With a month off of school and a plethora of Oscar hopefuls flooding the multiplexes in time for the holiday season, I get a lot of good movie-watching done over the break. Some were on DVD, since I sometimes have an aversion to leaving the house, some were second viewings, and some were first-runs in the theaters. As the TV writers' strike doesn't seem to have an end in sight, these may be some acceptable substitutions.
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In the Land of Women: Starring Adam Brody (whom I miss dearly since I stopped watching The O.C. three years ago), and Meg Ryan (and her overinflated lips). Like a combination of a little bit of
Garden State and a little bit of
The Graduate, it features a love triangle between a mom (Ryan), her daughter (Kristen Stewart, looking somewhat like a heroin addict), and the new boy next door (Brody). Props to supporting characters of the crazy grandmother and the precocious little sister, non-props to scenes featuring Brody in a tshirt and basketball shorts... I love him, but his legs are just too skinny to wear that look. A good movie for a dreary day.
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The Simpsons Movie: I've never been an avid watcher of the TV show, but I always get a kick out of the implicit social commentary. Putting the town of Springfield under a giant dome was a good way to make the TV series expandable for the big screen. The "Spider-Pig" sequence was the only thing I was familiar with from the trailer, and even that paid off and was actually funny. Good for some mindless laughs, even if you're not intimately familiar with the characters.
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Juno: Pregnancy seems to be excessively trendy these days, even when unexpected. As my best friend put it, "Abortions are totally out." Even though this plot revolves around the unplanned pregnancy of a 16-year-old high schooler (who is NOT Jamie-Lynn Spears), the protagonist is seen as selfless, not scandalous. Michael Cera (of
Superbad fame) is adorably dorkish as the "totally boss" Paulie Bleeker, and Ellen Page has a breakout performance as the title character. (Although seeing her tiny body with a pregnant belly is kind of painful.) The writing of Diablo Cody is the kind that makes me re-vow to write my own screenplay someday, and the teen dialogue is refreshingly believable. (One of my pet peeves is when writers are completely out of touch with teen and twenty-something slang.) This feel-good indie has been recognized with Golden Globe nominations for Best Actress, Best Picture (Musical or Comedy), and Best Screenplay, all of which are deserved.
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27 Dresses: Shameless romantic comedy featuring the lovely Katherine Heigl and the very pretty James Marsden. Jane (Heigl) has been a bridesmaid 27 times, and has the closet full of ugly dresses to prove it. Kevin (Marsden) is the "Commitments" writer for the fictional New York Journal, and is assigned to cover the wedding of Jane's sister to the man that Jane secretly loves. Fairly predictable plot, but just when it starts to get a little too corny, writer Aline Brosh McKenna throws in a sarcastic line that perfectly cuts through the cheesiness. The people are pretty, Heigl's Jane is easy to root for, and I'm a sucker for wedding movies with happy endings. A great chick flick.
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Superbad: The second viewing of this member of the Judd Apatow dynasty of films is just as good as the first. Love Seth, Evan, and McLovin, could do with less of the cops. Again, the writing captures how high schoolers really speak to one another (but with considerably more swearing than in Juno), and has some very believable sequences, which doesn't always happen in high school coming-of-age comedies. Favorite lines include the infinitely repeatable "Chicka chicka yeaaaah," and the not-as-repeatable "No one's gotten a hand job in cargo shorts since 'Nam." Great for mindless entertainment, or maybe a drinking game.
- In the Land of Women: Starring Adam Brody (whom I miss dearly since I stopped watching The O.C. three years ago), and Meg Ryan (and her overinflated lips). Like a combination of a little bit of Garden State and a little bit of The Graduate, it features a love triangle between a mom (Ryan), her daughter (Kristen Stewart, looking somewhat like a heroin addict), and the new boy next door (Brody). Props to supporting characters of the crazy grandmother and the precocious little sister, non-props to scenes featuring Brody in a tshirt and basketball shorts... I love him, but his legs are just too skinny to wear that look. A good movie for a dreary day.
- The Simpsons Movie: I've never been an avid watcher of the TV show, but I always get a kick out of the implicit social commentary. Putting the town of Springfield under a giant dome was a good way to make the TV series expandable for the big screen. The "Spider-Pig" sequence was the only thing I was familiar with from the trailer, and even that paid off and was actually funny. Good for some mindless laughs, even if you're not intimately familiar with the characters.
- Juno: Pregnancy seems to be excessively trendy these days, even when unexpected. As my best friend put it, "Abortions are totally out." Even though this plot revolves around the unplanned pregnancy of a 16-year-old high schooler (who is NOT Jamie-Lynn Spears), the protagonist is seen as selfless, not scandalous. Michael Cera (of Superbad fame) is adorably dorkish as the "totally boss" Paulie Bleeker, and Ellen Page has a breakout performance as the title character. (Although seeing her tiny body with a pregnant belly is kind of painful.) The writing of Diablo Cody is the kind that makes me re-vow to write my own screenplay someday, and the teen dialogue is refreshingly believable. (One of my pet peeves is when writers are completely out of touch with teen and twenty-something slang.) This feel-good indie has been recognized with Golden Globe nominations for Best Actress, Best Picture (Musical or Comedy), and Best Screenplay, all of which are deserved.
- 27 Dresses: Shameless romantic comedy featuring the lovely Katherine Heigl and the very pretty James Marsden. Jane (Heigl) has been a bridesmaid 27 times, and has the closet full of ugly dresses to prove it. Kevin (Marsden) is the "Commitments" writer for the fictional New York Journal, and is assigned to cover the wedding of Jane's sister to the man that Jane secretly loves. Fairly predictable plot, but just when it starts to get a little too corny, writer Aline Brosh McKenna throws in a sarcastic line that perfectly cuts through the cheesiness. The people are pretty, Heigl's Jane is easy to root for, and I'm a sucker for wedding movies with happy endings. A great chick flick.
- Superbad: The second viewing of this member of the Judd Apatow dynasty of films is just as good as the first. Love Seth, Evan, and McLovin, could do with less of the cops. Again, the writing captures how high schoolers really speak to one another (but with considerably more swearing than in Juno), and has some very believable sequences, which doesn't always happen in high school coming-of-age comedies. Favorite lines include the infinitely repeatable "Chicka chicka yeaaaah," and the not-as-repeatable "No one's gotten a hand job in cargo shorts since 'Nam." Great for mindless entertainment, or maybe a drinking game.
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