127 Hours

** SPOILERS AHEAD **

Despite what you may have heard, this is not a movie about a guy amputating his arm. This is a movie about a guy DECIDING to amputate his arm, which is totally different. The decision is, in fact, pretty hard. The actual amputation: pretty easy. (Don’t believe the hype. It’s not nearly as horrific as the squeamish press would have you believe. It’s much less gruesome than ER, Dexter, or The Walking Dead, for example.) James Franco is incredible as the lonely hiker in the tough pickle. The storytelling here is inspirational and life-affirming. Tough decisions await us all, and decisions define who we are, whether it’s cutting off a limb to survive, or never going hiking alone. It’s a simple human drama, and it’s absolutely worth seeing.

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest

The third movie in the “millennium” series, i.e. Swedish rape thriller, by Steig Larsson. The acting is strong, but the plot and story felt suspiciously tacked-on, as if they decided to make the sequels after the first movie, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, was a hit. So it’s kind of like The Matrix. The first one was good, but the second one, and this, the conclusion, were both aftermath and therefore, so-so. Also, at no point in the movie does a girl ever kick a hornet’s nest.

Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows, Part 1

“Hermione! Let’s spend 140 minutes of screen time in this magical tent trying to figure out what one mysterious symbol means.”

“Okay, Harry. And I might occasionally take a few moments to sit on some rocks in the woods and read.”

“That sounds like a ripping good idea, Hermione! Erectus tenticus!”

And so on...

Due Date

After all the heavy relationship dramas at AFI Fest this year, I was in the mood to laugh. Alas, this was not funny. Not at all. Swing and a miss.

The Cave of Forgotten Dreams

A 3D documentary about the oldest cave paintings in history from the real-life “most interesting man in the world” Werner Herzog. Slow, meditative doc focuses on the personalities of the scientists as much as the caves themselves. The 3D seemed a little blurry and out of focus sometimes, but maybe that’s because I had to sit in the second row. Nevertheless, some moments of this were amazing.

Casino Jack

The second movie I’ve seen in two weeks that had Karl Rove as a character. Kevin Spacey is great in this, but it plays for laughs the world of lobbying and Jack Abramoff's financial influence of our government. Actually, it’s really maddening. Sure, I’ve got as much of a sense of humor as the next guy, but at a certain point you realize it’s REALLY fucked up what this guy was doing. One wonders HOW MANY of our government’s decisions are made this way. (All of them?) At least this guy got thrown in jail and did hard time (unlike Scooter Libby in Fair Game). Worth seeing for Spacey's edgy performance.

Rabbit Hole

Starring Nicole Kidman’s weird lips. Despite Kidman’s distracting cosmetic surgery, John Cameron Mitchell et al have fashioned a decent and poignant drama about a grieving couple. Yes, at times it’s very sad, but there’s also some dark humor and ultimately a sense of optimism about the human condition. All the leads, including Kidman, are outstanding. Too, the low-budget, Red-camera cinematography looks like a real movie and not like a found-footage, faux-documentary soaked in iodine and bear poo (re: Blue Valentine). Not really a FUN! HAPPY! night at the movies, but a solid, rewarding drama.

Blue Valentine

I hated this. It’s so premeditated. The filmmakers seem desperate for indie cred. It feels like a computer model of the perfect Sundance movie, and it doesn’t have a sincere moment during its painfully long running time. Even the casting of indie darling actors who have been great in other movies like this, Michelle Williams and Ryan Gosling, reeks of Oscar-baiting effort. Everything: the non-plot, the flawed characters, the bad haircuts, the grimy color correction, the moody music, felt contrived and false. I couldn’t wait for this to end.

The King's Speech

Will get lots of Oscar nominations and stuff, because it’s based in a true story and the acting is strong. But no matter how you slice it, it’s still a kind of dull story about English people talking.

Love and Other Drugs

**SPOILERS AHEAD**

The advertisements would have us believe this is a funny, sexy comedy about a Viagra salesman. That’s because no one would come if they knew the movie is about a guy who falls in love with a girl with Parkinson’s. The first third is a pretty normal rom-com, and the occasionally nude leads Gyllenhaal and Hathaway are pleasant enough in their archetypes. But this quickly turns into a clichéd “disease-of-the-week” movie and doesn’t really add much to the genre.