"Larry Crowne"

by Guest Reviewer Josh Valentine
Indiebum

Tom Hanks’ “Larry Crowne” is a film that your mom goes to see with her girlfriends. It’s what appears run-of-the-mill romantic comedy starring everyman Tom Hanks and America’s sweetheart Julia Roberts. In some ways, that is the film. But the miracle of “Larry Crowne” is its immediacy and its passion for the human experience. This is a film that came and went in the theaters and it will be forgotten. It shouldn’t.

The film, co-written with Hanks by Nia Vardalos (“My Big Fat Greek Wedding”), and directed by the man himself, is about finding purpose. For most people, it is through purpose that life’s meaning is found. For some, raising a family is their purpose and that gets them through their existential woes. For others, they find this solace in their work. This is the focus of Larry Crowne’s life at U-Mart until he is laid off due to his lack of a college education. Crowne (played with dependable pluck by Hanks) faces a new chapter in his life – a chapter he never expected. He enrolls at the local community college where he meets Mrs. Mercy Tainot (Roberts), a speech and communications professor who’s at her wit’s end of a terrible marriage. He also meets Talia (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), a free-spirit who introduces him to the comfort of being cool. Larry begins to re-experience the life he’s felt he missed after his 20 years in the Navy. “Larry Crowne” is very much a film that encourages the idea that the experience of living is in itself what must be appreciated. For the three major characters, the achievement of purpose is what enlightens their existence.

Hanks, Roberts and Mbatha-Raw all portray their own character arcs to exhibit the theme of purpose. Hanks’ Crowne is generally optimistic, but never felt his past had any merit worth mentioning. He hides from his passion of cooking, because he felt he had done it too long in the Navy. His re-invention is a catalyst for his return to his passion and he is able to grow, even in middle age. Roberts’ character is borderline depressed, and wants to find purpose in her teaching. Thanks to Larry Crowne, she not only re-discovers her enthusiasm – but also finds the grown up man she’s been looking for. The character of Talia is pure optimism but is seemingly lost. When she drops out of college to pursue her dream of owning her own business, she finds her purpose. All of these character arcs seem relatively inconsequential, but really show how something so meaningless can actually change a person’s life forever. The film is surely fantasy, but it’s ideas and main themes of finding purpose are essentially human. This is a human film.

“Larry Crowne” ended its theatrical run recently, but will be on DVD and Blu-ray in November. It’s not essential viewing, but highly recommended. It might even help you find you your purpose.

"Inception"

Guest reviewer: Josh Valentine

This is the abridged version. Read complete review.

The modern American blockbuster is made up of event films - movies only meant to earn money by offering big budget effects and supposed escapism. With the release of Christopher Nolan's “Inception” a void has been filled. The film has a wonderful case of classic cinematic ambiguity - something that has been thrown away by even the most artful users of its design (Martin Scorsese, we all saw “Shutter Island” - you can do better).

Oscar alert: Wally Pfister won Best Achievement in Cinematography . 

The film has a very intricate plot, involving a dream thief or “extractor” named Cobb (Leonardo Dicaprio, in a role characteristically similar to his in “Shutter Island” but acceptably so because the character is much more deeply written and performed less extravagantly than in Scorsese's flick) who, with a team of highly trained individuals including his partner-in-crime Arthur (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), will remove a simple thought or idea from someone by kidnapping them and then tapping into their dream. Cobb is hired by Saito (Ken Watanabe) to perform inception - the seemingly impossible act of planting an idea in one's head unconsciously (so that the receiver of said idea is unaware they are the victim of inception). Cobb hires a new team including Ariadne (Ellen Page), Eames (Tom Hardy) and Yusuf (Dileep Rao) to research their target, Robert Fisher Jr. (Cillian Murphy), whom Saito wants to dismantle his dying father's company. The team enters Fisher's dream, but Cobb's daunting past and inability to control his malicious dead wife Mal (Marion Cotillard) from entering the dream turns the mission upside down.

The film is the third in a series of modern films about the dream. The first was the groundbreaking 1999 film “The Matrix” directed by the Wachowskis and the second was Michel Gondry's mind-erasing low budget feature “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.” The Matrix was a cunning film, using the sleeping human mind as a metaphor for the many different ways we are unconsciously controlled by the world sociologically both by government and the media. The characters' stasis resulted in their ability to control their environment based on their understanding of its rules and of their “programming.” In “Eternal Sunshine,” Gondry portrayed the effects of memory erasure and through both his directing style, Ellen Kuras' underrated cinematography, Charlie Kaufman's script, Jon Brion's score and the performances of Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet, he was able to show the unconscious psychological effects of dreaming and by its process that we make life decisions.

Nolan's film feels like a lurid dream after a marathon of those two films. In “Inception,” Nolan uses the ambiguity of his surprise ending to create the mood and metaphors of his film. The ending, alone with a lot of the other questions asked in the film create an overall sense of ambiguity. It is in this sense that Nolan is being compared to Kubrick in the way that “2001: A Space Odyssey” is able to break the barrier from questioning the film to questioning one's own existence. Nolan performs inception through the act of making this film - by placing a simple thought into his audience's mind, therefore changing the way we think about the possibilities of how we decode cinema. Last year, James Cameron successfully duped audiences all over the world into thinking he had created the new “2001: A Space Odyssey” with his unnervingly boring and useless “Avatar” (he even told Charlie Rose this was his intention), but little did he know that Nolan would beat him artistically by a long shot. “Inception” will last, “Avatar” will not.

The characters of the film are the most essential, and the performances of the actors only rectify their necessity to the concept. Dicaprio is in top form - Cobb is probably his best role to date - not too understated, but still mysterious. Leo's a master of the conflicted in that he never overacts. Dicaprio portrays Cobb on two main levels - one that is absolutely in control and the other that shows a distance, which may suggest that he in fact is not in control. Cobb is a very distressed man, who holds all of his secrets within. When Ariadne lets them out, all hell breaks loose. Page also creates a distance to her character - like someone thought up in a dream but that may also be more aware than the film initially suggests. Ariadne is hired as the “architect” of Fisher's dream but soon becomes more interested in finding out what Cobb's been hiding. It almost seems as if she has an alternate motive, in that she could be the one trying to attempt inception on him. That and her mysterious connection to Caine's character are also conjecture toward Nolan's big cinematic questions.

“Inception” is a rare film for our times. It's a high concept, Kubrick-style film disguised as a major Hollywood action thriller. This could be a major step forward in terms of left-brained film making in modern American cinema - a symptom that things could be looking brighter for a brand new era of young directors. Directors like Marc Webb (“(500) Days of Summer”) and Neill Blomkamp (“District 9”) proved that there's still artistic talent that is eager to step up to the plate. However, Nolan goes a step further - into territory no one expected. He might be the best thing we'll get to our Kubrick - if he doesn't go crazy.

For more Reel Inspiration reviews, visit: www.reelinspiration.blogspot.com

"Where the Wild Things Are"

This year I only posted movies I had personally seen on Reel Inspiration's Most Inspiring films poll. Unfortunately, because of the mixed reviews, I didn't watch, "Where the Wild Things Are" so it isn't on the list.

Reel Inspiration reviewer Josh Valentine wrote, " I would really like to be able to vote for "Where The Wild Things Are," it was the most transcendentally uplifting and inspirational film of the year for me!" Here is Josh's review - better late than never...

WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE

BY GUEST REVIEWER JOSH VALENTINE
Indiebum

A film that permeates the mind, and allows one to discover their inner child in a way you’d never expect. The attainment of innocence and one’s inner child is impossible to exact in a completely genuine way – but one single viewing of Spike Jonze’s adaptation of Maurice Sendak’s book will transport its viewer (if not for a single night) to a place they’d wholly forgotten. The tragic loneliness of childhood – the inability to let out one’s deep emotional pains because you lack the education to iterate it through metaphor – is portrayed, something I’ve never seen in the medium. The innocent intelligence of a child’s mind which only exists within that mind is actually achieved in Jonze’s brilliant script and through the performance of Max Records. And that’s only the first fifteen minutes. Sendak’s original book was relatively thin in terms of characterization, but it spoke loudly in terms of the explosive potential of a child’s imagination. Jonze and screenwriter Dave Eggers name and explore the actual wild things, utilizing each beast’s personality as a reflection of the complexities of a child. The voice work is phenomenal (watch the film, then check IMDb and be amazed at who played certain characters) as is Karen O and Carter Burwell’s inspired score – the best in terms of cinematic relevance since Jon Brion’s score or “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.” While the film has become something of a hipster’s wet dream, it should not be ignored as it is artistically important and singular in a new genre of film – the inner child’s film.

Just for fun:
Where the Wild Things," video adaptation of the Maurcie Sendak classic.

"The Wackness"

Reel Inspiration Review: The Wackness.
Guest Reviewer: Josh Valentine of Indie Bum
http://www.indiebum.com/

In recent years, the Sundance Film Festival has been known as the essential prognosticator of the following year’s great independent movies to come. The festival has brought us great cinema such as “American Splendor,” “Once,” “Little Miss Sunshine,” and “The Station Agent.” That latter film won the Audience Award in the Dramatic category as did the recently released drama “The Wackness.” While the fest has been losing credibility since last year’s misguided praise for the horrid “Rocket Science,” this new piece is not only one of the best things to ever come out of Sundance, but one of the better coming-of-age tales since “Almost Famous” and “Ghost World.”

The film stars once child star now budding actor Josh Peck as Luke Shapiro, a drug dealing high school grad living low in the East End of 1994 New York City. Dealing with the confusion of teenage sex drive and not used to being “the cool guy” after years of being terribly unpopular, Luke’s about to learn a whole lot about life. One mentor is his psychologist Dr. Jeff Squires (Ben Kingsley), who actually turns out to be Luke’s number one customer. Luke becomes acquainted with his pothead shrink’s daughter, the wildly sexy Stephanie (Olivia Thirlby) and soon enough she becomes the unreciprocated love of his life.

The film is deceptively simple. While the plot doesn’t exactly draw in its audience, it is the excruciatingly profound characters that both excites and titillates. Sharply written, and both strangely comic and touching, “The Wackness” is an awe-inspiring vision of teen angst and a huge step forward for its two young stars and a wonderful re-emergence of its legend.

It is wondrously refreshing to see an actor Peck’s age with such a resume (he’s most well known for his debut in “Snow Day” and the kiddie series “Drake and Josh”) taking on a role like Luke Shapiro. He was featured in 2004’s dark tale “Mean Creek” as the schoolyard bully accidentally murdered by his victims, however this role in “The Wackness” called for much more than his previous indie effort. Peck is surprisingly wonderful. Luke tries desperately to be cool, and while his attempts do not have a comic effect they are instead rather moving. The actor shows he wants to make an impression in the new world of indie filmmaking and exhibits terrific showmanship in an obviously researched role. He delivers an honest performance, one of young Brando-esque quality.

Also captivating is Thirlby, who is much more impressive and shows a different range than her turn in the indie-comedy “Juno” as the title character’s best friend. Her performance is at times wildly addictive and extremely seductive. Stephanie is an absolute tease, although curiously as confused and lost as her admirer. Thirlby intertwines these characterizations with ease and is effortlessly becoming the new (Sorry, Ellen Page) indie “it-girl.”

As for the legendary Ben Kingsley, he delivers nothing but one of his best performances. He exhibits a bizarre peculiarity and throughout the entire film it is obvious that he fully savored the juicy role from beginning to end. The character of Dr. Squires is actually the most profound accident within “The Wackness.” His realization of what he believes to be an empty life is heartbreaking and through what can only be described as a tour-de-force performance that deserves exhaustive recognition, Kingsley scores.

The most appealing aspect is the remarkable chemistry not between Peck and Thirlby, but between the young man and his doctor. Their relationship blossoms into cinematic moments of perfection. It is a joy watching each character learn about life from one another whether it’s through drugs, music, laughter, or sex. Seeing them together on screen is honestly the best part about the movie and in some ways the best scenes on film in 2008.

With his first major feature film, writer/director Jonathan Levine has achieved a definitive new classic. The film sparkles with originality and has inventive detail. At times we’re allowed into the mind of Luke Shapiro, and through visualized bubble dream sequences and fun set pieces Levine has craft ed a terrifically offbeat style of storytelling. With its limited time period and setting, the film would seem to have a niche audience, but transcends into a widely accessible work. Also, in some ways it is matchless in its genre in terms of its portrayal of the real misery of growing up in terms of love, heartache, and happiness.

At times the film is a bit predictable and somewhat formulaic, but it is the heartbreaking realizations of the characters of Luke and Dr. Squires that carry the entire piece. Also, the film has a relatively strong ending, coming full circle to add closure but also keeping somewhat open.

“The Wackness” is a breath of fresh air in a dead year of independent film, and its under-the-radar nature is truly a crime. Kingsley is Oscar-worthy, and hopefully this will open a veritable number of doors for its younger stars. Like this film’s motif – the heat of the summer – this film gets hotter and hotter and so do its stars. Go see “The Wackness,” yo.

"The Diving Bell and the Butterfly" (Le Scaphandre et Le Papillon)

by Josh Valentine
Indiebum

An unbelievable epic, “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly” is one of the most beautifully written, directed, and acted films of this year and of all time. Julian Schnabel’s French import is an amazing vision blooming with innovative directing techniques that are not often seen in American film. This is one of the best directed films this year, and one of the best foreign films of all time.

The film tells the story of Jean-Dominique Bauby (played miraculously by Mathieu Amalric) the former editor of French Elle whose life was sadly rendered by a massive stroke. The stroke left him paralyzed from head to toe with a rare illness called “locked-in syndrome, leaving only his mind and his left eye active. As Bauby recuperates, he begins to dictate a book about his affliction through the blink of his eye with the aid of three beautiful nurses Henriette (Marie-Josée Croze), Claude (Anne Consigny), and Marie (Olatz Lopez Garamendia).

The movie does an amazing job of telling the story through an excellent adaptation of Bauby’s memoir. We hear Bauby’s thoughts, almost completely made up by screenwriter Ronald Harwood. Harwood’s Bauby is an extremely intelligent man which adds a lot of sadness to the tale. From the outside it would seem like he would be quite the opposite due to his lazed physical appearance. The invented inner dialog shows a much sadder side to the story.

The film is directed like no other. Schnabel, who directed the fabulous biopic “Basquiat”, takes his job to new heights setting a new standard. “Diving Bell” is very well thought out. For example, the opening scene depicts Bauby’s awakening from his comatose state. The sequence lasts a few minutes, and the viewer really gets a feel for how confused the patient is and how claustrophobic he is feeling. The whole film is a little claustrophobic, but it is hardly uncomfortable.

Once more, the character of Jean-Dominique Bauby is very well developed. He has a very creative mind, something that spurs many glorious scenes which explore his imagined experiences. These sequences are incredibly delivered through Schnabel’s eye, Harwood’s script, and the amazing inspiration from Bauby’s memoir.

“Diving Bell” is also filled with triumphant performances. Mathieu Amalric, who was introduced to American audiences in Spielberg’s spectacular “Munich”, is a revelation. He barely speaks throughout the movie, but the sadness in his eyes could move mountains. Equally fantastic is the legendary Max von Sydow, playing Bauby’s sad father Papinou. Sydow’s performance is tragically impressive and his few scenes on the screen are heart wrenching.

Also outstanding is the beautiful Emmanuelle Seigner, who plays the estranged lover/mother of Bauby’s children. Her character is terribly sad in both her storyline and the fact that she puts on such a real face of hopefulness. She knows that she may lose Bauby in many ways, but she works through the pain to keep her family happy. There is one scene in which she breaks down, and it is probably one of the saddest scenes in recent film history. Seigner is absolutely superb, and after appearing in 2007’s other huge French film “La Vie En Rose”, it is sure that we will see a lot more of her.

Like many of the other movies that have proven spectacular these few weeks, the soundtrack to the film is equally as terrific. The list of songs may be short, but they fit the film perfectly. The use of artists like The Velvet Underground, Tom Waits, U2, Ultra Orange & Emmanuelle, and an amazing theme by Paul Cantelon create an amazing explosion of musical intensity that just work well with the movie and the audience.

“The Diving Bell and the Butterfly” proves a much more interesting theater experience than your average run of the mill movie. It is revolutionary in many different ways. The movie will undoubtedly get some Oscar attention after its three Golden Globe nominations (Best Director, Best Screenplay, and Best Foreign Language Film), most likely scoring some recognition for Julian Schnabel and his faultless directing style.

OSCAR UPDATE: The Diving Bell and the Butterfly was nominated for Best Directing, Best Adaptation, Best Editing, and Best Cinematography. (See 2008 Academy Award Nominations for more details.)


For more reviews from Josh and to see his Best Films List, visit: http://www.indiebum.com/

"I'm Not There"

by guest reviewer Josh Valentine
Indiebum

Every year there seems to be at least one or two biopics about famous musicians that garner a lot of attention. A few years ago “Ray” was released, and the year after that “Walk the Line” hit theaters. Both of those films became huge hits. Director Todd Haynes’ (“Far From Heaven”) new film “I’m Not There” is this year’s huge biopic and it tells the story of Bob Dylan. Unlike the previously mentioned films, “I’m Not There” is completely different in its delivery of its story. It is remarkably original, very funny, and also happens to be one of the best films of the year.

A total of six actors play different versions of the famous bard in this film, a fairly original idea that works perfectly. Dylan himself was so many different people throughout his career so it would have been hard to make a film with just one actor following a singular time line.

Ben Whishaw plays Arthur, the mysterious side of Dylan that the public saw in interviews. His character isn’t very developed but that’s done on purpose to show that mystifying side. Young Marcus Carl Franklin wonderfully plays a pre-adolescent version of Dylan named Woody. Franklin’s character is more abstract than Whishaw’s character in that he plays the young and excited characteristics of a very innocent Dylan (his character is named after Woody Guthrie, one of Dylan’s biggest inspirations as a musician).

Christian Bale plays Jack Rollins, a character that splits into two sides of Dylan: the folk legend and the preacher. Bale’s interpretation of Dylan is subtle yet very powerful especially during his unbelievable (albeit lip-synched) version of “Pressing On.” Bale is also the least featured character in the film, and while he pops up later in the film in some memorable scenes it would have been better to see more of him.

Heath Ledger is the weakest part of the film. He plays actor Robbie Clark who portrays the unpleasant celebrity side of Dylan. His relationship with French artist Claire (played by Charlotte Gainsbourg) is drawn out throughout the film. Their general disdain for each other from the beginning makes one wonder why they got together in the first place. Ledger seems to play the same conflicted character in many of his films and it would be refreshing to see him in a more upbeat role.

Richard Gere plays the older, reclusive side of Dylan. His story is the most abstract part of the film. He plays Billy the Kid (the famous outlaw) in reclusion after breaking out of jail. Gere is surprisingly strong in his role and like Bale, he is very subtle yet undeniably moving.

The film truly belongs to Cate Blanchett. Her scenes as Jude Quinn depict the often frowned upon moment when Dylan dropped his acoustic guitar and became electric. Blanchett is almost unrecognizable both physically and in her voice and mannerisms. She is Dylan, and at times it is easy to forget that this is an actress playing a role in a movie. In fact, after seeing the film, it is very hard to think of any other actor or actress who could have performed as well as Blanchett. Her performance (her best ever) will land her an Oscar Nomination and possibly her second win.

OSCAR UPDATE: Cate Blanchett was nominated, but didn't win the Oscar.

Besides Cate Blanchett, the other star of the film is its soundtrack. Released about a month ago, it has received rave reviews and it deserves every bit of praise. It features all sorts of indie musicians such as Sufjan Stevens, Mason Jennings, Stephen Malkmus, Yo La Tengo, and Calexico. Charlotte Gainsbourg (who appears in the film) does an amazing rendition of “Just Like a Woman” that lingers long after it’s played. The movie does a very good job of infusing these covers with the performances of the actors.

The film is not perfect, but it is the perfect Bob Dylan biopic. Its non-linear storytelling fits its source material but may turn off a lot of viewers, especially those who aren’t familiar with Bob Dylan. For those who get the chance, it is highly recommended to watch Martin Scorsese’s documentary “Bob Dylan: No Direction Home” before seeing this film. It is very well made, and clears up a lot about what is going on in “I’m Not There.”

Otherwise, the film shows that this man who we’ve always seen as a mystery is a real person just dealing with the pressures of fame, love, loss, and life. If the film had depicted just one of the different aspects of Dylan, there would have still been a lot to be desired. All together, each section of the film forms one amazing movie that shines above many of the films of 2007 and is a genuine pleasant surprise. Grade: A-