The One I Love

— I tend to like Mark Duplass’ films. The guy who chatted with the audience before “The One I Love” really liked the film as had many of his friends (yes, it’s that kind of theater where films are introduced while the audience sips cocktails and overheard conversations are sometimes as entertaining as the film). He said it was odd that a few friends were really unimpressed, until he realized all his married friends loved it and his single-and-never-married friends were unimpressed. When the film started, I was initially a little irritated with what was happening. When I began to realize it wasn’t just trying to be a film about alter egos and egos, the real and imagined, or the said and unsaid in relationships, but instead it was what Drew Fortune refers to as “a new genre called ‘sci-feelings’”, but too say I loved it would be too strong. I liked it. Duplass and Elisabeth Moss were great.

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[2014. 91 min. Directed by Charlie McDowell. Starring Mark Duplass, Elisabeth Moss, and Ted Danson.]
http://variety.com/2014/film/reviews/sundance-film-review-mark-duplass-elisabeth-moss-in-the-one-i-love-1201066612/

Frank

— “Frank” is certainly an oddity. A little absurd and quite a bit weird, but pretty delightful too, even if more than a couple of times I seemed to be the only person laughing in the sparse audience. It’s an odd tale of odd people, of musicians, creativity, and emotional issues. Amazingly, insanity evolves into a something a bit more serious and the film ends with care. The cast of bruised and borderline personalities still seems a bit peculiar, but no longer over the edge. This was fun if you’re even vaguely prone to like this sort of thing.

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[2014. 95 min. Directed by Lenny Abrahamson. Starring Michael Fassbender, Domhnall Gleeson, and Maggie Gyllenhaal.]
http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/frank-2014

The Double Hour

— “La Doppia Ora” (Netflix) premiered at the Venice International Film Festival in 2009 and, only three years later, a remake is on the way! Now that I’ve seen the original, I can understand the attraction but fear they’ll have a hard time doing as good a job. It’s filled with twists and you’re halfway into thing before you catch on to how complicated things are. There’s a love story, an art heist, a few funerals, a cop who won’t leave anything alone, and plenty of uncertainty, intrigue, and tension. It takes a bit for all the twists and loose ends to play out, but it’s worth it. This is a very clever and satisfying film.

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[2009. 95 min. Directed by Giuseppe Capotondi. Starring Kseniya Rappoport, Filippo Timi, and Antonia Truppo.]
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/15/movies/the-double-hour-italian-thriller-review.html

About Time

— I thought this was sort of fun, had a fine message, and moved along at a good clip. “About Time” (DVD) is pretty tame time-travelling, not the usual romping from decade to decade travel, and it is in the context of a comedy about self-discovery. Pleasant characters, decent-enough acting, and a focus on the present instead of changing the past to help the future. With a domestic gross of just over $15 million, most people liked this less than I did. I’d suggest checking it out.

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[2013. 123 min. Written and directed by Richard Curtis. Starring Domhnall Gleeson Rachel McAdams, and Bill Nighy.]
http://www.npr.org/2013/11/01/241594516/its-about-time-for-romance-and-rather-more http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/01/movies/about-time-a-british-confection-from-richard-curtis.html

This Is Where I Leave You

— A friend whose opinion I trust told me this was better than she’d thought "This Is Where I Leave You" would be and took issue with critics who thought the stellar cast was wasted on so blah a script. As a result, I went to see it. It was better than I expected too, and it was funny when it wasn’t trying to get a laugh out of boob or boner humor. I like a good dose of dysfunction in any family and this one has plenty of it, but as you’re watching it there’s something familiar about almost every gag. (For the life of me, I can’t remember the other movie that puts potty training front and center as a humorous thread, but one film with a cute kid carry a training potty around is enough!) Luckily, this über competent cast could make almost anything seem either touching or hilarious. It’s a great set-up, entertaining enough, and has just the right amount of emotional connection to uplift. Not original and not likely to be lauded as much more than a bit of fun, but an okay way to escape.

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[2014. 103 min. Directed by Shawn Levy. Starring Jason Bateman, Tina Fey, Jane Fonda, Adam Driver, Rose Byrne, Corey Stoll, Kathryn Hahn, and Connie Britton.]
http://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/sep/07/this-is-where-i-leave-you-review-jason-bateman-tina-fey

Calvary

— This is a very good film and extremely well written and Brendan Gleeson is wonderful in the starring role. A priest in a confessional is told he will be killed on the beach in a week, not because he did anything wrong, but because he is innocent and not the priest who abused the man as a young boy. Yes, it opens in a dark place and the rest of the film, as the priest puts his affairs in order and the audience tries to figure out who the murderer will be, is a continuation of the darkness with a very odd bit of humor to it. Everyone in the village seems to have problems and most appear to have more sin than virtue. There is no order in any of the lives, just moments of calm amongst cynicism, desperation and chaos. I’m not sure how much my Catholic education added to my enjoyment of the film but I did notice I snickered and smiled more often than many viewers. Learning the identity of the soon-to-be murderer takes a back seat to an increasing exasperation as everyone burdens the priest with their problems/sins. The film moves carefully to its conclusion, the priest heads for the beach, and everyone’s lives are still in shambles.

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[2014. 100 min. Written and directed by John Michael McDonagh. Starring Brendan Gleeson, Chris O’Dowd, Kelly Reilly, and Aidan Gillen.]
http://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/apr/13/calvary-review-terrific-black-comedy

The Hundred-Foot Journey

— “The Hundred-Foot Journey” is a nicely shot film, but even Helen Mirren couldn’t add much meat to the vaguely endearing but somewhat unfocused, simple, predictable, and linear script. Wait for it to be released to the home market before you bother to see it.

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[2014. 122 min. Directed by Lasse Hallstrom. Starring Helen Mirren, Om Puri, Manish Dayal, and Charlotte Le Bon.]
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/08/movies/in-the-hundred-foot-journey-kitchen-wars-break-out.html

Muscle Shoals

— “Muscle Shoals” (Netflix) is a fascinating documentary. I can’t believe how much of the soundtrack of my life—of everyone’s lives—was touched by a couple of studios in a small town on the Tennessee River in northwestern Alabama. What an unlikely spot to surface as the crossroads for so many musical styles and so much talent. The film documents the birth of the “Muscle Shoals” sound thanks to Rick Hall’s FAME Studios, and the Muscle Shoals Sound Studio, founded by “The Swampers" who originally were session musicians working for Rick Hall. It’s also a reminder that, even in the early 1960s, black and white musicians came together, blind to color when segregation and inequality were commonplace all around them.

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[2013. 111 min. Directed by Greg “Freddy” Camalier. Featuring Aretha Franklin, Mick Jagger, Alicia Keys, Bono, Etta James, Percy Sledge, Jimmy Cliff, Candi Staton, Clarence Carter, Greg Allman, and Keith Richards.]
http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/muscle-shoals-2013
http://www.artsatl.com/2013/10/review-muscle-shoals-theyve-swampers-music-cut/

Draft Day

— There’s something about Kevin Costner’s smooth voice and easy attitude that helps any movie. “Draft Day” (DVD) is a decent enough behind-the-scenes look at the machinations of the NFL Draft. It held my attention and kept me rooting for the right people. If you only want to see one draft film, choose “Moneyball” which was better, but if there’s room for more, give “Draft Day” a try.

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[2014. 110 min. Directed by Ivan Reitman. Starring Kevin Costner, Jennifer Garner, Frank Langella, and Denis Leary.]
http://variety.com/2014/film/reviews/film-review-draft-day-1201155283/

Delivery Man

— It’s not the best Vince Vaughn film you’ve seen and certainly not the best comedy, but “Delivery Man” (DVD) has a good, comedic premise and is more touching than you’d expect, even if the stereotypic man-child finding growth through schmaltz becomes more and more irritating with each successive film.

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[2013. 105 min. Directed by Ken Scott. Starring Vince Vaughn, Chris Pratt, and Cobie Smulders.]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/movies/delivery-man-movie-review/2013/11/20/3f961404-4e11-11e3-9890-a1e0997fb0c0_story.html