The Short Take: Neglect 2009 - Part II

Turned on light. Ordered dinner. Back to typing. Discovered that I already reviewed some of these stubs. Hurrah!

The Boys Are Back (2009)

It's equal parts brave and stupid to write a book about how you pretty much almost killed your kids after your wife died, yet you give little evidence that you've truly redressed. Don't get me wrong, Clive Owen doesn't actually endanger children's lives. It just takes him a while to figure out how to be the parent to two kids on his own. And then he does. The end. B-

An Education (2009)

Jenny (Carey Mulligan) is repeatedly presented as whip smart, but she's so ridiculously naïve, so willfully ignorant of the idea that there could be more skeletons in David's (Peter Sarsgaard) closet that you're practically glad she goes through what she does. Girl needed a good shaking to be honest. Screen adapter Nick Hornby, director Lone Scherfig, and Sarsgaard do what they can to find a little sympathy for Peter. Paul Englishby's score starts out strong in the opening credits (in fact, the opening credits are actually some of the movie's strongest work) but never lives up to its promise. At least Rosamund Pike makes for a delightfully dizzy dame. B+

Julie & Julia (2009)

By now everyone and their brother has told you that the Julia (Meryl Streep) parts are excellent and Julie (Amy Adams) comes across pretty poorly by comparison. I'll say no more except that I like Adams and only wish she'd be a bit more discerning with her script choices. On the other hand, maybe this is all she can get. Also, Streep, Stanley Tucci, and Jane Lynch together is heavenly. C

Adam (2009)

Movie is cute, Hugh Dancy is particularly good, having Rose Byrne essentially write "This is my evil plan!" in giant letters in her day planner in order to create conflict is moronic. C+

Ninja Assassin (2009)

Amazing: a movie that stars Rain as a ninja assassin, and nothing happens. Someone may claim that there is a plot, but that person is wrong. There are flashbacks, and there are ninja assassinations. That is it. C

Food arrived! Will be back after eating break.

Extract (2009)

The worlds that writer-director Mike Judge creates are so richly observed and true to life that it's almost (almost) worth waiting a decade for a spiritual sequel to Office Space. Idiocracy, while a clever satire in its own right, never quite comes to fruition the way these two movies do. With Judge at the helm, it's comedy first, life lessons later (or not at all).

Jason Bateman plays Joel, the owner of an extract plant on the verge of being bought out by General Mills. Naturally, this is the moment when Joel is beset by problems: his wife (Kristen Wiig) has ceased having sex with him, a freak accident puts an employee (Clifton Collins Jr.) out of commission, and a grifter (Mila Kunis) arrives to capitalize on this disaster.

While the movie sort of gives shortshrift to Wiig's hilarity in favour of Kunis' charms, it's also got one helluva supporting cast to offer plenty of other laughs from Ben Affleck's delightfully spaced out bartender to Dustin Milligan's hilariously blank gigolo to David Koechner's insanely obtuse neighbour.

At the centre of it all, we have Bateman playing what surely must be known as a Jason Bateman-type. It's sort of a wry everyman who reacts to the insanity around him with deadpan hilarity. There are variations: on Arrested Development, for example, Michael was also a complete narcissist. Mind you, that's not all he can do (cf. the sleaze he played in State of Play). On the other hand, who doesn't love this character? Who doesn't want to see Bateman grow rich playing him? If anything, the conflict that moves much of the plot forward is the movie's least believable element: who wouldn't have sex with Jason Bateman?

And even if you're not into that (but let's admit it: you are), Judge's instant (cult?) classic set pieces and set ups should keep you in quotes for weeks to come. Is there any better reason to see a movie? B+

Pop Culture Round Up: March 7 - 13

Because they feared Liam Neeson coming after them?

I rocked this thing.

That would be cool, but how would you find out about new shows? Channel surfing is still important.

Yay! I think I am okay with this. You`re welcome.

Wow, do I ever want to read this now. There`s so much I`m missing out on! This, too!

While I am quite excited that David Edelstein is blogging again, this addition so threw me that I don`t recall even finishing the sentence. What?

I finally got around to watching this, and it looks great.

Let`s go!

I hope so!

This is beautiful.

Is it me, or is there something wonky with Lenin`s eyes?

Why must this be so ridiculous?

Ha!

Really? Okay.

Is there?

This is the best thing I read all week.

Pop Culture Round Up: January 24 - 30

Who, pray tell, is being mocked? Your career?

What the? I don't care if Jennifer Saunders is involved, this thing is fishy. When my friend introduced me to the show, she told me that it was about a pair of aging hippies and trying to be career women but still hippies. Plus they're alcoholics. Does America find functional alcoholics funny?

Criticism in crisis reactions: Oh, no! I'm lazy!

They hired a new critic? Insanity!

For every action . . .

And a criticism defense!

"Film critics and scholars have a tumultuous relationship with a system that is meant to help guide readers but may also encourage some to skip the review entirely."

"The intellectual author's copious diaries record her struggles with a domineering father, her stultifying stint in the court of George III, her controversial marriage to a Catholic escapee from the French Revolution." Saucy stuff!

Ooo, another door! A flood door, but still.

"The most brilliant thing to happen to Jane Austen’s novels since … well, ever." I must have this book.

Don Draper makes ice cream!

That's too bad.

What, what?! This just might be awesome.

Holy Moses. Mind you, if I had that actor in the role, I might be wary of including an certain predilection as well.

This hurts a little.

Yes! I have been saying this for years.

Hmm. Good question. I'm pretty sure awesome movie is still the answer.

Heh. Although what he says is, "You followin' me, camera guy?", which is even better.

"As the number of possessions grew, so did the concept of ‘taste’, a subtle and elusive yardstick by which people advertised their social position and sensibilities."

"Comics actually are jazz." I can't say that occurred to me before.

I can't imagine one actor who could play him, much less two.

Hey, they did something nice!

Aww, don't take away old peoples' TVs!

SAG winners.

PGA winners.

Pop Culture Round-Up: January 10 - 16

Criticism in crisis is back in full force: LA Weekly's theatre critic shifts to "Critic-At-Large" [shudder], and LA's Daily Breeze has dropped their theatre critic as well. Is there no theatre in LA? That doesn't sound right.

But what if you are in the target demo, and you don't watch any of those shows? Who's targeting me?

What? Do I really have to reconsider my slight obsession with returned Nazi art? Mind, I would like there to be some sort of condition that requires the art to be donated to a period of time to the museum of the rightful owners choice. Being too poor to go around buying expensive art, I never saw the point of keeping it locked away.

I'm not looking forward to many of these. Surely 2009 has more to offer?

Adieu.

That's true -- what did happen there?

There should be more rapping about that show.

When Gossip Girl asked us on Monday, "Does anyone remember Georgina?", the correct answer was, "Yes, the writers." Girl better get hooked up with Agnes and stir that shit up.

"A couple of songs this year, we wanted to do particular styles, like a club tune, and we wanted to do a West Side Story-type musical song." I can only hope this leads to the return of angry dancing, which is only a step away from dance fighting.

Pretty much anyone associated with Supernatural already has a good reputation with me.

People, do not deny yourselves Slumdog Millionaire. Even if you don't like it.

What the hell? That's a mistake. This, however, is not. Actually, it might be. If Spider-Man 3 taught me anything, it's that having multiple villains doesn't always work. Mind you, it worked just fine for Batman Returns.

I am going to see this one.

There's nothing about this that isn't funny.

For our tough economic times.

Huh, what? Actually, I think that's alright.

Ooo, I think I might like that. Of course, I'd like it a lot better if the stupid fuckers at the alphabet network weren't such stupid fuckers to begin with.

Oh, what the hell? Grow up, Parents Television Council.

I'm not sure how exciting a LINCOLN SMASH-less TV season will be, but I'm okay.

Yay! But why isn't it about Eric?

I'm all about 2, 7, 14, 15, and 17. As for five, it's occurred to me recently that it might be a better soundtrack than it is a movie.

GAH! Is there nothing this man can't or doesn't do? I'm beginning to think that he thinks that he's Peter the Great reborn.

Phew.

Okay, I've keep silent over this one because when your favourite (living) actor quits acting, it's little like your (movie) boyfriend breaking up with you from out of nowhere. I had some stages of grief to go through. I'm (mostly) okay with it now. He remains a prime candidate for my burgeoning celebrity interventionist* career with news like this, though. What kind of crap friend is Casey? He doesn't stop him from going out in public looking like Vincent Gallo, and he can't even be bothered to help him figure out right from left.

'Tis the season:

LAFCA winners.

BAFTA nominees.

Golden Tomato Awards.

*N.B.: This isn't for the type of problem that would land you on Intervention. We deal with more celebrity-specific issues like how to style your hair for public viewing, considering pants, and, apparently, when to keep your dreams of becoming a rapper to yourself.

The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007)

Premise: On one of his last heists, Jesse James (Brad Pitt) accepts Charley Ford’s (Sam Rockwell) younger brother Bob (Casey Affleck) into his gang, despite the objections of Jesse’s older brother, Frank (Sam Shepard). Winter falls and sends the gang into hibernation, where Bob’s sycophantic obsession with Jesse festers into something more sinister.

I’m just going to go come out and say it: this movie’s not for everyone. It’s slow and atmospheric, full of forbidding landscapes and weighty narration. It’s a little like being caught in dream conception of the famous outlaw and discovering it’s a nightmare from which you can’t wake up. You can only ride it out.

It’s not so much a movie as it is a wrestling match between Pitt’s Jesse and Affleck’s Bob. Every time you think you have a handle on which of the two, if anyone, is the coward, the movie shifts focus yet again to pick up another facet of the story, another part of their twin personae.

Invoking Terrence Malik on his best day, director Andrew Dominik, working from his own screen adaptation of Ron Hansen’s novel, has created a world that’s not so much murky as it is relentlessly grey. Roger Deakins’ cinematography captures the stark, cold winter landscapes and the dull, overcast days that follow the snow to great effect. The world around these men is a reflection of the internal, seemingly empty with great dark forests at the edges. Combined with Nick Cave and Warren Ellis’ circular and moody score, the movie manages to take the oppressiveness that comes with a long, cold winter and apply it to the character’s psyches.

There’s a lot of great supporting work from the aforementioned Shepard and Rockwell, as well as Jeremy Renner, Garret Dillahunt, and the thoroughly creepy Paul Schneider, but this is really the Pitt-Affleck show. Pitt has grown from the pretty boy we first met into a far different man. The first shots we see of Jesse, standing alone in a wheat field, his face looks weathered, haunted, and handsome in way it never has before. He’s both snake and snake charmer, coiling around his prey to choke the hero worship out of Bob, only to demand it back again. It’s a difficult and nuanced performance, sad and strange, one that Pitt handles with aplomb.

He’s perfectly matched in the slight, pale Affleck. From his hunched shoulders to his wheezing laugh to his shortness of breath is almost every situation, Affleck is exactly what you would expect a coward who shot his boss in the back to be without ever actually being a coward. Affleck’s Bob is perfectly aware of his actions but detached from their consequences. He’s too young to see the bigger picture, and it is in that lack of experience that Affleck soars. It’s a wonder that he can draw me in with his maturity in other roles and still make me feel sympathy for the inevitably of his immaturity here.

Meditative and heavy, aided by Hugh Ross’s insightful narration, the slow pacing in this movie will probably put a lot of people off (like, say, those that left the theatre when we were there). If you stop fighting it, though, it will draw you into its haunting embrace. A-

Gone Baby Gone (2007)

Premise: After her three year-old niece goes missing, Beatrice McCready (Amy Madigan) hires a pair of detectives, Patrick Kenzie (Casey Affleck) and Angie Gennaro (Michelle Monaghan), to help out with the "neighbourhood aspect" of the search. Patrick and Angie encounter equal measures of difficulty in trying to get the mother, Helene (Amy Ryan), the uncle, Lionel(Titus Welliver), and the cops (Morgan Freeman, Ed Harris, and John Ashton) to cooperate until their search turns up a suspect.

Right before we got to the theatre yestereve, it turned out that we were not decided about what movie to see. One person did not want to see this movie at all, in fact. She thought it looked like a TV movie of the week. Instead, she went to see Into the Wild while the rest of us stuck to our guns. She missed out.

A tense thriller has one of two effects: 1) you feel completely drained afterwards or 2) you get an adrenaline rush from the pent up anxiety. Fall movies tend to fall into the former category, so it's a pleasant switch to see one that not only falls into the latter but is brilliant all the same.

Congratulations, Ben Affleck, on your directorial debut in a motion picture. Based on Dennis Lehane's novel, the screenplay B Affleck co-wrote with Aaron Stockard is a work of genius, managing bon mots without making them seem overwrought or out of the ordinary for the working-class characters. I got a little nervous during the opening narration (my aversion to voiceovers no secret from you, gentle reader), though it ended with one of my favourite bits of scripture. It turned out to be a clever use of voiceover, for the most part, giving us exposition while keeping the camera and the action moving forward and away from the conversation instead of forcing to sit with a bunch of talking heads. Wonderfully comfortable in a return to his own working class Boston roots, B Affleck's direction is assured and insightful, although he could stand to lay off the close-ups. Even so, this picture shows a tremendous amount of promise.

I read that Angie is based on Lehane's own wife, and I hope not for her sake. Much like with We Own the Night, the main female drew the short straw for characterization. You know that part at the end of Mystic River (another of Lehane's novels) where Laura Linney's character goes all Lady Macbeth out of nowhere? Monaghan's Angie is an extension of that moment, but it builds a lot more slowly and works within the character. Nonetheless, her tendency to jump to conclusions and her desire to pressure her partner into decisions outside of his comfort zone didn't line up with what we knew about her. And, if she was from around there, as is suggested earlier in the movie, why doesn't she have the same understanding of the neighbourhood, the people, much less the accent? As it was with Mendes, it was hard to tell if the blame should lie with the script, the direction, or the actress. I think the answer is somewhere between the three.

Freeman is good, but it's nothing we haven't seen from him before, so let's just leave it at that. Harris, on the other hand, is delightfully dangerous and explosive, in a way that I feel we don't get to see from him often enough. He's the kind of cop that toes the line only so much as he has to because he's seen enough to know when he shouldn't.

Of course the movie, naturally and entrancingly, belongs to Casey Affleck. One of the few actors who can play the maturity and wisdom that comes from experience that makes a man, Affleck owns the screen whenever he appears on it (which is pretty much always, hurrah!) making us feel the weariness that creeps into bones when one is faced with difficult decisions with no right answers. The case's many turns threaten to put his immortal soul in peril, and it's a rare actor who can make that danger resonate without seeming heavy handed or overly religious.

And be scorching hot. Just thought I should add that.

Backed by Harry Gregson-Williams' plaintive, piano-driven score, the Afflecks have delivered a tense and grim morality play. It's one of this year's best. A

Ocean's Thirteen (2007)

Outline: Willy Banks (Al Pacino) double crosses his latest casino partner Reuben Tishkoff (Elliott Gould), landing Reuben in the hospital. When Will refuses a Billy Martin from Danny (George Clooney), the gang (Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Eddie Jemison, Don Cheadle, Shaobo in, Casey Affleck, Scott Caan, Bernie Mac, and Carl Reiner) plan to take down Banks' casino during the soft open as payback, with a little help from Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia) and Roman Nagel (Eddie Izzard).

Oh, how delightful. The series goes back to its roots: Las Vegas and fun. Yup, it's fun again, kids. Might as well enjoy it.

Director and cinematographer Steven Soderbergh has it back on the rails, and it rolls along quickly and smoothly. Writing team Brian Koppelman and David Levien keep the plot streamlined, allowing more room for the loving character bits that made the first installment such a thrill to watch. There are plenty of giggle-worthy in- and out of character jabs.

Also, much to my delectation, Affleck gets his own subplot, and it's both relevant and hilarious. As much as the big stars are important, and as much as convivial amusements as Cloons, Pitt, Damon, Garcia, etc. bring to the screen, these movies are only as good as their supporting players. If Caan and Affleck, despite looking nothing alike, weren't believable antagonistic sibs, the movie would grind to a halt when they hit the screen. If Qin, with his lovely head of hair, wasn't such a good sport, the rest wouldn't matter.

Pacino tones it down enough to let his enjoyment in this boys club show, and the crazy hot Ellen Barkin adds the needed estrogen boost.

So much of the first picture comes full circle this time around that it's easy to forget the failings of the second. In fact, why don't we? Let's just sit back and enjoy. B+

The Last Kiss (2006)

Idea: Twenty-nine year-old Michael's (Zach Braff) life feels pretty planned out: he works at a great architecture firm, he's still friends with all his pre-school friends, and he lives with his pregnant girlfriend (Jacinda Barrett) of three years. Naturally, he meets a cute co-ed (Rachel Bilson) and starts having doubts about where his life is going. Meanwhile, in sub-plot-landia, Chris (Casey Affleck) is considering leaving his wife (Lauren Lee Smith), although he doesn't want to leave his toddler behind; Izzy (Michael Weston) can't win Ari (Marley Shelton) back, so he's heading to South America; Kenny (Eric Christian Olsen) may have found a girl worth more than a one-night stand; and Stephen (Tom Wilkinson) and Anna's (Blythe Danner) relationship is headed for rocky road.

Although I cannot find any proof of my conviction, I am certain that The Hater made some crack about this movie being a run-of-the-mill can't commit movie with a patina of Garden State to make is seem worthwhile. I had no idea how right she was until last night. In fact, she's not enough close to being right.

This movie is crap. Absolute, fucking crap. So little in this movie is genuine. And I realize that some people would tell me that asking for something genuine from Hollywood is asking too much. Listen, those people, something like that is pretty much all a movie like this has going for it. Something genuine, something true to life that the audience can connect to. Not something that the 14 year-old girls sitting behind me who had never been out in public before, much less to a movie before (Audible stage gasp "Do you think he's going to? Omigawd, he did!"), would swoon over. There were multiple points during this movie that I reached over to grab my purse and leave, remembered that I was with three other people, and settled for a full-on eye roll instead.

Most notable point? The fucking narration at the beginning of the movie. Does it ever reappear? Nope. Not a once. Is it in anyway necessary? Not really. Most of that could have been worked in as exposition, and the rest would have worked better as part of the dialogue that occurs later in the movie. Instead, you have to suffer through its "feeling"-ness. Shut up, shut up, Paul Haggis. You are making me sorry I ever touted the genius of Million Dollar Baby. I hope you are happy with yourself. Knowing you are involved with Clint Eastwood's latest movie is making me reconsider seeing it as well.

Shut up about women. Apparently, there are only slutty, shrewish and/or pathetic women in your world. My world is a bit more diverse, but let's look at yours for now. 98% of women, and I'm being generous to you here, Paul, 98% would walk away when they found out the object of their affection had a girlfriend. Esp. if they learn that fact at the first meeting. Don't get me wrong -- Michael misleads Kim in a lot of ways, but he cops to that one pretty quick. Their every interaction after that fact comes off as false. This is largely based in the way Kim in written and in the fact that Bilson doesn't have the acting chops to redeem her in anyway, but everything out of Kim's mouth and all her actions were so pathetic and unconnected to way that real women act as to be a farce.

Shut up about men while you are at it. If you want to see an example of men's relationships done well, watch any episode of Rescue Me. That show, too, short-changes women, but it nails male interaction bar none. As much as I have enjoyed Braff if the past, he, too, doesn't have the chops to rise above the mediocrity he is surrounded by. Mind you, he's not so bad since he gets to play pretty much the only fully fleshed character in the movie, but it's still pretty sucky.

Can I tell you guys something? I loves me some Casey Affleck. I want him to be my boyfriend. He's broody without being dark (a rare feat), and Chris is a grown-up who makes decisions and lives with their consequences. Because I am old, I find that dreamy.

To be honest with you, I mostly wished that Affleck and Wilkinson had a better movie to be in. I hope they find one. D-

Ocean's Twelve (2004)

Idea: The whole gang from Ocean's Eleven is back. Terry Benedict (Andy Garcia) wants it all back with interest, so they head out to three European cities to get it. Isabel (Catherine Zeta-Jones), however, is something of a jilted ex and hot on Rusty's (Brad Pitt) tail. They get into some trouble when they encounter a rival thief known only as the Nightfox.

Basically, George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Casey Affleck, Scott Caan, Shaobo Qin, Bernie Mac, Don Cheadle, Carl Reiner, Eddie Jemison, and Elliott Gould are up to their old tricks. And good tricks they are.

Except something isn't working here. And it's Steven Soderbergh.

George Nolfi's script nails the characters, but he ignores the setting as a character. Ocean's Eleven wouldn't have worked if it wasn't set in Las Vegas. It showcased that glittering steel trap beautifully. It's a bad sign, however, when people can't work Amsterdam and Rome. They seem like pretty easy cities to work.

But that's not the point. See, the first movie was a slick caper. Not your usual Soderbergh fare, but something smooth and completely seamless, from start to finish. Not so here. A Soderbergh film without doubt, but now it's no longer a heist movie. It has to be something more. So he sacrifices fun in the place of excessive close ups and disjoin, you-never-know-until-the-end-what's-really-going-on story telling. You could make a case for that in the first movie, but you'd have to see the sequel to understand the difference.

Still there are noteworthy elements at play.

Topher Grace has the best cameo since well . . . I don't even know. I just died when he said that he "totally phoned it in on that Dennis Quaid thing." Just died.

Clooney, my smarmy friend, and Pitt work well together, and everyone looks great. I swear, these movies are more about costuming than anything else. Zeta-Jones looks fabulous the whole way through. I wanted her wardrobe so very much. Too many great items to list.

Did they all phone it in, though? Maybe. B.

Gerry (2002)

Brief: Two Gerrys (Casey Affleck and Matt Damon) veer off a wilderness trail and become lost in the desert without any food or water.

Don't ask me why they are both named Gerry or if Gerry is merely a bizarre nickname they have for each other because I don't know the answer to either query.

I do, however, know that this is the best Gus Van Sant (director and co-writer) film I have seen to date.

I wanted to rent this movie because I thought it was an ingenious (and savvy low-budget) concept. Unfortunately, everytime I went to get it either it was out (who besides me would rent such a film?) or the party I was with didn't want to see it.

Luckily it appeared one afternoon on the Sundance channel while I was home, so I quite literally leapt at the opportunity.

After the first few minutes I regretted my choice. There was silence, and nothing to watch but a car going down an empty desert highway. I was going to quit, but I decided to stick it out.

Decision well made.

The film was co-scripted by Affleck, Damon, and Van Sant. They filled the dialogue with personalized slang, making it all the more real. Also, they never fell prey to making either character a hero or a villain, simply equal partners in the most difficult situation they had ever faced.

Truly chilling was how calm they were for the first couple of days, laughing and telling stories to fill the time.

Although much of the film is silent save the gravelly sounding steps across the hinterland, it becomes impossible to feel bored. Harris Savides' cinematography and the aforementioned trio's editing force you into an unsettling balance between panic and peace. It's so weird - you're nervous, but you feel almost apathetic about the source of that nervousness.

And that ending. I don't want to give it away because you definitely feel it coming anyway. Even so, it's breathtaking.

Affleck, while he has yet to eclipse his brother in terms of star power, has lapped him many times over in terms of talent. Every emotion he goes through in this film - and he runs the gamut - seems as natural as breathing.

Damon, who annoys me more and more with every passing movie he makes, actually works well here. His Gerry possesses clarity in crisis without the heavy-handed movie burden of leader, making his efforts all the more agonizing to watch.

It's been a few days now, but I just can seem to shake this movie, which is a triumph in my opinion.

Mind you, it also made me want to buy a compass.

To Die For (1995)

Short: Suzanne Stone Maretto (Nicole Kidman) has always believed she is destined for a life on TV. When she decides that her husband, Larry (Matt Dillon), is standing in her way, she enlists three 15 year-old followers, Jimmy (Joaquin Phoenix), Russell (Casey Affleck), and Lydia (Allison Folland), to take care of him for her.

Not, to my knowledge, based on a true story. Feel free to challenge this statement.

Blockbuster claims that this film is a “drama suspense”. Not really, I would say.

It’s satirical, and there are definitely elements of drama to it, as well as comedy. I didn’t buy the suspense, though. You get the feeling while you are watching it that it is almost something. Almost a drama, almost a comedy, almost a satire, almost good.

But never really enough of anything.

Here’s how I’ve decided that Gus Van Sant directs. “I’m Gus Van Sant! If you don’t like it, I don’t care ‘cause I’m Gus Van Sant.” Basically speaking, a little too self absorbed to be a worthwhile director.

Luckily he’s got a great script from Buck Henry, a man who knows a thing or two about satire, and one helluva performance from Kidman. I remember this movie as being the first were suddenly critics were saying, “Nicole Kidman! An actress! Not just Tom Cruise’s wife!”, which is great since only 50% of them can really act.

Phoenix also won himself some attention with this move, his return to feature films after a four year absence. He’s so good here – quiet, jittery, naïve. It’s hard not to like him or feel sorry for him.

I was also happy to see that Danny Elfman scored the movie since I like him so much. He’s finally getting the attention he deserves, and I couldn’t be happier for him.