The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999)

A simple assumption (he's borrowed a Princeton jacket and, so, is mistaken for a Princeton student) gives the lower-class Tom Ripley the opportunity to visit -- and quickly join -- the world of privilege.  He finds himself in love with the excess, freedom, and people who belong there and unwilling to give it up even when his luck runs out.  I saw this when it was in theaters, but I'd forgotten all but some vivid scenes, so I was glad to see this come up as a movie club pick.

In all, this is an effective film.  The problem is that what should have been the denouement stretches out interminably.  Every five minutes of the last 30-40 minutes, there was a decent stopping place for the movie but, instead, it chose to just keep going.  Solid story and strong acting all around, but it just really needed someone to shout “enough.”

B

The Dinner Game (1999)

I’ve seen Dinner for Schmucks, the American remake of this original French farce and, since I HATED that, there was no way I could help but find the original to be at least comparatively good.  Really, though, I think that this movie might simply be good on its own merits.

The basic premise is that a group of men hold a weekly dinner to which each invites the most idiotic guy they can find.  Somehow, I liked everyone in the film -- there was just a congenial vibe to the whole proceeding.  I even found myself liking the guy who was supposed to be a jerk because he 1) invited the “idiot” to dinner and 2) stole a man’s wife.  Maybe it was because I felt the mess he found himself in wasn't commensurate with his sins...or perhaps it was because he was best friends with the guy he pinched the wife from, so how bad could he be?  I don't know.

Fun and fast.  Didn’t overstay its welcome.

B

The Big Year (2011)

Three men: shlub Jack Black, rich almost-retiree Steve Martin, and desperate-to-hold-onto-past-glory Owen Wilson are all vying for the record of sighting the greatest number of bird species in a single calendar year. It’s got a lot of heart, but it’s just a bit too slight. Also, why couldn’t anyone take their significant other WITH them on their fabulous trips to spot elusive birds rather than risking relationships for a hobby? Everyone but the shlub could certainly afford to.

It wasn't until after the film that I learned that Big Year is a real thing and that the movie is based on a non-fiction book, which I'm now eager to read.  I've never been a bird watcher, but I am a newly minted empty-nester so, suddenly, I find myself interested in hobbies that were heretofore impossible due to time and travel requirements.

B

Travels with My Aunt (1972)

Bursts onto the screen with the promise of great fun, but kind of fizzles out once the set-up’s done and we get going with the "travels."

Maggie Smith is great, but I think they were going for a bit of a bawdier Auntie Mame feel and they fell quite short.

C+

Fellini's Casanova (1976)

A simply wretched waste of film. It’s a disjointed hop through one man’s life spent judging others and screwing everything in sight. Tons of hedonism without any sense of fun or storytelling. Just gross and ridiculous and boring.

F

We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011)

Thankfully, all the pieces were put together by the end of the movie, but for the first 30 minutes or so I was pretty annoyed with the out-of-order structure and confused as to how a cruelly evil child could exist from birth. This wasn’t a horror movie, but it may as well have been since the evil was inexplicable and seemingly unavoidable.

I also just can't believe that an entire town would demonize the mother of a monster.  Though she took some kind of legal responsibility for her son’s actions, would the neighborhood hate her so actively for it and for years? After all, she lost her entire family to her son's evilness. And why the hell didn’t she simply move?

Amazing, amazing acting, though.

C+

Trust (2011)

Fourteen-year-old Chicago High School Freshman Annie has started a flirtation with a 16-year-old Sophomore from California. They get closer -- the usual “you’re the only one who gets me” conversations follow...and then he reveals he’s not 16, he’s a 20-year-old college kid. After a beat, she accepts that he only lied in the first place so he wouldn’t come off as superior. A little later he admits to being 25...which is upsetting, but ultimately also acceptable because she’s so special and age shouldn’t matter. And then they meet and he’s even older than that and...

A good film for parents to remind them that there can be too much freedom in your kids' lives and a good film for kids to point out the very real dangers of anonymous chatting. The story got a little muddied when it focused on the fallout for the parents instead of staying firmly on Annie, but that’s pretty forgivable. It did a good job of giving us the power of what happened without ever getting graphic about the subject matter.

B

Conviction (2010)

Truly amazing story of a woman, without even a high school diploma, struggling for years to become a lawyer to work on overturning her brother’s conviction for murder. After spending 18 years in prison, he was finally exonerated due to her diligence and belief in him. I mean, wow.

Not only is the story itself amazing, the film is well-done and resists the sweeping music and emotional button-pushing that is usually found in films like these.

B