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Song of the Day: “Ruled by Secrecy” – Muse

So Thanksgiving came and went like a breeze this time around. Funny, it felt like it was already Christmas-time long before it was Thanksgiving. Marketing for the holiday season has become ridiculous and Christmas all but swallowed Thanksgiving like that, this time around. Unfortunate for Thanksgiving, I suppose.

The holiday was nice, quiet and relaxed, which of course translated to time with the family, some reading, lots of gaming (more than I have in a long while) and of course, movie watching, which is why I am presenting you with a movie dump again. I understand that I could save myself the trouble of movie dumps by committing to post one day a week every week. Problem is, I forget. Maybe an automatic reminder will help…

In any case, here are five movies for you to consider. Or not

-Fco.

Saved!

Director: Brian Danelly
Genre: Comedy/Drama
Year: 2004

This movie sat in my list for a very long time, continuously being pushed back, mostly because it fell in a strange genre that I supposed I had to be in the right mood to watch. I had little to no expectations of it, other than an comedy, which is probably why I ended up pleasantly surprised after seeing it. I assumed, the film would either be entirely preachy, or entirely anti-religion, neither of which I really felt like would be a good outcome. So I just kept putting other movies before it until I finally gave in and watched it.

There is no doubt that there is more than plenty of ammunition in this film for religion haters to get their kicks and I am guessing it will take a born again Christian with a sense of humor to watch this film and not be offended, but in the end, this movie is actually able to find the gray space between the black and the white and not fall into either extreme, which is more than I could have asked for.

The story revolves around Mary (Jena Malone), a high school senior who is convinced that God wants her to turn her boyfriend away from homosexuality. She of course does this by offering him her greatest possession: her virginity. It is a naive approach by a naive girl that has been brought up blindly in the power of prayer and a mentality of faith not necessarily followed by action. The result is an unwanted pregnancy during her senior year, which she must face in hostile grounds (she goes to an extremely Christian school with extreme Christian values), having only an outcast Jewish girl (Eva Amurri) who is determined to buck the system, and a handicapped boy (Macaulay Culkin) brother to the school’s most active and most fanatical student (Mandy More, in what is arguably the best role I have seen her in).

Among the expected problems you can imagine, the movie deals with peer pressure and decision making along with parenting and guidance and while it does take its time breaking down the ridiculous, extreme actions of fundamentalist Christians, it does also manage to recognize that religion as a whole is not entirely a bad thing, if one can learn to find the way to properly apply it to life.

With a good amount of laughs and pretty good acting, this film is definitely entertaining and more than slightly thought provoking. Some of you will find it more funny than others, so this one I would recommend watching first and deciding whether it is a buy, or something to burn.

Rating: 4 out of 5
Comments: There is some adult situations here, regarding sexuality, along with some language. Definitely a movie for teens on up.
Quote: Hilary Faye: Mary, turn away from Satan. Jesus, he loves you.
Mary: You don’t know the first thing about love.
Hilary Faye: [throws a Bible at Mary] I am FILLED with Christ’s love! You are just jealous of my success in the Lord.
Mary: [Mary holds up the Bible] This is not a weapon! You idiot.

Snow Angels

Director: David Gordon Green
Genre: Drama
Year: 2007

Kate Beckinsale is the main reason I added this movie to my queue. I won’t even pretend otherwise, and I dare any of you to tell me that is not a good enough reason. But that is by no means the only reason. After seeing the trailer I grew interested in the mood of the movie and the fact that it had Sam Rockwell, only seemed to sell me on it that much more easily.

Right off the bat I will let you know that if you are not a fan of sad movies, then this one is not going to be for you, so…just skip on to the next movie and pretend this one was never here. If you are a fan of the sad and depressing, then this movie will be right up your alley and while not exactly Requiem for a Dream messed up, this movie does leave you with dampened spirits.

It is always difficult to enjoy a movie about a dysfunctional family, unless you are Wes Anderson and are able to give it the comical spin that he gives his dysfunctional families on his films (The Royal Tenenbaums, Darjeeling Limited). But comedy is not the vein this movie travels, instead studying the broken relationship between Annie (Kate Beckinsale) and Glenn (Sam Rockwell) who share a daughter in common but little more. Having set himself straight after an alleged suicide attempt, Glenn is back, trying his hand at a job and doing his best to be involved in his daughter’s life. Annie, on the other hand is the primary provider for the child, working at a restaurant full time and finding her escape in the arms of a married man.

There is a second story that runs parallel to this one, regarding Arthur (Michael Angarano), a high school kid who is having to deal with the separation of his parents and a promising flame at school with charmingly unique and independent Layla (Olivia Thirlby) who is a newcomer to the high school. The fact that Annie used to babysit Arthur when he was younger and the fact that they work together at the restaurant provides the connections necessary for one story to effect the other and when Annie’s child goes missing, the consequences spread along those connections, among others, with a pretty explosive rapidity.

Overall I enjoyed this film, considering how depressing it can get, but there is a richness to the characters and a melancholic feel to the alienated town that really gives this film a human texture and therefore makes it much more heartfelt as it unfolds. This could be for some people a good thing, for others a bad, because it makes the events of the movie that much more powerful. Thankfully, one story offsets the other and while one offers a very dark ending, the other story provides enough hope to give us the idea that not all things broken will remain so and that there is a way to fix things if one only has the right incentive.

A good film, but one probably not for everybody.

Rating: 4 out of 5
Comments: Ummm…there was definitely language and adult situations. I do not recall much nudity, but there is sexual content. I would say this one is for mature adolescents and adults only.

Lie With Me

Director: Clément Virgo
Genre: Drama
Year: 2005

I know what the director was trying to do here and he almost came close to getting it. Almost. But not really. Dealing with the eternal question of love and given the fact that it is probably one of the most widely utilized themes, Virgo took on a challenge when she decided to present to us the controversial story of a young, sexually uninhibited Leila (Lauren Lee Smith) who seems to have finally found that missing piece in David (Eric Balfour) a young man in a relationship who is nevertheless magnetized by Leila.

Traveling along the rocky landscape of sexual conquest and adultery, this film places the story on the more explicit end of the romantic setting, butting two misguided people stumbling to find the importance of each other through a series of trials. And yet it is not the theme, nor necessarily the acting that fails but the directing (and some of the writing as well).

When I felt I should care, I simply didn’t. The story progresses in an over dramatic fashion, alluding to depth that is not truly there, or at least not well enough delivered for it to be believable. The result being a half ass movie that is much more a good soft porn movie than a good drama and I really doubt that was the director’s intention. For a superior version of what this film was trying to do, watch Closer.

Rating: 2.5 out of 5
Comments: Quite a bit of explicit sex and vulgar language on this one.
Quote: Leila: I won’t become good. I won’t become nice. I’ll be bad just for him. I’ll f*** just for him. When I can f*** without looking for his love I’ll stop running.

The Host

Director: Joon-ho Bong
Category: Horror/Drama/Comedy/Thriller/Action/Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Year: 2006

I have to give this to the Koreans, they are able to blend genres with admirable mastery and I love the fact that often in these films you are not given a formula. The typical Hollywood fan may have a problem with this, but at the same time, movies like this are approachable enough that they might suck you in whether you like it or not.

The Host successfully is a monster movie, a horror, a comedy, a drama, a science fiction flick and a thriller. It opens with a comedic touch and evolves, much like its monster into something far more interesting and horrific as it continues, without really ever letting go of its humor. This makes for a movie that is quite difficult to truly place in one single category.

Bordering on mental retardation, Gang-du, somehow became the father to a young girl who falls victim to a monster that lives in the river near their food stand. Convinced that she is still alive, a shattered family comes together, taking on not only the beast that resides in the river, but also the police and government agencies that refuse to help them. A kind elderly father, a less than successful business-man of a brother, a bronze medalist archer of a sister and Gang all team up determined to bring Hyun-seo back to safety.

This movie is a must watch, in content and format this film does what Hollywood films rarely do for blockbuster films of this type. Entertaining, fun, creepy, thrilling, this film puts you through the whole gamut of emotions and does so in a very satisfactory way. My only complaint is that in some instances the acting might seem weird. I do not know if it is a cultural difference or occasional poor acting…but at times the movie seemed to go juuuuuust a enough overboard before it got reined back in. The mourning scene is a perfect example of this, but certainly not enough to put a dent on the film as a whole.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5
Comments: Disturbing imagery, violence. There is a pretty creepy monster running around and some pretty intense scenes. Oh yeah, and the film makes Americans look like jack-asses, which is actually pretty funny.
Quote: Park Hie-bong: You wouldn’t know it, but he was a really smart kid. For example, when he was two, he’d sit in front of the village store, and everyone walking by would ask him directions. That’s how smart he looked.

Cashback

Director: Sean Ellis
Genre: Comedy/Romance/Drama
Year: 2006

This likeable, British Indie seems to hit a very pleasing chord, even if it shows a lot of boobies and naked chicks (I am not complaining, but some other people will). It is a modern, feel good film dealing with relationships and putting love — and the approach to love — in a slightly abstracted but quite artistically delightful frame.

Essentially, Ben (Sean Biggerstaff) is on the dumps. He has just broken up with Suzy (Michelle Ryan), something he was convinced was the right thing to do, but which as he begins to lose sleep and peace of mind, he begins to doubt. Unable to catch z’s, Ben decides to get a night time job in a small grocery store, where he meets doe eyed Sharon (Emilia Fox), pranksters Barry (Michael Dixon) and Matt (Michael Lambourne), kung-fu aficionado Brian (Marc Pickering) and token trying-too-hard-to-be-cool boss Jenkins (Stuart Goodwin).

It is in the question of time and how people chose to deal with it that the subject of beauty and infatuation is born for Ben. While Sharon deals with the slow passage of time by covering up her watches and blocking every clock in sight, and Matt & Barry entertain themselves pulling pranks on everybody from the boss on down, Ben decides to deal with it by freezing time.

What initially becomes an opportunity to admire the beauty of strangers (this is where the boobies come largely into play…no pun intended), eventually he finds true beauty in Sharon, whom he begins to slowly fall in love with. She becomes his muse and slowly their world begins to transform into something entirely unexpected, all of it aided by the fact that Ben, has managed to make the most out of his unique ability.

While the movie is cliché in a number of aspects, it delivers the content in a very likable fashion and with a sense of honesty and charm which makes this film extremely fun. It’s characters may not be the most unique, but its approach does have its own signature and it is perhaps in the easy with which one can relate to these characters that makes it so fun to watch. Hitting a number of good laughs as it tells a romantic story, this movie will likely be a good watch for couples, unless you have a girlfriend that does not want you looking at other girls breasts. Because, honestly, there is a chunk of this movie where mammaries are entirely unavoidable.

Rating: 4 out of 5
Comments: Quite a bit of female nudity, top and frontal, but not exactly explicit. There is also some language and some adult situations. Not for kids.
Quote: Ben Willis: Once upon a time, I wanted to know what love was. Love is there if you want it to be. You just have to see that it’s wrapped in beauty and hidden away in between the seconds of your life. If you don’t stop for a minute, you might miss it.