Her Movie Reviews

I would just like to start this review by saying that I loved the cast of this film, but I did not love this movie. Needless to say, I am on the proverbial fence about it, and cannot decide if I liked it or not. If any of you have ever seen a (recent) Terry Gilliam directed film, you can understand me when I say he really enjoys messing with your mind. Well sir, my mind does not appreciate this.

As we all know (or maybe we don’t, so let me help you) this is Heath Ledger’s last film. He was working on it when he died. He is, as always, remarkable. I have never, and will never, have a bad thing to say about the films he chose to participate in.  I don’t feel like anything I can say in this captures exactly what I mean, so I’ll just say he was perfect, and leave it at that. After he passed away, they had to do some rewriting in order to alleviate his absence, and into his shoes stepped Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Farrell. I won’t give away how they do it, or why, but it is very cleverly done.  The rest of the cast (Lily Cole, Christopher Plummer, Verne Troyer, Andrew Garfield, and Tom Waits) are really good too. Like I said, I love the cast of this film. They are all wonderful, and even though I had a hard time following along with what was going on, this is in no way their fault.

Okay, here’s the part I didn’t like. I am not giving anything away by revealing the plot, in fact, I might be doing some of you a favor! “The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus” is a traveling show featuring the teachings of Parnassus (Plummer). The actors in his show are his daughter Valentina (Cole) and Anton (Garfield). Along the way, they meet Tony (Ledger- it’s really hard to explain, but this part is also played by Depp, Law, and Farrell). It is revealed the Parnassus made a deal with the devil, Mr. Nick (Waits) and they bet on human decisions. The mirror featured in the traveling show is actually a doorway into Parnassus’ mind and the people who go into it are given two choices: if they make a good decision, they come out of his mind feeling free and happy, and if they make a bad choice, they die. They don’t make it back through the mirror. The movie is all about life and death, good and evil. For me, it got a little muddled. There was a lot going on, and there was not a good enough explanation in my opinion as to why some of the things in the film were happening. There were a lot of plot gaps, and that really drives me nuts.

I am not completely cold hearted when it comes to this film. I did get a bit weepy when hearing Tony deliver the line “nothing is permanent, not even death.” And there is a beautiful tribute to him during the credits. For those of you who are fans of Heath Ledger’s or a fan of any of the men who play in, or a fan of anyone in this film, you will not be disappointed. If you’re a fan of avant-garde films, or a fan of Terry Gilliam’s work, you’ll love it. Otherwise, wait for the DVD.

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Last night we went down to the theater to check out the last and final film by the late and more importantly great Heath Ledger. That film is known as the Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus – and wow that’s a mouth full of title. This film follows the story of a Buddhist monk that wagers bets with the devil on who can lure in more souls. The monk through the allure of the imagination and everything good it has to offer. The devil uses his most common trick of luring through a human’s most desired vice. Basically its a battle for your soul with the good (Dr. Parnassus) and evil (Mr. Nick, or better known as the devil).  I am going to say right up front, the movie can seem a little confusing and at times run long but I absolutely enjoyed it.  I seem to have a soft spot when a film tries to capture imagination running free.  I like the idea of saying, “With imagination, you can do anything.”   Now that’s not what this film’s exact message is, but it spotlights it.  It shows how good imagination can be.  Perhaps its the art student in me – I dunno.

Heath Ledger in the film plays Tony, a man that the Doctor’s traveling circus finds hanging from a bridge that joins their misfit band to help save souls.  And his rapport on life and death throughout the film is quite eerie considering the real-life circumstances.  Christopher Plummer plays the great Doctor Parnassus and I enjoyed him in the role. Actually everyone played their roles quite well including Tom Waits as Mr. Nick and Lily Cole as the beautiful Valentina.  But the most interesting part of this movie has to be what happened behind the scenes in the movie. With Heath’s premature death, the film itself was only partially completed.  So, three well-known actors (Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell, and Jude Law) stepped in to try and fill the shoes of Heath and finish the role.  And in pretty much seamless fashion, they were able to complete the film.  As Ledger’s character enter the imagination world, he is transformed to a person that a person would want him to be.  To me its amazing and fortunate that they were able to piece what they had together and make what resulted.  And the really cool thing is those three actors took what they were paid to do the film and passed it on to Heath’s daughter so that her future would be financially secure.  To me, it seems like a very noble and great way to honor a fellow actor in their last part.

Like I said before, the movie is a bit strange and on the artsy side.  Do not go if you are looking to remember Heath as the nicest man in the world.  He does have a dark side in this film.  But I say go, watch it, let your imagination explore the worlds they have created.

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Let me just preface this by saying that I have a soft spot in my heart for all Disney films (and all things Disney in general- I love that mouse!), but especially 2D animated Disney films! This was right up my alley.  I also knew I’d love it before I’d even bought my ticket. I’m biased, there aren’t any laws against that, right??

This movie has got a lot of heart. Yes, it’s a cartoon, but it’s not just some dumb kids movie. It was a good message to it, along with some great songs! It’s all about working hard for what you want; wishing on a star will only get you so much, you’ve got to work for it! Come on now, that’s not just a message for the kiddos! That message certainly contradicts the ideas of the studios earlier films, but it is geared towards a generation growing up in a tough economic climate, so I can certainly respect their new approach. I could get on my soap box about this topic, but I will resist!

The story takes place in and around 1920’s New Orleans. What really makes the film is the supporting characters: this includes alligators and fireflies and voodoo shadows. I know this is a contradiction, but the bad guy is awesome. He’s a voodoo king. Does it get much cooler than that?

It’s just a really fun story, and you don’t need to have a 5 year old to enjoy you. You may need a 5 year old to use as an excuse to see it without looking weird, but if you manage to go, I hope you like it as much as I did (and no, I didn’t steal someone’s kid to go see it, we went at 9 o’clock on a Friday night, and we were not the only adults in there. And none of them had children either).

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It’s been a while seen I have seen a true Disney animated feature.  Granted Princess and the Frog is their first 2D animated film since Home on the Range and that was 5 years ago.  But I know I haven’t seen that movie and the last one i watched before that was probably Lilo and Stitch. So it was nice to hit the theaters and catch some good ole Disney magic. It seemed like the 2D animated feature was dead, gone without any of us fans ever saying goodbyes.  Pixar has made an explosion with Toy Story and ever since then its been a landslide of 3D animation. Everyone these days has been caught up by the 3D bandwagon with Shrek, Ice Age, and the slew of Pixar movies out there.  And while Pixar does amazing work, I still think Disney has a place in the animated feature world. There is really nothing like the Disney classics.  I remember watching Snow White, Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, Lady and the Tramp, and Peter Pan millions of times growing up and being excited each and every time.  There truly is magic and imagination in those old films and I think Princess and the Frog brings a bit of that magic back while carrying on the tradition of 2D animation.  The strongest aspect of the film is truly the way they hearken to the old films and really try to fit this one in.  There are some modern advancements that can be seen with computer effects and digital drawing that bring the film into the 21st century.  But the way the characters are drawn and the story are definitely stamped with the Disney brand – which I for one am completely fine with. While I don’t think this is the strongest movie in Disney’s line-up, I think it is defintely worth a watch. There are some fun characters and the story gives a more truthful feeling to the ‘wishing upon a star.’  The idea that it is great to wish upon a star but you need to back it up with hard work and determination is fresh and truthful. This gives the main character Tiana a fresh look for a ‘Disney princess.’ She is an independent business woman looking to make her mark in the world.  She cares not for any Prince Charming or love for that matter.  Of course when you’re not looking, love tends to find you.

It’s funny, maybe being a dude, and older then probably the average targeted audience, I was actually more drawn to the bad guy of the film.  With his slick moves and voodoo magic he is, well, awesome.  Unfortunately he’s bad and mean.  In fact, with this evil minions, there are some parts of the film that I thought were kind of scary for children.  But those moments are quickly pushed from your mind when you meet Ray, a local firefly in the bayou of Louisiana played by Jim Cummings.  This little dude packs a punch of laughter and is definitely the highlight of the film.

All in all, it’s good to see that Disney is back in the 2D game, and let’s hope that they stay there.  This has always been their area, their expertise.  If you enjoy watching a classic Disney film with the story, animation, dancing, and singing, then you should definitely check this one out. Welcome back Disney.

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The funny thing about having a movie review blog is that a lot of people get you movie related gifts for Christmas.  When in doubt, get a theater gift card I suppose.   So with gift card in hand, we went to see the newest incarnation of the romantic comedy, Leap Year.  Amy Adams and Matthew Goode star in this film about a woman that hashes out this plan to propose to her boyfriend on February 29th in Ireland.  Of course nothing goes as planned and seeing that the other main star of the film is not her boyfriend, you can pretty much figure out the rest. Leap Year produces no clever advances or accomplishments to the romantic comedy genre, instead it is a straight by the book. In fact, just by watching the preview you get the whole movie in a nutshell. And with that being said, it makes this movie almost feel like a straight to DVD release.  Amy Adams is cute, but seems a bit weak in parts as conflict arises.  For example, when someone steals her bag, she rushes in then quickly turns timid and awkward.  Matthew Goode does an alright job but don’t expect an award winning performance.  Overall it is a simple love story that has been seen a million times before, and if you like romantic comedies, you’ll probably enjoy this.  The biggest flaw in this movie however is the horrible green screen.  Throughout the film, it is easily seen that they have been pasted into the beautiful landscape of Ireland and makes me wonder if they were ever there in the first place.  I mean seriously, I just paid $18 dollars for us to see this movie, at least make it look like they are actually there.  There are parts in the film where the green screen is about as good as what I can achieve with the fake iChat backgrounds on my Mac.  This one problem does a huge disservice to the film and especially Ireland.  I would say skip this movie, or just watch the trailer below – it’ll save you time and money.

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