Big Eyes (5/10): A change of pace from Tim Burton.

“Would you rather sell a $500 painting, or a million cheaply reproduced posters?”

Despite enjoying some of his films, I don’t consider myself much of a Tim Burton fan. Big  Eyes however, doesn’t feel like one of his films considering it is a conventional biopic about a cult painter in the 50’s. The story is rather interesting because it centers on this perverse relationship between Walter (Christoph Waltz) and Margaret Keane (Amy Adams) who lie to everyone about the Big eyed paintings they sell. Walter convinces Margaret to let him claim he is the artist because he believes he can sell more paintings this way. This leads to a bizarre relationship where Margaret has to lie to her own daughter (Madeleine Arthur) and work secretly behind locked doors. Thanks to Walter’s personality he is able to turn the paintings into a popular craze and the couple make tons of money off of Margaret’s work. This may be difficult to understand now, but in the 50’s females were more repressed and despite not wanting to lie Margaret ended up allowing her husband to take the credit for her work. The screenplay was written by Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski who had already worked with Burton a couple of decades ago in his other biopic  Ed Wood. Despite the rather shocking subject matter, they decided to turn this into a comedy of sorts and that aspect of the film didn’t work too well for me.

The cinematography in this film is very colorful. From the opening scene you are seduced by this striking blue and green scenery as Margaret drives through the coast of San Francisco. The film looks great, but the tone is what I had some issues with. Christoph Waltz portrays his character in a somewhat cartoonish way (especially during the court scenes near the final act), while Amy Adams is presented as a meek and weak character. In order for this story to work, I felt as if Waltz’s character should’ve been portrayed as less of a clown because it was hard to identify with Margaret since that made her look much weaker. It didn’t seem like it was fear that motivated her to lie about the paintings, but mostly because she allowed her husband to tell her what to do. This was probably true, but somehow it doesn’t translate well in our present situation. It should’ve been treated a bit more seriously, but that’s just my personal opinion. I also think that the ending was a bit rushed when it should’ve focused more on the later empowering aspects of Margaret’s life. Out of respect for the real Margaret Keane, at least they should’ve focused on the later years of her life when she found the courage to step up and confront everyone with the truth. But that was actually the moment where Waltz upped the comedy and went over the top. Waltz and Adams are great actors, but it is Adams who seems to take her role more seriously here. Terrence Stamp, Danny Huston, Jason Schwartzman, and Krysten Ritter have rather forgettable supporting roles. I could’ve appreciated some more of Schwartzman, but Stamp was at that same cartoonish level as Waltz was here. 

My Review: American Hustle (8/10)

"She was the Picasso of passive-aggressive karate."

American Hustle is an entertaining and fun film with the best performance from an ensemble cast all year. Director David O. Russell delivers a solid comedy and brings out the best from his actors which in my opinion really are the highlight of this film. I think American Hustle has been overhyped a bit, and perhaps I went to see it with way too high expectations, but despite being entertained and enjoying this I still felt like this was a bit of a let down for Russell compared with his other films. The comedy worked really well thanks to a slick and clever script, but the crime elements lacked some thrills. I also had some issues with the pacing of this film; it started off really slow and didn't pick up until halfway through the film when the science oven scene took place. A lot of credit has to be given however to the attention to detail because it really felt like a groovy 70's film. It had a lot of style and the hair and makeup in this film deserves an Oscar. In the opening scene where you see Bale's character getting a comb over you know you are in for a ride. American Hustle is an ambitious film that explores the American Dream and the need to reinvent oneself through some very memorable characters. The characters are the real center of this film.

The film is very loosely based on the Abscam political scandal that took place during the 70's in New Jersey. Irving (Christian Bale) is a successful con man who has survived thanks to keeping a low profile. He immediately falls in love with Sydney (Amy Adams) when he meets her at a party and introduces her to his world. She actually helps him thrive in his business thanks to her seductive powers, but they get into trouble with the law when an FBI agent named Richie DiMaso catches up with their illegal actions. Being the ambitious agent that he is, Richie doesn't want to settle for these small crooks and forces them to help him catch bigger fish like corrupt politicians and power-brokers. Sydney tries to convince Irving to flee the country together, but he doesn't want to leave his son with his unpredictable wife, Rosalyn (Jennifer Lawrence) who would never let him take the boy. Things get dangerous when the mafia get involved in the scam and Irving befriends the local Mayor, Carmine (Jeremy Renner), who despite having good intentions gets caught up in the middle of the mess. Irving and Sydney will have to pull out their greatest con job if they want to come out of this alive.

This entertaining and ambitious film succeeds thanks to a wonderful cast. Christian Bale and Amy Adams give outstanding performances in the lead role. Bale went through an extreme physical change gaining several pounds for his role and Adams looks sexier than ever with all the 70's glamour. They are completely believable in their roles and share several funny moments on screen. Bradley Cooper is also great as the wild and impulsive FBI agent who wants to get to the top as quick as possible. The scenes he shares with Louis C.K. are hilarious. Jeremy Renner is probably the weakest character in this film, but his quiet performance is solid. Despite all these great performances no one stands out the most as Jennifer Lawrence. She truly shines in this film and deserves an Oscar for her supporting performance. She's unstable and volatile while being very manipulative and she's just extremely funny in this movie. It is a memorable performance and Lawrence is turning out to be one of the best actresses of our generation. The cast are responsible for making this film such a fun and entertaining one. The film may not be original or groundbreaking but it is a near perfect imitation of other great films kind of like the replicas of the paintings that Irving sold. "Now who is the master, the painter or the forger?" That's Russell's question for the audience for the audience to decide.

My Review: Her (8/10)

"She's not just a computer."

Her is a beautiful and melancholic film written and directed by Spike Jonze which benefits from a wonderful and sweet performance from Joaquin Phoenix (who goes through a 180 degree transformation from his disturbed and troubling character in The Master to this sympathetic one) and one of the best voice performances I've seen on screen from Scarlett Johansson. I wonder if this film would've worked without her considering that Samantha Morton was originally the voice of Samantha, and only during the editing process did Jonze feel something was missing and decided to recast Johansson. In a film like Her where the need for connection is vital, Jonze found it between Phoenix and Johansson creating a believable and unique love story. It is a touching film that the audience can identify with because it deals with universal themes such as trying to move on from past relationships that we thought would last forever and the void that's left from it. Phoenix captures that melancholy perfectly through his facial expressions contrasted with those flashback scenes where he seemed blissfuly in love. This need for connection is perfectly represented in this film, which also manages to introduce a social commentary as to where we seem to be heading with all the technological advances. The sci-fi elements work really well because we definitely seem to be heading towards this futuristic world and Jonze blends those elements with this beautiful and sad love story. Her is philosophical at times and despite turning into a pretty much standard love story halfway through the film it still manages to be a great meditation on our need as humans for establishing connections (and they no longer need to be human connections). Her is a genuinely nostalgic romantic film that manages to touch its audience and speak to the heart.

The story centers on Theodore (Joaquin Phoenix) a letter writer who's been separated from his wife Catherine (Rooney Mara) for an year, but still hasn't found the strength to sign the divorce papers. He is very good at his job as he excels at expressing feelings through letters, but he's not doing so well at managing his own feelings around others. He is rather lonely and spends most of his time playing video games when he's not at work. He does have a very close friendship with his neighbors, Amy (Amy Adams) and Charles (Matt Letscher), especially with Amy as they both seem to share a sort of brother sisterly kind of love. His life turns around when he purchases a new artificially intelligent operating system, OS1, and immediately connects with Samantha (Scarlett Johansson), the voice behind the system. As they continue to spend more time together they begin falling in love with each other which excites Theodore because he's starting to feel alive again, but at the same time fills him with doubts and fears as he's conflicted about having a relationship with an operating system. Samantha also begins to grow intellectually as she experiences new things and is capable of having human emotions. Their unconventional love is what's explored in this film as the two connect and bond with each other.

Jonze has crafted a very unique and original story which I found to be a great psychological study on human relations. I wish I would've connected more with this film as I've found it to be on most of my friends top 10 lists for best films of the year, and despite liking this film quite a bit it still didn't manage to make my list. The premise is very interesting and Jonze directs this film masterfully, but I couldn't help and feel that halfway through the film it does become a rather conventional love story (at times it felt like a normal long distance relationship) with some familiar trials that couples go through. I actually never felt a true connection in their relationship until a key moment near the end of the film and that is where I really bought their love story. The elements I connected the most with where the nostalgic feelings of lost love as we got to see some interesting flashbacks between Theodore and Catherine. I also loved the score of this film, the music was lovely and touching. I also enjoyed the social commentary quite a bit which never felt forced. The scene where Theodore is worried about how he will be perceived by his friends for having a relationship like this and how relieved he is when Amy approves is proof that we not only seek connections in life, but we also search for social approval. It's a clever and melancholic film and one that we can all come out of experiencing something completely different (and that is a good thing).

My Review: Sunshine Cleaning (7/10)

"We come into people's lives when they have experienced something profound - and sad. And they've lost somebody, you know? And um, the circumstances, they're always different. But that's the same. And we help. In some small way we, um, we help."

Directed by Christine Jeffs (Sylvia) and written by Megan Holley, Sunshine Cleaning is one of those small indie films with big performances and a feel good story that allows the audience to connect with its characters. It's hard to resist despite its cliches and flaws, given it has very strong lead performances from Amy Adams and Emily Blunt and very well written female characters that are rare to find making it hard not to sympathize with them. This is a solid indie that manages to balance really well the dark humor with the drama. Many people might have issues with the forced ending, but the emotional detail that Blunt and Adams give to their characters makes this a film worth watching. A lot of credit must be given to screenwriter Holley for creating such strong and believable female characters in a lead role which are really rare to find nowadays. The performance from the cast only enhances this aspect of the film making single parenting look as hard as it really is. The film wouldn't have worked if it weren't for the performances and the balance in shifts of tones between humor and drama which Jeffs found. 

Rose (Amy Adams), a single mother to her seven year old son Oscar (Jason Spevack), is a responsible and hard working parent who is making a living as a house cleaner while she is trying to find time to finish her studies to become a real estate agent. Her sister, Norah (Emily Blunt), is a free spirited woman who finds it difficult to hold on to any job as she continues to live with her father Joe (Alan Arkin). Norah and Rose haven't had a normal childhood since their mother committed suicide when they were still very young. Being the older sister, Rose had to grow up as the responsible child. She was successful in High School but her glory days seem to be behind her as she now has to settle to having an affair with her teenage sweetheart Mac (Steve Zahn) who is now a married cop. When her young son is expelled from yet another school, Rose tries to come up with more money to put him into a private school. Mac tells her how the people who clean up after crime scenes make a lot of money, so she decides to start her own business with her sister and thus begin cleaning up after messy and bloody crime scenes. The cleaning business will also lead Rose and Norah to clean up some of the emotional distress from their past as they begin to recall them through familiar situations.

Sunshine Cleaning might be considered as simply another feel good indie film that tries to manipulate the audience through a roller-coaster of emotions while seeming to tie everything up perfectly and neatly at the end. This forced ending might be a let down, but I found it to work thanks to the amount of time invested in the lives of these unique characters. Adams and Blunt both are superb here as they deliver strong performances and add a lot of emotional depth to their characters. Clifton Collins Jr also gives a memorable performance as a possible future love interest for Rose, but the story really focuses on her as she struggles to manage the different challenges life throws at her. She is a reminder to all of us that life is worth living despite the struggles that we may be forced to go through, and that perhaps those small simple moments are the ones that make our lives a better place. Rose continues to stay positive despite the obstacles she faces and realizes that life is worth living despite it all. The monologue she delivers near the end of the film summarizes what this film was all about. Kudos to the director and screenwriters for presenting us with two strong female characters and allowing them to be the heart and soul of the film.

My Review: Julie and Julia (7/10)

"You are the butter to my bread, you are the breath to my life."

Julie and Julia felt like going to a fine restaurant to eat. It is not your typical fast food Hollywood movie, this is much more refined. Many people when going to the movies want to see some light film that will entertain them without having to think much about the performances, story, or dialogues (what I call fast-food). On the other hand there are some others (although fewer in number and much harder to please) that want to go to a movie that will make them think and feel like their time at the theater is productive and well spent. They go into the movie searching for good performances, great dialogues, or at least a decent story that hasnt been told before (which I compare it to the experience of going to a fine restaurant to eat). Well Julie and Julia falls into the fine restaurant category thanks to a great performance from the always reliable Meryl Streep, good supporting job by Stanley Tucci and Amy Adams. At times the movie can feel a little overcooked because you get the sensation the movie is so long and takes forever to end, but every time Streep is on screen she just shines and puts a smile on your face. Once again she plays a totally different role, she is such a versatile actress, and this time she has a very unique accent that is very sweet and funny at the same time. 

The film has two parallel stories that intertwine during the movie. They are both based on true stories. One of the stories takes place during the 1940s where Julia Childs played by the great Meryl Streep is moving to Paris with her husband (Tucci) because he works for the government and is going to work at the American consulate in Paris. From the beginning we know Julia Childs is a famous TV cook host and a writer as well, but the story focuses more on how she became so passionate about cooking and the decade it took her to write her first recipe cook book. Tucci and Streep are just wonderful together and their chemistry is great. He is always supporting her wife, especially when she is searching for her passion. They share the funniest scenes in the movie. The other story is about Julie played by Amy Adams, who lives in the post 9-11 days and works for a government agency where she helps people deal with the tragedy. She used to be a writer, but she seems to leave everything half-way. She also has a very supporting husband who wants her to find a passion as well and together they discover that she can blog about food. Julie identifies with Julia and decides to cook her more than 500 recipes in one year and blog about the experience each day. 

Even though the movie might feel like it drags at times, the film works because of Meryl Streep. She is terrific and plays a very sweet and likeable character. Her voice is very funny and there is even a SNL clip where Dan Aykroid is playing Julia Childs that is probably one of the funniest scenes of the movie so I am glad they included the clip. It helped the viewers understand the true fame that Childs reached because the film explores her early days even though she was more than 40 when she began. Her performance was worthy of an Oscar nomination and the movie should have focused more on that story, not because Adams did a bad job, but because Streep was simply superb. The movie has a feel good message as well and teaches you that it is never too late to find your true passion in life and fight for it. This is a highly recommended movie if you are in the mood for fine cooking, but if you are more into a fast-food movie than this is probably a movie you will want to skip.

My Review: Man of Steel (7/10)

¨You just have to decide what kind of man you want to grow up to be, Clark. Whoever that man is, he´s going to change the world.¨

There is no doubt in my mind that Man of Steel is a far more superior movie than its predecessor: Superman Returns. The franchise has gotten a positive reboot with director Zack Snyder at the helm and Christopher Nolan as one of the producers. I know this isn’t a perfect film, I thought it had several flaws, but compared to Superman Returns this is a masterpiece. What surprises me is that even though most critics acknowledge the fact that this is a superior film, in Rotten Tomatoes this film was only recommended by 57% of critics, compared to the 75% that recommended Superman Returns. For those of us who have seen both movies we know that is a tremendous flaw and most critics would agree that they gave too much anticipated love to Superman Returns which was a really mediocre movie. I can understand why they disliked this film because I think the film suffers from an action overdose. There is just way too much action in this film and it grows repetitive and tiresome. Snyder goes overboard with the action sequences and there is just way too much destruction that goes unaccounted for. I mean the entire city of Metropolis gets completely destroyed in this film and there are far too many 9/11 references here. That is the major issue I had with this film. Other than that I thought the movie had a great cast. Henry Cavill made for an exciting and near perfect Superman, Amy Adams nailed her role as Lois Lane, and Michael Shannon was a convincing villain as General Zod. Besides the cast, I also thought the flashback scenes involving the young Clark Kent were the strongest moments of the film. It was those quiet moments that I enjoyed more than all the loud action scenes in which Clark Kent was struggling to find his new identity. Those scenes worked really well for me and I thought Kevin Costner and Diane Lane were wonderful playing his Earth parents. I wasn’t a big fan of the opening sequence in Krypton, but thought Russell Crowe also was convincing as Jor-El.

The film opens in Krypton where we see Jor-El (Russell Crowe) help his wife give birth to his son, Kal-El, the first natural birth in the planet in a long time. The planet is at the verge of being extinct and Jor-El finds hope in his son, although General Zod (Michael Shannon) has different plans for his people. Despite Zod´s efforts to stop Jor-El, he manages to send his son to Earth where he can survive. At Earth he is adopted by Jonathan (Kevin Costner) and Martha (Diane Lane) who find him in their field in Kansas. The film centers on Clark (Henry Cavill) as he struggles to find meaning and purpose for his life. With the help of his parents he begins to deal with his powers, but is reminded that he should use these abilities as little as possible because the world isn’t prepared for someone like him. The scenes involving Clark´s childhood and his upbringing with his parents is told through a series of flashbacks as we see a much more mature Clark searching for the meaning of his existence in one place after another. He finally finds some answers when an ancient craft from Krypton is located on Earth and that is when he also runs into journalist, Louis Lane (Amy Adams) who discovers Clark isn’t a regular human being. His secret life is shattered when General Zod makes a theatrical entrance in his spaceship along with his crew and asks mankind to surrender the alien. Of course Zod has other intentions for the planet and doesn’t really settle for Kal-El. This is where the battle and destruction on Earth begins, and Clark Kent ironically remains the only hope for mankind.

Man of Steel delivers and fans of blockbuster action films will love this film. I thought the action sequences suffered from too much overload and repetitiveness. The scenes are extremely exaggerated and they grew tiresome after a while. I loved most of the film, but the last 45 minutes took a toll on me and made me enjoy this film less and less. That doesn’t mean I didn’t like this and of course I would rather sit through this than watch Superman Returns again (a film that critics seem to have enjoyed more). The problem is that after so many great superhero films, Man of Steel does fall short to other films like The Dark Knight or even Iron Man. It is probably at the same level as Thor, but I wouldn’t say this is a great superhero film because it is inferior to the bar that the Batman franchise set. I even think Iron Man 3 was a better movie than this, but Man of Steel did have its moments and I wouldn’t be surprised if a lot of people really like this blockbuster film considering the excellent cast and the wonderful performance from Henry Cavill as the new Superman.

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My Review: The Master (9/10)

¨If you figure out a way to live without a master, any master, be sure to let the rest of us know, for you would be the first in the history of the world.¨

The Master is a magnetic and hypnotic film, one that is definitely not for the casual viewer and that will require multiple viewings if you want to grasp the many different meanings of the film. I am not sure I really understood everything, but I can honestly say that I was hooked from the beginning and attracted to these characters that were searching for answers in life in an unusual way. Paul Thomas Anderson himself has become a master in directing these films with multiple meanings and interpretations through his character studies. He takes more time than other directors (this was made five years after There Will Be Blood, and 10 years after Punch-Drunk Love) and this is only his sixth feature film since he began directing in 1996 (between 96 and 99 he directed three films: Sydney, Boogie Nights, and Magnolia). He has slowed down and taken time with his movies now trying to perfect his craft by creating fully developed characters. Anderson has created a fan base and critics tend to love his films, but his movies aren’t for everyone as they require a serious audience because they can be challenging at times. Another thing Anderson has learned to do very well over time is to get the best performance from his actors. In There Will Be Blood, Daniel Day Lewis was spectacular, in Punch-Drunk Love we saw Adam Sandler give the performance of his life time, and now in The Master Joaquin Phoenix and Phillip Seymour Hoffman give tremendous and powerful performances. Their characters in this film are what make this movie so hypnotic and engaging. They have tremendous chemistry together and there are several hidden meanings behind their performances open to various interpretations. They had a tremendous script to work with as well since Anderson has become a master at creating these challenging character studies. This is a very smart and well crafted film and one that you need to pay close attention too.  

We are introduced from the very opening scene to a World War II naval veteran, Freddie Quell (Joaquin Phoenix), who seems to have suffered a very traumatic experience. He´s an alcoholic, in one scene we even see him drinking gasoline from the ship, and he is constantly mixing alcohol with toxic substances. He´s a very disturbed and troubled man suffering from PTSD breakdowns, we see him having trouble to adapt to normal society picking fights with his customers while working as a photographer and constantly drinking and thinking about sex. He has an incident where he might have killed a man when he offered him one of his poisonous drinks which he has learned to digest. While running away from a couple of men after that incident he hides out on a ship where he´s introduced to a sort of strange cult known as The Cause. He befriends Lancaster Dodd (Phillip Seymour Hoffman), who the rest of the crew call the Master, and the two take a liking for each other. The Master is a very charismatic leader who finds in Freddie someone who he can help to clear his emotions. Through a series of questions which the master calls processing he tries to help Freddie. Freddie becomes part of the movement as he joins Lancaster and his wife, Peggy (Amy Adams) as sort of their right hand man. The Cause begins to grow thanks to the Master´s leadership, but Freddie still has trouble controlling his emotions and alcohol abuse. The only person in the cult that seems to like Freddie is the Master himself, who seems to be coming up with his ideas as he goes along with the movement. Freddie himself has some doubts about the movement as they go along.

This is really a fascinating psychological drama with some of the greatest performances of the year. Phoenix´s physical performance stands out above the rest, but Hoffman is so charismatic that he even attracts the viewer and makes us stick with this confounding film. It demands the viewer’s complete attention, and in the end it rewards it with a fascinating ending open to many interpretations. There are several outstanding scenes like the processing scene where Hoffman questions Phoenix and brings up some things about his disturbed past. The scenes these two actors share together are all memorable; among my favorites are the jail scene and the final scene between them in London. Everything happening here can be processed in very different ways, but it really did satisfy me. Many people have said this was going to be a film about scientology, and there are perhaps some underlying hints that can make you think that way, but most of all it is a character study between two men who seem to have problems of their own. I felt that by the ending of the film, despite Freddie´s consistent troubles, he in a way tries to become a master himself. Perhaps he is the future Ron Hubbard, but of course the film is open to several different interpretations. This is a movie that hooks you from the beginning and will have you thinking about it long after the credits role. That is how you measure a truly successful film.

   

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My Review: Trouble with the Curve (8/10)

¨Anybody who uses computers doesn't know a damn thing about this game.¨

Trouble with the Curve is this year`s response to Moneyball claiming that the experience of scouts can`t be replaced by a bunch of computer programs and numbers. It is kind of the opposite of what happened in last year`s movie starring Brad Pitt, but in my opinion both films worked really well. I believe that a balance must be found in both systems and that there is no right or wrong way to approach this. Moneyball explored the baseball concepts a little deeper; Trouble with the Curve on the other hand focuses more on the father and daughter relationship. I am not a big baseball fan, but I enjoyed these movies quite a bit because they had a lot of heart. This film might be predictable, but it`s hard not to fall for the sentimentality it brings along and the broken relationships it tries to restore. This is Robert Lorenz`s first film as a director, but he has had a lot of experience working with Clint Eastwood as his assistant in most of his movies. Lorenz uses some of the same techniques and trademarks of Eastwood in this film so it is kind of like if you were watching one of his movies. The screenplay was written by Randy Brown, and the film stars Clint Eastwood (it has been a long time since he has acted in a movie that he didn’t direct). Eastwood`s last film as an actor was Gran Torino, and he has a sort of similar role in this movie playing his usual old grumpy self again. Trouble with the Curve is a good film, but not as great as some other Eastwood films (Gran Torino and Million Dollar Baby).

Gus (Clint Eastwood) is a baseball scout for the Atlanta Braves. He has had a long and successful career with the club, but some of the managers think he`s getting too old and his contract is about to expire in three months. Phillip (Matthew Lillard) one of the General Manager`s assistant is a firm believer in the numbers that his computer program gives him, but the other assistant, Pete (John Goodman), is a friend of Gus`s and defends him. Gus has a talent for scouting good players; the problem he´s facing now is that his eyes are failing him. Despite the problem, he tries to hide it from everybody and continue to go on as if nothing is wrong. His wife passed away years ago and he had to raise his daughter Mickey on his own. Mickey (Amy Adams) is now in her 30`s and is becoming a successful lawyer, but her relationship with her father has always been distant. Pete figures out that something is wrong with Gus and asks Mickey to accompany her father on what could be his last scouting assignment to North Carolina. Gus has to scout a promising player there named Bo (Joe Massingill) in case the Red Sox, who have the first round pick, pass on him. The scout from the Red Sox happens to be Johnny (Justin Timberlake), a former player who was scouted by Gus himself. Johnny ends up falling for Mickey during their stay in North Carolina, although there are several other issues she wants to resolve with her father first.

The performances in this film didn’t blow my mind, but the story does have a lot of heart. It`s hard not to fall for the characters in this story and despite the fact that the film is very predictable and formulaic it was still a very satisfying experience for me. Amy Adams and Clint Eastwood shared some touching scenes together. Eastwood seems to always explore this father-daughter distant relationship in most of his movies. You don’t need to be a baseball fan to enjoy this movie because it deals more with these relationships than with the game itself. Justin Timberlake and Amy Adams share some scenes together as well adding a little romance to the story. Trouble with the Curve has a little bit of everything: sports, romance, and drama so it is one of those rare films that the entire family will enjoy.

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My Review: The Muppets (8/10)

¨Am I a Muppet, or am I a man? If I'm a man, I'm a Muppet of a man. ¨

James Bobin was perhaps barely known for his work as a writer in TV series such as Da Ali G Show and The Flight of the Conchords, but after his direction in his first feature film, The Muppets, he will be recognized and remembered for bringing back the 70`s film and TV series back to life. Bobin has accomplished what I thought in today`s advanced technological world couldn`t be done: bring back the Muppets to popular mainstream and make them stars all over again. This film was a very pleasant surprise and didn’t just work only as a nostalgic piece, but it also managed to convert new fans with some catchy songs and great cameos. Whoever thought the Muppets were done and over with was wrong, because they`ve really made millions of new fans and there movie was on par with their greatest shows in the eighties. Seeing these characters back in the big screen without any use of animated effects and just being their old selves was such a great feeling. It allowed for a better story to be told and not just rely on the special effects like so many animated films do now a day. The spirit of Jim Henson is still alive and he would`ve been pleased with this latest effort. One of the reasons this film worked so well was thanks to the funny script which was written by Jason Segel (who also stars in this film) and Nicholas Stoller. Segel had already proven to be a great writer when he wrote the hilarious Forgetting Sarah Marshall. At the end of that film we came to know about his characters passion for directing a Muppet opera. Perhaps it is really a dream of his and he got close to achieving it with this film. The question I`ll have to ask Segel is if he is a Muppet or a man.

Gary (Jason Segel) and Walter (muppet voiced by Peter Linz) have been very close since they were born. The two brothers always spend time together and one of their favorite hobby`s is watching The Muppets on television. Walter admires the muppets and dreams of meeting them, and one day Gary decides to take him to their Theater in Los Angeles. Gary is actually going to LA to celebrate his tenth year together with girlfriend Mary (Amy Adams), but he convinces Mary to let Walter come with them. Once they arrive at the Museum, they are torn to see the place abandoned and no muppet in sight. While Walter is touring Kermit`s old office he overhears a conversation an oil tycoon named Tex Richman (Chris Cooper) is having, saying that he is going to buy the abandoned theater and extract oil from under the sacred place. Walter is terrified after hearing this and decides to search for Kermit in order to let him know about Richman`s evil plans. The only way to save the theater is to come up with ten million dollars before the end of the week. Gary, Mary, and Walter find Kermit and tell him they still have time to come up with the money if the Muppets get back together and raise the money. That is when Kermit begins enlisting every one of the muppets one by one and preparing a lived telecast show to raise the money. Veronica Martin (Rashida Jones) decides to produce the show despite believing the Muppets are history because their hottest show got cancelled and they need something to cover the hole, but she says they will need a star to host the show. The Muppets find Jack Black and convince him (by kidnapping him) to do it against his will. Thus the show begins and the race against the clock to raise the money.

The comedy along with the musicals in The Muppets work to perfection. I loved every one of the songs in this movie, and Kermit`s single was so good. Jason Segel and Amy Adams have a special chemistry together. Adams reminds us why we fell in love with Enchanted and Jason Segel plays his useful loveable self. It was such a nostalgic feeling to see The Muppets back in action, but they were great as always. Kermit, Miss Piggy, Gonzo, Animal, Fozzie, Beaker, Rowlf, and company were all spectacular. These are the characters I grew up with so it was really something to see them together once again in such a well written and entertaining movie. Perhaps the weakest part was the villain; Chris Cooper is a great actor but his character was a little over the top. The best part of the film in my opinion was the cameos. I absolutely loved each one of them, but I don’t want to give away any surprises. My favorite was the cameo from the ¨Am I a Muppet or a Man¨ song. This is a movie for everyone, fans of the old series and young kids will enjoy this alike. The Muppets is one of the pleasant surprises from 2011. It`s definitely worth a watch.

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My Review: The Fighter (8/10)

¨I´m the one who`s fighting. Not you, not you, and not you.¨

It`s a good thing Mark Wahlberg`s character reminds us about this near the end of the film because you could think that he wasn`t the central theme of David O. Russell`s movie due to the fact that the rest of the performances from the ensemble cast outshine him. Christian Bale, Melissa Leo, and Amy Adams give such great performances that Wahlberg`s character gets kind of lost in the midst of the story, but I don`t think that`s a negative critique for the film because it kind of summarizes the way his character has felt his entire life. Sidelined by his mother and seven sisters who have always shown preference toward his older half-brother (played by Christian Bale), who is sort of the local hero of a small town in Massachusetts called Lowell. Russell, who hadn`t directed a film in 6 years (I Heart Huckabees), does a great job with the direction of this film thanks to a powerful script written by Scott Silver, Paul Tamasy, and Eric Johnson. It is based on a true story, but of course has probably been modified by Hollywood for more dramatic effects. It follows the boxing career of ¨Irish¨ Micky Ward and his rise to the top against all odds. The plot may sound familiar and sort of follows the same premise every other sport movie does, however the performance from the ensemble cast makes this movie stand out from the rest. It also has a powerful screenplay and focuses on Ward`s family as much as it does with his boxing career so it makes for a good balanced dramatic sports film.

The movie takes place during the 90`s in Lowell, Massachusetts and opens with an HBO interview of Dicky Ecklund (Christian Bale), a former boxer known as ¨the pride of Lowell¨ who once knocked down the great Sugar Ray Leonard. He lost the fight, but survived all ten rounds in the ring with him. He is a retired boxer who is now training his younger half brother, Micky Ward (Mark Wahlberg) along with their mother, Alice (Melissa Leo), who is his manager. Dicky`s convinced that HBO is making a documentary about his comeback, but the truth of the matter is that it’s about crack addiction and how it can destroy people´s lives. Dicky is in his 40`s and consumed by his drug addiction. He spends most of his days locked up in a friend`s house getting high or in prison, although he still doesn`t seem to acknowledge the fact that it`s slowly ruining his life. His entire family knows about his addiction, but can`t seem to help him with it. Just like the rest of the people in Lowell, Micky admires his brother and listens to everything he has to say about boxing. Micky sometimes waits hours in the gym for his brother to show up and help him train, but his addiction and time in prison is hurting Micky`s career as well. His mother doesn`t help him very much as his manager either as she sometime pins him up in fights against boxers who are twenty pounds heavier than him. Micky is about to give up on his career until he meets Charlene Fleming (Amy Adams), a sexy bartender who teaches him to stand up against his family and not give up on his dream. When Dicky is sentenced to 15 years in prison it is time for Micky to find a new trainer and fulfill his dream.

Russell`s picture received 7 nominations including Best Picture and Best Director. It had been a long time since his latest film (six years) and the wait was worth the while. His most acclaimed film up to this point had been Three Kings (in which he also worked with Wahlberg), but I have a feeling most people will remember him for this movie now on. The Fighter is a good film. It is more than just another boxing movie; it`s a film about family and rising to the challenge. The film is so well balanced mixing boxing and family drama that I don`t know if the title is referring to Wahlberg`s character as a boxer, or Bale`s character as a drug addict. Both of them have to fight extremely difficult odds in order to survive (Micky as a boxer and Dicky as a free junkie). The family also has to go through difficult times in order to survive, but somehow they manage to stick together despite all the differences. Christian Bale is truly the star of this film. He is so energetic and loud, that one wouldn`t recognize this guy as being Batman or Sean Connor from the Terminator. The physical and emotional transformation he goes through in this film is just impressive. Melisa Leo (Frozen River) is also excellent in her role as Alice, as well as Amy Adams who also plays a different role in this film from what she has us used too.  All three actors have been nominated for the Oscars, and Bale is a favorite to win. Wahlberg, as I said, sort of gets sidelined by the rest of the cast, but his performance is strong and powerful nonetheless. The Fighter isn`t among my top ten films of the year, but it still is a very well balanced sports drama which I strongly recommend.

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