the film, is that these moments are real. Or as real as they can be in a manufactured setting, but the director, Derek Cinafrance, started in documentaries and he still has a feel for them. Gosling was really sleeping when Wladyka woke him, as was Williams. Cameras had been placed around the home they made to catch such moments, to film the undoing of a family, and it works wonderfully.

In the beginning we’re in this settled, much-lived-in world, as Dean and Cindy raise their daughter, Frankie. Cindy is a nurse and Dean paints houses. They get by, but there’s not a lot of love shared here, at least not between the parents. Just as we’re getting used to their lives and how they interact, suddenly we’re taken back six years to a younger looking, handsome Dean, before he meets Cindy. It’s a story in two parts then, as we witness the beginning (and how sweet that is) and end of their relationship. This could have been a disaster, overly sentimental and twee, but it works. The older couple tugs at your heart precisely because of what has gone before: The love. The potential. How well they fit together. And in the end it’s all gone, slowly and surely over the years we imagine, but gone nonetheless.

Both leads are phenomenal. They had four weeks between filming the early relationship scenes and the later ones, to become a family, put on weight, and believably age themselves in an attempt to show the passage of time. The director had been working on the script for around twelve years at the point it was filmed and had wanted to allow a real six year gap before filming the later scenes, but financial constraints wouldn’t allow it. I don’t think this has done the film any harm as the leads pull it off, with whatever else they’ve done – weight gain, shaving hair to show a receding hairline – the time shows on their faces. They look older. And tired, with puffy eyes and fine lines, whether this is clever make up or just down to damn good acting I don’t know, but I believed it all the way, and it made the skip back in time all the poignant.

It’s not an easy film to watch at times, but it is worth it. Maybe it shouldn’t work as well as it does, falling somewhere between a romantic love story and a depressing drama, and I am sure there are people who hated it, but to me it was wonderful. It’s beautiful. Although a little like watching my parents split up over two hours, except this time I didn’t want them to.

Not All About Skating For Once

No skating this week as I was resting my feet on Saturday (my blister has finally healed! My toenail has finally shuffled off this mortal coil!) and then in Exeter for work Monday-Wednesday. That was not remotely thrilling. Sitting in a by turns too hot and too cold room, being ignored for three days and missing out on tea when it was served, and also not selling very many books at all. It’s amazing how tiring sitting doing nothing all day can be, as every evening I would conk out at around 10pm trying to read A Game of Thrones.

I am totally addicted to GoT by the way. I loved the tv series muchly and was waiting until it was done to read the first book. I’m now onto the second and still loving it. I contemplated not reading it so as not to spoil the series when it airs next year, but who was I kidding, I couldn’t possibly wait that long to find out what happens. I am in love with the Khaleesi, and feisty Arya, and Tyrion and Jon. But I am worried about where it is going because George R.R. Martin is not afraid to kill off his characters, oh no. It’s wonderful writing and an amazing world that is so full of detail and so well realised I can only assume Martin is a genius. How does he keep track of everyone and everything he has created? It’s so vast. If you’re not reading or watching you should give it a go.

Something worth avoiding though is X Men: First Class. I didn’t have high hopes for this based on the truly awful film posters and so-so trailer, but I went to see it anyway, hoping it would take away the bad taste left by X Men 3. It didn’t and I think I shall have to go on pretending only two X Men films exist. For the first half I really truly could have walked out and not felt like I was missing anything. The child actors in the beginning were so earnest and cute it was impossible to take them seriously (and just seeing the revisited Magneto-as-a-boy moment showed you the difference in direction skills). In fact there was much eye-rolling all round as Kevin Bacon acted the villain and I felt like I was watching The Spy Who Shagged Me. It was just too cheesy. It got better as it went along, but still didn’t have nearly enough character development to make me give a crap about any of them. The teen mutants get a cursory montage of what their powers are, and that’s it. And I’m supposed to relate to them how? Root for them? Care when one of them double crosses the others? You’ve done nothing to show me what kind of people they are, so why should it come as a surprise? I’m supposed to care because I’m supposed to care, and that is just not good enough. It’s lazy and makes it impossible for an audience to engage. Also, James McAvoy was a terrible Professor X. I just about hated him in every scene he was in, and usually I quite like him. He’s no Patrick Stewart. Michael Fassbender fared better and I’d have probably preferred if they’d just concentrated on Magneto, at least I knew what he was about, and where his rage came from. I am also slightly worried about The Hunger Games film if that’s Jennifer Lawrence’s best acting. She was so good in Winter’s Bone, and so bad/pointless here. I couldn’t see anything of the Mystique to come.

And my one big peeve about the whole thing was Charles putting a finger to his temple every time he did anything with his mental powers. I understand that someone thought it necessary to telegraph to the audience with a big sign saying ‘MUTANT POWER GO’ but it was distracting and stupid. What does the finger do exactly, flick a switch? Did Stewart do this in the other films and I just didn’t notice? Gah. Hated it.

Back to skating on Saturday, with only two more practices left before I find out whether I can fully join the Rec League or have to start Fresh Meat again. Fingers crossed people!

Thor

Oh I really kind of hated this film. Or perhaps hate is too strong a word for something that was mainly incredibly dull and not nearly as fun as it seemed to think it was. I am generally fond of superhero movies, though I am getting tired of them, but this Avengers malarkey is getting extremely old and I don’t have high hopes for that film at all. Or any real inclination to see it. Except that it’ll be directed by Joss Whedon. Damn my oath of allegiance to that guy.

Anyway, Thor. Thor lives on Asgard with his dad Odin and his brother Loki and his mother Rene Russo. I do not know what her character name is as she was in the film for about thirty seconds. Thor is arrogant and vain and all about the beat down. After an opening that gives us some back story of the Asgardians’ (totally made up word or actually what they’re known as?) war with the Frost Giants (who came up with that lame name?) and how Odin took their little box of…frost/power we move on to a breach in Asgard’s defenses which allow some Frost Giants in. See, Asgard has this rainbow bridge thing that allows travel to different worlds, which are all connected, as is our own Earth. This will be important later. Sort of. Thor is ANGRY! about said breach and storms off in a strop with his best buddies and Loki to smack some Frost Giants around. Which would be fine if all of them had a super hammer that can create storms and let them fly, but they don’t, and so they get their asses kicked and are saved by daddy Odin who is mighty pissed and no longer happy to make Thor king. In fact, he’s going to take away his hammer and banish him to Earth where he can think about what he has done.

Also known as: Get hit by a van carrying Natalie Portman and create intrigue in her astrophysicist’s life. She’s looking at weird phenomena of some sort, but all her research is confiscated by the FBI and that dude who keeps turning up in these movies to either tell people things or be cryptic. Not Samuel L. Jackson. Thor and Jane (Portman) team up to get her stuff and his hammer back, but he is thwarted since Odin made the hammer respond only to someone who is worthy. Thor is not. Cue long shot of him suffering in the rain. And then not much happens until the main (yet lame) fight at the end.

I was quite bored during a lot of this movie, and yet it was watchable enough. Mostly I think I was annoyed. There seemed to be a half decent film in there trying to get out, but it was smothered by the truly awful special effects and shoddy costumes. I am so tired of CGI. I want a magnificent alien/god planet to look alive and breathtaking and beautiful, and not like it has been created by some dudes in a basement. It looks so fake that it just takes me out of the film. And the costumes…who thought really shiny plastic-looking armour was the way to go? I know they are gods or whatever and so will have lavish surroundings and clothing, but the armour looked like something you’d pick up from a fancy dress shop for Halloween. I’m supposed to take these people seriously as warriors? Couldn’t they have gone another way, maybe give them a more aged look? Anything else would have been better.

Another issue I had was the ‘romance’ between Thor and Jane. There’s not much of it, to begin with. We know very little about either of them and other than a short conversation on a rooftop they don’t really interact. And yet she is supposedly what makes him become a better man. Or at least I think she is. Protecting her and other humans leads him to learn that war isn’t always the right answer. And we have both of them brooding about each other at the end, because they’re in ‘love’. Really? She knew him for all of 48 hours, had one conversation and then he disappeared. Oh sure, he’s a god, and he looks amazing with his shirt off, but you’re gonna dedicate your life to finding him again? Argh!

I did however appreciate that there was a woman warrior among Thor’s friends (even if that is mentioned as being unorthodox even among gods. Pfft.) and that her outfit, while stupid like the rest of them, was not stupid in the usual way of her being unable to fight in it without her assets popping out all over the place. So, I guess that’s progress?

Mostly this felt like a pointless exercise. It wasn’t all that entertaining, it didn’t look very good, and I’m not sure it’s added anything to the Marvel film universe, other than being an introduction to Thor for The Avengers. I’m sure there was a cheaper way for them to achieve that.

Black Swan

I know a lot has been said about this film, seeing as it was a big critic darling and won an Oscar for its star, but I’ve kind of avoided reviews of it and all the press. In fact, I wasn’t even going to watch it, based on my past experiences with Darren Aronofsky films. He makes films to be endured and not watched again, whether they are ‘worthy’ or not. Not generally enjoyable experiences, for me. I figured it would be one of those films everyone talks about but that passes me by. But of course in the end I caved and watched it last night, and I was actually genuinely surprised that I didn’t totally hate it. That’s praise that is.

I’m sure most people know the plot by now, but I’ll do a little rehash anyway. Nina Sayers (Natalie Portman) is a dancer with a ballet company in New York. She’s ambitious but fragile and still lives with her mother in a small apartment, unable to even go to the bathroom without interruptions to her privacy. She has never been the lead in a ballet, but now has a chance as director Thomas (Vincent Cassel) throws off his old star, Beth (Winona Ryder, who I almost didn’t recognise), his ‘little princess’ and has a spot for a younger model. One he can again mould and make into his perfect ballerina, no matter the costs to her health or mental state. It’s clear that Beth has been pushed to her breaking point and is left a broken mess, one that Nina is keen to emulate, down to stealing Beth’s possessions.

The role in question is the dual one in Swan Lake. Nina is perfect for the virginal, innocent white swan, but doesn’t have the passion or freedom of movement to capture the evil black swan. Thomas sparks her jealousy and fear of being replaced when he mentions that new dancer Lily (Mila Kunis) embodies more of what he is looking for in the dark role. Taking on a punishing schedule to perfect the part, Nina starts to lose her grip on reality. Her madness manifests itself in scratching her back constantly but having no memory of it, pulling off strips of skin, and seeing her double everywhere – most notably Lily’s face becoming her own. Her life unravels as the night of her debut approaches, reaching a point where what we see and what is real are not necessarily one and the same.

As with other Aronofsky films I have watched, it’s not easy viewing. I had to turn away at several points with the blood and the nails and scratching, as well as witnessing a young woman on the brink of success completely unravel. Yet it is compelling; I was never bored and did want to see what happened, even if I was creeped out on occasion. That’s not to say I felt invested in Nina. I didn’t empathise with her or care that much about what happened to her, as she’s not especially likeable. I couldn’t get over her weakness and her little girl-ness. I know that’s the point, that this is what leads to her undoing, and makes her change at the end have more impact. But I would have preferred her turn into the black swan on her own terms – a big fuck you to her mother and Thomas, and come out stronger and better, empowered by what she has learned and using other people’s pressures on her to push her on and show them that she can succeed without their interference. Although Portman has apparently said she sees the ending not as a death but as a killing of the child inside to become an adult, and that I can get on board with. I did however find the literal turning into a black swan somewhat overplayed and unsubtle, even if it does add to our understanding of her madness. It felt cliche.

One of the things I did think was spot on was the music and sound effects. They are amazing and add so much to the tension and claustrophobic feeling. There’s lots of crunching and scratching sounds that just went through me and set me on edge. The film did almost lose me at the beginning with its extreme close ups, and following Nina from behind. It’s an excellent way to put the audience off kilter, but my brain was having trouble focusing and I desperately wanted the camera to zoom out. I’m not sure if it did or if I just got used to it after a while.

I’m not a ballerina (hah) and nor have I ever watched ballet, so have no experience in how the performance is supposed to look or be played, but I didn’t totally buy Nina being picked for the lead role based on her audition, even for the white swan. I know Natalie Portman worked hard for months and lost 20 pounds for the role, but she seemed wooden and ungraceful in a lot of the scenes. Perhaps I’m not the best judge and that’s exactly how it’s supposed to be played. I don’t want to take away from what was obviously a lot of determination and dedication to a role, but it didn’t quite work for me. In all though I’m glad I watched it and got to see what all the fuss was about, and I’m happy it was a better experience than expected.

Definitely, Maybe

You might look at that poster and the helpful ‘From the makers of Notting Hill and Love, Actually‘ and think ‘My god what a load of cheesy nonsense I’m staying away from that’ (like my boyfriend) and I’d totally understand, especially given the tagline that makes little sense. ‘A second look at the past’? When was his first look, I mean, had he reminisced before this film? But I think you’d be missing out if you ignored it…well, if nice rom-coms are remotely your thing of course. If you’d rather take a spoon to your liver then jog on.

Will Hayes (Ryan Reynolds) is a thirty-something (his age is never specifically given and it is a bit of a stretch at times to imagine him as a) older and b) a father but it mostly works) advertising exec who doesn’t really love his job trying to get kids to eat more cereal. But he gets through his days knowing he gets to spend time with his ten year old daughter, Maya (Abigail Breslin). Will is about to sign divorce papers and so only sees Maya on certain days. Like this day, when he picks her up from school to find they’ve had a sex education talk and Maya won’t stop saying ‘penis’ loudly until he tells her the story of her parents’ relationship, to better understand their split. Will tries to make it more interesting (for her and us) by changing names and dates so we don’t know who the mother is, and both Maya and the viewer get to play a game of name that mom.

That’s the basic cutesy bit of the premise. We then follow Will from a recent, bright-eyed graduate off to work on the Clinton campaign for a summer in New York, and leaving behind college girlfriend, Emily. Possible Mom No 1. Working on the campaign is hard at first and he loses some of his enthusiasm as he’s stocking toilet paper and making copies, where he meets April. Possible Mom No 2. She’s a free spirit and won’t take any of his dreamy bullshit. They become good friends. Meanwhile, Emily has given Will a package to give Summer, an old friend, which he of course opens and then goes to meet her. Possible Mom No 3. She’s an intellectual wannabe journalist having a relationship with a much older man and therefore out of Will’s league.

So those are the women, and he has relationships and friendships with each as he moves through different jobs, successes and defeats and loses a bit of his optimism. Part of what’s so likable about Definitely, Maybe is that, even though it’s a romantic comedy, it’s not just about the love and romance. We get to know Will and his dreams and watch him grow up and become comfortable in his skin. He becomes more confident in his work and his love life, and his life isn’t perfect. He suffers setbacks and disillusionment, and it doesn’t seem over done. He suffers when his heroes disappoint him, and he messes up his relationships as much as he is hurt by them in turn. And each one means something to him and teaches him important lessons, ones we should all probably learn. There is no ‘One’. Your current one may be your one for a lifetime, or they may instead be a brief affair that leads you on to the next, where you take what you’ve learned, your mistakes and accomplishments, and try to do better.

Ultimately Definitely, Maybe is an incredibly sweet film with a cute mystery element. I had seen it before a few years ago, so I knew how it would turn out (you mostly do anyway, but it’s fun not knowing for a little while) but that didn’t stop it being just as enjoyable the second time around. I also like that all three women are well rounded, likable characters, and you would pretty much be happy if he ended up with any of them, as they all seem to fit him well for the stages of life he is in when they are together. None of them are shrews, none of them go out of their way to make him feel bad, and the relationships end because of various reasons, not because either of them didn’t try or didn’t love one another. Sometimes circumstances are the greater factor. And it’s nice to watch a man on film be allowed to grow up, and have feelings, and be a good dad, and not go the gross-out route. For that alone this is a winner.

True Grit

OK confession: I’ve never seen the John Wayne film. Strike me down, but it’s never much appealed to me. Which is funny since one of my favourite Westerns is The Searchers. But True Grit has never been on the TV when I’ve been in the mood to watch it. Not that it’s on all that often anyway. After seeing this film though, I’d be happy to have a look at the original. This makes me basically the perfect audience for this ‘remake’ (I don’t necessarily see it as a remake, since it uses the original source material – the book by Charles Portis – as its inspiration), I had no expectations going in, and the Coen Brothers couldn’t ruin any memories I might have had. I know there are people out there shouting ‘This is an abomination! There was no need to remake this film!’ Well I guess there was a need, since I was happy to take myself off to the cinema and watch it. I do kind of understand this feeling though, since I don’t like it when films dear to me are remade (and ruined!), so maybe in the future I’ll try and be less angry about them, all live and let live, happy just to know a new audience is discovering something I love…

Yeah, that’s never gonna happen.

I’m also not a Coen Brothers fangirl. I can take them or leave them. The Big Lebowski and O Brother, Where Art Thou? Loved. Fargo and No Country For Old Men? Meh. But the trailer for this film totally hooked me and I was eager to see it. It’s a formulaic story, as I suppose a lot of Westerns are. 14 year old Mattie Ross (Hailie Steinfeld) vows to avenge her father’s death when he is killed trying to stop hired hand Tom Chaney (Josh Brolin) in a petty fight. Strong, smart and quick-tongued, Mattie soon raises the money needed to hire an old Marshal, Rooster Cogburn (Jeff Bridges) . He initially double-crosses her and leaves her behind, but she’s more than a match for him and catches up. Along for the ride is Texas Ranger, LaBoeuf (Matt Damon), who has been on Chaney’s trail for months with no luck.

The rest is fairly straightforward fare, a search for bad man in harsh times, some bickering and a fair amount of trouble, but not so much that you fear for their lives. But on most levels it didn’t disappoint. It is visually stunning with a beautiful score and has amazing actors. Hailee Steinfeld is especially good and more than holds her own against more established actors. And I always love seeing Jeff Bridges in films. It’s fun to see him in this part of his career, so far removed from the pretty boy of his early acting days. Matt Damon struggles a bit and has to contend with talking with a hurt tongue for half the movie, but he’s still competent. Josh Brolin gets very little screen time, but I thought he was very good with what he had to play with. Seemingly harmless one moment and menacing the next with Mattie on the river.

I had thought the film would be long, an epic, but it comes in at under two hours, and it never feels it. There’s always enough going on to keep your interest, and lots of great dialogue and sparring between the characters. But that’s not to say it’s perfect. It’s genuinely entertaining yes, but it doesn’t have much depth. There’s not a lot of characterisation going on; we’re given the barest of glimpses at Cogburn’s life, outside of being a crotchety drunk who likes shooting people. And who knows what LaBoeuf thought about anything.  But Mattie was where I felt this the most. It doesn’t delve into her motivation other than ‘He done me wrong and I want him punished!’ It doesn’t go into how she feels about the loss of her father, or leaving her mother and siblings behind. We don’t know whether she’s scared or how she will feel when she finally meets Chaney, let alone if she kills him. Is it something that she’ll carry around with her? Is she OK with that? Or is it something she just has no truck with? No, it’s just a straight up revenge story, and because of that it doesn’t leave much of a lasting impression.

I don’t want to leave it on a negative note. It’s well worth seeing and I enjoyed it very much. I just think there could have been more to it that would have made it fantastic, rather than just good or solid.

 

Morning Glory

Becky Fuller (Rachel McAdams) is a struggling TV producer-wannabe in her late 20s working at a morning show no one watches and expecting a promotion when she’s fired. This is especially bad as her job is her life. Her mother tells her to give up on her dream job working on The Today Show before it gets embarrassing. Thanks Mom. Refusing to give up she eventually gets a job at Day Break, another failing morning show in danger of being cancelled. She fires the useless male anchor and replaces him with Mike Pomeroy (Harrison Ford), a former news anchor who feels morning TV is beneath him (well, he did put a cold wash cloth on Mother Teresa’s forehead during a cholera outbreak) but who has to take the job due to his contract. Not that he’ll participate in the features. And so begins a battle of wills as Becky tries to save the show and prove her worth.

Rachel McAdams is brilliant in her role. Becky could easily have become an annoying character far too obsessed with herself for the viewer to stomach, but instead she’s endearing and cute and you want her to succeed. Few actresses could have pulled this off and not driven you mad. She’s smart and determined but never unlikable. The film itself follows a fairly bog-standard formula, but it’s sweet and funny in parts (especially the Ernie the weatherman segments). There’s a nice sub-plot with some romance and the difficulties of juggling a relationship with a career, but that’s never the focus and it’s nice to see a film with a female lead that isn’t all about finding ‘The One’.

Of course it gets somewhat saccharine towards the end as everyone gets what they want, or mostly. It would have been nice if Becky had not had to give up her dream job in order to ‘keep the family together’ (don’t get me wrong, I wanted her to too, it would just make a change for a woman not to have to be the one who compromises), but we get to see that she finds a balance between work and her personal life.

As for the cast aside from McAdams, they’re all excellent, although Diane Keaton is underused. I don’t think it would have hurt to give her more screen time, and not have her just be the straight man to Harrison Ford’s barbs. Speaking of, what the hell is going on with Harrison Ford? He’s turning into the most crotchety old man on screen since Walter Matthau, and if his voice gets any more gravelly he’ll be the first in line to play old Batman.