The Promotion (2008)

Seann William Scott is Doug, a bland guy with a nice wife, a cheap apartment, and an OK job in a supermarket -- and he's happy enough with his average life. But when he learns that his store is planning to open a new location and he's the top candidate, he and his wife begin to dream big. Their dreams are threatened by John C. Reilly, a newly transfered manager from Canada, who has, suddenly, as good a chance as Doug does at landing the new position.

This was a rather odd film. It wasn't a straight-up good vs. bad situation...even when there was a clear-cut "bad." The desperation was often palpable and it was hard to laugh at the comedy when it was bundled with so much tragedy.

Certainly could've used some tweaks, but I found it more interesting than not.

B-

Inglourious Basterds (2009)

All four of us (me, hubby, two teens) saw this together and I liked it more than than they did -- but that's not saying much.

In my opinion, all of the scenes were necessary, but they were UNnecessarily long. Every conversation seemed to last a few dozen sentences past usefulness, which brought me to the "get ON with it!" frustration point several times. My jaw hurt a bit by the end of the film because of my constant clenching.

As for the the other three: Gary hated the revisionism, younger son wanted his three hours back, and older son was surprised I found it even tolerable.

C+

Sugar (2009)

Gary and I both really liked this.

Sugar is a young man trained in his native Dominican Republic in the hopes of being recruited for American baseball. Their daily workouts come complete with "repeat it back" drills in helpful on-the-field phrases like "I got it! I got it!" and "Homerun!" These boys are drilled hard when it comes to the sport, but not hard enough in English, cultural differences, and preparedness for the inevitable loneliness that being so far from everything familiar will cause.

Just incredibly authentic, with equal parts pain and hope. The lead was beautifully cast in this gently-told story.

B+

Downhill Racer (1969)

Where did I get the idea that this movie was any good? It's one of those films I've actively wanted to see for at least a decade but, now that I have, I have no clue as to what got me interested.

Robert Redford plays an Olympic hopeful in speed skiing. He's full of umbrage and complaints when he doesn't get his way and full of excuses when he doesn't do well. Yes, he's talented but he's also a pain in the ass.

As for the story? Well, there's barely one to be found. It's more a series of scenes in chronological order with "the end" when it's time to stop watching than an arc. Much was left to the viewer to figure out -- something I don't usually mind -- but here just felt lazy (perhaps because I didn't care enough to want to work for it). In short: yawn.

D+

Sin Nombre (2009)

The first half of the film is undeniably powerful. In it, we meet both Casper, a lieutenant in a brutal Mexican gang, and Sayra, a young Honduran undertaking the life-threatening trip from her impoverished hometown to the states.

The first of the film feels so authentic and was so truly nerve-wracking, that it lets the second-half down. Casper and Sayra become tied to each other after mutual trauma, but instead of letting us fully feel the stress and terror, the mood became emotionally removed; almost a made-for-TV feel. Perhaps I should be celebrating its lack of sensationalism...but it felt more like a lack of honesty.

B-