Ford v Ferrari

Ford v Ferrari (2019)

Starring Matt Damon, Christian Bale, Jon Bernthal, Caitriona Balfe, Tracy Letts, Josh Lucas, Ray McKinnon, and Noah Jupe

Directed by James Mangold

Written by Jez Butterworth, John-Henry Butterworth, and Jason Keller

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  C

Suburbicon

Suburbicon (2017)

Starring Matt Damon, Julianne Moore, Noah Jupe, and Oscar Issac

Directed by George Clooney

Written by Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, George Clooney, and Grant Heslov

Summary (in 500 words or less):  The quaint cookie cutter town of 1950a Suburbicon is rocked by two incidences -- the arrival of a black family to the heretofore white neighborhood and a deadly home invasion that rocks the world of young Nicky Lodge (Noah Jupe) who begins to realize that his father (Matt Damon) may hold some dark secrets.

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  C-

Downsizing

Downsizing (2017)

Starring Matt Damon, Christoph Waltz, Hong Chao, Kristen Wiig, and Jason Sudeikis

Directed by Alexander Payne

Written by Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor

Summary (in 500 words or less):  In an attempt to control overpopulation, scientists have successfully created a way to shrink humans down to about a half a foot where they live in miniature communities, utilizing less resources and creating less waste.  Husband and wife Paul and Audrey (Matt Damon and Kristen Wiig) decide to undergo the treatment which creates a bit of chaos in their new lives

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating: C-

Movie Review - Jason Bourne

***Movie #5 of BOURNE Week***

Jason Bourne (2016)

Starring Matt Damon, Tommy Lee Jones, Alicia Vikander, Vincent Cassel, Riz Ahmed, and Julia Stiles

Directed by Paul Greengrass

Director Paul Greengrass and actor Matt Damon make their return to the action series that really made both of them famous with Jason Bourne which tosses Bourne Legacy star Jeremy Renner to the curb as we delve back into the story of the title character.  Unfortunately, in the first film in the series not to be co-written by Tony Gilroy, the flick flounders a bit, feeling more like a rehash rather than something original.

By now, we all get that the CIA is trying to shut down many of their special ops units -- they've been doing so for the past four movies -- so when former agent Nicky Parsons (Julia Stiles) finds and downloads a ton of info on the specialized programs, she quickly becomes a target of the CIA.  After Nicky enlists his help, Bourne discovers via the documents that his father helped to create the very same secret program that enlisted his son.  However, via flashbacks that begin to haunt Bourne, we discover that Bourne's father was killed in a violent terrorist attack in the Middle East.  Bourne soon begins to realize, however, that this father's death may not have been at the hands of a terrorist, but rather from his employers in the CIA, giving Bourne this film's vendetta to find the men responsible for his father's death.

Unfortunately, Bourne's vendetta is much too similar to everything we saw in the first three films of the series.  Rather than feel fresh, Jason Bourne ends up seeming like a repeat of everything we've seen.  The film certainly isn't awful -- Damon is good and the cast surrounding him works well together -- but it's too much of the same thing.  Tommy Lee Jones as the CIA head takes the place of David Strathairn and Chris Cooper's characters.  Alicia Vikander as the understanding, friendly CIA agent is Joan Allen's Pamela Landy.  Vincent Cassel as a hit man is like Clive Owen in the first film.  The script by Paul Greengrass and Christopher Rouse fails to do anything other than hit the notes that worked in the first three films.  Sure, the action sequences upped the ante -- including a decidedly un-Bourne-like Las Vegas chase scene that is so catastrophically damaging to the city that it feels like it was picked out from a Transformers movie -- but they're not enough to push the story to a fresh place.  You could certainly do worse when it comes to summer action flicks than Jason Bourne, but this final movie (thus far) in the Bourne series is unfortunately the worst.

The RyMickey Rating:  C

Movie Review - The Bourne Ultimatum

***Movie #3 of BOURNE Week***

The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)

Starring Matt Damon, Joan Allen, David Strathairn, Scott Glenn, Paddy Considine, Albert Finney, and Julia Stiles

Directed by Paul Greengrass

Director Paul Greengrass returns a little wiser with The Bourne Ultimatum, the best Bourne film in the series up to this point.  Seemingly put together as a bit of a final chapter for the character of Jason Bourne, Ultimatum succeeds because it brings the character full circle, becoming fully aware of both the reasons he lost his memory and why he worked for the CIA.  While Matt Damon had thus far been a bit bland, he comes alive a little bit here as he tries to uncover the mystery of the CIA program Blackbriar which has turned his world upside down for the past few years.

Full of some nice smaller performances, The Bourne Ultimatum carries the most tension throughout with Greengrass really able to maintain excitement and verve not only his action sequences, but also within the film's calmer moments.  The action scenes, in particular, are the best we've seen in the series so far with a lengthy opening one involving Bourne and a British reporter (Paddy Considine) who is beginning to uncover Blackbriar the most thrilling.  Admittedly, Greengrass's penchant for quick cuts and shaky camera movements feels more obvious in this installment than his first venture, but it worked here, creating a bit of a chaotic feeling surrounding the main character.

The Bourne Ultimatum certainly had an advantage working in its favor in that it was trying to somewhat neatly tie things up in a bow for the character of Jason Bourne, so the sense of finality helps the flick.  Even without that, though, the film's technical aspects are the best in the series so far.

The RyMickey Rating:  B

Movie Review - The Bourne Supremacy

***Movie #2 of BOURNE Week***
The Bourne Supremacy (2004)

Starring Matt Damon, Franka Potente, Joan Allen, Brian Cox, Karl Urban, and Julia Stiles

Directed by Paul Greengrass

Director Paul Greengrass carries a certain amount of caché for me as he helmed one of the films that is part of my Personal Canon -- United 93.  The Bourne Supremacy, however, was only his third feature film and his first big budget Hollywood flick...and unfortunately, his nascence shows a little here.

Two years have passed since the events of The Bourne Identity and Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) and his girlfriend Marie (Franka Potente) are living a peaceful existence in India.  In Russia, however, the CIA are in the midst of an operation headed by Deputy Director Pamela Landy (Joan Allen) to retrieve the "Neski Files" which contain details about the theft of millions of dollars of CIA allocations.  The mission is interrupted when a Russian agent steals the files, kills all the CIA agents present, and plants Bourne's fingerprints at the scene of the crime.  The Russian agent then sets out on a mission to kill Bourne, but that goes horribly awry, sending Bourne out into the world to track down the man who tried to assassinate him.  Meanwhile, Landy and the CIA believe that former agent Bourne is the one who killed their men in Russia.  With Bourne being tracked down by both the Russians and the CIA -- with both seemingly intent to end his life -- he's found himself in a bit of trouble again all the while trying to overcome his amnesia to determine how exactly he became a spy for the CIA in the first place.

Most pleasant about The Bourne Supremacy is that it does a nice job of slowly building the backstory of the title character.  Getting little tidbits here and there places the viewer in Bourne's shoes -- just as he is unaware of his background, we are as well.  This ambiguity connects us to the character in a way that most other films of this ilk are unable.

However, The Bourne Supremacy feels a little too complex for its own good.  It's not that it's particularly confusing, it's just that it seems "big" and more worldly than it needs to be.  Having Russian spies trying to frame Bourne in an effort to keep info from the US expanded the story beyond where I felt or wanted it to be, pulling the focus too much away from Bourne himself.  Director Greengrass also lacks the eye just yet to really lens an action sequence, with many of the moments feeling less impressive than director Doug Liman's venture in the series' first film.  Fortunately for the series, by the time Greengrass went behind the camera again for the third Bourne edition, he learned a tremendous amount.

The RyMickey Rating:  C+

Movie Review - The Bourne Identity

***Movie #1 of BOURNE Week***
The Bourne Identity (2002)

Starring Matt Damon, Franka Potente, Chris Cooper, Clive Owen, Brian Cox, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, and Julia Stiles

Directed by Doug Liman

It had been a long time since my last viewing of any movie in the Bourne series, so much so that I couldn't quite remember how many of the films I had actually seen.  With the latest film hitting theaters in 2016, I figured I'd revisit the series to determine if my lackluster feeling towards the films (so far as I could remember) was warranted.  After rewatching the first flick, The Bourne Identity, "lackluster" may be too strong of a negative word, but I will say that the flick was a surprisingly low-key affair, lacking the pivotal action sequences we've come to except from films in this "spy-ish" genre.

Granted, I'm all for reinventing the wheel, but The Bourne Identity doesn't really do that either.  What is unique about it is that is gives us a main character who doesn't know anything about himself -- who he is, what he does, what he's done -- when he is found lifelessly floating in a European sea and picked up by a boat.  Shot multiple times, one of the crew members nurses him back to health, discovering an embedded laser chip that seems to reveal the location of a safety deposit box.  Giving the chip to the nameless man upon arrival at a port, upon locating the box in Zurich, the man discovers that this name is Jason Bourne (Matt Damon), but he still doesn't know anything about himself.  However, he continues to have horrific violent memories popping into his mind of him seemingly committing crimes and he is surprisingly adept at fighting, using weapons, and thinking quickly on his feet.  Add to that, upon removing his items from the safety deposit box, he finds himself on the run from operatives who seem to be chasing him down for some reason.  Hoping to elude them, Bourne convinces a German woman named Marie (Franka Potente) to drive him to Paris where he believes he will uncover the truth about who he really is.

The Bourne Identity is certainly a solid piece of cinema and a decent film in the spy genre.  However, in director Doug Liman's hands, the film feels a little bland.  It doesn't take any chances visually and while that's not necessarily a bad thing, it doesn't ever feel special because of it.  The minimalist action sequences all work, but I surprisingly walked away from the film wanting a little more oomph and drive from those particular cinematic moments.  The character of Jason Bourne himself is an interesting one, though, whose story could easily be followed for subsequent films particularly due to his pre-amnesiac involvement in the CIA (which is revealed very early in the film, so no spoilers there).  While I didn't particularly love The Bourne Identity, things were looking up as I headed into the second film in the series...but would the Paul Greengrass-directed sequel continue my "This isn't as bad as I remember" mindset?

The RyMickey Rating:  B-

Movie Review - The Martian

The Martian (2015)

Starring Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, Kristen Wiig, Jeff Daniels, Michael Peña, Sean Bean, Kate Mara, Sebastian Stan, Aksel Hennie, Mackenzie Davis, Donald Glover, and Chiwetel Ejiofor

Directed by Ridley Scott

A huge success this fall, I avoided The Martian until the final week it was in theaters (heck, it's being released on Blu-Ray in less than a month) because of a lengthier running time in a genre that I don't dislike but isn't particularly my favorite.  Science fiction flicks oftentimes feel so heavily bogged down with jargon or "deep thinking" that they just don't seem fun.  (I'm talking to you, Interstellar - a film that I didn't mind, but at times felt like a chore to watch.)  While The Martian certainly has hefty scientific details running through it, director Ridley Scott's film is surprisingly witty, full of some charming performances, and has a story that is briskly paced and immensely enjoyable.

Matt Damon is, for all intents and purposes, the title character.  In 2035, botanist Mark Watney is left behind on Mars by the crew of the Ares III after he is struck by debris during a gigantic dust storm and unable to be found.  All indications according to the life support systems in Mark's suit point to him being dead so the crew (Jessica Chastain, Michael Peña, Kate Mara, Sebastian Stan, and Aksel Hennie) -- forced to make a difficult decision as the huge storm will soon make their ship unable to function -- start their three year journey home saddened for Mark's apparent death.  After the storm dissipates, Mark wakes up to find his suit impaled by an antenna which took out his biometer, but also, when mixed with Mark's blood, formed a seal on the suit keeping Mark alive.  Mark returns to the Mars astronaut base and begins to analyze his next moves.  Unable to communicate with Earth, Mark figures out a variety of ingenious ways to keep himself alive in hopes that at some point, he'll be able to get back in touch with NASA.

Meanwhile on Earth, satellite analyst Mindy Park (Mackenzie Davis) notices that there is movement on Mars in the area where the Ares crew lived while on the planet and determines that Mark is actually alive.  She immediately informs NASA director Teddy Sanders, NASA media relations head Annie Montrose, and Mars mission director Vincent Kapoor (respectively Jeff Daniels, Kristen Wiig, and Chiwetel Ejiofor) and plans are put into place to attempt to get Mark back.

Undoubtedly, The Martian is one of director Ridley Scott's best films -- and certainly his best in over a decade.  Quite frankly, I'm amazed at how involved I found myself in the story.  While not as solitary as a film like Cast Away in which Tom Hanks was essentially the only character onscreen, for huge portions of The Martian Matt Damon is the only actor onscreen.  Rather cleverly, screenwriter Drew Goddard has crafted a device where he has Mark talk to a computer screen in a video diary-type set-up which allows the audience to get into Mark's head and allows for quite a few comedic moments as Mark contemplates how to survive.  Combined, Scott's direction and Goddard's script keep things moving at an incredibly solid and tremendously surprising clip, creating a film that's hugely pleasant to watch.

While I certainly don't have anything against the actor, Matt Damon has never been a favorite of mine, but I must admit that the actor is quite captivating here.  There's a charm he brings to Mark that's intensely watchable, handling the humor and drama quite well and balancing both with ease.  The rest of the cast is also quite solid with not a bad egg in the bunch, but even though folks like Jeff Daniels and Chiwetel Ejiofor figure in quite a bit story-wise, this is really Damon's film and he holds our interest much more than I ever thought he would.

Admittedly, the film's big set piece that makes up the conclusion seems a little far-fetched, but despite the ridiculousness of it, I still found the denouement quite compelling and excitingly lensed.  Quite honestly, though, what's most intriguing about The Martian is how the science of what keeps Mark alive is placed so squarely front and center and seems shockingly plausible (with the exception of that seemingly ludicrous conclusion).  Not only is The Martian funny, but it's also surprisingly smart...and somehow it's still enjoyable.  Kudos to the entire team behind this one as I wasn't expecting to enjoy this one nearly as much as I did.

The RyMickey Rating:  B+

Movie Review - Interstellar

Interstellar (2014)

Starring Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain, David Gyasi, Wes Bentley Mackenzie Foy, John Lithgow, Timothée Chalamet, Casey Affleck, Matt Damon, Topher Grace, Ellen Burstyn, and Michael Caine

Directed by Christopher Nolan

I was extremely wary about Interstellar.  During its theatrical run, I found myself avoiding it due to its nearly three-hour running time and the much-gossiped about notion that its story was too talky and too befuddling.  So, with trepidation I sat down to watch director and co-screenwriter Christopher Nolan's Interstellar in one sitting not expecting to enjoy myself.  Obviously, this lede is insinuating that I liked the film and that intimation would be true.  While not without its faults, Interstellar is a surprisingly action-filled drama that, while certainly "deep" and a bit convoluted, is much easier to comprehend than I expected.

To make a (very) long story short, Earth is dying and within several years, it will be uninhabitable.  While driving around with his daughter one evening, former astronaut Joseph Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) stumbles upon a secret NASA facility wherein scientists are building a spaceship that can send a crew to explore the far regions of space to look for another planet that can sustain human life.  Much to his daughter Murph's (Mackenze Foy) chagrin, Cooper agrees to take part in the mission which will likely take him away from home for several years.  This connection between father and daughter continues to take shape as the film progresses with Murph aging into a young woman (played by Jessica Chastain) and Cooper still out in space.

Interstellar works best when it finds itself in space.  There's a harrowing sense of anticipation and excitement in nearly every story element as Cooper and his fellow astronauts (Anne Hathaway, Wes Bentlely, and David Gyasi) desperately struggle to find a place where the human race can survive for eons to come.  As they journey from planet to planet, they're forced to make some tough decisions which are intellectually complex, though at the same time fathomable to the general movie-going public.

Unfortunately, Insterstellar takes a long time to actually get Cooper up into space.  For nearly an hour, we find Cooper and his family bemoaning the state of the Earth and then debating whether Cooper should take on the space mission.  I remember about forty minutes in looking at how much time was left and getting antsy that there was still nearly two hours to go.  I recognize the need to set up a father/daughter relationship in the first act, but Nolan and his co-screenwriter brother Jonathan fail to keep things moving and the languid pace weighs down the entire film.

As mentioned, though, once we're in space, Interstellar becomes an intriguing film.  The special effects are top notch and the sound design (which got dinged a bit by critics who watched the film in theaters) works fine on a small screen sound system.  The acting is solid, but I had a few qualms with Matthew McConaughey's lead performance as Cooper.  First, I wanted him to open his damn mouth when he talked because multiple times it sounded as if he was talking with a handful of marbles in his mouth.  Perhaps more importantly, though, I felt that he looked bored for most of the flick.  Unlike other characters who were desperately trying to save their planet and complete a successful mission, McConaughey's Cooper didn't convey that sense of urgency.  While there are certainly moments in space during which McConaughey successfully showcases his emotions as a father longing to be reunited with his children, overall I felt that Cooper left me longing to connect with him seeing as how he was the crux of the whole film.

Despite some qualms, Interstellar actually provides a rather enjoyable experience.  Did I understand everything that happens at the end as the film veers into some weird metaphysical stuff?  Nope.  But I at least didn't feel like I was completely oblivious to the proceedings.  If you were wary like me to see this because of these fears of confusion (or simply because of the film's length), let me brush those aside for you and beckon you to give Interstellar a chance.

The RyMickey Rating:  B

Movie Review - The Monuments Men

The Monuments Men (2014)

Starring George Clooney, Matt Damon, Bill Murray, Cate Blanchett, John Goodman, Jean Dujardin, Hugh Bonneville, and Bob Balaban

Directed by George Clooney

Director George Clooney's The Monuments Men definitely feels like a throwback to the days when "Hogan's Heroes" was on tv.  That show went straight for the comedic aspects of WWII, but The Monuments Men attempts to mix comedy and drama and Clooney and his fellow screenwriter don't quite mesh the two together.  Unfortunately, this creates a film that never finds its footing, feeling slightly off balance all the way throughout with the comedic aspects never quite being funny enough and the dramatic aspects never quite mustering up the emotion they likely should.

Clooney's trademark charm is evident throughout the film -- and not just in his acting.  The film itself feels deeply rooted in 1960s cinema, a time when things were perhaps more innocent.  Yes, The Monuments Men is a war movie, but this is no Saving Private Ryan in terms of blood, guts, and action.  Instead, the film focuses on a band of merry older men with backgrounds in art who are brought together to retrieve important European sculptures, paintings, and other artistic media that Hitler's Nazi army took upon their take-overs of various countries.  These men -- played by Clooney, Matt Damon, Bill Murray, John Goodman, Jean Dujardin, Hugh Bonneville, and Bob Balaban -- have no military experience yet are thrown head-first into some war-torn parts of Europe where the Nazi regime -- although now retreating as the war comes to an end -- has not quite abandoned.

Unfortunately, Clooney's desire to create a more lighthearted romp with the serious subject matter doesn't work in the film's favor.  While I understand the drive behind the film and Clooney's inclination to imbue comedy into this tragic war, the humor waters down the serious moments whenever they pop up.  Rather than feel an emotional connection to several tragic occurrences that happen in the film, the relationship the audience has with the characters isn't there in the way that it should be which is a big detriment in the film's serious moments.  Perhaps a more deft director could have righted the ship, but Clooney doesn't quite have the chops yet.  I certainly appreciate the charming vibe he brought to the piece, but The Monuments Men simply doesn't balance itself out on the scale between humor and seriousness and this off-kilter nature is its downfall.

The RyMickey Rating:  C

Movie Review - Elysium

Elysium (2013)

Starring Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, Sharlto Copley, William Fichtner, Alice Braga, Wagner Moura, and Diego Luna

Directed by Neill Blomkamp

While Elysium takes place in the mid-22nd century, the basis of its plot shows us that the battle between the haves and the have-nots hasn't changed much 150 years from now.  Of course, rich people are bad, poor people are good, and there's no middle ground.  If you buy into this conceit you're probably a liberal, you may enjoy Neill Blomkamp's flick, but I found this dystopian future (so many dystopian futures lately in film) tiresome and obnoxious.

By the late 21st century, Earth has become diseased and polluted.  With the run-down land, Earth's wealthiest inhabitants fled to the space colony of Elysium in order to continue their way of life.  Elysium is just like Earth used to be except for the fact that this controlled environment drifts along through space.  Down on Earth, Max (Matt Damon) is a hard-working guy who's had his share of trouble with the law.  He ends up getting into a horrible accident at work in which he is exposed to a large amount of radiation which only gives him three days to live.  Rather than spend it on the hell that is Earth, he decides that he's going to try and do all he can to get to Elysium.  An associate named Spider (Wagner Moura) agrees to help him, but first he asks that Max steal some information from a powerful executive (William Fichtner) that will allow Spider to possibly take control of Elysium.  Through some convoluted nonsense, Max ends up undergoing a surgery that gives him a powerful exoskeleton that protects him when he goes to meet the exec and...yeah...I'm just gonna stop there, because can you top the notion of a powerful exoskeleton?

Seeing as how Max is trying to bring down Elysium (or at the very least make it more open to the general populous), many on Elysium aren't happy about this including Elysium's Secretary of Defense Delacourt (Jodie Foster).  Foster employs some weird accent (part South African-part Annoying) and couples that with some awkwardly-mannered jerky movements that make her presence off-the-charts odd (and not in a good way).  Toss in a weirdly overacting Sharlto Copley as some Elysium agent living on Earth who attempts to take out Max and Matt Damon ends up looking like one of the best actors ever to grace the screen in comparison.

Elysium looks ragged and worn-down from the outset (which I guess is the point), but it couldn't even visually intrigue me to make up for the lukewarm story and horrid acting.  It certainly doesn't help that the overarching theme of "rising up to defeat the man" felt tired and irksome.  Neil Blomkamp may have had success with the Best Picture-nominated District 9 (which I thought itself was overrated), but this just felt like more of the same in all aspects and it pales in comparison.

The RyMickey Rating:  D

Movie Review - Margaret

Margaret (2011)

Starring Anna Paquin, J. Smith-Cameron, Mark Ruffalo, Jeannie Berlin, Jean Reno, Allison Janney, Kieran Culkin, Matthew Broderick, and Matt Damon

Directed by Kenneth Lonergan

2006 was when Margaret was made.  2006.  That means this film was delayed five years before its release which is typically never a good sign.  However, after this film ended up being the number one movie of 2011 on an awards site I frequent and enjoy reading, I was looking forward to seeing this.  Instead of being treated to what some have called the best of last year, I slogged through 150 minutes of an odd tale with tons of loose strands filled oftentimes with bad acting, stilted dialog, and an overall stuffiness that never fades away.  I simply can't fathom that the director's original cut was over three hours.

Maybe I just don't get it, though.  There's supposed to be some deep connection to 9/11 here, but that just flew right over this reviewer's head.  Then again, lots of things in this movie just boggled my mind.  The story itself is relatively simple and the fact that it's stretched out to an epic length is, to me, simply a directorial folly.  While out on the streets of New York City looking for a cowboy hat for a trip to a ranch with her father, teenage Lisa (Anna Paquin) witnesses a tragic bus accident that kills a woman who just so happened to be crossing the street.  She can't help but feel that she is partially responsible for the event, feeling that she distracted the driver (Mark Ruffalo).  Lisa is a spoiled brat whose mom Joan (J. Smith-Cameron) is a burgeoning Off-Broadway actress and their relationship was already on shaky ground prior to the accident, but now it's falling off the deep end with both females at each others' throats.  Lisa eventually decides to try and seek some type of redemption for the woman who was killed by attempting to legally go after the bus driver, but that's the extent of the "plot" of the film.

Beyond what was laid out to you, the film meanders through a bunch of subplots that don't go anywhere and don't add anything to the story.  Joan starts dating some foreign guy (Jean Reno) who loves opera.  Lisa decides to lose her virginity not to the nice guy who genuinely cares for her, but to the druggie "cool" artist (Kieran Culkin) who deflowers her and then is completely abandoned by writer-director Kenneth Lonergan for the rest of the movie.  Lisa flirts with her math teacher (Matt Damon) which causes their relationship to slowly shift to shakier ground, leading to absolutely one of the worst scenes I've ever seen in a movie in which -- SPOILER ALERT -- in the film's final moments, Lisa rushes up to him and says that she's had an abortion which we have no clue is true (and if it is true was he responsible for it?) or simply retaliation for something.  This was so out of the blue that my eyes rolled and I let out a huge guffaw.  END SPOILER ALERT

Margaret just goes on and on, not knowing when to end.  It certainly doesn't help that it's peppered with uneven performances which are likely in part disappointing thanks to some of the most awkward dialog I've heard in recent years.  Anna Paquin -- even a "six years ago Anna Paquin" -- just plays the high school Lisa so awkwardly it's uncomfortable.  Her opening scenes lacked any modicum of believability that I was immediately disconnected from the film.  Admittedly, she does get better as the film progresses, but I still found her very off-putting.  It doesn't help that her character's motives for seeking retaliation against the bus driver are barely laid out and seem selfish rather than selfless.  Jeannie Berlin who plays the dead woman's best friend is playing things very naturalistic...almost too much so for a movie.  I realize that's an awkwardly-worded criticism, but I have no other way to describe it.  There were some emotional moments where I thought Ms. Berlin was rather brilliant and very effective, but in the simpler scenes where she's asked to recite basic dialog, I found her odd and almost too harsh to watch.  Similarly, the rest of the cast was just misguided by Lonergan.  His way of writing just didn't click for me.

And the less said about his direction and his lack of skills in the editing department the better.  Margaret was a real disappointment for me.  It's not even one of those movies that I can say was an admirable failure.  I just didn't get what I was supposed to take away from it.  It's a very basic story drawn out to a nearly epic length that simply doesn't work.

The RyMickey Rating:  D+

Movie Review - Contagion

Contagion (2011)

Starring Marion Cotillard, Matt Damon, Laurence Fishburne, Jude Law, Gwyneth Paltrow, Kate Winslet, Bryan Cranston, Jennifer Ehle, John Hawkes, Sanaa Lathan, and Elliot Gould

Directed by Steven Soderbergh

Contagion is a modern-day version of those 70s "classics" like Earthquake and The Towering Inferno.  Let's put a bunch of well-known actors into a plot, throw in a natural disaster, and see who makes it out alive.  Unlike those special effects-laden films of a few decades ago, however, Contagion is actually good.  

Really good.  

And genuinely frightening.  I do think that, in the end, Steven Soderbergh's thriller about a new strain of deadly virus wreaking havoc on the world hopes that it feels "important."  And while it certainly paints a rather grim picture of what would happen should such an incident occur, I can't help but think it seems more "fluffy" than "substantial," but that's certainly not a bad thing in this case because it still succeeds at nearly every level.

The film opens on a black screen with the sound of someone coughing.  And already the mood is ominous.  We discover (thanks to a subtitle on the screen) that we are in Day 2 of this new viral outbreak and we see the young and vibrant Beth Emhoff (Gwyneth Paltrow) sitting at an airport bar talking on the phone with a man whom she just slept with.  All seems fine...except then we realize that Beth is the person whom we heard coughing mere seconds ago.  And Soderbergh makes it very clear via his directorial choices that Beth is passing this thing along to others -- the close up of the bowl of peanuts that she just ate from, the handing of a credit card to the bartender.  We're in for trouble and Soderbergh isn't hiding that from us.  The very fact that he makes these incredibly mundane things manage to appear so scary is a credit to him.

From there, the film branches off into various storylines -- some following "normal" citizens like Beth and her husband (Matt Damon), with others focusing on members of the Centers for Disease Control and their attempts to discover the origins of the virus (which is where folks like Laurence Fishburne, Kate Winslet, and Marion Cotillard come into play).  Never staying with any of these plotlines for extended periods of time allows the viewer to never tire of any of them and always keep them longing for more.  Much like the disaster flicks of the 70s, no one is safe here.  Big stars (all of whom perform very well here) are going to bite the dust and this certainly increases the nerves that the viewer feels.

Admittedly, the film is bogged down with the character of Alan Krumwiede (Jude Law), a blogger who says that he will show the public the truth behind the secrets that the government and the CDC are hiding.  Anytime the plot veered into his territory, I kept wanting it to head to someone else.  His conspiracy theories just didn't seem well developed and, quite frankly, bored me (as most ludicrous conspiracy theories do).  Fortunately, as stated, the film doesn't stay on any one character for long and we find the plot quickly shifting to others.

Still, despite that one fault, I couldn't help but find myself absolutely enthralled by Contagion.  On the edge of my seat thanks to Soderbergh's creative direction, this is a completely believable real-life horror story the likes of which I hope we never see actually happen even though it positively could.  Time to grab that hand sanitizer...

The RyMickey Rating:  A-

Movie Review - Hereafter

Hereafter (2010)

Starring Matt Damon, Cécile De France, Frankie and George McLaren, Jay Mohr, and Bryce Dallas Howard
Directed by Clint Eastwood

At this point in time, I've seen about seven or eight Clint Eastwood-directed films.  And with the exception of maybe one, every single one of them is a complete bore.  Sure, Eastwood may be competent at composing a scene or evoking a mood, but I rarely am excited by his project choices and I'm certainly not impressed with his ability to keep a film moving at a steady clip.  Hereafter is no exception, unfortunately.  

Part of me wanted to see this movie because it's rare nowadays to get a mainstream Hollywood film that even touches upon issues of spirituality.  This flick is unabashedly about that -- this sense of "where do we go after we die."  That, in and of itself, is "ballsy" nowadays.  The script by Peter Morgan and the rather plodding direction by Eastwood just don't do the film any favors.  Broken up into three distinct segments that eventually come together rather anticlimactically in the film's final ten minutes, the film doesn't allow for any real sense of emotional connection with the characters, all of whom have gone through something traumatic which begs for us to really want to give a damn about these people.  Eastwood and Morgan, however, never allow the audience to really relate to the people onscreen.

Matt Damon is perfectly fine as a psychic who speaks to the dead.  Having given up on his craft, he finds himself being pulled back into that world by his caring, but overbearing and slightly money-hungry brother (a decent Jay Mohr).  Another storyline deals with Marie (Cécile De France), a French journalist vacationing in Thailand who gets swept away in a tsunami and has a near-death experience that connects her with the hereafter.  She becomes fascinated by the notion of afterlife and begins to investigate the concept.  Story #3 focuses on twin brothers Marcus and Jason (Frankie and George McLaren) who are living with their drug-abusing, alcoholic mother.  When Jason runs to a drug store to get medicine for his junkie mother, he gets hit by a truck and dies.  Marcus is rather devastated and tries to do all that he can to reconnect with his brother in a spiritual way.

Unfortunately, two of the three storylines just don't carry the emotional weight that they should and that's in part due to some lukewarm acting and just plain silly dialog (which, admittedly, could be because of some stupid subtitled translations from French to English).  Cécile De France seemed very distant to me and I never once felt bad for her character; I have to think that is in part due to her lack of connection with the character and storyline itself.  Also unfortunate is the fact that young Frankie and George McLaren, while adequate, just didn't deliver as well as they could have in what should have been the huge emotional arc of the movie -- I mean, a kid dies...that should've been freakin' tremendously sad and it wasn't.  Matt Damon's arc was probably the best and had a nice turn from Bryce Dallas Howard as a potential girlfriend.  However, considering his story only takes up a third of the movie, it simply isn't enough to carry the flick.

The RyMickey Rating:  D+

Movie Review - The Adjustment Bureau

The Adjustment Bureau (2011)

Starring Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, Anthony Mackie, and John Slattery

Directed by George Nolfi

I've never had any real "connection" to The Twilight Zone.  I didn't watch it in repeats as a kid and, frankly, I've probably only ever seen five episodes at most.  Still, I'm kind of fascinated by the premise and the execution of those said episodes.  The Adjustment Bureau (much like 2009's The Box) certainly has that Twilight Zone-retro feel.  However, despite some decent turns from Matt Damon and Emily Blunt, the whole affair fell amazingly flat and left me clamoring for a better story to go along with the surprisingly effective romance between the two leads.

David Norris (Damon) is running for senator of New York City.  As one of the youngest-ever candidates, he's got the buzz, but unfortunately, he doesn't necessarily garner the respect of the general public and he finds himself losing the election.  While preparing his concession speech in what he believes to be an empty men's room, he meets Elise (Blunt), a free-spirited gal who crashed a wedding at the locale and is hiding out from security.  Nearly immediately, there's a connection between the David and Elise, but they're quickly pulled apart without either being able to give each other their contact information.  

Cut to a couple of months later and, by chance, David meets Elise on a bus as he travels to his new job.  The connection is still there between them and this time the duo exchange numbers.  However, immediately after the meeting, David arrives at his office and stumbles upon a group of mysterious men who work for the equally mysterious Adjustment Bureau which David soon discovers attempt to control nearly every major event that occurs in the world.  Leaving nothing up to Fate or Chance, the hat-wearing members of the Bureau state that David and Elise are not supposed to be together.  While the group attempts to pull the two lovers apart, David desperately tries to stay with the woman he knows he's meant to spend his life with.

Matt Damon and Emily Blunt admirably try to make this film work and the scenes depicting their budding romance are the best part of the movie and a breath of fresh air.  However, any scene dealing with the men of the Adjustment Bureau (including the incredibly wooden acting of Anthony Mackie and John Slattery) is a failure.  The constant exposition in these moments in which the screenwriter (George Nolfi, who is also the director) feels the need to explain everything -- and do so multiple times -- is simply painful.  The repetitive nature makes the film endlessly drag in the middle hour, and while it seemed to be heading towards an edge-of-your-seat ending, the promise of excitement is never delivered.

Two disparate storylines -- one of which works and one which doesn't -- are the downfall of The Adjustment Bureau.  The palpable chemistry between Matt Damon and Emily Blunt is charming, but the retro science fiction aspect of the titular group responsible for controlling the lives of everyone is nothing less than an epic failure.

The RyMickey Rating:  D

Movie Review - True Grit

True Grit (2010)

Starring Jeff Bridges, Hailee Steinfeld, Matt Damon, and Josh Brolin

Directed by Ethan Coen and Joel Coen

Westerns are not my thing.  I know full well that True Grit is a good movie.  I'd even go so far as to add the qualifier "very" ahead of the "good" in the previous sentence.  However, that doesn't take away from the fact that I've yet to see a western that doesn't have me checking my watch every thirty minutes to see how much time is left.  There's something about the slow pace and the country accents that cannot grab my attention.  Still, despite my random spouts of momentary boredom while watching the Coen Brothers' latest film, I found myself oddly riveted.  I realize that the last sentence is kind of an oxymoron, but my reaction to True Grit is very confusing to even myself, so I can't imagine if this review will make any sense by the time I'm done typing it.

Needless to say, with my lack of affinity towards westerns, I had never seen the John Wayne original upon which this flick is based (although, I'd venture to guess that this 2010 flick may find its basis more in the original novel than in the original film).  So, with that said, I had no prior connection to the plot.  That's probably a good thing as there were a few surprises in the cleverly written screenplay  filled with the typical moments of dry (sometimes absurd) Coen humor.

As is often a staple of Coen Brothers flicks, the acting is some of the best you'll see in cinema. Whether it's the biggest celebrities or some actor you've never seen before (see last year's A Serious Man), the directing duo has a way of getting their actors to shine.  Had Jeff Bridges not won Best Actor at the Oscars last year for Crazy Heart, I'd have to imagine his nomination this year for True Grit would have made him a strong contender in the race rather than just an also-ran.  I, for one, thought he was pretty fantastic in this flick.  The grumbly, mumbly voice he brings to the part of bounty hunter Rooster Cogburn is one of those character choices that an actor makes that may have worried film execs initially, but proves to be a nifty defining characteristic that becomes instantly memorable.

Every bit as captivating is Hailee Steinfeld making her screen debut as the poised and wise-beyond-her-years Mattie Ross who seeks out the help of Cogburn in order to track down and bring to justice her father's killer.  Steinfeld is in nearly every single scene and is the impetus behind the entire film's story, so how she snagged a Supporting Actress nomination (rather than a Best Actress nom) is beyond me.  Nonetheless, she's a joy to watch and is perfectly suited for carrying out the Coens' dialog.

Rounding out the great cast (who will likely be mentioned as a whole in the Best Ensemble category when I get around to naming the coveted RyMickey Awards in mid-March) is Matt Damon, Josh Brolin, and Barry Pepper, all of whom make the most of their screen time by creating unique and lasting characters.  With everything this film has going for it -- great actors, a clever script, beautiful cinematography -- I have to wonder if there will ever be a western that doesn't have me looking at my watch.  I don't know if it's possible.  Still, I've got to say that despite the momentary minutes of boredom, I really enjoyed True Grit, and it's probably the only western I've seen that I can say I wouldn't mind watching again.

The RyMickey Rating:  B+

The Personal Canon - Saving Private Ryan

The Personal Canon is a recurring column highlighting my favorite films of all time.  While they may not necessarily be "A" rated, they are the movies that, for some reason or another, hold a special place in my filmgoing experience.

Saving Private Ryan (1998)

Starring Tom Hanks, Edward Burns, Tom Sizemore, Jeremy Davies, Barry Pepper, Adam Goldberg, Giovanni Ribisi, Vin Diesel, and Matt Damon

Directed by Steven Spielberg

Damn you, Saving Private Ryan.  When the single tear rolled down my cheek after watching you on my freshly received Blu-Ray, I was cursing your name.  I remember back on your opening day on July 24, 1998, as a somewhat fresh high school graduate, I sat in a theater full of mostly senior citizens (of which I assumed some were veterans) for your opening show.  Even twelve years ago, I remember welling up as the credits began to roll.  And I was not alone in the watery eye department.  You worked your emotions on nearly everyone in the theater.  I'm more than happy to report that you still stand the test of time, providing an eye-popping, gut-wrenching, and awe-inspiring glimpse into the trials our soldiers tackled head-on in World War II.

No discussion of director Steven Spielberg's Saving Private Ryan can be had without discussing the epic Omaha Beach D-Day battle sequence that opens the film.  A directing tour de force of the highest degree, Spielberg places us squarely in the action, not giving us a moment to breath for over twenty minutes.  In front of our very eyes, limbs are lost, explosions tear bodies apart -- loss of life everywhere.  The scene is relentless, unceasing, and as a viewer there is no greater desire for this assault (both physically and visually) to end. Emotionally, it's painful to watch.  Cinematically, it's brilliant.  Immediately, Spielberg has made us a soldier, shakily moving the camera as if we were standing on the beach witnessing the horrific chaos.  

By placing us in a soldier's shoes from the outset, we become one of the small battalion of men who go on a mission to search for Private James Ryan (Matt Damon) whose three brothers have been killed in various battles during the war.  Ordered from his superiors to find Ryan, Captain John Miller (Tom Hanks) and a group of eight other soldiers trek across France looking for, as Capt. Miller perfectly describes it, "a needle in a stack of needles."  Along the way, smaller battles will be fought, soldiers will be lost, and the fear, pain, joy, and camaraderie are palpably felt by the viewer.

Even though the film is bookended by two intense, lengthy battle sequences, a huge chunk of the emotional impact the film garners is derived from the quiet moments.  Towards the beginning, there's a gut check moment in which Ryan's mother is given the news that her sons have died.  There is not a word spoken in the scene by anyone, but the emotional impact of John William's melancholic score and Janusz Kaminski's breathtaking Academy Award-winning cinematography (coupled, of course, with Spielberg's deft direction and stellar acting even from secondary actors) make this moment instantly memorable.  Another particular "calm before the storm" moment occurs prior to the film's final battle where the surviving soldiers sit around thinking about life at home.  As they boast about sexual encounters or discuss simply missing their wife's rose garden, these quiet, understated moments in Robert Rodat's script allow us to get to know our fellow soldiers, all the while amplifying the anticipatory tension of the inevitable impact of the forthcoming battles.

Of course, the emotional resonance wouldn't make much of a difference if the actors in the film didn't shape characters to care about, but that's not a problem in the slightest.  Some may think Tom Hanks is rather subdued as Captain Miller and while they wouldn't be wrong per se, the dedication of Miller to both his military career and his fellow soldiers is the greatest quality Hanks brings to the character.  While Edward Burns brings a sarcastic roughness to his Private Reiben, Jeremy Davies' Corporal Upham is just the opposite -- scared and meek as he faces his first combat experience (mirroring, perhaps, how we may feel were we in his shoes).  Adam Goldberg, Giovanni Ribisi, Vin Diesel, Barry Pepper, and Tom Sizemore each craft distinct characters which, to me anyway, is not an easy thing to do in war movies in which many of the physical characteristics of people are so similar.

Unlike some future films that will be a part of my Personal Canon, Saving Private Ryan was honored by many of the year-end awards bodies.  For what it's worth, it walked away with Golden Globes for Best Picture Drama and Best Director.  At the Oscars, the film was nominated for eleven awards, walking away with five for Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Sound, Best Sound Effects Editing, and Best Film Editing.  It did, however, lose the big Best Picture award in a memorable upset to Shakespeare in Love, a film I have grown to really enjoy in recent years (and, who knows...it may end up in the canon in time, I enjoy it that much).  But for it to beat Saving Private Ryan?  That's just crazy.  Granted, if Ryan has a fault it's that it runs on a tad too long, but it never feels like the nearly three hour film that it is.  Maybe folks in the Academy couldn't get past the intense opening reel (or maybe those infamous Weinstein brothers -- the producers of Shakespeare -- paid off a bunch of voters). 

I'm not afraid or ashamed to admit that Saving Private Ryan hits me in the gut and genuinely makes me well up.  I wiped away a single tear as the film concluded.  Yes, I knew how it ended, but this film fires on all emotional cylinders, rousing up pride for our country and our soldiers who helped shape this country into what it is today.  You ladies can cry over something like The Notebook, but give me a movie that, while perhaps sad, is about the joys of the brotherhood of man.  That's what gets to me and Saving Private Ryan fits the bill perfectly.

The RyMickey Rating:  A

Movie Review - Invictus (2009)

Invictus
Starring Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon
Directed by Clint Eastwood

Wow. I haven't been this bored in a movie in a while. In fact, very few movies in 2009 have bored me as much Invictus.

Morgan Freeman is utterly dry as Nelson Mandela who after being released from a South African prison in 1990 becomes President of the country in 1994. Amidst much racial tension, Mandela places what appears to be all his faith in bringing the country together behind South Africa's losing rugby team, the Springboks, and their quest to win the 1995 Rugby World Cup. Apparently, nothing else will unify whites and blacks except a rugby team. We are literally shown nothing else that Mandela does except put all his strength behind this team. Mandela is certainly an admirable figure, but he's portrayed here in the driest fashion possible. Granted, Mandela may not be the most jaunty guy...but maybe you shouldn't make a movie about him.

It's no secret that biopics are my least favorite genre (I've said it multiple times and will continue to do so) and Invictus does nothing to change that. Written by Anthony Peckham, we learn just enough about rugby to "kinda sorta" follow the matches on the field, but not nearly enough to understand what's really going on (Why are they in that massive huddle? Why was that a foul and why did it lead to the game-winning point?). And it's not just the rugby. This is 135 minutes of nothingness. Nothing happens here.

And part of that problem lies in Clint Eastwood's direction. Sure, I haven't seen a lot of Eastwood-directed flicks, but I've seen six or seven of them, and that's enough to prove to me that I dislike him immensely as a director. I've yet to see a film by him that's felt anything other than ploddingly paced. It's like watching a snail...no excitement whatsoever. There were shots here that felt so incredibly film school in their basicness and simplicity and with his sloth-like pacing issues, Eastwood needs to at least give me something visually stimulating. Plus, Clint hits us over the head here with the racial issues, going so far as to include some horrific song midway through telling me to be "Color Blind." I literally laughed out loud when that lyric invaded my eardrums.

I don't know of any rugby terms, so I'll stick with some a sports term that I know -- Invictus is yet another strike-out for Eastwood.

The RyMickey Rating: D

Movie Review - The Informant! (2009)

Starring Matt Damon and a Bunch of People Known for Comedy Playing Dramatic Characters!
Directed by Steven Soderbergh!

Let me start with something good! The score by Marvin Hamlisch is one of my favorites of the year! Clever, retro, and highly enjoyable! I purchased it soon after I watched the movie!

Now, when the score's the best part of your movie, there's a problem!

Inherently, this movie's not bad! In fact, in addition to the score, there's quite a bit that I liked here, but it just all doesn't come together and amount to anything I could care about!

Based on a true story, Matt Damon is Mark Whitacre, a biochemist working for Archer Daniels Midland, a company responsible for putting corn in stuff! He decides to blow the whistle on the company's price fixing tactics! In the end, however, his plan begins to backfire for reasons I won't reveal here!

Damon is pretty decent! He certainly kept my interest throughout the movie and provided some clever voice-over work! He's aided acting-wise by Scott "Quantum Leap" Bakula and Joel "The Soup!" McHale as his contacts in the FBI! Both of these guys were good, as was Melanie Lynskey (who was so touching in Away We Go) as Whitacre's doting wife who pushes her husband to spill the beans on his company's wrongdoings, unaware of the fact that her husband may not be the angel he portrays himself as!

I also must say that I appreciated Soderbergh's directing style here! It felt very low key, low budget, and old school! I liked the odd lighting, the set design, and the costuming! It was visually very appealing!

So why the heck was I bored out of my mind during the first ninety minutes of this movie?! Admittedly, the final thirty minutes featuring Whitacre's unraveling caught my interest, but it felt like this movie went on for an eternity prior to that! Despite really appreciating a lot about this movie, it didn't click with me in the slightest! I guess that falls onto the writers for not doing enough to hook me with the story! It's unfortunate because there's a lot to like about this movie, but having a good story is pretty damn important and the story here is weak!

Note: It would be remiss of me not to mention the exclamation point at the end of the movie title! As you see in my post above, I'm a fan of the fact that there's an exclamation point there!

The RyMickey Rating: D+ !

Movie Review - Ponyo (2009)

Featuring the voice talent of Tina Fey, Liam Neeson, Betty White, Cate Blanchett, and Matt Damon
Written and Directed by Hayao Miyazaki

I liked the watercolor look of the film and the score.

Now that that's out of the way, let's try and explain why the rest of this film isn't any good.

Sosuke is a five year-old boy who finds a fish-like creature he names Ponyo while exploring the Japanese coastline. He brings Ponyo home and all seems well, but Ponyo's father (a human who lives under the sea in some bubble house thing) is searching for her, longing for her return. He uses his mystical powers to coerce the sea into getting her back. However, Ponyo now has "tasted human blood" and wants to be a human. Lucky for her, she has the powers to simply grow hands and feet, and through some mystical bullshit she swims up to the surface, walks on water, and finds herself back in the arms of Sosuke.

Weird enough for you yet? There's more...Sosuke and Ponyo become good friends, but as we soon find out, Ponyo's existence on the surface has caused the oceans to rise and be pulled upward by the moon's gravitational pull (or something like that). So, a bunch of the land on Earth is now underwater. The only way things can revert back to normal is if Sosuke can pass some kind of test (about love? kindness? I'm not quite sure). I guess he passed it, but not before Ponyo turns back into a fish. Susoke meets up with his mom (who leaves this five-year old unattended for nearly the whole second half of the movie) by traveling under the sea into some giant bubble that at one point is filled with air and then at the next point filled with water...it doesn't really matter what it's filled with, though, because humans can breathe and talk in it regardless of the environment. Anyway, in the end, Ponyo's a human and world order is restored (thank God!).

Odd, huh? I didn't even mention there's some weird god-like creature who I think had sex with Ponyo's father to create Ponyo and the array of smaller Ponyos that swim around like little sperm with faces and flowing red robes (I'm honestly not sure of that sex part, but I do think that this goddess and Ponyo's pop had something going on...cue the bomchickawahwah music).

Okay, so I realize that I just rambled about the story, but that's exactly what the movie does, too. It just rambles...on and on and on.

I don't get it. If I didn't get what the hell was going on, how the heck is a six-year old supposed to? I honestly can't believe that Disney is putting this out into 800 theaters this upcoming weekend. I can't imagine this thing being successful.

But, hey...it looked pretty...

The RyMickey Rating: D