January 2012
6 posts
4 tags
Beasts of the Southern Wild - LIVE from Sundance
Sundance’s big feature award winner in 2012 is a post-Katrina-apocolypse-meets-Beyond-Thunderdome-meets-Newt & Ripley & pre-historic-beasts-as-aliens in the swamps of the Bayou-south.
Did you get all that?
Said another way…gritty-magical-apocolype-realism that is totally unique and unforgettable. Filmmaker, Benh Zeitlin, has succeeded in creating a film that even the most...
4 tags
Live From Sundance 2012: "Save the Date"
Stop the presses - we have a winner!
It’s hard to have a fresh, original take on the “awkward fumbling-into-adulthood of 20-something’s in L.A.” genre, but “Save the Date” nails it with a story & performances that are as surprising and pitch-perfect as “Juno” - and that’s high praise.
Can’t remember the last time I was in a theater...
4 tags
Live from Sundance 2012: "The Comedy"
Add the term, “recreational cruelty” to your vocabulary, and if you’re confused about what that might mean, wait for this polarizing indie film to hit your local cineplex.
This hard-to-stomach, but sometimes funny film, is a raw look at the trust fund babies from the Beavis & Butthead generation. Talk about a niche! And boy…are these guys best in small doses.
While...
3 tags
Midnight in Paris
Pitch-perfect Woody Allen - more nostalgia & romance than humor, but a delightful 90 minutes. Plenty of love letters have been written about all things Paris - particularly Paris in the 20’s - but Woody Allen has the courage and the chops to one-up all of them. Owen Wilson perfectly cast, and the historical characters come to life - from Hemingway to F. Scott and Zelda - are just as...
9 tags
Moneyball
Swing and a miss! This movie tells the wrong story! In fact, Michael Lewis wrote the book too soon as history has shown Moneyball focuses on the SECOND most interesting success story of the “stats will set you free!” baseball era.
On the surface, this is baseball for stat-geeks with Brad Pitt maxing out his “aww shucks I may be wrong but I’m gonna do it my way” charm...
3 tags
Another Year
Mike Leigh makes interesting movies, with fully fleshed out characters, and some of them (“Happy Go Lucky”) can really surprise and delight, but this one…not so much. It’s pretty dark with the only light coming from the tired hopefulness of the every-men and every-women that fill out the story. Special kudos to Leslie Manville for playing one of the most desperate and sad...
1 tag
Super 8
Never has word-of-mouth about a movie been more spot on. This is a little too much of a Frankenstein monster of Spielberg’s greatest hits, but the performances of the kids in this cast are pitch-perfect and upstage everything else. Special nod to the best train crash sequence since The Fugitive!
December 2011
4 posts
8 tags
The Help
This is straight Hallmark movie-of-the-week stuff, folks, perfume’d up to be “art film / critics darling / blockbuster”…whatever works, just pay at the cash-register. And have you bought the best-selling novel, yet? How about the action figures?…err…Crisco cook book? It all seems so vanilla - and at 2 and a half hours - how much vanilla can one digest before...
3 tags
The Future
Miranda July is a completely original artist, film-maker, and performer. Her films are as unique as her translucent blue eyes, and definitely an acquired taste…like tofu. Talking cats (yes, really) and a comforting-lecturing-moon (oddly, it works!) meet raw private moments from top-notch actors in The Future. Fell asleep - twice! - watching this film…but rooting for the...
7 tags
How Do You Know
James L. Brooks has made some of the best, smartest, adult, drama-comedies in the last 30 years. His “Big 3”: “Terms of Endearment,” “Broadcast News,” and “As Good As It Gets” = yes, please!
“How Do You Know” is…horrible.
It’s hard to imagine how such a talented film-maker, and a world class cast, could make such a dud. And...
November 2011
10 posts
7 tags
Everything Must Go
Will Ferrell begins the long, slow “Bill Murray journey” of evolving from A-list comic star to legit dramatic actor. As with Murray’s earliest efforts (Razor’s Edge, anyone?) it’s not always a smooth journey, but Ferrell has “you can’t teach that” likability and shows the same potential in this short-story-turned-indie-film. Slow? Yep! Some honest,...
4 tags
Cary Barlowe on Gigging & Grubbing
Hit maker behind Lady Antebellum’s #1 hit, “American Honey,” tells all and shares his new single, “Helpless” which he says is the best song he’s written so far. Whiskey Kitchen and Piranha’s sandwiches look like good grubbing in Nashville, too, next time you’re swinging thru Music City. Who’s hungry?!
www.giggingandgrubbing.com
4 tags
Conan O'Brien Can't Stop
Hmm…O.K., I get it. 89 mins of the strengths and weaknesses of Conan all captured during his exhausting, thrown-together tour in the wake of his $45 million settlement after getting the shaft from NBC. Ironically, you almost get a taste of why Conan wasn’t up to the challenge of carrying the Tonight Show torch, but grow in appreciation of his indie comedy chops and tireless, ego &...
3 tags
Buck (doc)
Sundance award-winning darling is exactly as advertised: a real life horse whisperer. He’s as authentic as we’d like to believe all emotionally-wounded cowboys should be. And if you’ve never seen a wild horse bite a trainer in the face…this documentary will show it in shocking color.
3 tags
Page One: Inside the New York Times (doc)
A smart, focused look at the strengths / weaknesses of “legacy media” - the painful financial shift of readers to “new media” - the ignorance / arrogance of new media that survives off the backbone of “old media” - and the truly impressive teamwork and talent of world class JOURNALISTS at the top of their game.
The only risk most bloggers or new media start-ups...
2 tags
Paranormal Activity 2
OK…the tension / release of this franchise needed a little more tweaking in this follow up to the original. I understand the need to lull the audience with scenes of everyday life with a touch of foreshadowing here and there so you can set up the “big scares” but…too much lull leads to dull. I think what makes this whole franchise work is that Katie looks like a thick...
2 tags
Hanna
Uninteresting European pseudo-thriller about a teen girl reared by, and as, a super spy, on the run from the CIA. ASC-led by C Blanchett, who has an AWFUL (southern?) American accent- and ambitious direction can’t do a thing with a dull, implausible script that has too many “huh?” and “wha?“‘s to count. (submitted by Pittboy87)
6 tags
Rabbit Hole
Wow…Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart show world class acting chops that I’m not sure I knew they had. This is 92 minutes of almost-too-intimate access into the lives of parents grieving the sudden, accidental loss of their 4 year old son. The patience, pace, and lonely, isolated gaps of time balanced with gut-busting break downs and cathartic crossroads are masterfully handled by...
2 tags
Attack the Block
British sci-fi indie about juvie delinquents who take a stand in their apt building against VERY surly aliens w/ fluorescent teeth. Unlikeable characters in a (kinda) likeable movie, meant for the YA/Geek/Nerd crowd for sure; subtitles are encouraged. (submitted by Pittboy87)
4 tags
Stone (2010 - DeNiro!?)
Yep…you read that right…Robert DeNiro cranked out a movie last year on the backbone of those Michigan state tax incentives that is such a limp movie-of-the-week that it barely registered a whimper during limited release at the box office. “Stone!?” Sounds like a bad follow up to a Brian Boz flick! Oh, how the mighty have fallen.
Worse? Ed Norton, once his generations most...
October 2011
6 posts
2 tags
Captain America
F/X-driven comic book adapt of RW&B superhero; hits and misses w/ story & ASC, but Evans is good as the WWII soldier, and Weaving as the Red Skull is GREAT- almost under-used. Very decent watch w/ more build-up/tie-in to AVENGERS event in 2012…I’m in! (posted by Pittboy87)
3 tags
The Ides of March
All hail the nearly extinct “adult drama.” This dream team cast delivers great performances, and Clooney certainly earns kudos for adapting the stage play, producing, directing and starring - on a $12 mil budget! The problem with this political drama is that REAL politics and scandal have proven far more dramatic & surprising. That said, I’d still recommend it…because...
2 tags
Talihina Sky - The Story of Kings of Leon (doc)
This band seems to do lots of things right, and this self-made documentary is the latest example. Somehow understanding the backwoods, hillbilly-revival roots of the brothers in the band helps explain how the rebel path and “touched by God” vocals were inevitable. You might like the guys in the band LESS after watching, but you’ll understand them better. Here’s hoping they...
2 tags
WIN WIN
WIN WIN was just that. Quirky, funny and well acted by ASC cast working for Indie Cred peanuts, naturally. Kind of a quick out for an ending, but doesn’t undermine the rest of the movie. Good to see Burt Young in front of the camera, as well! (submitted by Pittboy87)
2 tags
The Thing (2011)
Scary, graphic homage/prequel to the ‘82 flick, where Norwegians find ET in the Antarctic ice. ME Winstead is Ripley-good as the heroine who takes charge of the sitch. Smart script that pays attention to past details & connects the dots perfectly. (Great Halloween flick!) - submitted by Pittboy87
5 tags
Barney's Version
What a jerk! This movie makes you appreciate how hard it is to make an unlikeable guy, likable! Nobody did it better than Paul Giamatti in “Sideways” but in this adaptation of a Canadian novel…he can’t pull it off. A stellar supporting cast sinks their teeth into this narrative-driven, time-shifting, 70’s melo-drama-feeling story with lots of gusto (Dustin Hoffman,...
September 2011
6 posts
1 tag
Andy Griggs on gigging & grubbing
This guy deserves his own show! Can’t wait to see Part 2…
http://www.giggingandgrubbing.com/
5 tags
Catching Hell (ESPN doc)
One of the most anticipated programs out of ESPN’s doc-machine…feels like a miss. The heart-tugging sympathy for die-hard Cubs fan “Bartman” is certainly a good building block, but the story still seems unfinished. No access to Bartman feels like Jaws without the shark. No explanation for how his friends abandoned him at his moment of need? The square-peg-round-circle...
4 tags
The Curious Case of Curt Flood (doc)
Oh the myth-building at work in THIS doc to try to make a hero out of the fraud that was Curt Flood. Being a dead-beat-dad, chronic drunk, artistic-scam-artist (really!) and living-beyond-your-means money hustler is what led to his trail-blazing attempt to become baseball’s first free agent. This is no disciple of Jackie Robinson, just a con-man whose reckless behavior around the globe...
4 tags
Roxie & Jenn - rock it!
Luv these ladies…
www.giggingandgrubbing.com
4 tags
Conviction
Incredible TRUE underdog story starring 2-time Oscar winner Hilary Swank…poorly told. Hilary and an “oh-my-God-look-who-ELSE-is-in-this-movie” cast hit all the notes, but this one failed in all those under-appreciated areas: writing, directing, and in this case the fatal editing error of time-shifting that took some of the wind out of the journey.
Quick shout out to The...
5 tags
The Ghost and the Darkness
Maybe the most under-rated safari-drama-thriller in the last 20 years. Michael Douglas and Val Kilmer at the peak of their game, a true story that is “I can’t be-LIEVE it’s true!?”, and a master-class screenplay by William Goldman. Enjoy…watch with the lights on…and don’t plan on sleeping alone for awhile after viewing.
August 2011
5 posts
3 tags
Paradise Lost - Parts 1 & 2 (HBO docs)
“Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills” and “Paradise Lost 2: Revelations” have re-surfaced from the 1990’s since the 3 subjects of the films have recently been released thanks to DNA evidence being recognized 18 years after their conviction…Yes, really!…Clocking in at almost FIVE HOURS combined, these two docs are exhausting viewing of the...
3 tags
One Day
Does Anne Hathaway have chemistry w/ anyone other than her real-life ponzi-scheme jail bird? Maybe…but one thing is certain: men all over the world will be dragged to see this bowl of lame-sauce disguised as a love story & even their wives / gf’s will be disappointed.
1 tag
Gigging & Grubbing w/ Joel Crouse
pop star rising…
www.giggingandgrubbing.com
4 tags
Blue Valentine
Raw, riveting & almost-too-initmate portrait of blue-collar love affair beginning, evolving & ending. Time shifts / flashbacks are used w/ great impact, & I simply don’t have the words to articulate how brilliant the performances are by Ryan Gosling & Michelle Williams. Design / execution of closing credits worth special mention: very stylish, colorful & somehow...
6 tags
Red
It’s AARP-action stars plugged into a fuzzy formula of retired-CIA getting pulled back into action to unmask a shady Vice Prez….oh, who cares? The joy of seeing Helen Mirrren and Morgan Freeman having some fun in a popcorn movie outweighs the tired Bruce Willis and “trying-too-hard” Mary-Louise Parker, but John Malkovich is the scene stealer of this All-Star Cast. Golden...
July 2011
14 posts
3 tags
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest
It’s a lazy ending to the totally original “Millenium Trilogy” books by Stieg Larsson. Somehow all the bad guys start to look alike and the spark between the two leads is muted by pretty standard courtroom drama stuff. That said, this movie is still better than most, and if you enjoyed the first two masterfully done films, you gotta close the loop with Lisbeth’s final...
3 tags
There's Something Wrong with Aunt Diane (doc)
What do you do when the rock of the family - emotionally, financially, universally recognized as a spit & polish-perfect mom - dies in a car accident caused by her own hand that also takes the lives of 7 others, including her own child and 3 nieces? The mysteries of this unimaginable tragedy will never be solved, and this doc takes an un-flinching look at the heartbroken and dazed family,...
3 tags
Terri
This is a darker version of Napoleon Dynamite. John C. Reilly continues to crank out great indie-film performances & his mid-movie monologue about the tragic flaws of human nature is a heart-breaker. The “kids” in this achingly-honest, coming-of-age, dark-but-hopeful tale are stellar - and you won’t believe who turns in a solid supporting performance fresh from the cast of...
pittboy87 asked: What do you get when Robert Rodriguez hires Jessica Alba, Jeff Fahey, Don Johnson, Michelle Rodriguez, Danny Trejo, a guy from Boardwalk Empire, Cheech Marin, Lindsay Lohan AND ROBERT DeNIRO to purposefully make a bad movie?? (Answer: A VERY VERY VERY bad movie.)
3 tags
guilty pleasure...
4 tags
Mann vs. Ford (doc)
HBO continues to be the leading distributor of documentaries that shake the social / political scales. Mann vs. Ford adds to that reputation. Kudos to the film-makers for spending FIVE YEARS un-earthing (literally) the ugly story of New Jersey hillbilly-country ruined by waste-dumping of Ford Motor Company. Sickness & death rot generations of this community, and despite legal and political...
5 tags
The Fab Five (doc)
What? You mean that all-flash, under-the-table-cash, Fab-5 hoops team from U of Michigan never actually WON anything? Shocker. This ESPN doc tries way too hard to attach social importance to the tarnished legacy of a team that was supposed to be great, but buckled under the shady character flaws of Weber and Rose, and ultimately became a footnote of the era right next to MC Hammer’s baggy...
7 tags
The Company Men
All-Star cast is undone by a filmmaker who wanted to be 1st-to-market w/ corporate downsizing story during the ongoing economic “Depression” (cap-“D” intentional.) “Everyman” tale told so generically it almost belittles the raw, gut-busting emotion that so many people and families are experiencing. John Wells (of West Wing fame) is clearly not a...
3 tags
Nick Nolte: No Exit
From the makers of “Dorf Goes Auto Racing” (really!) - Nick Nolte’s accelerating decent into madness hits warp speed. It appears that N2 bought a discount video camera, filmed himself asking questions…to himself…then films himself ANSWERING those questions. To add to this bizarro-world of perverse navel-gazing, someone got BEN STILLER & a bunch of b-listers to...
4 tags
Hereafter
Eastwood takes his time weaving together 3 stories that add up to a satisfying love connection that goes from impossible to inevitable. Damon’s reluctant-psychic is a good anchor, but Bryce Dallas Howard is brilliant in a minor role that was clearly overlooked & Oscar-worthy.
5 tags
The Tree of Life
Challenging, ambitious, and 138 minutes of “what the heck is going on here?” for the audience. Terrence Malick continues to be given a hall pass to make what are clearly “important” films for him - but fail to connect with a broad audience. Critics love him for being intellectual (Rhodes Scholar). Actors line up to work on something “artistic” (Brad Pitt and...
3 tags
Gone Baby Gone
With the general public crying out for justice in Florida, “Gone Baby Gone” is worth another viewing. Complex tale of child abduction brilliantly told by first-time film-maker, Ben Affleck. Scary how 2007 film foreshadowed some of the details of Casey Anthony case.
3 tags
Brothers at War (doc)
Uhh…is it possible to make a boring, action-free documentary about two brothers fighting on the front lines and their film-making brothers attempt to understand their need to serve?…Yep - this is it.