Kim's Thoughts

Crazy Heart didn’t receive a lot of fanfare and big, splashy promotions.  In fact, I wasn’t sure what it was when I saw it on the list of movies at the Sanford cinemas.  When I opened the link and read the synopsis, I did remember hearing about an upcoming movie reminiscent of an old favorite of mine – Tender Mercies – and that Robert Duvall, who starred in Tender Mercies in 1983, had a supporting role in it.  I didn’t connect that Jeff Bridges and Maggie Gyllenhaal starred in it and that it had been out in limited release since mid December (even though I did notice it was nominated for several awards).  It was definitely not on my radar – one I totally overlooked.  After reading the description and the cast list, which also included Colin Farrell, I was more than curious about it.  In fact, I looked up what movies were available for the weekend Friday evening after work and notice of this film made me decide to do something I rarely ever do – I decided to go see it on a Friday night and pay full price!

Not knowing what to expect because I hadn’t seen any trailers and the only thing I remember hearing about it was a comparison to Tender Mercies, I had several thoughts:  It would either be a sad disappointment because of the big shoes it had to fill if, indeed, it was an attempt to remake one of my favorite movies – OR – it could be a raging success at that attempt, much like the amazing 1976 remake of A Star is Born (which was originally done in 1937 and redone in 1954 and again in 1976….and got better with each remake!!!).   What I didn’t consider was that it might not be an attempt to remake Tender Mercies, at all.  Yes, the story lines were very similar — aging, rough, down and out musician turns his life around because of the love of a younger woman with a child — but the similarities end there.

Jeff Bridges plays Bad Blake – a 57-year-old alcoholic who was once a big country music star and is now relegated to doing gigs in out-of-the-way bowling alleys and bars.   What struck me about Bridges’ performance is how much he looked and sounded like a pot-bellied Kris Kristofferson!  The hair, the unshaven look, the raspy voice, the mannerisms – classic Kristofferson (except Kris has never looked that bad with his shirt off!).  The other thing that struck me was Bridges’ stage performances – he could have had a good career as a country music singer – not that his chosen career wasn’t the right choice.  He really did a top-notch job performing the songs — and, no, he didn’t sound like Kris when he sang – the raspy voice didn’t show up in those performances.

Maggie Gyllenhaal plays Jean – an aspiring journalist who interviews Blake and falls in love with him.  Jean is a young divorced mother of 4-year-old Buddy, played adorably by Jack Nation.  The relationship is complicated – Jean is drawn to men who are totally wrong for her and her son.  She doesn’t want Blake to drink in front of Buddy, knowing he is an alcoholic and can’t make it through the day without a bottle of booze.  After an incident with Blake and Buddy, Jean pulls back from the relationship and Blake realizes he needs to sober up and turn his life around.

Another standout performance for me was Colin Farrell as Blake’s former protege’, Tommy Sweet.  You don’t see much of Tommy, but there is a lot of reference to him.  Blake mentored Tommy in the early days – Tommy was Blake’s opening act and Blake taught him everything he knows.  After years of touring together, Tommy went off on a solo career and made it big – while Blake slide into obscurity.  Farrell sings his own songs, as well, and does a good job!  I liked his character and think the movie could have included more interaction between Blake and Tommy.  I wouldn’t have minded the movie going longer to accomplish that.

Robert Duvall was one of the Producers and had a small supporting role as an old friend of Blake’s.  I would have liked to have seen more of Duvall in the film, too, but realize it wasn’t one of the more prominent relationships.

This is a movie about complicated relationships and what living a hard life inside a bottle will do to a man’s ambitions.  Bridges and Gyllenhaal are both nominated for Oscars for their roles in this film — I’ll venture to guess that Bridges will likely win and definitely deserves it!  He already won several awards for this role, including a Golden Globe.  The acting by all was of high-caliber.  The story, while a little slow at times and left me wanting more, was interesting and intriguing.  I do not at all regret my decision to go on a crowded Friday night and pay full price!   I rate this one a A-!

What better movie to go see on Valentine’s Day weekend than one about Valentine’s Day……….and even titled “Valentine’s Day”!!!???  When asked what Valentine’s Day is, one of Jennifer Garner’s character’s students describes the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre — but that’s not the kind of Valentine’s Day we’re talking about here!  We’re talking the flower giving, candy eating, heart-themed kind!

But it isn’t all gushy, lovey-dovey stuff, either!  It actually has more funny looks at break-ups and people who would rather just forget the day exists – to paraphrase Jamie Foxx’s character – it isn’t even a real holiday, we have to go to work on it!  The audience watches as various characters deal with this day of love – some dateless, some very new relationships, some seasoned relationships, some lose love, and some discover it!  It is a wide range of relationships and situations that all cross each other and interact in some way at some point in the movie!  The most touching of all was Julia Roberts’ story – for most of the movie, we have short glimpses of her on a plane and we wonder what is going to develop with her.  We find out about her relationship at the end.  Even though I did guess it about half way through, I still took a deep breath, put my hand to my heart, let out a little sigh, smiled, and got all teary eyed!!!  It was the only semi tear-jerker scene and it was a good one!!!!

For those who think, “all the funny lines were in the trailers, so why bother” — don’t be too sure!!!!  I was very surprised to find several of the lines in the trailers AREN’T in the movie!!!  In several scenes, I felt I knew what they were going to say and was prepared for the punch line from the trailer and it wasn’t there – a different punch line was in its place!!!!  It was sorta like the trailer was a mix of lines that made it to the final cut and ones that were outtakes!!!  It was cool to pay attention to see what preview lines were “missing” 

And speaking of outtakes!  Be sure to stay through the credits!  I got up and started to leave the theater and realized they were going to show outtakes among the credits, so I stood in the aisle and watched them.  As usual, the outtakes are as entertaining as the movie!  Especially the last one — it is a Julia Roberts outtake — it cracked me up and I thought that was one they really should have left in the movie!!!  Although, unless you saw Pretty Woman and know the script by heart (like I do), you may not “get it”.

Obviously, the “draw” to this movie is the list of A-list stars in the cast!  Come on — Jessica Alba, Kathy Bates, Jessica Biel, Bradley Cooper, Eric Dane, Patrick Dempsey, Hector Elizondo, Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Garner, Anne Hathaway, Ashton Kutcher, Queen Latifah, George Lopez, Shirley MacLaine, Emma Roberts, Julia Roberts, Bryce Robinson, Taylor Swift….and more….all in the same movie!!!!  Can you imagine what the salary budget was on that film???  Add Garry Marshall as the Director and how can you lose with this one?  Although most have little more than cameo roles (the bulk of the movie revolves around a few key characters), they still make the movie worth seeing!  Anne Hathaway’s character is surprising – and so funny!  Taylor Swift’s character is a HOOT!!!  Shirley MacLaine and Hector Elizondo are a joy to see together!  Eric Dane is great eye candy, but watch for a surprise twist!  Bryce Robinson plays Edison – the endearing youngster with a school boy crush – so sweet!  Jessica Biel plays neurotic to the hilt!   And I absolutely roared and loved the scene where Jennifer Garner gets her revenge in a restaurant – PERFECTION!!!

So, did it knock any of my Top Ten Julia Roberts movies of the list (see the next post titled “Julia Roberts” to get this reference)?  No!  But, did I enjoy it? YES!!!  Go see it – it is a great date movie or for a girl’s night out – funny and fun!  Very enjoyable — I rate it a B+++….not quite “A” material, but really, really close!  The only thing that kept it from being a solid “A” was too much Ashton Kutcher – although I did enjoy his character a lot…..it was still Ashton Kutcher!  😉

Since I am not a football fan, had no interest in watching the Super Bowl, and figured there wouldn’t be much else on TV, I made plans to see a movie today!  My original plan was to see “When In Rome” – yeah, I know, it hasn’t been rated very well, but I just LOVE Josh Duhamel, so couldn’t resist!  I adored his character on “All My Children” – Leo – and was so upset when they killed him off!!!  And even though I didn’t care for the series “Las Vegas”, I’d watch it now and then just to get a glimpse of Josh…..such a cutie – he’s a real sweetheart and so lovable!  But, when I looked up the times, I realized another movie I’ve been waiting for is out and I almost missed noticing it on the theater list!!!  So, I decided to see Mel Gibson’s “Edge of Darkness”, instead — and I’m soooooo glad I did!!!

The story – Gibson is Thomas Craven, a Boston detective whose daughter is murdered on his front porch with him standing right next to her.  The assumption by him and the police is that he was the target.  But, the more he looks into his daughter’s life and friends, he realizes SHE was the target. 

I won’t go into any more details than that — it is a riveting two hours of corporate and government corruption, murder, suspense, twists, turns, surprises, and action – including scenes that made me jump and gasp out loud!!!  There is also a certain amount of sentimental parts that brought tears to my eyes!  Mel Gibson does a really good job in his role.   Another notable character is government operative, Darius Jedburgh, played brilliantly by English actor Ray Winstone.

Go see it — it is good and well worth the time and money!!!  I rate this one an A.

This movie is from same creators as The Notebook.  Since The Notebook is still my favorite movie of all time, I was not about to miss it!   Another movie by the same creators, Message In A Bottle, is right up there on my list of movies I was particularly touched by, as well!  Had to be good, right???

So, opening weekend, I was at the theater!  And so were a lot more people!  I went to the 2:30 matinée on Saturday and the theater was PACKED!  I got there right at 2:30, the coming attractions were already starting to run, and I stood at the bottom of the stairs looking at a full auditorium – both the stadium seats and the lower level seats closer to the screen.  Luckily, the front row of stadium seats was empty, so I didn’t have to go searching for a seat in the dark.  I was really surprised at not only the # of people in the theater for a matinée, but also at the # of men!  Typically, guys only go to movies like this if they are dragged there on a date night!  So, the audience mix was something I took notice of.

So, how did it stack up against The Notebook and Message In A Bottle?  Let me just say that they didn’t lose their spots on my list of favorites, but this one will likely be added a little below them!  I liked it a lot, but I’m not sure I loved it!  And, yeah – all those guys that were there probably found something they liked about it, too!  There was a nice mix of military scenes, as well!

If you haven’t seen the trailers, here is a synopsis:  Channing Tatum is John Tyree – a Special Forces soldier on a two-week leave in his home near Charleston, SC.  Amanda Seyfried is Savannah Curtis – a college student he meets there.  They are immediately attracted to each other and spend a lot of time together.  By the end of his two-week leave, they fall in love and promise to write each other about everything they do so that they can be together even if they are a world apart!  The letters and another brief leave keep them close.  But, after 9-11 John re-enlists instead of coming home to Savannah, as promised, time and distance starts to take its toll on their relationship.  Notable supporting stories include John’s father who is a shy recluse with a passion for his extensive coin collection and Savannah’s friend, Tim, and his autistic son Alan.  These characters intertwine throughout John and Savannah’s relationship binding them all in ways that both strengthen and weaken the relationship in various ways.

The acting is not bad, but a little less than stellar, with the exception of veteran actor Richard Jenkins’ performance as John’s father.  The saving grace in the performances was that Tatum and Seyfried both do a good job of showing their emotions in their faces.  Jenkin’s performance of Mr. Tyree was touching and emotional – he pulled me into his life and made me feel his pain.  There is a scene toward the end of the movie with John and his Dad that was heart wrenching and the one scene that brought me to tears!  Tatum stepped up and gave an amazing performance.  Jenkin’s didn’t say a word, but one gesture tore me up!

I didn’t read the book, but it was obvious that the girls who sat behind me did — when the movie ended, they said “That’s the end?  They changed the whole story!”   I don’t know how the book ended, but I thought the movie ended too soon!  I was left with the need to draw my own conclusions…..is the hint of a happy ending true…..was John out of the military or just on a leave – which might imply the time and distance may continue to be an issue…..I usually like movies that don’t necessarily answer all the questions an ending may leave, but this was different somehow – I wanted to see more.

All that aside, I did enjoy this movie and found it to be heart warming and heart wrenching all wrapped up in a believable and endearing story.  It was a love story not only of two young lovers struggling to keep their love alive against the odds, but also of a son who nearly missed the chance to ensure his father knows how much he loved him and of a deep friendship that drives a young woman to an act of love based responsibility.  And on the more superficial side — Channing Tatum is an incredible addition to the scenery!!

Dear John was good and I highly recommend it – just don’t expect another The Notebook or Message in a Bottle – expect a touching story of lives that are real and multi-faceted and you won’t be disappointed.  I rate this one a B+.

I was so excited to see Harrison Ford’s name in the credits of a movie!  I haven’t seen anything from him in a while and really miss him!  I absolutely adore him!  His is ruggedly handsome and equally comfortable playing comedy, adventure, and more serious roles – he is my idea of the all round perfect guy (er um, I mean actor)!  Whatever I meant, I always get excited about any movie that has him in the credits.  For example:  He was lovable and charming in Sabrina, Working Girl, and Regarding Henry.  He was energizing in the Indiana Jones films, The Fugitive, and Clear and Present Danger.  He was commanding in Air Force One, What Lies Beneath, and Firewall.  So — Harrison Ford is what drew me to this movie!  Then I saw the previews and discovered what the story was about and that clinched the deal!

The story involves a young marketing executive for a large Pharmaceutical company who is a desperate father of three – two of which suffer from Pompe, a fatal, incurable disease.  Brendan Fraser plays John Crowley and Keri Russell plays his wife Aileen.  Together, they care for their critically ill children and deal with the reality that they will eventually lose the fight for their lives.  Crowley discovers Dr. Robert Stonehill, portrayed by Harrison Ford, who is working on research to come up with a special enzyme to help save the lives of Pompe patients.  They team up – Stonehill with his research and Crowley with his marketing skills – to start a small biotech company  so that Stonehill can get the funding to finish the enzyme that has the promise of halting the disease in children who go through the therapy.  Things get complicated when they find themselves needing to get in bed with big pharma to overcome the financial pitfalls of being a small biotech company.

The movie is very emotional on several levels.  The most obvious being the children with this debilitating disease – the look of anguish on the parent’s faces during trips to the hospital where doctors tell them they are at the end of their journey and another family with two Pompe children who are close friends with the Crowleys lose the fight for their oldest daughter.  It is also emotional because it is based on a true story – the idea that this is more than a writer’s creation is compelling.  Yes, the writers, as with most “based on a true story” movies, does embellish some (for instance, Crowley is a real person, but Stonehill is a composite of several different researchers), but it still tugs at the heart-strings to know that there are people out there being real life heroes to children who are in desperate need of life saving research!

 But the part that got to me more than any of it was one scene about a meeting at the Pharmaceutical plant.  Crowley, frustrated about his passion and desires to do good becoming little more than business and politics, calls a meeting of all the employees and brings in Pompe families to talk to them about their struggles and thank them for the great work they are doing!  I, like Crowley, don’t understand why the corporate heads were against this!  Having worked the last 22 years in a Biotech manufacturing company – much like Crowley, first in a small biotech start-up company and then through a series of mergers and buy-outs growing into one of the largest Pharmaceutical companies in the world – I know that one of the strongest motivators employees in this field have is knowing their contributions save lives every day!  We had pictures of our “customers” – the babies – all over the facility and were often treated to testimonials from parents of children we saved!  Putting a face to the results of our work was always emotional and highly motivating!  So, this scene particularly hit home for me and really got to me!

The movie over all was good — the story was incredible, the acting was top-notch (both Ford and Fraser did excellent jobs in their roles), the scenes were touching!  Where it fell a little sort was that it was really quite “slow” – there were scenes that could have been compressed or beefed up so that they didn’t seem to drag out or maybe it was too many slower scenes clumped together.  But, that aside, it was interesting and thought-provoking!  I would rate it a B.

I fell asleep and didn’t get to see all the Golden Globe winners last night.  So, I checked out the winners on-line this morning.  Some made me very happy and I wish I could have seen the acceptance speeches for them.  Then there were some that I didn’t really care one way or the other because I didn’t see the performances.  But there was one in particular that I am very happy I didn’t stay awake to see……I was in shock when I saw it this morning!

Let’s start with the ones that I thought were excellent choices:

• UP – Best Animated Feature Film
• Meryl Streep – Best Actress in a Comedy or Musical for her wonderful portrayal of Julia Child in Julie and Julia
• Martin Scorsese – Cecil B De Mille Life Time Achievement Award (it is about time!!!)
• Sandra Bullock – Best Actress in a Drama for her amazing performance in The Blind Side

Now — the one I can not believe — it absolutely HAS to be a joke that is running rampant on the internet:

• Robert Downey, Jr. – Best Actor in a Comedy or Musical for his ridiculous portrayal of the beloved classic character, Sherlock Holmes in the movie of the same name!!

What were they thinking?  I thought his performance was dull and boring and he made a mockery of a great classic character.  For more on my opinion of this film and Robert Downey Jr’s part in it, scan down to the next post and read my review after seeing the film yesterday!

I can’t wait to see who takes home the Oscars for last year’s films!