It’s Complicated

OPENING: 12/25/2009

STUDIO: Universal

RUN TIME: 120

ACCOMPLICES:
Trailer, Official Site

The Charge
Divorced… with benefits.

Opening Statement
Nancy Meyers whips up another batch of her signature fluff in It’s Complicated, this holiday season’s obligatory attempt to draw in the 40+ female crowd. For better or worse, it’s pretty much another Nancy Meyers film, nothing more and nothing less. I can live with that.

Facts of the Case
Meryl Streep stars as Jane Adler (no relation to Irene Adler, debuting on the same day in Sherlock Holmes), a divorced baker who is still attempting to get over her failed relationship with ex-husband Jake (Alec Baldwin) ten years after their split. Jake is currently married to a woman young enough to be Jane’s daughter, a fact which makes Jane even more resentful. It’s a surprise to both Jake and Jane when they find themselves suddenly involved in a passionate affair. Is it possible that they were meant for each other after all? Complicating matters even more is Jane’s increasingly friendly relationship with Adam (Steve Martin), a warm and friendly architect. Jake is funny and interesting, but Adam is so fundamentally decent he might qualify for sainthood. Who will Jane choose?

The Evidence
Though hardly the complex narrative the title might suggest, It’s Complicated is a pleasant and inoffensive way to spend two hours. The story is fairly predictable, though not agonizingly so. The jokes are only moderately funny, but they are funny. Meyers does not make great cinema, but she does know how to craft a good time. This is a movie designed to inspire a generous dose of giggles and a whole lot of good feelings, which is precisely what it provides (slightly ironic, given that it centers on a character who is perpetually flustered and concerned). It’s a comedy of embarrassment, but a very gentle one. The viewer is never in any doubt that all parties concerned will make it to the end credits relatively unscathed.

So, we watch as one comic scenario after another is played out to the strains of a lilting Hans Zimmer score and some lightly flavorful pop tunes. Jane has just slept with her ex-husband. Oh no! What will she do now? Jane is supposed to be attending a family affair, and she’s stoned out of her mind after trying marijuana for the first time in 27 years. Oh! How will she handle such a situation? Adam is in the middle of an online video chat with Jane, and suddenly gets an eyeful of a very naked Jake. Oh no! How will she explain everything to Adam and win back his trust? Serving as an audience surrogate is Jane’s son-in-law Harley (John Krasinski, who energetically mugs for the camera along the lines of his turn in Leatherheads).

The movie rests on the shoulders of the three leads, and they pull off their fairly simple roles about as well as you would expect them to. Streep isn’t really stretching herself by any means, but creates a character suffering from a few mild contradictions make perfect sense. Martin mostly plays his role in a straightforward manner, projecting sweetness without making it too sugary, and innocence without seeming too dopey. The juiciest role goes to Baldwin, who generates the biggest laughs with his shamelessly lustful behavior. It’s hard to fathom that the dull leading man of Ghosts of Mississippi has turned into such a comedic pro (for more Baldwin goodness, I suggest tuning in to the terrific NBC sitcom 30 Rock).

Closing Statement
I liked It’s Complicated, in spite of the cliches and familiarity. It helped that I saw the film in a theater packed full of middle-aged women, who gave the movie one of the heartiest receptions I have ever experienced. It’s a crowd-pleaser, and thus best experienced with a crowd.

The Verdict
7/10

Julie & Julia

OPENING: 08/07/2009

STUDIO: Columbia Pictures

ACCOMPLICES:
Trailer, Official Site

SOUNDTRACK:

The Charge
Passion. Ambition. Butter. Do You Have What It Takes?

Opening Statement
The Summer Counter-Programming Meryl Streep Film is becoming an annual event. The previous installments have included The Devil Wears Prada, Evening, and Mamma Mia! Streep was magnificent in all three, but the films themselves were disappointingly middling. Sadly, this story is repeated once again in Nora Ephron’s hit-and-miss biopic Julie & Julia.

Facts of the Case
The "Julia" of the title is the famous chef Julia Child (Streep), who made the art of French cooking accessible to the average American housewife and won the hearts of millions through her charming television program. The film spotlights a period of Julia’s life that could be regarded as a major turning point. The second World War had concluded, she and her husband Paul (Stanley Tucci, The Terminal) had settled down in France (he was a representative of the American government working in Paris), and Julia was looking for something to do with her life. She decided upon cooking, found great joy in learning the many nuances of the profession, and then… well, I’ll let the film provide the details.

The "Julie" of the title is Julie Powell (Amy Adams, Enchanted), a 21st Century New York woman stuck in a very unpleasant job working for an insurance company. She is married to a man named Eric (Chris Messina, Vicky Cristina Barcelona), lives above a pizza parlor, and is looking for something to do with her life. She too decides to try cooking and is determined to go through Julia Child’s entire cookbook (all 524 recipes) in just one year. Every day, she will blog her experiences, keeping readers posted as to how well her project is going. Alas, the endeavor proves to be more challenging than she anticipated, taking its toll on her life and marriage.

The Evidence
Ephron takes these two stories and weaves them together… well, not seamlessly, but does so by constantly drawing parallels between the lives of these two women. Julie and Julia never meet, but Ephron attempts to suggest they were kindred spirits, each an equally fascinating individual in her own way. She may be correct in assuming Julie and Julia had some kind of profound connection, Julie is simply not as interesting.

There are a variety of possibilities as to why this is so. Julie’s life isn’t as intriguing or colorful as Julia’s, and the stale Queens (circa 2002) setting is far less cinematic than Paris in the 1950s. Watching someone cook and blog is not as exciting as watching someone attempt to break new ground in the world of culinary arts. Julie’s story also suffers from an overload of tedious life lesson tripe (of the, "Here’s what Julia unintentionally taught me today," variety) and a series of relationship developments that are agonizingly overworked cinema conventions. While these elements don’t do Julie any favors, the biggest problem seems to be that Amy Adams (as good as she is) isn’t half as interesting as Meryl Streep. Adams is stuck playing a thoroughly ordinary woman — a character constantly upset, irritated, depressed, and discouraged about a wide variety of things — and "dreary" isn’t a shade that suits Adams very well.

I might have liked her just fine, if the film was not constantly comparing her to the incomparable Streep, who gives us a spot-on Julia Child. Of course she does. Is there anything this woman cannot do? At this point, someone could cast her as former President Jimmy Carter and I wouldn’t blink. The screen lights up whenever she appears, as her wobbling, warbling Julia cheerfully makes merely average material genuinely exceptional. As with most of her performances, Streep convinces us she is Child, rather than doing a mere imitation. Just the other day I re-watched her performance as the frosty nun in Doubt (which also featured Adams), and it is almost unfathomable to believe this is the same person. Streep is a rare exception to the restrictive rules of Hollywood: She’s a woman who turned 60 years old this year and is still capable of bringing in audiences on star power alone.

However, Streep does not carry her portion of the film by herself. Her supporting cast is quite solid, particularly Stanley Tucci as her loving husband. Tucci doesn’t have much to do, but he gets a lot of mileage out of reaction shots that seem ten percent amused, ten percent exasperated, and eighty percent lovestruck with this marvelous woman he has married. Special mention should also be made of Jane Lynch, who gives us ten very entertaining minutes as Julia’s energetic sister. On the flip side, Adams is dealing with a series of bores. Messina is incredibly uninteresting, as her patient-but-not-too-patient husband, and her friends all feel like sub-par stereotypes from Sex and the City.

Closing Statement
Julie & Julia is a delightful film and a tiresome film rolled into one. It was a novel approach but, now that we’ve had an opportunity to see the finished product, it seems Ephron would have been far better served by telling Julia’s story and leaving Julie’s to the Hallmark Channel. Ah, well. Better luck next summer, Ms. Streep.

The Verdict
6/10

Doubt

OPENING: 12/12/2008

STUDIO: Miramax

TRAILER: Trailer

ACCOMPLICES: Official Site

The Charge
Based on the Pulitzer Prize winning play.

Opening Statement
Directed by John Patrick Shanley, who also wrote the stage play of the same name, Doubt is superbly acted and generally well-crafted, and I imagine most viewers will be able to admire it on some level. However, it will resonate most with viewers who have some sort of religious background. While some critics have mistaken the film for a simple whodunit or a study of child abuse within the Catholic church, it is neither. Doubt is a meditation on its own title, not only within the circumstance presented, but within religion as a whole.


Facts of the Case
The year is 1963, and there is a wind of change in the air. The ground is beginning to shift on a cultural level, and some are beginning to encourage similar change within the Catholic church. One such person is Father Flynn (Philip Seymour Hoffman, Capote), pastor of the St. Nicholas church and private school in New York. Father Flynn believes both the church and the school should be a little warmer and more encouraging. Why not relax the standards on popular music a little bit, or do something fun every once in a while? Father Flynn’s modern views are adamantly opposed by Sister Aloysius (Meryl Streep, The Bridges of Madison County), a very conservative nun feared by all the children attending St. Nicholas school.

The country is just beginning to implement integration, and St. Nicholas now has one single African-American student. His name is Donald Miller (Joseph Foster, 12 and Holding), and he’s a shy, sweet-natured young man. He is not picked on by the students at the school, but has had trouble making friends. Father Flynn takes an interest in Donald, determined to befriend the boy and keep an eye out for him. One day, Father Flynn calls Donald to the rectory for a private meeting. Sister James (Amy Adams, Enchanted), one of the teachers, is a little concerned by this. She mentions the event to Sister Aloysius, who responds with surprising fury. Very quickly, Sister Aloysius becomes convinced that Father Flynn is guilty of engaging in rather inappropriate behavior. However, she has no proof. She only has, as she says, her “certainty.” Father Flynn protests when he hears of this, and insists he is completely innocent of wrongdoing. There is reason to believe… and doubt… both individuals. Which one is telling the truth?

The Evidence
As someone who was raised in a rather conservative religious family, I have experienced my fair share of doubt and uncertainty over the years. One is brought up to believe very specific things, but sooner or later, many people reach a point where they must find difficult answers to difficult questions. There are many aspects of religion… any religion… that simply cannot be dealt with from a purely logical point of view. One either has to accept a certain idea, reject it, or sit eternally on the fence for fear of joining the wrong team. As various people present persuasive evidence for both sides of the argument, the questions seem to grow bigger and more complex, the deeper you dig. Doubt doesn’t deal with such questions directly, as there are simply too many to be dealt with over the course of a single film. However, it uniquely captures the complex torment of such questions by placing them within the context of this story of a man who may or may not be guilty of something horrible. By placing the story within a church setting, and by making the central character a priest, the film leaves absolutely no doubt as to the spiritual issues being pondered.

Some have criticized the film for being purposefully vague about what actually happened. I think the unanswered questions are absolutely essential to the success of the film. Answer those questions and you have just another well-made mystery. Here, we get something so much more. It wouldn’t have been possible without the fine performances of Meryl Streep and Philip Seymour Hoffman, who add surprising nuances from start to finish. Both actors are giving their very best here, and fortunately both are perfectly capable of standing their own against each other. The two receive a solid supporting turn from Amy Adams, and a remarkable single scene with Viola Davis as Donald’s mother.

Closing Statement
With the film concluded, have I taken a side? Well, I did so several times as I was watching. More often than not, I was inclined to believe whichever party happened to making their case at the time. Now, I don’t know. For a moment, I thought I knew which one I would have sided with… and then, yes, I began to have doubts. For some, Doubt will be nothing more than a frustrating exercise in payoff-free storytelling. For others, it will be an immensely gripping reflection of the sort of challenging existential and spiritual questions we must find nearly impossible answers for. Personally, Doubt is one of the year’s finest films, one I have a feeling I will be returning to with some regularity.


The Verdict
10/10

Mamma Mia!

Opening Date: 07/18/2008

STUDIO: Universal

TRAILER: Trailer

ACCOMPLICES: Official Site

The Charge
A mother. A daughter. Three possible fathers. A trip down the aisle you’ll never forget!

Opening Statement
This past weekend, movie-goers had the choice between two new movies: a comic book adventure featuring the Caped Crusader battling the Joker; or a sassy musical about an over-the-hill, former slut who prepares for her daughter’s wedding. For most, the decision was not a difficult one.

Facts of the Case
All Sophie (Amanda Seyfried, Mean Girls) wants is for her real father to escort her down the aisle at her forthcoming wedding. Trouble is, he could be one of three men: Sam (Pierce Brosnan, The Matador), Harry (Colin Firth, Then She Found Me), or Bill (Stellan Skarsgârd, Pirates Of The Caribbean: At World’s End). And the only way to find out is to invite them all to her mother’s (Meryl Streep, The Devil Wears Prada) Greek isle resort! What follows is a series of encounters, arguments, and blessings, all musically emphasized by a bunch of ABBA songs.

The Evidence
Rest assured, Mamma Mia! doesn’t have a chance to beat Batman’s butt at the box office. Nevertheless, it was given a huge head start in England, where it has already racked up almost $12 million, knocking Will Smith’s Hancock to second place. To U.S. audiences, that may be nothing to brag about, but there was plenty of singing at the theater I attended. The audience was going nuts for the musical numbers, enthusiastically crooning along with the actors on the screen, as they belted out the familiar tunes. And the scary part: I actually joined them… at times, anyway.

In truth, this was far from the wonderful musical extravaganza I was expecting. I have never seen the stage show; yet, since seeing the great 1994 film Muriel’s Wedding, I’ve been a fan of ABBA’s music. (Every time “Dancing Queen” starts playing, I seriously do feel the inclination to join in its joyous jubilee.) The smashing musical numbers were surely the highlight of Mamma Mia!, an overblown song-and-dance movie which almost collapses under its own weight due to an inexperienced director and a lot of curiously convoluted choreography.

Musicals have made an impressive comeback in the 21st century. It started with Baz Luhrmann’s Moulin Rouge, followed by the vastly overrated, Best Picture-winner Chicago. Since then, we’ve had other projects like Rent, Dreamgirls, and Hairspray, all of which have rejuvenated and rekindled the genre with surprising conviction. Despite the fact that Mamma Mia’s spirit is so high—and energy so invigorating—it disappoints in spite of its stage success, making it a mild musical which only partially succeeds.

Oddly enough, the weakest element is Phyllida Lloyd’s direction. She directed the original stage production and obviously has a lot of passion for the material. The problem is, she’s so inexperienced behind the camera it shows. Mamma Mia! boasts an idyllic setting and many talented actors, but she never takes full advantage of either. The Greek island location is too stagy and too restricted to enhance the cinematic scope. What’s worse, she’s so bent on moving around with the camera, she ends up losing focus on the principals as they break out. Her use of slow-mo shots are distracting to the point of annoying; even the fantastic “Dancing Queen” sequence is briefly compromised because of this ill-fated decision. Then there’s the choreography, which would make Jerome Robbins roll over in his grave. I didn’t expect the filmmakers to strive to perfection, but “sloppy” has been used in many reviews regarding this fundamental element. Many of the numbers feel awkward and cluttered, almost to the point where the supplementary singers are distracting. The energy is there, it just isn’t executed properly, making Mamma Mia! a jumbled mess.

Still, despite all its shortcomings, the film delights thanks to a willing cast, such as when Streep sings the title tune after discovering her ex-boyfriends, or when Baranski booms to “Does Your Mother Know?” while the background beach dancers add to the proceedings. At first, I was uneasy at the idea of Meryl Streep singing and dancing, but she is a triumph, proving once again she is one of the finest actresses the silver screen has ever been blessed with. She’s an absolute joy to watch, marvelously aided by Christine Baranski and Julie Walters, who are both very funny as her fellow dancing divas. Their closing numbers are knockouts, if a bit anticlimactic. Kudos also to Amanda Seyfried, an up-and-coming talent who is irresistible from the first frame to last, as the daughter determined to have her dream come true.

Unfortunately, the male actors don’t measure up. Pierce Brosnan, as charming as he is, looks so uncomfortable singing that he is almost straining trying to keep up with the music. Just watch him during “S.O.S.” and you will be shocked that no one from the crew sent out a distress signal. Colin Firth and Stellan Skarsgârd are engaging, but deserve more screen time, as both virtually disappear in the second half. The real standout among the guys is Dominic Cooper as Sophie’s fiancé, whose voice soars during the “Lay All Your Love On Me” duet with Seyfried.

Closing Statement
Mamma Mia! needs no more criticism. Those who are fans of ABBA, the show, or musicals in general will likely get a kick out of it, while others will be rather embarrassed to be in the same theater with the dedicated. The cast and music are admittedly first-rate, and to those buying tickets, that’s all that really matters.

The Verdict
Oh, hell… Not Guilty.

6/10