Serenity (2005)

Whoo! More RE-views! Rules.

You know, I really got into that review last time. I got into the movie this time around, too, and I probably will next time.

I'm not even sure my RE-view has a purpose, as my feelings about the movie haven't changed. I suppose I could write ruminations about Mal and River as father and daughter, Watcher and Slayer, unconditional love and duty, but I won't. I could tell you about how I approached the show from Simon and River's relationship, from his point of view specifically, but I won't do that either. Jacob's recap does that much and more. To be honest, it's so detailed and expertly written that I'd wager it might be better than the movie itself. I mean, you need to see the movie to understand, but his recap digs deep into the myth-arc of the series, of any Joss series. There's little I say that he didn't.

I can say that I didn't mind Book being marginalized in the movie because he could grate in the series, but his character is marginalized to the point where someone who didn't know him from the series wouldn't entirely understand his relationship with the other characters, generally, and Mal, specifically. Joss excels at establishing believable characters in a matter of seconds, so that's not the problem. It's the part where Book dies and Mal gets all worked up about him being part of the crew even if he does live on Haven now that would go over the head of someone who had never seen Book living on the boat to begin with.

It sucked that Jayne's character was dumbed down for the movie. I don't mean that he was a braintrust in the series, but a lot of his complexity, or startling lack thereof, was removed in the movie in a way that didn't work for me. You know that arc where Jayne tries to sell Simon and River back to the Alliance, then he seems to change his mind, gets double-crossed, discovered by Mal, almost killed by Mal, buys them apples, then warned by Simon? You know, that one? Those apples were my character touchstone. Jayne wasn't motivated by guilt (at least not entirely so). He wanted to buy back his place on Serenity. He needed to show Mal he was a valuable resource. It was, for me, the beginning of his transformation from mercenary to loyal member of the crew, but the movie kind of . . . pretends that none of that ever happened. Which sucks.

Of course, the worst marginalization was that of Wash because it gave Joss license to spearify him! What was that? I get it, sort of. It works along the same principle as Anya dying in the series finale of Buffy or Wesley in that of Angel. Someone has to die because none of them should have lived that long in the first place. There's no reason to think that everyone would survive a combined Reaver/Alliance attack, and Wash had the least to lose. His death could have the greatest emotional impact with the least plot impact.

I'm stickin' with my original grade. This movie rocks pretty hard.

Gasp!

 

Holy shit, people! I knew things were getting bad for Hollywood's resident crazy, but I didn't realize they were this bad. This is just paint nuts. Tom, what the hell are you going to do?

 

Okay, I know what you need to do. Take a big, long break. Say you are going into semi-retirement to spend time with your kids, plural, and actually marry Kat[i]e. Magazine covers are telling me you kind of don't want to anymore, but do it anyway. Patiently wait for other big stars to continue self-destruct (nature of the game, after all). Cautiously begin search for next script after a minimum of one year, take a huge cut on your crazy complicated pay scheme, and don't ever talk to anyone again about your "religious" beliefs. I think that should do.

 

Assuming you hit upon another Jerry Maguire or Rain Man, things will turn around for you. You've been on top for longer than pretty much anyone, ever. I think this could turn out very well for you.

Closer (2004)

RE-view! Rules are here.

I see now what my problem with it was. I couldn't quite put my finger on it before, but I've got it now.

It's not the performances. The performances are excellent. Not uniformly so, but that's too much to expect. It's tough to tell if Portman and Owens play the more compelling characters or if their characters are more compelling because they are so well played. Alice owns Dan from the first moment that she locks eyes on him through the crowded street, and it's her that gives him the courage to pursue Anna so ruthlessly. Portman gives the opposite performance of what a doe-eyed ingenue would do: instead of letting vulnerability show around the edges of her strength, Portman makes strength shine through layers of vulnerability.

Owens has the mean task of playing the most adult character in the movie, one who has emotions and issues but isn't too far gone to recognize responsibility. When he is introduced, he's the victim of a cruel joke, and he spends the rest of the movie floating on top of the other characters, able to observe and plan and execute when the rest are awash.

Although I have a tendency to point the finger at Roberts, she's not as bad as I originally made out. She makes it easy to understand why Anna is drawn to both Dan and Larry. Her early scene with Portman is probably her weakest, but her work with Owens elevates her usual shtick to an impressive level.

It's Dan that remains a mystery to me. Never mind what I feel are Law's diminishing returns. If you consider the relationship between Dan and Anna the movie's catalyst, then it has to be the most believable one, right? Except it's not. Dan's obsession with Anna baffles me. It comes out of nowhere, and it never feels quite right. After awhile you can accept that he is obsessed, but the important why continues to nag in the back of your mind.

Still, it's not the acting or the direction or the cinematography, for that matter, that holds the movie back. It's the writing. Specifically, it's the screen adaptation that doesn't work. Plays are talky by nature; it's fair to expect a talky movie. Patrick Marber basically "opened up" his play: I'm guessing that there are a lot more locations here than in the original work. Locations aren't enough. Everything happens off screen. Everything. The art show is the centrepiece (right), and it's well done, but it's the scene in the private room between Alice and Larry (top) that has the most going on and feels the most real. Not everything has to happen where we can't see it. Putting the viewer in the middle of the action helps them get more out of what they are seeing.

My original grade (B -) seems generous upon second viewing. C +

Mystery Solved

 

And it's a good thing, too. I was in knots wondering what CBC was going to do about The One.

 

While I'd like to feel smart and superior about this, I doubt Canadians would fare any better. I can't name a single judge on that sits on the bench of our Supreme Court.

Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2006)

Short: Due to some misguided advice from his stoner absentee father (Gary Cole), Ricky (Will Ferrell) lives his life by the philosophy that "if you're not first, you're last." This motto has propelled Ricky to the top of the NASCAR standings, where he either has to come in first in every race or destroy his car trying. He even keeps his best friend and fellow racer, Cal (John C. Reilly), in second place. The addition of a Formula One French racer (Sacha Baron Cohen) to the circuit creates trouble for Ricky. Then there's the usual crash, fear, redemption and love of a good woman stuff. La-dee-da.

Oh, come on! You don't care about the plot. You want to know if the laughs are worth the ten bucks. So, yes. Yes, they are.

Ferrell is just shy of having me crown him a comic genius, Cohen does a lot with a little, and the camera work is inventive for a comedy. The pacing needs work, and some of the jokes fall flat (I recall the entire audience looking around uncomfortably at least once). Jane Lynch is a treasure is Ricky's tough momma, and Reilly is a great comedian. I also like the idea of him doing two NASCAR movies.

I've been putting off this review because I can't think of much else to say besides the few sentences I've cobbled together up there. It's funny, but I don't want to spoil the many delightful gags the way other reviews have. I enjoyed it it; I'd see it again. I will say that while Leslie Bibb and Amy Adams do seem ridiculously young for Ferrel, there are only seven and eight year age differences, respectively. Solid work. B

The Eject Button
I hereby grant you permission to hit open/power if you discover anyone watching either of the following: Eulogy (2004) - a "dark comedy" that failed to elicit a single smirk from me in the 30 minutes I much too generously gave it - or Taboo (2002) - a "thriller" I unfortunately sat through all of simply because I wanted to watch everyone in it die (and I did). There was nothing surprising in its twists, and its low budget was hilarious ineffective (I made a game of guessing when they would switch to their sole stock shot of the exterior of the mansion, which was also their sole set).

50 Greatest Comedies of All Time

 

Well, maybe. I've seen appallingly few of these films, but at least they have Rushmore on the list. Any recommendations?