Belfast

Belfast (2021)

Starring Jude Hill, Caitriona Balfe, Jamie Dornan, Ciarán Hinds, and Judi Dench

Directed by Kenneth Branagh

Written by Kenneth Branagh

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  C-

Cats

Cats (2019)

Starring Francesca Hayward, Judi Dench, Idris Elba, Jennifer Hudson, Laurie Davidson, Robbie Fairchild, Rebel Wilson, James Cordon, Jason Derulo, Steven McRae, Danny Collins, Naoimh Morgan, Ray Winstone, and Taylor Swift

Directed by Tom Hooper

Written by Lee Hall and Tom Hooper

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating: D

Victoria & Abdul

Victoria & Abdul (2017)

Starring Judi Dench, Ali Fazal, Tim Pigott-Smith, Adeel Akhtar, Olivia Williams, Paul Higgins, and Eddie Izzard

Directed by Stephen Frears

Written by Lee Hall

Summary (in 500 words or less): The real-life story of the elderly seventy-something Queen Elizabeth (Judi Dench) and her friendship with an Indian servant Abdul (Ali Fazal) whose presence causes quite a stir amongst the Queen's family and her loyal British servants.

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating: B+

Murder on the Orient Express

Murder on the Orient Express (2017)

Starring Kenneth Branagh, Penelope Cruz, Willem Dafoe, Judi Dench, Johnny Depp, Josh Gad, Derek Jacobi, Leslie Odom, Jr., Michelle Pfeiffer, and Daisy Ridley

Directed by Kenneth Branagh

Written by Michael Green

Summary (in 500 words or less): Detective Hercule Poirot (Kenneth Branagh) embarks on what should be a pleasant train ride only to discover that a murder has occurred.  The only possible culprits are those on the train and it's up to Poirot to figure out whodunit before the train reaches its destination...and before they strike again.

• Kenneth Branagh's Murder on the Orient Express feels like it could have been made decades prior to this one.  That's not a bad thing, however, in this fast-paced culture in which we live, even I feel like this one could've stood to have a bit more life injected into it.  The pace proves to be a bit too slow.
• It's fun to see a big cast like this and the film's twists and turns allow most of them to ham it up every now and again with some overly dramatic moments.  The cheesy corniness works in a film like this and isn't ever laughable, but instead adds to the overall aesthetic.  
• That said, while the actors' corniness isn't laughable, the story often is.  The plot's surprise mystery twists just end up seeming too convoluted to be even moderately believable.  Sure, the screenwriter is simply following in the footsteps of Agatha Christie's book...but that doesn't mean Agatha Christie's book was any good.  Sometimes simpler is better, but in my few experiences with Christie -- via movies, plays, or books -- she doesn't follow that mantra...and it doesn't always work with modern-day audiences.

The RyMickey Rating:  C+

Movie Review - Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (2016)

Starring Eva Green, Asa Butterfield, Samuel L. Jackson, Rupert Everett, Allison Janney, Chris O'Dowd, Terence Stamp, Ella Purnell, and Judi Dench

Directed by Tim Burton

Things started out so positively in the titularly long-winded Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children that I thought Tim Burton may had finally found himself back on the positive side of things after giving us such directorial dreck as Alice in Wonderland, Dark Shadows, and Big Eyes over the past decade.  Unfortunately, the eerie quirkiness that is the staple of the director's work hinders things here rather than helping which causes the film to falter after an incredibly promising opening thirty minutes.  That said, perhaps my disappointment with the film isn't fully Burton's fault -- I had actually read this young adult novel upon which this was based and found it oddly un-compelling considering its unique subject matter so maybe enjoyment of this work as a cinematic experience was never in the cards for me in the first place.

Grandpa Abe (Terence Stamp) has for years regaled his grandson Jake (Asa Butterfield) with WWII stories in which he says he spent a great deal of time at Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children in Wales.  The tales of the odd kids that inhabited the house stuck with Jake and following his grandfather's unfortunate and odd death, Jake and his father (Chris O'Dowd) travel to Wales to try and give them both some closure.  The exposition-filled opening act was impressively tailored by Burton to give the film a quirky vibe which, while successful initially, begins to teeter upon Jake's arrival in Wales.  Upon arriving, Jake discovers that the home of his grandfather's stories was destroyed in an air raid during the 1940s, but when he visits the house, he is greeted by a group of children who end up taking him through a time portal and back in time to September 3, 1943, where he meets the caretaker of both the home and the children residing in it -- Miss Peregrine (Eva Green).  Jake is told that Miss Peregrine has the unique ability to manipulate time and, because of this, she has created a world in which the children under her care relive the same day -- September 3, 1943 -- over and over again.  Their peaceful existence seems quaint enough, but Jake soon discovers that not everyone is happy with Miss Peregrine's abilities and there may be some other "Peculiars" who would like to see her home cease to exist.

Ultimately, Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children becomes too bogged down in convoluted plot to really land successfully.  If that summary above proved a bit twisted, it's frankly much more complicated than that.  Sure, there are some nice performances which help the whole affair.  Eva Green in particular, who I've not like in the past, is charmingly odd and it works incredibly well. Asa Butterfield is somewhat of a blank slate, but I think that works for his character here (much like his role in Hugo) as he is faced with the absurdity of what he encounters.

And Burton himself really tries as a director to make the picture a success.  Despite not liking the movie all that much, this is Burton's best turn behind a camera in years.  He successfully created the world in which these characters exist -- unfortunately, the world is just a bit too confusing to succeed itself.  While not an out-and-out failure, Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children ultimately is a disappointment.

The RyMickey Rating:  C

Movie Review - Philomena

Philomena (2013)

Starring Judi Dench, Steve Coogan, Sophie Kennedy Clark, Sean Mahon, Peter Hermann, and Mare Winningham

Directed by Stephen Frears

In the 1940s, a teenage girl named Philomena (Sophie Kennedy Clark) gets pregnant and is sent to live at the Roscrea Catholic convent where she gives birth to her son Anthony.  The nuns have Philomena sign away her parental rights and end up giving the baby up for adoption, much to Philomena's distress.  Cut to decades later and an elderly Philomena (now played by Judi Dench) still finds herself thinking of her Anthony and wondering what happened to him, particularly now -- the year he would've turned fifty.  Philomena meets up with former disgraced politician-turned journalist Martin Sixsmith (Steve Coogan) who, in an attempt to help his image with the public, agrees to help the old woman search for her son in hopes that it will provide a fantastic human interest story for his bosses.

Based on a true story, Philomena doesn't shy away from heavy subject matter, tackling both religious and political themes.  While I welcome this aspect of Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope's script, I also must comment on their creative license that paints several figures in the piece as morally repugnant.  The film's final scene -- a showdown between two parties -- in fact never happened.  Placed in the film simply to up the dramatic quotient of things, the entire scene actually rang a bit untrue -- it was written almost childlike in its angry dialog -- and, come to find out, it never actually occurred.  Coogan and Pope were specifically twisting their plot to buoy their anti-religious standpoint.

However, for all the anti-Catholicism that occurs in the film, there is also a reverence given to the religion as well through the eyes of Philomena.  Despite all that happened to her as a child and the pain she's suffered through as an adult because of the loss of her child, she still looks to God for guidance.  The Catholic Church is certainly not without reproach and I give this film credit for trying to create a balance between the believers and the non-believers.  While I think Coogan and Pope went a step too far, they get close to their goal.

Philomena's story is a sad one, but the woman herself was a trooper and Judi Dench brings her joyful and respectful ways of life to the screen with gusto.  This'll sound corny, but there's heart on display that immediately connects the audience to the title character, with Dench bringing dignity to the title character's plight.  Dench really is fantastic here, garnering the accolade that I typically churn out at least once or twice an awards season -- even the slightest eye movement from conveys all we need to know about her character's internal thoughts which, to me, is an admirable quality in an actor.  While we certainly feel sorry for her, Philomena is a strong woman and Dench never makes us pity her -- something that easily could've happened.  Countering Dench, Steve Coogan's bitterness plays well against her and the duo really do have nice chemistry with one another.

Overall, Philomena is a solid film.  Although the writers made the finale a bit too dramatic for its own good, Dench's performance alone makes this one worth seeing.

The RyMickey Rating:  B

Movie Review - Skyfall

Skyfall (2012)

Starring Daniel Craig, Judi Dench, Javier Bardem, Ralph Fiennes, Naomie Harris, Albert Finney, and Ben Whishaw

Directed by Sam Mendes

After seeing my first James Bond flick in Casino Royale a month ago, I finally got around to checking out Skyfall and am pleased to report that it's a return to glory for 007 after the disappointment of Quantum of Solace.  Thankfully ditching the director of Quantum whose camerawork made that film's action scenes nearly incoherent, Academy Award-winner Sam Mendes takes the helm here and, with the help of his screenwriters, guides a surprisingly low key and much less frenetic Bond film to success.

I was perhaps most amazed by the fact that the action scenes that I've come to associate with Bond films after my initial viewings take a backseat to character development in Skyfall.  After a fantastic and adrenaline-pumping opening sequence involving the unsuccessful capture of a criminal who has confiscated a hard drive with all of the true identities of MI6's undercover agents, we watch James Bond (Daniel Craig) seemingly plunge to his death from atop a huge fall off of a train.  Cut to London and M (Judi Dench) is now preparing an obituary for 007 and also needing to face the fact that her MI6 is in serious trouble since that hard drive was not recovered.  After a meeting with Gareth Mallory (Ralph Fiennes), the Chairman of the British Intelligence and Security Committee, M finds herself under intense pressure to resign which she refuses to do, insisting that she will bring MI6 back from its current dark place.  However, upon returning from her meeting with Mallory, MI6's headquarters are attacked and six agents are killed thanks to someone hacking into M's personal computer systems.  Mr. Bond, who happened to survive his steep fall and had taken the opportunity to retire and secretly slip away from duty, hears about the London attack on a news broadcast and decides to return to England to help out M who made him a success.

But who is the culprit seeking revenge on MI-6 and why is he focusing solely on taunting M?  While I won't spoil any motives, I will say that Javier Bardem plays supervillain Raoul Silva with slimy gusto.  Honing in and capitalizing on the uncomfortable humor that sometimes comes hand in hand with a great villain, Bardem reinvigorates the film once he first appears about ninety minutes in.

Not that the film necessarily needed a jolt to reinvigorate it, but Skyfall is definitely a more character-driven piece than I was expecting.  This film is as much about the emotional roller coaster of being an undercover agent (or running an agency responsible for those agents) as it is about the action sequences.  Rather brilliantly, the movie is able to successfully balance both disparate spectrums thanks to Sam Mendes.  His action-oriented scenes are taut and exciting -- the opening fifteen minutes are just stellar -- and his more intimate moments carry more weight than most dramas out there today.

Mr. Mendes is of course aided by Judi Dench whose M takes on a much more significant role here than in the other Bond films I've seen.  She brings a weathered intelligence to every scene and she gives Daniel Craig's Bond a real emotional and deep attachment to care for rather than the Bond Girls he leaves after one romp in the sack.  Supporting turns from Ralph Fiennes, Ben Whishaw, and a ravishing Naomie Harris definitely showcase the promise of future Bond movies for sure.

I'm over 24 hours removed from watching Skyfall and I'm still finding myself thoroughly enjoying its thrills and somewhat ballsy dramatic turns.  The James Bond franchise was certainly not one that I eagerly looked forward to every three years or so when a new movie would be released, but I'm happy to say that I'm onboard the bandwagon and look forward to more in the future.

The RyMickey Rating:  A-

Movie Review - Quantum of Solace

Quantum of Solace (2008)

Starring Daniel Craig, Judi Dench, Olga Kurylenko, Mathieu Amalric, Giancarlo Giannini, Gemma Arterton, and Jeffrey Wright
Directed by Marc Forster

SPOILER ALERT AHEAD FOR CASINO ROYALE

After a great first experience with Mr. Bond in Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace had quite a bit to live up to and, unfortunately, it didn't really come close.  Taking place mere hours after the start of Casino Royale, Quantum is a quasi-sequel in that James Bond is still somewhat reeling (in that reserved British sense of "reeling") over the death of his lover and he finds himself on a mission to enact revenge on those who caused her death.  In and of itself, that would've been a good film, but we're given a eco-friendly villain (Mathieu Amalric) that I really couldn't care about -- the malevolence of taking away clean drinking water from the poor just isn't as much fun as world domination -- which doesn't help matters.

However, the biggest issue with Quantum of Solace is that director Marc Forster has no clue how to properly direct action sequences.  What I love about Casino Royale is that even the most ludicrous of action sequences are believable because of the way they are fluidly shot.  Forster resorts to the quick cuts that are so prevalent in action flicks today and there were several moments where I simply didn't comprehend what was going on.  Right from the opening scene in which two nearly identical black cars are involved in a chase, I knew I was in for disappointment.  When you can't tell which car is being driven by your protagonist and antagonist, you're in for trouble.

Here's hoping Skyfall is more like Casino Royale than this second Daniel Craig-starring venture.

The RyMickey Rating:  C

Movie Review - Casino Royale

Casino Royale (2006)

Starring Daniel Craig, Eva Green, Mads Mikkelson, Jeffrey Wright, and Judi Dench

Directed by Martin Campbell

I've gone thirty-two years without seeing a James Bond film and having now watched Casino Royale I have to ask myself why I waited so long.  Granted, one look at this long-lasting series of flicks may not be indicative of the franchise's overarching quality, but Casino Royale proved to be one of the best action movies I've seen in a long time.

I won't get into plots here -- the movie's been out for six years now -- except to give the briefest overview that as this flick starts Mr. Bond (Daniel Craig) is just beginning his British intelligence career.  With the need to prove himself to his boss, M (Judi Dench), he sets out on a mission to stop the criminal mastermind known as Le Chiffre (Mads Mikkelson) from providing funds to terrorists around the world.

Two things elevate this movie to the higher echelon of action flicks.  First, Daniel Craig gives a suave, debonair, yet no nonsense performance as the superspy.  He makes both his mellower and action-packed scenes completely plausible despite seemingly impossible moments.  Second, director Martin Campbell has crafted some of the best action scenes I've seen in ages.  Nowadays, cuts and edits make many action sequences completely incomprehensible, but I found Campbell's work here to be fluid and amazingly coherent.  Even amidst what may very well be the most unlikeliest of scenarios, I was always aware of what was going on in the rapidly paced scenes and that's a huge credit to the director and a gigantic positive for the film.

Here's hoping any future Bond endeavors can live up to this experience.

The RyMickey Rating: A-

Movie Review - The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2012)

Starring Judi Dench, Tom Wilkinson, Bill Nighy, Maggie Smith, Penelope Wilton, Celia Imrie, and Dev Patel

Directed by John Madden

Old people say the darndest things!  Sometimes they poke fun at the youth.  Sometimes they discuss their sex life for yucks.  And then there's always the humorous racist ones who've never moved out of the dark ages.  And each of these types of elderly folks has taken up residence at The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel in India.  Join them for two hours peppered with moments of laughs, but very little story or substance.  But if Viagra is on your (or your significant other's) bedside table, this may be just the movie for you!

There are some great performances here from very talented British folks.  Judi Dench, Tom Wilkinson, and Billy Nighy are just a few of the notable long in the tooth stars on display and they all attempt to make director John Madden's film as watchable as possible.  Those three celebrities and several others take on the roles of aging British citizens who, in their old age, decide to travel to India either wanting a change in atmosphere or for monetary reasons or for seeking discounted medical help.  They all settled on staying at The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel run by the young Sonny Kapoor (Dev Patel) thanks to the establishment's lovely brochure promoting luxury accommodations for the elderly, but upon their arrival they realize Sonny may have misrepresented his rundown complex.  Still, as the group settles in, they realize that India has so much to offer that it my even turn the most racist of people (Maggie Smith in a one-note role) into the most magnanimous by film's end.

The film's problem is that it's entirely too simplistic.  We are well aware of where all these folks' stories are going to end up from the very beginning (with the exception of Wilkinson's character who, although he goes through a rather touching story arc, felt oddly out of place with the rest of the film's overall tone).  There's no depth here and that would be fine if the film didn't attempt to strive for deep meaning.  Whimsicality is perfectly acceptable...they just should've gone for that here rather than trying for something more.

Then again, I don't really think The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel was made for me.  Were I forty years older and heading into my seventies, I might have gone gaga over it, but I have not reached the milestone of needing to wear Depends so I'm not the film's demographic.  Yes, I realize that there's flippancy in that last statement, but I really mean no disrespect to the film's audience.  There are people who will love this movie and it's great that the filmmakers behind this decided to (successfully...at least from a box office standpoint) appeal to an under-represented audience.  But perhaps because I wouldn't be allowed to check in to the Marigold Hotel, this one just didn't prove successful for me.

The RyMickey Rating:  C

Movie Review - My Week with Marilyn

My Week with Marilyn (2011)

Starring Michelle Williams, Eddie Redmayne, Kenneth Branagh, Emma Watson, Derek Jacobi, Julia Ormond, Dominic Cooper, Dougray Scott, Zoë Wanamaker, and Judi Dench

Directed by Simon Curtis

I say this whenever I write of review of films like these, but I am not a fan of biopics.  I greatly admire actors who are able to mimic the well-known personas of others, but oftentimes, I find myself left completely empty by the films they inhabit which all seem to want to tell the same tale -- more or less -- about the character's rise from adversity to something greater.  While My Week with Marilyn certainly follows the biopic formula, it fortunately only gives us a glimpse at the sexy and alluring Marilyn Monroe (played quite well by Michelle Williams) during a brief stint in her life when she traveled to London to make the film The Prince and the Showgirl with Laurence Olivier (played over-the-top [although I imagine Olivier was that way in real life] by Kenneth Branagh).  Giving the audience only a small chapter of the well-known Monroe's life proves to be a much better moviegoing experience and allows the viewers to infer how events prior to making this film, her time during the filmmaking process, and her years after starring in The Prince and the Showgirl all shaped her into the tragic figure she became.  The sheer fact that we're allowed to "infer" things is a welcome relief in this day and age when we're always hit over the head with everything as filmgoers.

The film -- which is a showcase of the power struggle between Monroe and Olivier during the making of the frivolous romantic comedy in 1956 -- can be summed up in one good line spoken by Dominic Cooper (I believe) portraying Marilyn's manager Milton Greene:  "[Sir Laurence] is an artist wanting to be a film star; [Marilyn] is a film star wanting to be an artist."  The two just don't mesh, but by the end of the filming process they've perhaps made each other a bit better at their craft.  Although this struggle between the two powerhouse actors is certainly front and center, the "My" in My Week with Marilyn refers to the young 23-year-old Colin Clark (Eddie Redmayne), a young Brit who, despite his parents' disdain, travels to London to work on the set of the Olivier picture.  While performing the task of the third assistant director -- essentially a glorified intern position -- he befriends Marilyn whose method acting techniques are causing huge issues with the cast and crew of the production.  The two bond and, as any young man would be, Colin becomes quite enamored with Ms. Monroe who despite having just married her third husband Arthur Miller (Dougray Scott) is already having some marital issues which may very well work in Colin's favor.

As a fan of movies, admittedly it's fun to see "behind the scenes" stories like these and this film is no exception.  The scenes on set with the bombastic Olivier and out-of-her-element Marilyn are brilliantly funny -- Branagh's Olivier, in particular, is also a hoot as he grows ever more exacerbated in the scenes.  Admittedly, I'm not all that familiar with Olivier, but I can't help but imagine Branagh's rather snooty interpretation of the guy -- who not only acted in The Prince and the Showgirl, but also directed it -- is spot-on.  Adding to the excitement is a very nice turn from Judi Dench playing Dame Sybil Thorndike who becomes somewhat of a loving mother to Marilyn on set and a hilarious turn from Zoë Wanamaker as Paula Strasberg, Marilyn's famous acting coach in the Stanislavski acting method which created much tension with Olivier.

The film falters a bit, however, when we walk away from the movie set.  Most notably, there's a throwaway subplot involving a romance between Colin and a young costume designer (played by Harry Potter's Emma Watson in a completely thankless role) that could have been (and should have been) left on the cutting room floor.  Additionally, as Marilyn begins a downward spiral after several difficult weeks on the set, the film shifts much too awkwardly from a light comedy to a rather serious look at the toils and troubles that made up Marilyn's life.  The tonal shift never quite finds an appropriate balance which is a shame.

Fortunately, never once does Ms. Williams' performance shift into a caricature of Monroe which it so easily could have done.  Surprisingly, however, Williams ends up shining in the more intimate moments of the film's second half rather than the comedic realm of the first half.  This ends up working in the movie's favor as us viewers can latch on to Williams' performance when the film -- which becomes a bit too psychoanalytical for its own good -- begins to falter.

The RyMickey Rating:  C+

Movie Review - J. Edgar

J. Edgar (2011)

Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Armie Hammer, Naomi Watts, Josh Lucas, and Judi Dench

Directed by Clint Eastwood

Oh, Clint Eastwood.  I'm gonna call you "Old Reliable" now seeing as how I can always count on your movies to be a total and utter bore.  J. Edgar lived up to that lofty (or lowly) expectation.  While it was perhaps slightly more interesting than Hereafter and Invictus thanks to its subject matter alone, Eastwood's flick just feels dark and heavy at every single turn from the acting to the brooding set design to the uninspired stuffy direction.  Somehow, though, despite the hefty feel of everything in the flick, there's an utter emptiness in terms of dramatic tension.

The saving grace of the film is that Eastwood and screenwriter Dustin Lance Black jump back and forth through time to various stages of the FBI creator J. Edgar Hoover's career and there's at least a bit of fun trying to pinpoint where in the timeline we are based off of the make-up caked onto Leonardo DiCaprio.  (It should be noted that a couple reviews I read panned the make-up in this flick, but I thought it was fine and sometimes quite good.)  However, the remainder of the flick's story much of which is composed of a ridiculously written romance between Hoover (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his secret paramour Clyde Tolson (Armie Hammer) plays out like a silly soap opera complete with a hotel room slapfest (that ends in a smooch on the lips) with the requisite throwing of a glass against a wall followed by shouted sayings like "How dare you! But don't leave me!  I love you!"  

Hoover was a helluva guy.  Overly ambitious it seems, but strongly believing that everything he did (whether it be wiretapping Martin Luther King, Jr.'s hotel room sexcapades or claiming to have scoop on Communist ties to Eleanor Roosevelt) was done in order to strengthen his position and the FBI's position in the government.  Sure, on one hand he was attempting to overthrow radicals in the country, but on the other hand he was becoming that dictatorial presence that he so despised.  Add the cross-dressing (which is only lightly touched upon and done so in a rather horrifying Norman Bates-ish Psycho manner) and the gay aspect of the guy and there's gotta be a good story there.  It's just not present in the movie.

Leonardo DiCaprio was fine (although oddly uncharismatic) and did a pretty darn good job at creating six decades of a character through changes in movement and speech.  Naomi Watts was adequate in what amounted to a very plain role as Hoover's longtime loyal secretary Helen Gandy.  Her character was in the film quite a bit, but wasn't given a whole lot else to do beyond saying, "Yes, sir," which just ends up wasting many minutes of the 140-minute runtime.  Still, DiCaprio and Watts were the two bright spots here.  Armie Hammer (whose role in The Social Network landed him in spot #5 on last year's Breakthrough Star RyMickey Awards) was overacting quite a bit, playing his role of Hoover's gay confidante Clyde Tolson with never a smidgeon of believability.  The screenplay does him no favors as it makes Clyde love fashion and dress impeccably (not that those are necessarily inherent characteristics of a gay man, but the way the movie plays them up it most certainly is intended to be that way).  And let's not even get started on Judi Dench who seemed to be sleepwalking through this thing as Hoover's overbearing mother -- another role in which the screenplay does no favors to the actor playing the part.

The personal life of J. Edgar Hoover admittedly isn't all that well-documented so who really knows if he was gay or a cross-dresser.  The problem is that J. Edgar skirts around these issues incredibly awkwardly and while it takes stands (to a degree) as to whether these rumors were true, it never attacks them head-on and it creates a lack of drama because of that.  

The RyMickey Rating:  D+

Movie Review - Jane Eyre

Jane Eyre (2011)

Starring Mia Wasikowska, Michael Fassbender, Judi Dench, Sally Hawkins, and Jamie Bell

Directed by Cary Fukunaga

Jane Eyre is a rather lovely film with beautiful cinematography, skillful direction, wonderful acting, and a melodic violin-heavy score.  It's also a period piece with a story that's so utterly depressing at times that it's a struggle to trudge through it.  In the movie's defense, I attempted to read the Charlotte Brontë's 1847 novel over the summer and had to stop at its midpoint because I just couldn't get into the thing.  Despite everything being well-above-average in terms of a "film," the story unfortunately drags a bit despite the fact that at the film's end I couldn't help but be somewhat moved by the romanticism on display.

After her parents die, young Jane is sent to live with her aunt (Sally Hawkins) who is angered by the ward left to her by her relatives.  Rather than deal with the child whom she despises, she sends Jane off to an all-girl's boarding school where she remains until her late teens at which point she accepts the position of a governess.  While working at Thornfield Hall, Jane (Mia Wasikowska) finds herself oddly drawn to the master of the house, Mr. Edward Rochester (Michael Fassbender) and he likewise to her.  The two are certainly from different social strata and it seemingly hinders Jane's ability to comprehend that Mr. Rochester could ever be in love with her, causing the young lady to suffer quite a bit under the emotional stress she begins to feel.

The brooding, heavy nature of the tale does cause Jane Eyre to be slow moving, but I certainly appreciate the Gothic tones on display (including a detour into "ghost" territory that provides an interesting twist to the whole story).  Still, I couldn't help but find the whole movie falling into that stereotypical "boringness" that so often permeates British period pieces (despite admirable attempts by director Cary Fukunaga to shake things up including some jumping around in time not present in the novel).

All that said, the film is full of wonderful things.  Its dark shadowy aesthetics are appropriately ominous and are always interesting to watch.  Coupled with a beautiful and haunting musical score, Jane Eyre is a feast for the eyes and the ears.  There are also some great performances from the two leads in an emotionally restrained Mia Wasikowska (in certainly her best role yet) and the somewhat sinister man with a heart of gold Michael Fassbender (who is one of 2011's "People to Watch" apparently based on buzz from his roles in this, the new X-Men film, and the upcoming Shame).

Ultimately, although the film lacks some fire in its story, Jane Eyre has much to admire even though it may not be suited for all tastes.

The RyMickey Rating:  B-

Movie Review - Nine (2009)

Starring Daniel Day-Lewis, Marion Cotillard, Penélope Cruz, Judi Dench, Fergie, Kate Hudson, Nicole Kidman, and Sophia Loren
Directed by Rob Marshall

As of this writing, Nine (not 9, the other 2009 release with the same title) is a conundrum to me. The more that I think of it (it's been settling in for about four hours now), the more I like it. In fact, I'm beginning to truly appreciate Rob Marshall's take on the Broadway musical which itself is a take on Frederico Fellini's 1963 film 8 1/2 (which, like most Italian cinema, I haven't seen...I'm not remotely familiar with the Broadway musical either). There's something really good here -- I think a huge chunk of the "good" lies in Marshall's direction. Unfortunately, there's some bad here, too, and that lies in the music behind the musical. When the music in your musical is lukewarm, it casts an unfortunate pallor over the whole affair and that seems to be the case here.

Guido Contini (Day-Lewis) is a famous Italian film director in the 1960s. He's in the midst of directing his latest film, the ambitious Italia, when he begins to have a mid-life crisis-type occurrence. The film he's making is somewhat autobiographical -- his take on how great women can affect a great man -- and Guido begins to think back on seven important women in his life (why not nine women? I have not clue). For some reason or another (this is a musical after all), all of these flashbacks occur with the ladies singing a song about their relationship with Guido.

Similar to Marshall's previous big screen musical, Chicago, in which the musical numbers were figments of characters' imaginations, all of the songs in Nine take place in Guido's mind. While this theatrical device works, I must admit that it took me a bit to warm up to the technique, but three songs in or so, I was on the bandwagon with Marshall. It helps that Marshall utilizes a variety of techniques during these flashbacks. While he overuses the quick cut, I appreciated how a few flashbacks were in beautiful black-and-white, really creating that old Italian film look (or that old Italian film look I've seen in clip retrospectives since, as I mentioned above, I'm quite unfamiliar with Italian cinema).

The burden of the film seems to be that the music just isn't all that good. Black-Eyed Peas singer Fergie actually has the most memorable and catchy song by far -- "Be Italian" -- and she performs it with zest. Kate Hudson sings "Cinema Italiano" which was apparently specifically written for the film and this number is also upbeat, whimsical, and enjoyable. I must admit that I never really got the love affair with Penélope Cruz's looks prior to this film, however she was completely sexy and alluring in her song (it's unfortunate that she's burdened with a silly subplot throughout the film). Judi Dench, Sophia Loren, and Nicole Kidman unfortunately come off the worst here, with Loren and Kidman being stuck with the worst songs by far in the flick (both of which come towards the end of the film, bringing the film to a halt after it had been on somewhat of an uptick).

By far, the shining star of the women here is Marion Cotillard. As Guido's wife, she gets to sing two songs, both of which, to me, contain the heart, soul, and emotional center of the film. As she longs for her husband to be faithful, she realizes that she's probably fighting a losing battle. Her "My Husband Makes Movies" was just heartbreaking and she sells it.

Daniel Day-Lewis is perfectly adequate and believable as the man-slut of the film. While I don't really think he learns his lesson in the end, I bought Day-Lewis as this sleazy director. But even though the film's center is his Guido, the film really belongs to the women in his life and Marshall rightly puts the focus on them.

I really think that this is a film that I will grow to appreciate more on repeated viewings. For now, though, I'm going to say Nine's a flawed picture. Rob Marshall certainly moves the episodic film along, but, in the end, it's really just that -- an episodic film that goes from woman to woman in Guido's life, giving each of them a song to sing with several of those songs being lukewarm at the very best.

The RyMickey Rating: C+