Our Idiot Brother

I can't pinpoint exactly why, but I really enjoyed my screening of Our Idiot Brother last night. I had the DVD from Netflix for over a week so I figured it was time to drop everything else I was doing, open a Spotted Cow, and watch the Paul Rudd, Zooey Deschanel, Emily Mortimer and Elizabeth Banks ensemble film.
I am a fan of all those stars, in that order, and I am warming up to Elizabeth Banks after seeing her as Miranda in this movie. The three ladies are sisters and, you guessed it, Rudd plays the idiot brother. But is he really an idiot? On the surface maybe, but his happy-go-lucky attitude seemed to be just what his sisters needed to uncover reality in their own lives.
It's not a serious movie, by any means, and the performances by the four main stars come off natural and at times improvised. Some of the scenes were a bit disconnected, but it didn't harm the overall plot or the film's entertainment value.
I don't know how many people actually paid attention to the movie's release last year, but I recommend seeing it now.
It's overall heartwarming, has an actually talented kid actor in it and a golden retriever named Willie Nelson is even one of the main characters. There should be more movies like this that can actually pull off humor without throwing it in your face or using over-the-top effects.
As Paul Rudd's character, Ned, would probably do I am going to stop now and not over analyze this subject anymore.
"Enjoy your burrito." (Chris Hardwick)

The Great Outdoors

I love watching old movies my family used to play on VHS after recording them from TV. Now with the ubiquity of Netflix or even rentals from the library, those classics can be at your doorstep in a day for a modern movie night.
Last night's choice, The Great Outdoors is, as my cousin David would say, "the cat's ass."
Anyone who has seen the John Candy/Dan Aykroyd caper would respond to that with, "thank you for sharing that, thank you."
Such lines have stuck with my family's vernacular over the years and watching the movie again last night also brought to light tidbits of it we didn't remember or notice during past viewings.
First things first, if for some odd reason you have not seen The Great Outdoors it's about Dan Aykroyd and his family crashing the cabin vacay of his brother-in-law Chet, played by John Candy.
Or as described on IMDB, "A Chicago man's hope for a peaceful family vacation in the woods is shattered when the annoying in-laws drop in."
Roman (Aykroyd) drives up to the northwoods in his posh Mercedes with personalized license plates while Chet and company travel in the family truckster, a Wagoneer. That vehicle factoid makes the movie even more of a favorite, seeing as my family had both a Mercedes and a Wagoneer during my childhood.
The cabin in The Great Outdoors reminds me of those we used to rent during the summer and nights of playing games or going out to local restaurants.
There was never an old 96er steak (people seem to like it) or bald-headed bear, but that is what watching The Great Outdoors is for. I could live without the cheeseball scenes between Buck and Cammie and the constant accompanying track of a Hungry Eyes knockoff, but I guess those are requirements for a movie from the 1980s.
Next up on the family film agenda this weekend is Fletch, so stay tuned for more posts about oldies but goodies.
I think that just about does it.

My Week With Marilyn

Hey hey Cinema Conversations fan club, it's almost Wednesday which traveling back in time to my late high school and then college years would mean I'd probably be watching Dawson's Creek at this time of night (or there would be a VHS tape all set to record it). The show was not nearly as good as say Felicity or Gilmore Girls, but I still managed to catch every episode. Maybe you're not in my fan club anymore, but if you are still reading I know now all those hours of the Pacey/Dawson/Joey drama were worth it because the show introduced the world of Hollyweird, and me, to Michelle Williams.
As a fellow child of the '80s, I admire Williams' rise from the WB to the big screen in Oscar-nominated films and quirky indie fare. If I could be or wanted to be an actress, I would try be one like her.
One minute she's Cecil in The Baxter (love), the next she's Cindy in Blue Valentine (also love, even though it's SO depressing) and most recently Williams took on the iconic Marilyn Monroe in My Week with Marilyn.
The role, which focused on Monroe while the actress filmed The Prince and the Showgirl with Sir Laurence Olivier in 1956, earned Williams one of three Oscar nominations. (They also include Blue Valentine and Brokeback Mountain).
In particular, the story is about the fleeting relationship Monroe develops with Colin Clark, a young, naive employee on the movie set.
Clark's diary of his work on the film, according to Rotten Tomatoes, was published 40 years later without the scoop on his week with Marilyn Monroe. Eventually that too was published and was the source of Simon Curtis' 2011 film also starring Kenneth Branagh, Eddie Redmayne and Julia Ormond.
Clark, in his early 20s, worked his way into a gig at Olivier's studio as the crew there prepared for The Prince and the Showgirl and Monroe's arrival to the film set.
That scene in My Week With Marilyn turned the film around for me because it started to develop the story more and allow the viewer to know more about the characters.
Marilyn Monroe is an iconic Hollywood image and it's a bit surreal to watch a movie about the making of a movie she starred in even before her career boomed with Some Like It Hot.
It's also educational to learn about the struggles in Monroe's life and about what she was like as a person, not an actress. Monroe was constantly late on set, had trouble remembering her lines and medicated herself with drugs and alcohol.
But Clark was able to help her through it when no one else could and in turn had the once in a lifetime experience of connecting with Monroe.
At times the story in My Week With Marilyn was a bit unbelievable, but I think that was more of a minor flaw of how the film was made, not the true lives it came from.
Overall the film captures one week in the life of Marilyn Monroe that no one would otherwise really know about. (I am intrigued to read Clark's book now.)
Perhaps there will be movies made about Michelle Williams one day. Whether or not that is true I am definitely going to keep up on her to-dos. Up next: Take This Waltz on June 7. Can't wait!

The Cabin In The Woods vs. The Avengers

It's the weekend, and if it weren't so darn nice out I'd check myself into the movie theater for some serious cinema therapy. I do have Take Shelter to watch, as it has shamefully been sitting by my television for weeks on end, but first I will catch up on documenting The Cabin in the Woods and The Avengers.
The Cabin in the Woods has been out long enough in theaters that the secret about what's "inside" may be out for everyone, but if you haven't seen it don't read anything about the film and get your tickets now.
Before the film's release I suspected it would leave me awake at night for weeks like most horror movies do. In fact, it wasn't scary at all and I like it. I'll take the sequel (I am sure there will be one) to any more of the frightful Paranormal Activity franchise any day. The movie-within-a-movie style, plot twists and fancy visual effects had me glued to the screen and I didn't even shut my eyes in fear once.
So, as soon as the sun goes down on this glorious day what else are you going to do but go to the movies? If you have the time, I recommend kicking off the summer blockbuster season just right with a double feature of The Cabin in the Woods and Marvel's The Avengers. Then go to the Marvel Bar and discuss over cocktails!
The films have some similarities, the main one being Joss Whedon is a writer and the producer for The Cabin in the Woods and the director and a writer of The Avengers. If you're not a fan of Joss now, you will be. If nothing else, ladies, you'll get a double dose of hunk-of-burning-love Chris Hemsworth since he is a star in both films.
It would really be a sight to see if all the characters in The Cabin in the Woods and The Avengers (there are A LOT) were to fight each other to really prove which film is better.
That may be the only way to determine that fact because the scripts, casting, action and the acting are all just right. My only complaint about The Avengers is it is a little too long, especially the final fight scene, but it still held up in entertainment value for those extra 30 minutes.
So there you have it, I hope these movies can tie you over until what we've all been waiting for. Have you seen the latest The Dark Knight Rises trailer? Oh, the anticipation.

Documentaries to watch: Into the Abyss and Being Elmo

I caved and recently returned to using Netflix. I could not resist my queue just sitting there for two years and thinking of how many movies I could watch in that time. Probably not 449, which is the current number of DVDs on the list, but hey a girl can dream, can't she?
I did just cross two titles, both documentaries, off my list: Being Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey and Into the Abyss.
While I recommend seeing both, definitely watch Into the Abyss first and then take in Being Elmo as a little pick me up.
I like documentaries because they are a film medium where you can learn a little bit about a whole host of topics, stories, and people. For example, Werner Herzog's Into the Abyss explores the intricacies of capital punishment using a triple homicide case in Conroe, Texas as the backdrop. Not very uplifting, I know, but after reading reviews and hearing the buzz about the film I had to watch it.
While a tough subject matter, Herzog presents a very balanced view about capital punishment, described in the film's synopsis as "to explore why people kill and why a state kills." Herzog even interviewed death row inmate Michael Perry (convicted for the triple homicide) eight days before his execution in Texas and his partner in crime Jason Burkett. Law enforcement, family members of the victims and even people who worked inside the walls of an execution chamber all had their stories told on screen through the documentary and honestly it sent chills down my spine. It's not something you want to see, but it's reality and educational.
Just remember, the little known, at least for me, life story of Elmo is not far away. Being Elmo, produced and directed by independent documentary filmmaker Constance Marks, is on Netflix instant if you have that service or on DVD. It is a rags to riches story of a young boy growing up in Baltimore who developed his career aspirations to work with Jim Henson one day from watching Sesame Street. Did you know that that boy, Kevin Clash, is now the senior Muppet coordinator on Sesame Street and the voice behind Elmo? And, he was a puppet in The Labyrinth. Talk about a dream job. The documentary does explore the highs and lows of Clash's career, which I like because it presents both sides of the story. As far as I can tell, Clash pretty much works all the time and because of that has sacrificed spending time with his family. But as Elmo he also influences the lives of many people, especially children.
It's too nice of a day to sit inside and watch mooooovies, but on the next rainy one, I recommend these titles.
Happy Sunday!

21 Jump Street

It's been slim pickings at the multiplex until this weekend, when the highly-anticipated (for me) The Cabin in the Woods released in theaters. I am in fact at a cabin in the woods right now, my parents' house in Wisconsin, but the movie is not playing at the theater here. My movie theater dry spell has already lasted long enough, so I suppose I can wait one more week to see it.
I believe The Hunger Games is to blame for the shortage of new releases lately, leaving the last one I saw in the theater as 21 Jump Street.
And, it was amazing. Luckily for all you Channing Tatum fans, it's still playing on the big screen. I highly recommend this picture if you want to see some mindless, quite hilarious entertainment with a surprise toward the end that will make it even more worth it.
Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum prove to be the perfect couple as undercover cops Schmidt and Jenko in this buddy comedy based on the short-lived "21 Jump Street" television show from the 1980s. And where can you go wrong with a supporting cast of Ice Cube, Dave Franco (James' little brother), Chris Parnell (Dr. Spaceman from 30 Rock) and Nick Offerman?
With a movie adaptation like 21 Jump Street, and especially one set against the backdrop of a modern high school, it can either be bad news bears or the best thing since sliced bread.
But, the undercover operation was a success.
If you're looking for a double feature this weekend forget about American Reunion and don't even get me started on The Three Stooges, see The Cabin in the Woods and then 21 Jump Street. That way, any lingering fear factor from the first one will be erased with some stellar comedy. BOOYA!

Young Adult

And, I'm back. I haven't really seen many movies lately and I decided to scrap my draft about the Oscars after it sat untouched for weeks.
 Frankly, the show was just like any other and Billy Crystal didn't help. I think the winners were deserving and the so called "losers" were films and actors that did not make the list of nominees anyway.
Luckily, there is a new year of movies ahead. I decided on an at-home screening last night after finding myself with nothing to do and a whole host of choices available at the press of a button. I went with Young Adult, the Diablo Cody/Jason Reitman project starring Charlize Theron as a teen fiction writer living in Minneapolis. Theron's character, Mavis Gary, grew up in a fictional small town of Mercury, Minnesota and decides it's time to go back to see if what she really needs in life is there -- namely her high school ex-boyfriend Buddy Slade.
The impetus for the visit is a birth announcement for Slade's daughter with his wife, who he also met at the Mercury high school. Mavis, meanwhile, is divorced and being hounded by her editor for more book chapters of a series with a dying readership.
In general, Young Adult is much less of a comedy that I thought it would be after learning the post-high school struggles of the main characters. The writing had enough wit, however, to keep the film from being totally depressing and the selected cast fit their roles well. Theron, a prom-queen type in high school, played the "beauty is only skin deep" persona with just the right mix of delusion and -- well -- a drinking problem.
The main cast is rounded out by Patton Oswalt as the nerdy guy from high school who was the victim of a hate crime and Patrick Wilson as Buddy Slade. All the characters, except for Mavis, still live in the fictional city of Mercury. Even though she doesn't live there, Mavis is part of the common thread of not having changed much since high school and she is especially still living with the scars of her teenage years.
I liked this film and was glad the dialogue wasn't quite as over the top as Juno -- also written by Diablo Cody. I know, I know it is a good movie and she deserves credit for a solid story, but something about the verbal interaction between the characters in Juno wasn't authentic. It is in Young Adult, however. My only complaint was that I was in the mood for a pick-me-up when I turned on Young Adult, and it is not that at all. However it is still a smart, well-written film that just about everyone can relate to. (When have you not been in a state where chugging Diet Coke first thing in the morning feels about right?)
If you need another suggestion of a title to watch at home, I highly recommend Roman Polanski's Carnage, due out on DVD March 20. Based on a play, Carnage is translated to the movie screen with a small set and cast -- Kate Winslet, Christoph Waltz, Jodie Foster and John C. Reilly. The two couples' sons get into a fight at school and the adults decide to meet at the home of Penelope and Michael Longstreet (Foster and Reilly) to come up with a disciplinary solution. It soon turns out that the spat on the school playground is not the issue to be resolved, rather the intricacies of the two couples' psyche and personal problems. This type of movie could have been very boring or gone way over the top in an attempt to entertain audiences but, thankfully, it is neither of those things.
Instead Polanski and the cast deliver a glimpse into the life of four parents -- even on a fictional level -- that I couldn't look away from for a second. They also deliver a film that is close as possible to watching a play, highlighting the sense for viewers that you are peeking in on these couples' personal lives from outside -- much like Rear Window. So, there you have it. Go out and enjoy the nice weather this week and when the sun goes down watch one of these movies. It's good to be back!