November 2007

August Rush

/ / Movie Reviews
  • Title: August Rush
  • IMDb: link

“I believe in music the way some people believe in fairy tales.”

august-rush-posterThere are two stories here.  The first involves a young orphan (Freddie Highmore) with untapped musical talent who leaves the orphanage to “follow the music” and find his parents.  His journey leads to new friends (Leon G. Thomas III, Jamia Simone Nash), a stint as a street musician under the control of the Fagin-esque Wizard (Robin Williams, in a cowboy hat), and a trip to Juliard where his talent blossoms.

The second story (shown mostly in flashbacks) involves cellist Lyla Novacek (Keri Russell) and rock band member Louis Connelly (Jonathan Rhys Meyers).  Their chance meeting a decade before was dashed by Lyla’s father (William Sadler) separating them for years. 

Lyla’s unexpected pregnancy puts her career at risk and her father snatches up a chance accident to make her believe her son is dead.  Jumping back to the present Lyla learns the truth and with the help of a social worker (Terrence Howard) begins to search for the son she’s never met.  At the same time across the country Louis facing his own midlife crisis searches out the woman who he still loves.

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No Country for Old Men

/ / Movie Reviews
  • Title: No Country for Old Men
  • IMDb: link

“It’s a mess ain’t it sheriff.”
“If it ain’t it’ll do ‘til the mess gets here.”

no-country-for-old-men-poster

Brutally violent, with eloquently scripted dialogue and sumptuously cinematography No Country for Old Men has all the pieces in place for a great film, but although it’s certainly a very good film it loses much of its momentum over the course of its two-hour running time ending with more of a whimper than a bang.

The story begins when Llewelyn Moss (Josh Brolin) discovers the remains of a drug deal gone wrong and finds $2 million in cash.  A moment of conscience leads to him being marked by both sides after the money and LLewelyn sends his wife (Kelly Macdonald) to her mother’s (Beth Grant) as he takes to the road to stay one step ahead of a hitman (Javier Bardem) who knows his name and always seems only one-step behind.

The film begins in terrific fashion and the dialogue is perfect, especially the simple scenes between Llewelyn and Carla Jean (MacDonald).  I wish she had a larger role in the film because the two work so well together.  Bardem puts in a strong performance as the mysterious sociopathic hitman (even if his introduction gets thrown off a bit by some logic problems such as the events which take place in the near-empty police station far too large for the small force).

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Ocean’s Thirteen on DVD

/ / Home Video

Good things come in threes.  Although this is hardly ever the case in films and sequels, Oceans Eleven and it’s two follow-ups have been enjoyable treats.  Here’s our review for Ocean’s Thirteen now available on DVD.

Ocean’s Thirteen
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“Is that… are you… are you watching Oprah?”

The third entry into the series finds Danny (George Clooney), Rusty (Brad Pitt) and the rest of the gang out for revenge when one of their own is taken advantage of by an unscrupulous casino owner (Al Pacino).  For more on the basic plot and performances check out my film review or Ian’s review.

I got a kick out of this flick and it’s still looking like the coolest film of 2007 so it’s an easy recommendation for me.  Would I like better extras?  Sure, who wouldn’t, but at least they took some time to put something extra on the disc this time.  Is it a great DVD?  No, but it’s a great film on a DVD, so that makes it worth it in my book.

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This Week in Film

/ / Film News & Trailers

An orphan (Freddie Highmore) with an uncanny talent for music runs away to search out his parents (Keri Russell, Jonathan Rhys Meyers) who don’t even know he is alive and falls in with a gang of street orphans run by a man named Fagin, um, I mean Wizard (Robin Williams).  Check out the official site.  We’ve seen it and we’ll have the review when the film hits theaters everywhere on Wednesday.  Larger trailer available in the Full Diagnosis.

August Rush
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This Week in Film

/ / Film News & Trailers

The evil queen (Susan Sarandon) sends a peasant girl (Amy Adams) who the prince (James Marsden) intends to marry out of fariy tale land and into the real world to protect her kindgom.  Patrick Dempsey, Rachel Covey, Timothy Spall, and Julie Andrews (as the narrator) also star (Bones fans should also look for a quick cameo from Michela Conlin).  Check out the official site.  We’ve seen it and we’ll have the review when the film opens everywhere on Wednesday.  Larger trailer available in the Full Diagnosis.

Enchanted
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