Posts tagged movies

An Unreasonable Man

I watched a surprisingly good movie last night. An Unreasonable Man, a documentary on the life of Ralph Nader, chronicles the life of a complex man, whose numerous accomplishments have been largely overshadowed by his villainous personae. If we skim the surface, we see that Ralph Nader spoiled the 2000 election for the democrats, and insodoing, helped bring to power one of the worst administrations in U.S. history. This documentary helps us look a bit deeper.

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Autumn brings two things with 100 percent certainty: lower temperatures and better movies! The arrivals of The Social Network and The Town seem to signify the beginning of the Oscar season that will be hopefully full of great films. While the Deathly Hallows has been on the top of my anticipation list for most of the year, True Grit has definitely vaulted into my top slot.

First of all, I have been a fan of the Coen Brothers since seeing Raising Arizona when I was like four years old. I can quote the vast majority of the lines in the Big Lebowski. Fargo and No Country for Old Men bring my Coen collection up to four. If I had my way (meaning a bit more money to burn) I would definitely buy Burn After Reading, Miller’s Crossing, and A Serious Man (on a side note, how awesome was A Serious Man?! Seriously, I was blown away. The Coen Brothers are seriously on their A-game these days).

But there is something about True Grit that just blows my mind. It is as if the universe has aligned, bringing all the best aspects of the Coen collection together. It’s the Wild West + The Dude + Josh Brolin + Matt Damon + a story about redemption + an incredibly engaging trailer. That is not even counting the fact that the source material is none other than an apparently beloved novel of the same title, which I shall now need to read immediately. If No Country for Old Men was an indication of how the Coen Brothers do when adapting Westerns, I think it is safe to expect an absolutely amazing film.

Anyone else pumped about this one?

Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Watched this one for the second time a few days ago. Definitely funny how second impressions can be so different! The first I saw this movie I feel like I was into the story a lot more. I was much more interested in the lives of the characters and how things were going to play out. This time I found it utterly absurd! The characters are so vacuous and one-dimensional, almost to the point of frustration. I felt as though there wasn’t a single meaningful dialogue in the whole movie… just a bunch of spoiled pricks grappling with hollowness of existence.

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Casualties of War

Piece of shit. More on this later…

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One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest

What the fuck just happened? 

Shutter Island

Defense mechanisms and denial were themes used throughout this latest movie in the long line of great Scorsese flicks. How appropriate that I found myself using both as weapons in my post-viewing arsenal against what I had just seen. But, like any heavy burden, it is difficult to stave off forever. The more I think about this movie the more I realize that it was deliberately paced; it was methodical; it was purposeful; it drags you straight down with it, so that by the end you don’t really know how to respond or react. It’s greatness comes afterwards, as you, the viewer, must labor in order to come to terms with the truth. The genius comes in realizing that despite being a detached piece of the audience, the truth is not easy to accept.

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