The Dig

 The Dig (2021 - Oscars 2020)

Starring Carey Mulligan, Ralph Fiennes, Lily James, Johnny Flynn, Ben Chaplin, Ken Stott, Monica Dolan, and Archie Barnes

Directed by Simon Stone

Written by Moira Buffini

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating: C+

Collateral

Collateral (2018)

Starring Carey Mulligan, John Simm, Billie Piper, Nicola Walker, Nathaniel Martello-White, Jeany Spark, Hayley Squires, Ahd Kamel, July Namir, Kae Alexander, Ben Miles, John Heffernan, and Maya Sansa

Directed by S.J. Clarkson

Written by David Hare

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating: C

Mudbound

Mudbound (2017)

Starring Carey Mulligan, Garrett Hedlund, Jason Clarke, Jason Mitchell, Mary J. Blige, Jonathan Banks, and Rob Morgan

Directed by Dee Rees

Written by Dee Rees and Virgil Williams
***This film is currently streaming via Netflix***

Summary (in 500 words or less):  The saga of a white and black family living on a farm in WWII-era Mississippi.

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating: B+

Movie Review - Far from the Madding Crowd

Far from the Madding Crowd (2015)

Starring Carey Mulligan, Matthias Schoenaerts, Michael Sheen, Tom Sturridge, Juno Temple, and Jessica Barden

Directed by Thomas Vinterberg 

Far from the Madding Crowd is a lushly-lensed romance reminiscent of films shot decades earlier when sweeping Victorian love stories adapted from famous novels were commonplace occurrences in cinemas.  Sometimes these types of films can feel stuffy, slow-moving, and ostentatious, but thanks to a winning performance from Carey Mulligan as a liberated and independent English woman, Far from the Madding Crowd doesn't fall into any of those disappointing stereotypes, instead proving to be surprisingly captivating.

Two hundred miles outside of London in Dorset, Bathsheba Everdene (Mulligan) is living with and working on her aunt's farm.  While there, her aunt's neighbor and sheep farmer Gabriel Oak (Matthias Schoenaerts) falls for the stunning Bathsheba, but she does not accept his advances and turns down his offer of marriage.  Bathsheba soon hears that she has inherited a large estate from her uncle following his death, while at the same time Gabriel loses his flock after a new sheep dog leads all of his sheep off a steep cliff into the ocean.  Both Bathsheba and Gabriel leave Dorset thinking they'll never see each other again, but fate works in mysterious ways.  One evening, the barn at Bathsheba's estate catches fire and Gabriel just happened to be walking by at the time, completely unaware that the estate belonged to Bathsheba.  He saves her barn and Bathsheba offers him a job on the estate which he reluctantly accepts seeing as how he still harbors feelings for the young woman.

Against all odds, Bathsheba is making it on her own which doesn't sit well with all the men in her town.  However, her neighbor William Boldwood (Michael Sheen) is immediately taken with her strength and falls for her.  At the same time, English soldier Frank Troy (Tom Sturridge) wanders onto her estate and also finds himself taken with Bathsheba.  With three suitors and independence always a goal in her life, Bathsheba faces the difficult question of whether to give herself to love or remain untethered to a man.

Far from the Madding Crowd embraces old school aesthetics and storytelling, yet somehow feels modern and fresh without ever feeling out of place.  Adapted from an 1874 Thomas Hardy novel, part of the "modernness" stems from the fact that Bathsheba is such a headstrong and independent woman.  Not knowing the story at all, I was quite taken by the character of Bathsheba, finding her a refreshing change to female characters we're used to seeing from novels of this one's era.  Carey Mulligan embraces the confidence of the character without ever coming across as overly feminist or off-putting.  The intelligence that radiates from Mulligan's persona is key to the film's plot and she successfully conveys it in what I think is her best role to date.

Next to Mulligan's Bathsheba, the men in the film are written with a little less depth, and as the film tries to give all of them their fair share of time attempting to woo her, it falters a bit towards its conclusion.  However, Far from the Madding Crowd was a wonderful surprise to me.  I expected to be bored silly, but I was anything but that.  Director Thomas Vinterberg has not only crafted a lovely film to look upon, but manages to create a bit of a romantic epic that doesn't feel the least bit tired or stale.

The RyMickey Rating:  B+

Movie Review - Suffragette

Suffragette (2015)

Starring Carey Mulligan, Helena Bonham Carter, Anne-Marie Duff, Brendan Gleeson, Ben Whishaw, and Meryl Streep

Directed by Sarah Gavron

There are certain movies that seem made purely to garner awards attention.  That's not necessarily a bad thing, but sometimes the "importance" of a piece can too highly overshadow a film's cinematic values and that's unfortunately the case with Suffragette, a film that never succeeded in bringing me into its story.  While it certainly tells an important tale as it deals with the British suffrage movement in the late 1910s, Suffragette suffers from relying too heavily on contrived predicaments in order to emphasize the struggles facing women a century ago.  While the heavy-handed plot lines our characters face may very well be based in reality and truth, when placed into a film setting, they can't help but feel piled on in order to achieve a desired emotional impact.

Carey Mulligan is, as always, doing excellent work as Maud Watts, a married laundry worker and mom of one who stumbles onto the suffragette movement one afternoon when she spots co-worker Violet (Anne-Marie Duff) tossing rocks into a store window in an attempt to have civil disobedience bring awareness to their cause.  However, as great as Mulligan is at taking us on her character's journey that begins with nonchalance towards the movement and ends with staunch advocacy on behalf of equality for voting rights, it is Maud who is inherently the film's problem.  A fictionalized character, screenwriter Abi Morgan piles heartbreak after heartbreak onto this women which, while once again may have truly happened to some in the 1910s, feels in a cinematic setting as an easy way to emotionally tug at audiences' heartstrings rather than resonate as realistic.

Morgan's script isn't helped by Sarah Gavron's pedestrian direction which, given the subject matter, fails to rouse the audience to join the cause in any way.  Weighed down in grays and browns with production design that always seems as if we're on a set rather than in a natural setting, Suffragette keeps the viewer at a distance rather than involving them in the plot despite its obvious intentions to do just the opposite.  While Gavron consistently gets good performances from key cast members -- including a nice turn from a subdued Helena Bonham Carter as a leader in the suffragette movement -- they're not enough to save this one from being a disappointment.

The RyMickey Rating:  C-

Movie Review - Inside Llewyn Davis

Inside Llewyn Davis (2013)

Starring Oscar Isaac, Carey Mulligan, John Goodman, Garrett Hedlund, and Justin Timberlake

Directed by Ethan Coen and Joel Coen

My movie-going relationship with Joel and Ethan Coen is an interesting one.  I recognize their importance in the cinematic landscape and that they've crafted some real winners -- A Serious Man, The Hudsucker Proxy -- and also some disappointing flicks that I probably overrated simply because of the supposed pedigree carried by the duo --  O Brother, Where Art Thou?, Barton Fink.  Inside Llewyn Davis unfortunately falls into the latter category as it follows a brief period of time in the life of Llewyn Davis (Oscar Isaac), a folk singer living in New York City in the early 1960s as he struggles to get a record contract after his former duet partner committed suicide a few years prior.

I'm sure there's something "deep" that I'm missing, but I couldn't help but be bored while watching this.  Oscar Isaac gives a nice performance as the title character, but I never found the script allowed me to really connect with his struggles for some reason.  It's not that he was an unlikable guy or that his plight is unrelatable, but perhaps his lack of enthusiasm towards anything made his status as a lead character particularly humdrum.  Somewhat surprisingly, secondary characters like John Goodman, Carey Mulligan, and Justin Timberlake aren't really allowed to step up and inject a bit of life and humor into the mix either, so the whole thing plays rather one-note stuck between this not-too-dark yet not-too-funny middle ground that never takes off.

The film looks nice and, as I mentioned, the acting is good, but nothing about this film excited me or motivated me to say anything really positive in my review, which in and of itself seems like a fairly damning statement.

The RyMickey Rating:  C

Movie Review - The Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby (2013)

***viewed in 3D***
Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, Carey Mulligan, Joel Edgarton, Elizabeth Debicki, Jason Clarke, and Isla Fisher

Directed by Baz Luhrmann

The Great Gatsby is distinctly a Baz Luhrmann film and your initial like or dislike will largely hinge on your feelings towards the eclectic auteur.  I was a big fan of Romeo + Juliet upon its release in my junior year of high school, but a revisit in 2011 didn't sit so well with me.  Similarly, I was a huge admirer of Moulin Rouge upon its release simply for its unique take on the movie musical and I rewatched it last year certain that it would land in my Personal Canon, but that didn't come to fruition this time around.  (The less said about Australia the better.)  It's not that Lurhmann suddenly became an incompetent director in my eyes, it's simply that he is a bit of a one trick pony (similar to Quentin Tarantino in that respect).  He does what he does well, but when you already know what you're going to get with him, there aren't as many surprises around the corner.

This isn't to say that is take on The Great Gatsby doesn't provide a solid experience, but the quick cutting, bombastic music, and focus on "love" (all Luhrmann staples) overshadow the other aspects of F. Scott Fitzgerald's work.  And I say that as someone who finds Fitzgerald's so-called masterpiece a fine read, but nowhere near the perfection that others espouse it to be.  [I finished a re-read of the novel mere hours before I went to see the movie.]  To Luhrmann, Gatsby is nothing but a tragic love story between the title character (played by Leonardo DiCaprio) and his long lost love Daisy (Carey Mulligan), the Midwest gal he's been pining over for the decade since he headed off to war and had to leave her.  Any semblance of Fitzgerald's take on the decline of American morals is brushed aside solely to focus on a love story.  Granted, I will admit that upon reading Gatsby again, I was quite surprised how much the Gatsby/Daisy love story was made a focus in the novel, but Luhrmann trains his camera (and script) right in on it, failing to leave the confines of the lovers' embrace for an exceedingly long time in the film's middle act.

Much like the book, the film is told through the wide eyes of Nick Carraway, played here by Tobey Maguire in the same dorky, oddly reflective way Tobey Maguire plays every single role he's ever undertaken.  No one was more surprised than me to discover that Maguire is a perfect fit for the role.  I realize that may not be a universally accepted opinion -- in fact, I've heard much derision sent Maguire's way -- but having recently read the novel, Maguire totally embodied my vision of Carraway.  That isn't to say that the actor did anything overly ambitious or out of his comfort zone, but Carraway is a part the oftentimes dumbfounded-looking former Spiderman was made to play.

Joel Edgarton and Elizabeth Debicki also aptly personified my visions of, respectively, the womanizing Tom Buchanan and the cynical Jordan Baker.  In her first major film role, I found myself unable to take my eyes off of Ms. Debicki who captivated me despite her character's bitter edge.  Mr. Edgarton continues to be an actor to watch as of late.  I could see how some might find his portrayal of Tom as a bit of a caricature, but he perfectly exemplified the hypocritical arrogance and machismo that comes across in Fitzgerald's work.

If anything, the problem with The Great Gatsby is with Gatsby himself and his paramour Daisy.  DiCaprio plays Gatsby much more fey and weak than I expected.  Yes, I realize once he lays eyes on Daisy, he essentially becomes a child again, but even in moments where he is supposed to exude strength and charisma, I found him a bit empty.  In the novel, Gatsby was a character whom I found passionate about a great many things, but none of this vigor comes to the surface in the film.  There's part of me that wonders if Luhrmann pushed DiCaprio in this direction in order to make the title character more sympathetic and appealing to women -- but that probably just comes off sounding sexist.

Gatsby's counterpart, Daisy, has always been an enigma to me.  She spouts lines that don't make sense to me in the novel and don't make sense to me in the movie either.  I don't understand who this woman is and why Gatsby fell head over heels for her.  Carey Mulligan didn't help my confusion.  Her character's arc is one that doesn't feel fulfilling for me and the film does nothing to change that.

I say all this and I realize the review comes across a bit more bitter than I intended it to be.  For the most part, I enjoyed The Great Gatsby while I was watching it.  However, like Baz Luhrmann's previous films, it hasn't lingered as well in my mind as time passes.  There's something alluring and even invigorating when watching Gatsby (at least in the first and final acts...the less said about the love story-fueled lengthy middle act the better), but when you peel back the visual and aural cacophony, there sometimes isn't enough there.  Then again, there aren't many directors that do visual and aural cacophony with the punch and pizzazz Luhrmann brings to the table.  And for that, The Great Gatsby is worth a view.

The RyMickey Rating:  C+

Movie Review - Shame

Shame (2011)

Starring Michael Fassbender, Carey Mulligan, James Badge Dale, and Nicole Beharie

Directed by Steve McQueen

Shame is perhaps best known as the film in which Michael Fassbender bares all.  For some reason, him going nude got all the press and the movie itself was shafted to a certain extent.  In the end, that's a real shame because Steve McQueen's moving character study about a man's addiction to sex is heartbreaking and touching with a riveting performance from Fassbender and absolutely beautiful direction from McQueen.

The story itself is fairly simple.  As stated above, the film focuses on Brandon Sullivan, a thirtysomething low-level executive in Manhattan who outwardly seems to have everything together, but inwardly finds himself ravaged by his addiction to sex.  Whether it be looking at porn on the internet, hiring a prostitute to fulfill his needs, or simply not being able to make it through the workday without heading into the bathroom to pleasure himself, Brandon has a problem.  And he's well aware of it.  Sex isn't about a "connection" for him...it's about a release that he hopes will be fulfilling, but is always completely empty.

Brandon's not a bad guy, though.  He's good looking and could do seemingly well with women if he wanted, but he is a bit shy which is evident in a lusciously filmed scene about halfway through the movie when Brandon and his co-worker Marianne (a delightful and sexy Nicole Beharie) sit down at a restaurant for a first date.  In a continuous take, we see the two simply talking about the typical "first date" stuff, but we begin to see for the inner workings of Brandon's mind as he explains to Marianne how he never wants to get married and doesn't understand the meaning of monogamy.  It's starting to crystallize in the audience's mind that Brandon, despite his need for sex, is ultimately unable to connect with someone.  His addiction has robbed him from being able to love...yes, that's perhaps an oversimplification of a much larger psychological issue, but that's Brandon's problem at its core.

And not only does this affect Brandon's life sexually, but this inability to love and connect with others also plays a huge role in his relationship with his family including his troubled sister Sissy (Carey Mulligan) who, despite Brandon's best efforts, moves into his small, sterile apartment in NYC after a falling-out with her boyfriend.  Sissy herself (whose odd story arc and relationship with Brandon is the one minor problem with the film) isn't without her share of pain (much of it seemingly self-inflicted), but she brings out the worst in Brandon...she makes him feel shameful of his way of life and it ends up spiraling him out of control in ways that I really never saw coming.  Towards the end of the film, Brandon's addiction leads him to places that may shock and appall the audience, but they never once rang untrue or felt unrealistic.

The more I think about Shame, the more I grow to be thoroughly fascinated with what I saw onscreen.  I imagine several scenes will pop up in the "Best Scene" category of the "RyMickey Awards" (coming in June) and I'm sure this film will make an appearance in many other categories including Best Actor for Michael Fassbender.  Admittedly, I went into this without many expectations.  I expected to be bored by the story and bombarded by "shocking moments" simply there to provide unnecessary provocation and titillation.  That wasn't the case in the slightest and that's a huge credit to Mr. Fassbender and director Steve McQueen.

Together, they have crafted a movie that doesn't necessarily provide answers or tie things up in pretty bows, but they have created an intimate character study about a man who knows his faults, attempts to correct them (fully realized in a riveting and heartbreaking scene with the aforementioned Nicole Beharie shortly after their characters' first date), but ultimately doesn't succeed.  Towards the end of the film, Brandon finds himself in the midst of a threesome (which he paid to be a part of) and after focusing initially on the writhing bodies, McQueen plants his camera squarely on Fassbender's face...and in his face and in this moment, we see everything that Brandon is and everything he wishes he could be.  This menage a trois is the furthest thing from a pleasurable experience.  To him, an orgasm is full of pain, anguish, and ultimately self-inflicted shame.

The RyMickey Rating:  A-

Movie Review - Drive

Drive (2011)

Starring Ryan Gosling, Carey Mulligan, Bryan Cranston, Christina Hendricks, Ron Perlman, Oscar Isaac, and Albert Brooks 

Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn

There's a low budget B-movie noirish vibe that I got while watching Drive, the latest film by director Nicolas Winding Refn whose Bronson I appreciated in 2009 (and is available to stream on Netflix for those interested).  Ubiquitous Ryan Gosling plays the main character, a man with no name who is a movie stunt car driver and garage mechanic during the day and a getaway-car-driver-for-hire by night.  As the film opens, the Driver (as heretofore Gosling's character will be called as that is how imdb lists him) is in the midst of a crime in progress.  Seemingly calm, cool, and collected, the Driver never appears to break a sweat even when he's being tailed by police cars and helicopters, and, sure enough, he completes the getaway without any problems.

On the surface, the Driver is oddly emotionless, but when he meets the lovely Irene (Carey Mulligan) and her cute son Benicio, it's obvious that despite the stolid face and the lack of expressive words, the Driver is growing to care for the two of them.  When Irene's husband Standard (Oscar Isaac) is released from prison, he still finds himself needing to repay his debts to his former criminal friends.  The Driver agrees to help Standard by being his getaway car driver in a robbery in order to keep Irene and Benicio out of harm's way.  From there, things begin to spiral out of control for the typically sedate Driver as he finds himself caught up in an imbroglio the likes of which he hasn't seen before.

Like many noirs, a woman leads to the main character's potential downfall and this is the case here as well with Carey Mulligan's Irene.  Much like the Driver, Irene is calm, pensive, and a lady of few words.  One has to wonder what led her down the path to marry the rough-edged Standard, but considering the fact that she's also obviously attracted to the less-than-angelic Driver, maybe it shouldn't be too surprising.  Mulligan plays things subdued, but is positively charming and tender.

The subdued nature of the acting carries over to Gosling as well who manages to relay all he needs to via his facial expressions seeing as how dialog is not the Driver's strong suit.  Taking on a completely different role from his last film Crazy, Stupid, Love, Gosling is truly the actor to watch right now.  He's a confident actor who seems to be right at home in his role here as a nice guy with slightly shady tendencies.

In the end, though, if you notice a lack of excitement in this review of Drive, it's because I have an overall general lack of excitement for the film.  Drive is a good film, but it's not as good as the raves would lead you to believe.  The tremendous buzz over Albert Brooks' role as a seedy criminal mastermind is groundless, in my opinion.  Like the film itself, Brooks was fine, but nothing rave-worthy.  Yes, the chase scenes are well shot, the film exudes a smart arthousey vibe which I enjoyed, and I never once found that the film lagged or felt boring (as was the major complaint I've heard from the haters of this movie).  Still, the film just didn't rouse me the way the "best" movies are wont to do.

The RyMickey Rating:  B

Movie Review - Never Let Me Go

Never Let Me Go (2010)

Starring Carey Mulligan, Andrew Garfield, Keira Knightley, Charlotte Rampling, Sally Hawkins, and Andrea Riseborough

Directed by Mark Romanek

There's a moment towards the end of Never Let Me Go where Andrew Garfield's character Tommy lets out a guttural, primal scream of anguish, pain, and bewilderment after learning some devastating news.  In that moment, I admittedly got chills.  It's a real shame that the remainder of the film couldn't elicit a single emotion from me one way or the other.  What could have been a powerful story about friendship (and in a broader sense, the implications of science and government impeding upon personal freedoms and choices) turns out to be simply a very well-acted flick that carries little emotional resonance.

In order to not spoil anything in the film, I'm simply going to copy and paste my summary from my book review with a few minor changes.

Never Let Me Go is a science fiction film in the loosest sense of the word.  There's not a hint of apocalyptic tones, nor does it take place in a future overrun by new technologies.  It actually takes place in Britain from the late 1970s-1990s and it's really a world similar to what we live in today.

The only real difference revolves around the young students at Hailsham, a private school that keeps its students far away from the outside world.  The students, including our narrator, Kathy (Carey Mulligan), and her friends Ruth (Keira Knightley) and Tommy (Andrew Garfield), are told right from the start of their schooling that they are "special" and will hold an important place in society as they grow older.  While they live a seemingly happy existence, as they head into their teen years and early twenties, they begin to realize their true purpose in life which leads to some students longing for a little something more.

In a nutshell, that's the tale.  The reason why these Hailsham children are "special" is where the emotional impact of the film should arise, but the film never really gets off the ground in that department.  I can't help but think that since nearly the entirety of the book was told in the mind of young Kathy that it was difficult to transfer to the screen all those inner emotions that were so easy to connect with while reading the novel.

The flick isn't a failure by any means and that is thanks to the great work of nearly all the actors that grace the screen.  Carey Mulligan is proving to be a force to be reckoned with.  Despite her melancholic tone throughout the whole film, she is a commanding presence.  Andrew Garfield (who I need to see in The Social Network still) was also quite good and, as I mentioned above, has the one moment in the film that actually hit me at an emotional level.  Supporting turns from Charlotte Rampling, Sally Hawkins, and Andrea Riseborough (who I saw and greatly admired in an Off-Broadway play last year) also added to the caliber of talent onscreen.

Keira Knightley, however, was a bit unimpressive.  In seemingly every single one of her movies, she does this incredibly odd thing with her chin and lower jaw when she talks. I think it's her way of trying to make her voice sound tougher and grittier, but all it does is tick me off.  [It's shades of good ole Kristen Stewart biting her lip in those damn Twilight movies.]  Admittedly, in Knightley's defense,  I think the character of Ruth in both the novel and the film is certainly the toughest for the audience to connect with, but in the film, the character's motivations are never quite clear.  [They were a little clearer in the book because we at least had an idea of Ruth's motivations thanks to Kathy's narration.]

The film was adequately shot, but director Mark Romanek doesn't really do anything special with his camera.  I think there were certain shots that were supposed to resonate with me on a visual and visceral level, but they didn't succeed.  Still, this is only his second film and I thought the direction was serviceable.

Needless to say, I was disappointed with Never Let Me Go.  It isn't a bad film, by any means, but it's a story that simply didn't translate well from the book to the screen.  The poignancy that made the book special wasn't present in the film at all.

The RyMickey Rating:  C

Movie Review - The Greatest

The Greatest (2010)

Starring Carey Mulligan, Pierce Brosnan, Susan Sarandon, Johnny Simmons, Zoë Kravitz, Aaron Johnson, and Michael Shannon

Directed by Shana Feste

Calling your movie The Greatest is really just asking for trouble.  The reviewers could just pounce all over your flick and trash it.  Fortunately, first-time writer-director Shana Feste has crafted a rather beautiful film here that, while it has its minor faults, is full of some great performances including another star-making turn from Carey Mulligan.

The Greatest begins with young high school couple Rose (Mulligan) and Bennett (Kick-Ass's Aaron Johnson) in a state of undress.  They'd only been dating each other for mere weeks, but they'd been pining after each other secretly for four years of high school.  After they sleep with each other for the first time consummating that unrequited love, Bennett drives Rose home and just as he begins to tell her he loves her, their car is involved in a horrific collision.  Bennett dies at the scene.

Some time passes and Rose shows up on the doorstep of Bennett's parents, Allen (Brosnan) and Grace Brewster (Sarandon).  She reveals that she is pregnant with Bennett's child and needs assistance with her pregnancy.  The Brewster household, however, has not quite come to terms with Bennett's death with each family member, including the Brewsters' other son, Ryan (Johnny Simmons), dealing with the tragedy in various ways.  The introduction of Rose into the Brewsters' lives causes each of them to examine their own grief in ways that couldn't possibly imagine.

Sounds like fun, right?  It's not a bed of roses and, at times, the script just seems too convenient.  Everything comes together much too cleanly and quickly in the end.  There's a character that befriends the Brewsters' son Ryan whose storyline comes to an awkward conclusion.  Michael Shannon's role as the driver who hits Bennett's car is quite awkward.

All these faults, however, are overshadowed by some amazing performances that elevate this film to a level infinitely better than it deserves to be.  First and foremost, Carey Mulligan is a star.  She just shines onscreen.  There's not a false note in her performance and I think her role here is better than her Oscar-nominated turn in An Education.

Susan Sarandon is also quite good here.  As a mother who simply longs to have her baby back, she resents Rose for entering their lives.  She wants no pity from the outside world, but, at the same time, she cannot let go of her dead son in the slightest. 

Pierce Brosnan's Allen, on the other hand, refuses to talk about his son.  Brosnan really surprised me here.  He creates a rigid, emotionless persona in Allen, but this only causes the inevitable break-down to be that much more effective.  Similarly, young Johnny Simmons was gripping as the son who masks his pain in drugs.  There's something about men crying onscreen that can ring incredibly false, but both of these actors (one who's been around quite a while and one who is just starting out) really raise the bar.   

I recognize that this film isn't perfect.  It's perhaps a tad too trite and absolutely comes together much too cleanly in the end, but this tale of grief, pain, and, ultimately, forgiveness and love is something I highly recommend.

The RyMickey Rating:  B+

Movie Review - Brothers (2009)

Starring Tobey Maguire, Jake Gyllenhaal, Natalie Portman, Sam Shepard, Mare Winningham, Carey Mulligan, Clifton Collins, Jr., and Bailee Madison

Directed by Jim Sheridan

There's something so emotionally gut-wrenching about watching the family members of a soldier being told that their courageous war hero has died in battle. As evidenced by the stellar film The Messenger earlier in 2009, the reactions of the family when they're told of the horrific news really seem to get to me. This holds true in Brothers, and although my fellow moviegoer (the poster known as "Anonymous" around these parts) will disagree entirely, I was quite moved by this surprising little movie. The emotional triangle that's crafted in this tale is entirely believable and certain scenes here packed quite a wallop.

Captain Sam Cahill (Maguire) has a loving family and as he heads off to Afghanistan for a second tour of duty, he knows that his wife, Grace (Portman), will hold down the fort with his two daughters (played by Bailee Madison and Taylor Geare in two of the most effective "young actor" roles this year). With his father (Sam Shepard) and mother-in-law (Winningham) helping out, Sam heads off to war feeling like things will be okay. The only wild card in the situation is his brother, Tommy (Gyllenhaal), who was released from prison a mere two days before he ships out. After serving his time for robbing a bank, Tommy's a loose cannon who appears to be resorting back to his old alcoholic ways.

After a few months in Afghanistan, Sam's helicopter is shot down and he is presumed dead. The devastating news hits each family member in a different way, but it causes Tommy to begin to realize his hurtful ways and he begins to help out Grace and the two young girls. Seeing a new side of Tommy and being an emotional wreck herself, Grace is quite befuddled, and, one night, Grace and Tommy kiss. Although they both realize they can't begin to consummate this relationship, they both know they have feelings towards one another. And those feelings only become more confusing when Sam, as it turns out, is discovered alive and returns home, emotionally ravaged by the heinous things he was forced to do as a prisoner of war.

I bought into this movie from the very beginning. I didn't feel a false note onscreen at all. True, Tobey Maguire isn't my favorite actor and there were moments where I felt he went a little overboard (he's "wide-eyed" way too much), but he also has an amazing scene at the end that simply riveted me. Gyllenhaal is fine and Portman continues to be a joy for me to watch. Supporting turns from Sam Shepard and Mare Winningham as the parents of Sam and Tommy were excellent, and the two young daughters of Sam and Grace were incredible. In many flicks, kids can either be too cloying or too smart for their age, but every scene the two girls were in here rang true. [Although, as I said in my last review of a Clifton Collins, Jr., movie, Mr. Collins is not a good actor despite his ubiquitousness this year.]

Brothers certainly takes its time, but it manages to explore every family members' emotions in a way that isn't often seen in movies. From the little girls to their older grandfather and everyone in between, all their feelings are unearthed. There's definitely something special going on here.

The RyMickey Rating: B+

Movie Review - An Education (2009)

Starring Carey Mulligan, Peter Sarsgaard, Alfred Molina, Dominic Cooper, Rosamund Pike, Emma Thompson, and Cara Seymour
Directed by Lone Scherfig

This is the second Peter Sarsgaard movie this year (the great Orphan being the other) in which he's played a character that has been involved in a "relationship" with an underage female. I'm not sure what that says about Mr. Sarsgaard...I'll let the psychologists determine whether that means something or not.

Set in 1961 (I've said it before, I'm a sucker for movies set in the '60s, for some reason), An Education tells the tale of a year in the life of Jenny (Carey Mulligan), a 16 year old teenager who seems content with achieving her father's dream for her of attending Oxford to earn an English degree. One day, she meets David (Peter Sarsgaard) who seems to immediately become infatuated with the girl. Their romance blossoms and Jenny begins to realize that an education may not be what she wants in life.

In order to even begin to like this, you have to look past the fact that there's a statutory rape feeling going on here...and if there's a failure in this movie it's that I felt kind of icky watching it (and I don't quite think that I was supposed to feel uncomfortable...as this idea was never even touched upon). I never quite understood how Jenny's parents (played brilliantly by Alfred Molina and Cara Seymour) were able to look past the fact that David appeared to be so much older.

That being said, if you look beyond that, this is a nice little film with a fantastic performance from relative newcomer Carey Mulligan. She was effortless, making me believe her feelings every moment she was onscreen. Fortunately, she's helped by some witty lines from screenwriter Nick Hornby. Nearly every scene between Jenny and her parents was so well-written that I couldn't help but smile at the humor and tenderness on display.

In addition to the great work from Mulligan, Peter Sarsgaard is also quite good as the charming (though slimy) David. Not only does he win over Jenny's parents, but he wins over us moviegoers, too. We know that there's something about him that just doesn't seem right, but he enchants us against our better judgment.

The film veers a little preachy at the end, but overall, I was won over by the character of Jenny and particularly Carey Mulligan's performance.

The RyMickey Rating: B