Mary Magdalene

Mary Magdalene (2019)

Starring Rooney Mara, Joaquin Phoenix, Chiwetel Ejiofor, and Tahar Rahim

Directed by Garth Davis

Written by Helen Edmundson and Philippa Goslett

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating: B+

Joker

Joker (2019)

Starring Joaquin Phoenix, Robert DeNiro, Zazie Beetz, Frances Conroy, and Brett Cullen

Directed by Todd Phillips

Written by Todd Phillips

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  C-

You Were Never Really Here

You Were Never Really Here (2018)

Starring Joaquin Phoenix, Judith Roberts, Ekaterina Samsonov, John Doman, Alex Manette, and Alessandro Nivola

Directed by Lynne Ramsay

Written by Lynne Ramsay

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating: C+

Movie Review - Irrational Man

Irrational Man (2015)

Starring Joaquin Phoenix, Emma Stone, Parker Posey, and Jamie Blackley

Directed by Woody Allen

No one will ever mistake Irrational Man for being one of Woody Allen's masterpieces, but it's certainly not one of his disasters.  A middle-of-the-road dramedy, Irrational Man is Allen's somewhat comedic take on Alfred Hitchcock's Strangers on a Train.  Here, troubled college philosophy professor Abe Lucas (Joaquin Phoenix) moves to a new university to begin teaching a summer session where he meets engaging graduate student Jill Pollard (Emma Stone).  Although Jill is dating fellow student Roy (Jamie Blackley), she immediately falls for Abe's intelligence and what she perceives as power despite the fact that Abe himself is facing internal strife and what he believes to be an existential crisis.  While Abe doesn't initially return Jill's affections, one afternoon while lunching at a diner, the two overhear a woman desperately complaining to her friends about the unfair judge presiding over the custody hearing concerning her children.  Upon hearing this, Abe thinks that helping this woman whom he doesn't even know may be the key to getting him out of his funk.  And how should he help the woman?  What about carrying out the perfect crime (seeing as how there is zero connection between Abe and this unknown woman) by killing the judge presiding over her custody hearing?

Therein is the Hitchcockian spin in Allen's latest feature film which, when it occurs about halfway through, lifts the flick up from a bit of a slow, predictable start.  Phoenix fits right in to the Woody Allen landscape with his downtrodden professor a perfect match for the actor himself who is quite adept at playing depressed men with a bit of anxiety.  (It wouldn't be a Woody Allen film without anxiety creeping in, right?)  While Emma Stone's Jill doesn't stretch the actress in any way, it's a much better character than her somewhat over-the-top role as a kooky psychic in Allen's last feature Magic in the Moonlight.  In fact, everything about Irrational Man is better than that prior feature, despite the fact that this flick, as mentioned, takes a little while to actually get to the meat of its story.  While Phoenix and Stone certainly try to make their relationship patter click in the film's first half, it really doesn't end up mattering much to the overall story which is no fault of the two actors.  Still, Irrational Man falls into the upper half of the Woody Allen flicks I've seen in terms of quality and story, and, while not perfect, creates an engaging atmosphere that comes into its own as the film progresses.

The RyMickey Rating:  B-

Movie Review - Inherent Vice

Inherent Vice (2014)

Starring Joaquin Phoenix, Josh Brolin, Katherine Waterston, Owen Wilson, Reese Witherspoon, Benicio Del Toro, Joanna Newsom, Jena Malone, Eric Roberts, Maya Rudolph, and Martin Short 

Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson

What in the hell was in the critics' water when they deemed Inherent Vice worthy of a 73% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes?  Just because a film is directed by an esteemed director doesn't make it worthy of such a ranking.  Just because a film is well acted doesn't make it worthy of such a ranking.  Just because a film looks good and has better than average production values doesn't make it worthy of such a ranking.  A film still has to be enjoyable in a sense that the viewer must remain captivated by any of those aforementioned criteria mentioned or by its story.  Unfortunately, the directing, acting, and production values aren't enough to keep Inherent Vice afloat and, boy, is its story one of the worst and least captivating tales I've seen woven in a film in 2014.

There was talk of the story here being incoherent and frustrating, but I found the general gist of the plot fairly easy to comprehend.  A drug-addled private eye named Doc Sportello (Joaquin Phoenix) is drafted by his former lover Shasta Fay (Katherine Waterston) to determine the seriousness of Shasta's current lover's wife and her lover's desire to put her husband (and, remember, Shasta's current lover) into a loony bin and take all of his money.  It should be noted that if the previous sentence has thrown you for a loop, Inherent Vice probably isn't for you.  Then again, Inherent Vice really isn't for anyone.  The biggest issue with director and screenwriter Paul Thomas Anderson's flick is that it takes an already convoluted premise and branches off on so many tangents that admittedly are related, but fail to resonate or prove meaningful in the slightest.  Characters come in for single scenes, drop some other name for Doc to investigate, and then leave and never come back.  This pattern gets repetitive and old rather quickly and makes the nearly 150-minute run time feels like an eternity.

What saves Inherent Vice from the very bottom dregs of the RyMickey Rating system is that fact that the film looks good and contains acting that is certainly above average.  Unfortunately, I still found myself twiddling my thumbs, waiting for this never-ending story to conclude.  Unable to latch on to any of the film's characters or their plights, I found myself adrift here and completely unimpressed.

The RyMickey Rating:  D

Movie Review - The Immigrant

The Immigrant (2014)

Starring Marion Cotillard, Joaquin Phoenix, and Jeremy Renner

Directed by James Grey

***This film is currently streaming on Netflix***

It's a shame that the nice, reserved performance from Marion Cotillard as Eva, a Polish immigrant arriving to the States in The Immigrant isn't matched in quality by the film itself.  Instead the onerous bleakness of James Grey's film creates a heaviness that's almost impossible to climb out from under, providing a none too pleasant experience that lost me about halfway through.

When Eva is turned away from entering the US after an erroneous claim is made that she willingly subjected herself to prostitution while on the ship to the mainland, she is forced to await return to Europe.  Separated from her sister who was quarantined upon arrival, Eva is devastated until Bruno Weiss (Joaquin Phoenix) sees her plight and, noticing her beauty, decides to help her out.  However, Bruno's seeming benevolence isn't all it's cracked up to be.  Bruno runs a burlesque hall which also happens to serve alcohol -- a hot commodity in 1921's prohibition era times -- and Bruno convinces Eva to use her feminine wiles to make money to help get her sister out of quarantine to see a legitimate doctor.  The strong-willed, former nurse Eva finds her steadfastness wear down quickly as she sinks into a world unknown to her.

I was with The Immigrant until this point about forty-five minutes in.  Sure, it was a bit depressing, but I could accept the interesting story and the solid performance from Ms. Cotillard.  However, the film then shifts into a love triangle between Eva, Bruno, and a magician named Orlando (Jeremy Renner) and the love story feels ominously uncomfortable and restrictingly heavy.  For the next seventy-five minutes, no one's happy, there's a lot of talking about how no one's happy, and this viewer wasn't happy either, finding himself zoning out and caring very little about any member of this trio.

Perhaps I just wasn't in the mood for such a hefty piece.  That's entirely possible.  However, I can't help but think part of the issue lies in James Grey's direction which plods the film along at a glacial pace and becomes a bit unsure of itself in terms of what kind of film it is when the romantic triangle rears its head.  As mentioned, Cotillard is good here and is positively the only reason to watch.  Renner tries, but his character often seems like a caricature -- not as much as Phoenix's Bruno, however, which feels like a mash-up of typical 1920s gangster-y stereotypes.  Unfortunately, Phoenix doesn't bring anything new to the table from an acting perspective either.

The RyMickey Rating:  C-

Movie Review - Her

Her (2013)

Starring Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Adams, Rooney Mara, Chris Pratt, and Olivia Wilde

Featuring the vocal talent of Scarlett Johansson

Directed by Spike Jonze

Full disclosure:  I watched Her immediately following shoveling a ton of snow and my tired body and rattled brain likely wasn't ready for the serious tone displayed by writer-director Spike Jonze.  While I appreciated the somewhat depressing look at love and intimacy presented by Jonze, I'm fully aware that a second viewing a few years from now may give me a greater appreciation of the film -- or may simply confirm my feelings that Her is good, but nothing more than that.

Joaquin Phoenix is Theodore Twombly, a thirtysomething guy who works as a writer of sorts.  You see, the film takes place in presumably the not-so-distant future and Theodore gets hired by regular folks to pen love notes or write personalized letters to their significant others.  (Odd, but kind of ingenious in the way it furthers the "lack of personal connection" in relationships that the film wants to highlight.)  Having just separated from his wife Catherine (Rooney Mara) and going through some rough divorce proceedings with her, Theodore downloads a new operating system for his computerized devices that is programmed to carry on conversations with its user.  Named Samantha (and voiced by Scarlett Johansson), the app quickly becomes a huge part of Theodore's daily life and, perhaps despite his best efforts, he becomes romantically attached to it/her.

Perhaps the reason for my lack of utter enjoyment of Her is the fact that I can't help but think that it paints a rather grim picture of our future.  While I loved Jonze's rendering of our country's upcoming years (set design and costumes were really top notch -- not too futuristic, but just enough to make their points), it's ultimately a bit disheartening.  While I think the film attempts to aim for your heart, it never really struck me there.  Phoenix is quite good as the lovable, though inherently sad Theodore, and it's incredibly easy to see why he fell for the sultry voice of Johansson, but despite their relationship being surprisingly believable, it was a tiny bit flat.  Perhaps that was the point, however -- a relationship with a "thing" rather than another person is going to be lacking that intimate connection.  (And see, as I type this, herein lies why I probably should watch this again...I'm liking it more as I ponder the film's conceptual ideals.)

With a great supporting turn from Amy Adams (is it wrong that I found her geeky character here much sexier than her alluring turn in American Hustle), Her is worth a watch, but I will admit that I'm a bit surprised it cracked the Best Picture list of nine.  Then again, as I mentioned, perhaps I wasn't in the right mindset and it may need another viewing in time.

The RyMickey Rating:  B

Movie Review - The Master

The Master (2012)

Starring Joaquin Phoenix, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams, and Laura Dern

Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson

Without a doubt, Paul Thomas Anderson's The Master is filled with beautiful direction and superb acting, but I can't exactly say it's overly enjoyable to watch.  In and of itself, that's not a bad thing, but the film which delves into the inner workings of cults, mind control, wartime post-dramatic stress disorder, and free will (or a lack thereof) is an odd duck.  While I grew fascinated with the characters, I couldn't help but notice an odd sense of detachment that runs throughout, never quite allowing me to fully enter the world that was created oscreen.  For some reason, there was just some odd disconnect with the film that less than twenty-four hours removed I can't quite explain yet.

I had heard some talk that there wasn't really a narrative throughout the film, but I thought there was a fairly legitimate through-line story...although "story" isn't necessarily the driving force of the film which may be why it doesn't quite settle in comfortably while you're watching it.  We meet Freddie Quell (Joaquin Phoenix), a WWII vet who turns to booze to cope with his memories and finds that he can't quite keep the lowly jobs that have come his way upon return to the States.  One night Freddie stumbles upon a party on a yacht and sneaks aboard.  Upon awakening, rather than be booted off the boat, he's befriended by the man chartering it -- Lancaster Dodd.  Dodd's a charming man with a charismatic personality that easily switches from introspectiveness to bombast, but it makes him a difficult man to pin down by both the audience and by Freddie.  Dodd's the leader of a movement known as "The Cause" and believes strongly in the philosophies of past lives.  Through psychological and sociological experiments, Dodd seems to be a manipulator of sorts and for some reason does what he can to keep Freddie firmly under his thumb.  As the film slowly progresses, we see the relationship between Freddie and Dodd evolve and devolve and it certainly is the basis for any type of story we witness (however loose that story may be).

The film looks stunning.  There were shots that had me in awe of their simplicity, yet enthralled by their depth, richness, and gorgeousness.  And the acting is definitely top-notch, with Philip Seymour Hoffman actually impressing me a bit more than Joaquin Phoenix (the latter of whom is garnering much deserved praise for his role).  While I admired both of them, Phoenix's part simply seemed a little more "actorly" and a bit more gimmicky in his mannerisms and verbalizations.  I say that with great respect as Phoenix still managed to enthrall me throughout, but if I were to compare the two, Hoffman's role comes out a bit on top.  I think a large part of that is due to the fact that his character is still such an enigma to me.  A kind and considerate man, yet one who has great power and knows how to manipulate so easily that it's almost frightening, Hoffman as Dodd had me thoroughly intrigued every moment he was onscreen.

And yet something didn't quite click and, as I mentioned above, I'm not quite sure what didn't work.  I found myself checking my watch quite often throughout the film despite loving many scenes, being fascinated by the visuals, and enamored with the two main performances.  [I've left Amy Adams out of the conversation because while her role was good, I don't find it quite worthy of the unanimous effusive praise it's been receiving.]  I liked the almost behind-the-scenes look at the Scientology-based group "The Cause," but the film doesn't really take a stand as to whether this religion (or any religion, for that matter) is a help or a hindrance to society as a whole.  It also left me questioning why these two souls in Freddie and Lancaster mutually needed the contentious relationship in which they found themselves.  On Freddie's end, it's almost understandable -- a wayward drifter who found a somewhat steady hand to feed and clothe him.  But on Lancaster's side of the equation, was Freddie just a guinea pig for his attempts at strengthening his "Cause?"  The question is never really answered and, unfortunately, I think it's an important enough one that an answer is deserved.

The Master is certainly an interesting movie and one that has some beautiful moments, but it's also one that probably deserves to be watched again to more fully comprehend just what Paul Thomas Anderson was trying to say.  However, and perhaps rather unfortunately, it's not the type of film that you want to jump right back into to have another go.

The RyMickey Rating:  B

Movie Review -I'm Still Here

I'm Still Here (2010)

Starring Joaquin Phoenix

Directed by Casey Affleck
***This film is currently streaming on Netflix***

In the winter of 2009, Academy Award-nominated actor Joaquin Phoenix went on Late Show with David Letterman and acted like an ass.  No other term to describe it, really.  Phoenix had decided to quit acting and become a rap superstar.  Folks weren't sure if this was all a large-scale Andy Kaufman-esque hoax or if the guy was genuinely serious.  If anything, I'm Still Here unequivocally states that it was a joke, but the faux-documentary also is one heckuva enjoyable film with an incredibly amusing performance from Phoenix as he slowly deteriorates into a humorously frightening version of himself. 

Phoenix and director Casey Affleck say that they created I'm Still Here as a riff on reality tv, playing off of the idea that people genuinely believe that reality isn't scripted for the purposes of entertainment.  In order and try and create the most believable "fake Joaquin" persona as possible, for nearly a year, at every public appearance made by Phoenix, he "played" the role of drunken, drugged "celebrity" who had seemingly fallen off of his rocker.  Admittedly, even to me who only saw clips of Phoenix in passing, it seemed that he truly had decided to pursue this rap career.  On film, however, it was pretty obvious from the get go that this whole shindig was scripted.

Somehow, though, this weird scripted mockumentary works and it's in large part due to Phoenix totally inhabiting this character.  He's a nut...it's obvious...but it never seems over the top.  Phoenix is never the person that makes this "documentary" seem fake.  It's the other celebs around him and their "scripted" comments that clue the viewer in on the veracity of the film's agenda (that and the fact that there's a cast list in the credits that lists "Joaquin's Father" as an Affleck which should have clued a good bunch of the critics in on the elaborate piece of performance art they just witnessed).  Also cluing me in to the "unreality" of the situation is the fact that Casey Affleck does a much too eloquent job directing for the whole thing to be fake.  Once again, this isn't a fault of the piece.  In fact, the direction is very good, but the smoothness of the whole thing and the completely obvious set-ups for camera shots makes me amazed that critics didn't understand this film for what it was.

Honestly, I was expecting to despise this film.  I remember watching The Man in the Moon many years ago which depicted Andy Kaufman's life and thinking that the guy -- a full-out performance artist known for his elaborate hoaxes and jokes -- was a complete jerk.  I didn't get the humor in his "art."  In I'm Still Here, though, I was thoroughly amused.  I'm not quite sure Phoenix and Affleck (the co-writers of the piece) necessarily made their point about the "perils of celebrity" and the "deception" that is reality television, but I was amused nonetheless.

The RyMickey Rating:  B+

Movie Review - Two Lovers (2009)

Starring Joaquin Phoenix, Gwyneth Paltrow, Vinessa Shaw, Elias Koteas, and Isabella Rossellini

Directed by James Gray

This flick is probably most well known (if it's known at all) because this is the film Joaquin Phoenix was promoting when he went all nutty in the rap star-persona he created (video of his Letterman appearance here). And, unfortunately, it's a shame, because Two Lovers is filled with some great acting and a surprisingly simple, yet engaging story about love.

Phoenix is Leonard, a troubled late twentysomething Jewish guy living at home with his parents. He recently broke up with his fiancé and, because of the pain that caused, has attempted suicide multiple times to no avail. One day, he meets Sandra (Vinessa Shaw), the daughter of a man who is attempting to purchase Leonard's father's laundromat business. The parental units on both Leonard and Sandra's sides think that the two are perfect for one another -- with the fact that they're both Jewish being a huge plus. Unfortunately, Leonard has also just met Michelle (Gwyneth Paltrow), a troubled semi-drug addict who just moved into his apartment complex, and he falls in love with her instantaneously. Leonard soon discovers, however, that Michelle is dating a married man, so he succumbs to his parents' wishes and begins dating Sandra, all the while longing to be with Michelle. Who does he end up with -- the stable, secure Sandra, or the female version of himself, Michelle -- and who does he hurt along the way?

This is a very simple movie in terms of direction and storytelling. There's no expansive set pieces or expensive shots. Director and co-writer James Gray makes it about these three actors -- Phoenix, Paltrow, and Shaw -- and they all, for the most part, step up to the plate. Phoenix is really quite good here playing the troubled young Leonard. I didn't feel like there was a bum note in his performance. He's hurt and in despair and simply longing to be loved -- willing to jump in and give himself over to Michelle, a similarly damaged soul, whom he's not even sure could even come close to reciprocating the feeling. Also compelling here is Vinessa Shaw. She's not given anything out of the ordinary to do -- she's kind of stuck playing "the good girl" -- but she felt so real to me (I use that "real" thing a lot, but in small character-driven movies like this, whenever an actor can make me believe they're a real person and not an actor playing a role, I enjoy it immensely). Looking at her filmography on imdb, I haven't seen her in a whole lot (although she was in the Rodney Dangerfield-starring Ladybugs that I watched three or four times in my youth -- you remember that one...the guy dresses up like a girl to help their soccer team win some tournament), but I'd like to see her in a whole lot more. The only weak link here is Paltrow. For some reason, I wasn't able to disassociate her from simply being Gwyneth Paltrow. I felt she was too old for the role from the very beginning and she never quite clicked with me. Not that she was bad, but of the main trio, she was the most disappointing.

This film got a very limited release back in February and it came and went with little fanfare which is unfortunate. It's a nice little emotional love story that, while slow moving, works quite well. It's currently streaming on Netflix, so be sure to check it out if you have an account.

The RyMickey Rating: B-

DVD Round-Up 4/1/09

A completely random assortment of DVDs here...

Role Models (2008)

I had heard that this Paul Rudd-Seann William Scott comedy was funny, but I hardly laughed at all when sitting in my living room. Maybe a movie theater experience was necessary. There were some funny lines, but they couldn't even create one funny scene. Rudd and Scott were okay, but lacked any type of charisma...dull as could be. As the head of the volunteer organization that Rudd and Scott were forced to join to complete some community service, Jane Lynch was completely wasted, forced to deliver the most ridiculous lines about drugs and phallic-shaped hot dogs. Kid actor Bobb'e J. Thompson (really Bobb'e...an apostrophe in your name?) is perhaps one of the most annoying people ever to grace the screen...the unfortunate thing was that in this poorly constructed movie, having a 12 year-old kid spout curse words was about the funniest thing it had going for it.

The RyMickey Rating: D

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Burn After Reading (2008)

There were some great actors here who all turned in some amusing work -- George Clooney, Frances McDormand, Tilda Swinton, Richard Jenkins, and a particularly funny Brad Pitt -- but the writing-directing Coen Brothers team didn't really know what to do with them. There's definitely a story here -- McDormand and Pitt come across an innocuous computer disk that they believe contains secret government information and try to blackmail its owner -- but in the end, I didn't really give a damn about it or any one of the characters. Not bad, but certainly nothing you need to rush out and rent.

The RyMickey Rating: C

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Lakeview Terrace (2008)

It's cliché to even say it nowadays, but Samuel L. Jackson will do anything for a paycheck. As a racist L.A. cop, Jackson is pissed that an interracial married couple moved in next door, and if you've seen the classic Snakes on a Plane, you know not to mess with motherf'n Samuel L. Jackson. This movie was awful. It bills itself as a suspense, but nothing happened in this movie for 115 minutes and then in the last 10 minutes it follows things way too "by the book" to be suspenseful in the least. Throw in a ridiculous storyline about impending California wildfires (which I'm sure is some metaphor for racism or something) and this was one of the worst movies I've seen in years.

The RyMickey Rating: F

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Reservation Road (2007)

Not to be confused with one of my favorite movies of last year (see review here), this Road movie is actually just as depressing, but ultimately not as good. The film starts out stunningly as the young son of Joaquin Phoenix (pre-rap artist crazy) and Jennifer Connelly is killed in a horrific hit-and-run car accident. Mark Ruffalo is the man who killed him, and he is wracked with guilt. When the police fail to find the killer, Phoenix attempts to take things into his own hands. The first 30 minutes of this one were utterly gripping. My eyes were literally welling up over the grief that was depicted onscreen. But then things got a little kooky...there were way too many coincidences and odd connections and too much time with Phoenix sitting in front of a computer. Despite my problems with the film which definitely falters in the final 45 minutes, the acting and story in the first half is too good to miss.

The RyMickey Rating: B