Jun 18, 2011
It seems “Drunken Heart” or “Broken-down Heart” might have been a more sensible title about a washed-up country singing crooner, Bad Blake (Jeff Bridges) who was destined for this Oscar worthy role. It’s not much of a story, so simple in fact if the plot is revealed you’ve seen it all, but it’s a lot of acting as Bridge’s character wrestles with his inner demons who surface when he meets Jean (Maggie Gyllenhaal). She’s some local guy’s niece who wants to interview and photograph him for the newspaper. She comes equipped with tripods and a four year old son, Buddy. This movie is this year’s “The Wrestler” and though it’s not as wretching, the acting is off-the-charts. Bridges has worked hard and steady through his 57 acting years even though his characters are often losers (think of “The Door In the Floor” and “The Big Lebowski” of big drunken dopes with a wandering eye. Even his lounge singer in “The Fabulous Baker Boys” – he’s got an edge for slowpokes.) The soundtrack, overseen by T Bone Burnetts, includes the movie’s theme song which Bridges performs. Who knew he could sing country and play guitar? We’re never quite sure what Gyllenhaal sees in Bad Blake, but we know that Tommy Sweet (Colin Farrell) the number one country singer in America owes his career to Blake’s past. Rounding out the cast of misfits is Robert Duvall as his old drinking buddy who finds any excuse to keep having another whiskey shot so long as they’re singing. The movie feels Santa Fe and it is. Directed and written by Scott Cooper, he’s captured that western charm. Three tiaras
Jun 18, 2011
Writer/Director Paul Haggis, an overnight success by Hollywood standards, for his Oscar script “Million Dollar Baby” brings us “Crash”, told in vignettes, about racism and elitism in America. Five seconds into the movie, only a couple lines of well-delivered dialog, from a Detective (Don Cheadle) and you know you are on a highly intelligent ride, inclusive of dramatic turns and unexpected collisions, as we intersect into many lives, on the L. A. freeways. Matt Dillion is a racist cop with too many exhausted years on the LAPD. Terrence Dashon Howard is a Television director on his way home from an upscale event, with his lovely wife, Thandie Newton, when they are pulled over by Dillon, who frames them for a stolen SUV. The real car thief is brilliantly played by rapper Ludacris (debut performance) who has just car-jacked the vehicle of the District Attorney, Brendan Fraser and his wife, a spoiled and bitchy Sandra Bullock. And then there’s more. There’s the hardworking Latino locksmith, Larenz Tate, just minding his business. There’s a Persian shopkeeper, Michael Pena, mistaken for an Iranian, and a young Ryan Phillipe as the rookie cop, afraid to speak up. This is our world today. This is what we’ve become. And while the story spans 48 hours in the lives of these people, we feel we’ve met these tortured souls, all wrestling with not only their inner demons, but with bigotry and social status, as they crash through lives, that add up to a lot more than just some broken headlights, airbags and twisted metal. One of the year’s best must-not-be-missed movies.
Jun 18, 2011
(rated PG-13, 94 mins.) If you woke up to someone after a one night stand and that person was so ugly, you’d rather bite your left arm off, that’s Coyote Ugly, explains Maria Bello as the bar owner with the movie’s funniest lines. But, you won’t have to worry about that here. Everybody is beautiful, blonde and sprouts cleavage galore! In this lame “Fame” (produced again by Jerry Bruckheimer sans “Flashdance” Don Simpson days), it’s the story of a young girl, Violet Sanford (Piper Perabo) who heads to New York to pursue her dream of becoming a songwriter. Her aspirations are sidelined by the notoriety she receives at her “day job” as a barmaid at Coyote Ugly, the hottest spot in town. The barmaids tease, tantalize and dance nightly atop a bar to a bunch of wild, horny and partying guys (girls too). If anyone else spilt more cocktails then they pour, they’d be out of a job, but not these girls. They can’t mix drinks but they can dance hard foot stompin’ routines without slipping on the counter top covered with whiskey. That’s right, it’s only a movie! If you’re looking for a strong premise without a violin playing, sappy, cheesy, storyline this probably isn’t your choice. If you’re looking for bad acting and lots of T & A, this one is Oscar caliber. And, by the way, the movie’s best performance, is not the sexy girls, it’s John Goodman as Violet’s dad.
Jun 17, 2011
You have to really understand the ups and downs of marriage to make this movie, and I’m not sure that’s a good thing. The story centers around four couples that any American couple can relate to. That part is a good thing. Vince Vaughn’s character tolerates the new kitchen tile choices his wife picks out while juggling a potty training son. Faizon Love is going through midlife crisis and fallen for a twenty-year-old, while Jon Favreau has a roaming eye from his wife played by Kristen Davis. But it’s Jason Bateman’s OCD character that is the culprit behind all the couples taking a vacation. Getting to the island is fun anticipation. Arriving is a big letdown. For them it’s six nights and seven days of couple’s therapy. For us, it’s two hours of on/off boredom. It’s as though the guys from “Wedding Crashers” got hitched and this is their destiny way beyond the seven-year-itch. This is the bickering, the lack of romance and the problems of rediscovering (or not) if they can stay happily ever after. And we’re right there with them. Often glancing at our watches. That said, like any marriage it’s the little moments that keep us going and this film has a few of those every now and then. So in the end two tiaras
Jun 17, 2011
Only the uber talented, Gwyneth Paltrow could tackle the role of a six-time-Grammy-winning-country-star with real life country singer Tim McGraw playing husband. Remember, Paltrow can really sing. She was amazing years ago opposite Huey Lewis in Duets. So this story opens in a rehab center where Kelly Canter (Paltrow) is busy testing her vocals with a cute orderly named Beau (Garrett Hedlund) who aspires to be a professional singer himself. He looks up to this Carrie Underwood beauty with her drawl gentleness and Ivory natural looks. Enter Kelly’s manager and husband, James (Tim McGraw) who is more interested in her career (or so it seems…it’s about to get confusing) so he pulls her out of rehab earlier even though he knows she had a scandalous drunken fall off stage in Dallas. This caused her to miscarry the baby she was carrying. If this is sounding a little too “Country Soap Opera” you’re right. And besides, if she’s been through this type of drama and turns to booze, why would he plunge her into a tour? Beyond that, she’s competing with the new chippy, Chiles (Leighton Meester) with her big hair and a bigger voice, busy flirting with both James and Beau simultaneously. And Beau – who we love as the hunky crooner from TRON: Legacy – seems to be torn between the two women, so we’re not sure if we should trust him. More soap opera… In the end, there’s a great concert scene and the lovely Paltrow shines as ever, but all along she’s weighed down by lack of coping skills and constantly smeared mascara. Two and a half tiaras
