The Fitzgerald Family Christmas

 The Fitzgerald Family Christmas (2012)

Starring Edward Burns, Kerry Bishé, Heather Burns, Marsha Dietlein, Caitlin FitzGerald, Anita Gillette, Tom Guiry, Ed Lauter, Michael McGlone, Noah Emmerich, and Connie Britton

Directed by Edward Burns

Click here for my Letterboxd review

The RyMickey Rating:  B+

The Avengers

 The Avengers (2012)

Starring Robert Downey, Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Tom Hiddleston, Clark Gregg, Cobie Smulders, Stellan Skarsgard, and Samuel L. Jackson

Directed by Joss Whedon

Written by Joss Whedon

Click here for my (current) Letterboxd review

Click here for my previous RyMickey Review

The (current) RyMickey Rating: B-

Movie Review - The Bourne Legacy

***Movie #4 of BOURNE Week***
The Bourne Legacy (2012)

Starring Jeremy Renner, Rachel Weisz, Edward Norton, Stacy Keach, Oscar Isaac, Albert Finney, David Strathairn, Scott Glenn, Donna Murphy, Corey Stoll, Zeljko Ivanek, and Joan Allen

Directed by Tony Gilroy

As we discovered in the previous Bourne films, Jason Bourne was just one of many men recruited by the CIA to violently act out missions for the agency.  The Bourne Legacy leaves Matt Damon behind (likely because they couldn't offer a big enough paycheck) and focuses on one of the other men -- Aaron Cross -- part of another black ops group Bourne and Pamela Landy (Joan Allen) were trying to uncover in earlier flicks.

The Bourne Legacy opens with many of its scenes running concurrently to the final moments in The Bourne Ultimatum.  Director Tony Gilroy (the co-screenwriter of the previous Bourne films as well as this one) picks up the reins from Paul Greengrass and nicely ties Aaron Cross's story into Jason Bourne's timeline with this concurrent opening.  Smartly, Gilroy plants Aaron Cross (played by Jeremy Renner) into a different CIA black ops program -- one that forces its recruits to take pills in order to maintain their stamina, strength, and intelligence.  This allows for a different background and starting point for Cross than Bourne and it plays well throughout the film, feeling like a somewhat different animal...which is a good thing.

The repercussions of the actions of Bourne and Landy, however, permeate throughout The Bourne Legacy, as Cross finds himself being hunted down by CIA agents as they try to cover their tracks about the government's black ops agencies.  This leads Cross to Dr. Marta Shearing (Rachel Weisz), a biochemist who has medically tested him in the past and who Cross uses to help him evade those coming after him.

The Bourne Legacy works really well as a continuation of the overarching political conspiracy story that runs rampant throughout this cinematic series.  Where it falters, however, is in a few of the film's action moments, including a very ill-conceived final action sequence with some laughable reaction shots from Weisz that ends things on a decidedly disappointing note.  Renner is more chipper than the dour Bourne (at least as chipper as one can be when being hunted down by the CIA) and his interactions with Weisz, while more generic than Bourne's interactions with his female contacts, are pleasantly conceived.  However, Renner is actually a little too high on charisma -- a fault that I almost can't believe I'm writing.  He didn't quite sell me on the "operative on the run" aspect of his character.  Still, it was pleasant to put a different face front and center in the series even though it didn't quite match the success of its immediate predecessor.

The RyMickey Rating:  B-

Movie Review - The Guilt Trip

The Guilt Trip (2012)

Starring Seth Rogen and Barbra Streisand

Directed by Anne Fletcher

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

Super Quick Review #2 for Today

No one is more surprised than me that I enjoyed The Guilt Trip.  The film is simple enough -- perhaps too simple -- with a mother and son traveling cross country getting on each other's last nerves, but predictably realizing their love for each other by the end.  Still, there's a surprising amount of heart that I found refreshing and comforting.

I'm not sure I've ever actually seen a movie with Barbara Streisand in it other than the Meet the Parents series, but she actually won me over here.  I may need to check out some of her other films to see if the Hollywood love affair with her stems from more than just her liberal politics.  Seth Rogen was also good, although admittedly I'm not quite sure this role was much of a stretch for him.

Still, The Guilt Trip is the kind of movie you can sit down and watch with your mom -- as I did -- and actually both enjoy.

The RyMickey Rating:  B

Movie Review - Jack Reacher

Jack Reacher (2012)

Starring Tom Cruise, Rosamund Pike, David Oyelowo, Richard Jenkins, Joseph Sikora, Jai Courtney, Werner Herzog, and Robert Duvall 

Directed by Christopher McQuarrie

***This film is crrently streaming on Netflix***

Super Quick Review #1 of Today

Tom Cruise is the title character in Jack Reacher, a former military man who now finds himself investigating crimes back in the States.  The crime featured in what is now apparently the first of a series of Jack Reacher films involves a sniper who shot and killed five innocent people in Pittsburgh.  The shooter - a former military sniper - has no recollection of the crime and Reacher believes that he's likely innocent.

Cruise is solid and the film was enjoyable enough to watch, but the plot was rather convoluted.  The film's overarching "conspiracy" failed to resonate and I found myself not caring about the resolution all that much.  Still, Jack Reacher was decent...I'm just not sure I'd really care to see a sequel.

The RyMickey Rating:  C

Movie Review - The Loved Ones

The Loved Ones (2012)

Starring Xavier Samuel, Robin McLeavy, John Brumpton, Victoria Thane (Holly), Richard Wilson, and Jessica McNamee (last two are the two people at the dance)

Directed by Sean Byrne
***This film is currently available for free on the FearNet Channel for Verizon OnDemand customers.***

At the very least, the horror movie The Loved Ones made me incredibly uncomfortable.  Squirming in my seat happened often in this one and there was even a moment where I covered my eyes in typical little kid fashion.  While I'm certainly making up for the lack of viewing horror movies in my teenage years, I haven't really ever found myself "enjoying" the subgenre of torture porn brought on by the likes of Saw in the early aughts.  And I certainly didn't "enjoy" watching The Loved Ones, but I absolutely appreciate that this is probably as good as it gets when it comes to this type of movie with some pretty great acting, an interesting (and sometimes humorous) story, and a first-time director that certainly knows how to create a frighteningly uncomfortable vibe.

The premise is incredibly simple and doesn't waste any time getting started.  Set in Australia, the film opens with Brent (Xavier Samuel) being asked by the soft spoken and presumably unpopular Lola (Robin McLeavy) to go to prom with her.  Brent doesn't ridicule her in the slightest (as we'd perhaps expect in movies like this), but tells her very politely that he's already going with Holly (the incredibly attractive Victoria Thane).  A few days later when he's out, Brent finds himself drugged, kidnapped, and dragged to Lola's house where she and her father (John Brumpton) have set up their own prom where they'll enact a series of heinously painful and psychologically disturbed acts of torture on the poor guy.

In his first film, writer-director Sean Byrne certainly displays a keen eye for horror, but he also rather adeptly mixes in just the right amounts of humor which, while creating laughs, also manages to make the disturbing moments even more distressing.  Oddly enough, thinking back on things, we hardly ever "see" the torture happening.  We know it's going on, but Byrne creates much of the macabre moments simply by insinuating them.

Byrne also gets some great performances from his cast.  Xavier Samuel is entirely convincing as the poor sap who has some of the worst possible acts inflicted upon him.  [I'll never look at salt and an open wound the same way again.]  Because of an initial torturous moment, his Brent is unable to speak, but Samuel still manages to convey everything needed for the movie to succeed.  John Brumpton as Lola's father is disturbingly creepy thanks to the typical suburban dad façade he puts on even as he wields a hammer willy nilly around Brent's head.  While he sometimes seems to be a bit more comic simply for "comedy's sake," he's a perfect counter to Robin McLeavy's Lola who is just terrifying.  The child-like mannerisms and tone that Lola often presents can turn on a dime to something infinitely more diabolical -- and that distinct change in image could've been laughable, but McLeavy sells it.

The film does falter a bit with an inane subplot involving Brent's buddy Jamie out on a mission to get laid on prom night.  His storyline goes nowhere and doesn't even interact with the main arc so I'm flabbergasted as to why it's even in the flick to begin with.  We all know what the "Hollywood ideal" of a normal prom night is -- we don't need it as a counterpoint to the hell Brent is experiencing with Lola.  Still, despite that fault, The Loved Ones is a good horror pic.  Granted, it's one I'd never want to watch again and one I can't necessarily recommend simply because of the fact that it made me cringe a bit too much...but I recognize that's what it was going for and it certainly achieved that goal

The RyMickey Rating:  B

Movie Review - The Perks of Being a Wallflower

The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012)

Starring Logan Lerman, Emma Watson, Ezra Miller, Mae Whitman, Kate Walsh, Dylan McDermott, Nina Dobrev, Johnny Simmons, Melanie Lynskey, Joan Cusack, and Paul Rudd

Directed by Stephen Chbosky

There's an aire of pretentiousness that runs throughout the novel The Perks of Being a Wallflower and I found it a book that kept me at a distance because none of the characters were embraceable, nor were they nasty enough to be characters you loved to hate.  I was hoping that the movie might change my tune, but my overall reaction stayed pretty much the same.  Overall, the book's author Stephen Chbosky does a nice job in his first directorial gig in nearly two decades and he adapts his novel quite adequately to the screen, but this is simply a tale I never quite found winning.

The problem with The Perks of Being a Wallflower never lies with the storyline of the main character Charlie (Logan Lerman) who, as the film begins, is starting ninth grade after having a difficult summer in which he lost his best friend to suicide.  For most of his life, Charlie has always been battling psychological demons, but he hopes he's pushed them to the side as he begins the angst-filled four years of high school.  Charlie ends up befriending two seniors, step-siblings Patrick and Sam (Ezra Miller and Emma Watson) and it's in these two characters and their surroundings that the film (and the book) disappoint.  It's not that Patrick and Sam prove to be unrealistic, it's just that I couldn't care less about their problems and dreams for the future.  Patrick is an incredibly quirky gay teen who is seemingly the class clown and Sam is lovable with a pixie cut that indicates a slightly rough edge.  Everything with these two just feels overly angsty with a vibe of "aren't we unique/no teenager has ever done this before" thrown in when, in fact, their shenanigans are quite commonplace.

However, the character of Charlie makes the film work better than it probably should and Logan Lerman is a standout.  Lerman's fairly new to the acting scene and while I can't say I've ever been disappointed by the kid, I don't think I ever would've said I've been impressed.  That has changed.  Here, the now twenty year-old Lerman perfectly captures the fear of the initial days of high school, the insecurity of being one's true self even if it doesn't make you popular, and the tentativeness of one's first forays into romance, alcohol, and the other difficulties that come with one's teen years.  Also nice was Paul Rudd's turn as Charlie's English teacher, a friend/mentor who helps shape Charlie into a young man who can be proud of himself.

While there's part of me that can understand the effusive praise The Perks of Being a Wallflower received upon its release -- the film looks good, the acting is decent -- I've never been a fan of Mr. Chbosky's novel so its transition to film was going to be difficult to reel me in.  Still, thanks to a great performance from Logan Lerman, this one definitely lands in the "you should see this" category.

The RyMickey Rating: B-

Movie Review - A Royal Affair

A Royal Affair (2012)

Starring Alicia Vikander, Mads Mikkelson, Mikkel Boe Følsgaard, and Trine Dyrholm

Directed by Nikolaj Arcel

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

Nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at this year's Academy Awards, Denmark's A Royal Affair depicts the true story of Caroline Matilda (played here by Alicia Vikander), a princess in Great Britain, who in 1766 at the age of fifteen leaves behind her family to travel to Denmark to marry Christian VII (Mikkel Boe Følsgaard).  Immediately, Christian's odd mannerisms and likely mental illness cause Caroline to immediately dislike Christian and he certainly feels no affection for her.  Christian is essentially a lame duck, sitting on the throne, but the puppet of his royal court and his demanding mother (Trine Dyrholm).  Some of the king's advisors see potential for imparting their own beliefs into the Danish monarchy and German philosopher and physician Johann Struensee (Mads Mikkelson) is seen as an ideal candidate to help start this "revolution" of sorts because he can act as Christian's doctor while also trying to espouse his at-the-time unimaginable tenets of free speech and rights for all people.

A perfectly acceptable film, A Royal Affair is adequately directed, acted, and written, and while it never really falls flat, it doesn't ever soar.  As the film proceeds, Struensee begins to fall for Caroline and she soon begins to return the affection, earning the film its name and causing the flick to veer slightly into melodramatic territory.  It's understandable why the two begin to fall in love -- Caroline was a very literate woman who was forced to leave that behind upon marrying Christian and Struensee is a very enlightened man with ideas and theories that fascinate her -- but it does become a bit drawn out in its romance.  Scenes where they sneak or kiss or just barely miss being seen by Christian feel like they're coming straight from a dime store romance novel.

Still, A Royal Affair is an intriguing piece of history that proves enjoyable to watch.  A little (or a lot of) trimming in the editing room would have helped, but if an historical drama is what you're in the mood for, you could certainly do worse.

The RyMickey Rating:  C+

Movie Review - Any Day Now

Any Day Now (2012)

Starring Alan Cumming, Garret Dillahunt, and Isaac Leyva

Directed by Travis Fine
***This film is currently streaming on Netflix***

A Fox News watcher's version of hell, Any Day Now is "inspired by a true story" of a 1979 gay couple who fight for the right to adopt a fourteen year-old boy with Down's Syndrome after his drug-addicted mother becomes incarcerated.  Those who know me know I'm a Fox News watcher myself, but my fiscal conservative nature doesn't necessarily toe the line when it comes to the Republican stance on certain social issues so the very concept of the film didn't have any bearing on my actual opinion.

With that in mind, I'm flabbergasted that Any Day Now has a 77% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes.  That isn't to say that director and co-writer Travis Fine's film is bad, but it certainly is steeped in stereotypes that I'm shocked weren't roasted by a few more folks.  I realize that the 1970s were likely not filled with kindness and understanding towards homosexuals, but this is one of those films where there's no middle ground -- people are either good or they're bad and that simply isn't a fascinating way to characterize people in films.

However, Any Day Now is buoyed by some decent performances from Alan Cumming and Garret Dillahunt as the newly formed couple and Isaac Leyva who, in real life, deals with Down's Syndrome on a daily basis.  It's during scenes where these three actors share the screen that the film works best with all three entirely capable of displaying the love and kindness that these characters feel for one another.

The RyMickey Rating:  C

Movie Review - A Late Quartet

A Late Quartet (2012)

Starring Philip Seymour Hoffman, Christopher Walken, Catherine Keener, Mark Ivanir, and Imogen Poots

Directed by Yaron Zilberman

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

An adult melodrama, A Late Quartet is full of so many soap operatic clichés that it gets a bit tiresome at times, but despite my best efforts to roll my eyes at certain moments, something about director and co-screenwriter Yaron Zilberman's first feature film clicks.  The film focuses on a famous string quartet called The Fugue who have been together for over two decades.  When their cellist Peter (Christopher Walken) receives a diagnosis that he's entering the early stages of Parkinson's, the news affects each of his fellow quartet members in different ways sending them all on emotional journeys that they likely weren't expecting.

Philip Seymour Hoffman and Catherine Keener play husband and wife Robert and Juliette.  Together since the start of the trio, they have a college age daughter Alexandra (Imogen Poots) who is also striving to become an expert string musician.  The fourth member of the quartet is Daniel (Mark Ivanir), the founder of the group, first chair violinist (a position that sets up some tension as the film progresses), and über-serious Russian immigrant.  Peter was a mentor to Robert, Juliette, and Daniel and the news of his debilitating disease affects them not only professionally, but also personally, sending them all on an emotional roller coaster.

Despite the silliness of some of the plot points, A Late Quartet exudes a intelligence that one doesn't often find in films.  Maybe it's simply because of the focus on classical music, but something here felt refreshingly adult in the dialog, even if the actions of some of these characters bordered on teenage idiocy.  The intellectual aire is due in part to the screenwriter, but it helps that the actors like Philip Seymour Hoffman and Mark Ivanir were entirely believable in their roles as classical musicians.  I've known a few classically trained musicians and they composed themselves just like them.  Catherine Keener is also fine, but she's saddled with one of the worst scenes in the movie involving her character and her daughter that even she couldn't really act her way out of the absurdity.  Christopher Walken is...well, Christopher Walken.  While he's not quite playing a caricature of himself as I feel he's done in recent years, I never quite manage to see Walken as anyone other than himself.  That being said, when the film begins one assumes that the movie is going to be all about his character Peter, but after the opening act, the focus shifts greatly to the other members of the quartet probably to the film's benefit.

I realize I've done a little bit of trashing of A Late Quartet in the above review and I completely recognize that at times it plays like a really mature Lifetime movie.  Still, despite the lowbrow nature of certain aspects of the flick, the intelligence outshines the melodramatic theatrics and makes this definitely worth a stream on Netflix.

The RyMickey Rating:  B

Movie Review - The Intouchables

The Intouchables (2012)

Starring François Cluzet, Omar Sy, Anne Le Ny, and Audrey Leurot

Directed by Olivier Nakache and Eric Toledano

The most successful French film (shot in French) in nearly two decades, The Intouchables is based on a true story of a wealthy white man named Philippe (François Cluzet) who becomes a quadriplegic after a horrible paragliding accident.  Needing someone to assist him with everyday activities like getting dressed, eating, and bathing, Philippe hires Driss (Omar Sy), a black man who only applied for the job in order to get a signature to continue to receive his welfare checks.  The two couldn't be more opposite -- Philippe lives in a mansion in the heart of Paris, Driss is an ex con recently released from prison -- but  in the tradition of films like The Blind Side and Driving Miss Daisy, these two very different people become good friends despite what society may think about the relationship.

The Intouchables is incredibly basic.  The simplicity of the whole thing coupled with the fact this is a dramedy has me shocked that this was so popular in France.  However, there is something that grabs you with this story and makes it quite compelling even though the whole thing isn't all that original.  Co-directors and screenwriters Olivier Nakache and Eric Toledano weave just the right amounts of comedy and drama into the mix to have the film move along at a brisk pace and their efforts help to elevate the film beyond what it really is.

Despite that backhanded praise, the film truly succeeds thanks to the efforts of François Cluzet and Omar Sy both of whom capture your attention from their first moments onscreen.  There's an energy the two have both as individuals and as a duo that is rarely captured on film.  Like the best buddy comedies, Cluzet and Sy play off of each other incredibly well.  Both have a captivating presence and can easily switch between the humor and drama that their roles require of them.  Additionally, Anne Le Ny and Audrey Leurot give some nice performances, too, as two of Philippe's assistants, so the entire cast is a pleasure to watch.

There's no denying that The Intouchables is quite basic in terms of what it brings to the table, but not every movie has to reinvent the wheel.  With performances worthy of attention and a wonderful balance in tones, this one is absolutely worth a watch and a nice primer for those wary of watching foreign subtitled films.

The RyMickey Rating:  B+

Movie Review - Damsels in Distress

Damsels in Distress (2012)

Starring Greta Gerwig, Analeigh Tipton, Megalyn Echikunwoke, Carrie MacLemore, and Adam Brody

Directed by Whit Stillman

Perhaps I formulated my Worst of 2012 list prematurely.  Quite frankly, I'm a little lost as to what Damsels in Distress is and what it's trying to be and that confusion is the only thing that's actually saving it from a bottom of the rung grade because it's at least made me think a tiny bit.  Greta Gerwig is Violet, a college student at the fictional Seven Oaks University, who is the head of the Suicide Prevention Center along with her buddies and roommates Heather (Carrie MacLemore) and Rose (Megalyn Echikunwoke).  Violet's suicide prevention method: dance.  Get the depressed kids together to dance and euphoria will spread into their psyches.  As the school year begins, they meet incoming sophomore Lily (Analeigh Tipton) who ends up becoming their roommate, but who also questions the odd nature of these three gals who are disliked around much of the campus for their quirkiness.

And it's the "quirkiness" that fails Damsels in Distress.  There's not a single frame of this movie that rings true.  Dialog (and there is tons and tons of dialog) is forced and grating, oftentimes trying to be super-cutesy while seconds later trying to be deep (or at least that "college deep" where young adults think they're saying something important but are really just full of hot air).  Any story is essentially nonexistent.  The film even sets itself up into mini-vignettes that don't amount to much of anything by the film's end.

The only thing remotely saving this is that the cast was at least attempting to make this watchable.  Analeigh Tipton who I liked in Crazy Stupid Love is fine here as is Adam Brody (as a love interest for Violet and Lily), Carrie MacLemore, and Megalyn Echikunwoke.  Greta Gerwig was unfortunately tasked with an impossible role.  Violet from the outset is obnoxious and tediously boring and as a lead character she has no charisma.  There was little that Gerwig could do to help things along.

The RyMickey Rating:  D

Movie Review - Smashed

Smashed (2012)

Starring Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Aaron Paul, Megan Mullally, Nick Offerman, and Octavia Spencer

Directed by James Ponsoldt

I didn't dislike Smashed, but as I watched, I couldn't help but think that the potential for so much more was possible with this story.  The writers let down their lead actress, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, who was certainly game for expanding the acting chops we'd previously seen on display from her.  Winstead is Kate, a first-grade school teacher who can't make it through the day without alcohol.  Things seemed bad enough to me when she woke up in the morning and couldn't get through a shower without sipping on a beer, but after a night at a bar, she gives a ride to a drunken young woman who shares some cocaine with Kate.  When Kate wakes up the next morning on the city streets next to some homeless folks, she gets the feeling that she may have taken things a step too far.  With the help of a colleague from work, Kate begins going to AA meetings despite the fact that her husband Charlie (Aaron Paul) -- who also happens to imbibe way too much -- frowns upon the idea.

There were moments throughout Smashed that were so close to reaching real emotional levels, but unfortunately director and co-writer James Ponsoldt never allows things to get to that gut-wrenching level that a story like this needs every now and then.  As an example, when Kate attends her first AA meeting, she stands up and gives a speech in which she finally comes to the realization that she might have a problem.  Had the scene gone on for maybe two minutes longer giving Kate a little more to say, it would have been emotionally perfect.  However, as it stands now, Ponsoldt snipped the scene a bit too short therein losing the powerful resonance it could have had.

Mary Elizabeth Winstead does a nice job and she captures the necessary emotions a role like this requires, but the script just does her a bit of a disservice.  Nick Offerman and Octavia Spencer as Kate's AA sponsors provide the nice, gentle voices the struggling Kate needs at this difficult time in her life but they, along with Aaron Paul's Charlie, felt like characters that could have all been developed a little more.

Those who frequent the blog know that I'm not a fan of movies that simply extend their run time for no valid reason, but Smashed (which clocks in at under ninety minutes) is a movie that should've been longer -- and I'm not sure I've ever said that on this blog.  It needed a bit more time to flesh out the characters in order to have a greater emotional impact for the audience.  Smashed isn't a bad movie, but it had the potential to be much better.

The RyMickey Rating:  C+

Movie Review - Cloud Atlas

Cloud Atlas (2012)

Starring Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Jim Broadbent, Hugo Weaving, Jim Sturgess, Ben Whishaw, Susan Sarandon, Hugh Grant, Doona Bae, and Keith David

Directed by Tom Tykwer, Andy Wachowski, and Lana Wachowski

"Our lives are not our own.  From womb to tomb we are bound to others past and present.  And by each crime and every kindness, we birth our future."

The epic, nearly three hour Cloud Atlas can be summed up in the quote above that comes at the film's end.  As actress Doona Bae said the words, it was immediately obvious that she was spouting the film's thesis as set forth by its trio of writer-directors Tom Tykwer, Andy Wachowski, and Lana Wachowski.  And after that line is said, I found myself asking this question: Is it possible to really like a movie even if you feel like its deep underlying meaning isn't fully realized despite the fact that its screenplay tries to hammer it home over and over again?  The answer I've realized is yes because Cloud Atlas is a film that may not be perfect, but is wholly original, visually appealing, and surprisingly compelling throughout its lengthy run time.

Essentially six separate stories, the overarching point of Cloud Atlas is to tell us that all of our current actions affect those that come after us which is why the stories here -- spanning the centuries from 1849 to 2321 -- are somewhat connected to one another, some by tenuous strands and some by significant plot points.  With each story undertaking a different genre -- there's comedy, suspense, romance, sci fi, historical drama -- it's as if we're watching a bunch of separate movies that are held together by both the film's theme and the interesting, entirely successful gimmick of having the members of the cast play different roles in all of the storylines.  So, as an example, while Halle Berry is the lead in the suspense segment, her role as a different character in the romance tale is a minimal one.  The same goes for Tom Hanks, Ben Whishaw, Jim Broadbent, Jim Sturgess, Hugo Weaving, Susan Sarandon, and Hugh Grant, all of whom make up a very nice ensemble and get the chance to play a variety of roles.

The film looks expensive and for a movie spanning so many genres and centuries, it's good that things don't look as if they were done on the cheap.  From the special effects to the scenic design to the nice score, all of the technical aspects of Cloud Atlas deserve praise.  Directors Tom Tykwer and the Wachowski siblings have really crafted something that I found rather intriguing on the visual side of things.

Overall, what prevents the film from thoroughly reaching its ambitious intentions is the fact that some of the stories just don't carry the gravitas of, as one character put it, showing "the consequences of one's life rippling through eternity."  As an example, I loved the comedy segment of the film featuring Jim Broadbent as a book editor who, after running afoul with one of his clients, is forced to go on the run and finds himself locked up in an old person's home.  I thought the story was well thought out, humorous, and completely entertaining.  However, I don't quite understand how it fit in with the six other stories.  Yes, there is a brief mention of Broadbent's character in the sci fi segment, but for the heftiness of the overarching theme, it doesn't quite work.  Granted, I understand that many people on this planet will only affect others in small ways, but I'm not quite sure for the scope and grandeur of Cloud Atlas that we should've been focusing on these people in this movie.

Still, while that may seem like a somewhat large "problem," it really isn't.  While it knocks the film down from a perfect level, Cloud Atlas is still a fascinating film that I'm still thinking about days after watching it.  Moreso than many of 2012's films, this is one that I look forward to watching again a few years in the future.

The RyMickey Rating:  B+

Movie Review - Your Sister's Sister

Your Sister's Sister (2012)

Starring Emily Blunt, Rosemarie Dewitt, and Mark Duplass

Directed by Lynn Shelton

Essentially a three-character comedy -- one that could easily have been a stage play prior to this cinematic incarnation -- Your Sister's Sister tells the tale of Jack (Mark Duplass) whose brother died a year prior.  While Jack tries to make it seem as if he's come to terms with the death, he still finds himself emotionally struggling with the heavy ordeal and after he overreacts at a party commemorating his brother, Jack's best friend and his brother's former girlfriend Iris (Emily Blunt) invites him to stay at her father's isolated cabin in the woods.  Jack agrees to some alone time, but when he arrives at the cabin, Iris's sister Hannah (Rosemarie Dewitt) happens to be there seeking some alone time for herself.  The two chat it up over tequila and, despite Hannah's lesbian tendencies, the two sleep together.  The next morning when Iris surprisingly shows up, Jack and Hannah try and hide their romp in the sack, but the three find themselves piling lie on top of lie.

Buoyed by three nice performances, Your Sister's Sister has a natural rhythm to it that I found very much echoed Humpday, the previous Lynn Shelton directed and written film I've seen.  Emily Blunt, Rosemarie Dewitt, and Mark Duplass seemingly improvise many of their lines and (even if that's not the case) make nearly everything they say believable for their characters who are rather complex despite the film's comedic leanings.  Ultimately, it's the layered characters that make the film successful.

The film takes a twist towards the end that knocks the realism down a few notches and while Blunt, Dewitt, and Duplass do their best to make it not seem far-fetched, they simply can't make the storyline work.  It's a bit unfortunate because prior to the last thirty minutes, I was thoroughly involved in the proceedings.  Don't get me wrong -- the final act doesn't ruin things, but it just turns an otherwise great indie film into a better than average one.

The RyMickey Rating:  B

Movie Review - This Is 40

This Is 40 (2012)

Starring Paul Rudd, Leslie Mann, Maude Apatow, Iris Apatow, Megan Fox, Jason Segel, Chris O'Dowd, Lena Dunham, Albert Brooks, John Lithgow, and Melissa McCarthy

Directed by Judd Apatow

While he sometimes succeeds as a producer (see Bridesmaids, Step Brothers, and The Five-Year Engagement), Judd Apatow has never been a favorite of mine when he gets behind the camera or puts pen to paper.  He can't seem to edit himself and he's the single biggest contributor to the notion that began in the 2000s that comedies must be longer than two hours in order to "feel important."  This Is 40 is typical Apatow in that these same problems exist -- seriously, can't this guy afford an editor at this point -- but I found the film overall quite humorous and, ultimately, worth a watch despite the fact that there is hardly any story to sustain itself over its 135-minute running time.

This Is 40 is apparently the quasi-sequel to Knocked Up in that Paul Rudd and Leslie Mann are reprising their roles of married couple Pete and Debbie, but there's nary a mention of that former movie and you certainly do not need to be even remotely familiar with it in order to understand the goings-on here.  As the film opens, Debbie is celebrating her fortieth birthday -- a milestone she refuses to accept which is why the birthday cake her two daughters Sadie and Charlotte (Maude and Iris Apatow) present her with has a giant "38" on it.  Pete is also celebrating his fourth decade on Earth in a few weeks and the couple finds themselves in a bit of a rut after having been together so long.  With a teenage daughter who always fights with her younger sister, a nagging Jewish father (Albert Brooks) who is constantly guilting Pete into giving him money, and a failing business leading to less income, life is difficult for the couple which leads to bickering around every corner.

The issue with This Is 40 lies in the fact that it doesn't bring anything new to the table and it feels like a dinner guest that just refuses to leave when he should.  There's simply not enough story presented to warrant its length and despite attempts at creating tangents -- Debbie is worried that a worker (Megan Fox) at her clothing shop is stealing, Debbie's estranged father (John Lithgow) tries to return into her life, an angry mom (Melissa McCarthy) accuses Pete and Debbie of harassing her son at school -- they're simply tangents that don't add anything to the overall story.  Granted, they're funny and they often caused me to laugh out loud, but in the end, it amounts to a whole lot of nothing.  And let's not even get started on the Judd Apatow reliance on something dramatically "important" happening that turns out not to be all that critical to the plot by the film's end.  There's several of those moments here, but I'm preferring to forget about them.

Still, despite these qualms, I wasn't ever bored by This Is 40 and the biggest credit for that probably should go to Rudd and Mann who work well together and are each more than capable of carrying out their own moments of required humor.  There's some nice cameos by folks like Jason Segel and Chris O'Dowd as well, but I can honestly say that I'm over the Melissa McCarthy craze.  This lady needs to stretch a bit as she's chosen the same exact role in every film she's undertaken.  For someone who burst onto the scene in an overwhelmingly strong way in Bridesmaids just two years ago, she's worn out her welcome very quickly.

I've never been a fan of Judd Apatow so I will admit that I came into this biased from the get-go and This Is 40 contains all of the typical Apatow-isms that I despise, but this one still manages to end on a good note for me.  There's probably something to be said in the fact that this is Apatow's lowest-rated film on RottenTomatoes and my favorite film of his, but I laughed enough to recommend it.

The RyMickey Rating: C+

Movie Review - This Means War

This Means War (2012)

Starring Chris Pine, Tom Hardy, Reese Witherspoon, Chelsea Handler, Til Schweiger, and Angela Bassett 

Directed by McG

There's something innately appealing about the trio of Chris Pine, Reese Witherspoon, and Tom Hardy, but the charming nature of all three actors is utterly wasted in the horrendous action-"comedy" This Means War.  With some of the shoddiest writing of 2012 and direction by McG that's just plain sloppy, there's simply no reason to subject yourself to this paint-by-numbers flick.

Hardy and Pine are Tuck and FDR (yep, FDR), covert CIA agents who just completed a mission in which they succeeded in preventing "international criminal" Heinrich (Til Schweiger) from getting his hands on a weapon of mass destruction.  However, in the midst of the mission, they kill Heinrich's brother which sends the supervillain on a mission of his own to hunt down and kill the CIA duo.  

Of course, this story doesn't really matter.  While the film opens and ends with its focus on Heinrich, the middle 85 minutes barely mention his name.  Instead, we're treated to a purportedly hilarious love triangle in which Tuck and FDR try and woo Lauren (Witherspoon), a beautiful gal who, like all beautiful gals in movies, has given up on love.  Instead, she dances around her apartment singing late 80s/early 90s rap songs and chats it up with her obnoxious best friend Trish (Chelsea Handler playing herself) who wants nothing more than to live vicariously through any sexcapade into which Lauren can venture.  Through a series of fateful events, Lauren finds herself dating both Tuck and FDR at the same time, and while Lauren has no idea her two beaus know each other, the CIA duo employ all the technology at their disposal to make sure the other fails at succeeding [while at the same time not using that same state-of-art gadgetry to make sure Heinrich doesn't make good on his vow to enact revenge on them.]

Perhaps there's something here in terms of a story, but with dialog so horrible this blogger could have done better and direction so odd that at moments I wondered if I was watching an edited-for-tv version of a film, This Means War is a chore to watch.  It's a shame because Chris Pine and Reese Witherspoon really do give this everything they have and there are some moments where their charming natures almost make certain scenes work, but they're really never given a chance with this dead on arrival junk. Tom Hardy is fine, but he's fared better in the past (and unfortunately I feel like I've been saying that a bit more than I'd like as of late) -- I'm simply not sure romantic comedy is a genre that suits him despite his effort here.

Quite simply, there's nothing about this movie that works.  The comedic moments never made me laugh.  The action scenes never provided a moment of tension.  The romance aspects never created steaminess.  When you fail in all three of the genres you're trying to place your movie into, you've got a mess on your hands and This Means War is a one of the biggest mishandled botches of 2012.

The RyMickey Rating:  D

Movie Review - Hysteria

Hysteria (2012)

Starring Hugh Dancy, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Rupert Everett, Jonathan Pryce, and Felicity Jones

Directed by Tanya Wexler

British women in the late 19th century were irritable creatures.  Garnering very little respect from their husbands, they found themselves heading to their doctors where they were diagnosed with "hysteria."  The cure, employed by docs like Robert Dalrymple (Jonathan Pryce), was to massage the genital area (in a purely decent manner underneath a velvet curtain) to induce a "paroxysmal convulsion" unaware that this was actually an orgasm.  Dr. Dalrymple finds his practice overwhelmed with hysterical women so he hires young physician Mortimer Granville (Hugh Dancy) who happens to have a knack for curing the disease.  More and more women flock to him to be relieved of their sickness which unfortunately causes his hand to cramp up substantially and he is fired by Dalrymple for not being able to perform his duties.  This dismissal happens to be quite fortuitous as Mortimer discovers that his friend Lord Edmund St. John-Smythe (Rupert Everett) has developed an electric feather duster which Mortimer believes could be the answer to his injured hand and the ladies' hysteria problems.  And, henceforth, the vibrator forever became a tool for women across the world.

Hysteria tells the story of the invention of the vibrator...and if that were the only story it told, it would've been a success.  Instead, the trio of screenwriters add in a love triangle involving Mortimer and Dr. Dalrymple's two daughters -- the younger, more reverent Emily (Felicity Jones) and the older, new-age feminist Charlotte (Maggie Gyllenhaal) -- which takes over the film's second half and causes it to fall flat on its face.  The obvious nature of the resolution of the love triangle from the film's outset created nary a modicum of tension and failed to resonate in the slightest despite the valiant efforts of Hugh Dancy who tries his hardest to be charming and carry the film on his shoulders.

I wanted to like this movie and for the first 45 minutes or so, I found Hysteria humorous enough to warrant its existence.  However, as the film progresses, it abandons its subject matter which makes it unique and turns into something we've seen over and over again in movies better than this.

The RyMickey Rating:  C-

Movie Review - The Loneliest Planet

The Loneliest Planet (2012)

Starring Gael Garcia Bernal, Hani Furstenberg, and Bidzina Gujabidze

Directed by Julia Loktev

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

The Loneliest Planet is a gorgeous film to gaze upon as director Julia Loktev with the help of cinematographer Inti Briones capture the beauty of the Caucusus Mountains in the eastern European country of Georgia.  Beyond the Georgian vistas, however, The Loneliest Planet is a nearly two hour slog to sit through and, despite my best efforts to enjoy the odd nature of the film, I simply can't find myself recommending this one.

Boyfriend and girlfriend Alex and Nica (Gael Garcia Bernal and Hani Furstenberg) are traveling through the former USSR with nothing much more than two backpacks.  In the film's initial moments, it's obvious they're in love and director Loktev does a nice job of establishing their relationship with even the simplest of hand gestures or knowing glances.  The two decide to trek through the Caucusus mountain range and hire Dato (Bidzina Gujabidze) as their guide.  And the next 105 minutes is just them walking and talking and walking and talking.  About halfway through, "an event" happens that is so quick that you could blink and miss it.  After the event, there's more walking and decidedly less talking, but it's obvious that the mood has decidedly changed amongst the trio.

Experimental is definitely the wrong word to describe The Loneliest Planet, but the lack of dialog or any real substantial story to follow makes it stand out from other films and at first I found it an admirable quality.  However, after "the event" happens, I just wanted some conversation to be had or some emotion to be expressed and instead we get silence.  While there's part of me that applauds the decidedly un-cinematic quality of the film, there's another part of me that says there was no need to capture this story on video.  I don't necessarily watch movies for a cinema verite style and this film somewhat tries to achieve that quality.

For what they're given to work with, all of the actors do a decent job, but I wished they had a little more to bite into here.  The Loneliest Planet is an interesting experiment, but it ultimately doesn't make for a very exciting film.

The RyMickey Rating:  C-

Movie Review - Seeking a Friend for the End of the World

Seeking a Friend for the End of the World (2012)

Starring Steve Carell, Keira Knightley, Adam Brody, Connie Britton, Rob Corddry, Derek Luke, and Martin Sheen

Directed by Lorene Scafaria

Second-time screenwriter Lorene Scafaria's debut directorial effort takes two disparate people -- the forlorn, depressed Dodge (Steve Carell) and the free-spirirted Penny (Keira Knightley) -- and forces them together as they trek from New York to Delaware (shout out to the First State!) to be with their families ahead of an impending 70-mile wide asteroid making impact with Earth bringing an end to civilization.  Although Dodge and Penny lived in the same apartment complex for years, they never knew each other at all.  When Dodge's wife leaves him and Penny's boyfriend (Adam Brody) proves to be not all she pegged him to be, the two find themselves involved in a mutually beneficial "end of the world" relationship.  Penny has a car that can take Dodge to his father's house in Delaware and Dodge says that he knows someone who can fly Penny to be with her family in England before the impending apocalypse.  Along the way, we are given what are essentially vignettes of Dodge and Penny meeting people who are preparing in different ways for the end of the world.

While none of these vignettes prove detrimental individually to the film, when put together, they don't really amount to much.  Despite the somewhat hollow feeling we have watching people act quirky despite their impending death, I still found myself completely interested in what was happening...and then the last thirty minutes of this movie come along and make everything that comes before it seem like it should have taken place in a completely different movie.  There's a tonal shift that the director/screenwriter can't ever quite effectively mesh together.  Both parts work individually, but they disappoint a bit when combined and we look at the movie as a whole.

It's a shame, really, because the final moments of Seeking a Friend for the End of the World were simply fantastic.  The last scene will likely end up very high on my 2012 RyMickey Awards Best Scene category (posting soon in June).  Admittedly, despite the distinct moods of the film, Ms. Scafaria does effectively create a relationship between Dodge and Penny.  Credit for this connection certainly must be doled out to Steve Carell and Keira Knightley who seem like such an odd coupling that I had absolutely no desire to see this film in the first place.  However, Carell in particular does some great work here.  The film overall lands squarely in the "dramedy" category and Carell is able to play both the humor and pathos of Dodge quite admirably. It was also a pleasant surprise for Knightley to tackle the more comedic character of the duo.  I look forward to seeing Carell pursue more dramatic work and Knightley taking on comedy if this film is any indication of their capabilities.

Yes, there are problems with Seeking a Friend for the End of the World, but I almost want you to ignore them because the payoff in the end feels so genuine, real, and organic that it's worth overlooking the flaws.  As long as you go into this one realizing that it isn't perfect, but is deserving of your time, you'll come away pleased and almost invigorated despite the ominous tone that stems from the possibility of the entire human race coming to an end.

The RyMickey Rating:  B-