a little *too* hip

Posted : 2 months, 3 weeks ago on 3 June 2008 01:16 (A review of Juno)

First of all, let me state the obvious: "Juno" is a very funny, very clever movie. But the post-modern ironic detachment that all the characters (save Paulie, Mark, and Vanessa) exhibit sucks the soul from the film.

The acting is very good, the direction is competent (if very consciously indie), but the screenwriter doesn't give each character their own voice. With the exception of the three mentioned above, all the character's dialogue seem drawn from the same hipster well, with always just the right witty barb on hand to combat any creeping signs of real heart or emotion.

Also, the claim that "Juno" courageously tackles politically sensitive subjects is overblown. The abortion question is dodged with a throw-away line about fingernails. Teen sex is just a plot device, neither glorified, damned, or much addressed at all except as a recurring gag on Paulie's competence (or lack thereof) "in chair."

Even with all the unjustified hype, it's hard to dislike the film, though, mostly because, as I said at the start of this review, it's so terribly clever. It's worth several viewings, but I wouldn't put it on par with "Ghost World", let alone "Rushmore" or "The Squid and the Whale" as far as coming of age films go.

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Funniest movie of 2007.

Posted : 3 months, 4 weeks ago on 2 May 2008 02:28 (A review of 300)

Really strikingly beautiful cinematography and action choreography.

But the plot, the acting, the writing-- it's a glorious monument to the power of cheese. I laughed all the way through. It's just sooo outlandish and over-the-top and yet it takes itself sooo seriously that I couldn't help but giggle.

Definitely worth seeing. 8/10.

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Beethoven the bastard

Posted : 9 months, 1 week ago on 19 November 2007 10:02 (A review of Immortal Beloved)

This biopic about Ludwig van Beethoven presents the composer as an insufferable asshole, paranoid and vindictive to the extreme. The film would ask us to forgive the man due to his immense talent and his having had a rough life (an abusive childhood and, of course, deafness during early adulthood), but I was left cold.

The film begins with Beethoven's death amid a dark and stormy night, with the opening notes of his Fifth Symphony (perhaps the most recognizable 4 notes in all of music) signalling his demise. Most of the rest of the film is told in flashback, with the plot revolving around the mysterious identity of Beethoven's "immortal beloved" to whom he willed his estate.

In fact, the best part of the film is its soundtrack, made up entirely of bits and pieces of Beethoven's music. One scene near the end, in particular, set to the fourth movement of Beethoven's 9th Symphony (the "Ode to Joy"), stands out in its intensity, both visual and aural. That scene alone makes the film worth seeing, in my opinion, but without it I'd have a hard time recommending the movie.

Gary Oldman is, as always, fantastic, but his Beethoven is a man almost impossible to sympathize with as he goes through life perpetrating one indignity after another on everyone around him.

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