The Top 10 of 2006: #8

Little Children (Todd Field, 2006)

Don't even get me started on the performances in this film. Patrick Wilson, Jackie Earle Haley, and the incredible Kate Winslet give performances that are so spellbinding, so real, so heartbreaking that you can't help but be sucked in to the film itself. The way the film plays out, and the narration all add to the storybook quality of the film. Todd Field directs this with such subtlety and care that the entire venture is a flawless one. For a film that's just a little over two hours, it flys by.

The Top 10 of 2006: #9

Babel (Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, 2006)

With a compelling cast of characters and the trademark storytelling style of Inarritu, Babel provides the audience with a serious film on the lack of communication in today's world, and the consequences we all face because of it. Although some labelled it as extremely melodramatic, I found that for the subtext of the film, it works perfectly. Each character's conflict is just as compelling as the next, and it deserved all the accolades it garnered in the awards circuit. The score by Gustavo Santaolalla just adds to the yearning desperation of the film. A definite must-see from 2006.

Top 10 of 2006: #10

Jesus Camp (Heidi Ewing, Rachel Grady, 2006)

A horrifying look at religiosity in the mid-west. From the first to the last frame, this film captivates. The beauty of this film is that it shows a completely unbiased look at this sect of Christianity that is slowly but surely building a religious army. It is a must-watch for everyone. Just so everyone is aware though, the film will frustrate. Be prepared.

Top 10 of 2006: Honorable Mention #2

Honorable Mention #2:

Casino Royale (Martin Campbell)

I went in to this film knowing absolutely nothing about the iconic secret agent, and the beauty of the film is that I didn't need to in order to enjoy it. This film works entirely on its own, away from the famous franchise, and that is huge when you have such a monstrous franchise as the James Bond one. But perhaps even more important is that the film is an incredible thrill-ride full of action, romance, and much more. One of the most fun films of 2006.

Top 10 of 2006: Honorable Mention #1

Honorable Mention #1:

The Departed (Marty Scorsese)

I know that I'll take some flack for putting this only as an honorable mention, but this "masterpiece" by Scorsese was pure entertainment for me, and nothing more. I didn't garner any deeper meaning, and although the film was fun, it was a tad too long and just isn't my type of film. However, I can't deny the great story, performances, and ridiculously clean directing.

"Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" (2007)

The Good:
Tim Burton is one hell of a guy. For someone who is as weird as they come, he's found his niche and he's sticking to it. I've seen many of his films countless numbers of times, and I must say that this is by far his masterpiece, rivaled only by Edward Scissorhands. His style, his flair, his vision were all completely understood and presented in this film. Mr. Burton has proven himself to be the current king of macabre in film, and he's doing in with such quality, that can't even be found in the horror films of late, which is where it should be featured prominently. Everything in this film works, and even things that weigh it down don't do it enough to slow the massive machine that is Tim Burton. The dissonant and ominous score and songs by Sondheim are so perfectly featured, that it doesn't even seem odd for the characters to break in to song constantly, which is very rare in musicals. From the cartoonish red of the blood to the shadows across Todd's face, each part of the film is perfectly orchestrated by Burton and his team of macabre film wizards.

The supporting actors in the film all are incredible. Toby, Johanna, Anthony, Judge Turpin, and especially the Beedle are so vivid and so complex as characters that the story moves at a good pace because of their ability to captivate. This could be attributed to the mostly perfectly cast actors. They are all so fitting in to their roles, that it should be no surprise that they're as soaring as they turned out to be. Not to mention, all of the cast members sing wonderfully, including Depp, who has a strength as well as a quiet intensity to his voice that is so beyond perfect for portraying Todd that one would think he was born to sing Sondheim's sweeping lyrics.

The Bad:
As much as Johnny Depp is wonderful as the demon barber, he had his weak spots as well. There were many times while he was singing where he would rely too hard on the music and the lyrics to display the emotion needed. This provided many spots with the "blank stare". Depp would just give a blank and vapid face that seemed ill-fitting in many situations. Even though Todd is a thinking man and could be pensive through many spots in the film, there should have been some fire in his eyes, yet there was nothing. Luckily, the rest of Depp's performance doesn't let these spots infect his entire performance.

While we're on the subject of performance, Helena Bonham Carter is beautiful, but her Mrs. Lovett is not. She has a wonderful singing voice that's breathy and whimsical, but unfortunately that's all she has going for her with this performance. I didn't feel her love for Sweeney Todd, I didn't feel her desperation for admiration from Toby, nor did I feel any sympathy for her whatsoever when *SPOILERS*she was thrown in the oven in the end. Bonham Carter relied too heavily on the insanity of the character than the deeper yearnings. It was a disappointing performance, and constantly took me away from the film and the story. What could have been something of greatness, Helena failed to rise to the occasion, and it shows on screen.

Overall: Burton delivers a desolate, macabre, and striking Sweeney Todd that triumphs in its "Burton-esque" qualities, despite a performance by Bonham Carter that appallingly fails to deliver.

B

Announcements!

Merry Christmas Everyone!

So, after I do my review of "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street", I am going to be posting my Top 10 of 2006! Now, I understand that this year is 2007, but I figured I'd do my list from last year on this new blog just to give you guys a taste of what I like in movies. I'll be announcing one a day, and there will still be new reviews, as well as blurbs on each of the entries. I will also include 2-3 honorable mentions: films that were good, but not good enough to be on the list.

I hope everyone enjoys the holiday!

"Juno" (2007)

The Good:
Sometimes, especially around awards season, every film is drawn out and excruciatingly melodramatic. Juno is the exact opposite. For its full (and short) 92 minute runtime, I was completely enthralled. The movie started at 10:30 P.M. and not once did I want to check my phone for the time, yawn, or look around the theatre. I was captivitated. Much of that is due to Diablo Cody's freshman screenplay, which is one of the tightest and best comedy screenplays I've seen in a long time. All of the lines were perfect, and not one awkward moment ensued without it being deliberately awkward, which fit perfectly in to the feel of the whole film. There were pop culture references galore, but enough that somebody not well-versed in pop culture wouldn't be completely lost. Plus, for a comedy the film has so much heart, and that makes the film more than just a comedy about a teenager who gets pregnant. This film has by far the best screenplay I've seen all year.

The characters are wonderfully fleshed out. Each character is real, and doesn't feel like you're watching a character in a movie, but a live person. There were no caricatures in the film whatsoever. Jennifer Garner's Vanessa was in pain over her inability to bear children, and you could feel that emanating at you from the screen. As much as I wanted Juno to keep the baby for herself, I also wanted Vanessa to have a great chance at motherhood. And unlike the recent comedy Superbad, which I felt was an extreme portrayal of teen perversion and awkwardness, Juno finds a wonderful rhythm that perfectly portrays how teenagers really act and speak. Not much swearing or sexual references, but enough to not make the teenagers sounds older than they really are.

The soundtrack, though subdued and quiet, is a perfect fit for each scene that a song plays in. With a mixture of recognizable bands such as Sonic Youth and Mott the Hoople, and filled with more indie fare such as The Moldy Peaches, Kimya Dawson, and Belle & Sebastian, each song seems to have been chosen perfectly for each situation. The opening song is perfect, as is Michael Cera and Ellen Page's rendition of The Moldy Peaches' "Anyone Else But You", which ends the movie on a perfect note.

Overall:
A movie with perfect characters, a great screenplay, and so much heart deserves to be called one of the best of 2007.

A

"Once" (2007)

The Good:
I've been waiting to see this film for as long as I can remember. As it is the case with all movies I hype up in my own mind, they disappoint. However, "Once" didn't.

Almost every film that I've seen released this year has seemed pretty complicated. "Michael Clayton", "No Country for Old Men", "I'm Not There", "Eastern Promises", they all rely on fairly complicated storylines and sub-plots. "Once" succeeds on it's simplicity. The storyline is so simple, so streamlined, so easily decipherable, that all the audience has to do is sit back and watch the beauty unfold. Yes these two main characters have backstories and factors influencing their actions, but nothing too daunting for the audience to discover for themselves. The story is brilliantly executed, and succeeds on every level.

The music. My god, the music. I bought this soundtrack a couple of days before seeing the film, and had listened to it a few times. I discovered the main hit from the movie, "Falling Slowly", on Youtube a while back and had instantly fallen (slowly, haha) in love with the song. The rest of the songs in the film were just as spellbinding and heartbreaking as "Falling Slowly." Each song fits perfectly in to the film, and each song lends itself so well to the already perfect plot. Most of the songs are also cleverly inserted. Unlike most musicals which rely on the theory of the "instant chorus" and breaking in to song out of the blue, the plot of "Once" has each song placed in a way so that it doesn't feel like the audience has been inserted in to the magical world of "musicals". The film never feels like a Hollywood Musical, and that makes perfect sense considering that the film is not that at all. It's a breath of fresh air from the "Hairsprays", "Dreamgirls", and "Rents" that we've been subjected to.

The Bad:
Now, coming from a theatre background, I pay very close attention to the quality of acting in a film. While the acting in this film is nowhere near bad, it is visibly amateurish, and seems too contrived and too forced at times. This makes for some awkward line delivery, and broke my suspension of disbelief at a few times throughout the film. However, both Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova do a formidable job, considering they both are amateurs. Both have never acted in films previously, and unfortunately there are times when it's apparent. This is just a caveat, though, and does not inhibit the film at all.

Overall:
A refreshing modern musical encompassing great music and plot to deliver one of the year's best films, and one of the best music films of the decade.

A-

Welcome to the Blog

I am a Cinephile.

How it developed, I have no idea, but as far back as I can remember I have been completely enthralled by film. From my youngest memories of watching "Grease" with my sister to last weeks foray to the Jane Pickens Theatre in Newport, RI to watch Todd Haynes' "I'm Not There", each experience has stuck with me and given me a sense of fulfillment that I've only been able to match by performing or reading a book.

Perhaps it's my imagination. I've always been an imaginative kid who had a penchant for getting lost in a story. A film is a story that gives you everything you need, and never changes, no matter how many times you wear out your VHS or DVD. Maybe it's that consistancy that drives my love for film, but more often than not it's my imagination and my love for great storytelling. Beautifully developed characters, a tight plot, and depth is what I look for in a story, and it's easy to find in the media of film.

I started this blog because I like to write down my opinions of films, or even just my random thoughts about something I've seen. I don't intend on writing ten-paragraph film reviews, but I would like to write critiques in order to express my own opinions. Whether anybody actually reads them or not, I could care less.

I just hope that I can express how much I love the art of the motion picture, and how much it has brought to my life, and society as a whole. When those two lovers finally get together, when the action hero saves the girl and brings down the villain, when the diseased patient atones for her sins and dies happily, or even when she doesn't, that is the magic of cinema. That is what I love.