True Grit

OPENING: 12/22/2010

STUDIO: Paramount Pictures

RUN TIME: 110 min

ACCOMPLICES:
Trailer, Official Site

The Charge
Punishment comes one way or another.

Opening Statement
Henry Hathaway’s 1969 adaptation of Charles Portis’ True Grit was an exceptional western, offering actor John Wayne one of his most iconic roles (for which Wayne would win his one and only Academy Award). Despite that film’s many virtues, Joel and Ethan Coen have now turned in the rare remake that proves superior to its predecessor in almost every way.

Facts of the Case
14-year-old Mattie Ross (Hailee Steinfeld) is seeking revenge for the death of her father. The man responsible is the villainous Tom Chaney (Josh Brolin, No Country for Old Men), and Mattie is determined to have him captured, sentenced and hanged (or simply shot on sight, if things work out that way). With some difficulty, she manages to hire U.S. Marshall Rooster Cogburn (Jeff Bridges, Iron Man) for the job. Cogburn is a crass, aging, overweight drunk, but Mattie is impressed with his fearsome reputation and ability to get the job done. With the aid of a Texas Ranger named LaBouef (Matt Damon, The Bourne Identity), Rooster and Mattie hit the trail and attempt to bring Chaney to justice.

The Evidence
The Coens opened their bleak comedy A Serious Man with an intriguing quote: “Receive with simplicity all that happens to you.” It’s a perfectly appropriate yet enigmatic line that lingers over the film like an uncertain storm cloud. There’s a similarly well-chosen line which opens their adaptation of True Grit (this time taken from the book of Proverbs): “The wicked flee when none pursueth.” The second half of that verse reads, “but the righteous are as bold as a lion.” However, that section has been removed from the film. There’s precious little room for righteousness in the version of the west they have to offer.

In some ways, the film is a continuation of the cynicism the Coens have indulged in their recent cinematic efforts, as they offer the American west as a place in which villains are abundant and so-called heroes are only interested in financially profitable brands of justice. Mattie Ross believes herself to be righteous and certainly is bold as a lion, but even she is tainted by an unwavering desire for revenge. If you’ve seen the original film, you will recall a particularly striking scene involving some rattlesnakes. It always played as nothing more than an extra bit of harrowing adventure in that movie, but the Coens draw out the scene’s symbolic resonance: this journey has been toxic for our young protagonist’s soul.

Fascinating stuff, but True Grit is by no means a bleak journey of spiritual torment, nor is it entirely a cynical one. In fact, this is quite possibly the most blatantly entertaining movie the Coens have crafted since their previous collaboration with Jeff Bridges (The Big Lebowski). Their gift for deadpan comedy is on full display for much of the film, beginning with an early scene in which a hanging concludes with a grimly funny punch line. It’s one of those sublime scenes that manages to work so well on one level that it takes you a moment to realize how well it works on another. A scene midway through the film in which Mattie and Rooster encounter a bizarre dentist (Ed Corbin, Blue Sky) in the woods features is such a sublimely odd piece of unexpected comedy that I laughed until I had tears in my eyes.

A good deal of the laughs come from the splendidly florid dialogue of Charles Portis (too little of which was taken advantage of in the original film). The highly stylized nature of the language may be a source of irritation for some viewers, but I suspect most will find it a pleasure to absorb. The Coens have adapted and fine-tuned lines from his book to maximum effect–it’s absolutely fascinating to simply listen to these people carry on a conversation.

Great as the John Wayne performance was in the original film, he was still playing a variation on “John Wayne.” Bridges quickly disappears inside the role of Rooster Cogburn, offering a gruffer, less flattering portrayal of the character that works better for the film’s purposes. You get the sense that this Rooster is just about shiftless enough to actually abandon Mattie. It’s hardly a conventional heroic role: in addition to stumbling around drunkenly and showing off an ungainly pot belly, Rooster is also depicted as a tiresome windbag. During his travels with Mattie, he rambles endlessly about whatever happens to be on his mind at the time, despite the fact that much of what he is saying is of very little interest to anyone other than himself. This guy can’t even manage the minor virtue of being the strong, silent type. By humbling Rooster Cogburn even more dramatically than the original film, the Coens transform his moments of nobility into something almost mythical.

Hailee Steinfeld is much less instantly adorable than Kim Darby in the role of Mattie Ross, but her performance is more impressive. Steinfeld’s confident rat-a-tat delivery makes her the ideal straight man in a film that frequently adopts the rhythms of a screwball comedy. Speaking of which, Matt Damon makes a surprisingly magnificent clown in his portrayal of LaBouef (amusingly pronounced “La-Beef”), bringing a giggle-inducing pomposity to a role that was flat-out boring in the hands of singer Glen Campbell. Josh Brolin and Barry Pepper (Saving Private Ryan) mostly depict their villainous figures as near-cartoonish monsters, but the film grants them curious moments of humanity that further blur the lines between this tale’s heroes and villains.

Closing Statement
True Grit is a more straightforward, broadly accessible film than usual for the Coens, but nonetheless another triumph of filmmaking. They’ve taken a story that served as the inspiration for a very good film and turned it into a great one.

The Verdict
10/10

TRON: Legacy

OPENING: 12/17/2010

STUDIO: Disney

RUN TIME: 127 min

ACCOMPLICES:
Trailer, Official Site

The Charge
The Game Has Changed

Opening Statement
When Disney’s TRON was released in 1982, it was regarded as a groundbreaking technical achievement. It took film to a new level in terms of computer-generated special effects and remains a much-loved movie despite its obvious dramatic flaws. Arriving a mere 28 years after its predecessor, TRON: Legacy proves disappointingly conventional in comparison.

Facts of the Case
Our story begins a few years after the first film concluded. Computer whiz Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges, Crazy Heart) is the wealthy CEO of a massive corporation. One day, Kevin mysteriously vanishes, leaving his young son Sam behind. We fast-forward some twenty years or so and discover that Sam (Garrett Hedlund, Four Brothers) is the corporation’s primary shareholder, but he has no interest in the day-to-day operations of the business. In the Flynn family’s absence, the company has taken an unfortunate turn; sacrificing quality for the sake of raking in more cash. The lone voice of reason on the board is Alan Bradley (Bruce Boxleitner, The Babe), Kevin’s old business partner.

One day, Alan discovers a piece of evidence suggesting that Kevin may still be alive. Sam is informed of this and determines to investigate the matter. Upon searching his father’s old arcade palace, Sam accidentally discovers a portal to another world–a digital land where human beings are faithfully recreated as code. It seems that Kevin had been visiting this high-tech dimension on a regular basis during Sam’s childhood. Unfortunately, Kevin became trapped inside this dimension after being betrayed by Clu (also played by Bridges), an advanced program Kevin created in the hopes of making a utopian world within the digital realm. Alas, Clu’s idea of perfection is a hive-minded dictatorship; meaning that the current version of this world is nothing short of a living nightmare.

Once Sam arrives (and is immediately captured by Clu), he must find a way to survive a series of increasingly challenging gladiatorial games, find his father and figure out how to get back home

The Evidence
To be honest, TRON: Legacy didn’t have a whole lot to live up to. Yes, the original TRON was a technical breakthrough, but the storytelling was ordinary and much of the acting was rather stiff. The intriguing, fresh ideas joined forces with a competent story to create a reasonably satisfying experience. Somehow, TRON: Legacy manages to make the same mistakes, offering misguided performances and some remarkably clumsy storytelling. Sure, it looks and sounds great (as the first one did in its day), but it ranks as an inferior experience in the ideas department. The original TRON was a film enamored with the specific rules of its innovative universe, while TRON: Legacy is a film that seems more interested in its superficially flashy production design than in the endless possibilities its world offers.

This is such a frustrating film on a storytelling level; the sort of movie that inspires questions of logic but never seems interested in answering them. For instance: where does the massive audience at the sporting events come from? If they’re programs, why do they need to be entertained? Why do they behave in such a blatantly emotional, human manner at the sporting events? Why is it that certain vehicles can go off the grid and others can’t? How did the equivalent of a big bang instantly create fully-evolved beings? How did these fully-evolved beings become so wise without the benefit of life experience? Why do certain rules of physics apply while others do not in this world? I could go on and on.

”It’s not rocket science; it’s just entertainment,” you may be saying. I realize that. On a certain fundamental technical level, the movie does provide some enjoyment. The visual design is immensely compelling and the film ensures that we always have some measure of eye-candy to behold (even if it uses up its best ideas within the first hour). The action sequences are well-crafted and offer some genuine excitement from time to time (even if the action sequences in the last act can’t hold a candle to those in the first). The energetic music by Daft Punk offers the film an invaluable boost, too (even if parts of it veer a little close to Hans Zimmer’s work on Inception). However, these strengths are indicative of the film’s weaknesses: it feels like all of the creative energy went into the visual effects and sound design.

The screenplay could certainly use a good deal of fine-tuning; burdened as it is with awkward dialogue, forced metaphors and obvious foreshadowing (there’s one moment early in the film which frustratingly spells out the film’s conclusion). None of the actors manage to overcome the weak writing. Garrett Hedlund is a fine actor, but most of his lines are so forced that he never comes across as a terribly compelling hero. Olivia Wilde (House) is never quite convincing as the naïve yet confident action heroine, while Michael Sheen (The Queen) goes bizarrely over-the-top as the proprietor of a digital night club. I don’t know whether Sheen or the director is responsible, but it only serves to generate a sense of bewilderment. Sheen seems to be playing hyperactive cross between Al Pacino’s Scarface and that villainous fox from Pinocchio.

I had high hopes that the presence of Jeff Bridges would ensure at least some high-caliber acting, but even the esteemed Oscar winner falls well short of his usual standard. To be fair, it isn’t really his fault. As Clu, Bridges is forced to deal with the film’s single terrible special effect. The attempts to make Bridges look 30-something are remarkably unpersuasive, as the character looks like he’s been transported from one of Robert Zemeckis’ motion-capture flicks. Bridges’ grizzled voice sounds exceedingly peculiar coming from the smooth-faced Clu’s mouth. One would assume that he would fare better as Kevin Flynn, but the writers assure that this performance doesn’t work. Much of Bridges’ dialogue is portentous sci-fi business, but the writers occasionally throw in PG-rated leftovers from The Big Lebowski. So, after giving some grave speech about the danger Clu poses to humanity, Bridges will utter something like, “Radical, man!” Bridges is generally an effortless actor, but this performance seems forced.

Oh, and what about the title character? As you may recall, Tron was the heroic program created by Alan in the original film (both Alan and Tron were played by Boxleitner). This time, Tron is onscreen for less than five minutes, wears a helmet concealing his face the entire time and has absolutely nothing of interest to do. Seriously? You’re making a movie called TRON: Legacy and Tron himself is nothing but an afterthought? Somebody needs to be slapped.

As is often the case with big-budget flicks these days, TRON: Legacy feels less like a self-contained movie than like the opening chapter of a franchise. Important plot strands are left hanging which will only be resolved if this flick make enough money. The most perplexing instance of this is the first-act introduction of a character played by Cillian Murphy (Sunshine). This character is the son of the villain played by David Warner in the original TRON. Alas, Murphy gets a few insignificant lines and then is never seen again–they’re saving him for future installments, I guess.

Closing Statement
I should conclude by re-asserting that the film isn’t bad–it’s a tolerable way to pass two hours, I guess. However, the disconnect between the potential this material has and what the filmmakers actually deliver is immensely frustrating. TRON deserves a better legacy than this.

The Verdict
5/10

Crazy Heart

OPENING: Limited Release

STUDIO: Fox Searchlight

RUN TIME: 112 min

ACCOMPLICES:
Trailer, Official Site

The Charge
The harder the life, the sweeter the song.

Opening Statement
Crazy Heart is a simple, straightforward story without a lot of surprises. It’s the sort of story we’ve seen before, but told in such a tender and thoughtful manner it somehow manages to completely transcend the conventions of its structure.

Facts of the Case
Jeff Bridges (The Big Lebowski) plays Bad Blake, a 57-year-old country singer whose glory days are far behind him. Once upon a time, Bad was a pretty big star, but alcoholism and poor decision-making have left him in a rough state. These days, he does what he can to get by, playing unimpressive venues like bars and bowling alleys. One day, a reporter named Jean Craddock (Maggie Gyllenhaal, Stranger Than Fiction) drops by Bad’s hotel room to conduct an interview. The two hit it off and Maggie ends up spending the night. She thinks it’s just a one-night stand, but Bad finds himself emotionally attached. He wants to get to know Maggie better, and spend time getting to know her 4-year-old son. Maggie likes Bad, but knows he’s a mess and might be beyond redemption. Meanwhile, Bad’s ultra-popular protege, Tommy Sweet (Colin Farrell, In Bruges), attempts to help his old mentor re-enter the music world.

The Evidence
Bad Blake may be a fictional character, but his story certainly has more than a ring of truth to it. Plenty of celebrities have been in Bad’s shoes. Once famous, they wasted opportunities in the spotlight and will take whatever they can to cover the rent and their addiction of choice. Bad is the sort of guy country music singers tend to sing about: his wife done left, he ain’t got many friends, just a beat-up truck and a near-empty bottle. There are more than a few echoes of The Wrestler‘s "Randy the Ram" in Bad.

In that film, Mickey Rourke played a character which seemed a logical choice for the actor. To a degree, Randy was a variation on Rourke’s own life. In Crazy Heart, Jeff Bridges turns in a performance every bit as moving and convincing, though I imagine there’s very little of the real-life Bridges to be found in this character. I’m glad Jeff is finally getting some attention for his performance, because he has been a tremendously under-appreciated actor over the course of his career. Jeff has a way of fully inhabiting the characters he plays, and within the first few minutes of Crazy Heart we completely forget that he was Starman, The Dude, and Obadiah Stane. I stopped seeing the actor and started seeing Bad Blake. It’s not a flashy performance. Jeff doesn’t have any of those award-bait moments in which he shouts out an impassioned monologue. He just makes creating a fully-realized, lived-in character seem deceptively easy.

The screenplay, written by director Scott Cooper (based on the novel by Thomas Cobb), is similarly impressive in an understated way, quietly slipping in sincere and truthful dialogue. The lines are so natural and underplayed, it may take a while to realize just how truly magnificent they are. There’s a moment when Jean asks Bad what he wants to talk about in the interview. "I want to talk about how bad you make this room look," he sighs wearily. These exchanges were undoubtedly constructed with precision and care, but the ensemble makes all of them feel organic.

Speaking of which, praise deserves to be showered on the supporting cast. Maggie Gyllenhaal is one of the most reliably engaging actresses of her generation, nailing the complicated blend of protectiveness she feels for her son and affection she feels towards Bad. Her quiet moments with Bridges are some of the strongest scenes in the film. Robert Duvall (who starred in the very similar Tender Mercies back in 1983) is excellent as one of Bad’s few remaining friends, while Colin Farrell proves surprisingly convincing as a country megastar who has a very complicated relationship with Bad. The protege has eclipsed the mentor, and Farrell successfully captures the awkward sense of guilt that comes with it.

I’m not really a fan of country music, but the songs in Crazy Heart (written by T. Bone Burnett and Stephen Bruton) are nothing short of excellent. They’re as quietly profound as the screenplay, offering genuinely affecting lyrics and memorably bittersweet melodies. The music ebbs and flows through the film, wrapping itself around the story and deeply enriching it. I expect a higher percentage of the audience will sit through the credits than usual, just to hear some of these tunes again. Bridges and Farrell both perform their numbers and do a genuinely impressive job, vastly better than the majority of what’s passing for country music these days.

Closing Statement
Crazy Heart is one of the great films of 2009, a quiet, beautiful story featuring a genuinely remarkable performance and excellent music. If you fail to see it, you are robbing yourself of a tremendously rewarding experience. Highly recommended.

The Verdict
10/10