1609 - Who the #$&% is Jackson Pollock?

When the opening interview of a documentary starts with:

Fairy tales begin with 'Once Upon a Time...'  But when a trucker tells you a story, it begins with 'You ain't gonna believe this shit!'

Then you know you're in for a treat.  We tried to see this at TIFF but the fates did not align - instead we saw a wonderful documentary called My Kid Could Paint That (really great - check it out!)

So this documentary is about a woman who believes she has found a Jackson Pollock painting that, if real, could be worth in the neighborhood of fifty million dollars.  And she's not willing to settle for anything less.  Because there is no traditional way to authenticate the painting, and because Pollock "experts" refuse to accept it, she relies on going to a world renowned forensic guy who specializes in art.  This man, after much searching, actually finds the kind of evidence where "If this were a murder trial, the subject would be guilty without question".  But for unexplained reasons (outside of tradition) the art world does not recognize forensic evidence.  Probably because it means that they could be right or wrong and something like that would just absolutely shatter a community that is based on opinion.  Fact is an ugly word when it comes to art.
This is a nice little flick (on netflix), and it's fun and informative about the art world - if you like this you should also check out Steve Martin's newest book An Object of Beauty which discusses similar themes. 
Who the #$&% Is Jackson Pollock?

An Object of Beauty

Yes.  This is Steve Martin the actor.  And it may surprise some to know that this isn't his first book.  He's got quite the literary career outside of films, with this being his third work of fiction following a beautiful novella Shopgirl (yes, the one that was made into a film), and The Pleasure of My Company.  At some points this book feels more like Martin wanted a justification for spending a lot of time researching the art world from the point of view of business.  And just in that light the book is quite interesting, pulling back the curtain to see the money side of it all - how people are influenced, how it all works.  I have to say that whenever it spent too long on those art-world tangents I found myself a little bit wavering.  Because Martin is such a skilled writer I was able to hang on, but a page turned this book was not - although, to be fair, I'm sure that's not what it was intended to be.
It follows Lacey, a woman who navigates herself through the New York art world over the course of two decades with it's highs and lows.  Most people know this girl - she's the type that finds the most powerful person in the room and makes them want to please her. 
The book has been out for a few months now, I picked it up on a whim due to my love of Martin's other books.  It's not my favourite of his, but I enjoyed it nontheless, and I think anyone with an appreciation, or curiosity of the art world would consider it a must-read.
An Object of Beauty: A Novel

1479 - Mixed Nuts

This film is going to kick-off my week long (hell, I might even make it two week long) Christmas-Film-Fest. I saw this film when it first came out, and outside of a few moments I mostly forgot what it was about. Sixteen years can do that to you. Nora Ephron is one of those queen's of romantic-comedies, so it's pretty enjoyable to see her tackle this dark, farcical material, and with such an eccentric cast. Here we are delighted by some lovely old stand-bys including none other than Mr. Steve Martin, he brilliant Madeline Kahn, and the never-cast-enough Rita Wilson, along with many people who were new-comers at the time - including an embarrassing performance by Adam Sandler doing the schtick that was expected of him at the time. Liev Shrieber is more-or-less introduced here in a pretty memorable role, and of course Juliette Lewis is in fine form. For those with keen eyes you'll notice a one line role from a very very young Haley Joel Osmet, and if you pay particular attention you'll notice that the male and female rollerbladers that book-end the film are none other than Jon Stewart and Parker Posey.

This film isn't super-heavy on the Christmas stuff, but it is there and it does give it some extra oomph in the bits where it's more important than others. This is one of those films that could easily have been a play - and I wonder if it wouldn't be just a tad stronger in that medium. I like this film enough, but I do find that it gets a little draggy in the middle - the plethora of great performances more often than not makes up for it though. If you haven't seen this one before it's probably not the first Christmas-esque film that I'd throw at you in a "you must absolutely see this" fashion, but I wouldn't dissuade you from checking it out either should it pique your interest. Not to give away too much but it's essentially about a suicide helpline is being shut down and the operator of it must find some way to keep it open whilst surrounded by a quirky cast of characters, all with their own problems.

It still stands up over time and I did enjoy it - so there's your half-ass recommendation.

1467 - Parenthood

When you become a parent, it changes how you watch movie. It changes what you want, and when. And what you want to watch. You go from being the kind of film connoisseur who just wants to consume everything that there is, to someone who realizes that there are only so many hours in the day - and therefore only so many movies you can watch. This is a film worth watching over and over again.

It's been years since I've seen this, but I recall it from my youth, back when I used to watch the same films over and over and over again, not realizing that I was studying them, building a language I would use decades later. This is a film about how messy families and relationships are, and how you have to learn how to deal with that. A quick glance above lets you see just how impressive this ensemble cast is, including a young Joaquin Phoenix, recognizable only by his upper lip here.

This film could easily have slipped into melodrama but instead it balances between comedy and drama better than most do. Whether it's a couple over or under-parenting, a teenager couple ready for marriage, and the guys that have been in it (maybe?) too long. I'm in the midst of developing a film in the same ensemble nature as this and so I wanted to check out it to see how they work with the tone, the balance, the visuals, to get it all to blend together. It's a pretty admirable job from a pretty admirable filmmaker, Mr. Ron Howard.

This is one of those classic films where if you haven't seen it, you really need to get out there and find yourself a copy right away. I can't imagine that there isn't something in this film for everyone. If I could recommend it higher than I would.

1352 - It''s Complicated

So Nancy Meyer seems to have found her niche in writing for middle aged women - and to be fair - she's attracting top talent. Her films, including this one, are good, but not great, and I think the problem lies in that she's got a monopoly on this crowd and no one else appears to be stepping up to be heard - so it's easy to be the big dog in this kennel.
The cast, like I mentioned are tops. John Krasinski even plays a broader version of his Office character, Jim. This isn't a slight to him at all, in fact, he brings something unique to this film, and any time he's a bit too much I think is merely a script thing.
Alec Baldwin has never been better than this stage of his career. He's interesting to me. Meryl is lovely and gets a chance to do some fun, light stuff. Steve Martin is a mystery to me here. His character doesn't have much to do, and I'd argue that's one of the bigger problems with the film - he'st just kind of there, lingering, never demanding anything for himself.
There is one perfect amazing sequence about half-way through the film where they all gather at a party at Meryl's daughters place. Hilarity and heart ensue. Doesn't help that there's a Beach Boy song underscoring. The film never comes back around to the brilliance of this earlier moment. So like I said, its good - not great. Highly recommend for those whom like her work, otherwise it's worth seeing at some point of you like rom-coms.

1349 - All of Me

When I write I tend to try and surround myself with similar kinds of films, and I think that I probably added this one to my zip.ca list back when I was first working on something with my writing partner called Speak For Yourself, Asshole. Which was quite some time ago. Better late than never I suppose.
It's a body swap comedy and it's not bad. They have some fun with the premise and do some nice little things. Steve Martin is enjoyable when he's not being too far over the top. It's an alright film, worth watching if you like either Martin or Lily Tomlin, but ultimately, a somewhat forgettable film...

1136 - Dirty Rotten Scoundrels

I haven't seen this film in years but I've been trying to look at rivalry films, especially comedies, for research. This is one of the great ones. It still feels fresh, funny, and smart even after 20 years. I can't imagine this film with another cast, especially with the original cast they were thinking for this of Mick Jagger and David Bowie. What a different film that would have been.

Didn't realize until looking at the trivia on imdb.com that this is a remake of a Brando/Niven film Bedtime Stories. I'm going to keep my eyes open for that film.

Lots of funny, lots of twists and turns. I'll have to pick up the DVD at some point, although my VHS tape of this is still holding up. I see that this film has spawned a musical, and perhaps a second remake. Could be interesting. I can never pass up a con film, especially a comedy.