2009 - Confessions of a Dangerous Mind

I love this film, and welcome any chance to revisit it.  It's funny, a conversation about this film has come up a few times over the last week or so so I really wanted to check it out.  Also, anything Kaufman related is worth spending time in.  I love any kind of film that has an element of mystery to it with an unreliable narrator, and this is one of the tops.  For those who don't know it's a bio pic about Chuck Barris who was a television game show producer who wrote an autobiography about having been an assassin for the CIA - in reality no one knows if it's true or not, and this film is an adaptation of that book.  It's so fucking good.  Sam Rockwell is one of my favorite actors, and he's surrounded by pure talent in this film.  If you haven't ever seen this it's a shame and should be rectified.  I love it so hard.

1580 - Going the Distance

I'm a big fan of a lot of the people in this film - Justin Long, Drew Barrymore, Charlie Day, the list goes on.  This is kind of your typical rom-com about a couple trying to stay together against adversity (this case being a long distance relationship) however it's... I don't know, it's kind of weird.  The tone is a little inconsistent, the film started off on a far more blunt and blatant sexual tone than I had expected (surprisingly enjoyed) but then that just kind of fades away and it floats more into typical rom-com tone - which was a shame.  I found that it foundered a little bit and created obstacles that didn't fit or exist (there's this little sequence involving Long's character concerned about needing to get a tan to look good for his girlfriend, where we've never set up for a moment that she would want such a thing).  I didn't hate the sequence, some funny comes out of it, but I just wanted more things connected more honestly and organically to the core story.  They turn Applegate's character into some kind of neat-freak, which I suppose is meant to be a quirky character trait, but she's entertaining enough with the rest of his stuff that this ultimately feels a bit forced.
Barrymore and Long are the highlights (as they should be) and they elevate the film wherever the script is lacking.  Barrymore in particular is rejuvenated here (for the most part) with an honest energy we haven't seen - her laugh is infectious and honest and really makes you love this pair.
So I don't have a strong recommend on this one, but I wouldn't deter people from watching it either.  
Going the Distance  Going the Distance [Blu-ray]

1356 - Whip It

I wanted to see this film as soon as I was the trailer. The cast was right, solid subject matter, and great trailer with awesome energy. This film looked like a blast.

A friend of mine is a captain for one of the teams in the Toronto Roller Derby league, their team is Chicks Ahoy and we finally made it out to see a game last night (which rocked!), so it was only natural that my wife and I were extra pumped to finally watch this.

And it was... okay.

No one hates throwing out negative comments more than me but I just... I don't know. It's part sports movie, so within that you've got a bit of cliche that just has to happen to make the structure work. I'm fine with that. But I just found that the story was a bit of painting-by-numbers - stuff like everyone getting made at her just happened to all happen at the same time 'cause... well that's where it's supposed to happen in story structure. I guess what I'm saying is that I just felt like I 'felt' the beats of the story, rather than then disappearing into the film.

The cardinal sin of this film, for me, was that the film was unable to make the energy and excitement of the trailer. Not that it was trying to be a bait and switch, but it didn't get me excited the way that I'd hoped. The cast was all lovely, and there were some really nice bits to it. It's not a film I think I'll ever need to revisit. I'll tell you this - if you have a love-on for Barrymore or any of the fantastic people that are in this cast, it's probably worth checking out. But if you want my advice, use the above links and get your ass to a real roller derby. That shit is fun. The logo for my friend's team is below:

1336 - Everyone Says I Love You

I've been giving my assistant films to watch over the last few months (she's racked up an impressive list - I'll try to post it when we're finished working on the show together) and she's shown a particular liking to Woody Allen, and so I've been more than happy to oblige her.
I haven't seen this film in years, and despite having a stack of new stuff to watch, I really felt like revisiting it.
I know some of these old songs, but a lot I'd never heard until I saw this film for the first time. An interesting piece of trivia I recently learned is that Woody didn't tell any of the actors that they were going to be appearing in a musical until after they'd signed their contacts. And what a cast it is. From Goldie to Julia to Edward to Drew to Tim Roth, and even a young Natalie Portman. There are many more, and all do a pretty good job in their singing roles (although Drew is dubbed).
I love that Woody isn't beyond shaking it up with something like this. It's ambitious and yet lovely. Full of some really wonderful moments. No one can say that Woody doesn't put himself out there and take risks. Let's hope for many more films from him.

1273 – 50 First Dates

Another film that I’m finally coming to years after it’s release. It’s an interesting blend of Sander and Barrymore. You’ve got a lot of the Happy-Madison in jokes and cast, but you’ve got the tremendous heart that Barrymore brings to everything that she does. I don’t want to give anything away but they do some really lovely things with this premise, and the ending is impressive, although not without a slew of new questions. All and all this film was much more interesting than I imagined from the outset. If you haven’t seen it and you’re a Sandler and/or Barrymore fan – check it out.

1204 - He's Just Not That Into You

If you know me at all, you know that I like a good romantic comedy. So here we've got an ensemble one, with a multitude of ideas and characters, with a multitude of actors, all whom I like - and so - does it work? For a large part, yeah - it does. There's no actors here that I dislike, and a few (Justin Long among others) that I fucking love. It starts off very strong with an honest take on relationships, and gets a little watered down as it moves along. Some moments are over-played, and would have been nicer with a little more subtlety. In the end it's a nice little date movie with something for the guys and the girls. Worthy of a date movie selection.