Movie Reviews
On Friday I gave my take on Dear John, and I hope it helped guide some of your movie-watching choices over the weekend. I’d like to give a quick update on the other movies I watched over the past two weeks in keeping with my New Year’s resolution. For the first six movies I watched this year, see my post from Jan. 21.
The next set were: Inglorious Basterds, When in Rome, A Clockwork Orange and Dear John.
Inglorious Basterds-As is becoming my habit, I’m embarrassed that it took me so long to see this amazing film. I had it on my list to rush out and see the day it came out but somehow didn’t manage until recently. I’m so pleased to see such a great example of Quentin Tarentino’s brilliance on display once again. I sometimes think he is overrated and is idolized too much by film buffs and students, but when he puts out something this good, his genius is undeniable. The story is fascinating, the acting superb and the use of dramatic irony to create intense tension and suspense is incredible. Check out my post on Talking Heads for more on this.
When in Rome-I love a good romantic comedy, but this was just an adequate romantic comedy. It tried hard, but suffered from a silly premise and clichéd rom-com devices that bordered on corny. Once again we have an over-worked, cynical, ridiculously successful ingénue (so successful that, to my utter horror, she could afford to toss aside her beautiful cerulean blue satin Christian Louboutin’s as if they were some cheap Payless knock-offs) who can’t and doesn’t even want to find love until her baby sister marries.
I was amused by the antics of the men under the spell of the fountain fawning over, stalking, and harassing poor Kristen Bell (especially Danny DeVito) but I didn’t feel quite enough chemistry between her and Josh Duhamel to really enjoy the story. They try hard, but fall short of creating a truly memorable love story. It’s good for a few laughs, and the reunion cameo of Napoleon Dynamite and Pedro is a cute touch, but this movie overall will be remembered (or forgotten) as another mediocre romantic comedy.
A Clockwork Orange-Sometimes I think Stanley Kubrick is just a pervert who we’ve all mistakenly dubbed a genius. There are parts of this film that fully support my theory, and other parts that hold him up as a great. Of course, we can’t blame Stanley for all of the perversions in this adaptation, but we can give him credit for crafting such an intriguing, if utterly disturbing film. The direction certainly helps make this film great, but the story is also a huge part of its success. Considering how avant-garde this film is supposed to be, it does use a fairly traditional plot and story structure that presents a fascinating moral question and an interesting examination of a possible future dilemma.
