1900 - Enough Said

Nicole Holofcener is one of my favorite filmmakers - she's labelled as a female Woody Allen, and while I love Woody, Nicole stands strongly on her own two feet.  She's making some of the best romantic comedies of our generation, and this is no exception.  I need to see it again before I firmly make this statement - but this might be my favorite of her films.
It's about two middle aged people who are watching their only children moving out of the house, and in the course they strike up a relationship and see if they can get over the baggage left by their previous marriages.  It's a beautiful little comedy with honest, insightful and hilarious conversations.  It's about learning who you are as you grow, and what you will and won't put up with.  It's a great film and a must-see.

1718 - Friends With Money

Another rematch for visual style inside of a talky film.  This one is shot pretty conventionally and simply, but works nicely because of it.  Nicole Holofcener isn't aiming to wow us with the visuals as much as she is with the story.  It's a cast filled of actresses that I love and they're all playing vastly unlikeable people, but their chemistry and commitment to the characters make it work somehow.  If you haven't seen it, the film is about a woman, Aniston, who is surrounded by friends far more well off than she is.  In a way the film is an argument against being wealthy as a way to solve all of your problems.  Most of the characters here are wealthy and still messed up regardless.  Their view on the world is skewed and somewhat terrible.  They believe they're instilled to whatever they want because they want it, and so why shouldn't they have it.  Sadly I think only Catherine Keener's character comes around in the end, whereas our "hero" Aniston appears to have found a way to get into the rich person's club, and we question if she's at all sincere about the way she's gotten in…
This is by no means a film for everyone.  The characters are not the kind of people you want to hang out with, and you might spend a great deal of the film wanting to bitch-slap them.  I believe that's the intent, and so I think for that this film is a success - even if it means that a lot of people would rather spend time watching a movie with characters they don't want to slap around.

1368 - Please Give

Finally I renewed my membership at The Fox down in the Beaches. There's a handful of other films I want to see this month so it was completely worth it. For a kid who grew up in a small town and had to drive at least forty minutes to see a regular movie, and up to several hours to see anything independent or foreign I love that I now live within walking distance of a place like The Fox.

So, to the movie. I love Nicole Holofcener. I recently had to submit something with a list of influences and she was one of them. She has this amazing skill of capturing people and creating natural scenes that create this wonderful organic performances - of which the film is filled with. Oliver Platt is wonderful, as always. Catherine Keener appears to be Holofcener's version of the every woman and is the most consistent thing about her films. I can't complain. Never seen a Keener performance I didn't like. Ann Morgan Guilbert steals every scene she's in as the cratchety grandmother, but the person who surprised me the most was Amanda Peet. I've liked Peet for a long time, but I really was amazed by this performance - part of it is the writing for sure. I mean, I know this character and this person - right down to the over use of lipgloss and the fake tan. I think she pulled her off lovely and made her real as well.

I don't think this got a huge release, which is a shame. But it's the perfect film to snuggle up and watch at home. Please check it out of you get a chance!