Cold Weather

— Missed “Cold Weather” in theaters so watched DVD yesterday. Irritatingly slow unfolding of nearly transparent layers involving self-centered, young Portlanders whose view expands somewhat amidst gorgeous, rainy, nearly stagnant scenes. I didn’t much like the people, wished it would move more quickly, questioned if there even was a plot, and thought the music eventually sounded like fingernails on a chalkboard, but it all came together, loosely, into something very nice.

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[2010. 96 min. Directed Aaron Katz. Starring Cris Landenau, Raul Castillo, and Robyn Rikoon.]
http://www.theguardian.com/film/2011/apr/14/cold-weather-film-review

Cowboys & Aliens

— Enjoyed "Cowboys and Aliens". Much more what I want from blockbuster summer fare than most of this year's mainstream releases. Nice to escape in AC with a fun film.

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[2011. 119 min. Directed Jon Favreau. Starring Daniel Craig, Harrison ford, and Olivia Wilde.]
http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/cowboys-and-aliens-2011

Potiche

— Watched "Potiche" and fell in love with Catherine Deneuve all over again, just like it was 1967 when "Belle de Jour" was in theaters. Find it irritating that previews on subtitled DVDs are almost always only for subtitled films. Seems kind of pigeonholing.

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[2010. 103 min. Directed Francois Ozon. Starring Catherine Deneuve, Gerard Depardieu, Fabric Luchini, and Karin Viard.]
http://articles.latimes.com/2011/mar/25/entertainment/la-et-potiche-20110325

The Tree of Life

— Saw “The Tree of Life” yesterday & the images are still floating through my head. I never expected such an ambitious film to be so successful. It felt like I was wandering through a shared, free-form, 1950s experience (Brad Pitt is great) inside Malick’s mind, but the gorgeously photographed spiritual & evolutionary sections made me wish my mind got more routine exercise. I can’t imagine anyone not loving or hating the film. I loved it.

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[2011. 139 min. Directed by Terrence Malick. Starring Brad Pitt, Jessica Chastain, and Sean Pean.]
http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-tree-of-life-2011

Midnight in Paris

— I really liked "Midnight in Paris". Very funny, thanks in part to my college education.

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[2010. 94 min. Directed Woody Allen. Starring Owen Wilson, Rachel McAdams, Kathy Bates, Adrien Brody, Carla Bruni, Marion Cotillard, and Michael Sheen.]
http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/midnight-in-paris-2011

Water for Elephants

— Saw “Water for Elephants” and thought it was gorgeous to look at, set in a wonderful era, and based on what I bet was a really good novel. Reese Witherspoon’s very good, but Robert Pattinson’s only slightly better than I’d imagined, and Christoph Waltz is a little over the top. Even so, it was rather enjoyable. Who can resist running away (or back) to the circus!

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[2011. 120 min. Directed Francis Lawrence. Starring Robert Pattinson, Reese Witherspoon, and Christoph Waltz.]

Another Year

— "Another Year" is a wonderful, subtle, psychological look at the lives of the less youthful. Lynch may hit too close to home as we all think of our disappointments, lost dreams, and despair in the face of growing isolation. Made me yearn for the disappointments of youth.

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[2010. 129 min. Directed Mike Leigh. Starring Jim Broadbent, Ruth Sheen, and Lesley Manville.]

The Arbor

— “The Arbor” was really interesting/different. The director had spent a couple of years gather audio interviews to use British playwright Andrea Dunbar, who died young and of one of her now adult daughters. Scenes with actors lip-syncing the edited audio interviews were separated by scenes for Dunbar’s play, “The Arbor.” Really a fascinating technique that worked.

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[2010. 94 min. Directed Clio Barnard. Starring Manjinder Virk, Christine Bottomley, Natalie Gavin, Parvani Lingiah, and Danny Webb.]