Alice Valentine

Movies I'm excited to see.

Fantastic Mr. Fox

Another wonderful Roald Dahl story that has been turned in to a movie (like The Witches, James and the Giant Peach, Matilda, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, etc.). Plus the writer/director is the brilliant Wes Anderson (The Darjeeling Limited, The Life Aquatic, The Royal Tenenbaums, etc.). Watch the preview for Fantastic Mr Fox here.

Mammoth

This "modern family drama" looks quite good. I'm glad to see Michelle Williams is acting again. Watch the preview here.

Serious Moonlight

This comedy looks quite cute. Meg Ryan's character goes up to her family's estate a day early and discovers that her husband has covered the house in roses... expecting his girlfriend to show up, not his wife. Meg ties him to the toilet and attempts to make him fall back in love with her. Watch the preview here.

And here's a few more:

 

Splinterheads

 

That Evening Sun

 

Motherhood

Food Inc.

Watch this movie. It has nothing to do with being vegan. It's a brilliant documentary about knowing where your food is coming from. Love it.

Halloween Plans

Jarod and I, along with our friends Jen and Paul, have tickets to go see the 1922 silent film Nosferatu on Halloween. The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra will be playing along with the film. I think it will be really fun! Nosferatu is the original Dracula movie. I've never seen it, but I think it will be a thrill!

I'm not completely sure what Jarod and I will be dressing up as. I think we may be characters from Mad Men. Jarod wanted to be Dr. Phil (he would shave the middle of his head bald) and he wanted me to be Oprah. That is so not happening. I've always wanted to be Snow White but the costumes are either rediculously over priced or really, really slutty.

Movie Monday: Grey Gardens

 

Grey Gardens

A couple of weeks ago Alice and I were at our local independent video store and she rented a new Drew Barrymore movie called Grey Gardens. When we went to pay the gentleman at the store asked us if we had seen the documentary. We hadn't so he gave it to us for free saying it was almost mandatory viewing. After seeing both movies I agree with him that they do add a lot of depth to each other. In retrospect I see what a phenomenal job the actresses did in the new film recreating the real life characters. Trust me, characters is the right word. Drew Barrymore will be nominated for an Oscar, I'm sure of it. The new film helps to put the documentary into context by giving you the family history before the snapshot of time that the documentary encompasses.

Both films are centered around the relationship between Jackie O's Aunt and cousin. Little Edie and big Edie as they are known. They were shut-ins living in a 26 bedroom estate in the Hampton's that the mother was left from a divorce. Neither of them earned an income. They lived off a small trust fund given to big Edie by her ex-husband. The trust eventually ran out and they had no means to support themselves. Big Edie refused to sell the estate and over the years it fell into disrepair. And by disrepair I mean they end up living in the one hospitable room while cats and raccoons take over the rest of the house and a tree grows through a wall upstairs.

Oh, and you are treated to some fantastic song and dance through out the two films. These women are a few eggs short of a dozen.

  

 

Movie Monday: The Professional

The Professional

This film also goes by the name Leon. It stars Jean Reno, Gary Oldman and Natalie Portman in only her second film as a young girl. The movie takes place in New York and centers around an eccentric recuse named Leon, who happens to be a contract killer. 

He and Natalie Portman's character live in the same building and through a sequence of events he becomes responsible for her. The most interesting part of the movie surrounds their relationship. They make quite a pair. Garl Oldman also delivers an exceptional performance as a deeply disturbed crooked cop. 

This movie is a must see. 

Movie Monday: Blade Runner

Blade Runner

This is my favourite Harrison Ford movie. Its got an extremely dark vibe about it. I'm a sucker for movies this brood. It's lit like Gotham City and has a bleak opinion of what the future holds for us.

Harrison Ford plays a cyborg bounty hunter. In the future man creates "skin jobs," machines that look, sound and feel identical to humans. The only difference being that they are much stronger and faster than us. Their only real weakness being that they are instilled with a fixed life span. They do the jobs that we don't want or are unable to do. I'm sure this is a complete surprise but some of them turn on us. I know, it was a shock for me to. 

After retiring Ford is pulled back into service to catch two skin jobs who hijacked a space ship form a remote mining colony. I'm not a sci-fi fan but for a movie this good I'll make an exception. 

Alice says: 

Oh Bladerunner! This is one of my favourite movies too... I used to play the computer game with my brother long before I saw the movie (which I beat first, by the way). If you've never seen it, I highly recommend it! I give this one a 9.5/10!

Movie Monday: Hard Candy

Hard Candy

This movie . . . totally awesome. It involves a man -- who shows all the signs of being a sexual predator -- lure a teenage girl back to his house for the afternoon. (Disclamer: that's not what I think is great about the movie). The film tracks their day and how the balance of power shifts back and forth in their relationship. 

I've discussed this movie with other people but I've never had someone agree with me over some of the specifics of what this movie implies during a couple of scenes. It's a movie that you really need to pay attention to. It's not that the story's hard to follow, there are just some subtle nuances that you need to notice to really understand the experience the character is going through. I've already said to much.

This movie is the best psychological thriller I've seen the in the last couple of years, with the possible exception of Funny Games. Hard Candy stars Ellen Page before her breakout role as Juno.

Alice's say: This is one of those movies that you don't love because it's romantic and sweet. . . you love it because it's unique and makes you think. Ellen Page is awesome in it. Great pick Jarod, and by the way I totally agreed with you once I saw it again : )

I rate it 8.5/10, but it's definitely not a film for everyone. 

Movie Monday: The Life Aquatic

The Life Aquatic

This is definitly a love it or hate it movie. If you've seen any of Bill Murray's recent movies and enjoyed it this movie is probably your cup of tea. Bill Murray plays a marine explorer the likes of Jacques Cousteau. He and his band of merry men have a multitude of adventures through out the film. I don't think any of the characters in the movie possess an IQ of more than 85 give or take. 

The film is extremely quirky. I implore you to give it a shot because if you enjoy this film there's about 5 more that have a similar vibe that your sure to enjoy. Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums and The Darjeeling Limited to name a few.

I want an orange toque.  

Movie Monday: Junebug

 

Junebug

This weekend Alice and I rented Junebug. A newlywed couple takes a trip to North Carolina because the wife owns an art gallery and has learnt of an idiot savant who's art she must have. While down south (They live in Chicago) they decide to visit the husbands family. Strangely there is little interaction in the film between the husband and wife that isn't of a "physical" nature. 

At times the movie can be profoundly sad. As the visit unfolds the wife starts to see how little she knows about her new husband and his past. One of the highlights of the movie is the portrayal of a childish southern wife who's about to have a child of her own by Amy Adams. 

The film is built around the dichotomy of the characters and the underlying animosity between them. There are strong performances turned in by almost all of the cast. They draw you into their world and you invest yourself in their troubles. 

I must also confess that I have a small crush on Embeth Davidtz who plays the wife. Don't tell Alice.

Alice: I loved the performance of Amy Adams. She was brilliant. The movie left off without answering all of my questions, but sometimes that's a good thing. It's classified as a comedy, but I found it to me more of a drama with a few funny scenes. Still definitely worth a watch. 8/10

Movie Monday: American Psycho

American Psycho

This is my favourite movie. I love the dark humor. This movie is about a young, successful executive whose sanity starts to slip away. What does a man with everything do in his spare time? Why randomly kill people of course. 

He and his circle are kind of like the Mad Men of the 80's. Materialistic doesn't even begin to describe this bunch. There's a scene when they're comparing business cards and you'd swear they all had their flies open. 

The violence in this movie isn't that graphic by todays standards but is extremely savage so be warned. I highly recommend this guilty pleasure.