Her

— “Her” is a more interesting movie than I’d expected, possibly because Joaquin Phoenix tones down his usual acting just enough to make everything seem normal, even if he is in a relationship with an operating system. Most everyone in the film has trouble with relationships, in part because of pervasiveness of technology, and the film moves from one revelation about interactions to another, portraying love and loneliness in a Bluetooth world. It’s a sci-fi world, but it’s really awfully close to the present and, with Scarlett Johansson as the voice of the operating system, it doesn’t seem unreasonable to have a relationship with ”her”. This is really a very original film about our disconnect with each other as we increasingly relate with technology, and about our absolute need for love and connections. It’s flat out the most original romance of the year. Phoenix and Johansson are perfect.

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[2013. 126 min. Directed by Spike Jonze. Written by Spike Jonze. Starring Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Adams, and Scarlett Johansson.]
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/18/movies/her-directed-by-spike-jonze.html?_r=0

Saving Mr. Banks

— If I’d read something about “Saving Mr. Banks” before seeing the film, I might have been more prepared for it. Instead, I went expecting to see the comedic film portrayed in the previews but got two stories—one set in 1960’s Hollywood that is mostly fun, and another set in early 1900’s Australia that’s melancholic. It’s a little uneven and a slow development of a backstory, but Emma Thompson and Tom Banks are both so outstanding that the struggle between the two stories becomes less and less distracting. Besides, the film really is about struggles between personalities, struggles involving artistic temperaments and attachments, and the struggle to accept the past and embrace the present. There are many very good films out there right now and I like some of them more than this one, but I think “Saving Mr. Banks” is among those that shouldn’t be overlooked.

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[2013. 125 min. Directed by John Lee Hancock. Starring Emma Thompson, Tom Hanks, Annie Rose Buckley, Colin Farrell, Ruth Wilson, Paul Giamatti, and Bradley Whitford.]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/movies/saving-mr-banks-review-the-affecting-story-of-how-mary-poppins-reached-the-screen/2013/12/11/a711137c-6275-11e3-a373-0f9f2d1c2b61_story.html

The Wolf of Wall Street

— Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio are pretty much a golden pair and they both displayed their talents in “The Wolf of Wall Street”, a 3-hour look greed, corruption, and debauchery. The film operates in hyper-speed most of the time and midway through I felt like I'd become addicted to amphetamines myself, taken along for a mesmerizing ride without an ethical center. It is a very dark and oddly funny comedy with excess at every turn and also a very good if somewhat troublesome film. See it for DiCaprio’s performance and Scorsese’s manic touch, along with very interesting use of music.

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[2013. 180 min. Directed by Martin Scorsese. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill, Margot Robbie, Matthew McConaughey, Kyle Chandler, and Rob Reiner.]
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/moviesnow/la-et-mn-wolf-of-wall-street-review-leonardo-dicaprio-martin-scorsese-20131225,0,7779703.story#axzz2ob03fVID

Nebraska

—“Nebraska” is one of those slightly quirky, somewhat sentimental, wonderful films that begins in the unspoken realm of family interactions and slowly reels you into the narrative. It’s part road trip, part family drama, and part glimpse at small town life. Many of the images are stunning, showing the landscape in black and white while the script blurs most of the edges. The film depicts the heartland I know, and is not one of those smart, urban, coastal films inhabited by people stepping out of the fashion pages and heading toward their next shrink appointment. There are some very funny moments and times when things are a bit wistful, maybe even melancholic, but it holds together as a single tale and is well worth seeing. By the end, a son has a better understanding of his father’s past and of the paths taken, regretted, and forgotten over time. Both Bruce Dern and Ruth Squibb’s performances are superb and Alexander Payne’s deliberate direction is spot on.

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[2013. 115 min. Directed by Alexander Payne. Starring Bruce Dern, Will Forte, and June Squibb.]
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/15/movies/nebraska-directed-by-alexander-payne-stars-bruce-dern.html?_r=1&

American Hustle

—“American Hustle” is alarmingly complex and very successful. An A-list cast and a remarkable script combine to raise lots of questions about the gray areas of life and the need to feel valued and loved. In the film, everyone’s working an angle, there’s a little deception in every act, and everyone’s trying to get ahead. The world is inhabited by con artists and corrupt or manipulative characters who are also endearing, sympathetic, and a little like us all. Ends and means and ethics often take a back seat to matters of survival. This is an A-list film and director David O. Russell and his cast (Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper, Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, Jennifer Lawrence) deserve kudos.

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[2013. 138 min. Directed by David O. Russell. Starring Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Bradley Cooper, Jeremy Renner, Jennifer Lawrence, and Louis C.K.]
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movie/american-hustle/review/660832

Out of the Furnace

— I usually like dark films and “Out of the Furnace” is dark, but it is only a so-so film. A few scenes reminded me “Winter’s Bone” and “Mystic River” and I wish “Furnace” could have been in their league. Christian Bale does an admirable, understated job as the working class guy whose life is out of control, and Woody Harrelson is perfect as a meth-dealing, fight-club-organizing, killing hillbilly. In fact, as I think about it, Casey Affleck, Willem Dafoe, Forrest Whitaker, and Sam Shepard all do a fine job too, but somehow all the characters add up to more gritty reality than anyone needs. The film heaps dirt and drugs and illness, upon rejection and tragedy and death, over and over again, until things couldn’t get much more sad and bleak.

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[2013. 116 min. Directed by Scott Cooper. Starring Christain Bale, Casey Affleck, Zoe Saldana and Woody Harrelson.]
http://news.moviefone.com/2013/12/05/out-of-the-furnace-review/

The Book Thief

— “The Book Thief” is nicely crafted and fairly well acted, but it seems a little more like a made-for-TV movie than a theatrical release. It’s a bit too sentimental and seems to exist outside of historical context. The horror is relegated to a heightened fear in the neighborhood, a quick scene of Jews being led to a concentration camp, and a bombing or two. Somehow the children, while professing a hatred of Hitler, still seem innocent enough. In fact, there’s something naïve about the whole thing, and you’d think that would be hard to do when you have Death narrating. Remember, this is based on a young adult novel, so it isn’t surprising that there is a great deal of compassion and hope and morality in the story, even if the focus is a bit narrow.

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[2013. 131 min. Directed by Peter BergBrian Percival. Starring Sophie Nelisse, Geoffrey Rush, and Emily Watson.]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/movies/book-thief-movie-review/2013/11/13/ea0f896a-47db-11e3-a196-3544a03c2351_story.html

Philomena

— In many ways, “Philomena” is a smaller film than its current theatrical competition, but its clever script, expert direction, and Judi Dench’s tour de force performance leave it more than able to compete. True, the target demographic, based on the audience when I saw the film, appears to be over-60ish white women, it is still a film worth seeing. For those who were raised Catholic, we’re reminded of the role Catholic guilt and forgiveness played in our lives and the ambiguous nature of sin, particularly as it was served up sixty years ago. Mostly, I suppose, the film has more to say about nothing being black and white, and about forgiveness and acceptance over time. Thanks Judi Dench, Steve Coogan, and Stephen Frears.

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[2013. 98 min. Directed by Stephen Frears. Starring Judi Dench and Steve Coogan.]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/movies/philomena-movie-review-judi-dench-shines-in-this-alternately-funny-wrenching-drama/2013/11/26/6a11f5f4-56db-11e3-835d-e7173847c7cc_story.html