Look Both Ways (2006)

I loved this movie -- maybe because I feel such a kinship with Meryl, the protagonist. She's smart, kind of rumply, and burdened with a vivid imagination that is often busy manufacturing graphic ways in which things can go violently wrong (shown to us in animated interludes). I'm also a sucker for a good love story and while the romance at the center of this movie doesn't exactly make me swoon, it is satisfying -- maybe because I wasn't sure it should work and, therefore, whether the movie would let it work.

There's a lot going on here, not the least of which is an emotional subplot involving an accidental death on the local train tracks. It's beautiful and effective.

A-

The TV Set (2007)

David Duchovny is a writer who sells his show to a network that proceeds to crush the soul out of it. And him. And us.

Suits change the name of the show from "The Wexler Chronicles" to, um, something generic I can't remember, choose the good looking subtle-as-a-hammer diva dude for the lead rather than the less-attractive understated actor favored by Duchovny, and switch the premise from the the too-depressing "brother committed suicide" to "brother's in jail." That stuff just isn't very funny -- probably because anyone who watches television pretty much knows that most shows are dumb and they had to get that way somehow.

I smiled a couple of times, but never felt outraged, frustrated, or even terribly entertained.

C

Knocked Up (2007)

I had been told by dozens of people how can't-catch-your-breath funny this movie is. While I laughed quite a bit, I was surprised that, instead, I hadn't been informed about how touching it is.

Everyone knows the premise by now: chubby loser (Seth) gets a waaaaay out of his league girl (Alison) pregnant. But instead of being played strictly for laughs, I found the "getting ready for baby" scenes poignant and real. I remember the early months of my own marriage: the potent mixture of fear that we'd made a huge mistake, terror of screwing up further, and undeniable excitement of impending parenthood. "Authentic" is how I'd describe many of the scenes between Seth and Alison.

The secondary story lines were, to me, often more of a distraction than a help. Although I appreciated many of the scenes between Alison's sister and brother-in-law, and laughed pretty hard at the arrested development episodes in Seth's house with his four live-in buddies, I wanted to spend more time with the central couple. A few judicious cuts would've strengthened the throughline -- no reason for this to be more than 2 hours long.

B

Becket (1964)

King Henry II and his servant Thomas Becket are great friends. Since Henry's a child who's sick of the church not doing what he wants it to do, he puts his buddy Tom in a position of church power so that it will no longer be a problem. Of course, if things went as planned, there'd be little reason for a movie.

Basically, Becket's a decent fellow who has never had a problem choosing obedience to king -- even when it meant sacrificing the woman he loved to him. But once he also was forced to become a slave to God, the choice of whom to follow when the directives don't match becomes problematic (more for the king than for Becket).

I just didn't really go for this, though the subject sounded intriguing. It just pounded away at the story with very little subtlety.

C-

Stephanie Daley (2007)

I've seen a few "teenage mom" movies, but this one is almost hauntingly effective. Most of the credit for that goes to Amber Tamblyn in the title role. She's complex and heartbreaking in a role that runs the gamut: innocence, sullenness, defiance, and guilt.

It felt so real that I was rather surprised to find out it was fiction. The film seemed to keep things under control -- no unnecessary sensationalism. The "big" scene that finally shows us exactly what happened is simply amazing.

I'm not sure this film will hold up in my memory, but there's no doubt whatsoever that Tamblyn's amazing work will.

B-

The Valet (2007)

When a meek Paris valet is caught in the background of a tabloid shot of a wealthy businessman and his supermodel mistress, he gets dragged into a silly scheme designed to convince the businessman's wife (and the media) that it's actually the supermodel and the valet who are romantically involved.

It's a sweet little movie with a sweet little premise that never amounts to anything better than sweet. There're some funny bits with the suspicious wife, some unfunny bits with an insufferable cell phone salesman, and some supposed-to-be-funny-but-really-just-stupid bits with a doctor who is doctored by his patients.

In short: eh.

C

Rob Roy (1995)

I've seen this one a few times now and it is, quite simply, one of my favorite movies (in the top 20 at least).

It works as a deep romance, historical drama, and thrilling adventure.

A+

Jet Lag (2003)

Rose (Juliette Binoche) is a breezy cosmetician trying to leave a bad relationship. Felix (Jean Reno) is a crabby restaurateur missing his ex-wife. When they both get stuck in Paris due to delayed flights, Rose's cell phone disappears down a toilet and she asks to borrow Felix's and...well, anyone who's seen a romantic comedy can pretty much write the rest and match 75% of what was on screen. I actually like a little predictable comfort movie every so often -- and this one isn't bad at all.

Frothy little movie for when you've got a cold and nothing better to do.

B-

Prime Suspect 7: The Final Act (2006)

I've loved Helen Mirren as Jane Tennison for 15 years, so I'm sorry to see it end.

This is a solid conclusion to the series -- though not, by a long shot, the best entry. Jane is her wonderfully flawed, still rather capable self. It's the story that doesn't rise to the occasion -- it's a pretty standard Law & Order-type deal. I do love me some L&O, but I was hoping for something more twisty or scary for the last chapter of the show.

The biggest complaint I have is that the ending seemed ridiculously rushed. I was actually confused for several seconds by the speed at which some scenes occurred.

B

Away From Her (2007)

The story of a long-term marriage coming to an emotional end due to Alzheimer's.

The husband does an amazing, heart-breaking job. I was overwhelmed while watching this movie because it put on screen one of my most intangible fears: what heaven is going to be like. I'm so nuts about my husband that, even in the afterlife, I can't stand the thought of not being coupled with him. I think that the Bible passage that explains there's no marriage in heaven is meant to be a reassuring one, i.e.: don't worry if you hated your spouse or had multiple partners -- the slate's wiped clean up there! But, for me, it's always meant that the love of my life will just be another soul among many. Gary's always been fine with the idea of heaven -- his take is "I just trust it'll be better" and that's always hurt my feelings. Basically, this movie shows a woman who's forgotten the life before and is happy in her new world while her husband yearns for the old -- juggling the fragments of his heart while his wife smiles into the face of another man. That's hell.

There's a whiff of "Breaking the Waves" here as one spouse embarks on a sexual relationship solely for the benefit of the other...which is especially interesting given that his marriage was hurt in years past by his indulging in sexual relationships solely to satisfy himself.

Wendy Crewson as the all-business administrator with limited people skills was just perfect -- so perfect that, at first, I thought she was too stiff.

A

The Pumpkin Eater (1964)

Pretty much a depress-a-thon.

Lonely woman with a passel of kids is in the middle of a breakdown when we meet her, so we back up a bit to see how she got there. Basically, she packed up her children and left her drafty, laughter-filled farmhouse and kind husband for a slick movie executive who starts cheating on her right away.

I know it's kind of judgmental, but I had a hard time working up too much sympathy for her. Yes, her husband's a weasel, but she left a perfectly good spouse for this guy in the first place. Anne Bancroft does do a great job of transforming from a woman full of joy to a hollow-eyed shell, but there's so very little reason to care.

C-

RoboCop (1987)

Corny and fun, without ever devolving into complete silliness. I appreciated that they stopped at the right time -- the film didn't drag into a manufactured denouement.

B

Swing High, Swing Low (1937)

Story in a nutshell: American slacker just out of the service (Fred MacMurray) meets a pretty girl (Carole Lombard) on a short layover in Panama. She shapes him into something worthwhile by, you know, believing in him and stuff. He takes his new-found confidence and trumpet-playing gifts and leaves her behind. She keeps the faith for a while but he eventually loses her. So he falls on hard times because she was the only good thing in his life. Because he's now pathetic again, she goes back to him. Somehow, with her in his arms, he gets his trumpeting mojo back.

I can only assume the cycle repeats in perpetuity. Sorry if I spoiled anything.

D+

Civic Duty (2007)

It's been a while -- at least a couple of weeks anyway -- since I've seen SUCH an overwrought piece of crap. The most banal actions are shot as though they're tense, employing methods such as a jittery camera, zooming back and forth between subjects, and deliberate blurring of a portion of the current face. At one point a deadbolt is thrown and we see it from the perspective of the hole: "aieee! The metal block's comin' at me!"

I do think the subject is kind of interesting. We Americans are being deliberately kept in a heightened state of distrust and fear by our own government. So of course a bored unemployed guy is going to get nervous when a middle-eastern minimalist moves in downstairs! Doesn't help matters that every single thing the new neighbor does is suspicious (e.g. throwing trash into the dumpster at 3 a.m., doing experiments utilizing beakers on his kitchen counter, and hoarding cash machine envelopes).

But the film completely negates any power its clumsy message could have held as it turns out that our protagonist is kuh-razy. Not just kinda "no one believes me and it's making me nuts" crazy -- completely and utterly out of his mind. Talk about a waste of time.

D+

Sacco and Vanzetti (2007)

Documentary about two Italian immigrants who were accused, convicted, and executed for a Boston robbery and killing in 1920 they almost certainly had no hand in committing.

This is, obviously, a big emotional story -- inspiring folk songs and previous dramatic films -- so I don't have any idea how it came off as plodding, especially considering its 80-minute run time. Part of the problem was its scattershot approach, which made it difficult for someone unfamiliar with the material (me!) to follow the thread of events. Most of the time I was more incensed about the way the filmmakers were killing the narrative than the fact that Sacco and Vanzetti were being killed. That ain't right.

C-

Friends With Money (2006)

Although the movie is set in an environment in which I'd be unable to exist (moneyed California suburbia), the emotions are still relatable. I'm a fan of the writer/director Nicole Holofcener's Walking and Talking, and this has the same type of vibe. I may not be in the same circumstances as the characters, but it's impossible not to understand them as they are brilliantly written and matched so well with capable actors.

I'm not even sure if there's a main story here... A group of four friends (three married, one single; three never-have-to-worry-about-money wealthy, one broke) move through a couple of months or so. We see them together and in their private family moments -- and I could see my relationship with my husband in every single one of the marriages. Sometimes that can be uncomfortable, but here it just felt completely right.

Good stuff.

A-

Broken English (2007)

This is the kind of story I usually really get into, but Parker Posey just didn't work in the lead role of a lonely professional and it kind of took me out of the experience. She's really out of her element here -- the fact that she has a hard time coming off as "real" (a la Jim Carrey) hurts what's a very real, very low-key vibe.

Drea de Matteo steals every scene she's in because she's just so much better than Posey. She was effortlessly organic while Posey just gave it her best.

One other thing: Parker's fingernails were so dirty in the opening scene that I was surprised that she was revealed to be a hotel employee rather than, say, a painter or a gardener. Yuck.

C+

Kingpin (1996)

This was probably the fifth or sixth time I've seen it over the last decade. One of those movies I just, every once in a while, have to see again.

Lowbrow, irreverent, and funny as hell. I quote it embarrassingly often and laugh whenever I think of it.

Bonus: couple of great Freedy Johnston songs on the soundtrack.

A

Curse of the Demon (1958)

Dana Andrews is John Holden, an American skeptic, in England to help investigate an alleged Satanist. When he gets there, he finds that his research partner has died under mysterious circumstances and it seems he's next. Good thing his dead partner left behind a pretty young niece/daughter/whatever who wants to get to the bottom of uncle's/dad's/whatever's death as badly as Holden does.

Some scenes are creepy and have a nice sense of foreboding -- but there's so much talking and vocal skepticism that some of the scare leaks right out. It's fine, but certainly could have been better. And while most of the special effects work well enough, the demon himself is ripe for parody on MST3K.

B-

The Conqueror Worm (1968)

Vincent Price is the Witchfinder General Matthew Hopkins (a real-life figure from the 1600s). He travels around England's countryside, taking gold from locals to sic his henchman on suspected witches. He's corruption cloaked in piety.

I'm sure this was daring for the time and thrillingly terrible when first shown in theaters, but it amounted to too much screaming and too little reason to care. There were boobs aplenty -- sometimes spattered with too-bright blood, production values on the level of Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and a weird tracking problem with one of the character's voices.

I was bored and that takes some doing in an 86-minute movie.

D+