I think it's fair to say that I have not been moved or thrilled with a lot of the animated films, including shorts, that I have seen recently. And when Lava started out, I thought, ugh, here we go again. It didn't take long (thank goodness, because it's only seven minutes) before it grew on me. It's the story of a growing Hawaiian volcano who sings a song about finding love. He sings it for what maybe hundreds or thousands of years without any success, until one day, beneath the ocean, another volcano hears his song. It may sound sappy, but I liked it and I think it was a million times better than Feast, the winner of the Oscar for Best Animated Short.
12/19/15 Inside Out, not yet nominated, 2015
I did like Home, which I watched not too long ago, but as I mentioned above, most animated films have left me feeling blah. I had heard good things about Inside Out and it had some of my favorite comedians, including Amy Poehler, Lewis Black, Paula Poundstone (in an all too brief appearance) and Bill Hader, so I was curious if nothing else. Inside Out is about the developing emotions of Riley, a young girl from Minnesota who moves with her family to San Francisco. The focus is on the emotions, who are led by Joy (Amy Poehler); Anger (Lewis Black), Disgust (Mindy Kaling), Fear (Bill Hader) and Sadness (Phyllis Smith) generally follow Joy's lead, but one day, things go askew when Sadness starts to touch 'core memories', making them tinged with sadness. This leads Joy and Sadness off on a tour of Riley's memories, going back through her childhood; they also meet other 'workers' in her subconscious and her dream world. The trauma of moving from one place to another is very real for a lot of kids, and trying to explain all those feelings is not very easy; actually, trying to explain feelings at any time can be challenging. I liked the way the movie anthropomorphized feelings, and giving them a voice (I will forever hear Lewis Black when I go on a rant). Sometimes I can't I understand why a movie is popular, but this time, I totally get why kids and adults would see this movie over and over (I may buy it myself). The cast was pretty much perfect, and the emotional responses were pretty on target as well. If you haven't seen it, I suggest you get it for a nice break from all the serious, gritty movies out this time of year.
12/22/15 Mr. Holmes, not yet nominated, 2015
There is something about Sherlock Holmes character that lends itself to all kinds of modifications, adaptations and extrapolations. In this interpretation, Ian McKellen plays an aged Sherlock Holmes in 1947, living in the country with his housekeeper, Mrs. Munro (Laura Linney) and her young son, Roger (Milo Parker). Holmes is in failing health, but his mind is still pretty agile, and he forms a bond with Roger, although he and Mrs. Munro quibble occasionally, mostly about his health. The film uses flashbacks to show the last case that Holmes worked on and why he quit detecting. The movie is a little over an hour and a half, and it took about 45 minutes for me to really get into it. It was more the pace of the story, I think, than the story itself, which is three stories in one, with some misdirection and a little mystery along the way. McKellen really could be Holmes, and I wouldn't mind some stories involving an older Holmes and Roger as his 'Watson'. But, I don't think that will happen, but it's a thought. I also don't think the movie will see too many nominations with so many bigger films out there, but you never know, there may be a costume or cinematography nomination in there somewhere.
12/23/15 Get Hard, 2015
I wanted funny, and with Kevin Hart and Will Farrell, I thought I would get pee in my pants funny. I got 'I'm glad the movie was free from the library' funny. I don't mind stupid funny, or even gross funny (sometimes), but I can't tell you what this was. Oh, I know, it was 'all the funny is in the trailers' funny. Will Farrell is sentenced to prison for fraud or something and he thinks that Kevin Hart's character has experience in prison and asks for some tips. Most of the movie is Farrell getting ready for prison. I am not going to the trouble to look up or confirm my information on Wikipedia. If you are looking for that mindless movie that you can watch, but also talk with your friends or do your taxes, you can watch this or Tammy.
12/24/15 The Big Short, not yet nominated, 2015
Warning: If you worked in the mortgage industry in the 2000s, you may not want to watch this, or go with friends who understand what we experienced. When I say 'we', I worked in the mortgage industry for twelve years at a company that was a leader in the securitization industry. I also watched as mortgage companies started to implode and then our own company caved in on itself as the financial services world was decimated and my friends lost their jobs. Sorry for the gloom, but as I noted to some friends on Facebook, the movie was too close to home. The Big Short features some big name actors (Brad Pitt, Steve Carell, Christian Bale and Ryan Gosling) telling this very confusing story of mortgage-backed securities, CDOs, credit swaps, but in a nutshell, fraud by the largest financial institutions in the world. The movie is very good, but I think it may be too convoluted for most people to follow; I was in the business and my head was spinning. Maybe all the details aren't that important if you focus on the ultimate issue: fraud and deceit, and the fact that there were warning signs. The movie is about some of the real people who had the foresight to see the perils of the housing market and subprime loans and the impact on the worldwide economy; Dr. Michael Burry (Bale) started the ball rolling by looking for a huge return on an investment and created the first credit default swaps; Jared Vennett (Gosling) hears about them and tries to get other investors on board, and gets Mark Baum's (Carell) group to buy in as well. The difference about Baum is he is a crusader and realizes that when these securities go belly up, it's going to hurt the banks, which is what he wants. The movie uses a different narrative method, by having Vennett and other characters speak directly to the audience, occasionally bringing in real people, like Anthony Bourdain, Margot Robbie and Selena Gomez to explain some of the financial concepts. I found that to be annoying and not helpful, but perhaps that's just me. I liked the movie, and Carell was really good, so much better than in Foxcatcher in my opinion, Bale is also very good as the socially challenged, but insightful, Mike Burry. There is some Oscar buzz, but it would be hard to pick a Best Actor out of the ensemble, but perhaps a Best Supporting Actor, Best Writing, Best Editing. It might be helpful to watch the movie at home where it can be paused or rewound (so to speak), but it's a movie that should be seen because nobody of any significance was ever charged or sentenced; the banks, with the exception of Lehman Brothers, were rescued and bonuses were paid out; it seems like things may not have changed all that much, and the public should know.
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| Russian Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Red Square, Moscow |
12/24/15 Red Army, 2014
Like many people of my generation (oh my god, I sound ancient), I remember very clearly the game where the US beat the Soviet hockey team at home, in Lake Placid during the 1980 Olympics. Other than knowing that the Soviet hockey team was practically unbeatable, I knew very little about Soviet hockey, or hockey in general. Red Army gives the viewer a look inside the players who made up the Soviet team, focusing on Slava Fetisov, a defenseman who was also the captain of the Soviet team and a hero to his country, until he wanted to play in the US and keep all of his salary (there was an arrangement whereby players could play in the US, but they had to give up 50% of their salaries to the Soviet government). Fetisov became an outcast, losing friends and teammates. Eventually, perestroika came to the USSR and Fetisov played for the Detroit Red Wings, along with four of his countrymen, leading the Red Wings to the Stanley Cup Championship. The documentary focuses on what life was like in Russia, how important hockey was to the people and the different style that the Russian skaters used (more finesse and style than the brute strength of the NHL), as well as Fetisov himself. Any fan of hockey should see this movie, as well as any student of the Cold War, just to listen to Vladimir Pozner's observations and commentary.
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| Stalin era Skyscraper, Moscow, Russia |
