The Guitar (2008)

A depressed and lonely woman finds out that she's got about a month to live and, well, sets about living her life in a very non-movie "month to live" way.

Something about this just struck a chord with me. I felt like I understood what she was doing, even though none of it was predictable. Maybe it's what I think I might do with weeks to live -- hole up alone and indulge in home shopping extravagance in a way I'd never allow when the eventual bills would be my personal problem. That certainly sounds more like me than skydiving and whirlwind trips abroad.

And then the ending! The ending! I got it. I loved it.

A-

W. (2008)

1) Who cares about George W. Bush right now? Even a year ago, this movie may have been relevant. Perhaps a decade from now, the subject may warrant revisiting. But now? When our hopes are pinned to the future? I just wanna put the guy out of my mind.

2) This movie isn't good enough -- even if I had a current interest in the subject. There was no point of view and no throughline to the narrative. So many of the scenes were "private moments," which meant they had to be mentally questioned (did that really happen? Did he say that?). It didn't paint Bush in a bad light...it didn't really comment at all. Basically, why should I care? And what was up with the time jumping? And why did we see the close-up of a chick stepping on a corn cob? And how come Elizabeth Banks as Laura never aged unless you count hairdo (which I don't)?

C-

Happy-Go-Lucky (2008)

When I first started watching this, I thought "this might be somewhat inspiring...here's a woman whose choice is to find the humor in every situation..." but, boy, did Poppy get annoying quick. It was clear that she had the ability to be normal, but instead made a conscious effort to be cute and quirky (read fake and exhausting) with everyone -- friends, strangers, colleagues, and driving instructors -- alike.

The meat of the film comes from Poppy's scenes with her driving instructor. His temperament is a flipside Poppy's buoyancy: his default attitude being one of distrust and barely-contained annoyance. He is both frustrated and confused by Poppy's constant distracted air, giggles, and failure to obey his instructions when they conflict with her whims or cutesy desires. Yes, the guy has problems, but Poppy simply heaped more on top of them -- her sunniness exposed as complete self-absorption.

When Poppy's friend counsels her, regarding the instructor who had just become physically abusive, "You can't make everyone happy," and Poppy's response was "No harm in trying," I just stared at the screen in disbelief. The subject of the discussion was a man whose life had just been made extremely unhappy simply because he'd met her. The least the story could've given us is the closure that Poppy at least understood that "all happy all the time" is not honest and is likely to be misinterpreted by some.

D+

Rachel Getting Married (2008)

Ugh. Indulgent and annoying.

The only "people" in this movie I could've stood being around were probably the groom and his best man (and the only tolerable few minutes of film were the ones in which "Unknown Legend" -- clip below -- was sung at the altar. THAT was good -- though why it made sense as a love song from groom to bride, I have no idea).

I hated everyone else and their stupid toasts and their disgusting self-centeredness and, oh, everything. My family's pretty screwed up, but they're nearly normal comparatively. Yuck.

D

The Duchess (2008)

What a gorgeous and fully entertaining production. I was surprised by how much I liked this story and how little annoyed I was by Keira Knightley in the title role. You know, I think I may just have to put aside my dislike of the chin-jutter as it's becoming more of a habit for me to roll my eyes at her rather than based on any present truth. It's like she used to be fat five years ago and my mental image of her refuses to be overwritten so that, whenever I see her, I gasp all over again, "I can't believe she's so thin!"

Anyway, back to the movie. Basically, celebrities have always had it hard, living a public life that is expected to "look" a certain way even when the truth might be far different. I was even more impressed with this movie after watching some of the extras, which delved into the real Duchess of Devonshire -- truly fascinating stuff.

A-

Frozen River

Melissa Leo plays Ray, a tough (but obviously loving and competent) mother honestly trying to provide a better life for her family. But she's got a crappy job and a crappier husband conspiring against her. When her selfish husband runs off with the final payment on the family's new doublewide, Ray gets desperate and finds a new source of cash smuggling aliens over the dangerous frozen waterway between her upstate New York home and Canada.

The story was both brand new and recognizable -- I've seen hardscrabble desperation and mother-love, but the setting and situation were completely novel. Felt real and urgent without being either depressing or unbelievable.

This is a very good performance by Leo; she's my vote for the best actress Oscar this year.

A

Slumdog Millionaire (2008)

My initial impression of this film was one of disappointment...which then morphed into disbelief that this was the big winner at the Oscars. The entire family went together to see this and, although I was clearly the least impressed of our group, no one else thought they had just viewed the movie of the year.

Part of the problem was that it was difficult to know what was appropriate to feel. I barely had time to absorb the horrors of the flashbacks before I was supposed to be laughing and enjoying the "present." Sure, life is like that -- tragedy can turn to triumph -- but it made for a jarring and heavy-handed movie.

C+

Doubt (2008)

Near-perfect movie, marred only by the very last line -- I mean, whoa, it's terrible -- delivered by Meryl Streep (reminded me a bit of the final "rat scene" in The Departed. Yeah, we GET it).

Wonderful performances by absolutely everyone and enough uncertainty built into the script that my son Nathan (who watched it with me) and I argued animatedly for our respective versions of the "truth" afterwards.

A

The Express (2008)

Inspirational based-on-a-true-story movie that left me uninspired. Ernie Davis seems like a decent enough kid who took on a huge task against pretty big odds...yet I just couldn't muster up much emotion. Something off about the pacing, maybe?

Regardless of why, the result is that the film felt like dozens of other sports films. Fine, but definitely not at the top of this particular genre.

B-

Milk (2008)

Performances were good, yes, but I'm not seeing a best picture nominee here.

It felt way longer than it was and seemed to keep covering the same ground. Yes, I realize that, in politics, sometimes the same battles must be fought again and again before they can be put to rest...but this was a movie, not Countdown with Keith Olbermann.

Also, Diego Luna's character drove me nuts.

C+

The Wrestler (2008)

A couple of times a month, my mind can get caught in a loop of fright brought on by talk/images of how fragile our bodies are. The ease with which bones crush and skin splits can cause me to ball up and rock, eyes squeezed shut, until the panic subsides. This isn't fear about my own safety, but just about how scary the world is in general. I mean, I worry about the possibility of accidental injury on ice-coated concrete steps I glimpse through my moving car's window and the sharp-edges of coffee tables I see in the living rooms of sitcom families. If I allow myself to contemplate injury deliberately inflicted...well, let's just say I've learned that's not a mental place I should ever go.

So this was a bad movie for me. I nearly threw up during one wrestling match involving a staple gun, barbed wire, and broken glass and then got shakingly angry when a fist was deliberately punched into a deli slicer (as a former caterer, I've had plenty of sleepless hours thinking about the dangers of those ANYWAY). Basically, this was more than uncomfortable for me.

Even if I didn't loathe the world depicted and those who keep clapping as the blood flows, I'm pretty sure I would have been complaining about the jogging-in-place cinematography. I just don't get why people love this depressing portrait of losers -- I don't even think that Rourke's performance was deserving of all the praise it got. If this didn't feed on my own particular fears, the highest grade I could muster would probably be a "C+". Because it felt irresponsible on the level of "Se7en" to me and I never want to think of it again, my personal grade is lower.

C-

Revolutionary Road (2008)

This is a flat-out amazing movie.

The performances are flawless, the writing perfect, and the whole thing devastating. I've not read the novel, so I'm not sure whether Richard Yates (the novelist) or Justin Haythe (the screenwriter) deserves the credit for the oh-so-sickening yet familiar way that the mood between a married couple can shift from bliss to irritation to palpable disgust. The thin line is on naked display here and it's both uncomfortable and undeniably heartbreaking.

My personal pick for best movie of the year and I dearly wish Kate Winslet had been honored for her devastating work here rather than in the lesser The Reader.

A+

Frost/Nixon (2008)

This movie just blew me away.

I'm not entirely sure why I had mentally prepared myself for a letdown: could've been the fact that I think of Ron Howard as a "for the masses" director rather than one who possesses subtlety; might've been that I'd been prejudiced by the flak the film had been getting for being less than 100% accurate. Whatever the reason, I wasn't expecting much more than an "alright" and I got a "wow."

Langella is superb as Nixon, feeling useless and growing bitter in his California "exile." Sheen is equally amazing as the lightweight TV personality putting his own cash and career on the line for an idea that no one else really believes in. They're amazing performances and Howard does right by them, turning in a tense, believable and emotionally compelling cut that had both Gary and I raving. We both think it's one of the best movies of the year.

A

Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired (2008)

My opinion of Roman Polanski was vague, to say the least. I'd read and seen Helter Skelter (both book & movie), so knew that he'd been married to Sharon Tate when she was murdered by the Manson clan. I've watched Chinatown and the Pianist, among others, so I know he's a brilliant filmmaker. I've also known, for as long as I could remember, that he couldn't come back to the states without risking arrest for having sex with a 13-year-old girl more than 30 years ago.

I guess my opinion of the man was an offhand "pervert who ran away," when I thought of him at all. Now, however, my thoughts about him are much more complicated...and wrapped up with lots of other thoughts (about the American justice system, trial by media, etc.).

This is, quite simply, a fascinating documentary and well worth watching.

A

Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008)

Problems:

1) The narration. It just doesn't work here. Instead of providing insight, it acts more as a crutch so that the actors needn't bother with all that tiresome acting so we could get the point the "normal" way.

2) Penelope Cruz. For the first time EVER, she seems disconnected from the material -- and, frankly, I don't blame her when it's this weak. In the film, her character is constantly reminded to speak English because of the presence of the American Cristina. This struck me as a neat little metaphor for what was happening to her acting in this movie: she stopped going with what came naturally in order to please the man she loves. In the film, it was her ex-husband...on set, it was Woody Allen. The usually vibrant Cruz looks like she's faking it.

3) Scarlett Johannson. She may be Woody's current muse, but she's no good at it. Either he's lost his filmmaking mojo completely or he needs to go find a new lead to inspire him.

4) So what? The movie's got nothing to say, really. "Love is unpredictable"? I knew that already.

Pluses:

1) Barcelona is pretty.

2) Javier Bardem is pretty.

C-