My Review: August: Osage County (5/10)

"I thought we were having a funeral dinner not a cockfight."

Based on Tracy Letts' Pulitzer winning play of the same name, August: Osage County is a dark comedy about a dysfunctional family that are reunited for their father's funeral and several secrets are revealed along the way. This is director John Wells' follow up to his 2010 film The Company Men, with Letts adapting the screenplay of his own play. Add a very talented cast to the mix and you have all the right elements for a successful film, but somehow it failed to engage me. The characters in this film are so unlikable and they treat each other so terribly that I just found this film hard to enjoy. This is one family I would like to stay as far away as possible, and therefor I never felt comfortable watching this. This is an extremely verbally violent film which proves the point that words can hit harder than stones. August Osage County does have several positive things going for it beginning with some terrific performances from Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts. It also has a very witty and sharp screenplay as several secrets revealed along the way come as a surprise. It is a powerful film, but one that I never felt comfortable watching due to the fact I despised the way these characters treated each other. It was a depressing film, much like Lett's previous adapted play, Killer Joe. Despite having some fun moments I still felt like I'd be better off keeping away from this depressing story.

The film opens with Beverly (Sam Shepard) interviewing a young Native American woman named Johnna (Misty Upham) for a position as a live-in maid. He tells her about his wife Violet (Meryl Streep) who has been diagnosed with cancer and her addiction to pills. He and his wife have made an agreement, he doesn't say anything to him about her addiction and she doesn't bother him for being an alcoholic. It's just the way they deal with each other and their problems. Violet interrupts the interview and seems disturbed because she doesn't think she needs anyone taking care after her. Several days later it appears that Beverly has gone missing. The first to arrive at Violet's home providing support are her daughter Ivy (Julianne Nicholson), her sister Mattie Fae (Margo Martindale) and Fae's husband Charlie (Chris Cooper). Violet spends most of her time drinking pills and criticizing her family, especially Ivy for still being single. Violet's oldest daughter, Barbara (Julia Roberts) arrives with her husband Bill (Ewan McGregor) and their fourteen year old daughter Jean (Abigail Breslin) just around the moment that they discover Beverly's boat is missing. Later that afternoon, the local sheriff arrives and announces they have found Beverly's body, saying that he committed suicide and drowned himself. Several days later the funeral is held and the rest of Violet's family arrives, including her other daughter, Karen (Juliette Lewis) with her fiancé Steve (Dermot Mulroney) . The stage is set as they gather together for diner after the service and chaos ensues as secrets are revealed and horrible things are said to each other.

Meryl Streep may have just played her meanest role to date. She is a paranoid and dysfunctional woman who clearly has affected her children in the way she raised them. Julia Roberts also holds her own against Streep as they share some very powerful scenes together. The dialogue is witty and funny at times, while revealing some surprises along the way, but it's just the way these people treat each other that makes you want to stay away from them. The performance from the entire cast was above par, and the film succeeds in portraying them as these despicable and hateful people. Benedict Cumberbatch and Chris Cooper being both perhaps the most sympathetic characters in the film, although they do have their flaws as well. Despite all the strong performances I do believe Roberts and Streep steal each scene they are in. They deserve all the recognition they've been receiving, but I just had a hard time watching this movie and getting through the entire thing. This is one of those stories that seem to have worked better as a play than in the big screen.

My Review: Breach (8/10)

"Can you imagine, sitting in a room with a bunch of your colleagues, everybody trying to guess the identity of a mole and all the while, it's you they're after, you they're looking for? That must be very satisfying, wouldn't you think?"

Breach is a very intelligent spy thriller much more interesting than Spy Games or any of the other spy movies that have come out in recent years which rely too much on the special effects and not as much on the relationship between the characters. Breach is based on a true story about the mole in the FBI agency that sold millions worth of information to the Soviets in a 25 year span and focuses on the last two months before his arrest. What makes this movie so appealing is that this man, Robert Hanssen lived a very hipocritcal life since he was a very religious man who went to mass every day and seemed to live a very clean life. What makes this even better is that it is a true story based on recent events and the script couldnt have been made up by any Hollywood writers.

The actors in this film are great, but who really stands out in this movie is Chris Cooper. He plays the mole Robert Hanssen brilliantly, and is such a solid actor. In this film he absolutely nails the character and for some moments I was even fooled into sympathising with his persona. This is one of his best performances to date along with Seabiscuit although this time he has more screen time. Ryan Philippe also does a good job as O Neill, the agent who is chosen to work alongside Hannsen and spy on him. Laura Linney completes this well cast movie and also shines in the few scenes she is in. The only performance I somewhat disliked came from the actress that played Phillipes wife. She felt a bit miscast, but the rest of the supporting actors were good and Cooper simply outshines everyone.

Overall I found this movie very entertaining and it mantained my interest for the entire two hours even though we already know the outcome of the film. The movie is worth seeing for Coopers performance alone, but even then there is much more to this that you will find enjoyable and thrilling. The relationship and character development between Hannsen and O Neill is also one of the main ingredients that help make this a succesful film. I recommend this movie!

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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