The Reel Dr. Bob

FILM REVIEWS #371

June 8th, 2011

2) THE TREE OF LIFE- 2011. Synopsis by Netflix. “Brad Pitt and Sean Penn star in Terrence Malick’s 1950s adventure about a confused man named Jack, who sets off on a journey to understand the true nature of the world. Growing up in the Midwest with two brothers, Jack has always been torn between his mother’s guidance to approach everything he encounters with an open heart and his father’s advice to look after his own interests. Now, Jack must find a way to regain purpose and perspective.” Good audience reviews so far but no professional ones as yet. TRDB. The movie won best picture at Cannes 2011.

6/6/11- While grand in scale I felt that I was watching a series of coming attractions, each lasting 1 or 2 minutes. What  a waste of time. My friend Sue said it well– “Judging by the award of Best Picture at Cannes I feel like I am watching “The Emperor’s New Clothes.” I agree. TRDB. At the theater.

2) BUDRUS- 2009. Premise by Netflix. “Documentarian Julia Bacha delves into the fraught world of Palestinian-Israeli relations in this amazing account of one family’s leadership of a movement to prevent Israel’s Separation Barrier from slicing the Palestinian village of Budrus in half. Ayed Morrar inspires nonviolent protests of the giant barrier by numerous factions, and his 15-year-old daughter, Iltezam, leads a women’s group. Archival footage and interviews illuminate the action.” Excellent reviews.

6/2/11- A poignant but somewhat one-sided documentary showing that occasionally peaceful methods can work in the Middle East conflict. TRDB. Netflix.

3) KABOOM- 2010. Premise by Netflix. “Lovelorn college student Smith (Thomas Dekker) spends his days hanging with his friend Stella (Haley Bennett) and his nights lusting after his straight roommate Thor (Chris Zylka), until one wild party shatters his world in this comic thriller from edgy director Gregg Araki. After eating drug-laced cookies, Smith witnesses the murder of an enigmatic woman who has haunted his dreams, and he begins a bizarre journey that will determine his future.” Only fair reviews. At Sundance 2011.

6/3/11- Awful movie and I turned it off quickly. TRDB. Netflix.

4) THE WAITING CITY- 2009. Premise by Netflix. “Radha Mitchell and Joel Edgerton star as adoptive parents-to-be, en route from Australia to Calcutta to pick up their new baby, in this unconventional love story infused with the exotic charms of India from director Claire McCarthy. To foreigners who have never been on Indian soil, the city is at once intoxicating and overwhelming. But it also has the power to pull the couple’s already fragile marriage apart at the seams.” Reviewers were OK with this one but audience reaction was poor. TRDB.

6/4/11- I enjoyed this movie that was clearly as much about India as it was about the principal characters. TRDB.

5) THE LOVER- 1992. Adapted from the book by Marguerite Duras and starring Tony Leung and Jane March. Synopsis by Netflix. “Set in French Colonial Vietnam in 1929, this Oscar-nominated film explores the erotic charge of forbidden love. A 15-year-old French girl is sent to a Saigon boarding school, where she meets a 32-year-old Chinese aristocrat. Love at first sight leads to a liaison where the lovers revel in a variety of sexual encounters. They both realize that their love is doomed, however, as neither of their families will approve of the interracial coupling.”

6/6/11- I saw this film years ago and liked it very much, saw it once again and I still do. TRDB. Netflix.

6) BULLY- 2001. Synopsis by Netflix. “Bobby (Nick Stahl) takes great joy in bossing around and beating up his best friend, slovenly ex-surfer Marty (Brad Renfro). But when Marty’s girlfriend (Rachel Miner) witnesses one too many of these incidents, she vows to kill Bobby, enlisting her friends — and a hit man — to help. From controversial director Larry Clark (Kids), this unsettling drama is based on a true crime. Parental advisory: Contains sexually explicit material.” Mixed reviews. TRDB.

6/7/11- Based on a true story this is a very powerful movie and considerably more than just teenage drug use and sex. TRDB. Netflix.

7) YOU WON’T MISS ME- 2009. Premise by Netflix. “After a brief stint at a psychiatric hospital, emotionally intense Shelly Brown (Stella Schnabel), a 23-year-old aspiring actress, struggles to find her own path in the world while auditioning for roles, hooking up with the wrong guys and clashing with friends. Blending footage shot on multiple film and video formats, writer-director Ry Russo-Young’s evocative character portrait also stars Carlen Altman, Borden Capalino and Simon O’Connor.” Only fair reviews.

6/7/11- I felt like I’ve seen several other movies like this one, only much better. I turned it off. Miss it! TRDB. Netflix.

4)  MOOZ-LUM- 2010. Synopsis by Netflix. “Thanks to a strict Muslim upbringing that largely shielded him from the outside world, Tariq’s first year of college proves transformative. That is, until the 9/11 terrorist attacks invite growing suspicion and distrust from his angry classmates.” Good reviews. TRDB.

2) EVEN THE RAIN- 2010. Synopsis by Netflix. “In this provocative film-within-a-film, director Sebastián (Gael García Bernal) heads to Cochabamba, Bolivia, to shoot a film about Christopher Columbus’s trespasses in the New World, only to find the locals protesting present-day exploitation of the poor. Sebastián is sympathetic to the cause, but realities collide when lead actor Daniel (Carlos Aduviri), cast as a rebel against the Spanish, becomes a key figure in the current demonstrations.” Winner at 2011 Palm Springs Film Festival.

3/11- An excellent depiction of the moral conflicts involved in this type of situation. Well acted and I loved the movie. TRDB.

3) MAD BASTARDS- 2011. Synopsis by Netflix. “Tough men try to do right by their families in this Australian production featuring an Aboriginal cast of non-professional actors. TJ (Dean Daley-Jones) travels across northwestern Australia to the Kimberley region to track down his son Bullet (Ngaire Pigram), who’s fast on his way to repeating his father’s mistakes. Meanwhile TJ’s police officer father seeks to undo the damage to his community and right some wrongs of his own.” At Sundance 2011 and back now for a 2nd run On-Demand.

1/11- I enjoyed this movie ON-DEMAND straight from Sundance. Good story and great music but a little difficulty in understanding the speech. Should have had sub-titles. TRDB.

4) THE PERFECT HOST- 2010. Synopsis by Netflix. “A fugitive on the lam decides to crash a dinner party. But he seriously regrets it when the mysterious and unusual host soon has him convinced that he would have been better off hiding somewhere else. David Hyde Pierce plays the memorable Warwick Wilson; Nathaniel Parker, Clayne Crawford and Helen Reddy also star in this thriller from first-time feature writer-director Nick Tomnay. The film makes it premier at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival.” Good early reviews. TRDB.

5) MOOZ-LUM- 2010. Synopsis by Netflix. “Thanks to a strict Muslim upbringing that largely shielded him from the outside world, Tariq’s first year of college proves transformative. That is, until the 9/11 terrorist attacks invite growing suspicion and distrust from his angry classmates.” Good reviews. TRDB.

6) NEVER FOREVER- 2007. Synopsis by Netflix. “Vera Farmiga stars in this heartbreaking drama (a 2006 Sundance Film Festival entry) as Sophie, a woman who’s utterly devoted to her husband but finds she’s unable to get pregnant. When Sophie makes an odd but decisive choice to bring a Korean immigrant (Jung-woo Ha) into their marriage, her fateful decision soon threatens to tear the couple apart — and drive Sophie to the brink of total despair.”

A very interesting story and I liked it very much. TRDB.

6/3/11- A good story, good acting and of course great Paris. Not one of Woody’s best but it was good and I enjoyed it. TRDB.

4) BRIDESMAIDS- Saw Mill Hawthorne, Danbury. 2011. Synopsis by Rotten Tomatoes. “Kristen Wiig leads the cast as Annie, a maid of honor whose life unravels as she leads her best friend, Lillian (Maya Rudolph), and a group of colorful bridesmaids (Rose Byrne, Melissa McCarthy, Wendi McLendon-Covey and Ellie Kemper) on a wild ride down the road to matrimony.” Fairly good reviews so far but a fair number of negative ones as well.  A surprisingly good review from the NY Times on 5/13/11. TRDB.

5) THE TREE OF LIFE- Jacob Burns. 2011. Synopsis by Netflix. “Brad Pitt and Sean Penn star in Terrence Malick’s 1950s adventure about a confused man named Jack, who sets off on a journey to understand the true nature of the world. Growing up in the Midwest with two brothers, Jack has always been torn between his mother’s guidance to approach everything he encounters with an open heart and his father’s advice to look after his own interests. Now, Jack must find a way to regain purpose and perspective.” Good audience reviews so far but no professional ones as yet. TRDB. The movie won best picture at Cannes 2011.

6/6/11- While grand in scale I felt that I was watching a series of coming attractions, each lasting 1 or 2 minutes. What  a waste of time. My friend Sue said it well– “Judging by the award of Best Picture at Cannes I feel like I am watching “The Emperor’s New Clothes.” I agree. TRDB.

6) THE DOUBLE HOUR- Clearview 100. 2009. Synopsis by Netflix. “In this constantly twisting Italian thriller, Sonia (Kseniya Rappoport) is a newly arrived Slovenian immigrant who is in the wrong place at the wrong time during a violent art robbery. Surviving a bullet in the head, Sonia is haunted by visions after the crime. Her mysterious past, meanwhile, comes to light under the watchful eye of a suspicious policeman. Rappoport won the Best Actress award at the 2009 Venice Film Festival for her turn as Sonia.” Very good professional reviews but only average audience reaction. TRDB.

5/11/11- A real thriller and I’d like to watch it again to figure out what actually happened. It’s fun and recommended. TRDB.

7)  INCENDIES- Clearview 100. 2010. Synopsis by Netflix. “When their mother’s (Lubna Azabal) will implores them to deliver letters to the father they thought was dead and a brother they never knew about, twins Jeanne (Mélissa Désormeaux-Poulin) and Simon (Maxim Gaudette) journey to the Middle East and attempt to reconstruct their family’s hidden history. Adapted from a Wajdi Mouawad play, director Denis Villeneuve’s drama flashes back to intense scenes set during the Lebanese Civil War in the 1970s.” Showed at HIFF 2010. Great professional reviews and very good audience response as well. TRDB.

5/15/11- This movie was done in a most realistic fashion with great acting and superb direction. While it was often difficult to watch I thought that it was a great movie. TRDB. 

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